Apr 232012
 


How are you gonna make your mark? The All-Star Jam is as fine a place for doing so as there is on the Web.

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  25 Responses to “All-Star Jam”

  1. I was thinking the other day about the poor man’s version (for lack of a better metaphor) of specific artists. It’s totally subjective and probably unfair but I always thought John Mellencamp was the poor man’s Bruce Springsteen, Foreigner was the poor man’s Boston and Bon Jovi was the poor man’s Aerosmith. No point really.

  2. I think of Bon Jovi as the Poor Man’s Mellencamp, meaning a really poor version of Springsteen.

    Foreigner predated Boston, didn’t they? I think of them as trying to be a more dynamic, poppy version of Bad Company, although I’m not sure which of those bands is more poverty striken.

  3. tonyola

    Boston’s first album was released around nine months before Foreigner’s first. I don’t see a whole lot of resemblance between the two bands other than the high-pitched, high-decibel lead vocals. Foreigner relied less on “virtuoso” instrumental flash in favor of arguably stronger songwriting. After all, Mick Jones, for all his faults, at least wasn’t trying to sell a line of guitar gear.

  4. Yea, I think it’s that high pitched screamin’ harmony thing that makes them seem similar to me. I just remember when that first Boston 8track came out it was huge. I loved the keyboards even though Scholz got all the credit. I never owned a rockman.

  5. Wow, for some reason I thought Foreigner dated back to 1976. Maybe I think that now because I know they had more musicians with a career spanning back to the early ’70s.

  6. cliff sovinsanity

    In the grand scheme of all that is self-important in the Hall and in life, a movie bio pic is not a big deal. But, somehow the news that Taylor Swift may be portraying Joni Mitchell in the upcoming film adaptation of Shelia Weller’s book Girls Like Us really put a gnarl in my neck. This may be the only time we see a fictionalized portrayal of Joni Mitchell on screen. Am I not crazy for wanting a certain amount of weight brought to the performance? Weighty performance is not something usually associated with the warbling teenage bedroom poetry of Swift. Shamefully what first came to mind was that Swift was way too pretty to play Mitchell. Which I know, sounds incredibly shallow. Is there some sad truth to my admission. Is there a biased against pretty women in rock ?
    No word yet, on who will portray Carole King or Carly Simon ?
    http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/taylor-swift-in-talks-to-play-joni-mitchell-20120423

  7. Hey, my first shallow thought is, “Joni was hot!” My second thought is, “Almost all rock biopics blow, so don’t sweat it.”

    That said, I have the slightest amount of faith that Taylor Swift could do a decent job in such a biopic. I still recall the first time I ever heard of or saw that girl (and yes, I think she’s still young enough that I can call her a “girl”). She sang the National Anthem before a Phillies playoff game in 2008, if memory serves, just her and her acoustic guitar, real simple and plain. It was surprisingly understated and pretty. Then about 2 years ago my youngest son went through a phase when he had a crush on her, playing her hit song (“You Belong to Me”) constantly and telling me how she ranked up there with Debbie Harry and Kirsten Dunst. My soft spot for her was confirmed. Then I found out that my now 21-year-old nephew, who lives about 5 miles from her hometown, thinks she’s the Ultimate Woman (and still does). He’s a great kid, too. How could I argue with that? I think Taylor Swift has more to her than we know. She’s a force to be reckoned with.

  8. Here’s Swift’s World Series National Anthem, which was surprising and slightly memorable to me, at least:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elCh6LgJUaM

  9. cliff sovinsanity

    Point taken. I’ve actually defended Taylor on occasion for at least sticking with what she knows and pulling it off competently. Unfortunately, I just don’t see/hear enough soul and hurt in her voice. Perhaps she would do a great Barbra Mandrell, but not Joni.
    On the other hand, I’m beginning to think this might be a good thing in that it might turn on a new generation onto Mitchell’s music.

  10. Let’s not forget that Joni was plenty chirpy and twee in her early days. It took some time for her to develop some gravitas on her own.

  11. diskojoe

    Speaking of Dick Clark,I recently purchased a bootleg DVD of Paul Revere & the Raiders’ TV appearances which had 3 additional DVDs full of additional stuff, including 1 DVD full of appearances from Where The Action Is which were in surprisingly good to great condition.

  12. misterioso

    diskojoe, I am partly afraid to say that I think that sounds really cool. Is there anything on there done live or is it all lip-synching?

  13. diskojoe

    It’s all probably lip-synching, but hey, what do you want for $4?

    Here’s a little taste:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9IF5TXl8u4c

    There is actually a clip of them covering My Generation while dressed up in caveman outfits, which I couldn’t find on YouTube.

  14. hrrundivbakshi

    Holy shit on a shingle — this song is actually pretty freaking excellent!

  15. I don’t know. Eh. Where those lyrics frozen in amber in 1962? Or is that just a byproduct of (probably) being written by Mike Love?

  16. hrrundivbakshi

    The sheen is pretty cheese-tstic, but those are some of the most interesting harmonies I’ve heard out of (presumably) Brian Wilson in about 40 years. I can’t help it: when the Beach Boys sing about God, I go all mushy.

    In Love’s defense, I have to say I actually cracked a smile at something he said that was intended to be funny. Describing the lyrics he’s writing for the album, Love said: “I’m trying to write lyrics that fit the music without making it sound like you’re writing from a hospice.”

  17. misterioso

    Nice. Quite likely about 3.5 dvds more than I could ever manage, but in smallish doses I think they were a great band for a couple of years.

  18. misterioso

    Written by Mike Love? Let’s be fair. They sound like they were written by John Stamos.

  19. tonyola

    Well, it’s not “Good Vibrations”, but it’s not “Santa’s Goin’ To Kokomo” either. I wonder how much of a hand Brian had it in – it sounds a little too complex in structure for the others – and I also wonder what drugs were given to Mike to keep him under control.

  20. cherguevara

    See it there, as he is having difficulty licensing all the songs in the film, so it’s looking like a rocky road for a commercial release. I’d love to see this.

  21. That’s a bummer. Now, I’m sorry I’m not going to be able to see this tomorrow night. I figured I could catch up down the road.

  22. cherguevara

    He’s taking donations to make it happen:

    http://wreckingcrew.tv/donations.html

  23. Anybody else going to see this today at 5? I’m thinking about doing it.

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