Our busy season has come this weekend although Saturday we were spared of working it and got to see Los Lobos to which I'm still recovering from all the fun that was had and shared. Worked Sunday and I'm sure this weekend will be working again so basically trying to make deadlines and share the music and comments to all of my 20 dedicated followers out there. I don't see any bargain hunts forthcoming this month and still debating when to take the big vacation this year, after all I just got done with an unplanned one. To the friends of the SW, I'd love to hit the desert and return to my place of zen, the Crookton Pass Overpass which means the question of Vegas or Mesa again? I'm sure the kind folks at Zia's or Hastings would love to see me frequent their places and outbuy the stores but last time I was there, I didn't buy that much so perhaps I have it all? Judging from the last two weekends, no I don't, far from it.
Congrats to Katie Wiedeman for popping out another one and keeping the population of Earth going. But what is with the dumb names their giving their babies? Future news maker? Say hello to Knox Donald.
To Ultimate Classic Rock: It's been a given that Guns & Roses never start a show on time, that they're always coming on late but still rocking it all. Kinda like Sammy Hagar blasting about Van Halen all year. Axl Rose isn't going to change. How bout this....how bout showing up to see The Axl Rose Band 50 minutes after the original time of them going on? They may not be even the takin the stage yet. Quit Bitching.
George Marino passed away. He worked on many recordings for Sterling Sound, KISS, Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith, Coldplay. And of course, Frank Marino (although I don't think they were related). He had a very distinctive way of signing his name on those late 70s dead wax area. A one of a kind that you won't here anywhere else but the recording sector and record collectors. Died from lung cancer. Here's something from 2009 that you might like to read http://www.sonicscoop.com/2009/06/16/vinyl-comeback-prompts-sterling%E2%80%99s-new-all-analog-vinyl-mastering-part-i/
Looking through the Archives, I couldn't find the Richard Thompson blog that I did back in 2005 and that included sorting through two hours worth of My Space blogs of 2006-2009. At least here at Blogspot everything can be found a bit easier. My Space took a shit when they changed everything and got rid of the search engine of finding that blog. And it hasn't changed since Justin Timberlake bought them out, very cumbersome and a pain in the ass.
After taking a couple months off, The Brains Blog has taken off into the stratosphere again with 65 views the past week. Will somebody show Andy McKie and the rest of the Universal Group holding The Brains' albums hostage and won't reissue them on CD the blog to show there's interest in this?
So here we go, another 10 songs that defined this week. For better or worse or less.
1. Dream In Blue-Los Lobos 1992 You knew it was bound to happen. We lead off the top ten with a song that started the Iowa City show from my now favorite band of today and top five all time. Hey if they make the time and effort to meet and greet me then that accounts for alot. I didn't realize how many songs they did off Kiko till I played the CD and started remembering the songs that were familar. This song got extended by about 10 minutes while Bugs Gonzalez played a drum solo right off the bat. Shout Factory has plans to release a live version of Kiko sometime in the summer. Last time they played Iowa City was at the long gone Crow's Nest in 92 although I'm thinking they may have played Gabe's. Further research showed they played at McBride Auditorium at the U of I in 1991. http://loslobos.setlist.com/1991.html
2. On A Mission-Trick Pony 2002 Right after the turn of the new century this band was up and coming in the country world, hot chick and two goofy guys backing her up. Heidi Newfield did most of the singing on the albums at hand, their best known was Pour Me which was part honky tonk and part Ain't That A Shame to which it borrowed a few lines and melody. The followup album didn't do so well and Warner Brothers traded them over to the worthless Curb label and they made one so so album before Newfield went on to a solo career. Take away the fiddles on this song and it would have given Bon Jovi a run for the rock and roll money. Kenny Arnoff guest stars on drums.
3. Back In The Night-Dr. Feelgood 1976 Pub rock wasn't much of a hold in the US, you heard it on the underground FM and college stations more than you did on KRNA which I don't think they ever did play this song. The original band along with Eddie & The Hot Rods, Ducks Deluxe, The Pirates and Brinsley Schwartz defined pub rock as three chords and the truth and most were produced by the late great Vic Maile. In the UK they recorded for EMI United Aritsts, whereas in the US, Columbia issued two of their albums, Malpractice and Sneaking Suspicion, the latter who split the band apart and Wilko Johnson would leave. Lee Brilleaux died from cancer at age 41 in 1994 but the band continues on with replacement players. To which the answer is given here from the last blog. Bob Dorr loved this song so much in 1976 that he played it twice in one show and he did it again on the last Backtracks show last weekend. I may have helped him into playing that twice.
4. Hero-Willie Nelson with Jamey Johnson and Billy Joe Shaver 2012 Big album release of last month was the 1,500 album that Willie has released in his career and a return back to Sony Music via Legacy (He spent just about 20 years with Columbia), reunited with Buddy Cannon and calls the new effort Heroes to which we get plenty of guest stars and son Lukas playing on 10 songs and of course the worst track is Sheryl Crow trying to sound black on a Tom Waits number that almost throws this album into total disarray. Again we rag on Sheryl Crow not because she's one of the most overrated singers of all time, in fact she does do some worthy causes and is anti GOP which we admire and credit, we rag on her because she seems to elbow herself into everybody's album that's over 50 years old. She did that to Jerry Lee Lewis, she did that to Eric Clapton and who can forget that crappy assed cameo she did on Fleetwood Mac's Say You Will. Too bad Legacy didn't stick that Come On Up To This House on a expanded edition so we didn't have to buy that and hear her wail away in that "don't yell at me" voice that irritates the fuck out of me. Next time Willie get Mavis Staples or somebody with soul. What Heroes needed was a bit more Jamey Johnson who shines on this duet with Willie and Billy Joe and Hero is a great song. A suggestion, next time get Lukas to make his own solo album and tell Sheryl Crow to stay home. The world will be better for it. http://www.restlessandreal.blogspot.com/2012/06/cowboy-grace-interview-with-willie.html
5. Martian Hop-The Ran-Dells 1963 One of the things that a record collector does is he tends to look for the more obscure stuff than the everyday dude who don't have time to do that. Family, work, change of lifestyle will do that to ya. But in a day and age of finding 45's that are 40 years old or older in great shape is just about needle in a haystack ratio, I still take great comfort in actually finding 45's without any sleeves to protect them still exists and on the weekend trip to Iowa City, somebody dropped off a bunch of old 45s that vary in shape and condition. This is a novelty song that can be found on They Came From Other Space to which Varase Vintage issued in 1998 and I found at Mister Money in I City about 10 years beforehand. But never seen the actual 45 till this weekend. The B side Forgive Me Darling (I Have Lied) could be considered Doo Wop garage. But they'll be forever remembered with this cool tune to which Dr Demento has played on his show.
6. No Milk Today-Herman Hermits 1966 Out of all the British Invasion bands, the Hermits are looked upon with scorn and ridicule but in reality they had a good vocalist in Peter Noone and although the garbage is still there (Mrs Brown You Got A Lovely Daughter or I'm Henry The VIII I Am) some of the other songs are hooky and quite good (Can't You Hear My Heartbeat, Must To Avoid, I'm Into Something Good). This is kinda Hollies sounding with Graham Gouldman writing this (later of 10cc, formerly of The Mindbenders).
7. Dragster Beach-The Dragsters 1989 Here's another forgotten band that nobody really knows about. Another one of those odd finds in the buck bins. They had a love of Jan And Dean, Elvis' movies (even covered Do The Clam off that classic movie Clambake) but in some ways they sound a lot like The Challengers or The Ventures of the 60s although they were babies or not even born yet. Made one album for a Island offshoot label and would never be heard again.
8. No Sackie Sack-H Bomb Ferguson 1959 Thereabouts? One of the most fun CDs I have brought was something called Stompin 4 and where this came from or who made it is as unknown as it gets. For the most part it's all uptempo rhythm and blues done by forgotten artists of the past. H Bomb made various sides for various labels (Specialty comes to mind), this song comes from the little known Miami Recording Company of Hamilton Ohio under Big Bang. The CD was found for 2 bucks at HP Books but this may have come from the old Ratz Records as a trade in. Or maybe as far back as Relics.
9. Baby Come Home-Scissor Sisters 2012 They're popular in the UK and points in between but in the US they still remain a curio. Their new album Magic Hour gets a bit too much into Black Eyed Peas territory to my liking and most of the album is hit and miss although I hear some of the songs could get into top forty airplay if they don't watch out (Let's Have A Kiki might be that one). At times they reveal themselves to be a disco act that is popular on the gay dancefloors and their first two albums reveal a love of the Bee Gees, Elton John and disco drums. I bought the first, passed on the second before listening to their best album Night Work and then rediscovered Ta Dah! to which Elton John plays piano on two of those cuts. They're on Polydor in the UK but Universal got the bright idea to relocate them to Casablanca, probably to rid of the world that Lindsay Lohan recorded for that label in the 00's. Or maybe Ashley Simpson, either way I'm too tired to look it up but it is out there for those who wants the facts straight and then report it to me in the comments section. I think they're safe in the UK but the album is either make or break for them here. After all Universal keeps bouncing them from satellite label to satellite label, just like light bouncing off the disco ball.
10. Both Sides Now-Joni Mitchell 1969 I have never gotten into Joni's albums all that much, I tried Blue and it didn't work for me and her Hits Cd shows the good and the bad of Joni. In the end, I think I'll stick with Court And Spark if I want to hear her music and may hold out to hear Clouds to which this song appears. Of course everybody knows about the Judy Collins big hit version but in essence this just might be my favorite Joni Mitchell song. And when she sings "I don't understand life at all" I think she's singing it from my point of view. I used to write songs myself but lately I tend to find out that some of the songs that I intended to write come from the original sources whoever they are and they speak for me better than I can write them. Maybe someday when I stay away from my second home at HP Books or any of the music stores that I frequent that perhaps I can write songs from my viewpoint but I seriously doubt that will ever happen anymore. I may be wrong though. We'll see.
5 MO 4 YA:
Easy Lover-Philip Bailey with Phil Collins 1984
Cash Box-Jimmy McGriff 1963
Diary Of Fools-Rock Rose 1979
Telephone Operator-Pete Shelley 1983
Elvis Is Everywhere-Mojo Nixon/Skid Roper 1988
Los Lobos Set List http://loslobos.setlist.com/2012setlists/06-02-12.html
- Dream in Blue
- Don't Worry Baby
- Will The Wolf Survive?
- I Walk Alone
- One Time, One Night*
- Chuco's Cumbia*
- Teresa*
- Wicked Rain
- Come On, Let's Go
- Just a Man
- Kiko and the Lavender Moon
- Ay Te Dejo en San Antonio
- Soy Mexico Americano
- Volver, Volver
- La Veganza De Los Pelados
- La Bamba>
- Good Lovin'>
- La Bamba
--- Encore: - Mas y Mas*
*-w/Carry Rodriguez on violin and Luke Jacobs on pedal steel
Conrad Lozano absent from show. Juan Perez played bass for entire show
