Rock Town Hall • Rock Music Discussion

Licks, Faces, Feel: Robertson vs Clapton

Apr 022009

In honor of my having watched The Last Waltz for what may have been the 100th time after happening upon it during a flip of channels this evening, I felt like revisiting this breakthrough analysis, if I do say so myself. Among the thousands of things I love about The Last Waltz is Scorcese’s keen eye for rock porn interplay. Does any other rock film allow for as many voyeuristic views of hot musician-on-musician action?

This post initially appeared 6/18/07.

Surely you know the game Rock, Paper, Scissors. You probably know it better than I do. Scissors cut paper, paper covers rock, rock smashes scissors. Using the following clip from The Last Waltz, I’ll ask you to play a similar game I like to call Licks, Faces, Feel. In this game, feel exposes faces, faces amplify licks, and licks always feel good.*

I’m going to ask you to watch the following performance of “Further On Up the Road”, featuring a guitar dual between Eric Clapton and Robbie Robertson of The Band, and I’m going to ask you to analyze this video clip, at first, at least three ways:

With the sound OFF and your eyes fixed on the screen
With the sound ON and your eyes fixed on the screen
With the sound ON and your eyes closed

To keep a fresh perspective, I suggest getting up and walking around for a few minutes between each initial round of analysis.

While analyzing the video with the sound OFF and your eyes fixed on the screen, note the points at which one guitarist outshines the other in terms of his use of rock soloing faces.

While analyzing the video with the sound ON and your eyes fixed on the screen, note the points when one guitarist’s licks clearly outshine those of his opponent.

While analyzing the video with the sound ON and your eyes closed, make note of the points at which one guitarist’s feel is hitting on all cylinders.

Finally, watch the video again with the sound on. Spread your notes in front of you and assess the points at which one guitarist’s move is countered, either simultaneously or in the following solo, by another move. For instance, see if there are points at which one guitarist’s licks are countered by the other man’s faces (advantage faces). Or, perhaps, you will see a segment in which one man’s faces are exposed as cheap ploys by the other man’s feel. Or, of course, one man’s fine sense of feel will be negated by the other man’s impeccable licks. There may be times in the performance when the artists reach a draw.

Keep score and report your scores to the Hall!

*Please note that Clapton and Robertson are controlled for both Look and Gear.

NEW! Mr. Moderator weighs in with his official scoring of the dual. Continue reading »

Pub Rock Also-Rans Pt. 2: Kilburn & the High Roads

Posted by BigSteve

Apr 022009

I felt a little bad after calling bands “also-rans” last time I posted about pub rock, but in a way all of them were also-rans. It wasn’t a big scene, and I think only Dr. Feelgood ever had actual hits. Pub rock evolved as an alternative to the arena rock culture of the early ’70s, and it was a strange brew that bubbled under briefly before being swallowed up by punk rock, the appearance of which forced the pub rockers to evolve or die.

One of the more interesting cases was Ian Dury’s first band Kilburn & the High Roads. Named after the main thoroughfare in Kilburn (ie, the ancient Kilburn High Road), an area of north London known at the time for having large Irish and black populations, the band was formed while Dury was still a lecturer at the Canterbury College of Art. Anyone who has looked into the history of British rock knows how influential the art colleges were in the ’60s and ’70s, and Dury had studied with the famous Peter Blake at the Royal College of Art. Most of the original members of the band had been students of Dury’s, and they seemed more like a random collection of characters having a laugh than a group of professional musicians. Here you can see the early version of the band stumbling through “Mumble Rumble & the Cocktail Rock” on the Old Grey Whistle Test, in 1973.

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What I find most interesting about this band is that you can see and hear the elements that would go into Dury’s success with the Blockheads, though the mix isn’t quite there yet. In that clip you can notice his fascination with ’50s rock. In fact the story goes that Dury was inspired to go into music by the death of Gene Vincent in late 1971. Notice that Dury wears black leather gloves in these clips as a tribute to Vincent.
Continue reading »

Rock ‘n Roll Big Brothers and Sisters of Rock Town Hall

Posted by Mr. Moderator

Apr 022009

Some of you are big brothers or big sisters. Some of you (maybe even some of you big brothers and sisters) grew up with big brothers or sisters. Some of you grew up without a big brother or sister and/or had parents who were not in any way hip to good music. Maybe Percy Faith Orchestra was about as rockin’ as anything your folks played in the house. This must have been a tough situation, to be on your own, a musical orphan entering middle school with no one to guide you in the ways of musical cool.

Here’s a chance to relive your musical needs from that delicate period. Here’s a chance to share experiences as a musical mentor to a young boy or girl in need of guidance. Perhaps you still need help today. We can offer assistance, we can match the childhood musical orphan in you with a helpful Rock ‘n Roll Big Brother or Big Sister!

PSA: Kids, Stay Away From Musicians

Posted by Mr. Moderator

Apr 012009

Listen to what the man says.

Critical Upgrade: Head East

Posted by sammymaudlin

Apr 012009

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Never Been Any Reason is indeed a strong contender for Rock ‘N Roll National Anthem. On the strength of this classic alone, Head East is overdue for a critical upgrade. And I’m not alone on this. In 2001, the 20th Century Masters Millennium Collection gave their rare stamp of approval to these guys.

Some folks I know haven’t dipped too far into the Head East catalog and that needs to end now!
Continue reading »

The Rock Town Hall Interview: John Schlitt of Head East

Posted by Mr. Moderator

Apr 012009

Schlitt with fan at the Playboy Mansion, March 2002.

Rock Town Hall recently caught up with former Head East lead vocalist and founder, John Schlitt, moments before ducking into a rehearsal with his re-formed, brief-lived, post-Head East band, Johnny, to prepare for a short tour later in April that will take the band to Hudson, WI; Fort Yates, ND; Peoria, IL; and Sioux Falls, SD. “I’m really sorry I don’t have much time,” said Schlitt, while graciously accepting our unexpected request for an interview, “We’ve got a lot of work to do!”
Continue reading »

Back to the Garden: Send Me the Free LP!

Posted by Mr. Moderator

Apr 012009

A couple of years ago, as we were launching the Rock Town Hall blog that you are presently reading, a Founding Father of this long-running discussion group, one who launched our original Yahoo Groups list with me, was caught in the grips of resistance to the changing tides. He fought valiantly to keep the old list alive, posting his patently hilarious and sometimes offensive rants, ones that increasingly tended to center around insults at me and my co-conspirators in our great leap forward. It was a difficult time for us all.

One post from this time has stuck with me since we flew by the 2-year mark in the launch of this blog. Our passionate Townsman was discussing his newfound love for the Dixie Chicks. He wanted to talk about them, and he wanted to talk about them through the original RTH forum. He threw down the following challenge, in a passage that I’ve kept printed out and in my wallet for the last 2+ years:
Continue reading »

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