Apparently I'm in a musical rut. I keep gravitating toward new bands that sound like 90's indie bands. The most recent is a fantastic band called Cheatahs. Cheatahs are a UK band, however singer, guitarist Martin Hewitt is a transplanted Canadian. After repeated listens, I'm fairly certain Hewitt loves Mezcal Head by Swervedriver. So do I, so it's all good. He has a similar vocal style of holding a word for several beats during the chorus and the guitars are also quite similar. That's not to say they're derivative. My favorite song, "Jacobi", is an excellent pop song that sounds nothing like Swervedriver. Extended Plays is technically not an actual album. It's comprised of two EP's that were released in 2012, Coared and Sans. There really isn't a bad song on this CD, but unfortunately there are only eight with a running time of 26 minutes. Hopefully they're working on a follow-up album. The songs "The Swan", "Sans", "Coared" and "Froshed" are all indebted to Swervedriver. My second favorite song, "Flake" sounds inspired by Dinosaur Jr. Extended Plays is by far my favorite CD of 2013, so far. I strongly recommend it and look forward to their next release.
In related news about bands that sound like 90's bands, Sound Mind favorites Yuck have lost singer, guitarist Daniel Blumberg. He has left to pursue a new project called Hebronix. This came as horrible news, but Yuck plan on continuing their next album without him. Even though this is personally disappointing, I wish success to everyone involved. Peace.
A Living Will For My Music Collection
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Sunday, May 26, 2013
B-52's: Time Capsule
I'm not Mr. Fun Time Party Guy. If, for some unimaginable reason, I were to throw a party I would play B-52's Time Capsule on a loop. As Fred Schneider explains in the song "Quiche Lorraine", having a good time on a crummy day is our game. My wife finds it funny ( funny strange and funny ha-ha) that I like the B-52's, because it's so out of character. Back when At War With The Mystics came out, I talked her into going to see The Flaming Lips with me. I told her about the animal costumes and confetti guns and Wayne's giant, crowd surfing hamster ball. Sadly, he didn't use the hamster ball in Detroit. Anyhow, she said it sounded fun, but couldn't understand why I loved them so much... because they sounded fun. Apparently, something in my brain draws me to bands like Sparklehorse, Neutral Milk Hotel and Grandaddy, but I also love The B-52's.
Obviously, the B-52's campy look was a major aspect of their early appeal. People were drawn in by the bee hive hairdo's and retro clothes, but it was the music that hooked them in. I was in high school when the first two albums came out and I loved their sense of humor on songs like "Rock Lobster " and "Private Idaho". Their sound was like nothing I'd heard before. Kate and Cindy's off-kilter, space age harmonies were a revelation. Fred's exuberant, spastic shout-singing was fun on a stick. The thing that made their first few albums stand out, for me, was Ricky Wilson. His angular (damn, I used that word) surf rock guitar style gave their songs the power that balanced out the wackiness. When he died in 1985, the B-52's never quite sounded the same. That's not to say they were horrible after 1985. I love Cosmic Thing as much as the next guy, but it was a more commercial sound. Not only was Ricky's guitar style gone, but the harmonies were much more conventional. Not that that's bad, I just prefer how they sounded on their first two albums. I'll gladly give it up to "Roam", "Deadbeat Club" and the greatest party song of all-time "Love Shack". There's nothing like 50 people all yelling "tin roof...rusted" for a good time.
I highly recommend my kids listen to my B-52's collection. I have Time Capsule and the first album on CD and I have a 2 in 1 cassette of the first album and Wild Planet. Wild Planet has my favorite B-52's song, "Strobe Light". I feel everything great about the B-52's is encapsulated in that one song. The guitar is outstanding and Fred is completely over the top. The beginning is fantastic when Fred asks, "Where's my telephone?", then he and Kate (I think) start having a phone conversation.
"Is that you baby?"
"Yeah."
"Got something to tell you."
"Oh, what?"
Her disinterested, deadpan delivery of "Yeah" and "Oh, what" is great. And I always smile when Fred sings "Un- der- neath the strooooobe light". Maybe I should throw a party. Pass the tanning butter! Peace.
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
The Doors: This Is The End
I had planned on writing a post about The Doors at some point, but with the recent passing of Ray Manzarek I decided to do it today. In honor of Mr. Manzarek, I will have lists of my favorite rock and jazz keyboardists at the end of this post. Obviously, the first person people think of when you mention The Doors is Jim Morrison. It's understandable on many levels. He was charismatic. He died young. He was controversial. He was a mystical, shaman poet in leather pants. Unfortunately, his act overshadowed the rest of the band. It could be argued that Ray Manzarek was the key to The Doors sound. His playing was central to The Doors fusion of rock and jazz and poetry. Besides being an iconic keyboardist, he also held down the bass lines since The Doors didn't have a bassist. What made The Doors sound unique was that Manzarek, Kreiger and Densmore were like a jazz trio who thrived in the song structure of rock music.
Having said all this, I haven't always been the biggest fan of The Doors. When I was younger, I thought "Riders On The Storm" was the creepiest song ever. "Light My Fire" was played to death. "Touch Me" had horn players. And I still can't stand "L.A. Woman". Oddly enough, it was Oliver Stone's movie, The Doors, that brought me around. I found myself pulling for them. I went out and bought their first album and the Very Best Of The Doors on cd. That's probably all I need and what I recommend to my kids. And they did write some amazing songs. Break On Through. The End. Love Me Two Times. Hello, I Love You. Soul Kitchen. The WASP. Roadhouse Blues. Waiting For The Sun. People Are Strange. Even Light My Fire. Here are some of my favorite lines from The Doors.
* Gate is straight, deep and wide. Break on through to the other side.
* We have constructed pyramids in honor of our escaping.
* Out here on the perimeter there are no stars. Out here we is stoned-immaculate.
* No eternal reward will forgive us now for wasting the dawn.
* You men eat your dinner, eat your pork and beans. I eat more chicken than any man ever seen.
* Lost in a Roman wilderness of pain and all the children are insane.
* The snake is long, seven miles.
* The end of laughter and soft lies.
* He took a face from the ancient gallery and he walked on down the hall.
* I'll never look into your eyes again...the end.
Over the past few posts, I've been struggling with my feelings about keyboards. As I said before, I know what I like and I know what I don't like. I guess what it boils down to is I like them in the proper context. Ray Manzarek's organ is integral to the sound of The Doors. To use Rush as an example, keyboards on proggy songs like Xanadu are fine. Using keyboards in the mid-80's and crowding out Alex Lifeson's guitar genius, bad. Anyhow, here are my favorite keyboardists. Peace.
JAZZ
1) Bill Evans
2) Thelonius Monk
3) Herbie Hancock
4) Dave Brubeck
5) Oscar Peterson
ROCK
1) Ray Manzarek
2) Tony Banks
3) Billy Preston
4) Rick Wakeman
5) Keith Emerson
6) Rod Argent
7) Elton John (piano counts)
8) Benmont Tench (greatest name ever)
9) Stevie Wonder
10) Jerry Lee Lewis
Having said all this, I haven't always been the biggest fan of The Doors. When I was younger, I thought "Riders On The Storm" was the creepiest song ever. "Light My Fire" was played to death. "Touch Me" had horn players. And I still can't stand "L.A. Woman". Oddly enough, it was Oliver Stone's movie, The Doors, that brought me around. I found myself pulling for them. I went out and bought their first album and the Very Best Of The Doors on cd. That's probably all I need and what I recommend to my kids. And they did write some amazing songs. Break On Through. The End. Love Me Two Times. Hello, I Love You. Soul Kitchen. The WASP. Roadhouse Blues. Waiting For The Sun. People Are Strange. Even Light My Fire. Here are some of my favorite lines from The Doors.
* Gate is straight, deep and wide. Break on through to the other side.
* We have constructed pyramids in honor of our escaping.
* Out here on the perimeter there are no stars. Out here we is stoned-immaculate.
* No eternal reward will forgive us now for wasting the dawn.
* You men eat your dinner, eat your pork and beans. I eat more chicken than any man ever seen.
* Lost in a Roman wilderness of pain and all the children are insane.
* The snake is long, seven miles.
* The end of laughter and soft lies.
* He took a face from the ancient gallery and he walked on down the hall.
* I'll never look into your eyes again...the end.
Over the past few posts, I've been struggling with my feelings about keyboards. As I said before, I know what I like and I know what I don't like. I guess what it boils down to is I like them in the proper context. Ray Manzarek's organ is integral to the sound of The Doors. To use Rush as an example, keyboards on proggy songs like Xanadu are fine. Using keyboards in the mid-80's and crowding out Alex Lifeson's guitar genius, bad. Anyhow, here are my favorite keyboardists. Peace.
JAZZ
1) Bill Evans
2) Thelonius Monk
3) Herbie Hancock
4) Dave Brubeck
5) Oscar Peterson
ROCK
1) Ray Manzarek
2) Tony Banks
3) Billy Preston
4) Rick Wakeman
5) Keith Emerson
6) Rod Argent
7) Elton John (piano counts)
8) Benmont Tench (greatest name ever)
9) Stevie Wonder
10) Jerry Lee Lewis
Sunday, May 19, 2013
The Cars
Two sayings come to mind when I think of The Cars; sex sells and timing is everything. To say that the covers of The Cars first two albums were right in the wheelhouse of a teenage boy would be a gross understatement. When I was in 8th grade, we had a few teachers who periodically let us bring in records to listen to during class. I remember one of my classmates brought in The Cars debut album and it was love at first sight. The cover featured that smiling girl with the red lips and red nails clutching a clear acrylic steering wheel. It was like she was saying to me, "For a good time, buy the Cars album". So I did. This, however, was nothing compared to the cover of Candy-O. That cover, with a pinup drawing of a busty, leggy red head sprawled out on a car, was so provocative I was too embarrassed to even buy it. Looking back it's kind of funny, because at the time I wore a Charlie's Angels sweatshirt and had a Lynda Carter Wonder Woman poster in my room. It wasn't until I was in my 40's that I finally bought a used copy of Candy-O on vinyl. Back in the day, I did have a cassette with The Cars on side one and Candy-O on side two, so it was all good.
You have probably noticed some inconsistencies in my posts with regards to keyboards. I love prog rock, but I railed against Van Halen and Rush in the mid-80's. All I can say in my own defense is I know what I like (and what I don't like). On the surface, The Cars were a New Wave band that embraced keyboards. However, The Cars had two things over other New Wave bands. One was an amazing left-handed guitarist, Elliot Easton. Easton was the secret weapon that expanded The Cars appeal to album rock fans. The other was the smart lyrics of supermodel marrying, GbV producing, Ric Ocasek. When I was 13, I didn't understand most of what Ocasek was singing, but it sounded cool. His lyrics were all about hooking up, but they were couched in a more modern vocabulary. He used phrases like; nuclear boots, psilocybin pony, electric angel, clock machine, cadium car, plastic sneakers and razor lights. And he had an enormous Adam's apple:)
I love those first two albums, but in the early 80's they were off my radar. Then, when I was in college, Heartbeat City ruled the land. The Cars were a staple of MTV. I hated it at the time. Now that I'm older, I've come to enjoy songs like "Magic", "Hello Again" and "You Might Think". I still don't like "Drive", though. I didn't have any of The Cars albums on cd, so last year I bought the Complete Greatest Hits. I recommend The Cars, Candy-O and the greatest hits to my kids. Here's a list of my favorite lines from the first two Cars albums. Peace.
* Can I touch you? Are you out of touch? I guess I never noticed that much.
* Can I bring you out in the light? My curiosity's got me tonight.
* They want to crack your crossword smile. Can I take you out for a while?
* Let them brush your rock and roll hair.
* You've got your nuclear boots and your drip dry glove.
* You got the wisenheimer brainstorm
* It's such a wavy midnight when you slip into insane. Electric angel rock and roller I hear what you're playing.
* I got a lot on my head, most of it's you.
* When you idle at the stop light you better get the signal right.
* And once in the night I dreamed you were there. I cancelled my flight from going nowhere.
* She's got wonderful eyes and a risque mouth. And when I asked her before she said she's holding out. She's a frozen fire. She's my one desire.
You have probably noticed some inconsistencies in my posts with regards to keyboards. I love prog rock, but I railed against Van Halen and Rush in the mid-80's. All I can say in my own defense is I know what I like (and what I don't like). On the surface, The Cars were a New Wave band that embraced keyboards. However, The Cars had two things over other New Wave bands. One was an amazing left-handed guitarist, Elliot Easton. Easton was the secret weapon that expanded The Cars appeal to album rock fans. The other was the smart lyrics of supermodel marrying, GbV producing, Ric Ocasek. When I was 13, I didn't understand most of what Ocasek was singing, but it sounded cool. His lyrics were all about hooking up, but they were couched in a more modern vocabulary. He used phrases like; nuclear boots, psilocybin pony, electric angel, clock machine, cadium car, plastic sneakers and razor lights. And he had an enormous Adam's apple:)
I love those first two albums, but in the early 80's they were off my radar. Then, when I was in college, Heartbeat City ruled the land. The Cars were a staple of MTV. I hated it at the time. Now that I'm older, I've come to enjoy songs like "Magic", "Hello Again" and "You Might Think". I still don't like "Drive", though. I didn't have any of The Cars albums on cd, so last year I bought the Complete Greatest Hits. I recommend The Cars, Candy-O and the greatest hits to my kids. Here's a list of my favorite lines from the first two Cars albums. Peace.
* Can I touch you? Are you out of touch? I guess I never noticed that much.
* Can I bring you out in the light? My curiosity's got me tonight.
* They want to crack your crossword smile. Can I take you out for a while?
* Let them brush your rock and roll hair.
* You've got your nuclear boots and your drip dry glove.
* You got the wisenheimer brainstorm
* It's such a wavy midnight when you slip into insane. Electric angel rock and roller I hear what you're playing.
* I got a lot on my head, most of it's you.
* When you idle at the stop light you better get the signal right.
* And once in the night I dreamed you were there. I cancelled my flight from going nowhere.
* She's got wonderful eyes and a risque mouth. And when I asked her before she said she's holding out. She's a frozen fire. She's my one desire.
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
The Modern Lovers
A few years ago, a co-worker did the unthinkable; at least for me. He was moving to New York and decided to put a bunch of his cd's on a hard drive and then sell them. Even though I thought he was crazy, he offered me the chance to go through them before they were put up for sale. Now, he wasn't totally insane. He kept his rare and signed cd's, but the rest I could buy. I got a bunch of Teenage Fanclub, a Wire best of, Steve Earle and some other stuff. Then I saw a cd I'd never heard of before. "Who are The Modern Lovers?", I asked. He proceeded to tell me what a great album it was, so I decided to take a flyer on it. I was not disappointed.
The first thing that surprised me about The Modern Lovers was the band members. I had heard of Jonathan Richman, but I wasn't familiar with any of his albums. The keyboard player was Jerry Harrison. Yes, the Jerry Harrison of the Talking Heads. It's odd to hear him play on this album, because he sounds like Ray Manzarek of The Doors on most of it. Then there was David Robinson. He couldn't possibly be the drummer from The Cars. Yes he could, and he was. His playing with The Modern Lovers was much less precise than his work with The Cars. This is probably due to the fact that The Modern Lovers is actually a cobbled together demo and not a proper album. Most of the album was recorded in 1973 with John Cale producing. Unfortunately, it was scrapped at the time and wasn't released until 1976 in it's raw form. Oddly, that's what makes it so great. The bad news is by 1976 The Modern Lovers were no longer a band and the album went nowhere.
Many of the reviews I've read about The Modern Lovers mention Richman's love of the Velvet Underground. I have to admit, I don't listen to the Velvets and what I have heard doesn't do anything for me, so I can't speak to those comparisons. To me, they sound like part Doors and part live J. Geils Band. Much of the "live" feel is due to Richman's delivery and the fact that these are really just demos. The album starts with Richman counting in 1,2,3,4,5,6 then breaking into the classic track, "Roadrunner". Whenever I start to hate the government or capitalism, I listen to "Roadrunner" and fall in love with America all over again. Throughout the album, Richman banters with the rest of the band and they play off him. On many of the songs, Richman seems to be making up the lyrics as he goes. I'm reasonably certain Stephen Malkmus is a fan of The Modern Lovers; just sayin'. The track "Pablo Picasso", in particular, seems like a reference point for Malkmus' style. Plus Richman rhymes Picasso with asshole and avocado with El Dorado, which is fantastic. The song "I'm Straight" is delivered like an actual phone call from an awkward guy to a girl. I wish I'd heard this album in 1976, because I identify strongly with Richman's lyrics. I was the awkward guy who wasn't confident with girls. My favorite song on the album is "Someone I Care About". It's an anti-cock rock song. It's about finding that one amazing girl rather than just getting with every girl you can. And it rocks. I also enjoy on the song "Girlfriend" how he spells it out G-I-R-L-F-R-E-N.
The Modern Lovers is an amazing album and I strongly recommend it, if for no other reason than the song "Roadrunner". It's an oft-covered rock and roll classic. Peace.
The first thing that surprised me about The Modern Lovers was the band members. I had heard of Jonathan Richman, but I wasn't familiar with any of his albums. The keyboard player was Jerry Harrison. Yes, the Jerry Harrison of the Talking Heads. It's odd to hear him play on this album, because he sounds like Ray Manzarek of The Doors on most of it. Then there was David Robinson. He couldn't possibly be the drummer from The Cars. Yes he could, and he was. His playing with The Modern Lovers was much less precise than his work with The Cars. This is probably due to the fact that The Modern Lovers is actually a cobbled together demo and not a proper album. Most of the album was recorded in 1973 with John Cale producing. Unfortunately, it was scrapped at the time and wasn't released until 1976 in it's raw form. Oddly, that's what makes it so great. The bad news is by 1976 The Modern Lovers were no longer a band and the album went nowhere.
Many of the reviews I've read about The Modern Lovers mention Richman's love of the Velvet Underground. I have to admit, I don't listen to the Velvets and what I have heard doesn't do anything for me, so I can't speak to those comparisons. To me, they sound like part Doors and part live J. Geils Band. Much of the "live" feel is due to Richman's delivery and the fact that these are really just demos. The album starts with Richman counting in 1,2,3,4,5,6 then breaking into the classic track, "Roadrunner". Whenever I start to hate the government or capitalism, I listen to "Roadrunner" and fall in love with America all over again. Throughout the album, Richman banters with the rest of the band and they play off him. On many of the songs, Richman seems to be making up the lyrics as he goes. I'm reasonably certain Stephen Malkmus is a fan of The Modern Lovers; just sayin'. The track "Pablo Picasso", in particular, seems like a reference point for Malkmus' style. Plus Richman rhymes Picasso with asshole and avocado with El Dorado, which is fantastic. The song "I'm Straight" is delivered like an actual phone call from an awkward guy to a girl. I wish I'd heard this album in 1976, because I identify strongly with Richman's lyrics. I was the awkward guy who wasn't confident with girls. My favorite song on the album is "Someone I Care About". It's an anti-cock rock song. It's about finding that one amazing girl rather than just getting with every girl you can. And it rocks. I also enjoy on the song "Girlfriend" how he spells it out G-I-R-L-F-R-E-N.
The Modern Lovers is an amazing album and I strongly recommend it, if for no other reason than the song "Roadrunner". It's an oft-covered rock and roll classic. Peace.
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Pavement: Brighten The Corners
Well, this is my fourth and final Pavement post. That is until Matador reissues Terror Twilight. Before I get into Brighten The Corners, I thought I'd encapsulate my feelings about Pavement's first four albums with a girl analogy. Slanted And Enchanted is your first love, but she's not THE one. Crooked Rain Crooked Rain is the awesome girl that you fall in love with and marry. Wowee Zowee is that hot, freaky chick you want really bad, but you know you're not cool enough to get. Brighten The Corners is the girl of your dreams that you meet after you're already married to CRCR. How's that for a summation of one of the greatest "grand slam" album runs by any band?
Brighten The Corners starts out with the track "Stereo". Malkmus' delivery is equal parts goofy and laid back. I also enjoy his reference to Geddy Lee's voice. The album also features my second favorite Pavement song, "Date W/ Ikea", which is a Spiral Stairs power pop gem. The rest of the album is a solid amalgamation of the ground they had covered on their previous releases. Once again, Matador did an excellent job of packaging this reissue. I highly recommend my kids listen to all my Pavement cd's.
I'm not sure how I feel about the decision to cover Pavement as a series of posts. I didn't want to cram everything into one post, but a series probably wasn't the best alternative. Going forward, I'm not sure I'll do it with another band or artist. I will probably continue to post about Guided by Voices albums as they come out, though.
I also have a couple side notes today. First, I just finished reading Wilson Neate's new book about Wire called, Read & Burn. It's fantastic and now I think I'm going to go to the Wire show at the Beachland. He also wrote the excellent 33 1/3 book about Pink Flag. Finally, this is my 88th post. Since I'm closing in on 100, I thought I'd come up with a special 100th post. I haven't figured out what it will be yet, but I have 11 more posts before I have to decide. Peace.
Brighten The Corners starts out with the track "Stereo". Malkmus' delivery is equal parts goofy and laid back. I also enjoy his reference to Geddy Lee's voice. The album also features my second favorite Pavement song, "Date W/ Ikea", which is a Spiral Stairs power pop gem. The rest of the album is a solid amalgamation of the ground they had covered on their previous releases. Once again, Matador did an excellent job of packaging this reissue. I highly recommend my kids listen to all my Pavement cd's.
I'm not sure how I feel about the decision to cover Pavement as a series of posts. I didn't want to cram everything into one post, but a series probably wasn't the best alternative. Going forward, I'm not sure I'll do it with another band or artist. I will probably continue to post about Guided by Voices albums as they come out, though.
I also have a couple side notes today. First, I just finished reading Wilson Neate's new book about Wire called, Read & Burn. It's fantastic and now I think I'm going to go to the Wire show at the Beachland. He also wrote the excellent 33 1/3 book about Pink Flag. Finally, this is my 88th post. Since I'm closing in on 100, I thought I'd come up with a special 100th post. I haven't figured out what it will be yet, but I have 11 more posts before I have to decide. Peace.
John Lennon: Legend
John Lennon is my favorite Beatle. His songs are, by and large, my favorite Beatle's songs. Rain. I Am The Walrus. Ticket To Ride. Strawberry Fields Forever. And Your Bird Can Sing. Help. Nowhere Man. In one of my college courses, we were assigned to write about the person we most admired. I chose John Lennon. I can still remember how numb I felt when I woke up on December 9th, 1980, and my dad told me John Lennon was dead. It was unreal. Why would someone murder John Lennon? His death struck me harder than those of my own family members. So, why is it that I have no proper John Lennon albums in my collection? I did have Double Fantasy on cassette, but I don't have it anymore and it was half Yoko. All I have is the best of collection, Lennon Legend, which my wife bought for me.
I think the main reason is the quality of his songwriting on his solo albums paled in comparison to that of his Beatles years. Obviously, he wrote some amazing songs as a solo artist. I'm moved every time I listen to "Jealous Guy". His vocals are fragile and vulnerable. I love the opening line: "I was dreaming of the past, and my heart was beating fast". My favorite John Lennon song is the brutal "Working Class Hero". A few years prior to writing this song, he was an idealist singing all we need is love. "Working Class Hero" was based in the hard truth of reality. The line that really speaks to me is, "keep you doped with religion and sex and tv". That's how I knew the 99% movement was doomed to fail. The vast majority of people are too "doped" to rise up from watching "American Idol" to demand any kind of social change. And I'm as guilty as everyone else. I thought about posting the entire lyrics to "Working Class Hero", but I decided to go with the highlights instead.
* As soon as you're born they make you feel small, by giving you no time instead of it all.
*They hate you if you're clever and they despise a fool.
*There's room at the top they're telling you still, but first you must learn how to smile as you kill.
*Keep you doped on religion and sex and tv. And you think you're so clever and classless and free. But you're still f-ing peasants as far as I can see.
I even like "Nobody Told Me", which is just a goofy little song. I always laugh to myself when he says, "Most peculiar mama".
That, however, pretty much ends the list of Lennon songs that I put on a par with The Beatles. When I was younger, I thought "Imagine" was one of the best songs of all-time. Now that I'm older, I find it absurd. Yes, it would be great if there were no countries or religion dividing us, but come on. And "Power To The People" and "Give Peace A Chance" have nowhere near the impact of "Working Class Hero". I guess my main hang up with Lennon's solo catalog is it's too personal and cathartic. I understand he went through a bitter breakup with The Beatles and had personal demons to deal with, but I don't particularly want to listen to therapy. What I loved about his songwriting was his surreal, elliptical lyrics. That style is largely absent on his solo albums. A few years ago, when they reissued those albums, I seriously considered buying them. In the end, I decided I was good with Lennon Legend and my Beatles collection. So far, my kids haven't shown much interest in the Beatles' solo material, but I recommend they listen to Lennon Legend. Maybe some day, I'll put aside my feelings about the break up and Yoko and give his solo albums a chance. Peace.
I think the main reason is the quality of his songwriting on his solo albums paled in comparison to that of his Beatles years. Obviously, he wrote some amazing songs as a solo artist. I'm moved every time I listen to "Jealous Guy". His vocals are fragile and vulnerable. I love the opening line: "I was dreaming of the past, and my heart was beating fast". My favorite John Lennon song is the brutal "Working Class Hero". A few years prior to writing this song, he was an idealist singing all we need is love. "Working Class Hero" was based in the hard truth of reality. The line that really speaks to me is, "keep you doped with religion and sex and tv". That's how I knew the 99% movement was doomed to fail. The vast majority of people are too "doped" to rise up from watching "American Idol" to demand any kind of social change. And I'm as guilty as everyone else. I thought about posting the entire lyrics to "Working Class Hero", but I decided to go with the highlights instead.
* As soon as you're born they make you feel small, by giving you no time instead of it all.
*They hate you if you're clever and they despise a fool.
*There's room at the top they're telling you still, but first you must learn how to smile as you kill.
*Keep you doped on religion and sex and tv. And you think you're so clever and classless and free. But you're still f-ing peasants as far as I can see.
I even like "Nobody Told Me", which is just a goofy little song. I always laugh to myself when he says, "Most peculiar mama".
That, however, pretty much ends the list of Lennon songs that I put on a par with The Beatles. When I was younger, I thought "Imagine" was one of the best songs of all-time. Now that I'm older, I find it absurd. Yes, it would be great if there were no countries or religion dividing us, but come on. And "Power To The People" and "Give Peace A Chance" have nowhere near the impact of "Working Class Hero". I guess my main hang up with Lennon's solo catalog is it's too personal and cathartic. I understand he went through a bitter breakup with The Beatles and had personal demons to deal with, but I don't particularly want to listen to therapy. What I loved about his songwriting was his surreal, elliptical lyrics. That style is largely absent on his solo albums. A few years ago, when they reissued those albums, I seriously considered buying them. In the end, I decided I was good with Lennon Legend and my Beatles collection. So far, my kids haven't shown much interest in the Beatles' solo material, but I recommend they listen to Lennon Legend. Maybe some day, I'll put aside my feelings about the break up and Yoko and give his solo albums a chance. Peace.
Saturday, May 4, 2013
The Great Van Halen Debates
Let me preface this post by saying I'm not a huge Van Halen fan. Don't get me wrong, I like their early stuff, but I only own the first two albums. For some reason, however, I have several opinions about them. Most of my opinions put me at odds with my friends, who are in their 20's and 30's. You can probably guess most of my positions since I'm a 48 year old curmudgeon. The one opinion I haven't shared with others, until now, is I don't really like Eddie Van Halen's style of guitar playing. I know, blasphemy! To me, it's all technique and no soul. "Look at me, I can finger tap really fast". Good for you, Eddie. That's not really a Van Halen debate, though. I'm kind of on an island there. Anyhow, here are the two main arguments I have with my friends; Van Halen vs. Van Hagar and the merits of 1984.
Let's take on Van Hagar first. I was actually a big Sammy Hagar fan, going back to Montrose. At one time, I owned his solo album, Standing Hampton, as well as Hagar,Schon, Aaronson and Shrieve. When I heard he was replacing David Lee Roth I was cautiously optimistic. I didn't like where Van Halen were going on their two previous albums, so maybe a change was in order. Boy, was I wrong. Van Hagar was a train wreck. Here's a litany of the horrendously, facile songs these cretins unleashed on an unsuspecting public. Why Can't This Be Love. Dreams. Love Walks In. Best Of Both Worlds. When It's Love. Finish What Ya Started. Poundcake. Right Now. It looked good on paper, but you don't play rock 'n' roll on paper.
The most heated debates we have are over 1984. Now I can make a case for Van Halen I, II, Women And Children First and Fair Warning being great albums. Those albums included hard rock classics like "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love", "Everybody Wants Some" and "Unchained". DLR hadn't become a joke yet. Then along came Diver Down. Half the album was covers and they all stunk. And the video for "Pretty Woman" was reprehensible and without a doubt the worst music video of all-time. Then there was that fateful night in 1984. I was watching Friday Night Videos and a piece of me died. Not only did I see the video for "Distant Early Warning" by Rush, but I also saw "Jump" by Van Halen. Rush's video featured Geddy Lee with his stick bass, playing keyboards. "Jump" featured Eddie Van Halen playing keyboards. The world of rock music had gone Planet of the Apes. Everything was upside down. To this day I HATE 1984. I hate Jump. I hate I'll Wait. I hate Hot For Teacher. I hate Drop Dead Legs. The only song I like is "Panama". The main reason I like "Panama" is that it has one of those classic DLR mid-song, spoken-word gems. In fact, here's my list of favorite DLR moments.
1) Yeah we're runnin' a little bit hot tonight. I can barely see the road from the heat comin' off. Reach down between my legs and...ease the seat back.
2) I like the way the line runs up the back of the stockings. I've always liked those kind of high heels too.
3) Come on Dave gimme a break. Hey hey hey hey! One break coming up.
All my friends love 1984. Maybe it's me. Anyhow, I do recommend Van Halen I, but it's way down the list of albums in my collection that my kids should check out. Thanks for letting me vent, again. Peace.
Let's take on Van Hagar first. I was actually a big Sammy Hagar fan, going back to Montrose. At one time, I owned his solo album, Standing Hampton, as well as Hagar,Schon, Aaronson and Shrieve. When I heard he was replacing David Lee Roth I was cautiously optimistic. I didn't like where Van Halen were going on their two previous albums, so maybe a change was in order. Boy, was I wrong. Van Hagar was a train wreck. Here's a litany of the horrendously, facile songs these cretins unleashed on an unsuspecting public. Why Can't This Be Love. Dreams. Love Walks In. Best Of Both Worlds. When It's Love. Finish What Ya Started. Poundcake. Right Now. It looked good on paper, but you don't play rock 'n' roll on paper.
The most heated debates we have are over 1984. Now I can make a case for Van Halen I, II, Women And Children First and Fair Warning being great albums. Those albums included hard rock classics like "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love", "Everybody Wants Some" and "Unchained". DLR hadn't become a joke yet. Then along came Diver Down. Half the album was covers and they all stunk. And the video for "Pretty Woman" was reprehensible and without a doubt the worst music video of all-time. Then there was that fateful night in 1984. I was watching Friday Night Videos and a piece of me died. Not only did I see the video for "Distant Early Warning" by Rush, but I also saw "Jump" by Van Halen. Rush's video featured Geddy Lee with his stick bass, playing keyboards. "Jump" featured Eddie Van Halen playing keyboards. The world of rock music had gone Planet of the Apes. Everything was upside down. To this day I HATE 1984. I hate Jump. I hate I'll Wait. I hate Hot For Teacher. I hate Drop Dead Legs. The only song I like is "Panama". The main reason I like "Panama" is that it has one of those classic DLR mid-song, spoken-word gems. In fact, here's my list of favorite DLR moments.
1) Yeah we're runnin' a little bit hot tonight. I can barely see the road from the heat comin' off. Reach down between my legs and...ease the seat back.
2) I like the way the line runs up the back of the stockings. I've always liked those kind of high heels too.
3) Come on Dave gimme a break. Hey hey hey hey! One break coming up.
All my friends love 1984. Maybe it's me. Anyhow, I do recommend Van Halen I, but it's way down the list of albums in my collection that my kids should check out. Thanks for letting me vent, again. Peace.
Friday, May 3, 2013
Stone Temple Pilots: Tiny Music
Since I began this blog last Fall, I've spent a considerable amount of time digging through my music collection. Which albums and bands will I post about and which won't make the cut? Many of them I haven't listened to in years. One of those bands is Stone Temple Pilots. For reasons I can't explain, I had forgotten how many outstanding songs they recorded. Maybe it's because it's depressing to think "grunge" was twenty years ago. Is that even possible?
Alright, I have another confession to make. I was never really into "grunge" that much. Until Nirvana, I had never heard of Mudhoney, Tad or the Melvins. I HATE Pearl Jam. I hate Alice In Chains. I'm ambivalent about Soundgarden. I love Nirvana, but it was more about Cobain. Anyhow, Stone Temple Pilots get lumped in with grunge and I'm not sure why, other than the fact they debuted in 1992. I guess their first album, Core, was fairly grungy with songs like "Wicked Garden", "Dead And Bloated" and "Plush". It's my least favorite S.T.P. album, although I like "Sex Type Thing" and "Creep". I feel their second album, Purple, demonstrated that they had more in common with arena rock than grunge. Kind of like what Foo Fighters would become. The songs were well-written and structured. There was also a great range of material, from "Vasoline" to "Interstate Love Song" to "Big Empty" to "Unglued". One of my favorite S.T.P. lines is from "Vasoline": Flys in the vasoline, we are, sometimes it blows my mind. Keep getting stuck here all the time.
In 1996, they released what I feel is their masterpiece, Tiny Music...Songs From The Vatican Gift Shop. It's a flawless hard rock album. Unfortunately, when it came out, Scott Weiland flamed out. The double-edged sword with someone like Weiland is that his demons make his art great, but his self-destructive behavior sabotages it. In the song "Adhesive", he wrote the lyric "sell more records if I'm dead". At the time that line could have been perceived as a commentary on Cobain, but I think he was speculating about himself and his legacy. The good news, I guess, is he's still alive making music and going in and out of rehab. Bottom line, I highly recommend Tiny Music to my kids. Here are my track by track thoughts. Peace.
1) Press Play- Opens with the first of two instrumentals. Sounds more like Rush than grunge.
2) Pop's Love Suicide- Straight up, sneering rocker.
3) Tumble In The Rough- Sounds like he's trying to deal with rehab.
4) Big Bang Baby- When this song came out I thought it was the greatest song ever. Now it's only my third or fourth favorite on this album. "Does anybody know how the story really goes, how the story really goes or do we all just hum along".
5) Lady Picture Show- I LOOOOOOOVE this song. It should have been on my top 50 list, but I forgot. Extremely Beatlesesque. Great guitar and hand clap song.
6) And So I Know- Great take on 70's AM radio. Hopefully that's what they were aiming for:)
7) Trippin' On A Hole In A Paper Heart- Second favorite song on this album. "I'm not dead and I'm not for sale". "Let go it's harder holding on. One more trip and I'll be gone".
8) Art School Girl- "I told you five or four times".
9) Adhesive- Beautiful...Sweeping...Epic
10) Ride The Cliche- Just a really good song.
11) Daisy- The other instrumental. As much as it pains me to say, the instrumentals are the weakest part of Tiny Music.
12) Seven Caged Tigers- Third favorite song. I just like how it sounds.
Alright, I have another confession to make. I was never really into "grunge" that much. Until Nirvana, I had never heard of Mudhoney, Tad or the Melvins. I HATE Pearl Jam. I hate Alice In Chains. I'm ambivalent about Soundgarden. I love Nirvana, but it was more about Cobain. Anyhow, Stone Temple Pilots get lumped in with grunge and I'm not sure why, other than the fact they debuted in 1992. I guess their first album, Core, was fairly grungy with songs like "Wicked Garden", "Dead And Bloated" and "Plush". It's my least favorite S.T.P. album, although I like "Sex Type Thing" and "Creep". I feel their second album, Purple, demonstrated that they had more in common with arena rock than grunge. Kind of like what Foo Fighters would become. The songs were well-written and structured. There was also a great range of material, from "Vasoline" to "Interstate Love Song" to "Big Empty" to "Unglued". One of my favorite S.T.P. lines is from "Vasoline": Flys in the vasoline, we are, sometimes it blows my mind. Keep getting stuck here all the time.
In 1996, they released what I feel is their masterpiece, Tiny Music...Songs From The Vatican Gift Shop. It's a flawless hard rock album. Unfortunately, when it came out, Scott Weiland flamed out. The double-edged sword with someone like Weiland is that his demons make his art great, but his self-destructive behavior sabotages it. In the song "Adhesive", he wrote the lyric "sell more records if I'm dead". At the time that line could have been perceived as a commentary on Cobain, but I think he was speculating about himself and his legacy. The good news, I guess, is he's still alive making music and going in and out of rehab. Bottom line, I highly recommend Tiny Music to my kids. Here are my track by track thoughts. Peace.
1) Press Play- Opens with the first of two instrumentals. Sounds more like Rush than grunge.
2) Pop's Love Suicide- Straight up, sneering rocker.
3) Tumble In The Rough- Sounds like he's trying to deal with rehab.
4) Big Bang Baby- When this song came out I thought it was the greatest song ever. Now it's only my third or fourth favorite on this album. "Does anybody know how the story really goes, how the story really goes or do we all just hum along".
5) Lady Picture Show- I LOOOOOOOVE this song. It should have been on my top 50 list, but I forgot. Extremely Beatlesesque. Great guitar and hand clap song.
6) And So I Know- Great take on 70's AM radio. Hopefully that's what they were aiming for:)
7) Trippin' On A Hole In A Paper Heart- Second favorite song on this album. "I'm not dead and I'm not for sale". "Let go it's harder holding on. One more trip and I'll be gone".
8) Art School Girl- "I told you five or four times".
9) Adhesive- Beautiful...Sweeping...Epic
10) Ride The Cliche- Just a really good song.
11) Daisy- The other instrumental. As much as it pains me to say, the instrumentals are the weakest part of Tiny Music.
12) Seven Caged Tigers- Third favorite song. I just like how it sounds.
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Guided by Voices: English Little League
I'm confused. I've already read several reviews of GbV's latest album, English Little League, and most have been dismissive. They usually begin with the obligatory scorekeeping of how many albums they've put out since reforming. Then they claim that the ratio of hits to misses has been 50-50, at best. Now, I've listened to a metric shit ton of Guided by Voices (and solo and side projects) over the past ten years and I feel the quality of their recent releases has been quite high. I suggest these reviewers spend some time listening to Pollard's Circus Devils albums or the Suitcases and then come back and listen to ELL. It will sound like Pet Sounds after that. I understand if you're not in the cult of Pollard ELL could be considered a haphazard release. To me, they seem to be hitting their stride and I hope they keep it in motion:)
English Little League has all the hallmarks of a good GbV album. Album cover collage. Check. Awesome song titles, such as, "Xeno Pariah", "Trashcan Full Of Nails", "Crybaby 4 Star Hotel", "Biographer Seahorse" and "Taciturn Cave". Check. A couple Tobin Sprout gems. Check. A couple turds like "Sir Garlic Breath" and "Reflections In A Metal Whistle". Check. Where's the problem? Out of 17 songs I count two clunkers, a handful of gems and a bunch of solid rockers. I'd say that's a pretty good batting average. Just for full disclosure, I bought the "Noble Insect" and "Islands" 7"'s and the B-sides are below average. As far as songs that could take a place of prominence in the GbV canon, here's my list.
1) Xeno Pariah- It starts out with jangly guitars and harmonies, then breaks out into a power pop gem.
2) Islands (She Talks In Rainbows)- One of Tobin Sprout's best songs since his Moonflower Plastic album.
3) Send To Celeste- One of those raise your lighter (or cell phone) Pollard anthems.
4) Flunky Minnows- Classic line "everything is wonderful and microscopes are fun". Great GbV single.
5) Birds- It starts out like a Tobin song, but it's a great Revolver-esque Pollard song.
6) Taciturn Cave- Classic Pollard proggy bombast.
7) W/ Glass In Foot- Just a great straight up rocker to close out the festivities.
The song "Trashcan Full Of Nails" reminds me of something funny that happened at work. My friend and I will sometimes try to come up with possible Pollard song titles when we're bored. One day, there was a car in the parking lot with it's trunk popped open. Inside the trunk were a bunch of shotguns. There was no incident, but we had some freaked out customers. Anyhow, when I was telling my friend about it, I came up with a Pollard song for the occasion called "Carload Of Shotguns". I came up with the beginning lyrics, but never finished it. The lyrics were " Got a carload of shotguns, double barreled hot fun". Maybe I'll try to finish it one of these days.
I feel bad for my kids having to wade through all my Pollard and Sprout when they inherit my collection. By then it will be exponentially more than it is now. I think I need to start exposing them soon and hopefully it will take with one of them. Peace.
English Little League has all the hallmarks of a good GbV album. Album cover collage. Check. Awesome song titles, such as, "Xeno Pariah", "Trashcan Full Of Nails", "Crybaby 4 Star Hotel", "Biographer Seahorse" and "Taciturn Cave". Check. A couple Tobin Sprout gems. Check. A couple turds like "Sir Garlic Breath" and "Reflections In A Metal Whistle". Check. Where's the problem? Out of 17 songs I count two clunkers, a handful of gems and a bunch of solid rockers. I'd say that's a pretty good batting average. Just for full disclosure, I bought the "Noble Insect" and "Islands" 7"'s and the B-sides are below average. As far as songs that could take a place of prominence in the GbV canon, here's my list.
1) Xeno Pariah- It starts out with jangly guitars and harmonies, then breaks out into a power pop gem.
2) Islands (She Talks In Rainbows)- One of Tobin Sprout's best songs since his Moonflower Plastic album.
3) Send To Celeste- One of those raise your lighter (or cell phone) Pollard anthems.
4) Flunky Minnows- Classic line "everything is wonderful and microscopes are fun". Great GbV single.
5) Birds- It starts out like a Tobin song, but it's a great Revolver-esque Pollard song.
6) Taciturn Cave- Classic Pollard proggy bombast.
7) W/ Glass In Foot- Just a great straight up rocker to close out the festivities.
The song "Trashcan Full Of Nails" reminds me of something funny that happened at work. My friend and I will sometimes try to come up with possible Pollard song titles when we're bored. One day, there was a car in the parking lot with it's trunk popped open. Inside the trunk were a bunch of shotguns. There was no incident, but we had some freaked out customers. Anyhow, when I was telling my friend about it, I came up with a Pollard song for the occasion called "Carload Of Shotguns". I came up with the beginning lyrics, but never finished it. The lyrics were " Got a carload of shotguns, double barreled hot fun". Maybe I'll try to finish it one of these days.
I feel bad for my kids having to wade through all my Pollard and Sprout when they inherit my collection. By then it will be exponentially more than it is now. I think I need to start exposing them soon and hopefully it will take with one of them. Peace.
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