- Posts tagged Gregg Allman
- Explore Gregg Allman on posterous
Delaney & Bonnie's Southern Soul, Rollicking R&R: If they haven't already, they 'gonna get you some day'
One of those weird, cosmic, connect-the-dots, WTF thingies happened to me last week. It was just after dinner and I was checking out a twitter list that I created (it is chock full of music bloggers and journalists). I decided I needed some foreground music for this. I dropped an album on to the turntable that I have been obsessed with since picking it up a month ago at a used record shop in Paris.
So there I am, rousting along to side two of the legendary, shit-hot...no, white-hot..."On Tour with Eric Clapton" from Delaney & Bonnie & Friends when a tweet from Jim Fusili, Wall Street Journal rock journo (@wsjrock), caught my eye ("cue the weirdness").
Fusili had just posted an article on Delaney & Bonnie...the spookiness ensued. Fusili's article was about the grandiose re-release of this very same album. Love that cosmic timing. Rhino records has re-released this set as a sprawling 52 track, 4 CD set with over three hours of unreleased greasy, gut-bucket, southern soul rollicking rock and roll. It only comes in physical format, but box it comes in a box shaped like a roadie's case...cool for for collectors, if anything. Funny though, it adds a wrinkle to my post last week on only buying downloads and vinyl. I'll have to make a "cool boox sets" clause for situations like these.
I have to admit, I am late to the party on Delaney & Bonnie. Yes, I listen to them and never flip the dial when they come on the box, but I never really got into them. I think it has something to do with when I was younger and first heard about them. I was still learning the about the folks and the lore of the sweet-spot period of rock and roll in the late '60's / early 70's and, unfairly, I locked D&B away as an Eric Clapton side project. in my "wax-on, wax-off" learning phase, the big-stars made bigger impressions on me. Back then, I didn't understand that Clapton was just one many stars and not the star in this constellation of "Friends".
This wasn't you average band; which is why it was so damn good: Delaney & Bonnie, Clapton, Carl Radle, Jim Gordon, Bobby Whitlock, Jim Price, Bobby Keys, Tex Johnson and at times, Rita Coolidge, George Harison and Dave Mason. Eeeeh Dogeee...that deck was stacked. You've got the future Derek & The Dominoes in there, future Stones horns stalwarts and other superstars in their own rights. Yeah, no wonder...
I don't hink it would be possible to trace back the lines of influence back to Delaney & Bonnie. Do yourself a favor...let them influenced your listening flavors.
The rerelease had me wondering what was thought of the original. I jumped over to allmusic to have a look at what they had to say about the album. It was short and sweet and packed a wallop. here are some highlights:
"[Clapton] rises to the occasion with dazzling displays of virtuosity throughout, highlighted by a dizzying solo on "I Don't Want to Discuss," a long, languid part on "Only You Know and I Know," and searing, soulful lead on the beautifully harmonized "Coming Home." Vocally, Delaney & Bonnie were never better than they come off on this live set, and the 11-piece band sounds tighter musically than a lot of quartets that were working at the time, whether they're playing extended blues or ripping through a medley o fLittle Richard songs....One only wishes that Atlantic Records might check their vaults for any unreleased numbers from these shows that could fit on an extended CD."
Well, what do you know...this lucky bastard's wish has come true! For more on the Rhino re-release, go here. Check out Fusili's article on D&B as well as Rolling Stone's write up. You can get more history on the band as well as current thoughts from Bonnie Bramlett (Delaney has since moved on to the great gig in the sky).
After all of this dot-connecting, opened YouTube and went a searchin'. Here are some of the choice vids I pulled up. Enjoy...
Comin' Home: Damn, I love this song. That riff is so crunchy and snarly and, of course, the harmonies are spot on.
Poor Elijah / Tribute to Johnson: So, so, down home cool. This song deserves a hot day, cold beer and friends trying to sing the harmonies together.
Come On Into My Kitchen: You have to listen to this, just because "Brother Duane" Allman is playing slide. Brother Duane is one of the top three "what if" cases in R&R history. Listen to Duane lay that slide think and greezey.
>
Only You Know and I Know: More foot stompin' w/Brother Duane and Brother Gregg...
I Don't Want to Discuss It: And then there is this humdinger with Clapton, George Harrison, Dave Mason, Bobby Keys, et all, ramblin' along side D&B. Sick Boogie...
The Klieg Light Club: When great artists go from "true to form" to "true to formula"
Recently I posted about keeping it simple in 2010. Let's chalk this one up as a sequel to that post. This time it's about keeping it real in 2010.
_____
Have you seen the movie Precious?
Yes? [collective exhaling, wide-eyed looks and shaking of the heads]
No? Well then, you must see this movie. It is a harrowing story about the human will and the extreme, extremely extreme, challenges it can endure. The movie has been much talked about in the media and on blogs. In a flick filled with shocking moments, one of the most shocking is the performance of Mariah Carey.
Everyone knows who Mariah Carey is, right? Yes, of course we do. She is known as a self-indulgent, high-maintenance, look-at-me, glamour-puss. In Precious she played a run-of-the-mill social worker. For the role, Carey stripped off her Diva persona and played the ugly duckling. In her own words:
"I had to lose all vanity," Carey said. "I had to change my demeanor, my inside, layers of who I am, to become that woman."
Oh my, Mariah. Oh, my. Where to start...? Let's start with the "layers of who I am" part of that statement. How crazy is this shit? She really believes she has these "layers". Is this a bad case of the stardom flu or is she serious. My guess is that she thinks she is serious. My guess is that she thinks that people don't understand that she is a real person underneath it all. My guess is that she thinks that moonbeams and winged unicorns shoot from her ass every-time she farts.
The ironic thing here is that Mariah thinks that she is acting in this movie when, in actuality, it may be her most real performance yet. As I sat in the theatre watching this, I thought to myself, "damn, she seems normal...why doesn't she come off this way all the time"? Forget the no make-up haggard appearance, it was her likability that got me. Why does she chose (yes, choose) to come off so damn self-important and narcissistic in the press?
She is caught in the crossfire of the klieg lights. She was a earnest singer with pipes that dominated the charts. Now she is a indulgent Diva with performances that overwhelm the gossip rags. Just like so many artists, be they actors or musicians, Mariah lost her essence.
How many others has this happened to? Countless. Here is one that comes to mind:
Rod Stewart: Wow. Rod used to be a rocker. He had swagger. He had rough edges. He had the last laugh. Now he is a laughingstock. Has there ever been a career that has experienced such a downward spiral. Seriously. He started out with Long John Baldry, fronted the Jeff Beck Group (brilliantly), led the almighty Faces, absolutely nailed five out of his first six solo albums (Smiler being the lone dud), and then... what the fuck happened? He became a star, that's what happened. Klieg lights...everywhere.
After "A Night on the Town" he started to fall apart. All of his rough edges became polished and glossy and he fell into the glits and glam of the '70's slipstream. He went pop chart and disco with "Footloose & Fancy Free" and "Blondes Have More Fun". He became fodder for urban legends involving blow-jobs and stomach pumping. He limped into the '80's with infrequent blips on the charts with songs hearkening back to days of yore. He rekindled old flames with live albums of old hits. And now...now he sells albums of covers songs to baby boomers, who, like Rod, think that almost is good enough. Yuck.
The Good (the very good)
The Bad
The Ugly
I feel dirty after that last video. I need to go play "Gasoline Alley" front to back right now to restore my faith in the gravel-throated goodness that once was Rod Stewart.
Who else belongs in the Klieg Lights Club?
- Elton John (the earliest stuff was so damn earnest)
- Robbie Robertson (stop with the Indian albums and the movie producing and put out the classic you know you have in you..please!)
- Stephen Stills (so much talent + so much meandering = coulda, shoulda, woulda)
- Mick Jagger (solo stuff specifically)
- Aerosmith (Dude looks like a train-wreck...)
- Gregg Allman (he lost his way when he lost Duane...Allman and Woman? Check out that link...WTF is that album cover all about!?! Come on?! That never would have happened it Duane was still alive).
On the flip-side, there are those who have stayed true to the course. A sampling of the many that are in the Real Deal club:
- John Fogerty
- Tom Petty
- Levon Helm
- Bruce Springsteen
- Tom Waits
- Roger McGuinn
- Keith Richards (solo albums and guest-star appearances seal the deal)
- Neil Young (They King of Them All Y'All...in fact, he may deserve his own club)
What do you think about those lists. Agree? You have any additions to either one?
These Days: How Gregg Allman stole Jackson Browne's song with ONE WORD (or "how to cover a song and not have it suck balls")
What's a cover song, really? Is it a "tribute" to an artist or is it just an excuse for not being able to come up with a song "as good" or any good songs at all? Maybe we should ask Steve Earle.
I just saw Earle last night here in London. It was my first time seeing him perform. I liked it. It was an earnest and humble performance: a tribute to his "teacher", Townes Van Zandt. Earle just released an entire album of Townes' song, aptly titles, "Townes".
Earle was unapologetic in his unabashed covering of Townes. He did it in tribute. He told us that this album of Townes penned tunes outsold his last two albums of original material ("as a singer/songwriter, that hurts a bit"). I was sitting 3rd row, dead center. I thoroughly enjoyed the show. He delivered each song with passion and told tall tales about times he and Townes shared.
[NOTE: This conversation I am starting here is not really a solo job. I really need to be having it in a bar with four other half-stoned, full drunk music freaks. That being said, do what you have to do in the comfort of your own interweb.]
Cover songs. Some are brilliant: Hendrix - "All Along the Watchtower". Some are fucking train-wrecks: Britney Spears - "Satisfaction". What I find funny about cover songs is that the "cover-er" is singing the "cover-ee's" lyrics, some of which are heartfelt and personal. Case in point: Jackson Browne's: "These Days".
You can argue that every one of Browne's songs are completely saturated with sentiment that oozes from every groove. How can another artist take a song like, "These days" and turn it into a full on autobiography sans parody? Don't ask Nico that question (her version: I have been in surgery theatres less aseptic than her version)
Ask Gregg Allman. He knows all too, dangerously, well.
Have you listened to Browne's, "These Days"? Have you had a listen to the lyrics? Let's jump right to the second and third verses:
Now if I seem to be afraid
To live the life I have made in song
Well it's just that I've been losing for so long These days I sit on corner stones
And count the time in quarter tones to ten, my friend
Don't confront me with my failures
I had not forgotten them
It is a contemplative song. he's looking forward, but also looking back. Jackson Browne: "I've been losing for so damn long that I am a bit hesitant to live my life in song". That's cool, Jackson. You can reconcile your past though, can't you. "Hey", he says, "I fucked up in the past, I haven't forgotten about that". Thanks for sharing how you do it...by forgiving yourself and counting quarter tones. His version is pleasant. It makes you feel good about forgetting some mistakes you have made and moving on.
Now...go listen to Gregg Allman's version. This...this is a cover song that completely dismantles the original version. It kidnaps it, takes it across the country, avoiding amber alerts along the way, and gives it a new identity...and forces it to live an entirely different life than originally intended. And it does it with ONE WORD. One kick-you-in-the-balls word.
Let's go back to that last verse:
These days I sit on corner stones
And count the time in quarter tones to ten, my friend
Don't confront me with my failures
I had not forgotten them
Gregg takes the last line and swaps "forgotten" for aware. WHAMO! He take the song and turns it from jaunty, feel good, I'm OK-You're OK, tune to a I'm-still-neck-deep-in-the-shit, can't get out of my own way to save myself, present-tense, pity-party lament. I fucking love Gregg's version.
If you know Gregg's story [as told in the rock-press/history books and interviews]...he has many personal failures. Need a place to start, go here. Hey, the man has many successes as well...but that is not what this song is about.
Go back and look at the one line in the third verse: "Well it's just that I've been losing for so long". As Gregg sings this song, he is still losing and it is because of those failures that he just can't shake.
OK...now go listen to the two versions. They are not all that different stylistically. Gregg's is a bit more of a dirge. It may be my rock and roll fantasy, but I am sure he made the ONE WORD change before recording the song, which had to have an impact on his delivery.
Are you with me now? Gregg now owns that song. If I didn't know better, I would have thought Jackson covered him.
_____
A lot of people have covered this song. Do you think anyone else out-Jacksons Gregg?
