Hey man, it’s cool: the All-Star Jam is for posting just about anything that interests you. Just stomp your foot, if you please.
Apr 262012
Apr 262012
In honor of the 18 years in the making “breaking news” regarding Joe Walsh‘s sobriety, let us conduct a Last Man Standing on songs about sobriety. Remember, especially considering this contest’s theme, don’t bogart the thread! Please limit yourself to one entry per post. Thank you.
Apr 262012
Apropos of nothing musical, I’ve had the strange fortune this week to catch, first, the last half hour, of Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life and then, a couple of days later, the first half hour of the film. Has anyone seen this, either in full or in part, even out of sequence? As I await delivery and posting of a really cool interview with a key artist in the Hall, I thought I’d share my thoughts on what I saw.
SPOILER ALERT! I may be giving away some key plot developments…after the jump, but probably not. Continue reading »
Apr 252012
I would’ve categorized this as “News” but…really? “News”?! I received this email the other day from a local radio station and it was entitled:
BREAKING NEWS:
JOE WALSH IS SOBER
Here’s a quote from the note:
“A whole new world…” That’s what the legendary Joe Walsh told me as he described life as a sober Rock star. He’s feeling great, and we couldn’t be happier for him. I thought you might want to see the chat I had with Joe…”
Lots of questions come to mind after receiving this email and watching the video.
- Who cares? Seriously. Good for Joe but is this “Breaking News” worthy? Even coming from a radio station it doesn’t feel like a big-whoop to me. “Joe Walsh Dies” would be breaking news. “Joe Walsh Has a Sex Change Operation” could also be breaking news… And if it is breaking newsworthy then it begs the question: whoa, how much effing booze has this dude downed?
- He says in the video interview that he got sober in 1994. Did I hear that right? So that would be 18 years ago. I’m not a Joe Walsh follower and am not an Eagles fan but if this is right then what about “Joe Walsh is Sober” is breaking in any way?
- 1994. Feels like that is about 14—15 years too late anyhoo. Just me?
- Joe looks to be wearing a Joy Division t-shirt based on the Unknown Pleasures cover. WTF? This is in fact the most newsworthy piece of information to me.
Apr 242012
A drummer worth watching.
A few years ago we promised to examine the stage stances of rock musicians by instrument, beginning with a mostly likely eventually groundbreaking piece on bassists. I don’t think we ever took this series any further…until now.
You hear the phrase that a great performer is “larger than life.” For rock musicians, that larger than life pose is literally grounded in the musician’s basic stance. Everything the musician does from that initial stance—be it swaying to the music, keeping time with his or her foot, placing a foot on the monitor, punching the air with a sweaty fist—flows from that initial stance, or gesture. You might find it curious that we’re rebooting this series with an examination of the stance of drummers, since few drummers actually stand up in the first place. However, I encourage you to think of a drummer’s stance in broader terms, that is, as the drummer’s presence from behind his or her kit. A distinctive drummer “stance” can add a lot to one’s enjoyment of a band’s live performance.
There’s no “right” stance, although as we examine the rock stances of various musicians, we may argue that there are “wrong” stances. I wouldn’t put it past us. It is highly likely, throughout the course of this series, that we’ll overlook an important stance. Please don’t hesitate to add to this base of knowledge. In fact, I am incapable of doing this survey justice alone.
Apr 242012
Mark Stein is the keyboard player from Vanilla Fudge, one of the most irritating bands in the history of Rock music. Vanilla Fudge featured an irritating guitarist, a very irritating bass player, and certainly the most irritating drummer in the history of the universe, Carmine Appice. Yet — somehow — Mark Stein, the keyboardist for Vanilla Fudge, manages to be more irritating than all of them put together.
I admit, I may have a problem with Mark Stein — but seriously, what is not irritating about Mark Stein? His stage garb is irritating — oversized brass medallions under freaky dashikis. Bellbottoms and Cuban heel boots — normally pretty cool fashion items — on Mark Stein, they just make me want to punch him in the nose. His hair isn’t cool — it’s a sort of modified bowl cut that neither impresses with its shag factor, nor interests for any purposeful lack of hippy hair integrity. It’s fake, like everything else about Mark Stein. Fake hair, Mark Stein. Fake clothes, Mark Stein. Fake Look, Mark Stein.
Mark Stein, will you please stop swivelling on your ass at every offbeat in every song you perform? Will you please stop doing that Mark Stein arm wave thing — like you’re pretending to conduct some invisible 300-piece rock orchestra? You do realize you’re just conducting Vanilla Fudge, right? Mark Stein, are you listening to me? Are you high, Mark Stein? I doubt it. You’re just acting like you’re high, aren’t you, Mark Stein? Stop acting, Mark Stein. Stop acting.
Please just stop singing, Mark Stein. The way you lean into the microphone is really, really irritating. The way you bellow is irritating, too, Mark Stein. Please stop, Mark Stein. Please just stop. You are very, very irritating.
HVB
Apr 242012
UPDATED…after the jump!
I was listening to American Routes on NPR last night while washing the dishes. Over the years, host Nick Spitzer has opened my ears to all kinds of American roots artists I’d previously found boring. Not everything he plays works for me (I still can’t stand most of that accordion-driven music from Louisiana), but as great DJs can do, there’s something about the way he sets up and frames the music he plays each week that often works wonders.
While I was scrubbing a roasting pan last night, Spitzer introduced Robert Johnson‘s original recording of “Crossroads.” Because there’s so little blues music I’ve liked over the years and because I’ve never previously found anything that interesting about Johnson, the most legendary bluesman ever and probably an inspiration for not only the movie Crossroads but my favorite blues-based movie, Black Snake Moan, I put down the scrubber and let the pan soak a few minutes longer, so I could pay full attention to what Spitzer announced was probably Johnson’s most influential recording.
