“If you like good sound…”
Lou discusses the price of good sound, mp3s, Lee Allen’s tone, and possible elitist notions of…good sound.
“What do you think?”
Apr 122008
Mr. Moderator
Apr 122008
All the fuzzy white and gray tones from the middle-to-right of this clip is purportedly Nick Lowe and Robyn Hitchcock. They’re jamming with Elvis Costello. Pretty cool, despite the longtime Rock Town Hall in-joke of this post’s title.
Apr 112008
How hard up are you Nancy Sinatra-Lee Hazelwood collectors for something cool to show off at your next gathering of rock nerd friends or to spin on your college radio show? Granted, this rant is a good 20 years overdue, dating back to the time when we all started feeling warm and fuzzy about this stuff, but it’s gone on too long. Suddenly, the joke’s on us. Let’s review the supposed “greatness” of these collaborations.
The groovy camp appeal of “These Boots Are Made for Walking” is undeniable. The tune is pretty cool. Nancy’s looking good. Women feel empowered. And all that jazz. An unforgettable treat.
Certainly, I get the hipster, so-bad-it’s-great appeal of “Some Velvet Morning”. When we first discovered this song in the ’80s and cool bands started covering it, this was the appeal, right? It’s like a musical equivalent of Mandom. Honestly, though, beyond the giggle factor of of this song and the associated images of these two clowns, what’s there to dig? Isn’t this kind of stuff best left to the French, who excelled at making melodramatic, semi-lame, semi-laughable, semi-groovy ’60s pop music? Plus, those French women were much hotter than Nancy. Sorry, Frank.
Apr 102008
Let me see if I can summarize a recent experience and then open the Halls for some thoughtful discussion on that great lost avenue to record buyers on a budget: cut-out bins.
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Apr 102008
Check out this live 1970 Fairport Convention performance. It’s a perfectly captured moment in time, if not necessarily a moment we need to relive that often. The colors, the outdoor lighting, the band members getting smothered by the anti-popping mic covers, the light breeze blowing through Richard Thompson’s perfect curls, the music! This makes The Youngbloods‘ color performance of “Get Together” and more seem like gagsta rap. You don’t believe me? Check it out!
Apr 082008
In commenting on a comment in the recent Name That Tune! thread, Townsman Al said of Leon Russell:
I think his string of early ’70s albums were phenomenal. Then he had to go get married and start putting out duet albums with his wife. There’s a Last Man Standing thread there.
Indeed, there is. Thanks, Al! And let’s make sure we’re not being sexist about this. A great woman artist whose career was dragged down by making duet albums with her new husband is just as relevant.
Note: To avoid a likely week-long debate over which spouse dragged down the other’s career, we’ll rule out the Gregg Allman–Cher collaboration that was knocked out during their historic 9-day marriage, Two the Hard Way.
Apr 082008
My teenage rock nerd treasure hunt begins.
Some of you are aware of the profound influence issue #46 of Trouser Press had on my young rock nerd’s development. It was the first issue of the new decade, and my favorite underground rock magazine kicked it off with a snazzy, double-length issue that looked back at the decade that had just passed and looked ahead to the promise of the 1980s!
As some of you are also aware, the promise of the 1980s soon turned ugly for this once-young man’s dreams of a return to energetic, concise rock ‘n roll on the radio. Instead of The Clash, Elvis Costello & The Attractions, The Buzzcocks, The Jam, and The Undertones ruling the airwaves, the underground pop song movement would emerge victorious, Yamaha DX-7 synths in tow, as the synth-pop of mildly entertaining types like Thomas Dolby and Thompson Twins and finally the massively successful dance-pop of Madonna and Rock Town Hall flashpoint Prince. Despite the success of a few more commercial contenders from that scene, like The Police, The Cars, and Blondie (and Costello and The Clash, to some extent), the closing credits were rolling on the dream.
Trouser Press #46, “Some 1970s Albums You Might Have Missed” (~40 mb)
That didn’t mean I couldn’t spend the ’80s seeking out cool, underground albums from the ’70s that were mostly alien to me before I’d reached my late teens and became a loyal Trouser Press reader. I scanned what’s still my touchstone article from that issue, “Some 1970s Albums You Might Have Missed” (~40 mb; click to download). It’s a large file, but if you download it and print it out, you’ll have some choice bathroom reading! Then – after you’ve washed your hands – I’m sure you’ll want to log back into the Halls of Rock and share your thoughts on these albums, those times, your own significant moment that helped launch your personal rock nerd journey.
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