Re: The Eradication Game (Re: Grammyszzzzzzzzz....)
In a message dated 3/1/99 10:18:25 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: Make up, Fire, Heavy Metal, Glam, Spitting Blood, The Comic Book, Kiss, come'on didn't Alice Copper do much of this before Kiss... As far as "Glam," David Bowie, even Mot the Hoople I think, was there before Kiss. I lived in Japan at the time, so am not really sure, someone help me here. Nancy, now wearing silver platform work boots, getting ready to shovel pig poop from Gidget's "crib".
Re: steve earle, Jesse Taylor?
went to a wedding last year that jesse played at, yeow, mighty fine tunes for a wedding!!! dave
Re: Robbie Fulks and covers
Hey there, Dina 'Gundy' Gunderson OK, OK, finally I just have to ask "WHY?!!!" I just don't get it. Why do people love for country or alt.country bands or so-called alt.country bands to do covers of godawful cheesy rock songs? Why do people respond to these more than they do to the, OK, I'm going to say it, "real" songs? a bunch of replies and then Jamie... Yeah, I'll testify. Here's my deal, Dina--usually I don't like it much when a band covers a cheesy song. I'm thinking of that awful disco thing that Cake covered a couple years back, for instance..."I Will Survive", was it? Anyhow, to me, the difference is, Robbie made "Jet" sound like the best damn song ever written when he played it. (And that takes some doing. g) I think it was his sheer enthusiasm. Well, agreeing with all the 'it sounds good' and 'its fun' posts one more thing. Ive heard both Cake and Robbie introduce old covers by explicitly stating something along the lines of 'I think this is a really good song' Cake even went so far as to say 'we're not doing this ironically.' So I think, contrary to Jamie's point, that there are songs that can be removed from their original context (read: Disco) to highlight the lyrical and/or simple melody of the tune. Enough to make you go "Hey, Dancing Queen is a pretty cool tune." I'd put John Wesley Harding's cover of Like A Prayer in this pile as well. Later... CK shocked that Linda didnt know Wings sang Jet ___ You don't need to buy Internet access to use free Internet e-mail. Get completely free e-mail from Juno at http://www.juno.com/getjuno.html or call Juno at (800) 654-JUNO [654-5866]
Kelly Willis
I picked up What I Deserve yesterday, and from the first couple of spins I like it at least as much as Bang Bang (up til now my favorite of her records). It's more uptempo than I'd been led to expect, and the record sounds like it should get played all over the radio. All this and some tasty Chuck Prophet guitar work to boot. Color me impressed. Anyone have tour dates for her? Carl Z.
Re: Kelly Willis
At 12:39 AM 3/2/1999 Carl Z. wrote: Anyone have tour dates for her? Yup. Sorry for the ugly formatting, off Pollstar. Now I gotta figure out which show to travel to... 03/06/99 Houston TX Mucky Duck 03/09/99 Davis CA Palms Playhouse 03/10/99 Monterey CA Doc's Nightclub 03/11/99 San Francisco CA Slim's 03/13/99 Hollywood CA Jack's Sugar Shack 03/20/99 Austin TX SxSW Convention 03/31/99 St. Louis MO Side Door 04/01/99 Chicago IL Schuba's 04/02/99 Chicago IL Schuba's 04/03/99 Minneapolis MN Lee's Liquor Lounge 04/06/99 Pittsburgh PA Graffiti Showcase 04/07/99 Columbus OH Little Brother's 04/08/99 Lexington KY Lynagh's 04/09/99 Nashville TN Exit / In 04/10/99 Memphis TN Newby's 04/11/99 Atlanta GA Smith's Olde Bar 04/16/99 Philadelphia PA Tin Angel 04/17/99 Alexandria VA Birchmere 04/21/99 Somerville MA Johnny D's 04/22/99 Northampton MA Iron Horse Music Hall 04/23/99 New York NY Mercury Lounge 04/24/99 New York NY Mercury Lounge 05/06/99 Austin TX Carlos' N Charlie's Bar Grill 05/07/99 Fort Worth TX Billy Bob's "The truth ain't always what we need, sometimes we need to hear a beautiful lie." -Bill Lloyd
Re: steve earle, Jesse Taylor?
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Just wondering whether Jesse Taylor made any "best" lists for his fine work over the years (the strong arm of the acoustic guitar world)? If you've ever seen him with Ely you know how his ability to shape a song is unmatched. Well, he certainly figures in my personal list. I had the pleasure of seeing him perform a few years ago up in Glasgow, Scotland, with 'Don McAlister Jr. and his Cowboy Jazz Revue'. Jesse Taylor is a big, strong man, and he could alternately thrash the hell out of the acoustic guitar when the song required it, while, in the next second, switch to playing with the most amazing delicacy and tenderness. Beautiful to listen to, and to watch. That same night, he was wearing black from head to toe, but had on a very nice vest: black (again), but covered with lots of brightly coloured pictures of electric guitars. From first sight, it was clear that the guy meant business ... +-- ///\ Ian Durkacz --+ |C-oo Department of Automatic Control Systems Engineering | |\ The University of Sheffield, Sheffield, England| +--- \_v e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] +
Re: Has Anyone Actually seen this?
Keith Beck writes: While looking up a movie in a video guide, I came across this entry: HILLBILLIES IN A HAUNTED HOUSE(1967) Unbelievably bad mishmash of country corn and horror humor. 88m Director:Jean Yarborough Cast:Ferlin Huskey, Joi Lansing, Don Bowman, John Carradine, Lon Chaney Jr., Basil Rathbone, Molly Bee, Merle Haggard, Sonny James. Yikes Yikes, indeed. I've *seen* it. It's...er...pretty painful. --Jon Johnson [EMAIL PROTECTED] Wollaston, Massachusetts
Re: Damn This Old LA Town
That assumes that Buckner has word-of-mouth "street cred," but wouldn't the word-of-mouth say that his word is MUCH MORE creative than whatever spills out of your cakehole? I don't get it, like I said, in the small picture. In the big picture it's obvious. "Hey, Fuckface! You're not in your living room watching TV! And that guy on stage is NOT a cathode-ray figment of your delusional self-importance! Shut the Fuck up!!!" Lance . . . feeling pain . . . And you're rude and disgusting. What a vile mouth you have! How dare you flame another poster that way. It is not funny! Who do you think you are? I've read your self-important postings lo these past months and I cannot believe that anyone could put up with your long, I-AM-GOD self-righteous rants.How dare you flame Dan for his opinions. Further, I cannot believe that anyone here has not touched upon this... and taken you to task for your long-winded bullshit. You are not pertinent, not valid and definitely not funny. I am ashamed of you. Tera
Big Book of Co. Music
Was perusing Richard Carlin's "The Big Book of Country Music" (Penguin Press, 1995) last night. Man, this book is chock full of provocative judgments about country music and its past -- enough stuff to launch hundreds of lengthy threads about such things as country vs. pop, production, the relative merits of various artists, etc. On the latter issue, Carlin more or less pronounces Steve Earle as a one-shot flash in the pan, whose only work of any real merit (as of the early 90s) was "Guitar Town" (The segment on Earle begins: "Earle is a country-rocker who has never really lived up to his potential after the release of his now-legendary 1986 album, 'Guitar Town,'" and concludes several hundred words later, "After a 1990 tour with Bob Dylan, Earle has for the moment faded from both the country and pop scenes." On the Nashville Sound and the later Countrypolitan phase in country music, Carlin is decidedly contemptuous, more or less mirroring some of the stuff I've argued on this list. He goes too far, though, in laying down value judgments without anything to back them up. Such as: "After the pernicious effects of the Nashville Sound had rendered country music into a bland reflection of middle-of-the-road pop, the seventies drove what seemed to be the final nail in country music's coffin with the development of country-politan, or crossover, country artists..." Or: "While countrypolitan and even seventies crossover country tried to 'modernize' country music by employing cushy choruses and sappy strings, the country-rock crowd was showing that the real strength of country music lay in its strong lyrical content and its stripped-down sound..." Or, in reference to the Anita Kerr Singers, whom Chet Atkins used on some of the records he produced (including Bobby Bare's): "(They) appeared on countless Nashville sessions (in the late 50s and 60s), oohing and aahing behind Jim Reeves, Red Foley, the Browns and countless others. As such, they represent the worst excesses of the Nashville Sound, when plodding pianos and sighing singers drowned legitimate country acts in dreadful audio ooze... Anita Kerr deserves much of the credit for the success of mainstream country recordings of the sixties. And for all who love ear candy, there's nothing like an Anita Kerr LP to take you down memory lane.." Well, there's a sampling. No pretense toward objectivity, plenty to rile up just about anybody, and some factual errors that even I noticed. I suspect that this book has been discussed here before, but since I lack an encyclopaedic memory, forgive me if I don't recall it. -- Terry Smith ps in the Bobby Bare entry, he cites "Detroit City" as a seventies hit by Bare. Did Bare record this tune twice, or did Carlin get it wrong? I know Bare recorded this tune in the sixties.
Re: The Eradication Game (Re: Grammyszzzzzzzzz....)
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Neil writes: Not even close. Seger made some great great music way back when. GAG! Great compared to what, REO Speedwagon? g When you look in the rock dictionary under "over hyped, bombastic and silly" there's a picture of Seger and nothing else. Next! Jim, smilin'like a rock I dunno. Not a big Seger fan, but I remember cruising around Pontiac with my cousin in his souped up Firebird when there was nothing but Seger on the radio. I mean you heard it everywhere. There was something strange about all that nostaligia tint to his stuff. This was when the Detroit area auto industry was in free fall, and all the juniors of the folks who went to sleep in Detroit City were getting in their cars with the black Michigan plates (remember southerners calling em the black tag people?), and heading back to the ancestral homes looking for work. Which is why my cousins now live in Tennessee. Segers music always struck me as kind of dirge like. Stuart jet lagged
Re: Grammyszzzzzzzzz....
Matt Benz wrote: Which weren't really being played, i don't think: they were just held by the back up singers. That was truly a terrible performance, awful song (we ran the close captioning, so we could catch the lyrics: one of the lines is about changing hair color: now *that's* empowerment!). The Bottlerockets sound more like a country band than she does. Made me long for Garth B. I think I realize who the true enemy is. .Cause the Bottle Rockets are a country band, just like the Stones. Did anyone post over there that P1 comment from Henneman about how Earle was a bad ass and should have a bunch of bikers backing him up? Too funny. So I get back from England, where I saw nothing about the grammies, although they had just awarded a bunch of Brits awards to musicians (?) I'd never heard of, and I find a gazillion posts about the grammies. What the hell is wrong witch you all? Does anybody take this industry crap seriously?
Re: Ringo
Iain Noble wrote: Looks like I have a good chance on interviewing Ringo and trying to get ready. Anyone have any ideas on "different" questions to ask him other than the same old crap? Thanks in advance for any tips, I have a feeling I will have to remind myself to not drool, so I want to be really prepared. Nancy Is it true he took tins of baked beans with him when they went to stay with the Maharishi in India? And did he realy say that the M's place was just like Butlin's? .One of the more interesting discoveries of my first trip there is that the English eat beans on toast for breakfast, put them on baked potatoes, and god knows what else. Other than that the English food was not bad. Sturdy stuff. As John Cleese once said to the question of why English food sucked: "We had an empire to run, we didn't have time to develop a cuisine!" The beer looked great and made me miss it terribly. Twang content: had a lovely time in a Sheffield pub with Iain listening to the Hillybilly Cats. Reviews to follow, but must get to work. Stuart semi-conscious
RE: Bob o the sovines update
-Original Message- From: Gary Grismore [SMTP:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Monday, March 01, 1999 6:09 PM To: passenger side Subject: Re: Bob o the sovines update Great news Matt! Does this mean we're no longer collecting a donation? I'd still be happy to contribute - just don't want to if it's just going to get returned. Let me know - and keep me updated on the possible benefit. Thanks! Gary [Matt Benz] yes, I would say donations are really no longer needed. I helped him move out some yesterday, and they really were very lucky, other than losing the cat. And the apartment, of course. But they are doing well, and the landlord may have a new place for em. That old building musta had some kind of firewall setup, cos really, the fire was stopped cold all around their apartment. From the looks of it, 5 more minutes, they ceiling woulda come crashing down, and *then* they would've lost it all. I took off the apt. # 5 for em, figuring that might be their lucky number now. Again, thanks for the show of concern folks!
Re: Has Anyone Actually seen this?
In a message dated 3/2/99 6:04:18 AM !!!First Boot!!!, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: While looking up a movie in a video guide, I came across this entry: HILLBILLIES IN A HAUNTED HOUSE(1967) Unbelievably bad mishmash of country corn and horror humor. 88m Director:Jean Yarborough Cast:Ferlin Huskey, Joi Lansing, Don Bowman, John Carradine, Lon Chaney Jr., Basil Rathbone, Molly Bee, Merle Haggard, Sonny James. Yikes But I do think it's something we all need to get a hold of and watch just once, AND ONLY ONCE! (Along with "The Fastest Guitar in the West" with Roy Orbison) Mitch Matthews Gravel Train/Sunken Road
RE: bluegrass
Someone wondered if anybody else had gotten hot-shot bluegrass players to work with them -- so I've got to mention Dan Fogelberg, who in the 80s got a who's who of bluegrass knights to back him on a record. Forgettable songs, generic muzac-ified bluegrass, if I remember correctly. Some of the songs (though not the performances) were memorable, but they were covers of bluegrass classics. Another point about bluegrass that someone brought up -- how with a lot of folks the high, keening vocals are an instant irritant. It can never be pointed out often enough that "high lonesome" is only one of a number of bluegrass vocal styles. It is not an accident that the "low friendly" sound of Flatt Scruggs was among the most popular - not only with the public at large, so to speak, but also with many bluegrassers. Jon Weisberger Kenton County, KY [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://home.fuse.net/jonweisberger/
Re: Esther ???
I believe she's the woman who played the main female character in Jim Jarmusch's "Stranger Than Paradise." I think I remember reading something about her father being a jazz musician, but I could have been halucinating. I also seem to remember reading something about her releasing a CD. Jamie D., who is absolutely positive she's at work right now, but not of much else At 08:54 AM 3/2/99 -0500, you wrote: While driving around yesterday making a living being a traveling salesman of sorts... I heard a live in the studio performance of someone named Esther ?Bolint? I am not sure of the last name, and she may be a member of a band. Interesting music with violin and cello and a real nice voice. Does anybody know who I an talking about? Or was I just dreaming while driving again? Thom Wodock [EMAIL PROTECTED] Thanks
Re: Robbie Fulks and covers
Barry Mazor wrote: OK, OK, finally I just have to ask "WHY?!!!" I just don't get it. Why do people love for country or alt.country bands or so-called alt.country bands to do covers of godawful cheesy rock songs? Why do people respond to these more than they do to the, OK, I'm going to say it, "real" songs? Dina Two reasons I think. 1. If you do like the twang--then these covers arrive as an incongruous SURPRISE. You get a response. 2. For those at these alt.country shows who DON'T actually like twang but only the tiniest rock and roll allusions to it (and they're always afoot), it gives them something they actually relate to. Very well put Barry. I think the Flatirons doing Crazy Train certainly qualifies for the incongruous surprise category. Bill Lavery http://villagerecords.com/
Re: Esther ???
Reply to: Re: Esther ??? Her name is Eszter Balint. Jamie DePolo wrote: I believe she's the woman who played the main female character in Jim Jarmusch's "Stranger Than Paradise." I think I remember reading something about her father being a jazz musician, but I could have been halucinating. I also seem to remember reading something about her releasing a CD. Jamie D., who is absolutely positive she's at work right now, but not of much else At 08:54 AM 3/2/99 -0500, you wrote: While driving around yesterday making a living being a traveling salesman of sorts... I heard a live in the studio performance of someone named Esther ?Bolint? I am not sure of the last name, and she may be a member of a band. Interesting music with violin and cello and a real nice voice. Does anybody know who I an talking about? Or was I just dreaming while driving again? Thom Wodock [EMAIL PROTECTED] Thanks
Kelly Willis Tour Dates
Kelly's web site kellywillis.com currently has dates for March and April. She will be touring w/ a new band (Amy Farris, Rafael Goyel and Jerry Holmes) and all April dates have Bruce Robison opening (how convenient). A bunch of us NY P2'ers are already warming up the car for our April 22 road trip to see her play Northampton Mass. Jeff
Re: Robbie Fulks and covers
Barry says, And bonus 3: It is a passing peculiarity of the late 90s that it passes for ultrahip to celebrate the most addlebrained and plain dull pop pablum of years gone by, at the deliberate expense of what somebody's older brother with taste liked. So you scream for Karen Carpenter and ABBA, natch, and explain why Jimi Hendrix was the plague and the Beatles overrated. These choices prove you are most-definitely alternatively, dude. Well, you know that means that folks like Neil McCoy and Brooks Dunn are SUPER-ultrahip in their cover choices! Dina
Re: Damn This Old LA Town
I think something got distorted below here, at least I *think* so Lance wrote this in sympathy w/ my painful live Buckner experience (painful due to the gabbers right up front with me); That assumes that Buckner has word-of-mouth "street cred," but wouldn't the word-of-mouth say that his word is MUCH MORE creative than whatever spills out of your cakehole? I don't get it, like I said, in the small picture. In the big picture it's obvious. "Hey, Fuckface! You're not in your living room watching TV! And that guy on stage is NOT a cathode-ray figment of your delusional self-importance! Shut the Fuck up!!!" Lance . . . feeling pain . . . And you're rude and disgusting. What a vile mouth you have! How dare you flame another poster that way. It is not funny! Who do you think you are? I've read your self-important postings lo these past months and I cannot believe that anyone could put up with your long, I-AM-GOD self-righteous rants.How dare you flame Dan for his opinions. Further, I cannot believe that anyone here has not touched upon this... and taken you to task for your long-winded bullshit. You are not pertinent, not valid and definitely not funny. I am ashamed of you. Tera ...anyway, if I'm reading you right Tera, don't worry about it, Lance was simply writing in sympatico and telling me what I (or anyone) should think about saying to the jabbermouths next time. At least that's what I think he was saying, and what I think you've you misread..(wow, this listserv stuff gets complicated sometimesg) anyway don't worry about it. dan
Re: Kelly Willis Tour Dates
Jeff Sohn wrote: Kelly's web site kellywillis.com currently has dates for March and April. When she was on Crook Chase (what a goofy-ass show) last week, she said she was going to be touring Europe later in the spring. -- Tom Mohr at the office: [EMAIL PROTECTED] at the home: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
RE: Waterloo Top 50/Texas Top 10 - 2.27.99
5. Steve Earle Del McCoury TX 62 ^^ I'll bet that's news to Del'n'em - being TX artists, I mean. Jon Weisberger Kenton County, KY [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://home.fuse.net/jonweisberger/
Sunrise (was: RE: Playlist: The Boudin Barndance - 2/18/99)
Shane asked: BoudinDan mentions in his fine playlist: ...the new Elvis set called "Sunrise." When did this come out? What's on it? Is it a box set? It's a double-CD in one of those flip cases, released a couple of weeks ago. Basically, it's The Sun Sessions plus - the plus being a number of live cuts from 1955, pre-Sun stuff and a couple of alternate takes that didn't appear on The Sun Sessions. The notes consist of a good essay by Peter Guralnick and not much else; there is, for instance, no date, definite or speculative (beyond the year), for the live cuts, and no discussion of where or why they were recorded. Unfortunately, at least from my perspective, there are a couple of outtakes/alternate takes on The Sun Sessions that don't appear on Sunrise, so a completist will want to hang onto the former (is this a new strategy to reduce the traffic in used copies of The Sun Sessions that might otherwise result?). Jon Weisberger Kenton County, KY [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://home.fuse.net/jonweisberger/
questions
Has anyone heard of any of these bands? What kind of music do they play? This is supposedly a lineup for a Jazz festival that someone is questioning me on and I don't think I recognize any of them. Anybody? Thanks, Jim, still smilin' Gin Draga Hall St. Honkers Jean Kittrell Wooden Nickel Buck Creek Cats N Jammer Blue Street Zydeto Flames Bathtub Gin Jewish Wedding Royal Society Pieces of 8 Marine Corps Uptown Mardi Gras Chicago 6 Donna Landry Gator Beat Horn Band Uptown Big Foot Lavey Smith Dancers Only Dynatones
Re: Waterloo Top 50/Texas Top 10 - 2.27.99
although I believe that Steve is from San Antonio In a message dated 3/2/1999 10:03:55 AM Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: 5. Steve Earle Del McCoury TX 62 ^^ I'll bet that's news to Del'n'em - being TX artists, I mean. Jon Weisberger Kenton County, KY [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://home.fuse.net/jonweisberger/
Re: elena,ghostrockets,htc review
Here's the Richmond Times-Dispatch review of the Capital City Barn Dance show Saturday night featuring Elena Skye and the Demolition String Band, The Ghostrockets and Honky Tonk Confidential: Monday, March 1, 1999 BY BILL CRAIG Special Correspondent For the past two years, the Capital City Barn Dance has been holding monthly showcases of local and regional talent recruited from the way left-hand side of the country music dial. After beginning its run amid the hyperactivity of Shockoe Bottom, the Barn Dance recently found a new home in the almost suburban confines of the Dogtown Lounge. Similarly, Elena Skye got her professional start in the wild world of New Jersey and New York punk rock before the rediscovery of bluegrass music led her to turn down the volume and form her traditional country-influenced but cowpunk-driven quartet, Elena Skye and the Demolition String Band. So it seemed quite appropriate in a honky-tonk kind of way that Skye and company headlined a Barn Dance lineup Saturday night that they shared with the Ghost Rockets, fellow New Jersey residents, and Washington's Honky Tonk Confidential. Backed by the slick lead guitar of Bo Reiners, Skye opened the evening with a bluegrass instrumental and a Jimmie Rodgers cover before sliding into a sample of hard-core honkabilly. The hour-long set included a whole bunch of twangy heartache, highlighted by the big shuffle of "Biggest Piece of Nothing," the Tex-Mex flavored "I'll Try Not to Cry Tonight" and a juiced-up version of Loretta Lynn's "Get What You Got and Go." As a reminder of just how alternative it is, the quartet followed the bouncy conventional country pain of "It Still Hurts" with "Are You Armed," a cool honky-tonk/surf music instrumental hybrid. The evening's most unadulterated twang was provided by the four men and one woman of Honky Tonk Confidential. Carried by the vocals of Diana Quinn, Mike Woods and Geff King and a ton of sweet string work, the band paid homage to the founding fathers and mothers of country music with reverent interpretations of tunes by, among others, Wanda Jackson, Bob Wills and Johnny Cash, along with a handful of originals that sounded as if they were written two or three decades ago. Quinn and the boys knocked out a nice little survey course in country music history with songs such as Jim Ed Brown's bouncy "Pop a Top," Johnny Paycheck's "A-11" and Cash's classic "Folsom Prison Blues." Best of the originals included "Down in Washington, " a honky-tonkified look at the state of the union, the swingin' feel of "(Ain't A) Texas Gal" and the self-explanatory confessional "Lottery Tickets, Cigarettes and Booze." The Ghost Rockets closed out Hoboken Night at the Barn Dance with a song list that, while featuring a mighty fine Louvin Brothers tune, earned an A for alternative content. The five-man band's shades of country ranged from the country/pop of "This Girl of Mine" and the Southern rock of "Family Tree" to the bluesy jammin' of "Hard to Get" and the classically hard-core country of "Sitting Alone in the Moonlight." The Capital City Barn Dance returns to the Dogtown Lounge on March 27 with the Ex-Husbands, Lancaster County Prison and the Steam Donkeys. © 1999, Richmond Newspapers Inc.
Re: Sunrise (was: RE: Playlist: The Boudin Barndance - 2/18/99)
Jon Weisberger writes: It's a double-CD in one of those flip cases, released a couple of weeks ago. Basically, it's The Sun Sessions plus - the plus being a number of live cuts from 1955, pre-Sun stuff and a couple of alternate takes that didn't appear on The Sun Sessions. The notes consist of a good essay by Peter Guralnick and not much else; there is, for instance, no date, definite or speculative (beyond the year), for the live cuts, and no discussion of where or why they were recorded. Unfortunately, at least from my perspective, there are a couple of outtakes/alternate takes on The Sun Sessions that don't appear on Sunrise, so a completist will want to hang onto the former (is this a new strategy to reduce the traffic in used copies of The Sun Sessions that might otherwise result?). These are all points that I made in my "C.S.T." review. The good points are that a) "Sunrise" collects - for the first time - all four of Big E's pre-Sun acetate recordings in one place, b) it puts "Fool, Fool, Fool" and the early version of "Shake, Rattle, and Roll" (both recorded in Lubbock for a radio station) in their proper context for the first time, c) it includes an unreleased alternate take of "Blue Moon," and d) the Louisiana Hayride recordings are pretty damn rough, but interesting nonetheless. There are two huge problems in my book. First of all, the sessionography, such as it is, gives absolutely no information about release numbers, take numbers, release dates, etc. You get recording dates and not much else. Personally, I'm not sure what the problem was, considering that all of this information was included with "The Sun Sessions" back in '87. The other big problem, as Jon W. mentioned, is the greatly reduced number of alternate takes that appeared on the original CD, which already had fewer alternates than the 2-record LP version due to space constraints. Since "Sunrise" is a 2-disc set, there's absolutely no excuse for this as far as I'm concerned. There was plenty of room to make "Sunrise" the last word on this era of Elvis' career. And, sure, maybe Joe Consumer isn't going to care about listening to seven barely distinguishable versions of "I'm Left, You're Right, She's Gone," but I do. "Sunrise" is worth picking up but I'm absolutely stumped as to why RCA didn't do a better job, particularly considering the hugely improved quality of their Elvis releases since '86 or so and the fact that Ernst Jorgensen was involved with this. More than anyone else at RCA, you'd have thought that *he* would have known better. --Jon Johnson [EMAIL PROTECTED] Wollaston, Massachusetts
Re: Waterloo Top 50/Texas Top 10 - 2.27.99
There will probably be 27 different replies before this gets through but Steve Earle is originally from Virginia. [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: although I believe that Steve is from San Antonio In a message dated 3/2/1999 10:03:55 AM Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: 5. Steve Earle Del McCoury TX 62 ^^ I'll bet that's news to Del'n'em - being TX artists, I mean. Jon Weisberger Kenton County, KY [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://home.fuse.net/jonweisberger/
Re: Waterloo Top 50/Texas Top 10 - 2.27.99
hmmm.was this the story about his grandfather sending dirt up to Virginia so he'd be born with Texas soil beneath his feet? If so, you are correct, thanks for the reminder! And if not, it's still a great story if anyone knows all the details! Kate [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: There will probably be 27 different replies before this gets through but Steve Earle is originally from Virginia. [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: although I believe that Steve is from San Antonio In a message dated 3/2/1999 10:03:55 AM Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: 5. Steve Earle Del McCoury TX 62 ^^ I'll bet that's news to Del'n'em - being TX artists, I mean. Jon Weisberger Kenton County, KY [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://home.fuse.net/jonweisberger/
Re: Grammyszzzzzzzzz....
So I get back from England, where I saw nothing about the grammies, although they had just awarded a bunch of Brits awards to musicians (?) I'd never heard of, and I find a gazillion posts about the grammies. What the hell is wrong witch you all? Does anybody take this industry crap seriously? I'm no fan of these awards either, although they do have a certain fascination, I think it's a rabbit in the headlights kind of thing. Anyway the unknown musicians you mention included Beck and Belle Sebastian. Don't know what that proves just thought I'd mention it. Andy
THE DRAGON'S ROAR (fwd)
DRAGON THE PEN COMMUNICATIONS PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ìTHE DRAGONíS ROARî NOW HEARD ëROUND THE WORLD! West Coast country and western and American roots music historian, critic and journalist JANA PENDRAGON has begun a new column, THE DRAGONíS ROAR, to be published in the online international journal of arts and ideas, THE TOWER OF BABEL. A multilingual and multicultural publication that is published and edited by MALCOLM LAWRENCE, THE TOWER OF BABEL can be found on the World Wide Web at the following address: www.towerofbabel.com. THE DRAGONíS ROAR will kick off an expansion of THE TOWER OF BABELíS ëMusic Section.í THE DRAGONíS ROAR will cover everything from the sharper, edgier flavor of the West Coast Honky Tonk Sound to the myriad of forms of traditional American Roots music including Bluegrass, Rock ëní Roll, Mountain Music, Western Swing, Cowboy Tunes and everything in between. The ëHonky Tonk Divisioní of THE TOWER OF BABEL will go beyond the hype and marketing of todayís pop-goes-the-country fluff to uncover the many distinctive layers of REAL CW and roots music. The first installment of THE DRAGONíS ROAR introduces readers to one of the West Coastís most talented up-and-comers, CISCO. A native of Fresno, California in the fertile San Joaquin Valley that gave birth to the independent BAKERSFIELD SOUND, Cisco defies current convention. More like Bakersfield pioneer MERLE HAGGARD or Texas Outlaw WAYLON JENNINGS, CISCO is as physically charismatic as a young ELVIS PRESLEY and as dangerous and enticing as ëhillbilly deluxeí DWIGHT YOAKAM. Ruffling feathers and stopping listeners in their tracks wherever he goes, heís made a huge sensation with the release of his first studio project, WISHING YOU WELL FROM THE PINK MOTEL*. Produced by MIKE NESS and JAMES SAEZ, this solid country indie has been declared ëone of the best of ë98.í Check out CISCO and THE DRAGONíS ROAR at: www.towerofbabel.com/selections/music/honkytonk/dragonsroar/cisco. And be sure to keep an eye on all the many wonders of the world as THE TOWER OF BABEL continues to break down barriers and open minds to new ideas and the arts! *(WISHING YOU WELL FROM THE PINK MOTEL is available from MILES OF MUSIC: www.MilesOMusc.com or e-mail them at: [EMAIL PROTECTED]) ###
RE: Big Book of Co. Music
On Tue, 2 Mar 1999, Jon Weisberger wrote: ps in the Bobby Bare entry, he cites "Detroit City" as a seventies hit by Bare. Did Bare record this tune twice, or did Carlin get it wrong? I know Bare recorded this tune in the sixties. Carlin got it wrong, certainly the "hit" part. The hit was in the 60s. And that's not all he got wrong. The Big Book Of Country Music is easily one of the most unreliable reference books on country that you'll find. It's riddled with factual errors, and Carlin's critical judgment (such as it is) leaves much to be desired.--don
Re: Damn This Old LA Town
On Tue, 2 Mar 1999 [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: ...anyway, if I'm reading you right Tera, don't worry about it, Lance was simply writing in sympatico and telling me what I (or anyone) should think about saying to the jabbermouths next time. At least that's what I think he was saying, and what I think you've you misread Er, what he said. And it sure is ironic to see a post viciously insulting a fellow P2er for an imaginary insult.g Please read more carefully folks, lest you read something into a message that simply isn't there.--don
Re: Robbie Fulks and Jet
On Mon, 1 Mar 1999, lance davis wrote: BTW: does anyone in the Pacific Northwest know if the band the Model Rockets are extant?? They used to do a great cover of this song, which got me to thinking of their Cheap Trick-ish selves. They still occasionally play around town. Lead MR John Ramberg has also been busy backin' up the divine Neko Case (who's playing the Tractor Tavern on March 11).--don
Re: THE DRAGON'S ROAR (fwd)
On Tue, 2 Mar 1999, Joyce Linehan wrote: West Coast country and western and American roots music historian, critic and journalist JANA PENDRAGON has begun a new column, THE DRAGONíS ROAR, to be published in the online international journal of arts and ideas, THE TOWER OF BABEL. My memory's a little shaky this morning, but isn't that the person who wrote a letter to ND rippin' into ol' Cantwell about his negative critique of Dwight's half-assed cover album? Just wonderin'.--don
RE: Fulks and the Hollies
Jon Weisberger Kenton County, KY [EMAIL PROTECTED], asked: Which reminds me, who's covered "Carrie Ann?" That's a good song. I don't know who else has covered this song, but the Burns Sisters lifted the melody from its chorus for "Far From My Home" on their last Rounder CD. jim catalano still a friend and fan of the Burns Sisters NP: "Swingin' on the Strings-The Jimmy Bryant Speedy West Collection, Vol. 2," (Razor Tie). Hot stuff, indeed!
Re: Is It or Is It Not?
"Ferguson, Dan" wrote: Jon wrote: Oh, and finally, one thing that's bugging me half to death... Earle's mentioned a number of times that Del and the guys brought back the use of one mike, but speaking in terms of national acts, that honor (such as it is) really belongs to Doyle Lawson. And if I remember correctly, Hot Rize made pretty good use of the single mike when they were a bluegrass entity. Boudin Dan One mic is cool because the singers mix themselves into a coherent, single sound. This is a far superior sound than when a soundperson tries to take 3 or 4 mics and mix it and the monitors into a fake blend. People sing more in tune, they sing together, and they sing better. -- Joe Gracey President-For-Life, Jackalope Records http://www.kimmierhodes.com
RE: Robbie Fulks and covers
Excerpts from recent postcards: Why do people love for country or alt.country bands or so-called alt.country bands to do covers of godawful cheesy rock songs? Why do people respond to these more than they do to the, OK, I'm going to say it, "real" songs? Two reasons I think. 1. If you do like the twang--then these covers arrive as an incongruous SURPRISE. You get a response. 2. For those at these alt.country shows who DON'T actually like twang but only the tiniest rock and roll allusions to it (and they're always afoot), it gives them something they actually relate to. And bonus 3: It is a passing peculiarity of the late 90s that it passes for ultrahip to celebrate the most addlebrained and plain dull pop pablum of years gone by, at the deliberate expense of what somebody's older brother with taste liked Slonedog says: Or perhaps it's because the artists actually like the songs. I for one love "Dancing Queen", "Jet" and "I Will Survive". They're not "guilty pleasures", they're just fun songs. One of my favorite bands, the late, lamented Jellyfish used to do a great cover of "Jet". And U2 has been known to cover "Dancing Queen". By the way, speaking of covers, the Del McCoury Band did a great cover of Tom Petty's "Love Is A Long Road" on Sessions at West 54th. Cake's version of "I Will Survive" was lame though. More excerpts: And watch this lil hipster wannabees: in 15 years someone will announce that Son Volt, Nirvana, and say...Beck..were pretentious 90s shits, and the embarrassing lunkheads of that time never saw the genius of Shania Twain.. Slonedog says: Nirvana were pretentious 90s shits but I guess they were better than Shania.
Re: THE DRAGON'S ROAR (fwd)
At 08:50 AM 3/2/99 -0800, Don wrote: My memory's a little shaky this morning, but isn't that the person who wrote a letter to ND rippin' into ol' Cantwell about his negative critique of Dwight's half-assed cover album? Just wonderin'.--don You are correct, sir! I never would've remembered that in a million years, Don, without you sending me back to look. And here I was going to attack that press release on its merits (She's going to tackle "REAL CW and roots music"? Oh come on, won't this silly distinction ever be discredited?; Cisco is "as physically charismatic as a young Elvis Presley"? Let's just say I'm dubious; and so on), but now that you've put me wise, I can instead just dismiss her column out of hand. After all, if she disagreed with me once, then she can't be up to anything very interesting... That last sentence was a joke, btw. Everybody knew that, right? Alright then... --david cantwell
Friday's 'Ghosts' Winner
Whoops forgot to post the winner for Friday. It was: Melinda Haire (Houston, TX) 'Ghosts of Hallelujah' is released on March 9 but is available for pre-release sale on the site - www.allegro-music.com/gourds
Re: Robbie Fulks and covers
I could care less about Cake, but Gloria Gaynor's original version is just swell. Great song delivering a dead-serious message that no doubt resonated with lotsa folks inside and outside of her intended audience. I want to defend Cake here, who it seems some folks might wanna toss away as just another one hit alt wonder. Not nearly the case. They fascinate me to no end for their smart, funny, sad inventive, rocking, groovy, genre-bent ways. The Camper Van on the 90s, methinks. As for their cover of "I Will Survive," I think it's quite good, turning the song into a slightly disconcerting trip that still remains quite faithful to the original with its uplifting message, a tone punctuated by the trumpet parts. It's worth noting too that "Survive" is one of three covers on that album, the others being "Perhaps Perhaps Perhaps" (by which old time female pop singer???) and Willie's "Sad Songs and Waltzes." Now that's pretty darn ambitious if you ask me. from the rock side, Neal Weiss
RE: Big Book of Co. Music
On the other hand, at least Carlin bothers to have a countrypolitan entry. That's more than can be said for the CMF's otherwise excellent Encylopedia Of Country Music (well, not entirely otherwise--there's also no southern gospel entry, let alone individual entries for the Blackwoods, Statesmen, JD Sumner The Stamps, etc etc. etc.) True enough about the individual entries, but I'll argue back a little bit on the southern gospel thing; though there's no entry as such, there's some discussion in the entry under gospel music (written by Charles Wolfe). Wolfe essentially treats gospel as its own kind of category, and discusses the influences of various kinds of gospel on country music; "the most potent influence," he says, was southern gospel. I'm not sure I agree with that approach wholeheartedly, but there's something to be said for it. It certainly has had a different set of institutions and conventions. Jon Weisberger Kenton County, KY [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://home.fuse.net/jonweisberger/
Re: THE DRAGON'S ROAR (fwd)
On Tue, 2 Mar 1999, David Cantwell wrote: And here I was going to attack that press release on its merits (She's going to tackle "REAL CW and roots music"? Oh come on, won't this silly distinction ever be discredited?; Cisco is "as physically charismatic as a young Elvis Presley"? Let's just say I'm dubious; and so on) And you should be. I just looked it over, and all that purple prose made me dizzy.g Not to mention the tired, kneejerk assumptions about "real" country music. And it's easy to see why she ripped into you about your Dwight review -- considering all the excessive praise she throws his way, she must be some fan.g--don
RE: The Eradication Game misc comments
And while I'm at it, the snide remarks about Shania Twain's dress got on my nerves. It's one thing to criticize her music; another to apply a double standard to her stage clothes. What double standard? Imagine the same exact dress on Tina Turner. That double standard. Plus, the catty comments about the Dixie Chicks' sartorial shortcomings are pretty rich coming from a group that accepts hats made out of sweatpant legs. g [Matt Benz] Wrong, yerself. You're assuming we think the outfit would look good on *anybody.* And ain't no one said we accept the sweatpant hat as a group.
Re: THE DRAGON'S ROAR (fwd)
At 11:18 AM -0600 on 3/2/99, David Cantwell wrote: (She's going to tackle "REAL CW and roots music"? Oh come on, won't this silly distinction ever be discredited? You lost me there, David. Country may be roots music, but not all roots music is country. Why's her distinction silly? Bob
RE: Robbie Fulks and covers
By the way, speaking of covers, the Del
McCoury Band did a great cover of Tom Petty's "Love Is A Long Road" on
Sessions at West 54th.
The first time I heard their version was on the televised portion of the
Opry a few years ago; that flat 7 chord jumped right out at me. It's on
their last album, The Cold Hard Facts (Rounder), along with a Robert Cray
number ("Smoking Gun"). Can't get more traditional than that.
Slonedog says: Nirvana were pretentious 90s shits but I guess they were
better than Shania.
Better how?
Jon Weisberger Kenton County, KY [EMAIL PROTECTED]
http://home.fuse.net/jonweisberger/
Re: Robbie Fulks and covers
At 08:31 PM 3/1/99 -0500, you wrote: Jennifer, who is going to scream for "Jet" at the top of her lungs when Mr. Fulks hits town next month... OK, OK, finally I just have to ask "WHY?!!!" I just don't get it. Why do people love for country or alt.country bands or so-called alt.country bands to do covers of godawful cheesy rock songs? Why do people respond to these more than they do to the, OK, I'm going to say it, "real" songs? Secret confirmation that those godawful songs we all loved as kids aren't as godawful as many of us publicly claim. It isn't just alt.country bands. The Mats once did a three song Alice Cooper medly with the roadie singing leads (Bill something or another, I think). In fact, they also did Build Me Up Buttercup in that same show and this wasn't one of the drunken song frag shows. Jeff Miles of Music mail order http://www.milesofmusic.com FREE printed Catalog: (818) 883-9975 fax: (818) 992-8302, [EMAIL PROTECTED] Alt-Country, rockabilly, bluegrass, folk, power pop and tons more.
Re: Who the hell... indeed!
(now, who the hell is Pete Krebs?) Portland singer-songwriter, asociated with Hazel, Golden Delicious and others. This new album of his reminds me of the Young Fresh Fellows at times and country rock at others. Hard to pinpoint why I set this apart from the pack, but it just sounds fresher and less derived than much of the stuff I get in the mail. Neal Weiss
Re: Robbie Fulks and covers
Someone (sorry, missed the initial message) wrote:
> Why do people love for country or alt.country bands or so-called
> alt.country bands to do covers of godawful cheesy rock songs?
And Jeff Weiss responded:
> Secret confirmation that those godawful songs we all loved as kids
> aren't as godawful as many of us publicly claim.
What he said. Some of those songs are quite well written. A couple of my bands have done a country-ish version of the Cars "My Best Friend's Girlfriend." Goofy lyrics ("you gotcher nuclear boot, and your drip-dry glove") aside, it's a well-written song. Another fave to do in spare folk style is Soundgarden's "Black Hole Sun." The Ass Ponys used to do a spare, drop-dead-serious version of "You Shook Me All Night Long." And so on.
They're just damned fun to play.
If Jake London is out here still, he should forward his very fine essay on covers to the list.
Hi everyone. Did I miss anything good?
Smooches,
Dave
***
Dave Purcell, [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Northern Ky Roots Music: http://w3.one.net/~newport
Twangfest: http://www.twangfest.com
Re: THE DRAGON'S ROAR (fwd)
At 11:37 AM 3/2/99 -0600, you wrote: You lost me there, David. Country may be roots music, but not all roots music is country. Why's her distinction silly? You're right, Bob, about roots and country. But I was referring to the distinction between REAL and unreal. --david cantwell NP: Kelly Willis' What I Deserve
Re: Robbie Fulks/Cake
Reply to: Re: Robbie Fulks/Cake Warning! Mention of alternative rock not country to follow. Proceed with caution! I picked up Cake's Prolonging the Magic. And, IMHO, it's pretty fabulous. I think for anyone who grew up on quirky alternative radio (Oingo Boingo, X, Wall of Voodoo, Meat Puppets) and feels a little disconnected with the current crop of sound-a-like "alternative" bands (Is there really any difference between Live, Matchbox 20, Fastball, and the Goo Goo Dolls?) Cake is, well, an alternative. Neil's right, they do sound a little like a funkified Camper Van Beethoven or maybe a less obtuse Beck. And they twang pretty well, too (pedal steel on a track or two). Chuck Prophet and Jim Campilongo spice up the grooves considerably with some great guitar work. My recommendation: rush out and buy yourself a big slice. CD np: Leonard Cohen Ndubb wrote: I want to defend Cake here, who it seems some folks might wanna toss away as just another one hit alt wonder. Not nearly the case. They fascinate me to no end for their smart, funny, sad inventive, rocking, groovy, genre-bent ways. The Camper Van on the 90s, methinks. As for their cover of "I Will Survive," I think it's quite good, turning the song into a slightly disconcerting trip that still remains quite faithful to the original with its uplifting message, a tone punctuated by the trumpet parts. It's worth noting too that "Survive" is one of three covers on that album, the others being "Perhaps Perhaps Perhaps" (by which old time female pop singer???) and Willie's "Sad Songs and Waltzes." Now that's pretty darn ambitious if you ask me. from the rock side, Neal Weiss
Southern gospel (was Big Book)
At 12:32 PM 3/2/99 -0500, Jon wrote: True enough about the individual entries, but I'll argue back a little bit on the southern gospel thing; though there's no entry as such, there's some discussion in the entry under gospel music (written by Charles Wolfe). yeah I knew that. And it's better than nothing. But... Hey, I'm a southern gospel nut. I have heard that Wolfe, between bouts of illness, has been working on a history of southern gospel. That would great and much needed--Don Cusic's history, The Sound of Light, is the best I know of currently, but it's only half southern gospel. The other is black gospel, which is great but Anthony (?) Heilbut's The Gospel Sound pretty definitively covered that side of the tradition already. We need a southern gospel book, before the tradition's gone for good... --david cantwell
Re: questions
At 09:15 AM 3/2/99 -0600, you wrote: Has anyone heard of any of these bands? What kind of music do they play? Just as a guess, I'd say you're looking at some sort of traditional jazz festival. These are the bands of which I have heard, and my simple generalization about their music: Cats N Jammers - hot string jazz Zydeco Flames - zydeco Lavay Smith and her Red Hot Skillet Lickers - 20's and 30's jazz with sultry vocals Dynatones - white guys playing blues
Re: Robbie Fulks and covers
On Tue, 2 Mar 1999, Dave Purcell wrote: If Jake London is out here still, he should forward his very fine essay on covers to the list. Speakin' of Jake and cool covers, he does a swell version of the Spinners' "Games People Play." Hi everyone. Did I miss anything good? Nah. We've all been waitin' for you to return, darlin'. Welcome back!--don
From the Where Are They Now Department
Hi folks, Does anyone out there know the whereabouts of John Miller (recorded w/Rounder and Blue Goose) or Peter Stampfel (Bottlecaps/HMR fame). I thought I'd heard Miller on an E-Town show a while back and mentioned living out on the West coast, true? I still play "Biding My Time" about once a month. All info appreciated, Kate N.P. Geoff Muldaur/the secret handshake
Damnations TX vs tired UT sounds
After driving around the entire outerbelt searching for an elusive copy of this album, I weaved my way back to the "impeccable indy store" and of course found it. Learnin lessons the hard way here. Anyway, I love the record, but am surprised to hear the tag team of Yates and Weiss claim this stands out from the UT "genre". I hear plenty of overt UT influence on this album. Strains of New Madrid lurk in the banjo strains, etc... Also, do you really think that musically this album stands out? Some of the same loping alt-country shuffling going on, and I dare say that the only differences I hear on some of the tunes are the female vocals: stick a guy wailing away on some of em: same ol alt country rag. Tho maybe not in tune g. Sure, I hear the 60's RB basslines that pop up, that I admit is different, tho not radically so. Don't get me wrong, I'm not picking a fight, nor do I doubt your word here: you see and hear far more of this music than I do. Just want you to elaborate, maybe. Maybe we need another "Alt-COuntry Consumer Alert" list. And I love the album thus far. It was worth the nerve racking drive thru the pastel condo sprawl of the outerbelt. Matt high on god dam life.
Re: THE DRAGON'S ROAR (fwd)
punk camp than the pop world. He's constantly alienating people at live gigs by spouting off about something. Well, that might make our SXSW party kinda fun.. or not. Jeff Miles of Music mail order http://www.milesofmusic.com FREE printed Catalog: (818) 883-9975 fax: (818) 992-8302, [EMAIL PROTECTED] Alt-Country, rockabilly, bluegrass, folk, power pop and tons more.
RE: Robbie Fulks and covers
At 12:54 PM 3/2/99 -0500, you wrote: By the way, speaking of covers, the Del McCoury Band did a great cover of Tom Petty's "Love Is A Long Road" on Sessions at West 54th. The first time I heard their version was on the televised portion of the Opry a few years ago; that flat 7 chord jumped right out at me. Uh... as a non-musician who doesn't even aspire to play three chord Lou Reed songs, what the hell are you talking about? Jeff Miles of Music mail order http://www.milesofmusic.com FREE printed Catalog: (818) 883-9975 fax: (818) 992-8302, [EMAIL PROTECTED] Alt-Country, rockabilly, bluegrass, folk, power pop and tons more.
Don't! Squeeze (they're charmin') RE: Friday's 'Ghosts' Winner
My vote for a Band to be Eradicated: Squeeze Though I've drifted away from recent releases, "Pulling Mussels from the Shell", "Black Coffee in Bed", etc. were such a part of my college dating/dancing soundtracks, that I must cry "Nay!" "When the Hangover Strikes" and "If I Didn't Love You" are also sublime. I offer in return: Dead or Alive and Dokken. Or are transsexual new wave bands and hair metal too easy? Chris
Re: Damn This Old LA Town
And you're rude and disgusting. What a vile mouth you have! How dare you flame another poster that way. It is not funny! Who do you think you are? I've read your self-important postings lo these past months and I cannot believe that anyone could put up with your long, I-AM-GOD self-righteous rants.How dare you flame Dan for his opinions. Further, I cannot believe that anyone here has not touched upon this... and taken you to task for your long-winded bullshit. You are not pertinent, not valid and definitely not funny. I am ashamed of you. Tera Hello, I wasn't talking about Dan. I wasn't trying to flame Dan. I was sympathizing with Dan in HIM having to put up people talking around HIM. Jeesh. And I may be self-important and self-righteous and think I am God, but I have to model myself after somebody g. Anyway, I hope this clears things up. Love ya. Lance, getting ready for therapy . . .
Re: Big Book of Country Music
Howdy, Dern. I thought y'all were talking about a new Richard Scary book or something... Take care, Shane Rhyne Knoxville, TN [EMAIL PROTECTED] NP: $1000 Wedding, Somewhere In Between
Re: THE DRAGON'S ROAR (fwd)
In a message dated 3/2/99 12:59:33 PM Central Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: punk camp than the pop world. He's constantly alienating people at live gigs by spouting off about something. Well, that might make our SXSW party kinda fun.. or not. Can I come? I promise not to start any fights, but I will not hesitate to finish them. Badass Slim
Re: Model Rockets
Lead MR John Ramberg has also been busy backin' up the divine Neko Case (who's playing the Tractor Tavern on March 11).--don Is he the brown-haired fella or the blonde one (who I always thought looked like a young John Lennon)? Lance . . .
Re: THE DRAGON'S ROAR (fwd)
At 12:20 PM -0600 on 3/2/99, David Cantwell wrote: You're right, Bob, about roots and country. But I was referring to the distinction between REAL and unreal. --david cantwell Well, but have you written this off as a question not worth exploring -- how far can a style be stretched and still be considered part of that style? Bob
Re: THE DRAGON'S ROAR (fwd)
What I don't get is how Jana's gonna resolve this part; The ëHonky Tonk Divisioní of THE TOWER OF BABEL will go beyond the hype and marketing . with this part; . More like Bakersfield pioneer MERLE HAGGARD or Texas Outlaw WAYLON JENNINGS, CISCO is as physically charismatic as a young ELVIS PRESLEY and as dangerous and enticing as ëhillbilly deluxeí DWIGHT YOAKAM. Ruffling feathers and stopping listeners in their tracks wherever he goes, heís made a huge sensation with the release of his first studio project, WISHING YOU WELL FROM THE PINK MOTEL*. Now, I haven't heard Cisco's record yet, and I'm sure it's real good and all, but. Oh well, maybe this will turn out to be a vital new addition to the online music criticism, I'll keep my mind open. But in trying to tear David a new one in that Yoakum review retort, didn't she damn near accuse him of playing a role in Princess Diana's death as well??? I mean, Cantwell's a pretty solid writer, but he ain't that good! Dan, more fearful than ever of music critics...g
Re: Big Book of Country Music
Thanks for some of you guys' input on this book. I sort of figured you wouldn't be too thrilled about it, those of you who take a tolerant view of pop influences on country music. Even skimming through the book, I do detect that the author, Richard Carlin, definitely has a bad attitude about pop music. Every time he mentions it, nearly, he adds some snide adjective or comment. The fellow apparently comes from a roots-oriented perspective, and has a disdain for the "phoney" sounds of pop. Me, I like pop just fine, as long as it's old pop and not new pop. Picky, picky. -- Terry Smith
Re: Robbie Fulks and covers
...covers of godawful cheesy rock songs? Why do people respond to these more than they do to the, OK, I'm going to say it, "real" songs? The obvious answer here is that people like to have fun (and unfortunately sometimes people like to have fun much more than they like to have anything else, which is why people talk during the ballads). ... But it was interesting the way this came round to various attempts to condemn particular pop songs, which others defended, and then to the whole alterna-cool of cheeze these days. I'm as bored by a lot of kitschomania as anyone (possibly more so), but I think there's more to this - that in a genuinely *un*ironic way the hip-music world has come round to an appreciation of pop as a Good Thing in itself in the past few years. you can hear it in people saying "we're not trying to be silly by playing these pop covers - we *like* these songs." you can hear it in many of the best indie bands, and I think (I know it is for me) a weariness with the pointless game of keeping up with hip trends and cooler-than-thouness that began especially with punk rock, and a new wariness against the kind of disdainful ironic stance that was ubiquitous in post-punk circles towards pop culture. The embrace of pop is also part of a new eclecticism, in which everything from 60s soundtrack music to disco to musique concrete to Tuvan throat-singing sits happily in the alterna-bricolage. (Oh, and country should be on that list, too.) I do however see a couple of problems with this: first, I think a lot of people in the alterna-world have never developed good ears to be able to tell a great pop song from a mediocre one, and tend just to respond to whatever reminds them of being 12; second, the just-wanna-have-fun impulse that's good for pop can lead to a shutout of more genuinely experimental and innovative efforts, an over-suspicion that anything not willfully bouncy is pretentious. Still, I think pop revivals are always a good thing for the music-creativity cycle in the long run. Music being music, you need to feel it all over. Carl W.
Re: Summer Teeth
So they made a ragin full on glossy pop album, eh? Ok, so how fare the songs under Tweedy's increasingly raspy vocals, which would seem to these ears to defy glossy pop, at least the 70's kind David C refers to throughout his fine review. Or did Tweedy clear his throat finally? g By no means would I call it ragin' full-on glossy. It's still Wilco, still ragged, still loose, still throaty. They can only be so glossy and pop, no matter how hard they tried. One of favorite things about Tweety is that he always sounds as if he's either nearing sleep or just having woken up. Summer Teeth doesn't lose that. Combine that with pop hooks and some dark-ass lyrics and that's what makes it so damn interesting to me. Neal Weiss
Re: Robbie Fulks and covers
Aw, Dave's back. Hi everyone. Did I miss anything good? Smooches, Dave Actually, you didn't. Marah is still the future of alt-country. g marie
model rockets
Lead MR John Ramberg has also been busy backin' up the divine Neko Case (who's playing the Tractor Tavern on March 11).--don Is he the brown-haired fella or the blonde one (who I always thought looked like a young John Lennon)? Lance . . . Model Rockets are back up and running with Scott (blonde guy) back in the fold. They played a great set at the croc on feb 5 opening for Young Fresh Fellows and there's more to come. John also did a really fun solo set the next night on bill with some other folks (including yours truly and Christy from the Picketts). The guy is a great songwriter and way way underappreciated. Message to people out there. If you like power pop in the Cheap Trick vein, you should buy this band's albums "Hi-Lux" (Lucky) and "Snatch it Back and Hold it" (C/Z). I won't lie to you. John is a friend of mine and I've also done legal work for the Model Rockets. But I think other more unbiased Seattlites will concur with me here. This is a great great band. They also do a great cover of "Sir Duke" by Stevie Wonder and they've also done "Jet" on occassion. Jake London
RE: Summer Teeth
Sounds interesting enough to give a listen. And don't think I don't like pop, so even if it was real glossy, I could take it. Those Rasberries singles around my house weren't ignored while growing up. But tt is a *single* disc, isn't it? M -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [SMTP:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] By no means would I call it ragin' full-on glossy. It's still Wilco, still ragged, still loose, still throaty. They can only be so glossy and pop, no matter how hard they tried. One of favorite things about Tweety is that he always sounds as if he's either nearing sleep or just having woken up. Summer Teeth doesn't lose that. Combine that with pop hooks and some dark-ass lyrics and that's what makes it so damn interesting to me. Neal Weiss
RE: Robbie Fulks and covers
The first time I heard their version was on the televised portion of the Opry a few years ago; that flat 7 chord jumped right out at me. Uh... as a non-musician who doesn't even aspire to play three chord Lou Reed songs, what the hell are you talking about? Hah, am I glad you asked, because it's not a flat 7, it's a flat 6 (so much for this "non-musician" pose). The first two lines of the verse go 4 chord to 1 chord, but at the start of the third line, it goes to a flat 6 chord - C in the key of E - and that's not something you find a lot of in bluegrass, or in country music in general (there's a flat 6 in the second part of "Snowflake Reel"/"Snowflake Breakdown," but after that it gets hard to recall any right now). If you recall the chord pattern for "All Along The Watchtower," the chord that the pattern goes down to is the flat 6 (1minor, flat 7, flat 6, flat 7,1minor, repeat ad infinitum); another example of it is in "I've Been Loving You Too Long," where it's used in the vamp (a passage that you play over and over, like a loop). Maybe that will give you the idea of the sound. Jon Weisberger Kenton County, KY [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://home.fuse.net/jonweisberger/
Re: Sunrise (was: RE: Playlist: The Boudin Barndance - 2/18/99)
Jon wrote: It's a double-CD in one of those flip cases, released a couple of weeks ago. Basically, it's The Sun Sessions plus - the plus being a number of live cuts from 1955, pre-Sun stuff and a couple of alternate takes that didn't appear on The Sun Sessions. The notes consist of a good essay by Peter Guralnick and not much else; there is, for instance, no date, definite or speculative (beyond the year), for the live cuts, and no discussion of where or why they were recorded. I believe the live material (and I thought I read it in the liner notes) is taken from an acetate of a 1955 Louisiana Hayride appearance. Regardless, the sound quality of those unreleased live tracks is just short of abysmal. In other words, unless you need all the Elvis you can get, this collection doesn't really bring anything new and worthwhile to the table. Boudin Dan
Re: Damnations TX vs tired UT sounds
The first time I saw The D-Nation, I had the same feeling. A little too ND for me, but they do it so well that it grew on me. And since then they have branched out a lot. Rob and Keith are so far beyond what anybody in any other country band (except the Gourds, of course) can do for me, it's not even funny. And neither has probably ever heard "New Madrid". But they hear the guy that played that part not play it with The Gourds all the time. The girls love Jay Farrar Superstar and such, but I think they've learned to get somewhat beyond their influences. (Amy should write a song that's not about Jimmy or his ampha!) So has Jeff T., Max, Jimmy, Kev., etc. These are the people to watch. UT is a funny thing. Certain gourds and beebles remember hearing that there was a band from Missouri that was sorta like The Picket Line Coyotes. --Matt Cook (still a little tanked) Matt Benz wrote: After driving around the entire outerbelt searching for an elusive copy of this album, I weaved my way back to the "impeccable indy store" and of course found it. Learnin lessons the hard way here. Anyway, I love the record, but am surprised to hear the tag team of Yates and Weiss claim this stands out from the UT "genre". I hear plenty of overt UT influence on this album. Strains of New Madrid lurk in the banjo strains, etc... Also, do you really think that musically this album stands out? Some of the same loping alt-country shuffling going on, and I dare say that the only differences I hear on some of the tunes are the female vocals: stick a guy wailing away on some of em: same ol alt country rag. Tho maybe not in tune g. Sure, I hear the 60's RB basslines that pop up, that I admit is different, tho not radically so.
RE: Robbie Fulks and covers
Dina asked why a person might scream out for a cheesy pop cover... Well, speaking only for myself, I have to say that I enjoy "Jet." A lot. So sue me g. On the topic of covers, generally, I enjoy the occasional incongruous cover that an artist throws into the set, even the cheese. Especially when the artist can make the cover song sound uniquely "theirs." I guess I like the novelty of it. A song ends and I expect to hear another fabulous original. But no, instead I get "Jet." Fabulous! Hilarious! I'm thinking of the first time I heard The Derailers' cover of Prince's "Raspberry Beret" or The V-Roys' cover of IOU by The Replacements. I guess one could make the argument that the above songs are not really cheese, but I like 'em all. Still standing by my plan to scream for "Jet," Jennifer
RE: Sunrise (was: RE: Playlist: The Boudin Barndance - 2/18/99)
I believe the live material (and I thought I read it in the liner notes) is taken from an acetate of a 1955 Louisiana Hayride appearance. Oh, er, um, yeah. Still not dated more precisely, though g. Regardless, the sound quality of those unreleased live tracks is just short of abysmal. In other words, unless you need all the Elvis you can get, this collection doesn't really bring anything new and worthwhile to the table. New, no, but worthwhile, I'd say yes, and not because I need all the Elvis I can get. This is the Elvis period that's of greatest interest to me, and to hear him doing his stuff in front of a Hayride audience offers some insights into what he was doing and thinking during a critical time in his career - and for country music. Jon Weisberger Kenton County, KY [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://home.fuse.net/jonweisberger/
Re: Southern gospel
I knew about the web stuff already, but the rest of this is very good to hear, Shane. 'Round here in KC I can say that it's dying or dead, though I can still see references to shows down southern missouri way. Our only southern gospel tv show, on cable access, isn't around anymore, and the southern gospel radio station spends most of its day playing music that I, uh, wouldn't call REAL southern gospel (That'll make Bob happy! g). Addtionally, it just sounds soulless and over sung, like a lot of other contemporary christian stuff. Actually, I can't even tell the difference between what gets southern gospel there and the southern gospel I cut my teeth on. So maybe the SG tradition has changed into something I don't get or appreciate. Very possible. But anyway, what I meant, specifically, when I referred to someone getting it all down in a book before it's long gone was the quartet tradition of the Blackwoods, Statesmen, Florida Boys (who I know are still going strong), LeFevres, rambos, Oak Ridge, Kingsmen, etc. Is that still around down there? I know when I watch Gaither Gospel Series stuff on TNN, they usually feature just one or two of the old guys, who just break me up, then they turn it over to some young guy or gal for half an hour who oversings soulleslly, like a lot of contemporary christian Also: Given what I like, Shane, do you think the annual national quartet convention would let me down or lift me up? Is it worth checking out? --david cantwell
Re: THE DRAGON'S ROAR (fwd)
At 02:18 PM 3/2/99 -0600, Bob asked about distinctions between REAL and unreal country music: Well, but have you written this off as a question not worth exploring -- how far can a style be stretched and still be considered part of that style? No, I haven't written it off as a question altogether; I was just doubting that the question would be taken beyond a superficial level in that column, given that the expression looked to be code, as it typically is, for "hardcore" country (as if softshell isn't "real" country), or older styles of country (as if HNC wasn't "real" country) or simply "country that I like" (which is no help at all, at least in regards to what's "real" or not). --david cantwell
RE: Summer Teeth
On Tue, 02 March 1999, Matt Benz wrote: And don't think I don't like pop, so even if it was real glossy, I could take it. Those Rasberries singles around my house weren't ignored while growing up. "Raspberries singles"? The force is in you...come over to the dark side, Matt. g Heck, this buzz about "pop" Wilco on P2 and pop lists alike leads me expect a messy mishmash that's a little twangy, a little poppy and not enough of either. The combination worked only intermittently on BEING THERE, though it was better on AM, a record Tweedy seems to be distancing himself from at this point. b.s. n.p. Jim Roll
Re: Big Book of Country Music
At 03:30 PM 3/2/99 -0500, Mr. "I have to go to my brother's jazz festival instead of twangfest" Smith wrote: Thanks for some of you guys' input on this book. I sort of figured you wouldn't be too thrilled about it, those of you who take a tolerant view of pop influences on country music. Well, actually, my objection with the book is not his tastes--I can weed that out--but his knowledge: he gets tons of stuff just plain wrong, which makes the book virtually (I'm being generous) useless as a resource. If remember right, there was a JCM review years back that went through the Big Book error by error. It was a very long review. --david cantwell
Re: Robbie Fulks and covers
At 04:40 PM 3/2/99 PST, John K. wrote: I never thought I'd be glad to hear "These Boots Are Made For Walking" again until I heard Candye Kane reinvent it on her CD. My favorite version of this song is Loretta Lynn's. And she don't do it campy, neither--I mean, she is all but out the door! --david cantwell
RE: Summer Teeth
-Original Message- From: Bill [SMTP:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Tuesday, March 02, 1999 4:54 PM To: passenger side Subject: RE: Summer Teeth On Tue, 02 March 1999, Matt Benz wrote: And don't think I don't like pop, so even if it was real glossy, I could take it. Those Rasberries singles around my house weren't ignored while growing up. "Raspberries singles"? The force is in you...come over to the dark side, Matt. g [Matt Benz] Uh, hell yes! Rasberries, Badfinger, Jackson 5, and top 40 radio, all day, and as late into the night as we could get away with. And until our radio caught fire, but that's another story. I was born on the dark side, my friend.
Re: Summer Teeth
But tt is a *single* disc, isn't it? Yes, it's a single, albeit a loong single. Like 17 songs or something. Add that to the half of Mermaid Ave and a third of the last Golden Smog and it's no doubt that boy is prolific. NW
Re: Esther ???
I believe she's the woman who played the main female character in Jim Jarmusch's "Stranger Than Paradise." I think I remember reading something about her father being a jazz musician, but I could have been halucinating. I also seem to remember reading something about her releasing a CD. Jamie D., who is absolutely positive she's at work right now, but not of much else Jamie's got that exactly right. Mrs. Hockestix and I actually saw Ms. Bolint open for Freakwater some months ago; you can see it made for an, uh, interesting evening. Esther'ss still a resident of the same East Village she sludged through to the dulcet tones of Screamin' Jay Hawkins in my old friend Mr. Jarmusch's picture. Her music was DEFINITELY in the stolen by gypsies vein--but wanted at times to have a sort of twang twinge...(There's a new genre for ya--Twinge)... Screamin Jay, unfortunately, did not attend. Barry M.
very long piece on Replacements and Covers (was fulks and covers)
Well, I've held off burdening the whole list with this for a couple of years now, although I have sent to a few folks I thought would enjoy it. But since Dave Purcell brought it up, I'll post this behemoth against my better judgment. I do think it's germane. And I also think that when Fulks covers "Jet" he takes part in the tradition I talk about in the piece. At some level, it's part of what puts the "alt" in his alt country categorization (imho). Actually, I'd argue that it's a big part of what puts the "alt" in alt-country generally. But I won't belabor that here. I think it will make more sense if you read the thing. As you'll see, I'd argue that at this point, it's impossible for Fulks' actions not to be viewed as somewhat ironic by the audience. Nevertheless, I view irony primarily as a shield in this context anyway (although it may not be a shield Fulks himself needs anymore). A good pop song has the power to touch us at the deepest emotional level, especially one from our childhood before we knew all about hipness, etc. Unfortunately, many of us from the post baby-boom generation forgot or have been too insecure to admit this truth, especially in our late teens and twenties. So irony helps create a space for us to safely be nostalgic about some rather absurd times. Anyway, sorry in advance for the length. I also hope the formatting isn't too screwed up. I'm afraid I write in pretty long paragraphs sometimes. This thing has never been published anywhere. Indeed, I'm not even sure why I wrote it. I guess I just think about this stuff too much sometimes. That's why I love this list. It's one of the few places where I've found some kindred spirits. Enjoy or delete. JL Sucking in the Seventies: Paul Westerberg, the Replacements, and the Onset of the Ironic Cover Aesthetic in Rock and Roll (It's Only Rock and Roll But I Like It) By Jacob London, Copyright 1996 All Rights Reserved A while back, my local "alternative" radio station began playing a cover version of the Bay City Rollers' "Saturday Night" by the U.K. band Ned's Atomic Dustbin. The first time I heard it, I didn't even think about changing the station, even though the Rollers were one of the most critically unhip bands of the 1970s. I just sat back and listened, slightly amused, but mostly taking the whole experience for granted. Such is the state of things now that the practice of "alternative" bands covering "bad" songs from the 1970s has become so commonplace. If it isn't Ned's Atomic Dustbin, it's Seaweed or Smashing Pumpkins doing some Fleetwood Mac song like "Go Your Own Way" or "Landslide." Few question the full-on embrace of 1970s popular culture anymore. It's even got it's own "American Grafitti" film in Richard Linklater's "Dazed and Confused." Linklater's take on the past is a little more self-conscious and cynical than George Lucas's vision of the early 1960s in "American Grafitti." But Linklater's remembrance of teen life in 1976 remains a warm one, especially in its unself-consciously reverant use of the period's music. It pushes all the same buttons as Lucas's film, although neither Linklater nor his audience would ever completely admit it. For even as the residue of 1970s has reasserted itself in the American cultural life of the 1990s, a lingering tinge of reticence remains, as people continue to adjust to the idea that openly embracing the mainstream culture of the 1970s no longer entails being instantly labeled a loser or a philistine. Back in the early 1980s, when I was starting college in Ann Arbor, Michigan, things were a lot different. There was plenty of risk involved in embracing the mainstream music of the 1970s, at least among the community of rock and roll hipsters I hung out with. A friend later summarized the stakes very well in a different context: "There's a lot on the line when you tell other people what kind of music you like; people know they'll be judged based on what they say. If they give the right answer they'll be accepted. If they don't, people may look down on them." This was true in Ann Arbor during that time as it has been everywhere I've lived since. The rules determining inside and outside were generally unwritten, but they weren't hard to figure out. Punk rock was cool. Some New Wave was cool. David Bowie, he was pretty cool (his glam rock was sort of New Wave and Punk before they were invented). Dylan, the Beatles, the Byrds, the Stones, the Who, Motown, and the other classics of 1960s rock, that was cool too, as long as you weren't too much of a hippie about it. But the mainstream music of the 1970s was not cool. Disco sucked, including George Clinton and his P-Funk allies. Foreigner was not cool. Lynyrd Skynyrd was not cool. Neither were Black Sabbath, Led Zepplin, Peter Frampton, Foghat, Bad Company, Thin Lizzy, or Alice Cooper. Black Oak Arkansas was not cool. Neither were Head East, R.E.O. Speedwagon, the Michael Stanley
Re: Kelly Willis Tour Dates
Howdy, Arrgh. Bill Silvers posted Kelly Willis' latest tour schedule which includes, in part... 04/08/99--Lexington KY-- Lynagh's 04/09/99--Nashville TN-- Exit / In 04/10/99--Memphis TN-- Newby's 04/11/99--Atlanta GA-- Smith's Olde Bar No. No. No. This is geographically non-efficient. A *much* better schedule would go like this... Lexington, Nashville, ***Knoxville***, Atlanta. Memphis can be added on the way to that second Texas leg of the concert series. Look at map. See? I'm right. I'm only looking out for Ms. Willis' best interests here. The Nashville-Knoxville-Atlanta drive is a lot less grueling and perilous than the Nashville-Memphis-Atlanta drive. I wonder if I can get them to reconsider? Take care, Shane Rhyne Knoxville, TN [EMAIL PROTECTED] NP: Rural String Bands of Tennessee
Re: Sunrise (was: RE: Playlist: The Boudin Barndance - 2/18/99)
Unfortunately, Jon, from the perspective of just about anybody'd who care, you're absolutely rightThere's much good music and a lot of interets in getting to hear how that sound was arrived at--and some of the alternate versions hold their own anyway, some of which are the ones they keep on Sunrise, apparently--but you lose the process, which is worth preserving. I just don't GET what they're doing with the Sun sessions any more., The most complete version yet released was still that double vuinyl LP from the 80s--reduced to the first Sun sessions CD. Then they let go of those "I recorded these for my mama Gladys" cuts in pieces==and I think a lot of Elvis fans will know that the live cuts they've added here are from the much-released already Louisiana Hayride performances--which are sometimes joined by the "return to Memphis from RCA" version of Hound Dog. (Not on this disc though, I believe.) If you're gonna pull the Sun Sessions together--from from a rock and roll and rockabilly perspective, and arguably, country too, you need to--why not just do it. Personally, I have the basic takes and outtakes already on that very necessary 50s Elvis box, the first box--so the justification for this would be to give it the full treatment. But I suppose they'll do that in another three years and try to sell me this stuff for, if I can keep count, the seventh time! Barry Unfortunately, at least from my perspective, there are a couple of outtakes/alternate takes on The Sun Sessions that don't appear on Sunrise, so a completist will want to hang onto the former (is this a new strategy to reduce the traffic in used copies of The Sun Sessions that might otherwise result?). Jon
RE: Is It or Is It Not?
Joe mentions: One mic is cool because the singers mix themselves into a coherent, single sound. This is a far superior sound than when a soundperson tries to take 3 or 4 mics and mix it and the monitors into a fake blend. People sing more in tune, they sing together, and they sing better. True enough, which is why the La-Z Boys and the Comet All-Stars use a single mike for vocals. The downside is that feedback is more frequently a problem, because you have to pump up the gain, since a gang of people can't get as close to a mike as an individual can. This can be a problem in venues where you can't get a good distance from the main speakers relative to the volume you need to produce, and it also poses a problem with monitors. The solution is to do without monitors, which can be advantageous, but not always (Ronnie McCoury told me that when the McCourys and Steve Earle used a single mike at Farm Aid, he couldn't hear anything but his own mandolin), and/or use something like the Sabine Feedback Exterminator. Jon Weisberger Kenton County, KY [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://home.fuse.net/jonweisberger/
Re: jerry curry vs. portland
i'd much rather be lurking, but can't let this one slide by. c'mon jerry.you are unable to find a single band or musician that meets your criteria in a town with a population of nearly 2 million people, especially in a town with a thriving and supportive music community such as portland? sorry, i don't buy it. it's the best place i've ever lived to watch bands develop and grow, and i'm proud to admit to being a fan of the music scene in portland. i love it here. elaine np: fernando *pacoima*
Re: Fwd: Re: Robbie Fulks/Cake
Chaco (who I'm sure knows better) queried: (Is there really any difference between Live, Matchbox 20, Fastball, and the Goo Goo Dolls?) Cake is, well, an alternative. Well, Chaco, I'd submit that each of the four bands you mention sound distinctly different from another.I loved Fastball's ALL THE PAIN... record last year, thought it was my pop disc of the year. Touches of 60's and 70's pop and rock; hooks you could land Moby Dick with. The Goo Goo Dolls have made a couple of very good guitar pop records prior to their new one, which I'll confess to not having heard- the singles haven't enticed me. Live is awful, bombastic over-emoted junk overwhelming the decent musicianship. Styx for the 90's. Matchbox 20 best seems to typify your argument as to how same-y a lot of modern rock sounds. I mean, your point about Cake's uniqueness is well taken, but those four bands you mention aren't soundalikes. b.s.
Re:Elena review--and her CD
"Similarly, Elena Skye got her professional start in the wild world of New Jersey and New York punk rock before the rediscovery of bluegrass music led her to turn down the volume and form her traditional country-influenced but cowpunk-driven quartet, Elena Skye and the Demolition String Band". So they had it in Richmond and often do in reviews, it seems--but as Ms. Ske has pointed out right here mnore than once--and as is very true, the Demolitions are not exactly a bluegrass band, and don't say they are. They are an unmitigated String Band--as much or more influenced by jazz and blues and jug as bluegrass and country, and Ms. Skye's strong vocals handles all of this tough stuff with adeptness and style--and so does that whole band. I suspect that, exactly like the Bad Livers, they'll always be called a bluegrass band by those who don't quite have their music straight and don't know what the great white and black string band traditions were. So it goes; sigh. But what you need to do, if they haven't yet offered you the very rela pleasure of playiong in front of your very face, is to pick up this new El;ena Ske The Demolition String Band: one dog town disc--which here in the wilds of New York at least, has been readily available at even Tower Records (North Hollow Rexords). The Greg Garing-produced disc does capture the sound as it is--inlcuding a licve Alphabet City Opry take, and even, after I've said all this, even some pretty good bluegrass, to my city ears. Get it. And personally, I hope we'll have them at Twangfest. Barry M.
Re: very long piece
Since I'm one of the lucky few who Jacob had shared this with, I can give my estimation of the piece right now: one of best, smartest, most insightful music pieces I've ever read. Period. --david cantwell
RE: Robbie Fulks and covers
Slonedog says: Or perhaps it's because the artists actually like the songs. I for one love "Dancing Queen", "Jet" and "I Will Survive". They're not "guilty pleasures", they're just fun songs. I don't like to do the "But that's what I said in the firts place" thing--but I did--before those, uh, social decsriptions. Robbie Fulks did those songs in dead earnest and they were swell--and I never said I didn't like 'em for their own sake in the firts place. What we were looking at is the reason for the seemingly out of proportion response to 'em compared to the rest of a terrific set of his own stuff. That's all. Barry
Irony Bad Taste (was Arsenic Old Lace)
Now folksthat's a good piece of thinkin' and then writin'. Jake, thanks for expressing some of the thoughts, much more eloquently than I can, regarding my love of old pop music. I couch my deep appreciation in terms of being eclectic, but sometimes I hate feeling that my tastes need to be defended. Now, we are mostly among friends here, but do you get a squeamish feeling when asked about a guilty pleasure or you hold a KC the Sunshine disc in your hand while heading to the check-out counter? Do you run around and hide the Jackson 5 reissues when your date shows up at the door for your first encounter? I don't but sometimes, I feel like I want to. Indeed, the introduction of ironic distance does allow us to embrace nostalgia from a safe and thus, relatively unassailable position. A good pop sound has, did, does, and will always touch me at a deep level. Even a current gem like "Mmmmbop" transforms me back to the days Mr. Benz alluded to in his recent most. That is, listening to my transistor AM radio via my earphone long after I was ordered to bed. These songs take me back to a particular place, or remind me of a particular memory. Those emotions and remembrances are exclusively mine and no amount of external subjectivism or conforming aloofness can cause me to lose them. No amount of externally or internally introduced ironic distance will dull my memory. Course I ain't about to dust off and begin wearing my prismatic KISS belt buckle. I meand decorum rules and one must draw the line somewhere. g Great point about forgetting what it's like to be young or becoming to insecure to embrace your past likes. God damn it, I love Emerson, Lake Palmer and I'll admit that until the day I die. Threeothings pop into my mind here: (1) the boys in the car in Wayne's World absolutely jamming to Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" (how refreshing that was), (2) during a thread on "Guilty Pleasures" someone groaning about the use of that term and admitting there was no such a thing and (3) something Robbie Fulks mentioned during his Fresh Air interview. He said Abba's "Dancing Queen" is essentially a good damn pop song. The words are tossible, but the hooks and music is great. He learned it and now plays it live just to prove that point. Gosh, I loved hearing it and so did the other 500 people in the theater that not. I detected nary a trace of irony in the house and I sure saw about 500 sets of pearly whites gleaming. A beautiful moment..and a point well proved. Thanks Jake.. Best, Jerry On Tue, 2 Mar 1999, Jacob London wrote: not be a shield Fulks himself needs anymore). A good pop song has the power to touch us at the deepest emotional level, especially one from our childhood before we knew all about hipness, etc. Unfortunately, many of us from the post baby-boom generation forgot or have been too insecure to admit this truth, especially in our late teens and twenties. So irony helps create a space for us to safely be nostalgic about some rather absurd times.
Re: jerry curry vs. portland
Um...Terry Robb Joni Harms! And, I do kinda like the Countripolitans, the Flatirons to a lesser extent. Little Sue is getting better all the time. Fernando, Bingo, Golden Delicious, and Pete Krebs, I just can't get into. Would love to hear 44 Long on record and outside of a "wall of noise" club environment. Let's see, no traditional country scene, that's particularly disappointing when I read about the stuff Honky Tonk Confidential is doing. Small bluegrass community. Horrible radio. Perhaps our Low Power FM project will help ease that Jones. Yes, I knowmove back East, East Tennessee boy. I hear ya. I do like it here though and really wasn't trying to slag the entire scene at all. The sheer number of quality clubs never ceases to amaze. Need an acoustic, singer-songwriter place to hang on though. I'd prefer being neck deep in the Nashville or Austin scene than up here. Those scenes just offer more opportunity to enjoy the kind of music I really enjoy than Portland. I'm most certainly NOT knocking Portland for developing musical directions that differ from my own interests. It's a truly wonderful area (to visit...g). And to live. Your truly from the Portland Chamber of Commerce. Done posting for the rest of the day Jerry On Tue, 2 Mar 1999 [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: c'mon jerry.you are unable to find a single band or musician that meets your criteria in a town with a population of nearly 2 million people, especially in a town with a thriving and supportive music community such as portland? sorry, i don't buy it. it's the best place i've ever lived to watch bands develop and grow, and i'm proud to admit to being a fan of the music scene in portland. i love it here. Jerry Curry - Spectre Booking Independence, Oregon [EMAIL PROTECTED] In the Top 40, half the songs are secret messages to the teen world to drop out, turn on, and groove with the chemicals and light shows at discotheques. -- Art Linkletter
The Eradication Game (Re: Grammyszzzzzzzzz....)
Genesis - all incarnations. To Iain: Yes? YES !!) Brian -- Brian Debenham [EMAIL PROTECTED] (home) [EMAIL PROTECTED] (work) StrongARMed and dangerous ! Chelmsford CAMRA: http://homepages.enterprise.net/briandebenham/camra.html
sucking in the 70s (was Fulks/very long piece)
I'm off to a company-awards dinner with an open bar, so I can't linger at the moment. But I'd like to urge everybody who might have balked at the length to read Jake's piece right now (tho he shouldn't have sent it as an attachment - you should repost it as mail for those who can't handle attachments, Jake). It's the most engaging and cogent piece of personal rock crit/history I've read in a long while - a lot like some of the considered essays people used to post to P2 more often in the distant past. (When there weren't seven-fucking-hundred of us.) I have some points to make about the demographic analysis he offers, how that's shifted since the essay was written, and how that relates to my argument that post-irony (not to be confused with boomer non-irony) is happily finally here (in my previous post). I also have some thread-sparking questions (what was the first known instance of the half-ironic cover - is he right in naming the 'Mats's Kiss cover as Patient Zero - and also how to relate this web of analysis to the various levels of irony in alt-country covers of both rock and country so-called cheeze). Briefly, the grunge-lounge period dynamic changed the landscape - which I think relates very much to why the post-Tupelo alt-country explosion (much to do with groping toward authenticity-sincerity) has happened. As I say, I've got some serious drinking to do, so that'll have to wait til morning. But y'all could start without me, I won't mind. Thanks a lot Jake. Don't wait 3 years next time! Carl W.
1st half-ironic cover? (was sucking in the 70s)
Carl starts a thread: I also have some thread-sparking questions (what was the first known instance of the half-ironic cover - is he right in naming the 'Mats's Kiss cover as Patient Zero - and also how to relate this web of analysis to the various levels of irony in alt-country covers of both rock and country so-called cheeze). In my mind, it was always the Byrd's version of "The Christian Life." I couldn't understand it any other way than as an ironic gesture at the time --junior
Re: sucking in the 70s (was Fulks/very long piece)
Yes, Jake, can you please repost your piece in straight mail form for those of us whose computers don't open attachments? Many thanks, --junior
