recommended gigs

Friday Mar 30 - Dominiki at Evel Pie
Friday Mar 30 - Franks'n'Deans and the All Togethers at the Hard Rock on the Strip
Friday Mar 30 - the Darkness at Brooklyn Bowl

Saturday Mar 31 - the Swamp Gospel with the Psyatics (for the record release show!) and more at the Double Down

Sunday April 1 - Garage Ma Hall Takeover benefit for Keith Alcantara with:Shanda & The Howlers,FLUX, Superstar Bingo, Pitchfork, The Unwieldies, Dr. Vibus,Donzo’s Cosmos,Gravity Surfer and the Cosmic Bus Ride,Drums with Community Productions,Flame Troupe 'Flameology'

Monday April 2 - the Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday April 4 - Dickies, Queers, Jerk! at the Beauty Bar
Wednesday April 4 - Franks'n'Deans Weenie Roast with All the Rage at the Double Down

Thursday April 5 - the Legendary Shack Shakers with the Rhyolite Sound and Shanda and the Howlers at the Beauty Bar
Thursday April 5 - Wanda Jackson at Backstage Bar and Billiards

Friday April 6 - Durango 66 at the Double Down

Saturday April 7 - The Psyatics, the Pluralses, Better Broken and the Whining Pussys at the Dive Bar

Sunday April 8 - Dead Meadow and the Acid Sisters at the Bunkhouse

Monday April 9 - the Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Friday April 13 - The Swank Bastards at the Double Down

Saturday April 14 - the New Waves at the Golden Tiki

Monday April 16 - the Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday April 18 - Peelander-Z, Time Crashers and Illicitor at the Beauty Bar
Wednesday April 18 - the Terrorsaurs at the Bunkhouse

Thursday April 19 - the Terrorsaurs, Psyatics, Swank Bastards at the Double Down
Thursday April 19 - the Dream Syndicate at the Beauty Bar

Saturday April 21 - Fuzz Solow at the Golden Tiki
Saturday April 21 - the Unwieldies at Zia Records on Eastern for Record Store Day

Monday April 23 - the legendary Rev Beat Man with the Swamp Gospel and the Psyatics at the Beauty Bar

Saturday May 19 - the New Waves at the Golden Tiki

Saturday May 26 - the Dead Boys with the Schizophonics at Backstage Bar and Billiards

Friday Sept 7 - Hot Tuna at Brooklyn Bowl

What have I forgotten? Lemme know

Pitchfork at Aces and Ales Bluegrass Brunch, Sunday Mar 25, 2018

This Las Vegas bluesgrass combo consists of 2 guitars, stand up bass, banjo, mandolin and Richard, the dobro player from the Unwieldies. Aces and Ales was jammed this afternoon for their appearance at the Bluegrass Brunch and the crowd was highly enthusiastic - yelpin'n'cheerin'n'singin' along with their combination of old school bluegrass and more modern tunes like their covers of the Doobie Brothers, Eagles and Grateful Dead. Great playing all around and fine 3 part harmony vocals. I would personally prefer more straight-forward bluegrass, but I think I was in the minority here! A good time was certainly had by all!

There Goes Gravity - A Life in Rock and Roll - Lisa Robinson

Lisa Robinson has written about rock'n'roll for decades, from the time that she and her husband Richard edited Hit Parader and Rock Scene (and wrote for countless others) through today, working as a contributing editor for Vanity Fair (not quite the same, but she produces music issues). Her writing was always gossipy'n'fun and concentrated on fashion - something not done by "rock critics" previously. In fact, her column in Creem was Eleganza, solely reporting on what the stars wore. Her book continues in a light-hearted way, but is highly engaging and difficult to put down, especially for us who lived through the exciting days of 60's and 70's rock stardom. She does still talk in a gossipy way and still mentions what was worn and by whom.

She opens the book with literally a couple pages about herself (this is certainly not an autobiography, although she probably had a fascinating youth in NYC seeing early rock'n'roll like Screamin' Jay Hawkins, Little Richard, Chuck Berry and more) before jumping right into chapters on the huge stars like the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin. She references bits that I read back in the day in the afore-mentioned zines, like the famous quip about "Happy" being Keith Richards' song - "are you kidding? They're ALL Keith's songs"!

It is fairly incredible who she managed to hang out with and interview and many get their own chapters - Bowie, Iggy, Reed (her husband produced Lou's first solo record), John'n'Yoko, Phil Spector, Michael Jackson and on'n'on, as well as the burgeoning NY punk rock scene - Patti Smith, Television, the Ramones (Rock Scene was an early champion of the bruthers) and everyone else in between. She devotes a huge (40+ page) chapter to her friends, U2, and seems to be trying to convince people that they are way cooler than they actually are (Bono keeps saying that they were a "punk band", despite the protestations from other band members). Unfortunately, the long, long chapter on Eminem and rap is a snooze fest (does anyone who knows who Lisa is really care about rap? And, while looking for the image of this book cover, I discovered that the mysterious title is from Eminem - yeesh!) although the one on Lady Gaga is more interesting (I am astonished at how young she is, though) and she seems more down-to-earth, despite being so outrageous in her style. This also makes more sense to me (despite Robinson being fans of practically everyone she is writing about) since she started out writing about fashion in music. It is funny how all of these various people from very, very un-punk backgrounds constantly talk about how something - some action, some performance, but not their music - is "punk rock", as if they actually have an idea of what that really is. Maybe they think they need to say this to Robinson? I dunno - but it's pretty silly.

Despite the last few chapters being considerably less entertaining, the book, overall, is a blast and a great read! Buy it for the 70's rock'n'roll chapters!

recommended gigs

Friday Mar 23 - the Swank Bastards at the Huntridge Tavern

Saturday Mar 24 - Brochcho Fest at Bonnie Springs Ranch with Water Landing, Until the Eclipse, Johnny Zig and the Force and Thee Swank Bastards - starts at 11:00 AM

Monday Mar 26 - the Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Tuesday Mar 27 - the Reeves Brothers at the Sand Dollar

Wednesday Mar 28 - The Swank Bastards at the Double Down

Friday Mar 30 - Dominiki at Evel Pie
Friday Mar 30 - Franks'n'Deans and the All Togethers at the Hard Rock on the Strip

Saturday Mar 31 - the Swamp Gospel with the Psyatics (for the record release show!) and more at the Double Down

Sunday April 1 - Garage Ma Hall Takeover benefit for Keith Alcantara with:Shanda & The Howlers,FLUX, Superstar Bingo, Pitchfork, The Unwieldies, Dr. Vibus,Donzo’s Cosmos,Gravity Surfer and the Cosmic Bus Ride,Drums with Community Productions,Flame Troupe 'Flameology'

Monday April 2 - the Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday April 4 - Dickies, Queers, Jerk! at the Beauty Bar

Thursday April 5 - the Legendary Shack Shakers at the Beauty Bar
Thursday April 5 - Wanda Jackson at Backstage Bar and Billiards

Saturday April 7 - The Psyatics, the Pluralses, Better Broken and the Whining Pussys at the Dive Bar

Sunday April 8 - Dead Meadow and the Acid Sisters at the Bunkhouse

Monday April 9 - the Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Friday April 13 - The Swank Bastards at the Double Down

Saturday April 14 - the New Waves at the Golden Tiki

Monday April 16 - the Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday April 18 - Peelander-Z, Time Crashers and Illicitor at the Beauty Bar

Thursday April 19 - the Terrorsaurs, Psyatics, Swank Bastards at the Double Down

Saturday April 21 - Fuzz Solow at the Golden Tiki

Monday April 23 - the legendary Rev Beat Man with the Swamp Gospel and the Psyatics at the Beauty Bar

Saturday May 19 - the New Waves at the Golden Tiki


Friday Sept 7 - Hot Tuna at Brooklyn Bowl

What have I forgotten? Lemme know

Sativa LuvBox - Beloved Satellite

Pat Mata was among the first musicians that I met in LA and, in fact, my often-forgotten first show in Hollywood (due to it being a one-off project and I was simply the guitarist) was at the Cathay de Grande opening for the original incarnation of Kommunity FK. We've been in and out of touch since then, but I followed his career and saw this 90's project a few times and enjoyed his new take on melodic/goth/ psych/rock'n'roll. Funnily, just after I pulled this CD out again for the first time in ages, Pat found me on Facebook. It has taken me far too long to write about this.

This trio was dedicated to Pat's girlfriend at the time, who went by the name of Sativa, so, yes, the band was named after her...well, you know... In any case, Mata always had a wonderful voice - dulcet and often soaring, and had a gift for melody, as is evidenced in the rockin' "Warm Inside". His guitar work tends to take a back seat to his vocals, but he is creative and biting here, with just the proper use of effects to add to the song and not overpower it. Heavy bass, cool guitar riffs and wailin' harmonica highlight the sing-along "U Got It All Wrong", hypnotic psych (similar to what Sundial would later do) permeates "See Me in the Sky", "Shock Shop" has a similar feel, the title track is a fuzz-guitar-led semi-ballad, while "Let's Be Forever" is a full-fledged power ballad, in the best sense of the word, with Pat's passionate, soaring voice leading the way on a song that, in a fair world, would have been a massive hit.

Heavy guitar and punk-rock speed are back for the lascivious "Orgy Inna Bed of Flowers" and the powerful "Pagan Son", while "Acid City" is simply a sound effect track, "Ooze" is aptly psychedelic while still energetic, riff-laden and memorably repetitive, "Wet With Power" has a hard-rock/dance beat with fierce guitars and they close out with a convincing cover of Syd Barrett's "No Good Trying".

This combo was definitely more psych than goth, but there are still elements of that, along with everything else that makes Pat tick, in here. This was a really strong release by an enduring artist that is still vibrant today. Worth searching out!

Marianne Faithfull - Broken English

Obviously, I was aware of Marianne from her time as a pop diva in the 60's, so when this album was released in late 1979, I picked it up to see what she was up to in this era. With a considerably rougher voice due to a bout of severe laryngitis and years of abuse, her material matched this new sound, with edgey songs that came out of the punk scene but with a new-wave-y, keyboard sound (done by Steve Winwood, which I hadn't realized or had forgotten). Normally, this would be a bit off-putting, but somehow it all works in context.

Opening with the title track and its pulsating rhythms'n'keys, this wouldn't sound completely out of place on Iggy's records from the time - The Idiot or Lust For Life. "Witches' Song" is a melodic, catchy ballad with a great chorus, "Brain Drain" is equally, darkly catchy, with a nice groove, and side one closes with a defiant Marianne alternating between refusing to feel "Guilt" and being consumed by it.

One of my faves, and many others, apparently (as it has been used in numerous movies and TV shows), is her cover of Shel Silverstein's "Ballad of Lucy Jordan", a emotional tale of a wasted life that either ends in suicide or madness, depending on your interpretation. There have been a number of versions of this tune, but none as powerful as Marianne's. Appropriately, "What's the Hurry" is the most fast-paced song of the album and even with the new-wave production, it's pretty darn rockin'. Her take on John Lennon's "Working Class Hero" is fierce and gripping - possibly surpassing the original with her terrific rendering and the accenting guitars. Of course, one of her most famous/infamous number is the vicious "Why D'Ya Do It", a vitriolic, venomous diatribe at her cheating lover, done with Television-like guitars, a pseudo-reggae beat and some of the harshest lyrics'n'delivery ever conceived.

While the production sounds a bit dated today, this is still probably Faithfull's best work - in fact, she has called it her masterpiece. Highly recommended!

Jimi Hendrix - First Rays of the New Rising Sun

The record compiles songs that were considered for Jimi's fourth studio album (to follow Electric Ladyland) and which have been released previously on vinyl as Cry of Love, Rainbow Bridge and War Heroes, but this 17 song CD version has been released with the approval of the family and with the help of long time engineer Eddie Kramer.

Backed by Mitch Mitchell and Billy Cox, Jimi runs through the songs that I mentioned from Cry of Love, as well as now-classics like the Hendrix-ized blues of "Izabella" (a fave from Woodstock Volume 2), the psychedelic rocker "Room Full of Mirrors", and another of my posthumous faves, "Dolly Dagger" ("she drinks her blood from a jagged edge"), with its cool licks and heavy fuzz bass. "Beginnings" is the riff-laden instrumental that goes off on a few tangents and that also appears in Woodstock, "Stepping Stone" has nothing to do with the hit song by the same name, but has more fine playing throughout, and "Hey Baby (New Rising Sun)" had numerous incarnations, but was another fave with its simple chord progression, memorable melody'n'lyrics and, of course, terrific guitar work and "Earth Blues" seems to be a tune that was more finalized than some, as has a more fully realized arrangement, complete with female backing vocals.

Combined with the material from Cry of Love, this release is pretty darn stellar and solid throughout. As I always say, the official releases are the right starting points, but any sane person will want more, and this is highly recommended/

A Different Beat - Writings from the Women of the Beat Generation

An interesting premise, and one long-overlooked and under-valued, the women of the Beat Generation were artists in their own right but were overshadowed by the men. Of course, some of this was due to the politics of the time - women were not respected by general society at this point and many of the Beat men were all-too-usual men  Some of it, too, was that some of the women's work was not as powerful as the men's - at least at the time.

In this volume we hear from numerous women of the 50's, some who later became well known (the women in Kerouac's life are accounted for) and many who faded into obscurity. They write frankly about sex - a taboo subject especially for women at the time - and about their relationships with the men of the scene - as supporters, as lovers, as friends. They speak of lesbianism, and of abortion but not that often of their own dreams and careers. Drugs, of course, are a big topic, as well - grass, natch, heroin and later, LSD.

I tend to prefer the prose to the poetry - as with a lot of people, poetry has to be something special to really grab me - but the stories are interesting and it's good to know that there were women speaking eloquently about their lives at this time.

Not great, overall, but intriguing and makes me want to read more from some of these women.

The Psyatics - Much Worse Things Happen at Sea

Putting most, less ambitious, Las Vegas bands to shame, the Psyatics have released their fourth studio album in 6 years. Following on the heels of 2016's Famous Monsters, this newest offering gives us more of their take on No-Wave/Noise/ Garage Rock'n'Roll, with ample Psyaticsized twists'n'turns, shrieks'n'shouts and clamorous beast-beats.

Opening with Jack Ball's layers of atmospheric guitar, Rob Bell adds his lopin'n'loopin'  bass licks to  Mark Bartschi's surfy drums and wastes no time in throat scorchin' the lyrics to "God's Gun". Guest horn man Gene Howley's vaguely Mid-Eastern/ Free Jazz sax riff punctuate "Psyatic Nerves" and the band creates a discordant swing in "Warm F-Holes".

I have never knowingly listened to Pink Floyd's Animals and the song "Pigs" is not particularly catchy or memorable, but the Psyatics dynamic, punchy version with its waves of wah's is growing on me. "Sheep In Wolves' Clothing" has a very odd, syncopated time signature and plenty of No-Wave-y cacophony but remains memorable and riff laden, while Howley returns to accentuate "Prey On It" (and provides a lovely, screeching solo), which also benefits from Rob's wife Danielle's captivating voice. I can't be too objective about their cover of the Hives' "Two Timing Touch" as I appear on it on lead guitar, but they retain the power'n'energy of the original while changing it up pretty dramatically, as they are wont to do.

Swirlin' swells of feedback'n'guitar noise are layered over a somewhat laid-back, arpeggio'd bass riff with a drum beat that ebbs and flows between climbing, shrieking cries of "do it again" in "Repetition", "Two Cannibal Kings" is their take on sorta/kinda more straight-forward-but-tense post-punk rock and there's a mellow, jazz vibe to the title cut, with groovin' bass, swingin' drums, plenty of 9th chords, more nice backing vocals from Danielle and cool, discordant guitar solo (you can always bet on Jack coming up with some unusual melodies).

"Never Enough" gives us some raucously rousin' funk, with Howley's horns boppin'n'jabbin' throughout, while Jack's fuzz-ridden guitar riffs around Rob's rollin' bass and Mark's hep groove. "Inbreeder" is damn near poppy in its catchiness and head-boppin' beat and for the finale, Rob's pop culture roots show through again in "The Ludovico Technique", a reference to the aversion therapy that Alex goes through in A Clockwork Orange in an attempt to rehabilitate him. This is an ultra-rare mellow, acoustic tune - is that bongos I hear? A very different way for this always different band to close out their record!

If you read this blog at all, you know that I love this band and these guys, so I'm prejudiced, but this is another hot piece of polycarbonate plastic! Get it! (I just wish that they would include lyric sheets as Rob is a great writer!)

recommended gigs

Friday Mar 16 - Dougfest at the Bunkhouse

Saturday Mar 17 - Franks'n'Deans, Sheiks of Neptune, Geezus Cryst and Free Beer, Left Unattended at the Double Down
Saturday Mar 17 - The Unwieldies and Bogtrotter's Union at the Golden Tiki

Sunday Mar 18 - Jerk, Alan Six, the Sheckles, Three Rounds at Evel Pie

Monday Mar 19 - the Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Friday Mar 23 - the Swank Bastards at the Huntridge Tavern

Saturday Mar 24 - Brochcho Fest at Bonnie Springs Ranch with Water Landing, Until the Eclipse, Johnny Zig and the Force and Thee Swank Bastards - starts at 11:00 AM

Monday Mar 26 - the Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Tuesday Mar 27 - the Reeves Brothers at the Sand Dollar

Wednesday Mar 28 - The Swank Bastards at the Double Down

Friday Mar 30 - Dominiki at Evel Pie

Saturday Mar 31 - the Swamp Gospel with the Psyatics (for the record release show!) and more at the Double Down

Wednesday April 4 - Dickies, Queers, Jerk! at the Beauty Bar

Thursday April 5 - the Legendary Shack Shakers at the Beauty Bar
Thursday April 5 - Wanda Jackson at Backstage Bar and Billiards

Saturday April 7 - The Psyatics, the Pluralses, Better Broken and the Whining Pussys at the Dive Bar

Sunday April 8 - Dead Meadow and the Acid Sisters at the Bunkhouse

Saturday April 14 - the New Waves at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday April 18 - Peelander-Z, Time Crashers and Illicitor at the Beauty Bar

Thursday April 19 - the Terrorsaurs, Psyatics, Swank Bastards at the Double Down

Monday April 23 - the legendary Rev Beat Man with the Swamp Gospel and the Psyatics at the Beauty Bar

Saturday May 19 - the New Waves at the Golden Tiki


Friday Sept 7 - Hot Tuna at Brooklyn Bowl

What have I forgotten? Lemme know

RIP Charlie (Chala) Quintana

Although he played with numerous people throughout his career, he was a founding member of the legendary Plugz and played with Social Distortion for a number of years. Another one gone way too young.

RIP Nokie Edwards

Nokie Edwards, the Ventures' influential lead guitarist, dies at 82 
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The Reeves Brothers at Saddle'n'Spurs, Sunday Mar 11, 2018

I'm always grateful when a good band plays nearby us, and it's especially great when they play early enough that we can check them out and still be home at a reasonable time for work the next day. Saddle'n'Spurs is our local honly-tonk that starts live music at 7:00 pm on Sundays and this evening they hosted our fave local (by way of Pahrump) C&W band (and winners of the Ameripolitan award for Honky Tonk Group), the Reeves Brothers.

I've ranted'n'raved a few times about brothers Matt'n'Cole who, along with bassist Kelly, make up the band the Reeves Brothers. They have yet to maintain a regular drummer so this evening they featured SnS Manager (and regular performer), Bobby Kingston on the skins. The brothers are a couple of the best guitarists'n'singers you're likely to see in any genre, and Kelly'n'Bobby kept the country swingin' and the guests dancin'.

This night the club was about as crowded as I have ever seen it and the couples kept the dance floor full all night. The clientele here is usually a bit older , so the Brothers adjusted the set a bit to accommodate and kept the tempo as a slow-to-medium pace throughout the night (as opposed to the more rockin' C&W they tend to perform at "rock" clubs). But, the set was great, with plenty of their usual classics - Waylon, Jimmy Reed, Merle, Glen Campbell and more - mixed in with originals from their two CDs, and their humorous banter throughout. They hosted a special guest this evening, Sal Santiago, who hails from Nashville and who has graced the stage of the Grand Ols Opry, Opryland and even appeared on the TV show Hee Haw! They seemed ready to play as long as people were willing to dance when we left and I'm sure the entire crowd was left well satisfied!

Jesika Von Rabbit and the Phantoms at Artifice, Friday Mar 9, 2018

Friday nights can be tough at times, but I haven't seen my old pal, Lee Joseph, for a while and it had been a f'k of a week, so I could use a night out.

Unfortunately, I got there somewhat late and missed the openers, Trevor and the Jones, the Vegas-based psysh/garage combo has just started playing out again so I'm sure I will catch them at some point. I did catch the last song of Fans of Jimmy Century, who are an electronic duo doing dance music - not exactly my thing, but seemed to be visually entertaining.

Lee did some DJ'ing during the night, playing cool garage/soul/60's dance music and was joined on the turntables by Dizzy Lizzy, who also pulled out some stellar tracks.

I have seen Issac Rother and the Phantoms just last year opening for Guitar Wolf and dug their brand of spooky 60's rock'n'roll. They mix garage with frat rock, some 50's doo-wop and r'n'r and whatever else that comes to mind, with a lyrical bent towards camp horror stories - in fact they call themselves an R'n'B Horror Revue Show. Everyone is dressed in black with Issac, a Rob Ryner look-alike, donning bones and a cape and a female backing singer/dancer in a skimpy jumpsuit and cape. The songs are fun and danceable with a solid rhythm backing, cool, reverbed guitar licks (they even did a creepy surf instro) and the female singer adding a lot with her backing vocals and taking lead to belt out a great take on Howlin' Wolf's "Evil". Totally enjoyable project - I will certainly see them again when they come back through town.

Joshua Tree's Jesika Von Rabbit has added a guitar and live drums to their mix of backing tapes/keys/bass (Lee Joseph) in their line up to beef up the sound and give their style of electronica dance music a bit more of a r'n'r edge'n'energy. They still use backing tapes and some electronic drums, but the live kit certainly adds another dimension to the sound, as does the effect-laden guitar. Lee, of course, is a superb bassist who adds some heavy fuzz to the bottom end as Jesika layers keys on top of it all while singing, performing, and interacting with the audience. They did not have the extra dancers that accompanied them last time I saw them, but they still know how to put on a show! Dance music is what they provide and the audience definitely were happy to participate! The encore, I believe it was a new song called "Innuendo", relied less on backing tracks and was more of a straight-ahead garage rocker. Always worth seeing!

Due to the afore-mentioned f'k of a week, I was pretty wiped out and I missed the psychedelic sounds of Spindrift (who I dug when I saw them a few years back), but thanks to Brian Moy and his Dirty Rock'n'Roll Dance Party for another hip'n'happening show!

recommended gigs

Friday Mar 9 - Spindrift, Jesika Von Rabbit, Trevor and the Jones and more at Artifice
Friday Mar 9 - The Swank Bastards at the Double Down

Saturday Mar 10 - the Blasters and Shanda and the Howlers, the Van der Rohe and the First Sun at Backstage Bar and Billiards
Saturday Mar 10 - the New Waves at the Golden Tiki
Saturday Mar 10 - the Unwieldies at the Dillinger

Sunday Mar 11 - the Reeves Brothers at Saddle'n'Spurs

Monday Mar 12 - the Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Friday Mar 16 - Dougfest at the Bunkhouse

Saturday Mar 17 - Franks'n'Deans, Sheiks of Neptune, Geezus Cryst and Free Beer, Left Unattended at the Double Down
Saturday Mar 17 - The Unwieldies and Bogtrotter's Union at the Golden Tiki

Sunday Mar 18 - Jerk, Alan Six, the Sheckles, Three Rounds at Evel Pie

Monday Mar 19 - the Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Friday Mar 23 - the Swank Bastards at the Huntridge Tavern

Monday Mar 26 - the Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Tuesday Mar 27 - the Reeves Brothers at the Sand Dollar

Wednesday Mar 28 - The Swank Bastards at the Double Down

Friday Mar 30 - Dominiki at Evel Pie

Saturday Mar 31 - the Swamp Gospel with the Psyatics (for the record release show!) and more at the Double Down

Wednesday April 4 - Dickies, Queers, Jerk! at the Beauty Bar

Thursday April 5 - the Legendary Shack Shakers at the Beauty Bar
Thursday April 5 - Wanda Jackson at Backstage Bar and Billiards

Saturday April 7 - The Psyatics, the Pluralses, Better Broken and the Whining Pussys at the Dive Bar

Sunday April 8 - Dead Meadow and the Acid Sisters at the Bunkhouse

Thursday April 19 - the Terrorsaurs, Psyatics, Swank Bastards at the Double Down

Monday April 23 - the legendary Rev Beat Man with the Swamp Gospel and the Psyatics at the Beauty Bar


Friday Sept 7 - Hot Tuna at Brooklyn Bowl

What have I forgotten? Lemme know

Jimi Hendrix - Roots of Hendrix

Again, forgive me if I have reviewed this somewhere on this blog before, but my search does not come up with it, which, again, I find odd. In any case, this record was released in order to cash in on Hendrix's immense fame, and I believe (if I remember correctly), it was after his death, when desire for new material from the man was at its greatest.

Of course, this is not actually a Hendrix record, but a compilation of some studio work that he had done before becoming a solo artist. Here the main man is actually Lonnie Youngblood, a sax player/vocalist who sets a funky/soulful tone throughout the sessions. Also appearing are two other guitarists - Herman Hitson and Lee Moses - along with an unnamed rhythm section. As I said, this is funky soul music, with the band acting as a band and Jimi only occasionally stepping out, and when he does, it is without the wild guitar histrionics that we now know him for. Naturally, this is not surprising as this was before he started working with Marshall amps and the various effects that are now synonymous with Hendrix. But, when you're a kid in the 70's looking for more Hendrix, this was a bit of a let-down.

Regardless, these days, it's a fun romp through some cool dance music where Jimi is mostly a backing musician, but he does get to tear off a few great leads and even vocalizes with Lonnie on one number. I'm not sure if this is still available - I can't even remember when I bought this first - but it's an entertaining look at the pre-fame side of Hendrix.

Otis Reddng / The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Live at Monterey (LP)

I still consider the Experience's performance at Monterey as one of the greatest rock'n'roll shows that I have ever witnessed (albeit only on film). The band was just starting out and were hungry as hell for the stardom that would soon follow and wanted to "make it" in America so they would pull out all of the stops - they dressed amazing, they put on a mind-boggling show (especially Jimi, of course) and they played like no one had ever heard before. The band was super tight and the songs were fantastic. Seeing the Monterey film and just catching the sight of Jimi mangling "Wild Thing" and lighting his guitar on fire made me a life-long fan. When I finally was able to see the entire performance, I was knocked out! Of course, this document, being simply a single LP covering two artists, has edited both performers' sets, but is still a magical representation of the time. Their entire sets have since been released and those should certainly be procured, but this was a must-have when this was all that was available.

Side one is Jimi's side, and the four songs chosen to represent him are his incredible take on Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone" (so many people interpreted Dylan, and many did a great job, but few could make his songs their own like Jimi did), his super-charged version of the traditional "Rock Me, Baby" that has since gone on to be THEE version, the original "Can You See Me" and, of course, "Wild Thing". As I said, the playing is superb throughout and the energy is perfect.

Otis comes blazing out with a sped-up "Shout!" that literally takes his breath away before he moves on to his own "Respect" (a hit for Aretha Franklin at the time), his sexy, soulful ballad "I've Been Loving You Too Long", his classic version of the Stones' "Satisfaction" that they would later use as a template for their own live shows and finally, the dynamic build-up of his wonderful "Try a Little Tenderness".

As I said, now that the full versions are available, those should be sought out, but how great was this LP when it first appeared?

Jimi Hendrix - Cry of Love

After watching the Voodoo Child documentary last night, I was naturally drawn to my Hendrix vinyl this morning to see what I had that wasn't already reissued on CD. This release kinda straddles the line, as the songs have been reissued at various times (most recently as First Rays of the New Rising Sun, which I'm sure I have reviewed but I'll be damned if my search will fine it), but not in this particular order and as this particular release.

Of course, Hendrix fanatics were desperately seeking anything new in the years after his death - who could imagine that so many releases would eventually see light, with more to come? - and while this doesn't match the brilliance of Axis or Ladyland, it is a heckuva strong effort.

This vinyl compiles the rockin' opener "Freedom" with the ballad "Drifting", the funky "Ezy Ryder", the intricate guitar interplay of "Night Bird Flying" and a cool psychedelic blues in "My Friend". For side two we get the high energy "Straight Ahead", the somewhat silly "Astro Man" (with lyrics from Saturday morning cartoons), the beautiful ballad "Angel" (right up there with "Little Wing" as a couple of his prettiest love songs), the hard, riff-rockin' "In From the Storm" (one of my faves from the man) and finally, another sparse, psych-blues in "Belly Button Window".

Now that everything has been reissued, I suppose there is no real need for this vinyl, but just imagine being a teenaged Hendrix freak in the 70's and finding out that there was new material from this genius! Wonderful stuff.

Joe Cocker - Mad Dog With Soul

Joe Cocker was one of the many artists who burst on the scene via the move Woodstock, with his tremendous version of "With a Little Help From My Friends". The single had actually gotten some serious airplay previous to the movie, but the film catapulted him into stardom. Only a few years before, he had been a pudgy British teen mimicking Ray Charles in the local pub and suddenly he was a slightly psychotic r'n'r blues belter rock star.

The interviews with Joe and his band are classic, but I kinda lose interest when boring f*ks like Billy Joel are put on the screen. But, of course, his work with massive artists like Leon Russell and Rita Coolidge and Bobby Keys and Claudia Lennear and the majestic'n'massive gospel troupe, Mad Dogs and Englishmen line-up will forever go down in rock history. Although the MD&E tour was a fantastic success musically, if not financially, it took a major toll on Joe - he did drugs, his psyche was shattered and his personality changed. Despite his enormous profile, he dropped out of the music scene for 2 years before making a comeback of sorts, although his self-destructive habits jinxed it.

Funnily, the documentary skips his huge hits "High Time We Went"/"Feelin' Alright" and goes straight to the maudlin'n'murky "You Are So Beautiful" - a smash, but an albatross and a terrible ballad. Unfortunately, half of the doc is Joe in his wimpiest days, although the story is still compelling - like when management gets him a band that is sober, in the hopes of helping him, but then augments it with Bobby Keys and Nicky Hopkins - hardly clean-cut kids! The shows and the band were not up to his old standards, though. His material gets weaker and weaker and although his popularity rises, he changes from an exciting rock/blue/soul belter to a forgettable AOR, pop/pap crooner. I'm glad for his fortune, but artistically, it is a travesty that an artist with so much power and potential turned into something forgettable.

The later years are dull, but it led to his international success and celebrity, although he had to fight years of alcoholism (which he eventually conquered). He did seem to find happiness with his wife in a quiet life in Colorado, but the years of abuse and hard work eventually caught up with him and he died of cancer at 70.

An interesting life, to be sure, but most rock'n'rollers will really only be interested in the first part of this doc.

Jimi Hendrix - Voodoo Child (documentary)

I really thought that I had reviewed this before, because I know that I've watched it, but I can't find it if I did. In any case, as Hendrix is one of my all-time fave musicians, I will check out pretty much anything that he is associated with. This documentary is made up of various film clips of Jimi, with the narration - by Bootsy Collins (!) - Jimi's own words, taken from letters and interviews. The story is always familiar, but I enjoy the various takes on it and love to hear about Jimi playing the "Chitlin Circuit" with the likes of the Isley Brothers, Little Richard and many others. He never lasted long as the backing musician for any other act as he always had his own ideas and always wanted to explore different sounds and make a r'n'r spectacle of himself. Of course, his "discovery" by Chas Chandler gave him that chance and rock'n'roll music was never the same again.

As Hendrix talks of his influences, you see them show up blatantly in his music - Muddy Waters, Chuck Berry, Howlin' Wolf - but he mixes it all up with the purest essence of the 60's to create his own sound - pure blues, but a blues unlike any ever heard before. They were also one of the most visual bands ever to exist at that point - Jimi's outrageous stage behavior but also their incredible clothes and stellar playing. The story is one that has been told multiple times, but it's always so great to see the footage and always so heartbreaking to think of what this man could have accomplished if only...

This man is one of my biggest influences - I never was able to put together what I wanted, but it would have been a mix of Jimi, Alice and the MC5. Anyway, I will never tire of watching this man's immense talent.

The Beatles Live at the Star Club

After watching the George Harrison documentary yesterday I was naturally drawn to my Beatles vinyl this morning, initially thinking I would single out some Harrison tunes, but came across this and realized I hadn't heard it for quite a while. This is a single mic recording from the group's final appearance at the Star Club - and this time with Ringo in tow - before rising to fame in their native country. Taken from a few performances in December of '62, this shows the group in a pretty raw'n'raucous form, and is fairly low fidelity but to today's ears, the sound really isn't that bad - you can hear every instrument and while the vocals might be slightly muffled, this is significantly better than most bootlegs.

Apparently, there have been a variety of releases based on these tapes with some different song selections but this concentrates on their 50's r'n'r stylings, with a number of Chuck Berry covers ("Roll Over Beethoven", "Little Queenie", "Sweet Little Sixteen"), a couple of Carl Perkins ("Lend Me Your Comb", his take on "Matchbox"), some Ray Charles (pre-Stones version of "Talkin' 'bout You", "Hallelujah I Love Her So"), "Be Bop a Lula", "Long Tall Sally", "Hippy Hippy Shake" and plenty more. A few quieter moments, like "Mr. Moonlight" and "A Taste of Honey" are a nice change of pace (I'm sure they had to do all kinds of different styles during their residency), and they even have a guest vocalist or two.

Their irreverent stage banter is fun, as well, and this is a good documentation of their live shows, pre-stardom. I bought my 2-LP set ("also available on 8 track cartridges and cassettes"!) new in 1977 (Lingasong Records) and I don't know if this is still procurable - the band was not happy with its release - but I dig it as a fine moment in rock'n'roll history.

George Harrison - Living in a Material World

This documentary by Martin Scorsese highlights the life of the "quiet Beatle", George Harrison, from the time that he joined him most famous band at 17 through to the end of his life, losing a battle with cancer. He was a truly fascinating character - maybe the most fascinating of the band - and while the film glosses over some of his shortcomings (there are tales of his cruelty and womanizing elsewhere), he still comes across as a multi-faceted, loving human being.

The film is comprised mainly of interviews and Scorsese has access to practically everyone that George worked with, from Paul and Ringo through to Eric Clapton (who talks frankly of his relationship with George's wife) and Tom Petty. His wife and son participate and there is a lot of vintage footage of every aspect of his life - obviously, you have to love the early Beatles photos and films - and plenty of interviews with George himself, which are revealing, naturally.

The story truly is amazing and could only have happened with the 60's as a starting point. His time in Germany, their rise to fame, his devotion to Krishna and Indian music (and his friendship with Ravi Shankar) and his studies of the sitar, his departure from the Beatles (he is actually the one who left first, although he allowed himself to be talked back in), his solo career, drug use (although this is also kind of skirted), some pretty awful shows, his work with Monty Python, his obsession with the ukelele, the Traveling Willburys, his bout with cancer, the crazed attacker in his home and his eventual demise. Obviously, there is much more in this

Everyone interviewed shows a great love for George and it is very touching and shows that despite his faults, his goodness and talent prevailed. Although it is almost 3 and a half hours long, you could easily watch considerably more and never be bored by this incredible life and the incredible music that he made. Highly recommended.

recommended gigs

Saturday Mar 3 - the Moanin' Blacksnakes at the opening of the Mint

Sunday Mar 4 - Goldtop Bob at the Sand Dollar
Sunday Mar 4 - Howlin' King Crawdad at Saddle'n'Spurs

Monday Mar 5 - the Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday Mar 7 - Franks'n'Deans at the Double Down

Friday Mar 9 - Spindrift, Jesika Von Rabbit, Trevor and the Jones and more at Artifice
Friday Mar 9 - The Swank Bastards at the Double Down

Saturday Mar 10 - the Blasters and Shanda and the Howlers, the Van der Rohe and the First Sun at Backstage Bar and Billiards
Saturday Mar 10 - the New Waves at the Golden Tiki
Saturday Mar 10 - the Unwieldies at the Dillinger

Monday Mar 12 - the Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Saturday Mar 17 - Franks'n'Deans, Sheiks of Neptune, Geezus Cryst and Free Beer, Left Unattended at the Double Down
Saturday Mar 17 - The Unwieldies and Bogtrotter's Union at the Golden Tiki

Sunday Mar 18 - Jerk, Alan Six, the Sheckles, Three Rounds at Evel Pie

Monday Mar 19 - the Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Friday Mar 23 - the Swank Bastards at the Huntridge Tavern

Monday Mar 26 - the Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Tuesday Mar 27 - the Reeves Brothers at the Sand Dollar

Wednesday Mar 28 - The Swank Bastards at the Double Down

Friday Mar 30 - Dominiki at Evel Pie

Saturday Mar 31 - the Swamp Gospel with the Psyatics (for the record release show!) and more at the Double Down

Wednesday April 4 - Dickies, Queers, Jerk! at the Beauty Bar

Thursday April 5 - the Legendary Shack Shakers at the Beauty Bar
Thursday April 5 - Wanda Jackson at Backstage Bar and Billiards

Saturday April 7 - The Psyatics, the Pluralses, Better Broken and the Whining Pussys at the Dive Bar

Sunday April 8 - Dead Meadow and the Acid Sisters at the Bunkhouse

Thursday April 19 - the Terrorsaurs, Psyatics, Swank Bastards at the Double Down

Monday April 23 - the legendary Rev Beat Man with the Swamp Gospel and the Psyatics at the Beauty Bar

What have I forgotten? Lemme know