The subtitle on this CD is "Good Time Music for Hard Times," and fits perfectly. Jug bands were popular during what is lovingly called by the history books as the ‘great’ depression. I imagine our current days will be known in the history books as the ‘marvelous’ or ‘sweet’ depression. Some rich people are getting very very rich from our future taxes, while members of each of our families lose their houses. At least we have some fun music to make life worthwhile & worth singing about even while we search for a method of being sure food stays on the table. In case you’re wondering, there’s not one turkey on the CD! Total value for your bucks. Maria Muldaur
Prepping my Turkey this morning was a great joy with the joyous New Orleans spices added by this great band. Many points of joyous laughter caused by the tremendous virtuosity creates the best holiday CD I’ve heard this year.
Between the Woodstock parties and the Beatles celebrations, it is very difficult to listen to new music and find very much melodically or poetically interesting. What follows are the exceptions – songs you should be hearing:
I’m intrigued by this for a lot of reasons. Sony mailed it so it would arrive here in September. So, it’s obvious they’re not out to exploit the title of the disk, even though it was recorded in August 2008. Plenty of time to prepare it for summer ’09 release. But, no sweat, we’re all about the music here. I learned a lot watching this DVD – it’s hard to even think about being a band member not allowed to explore or get involved in pushing the limits of the music – yet Neil has managed to hang onto his band members for 30 years! That’s saying something. The video was willing to show all the young fans, as well as the hundreds of 50+ aged fans – but my absolute favorite may have been something I dreamed – the little old lady 90+ with white hair boogying her butt off. The music was well performed, but predictable. I imagine that’s what Neil Diamond’s fans are looking for, so he gave it to them. I don’t regret watching the show – after all, once upon a time I was a huge fan. He still sounds good, and managed to put on a two hour show without breaking a sweat. That’s not bad for a hot august night beneath the hot lights where a mere mortal would be able to hear his sweat. Neil Diamond
A very cool song about how the media warps our view of reality. The school I work at allows us to visualize that warp. Remember how we used to walk about ¼ mile to our neighborhood school? No longer true. Parents will drive as little as a block to drop off and pick up their kids from school for fear of the child stealer. No children have ever been stolen in our small community, but the fear is ever-present. Want more? Well, try walking around a neighborhood between 4 & 6 in the evening. Or try a Saturday morning or afternoon. Kids used to play outside for hours. No longer. Same fear – learned from the TV. The video for this song portrays it with great parodic skill. Shoutouts for Independence Day, Mr. Bully Boy, and Love Comes Around.
John has decided to give away his music. When you get to his site by clicking on his name below,,push on the round white button on the jukebox twice - once to grow the jukebox, and once to open the download screen.
Rock and roll blues with guitars and harp playing swirling in loving circles wake this week up and end this month with a highway song that blasts the stage into another dimension. The party continues with full-bore power with another rocker called Northbound. These guys have got to be a blast to see live - it’s great that they managed to capture so much energy in the studio. Woodbrain
The first two people to send me an email asking for Char Butler's new CD will recieve a code provided by Char to download her new CD, Sleepers Awake. The CD features harmony vocals with her daughter, Amber Whitworth. ***BOTH CDS WERE CLAIMED*** Thanks!
Yep, Friday night, get to the bar & what should ya do? “They got a juke box in the corner full of old country tunes. Eighty-five dollars worth of quarters, it’s the first thing I always do, ‘cause I need a little twang!” About three hours of music picked by one guy? Gotta love this bar. And love the guy who has a big enough johnny paycheck to listen to johnny cash with some johnny rodriguez and some hank and waylon along the way. “Get that foot-stomping honky-tonkin’ feeling flowing through my veins!” That one needs a whoop and a haller, you betcha! Meet me at Triple T’s tonight & we’ll see if that one’s on the karaoke list. They do the single vowel texas style – every single vowel lasts for seven syllables. Can’t sing with Twang? No sweat, just dance. Shoutouts for Same Kind Of Crazy, Hot Grease & Zydeco, and El Rey. George Strait
”Landlord said this morning to me, ‘Give me the key, this flat ain’t free. I can’t get any rent outta you, pack up your rags and skidoo.’” Leave it to Loudon to find a 100 year old song that applies to hundreds of thousands of Americans today. As I write this my sister is moving out of a foreclosed house. This topical song is great on its own, it’s just icing on the cake that Loudon has arranged this with a dance beat with some beautiful harmonies.
The title tune, High, Wide & Handsome, includes this philosophy: “Song, wine and women, they’re my three favorites. Beer, gin and whiskey, that’s five, six and four. Saturday night I like eatin’ and dancin’, and I sleep all day Sunday so’s I’m ready for more!” Shoutouts for the honky tonk smiles of Took My Gal Out Walkin’ (“she said she wouldn’t kiss me, so I kissed her instead”) & the country gospel pop of Acres of Diamonds (“you simply must have overlooked what you’ve been looking for”). Loudon Wainwright III
I've spent the past few weeks simply enjoying 1969. There are the 5 new Sony releases which I talked about a few weeks back - those are all eye-opening. I've also been enjoying the brand 6 CD Rhino release which includes several never-heard-before cuts, as well as the brand new Arlo Guthrie release called "Tales of '69". The Arlo release is not recorded AT woodstock, but was recorded less than a week before, so it's interesting to compare & exciting to listen to. I had actually never hear Alice Part 3, or even knew of it's existence. Fantastic.
The Ken Bielen Woodstock tapes were also released during the past few weeks. Not exactly easy listening - these are audience recordings made on a dictaphone recorder. It's a wonder this material survived at all. It manages to add 15 unique recordings to our Woodstock collection, which with all the recent "finds" has grown from 22 CDs to 24 CDs. There's still more out there, I'm sure - but it's worth the wait. The best thing about the Ken Bielen tapes is it reminds us that the experience from the ground was not as grand as the 2 hour movie could lead one to believe.
I made many sidetrips, as usual - spent 8 hours lisening to all my Jimi CD's, then turned around and did it again a day later. I pulled out all my Janis CDs and listened to those, as well as Johnny Winter. I took a few side-trips through Delany & Bonnie & Donovan simply because I wanted to hear them.
But, that's not all folks! My personal absolute favorite band from 1969 was Child/Steel Mill - mostly because I saw them live about 15 times during those years. I was a young guitar player and wuld get as close as I could to see their guitar player named Bruce play the most wonderful guitar licks - I learned by watching lots of power chords and lead playing. The band went through changes, with great organ playing by Danny along the way, and a player named Steve added in the mix to play bass. The drummer, Vini, has been busy recently - and this has me grinning from ear to ear, literally. I still pull out my live tapes every summer but Vini has been working with some players to attempt to recreate the era on CD - in the studio. A few years back he released Chronicles, and it's a blessing to hear crisp clean versions of Come On, The Wind And The Rain, Boppin The Blues, KT88 & more. This month he has released a second CD, with All Man The Guns, and a personal favorite, Resurrection. There's much more good news: Sherlock Goes Holmes is fantastic, and I love the full band version of Cowboys by the Sea. The full band version of that one I have on tape is extremely muddy, so this is a revelation - and interesting to compare with the solo demos. There's a few more that were popular in 72 - Down To Mexico, Crow Liquor, Sweet Melinda & Lady Walking. The version of the Train song included here is not as powerful as the demo or the one Robbin Thompson officially released; but it's still great that it's included. I am excited that Vini continues to mine the old tapes for these gems, and it is my prayer they continue to record crisp versions - I'm hoping next time he'll do versions of Jambalaya (Roll Over, Roll Over), Sister Theresa, and a host of others. By my reckoning, there is at least 5 or 6 more CDs of superb material to share with folks who love the power rock blues sound that Bruce and company were famous for before he went on to join a major label and turn to pop.
I'm not sure my nostalgic journey is over - you'll know when the blog returns daily that I'm refreshed and ready to start sharing new finds with you. In the meantime, "Hail Hail Resurrection!"
Notes: Arlo's CD is not yet available on Amazon, but a quick google search for "Tales of '69" will help you discover it. Vini's website for the new versions of Steel Mill/ BSB Band songs is http://www.steelmillretro.com - Long live Dr Zoom & The Sonic Boom!
In celebration of our TEN-YEAR anniversary since the birth of SideCho in 1999, we would like to invite you to join us for this exclusive sale! We have 3 exclusive packages ranging from 3 CDs for $10.00, 6 CDs with a T-shirt for $20.09, and 10 CDs with 2 T-shirts for $29.99. All packages come with buttons/stickers, and posters. This will only be available for a Limited Time only! The sale ends at the end of August. For more information visit www.store.sidecho.com and www.sidecho.com
I’ve seen clips of these on documentaries through the years, but it’s quite a joy to see all three Elvis appearances in one sitting. First thing I notices was that Ed Sullivan was not even there for the first appearance – and later in one of the additional features I learned that Sullivan had been in a pretty bad car wreck. The second thing I noticed was that all those stories about Elvis being filmed from the waist up were only true about his final performance. So, some folk tales squashed, and some really fine show business moments in these appearances. It’s obvious these guys are singing live and not lip-syncing because of a few flubs on live TV. The music, of course, is great. And, maybe not so important to some, but people like me are interested in the range Elvis has, and how in the close-ups you can actually see his adam apple going through the tremendous range Elvis had as a vocalist. Great fun to watch. Elvis
”Living softly off the land!” Start in New York City, drive down to Kentucky to grab some of the story telling techniques of Tom T Hall, then ride through Colorado to capture some of the mountain cowboy clear vocals of John Denver, and keep heading North to Montana and you end up with Bryan Ragsdale singing songs about living life in a place he loves. Brian Ragsdale
”Enough to drive you crackers!” The late 70’s introduced us to “New Wave”, and Roger has captured the spirit of the era with this tune. While the spirit is not original, the energy exuded by the cut makes for a great listening experience. The silly guitar solo makes for a bopping summer radio smash. Add to that the fun oddio track Witch From Hell, which delivers the vindictive it promises, and My Life Is Sweet, which really says nothing more, but is arranged in a queenbeachboy fashion that makes it a joy to hear occasionally. Roger Klug
The guys dug this beautiful song off a Tom T Hall album from 1970. I remember crying then as I do now 40 years later. Fine job at re-creating the song for our current crop of buddies facing the same headlines when they come home. PS – the original song is available, with 100 children, on Tom’s exquisite anthology.
Mama bake a pie (daddy kill a chicken) Tom T. Hall 1970
People starin' at me as they wheel me down the ramp toward my plane The war is over for me I've forgotten everything except the pain Thank you sir and yes sir it was worth it for the old red-white-and-blue And since I won't be walking I suppose I'll save some money buying shoes
The bottle hidden underneath the blanket over my two battered legs I can see the stewardess make over me and ask were you afraid I say why no I'm Superman and couldn't find a phone booth quite in time A GI gets a lotta laughs if he remembers all the funny lines
Mama bake a pie daddy kill a chicken Your son is comin' home 11:35 Wednesday night
Mama will be crying and daddy's gonna say son did they treat you good My uncle he'll be drunk and he'll say boy they do some real great things with wood The letter that she wrote me said goodbye she couldn't wait and lots of luck The bottle underneath the blanket feels just like an old friend to my touch
I know she'll come and see me but I bet she never once looks at my legs No she'll talk about the weather and the dress she wore the July 4th Parade Lord I love her and I don't believe this bottle's gonna get her off my mind I see here in the paper where they say the war is just a waste of time
Mama bake a pie daddy kill a chicken Your son is comin' home 11:35 Wednesday night
Acoustic high-steppin’ high energy lookin’ at life as a stage. “If you wanna know who I’m singin’ for? Pretty mama, anytime you want to realize – it’s you!” The recording has a great live feel & some fun lead guitar pickin’ & bass pluckin'. Gordie Tentrees
“If it was Friday, I would walk out the door, strap on my wings and fly away!” Great image, and it is Friday, so the song allows us to fly. This happy summer melody overlies the worker stuck inside while the beautiful summer beaches are calling for some fun. “If it was Friday I could lose myself for a coupla days, till the Monday morning rush on the train.” Sung with excitement. “Is it me, or am I bored with the human race.” LOL!!! Shoutout for Clouds Disappear. Shelley Harland
“She could not change her behaviour, she is surely one of a kind.” Poetry placed to music is a different craft than songwriting. “If you could see inside her mind you’d never guess at what you’d find.” Often melody must be diminished to allow the meter to fit into a pop format. “A squandered soul may be in the bad memory of a banshee.” Miss Ivy was successful creating little musical story poems because there is melodic music pulling the ear while the stories wring the soulful tales. “Your evil bride is waiting for you outside, she dyed her seashell dress scarlet.” This is well done because it leaves me wondering who is considering the bride evil – my guess the bride herself is not thinking that way, but the community. Shoutouts for Dark Rising (“In an endless field of meadow right over the fence, there’s an old road made of cobblestone”) and Morrigan’s Curse (“I agreed in a certain way to make him pay for all the lies he said to me”). Miss Ivy
Happy 1st hump day in August! Hot enough? Let’s dance! “Im getting off track and I can’t control a thing.” Once in awhile a dance album comes out that’s different enough to capture eartaster’s buds. Anjulie has a fine voice that pulls me to the dancefloor, but what stands out here is the production. On Boom the background allows the guitar to enter from several rooms away, and is emphasized by many percussive flavors. The tempo changes between songs, and allows for cool down in the 102 degree summer texas hill heat. Shoutouts for Rain, Crazy That Way, Jamba, Same Damn Thing, and the beautiful slow dance When It’s Love. Anjulie
The guitar wakes my ears in a very happy way, and what great fun when the guitar is accompanied y the voice of Fiona. The flavors are an equal match and both perfectly complement each other. In the midsection when she plays a sensational solo shivers find my spine with no problem. It’s not easy to capture a live feel on CD, but it works here perfectly. The band is right here in my living room without the aid of any electronic tricks. A very special shoutout for Old Time Ways, which features some fine good-time piano along with some bluesy lead guitar. The video below shows Fiona is perfectly able to handle this song all by her lonesome without the great back-up musicians. Fiona Boyes
“Let the quiet shout so voices may be heard!” Notfadeaway shuffle wake-up rock and roll. Lots of great instruments backing up the excited singer – my favorite is the rock fiddler. Shoutout for the equally loud and more anthemic Shine (“one of these days you will rise up”). The Popes
Less rock and roll than the new one, but still loud!
A rhythm fest with some fun guitar work. Think of a jazz lounge act with a vibraphone who asks a rock blues guitarist to sit in. To add to the instrumental excitement is some damn fine organ playing. Shoutout for the equally exciting Magdalena. John Zorn
I think it’s great that The Thromboes are the subject of my 1500th post. They are a perfect example of what this blog has always strived for – interesting music that is easy to listen to over and over with a sense of satisfaction that the world of music is intensely varied.
“Don’t get into my head, girl, there’s no space for you there. Don’t have time for your pain.” Typical macho song, but worth a close look. The narrator is letting on that there’s something going on inside himself that is keeping him from opening up. The next verse says, “Don’t move into my heart, girl. Keep your blues to yourself.” There’s a hint that it’s possible for this movement into his head and heart is possible; but something’s making him beg for that not to happen. So, can we still say ‘typical macho’? Not really. The guy is opening up and admitting he has stuff inside him too.
But what about the music? Ah, pure bliss. Garage punk style guitars and drums, with the vocals sounding as if they are recorded at the same time as the rest of the noise – garage punk. Live as you can get on record. Shoutout for the hilarious Rock And Roll Rant (“look me in the eyes and tell me I can’t”).
This mood track set me on a walk through the hills to explore the undergrowth. The soundtrack enabled me to find living creatures beneath rocks, and I saw an armadillo either sunning himself or praying, or both. The musicians work together in this soundscape to empower the conscious mind to access deep memories and dreams. Simply beautiful. Shoutout for Raindance, which works at the same level, but moves faster. Besides, we truly need rain up here. It’s been over 102 every day for over a month, with no signs of letting up – both the wild animals and the roots are thirsty. This dance will be played often. Trezire is giving digital copies of the entire album, Anatomy, to anyone who requests one. Trezire
Like the band Trezire, Robin works on composing soundscapes. The difference is Robin utilizes computers to fire neurons in my brain. The synthesizer brings in different layers, emoting a path that looks for dreams still to come. Robin Guthrie
“I’m alive!” This wake-up song celebrates simplicity and computer beats with choruses of voices announcing the joy of a new week. This is one of those songs that promise to do nothing else but wake you up long enough to get some cofdfee in your system, and once you’ve had a bit of coffee you put it on repeat and dance around the kitchen getting the toast and butter ready. Then leave the house bopping & holding your hands over your hear swinging and swaying and yelling along, “I’m alive!” The Yes Pleases
An interesting concept. There are 10 CDs here, 5 of which were the original CDs from 1969, and the other 5 are the full performances of the bands at Woodstock. The 5 bands included here are Sly & The Family Stone, Santana, Jefferson Airplane, Janis Joplin & Johnny Winter. The price for the set is fair if you catch it while it’s on sale. I’m one of those who have the original CDs already on CD, and it doesn’t thrill me that these are simply re-packaged. If I were the CEO at Sony I would have pushed harder for including 5 more Woodstock-only CDs. Of course, there’s a very good chance the CEO at Sony wasn’t even born when Woodstock happened, so there’s already a disconnect.
The great thing here is also an aggravating thing. Many of us bought the Santana Legacy CDs – which included the demos of the original CD & the Woodstock performance. Lo and behold, the Woodstock performance here includes one more unreleased song! The good news is these CDs are all available separately, so if you are a Santana completist, you will not have to purchase the whole set.
The Airplane set at Woodstock ran longer than a CD, so that one runs over into their 1969 release, Volunteers. The Janis Joplin set is exactly what’s been available through collectors for many years now. The Johnny Winter set sounds great, and has better sound than the collectors set. The true excellence here is the Sly & The Family Stone set, which has 3 songs that are not on the collectors set.
The collectors set runs 20 CDs. Many of those are just partial shows. Somewhere there’s a vault with the rest in them, and it looks like we’ll have to wait for the 50th anniversary to get more. Some that have been officially released are Jimi Hendrix, Creedence Clearwater Revival, and John Sebastian. They’re often stuck in the midst of something (for example, Sebastian’s set was stuck in a box set). Trying to put together a Woodstock-only collection has been a hobbyist’s nightmare for years. Many were hoping the 40th would see the floodgates open. There’s also the question of how many more will still be here to purchase the sets 10 years from now!
There’re some stories around, for example: “anyone who says they remember Woodstock could not have really been there.” There’re also stories about how poor the music actually was. Well, I wasn’t present at Woodstock for these performances, perhaps that’s in retrospect a good thing. But I’ve heard many performances, the present 5 sets included, and the music was/is fantastic. You will think of Joplin differently after listening to this. Picture Sly & The Family Stone in the wee hours of the morning & all the energy they are unleashing! Johnny Winter – sweet performances here. Santana was captured on film – so multiply the movie performance by several more great songs. Jefferson Airplane – no comment.
I’m thinking like this – if you are a completist, no question – good investment. If you have nothing from Woodstock, this is as good a place as any to start. If you’re simply curious, I’m betting there will be someone like me in your town in the middle of August blasting their speakers loud enough for you to hear. These 5 CDs alone run close to 6 hours. Enjoy!
“I get what I want and I don’t come sneaking back.” Nope, he sure ain’t ‘sneaking’ back, he’s back full force, with some good old fashioned rock and roll keeping a party shouting, dancing, and throwing back the ice cold beer to let it slide down our throats with finesse and superb technique. The best news is he still makes the old songs sound salad-fresh. Shoutouts for an upbeat version of Born Lover, and the diddley beat of Let Me Pass. Note that the second ½ of this CD is previously released. George Thorogood
Any good Friday night party needs humor & Tyrants in Therapy are more than happy to supply that. Sneak this cut in anywhere & you’ll have people roiling on the floor laughing for at least three minutes. Old fashioned margaritaville calypso music added to the book of Revelation. I personally can’t wait to try this one out at my next meeting with the prophecy enthusiasts at the church – this will test their sense of humor. I know Chuck Missler, my favorite end times instructor, will giggle. “When it all came down, it was a sad day indeed for every organism from billionaires to weeds!” LOL!!! “The sky overheated, and the sun got real hot!” STOP!!! You’re hurting my side! “and the earth started smoking like a rastaman’s pot!” ARRGGHHH!!! You guys are killing me HAHAHA!!! I’m laughing too hard to share the rest with you, just know if you love to laugh a lot, you’re going to love blasting this at your next party. To hear the track, select the CD entitled High Class Trash below, and it's the first cut. Enjoy!The Tyrants in Therapy
“I met my sister on the bridge staring from the precipice.” The narrator shares a dream-like sequence through this CD that pulls my interest in with pure melody. There are instruments present, but they are there apparently simply to set tone. On Color Opposition Theory there is a breathing-type accordion harmonica sounding instrument that takes in air and sends it back into our habitat with a solid, steady pace through deep, colorful sleep. Master & Servant has a Lennonesque piano with ambient sounds of cars driving through the street with a harmony child angel protecting the dreamer from danger. “Lately, the Devil’s been talking to me”. The End of the Dream is exactly as described by the title. The narrator reminds me of dreams where, no matter what had happened within the dream I have no earthly intention of leaving it. The voices keep me in the dream, and they repeat even as someone attempts to wake me. The reality of the dream is much more alive and energetic than the world I wake into. I want to stay in the madness of the dream, not move on to the insanity of another day. Lady Lazarus
Spend a minute listening to these guys & you’ll want them to come play at your next BBQ because it’s easy to tell their live show must be great. The good news is a lotta people have heard them, and now they are playing at some really big bbqs, so you may be able to catch them at a party near you this summer. If not, the CD is still great fun to spin at the party. “Drive out to the west son, go watch the river run.” There are many stories about wanderin’ men headin’ down the road in the folk tradition, and the Wiyos shoot for making it fun. Like all macho traditions, when the woman kicks the narrator out, he smiles and pretends “I won’t worry when it’s over”, even while he’s kinda hinting for her to “keep my place set at your table.” Quite simply, he doesn’t believe she’s kicking him out for good. Confidence, expressed with fun. The narrator seems plenty happy with passing corn fields, roosters, barns, and rivers on his round trip. If funky country folk wasn’t a genre, it is now. Shoutout for the harmonizing jug band party of Promenade (we’ll all dance the night away”). The Wiyos
What gives a normal song the oomph it takes to be noticed by the eartaster? It differs on every song, but this one was easy. I was bouncing along with the song thinking about its upbeat lyrics and low key presentation and out of nowhere two words were whispered, “trust me”. The lyrics are simple, yet within that simplicity is much wisdom. “I wanna learn from my mistakes, I wanna give back what I take.” The shout-out tune is Strong Enough. Yep, that one. When Ms Crow sings with her strong blasting voice the message is clearly ‘I’m a strong woman, can you take me on?’ Cathy-Anne has a totally different approach – she’s being extremely honest about all her weaknesses, but isn’t shouting proudly about them. She approaches them as a fact of being a woman – there’s going to be times she’s hard to live with. Knowing these truths, all she wants is consistency in her man. Cathy-Anne takes a powerful song and turns it inwards showing a completely different depth in its poetry. A quiet album, with a tasty back-up band that never overwhelms. Cathy-Anne McClintock
Behind every great album is a group of songs which were experiments, dreams, understandings, life affirming spatial desserts floating through and beyond the goal. Usually those moments are lost in the ether. Practices, trials, mindful strivings are not usually recorded until the spirit is perfected and ready for what the artist feels others are ready to consume. While Larry was recording with the Thromboes this spring, the recorder was left on during the strumming usually heard only by God. I feel blessed to be able to hear these visions, and I’m sure if you’ve read this far that you will too. Contact Larry through his web page and offer him enough cash to buy a meal or some really good beer and I’ll bet you can get a copy of this. Larry Levy
I talked these guys up in April, and just received the word that Eartaste fans can download the song – so hey! Go for it. Right click on the link below & listen in. The plan, of course, is to encourage you to purchase the entire CD. There’s a link for that too. And, if you can’t remember what I wrote the day after my birthday 3 months ago, well – there’s a link for that too!
Lazy Sundays are easy to achieve when the weather stays above 100 degrees for an entire week. The music Putumayo serves up this time out is perfect for a Lazy Sunday, with voices floating over the clouds and instruments swimming through the humidity with pure blissful peace. Many thanks for sharing the talents of Katia B, Ceumar, y Teresa Cristina and Grupo Semente with the neighborhood today. The slower dancing possible with this CD makes for a cooler atmosphere than is possible by just sitting around complaining about the weather. I can feel the waves splashing around as I move through the shade offered by the hackberry trees. Experience pleasure – when you purchase this CD you wil be helping a children’s group in Brazil, as well as receiving a recipe for a 4-layer pleasurable dessert known as coffee pave and finally a recipe for cafezinho. The Brazilian Café is proud to serve up many different flavors for your ears, your soul, and your tongue. Brazilian Café
I already hear the complaining. You wonder why I’m slipping a song about revolution into my Friday night party. Well, there’s many types of revolutions. This one requests that you “go and get your pants on.” These guys have nothing more in mind except to accentuate our fun with slap-happy kink-smiling songs. And along with the excellent melody, these guys enjoy getting me up to dance. My DJ friends will have everyone up and dancing to this cut. Shoutouts for the equally energetic Sweet Spot (“my aim is true”) and the magical mystery kinkesque Meeting Mr Miandad (‘when we break down people tow us”). The Duckworth Lewis Method
“I wanna be there when you wake. I wanna help you start your day. Will you breath or suffocate?” LOL! A dramatic way to say, hey, make a decision! “I’m a stranger inside of you. Someday, be a friend of mine too.” Bordering on humor, I choose to accept the narrator here enjoys her life and is looking to share it. She does a wonderful job communicating her joy of living. The band is having a great time being the canvas that the story is splattered upon. Shoutouts for the light hearted Gather It All (“who wants to stumble over love?”), the heavy depths of Meet You In Produce (“take your medicine, sing your songs to me”), the psychedelic dreamlike nature of Concrete Feet (“I’ve lost my life a dozen times”), and the psychobilly rock of Instructions (“I know what you’re thinking”). The Peekers
Summer bubble pop. “Stargazer, dreammaker, I’m in love with you. Spin the bottle and every time it’s landing right on you.” It’s good to hear the kids still play spin the bottle. I promise – nothing deep here, just fun dance beats. And humor! Silly humor, but what the heck – it’s melodic and keeps the summer happy. Shoutouts for Blackbird and Gin & Money. Marcy Playground
”I don’t count my blessings anymore. I just keep a watchful eye, wonderin’ if God is keeping score.” It’s easy to joke about this song – around here the sun ain’t been doing nothing but shining 107 degrees every day this week. But that wouldn’t be fair to what is going on here. This cool burner is making the humidity even worse with all the sweat coming out of my body from the way the drummer forces my feet up to move. That, plus the electrical storm blazing between the two singers toward the end of this tune. Beautiful. Shoutouts for the faster dance and sweet harmonica of the honest short story of America called Stranger (“that is how a family goes from middle class to hand-out”), the Townes-like picking of Raindance (“the raven in my dream whispers your name”), and the beautiful Hello (“of all of my problems, the least was the liquor”). Drew Nelson
A Monday album that starts right off with a bass rumble to wake you up and start dancing! Complete with poetry! “Written 37 letters, none of which I’ll ever send. But I’ll write them and reread them over and over again. I have 16 that say ‘I love you’, 16 more that wish you dead, drunken Bukowski ramblings in the 5 that I have left.” I won’t go on about whether or not Bukowski wrote while drunk, because he was known to perform while drunk – and anybody trying to reach the world of stardom while roaring about Bukowski is bound to be a soul brother. The instrumentation is spare, and sounds great loud. The narrator sets the mood perfectly with his voice while the band pleasingly plays in pure pop mode. Great summer record! Shoutouts for Brass Ring, and Swingset Assassin. These tasty musical treats will lead you back to their third CD featuring Come Back to Shelby, No Shame, and Now I Know. Two Cow Garage
My ears are very happy tonight. My original thought was the B-52’s 25 years ago, then I remembered they were simply channeling Question Mark and the Mysterians from 20 years before that. Am I saying this group is retro? Only on the surface. There’s some clean 21st century bass lines in here that make my ears extremely pleased, and my feet even happier. I dare you to sit down with the Love Me Nots on your turntable. Perfect party platter. Shoutouts for You're Really Something, Secret Pocket, and Give Em What They Want. The Love Me Nots
Nebelhexë has several CDs that stay near my player, Laguz (2004), and Essensual (2006), so it was exciting to find new sounds to devour by this artist. As I entered into the enhanced dream state produced by the aural landscapes I envisioned a show with other payers from mixed eras but similar visions, so that is the enchanted hour you’ll share if you seek out these artists with me.
Nebelhexë - Against The Wall (“No more frontiers. . .I cannot see ahead. . .The wall is painted black. . . Don't hold me down. . .I still can shout”), Dead Waters (“I won't care. . .Too self aware. . .Look behind my smile. . .Into blackened eyes”) and Beyond The Ninth Wave (“How about the ghost that sleeps with me in the dark?”). Nebelhexë
Yoko & The Plastic Ono Band - Memory Of Footsteps (“welcome to life”), Feel The Sand (“your heart is responding to the birds”) and Higa Noboru (why is this life so beautiful?”). Yoko & The Plastic Ono Band
Filmed live on a cell phone by Suzy Secret:
No words necessary for the gothic beauty of Broken Mirror, A Real Diamond In The Rough, Squid Ink, and Formless Present. Buckethead
Eyes Like Ours (“Do you recall when the world was still young? Just a small town? “) and Outside (“was afraid that you might see me”). Tiny Vipers
Adding visual depth to the earwaves, the special quality of these tunes frame a safe landing strip filled with beauty. Wish You Were Mine, As You Watch Each City Fall (Part 2), Buffalo Blues, and Time And Emotion. Robin Trower
The subtitle on this CD is "Good Time Music for Hard Times," and fits perfectly. Jug bands were popular during what is lovingly called by the history books as the ‘great’ depression. I imagine our current days will be known in the history books as the ‘marvelous’ or ‘sweet’ depression. Some rich people are getting very very rich from our future taxes, while members of each of our families lose their houses. At least we have some fun music to make life worthwhile & worth singing about even while we search for a method of being sure food stays on the table. In case you’re wondering, there’s not one turkey on the CD! Total value for your bucks. Maria Muldaur
