RIP Melanie Safka

Melanie, ‘Brand New Key’ Folk Singer Who Played Woodstock, Dead at 76

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I hate that her worst song is the one she's most known for, but Melanie had some terrific numbers, especially "Lay Down" (which Mott the Hoople covered successfully). A beautiful woman with a terrific voice - I definitely had a crush on her back in the day! Sad to hear of her leaving us so young.

Neil Young - Under the Covers

 

The title gives away the obvious theme of this mixed-bag collection - not a bad concept but not all of the songs are really rendered all that well, to be blunt. Nothing is terrible, of course - this is Neil Young, after all - but some were certainly done simply for fun and I'd be surprised if they were meant to be anything more.

Right off the bat, "Do You Wanna Dance" is surely an early fave of Neil's, but it is not a standout - not bad, fairly traditional, in fact, but not particularly interesting, other than Young's insanely (wasted?) over-the-top farewell to the audience on this live recording. More successful is the country-ish Canadian number from 1959, Joe London's "It Might Have Been", apparently a Canadian Top Forty hit so, again, surely a remembrance from his youth. I was also not familiar with Nils Lofgren's "Beggars Day", here given a noisy, live treatment, I assume with Crazy Horse, sounding like some of Neil's best crunchy tunes. "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" is an intriguing idea, especially since I believe that the MG's are backing him on this live show, but Neil's vocals aren't really up to this task, but how can he compete with Otis? He does do a fine job on a newer Dylan number called "Everything Is Broken", with off-kilter piano'n'harmonica, followed by another one of Dylan's, the heartfelt "Forever Young" (funny, considering Neil's last name!), from his grunge-y period, there's a trashy take on "Farmer John" (done on his Ragged Glory album), then yet another Dylan cover, "Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues" with some excellent, patented Neil Young electric guitar solos, shifting back to acoustic for a nice cover of Ian and Sylvia's "Four Strong Winds", which absolutely sounds like it could have been a Young original. Springsteen's "Hungry Heart" is done with the Boss, there's an odd, quiet instrumental take on "Greensleeves", yet another tune that I thought was Neil's - Don Gibson's "Oh Lonesome Me", his take on "All Along the Watchtower" that kinda blends Dylan's and Hendrix's, another oddity is "Stranger In Paradise", from the musical Kismet - definitely not what you would expect from Young - that then jumps into his rockabilly roots for Arthur Crudups' "That's Alright Mama" and this set closes out with another unusual one, a unique take on "On Broadway" - not sure that this one actually works, either, but it is different, especially the blasts of insanely overdriven guitar!

I got this one from the library so I don't have the liner note details, although I think that most, if not all, of these cuts are live with special guests appearing with Neil, but as I said, some work better than others and you probably won't need to hear some of these multiple times, but it is interesting to hear his wildly varied influences!

Neil Young - The Times

 

This EP is made up of live recordings that Young did in his home as part of The Fireside Sessions during the Covid pandemic. Once again, this simply features Neil and his guitar for a mere 7 songs, including a cover of "The Times They Are A-Changin'", all of which are politically charged, as this was the painfully horrible Trump era. He even updates his Bush protest song "Looking For a Leader" (from his Living With War protest album) for this unfortunate'n'disastrous period of American history.

He starts things off with a surprisingly full-sounding version of "Alabama" - to the point where I initially thought there were others on this track, although it appears to be just Neil and his guitar - he could fill a tune all on his own! "Campaigner", with the infamous line about Nixon having soul, is given a nice reading, "Ohio" is still powerful in an acoustic setting, he gives a tribute to Dylan with "The Things They Are A-Changin'", complete with a harmonica solo which is more melodic than Dylan original performed! His bluesy, footstompin', harmonica-fueled update of "Looking For a Leader 2020" is, in my opinion, the centerpiece of this EP, with its lyrics of hope in a world gone mad. It's tough to follow that one, but he brings out "Southern Man", with harmonica taking the place of the wild, electric solos on the original, but otherwise sounding pretty damn strong, and he closes with a number that I'm not familiar with called "Little Wing" (not the Hendrix song, obviously)  that is a pretty ballad, but also seems a bit unfinished and loose, without a lot of structure - certainly the odd song out of this collection.

Although I love Young's electric madness, I've also been a fan of his acoustic work for as long as I can remember, so I'm going to dig stuff like this. It certainly could have been longer, though, especially considering that it was obviously a low-budget recording. Regardless, again, fans will certainly want it.

recommended gigs

 Thursday 1-25-24 - Fuzz Solo at Fat Cats

Friday 1-26-24 - Thee Hypnotiques at the Golden Tiki

Friday 1-26-24 - Shanda and the Howlers at Mabels

Saturday 1-27-24 -  Late night -Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Monday 1-29-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Tuesday 1-30-24 - Fuzz Solow at Fat Cat

Thursday 2-1-24 - Fuzz Solow at Fat Cat

Friday 2-2-24 - The Bitters, Mondo Vermin, Red Moon One, Noize Complaint at Backstage Bar and Billiards

Saturday 2-3-24 - The New Waves at the Golden Tiki

Sunday 2-4-24 - the Minges, the Out There and War Peggy at Red Dwarf

Monday 2-5-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 2-7-24 - Franks'n'Deans Weenie Roast at the Double Down

Friday 2-9-24 - The Implosions, Las Nalgonas, the Hideaway at Cemetery Pulp

Saturday 2-10-24 - the Unwieldies at Boulder Dam Brewery 

Monday 2-12-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Friday 2-16-24 - Suburban Resistance and Mismiths at the Dive Bar

Saturday 2-17-25 - The Psyatics with Stagnettis Cock and VaVoom at Founder’s Club

Saturday 2-17-24 - Junkyard at the Dive Bar

Saturday 2-17-24 - Late night -Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Monday 2-19-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Monday 2-26-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Monday 3-11-24 - The Psyatics at Joecephus and the George Joneston Massacre at Fat Cat

Thursday 3-14-24 - The Silhouettes at the Double Down

Friday 3-15-24 - the Silhouettes with Fur Dixon and the Psyatics at Red Dwarf

Tuesday 3-19-24 - IV and the Strange Band at SoulBelly BBQ

Thursday 4-11-24 - The Hangmen at the Dive Bar

Saturday 5-25-24 - Guitar Wolf, the Schizophonics, the Shakewells and Lords of Altamont at the Usual Place

RIP Shelley Ganz on The Unclaimed

 

Where do tou even start on something like this?

My life would be very different if not for the Unclaimed. We all became friends (me, my then sorta girlfriend, Aldyth, and roommate Eddie), opening a social scene for us, who had all just moved to LA. We were amazed to see a band that not only knew but replicated the likes of the Sonics and Chocolate Watchband, as well as much more obscure bands that even us music fanatics did not know. I became entrenched in the burgeoning garage scene, having lived through the original 60's, and I became quite the fanatic. I eventually joined the band 6 or 7 months before Sid and Barry left to form the Long Ryders, but it was an amazing time. Shelley and I (and drummer Matt Roberts) persevered and found bassist Ray Flores and continued as a four piece for a few more years, opening for the likes of the Cramps, and having many more bands who later became famous, open for us (Bangs, Salvation Army, Los Lobos, and too many more to name). Eventually, I started writing more and Ray and Matt came with me to form the less restrictive Thee Fourgiven, but that's another story.

Shelley and I were pretty close during the band days, with lots of late night discussions on music, religion (he was interested in Buddhism, although never - to my knowledge - a complete convert, but some of his lyrics make his interest obvious), comic books ("Betty Cooper", anyone? He enjoyed lots of others, as well, including being a huge Conan fan and wishing he could have lived in those times), and lots more. Music was a life-line for him, as it was for me, and our lives revolved around it. He was a true visionary - more than me, for sure - and while he was restrictive, he knew what he wanted and he deservedly received respect for following those visions, even when it was hard to find others to join him.

Without the Unclaimed, I wouldn't have known Shelley, Sid, Barry, Matt or Ray or even Lee Joseph, who became another close friend and helped me and Thee Fourgiven in infinite ways. Of course, there are innumerable others who joined us in our crazy journey and many more stories to tell...

Shit, I'm sure that memories will continue to come to me but while we had a falling out - over women, what else? - and we were never super close afterwards, we were still friendly and I was happy for his recent revivalist successes. Hell, he just put out a new record and just played a gig a couple of weeks ago.

This fucking sucks....Hope you're under the bohdi tree now, my friend...

RIP Mary Weiss

Mary Weiss, Lead Singer of The Shangri-Las, Dead at 75 

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Of course, I've been a huge fan of the Shangri-Las since they first appeared on the scene. Definitely the hippest, toughest, swingingest girl group with great songs and image!

Neil Young - Hitchhiker

 

Our local library definitely has someone who is a Neil Young fan working there and that's no problem for me as I dig finding these releases for free! This is a fairly fascinating album - released in 2017 (his 37th studio album!), it was actually recorded in 1976 in one night with just Neil and his acoustic guitar (and occasional harmonica). The record label thought these were unfinished and did not release it as an album at the time, but certain takes later received overdubs and became well known numbers, such as "Pocahontas".

That number opens this CD and, of course, it sounds familiar, but stripped down, showing the strength of the number on its own, and following in this vein is "Powderfinger", which also sounds like it could have been the backing track for the take we all now know. "Captain Kennedy" shows off his finger-pickin' style (nice, traditional-sounding melody, as well), "Hawaii" and "Give Me Strength" were previously unreleased before this album but the former is another quiet, well written ballad, while the latter is a mid-tempo strummer with another strong melody - certainly no reason why these should have been neglected, other than the fact that Neil always has lots more where these come from.

"Ride My Llama" is pretty similar to the later version, with its downtuned stummin' (not dissimilar to numbers like "Cinnamon Girl" in basic feel), but, at one minute, 50 seconds, it definitely feels unfinished, but the title cut is upbeat and powerful, even in this stripped down take, and is fully formed and a fine tune, as is "Campaigner", with his famous line about Nixon having soul (still don't believe that one), "Human Highway" is another of Neil's which sounds like it easily could have been an old, traditional folk tune but, of course, with his unique twists, and the record concludes with "The Old Country Waltz" which is, indeed, a sad, waltz beat, performed on the piano (with harmonica accompaniment) for a change, and sounding like a good ending number, somehow - perhaps due to its melancholy nature.

I can see why a record label would want the performances to be a bit more fleshed out, especially in the mid-70's, but Neil has always been able to carry a performance on his own. I dig these intimate looks at his songs - fans will certainly want this!

George Thorogood and the Destroyers - 30 Years of Rock - Greatest Hits

 I think that I first heard George Thorogood in the late 70's, as I was just really discovering more about original blues music. I dug his firey guitar work and his simplistic arrangements, all based on the works of the likes of Elmore James, John Lee Hooker, Bo Diddley and more. As he got more popular, I kinda lost track of him, but I've been interested in revisiting his stuff for a while so when I found this one at the library, I grabbed it.

He starts this set with his take on Elmore's "Madison Blues", showing off his slide prowess in this upbeat boogie, and speaking of boogie (chillen), he does an excellent take on Hooker's "One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer", organizing the arrangement a bit, adding some of his own rap, some excellent riffage, and creating one of his best known performances. He turns Hank Williams' country classic "Move It On Over" into a slide guitar rocker, "Who Do You Love" - c'mon, is it possible to do a bad version of this one? - into his own "Bad To the Bone", which, while good, I don't think is as successful as some of the others due to the over-the-top boasting and I know that's typical for blues music, but something here feels a bit forced, but it's still a rocker.

"I Drink Alone" I think works a bit better, and the puns are pretty funny, "Gear Jammer" is positively frantic, appropriate for a song about being on the run from the law, he takes on "Willie and the Hand Jive", "The Sky Is Crying" (Elmore's slow blues) and Chuck Berry's "Reelin' and Rockin"", all fairly faithfully. More upbeat blues-rock in "You Talk Too Much" and "If You Don't Start Drinkin'", a bit of teenage agnst in "Get a Haircut", more Berry-ish rock'n'roll in "Rockin' My Life Away", a little different bit of r'n'r for "American Made" - not sure how to describe this one, good'n'rockin' but a little different in an odd way - and it all closes with another, not as successful, take on "Who Do You Love", this one previously unreleased - probably realized it was an experiment that didn't quite work.

Pretty solid throughout although, as usual, I dig the earliest stuff the best, but not much to complain about here from start to finish. If ya dig simple, bluesy rock'n'roll, it's a goodie. 

Thank You - A Memoir - Sly Stone

 

Of course, I've been a huge fan of Sly and the Family Stone's brand of funk'n'roll since they started having hits back in the 60's. Their cuts sounded especially good over the PA at the local swimming pool in the summertime (hot fun!). Of course, seeing the band in the Woodstock movie clinched it - they were an amazing live act - wish I could have seen them in person, but I never got the chance.

Here, Sly (Sylvester Stewart) tells his tale with the help of Ben Greenman - it reads as if Sly is talking - with his hip, jive talkin' manner - and Ben simply organized everything, which is a fine way of doing it, actually. There is some of the usual familial background, but not overdoing it and Sly grows up surrounded by music and learns from his family as well as some theory in school. As with most musically inclined teenagers, he started his own bands and always kept a lookout for local talent and kept the interesting peeps in mind for the future. After a stint as a DJ (helping to hone his persona, lyrics and on-stage raps), a record producer (the Beau Brummels were a huge hit of his, as well as others who would only later became stars), and a recording artist in his own right (nothing came of it), he put together what would become the Family Stone.

After a bit of a slow start, the hits started coming fast'n'furious, and the band's schedule then sped up, as well, which caused a need for speed within the group - and Sly was not one to turn down a bit of mood enhancers. While the party seemed to get pretty crazy pretty quickly, Sly and the band was also able to keep the hits flowing - for a while. He admits to missing gigs and running late a lot but does try to make excuses, although they are not very convincing, especially as he talks about how big a part the drugs are playing by this point. 

The story starts to get a bit depressing here - the drugs, the excuses, the more-than-erratic behavior, the missed gigs, the lack of respect for others, the incoherent interviews. But, at the same time, Sly was in a happy relationship, expecting a child and planning a wedding at Madison Square Garden! It's a mixed bag for sure, and you can't argue with tunes like "Family Affair" (although There's a Riot Going On is a bit meandering) and "If You Want Me To Stay", but everything was becoming a bit wobbly, to say the least.

The post-stardom portion of the book is, unfortunately, the longest, as he goes into lots of trials, taxes, repossessions, violence, and more - and, of course, drugs'n'drugs'n'drugs. He had chances to get clean, but didn't have the desire and continually f'k'd up his own life. But he kept trying to work and he does mention doing some recording at the same studio that I was working at at this time - Silvery Moon with our pal, Gary Stern - which, unfortunately, he was busted at. He also mentions shows set up at the Las Palmas Theater in Hollywood - a place that I had played - that I considered going to, but, again, he was busted after one half-assed gig.

He continually received breaks'n'funds'n'chances galore - far more than he probably deserved at this point - and would be put up in apartments and given allowances but would just flush it all down the tube with drugs. He was not loyal to women in any way, shape or form, and it seems that he still does not believe that his disrespect was a problem in any way. He does not do himself any favors in his telling, in fact, he comes off as quite the ass, from personal relationships to disrespecting fans and promoters (and even his own band) who took chances on him (his story about "playing" Coachella is cringe-worthy).

Glad to have read it and good to hear the man's own point of view on how things went down and how he's survived, but it is not a fun story, unfortunately. But, the music that he made is still a treat!

recommended gigs

 Thursday 1-18-24 - Dog Party, the Snares, Negative Nancy, VaVoom at Red Dwarf

Saturday 1-20-24 - the Shakewells, the Implosions and the Boreouts at Red Dwarf

Saturday 1-20-24 - the Unwieldies and Big Like Texas at the Huntridge Tavern 

Saturday 1-20-24 - late night at the Golden Tiki - Thee Swank Bastards

Sunday 1-21-24 - Generic Surf Band at Red Dwarf’s Sunday Brunch 

Sunday 1-21-24 - Mac Sabbath with the Darts at Area 51

Monday 1-22-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Tuesday 1-23-24 - The Minges, Crimson Riot and the Drowns at the Griffin

Tuesday 1-23-24 - Glen Matlock with the Shakewells at Oxford at the Virgin Hotel

Thursday 1-25-24 - Fuzz Solo at Fat Cats

Friday 1-26-24 - Thee Hypnotiques at the Golden Tiki

Saturday 1-27-24 -  Late night -Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Friday 2-2-24 - The Bitters, Mondo Vermin, Red Moon One, Noize Complaint at Backstage Bar and Billiards

Saturday 2-3-24 - The New Waves at the Golden Tiki

Sunday 2-4-24 - the Minges, the Out There and War Peggy at Red Dwarf

Monday 2-5-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 2-7-24 - Franks'n'Deans Weenie Roast at the Double Down

Friday 2-9-24 - The Implosions, Las Nalgonas, the Hideaway at Cemetery Pulp

Saturday 2-10-24 - the Unwieldies at Boulder Dam Brewery 

Friday 2-16-24 - Suburban Resistance and Mismiths at the Dive Bar

Saturday 2-17-24 - Junkyard at the Dive Bar

Saturday 2-17-24 - Late night -Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Thursday 3-14-24 - The Silhouettes at the Double Down

Friday 3-15-24 - the Silhouettes with Fur Dixon and the Psyatics at Red Dwarf

Tuesday 3-19-24 - IV and the Strange Band at SoulBelly BBQ

Saturday 4-16-24 - The Unwieldies with Big Like Texas and Jeff Mix and the Songhearts at Gold Mine Tavern

Saturday 5-25-24 - Guitar Wolf, the Schizophonics, the Shakewells and Lords of Altamont at the Usual Place

P.P. Arnold - Soul Survivor - The Autobiography

 

Of course, I've been a fan of P.P. Arnold's talents ever since I first heard her, whether it was her smash solo hit, "The First Cut Is the Deepest" or her work with the likes of the Small Faces. I never knew much about her, other than that she was ravishingly lovely with a huge voice, so when I saw that she had released an autobiography, I had to pick it up.

She begins as a 17 year old mother of two (!) in an extremely abusive relationship who was just asked to audition as an Ikette! She leaves the house under false pretenses, gets the gig, goes to an Ike and Tina show and, predictably, gets beaten by her husband, which simply sets her resolve to leave and start her musical career.

From there she gets into her familial history, a necessary but ultimately slightly dull portion of any musician's bio, although without it you wouldn’t understand their motivations. The chapters alternate between her life in the road with Ike and Tina (unsurprisingly, Ike is physically and sexually abusive) and her family life, growing up in LA. She did not have it easy in either scenario.

Both tales turn out to be fascinating, if not a bit heartbreaking - she becomes pregnant at 15 via (essentially) rape by an abusive boyfriend, while her troubles with Ike and Tina give her the opportunity to travel to England, have an affair with Mick Jagger, and get offered a solo career with Andrew Loog Oldham - but only after spending weeks with virtual strangers in a country that she knew next to nothing about. She gets settled, gets a hit ("First Cut Is the Deepest"), has affairs with various stars (Hendrix, Marriott, of course, among others), travels, and works'n'sings with the likes of the Small Faces along with her own career.

Arnold is a fine writer, and she conjures sights'n'sounds'n'emotions of the times and, of course, the early days are exciting, even though challenging, but being part of the swingin' 60's British scene means that she met practically everyone of note. She has been friends with some of the biggest names in the biz and mostly has good things to say about them, but she is honest when she did have issues with certain folks. Of course, none of this guarantees long term success and a string of bad luck, bad decisions and lack of support means that, after her initial success, she did not have an easy life. In fact, there is a lot of sadness and frustration throughout, causing me to need to take occasional breaks from the story, despite continuing to be drawn into the tale.

Lovely and talented and intelligent, it's a strong book by a strong woman. Glad that she has made it through and seems to have a reasonably good life now, with more well-deserved recognition. This is a fine read!

Easy Action - The Original Alice Cooper Band - by Martin Popoff

 

Of course, I have been a fan of the original Alice Cooper band since they burst onto the scene with their smash hit "Eighteen", but especially after seeing their incredible live show on TV's In Concert series. Whether it ever showed or not, few things have been as big of an influence on me as that footage. So, of course, I read whatever I can find on them and - once again - although I can't remember where I first heard about this, I had to pick it up when I got the chance.

Popoff's technique here is to basically tell the tale in the band member's own words, using (roughly) chronological interview segments mixed with a bit of his own commentary for continuity's sake, as well as adding a few other pop culture references (Screamin' Jay Hawkins' appearance, Blue Cheer's debut, sidemen like Dick Wagner's birth and bands, etc.).

While I dig hearing from the guys themselves, I do think that there could have been a bit more context placed in the story, as these snippets only provide so much, naturally. Of course, the early days have the really great stories, from hanging out with bands like Pink Floyd, the Yardbirds and Arthur Brown, to crashing festivals, to emptying halls to writing "Return of the Spiders" as a plea to the audience to "Stop, Look and Listen"! Funnily, the infamous "chicken episode" has vastly different recollections from the different band members, but such is life on the road when something unplanned becomes one of your most well-known escapades.

Of course, we go through the rise and inevitable fall of the fantastic, original Alice Cooper band - not the solo artist - from their meager start with Frank Zappa's Bizarre/Straight label, to Warner's for their surprise breakthrough with Love It To Death and the smash "(I'm) Eighteen", their work with Bob Ezrin, the following successes with Killer and School's Out before hitting number one with Billion Dollar Babies, which began their downward fall.

I do enjoy hearing from the men themselves, but this is all-too-brief in a mere 200-ish pages, and, as I said, the story obviously could have been fleshed out a lot more. Well worth reading, but as a secondary source, not the only telling of the tale. Dennis Dunaway's book is much more fulfilling, overall.

Snooks Eaglin - Soul's Edge

 

This one was a prez from my old buddy Kenzo - thanks, man! - and while I was familiar with Snooks' name, I never knew too much about the man, other than what I found out while reviewing That's All Right a number of years ago. This New Orleans-based guitarist was once billed as "Little Ray Charles" but over the years has made a name for himself by playing a variety of styles while still remaining true to his own personal vision.

This 1995 release shows off his N'Awlins' roots by opening with Fats Domino's "Josephine", with its bouncy, syncopated beat and hip, bluesy guitar licks. This is followed by an upbeat blues in "Show Me The Way Back Home" (some fine, fast-paced soloing here, in a Texas style - kinda Stevie Ray Vaughn-ish), more great guitar-ing in the rather un-PC cover of "Ling Ting Tong" (swinging NO rhythms, though!), the instro "Aw' Some Funk" has a funky melodic nod (to my ears, anyway) to "I'm In With the In Crowd", he gives us a slow, soulful blues, with a hint of doo-wop in "I'm Not Ashamed", more soul for "Nine Pound Steel", a bit of (instrumental) Gospel for "Answer Now", pretty respectful takes on "Skinnie Minnie" and "Thrill on the Hill", another slow blues in "You and Me", then the very New Orleans-y "I Went to the Mardi Gras", the sweet soul ballad, "Talk To Me",  a take on Earl King's rather silly "Mama and Papa" and finally the traditional Gospel of "God Will Take Care".

Some truly terrific guitar playing throughout this one - definitely a quality release from the 90's!

recommended gigs

 Saturday 1-13-24 - the Psyatics with VaVoom and Stainless Steel Ride at the Founders Club

Saturday 1-13-24 - late night at the Golden Tiki - Thee Swank Bastards

Sunday 1-14-24 - The Dirty Licks from Tucson at Red Dwarf's Sunday Brunch

Monday 1-15-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Thursday 1-18-24 - Dog Party, the Snares, Negative Nancy, VaVoom at Red Dwarf

Saturday 1-20-24 - the Shakewells, the Implosions and the Boreouts at Red Dwarf

Saturday 1-20-24 - the Unwieldies and Big Like Texas at the Huntridge Tavern 

Saturday 1-20-24 - late night at the Golden Tiki - Thee Swank Bastards

Sunday 1-21-24 - Generic Surf Band at Red Dwarf’s Sunday Brunch 

Monday 1-22-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Tuesday 1-23-24 - The Minges, Crimson Riot and the Drowns at the Griffin

Tuesday 1-23-24 - Glen Matlock with the Shakewells at Oxford at the Virgin Hotel

Friday 1-26-24 - Thee Hypnotiques at the Golden Tiki

Saturday 1-27-24 -  Late night -Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Friday 2-2-24 - The Bitters, Mondo Vermin, Red Moon One, Noize Complaint at Backstage Bar and Billiards

Saturday 2-3-24 - The New Waves at the Golden Tiki

Sunday 2-4-24 - the Minges, the Out There and War Peggy at Red Dwarf

Monday 2-5-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 2-7-24 - Franks'n'Deans Weenie Roast at the Double Down

Saturday 2-10-24 - The Unwieldies with Big Like Texas and Frankie Lee and the Infernos at Gold Mine Tavern

Friday 2-16-24 - Suburban Resistance and Mismiths at the Dive Bar

Saturday 2-17-24 - Junkyard at the Dive Bar

Saturday 2-17-24 - Late night -Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Thursday 3-14-24 - The Silhouettes at the Double Down

Friday 3-15-24 - the Silhouettes with Fur Dixon and the Psyatics at Red Dwarf

Tuesday 3-19-24 - IV and the Strange Band at SoulBelly BBQ

Saturday 4-16-24 - The Unwieldies with Big Like Texas and Jeff Mix and the Songhearts at Gold Mine Tavern

John Lee Hooker - Four Classic Albums

 

Of course, I'm a big fan of Hooker's brand of minimalistic blues'n'boogie (chillen) and I have a number of albums but most of them are compilations so when this 2-CD, 4-album set popped up at a reasonable price, I grabbed it to hear how many of these tunes were initially released. Of course, as these are early works, a lot of his best-known songs are included - but certainly not all of them, by any means - but there are also quite a few that I had never heard before, which definitely makes the package well worth its price.

Considering how minimalistic Hooker's playing is, there is a lot of variety in this set, with some tunes simply showcasing John, his guitar and his foot-stompin', and many with a band of varying sizes. Due to the fact that his timing'n'phrasing are erratic, to say the least, the bands sometimes have quite the chore trying to follow him, but in some cases, the group solidifies the song and formulates a real beginning, middle and ending (some of his solo performances barely change and simply fade out to avoid a "real" ending). Innumerable covers of his work have generally given the songs a stronger, albeit more traditional, arrangement, which can be more palatable to the modern ears, although I absolutely dig Hooker's relative anarchy.

Right off the bat from the "I'm John Lee Hooker" album we get the classic "Dimples" with a rockin' band (the Animals did a fine take on this) and it is immediately followed by Hooker on his own for the excellent "Hobo Blues" - love this sparseness and, of course, his incessantly stompin' foot! These options continue through tunes like "I'm So Excited", "I Love You Honey" and his incredible breakthrough "Boogie Chillen". Along with some other, lesser known, but still fine tunes, we also get his incredible "Crawlin' King Snake" and "I'm In the Mood". What a record!

Next up is the album Travelin', which includes a number of tunes that I am not overly familiar with, although that doesn't mean that they aren't still quality pickin's! There seems to be more songs with a backing band than without on this outing, but the Hook is still callin' the shots and his haunting guitar tone really shines on the likes of "Solid Sender". He's almost whisperin' on the moody "I Can't Believe" but then gets in a couple more boogies before calling it.

Plays and Sings the Blues has more stripped down blues'n'boogie from John Lee - some great stuff with just the man and his guitar that I hadn't heard before, including the incredible upbeat boogie "Mad Man Blues", "Lonely Boy Boogie" amd "Hey Boogie",some mournful, slower blues (such as "Bluebird"), his unique take on "Worried Life Blues" and "Please Don't Go", lots of foot-stompin' music, and plenty more, showing that he can easily carry an album all on his own, with great tunes and real variety.

He's back with a full band for Burnin' and start the party off right away with his fantastic rocker "Boom Boom", followed by a funny tune about "Process" hair styles (!), then an upbeat rocker ironically complaining that he "Lost a Good Girl", simmerin' slow blues in "A New Leaf" and "Blues Before Sunrise", rockin' boogie for "Let's Make It", back to smoldering for "I Got a Letter", back with the swing for "Thelma", a mid-tempo Hooker-groove for "Drug Store Woman", a "Tequila"-flavored beat for "Keep Your Hands to Yourself" and then everything closes with another upbeat, minimalistic groove for "What Do You Say".

Great collection! Like I say, even these four albums don't compile everything that is essential by the man but if you don't have 'em, they're all great and this would be a terrific start for someone's JLH collection!

Lou Reed - The King of New York - Will Hermes

 

Of course, I've been a Lou Reed fan since Kenne Highland first turned me onto the Velvets by saying that my guitar playing at the time reminded him of Lou's in the VU - which was also about the time that "Walk on the Wild Side" was a surprise AM radio hit. His career is full of chameleon-like changes, and not everything that he has done has been successful (of course) but I am still a fan, some 50-ish years later (as my many writings about him on this blog attest).

Right off the bat, I take exception to the fact that while listing iconic versions of Reed tunes, Hermes ignores Mott the Hoople's classic take on "Sweet Jane" (he does mention it later), while also claiming that Bowie covered "I'm Waiting For My Man" from an acetate before the Velvets' record was released, although he doesn't say how or where Bowie did this (I know that he covered it later, but I've never heard of a version in the mid-60's - again, Hermes explains further later, but it's kinda vague). So, let's see what this book brings...

Of course, there's the obligatory familial background - necessary, for sure, but with limited real interest - before we get to Reed coming of age with rock'n'roll and doo wop. As a teen he gets to record with his thrown-together "band" (two school chums and himself, created for a high school talent show) with none other than Mickey Baker (Sylvia and Mickey) on guitar and King Curtis on sax! Wow! Although, according to this recollection, this mainly simply convinced him to not attempt to imitate the black artists he so admired.

The basic story is the oft-told tales - the shock therapy, Delmore Schwartz influencing his prose writing in college (and alcohol and drug abuse), his homosexual leanings as well as his womanizing, his various bands, and his job as a house-songwriter at Pickwick, which led to the Primitives and "The Ostrich" which leads to meeting John Cale and the formation of the Velvets. The evolution and eventual dissolution is discussed, and, of course, Reed's considerable solo career. Not a whole lot of new info here, but told well and the story flows appropriately, while including a few unfamiliar tidbits.

More than once Hermes claims that the Grateful Dead is a band in the same league as the Velvets, which is, of course, more than suspicious. I know that the Dead are revered and all, but there is no way that they have the credentials that the VU has...Some of his other musical opinions (semi-dissing the Dictators, for instance) and also questionable, including some of his thoughts on Reeds work, but everyone is, of course, entitled to their own opinions.

Obviously, this covers much of the same territory as Victor Bockris' Transformer - how could it not? - although I think that Hermes is more even-handed, since he did not know Reed personally, and. at 400+ pages, he gives a lot of detail. Reed was also still alive at the time of Bockris' book, so there is the sad coda in this one - although Reed worked just about up until the end and was financially secure and in a loving relationship. So, yes, sad that he passed too early, but he was able to do what he loved right until the end.

Definitely a good bio, although maybe not completely necessary if you've read others, but if not, this is one to get!

RIP Larry Collins

Renowned Guitarist Larry Collins Passes

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What a guitarist and showman, even at a ridiculously young age. Sorry to hear of his passing.