Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band - "Electricity" (1967)
Ry Cooder is one of the guitar players here. We've mentioned him before as performer here and producer here.
It's electric blues played by people who don't care if you like them or not. That's the best explanation someone ever gave me for Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band, a group that has a lot of chops, a number of very vocal fans, and no commercial appeal at all. Their third album Trout Mask Replica, released in 1969 is regularly placed on best of all time lists, but it was still not a hit. This track is off of their debut album, before they were ignored by the establishment, before they were dropped by multiple labels, before they toned down their sound to try to sell. The album is called Safe as Milk, as if the band knew that there would be problems.
As for the song itself, I really like the bass a lot. The guitar and sitar work is a great jam and the drums kick along as well, but that bass beat is great. There is also a theramin on the track, weirding it up a little. Just about the only thing unlikeable about this song is the primary singer's voice. It sounds like a drunk bum they found on the street and let him say whatever he wanted and then based the song on it. Now by the end, the whole song kind of gets away from them , but as far as fade outs go I've heard worse. The song is a great late 60s groove that gets a little experimental but is over all great. The thing is, on other songs, the vocalist sounds fine, this was something that they did for this track alone, and it suffers for it.
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Saturday, April 21, 2012
"re: Stacks"
Bon Iver - "re: Stacks" (2007)
"/This is not the sound of a new man of crispy realization / It's the sound of the unlocking and the lift away. /"
Not as famous as Jewel's time spent living in her van before making it big, the three months that Justin Vernon had mono in a cabin in the woods brought about the debut album of Bon Iver: For Emma, Forever Ago. At the time, Vernon was the only member of the band, and he is still the only major creative force. He writes and composes all of the songs, and no one else gets a writing credit on the album. On the first album, Vernon did the sound engineering and production as well. There are three other musicians listed on the album notes, but none of them play on this track. It's deep lyrically, the title and many of the lyrics are meant to reference stacks of chips in Vegas as well as 'how things stack up'. The opening line however is reference to the Dead Sea Scrolls.
The song itself is about six and a half minutes long, and yet really just about 45 seconds or so of music repeated over and over. The lyrics can be hard to make out sometimes. For a universally praised album,. The consistent fault found with it is that sometimes the lyrics sound muddy. Vernon's voice is almost entirely in falsetto during the song. He also doubles himself to give a stronger sound. Every once in a while I swear I can hear a faint organ supporting the man and his guitar, but the liner notes don't mention one. It must just be ringing guitar strings.
"/This is not the sound of a new man of crispy realization / It's the sound of the unlocking and the lift away. /"
Not as famous as Jewel's time spent living in her van before making it big, the three months that Justin Vernon had mono in a cabin in the woods brought about the debut album of Bon Iver: For Emma, Forever Ago. At the time, Vernon was the only member of the band, and he is still the only major creative force. He writes and composes all of the songs, and no one else gets a writing credit on the album. On the first album, Vernon did the sound engineering and production as well. There are three other musicians listed on the album notes, but none of them play on this track. It's deep lyrically, the title and many of the lyrics are meant to reference stacks of chips in Vegas as well as 'how things stack up'. The opening line however is reference to the Dead Sea Scrolls.
The song itself is about six and a half minutes long, and yet really just about 45 seconds or so of music repeated over and over. The lyrics can be hard to make out sometimes. For a universally praised album,. The consistent fault found with it is that sometimes the lyrics sound muddy. Vernon's voice is almost entirely in falsetto during the song. He also doubles himself to give a stronger sound. Every once in a while I swear I can hear a faint organ supporting the man and his guitar, but the liner notes don't mention one. It must just be ringing guitar strings.
Friday, April 20, 2012
"Blister in the Sun"
Violent Femmes - "Blister in the Sun" (1983)
The one that started, and ended it all.
Debut single from their debut eponymous album, the Violent Femmes kicked off the "Alternative Rock" label almost a decade before America embraced it. The album went platinum, eight years after its release. The music was written by the bands youngest member, singer and guitarist Gordon Gano, while he was still in high school. The song, as well as the album it came from helped launch a new sub genre in America: folk punk. Kick-started in Ireland by The Pogues, the Violent Femmes played a similar style of blended music. Acoustic guitar based, but short punchy songs, witty lyrics sang by a almost whiny untrained voice, and as few chords as possible. Even their bass player is playing acoustic. The drummer is playing on a single tom drum set, bare bones stuff, which is actually right in line with both Folk and Punk sensibilities. Two verses and a chorus, just repeated for two and a half minutes long, and yet it's one of the songs that stands the test, and sounds as great today as the first time I heard it.
The version from Grosse Pointe Blank ? That was new, they had to record it again because the original master tapes weren't available, at the time they had a new drummer, so it Guy Hoffman who got to share the huge success the band was enjoying while he played with them from 1993 until 2002. Victor DeLorenzo was the original drummer with the band from its start in 1980 until he left the band to do his own solo work. The original lineup did reunite in 2002 and played together until a long ugly public lawsuit eventually caused the band to disband. The lawsuit was about this song.
The one that started, and ended it all.
Debut single from their debut eponymous album, the Violent Femmes kicked off the "Alternative Rock" label almost a decade before America embraced it. The album went platinum, eight years after its release. The music was written by the bands youngest member, singer and guitarist Gordon Gano, while he was still in high school. The song, as well as the album it came from helped launch a new sub genre in America: folk punk. Kick-started in Ireland by The Pogues, the Violent Femmes played a similar style of blended music. Acoustic guitar based, but short punchy songs, witty lyrics sang by a almost whiny untrained voice, and as few chords as possible. Even their bass player is playing acoustic. The drummer is playing on a single tom drum set, bare bones stuff, which is actually right in line with both Folk and Punk sensibilities. Two verses and a chorus, just repeated for two and a half minutes long, and yet it's one of the songs that stands the test, and sounds as great today as the first time I heard it.
The version from Grosse Pointe Blank ? That was new, they had to record it again because the original master tapes weren't available, at the time they had a new drummer, so it Guy Hoffman who got to share the huge success the band was enjoying while he played with them from 1993 until 2002. Victor DeLorenzo was the original drummer with the band from its start in 1980 until he left the band to do his own solo work. The original lineup did reunite in 2002 and played together until a long ugly public lawsuit eventually caused the band to disband. The lawsuit was about this song.
Thursday, April 19, 2012
"Elected"
Alice Cooper - "Elected" (1972)
The single immediately following "School's Out".
The opening contains crunchy electric guitar riffs, feedback that sounds like it belongs to Jimi Hendrix, and a boing sound like a toddler's spring toy would make. The aggressive sounds continue as the drums and bass drive the sound into your eardrums and Cooper's rough and throaty vocals sit on the edge between exciting and annoying. As the song continues though, a full brass and woodwind section comes out, working with the election theme and meant to sound like a high-school marching band was playing along, the song actually elevates above the mass of repetitive guitar riffs and shouted vocals and becomes a really fun track. The band overdub was added by producer Bob Ezrin, who worked with Alice Cooper before, as well as later as a solo artist. He also produced Destroyer, the biggest selling album for KISS, and three of the last four studio albums for Pink Floyd, including The Wall.
The single immediately following "School's Out".
The opening contains crunchy electric guitar riffs, feedback that sounds like it belongs to Jimi Hendrix, and a boing sound like a toddler's spring toy would make. The aggressive sounds continue as the drums and bass drive the sound into your eardrums and Cooper's rough and throaty vocals sit on the edge between exciting and annoying. As the song continues though, a full brass and woodwind section comes out, working with the election theme and meant to sound like a high-school marching band was playing along, the song actually elevates above the mass of repetitive guitar riffs and shouted vocals and becomes a really fun track. The band overdub was added by producer Bob Ezrin, who worked with Alice Cooper before, as well as later as a solo artist. He also produced Destroyer, the biggest selling album for KISS, and three of the last four studio albums for Pink Floyd, including The Wall.
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
"Laid"
James - "Laid" (1993)
Produced by Brian Eno in between working with U2 and Depeche Mode
So this Alternative Rock group from the past; that I remember with some fondness, actually has over a dozen live albums and some are actually from this decade. They also performed at Coachella this year. The band started in the early 80s playing folk influnced acoustic rock, but by the late 80s they were playing more danceable pop and rock tracks. The early 90s found them beginning to crack into the US indie scene and even supporting Neil Young on a summer tour before returning to England to record another album, what would become their fifth: Laid. They released the first single "Sometimes" and then unexpectedly "Laid" became a enormous college radio hit. The lyrics about a couple who has sex as loudly as they fight seemed to hit a chord with the Alternative Rock scene and James was suddenly selling out shows around the world. A little more than five years later, the song found a renewed audience when it was used in the trailer for American Pie. A cover of the song was used in the third and fourth films in the franchise. A different cover was used in the seventh film in the franchise and just this year, the original version was used in the followup film American Reunion.
As for the song itself, let's break it down. There is one basic chord and strum pattern to learn on guitar and you've got this song down, it's pretty simple. There is another guitar that is much quieter adding a kind of mystical/Indian sitar feel to the song that is harder to pin down. The keyboardist gets a work out on this song as well. Not that he's playing anything technically too hard, just that almost from the start we are getting layers of hard to describe sounds bolstering the guitars. The incredibly simple drum roll that gets a lot of attention does add to the antagonistic feel of the song, otherwise the drums are mostly unremarkable. Undoubtedly the song is catchy, but it is the sexy but quirky lyrics that have made this song memorable and remarkable.
Produced by Brian Eno in between working with U2 and Depeche Mode
So this Alternative Rock group from the past; that I remember with some fondness, actually has over a dozen live albums and some are actually from this decade. They also performed at Coachella this year. The band started in the early 80s playing folk influnced acoustic rock, but by the late 80s they were playing more danceable pop and rock tracks. The early 90s found them beginning to crack into the US indie scene and even supporting Neil Young on a summer tour before returning to England to record another album, what would become their fifth: Laid. They released the first single "Sometimes" and then unexpectedly "Laid" became a enormous college radio hit. The lyrics about a couple who has sex as loudly as they fight seemed to hit a chord with the Alternative Rock scene and James was suddenly selling out shows around the world. A little more than five years later, the song found a renewed audience when it was used in the trailer for American Pie. A cover of the song was used in the third and fourth films in the franchise. A different cover was used in the seventh film in the franchise and just this year, the original version was used in the followup film American Reunion.
As for the song itself, let's break it down. There is one basic chord and strum pattern to learn on guitar and you've got this song down, it's pretty simple. There is another guitar that is much quieter adding a kind of mystical/Indian sitar feel to the song that is harder to pin down. The keyboardist gets a work out on this song as well. Not that he's playing anything technically too hard, just that almost from the start we are getting layers of hard to describe sounds bolstering the guitars. The incredibly simple drum roll that gets a lot of attention does add to the antagonistic feel of the song, otherwise the drums are mostly unremarkable. Undoubtedly the song is catchy, but it is the sexy but quirky lyrics that have made this song memorable and remarkable.
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
"Psychotic Reaction"
The Count Five - "Psychotic Reaction" (1966)
The essay, that became the basis for the book Psychotic Reactions and Carburetor Dung by legendary rock critic Lester Bangs was named for this single.
I gotta say, I think the band is properly called Count Five or Count V without the 'The' but that's what the book has. At the time of this recording, lead singer and primary songwriter John Byrne was 19 and attending San Jose City College with at least two other members of the band. The youngest member of the band was still in high school. They performed in 'Count Dracula' style capes and played up Byrne's international (he was Irish) heritage to take advantage of the British Invasion popularity. The single was a big local hit, so they recorded a few more, toured the California coast for about a year, recorded an album, had a #5 US singles hit and then turned down a nation wide tour to go back to school. They disappeared and never recorded again, a classic one hit wonder.
The song is a perfect embodiment of the mid sixties electric blues sound so associated with Eric Clapton. Whether in his work with The Yardbirds, John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, or Cream; the Clapton sound is what Count Five and many others were emulating. The Animals and The Rolling Stones were also big fans of the sound, and America was buying anything that sounded like it. On this track the pounding might as well be on a crate as a drum set, but it serves its purpose well. Layered guitars all playing similar notes with different sound qualities, a harmonica and a vocal about love from a bouncy yet hinting of anger voice were just what the doctor ordered. The middle and end sections, with their sped up driving beat, rising electric guitar solo, frenzied backing guitar effects and train-with-no-breaks harmonica is what all the fuss is about. There were probably thousands of garage bands in 1966. Hundreds of them had more than a handful of tour dates, and dozens of them cut a record and thought they could be something. But that sound was so heartfelt and raw and real that it doesn't surprise me what happened to their legacy.
Remember me mentioning Lester Bangs? He wrote an essay in 1971 about garage rock. In it he described the legacy of the Count Five and talked about their first album Psychotic Reaction and their second album Carburetor Dung as well as other albums and concerts. The thing is, he created everything after the first album. The band had split up, but Bangs created a fictional account of the group. This got them an odd amount of attention, and the song actually was popular with American soldiers in Vietnam years after the band had broken up.
The essay, that became the basis for the book Psychotic Reactions and Carburetor Dung by legendary rock critic Lester Bangs was named for this single.
I gotta say, I think the band is properly called Count Five or Count V without the 'The' but that's what the book has. At the time of this recording, lead singer and primary songwriter John Byrne was 19 and attending San Jose City College with at least two other members of the band. The youngest member of the band was still in high school. They performed in 'Count Dracula' style capes and played up Byrne's international (he was Irish) heritage to take advantage of the British Invasion popularity. The single was a big local hit, so they recorded a few more, toured the California coast for about a year, recorded an album, had a #5 US singles hit and then turned down a nation wide tour to go back to school. They disappeared and never recorded again, a classic one hit wonder.
The song is a perfect embodiment of the mid sixties electric blues sound so associated with Eric Clapton. Whether in his work with The Yardbirds, John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, or Cream; the Clapton sound is what Count Five and many others were emulating. The Animals and The Rolling Stones were also big fans of the sound, and America was buying anything that sounded like it. On this track the pounding might as well be on a crate as a drum set, but it serves its purpose well. Layered guitars all playing similar notes with different sound qualities, a harmonica and a vocal about love from a bouncy yet hinting of anger voice were just what the doctor ordered. The middle and end sections, with their sped up driving beat, rising electric guitar solo, frenzied backing guitar effects and train-with-no-breaks harmonica is what all the fuss is about. There were probably thousands of garage bands in 1966. Hundreds of them had more than a handful of tour dates, and dozens of them cut a record and thought they could be something. But that sound was so heartfelt and raw and real that it doesn't surprise me what happened to their legacy.
Remember me mentioning Lester Bangs? He wrote an essay in 1971 about garage rock. In it he described the legacy of the Count Five and talked about their first album Psychotic Reaction and their second album Carburetor Dung as well as other albums and concerts. The thing is, he created everything after the first album. The band had split up, but Bangs created a fictional account of the group. This got them an odd amount of attention, and the song actually was popular with American soldiers in Vietnam years after the band had broken up.
Monday, April 16, 2012
"Welcome to Jamrock"
Damian Marley - "Welcome to Jamrock" (2005)
Youngest son of Bob Marley.
The song is only half the length of the video, but this is the best audio I could find.
Damian Marley was two when his father died. He was raised in Jamaica and began performing by age thirteen. His name helped get him early recording time and top producers, but his continued success and multiple Grammy awards are due to his hard work and talent. This song won a Grammy, and so did the album it opened. These were the second and third Grammy awards that Damian had won. He beat Gorillaz and Mos Def among others that year.
This song was produced by Damian's half brother Stephen Marley. He dug back to the early 80s to find a track to sample so that Damian could rap over it. That bold reuse of an almost complete song with new lyrical content is a hallmark of Dancehall, Reggae's often violent half brother. Artist Ini Kamoze had a huge international hit with "Here Comes the Hotstepper" in 1994. Ten years prior to that hit he released a single called "World-A-Music" with powerhouse rhythm section/producers Sly and Robbie providing the hot hook. If you listen, you can tell that Stephen Marley really did just take the rhythm of the later song in whole, and then grabbed a scene stealing line from the second verse and turned it into the final line of the chorus.
Lyrically the song is unlike most Jamaican music that makes it off island. Damian points out all that is wrong with his poor country; the violence, the corruption and the gangs and police fighting in the streets. It was this look behind the curtain that got the global music scene so interested in the song. One of the things that confused that same group of people was hearing a "Marley" rap rather than sing.
Youngest son of Bob Marley.
The song is only half the length of the video, but this is the best audio I could find.
Damian Marley was two when his father died. He was raised in Jamaica and began performing by age thirteen. His name helped get him early recording time and top producers, but his continued success and multiple Grammy awards are due to his hard work and talent. This song won a Grammy, and so did the album it opened. These were the second and third Grammy awards that Damian had won. He beat Gorillaz and Mos Def among others that year.
This song was produced by Damian's half brother Stephen Marley. He dug back to the early 80s to find a track to sample so that Damian could rap over it. That bold reuse of an almost complete song with new lyrical content is a hallmark of Dancehall, Reggae's often violent half brother. Artist Ini Kamoze had a huge international hit with "Here Comes the Hotstepper" in 1994. Ten years prior to that hit he released a single called "World-A-Music" with powerhouse rhythm section/producers Sly and Robbie providing the hot hook. If you listen, you can tell that Stephen Marley really did just take the rhythm of the later song in whole, and then grabbed a scene stealing line from the second verse and turned it into the final line of the chorus.
Lyrically the song is unlike most Jamaican music that makes it off island. Damian points out all that is wrong with his poor country; the violence, the corruption and the gangs and police fighting in the streets. It was this look behind the curtain that got the global music scene so interested in the song. One of the things that confused that same group of people was hearing a "Marley" rap rather than sing.
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