I came across this clip of Johnny Winter and band, including guitarist Floyd Radford, playing a gig for German TV’s Beat Club in 1974, and absolutely tearing it up. The footage kicks off with Radford unleashing a fiery blues/rock solo on what appears to be a Gibson ES-335 followed by Winter’s nasty licks on his trademark Gibson Firebird. Stunning!
Archive for the ‘Listening To’ Category
James Talley – Got No Bread, No Milk, No Money, But We Sure Got A Lot Of Love
I write about people, and as long as they don’t go out of style I guess my music won’t go out of style.
- James Talley, 1978
I remember reading about James Talley‘s Got No Bread, No Milk, No Money, But We Sure Got A Lot Of Love back in high school. By those who heard it, the LP was hailed as a classic mix of blues, folk and Western swing. I searched for a copy for years in used record stores and came up empty. Lo and behold, I just needed to wait a couple decades for a CD reissue. Talley is a master of spinning back-porch tales of hard-working common folk and painting musical portraits of the United States. Talley is also an understated guitar player, sublime melodicist and lyricist of high wit. Like Willis Allen Ramsey, Emitt Rhodes, Jimmie Spheeris, Stu Nunnery and others I’ll get to, Talley has remained too long on the fringe of popular music. Think of a 1970′s version of Swing legend Bob Wills and all that once was good about country music and country rock and you’ll find it with Talley.
Is it classic rock? No. But it’s classic music that should be heard by all who think the songs of Alan Jackson or Kenny Chesney are actually acceptable. Talley put his boot down long ago and was as much of an outlaw as Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson or Johnny Cash. When Talley sings about the joys of cutting loose on a Saturday night, the lament of an old railroad conductor let go or the steady memory of the Red River Valley, I actually believe him, and you will, too. It’s a song cycle of rural American life that hints at John Prine, Bob Dylan, Earl Scruggs and even Hank Williams, but exists totally on its own.
This is a beautiful, timeless and perfect record.
Bruce Springsteen & E Street Band – Hammersmith Odeon London 75
Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band‘s Hammersmith Odeon London ’75 is simply one of the greatest (if not greatest) live albums ever. The energy is unbelievable, the pacing perfect. What I like most is that this album is far from a greatest-hits collection, and songs such as “The E Street Shuffle” are so transformed that they become new. Yeah, “Born To Run” is on here, but it’s long before it was ground into dust by FM radio, and it’s not the best song here anyway.
The opening, “Thunder Road,” is stripped to the bones, with Springsteen singing to piano accompaniment only. The gentle vibe doesn’t hint at the explosion to come, and three tracks into the set (“Spirit In The Night”), it’s evident that this gig is special. Springsteen and The E Street Band give transcendent performances of “Rosalita (Come Out Tonight),” “Kitty’s Back,” “Jungleland” and more. By the time they tear through “Detroit Medley,” one wonders what could be left. Extraordinary live set.
Nektar – Down To Earth
For many progressive rock fans, the German band Nektar hit their grand slam with the 1973 concept album Remember The Future – essentially one song spread across two album sides. The band’s 1974 follow-up, Down To Earth, takes a wacked-out circus as its theme; Nektar tighten the song structures and create another prog-rock classic.
The vintage Nektar sound is all over: chiming guitar chords (“Show Me The Way”), lilting harmonies (“Early Morning Clown”), perfect melodies (“Little Boy”), in-your-face-bass (“Astral Man”) and a wonderful sense of play (“Nelly The Elephant” and “Fidgety Queen”). Look for the Eclectic Discs reissue, which includes six alternate versions of Down To Earth songs and outtakes.
In the liner notes, Nektar guitarist and lead vocalist Roye Albrighton writes, “Down To Earth is Nektar’s Magical Mystery Tour…”
What other Magical Mystery Tours are there?
Roy Buchanan – The Prophet – The Unreleased First Polydor Album
Roy Buchanan was an enormously skilled guitarist who made his name primarily as a blues musician. The Prophet, however, reveals Buchanan as capable of playing across a wide range of styles, with gut-wrenching intensity and emotion. The sessions for Buchanan’s first album took place in late 1969. Charlie Daniels (yes, the “Devil Went Down To Georgia” Daniels) secured a recording contract for Buchanan with Polydor, and he plays and sings here on many tunes (several of which he wrote). If you think Daniels is all redneck boogie, just give this CD a listen. The Charlie Daniels of the late 1960s wrote music with psychedelic, heavy blues and countrified-rock stylings.
Buchanan’s ability to hold back and play just what the song requires (a la Jeff Beck) makes the notes he does play even more worth hearing. The brooding “Black Autumn” is countered with the organ-driven soul of “There’ll Always Be,” while the playful “Humbug Down On The River” is an early slab of country-rock. Buchanan’s take on Bob Dylan‘s “Sign On The Window” is tasteful, with a flowing guitar bit accentuating the melody. The cover of Leonard Cohen‘s “The Story Of Isaac” is haunting and stunning. Moody acoustic chords follow Daniels’ gruff vocal through the opening verses before Buchanan tears off into the stratosphere with a smoldering guitar line.
Elsewhere, Buchanan puts his blistering brand on T-Bone Walker‘s classic blues “Stormy Monday.” Buchanan’s “About Face” segues into “The Messiah Will Come Again,” the instrumental that would become the guitarist’s signature tune. The flowing blues number builds in drama until Buchanan lets loose with a scattershot flurry of notes that fly like steel pellets from his Fender Telecaster. All heads down!
The liner notes call Buchanan “the best kept secret in Washington, D.C.” Is his music a secret to you?
Steve Gaines – One In The Sun
One In The Sun is Steve Gaines’ lone solo album, released nearly 15 years after the tracks were first recorded. Gaines’ own time in the sun was cut tragically short by the plane crash that took his life, his sister Cassie’s and Lynyrd Skynyrd bandmate Ronnie Van Zant’s. The personal tragedy was compounded by the musical tragedy, as Skynyrd had recently released what would become a Southern rock classic in Street Survivors. Gaines’ musical contributions to that album and the live One More From The Road gave Skynyrd a much-needed second wind. I always liked what I heard from Gaines on those recordings but it wasn’t until I saw live tape of him on stage that I appreciated how damn good he was on guitar. Watching him and Allen Collins rip through the solos on “Free Bird” for the first time made my jaw drop. Gaines could and did shred with the best of them, and we can only imagine what higher heights Skynyrd would achieve had the band’s plane not gone down in a Mississippi swamp that fateful October day in 1977.
One In The Sun represents a stylistic detour from Gaines’ work in Skynyrd. Instead of tearing down the honky-tonks and singing about sipping whiskey, Gaines showcases his R&B background and session-man mentality across a diverse set of songs, ranging from the R&B vibe of Curtis Mayfield’s “It’s Alright” and the reggae-inflected “Black Jack Davey” to the Latin beat of “Take My Time” and full-up funk of “Summertime’s Here.” Gaines lays back when needed, and what he does play is tasteful and supports the song. He’s also a pretty soulful singer. Check it out!
John Mayer – Continuum
John Mayer’s Continuum really opened my ears. I came across this record by accident – not that I didn’t know Mayer, it just seemed I always had somebody else to listen to. Continuum is a special album. I love its moods – snaking along through blues, soul, R&B and pop. Tunes such as “Dreaming With A Broken Heart” and “In Repair” may seem sugary on first listen, but they have a depth and artistry that grown on you after a couple spins. And Mayer’s guitar Jones – and skill – is let loose on a groovy cover of Jimi Hendrix’s “Bold As Love.”
Mörglbl – Jazz For The Deaf
Mörglbl are a three-piece progressive rock outfit from France whose strange name could be construed as an onomatopoeia for the band’s sound. Jazz For The Deaf is an absolutely killer collection of instrumentals fronted by guitar-god-in-waiting Christophe Godin. Remember the name. What’s Mörglbl like? It’s progressive rock with a heavy guitar edge but always with a strong melodic foundation. “22 Oz” sounds like Robin Trower and Steve Vai guesting on King Crimson’s Red. Ivan Rougny’s elastic bass makes the slippery “Borderline” veer back and forth between Tony Levin and Les Claypool. Drummer Aurélien Ouzoulias has a punchy and crisp attack that cements every mix.
Mörglbl : Funny name.
Jazz For The Deaf: Savage, twisted and beautiful instrumental rock music with a sense of humor.
Listen to streaming music clips at the band’s MySpace Music page at http://www.myspace.com/morglbl.
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