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All-Star Jam

Posted by al

Dec 072015

RTH has been a lonely place lately. My excuse has been spending 10 days in Italy. While wondering around Rome (my wife and I walked 36 miles in 4 days!) we stumbled upon a church. And, yes, I know that’s not hard to do in Rome. This was one I’ve never been to before and I can’t even remember the name. Pretty plain by Rome standards. I snapped this picture of a side altar:

What a Marshall amp was doing on an altar in Rome I have no idea.

Do you? Any unlikely place you’ve stumbled on rock & roll lately?

Last Man Standing: Where the Streets Have a Name

Posted by al

Oct 142015

Simple one. Name an album, song title, or lyric which contains the name of a street. Doesn’t have to be an actual street but must be in the form of an actual street. So “boulevard of broken dreams is out” but Rue Morgue Avenue – from Dylan’s “Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues,” performed in the video by Nina Simone just because I stumbled upon it and like it – is in.

Standard rules. One entry at a time. Decision of the judge is final.

Tempted or Not Tempted

Posted by al

Mar 262015

Maybe this can be a new regular feature of RTH.

I was just reading a little bit about Pete Townshend‘s latest recycling effort, a classical version of Quadrophenia to be released on 22 June:

Pete Townshend’s symphonic reimagining of The Who’s Quadrophenia will be released by classical label Deutsche Grammophon this June.

The album has been orchestrated by his partner, Rachel Fuller and includes Pete on electric guitar on the record. English tenor Alfie Boe provides most of the vocals – there is no participation from Roger Daltrey.

orchestrated by Rachel Fuller
Featuring Pete Townshend – Alfie Boe – Billy Idol · Phil Daniels
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Robert Ziegler

If you want more details/track listing you can go here: http://www.spincds.com/coming-soon/pete-townshend-s-classic-quadrophenia-cd

Now, Pete ranks up there with Bowie and Costello for most frequent reissues. Pete’s churning doesn’t need to be as expensive as Bowie’s or Costello’s because the Who catalogue really isn’t that extensive. And I stopped being tempted several years ago.

But…

Quadrophenia is probably my favorite Who album and this does tempt me. I fear, though, that the reality will be far less than the possibilities I imagine now in theory. I’d hope that it will really be something different and I fear it will be the same old Quadrophenia with some strings/brass taped over it.

I can’t say this teaser does much to make me hopeful:

How about you? Tempted? Or not tempted?

Last Man Standing: Let’s Get Some Action

Posted by al

Oct 132014

Trying to kickstart some action here: Name a song with the word “action” (or a compound thereof) in the title.

I’ll start it off with this one – Elvis Costello’s “No Action.”

Last Man Standing: Songs That Mention The Beatles

Posted by al

Jul 172014

How about a simple LMS to try and stir some activity during the doldrums of summer? How many songs that reference the Beatles, individually or severally, can we name? Self-referential songs count and I’ll start with my favorite of those, Ringo’s “Early 1970”.

One at a time please!

Isn’t It A Pity? or Worst Best?

Posted by al

Jun 102014

Over the years I’ve thought I wanted to delve more deeply into George Harrison’s solo catalog. I know what the general feeling has been but All Things Must Pass is a classic by almost anyone’s standards. And Living in the Material World has enough charms that I bought the reissue a few yeas back to supplant the old vinyl copy. And I bought the big comeback, Cloud Nine, way back when and remember liking it well enough (even if I don’t remember too much of it very well now).

Over the last several decades I thought I should try some of the maligned records that came out between Material World and Cloud Nine but never had; after all, how bad could they be? Back a decade ago after George died a box set of all the Dark Horse material came out and that tempted me.

Thank the music gods that I resisted!

I recently borrowed the one disc Best of Dark Horse, 1976-1989, and it is stunningly pedestrian. There’s one cut that would deserve to go on a true Harrison best of, “Blow Away,” thanks to a stellar chorus. And I’d listen to “Got My Mind Set On You,” “Crackerbox Palace,” “When We Was Fab,” and “All Those Years Ago” all the way through if they came on the car radio (although “When We Was Fab” belongs more on an ELO album – and not a greatest hits ELO album).

And the other 10 tracks, well, if that’s the best of the Dark Horse albums then they must be horrible. I won’t subject any of you to any of them here; seek them out at your own risk.

Am I being too harsh? Why did he even bother putting out this dreck? And is there a worse Best of than this? No cheating on that last question; we all know Christopher Cross’ Best of sucks (at least I presume it does).