Many of you know I recently set up a Facebook account. I've put this off for quite some time, mainly because of my perceptions about Zuckerberg. While my perceptions haven't changed, nor has my disdain for social media, I am painfully aware that as an aspiring music blogger/writer I need to set aside my prejudices and embrace this technology. It has also become increasingly difficult to do many things I'd like to do online without a Facebook account, so I caved. As soon as I'm more comfortable with the technology, I plan to create a Facebook page for Sound Mind. The main drawback I see to doing this is it will make it easier for my wife to figure out how much I'm spending on CD's and records:) Anyway, I bring this up because Facebook has already paid off in regards to my music collection. The first couple days on Facebook, I spent some time "like"-ing things. The Detroit Tigers, Centro-matic, Parks and Rec, John Hodgman, Doctor Who, Flying Nun Records, Lucky Records, the Record Den and Square Records. The other day, Square Records shared that they still had some Record Store Day items in stock. You can probably guess from the title of this post that they had the Bored Games' Who Killed Colonel Mustard 12" EP. So, I trekked down to Akron yesterday to pick it up (along with a CD of Mountain Goats' Tallahassee).
The first thing that struck me when I got this home was these guys were kids. The whole EP has a board game theme. The front of the sleeve shows a hand of playing cards with cutouts of their faces on top of Sorry pawns. Lead guitarist Fraser Batts' picture appears to be him as a two year old. Of course, the band name is a play on words and the title is a reference to the game Clue. When I flipped over the jacket, there is an actual Snakes and Ladders game based on what could happen with their music career. Square #100 reads "Sell 3 million records". Here are some of the highlights of the game.
Snakes
* Space 15 to 9- Get drunk at first practice/Get grounded for a very long time, thus inhibiting bands progress
* Space 88 to 36- Never have money or parents permission to tour out of Dunedin/Become a cult band or more likely fade into obscurity
* Space 58-45- Argue with The Clean/ Become disowned by the hip set
* Space 48-12- Groupies/Decadence, sin and the ultimate depression
Ladders
* Space 27-56- Band reaches puberty/Contract strange diseases
* Space 79-98- Beat an aging heavy metal band in the Battle of the Bands/ Get hit by their lead guitarist
* Space 6-16- Drugs/A higher level of un-consciousness
Inside the jacket, there is an insert with pictures of the band at what appears to be a high school talent show. When this EP was recorded in 1982, lead singer Shayne Carter was 17 and he doesn't even look that old. Neither do the rest of the band.
The EP has a Marilyn Side which has a picture of Marilyn Monroe on the label and a Man Side which has a picture of DaVinci's man. The first song on the Marilyn Side is "Happy Endings". It's about Marilyn Monroe and the playing is really tight. Their harmonies during the chorus are fantastic. The second song is "I Don't Get It" which is mainly a Sex Pistols-y exercise for the bassist and drummer, but also really good. The strongest track is the opener of the Man Side, "Joe 90". It's aggressive, cocky, tight and replete with hand claps. It even has a competent guitar solo. The last song. "Bridesmaid", is a nice combination of punk and surf, but mostly punk.
I really love everything about Who Killed Colonel Mustard from the music to the packaging and I'm jazzed that I was able to find a copy of it. When my son becomes a teenager I may leave this record laying around and see if he takes the bait. Peace.
A Living Will For My Music Collection
Friday, April 25, 2014
Sunday, April 20, 2014
Record Store Day 2014
Happy Easter, if you're into that:) I do enjoy any excuse to consume mass quantities of candy; especially Cadbury Creme Eggs. That's what my kids are doing as I type. They've been up since 5:30 A.M! Sorry about the liberal use of an exclamation point grammarians, but c'mon, 5:30 A.M. Thanks Easter Bunny. I am starting a weeks vacation today, so I guess I can suck it up for the children. I considered doing some kind of Easter post with a list, but there's a possibility that Eddie Rabbit might have been involved so I scrapped that plan. I do enjoy the occasional rainy night, though.
First, I'd like to congratulate my friend Dave on his first Record Store Day at Lucky Records in Wooster. I made the trek down to Wayne County to check it out and the place was packed. There were bands playing all day and everyone was having a great time. I picked up a Lucky Records t-shirt and Dave hooked me up with an LP of R.E.M.'s Dead Letter Office. I've been chasing that record for years. Now I have all the IRS stuff on vinyl.
I began RSD 2014 at the Record Den. When I arrived at 7:45 A.M. there were already about 40 people in line. While that's great for the Record Den it sucked to be me. When I walked out of the store at 9:10 there was still a line of people waiting to get in. This is symptomatic of my growing problem with RSD. It's becoming like Walmart on Black Friday, except the prices are outrageously higher. However, the larger problem for me this year was the fact that the LP's I really wanted were extremely limited and regional. The prime example was Redo The Stacks by Centro-matic. If you're a regular Sound Mind reader you know how long I've waited for this album to be reissued, but they only produced 500 copies and I doubt any of them left the state of Texas. I'm sure if I were to go online today some a-hole is selling it for $150. Even something like Devo Live at Max's Kansas City was impossible to get. And I knew up front that no one would have the two Flying Nun releases, the Dunedin Double and Bored Games (featuring a young Shayne Carter). There were some things that I was on the fence about that I can probably still pick up next week because the quantities produced were greater; like Husker Du, Tame Impala, Frank Zappa and The Zombies. I did pick up a few things, but they weren't anything mind blowing. Here's the list.
* Oasis- Supersonic 12": I LOVE this song and it sounds awesome on heavyweight vinyl. There are two songs on the B-side and they're good too.
* The Cure / Dinosaur Jr- Just Like Heaven split 7": I wasn't going to get this, but I did for sentimental reasons (see my post on Neutral Milk Hotel).
* Rush / Love- 7 x 7 Is split 7": I only got this because I'm a Rush completist. Had I been able to get Centro-matic and Devo I would have held off on this, but I'm a sucker. I'm probably going to get the deluxe reissue of the first Rush album, as well, even though I already have an original copy. I need help.
* Silversun Pickups- Singles Collection: Technically this isn't a RSD release, but RSD was a good excuse to spend $40 on a Silversun Pickups boxed 7" collection. I'll discuss this more when I do a post on them in the near future. Yes, I'm an unapologetic fan of this band, thus proving I'm not a hipster. I think. Peace.
First, I'd like to congratulate my friend Dave on his first Record Store Day at Lucky Records in Wooster. I made the trek down to Wayne County to check it out and the place was packed. There were bands playing all day and everyone was having a great time. I picked up a Lucky Records t-shirt and Dave hooked me up with an LP of R.E.M.'s Dead Letter Office. I've been chasing that record for years. Now I have all the IRS stuff on vinyl.
I began RSD 2014 at the Record Den. When I arrived at 7:45 A.M. there were already about 40 people in line. While that's great for the Record Den it sucked to be me. When I walked out of the store at 9:10 there was still a line of people waiting to get in. This is symptomatic of my growing problem with RSD. It's becoming like Walmart on Black Friday, except the prices are outrageously higher. However, the larger problem for me this year was the fact that the LP's I really wanted were extremely limited and regional. The prime example was Redo The Stacks by Centro-matic. If you're a regular Sound Mind reader you know how long I've waited for this album to be reissued, but they only produced 500 copies and I doubt any of them left the state of Texas. I'm sure if I were to go online today some a-hole is selling it for $150. Even something like Devo Live at Max's Kansas City was impossible to get. And I knew up front that no one would have the two Flying Nun releases, the Dunedin Double and Bored Games (featuring a young Shayne Carter). There were some things that I was on the fence about that I can probably still pick up next week because the quantities produced were greater; like Husker Du, Tame Impala, Frank Zappa and The Zombies. I did pick up a few things, but they weren't anything mind blowing. Here's the list.
* Oasis- Supersonic 12": I LOVE this song and it sounds awesome on heavyweight vinyl. There are two songs on the B-side and they're good too.
* The Cure / Dinosaur Jr- Just Like Heaven split 7": I wasn't going to get this, but I did for sentimental reasons (see my post on Neutral Milk Hotel).
* Rush / Love- 7 x 7 Is split 7": I only got this because I'm a Rush completist. Had I been able to get Centro-matic and Devo I would have held off on this, but I'm a sucker. I'm probably going to get the deluxe reissue of the first Rush album, as well, even though I already have an original copy. I need help.
* Silversun Pickups- Singles Collection: Technically this isn't a RSD release, but RSD was a good excuse to spend $40 on a Silversun Pickups boxed 7" collection. I'll discuss this more when I do a post on them in the near future. Yes, I'm an unapologetic fan of this band, thus proving I'm not a hipster. I think. Peace.
Friday, April 11, 2014
Jimi Goodwin: Odludek
There's a great saying about trying to escape your past, "Wherever you go, there you are". I was reminded of this recently with the release of Doves front man Jimi Goodwin's solo album, Odludek. I'm a huge Doves fan. They're my favorite band of the 2000's, ahead of The White Stripes and Kasabian. It has been five years since their last album Kingdom of Rust and I've been waiting patiently for anything new from their camp. When I saw on the internets that Jimi Goodwin was releasing a solo album I was amped. Then I started reading interviews and advanced reviews and my buzz was killed. Goodwin described it as a "crazy mixtape" and talked about not wanting to be "pegged" as that guy from that band. After reading several reviews, I didn't know if it was going to be a hodge podge-y train wreck or a boring singer- songwriter album or a return to his club music roots or a combination of all the above. I even considered not getting it because I didn't want to be disappointed. But that wasn't really going to happen and I did pick it up.
If Goodwin thought he was escaping his past by recording a "crazy mixtape" solo album I'll just remind him of that saying "Wherever you go, there you are". You are Jimi-freakin'-Goodwin. You are going to write sonically powerful rock songs and layer them with your signature vocals. My fears of Jimi sitting on a stool with an acoutic guitar being James Taylor were assuaged the second I dropped the needle on Odludek. "Terracotta Warrior" immediately hits you in the face with the striking of an electric guitar chord which is repeated over a few bars. Then Goodwin comes in with an in your face, passionate vocal before slipping into a Roger Waters, Piper at the Gates of Dawn bass groove. The song then combines all these elements and rocks headlong to it's conclusion. The second track, "Didsbury Girl" is the first of several songs on this album that could have easily fit on the Doves album Lost Souls. In a previous post, I recommended Lost Souls to my kids and I would add here that if you've never heard that album do yourself a huge favor. The composition will blow your mind. But I digress. "Live Like a River" is the next track and it's the strongest of the set. It's powerful and sounds like a continuation of Kingdom of Rust. "Hope" is an alright song, but it's like middle of the road U2. The guitars even sound like The Edge. "Man V Dingo" is the craziest track off Odludek. It starts out with what sounds like the theme to a 70's game show. Then it becomes a weird oompah band thing with Goodwin ranting over top about current culture. It's probably the biggest departure from Doves, but it has grown on me after listening to the album twenty odd times. Side Two of the LP begins with the most Lost Soul-ish track "Keep My Soul In Song". It carries you away in a languid stream of sonic majesty. The first single in the UK is the track "Oh! Whiskey". It's the most singer-songwriter-y song on the album. It starts out with acoustic guitar strumming, but it does add piano and percussion and is far from boring. My favorite song, at this writing, is "The Ghost of the Empties". It also falls on the Lost Souls spectrum of Goodwin's sound. There's also a guitar section that sounds like Clouds Taste Metallic Flaming Lips Ronald Jones. My favorite line is "if you'd have opened up my skull that day you'd have found a supermarkets worth of useless junk". "Lonely At the Drop" is an up-tempo rocker and a diatribe about God. Many reviewers didn't like this track, but I quite enjoyed it. My favorite line is "it must get lonely on that cross, I mean shit you've paid your dues". The final track is "Panic Tree" and it's my least favorite. Oddly, it's the song that deals the most directly with escaping your past and the mistakes of your fathers, but I don't like the music. It's too old tyme music hall for my taste, but the content of the lyrics is good.
According to Goodwin, Odludek is Polish for loner or pilgrim. In fact, he wanted to call the project Odludek, but the label insisted he put his name on it. I understand the whole loner and pilgrim thing, but I hope he's gotten it out of his system and works with Andy and Jez again. You can't escape who you are. Peace.
If Goodwin thought he was escaping his past by recording a "crazy mixtape" solo album I'll just remind him of that saying "Wherever you go, there you are". You are Jimi-freakin'-Goodwin. You are going to write sonically powerful rock songs and layer them with your signature vocals. My fears of Jimi sitting on a stool with an acoutic guitar being James Taylor were assuaged the second I dropped the needle on Odludek. "Terracotta Warrior" immediately hits you in the face with the striking of an electric guitar chord which is repeated over a few bars. Then Goodwin comes in with an in your face, passionate vocal before slipping into a Roger Waters, Piper at the Gates of Dawn bass groove. The song then combines all these elements and rocks headlong to it's conclusion. The second track, "Didsbury Girl" is the first of several songs on this album that could have easily fit on the Doves album Lost Souls. In a previous post, I recommended Lost Souls to my kids and I would add here that if you've never heard that album do yourself a huge favor. The composition will blow your mind. But I digress. "Live Like a River" is the next track and it's the strongest of the set. It's powerful and sounds like a continuation of Kingdom of Rust. "Hope" is an alright song, but it's like middle of the road U2. The guitars even sound like The Edge. "Man V Dingo" is the craziest track off Odludek. It starts out with what sounds like the theme to a 70's game show. Then it becomes a weird oompah band thing with Goodwin ranting over top about current culture. It's probably the biggest departure from Doves, but it has grown on me after listening to the album twenty odd times. Side Two of the LP begins with the most Lost Soul-ish track "Keep My Soul In Song". It carries you away in a languid stream of sonic majesty. The first single in the UK is the track "Oh! Whiskey". It's the most singer-songwriter-y song on the album. It starts out with acoustic guitar strumming, but it does add piano and percussion and is far from boring. My favorite song, at this writing, is "The Ghost of the Empties". It also falls on the Lost Souls spectrum of Goodwin's sound. There's also a guitar section that sounds like Clouds Taste Metallic Flaming Lips Ronald Jones. My favorite line is "if you'd have opened up my skull that day you'd have found a supermarkets worth of useless junk". "Lonely At the Drop" is an up-tempo rocker and a diatribe about God. Many reviewers didn't like this track, but I quite enjoyed it. My favorite line is "it must get lonely on that cross, I mean shit you've paid your dues". The final track is "Panic Tree" and it's my least favorite. Oddly, it's the song that deals the most directly with escaping your past and the mistakes of your fathers, but I don't like the music. It's too old tyme music hall for my taste, but the content of the lyrics is good.
According to Goodwin, Odludek is Polish for loner or pilgrim. In fact, he wanted to call the project Odludek, but the label insisted he put his name on it. I understand the whole loner and pilgrim thing, but I hope he's gotten it out of his system and works with Andy and Jez again. You can't escape who you are. Peace.
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
Wig Out at Jagbags
You would probably assume that someone who has written four posts on Pavement would have bought the entire Stephen Malkmus and The Jicks catalog. Well, you would be making an ass of "u" and me, because I hadn't. Sometimes I'm negligent at getting around to the solo careers of guys who used to be in iconic bands. I didn't have any Malkmus. I don't have any Frank Black. I don't have any Thom Yorke or Paul Westerberg or Lou Reed or Phil Collins. I don't even have any of the KISS solo albums. Having said that, I'm jazzed about the Jimi Goodwin (Doves) album that's coming out next week. Anyhow, I hadn't bought a Jicks album until Wig Out at Jagbags. And truthfully, I only picked it up because I was going to see them live and wanted to be familiar with the new material. Before I discuss Wig Out, let me just say it's the best album I've heard, so far, this year and their show was possibly the best I've ever seen. They were loose and seemed to be having fun. Their playing was tight and they closed the show with a cover of the 70's hit Brandy (You're A Fine Girl), which was fantastic.
I grew up listening to the radio in the 70's and apparently Malkmus did as well (he's only a couple years younger than me). Wig Out definitely has a 70's vibe. I hear The Grateful Dead (Cinnamon and Lesbians), The Mothers of Invention (Planetary Motion), Wings (Chartjunk) and even Bacharach and David (J Smoov). He even name checks The Dead on "Lariat". Just as a side note, this will be the only time The Grateful Dead will ever be mentioned on this blog. "Lariat" has one of my favorite lines "I wouldn't jerry rig or candy coat your Latin kisses" and he manages to rhyme Tennyson with venison. I am confused, though, when he sings about growing up listening to the music of the best decade ever and he seems to say it's the 80's.
My favorite track is "Chartjunk", which reminds me of "Magneto and Titanium Man" by Paul McCartney and Wings. It has that same kind of rock shuffle structure and guitar sound. There are some classic Malkmus lyrics like:
In one ear and out of the other
If you feel the urge to share
Think again cuz you're not my mother
Actually I'm not contractually obliged to care
If you flood the lane on me brother
Watch out for my step back three
I put the "I" in team like no other
Actually I'm not contractually obliged to share
If you're a Pavement fan, don't despair. There are a few Pavement-y tracks like "The Janitor Revealed", "Houston Hades", "Shibboleth" and "Scattegories". There's also a track, "Rumble at the Rainbo", that sounds like Weezer. My interpretation is that it's a dig at Rivers Cuomo. If you recall from my Weezer post, I hate their music after the Green Album because it's Rivers whining about getting old. "Rumble at the Rainbo" is also about getting older, but it's much more clever and well written than a song like, say, "Pork and Beans".
My friend, Mike, loaned me the rest of The Jicks CD's, so I will be playing catch up with their catalog. I've really come a long way with Stephen Malkmus. I used to dismiss him as a smart ass hipster who thought he was cooler than thou. Now he's one of my favorite songwriters and performers. He's a reminder to me to try and keep an open mind despite my curmudgeonly nature. Peace.
I grew up listening to the radio in the 70's and apparently Malkmus did as well (he's only a couple years younger than me). Wig Out definitely has a 70's vibe. I hear The Grateful Dead (Cinnamon and Lesbians), The Mothers of Invention (Planetary Motion), Wings (Chartjunk) and even Bacharach and David (J Smoov). He even name checks The Dead on "Lariat". Just as a side note, this will be the only time The Grateful Dead will ever be mentioned on this blog. "Lariat" has one of my favorite lines "I wouldn't jerry rig or candy coat your Latin kisses" and he manages to rhyme Tennyson with venison. I am confused, though, when he sings about growing up listening to the music of the best decade ever and he seems to say it's the 80's.
My favorite track is "Chartjunk", which reminds me of "Magneto and Titanium Man" by Paul McCartney and Wings. It has that same kind of rock shuffle structure and guitar sound. There are some classic Malkmus lyrics like:
In one ear and out of the other
If you feel the urge to share
Think again cuz you're not my mother
Actually I'm not contractually obliged to care
If you flood the lane on me brother
Watch out for my step back three
I put the "I" in team like no other
Actually I'm not contractually obliged to share
If you're a Pavement fan, don't despair. There are a few Pavement-y tracks like "The Janitor Revealed", "Houston Hades", "Shibboleth" and "Scattegories". There's also a track, "Rumble at the Rainbo", that sounds like Weezer. My interpretation is that it's a dig at Rivers Cuomo. If you recall from my Weezer post, I hate their music after the Green Album because it's Rivers whining about getting old. "Rumble at the Rainbo" is also about getting older, but it's much more clever and well written than a song like, say, "Pork and Beans".
My friend, Mike, loaned me the rest of The Jicks CD's, so I will be playing catch up with their catalog. I've really come a long way with Stephen Malkmus. I used to dismiss him as a smart ass hipster who thought he was cooler than thou. Now he's one of my favorite songwriters and performers. He's a reminder to me to try and keep an open mind despite my curmudgeonly nature. Peace.
Sunday, February 9, 2014
It Was Fifty Years Ago Today
It's hard to remember now that there used to be a time without 200 cable channels and the internet and smart phones. Fifty years ago today, 70 million Americans crowded around their black and white TV's to watch four kids from Liverpool on the Ed Sullivan Show. The world literally changed that night. I'm working on the Beatles' chapter of my Sound Mind book right now and it's entitled "Beatles Exceptionalism". The Beatles were the perfect storm of talent, looks and personality to popularize rock music. They created the template for future rock bands. After a few years of playing covers and internalizing their influences, many of whom were American, they began writing their own songs. Prior to The Beatles, Chuck Berry and Buddy Holly were among the few artists who wrote their own songs, but they didn't make teenage girls scream and pass out. Before The Beatles, bands like the Crickets, the Comets and the Buckaroos were backups to a featured artist. The Beatles were an actual band with three (and sometimes four) singers who wrote their own songs. They popularized the band configuration of lead guitar, rhythm guitar, bass and drums. After The Beatles' appearance on Ed Sullivan, kids began growing their hair and went to the garage to figure out the chords to "I Wanna Hold Your Hand". Sometimes I wish I'd been a teenager in 1964, but it would be a month after Beatlemania hit America before I was conceived.
In all the hype about the 50th anniversary of The Beatles' Ed Sullivan appearance, I found something preposterous and shockingly it was from Fox News. They put out a list of 11 bands better than The Beatles. I shit you not. I was only aware of this list because Rush is on it and it was featured on the Rushisaband site. Anyhow, I thought I'd share the list and comment on it's absurdity since that's how I roll. Peace.
1) Led Zeppelin- Great band, but they spawned Whitesnake, Kingdom Come and Bonham.
2) The Rolling Stones- While I've come around to The Stones, I'll remind you of my "I Wanna Be Your Man" argument. The Beatles' version was vastly superior and they even let Ringo do it.
3) Velvet Underground- Many bands I love cite them as an influence or are compared to them, but I don't get it. I can't stand VU or Lou Reed. I'd rather listen to a bag full of cats.
4) U2- Are they serious?! I love U2, but c'mon.
5) Radiohead- See my Radiohead post, but not better than The Beatles.
6) Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers- I love the Heartbreakers and on any given day I might argue they are the best American band, but not better than The Beatles.
7) Rush- You all know how much I love Rush, but this is laughable.
8) The Band- I couldn't even name you a song by The Band. Didn't they do something with Zimmerman?
9) The Clash- I mentioned The Clash in my post on Wire. I don't get the big deal.
10) Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band- This is straight up New Jersey bias.
11) The Replacements- Great band and very influential, but I could argue GbV is better than The Beatles before The Replacements. And none of these bands, other than The Stones, would have existed without The Beatles. Can't something be done about Fox News?
In all the hype about the 50th anniversary of The Beatles' Ed Sullivan appearance, I found something preposterous and shockingly it was from Fox News. They put out a list of 11 bands better than The Beatles. I shit you not. I was only aware of this list because Rush is on it and it was featured on the Rushisaband site. Anyhow, I thought I'd share the list and comment on it's absurdity since that's how I roll. Peace.
1) Led Zeppelin- Great band, but they spawned Whitesnake, Kingdom Come and Bonham.
2) The Rolling Stones- While I've come around to The Stones, I'll remind you of my "I Wanna Be Your Man" argument. The Beatles' version was vastly superior and they even let Ringo do it.
3) Velvet Underground- Many bands I love cite them as an influence or are compared to them, but I don't get it. I can't stand VU or Lou Reed. I'd rather listen to a bag full of cats.
4) U2- Are they serious?! I love U2, but c'mon.
5) Radiohead- See my Radiohead post, but not better than The Beatles.
6) Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers- I love the Heartbreakers and on any given day I might argue they are the best American band, but not better than The Beatles.
7) Rush- You all know how much I love Rush, but this is laughable.
8) The Band- I couldn't even name you a song by The Band. Didn't they do something with Zimmerman?
9) The Clash- I mentioned The Clash in my post on Wire. I don't get the big deal.
10) Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band- This is straight up New Jersey bias.
11) The Replacements- Great band and very influential, but I could argue GbV is better than The Beatles before The Replacements. And none of these bands, other than The Stones, would have existed without The Beatles. Can't something be done about Fox News?
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
The Best of The Move
Hello again. Yes, I'm still alive and nobody has inherited my music collection yet. I could list a bunch of excuses as to why I haven't posted in almost a month, but they would just be excuses. I recently read an interview with Robert Pollard where he was asked if he ever suffers from writer's block. He simply replied, "Writer's block is for pussies". That is my new mantra for 2014. That being said, let's talk about The Move. My kids gave me a gift certificate to the record store for Christmas and one of the CD's I picked up was The Best of The Move. As you know, I'm a huge fan of the Electric Light Orchestra and Cheap Trick. Yet for reasons I can't explain I'm just getting around to checking out The Move.
I had never heard of The Move until a few years ago when I learned that "California Man" by Cheap Trick was actually a cover of The Move. However, that fact didn't spark my intellectual curiosity enough to check them out. Then even more recently, I learned that the Electric Light Orchestra was an offshoot of The Move. That finally put them on my radar, so when I received a gift certificate for the record store picking up a CD by The Move was priority #1. I went straight to the liner notes before I even listened to the CD. You may remember me complaining in the past about great UK bands that never get a sniff in the United States, such as Doves, Kasabian and Elbow. Apparently, The Move were one of the original bands to suffer this fate. They had several hit singles in the UK from 1966 to 1971, but couldn't make a dent in the States.
The majority of The Move's songs were written by eccentric co-founder and multi-instrumentalist Roy Wood. I assumed that a band which would one day become the Electric Light Orchestra would be heavily influenced by The Beatles. However, it seems the only influence they had on Wood was to inspire him to start his own band and perform original songs rather than playing in cover bands that had no interest in his songs. Just from what I can tell from a Best of collection, the Beatles influence enters the band with the arrival of Jeff Lynne in the 70's. I also had no idea that Roy Wood bailed on E.L.O. early on to start the band Wizzard. I had never heard of Wizzard, so I checked them out on You Tube. Apparently, they did that now famous Christmas song, "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday". The video is awesome. Roy Wood is dressed up like a glam Santa. Wizzard consisted of two drummers and horn players and guitars. I checked out a few videos and they seemed like a fun pop band. Their wardrobe, however, was crazy. Wood looked like a combination of Tim the Enchanter from Monty Python and the Holy Grail and Ozzy from the Diary of a Madman album cover. One of the guitarists was dressed as a "gumby" from Monty Python's Flying Circus. Between Wizzard and The Move, Wood was responsible for more than 20 UK hit singles and he's virtually unknown in America.
As I listened to the CD, I was struck by a few things. Cheap Trick's version of "California Man" is actually a combination of two songs by The Move, "California Man" and "Brontosaurus", the later which provides a guitar riff that Rick Nielsen uses and builds upon. The song "Chinatown" which was written by Wood and sung by Lynne is straight up George Harrison, complete with slide guitar. For me, the most interesting song is The Move's version of "Do Ya", which would later become a hit for the Electric Light Orchestra. I think Christopher Walken produced this track, because somebody had a fever for more cowbell. This version doesn't include one of favorite lyrics, "I heard the police playin' with their guns". It also sounds like Lynne says "long black veil" instead of "long black hair". They also had a couple fantastic Who inspired songs, "I Can Hear The Grass Grow" and "Lemon Tree".
The Best of The Move is a great collection of songs by a tragically unknown band. The music runs the gamut of late 60's rock from The Who to The Stones to The Zombies to Syd Barrett Floyd. Based on this collection, Roy Wood seems like a very gifted lyricist and songwriter. I intend to investigate his catalog further. I definitely recommend that my kids listen to The Move, as well as all my Electric Light Orchestra. Peace.
I had never heard of The Move until a few years ago when I learned that "California Man" by Cheap Trick was actually a cover of The Move. However, that fact didn't spark my intellectual curiosity enough to check them out. Then even more recently, I learned that the Electric Light Orchestra was an offshoot of The Move. That finally put them on my radar, so when I received a gift certificate for the record store picking up a CD by The Move was priority #1. I went straight to the liner notes before I even listened to the CD. You may remember me complaining in the past about great UK bands that never get a sniff in the United States, such as Doves, Kasabian and Elbow. Apparently, The Move were one of the original bands to suffer this fate. They had several hit singles in the UK from 1966 to 1971, but couldn't make a dent in the States.
The majority of The Move's songs were written by eccentric co-founder and multi-instrumentalist Roy Wood. I assumed that a band which would one day become the Electric Light Orchestra would be heavily influenced by The Beatles. However, it seems the only influence they had on Wood was to inspire him to start his own band and perform original songs rather than playing in cover bands that had no interest in his songs. Just from what I can tell from a Best of collection, the Beatles influence enters the band with the arrival of Jeff Lynne in the 70's. I also had no idea that Roy Wood bailed on E.L.O. early on to start the band Wizzard. I had never heard of Wizzard, so I checked them out on You Tube. Apparently, they did that now famous Christmas song, "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday". The video is awesome. Roy Wood is dressed up like a glam Santa. Wizzard consisted of two drummers and horn players and guitars. I checked out a few videos and they seemed like a fun pop band. Their wardrobe, however, was crazy. Wood looked like a combination of Tim the Enchanter from Monty Python and the Holy Grail and Ozzy from the Diary of a Madman album cover. One of the guitarists was dressed as a "gumby" from Monty Python's Flying Circus. Between Wizzard and The Move, Wood was responsible for more than 20 UK hit singles and he's virtually unknown in America.
As I listened to the CD, I was struck by a few things. Cheap Trick's version of "California Man" is actually a combination of two songs by The Move, "California Man" and "Brontosaurus", the later which provides a guitar riff that Rick Nielsen uses and builds upon. The song "Chinatown" which was written by Wood and sung by Lynne is straight up George Harrison, complete with slide guitar. For me, the most interesting song is The Move's version of "Do Ya", which would later become a hit for the Electric Light Orchestra. I think Christopher Walken produced this track, because somebody had a fever for more cowbell. This version doesn't include one of favorite lyrics, "I heard the police playin' with their guns". It also sounds like Lynne says "long black veil" instead of "long black hair". They also had a couple fantastic Who inspired songs, "I Can Hear The Grass Grow" and "Lemon Tree".
The Best of The Move is a great collection of songs by a tragically unknown band. The music runs the gamut of late 60's rock from The Who to The Stones to The Zombies to Syd Barrett Floyd. Based on this collection, Roy Wood seems like a very gifted lyricist and songwriter. I intend to investigate his catalog further. I definitely recommend that my kids listen to The Move, as well as all my Electric Light Orchestra. Peace.
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Rock Hall Class of 2014
For the second straight year, the crack Rock Hall induction team has silenced another rabid fan base. Last year it was the induction of Rush that finally got us Rush-ians to stop our whining and petitions. In 2014, the hottest band in the world (in the 70's), KISS, finally get their due and the KISS Army get their validation. They will be joined by first ballot slam dunk Nirvana, Peter Gabriel, Hall & Oates, Linda Ronstadt and Yusef Islam. I, for one, can hardly wait to see this motley crew jam to "Crossroads", "Peace Train" and "Smells Like Teen Spirit". If there's a God, maybe they'll at least perform "Tumbling Dice". Where do I even start with this class? I did vote for Nirvana, KISS and Peter Gabriel, so I'm happy for them. I would have voted for Hall & Oates if there hadn't been a five vote limit, so I can go for that. Unfortunately, Dave Grohl, Gene Simmons, Peter Gabriel and Daryl Hall will be forced to share this moment with Yusef Islam and Linda Ronstadt. Every year there is at least one head-scratcher, and this year there are two. At least there should be intrigue a-plenty with KISS and Nirvana. Will the human dumpster fire that is Courtney Love somehow manage to insinuate herself into this honor for her late husband? Will Dave Grohl get a restraining order on her, so she can't get within 500 yards of the ceremony? Will Sir Paul reprise his role of lead singer and left-handed guitarist of Nirvana? Will Gene Simmons not be a douche and play with Ace and Peter? Will Gene insist on inducting his own band into the Rock Hall? Will KISS wear their makeup? Will there be an appearance by a hologram of Kurt Cobain? Will Yusef Islam be inducted by Salman Rushdie? Will Yusef Islam kill Salman Rushdie while singing "PeaceTrain"? Will Peter Gabriel show up wearing a dress and fox head mask? Will we finally get the Hall & Oates vs. Simon & Garfunkel cage match that we've all been dreaming of? Now I kind of wish it was Cleveland's turn to host in 2014.
Seriously, the top of this class is great. Nirvana may be the last band to get in on their first ballot for some time. Radiohead and The White Stripes are the only other bands I can think of that have a chance, but I doubt it. Cobain's music touched millions of people because they felt like he was someone who understood them. There's been some revisionist history since their nomination, but go back and listen to those albums. Listen to the studio version of "About A Girl". Watch Nirvana on MTV Unplugged. They did what The Pixies and Dinosaur Jr. couldn't do; bring alternative rock to the mainstream. They may not have been the best band, but they were one of the most important bands in the history of rock music.
KISS were long overdue for induction. I had the great fortune of growing up during their heyday. I drew them on my notebooks. I watch their horrible movie. I was glued to MTV when they removed their makeup. I played the hell out of Alive II. I wanted to be Ace Frehley. They are truly one of the most influential bands ever.
I have to admit, in the 80's I hated Hall & Oates. I was into metal and prog rock. They represented everything I despised about mainstream music. In my middle age, I've grown to appreciate their music and I even own a greatest hits CD. I'm still surprised they were inducted into the Rock Hall. Maybe groups like Duran Duran still have a chance some day.
Finally, Peter Gabriel is a musical genius. He completely reinvented himself as a solo artist and became one of the world's most iconic performers. I crap on the Rock Hall voters quite often, but I congratulate them for inducting Peter Gabriel. It almost makes up for Yusef Islam. I gotta go. It's Cold Gin time again. Peace.
Seriously, the top of this class is great. Nirvana may be the last band to get in on their first ballot for some time. Radiohead and The White Stripes are the only other bands I can think of that have a chance, but I doubt it. Cobain's music touched millions of people because they felt like he was someone who understood them. There's been some revisionist history since their nomination, but go back and listen to those albums. Listen to the studio version of "About A Girl". Watch Nirvana on MTV Unplugged. They did what The Pixies and Dinosaur Jr. couldn't do; bring alternative rock to the mainstream. They may not have been the best band, but they were one of the most important bands in the history of rock music.
KISS were long overdue for induction. I had the great fortune of growing up during their heyday. I drew them on my notebooks. I watch their horrible movie. I was glued to MTV when they removed their makeup. I played the hell out of Alive II. I wanted to be Ace Frehley. They are truly one of the most influential bands ever.
I have to admit, in the 80's I hated Hall & Oates. I was into metal and prog rock. They represented everything I despised about mainstream music. In my middle age, I've grown to appreciate their music and I even own a greatest hits CD. I'm still surprised they were inducted into the Rock Hall. Maybe groups like Duran Duran still have a chance some day.
Finally, Peter Gabriel is a musical genius. He completely reinvented himself as a solo artist and became one of the world's most iconic performers. I crap on the Rock Hall voters quite often, but I congratulate them for inducting Peter Gabriel. It almost makes up for Yusef Islam. I gotta go. It's Cold Gin time again. Peace.
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