Don’t ask me why I obsessively look to rock ’n’ roll bands for some kind of model for a better society. I guess it’s just that I glimpsed something beautiful in a flashbulb moment once, and perhaps mistaking it for prophecy have been seeking its fulfillment ever since.
- Lester Bangs
I got to the Steve Earle party really late. When my mind and ears finally opened up to the 'alt country' sound(I hate that term, but it is easy and I am lazy) in the mid 90's Steve Earle was already well into an amazing career. 'Transcendental Blues', which was released in 2000, was the first Steve Earle record I ever bought. I loved it SO much...i remember making copies for ALL of my friends...most of who dismissed it as country and never gave it a a second spin. Their loss. I dove into Earle's back catalog almost immediately, and he has been one of my favorite artists ever since, up to and including this year's "Washington Square Serenade."
So many great tunes on 'TB'. 'Lonelier Than This' is one of my all time favorite tracks of his, 'Galway Girl', 'Everyone's In Love With You', 'Over Yonder', and the title track are all favorites of mine too. Just a great collection of songs...and one that I still listen to all the time.
This week's honoree is the best Swedish artist with THE least Swedish sounding name. But the talent proves he's Swedish. I have no missed Mr. Gonzalez 4 times...twice in Ohio and once at Coachella and once since I have been here in Los Angeles.
'Down The Line' is from his latest record, 'In Our Nature'
This video is brought to you by boredom and my love of the Hold Steady. Reason number #429 that I love this band so much...Craig Finn graduated with honors form Boston College and still moved back to Minneapolis to start his band...sidestepping the road more traveled. For my money, he is the most intellectual rock star on the planet...and just when I thought I couldn't love the guy anymore, i read this quote:
"When I started Lifter Puller it was some of my earliest singing, and I set out to create a vocal style that was very close to my speaking style. That seemed natural. I hate nothing worse than when vocalists sing in a voice entirely different from their real voice. Dave Matthews comes to mind, unless he talks like that. I doubt it."
Mark Lanegan could probably sing names out of the phone book and I would be blown away. His gravelly voice has always been one of my favorites...and it is aging SO well. You will know what I mean if you listen to his latest project, Soulsavers. But I digress. Today I dusted off 1992's 'Sweet Oblivion.'
Such a great time capsule record. I press play and its like I am transported back to the days when Abercrombie & Fitch were selling flannel shirts and jeans with holes in them, yes...the grunge years.
'Nearly Lost You', 'Dollar Bill', and my all time favorite Trees track, the album ending 'Julie Paradise' are my favorites off of this one...but the entire disc is pretty spectacular...just watch out for that flashback jet lag.
This beautiful Beth Orton album was originally released in 1999. To this day it is still one of my all time favorite LP's to mellow out with or to decompress to after a long day. Songs like 'Sweetest Decline', 'Feel To Believe', and 'Pass In Time' never fail to soothe my soul, whenever I find myself out of sorts. Not much else to say really...except that almost 9yrs after it was released I find myself still listening to it all the time...can't think of a much better recommendation than that :-)
In honor of the darkest day in commerce, I'll post my favorite track off of 'Black Love' by the Afghan Whigs. I bet Greg Dulli isn't getting up at 4AM to go shopping...so neither should you!
Wow...almost 10yrs on and our hero is still carrying a torch for his missed connection...I feel his pain though, the 'right girl at the wrong time' has been a recurring motif in my life. Best of luck my friend...I am keeping my fingers crossed for a happy ending :-)
----- Jerrilyn, a Missed Connection in 1999 - m4w
Jerrilyn,
1998-99: I was in LA on a consulting assignment, and bought something in your shop. You'll remember me as dark-haired, moustached and tall. We talked, went to dinner and even though I was involved with someone else in another city, we became close until just before I left town in early 1999.
There isn't a day that goes by without my thinking of you, your elegance, your wonderful mind, your amazing smile, and what a fool I was not to stay here with you. I'm finally back in LA, but your store is gone, and I haven't been able to find you.
Should you see this, and if you'll accept my apology, I'd welcome the chance to begin again.
P/
P.S. And so I'll know it's you: 1) Where did you spend New Years Eve without me in 1998? 2) What was the name of your shop, what street was it on and what did you sell? 3) What was the last thing you said to me in our last telephone conversation?
----- Upon reading this post, the New Pornographers 'Challengers' sprang to mind...or at least one specific lyric did...so I am going to go with that as my musical selection...
'you live with someone...i live with somebody too'
Every once and awhile I like to drift down memory lane in blog form, and revisit an album that has left an impression on me over the years. 'Albums That I've Loved Before' serves has my own personal album Hall Of Fame'. The only real criteria I attempt to adhere to is that the record be at least 5ys old. I figure if I still want to tell people about it 5yrs after its release, it's worth a paragraph or two at least. 'Tomorrow The Green Grass' will always be my favorite Jayhawks album, its just gorgeous, but with every passing year 'Sound Of Lies' makes up a little ground. It is the follow up to 'TTGG' and is sort of a transition into a more pop influenced sound. It's an interesting progression to listen to the first real Jayhawks LP 'Hollywood Town Hall' then 'TTGG' then 'SOL'...each set of songs loses just a little more of that alt-country twang. Not that that is all bad...songs like 'The Man Who Loved Life', 'Sixteen Down', and 'Big Star' are all great tracks. I can honestly say that I like every track on this record. But be warned, 'Bottomless Cup' and 'Stick In The Mud' are absolute heart breakers...I know, me liking sad songs...SHOCKING!
I am not a big fan of KISS, but I truly despise Gene Simmons. I have no doubt whatsoever that if there was a buck to be made, he would sell his own children. Never have I seen an 'artist' find more ways of fleecing his fans. I mean the guy sells KISS coffins for God's sake. Why? I guess just in case his fans haven't been gouged enough while living, he can get a few last dollars out of them before they pass on to the great KISS fan club in the sky. I do like this cover though by Toad The Wet Sprocket that is on a KISS tribute album. Please do me a personal favor, and don't by the album...its really not very good aside from this track, and Gene doesn't need your money...please just steal this song.
Today's entry is a simple, heartfelt missed connection. I think every single guy in LA has a list similar to this for a single girl in LA. SO MANY lonely souls bouncing around this town.
Best of luck my friend...
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Wish list - w4m
To see you again. Enjoying a cup of coffee with you. To talk with you. To feel you in my arms. To share our lives together. To kiss you.
Perhaps one day, my list will be fulfilled. I am quite sure my heart would only love you even more than I do now when/if that day arrives. The 'if' part is because I don't know how you feel about me.
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A painfully obvious choice for the musical portion of the program:
This week's honorees are 'Teddybears', a three piece Stockholm band featuring Patrik Arve, Joakim Åhlund, and Klas Åhlund. With all of the amazing acts I saw at Coachella in 2007, these guys are the ones I am still thinking about all these months later. If you ever get a chance to take in a show, DO IT.
Playing their unique mashed up style of music while flashing classic scenes from classic films(with giant Teddybear heads superimposed on some of the characters) displayed an a huge screen behind the band. And at the show I saw the entire band wore the giant teddybear masks for the entire set...that is dedication.
This song, 'Punkrocker' features Iggy Pop on vocals and is featured on last year's 'Soft Machine'
Things didn't go so well for Dion Dimucci after music tastes shifted in the 60's and he split with his legendary group the Belmonts. Like the classic story goes...boy finds rock success, boy loses rock success, boy finds drugs and alcohol....you know the sad ending.
But not in this case. Dion actually shook his demons and 'found God'...and has continued to release muisc on and off since the late 60's. 'Your Own Backyard' is a demo I think, not sure if it is available on any album, but it is on the Dion box set 'King Of The New York Streets'. To me it is one of the best songs ever written about kicking a habit. It will always be in my collection...just in case.
I just want to take a brief moment and thank Uncle Tupelo for breaking up almost 15yrs ago. It's not that I wasn't a fan of the seminal alt-country band, in fact it is the exact opposite. I still listen to Anodyne at least a couple of times a month. And Uncle Tupelo almost single handily started the entire resurgence of the 'no depression' sound...which had laid dormant for the most part since The Byrds and Gram Parsons ruled the airwaves in the late 60's, early 70's. As I peruse my music collection the influential stamp of Uncle Tupelo is all over it.
But since Uncle Tupelo split I have gotten 2 Son Volt records that I really like from Jay Farrar and his new outfit, and Wilco and Jeff Tweedy have been one of my favorite 2 or 3 bands since AM came out in 94(i think it was 94...they years are starting to blur together in my mind.)
So thanks for dividing and conquering fellas...enjoy the song.
Here is the gorgeous new Cat Power track. This will be featured on the 'Covers Record' sequel that is do out in January I do believe. I have always loved CP...but after seeing Chan live this past Autumn my appreciation has grown exponentially....love, love, love her.
I have been listening to a TON of Daniel Johnston stuff lately. When life starts getting complicated, his simple, poignant way of telling stories via his songs does the soul so well. If you don't already have it RUN to the record store and get this tribute album, "Discovered Covered: A Tribute To Daniel Johnston"...its a double CD set, with both the originals and an amazing cast of artists like Bright Eyes, Death Cab For Cutie, Beck, and so many more doing their favorite DJ songs.
It is impossible, in my estimation, to calculate the impact Kurt Cobain had on popular music, and popular culture for that matter. I wonder, in the 13yrs since his death, how many kids who felt lost and disenfranchised with society at large picked up a guitar after hearing 'Nevermind' for the first time. How many lost souls found each other, formed a band, and suddenly had an outlet for their demons. He was the closest thing my generation ever got to John Lennon, Kurt Donald Cobain was a rock n' roll martyr.
Just passing along three of my favorite Nirvana recordings. The haunting finale to the MTV Unplugged album, Leadbelly's 'Where Did You Sleep Last Night', a cove of the Velvet Underground's 'Here She Comes Now', and a live version of Aneurysm.
" And a lot of our fans are customers of Wal-Mart, so we thought it was a good fit"
I didn't even realize they were still out there scarring people with their horrid music...not only are they out there, but they had a deal where the ONLY place you could buy the record was at Wal Mart.
And it sold 700.000 copies in a week. Anyone still wonder why most of the world hates America?
The Universe works in mysterious and sad ways. Like taking Jeff Buckley from us SO soon, yet allowing people like Fred Durst to roam the planet...always threatening us with the chance of 'new music.'
I guess the best we can do is to spread Mr. Buckley's music as far and wide as we can...and hope that it clings to a few souls out there. I know that the first time I heard this version of the Bob Dylan classic I was awestruck. So I will set it free once again...and hopefully someone who needs it will stumble across it.
The premise behind the 'Lost Songs Department' is pretty simple. There is an overabundance of great music out there. And WAY too many amazing songs fly by me at the time of their release. Luckily in this era of the blog-o-sphere and file sharing, some of these songs are coming to light again.
Arthur Russell lived an amazing life. Here is a quick bio from allmusic.com
'A Little Lost' is so simple and so beautiful. Just a great tune and I am so glad it found me.
Yet another post inspired by a total stranger. This one though I have to tread through carefully, as I was once guilty of the crime I am condemning...sort of.
I was walking down to the corner convenience store to pick up a couple of things and I see out of the corner of my eye this huge pick up truck pull into the lot. I swivel my neck around to check it out and there in the back window I saw it. One gigantic white sticker, taking up almost the entire length of this guy's back glass, one word: Hustler in an old English font. Super hip. I mean if you are advertising that you are a 'Hustler' you obviously are, right? And you are just extremely proud of your status as a 'Hustler' and rightly so. I bow down to your modesty...
Whatever. But as I was walking back home the Sonic Youth song 'Teenage Riot' came on my mp3 player. Then it all came back to me. My 1995 emerald green Chevy Cavalier. The first real car I ever had and to this day the worst. I had band stickers plastered all over the back of my car. My brand new car. I was the one shouting for attention..."hey, look at me I like Sonic Youth." I think I had visions of hot alt-rock girls pulling up next to me at stoplights and commenting on my stickers...that never happened. Not once.
If i can remember correctly I had black and white Sonic Youth and Beastie Boys stickers on the left rear of the car. A Hole sticker that was really lame, even by car sticker standards on the rear right. And the crown jewel of the collection. A huge black rectangular sticker with PAVEMENT in yellow letters right in the middle of the trunk door. Yeah, and like 4yrs later when I went to get rid of the car it took what seemed like WEEKS to get them off...I was not so smart. Apparently I thought I would own that little two door cavalier that broke down ever three weeks forever. I have never been good at being a big picture thinker.
I guess I am saying I shouldn't be so quick to judge. Today's hustler might be tomorrow's me...scary thought...but I hope this guy's hustling days are just a phase. For his sake and for society's!
The impetus of this post is rooted in in what I saw last night in the usually dull aisles of the local Ralph's supermarket. It was there that I witnessed what has to go down as one of the all time best 'take me home' fights in the history of dating.
These two were having it out right in the middle of the frozen foods aisle. So of course i pretended to be a serious shopper and perused the frozen pizzas for like 5 minutes as they exchanged accusations. When things get that bad at the grocery store, not a good sign. I tell you this from experience. Sometimes, you get to a point in a relationship(SOME relationships)... that even trips to the store end in arguments. I have been down that road, and the view is not so good. When you get to that place that every little thing the person does gets under your skin...get out and save your sanity!
Charles Bukowski says "There are worse things than being alone." And he could not have been more right. I lived with a girl for a year once. Not a wise decision. She was a great person, but not someone I could see myself with for the long haul...I mean she liked the show 'Friends'...NO, she REALLY liked the show friends. I was always dragging her to shows of bands that she had never heard of and she would drag me to some of the worst movies ever made. It was like an ongoing contest of 'who can torture who the best.'
Whoa! This rambling post totally got off track...my mind veers off easily...that ADD kicks in at the most inopportune times. Back to the original fight that I saw at the grocery store...the one insult I heard that had me come home and put this little play list together was the girl screeching '...oh no, if you leave me does that mean I will never get to go spend another saturday night sitting on your couch while you play video games.' She won the fight in my opinion. That comment was the clincher...they were still bickering, but I bolted...you can only pretend to look at frozen pizzas for so long.
So...in honor of her victory, i put together this brief angry girl mix(only 7 songs - i call it the 'Hell Hath No Fury' EP)...with the first song being especially dedicated to that girl I used to live with. I hope she finds her Ross someday.
Tis the season. Money and free time are in short supply this time of year it seems, due to the impending holidays. And with that being the case, I feel pretty OK with listing my favorites of the last 320 days or so, seeing as how I won't be going to many more shows(stupid presents) or having time to listen to newly released records. Plus I am a sucker for a list.
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FAVORITE Albums Of 2007
GRAND CHAMPION - White Stripes - 'Icky Thump' * The King and Queen of rock n roll have reclaimed their thrones.
THE NEXT BEST NINE IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER * Low - 'Drums And Guns' * Band Of Horses - 'Cease To Begin' * Wilco - 'Sky Blue Sky' * Matt Nathanson - 'Some Mad Hope' * Ted Leo & The Pharmacists - 'Living With The Living' * Arcade Fire - 'Neon Bible' * Rilo Kiley - 'Under The Blacklight' * Matt Pond PA - 'Last Light' * Kings Of Leon - 'Because Of The Times'
Most Amazing Live Music Experiences
GRAND CHAMPION - Pearl Jam @ Lollapalooza - Best beginning to a new life ever. Pearl Jam's set was equal parts nostalgia and inspiration. It was a 'watershed moment in my life' kinda night.
THE NEXT BEST NINE IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER * Cat Power @ The Avalon * The Hold Steady/Thermals show @ The Newport Music Hall, St Patrick's Day * My Morning Jacket @ Lolla * Crowded House @ Coachella * The Jesus And Mary Chain and Scarlett Johansen @ Coachella * The Teddybears @ Coachella * Girl Talk @ the Wexner Center * Swell Season @ The Wiltern * The Hold Steady @ The Music Box
Favorite Songs Of The Year
GRAND CHAMPION - 'Effect And Cause' * The White Stripes.
NEXT BEST NINE IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER * Buck 65 - '1957' * Ween - 'Your Party' * Matt Pond PA - 'Sunlight * Beirut - 'Nantes' * Matt Nathanson - 'Sooner Surrender' * Band Of Horses - 'The General Specific' * Low - 'Hatchet' * Jesca Hoop- 'Summertime' * Rufus Wainwright - 'Slidewhow'
I am sad and disappointed in myself for having written this band off as a fluke after their huge hit 'Lovefool'...that super catchy ditty from the Romeo And Juliet Soundtrack.
I was SO wrong. So much substance here. Nina Persson and company have put out a handful of great records since then...'Turismo' and 'Super Extra Gravity' are especially nice.
Here is my all time favorite Cardigans track...dig the words:
The Cardigans 'I need Some Fine Wine, And You Need To Be Nicer'
Finally...the dates have been announced for this year's festival- April 25-27. I am SO looking forward to my first Coachella as a Californian...this is after all the event that started the ball rolling on getting me out of Ohio.
What a great time to be a music lover, huh? Go to a show...a few days later it is all immortalized on youtube for you! Which really comes in handy at Hold Steady shows, where much drinking takes place. The audio on these are not great, but I hope you get a sense of why the Hold Steady are my favorite band on the planet. Craig says at the end of every show, 'There Is So Much Joy In What We Do...' and these clips totally back that up :-)
This one is off what is probably my favorite tribute album,'Return Of The Grievous Angel: A Tribute To Gram Parsons'...with songs by Wilco,Gillian Welch, Chrissy Hynde, Whiskeytown, Elvis Costello, Beck, David Crosby and more, it is an incredible testament to all of the great songs Gram wrote and all of the artists he influenced.
Here is Evan Dando with Julianna Hatfield and their beautiful rendition of '$1000 Wedding'
I closed my eyes for a second during 'Falling Slowly' and I swore I was in a music shop somewhere in Dublin watching Glen and Markéta sing. Then the full band(the bassist and violin player from The Frames, as well as a Cello player) kicked in and as Glen stopped singing and 2500 people picked up the chorus, I got chills...and chills were a recurring theme all night.
I have to give major KUDOS to the crowd at the Wiltern. I have never heard a crowd that big be so quiet and so respectful at the appropriate times, but spark to life when prompted by the band. And there is no underestimating how well that movie has done...when I saw the Frames two months ago at the Fonda, there were maybe 500 people there...maybe. The Wiltern was sold out tonight and has been for weeks. Oh, and apparently 'Once' comes out on DVD Dec 19...someone yelled the question to Glen, who (awesomely in my opinion) had no idea when it came out...but several people in the audience did and happily yelled back.
The set list was as you'd expect, leaning heavily on the songs from the 'Once' soundtrack. The show started with a solo glen ripping through a passionate performance of 'Say It To Me Now'...incredible...then Markéta joined him for a beautiful duet on 'Drown Out'...then the rest of the band came out, and the show was ON.
After about an hour an fifteen minutes...the really amazing moments started with the first encore. First off was Glen and Markéta rocking out to a GREAT Michelle Shocked song, 'Fogtown'. Then joined again by the band, 'Star Star', 'I Want My Life To Make More Sense', an incredible Irish song that I need to find called 'Ragged Road(i believe that was the title)...then they took one last break, came back and played the title track from 'Once' then finished off the night with an insane version of Dylan's 'You Ain't Going Nowhere'...with the whole crowd once again singing along!!
One of the best nights of live music I have ever seen. I didn't even get into Glen's charming pre-song rambling introductions or Marketa's adorable shyness...or the way they looked at each other as they played. The sweetest moment of the night came right at the very end, when during the Dylan tune he slipped her a little peck on the lips, right in mid song...crazy kids in love!
One of my all time favorite bands, Pavement, singing about one of my other all time favorite bands, REM. What's not to love? I had to immortalize it in blog form...
Um, wow. This a rather descriptive missed connection. I am proud to say it comes from the Columbus page! It came to me as a request from a friend in Columbus...and I have it on good authority that she is NOT the girl in question.
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You drive a Honda with a broken window - m4w - 47
You just moved into a building I own down the street from my office. You have a little daughter with an interesting name. I don't normally mix business with pleasure, but I think this is a special circumstance. I want to roll you around in a baby pool full of honey and tell you how much I want you. I want to powder you like a donut- then tell you how sweet you are-and I want you to tell me that you're bad for me-then I'll tell you "I know, but it's worth it". I want to wrap you in plastic like a lollipop, then take the plastic off and enjoy you like I would enjoy a lollipop. Slowly.
I've been wanting to talk to you about this ever since you filled out the application. Ever since I talked to your dad. I want to be your dad. But only in a sexy "call me daddy" way. I don't want to tell you what to do. Unless you want me to. I hope you read this. God I hope you read this.
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This is the FIRST song that came to me...i think it works extraordinarily well!
Ah...a nostalgic CL dedication today. I don't think I have seen one Waffle House since moving from Columbus to Los Angeles! IT does my heart(if not my appetite) good to know that there is one somewhere in this huge city. Oh, the many, MANY drunken nights we sobered up at Waffle Houses over really bad food back in C-bus...good times, good times.
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Waffle House - w4m
Just got back from visiting my mom. She took me and the little guy to see a crystal cave in Tuscon. I saw the Waffle House sign. I was thinking of you a lot. I said a prayer for your brother.
I know you're gone. I know this isn't healthy. But I love you anyways.
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So for the musical portion of the program, I will go with Columbus' local hero Tim Easton!
What a beautiful night of rock and roll at the Fonda Theater. Excuse while I get all 'hippie' here for a moment, but I just love the communal bliss that I feel at a Hold Steady show!
Singing along with a few hundred new friends...never ceases to make me happy. Just a great show on Wednesday night! Art Brut were amazing as well, and hearing 'Moving To La' IN Los Angeles was pretty cool, I have to admit...they totally worked the crowd into a fever pitch, which Craig and the rest of the Hold Steady somehow raised even a few notches higher!!
Got to hear three new songs...which were all incredible...can't wait for the next album! And This was the 4th time I have seen the HS and this was the most radically different setlist they have played yet...but of course they still closed with 'Killer Parties'...which OF COURSE brought the house down...just an amazing night...totally justifying their status as my favorite band!!!
I hereby bestow the great honor of 'Swedish artist of the week' to Dungen(pronounced Dun yen) this time around. They are probably the only Swedish in my collection that sings EXCLUSIVELY in Swedish. Usually I am a lyrics guy, drawn to the words moreso than the music...but I have no idea what is being sung here, but I love it. Love both albums I have in fact...and loved both times I saw them live...sometimes. ignorance really is bliss.
Hmmm....I am always curious as to why someone posts a missed connections entry when they do. Like this guy for example. This festival was at the very beginning of August...at least I think it was. The three days of heavy alcohol consumption has sort of clouded my brain...and in fact I was so drunk when Pearl Jam played, I may have actually talked to this guy and told him my name was Megan...i honestly couldn't tell you. Well...to help relive that great weekend, and since the Hold Steady show is this week...i will post my Lolla slideshow from this past festival.
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Lollapalooza 2007 - m4w - 30
Hi there, looking for Megan from LA, who was at Lollapalooza with a friend, we met there and watched Pearl Jam together. we were born at same date. 31st of august 77. i was enough stupid for not getting your phone number. she was a teacher.
All of the take away showsare incredible. They sound great and are beautiful to look at...not to mention they get you closer to an artist than anything else I have seen in the blog o sphere.
If you don't already have former Drive-By Trucker Jason Isbell's solo debut 'Sirens Of The Ditch' you are really missing out...a wonderful set of songs.
In honor of The Day Of The Dead...i offer up this sacrifice to the musical Gods...please close your eyes...i had nothing to do with this video, and it seems to be taken from one of those bad WB shows...great song though.
Two songs taped exclusively for the Letterman website here, one of my all time favorite Adams songs 'How Do You Keep Love Alive' and from Easy Tiger, 'Pearls On A String'. Nellie McKay sits in on the second tune.
