Nov 302007
Nov 302007
After weeks of negotiations, Rock Town Hall has obtained exclusive rights to run excerpts from E-Street Band legend Clarence Clemons‘ forthcoming autobiography, No Small Parts for The Big Man. In our first installment Clarence recounts the day The Boss presented him with a new assignment.
By The River Danny was already getting half of my “touches” with that rinky-dink Farfisa organ. Some folks couldn’t leave that wheezy thing back in the garage. The garage rock contingency in the E-Street Band was always trying to make itself heard above he more complex, subtle members of the band, like Roy and Max. God bless ’em! I always saw myself as the bridge among the musicians, and it goes without saying that all roads led to The Boss himself. Now I don’t want you to get the wrong idea. I was all-state footballer long before anyone outside Norfolk County, Virginia had heard me blow my horn. The Big Man was a lineman, so “touches,” that is, opportunities to carry and catch the football, were not in my repertoire. I was in the trenches, making the quarterback and all the other pretty boys look good. These may not have been my glory days, but The Big Man could play. Attended Maryland State College (now the University of Maryland, Eastern Shore) on an football athletic scholarship. Thought I was headed for the show, the National Football League.
As it was, the Man with the Plan had another show in mind. My parents gave me the gift of my first saxophone, but the Lord gave me the breath to blow down any walls set in my way. With the spiritual guidance of our Maker and as many King Curtis records as I could lay my hands on, I was prepared for that first time The Boss called for “Big Man!” to step forward and take it home with a solo.
Bruce called us together for the first rehearsals toward an album he said would take us in a new direction. “My Daddy said to me the other morning at breakfast, ‘Bruce, when you gonna grow up and play some real music?’ I said, ‘Pops, whaddaya talkin’ about? I been playin’ real music…” Well, you know how Bruce can get on a roll about his breakfast chats with his dad. Long story short, according to him the old man sold him on the idea of streamlining his sound and putting out an album that would once and for all move beyond his comfort zone of middle class kids from the Northeast corridor. Sounded good to me.
Bruce began by walking us through a new song called “Born in the USA”. Continue reading »
Nov 302007
“Any questions about photos?”
Nov 302007
Nov 292007
It’s long been known that I’ve had trouble warming up to David Bowie despite loving 30 of his songs. That’s probably more songs than I love by a bands like The Rascals and The Turtles, both of whom I’m quick to defend at “underrated.” It’s less songs than I love by Iggy Pop, whose music with The Stooges I can say “I love,” excluding half of the Bowie-produced Raw Power, of course.
What I’ve kept to myself all these years is the list of 30 Bowie songs that I love. Today, at the request of Townsman Alexmagic, I am coming forth with this list. Thank you, Alexmagic, for encouraging me to publish these long-held secrets. Already I feel a weight lifting from my soul.
Nov 292007
How ’bout we stir up some Dugout Chatter on this late-November day? Your candid, immediate answers will be most appreciated.
Candy Slice or Jennifer Jason Leigh’s title character from the film Georgia?
I would imagine that even those who don’t like Dylan like the copycat Steeler’s Wheel hit “Stuck in the Middle with You”. Is there a copycat song that you like better than almost any song by the originator of that sound?
Excluding the likes of Paul McCartney and Geddy Lee, who are key singer/songwriters in their bands, who is your Most Valuable Bassist in a band? This excludes a great studio cat like James Jamerson and friend of RTH, Lee Sklar. The bassist can write and sing an occasional song, but I’m looking for band-oriented bassist credentials exclusively. You may ask yourself, Which band would suffer most from the loss of its bassist?
What cliched rock-crit modifier (eg, “classically trained”) could you do without having to ever read again?
Which album would you most like to see a documentary on the making of, with the producer/engineer and band members breaking down track by track at the mixing board?
Is there a pattern of 3 or 4 notes or chords – not the specific notes or chords but their intervals – that you’re a sucker for? For those with less musical lingo than even myself, an example would be the 3-chord structure that’s at the root of “Louie Louie” and “Wild Thing”. You don’t need to report this pattern in musical terms; in fact, we’d all have a better understanding if you provide an example from a part where it stands out in a song you love. Mad props to any Townsperson who takes a crack at this one!
Nov 292007
As part of my ongoing effort to lift RTH out of the hatred and finger-pointing, I offer Snoop’s latest tribute to the power of Mighty Love. I approve of Snoop’s new attitude!
