The 6149

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March 11, 2010

The first tix of my Spring Gigs have arrived! Clapton & Winwood, 21st May @ Wembley Arena

Ah...Clapton & Winwood. I've seen Clapton twice and once was on his Blues tour supporting the "From the Cradle" album.    

I have the recent Clapton/Winwood MSG live set. I was surprised how good it was. Actually, I was surprised how good Clapton was. In my opinion, Clapton now needs someone to push him...push him to play to his abilities...not God-like, but guitar-hero like.  In recent years, the "push" has brought him to Claptonian peaks: Bob Dylan 30th Anniversary, Clapton & Jeff Beck, Clapton & Winwood, Clapton & The Allman Brothers, Clapton and Derek Trucks, Clapton and Buddy Guy...

Looking forward to this go-round with Winwood.  Winwood knows Clapton and what buttons to push and knobs to turn. He does it from behind the organ and from behind the guitar. Winwood can play, dammit. His six string work is phenomenal. I ask you, if you are unfamiliar with Winwood's guitar playing, to watch this eight minute Traffic vid from 1972. Hot Damn!

My good mate, The Kingfish (owner of Mojo Music in Sydney...my fave record shop), sold me this entire set on DVD. We watched it three times straight over a couple dozen beers. This isn't the beers talking...Winwood takes flight.

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Speaking of Clapton needing a push...here are two songs from Clapton's guest spot with the Allman's at last year's Beacon run. Little Wing is jaw-drop material and wait until you hear him solo'ing in the middle of a Trucks/Haynes Fret Sandwich. Extra mustard, please.  
Go to this link and download them. Oh what fun it is to be triple-whammied by the Clapton/Trucks/Haynes Trilogy...picking out who's who is the fun part.  Tell me what you think: 
Here is the entire Clapton part of the set list from that show:
  • Key to the Highway (Clapton vox)
  • Stormy Monday 
  • Dreams
  • Why Does Love Have to be so Sad
  • Little Wing
  • Elizabeth Reed (you will be paralytic after this)
  • Layla (Clapton vox)
If you want the set, let me know and I will upload it. 

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Filed under  //   Allman Brothers   Derek Trucks   Eric Clapton   gigs   live music   Music   riffs   Stevie Winwood   Tune Tags   vids   Warren Haynes  
Posted by Judd 

Comments [15]

February 23, 2010

The Devil Made Me Do it ("big-box record stores are such a drag...")

As a rule, I can't stand giving my money to the big-box record store chains. There is no feel there, no personality and certainly no charm. Its all profits and loss and debits and credits. This is not to say that our independent record store friends aren't in the game to make some bread...they are. It is just that these guys aren't afraid to leave a little blood on the tracks. 

When I was living in Sydney Australia, I only bought my music from one shop and one shop only...Mojo Music (see pic for a snap of the shop).  The owner (I calls him The Kingfish) runs a bow-down operation. Check out this post to learn a bit about the most down-right, damn-straight, hot shit record shop south of the sun: "If you ever get lonely, you go to the record shop and visit all of your friends...".

All that being said...I'm a fucking rat-fink.  I went to the dark-side the other day...the HMV on Oxford St. in London. I wanted to pick up the latest/last release from my ol' pal Johnny Cash.  I figured I would pick this up in a quick dash and grab to get a new release. Usually I love to hunt for buried treasure only found in used vinyl shop.  Anyhow, this newbie is the last in the American Recording series from Rick Rubin & Johnny: "American Recordings VI: Ain't No Grave".  It is a stellar swan-gsong from a lost legend. This record is still riding towards the setting sun...I miss Johnny Cash. 

I went down the bottom floor of the HMV and saw two things that knocked me out: a full on dedicated display to ACE Records and a country music section that was, well, a country-mile wide. 

ACE Records' HQ is here in London, so I wasn't surprised to see the display...but sho' nuff if it didn't look impressive.  

I found me a blue ribbon prize in the country section, too...black gold.  I picked up my fave Willie Nelson album...on a shinny new piece of vinyl, no less.  This is my favorite Willie period. During this time he made the records he wanted and had a full-on, all-out ball doing it with his Family Band. 

Here are three ditties from Ol' Willie from that chestnut of an album: "Shotgun Willie", "Devil in a Sleepin' Bag" & "Stay All Night".  The last song is a live version of the song...listen to Willie riff on Trigger (that's his trusty old guitar for those of you who don't know). 

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p.s. Hey Kingfish...sorry about going into HMV.  It won't happen again...

     
Click here to download:
The_Devil_Made_Me_Do_it_big-bo.zip (4280 KB)

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Filed under  //   Johnny Cash   London   Mojo   Music   Record Store   Sydney   The Kingfish   Tune Tags   Vinyl   WIllie Nelson  
Posted by Judd 

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January 23, 2010

10 lbs. of Shit in an 8 lbs. Bag: A request for keeping music simple in 2010

"Too much of anything is too much for me. Too much and everything gets too much for me". - The Who

That is a line from the chorus of the song of the same name, "Too Much of Anything". Strangely enough, this was a bonus track off the 1995 reissue of the always-delivers Who album, "Who's Next". I say "strangely" for two reasons: one, the original version of  this album was nine songs of bow-down material and two, the fact that this song was a bonus track is fucking ironic. 

Too much of anything, indeed.

Why the hell did we need bonus tracks for this masterstroke? We didn't.  Pete & The Who made a brilliant, time-tested album that consisted of nine crowd pleasing, beer hoisting tunes. Nine. Here we go again...gorging ourselves on a great meal; bloated and reaching for the bicarbonates. Too much.  

I am fed up with "too much".  This year I am bringing it all back home: keeping everything as clean and simple as I need it to be. Near the end of 2009 I started to think about  clarity: eliminating variables; reducing clutter; focusing on less to enjoy more. 

I am not preaching purely simplicity for simple's sake. I am talking about clarity. Clarity doesn't sacrifice depth at simple's alter. "Focusing on less to enjoy more" is about clarity; lucidity. It is a concept that I am (forever forward) latching on to and enveloping myself in...including my music listening habits.  

I find myself gravitating to music that is much more lucid and clean of complexities...but, not lacking depth. Case in point: the Black Keys' "Chulahoma: The Songs of Junior Kimbrough".  

I am a Black Keys fan. They aren't always on my playlist, but I enjoy them from time to time. I did not own this album prior to my hearing it. Recently I was in a crowed and very loud bar. Nothing on the juke box was cutting through the din until I heard this album being played. Whoever was at the controls, decided that they need to play this album in its entirety. The groove was so pronounced and clear, it drowned out the noise in the room and filled all the spaces like a welcome mist. It felt calming and clean to me (even amongst all the clutter in the bar). I went out and bought it the next day. 

Lucidity, clarity and depth are full frontal on this set of six songs. The straightforward, two-fisted, Corsican Brother drum and guitar approach of Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney lends itself to the clarity/simplicity + depth credo. There is no gratuitous flutes or overdubs or 16 track recordings...just two dudes, two instruments and a half a dozen of a simple bluesman's simple blues songs.  By simple I mean uncomplicated, not simpleton or unsophisticated or naive. No, these songs have depth and sagacity. 

Junior Kimbrough didn't make it on the blues scene until the 1990's, but he'd been cutting tracks as early as 1968. Junior was a Mississippi Hill Country native and legend. His blues is a hypnotic, sauntering groove that preaches a knowing simplicity and bares warts, proudly. This blues holds you in it's vibe and makes it hard to pull away. Every time I put it on, I know it is going to be a happening. I know I need to dedicate at least 20-30 minutes to it's gravity.

Here is a clip from Robert Palmer's brilliant expose on the raw, country blues: "Deep Blues". If you have not seen this, you MUST do so soon. More-so, read the book that preceded the movie. It is widely thought of as a classic in the genre; a career high for Robert Palmer in career filled with tall peaks.

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(Junior also had the coolest album titles: "God Knows I Tried" & "Most Things Haven't Worked Out")

The Black Keys decided they needed to have a go at Junior's music. They gave it a richer, thicker sound...while keeping the ethos of it intact. They added to it without complicating it: less is more.  This is my fave track of the set:

What do you think? Does that feel like less is more to you?
_____

Nine songs. I like that. "Who's Next" wasn't the only great album with nine songs: "Let It Bleed" had nine songs, too.  That is my favorite album of all-time (a post for another day). Conversely, the Stone's 2005 Masterplunk, "A Bigger Bang", had 16(!) songs. Too much. 

I'd like to make a request of all music makers in 2010: please, don't try to cram ten pounds of shit in an eight pound bag.  Focus on reducing the clutter on your albums. Just because you can crowd16 songs on a CD doesn't mean you have to. I don't want more from you, I want less...and I want depth.

Excuse me while I go off to listen to some Charlie Patton...

_____

Regarding my personal thoughts on "too much": 

Too much of my time was being wasted worrying about things I manufactured or labeled as important.  Whether they were tasks or audacious (unattainable) goals or simply over thinking decisions or situations, the importance that I gave these things, put undue emphasis on them; one more thing I had to worry about. 

Here is a bit, from a larger mindmap (on my 2010 thoughts), on "reducing the clutter"

(download)

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Filed under  //   2010   Black Keys   Blues   Brevity   Charley Patton   clutter   Junior Kimbrough   Less   More   Music   Rolling Stones   The Who   Tune Tags  
Posted by Judd 

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December 15, 2009

Levon Helm Rings True: "Electric Dirt" gets a Grammy Nod for "Best Americana Album"

Nothing rings more true than Levon Helm's vocals.  Levon is not only a symbol of the lore of American music, he's lived it from the inside out. The struggle; the fortune; the fame; the riches; the spoils; the tragedy; the drama; the ruts; the ruin; the sickness; the rebirth; the legend; the legacy. 

This ain't your father's archetype.

Levon Helm rings true: Good Ol' Boy True. Hero True. Word is Bond True.


Congrats on the Grammy nod for "Electric Dirt".  This is easily in my Top 5 for 2009.  This album is has wisdom like rings on tree, it wears dusty boots and can swing like New Orleans rag.

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In Levon's November email newsletter, they listed out his top five fave dongs of all times. There should be no surprises here:

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Filed under  //   albums   Americana   Electric Dirt   Grammy   Levon Helm   pics   Truth   Tune Tags   vids  
Posted by Judd 

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December 9, 2009

It's wasn't quite Memphis Soul Stew, but it sure tasted daaamn good...

The day they figure out how we can embed smell and taste on blogs and websites is the day porn officially takes over the interweb. Can you image the sickness...the rank, funk-plague that will take hold?!  Prepubescents, geezers and creeps will be dry-humping, licking and snorting their monitors and mobile phones until the police come in to haul them away.

Main offenders will have their parts lopped off right there and then. Tongues and noses will litter the streets and clog our gutters; I will be on Main Street in my lawn chair waiting for the filth parade to begin. Join me?

Until then, have a gander at the meal I whipped up for me and Mrs. 6149 tonight. I know what you are thinking...this is where that smell/taste webability would come in very handy. Yes in-deed-y. I have the good fortune of smelling and tasting this crock pot concoction. Sure, its not free porn, but at least you don't have to look over your shoulder when you eat it. 

This was my second go at the slow-cooker. The first time I let it cook too long and the meat was tougher than a wet saddle. This time I planned for a long cooking time with big hunks of stuff and meat and other stuff. What you see here is a huge piece of Lamb ( a Lamb Joint) smothered in sweet potatoes, green onions, garlic cloves, carrots, big fat mushrooms, various spices and an entire bottle of merlot. 

I put this in the crocker this morning at 6:28am, set it to "medium" heat and left it there all day until I got home from work at 7:20pm. Thirteen hours of slow-cooking later and what you see here is what we ate then. It was cooked perfectly (a bit of luck on that one). If you could smell and taste this picture, you would be looking for a second helping.

The two of us almost finished the whole thing. Next time I am going stick a small bird in there and crock it good.

_____

Another dish I always get a second and third and fourth helping of is Memphis Soul Stew.  The stew is prepared best by a chef thats part cool cat with soulful sax-man: King Curtis.  Memphis Soul Stew is made with only the finest of ingredients:

  • 1/2 teacup of bass
  • 1 lb fat-back drums
  • 4 tbs of boiling Memphis geetars
  • Pinch of organ
  • 1/2 pt of horns

Bring those ingredients to a boil and then beat...well.

Here try some for yourself. It comes in two flavours: audio and video. 

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Filed under  //   Crock Pot   Internet   King Curtis   Lamb   memphis   Memphis Soul Stew   Porn   Sweet Potato   Tongues   Tune Tags   vids  
Posted by Judd 

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December 6, 2009

From Blogs to Brussels, music is the great communicator (Albert King ain't too shabby either...)

I don't know how to speak French, but I sure know how to speak Albert King.  

I just returned from a weekend in Brussels where French is the primary language. I took French I and II in high school; I was horrible in both. Ironically my pitiful performance in these two classes resulted in the first set of double-"D's" I ever got my hands on in high school.

I can croak out a few random phrases: "shut the door", "what time is it", "I am cold/warm"; none of which are worth much without context. Such is the traveller's life. When you are not fluent in the local tongue you have to get by on common human connectors: laughter, winks, nods, smiles and, as I experienced this weekend, music.

Our train pulled into Brussels late Friday night. We were there to see the famous xmas markets and had a long day of roaming and wandering planned for Saturday.  Before we called Friday done and dusted, we popped into a nearby pub to wash down some eats with a few delicious Belgian brews. 

The next morning my wife was cracking the early morning whip and was hot to get started on our market tour. Before we cut a path, we stopped for coffee. Seated across from me, she put down her latte, smiled her "I'm on to you" smile and asked me, "so...did you find one"?

She knows me oh so well.

Before every trip we take, I always search out the local independent record shop/collectors. It is not always that I find "one", but I did in Brussels; fortunately it was right in the centre of town. It is also a thrill to flip through European record bins in hopes of finding some old time used to be. 

We walked the markets all day, tasted the local foods and drank much "chaud rouge" (hot red wine).  Once we had our fill of the markets, my wife wanted to rest weary bones in a local cafe. Perfect.  This was my window to self-indulge with a trip to the record shop. I wasn't exactly sure where it was, but I was hell-bent on finding it. 

As I was scurrying through the streets, I heard the sound of a lone guitar man playing and singing for the passers by. There were lots of street performers out that day, but only one was playing music to my ears: Creedence Clearwater Revival. I swore I heard some one playing CCR; not just your standard CCR ditty, but a relatively obscure CCR song: "Cotton Fields". I love this song. It was built for the foot-stomp and sing-a-longs and I partake in each every time I hear it. 

I followed the sound until I saw who was playing it. There he was sitting on a crate, a Pete Seeger look-a-like strumming on his amplified acoustic. "Cotton Fields"!?! Of all the songs in the CCR catalog, why the hell was he playing "Cotton Fields" and doing so in the middle of Brussels?  Questioning it would only ruin the sweet surprise of it all. Instead I threw him a handful of Euros and did what comes natural: tapped my foot and sang along. My guess was that I was the only person who knew that tune within earshot...and I loved that.

Here is a quick clip of him finishing the song...with a bit of help on vox from yours truly:

(download)

As soon as he was done, I made haste for the shop. After a few more lefts and rights, I was there: "The Collector Record Gallery".  The sign was a dead giveaway that I had arrived, but I knew that before I saw it. As I made my way up the street I could hear the loud, searing sting of Albert King's Flying V. 

The front window was full of vinyl, DVDs, books and CDs. Store front windows display their top wares in order to get people to come in to see what else is inside. This was a damn fine store front window. Inside there were a dozen or more serious vinyl flippers like myself. From what I could tell I was the only English speaking music freak in the shop. 

           
Click here to download:
From_Blogs_to_Brussels_music_i.zip (9482 KB)

Myself and five other guys were leaning on the counter positioned around the turntable.  None of us said a word, but we were speaking the same language: Albert King. Albert King was our translator. A few of us were rocking back and forth to his blues and everyone was smiling and nodding at one another.  This is why music is so damn cool. You don't have to understand the lyrics, you don't have to know what the hell the song is about...shit, you don't even have to know who is singing it. Ain't nothing to do but sit back and let the man play...

We all had a few blues albums under our arms ready to buy. I motioned to one of the guys to see what he has holding. He handed his stack over to me. This guy had taste: live Magic Sam, Fred McDowell and a Mike Bloomfeld bootleg. I smiled and shook my head in a approval and pretended to take them for my own! He reached out for them and shot me a "oh, no you don't" look and then chuckled. The other guys joined in for laugh, too. 

I paid for my selections, shook a few hands and then left the shop. 

I am continually amazed at the role music has had in my making friends and acquaintances all over the globe.  Whether it is through this blog or random record shops in Brussels, music has been my great communicator.

Hail, hail rock and roll...

 

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Filed under  //   Albert King   Brussels   CCR   English   French   Language   Music   Record Shop   Street Performers   Tune Tags   Vids  
Posted from Brussel, Belgium
Posted by Judd 

Comments [14]

November 24, 2009

The night I witnessed Willie Nelson make a room full of grown women breakdown and cry

It was somewhere close to 11:30pm, we had been drinking all day and my apartment was full of chicks. Well, let me qualify that for you: the chicks  were actually my wife and her four best girl friends. We did in fact drink all day, out on a boat on Sydney harbour....and in a string of bars...and, finally, back in our apartment. 

As was the case, and as I am want to do in situations like that one, turned to the stereo.

Usually when I kick-off a late night song splurge, I pour myself a tall glass of Wild Turkey with plenty of ice. The occasion in question though called for something with a little more moxie: The Grievous Angel.  

What is the Grievous Angel?  It has only two ingredients: Mango Gatorade and Jose Cuervo (your mouth is watering, isn't it?). I only break out this particular libation for creating late night stereo vibrations. It's origins date back to living in Florida, playing my tunes at top volume, hankering for a mood alteration and only having only the two aforementioned ingredients on hand.  

Like they say, "If you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with..."

With drink in hand, I started to pull songs from my vast collection in hopes of turing the girls on to new stuff.  Once they were knee deep in a serendipitous sound sampling, I decided to throw 'em a (country) curve: Willie Nelson. 

"Willie Nelson?!", they yelled out in unison. "Please don't play Willie Nelson. If you are going to play country, at least put on some Brad Paisley or Keith Urban".

[silence]

After they picked me up from the floor and wiped away the blood that tricked from my ears, I attempted to teach them a lesson about country music. 

"Country music," I told them, "comes in four flavours: Willie, Johnny, Waylon and Merle. There is no room in country music for candy-assed cowboys, "guyliner" or GAP ad posers. Just because you sing about your truck, heartache and BBQs doesn't mean you are fucking country singer".

They laughed at me: "What do we want with that craggy ol' country fossil anyhow?" 

Surely the drink had gotten to them. They were delirious, crazed from the heat, strung out on hubris...but, they persisted.

"What makes you think Willie Nelson is going to be able to sing anything that'll make us swoon over him? He looks like his horse has been riding him for all these years. He was lucky Julio Iglesias let him sing with him". 

Things were getting out of control and really staring to amuse themselves. I had to put a stop to it and there was only one thing left to do...take a deep swig of the Grievous Angel, give the gals a steely look and pull out the big gun: "A Song for You"

Do you know this song?  It was written by Leon Russell in 1970. Aside from Willie's version, it was most famously covered by Donnie Hathaway (another personal fave performer of mine). Here is a wikipedia link for the song if you want to see who else covered it (please, I BEG of you, forget the fact that Michael Buble covered this song...in fact, forget that Michael Buble ever existed).

"Song for You" is a flat out heartache no matter who sings it (aside from "you know who"..."MB"). I love the Willie version best.  If you didn't know it before, after listening to his vocal, you know that that his voice is one of the true treasures of American music. It is not just country, it is Country; USA...pilgrims; pioneers; patriots.

For my my money it is one of the best straight vocal performance ever put on record. It is such a clean vocal. It has depth and sincerity and feels like an apology, a love letter and a pleading, yearning request for forgiveness and appreciation.  Seriously...I am not overstating this. Really...

The girls decided to give me and Willie one shot to win them over. I played "Song for You" for them. I quieted the room, turned the lights down a bit, moderated the volume to give the vocal the right effect, and I hit play....

Have you ever had a good cry?  The ones that make everything right and cause you to laugh out loud? You're not really sure why you are crying, but you feel the need to just emote. Yes? No? Well, this is what the room felt like at the end of that song. The girls that had never heard it (my wife excluded) sat quietly until sniffles and tears gave way to smiles and call-outs to "play it again...in fact, don't stop playing it".

I knew it would work.  We played the song over and over again until one by one they started to nod off. I had tried to play other Willie tunes, but it was too late...they had been sweetly seduced by the Redheaded Stranger. 

They swooned for Willie.
_____

You should have a listen to the other two versions I recommend: the original version by Leon Russell (again, he wrote the song) and the incredible, soul-drenched version by Donny Hathaway:

Also, you MUST watch this video of Leon, Willie and Ray Charles do this song on one of Willie's primetime TV "Willie & Friends" specials. Ray was in bad health and there was question if he could make the show. He ended up not only making the show, but stealing it with his performance here.  

Watch Willie get lost in Ray's presence as he tries to hold back his own tears. Shit, I just stopped writing to watch it again...son of a bitch choked me right up. Whew. Powerful.

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_____

Post Script: 

When these girls flew from the States to visit us in Sydney in 2008, they all stayed at our apartment. Four women visitors, a wife, two dogs and me in one apartment. Can you imagine the shit-fight I would have had trying to get into the ONE bathroom?  

I was a bit scared about this..until my wife approached me with one of the best ideas she has EVER come up with. She said, "Would you mind if I just rented you a small hotel room in the city while the girls are here?"  

Reason #108 why I love my wife.  

Ah the bachelors life...just like riding a bike. I felt like I was in my Boston apartment again: no TV, only beer and water in the fridge and music playing 24-7 (minus all the other stuff...because playing bachelor is much different that actually being one).

Here are some snaps of my (temporary) home-sweet-home.

     
Click here to download:
The_night_I_witnessed_Willie_N.zip (1534 KB)

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Filed under  //   australia   Bachelor   Cover Songs   Donny Hathaway   Grievous Angel   Leon Russel   Music   pics   Ray Charles   Sydney   Tequila   Tune Tags   vids   Wild Turkey   Willie Nelson  
Posted from Sydney, Australia
Posted by Judd 

Comments [4]

November 16, 2009

The CD Conundrum: Coasters or Collectors Items (What the hell should I do with my 1,000+ CDs?!?)

           
Click here to download:
The_CD_Conundrum_Coasters_or_C.zip (7913 KB)

Images of me unpacking and resorting my CD collection in my new London flat.

For those of you who do not know, I have been on my own World Tour of sorts as of late. In 1996 I lived in Newport, Rhode Island. In 1998 I moved up to Boston, where I met my wife (at a Tom Petty concert: find out how here). In 2002 we moved from Boston to Ft. Lauderdale, FL. In 2005, we made the big move around the globe to Sydney, Australia. This past September we relocated to London; ironically we now live on Sydney Street.

There are two things I have always traveled with no matter where I have rambled: my wife and my music collection.  Arguably these are the two most important things in my life; I couldn't do without either. Funny though, I have had a longer relationship with my music collection than my wife (she and I have been together over 10 years). My wife is not the jealous type, nor should ever have reason to be: I am an extremely loyal and dedicated man.  Which is why she shouldn't be surprised at my resistance to want to shed my vast collection of CDs.

My collection is 1,419 albums and box sets strong, consisting of both CDs and downloads. Recently I have converted back to vinyl (75 albums and growing) after decades of turning a deaf ear on their sonic brilliance. You can read through it all here in a live-list I created in a Google Doc: Judd's Juke Joint. I update this whenever I add to it. There is also a tab for my music related DVD material as well. 

Before I go any further, let me say this: as far as I am concerned my collection is 99% fat free. While I do think that size matters, quality is of most importance. 

As you can see in the spreadsheet I am in the process of highlighting which albums are physical CDs and which are downloaded bits and bytes. In my rough estimate, just under 1,110 of my collection is in CD format (including box sets).  That is a quite a load to haul around the world with me. I am thinking of making a move that scares the shit out of me: junking all of my physical CDs.

I am entertaining this thought for a few reasons:
  1. The sheer volume of CDs is cumbersome to move (around the world or otherwise)
  2. The majority of the CDs are on my two Macbooks. One of which is dedicated to just play music wirelessly around my flat.
  3. Because of #2, I hardly ever go to pull a CD off the racks to play it...I do only if I haven't already ripped it to my laptop
  4. My taste for vinyl.  
Why am I keeping all of these CDs?  I don't know, really.  Part of it is that it is tangible. I love seeing this tower of CDs everyday. A lot of work and play (and $$$) went into amassing this collection. Yes, I am emotionally attached to all of that polycarbonate plastic.

Conversely, I LOVE sifting through my vinyl collection and physically playing and flipping records...which is not easier nor is it more convenient. This of course, is because the sound and the experience from vinyl is worth the effort. The CD experience in comparison is shit. Having to get up and move across the floor to flip the record is exciting...I am actively participating in the music. Yes, I am now emotionally attached to all of that beautiful black lacquer.

So, what is poor music fan to do, 'cept to play some ol' rock and roll bands...899.html">heh heh.

Here is what I am thinking about doing if I decide to do anything at all:
  • Rip my entire physical CD collection to hard drives. I would put as much on my Macbooks as I can and the rest, in its combined CD and download glory, would be stored on external drives. I would back it up to as many as necessary until I feel secure. I could keep two on hand, get a safe deposit book for one and send one to my parents in New Hampshire for extra safe keeping.  And If all fails, I can bury one under a rock in Buxton, Maine for Red to dig up when he gets out of prison. 
  • I would then take all of the CD inserts/liner notes from each case and store them in a photo-album or something similar. This way I can have the info if I ever need it (this sounds like madness, doesn't it...).
  • I could hook up my external drive to the computer and play everything and anything through my wireless network set up throughout my flat. This is also very convenient for mobile-music
  • I would find some young, deserving music fans and donate my CD collection to them. I would divvy it up into assorted chunks so that the recipients would get a good mix of blues, soul, country, etc.  If I do this, I might have to forgo keeping the CD inserts. 
This would leave me with all digital files, vinyl and box sets (I would keep those in physical form). I think...think...I could live with that.  But how would I buy music?  

Let's use the last Bob Dylan album, "Together Through Life", as a test case. I bought that on vinyl and it came with a CD of the tunes sans CD packaging fanfare. This is best of both worlds: my preferred vinyl in 180 gram goodness and a CD to rip to my digital collection...and I get to give the CD to a deserving music fan/friend. If the album had come with a code for download that would have been just as good.

Anyhow, this is where I am at with my collection. I am not in a hurry to decide. All I know is that my collection will only grow.  While I LOVE the thought that it will get out of hand, it could get physically unmanageable as I move from place to place. 

Are any of you in the same situation? What are your thoughts? How have you/would you act on this...if at all? How do you buy your music? What are the holes in my potential plan?

Tune Tags

I chose "Sparks" by The Who as the tune tag for this post. This was the song playing in the movie Almost Famous when a young William Miller was flipping through the vinyl collection left to him (...to liberate him!) by his sister.


 

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Filed under  //   Bow-Down Post   CDs   Collection   DVDs   hard drive   Judd'sJukeJoint   Moving   riffs   The Who   Tom Petty   travel   Tune Tags   Vinyl  
Posted by Judd 

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November 12, 2009

Autumn Audio: flannel shirts, leaves changing and songs for dirt roads

     
Click here to download:
Autumn_Audio_flannel_shirts_le.zip (176 KB)

(scenes of New Hampshire in the Fall)

If you're a little bit of country and have never visited a website called "When You Awake", you ain't worth your salt.

Jody, who runs the site, says that When You Awake is an "ode to country life, celebrating everything from classic country and rock to the the current indie folk and roots scenes. The daily blog features music news, mixtapes, ticket giveaways, style finds and much more".  She does a great job curating all kinds of great tunes that go twang into mixtapes for you to download.  I know I've burned my share of bandwidth on her site.

There is a lot there to read and hear, so make sure you have time on hand when you have a gander.

In a recent post, she put together a list of "Seven Songs Shaping our Fall".  The brief for this exercise: include songs that you are really enjoying now, that are shaping your life...genre be damned. Follow the link I provided for you to see what she came up with.  

In a subsequent post Jody posted Fall song lists from "friends and trusted bloggers". She also suggests that we readers add out own lists in the comments.  It is always great to see people respond to requests/posts like this. I enjoy seeing what everyone has their ears to and what new songs/artists I can get turned on to. 

Of course this is a two-way street; I couldn't help but add my own list. A few others added their seven songs, too. Check the list updates here.  You'll find mine in the comment section.  I'm also adding it here, with my comments from the post, as well as with a Tune Tag playlist attached.

p.s. my "little bit of country" comment in the first line of this post was a tongue-in-cheek nod to two towering Champions of Contrived Cultural Cheesey-ness.  I can't believe I am even linking to this (there goes my street cred). Warning: this may make you puke in your mouth.
_____

My Comments from When You Awake:

Great idea for a list. I am from New Hampshire but I have been off living in Sydney Australia and now in London. I miss the fall. Just looking at that picture takes me back to the N.H. fall with short, bitter days and long, warm nights of carousing by a jukebox with friends.

Here are my seven (this list wears a flannel shirt and should only be listened to on a roadtrip, preferably on a dirt road):

1. The Mountain - Levon Helm (Dirt Farmer)
2. Pullin’ Up the Tracks - Dave Gleason (Midnight California)
3. Wagon Wheel - Old Crow Medicine Show (O.C.M.S.)
4. Can’t You See - The Marshall Tucker Band (Marshall Tucker Band)
5. Long May You Run - Neil (Decade)
6. Hickory Wind - GP (Sacred Hearts & Fallen Angels)
7. Car Wheels on a Gravel Road - Lucinda (Car Wheels on a Gravel Road)

(Cameron Crowe would be upset at me for not having an Elton John song on a roadtrip mix tape: Country Comfort - Elton John (Tumbleweed Connection)

 

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Filed under  //   Autumn   Blogs   Dave Gleason   Dirt Roads   Elton John   Fall   Flannel Shirts   Gram Parsons   Levon Helm   Lucinda WIlliams   Marshall Tucker Band   neil young   New Hampshire   Old Crow Medicine Show   Playlists   riffs   Tune Tags  
Posted by Judd 

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November 5, 2009

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?

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Filed under  //   Bow-Down Post   Cover Songs   Gregg Allman   Jackson Browne   One Word   riffs   Steve Earle   These Days   Townes Van Zandt   Tune Tags  
Posted by Judd 

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