Last Updated on Wednesday, 15 April 2009 01:50
| Written by Joe Viglione | | Tuesday, 05 May 2009 09:21 |  | Tricadé 360 has released a very mid-70s Rolling Stones-ish collection of solid rock with heavy pop overtones and Mick Taylor-styled guitar lines. Great stuff. There's even a female vocalist sounding like she's from the original Cake from the 60s. "Shoot Straight" (with a terrific hook, Get You Back In my heart) is a standout, as is the title track. |
| | Last Updated on Tuesday, 05 May 2009 15:51 |
| Going Track By Track with Ken Selcer on "Breaking The Glass" |  |  |  |
| Written by Joe Viglione | | Friday, 22 May 2009 10:28 | | 
| Title: Breaking the Glass
Artist: Selcer, Ken
Catalog #TTS 1008
Originally released in 2002 with 8 tracks the 2008 edition features 11 including the bonus track of Evelyn. In 2009 another expanded edition was released including the new addition "Even A Fool"
For a quick link to this site: http://tinyurl.com/breakingtheglass | Originally released in 2002 with 8 tracks the 2008 edition features 11 including the bonus track of Evelyn, Boston area musician, songwriter and industry veteran Ken Selcer has issued an interesting and unique look at his work outside of his many touring groups. With a back catalog of probably a thousand live tapes (if not more), Selcer is one of the most recorded artists in New England. We decided to focus on this project for the first "Going Track By Track" with Ken Selcer 1)Why does "Annie" start off the disc and what is the song about? Annie starts the disc off because I wanted a song that set an upbeat tone(as far as rhythm) - and it has a singable chorus. It's an accessible song. I like the play of words during the verses - lots of variations on the theme. The song is basically about a person dealing with a break up and wanting to go away somewhere to lick his wounds. He's commiserating about the breaking up (why did you have to quit?) and feeling the loss of the dream of a future together (check out the chorus). It's a good upbeat song about a bad thing. The guitar riff is very catchy, and moves the song along, etc. A good opener for a cd. 2)Was "Moment By Moment" recorded in the same time period and at the same studio, and if not, could you give us a bit of the history behind each track's recording and dates? All of the Breaking the Glass songs, except for the bonus tracks were recorded at the same sessions. I did the basics at Wellspring sound in Acton, MA(some of the songs were "complete" like Shout - the basics were kept). I did the overdubs and vocals at my friend Jill Stein's and my studio in Lexington, MA. I recorded 13 songs at the time. I took my time mixing them for various reasons. There are now 12 songs from those sessions on the cd with the inclusion of Go and Even a Fool. One more Place For you is not mixed. Who knows when for that? Another song Stay While was recorded with 2 guitars, bass and vocals. I started to do the song with my band(Shazam, on those days) and I realized that only a full out version of the song would do it justice so I didn't keep that stripped down version for the cd. Moment By Moment was my homage to Latin music, which I like very much. It's a hybrid of different styles because I didn't quite know how to write in a Latin style like Salsa or Cha Cha and so on. There's a Santanaesque guitar solo in the middle. Mark Shilansky, the pianist, helped me with the arranging. I brought in Equie Catstillo to play congas and timbales to bring it more into the Latin world. I listened to Ricky Martin and Mark Anthony while writing the song and a Bob Weir song too that had a Latin flvoer. I checked out how they wrote the lyrics - alot of lyrics are drenched in emotion. I brought in Larry Finn on drums for the session (for all the songs). He's an absolute rhythm machine (he's one of the best drummers around) and I love rhythm. He recommended Lou Ulrich on bass. I knew of him from area rock bands. Very fine player. Chris Billias is a killer Hammond organ player who I worked with before. Mark played all of the piano parts. He's a monster musician also. I brought in Billy Novick to play sax on a couple of cuts. His sax charts and performance on Shout made the song! Amazing. I used 10 backing vocalists (inc. myself) - all people I knew except for Lauren Wool who was recommended by Mark. Mark Baxter was my vocal coach. He was on the cd and helped me during the recording of the vocals to ensure I was singing the best I could for the times. Everyone was great to work with. Huck Bennert engineered the basics and mixed the cd. I love working with him. He can bring the music to life. We did the basics in 2 days starting with Another Day. Everyone was so good that it went very smoothly. I knew what I wanted and I trusted the musicians to go beyond what I could envision and it worked. I'm very proud of the cd. 3)At 5 minutes plus "Imagination", like most of the music here, stretches out beyond the prime pop target area of 3 to 4 minutes. Is "Imagination" indicative of Ken Selcer live or do you use the studio to paint a different picture? I don't really see myself as a pop artist. I don't have the looks anymore and I really don't have the sensibility to exist very well in that world. I've been attracted to many styles of music over the years including pop, but my strengths lies elsewhere. I like some jazz and world music and I grew up with Motown and top 40, so there's a wide range of music to deal with. I never was around the business people who could help steer me in a direction of more accessibility and towards more possibilities in the mainstream world. I was never averse to writing a song that could be a hit type song. I just couldn't do it. It's not what I heard in my head and it wasn't the culture I was in, so to speak. My songwriting reflected not only what I was into but what I could write. As I matured as a song writer (I did "study" what made songs a good song and all that), my songs became more accessible in a lot of ways and they became clearer and more focused.I think I have a body of work that stands on it's own and reflects a clear vision of a world view. Now as far as marketing all this, well, it's something I would like to do. I would love to have my songs heard. A song like Imagination has a jazzy type solo in it. That makes it long. The rest is a jazzy pop song. Almost 2 songs in one. I'm a good guitar player and I like to mix it up sometimes in my songs. I would need a context to write and put together songs for a more mainstream audience. By a context I mean the people I work with, the scene I hang out in, the possibility of more exposure, people with more business experience than the people I have worked with in my musical past and so on. 4)"Fly Away", like many other titles, conjure up jazz-oriented titles, but the music is more a happy-go-lucky New Orleans rag with almost Latino tinges, do you intentionally keep the audience off-balance with the concepts? A good question in that I am a prankster of sorts. I do like to keep my audience (or even friends) off-balance in a way. I have a song (not on this cd) where a lyric says "what you say ain't what you get". I am into so much. music, arts, politics, etc, and I look and even act sometimes like a mild mannered guy, one who is easy to typecast. But I think I can play many many styles of music and that's what I like to do and I can fool you by just being who I am. I like rock and folk and jazz and funk and blues and country and world and everything in between. I'm fascinated by all different kinds of music - probably because music is just people after all - and I get fascinated by it all and I love to go into people's different world's. I don't really intentionally keep the audience off-balance in my songs though I do like to keep it real by showing that real could mean a multitude of things. And I do like to mess around some when playing live. I find that I do think that people's conception of what hip is is very provincial and I do like to break up people's notions of that. I can do that much better in my guitar playing than I can in my songwriting and my lyrics, but I'm working on it. 5)I Oughta Know continues the vibe but has more of a distinctive riff.What's your artistic statement with the lyrics? And by the way, the 8 1/2 x 11 enclosed lyric page is so much more helpful than slapping the words in tiny type inside a booklet.
Fly Away is a groove song sort of. Maybe a good jam band could do it. There is a Beach Boys type descant (or high voice ) in it put together by Mark. I Oughta Know shows my fondness for funky riffs and maybe for funk in general. There's a lot happening in this song. The lyrics talk about my awkwardness at parties(I don't like parties generally speaking - it's all there in the lyrics) and also my innate shyness and even misreading of the opposite sex. The guitar solo is my attempt to go full out within this type of rhythm and subtlety be damned. I think it worked. I was working with an octave divider and I was keeping Frank Zappa in mind. Who knows what I achieved there?
6)Who are the musicians on "Shout" and are they the same on much of the album?
The same musicians: Larry Finn on drums, me on guitar, Lou Ulrich on bass, Mark on piano, Eguie on congas and timbales. We kept the basics. That guitar solo is intact. I think the track is the 2nd take. We loved it. Billy Novick came in with a chart for baritone, alto and tenor sax, which he proceeded to play. Lovely! It all has an old school R&B sound. The guitar riff is from the Grateful Dead and jazz rock world. I love that stuff.
7)"Holiday" says 1999 and with its neo-Flamenco drenched in reverb guitar sounds it sounds like new age meets folk rock. It's a very strong track, care to elaborate on the inspiration for it?
Holiday is unique for me in my view. The lyrics are sarcastic which is highly unusual for me. Check out the so I am tending to wonder if anyone’s home line. Of course, it has my usual thematic lyric though: Doing something for others and getting nothing in return - gave my love away, whoopee it's a holiday - like it's unique for me to have this kind of thing happen. I have a version somewhere in my archives where I'm fooling around with drum machines and House rhythms. It's actually a cool recording. I'll have to dig it out someday. I wanted to record it for my cd and it came out real fine. The 2nd half is now called Belly of the Beast. It has echoes of middle east and eastern music. This was right during the 9-11 days. There a whirlwind of anarchy happening in the song, reflecting what was happening in the world then. This was also a two take song with overdubs. A great take. We put tablas on it afterwards (by Eguie) and Marlene Tholl did many many takes of here "peacock" vocal sounds. We used many of them in the final mix. And I played slide and Tim Kelly played lap steel. Even I can't tell who did what there. By the way, I've never played this live except for a few lame attempts at an acoustic solo version.
8)Mama Don't Worry hails back to 1973. Is this a new version or an older tape? It sounds like a perfect song for a Charlie Chaplin silent movie. Who is on the Honky Tonk piano?
Mama Don't Worry has a cool history. I was in a band when I first moved to Boston named Canyon Sparrow. We were a jam band before anyone called them jam bands. I wrote this song back then and it became our cult type hit for our few followers. Very fun piece. Very me. I did record it in 1980 in a band I was in called Rendition. That version got played on some radio station that did novelty music. I had a double kazoo solo on that version. I felt that the song had to be recorded and here it is. Mark Shilansky plays the killer piano and I play a pretty good solo on it too. Felica Brady heard it and said that she'd like to sing harmonies on it. She heard it as Texas swing. She's from Texas. I never looked at it that way and she was right! Now I hear it as Texas Swing with quirky lyrics. A cool and fun version.
9)Another Day is not the Paul McCartney solo hit from the first moments after The Beatles broke up. In fact, it has more intricate guitar lines that could find their way into early Yes, though not as progressive as it seems more like Flying Burrito Brothers. That's a market with a strong following, is this the arena Ken Selcer has pointed this album towards?
Another day has a nice history to it also. Back in the 90's, I hung out in Harvard Square, Cambridge alot. On weekends it was crazy with street musicians, jugglers, etc. It was like a carnival. And it was like a dream - for me especially roaming around by myself. That's were the lines I had a dream came from. It all seemed dream like. And I was alone, The rest is self-evident. I was listening to a little world music, maybe Caribbean music at the time and maybe also some Wilco. Some gospel. It's all in there. This is a good accessible song. Another good relationship song about transcending troubles and tribulations: There's always another day. As for the musical lines in the song: I like to include some moving lines in a song if I can. I think very compositionally and counter lines and all that. I try to put them into songs without that taking over the music and the song. I see much progressive music having the technique and compositional stylings in the forefront of the music and taking it over. My approach is to have all that support the song so the listener can sink in to the emotional part of the song without being distracting by all the music nonsense that should support the song and not the other way around.
10)"Walk With Me" rocks out more, but still could be identified with West Coast Country/Pop a la John David Souther, Gram Parsons or the Eagles. Do you play material like this in your live bands?
Walk Me Me also has some Billy Joel type piano on it by Mark Shilansky. At least that's how he described it. I like to rock out. I don't get a chance to do this kind of material in my live bands because of the instrumentation of my groups. There is a guitar in the back ground on Walk With Me that is always doing counter lines and has overdrive on it. I can't do that live. When I'm playing live these days I pick songs that the particular players and instrumentation points to. So the songs and the arrangements are geared towards that. If I do an older song, the arrangements invariably are different than the recorded versions. I'd love to have a band with full instrumentation to play these songs, but it would be a luxury these days to be able to do that.
11)The smooth "Evelyn" sounds like a more recent recording, it also feels more commercial. When was it put together and why is it a "bonus track?"
Evelyn is a more recent recording. I played all the instruments myself and programmed the drums with some help from a friend of mine Rob Rudin. This a an Americana type song. I was looking for a sparse elemental feel to it, especially to the lyrics. I was looking for a stark feel describing more relationship troubles and being in the midst of it all. And, while doing this, thinking about time passing and what it all means. I wanted to keep it very simple with very little excess. I heard about a death of someone I knew along time ago while writing this song. That's in the song. It all seemed to come together the way I want it to. I do feel it's more commercial. I'm able to write songs now that are more broad based and can appeal to more listeners. I recorded it in 2007 at my house and Huck Bennert mixed it. It's a bonus track for a few reasons. I like the song very much and because of that and because it has more mass appeal and because I have no idea of when I will have another cd, it just seemed right to put it on Breaking The Glass so people could hear it. It's called a bonus track because it's not from the Glass sessions. It's a new song. I do have many many new songs, enough for 1 or 2 cds. Who knows when I will get to putting out another cd. This is also why I put another song, It's All Around You, on the cd, also as a bonus track. So I have 2 bonus cuts on it. It's All Around You is a reggae and R & B influenced song that is also one of my more accessible and broad based songs that I have written. So there are now 14 songs on the cd.
Anything else you'd like to tell us about this specific album, Ken?
I think that the cd is a good reflection of my music, especially for the time I recorded it. It has something for lots of people. It's an artistic and personal statement that stands up to the passing of time and people's judgments. It has many universal themes that we all can relate to. If you listen to it, it seeps into you and the subtlety becomes music and lyrics that brings you to a place of renewal and hope without wallowing in self-reflection. And, it has great musicianship and fine guitar solos too! Breaking the Glass is work I'm very proud of. Thanks.
Kenny Selcer |
1. Annie 4:52
2. Moment by Moment 4:39
3. Imagination 5:18
4. Fly Away 5:16
5. I Oughta Know 4:03
6. Shout 7:43
7. Holiday/Belly Of The Beast 6:18
8. Mama Don't Worry 3:11
9. Another Day 4:36
10. Walk With Me 4:24
11. Evelyn (bonus track)
12. Even A Fool 6:04
| | Last Updated on Tuesday, 28 July 2009 01:38 |
| Peter Calo interpets instrumental Beatles | | | |
| Written by Joseph Tortelli | | Monday, 09 November 2009 05:29 | | Title: Cowboy Song
Label: Tune Stew TS141
Review by Joseph Tortelli Cowboy Song celebrates the magnificent music of the American West, at the same time lamenting the passing of its romantic ideals. Guitarist Peter Calo reinterprets 14 songs tied to the frontier and prairie, evoking the spirit of the Old West in a way that simultaneously sounds old and new, traditional and contemporary. Calo plays acoustic and electric guitars on "Jesse James," "The Streets of Laredo," and "Tumbling Tumbleweed"; he doubles on the mandolin, dulcimer, or dobro on chestnuts like "Red River Valley" and "The Old Chisholm Trail." An exceptionally tasteful musician who has most notably performed with Carly Simon, Calo is supported by tuba, cello, violin, and accordion, along with piano, bass, and occasional vocals. Showing his interest in and passion for the material, Calo writes liner notes outlining the historical backdrop to each number. And Cowboy Song provides lyrics, not so much for singalong as contemplation. |  |
| | Last Updated on Tuesday, 10 November 2009 15:47 |
| Canadian Beatles Tribute: It Was 40 Years Ago Today / Boston Does The Beatles | | | |
| Written by Joe Viglione | | Saturday, 12 September 2009 19:35 | | IT WAS FORTY YEARS AGO TODAY: A TRIBUTE TO THE BEATLES GETS READY FOR A RE-RELEASE  | Label: Bullseye Year : 2004 An impressive and delightfully exhausting 50 tracks capture the spirit of the Beatles' music on this double-CD compilation that imitates The White Album in look, just as the immaculate Boston Does the Beatles double LP from 1988 did. There are so many highlights in the over 150 minutes of music (almost an hour more than the approximately 97-minute aforementioned Boston Does the Beatles) that it is hard to be fair to all involved by leaving out names, when so much of this is so very good. Jeremy Morris submits an authentic "It's All Too Much," while Al Kooper dramatically revises "Eleanor Rigby" to wonderful effect. (In fact, Kooper sounds like he's produced by John Cale and J.J. Cale with backing by the fellow whose name is always confused with Blood, Sweat & Tears' founder). | The booklet gives anecdotes on the material and/or describes how each individual Beatles songwriter got the inspiration -- along with the release date and album where the material was originally launched. Read more here: |
OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE FROM BULLSEYE IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Despite a rough financial year or two, Bullseye Records is cautiously edging its way back into the music making business as Bullseye Songs -- a digital music distributor, that will be occasionally looking at project-oriented releases. To that end we thought what better time than on the tidal wave of the Beatles remasters to revive the 2004 "It Was 40 Years Ago Today" package...5 years later!
The first version in 2004 was an undisputed critical success, but the initial costs to master, pay mechanical royalties to the Beatle publishing empire, manufacture a double disc and then a third promo CD never allowed Bullseye to recoup or reprint past the initial run of discs and the project was out of print by 2006.
With the digital and internet worlds now being entwined, it seemed the time was ripe to revive the idea in the wake of the Beatles media storm and public awareness.
Cover tunes by The Beatles have become a collectible in and of themselves so we're upping the ante by adding most of the 73 tracks from the original 3 disc set PLUS added bonus tracks by many of those same artists AND new material by those who missed the original project. We'll have the equivalent of entire albums worth of material from which customers can pick downloadable tracks by either the artist or song title.
Tracks will begin appearing on bullseyesongs.com and cdfreedom.com starting Wednesday, September 16th under the name "It Was 45 Years Ago Today" with tunes being added weekly -- and indefinitely -- as the collection will be a 'living' release. Look for your favourite Beatle tracks by the likes of The Carpet Frogs, Michael Carpenter, Stacey Wheal, The Meatles, The Anger Brothers, The Wackers, Maureen Leeson, Popdudes, Michael Kropp, Nick Sinopoli, Jeff Jones (Red Rider), John Jones (producer for Duran Duran), Frank Soda, Goddo, and many many more! We're also looking for MORE acts to join. Drop Bullseye's Jaimie Vernon a line at bullseyecanada@hotmail.com This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it for more details!
Boston Does the Beatles
Various Artists This enormous project was coordinated by the crew who would go on to do a single-disc tribute to Mick and Keith entitled Boston Gets Stoned but, where that album was inconsistent, the 31 tracks here make for a cohesive unit and compelling history of Boston music circa 1988. In his usual deranged fashion, A.J. Wachtel, cousin of guitarist Waddy Wachtel, allegedly lined a hundred bands up for this (same as with Boston Gets Stoned) -- an admirable but implausible goal. | | Last Updated on Sunday, 13 September 2009 18:36 |
| Rare versions of Classic Albums | | | |
| Written by Joe Viglione | | Sunday, 17 May 2009 18:20 | |  | When Janis Joplin's I Got Dem Ol' KOZMIC BLUES again, Mama CD was first released the six-minute 32 second "Work Me Lord" contained a decidedly different mix with Sam Andrew's slide guitar decidedly different from the version Joplin fans had heard since the album was released in the late 1960s. Perhaps it was an intern who grabbed the wrong box, one never knows, but this anomaly has never been re-issued, to my knowledge, and is a solid collector's item in Janis Joplin's catalog. |
| | Last Updated on Tuesday, 19 May 2009 19:45 |
| IAN GILLAN: ONE EYE TO MOROCCO | | | |
| Written by Joe Viglione | | Tuesday, 02 June 2009 08:16 | | IAN GILLAN: ONE EYE TO MOROCCO
Track listing:
1.) One Eye To Morocco
2.) No Lotion For That
3.) Don’t Stop
4.) Change My Ways
5.) Girl Goes To Show
6.) Better Days
7.) Deal With It
8.) Ultimate Groove
9.) The Sky Is Falling Down
10.) Texas State Of Mind
11.) It Would Be Nice
12.) Always The Traveler
Ian Gillan's One Eye To Morocco is the professional product one expects from this industry veteran, an interesting videoclip airing on the web - more mellow than usual, sounding as if he's fronting Procol Harum rather than Purple. Ian discusses the title track on the above-referenced promotional vid: "So the song, "One Eye To Morocco", was the song that all (the) other songs had to fit with. It was written (starts humming the riff) as a backing track, and I developed the melody with (guitarist) Steve Morris some years before. But we never found a home for it...and now it's become the front door of the album". With a little taste of "Perfect Strangers", which certainly is a good thing, the instrumentation gets a bit more exotic, a Beatle-esque string section coming in a la "Strawberry Fields Forever" before Ian starts singing: "I'm drawn by this obsession/With a tantalizing vision/Of a swirling robe" the gutiar wobbling in an entertaining tremolo, Rodney Appelby's bassline very subtle under all the intricacies producer Nick Blagona slips into the construct. At 4:08 it is only one of four titles that clock in over four minutes. Gillan knows people like short, quick bursts of melody and sound, and his lyrics are far more refined than they were in the early days of his run with Deep Purple. Has anyone noticed how Purple were better lyricists before In Rock, Machine Head and Fireball...in the Rod Evans period? Here Gillan has all the elements working in his favor, "No Lotion For That" grooves with smooth car-driving rock, followed by a quick "Don't Stop" with its quasi-Latino-fused-with-American-pop feel. "Change My Ways" certainly isn't a song about his music because though things go a bit sideways from the material Gillan is most associated with, beyond Jesus Christ Superstar, it's still the Deep Purple voice and attitude permating these tracks. "Girl Goes To Show deeping into even trippier musical bags, from Blondie's "The Tide Is High" to even little subtleties of Stevie Wonder's "Part Time Lover", not that you can hear those vibes as much as feel them. On "Better Days" Gillan goes for a more Lou Reed-ish talk/vocal out of some Cajun bayou once inhabited by Rusty Kershaw. The album clocks in at almost 44 minutes, a search for the "ultimate groove", in a song of the same name, to the pensive introspection of "Always A Traveler", this will satisfy his large following but begs the question, can journeymen the stature of Ian Gillan find a bonanza of fans on the worldwide without the platform that the unknown Susan Boyle types now utilize, and do we want our pop heroes to resurrect themselves in "reality tv" beyond what Ozzie Osborne has accomplished? Without some kind of extreme blitz in the world of YouTube an album like One Eye To Morocco may never reach its full potential. Expert review by Joe Viglione 12:14 PM June 2, 2009 From the publicist: Deep Purple Legend Releases All New Studio Album
~March 31~
New York, NY (February 4, 2009)—Eagle Rock Entertainment is proud to announce the release of One Eye To Morocco – the first studio album with all new material in 10 years from legendary Deep Purple singer Ian Gillan – released through subsidiary Eagle Records on March 31 (prebook date March 11, retail sales price $13.98)
Produced and recorded in Canada with maestro Nick Blagona, the music was written by Ian Gillan together with long-time collaborator Steve Morris, as well as Michael Lee Jackson and Rodney Appleby – who both performed on the “Gillan’s Inn” US tour, as featured on the double album/DVD Live in Anaheim (released through Edel Entertainment).
The musicians are: Michael Lee Jackson – Guitar, Rodney Appleby – Bass, Howard Wilson – Drums, Joe Menonna – Saxophone, Lance Anderson – Hammond Organ, and Jesse O’Brien – Keyboards.
The voice is instantly recognizable; Ian Gillan’s unique style draws you in. One Eye To Morocco goes deeper into the roots of Rock and Roll, Soul and Blues, than any other Ian Gillan solo album.
The CD is the most adventurous and complete album Ian Gillan has recorded in his long career. His distinguished style admired by generations of Deep Purple fans is showcased, as well as his musical versatility. The title track is a seductive orchestration supporting Gillan’s entrancing style, followed by the pure Rock and Roll of “No Lotion For That”, while “Better Days” and “Always The Traveler” are inspired Soul ballads.
“From a café in the Jewish Quarter of Cracow, where the conceptual seeds were sown, to harvest time at a Toronto studio, this is a magical journey for me,” says Gillan. “Sitting alone in my room, waiting for no one to call me, lost in a dream of my own…”
Eagle Rock Entertainment develops, acquires and produces music programming for a wide range of notable and high profile artists, which the company distributes on a worldwide basis. Eagle Rock Entertainment, Eagle Vision and Eagle Eye Media are wholly owned divisions of Eagle Rock Group, LTD.
For more information regarding this and other Eagle Rock Entertainment releases, contact Carol Kaye
| | Last Updated on Tuesday, 02 June 2009 18:28 |
| efferson Airplane At Woodstock - The Complete Setlist | | | |
| Written by Craig Fenton | | Sunday, 26 July 2009 20:01 | | 
Remember to click on the photos and album covers to find tons and tons of Jefferson Airplane products and rarities in Gemm.com itself.
By The Time The Airplane Landed At Woodstock: If you need to find the meaning of the term culture shock look no further then August 15 through August 18, 1969, Woodstock Music Festival, Max Yasgur’s Farm, Bethel, New York. The 1969 population of Bethel , New York was under 4000 full-time residents and even forty years removed from the historic event the population has not reached 5000. Grace Slick’s intro set the mood and laid the foundation for what would be a little under 100 minutes of music, but a lifetime of memories, “Alright friends you have seen the heavy groups, now you will see morning maniac music. Believe me, yeah. It’s a new dawn, yeah. The regular guys and Nicky Hopkins.” Fast forward to the past. RCA/Legacy for the first time offers the complete and uncut Jefferson Airplane performance from August 17th, 1969 . There are a myriad of reasons why this is one of the most imperative releases for the old rocker. One note immediately erases the fallacy that the uniqueness of Woodstock as an event outshined the sounds that actually emanated from the stage. | Accompanied by keyboardist, friend, and session man extraordinaire Nicky Hopkins (Beatles, Rolling Stones, and the Who to name a few) the Jefferson Airplane launched into their stellar rendition of the Fred Neil song “The Other Side Of This Life.” This is the first time the track is available in its full eight plus minutes of glory. “Somebody To Love” is next and continues to leave the masses spellbound. “3/5 Of A Mile In 10 Seconds” had never been previously heard from the Woodstock gig until now. It doesn’t disappoint with the power and passion that has solidified the song as one of the finest the band would pen. As an added bonus the intro is rearranged slightly with Grace singing the beginning couple of lines and not Marty. Up next “Won’t You Try/Saturday Afternoon” resonated more piercing |  | than ever in the outdoor setting. “Eskimo Blue Day” may be exoteric to some ears but it enhances the Airplane experience showing their ability to change direction at a moments notice and never seem off course. “Plastic Fantastic Lover” would always be taken to another level when played live and this was once again exhibited. Even those in attendance that had witnessed the Airplane stage magic the previously four years could never have been ready for the sound barriers that would be crossed. “Wooden Ships” (available for the first time from Woodstock ) clocked in at over twenty-one minutes! With the signature “Go Ride The Music”, one line from one of their most under-rated tunes “J.P.P. McStep B. Blues” and enough improvisation to keep even those with the shortest attention span enthralled, the J.A. assaulted the senses with a blowtorch. If the band needed to show anymore reasons why they didn’t have to apologize for being the best American group of all-time, they handed things over to Jorma Kaukonen for “Uncle Sam Blues.” When you can claim four legitimate singers Grace Slick, Marty Balin, Paul Kantner, and Jorma Kaukonen on the same stage it doesn’t take an Ivy League graduate to comprehend why for a few years the Jefferson Airplane were the highest paid American band for concert performances. If ever a setting seemed right for “Volunteers” it would have been next. It didn’t take long for the “Ballad Of You And Me And Pooneil” to have the effect of a sledgehammer between the eyes. The fifteen minutes (heard for the first time from Woodstock here) mesmerized and fascinated anyone within an ear shot of the masterpiece. Once again Jorma is given the vocal reign for “Come Back Baby” (never available previously from Woodstock ). It should be noted that Paul Kantner was in charge of the Jefferson Airplane set lists from the first day the band formed until the break-up in 1972 and for the 1989 re-launch. It would have been easy as one of the founding members to push for his own contributions but he was well versed in what made the Airplane such a live attraction. “White Rabbit” recognized instantly thanks to Jack Casady’s bass, kept things in superlative fashion. Unfortunately the end had to come and the band used “The House At Pooneil Corners” as the finale. Having been omitted previously from any Woodstock release it showed the Airplane’s comfort level of playing any song in any portion of the performance. While it would have been impossible for the members of the J.A. to make actual eye contact with over half a million strong, they made a life long impression with a set that gets extraordinary marks in a less than optimum setting. The mix of the instruments would make Beatles producer George Martin proud. The only gripe is the vocals could be a bit higher. If the complete Woodstock performance isn’t enough to entice you, also included is the “Volunteers” album remastered and replica packaging, as well as a poster. This is a limited edition so don’t be turned away from the farm. Put the television on the Weather Channel when they show some rain and mud to help recreate what it meant to witness Grace, Marty, Paul, Jorma, Jack, Spencer (the regular guys), and Nicky Hopkins. From somewhere near Fulton Street and the Fillmore East all the best, Craig Fenton Author Jefferson Airplane “Take Me To A Circus Tent” Jefferson Starship “Have You Seen The Stars Tonite” |
Remember to click on the photos and album covers to find tons and tons of Jefferson Airplane products and rarities in Gemm.com itself. | | Last Updated on Saturday, 12 September 2009 03:34 |
| SOUNDTRACKS: Rolling Stones Rock & Roll Circus | | | |
| Written by Gary Pig Gold | | Thursday, 22 October 2009 21:20 | |
Please Allow Gary Pig Gold
to re-introduce The Rolling Stones and their Rock And Roll Circus
Direct link to this story here: http://tinyurl.com/rockandrollcircus  |
I think we’re more than all in agreement here that something very, very special took place during the middle 1960’s; a magical, monumental something in the air(waves) which gave rise to an undeniably positive socio-artistic upheaval courtesy of poets like Dylan, bands like the Beatles, filmmakers like Kubrick and, if I may push the issue quite thinly indeed, television the likes of “Get Smart” and “Green Acres” to boot.
Still with me? Good. For soon came a glorious peak – roughly stretching from “Pet Sounds” through “Sgt. Pepper,” phonographically speaking – when anything and everything seemed possible, and a florescent-bright, fully-dimensionally-stereophonic future felt well within the fitful grasp of all who, well, BELIEVED. Believed in the magic of rock and roll as the song goes, for starters. Or, as those still-kinda-cute moptops advised the planet via satellite transmission one hot night that July, “All you need is love.”
But then came 1968, and shadows started to encroach upon everyone’s idyllic little Summer of Flowery Power. “Time” Magazine (and George Harrison even!) ruthlessly “exposed” the hippie movement, Dylan grew a beard, had a few more kids and went “country,” Brian Wilson forsook “SMiLE” for some lower-key “Friends” and, as if to drive the disillusionment even further home, MLK then RFK were gunned down, right there in living color on our TV screens, while the Vietnam casualties soared, inner cities roared, and college campuses the world over began to explode.
Throughout this all and then some, the Rolling Stones, unlike most every single one of their Britpop contemporaries all those years ago, not only seemed always able to recognize such grit beneath our collective cosmic glory, but were able to capture it – some would even say glorify it – in their music, their outlook, and even upon their album covers. So when things started to really get kinda hairy in ‘68, the Stones were more than prepared to meet the mess head-on and ride the road to ruin for all it was worth. For really, what else COULD those (poor?) boys do, ‘cept to sing out the jams in their rock and roll band.
| |
Which is precisely what makes viewing the December 1968 television semi-spectacular “The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus” all the more momentous today, even from a full four decades’ worth of comfy, clinical retrospection.
Sure, this particular carnival absolutely provides a nice bright, loud, swinging sixty minutes full of music and merriment, with fire-eaters and trapeze artists unapologetically sandwiched between Taj Mahal and Yoko Ono as only The Ed Sullivan Show had dared to before. Yet especially from a modern-day perspective, this archival hour provides perhaps the best-existing audio/visual documentation of a time truly in turmoil; of a musical and even social changing of the guard between, well, “All You Need Is Love” and Altamont. Between the death of one form of innocence, I suppose, and the coming long long years of doubt, cynicism, and bands without the word “The” in their names.
Now, I will leave it to each individual reader out there as to whether this all spells a good thing or not (i.e., do you prefer “The Who Sell Out” or “Tommy,” in other words).
Whatever that case may be, director Michael Lindsay-Hogg, who’d already captured the best of the small-screen Stones on various U.K. pop shows of the moment, masterfully translated Mick Jagger’s vision of “taking out the normal and making a slightly surreal circus“ onto celluloid, and their collaboration was such that the word “nostalgia” barely applies today to this film. Unlike, say, other 1968-vintage productions such as “Wonderwall,” “Yellow Submarine,” or even “Monterey Pop” …not to mention my beloved Monkee movie “Head.”
The primary reason for this may be that Lindsay-Hogg, who had pioneered his amphetamine-paced quick-jump style on the landmark “Ready, Steady, Go!” television series (expertly shooting the Stones’ “Paint It, Black” in ’66 for example), stretched his skills to supreme effect throughout the “Rock and Roll Circus,” cleverly cutting his shots to the beat of the songs themselves, and in The Who’s landmark “A Quick One While He’s Away” herein especially, turning an already red-hot performance into a downright incendiary one.
Conversely however, he employs a single, lazy circular tracking shot around a stoically seated Marianne Faithfull as she concludes her number, unequivocally emphasizing an artist the caliber of Ms. Faithfull need only her voice and face (those EYES!) to sell a song. Yes, roll over Britney, and tell Beyonce the news. Please.
Oh, and you want guitar wars? The “Circus” has got them too! We can catch a young Jesse Ed Davis applying expert Telecaster texture to Taj Mahal’s “Ain’t That A Lot Of Love,” a pre-Sabbath Tony Iommi subbing for an AWOL Mick Abrahams for Jethro Tull’s wholly whacked “Song for Jeffrey,” and a straight-outta-Cream Clapton fingering bravely on as Yoko baffles – or should I say battles – violinist Ivry Gitlis throughout the Dirty Mac band’s “Whole Lotta Yoko” …much to the supreme amusement of all involved (and under the encouragement of that rascally-as-ever J. Lennon).
But it is, not surprisingly at all, the Rolling Stones who steal the show …after all, it is THEIR show. It is, in fact, the final performance of the classic Jagger-Richard(s)-Wyman-Watts-Jones line-up, and let me just take a moment here to put a couple’a rockin’ myths to rest:
Legend has it the barely-upright Brian Jones was literally on his final legs at the “Circus,” having just suffered through over a year’s worth of narcotic legal misadventure (not to mention “Their Satanic Majesties Request”). Which makes it all the more astounding indeed then to hear his guitar slide with such sublime finesse all over “No Expectations”: ironic indeed, perhaps, as we now realize things had just come full circle for the doomed Stone, adding Elmore James-pure accompaniment just as he had upon first forming the band a mere six years before. RIP, Brian, I can only hope.
Another misconception is that “The Rock and Roll Circus” was never originally aired as scheduled in early 1969 because many felt The Who, fresh off a world tour, had smoked the Stones’ performance hands-down. Actually, it was a morass of legal molasses which kept the circus off the airwaves back then. And the Stones, despite having to finally take the center ring for their six-song set at the ungodly-even-for-rock hour of 2 AM – following a grueling fourteen hours spent coordinating the rest of the show! – not only rose to the challenge, but as they usually do, exceeded most each and every expectation.
Really, were there ever a set of eyes and lips more ready-made for the television lens than Jagger’s? As he bravely debuts “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” (towards Marianne), all stops are most definitely pulled far out, to such an extent that the man’s tragi-comic striptease at the close of “Sympathy For The Devil” (revealing a torso covered in instant wash-off satanic tattoos) seems, well, far from indelible in comparison. Nevertheless, on that small, sawdust-strewn stage, and to a tiny invited studio audience that had been held captive for nearly twenty hours straight [sic] by this point, Mick still manages to make THIS display of “Sympathy” far more engaging – not to mention sinister – than he’s ever been fully able to since …the company of Hell’s Angels or three million dollars’ worth of Enormo-dome theatrical staging notwithstanding.
Finally the assembled multitude, including an uproariously manic Who (who by this point in the proceedings were thrashing about beneath seat cushions fashioned as some sort of mock-papal headgear) were bid a semi-fond farewell and adios to the tune of Mick and Keith’s “Salt Of The Earth,” sung in most appropriately ragged proto-Glimmer Twins style. Cue the midgets, elephants and rope climbers one last time and this circus then packs up and forever leaves town.
Or so we thought.
But jump cut to the twenty-first century, and “The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus” is back and available on DVD and CD from our friends over at ABKCO, chockfull of additional insights (witness a contemporary Pete Townshend pontificate himself into knots praising Jagger and Co.) and above-worthy bonus material (BE SURE to stay well tuned for Fatboy Slim’s samba-from-hell “Sympathy” video remix, which sports precisely the kind of devil-may-care adventurousness the Stones themselves abandoned somewhere circa “Undercover Of The Night”).
Most importantly though, sit back, watch and marvel in wonder at a stirring little slice of time when The World’s Greatest Rock and Roll Band wouldn’t think twice about dressing in clown uniforms to cavort amongst the lions and tigers and bears, oh my. Just so they could quite simply, quite pimply, bring to our collective living rooms a gala evening’s star-spangled entertainment with, and for, all of their finely feathered musical friends. Nothing more. Nothing less.
Were things ever really that pure, simple, and downright FUN? Yes, they really were. Even during the street-fighting winter of 1968.
Here’s the proof.
And, yes, a splendid time IS guaranteed for all.
| | Last Updated on Thursday, 22 October 2009 21:26 |
| Going Track By Track with Tim Giovanniello | | | |
| Written by Joe Viglione | | Sunday, 05 July 2009 16:48 | | 
Tim Giovanniello is known to many as a member of The Swinging Steaks. He's finally released an interesting solo cd that shows his many talents away from the group. Gemmzine is pleased to go Track By Track with Tim Giovanniello
Gemmzine/Joe Viglione: The Sun Tim, when you write a song like "The Sun", how do you choose it for your solo work instead of The Swinging Steaks?
Tim: This is the first solo project/recording I’ve ever done. In the past all the songs I wrote were for the Swinging Steaks. Not all the songs I presented to the Steaks were the right fit. Over time I had a bunch of songs lying around and decided to start recording on my own, outside of the Steaks. When I wrote "The Sun", I had very specific
ideas in mind as to how I thought it should sound. The Steaks play that song live and it sounds different from the recorded version. The Steaks have been doing it for 20 years and we put out a certain color to what we do.
That song I knew I wanted a little different coloring so I decided to keep it.
Gemmzine: What was the inspiration for "Run Through Fields" ?
Tim: Most of my writing starts with an acoustic guitar and a quiet place. I’ll sit and explore… what’s my mood? How and what am I feeling? Where’s my head and heart at, am I up, am I down, melancholy, angry, aggressive……… I’ll usually come up with some sort of musical phrase first and I’ll start searching for a melody. The melody will come
with a certain cadence and then if I’m lucky words start to break through. This song was about the feeling of freedom, a festive unattached feeling. Feeling without effort. I closed my eyes and envisioned myself running through a great big field with lots of other people listening to music. The kind of running you did as a kid.
Gemmzine:On "Make You Feel Better" how did you approach the recording?
Tim: This was the 2nd or 3rd track I recorded with producer Anthony Resta. Anthony has a great pop sensibility, and a great approach to recording. I would bring in the tune. Anthony and I would spend a couple hours arranging the tune. Then we would map out a click track for the tune. Then we would track the drums along with a
scratch vocal and acoustic guitar for reference. Next we would do a couple of drum takes and comp the best. From there we had all the other guys come in and lay down tracks. Each musician would do three or four takes and we would comp the best stuff.
Gemmzine:Five of the songs come in at under 4 minutes with "Untrue" being one of them, do you feel these compositions have commercial potential beyond life as album tracks?
Tim: I would like to think so. It really is a hard thing to nail down. Commercial life….very subjective. I like the songs and given the chance I think others would too.
Gemmzine: Andy Pratt and Robin Lane got some backlash for being open about their Christian songwriting. Is "Jesus Saves" a risk or with the explosion of Gospel music are rock audiences more accepting in the new millennium?
Tim:…..In the old days of the record biz, there were stricter do’s and don’ts. There were hard lines drawn and if you crossed them you would run the risk of isolating yourself from the record labels targeted mainstream. Used to be that when you said the word Jesus in a song it was a Christian song and written for a very select audience. I’m not sure
this is the case as much anymore. With that said, anybody who thinks that Jesus Saves is Christian songwriting isn’t listening. This is a song about road rage. I was inspired to write this song while commuting into Boston from the south shore.
Gemmzine:"Get Dirty", like all the songs on your solo disc, is written by you. Why did you decide to go with no collaborations?
Tim: I don’t collaborate a whole lot at the initial stages of songwriting. Songwriting has always been a very personal experience for me. I also work a little slower than most of my peers and at times it takes a bit of work for me to get the song out. When you collaborate with others it’s a much different experience. Most of the collaboration that happens on this record was with the producer and was with respect to arrangement.
Gemmzine:On track by track we give the artist a chance to tell us about the last four titles on the disc - the recording experience, if the music came out the way you wanted it to, and what you are saying to the world with these musical statements.
Tim talks about four of his songs: Somebody's Found Recording Experience: This track started out in the home studio. The tracks were recorded using Digital performer. The lead vocal was cut at Long View Farm. I had a friend in the industry who needed to do a microphone shootout.
So we set up seven mics and walked away with what I think is the best sounding vocal track on the record. Overdubs were done at Bopnique studios along with the mixing.
Did the music come out as hoped:
Yes, I always hope that when I give it a listen some time later that I still find it enjoyable.
What am I saying to the world:
This is about the duality of life, the give and take, cause and effect, the balance of it all.
8)Run Back Home
Recording Experience:
This was the first track I recorded with Anthony Resta at Bopnique Studios. Here’s how it worked: I would bring in the basic tune. Anthony would give it a listen and sit with it over a few days. We would get together and map out an arrangement to a sequencer. Recording would then begin with the tracking of the drums. Set up the drums in the room along with a scratch vocal and acoustic guitar. We would do 2 or 3 drums takes and comp the best parts.
After that it was all overdubs. As the different players would overdub, different parts would emerge. Once you had all the parts it was onto mixing.
Did the music come out as hoped: Yes. I wasn’t sure what to expect because this was a new experience for me with respect to the producer.
What am I saying to the world: The thought here is about being out on your own, trying to do what you think you’re supposed to be doing, being met with resistance and having the strength and courage to overcome.
9)Long Ride
Recording Experience:
Was recorded using the Radar system and was very analog in its approach. No digital editing to speak of. Mostly old school punches. Was mixed through a console using outboard gear. Very warm sounding.
Did the music come out as hoped:
Yes
What am I saying to the world:
Life is a long ride. Story of experiences in life at specific ages correlated as mile markers on a journey.
10)Hiding From The Truth
Recording Experience:
This track was part of the first studio batch of tunes. Recorded at the Outpost in Stoughton MA with Fletcher/Mercenary Audio running the board. Lot’s of gear was brought in from Fletchers place. Drums on
this week long session was to be handled by a friend of Fletcher, a guy I didn’t know, had never met and had never played with. Drummer George Riceli, a friend of Fletchers is the current drummer with Dylan. A fair amount of uncertainty going into the studio.
Did the music come out as hoped: Very pretty sounding track. Three things that standout to me: The Piano, Fiddle and Ramona Silver Backing vocal sounds and performances are all great.
What am I saying to the world:
The situation at hand is what it is, embrace and engage……never ignore. The truth is many things but it is never ignored. You can run but you can’t hide.
11)Run Back Home (alternate version)
Recording Experience: I had very little to do with this. The producer Anthony wanted to do an alternate version. A few overdubs and edits later.
Did the music come out as hoped: I think it’s a cool shorter stripped
down version of the song.
What am I saying to the world: same as above in less time.
| | Last Updated on Wednesday, 22 July 2009 21:26 |
| KCRW's SOUNDS ECLECTIC: THE COVERS PROJECT | | | |
| Written by Joe Viglione | | Thursday, 21 May 2009 15:30 |  | KCRW's SOUNDS ECLECTIC features rare live tracks from Robert Plant, R.E.M., Paul Weller and others. KCRW and Starbuck's Hear Music collaborated to bring this tremendous CD chock full of collectibles opening with Girls In Hawaii sounding like vintage Neil Young circa After The Goldrust on Young's "Out On The Weekend". The song was released on Neil's Harvest LP but he was playing it out prior to the album's monstrous success, the lingering vibes from his earlier discs captured significantly here in the live rendition taped April 19, 2006. | From 3 years prior is a pensive "Harvest" as recorded on September 29, 2003 by Rufus Wainwright with Chris (not Stephen) Stills. Played alongside R.E.M.'s very respectful rendition of John Hartford's "Gentle On My Mind", giving the words clarity where Glen Campbell's original was a precursor to rap. The Flaming Lips "Knives Out" sounds like a studio take, it's eerie and magnetic and a treat out of left field Robert Plant's new perspective on "Black Dog" is a pseudo-rap with cool guitars that bring it back to earth. Dido's cover of "Fire & Rain" is the exact opposite of "Black Dog", but everything fits on this wondrous disc which contains new revelations and is a very worthwhile look into the world of college radio inventory of live shows that should pour out from across the country and around the world like raindrops...encore joe v 8:43 PM 5/21/09 |
For more information on KCRW | | Last Updated on Friday, 22 May 2009 16:08 |
| Tributes: All Blues'd Up! Songs of The Rolling Stones and More | | | |
| Written by Joe Viglione | | Friday, 15 May 2009 22:13 | | 
1. Luther Allison - You Can't Always Get What You Want
2. Johnny Copeland - Tumblin' Dice (feat. The Yahoos, Derek Trucks, & Shemekia Copeland)
3. Junior Wells - (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction (feat. Bob Margolin)
4. Otis Clay - Wild Horses
5. Taj Mahal - Honky Tonk Women (feat. James Cotton)
6. Alvin Youngblood Hart - Sway
7. Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown - Ventilator Blues (feat. Sonny Landreth)
8. The Holmes Brothers - Beast of Burden
9. Lucky Peterson - Under My Thumb
10. Bobby Womack - It's All Over Now
11. Larry McCray - Midnight Rambler
12. Joe Louis Walker - Heart of Stone
13. Alvin Youngblood Hart - Moonlight Mile
the songs of the Rolling Stones paint it blue House of Blues Music Company, Ruf Records GmbH, Ruf 1020
|  |
| | Last Updated on Saturday, 16 May 2009 16:54 |
| Mr. Curt: The Prodigal Muse with Beatles Cover "It's Only Love" | | | |
| Written by Joe Viglione | | Saturday, 12 September 2009 21:31 | |
1 E-Bowvia (Comboveture) 4:58
2 It's Only Love 3:12
3 Chairs 4:27
4 Beat Soup 6:39
5 A Great Lesson (Is Hard to Take) 1:06
6 A Union of Forever 5:36
7 Trial by Fire 5:29
8 Shrines of Innocence 6:06
9 Caravan of Dreams 3:03
10 The Choice 4:18
11 A Certain Way of Seeing 4:18
12 Fresh White Shirt 6:41
13 Pond Life 5:30
14 Swamp Talk 6:28
15 Shark Therapy/Keys to the Future And the Vinyl of Pastiche 
| | Last Updated on Sunday, 13 September 2009 17:29 |
| Jesse Neal Barish Wheel Keep Turning CD | | | |
| Written by Craig Fenton | | Wednesday, 18 November 2009 17:58 | | If the assemblage of folks a musician is surrounded by resonates as emphatically as the songs they crafted the end result is paramount. Jesse Barish has reached that pinnacle when his pen finished the remaining words of “Count On Me”, “Hearts”, and “Atlanta Lady (Something About Your Love).” The odds of a tune reaching world-wide prominence are microscopic. When you repeat the process several times the algebraic possibilities are incalculable. Jesse didn’t stake a spot on the sun only to see the light dim over time. It has become more voluminous each decade. Marty Balin (Rock & Roll Hall of Famer) noted for his time with the Jefferson Airplane, Jefferson Starship, and KBC considers Jesse to be one of the masters of songwriting. With a myriad of writers approaching Marty year after year it isn’t as if Mr. Balin doesn’t have the cream of the crop at his disposable. Marty’s home could be wallpapered with the plethora of songs he has recorded, performed, or even entertained his family with that have the name Barish attached to the credits. Jesse’s proficiency doesn’t fizzle when he records his own story. An enduring bunch of albums are available from his solo catalog. The number grows with the latest “Wheel Keep Turning." Jeff Pescetto works in conjunction with Jesse on the sixteen track effort. Pescetto handles the production, backing vocals, and most of the instruments. Jesse contributes lead-vocals, flute, harmonica, and some acoustic-guitar. It’s no secret the imperative nature for a recording to catch the listener’s ear within seconds or the CD is destined to be used as a cup holder for eternity. The opening track “Highway” secures its rightful place in the collection with lyrics that will have you analyzing them a time or two. The title track is next and further builds the foundation for the remaining journey. Latter the road takes us to “Cast A Stone.” Brilliant imagery as you are heading on a bus to nowhere (oblivion is around the corner) wondering where did it all go wrong. “Chasing Down A Dream” gives a reason to believe. Prosperity and the perfect relationship haven’t arrived but the highway hasn’t evaporated either. “Love Is” begins catapulting the senses to the magical musical past of 1973. For a moment you can clearly hear one of the finest acoustic songs to ever make the grooves on a vinyl record “Still… You Turn Me On”, from Emerson, Lake , & Palmer. Call it poetic justice for the CD to conclude with such a distinguished tune. Technically there is one final song to enjoy “Black” but it is a bonus and not privy to the theme and our excursion. When the term singer-songwriter first entered the rock and roll dictionary it was often complementary in nature. Leonard Cohen, James Taylor, Jackson Browne, Joni Mitchell and many of their contemporaries received the proper adulation for deeply personal thoughts and an opening of their souls. As the years became decades some think of a singer-songwriter as a one trick pony. Their assessment is completely misguided. I bring this to the surface so that it is understood Jesse Barish writes and sings songs but has never and will never fit into one category. The CD has traces of America , Leonard Cohen, John Mellencamp, Boz Scaggs, Seals & Crofts, Bruce Springsteen, and Steely Dan. Most of all it is Jesse Barish and he calls it “Wheel Keep Turning.” The wheels are beginning to spin, let’s board! All the best,
Craig Fenton Author Craig Fenton's Take Me To A Circus Tent Have You Seen The Stars Tonite (Jefferson Starship Flight Manual 1974-78 & J.S. The Next Generation 1992-2007),
|
Read more about Jesse Barish on Gemmzine: http://tinyurl.com/jessebarishinterview
Craig Fenton http://craigtheairplaneman.wordpress.com/ Direct link to this review here: http://tinyurl.com/wheelkeepsturning | | Last Updated on Wednesday, 18 November 2009 21:12 |
| Hendrix In The West - LP / CD review | | | |
| Written by Joe Viglione | | Sunday, 13 September 2009 08:51 | | H E N D R I X I N T H E W E S T direct link: http://tinyurl.com/hendrixinthewest Before the Alan Douglas era set in with that after-the-fact producer's vision for the Jimi Hendrix catalog of music on albums like 1975's Crash Landing and Midnight Lightning, manager Michael Jeffery had engineers Eddie Kramer and John Jansen develop compilations after 1971's The Cry of Love, those being the Rainbow Bridge Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (actually, studio tracks and a cut from the May 30, 1970 Berkeley Community Center concert) and this quick follow-up, Hendrix in the West at the end of 1971/early 1972. With a version of "Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" and the traditional British National Anthem, "The Queen," culled from the Isle of Wight concert (but not the single-disc 1971 Polydor Isle of Wight release); "Lover Man," "Johnny B. Goode," and "Blue Suede Shoes" from the Berkeley Community Center concert (the "Johnny B. Goode" track would be re-released the next year along with "Purple Haze" from the Berkeley concert on Reprise Records' Sound Track Recordings From the Film Jimi Hendrix); and "Red House," "Little Wing," and "Voodoo Chile" from the San Diego Sports Arena, this album strangely works. Maybe because it is Jimi Hendrix and his music somehow had the ability to rise above all the mutations his performances would endure in the years after his passing. The Jim Marshall photos are beautiful, and the seamless production by Eddie Kramer and John Jansen makes for a commercial and interesting mixture of the two versions of the Jimi Hendrix Experience: Mitch Mitchell and Noel Redding from the San Diego Sports Arena, and Mitch Mitchell and Billy Cox from both Isle of Wight and the Berkeley Community Center. Author Steven Roby gives a clear explanation of how this album developed on page 171 of his book Black Gold: The Lost Archives of Jimi Hendrix, citing engineer Eddie Kramer and manager Michael Jeffery's ideas for the project. Roby's book also states that material on this release came from England's Royal Albert Hall, but that information is not on the liner notes. It's an interesting release for the fans in the immediate time after the loss of Hendrix, and a guilty pleasure for purists years after the fact. — Joe Viglione 1. Johnny B. Goode 2. Lover Man 3. Blue Suede Shoes 4. Voodoo Chile 5. The Queen 6. Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band 7. Little Wing 8. Red House Interesting Links: pearltubes.blogspot.com astronationoftheunitedworlds.blogspot.com Wikipedia | | Last Updated on Friday, 02 October 2009 00:27 |
| Andy Pratt: Live At The Village Underground | | | |
| Written by Joe Viglione | | Thursday, 09 July 2009 19:28 | |  | Title: Andy Pratt Live At The Village Underground March 11, 2003 Artist: Andy Pratt, Sal Baglio, Mark Doyle, Gary Link, Tom Hambridge Label: Renaissance/It's About Music.com | With about 17 studio albums in print, including albums with Christian-oriented lyrics, enigmatic singer/songwriter Andy Pratt has never had a full live album that can translate what his better shows have communicated. Mark Doyle's guitar lines complement Pratt perfectly and this exquisite recording captures the artist in a way that recalls some of the better shows of his heyday. In the 2000s Pratt has had a penchant to perform at open mic nights, no frills, not even proper stage attire that those who remember his shows from the 70s and 80s expect. Sev Grossman of Willie Alexander and The Boom Boom band has said that you have to play every show as if those in the audience will never see you again, because it may be the only time they see you. With that in mind Live At The Village Underground works as a document of Pratt as the consummate musician he can be, the music maker that his devoted fans believe he is. The 20 selections here are played with rock & roll enthusiasm - Pratt is "on", and the musicians superbly blend their skills. He's the kind of artist you have to appreciate from afar...get an autograph and be on your way...and enjoy this excellent document of a man who acts as strange as the characters he creates in his songs. "Treasure That Canary", a musical essay that almost demands you take the singer as he is, is majestic with the guitars singing in an almost Mick Ronson/David Bowie-ish kind of way, a compliment supreme. "It takes us Americans a long time to grow up" Pratt says while dissing wife #1, wife #2 and wife #3 in one fell swoop. "Karen's Song", with its hard rock meets reggae undercurrents and sublime hook blossoming so beautifully in this setting is a result of a team effort, like all the tracks here, the product that only a group on a successful mission can generate. Executive Dean Producer knows Pratt's music intimately and he's the driving force behind this project. It is that kind of devotion that is necessary when capturing precious moments from erratic rock and roll personalities who need some kind of boundaries in order to preserve their art. Live At The Village Underground is, along with being a great treat for long-time Andy Pratt fans, an excellent introduction to the man's music. Expert review by Joe Viglione 1 If You Could See Yourself (Through My Eyes) 4:02
2 Rainbow 3:34
3 Constant Heat 3:54
4 Treasure That Canary 4:05
5 Karen's Song 4:40
6 Call Up That Old Friend 3:31
7 So Faint 3:25
8 Love Song 3:19
9 Grey, Chick and Malda 2:23
10 I'm Alright 3:41
11 Summer, Summer 3:55
12 19th Nervous Breakdown 4:32
13 I Don't Wanna Live Anymore 2:53
14 Business as Usual 3:40
15 Insanity 3:49
16 Who Am I Talking To 2:55
17 Can't Stop My Love 3:53
18 Everything Falls into Place 4:17
19 Avenging Annie 6:04
20 All I Want Is You 6:27 Joe Viglione has written a number of Andy Pratt reviews for the All Media Guide as well as the liner notes to the CD release of Pratt's first album Records Are Like Life. You can find lots of Andy Pratt recordings on GEMM.com: http://www1.gemm.com/c/search.pl?field=GEMM+SEARCH&wild=andy+pratt&Go!.x=0&Go!.y=0&Go!=Search&picklang=%2Fc%2Fsearch.pl%3Flang%3DEN%26clickflag%3D1%26 |
| | Last Updated on Friday, 10 July 2009 06:01 |
| RARE ALBUM OF THE MONTH: HERE'S JOHNNY: RARE MOMENTS FROM THE TONIGHT SHOW | | | |
| Written by Joe Viglione | | Friday, 02 October 2009 19:10 | | Direct link here: http://tinyurl.com/johnnycarson Remember to click on highlighted links to explore Gemm.com and products associated with this album.  | This expensive (and expansive) double record set was reportedly an albatross for Casablanca Records, not selling what - on paper - the company allegedly thought it would sell. But it is here on GEMM.com Tonight Show on GEMM.com Heres Johnny Magic Moments from the Tonight Show From public domain information "Casablanca Special Products produced this two album set in November 1974. The Beginning is Johnny’s first show October 1, 1962. What follows is a lineup of history from Pearl Bailey to Richard Nixon including Jack Benny, referenced on his Wikipedia page. Benny made one of his final television appearances in the fall of 1972 on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson when Carson celebrated his 10th anniversary. (An audio recording featuring highlights of Benny's appearance is featured on the album Here's Johnny: Magic Moments From The Tonight Show released in 1973 "
|
| Joe Viglione's thoughts: OK, the idea of Richard M Nixon ,Lenny Bruce and Bette Midler appearing on media outside of a news report sounds like a sick joke, but it is the iconic status of Johnny Carson which makes such a smorgasbord of rich audio interview footage such a compelling project in the pre-DVD world of 1973. That Casablanca dropped the ball is obvious, and this could have sunk the label if not for Donna Summer and Kiss, but where a Peter Lemongello was legend for his Andy Warhol alotted 15 minutes, marketing his unknown-self into a million homes, why Casablanca couldn't duplicate this to a television audience, Carson's realm, and beyond the fan base of Billie Holiday which, though substantial, couldn't drum up millions of sales on its own. Euclid's axiom that "The whole is greater than the sum of its parts" is usually true, but it was poor marketing that denied this album its true moment in the sun. Click on the blue highlights to find each personality inside GEMM.com itself. 01 The Beginning - Johnny Carson & Ed McMahon 02 Tonto Tonto - Jay Silverheels 03 Lullabye of Broadway & Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy - Bette Midler 04 Fathers Day - Groucho Marx 05 Morningside Heights - George Carlin 06 Our Love Is Here To Stay - Pearl Bailey & Johnny Carson 07 The Discovery - Lenny Bruce 08 Ladies Sing The Blues *** Them There Eyes – Billie Holiday *** The Man That Got Away – Judy Garland *** Until You Come Back To Me (That’s What I’m Gonn a Do) - Aretha Franklin 09 Boil That Cabbage – Smothers Brothers 10 Richard M Nixon (Interview) |
Direct link here: http://tinyurl.com/johnnycarson Remember to click on highlighted links to explore Gemm.com and products associated with this album. | | Last Updated on Sunday, 18 October 2009 11:45 |
| Written by Joe Viglione | | Wednesday, 08 April 2009 07:22 | | 
| The intentional and exquisite raw production of Genya Ravan's Urban Desire explores the high voltage newly emerging in cities around the world during the cherished "New Wave" movement in rock. Ravan's production of The Dead Boys "Sonic Reducer" in 1977 helped spearhead the revolution, a charge continued on this, her fifth solo disc after previous careers with the influential jazz/pop ensemble Ten Wheel Drive and the ground-breaking all-girl Goldie & The Gingerbreads before that.
1978's Urban Desire is part of an important trilogy of Ravan recordings, including it's sequel - also on Hip-0 Select - 1979's ...And I Mean It and concluding with Ronnie Spector's Siren from 1980 - as much a Genya Ravan record as it is Ronnie's.
Two Joe Droukas compositions, "Shadowboxing" and "The Sweetest One", bring to mind The Rolling Stones' Sticky Fingers phase. | | (This content is also on Universal Music's Hip-0 Select site, it is Copyright 2009 Joe Viglione) | Find a copy of URBAN DESIRE on GEMM | | In fact, "Shadowboxing" could nearly be considered the great lost track from the Stones 1972 masterpiece. The Droukas/Ravan team doesn't stop there, though; for "The Knight Ain't Long Enough" is more than a clever double-entendre, it creatively reflects Mott The Hoople during their wonderful Brain Capers period - the moment before Bowie got hold of them - and a style that La David emulated often.
Genya also puts dynamics in sequencing the material; "Do It Just For Me" comes off a lot more subtly than the rocking disc-opener, "Jerry's Pigeons." Rock's pioneering lady spins the songs like a disc jockey; "Shot In The Heart" - as with most of the record - adaptable for college or mainstream radio. The Lou Reed duet on "Aye Co'lorado" is just the prescription for anyone who wanted to demolish their stereo every time an Eagles song came on. And to Velvet Underground fans even further, Genya does a Gospel-meets-the-street version of John Cale's superb "Darling I Need You." If you can envision Deep Purple asking one of the foxiest lead singers from the '70s to come onstage to sing a Supremes tune, you'll have a good idea of how "Back In My Arms Again" sounds with guitars ablaze. It brings to mind the idea of Diana Ross and Janis Joplin as vocalists in Genya's dream-team version of The Supremes - but Janis can't and Diana won't, you'll have to indulge in Urban Desire to fully comprehend life on the edge. Gavin Lurssen's superb mastering will help you do just that.
|
| | Last Updated on Wednesday, 15 April 2009 02:31 |
| Letters From A Flying Machine - Peter Mulven | | | |
| Written by Joe Viglione | | Tuesday, 07 July 2009 14:01 |  | | Last Updated on Wednesday, 08 July 2009 00:20 |
| Bobby Hebb's classic "Sunny" album | | | |
| Written by Joe Viglione | | Wednesday, 08 April 2009 07:11 | | Bobby Hebb's "Sunny" (Philips 40365) has captivated generations with its immaculate melody and philosophy to always look at the bright side. Though many have speculated that Hebb wrote the song for God or for his brother and mentor, Hal Hebb, the singer has stated many times the tune is about a "sunny disposition." And though this one title loved by millions led to Bobby touring with The Beatles in 1966 and brought the Hebb name to prominence, the eleven other performances on the album are also of great substance and filled with entertainment value.
Buy BOBBY HEBB discs on GEMM.com
"Sunny" became a #1 hit in Cashbox Magazine and #2 in Billboard the week of Bobby Hebb's 28th birthday, July 26, 1966. Less than four months later track #7, "A Satisfied Mind", would break the Billboard Top 40. The song was a #1 Country hit for Porter Wagoner eleven years earlier, but more important to Bobby, it was in the repertoire of Roy Acuff, the man called "the king of the hillbillies." It was as a member of Acuff's band that Hebb appeared on the Grand Ole Opry A third hit from the album, "Love Love Love", was co-written by the album's producer, Jerry Ross along with Joe Renzetti, the album's arranger. "Love, Love, Love" (the flip side of "A Satisfied Mind) became a hit recording in England in 1972, six years after its initial release. The "Northern Soul" phenomenon started in Europe has also brought attention to this important work. "Crazy Baby" (Philips 40421) became a third release from the album with a brilliant non-lp B side co-written by the great Kenny Gamble and Jerry Ross, a song entitled "Love Me" which is a kind of second-cousin to "Sunny", if you will. Kenny Gamble composed "You Don't Know What You Got Until You Lose It" with producer Jerry Ross, as essential as Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil's contribution on the album's shortest track, "Good Good Lovin' ", as vital as the legendary Van McCoy's album closer, the elegant and Drifter's-styled "For You." Though in the new millenium Mr. Hebb is still the "song a day man", his vast repertoire was not tapped for the dozen tunes that appeared on his debut lp, in fact only "Crazy Baby" along with "Yes Or No Or Maybe Not" joined the classic "Sunny" as ideas from the singer's fountain pen. And though "Love Love Love" and "A Satisfied Mind" have shown up on various compilations and continue to get attention, it is "Sunny" that has maintained classic status being awarded the #25 position on BMI's Top 100 Songs of The Century. That organization credits "Sunny" with at least 5 million performances, wonderful acknowledgment for a composition that crosses genres and keeps finding chart action decade after decade. Cher and Georgie Fame had British hits with "Sunny", while Mieko Hiroto actually charted in Japan with a version prior to Bobby Hebb's rendition. Yambu found fame on the 1970s dance floors with this melody, as did Boney M. who hit #1 in Germany with "Sunny" in 1977. The Boogie Pimps sampled the Boney M. version in 2003 and hit with it in 2004.. Recorded by hundreds of artists from Vibraphonist Dave Pike to Frank Sinatra & Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Pat Martino, Stan Kenton, Herbie Mann, Frankie Valli, Roger Williams and so many others, the song and this album have a secure place in popular culture. Hearing the composition as interpreted by others is fascinating and a treat, but it is Bobby Hebb's original "Sunny" with backing vocals by his friends Melba Moore, Nick Ashford & Valerie Simpson that endures. | | Last Updated on Wednesday, 15 April 2009 04:27 |
|
No comments:
Post a Comment