The Band Guestbook, April 2011

Entered at Sat Apr 30 22:57:49 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Entered at Sat Apr 30 22:36:03 CEST 2011 from (91.42.253.83)

Norbert

Entered at Sat Apr 30 22:28:36 CEST 2011 from (85.255.44.145)

jh

Subject: Danish idiot

The cut-and-paste-guy posting links to fetish sites in Denmark has been blocked. We're currently tracking him down, as he now owes us $3000 (check link above) for publishing links to ads at The Band web site.

Entered at Sat Apr 30 21:03:30 CEST 2011 from (67.250.113.92)

Lars

Subject: Who's to blame for it all?

Norbert- the guilty party who stole your GB pages ALSO tried to ruin TLW, sits inside Ben Barnake's middle ear and whispers, "just print more money!!!" AND controls Red John. It's THE FLY again!!!!! (loud, alarming music)!

We all have to stuff flyswatter handles down the back of our bluejeans and swat flies whenever we can. And, if you're up to it, go after the squirrels as well.

Entered at Sat Apr 30 20:54:54 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Subject: San Francisco, New Year 83/84

Restored on Wolfgangs Vault...but WTF? What's the extra bass player all about?

(Apologies if this is well documented but I'm not terribly up to speed on the early days of the reformed Band. Is this the Cate Bros era?)

Entered at Sat Apr 30 20:42:01 CEST 2011 from (216.121.194.179)

S..M.

I think always what Libby Titus said about RR: "He was good to his mother, his wife, and the other guys." That says it all!

Entered at Sat Apr 30 20:42:06 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Entered at Sat Apr 30 20:16:11 CEST 2011 from (98.229.113.186)

Long Distance Operator

Howdy, Guestbook. Just popping in to see if any other GB'ers will be at the Levon ramble on June 3rd? I'm making the rock and roll pilgrimage and thought maybe some of y'all were, too. All the best, LDO

Entered at Sat Apr 30 20:14:35 CEST 2011 from (91.42.241.81)

Norbert

My 2 cents, I agree it could be RR, if you’re audacious enough to steel songs, what in the world would prevent you from stealing a guestbook? Or is it a cry for attention from one that needs help?

It only confirms my belief that RR closed my GB (run by Peter) too (I honestly must say I’m still a bit proud about that one (I never brag about it though) and will take it as a fact till some proofs the opposite).

On the other hand I also never trust keyboard players, Garth, RTO, or Pat B, why not? It’s 2011.

Entered at Sat Apr 30 19:50:30 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Thank you for confirming what I thought, PV. All from the same IP address, always a post from David or I. Must be cut and pasted and manually put in as you say. Kevin, you are quite right. Who needs fetishes when you have Grace Slick?

Entered at Sat Apr 30 19:24:18 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

This had to be done by cutting and pasting and then choosing to tick the box. It's too much trouble for most, but some will do it. I find this on my own work site, that people will type out seemingly relevant comments to avoid the very good Wordpress SPAM filter. I don't mean the generic bullshit about liking a blog and asking how to build similar. It's hard to see why it's worth it, but I haven't known them cut and paste other's comments before.

Entered at Sat Apr 30 18:41:13 CEST 2011 from (74.108.27.233)

Joan

As expected, Carol Caffin has done the best interview I have seen from Robbie. She managed to get him off the "party line" of answers. Way to go Carol!

The hacker is weird. Went to a lot of trouble to post links I can't even understand.

Entered at Sat Apr 30 18:00:58 CEST 2011 from (74.198.87.47)

Kevin J

Trust me on this one Rob...... there are no doubt low-lifes out there that at this very moment are thinking it is RR that has taken your posts as his without proper attribution......the finance link was apparantly the one that confirmed it for them.......they also believe he used his influence with the uppers echelons to get Obama into Harvard and to forge his birth certificate......Hang tough we all know your fetishes don't extend much further than Jefferson Airplane.....

Entered at Sat Apr 30 17:49:56 CEST 2011 from (99.115.147.236)

Jeb Stuart

Entered at Sat Apr 30 17:02:21 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Entered at Sat Apr 30 16:59:09 CEST 2011 from (203.160.29.153)

Fred

Why are selected RTO's posts being replicated and reposted under different names with links to Lord knows what? Is this some part of a nefarious plot to destabilize civilization as we know it?

Entered at Sat Apr 30 16:57:27 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

"Shane" has just copied a post of mine and linked us to a fetish site!

Entered at Sat Apr 30 16:30:45 CEST 2011 from (89.150.181.130)

Shane

Entered at Sat Apr 30 15:21:15 CEST 2011 from (76.66.125.166)

brown eyed girl

RTOOO! I forgot that Brins plays sliiiiiide on this one!

Ok, I'm off to a Math Seminar at my old school UofT with "Mr. Maximus" who is a Master's of engineers. We'll go just about anywhere for a free lunch. ;-D

Entered at Sat Apr 30 15:09:02 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Nice one! The flak we gave Brins for playing a pointy guitar in the 80s.... You gotta love the Farfisa organ for songs like this. Many find them too shrill, but for certain sounds nothing comes close. Best use of that kind of organ (Vox, Farfisa etc) is Augie M in the Sir Doug Q. Played it a bit like an accordion, phrasing wise, and it worked every time.

Entered at Sat Apr 30 15:01:16 CEST 2011 from (79.202.188.125)

Norbert

forgot to say, when Daniël Loheus fromed his blues band and wanted to take them to Holland, one of the musician insisted to take his mother along, and so they did .... she went with them to all gigs also, ha! ...

Entered at Sat Apr 30 14:58:59 CEST 2011 from (76.66.125.166)

brown eyed girl

...and here's one for RTO and and another one for JQ!

Entered at Sat Apr 30 14:47:42 CEST 2011 from (76.66.125.166)

brown eyed girl

Garland Jeffreys!!!!

I hope his upcoming CD "The King Of In Between" (June 7) has some love ballads and songs of social justice as well...and some reggae grooves too!
Give thanks and praises to Garland Jeffreys!!!!

Entered at Sat Apr 30 14:24:53 CEST 2011 from (91.42.250.177)

Norbert

Subject: 'The crossroads where the devil took Robert Johnson back

Empty, as you speak (or understand) Dutch, here a clip (link 2/7) of Daniël Looheus searching the blues (band) in the Mississippi Delta, visiting the crossroads where Robert Johnson was poisoned. An passant he becomes philosophical about crossroads, about fear he states: fear is just for the moment, regret lasts a life long, isn’t he right? Actually he later found great musicians, formed a blues band, took them to Holland and toured The Netherlands (2 years ago). I saw Loohues yesterday in Enschede; about his blues drummer from than: sometimes he got lost in drugs, according to the man the devil took him sometimes. On a Sunday he made him some “snert” (soup) with all kinds of meat in it (a lot). The drummer liked it very much, only the “green sauce” he wasn’t so fund of ;-).

Anyway doesn’t the devil take us all from time to time? Like Mayer sings:

Gravity, stay the hell away from me

Gravity has taken better men than me

Just keep me where the light is

Anyway it’s “Queens day” over here and the weather is great, I’m going to light the BBQ this afternoon and pop a bottle of wine, have a great weekend, regards.

Entered at Sat Apr 30 14:24:13 CEST 2011 from (76.66.125.166)

brown eyed girl

Oh Carol!!!!!

Thanks for your email.....I had a feeeeeeling you've been busy. I'm glad it was a great experience for you.
You always acknowledged his Birthday on your site...showed a sense of fair play.

"Robbie Robertson on His New Album, Past Projects, and the Band Rumors that Won't Go Away"" -- great article/interview by Carol Caffin, from Crawdaddy."

Crawdaddy via of Carol Caffin!: How would you want the Band to be remembered?

Robertson: I would want the Band to be remembered as a real band. There was just a wonderful balance in this group, the way the whole thing worked. What Garth [Hudson] did was completely unique. Nobody else in the world was able to do anything near what Garth would do in the group. Rick, his singing and his playing—god only made one of those, and he broke the mold after that. Richard Manuel could make you cry in a second with his singing, and he was also just an amazing, beautiful soul, too. And Levon is one of the most talented people I’ve ever crossed paths with in my life. Levon taught me so much and is the closest thing I’ve ever had in my life to a brother. So anyway, I just have such warm, fond memories of the Band, and I would just want that to be passed on.

Crawdaddy!: And how would you like to be remembered?

Robertson: I just want be remembered as somebody who was really passionate about what he did and who loved a good challenge.

Entered at Sat Apr 30 13:32:09 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

I think we're singing from the same hymn-book, but I wouldn't say the Kinks' Music Hall tradition was particularly evocative of Americana. I think Bill was alluding to their Englishness showing through in the same way the Band wrote new songs that were riddled with Amer..err...Canad...err..Transatlantic heritage.

Of course, America has vaudeville, but that's not really a folk heritage. Give it twenty years and will be though.

Entered at Sat Apr 30 13:13:27 CEST 2011 from (72.196.146.10)

Calvin

Scarlet Pimpernal Bill? The Swedish Band? Kind of boring really.

Entered at Sat Apr 30 12:50:47 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

Entered at Sat Apr 30 11:36:13 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Sat Apr 30 08:44:58 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Sat Apr 30 04:27:56 CEST 2011 from (74.198.87.15)

Kevin J

Entered at Sat Apr 30 04:00:53 CEST 2011 from (70.26.121.186)

Mike Nomad

Nice work. I'm assuming the interview was done face-to-face. It would be interesting, too, to know how the interview session was set up and where it was held, plus a few other incidentals — such as the mechanics of reaching RR's people to set it up and RR's willingness to partake etc etc. Carol mentions the interview's agreed-to time period was extended twice. By Robbie or "his people"? Overall, it was such a good interview that, personally, I'd just love to learn more details. Good job!

Entered at Sat Apr 30 03:57:09 CEST 2011 from (203.160.29.153)

Fred

RTO: you forgot to mention that post by "Frank"...a replica of one of yours.

Entered at Sat Apr 30 02:56:11 CEST 2011 from (99.141.48.246)

Adam2

Carol Caffin's Robbie interview is really good.

Entered at Sat Apr 30 02:50:00 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Somebody called Tyler has just duplicated David P's earlier post to me about mono JA releases. The link is about some kind of baby products. Avast ye hacker! May the yuletide log this December slip from the fire and burn your house down!

Entered at Sat Apr 30 02:38:52 CEST 2011 from (24.236.77.125)

Deb

Very nicely done Carol! This is probably the best interview I've read in the recent articles on the HTBC release.

Entered at Sat Apr 30 02:36:38 CEST 2011 from (96.30.174.20)

joe j

Subject: carol

And a damn fine interview it was too. Carol never shied away from asking questions. Robbie never shied away from answering. Just wish she would have pursued the fly issue.

Entered at Sat Apr 30 00:47:23 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Fri Apr 29 22:33:42 CEST 2011 from (166.205.141.47)

JQ

Anybody have an opinion on his latest: The King Of In Beetween?

Entered at Fri Apr 29 22:28:18 CEST 2011 from (74.198.87.113)

Kevin J

Entered at Fri Apr 29 21:43:50 CEST 2011 from (63.88.115.195)

Carmen

Subject: Beatles Spelling

The Band is easier to spell too!

Entered at Fri Apr 29 21:41:39 CEST 2011 from (63.88.115.195)

carmen

Subject: Band vs Beetles

I read once that Elvis said he would never follow Roy Orbinson on stage. I would bet McCarthy would say the same about the Band!

Entered at Fri Apr 29 20:37:14 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

David / Peter: Prompted by our talk of JA, after years of meaning to I had a listen to Donovan's original (well, actually the live version from Donovan In Concert) "The Fat Angel" for the first time today. Of course, this was the tune that JA were namechecked in a chorus, and themselves used as a springboard for a live jam on occasions including the Fillmore shows that BIPLH came from.

Any clue as to who "Captain High" who I assume is also the Fat Angel in the title refers to? Garcia used "Captain Trips" but wasn't overly fat then....

Entered at Fri Apr 29 20:31:32 CEST 2011 from (131.137.35.83)

sadavid

Subject: insert [big organ] joke here

watched a bit of the wedding coverage with my morning bowl of soylent just a little before dawn today . . . much impressed with the gloss they'd achieved on the Roller fetching fetching young Kate -- I think it was maroon, but honestly it was so shiny it was hard to make out the colour.

Also much impressed with the shot of the pipe array to the organ (Chest Fever!!!) . . . see [My link], fourth photo down, for an image of the operator's station for this beast. Note the ignition keys at lower left, TELEX terminal at far right, iPod dock to the left of the manuals, sno-globe at upper right . . . .

Entered at Fri Apr 29 20:29:54 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Jesus, whoever he is that guy Robert Walter is good. Don't care too much for jazz, but the organ grinding is first rate. Btw, Jon - your surname isn't Lord, is it!!!!

Entered at Fri Apr 29 20:07:26 CEST 2011 from (41.97.149.243)

Empty Now

Subject: correction

Mister Giorgina

chaufe Marcel chauffe

Entered at Fri Apr 29 18:43:00 CEST 2011 from (74.203.77.122)

Jon L

Subject: Garth and Al Kooper

Just saw this: Al Kooper, Garth and others will be featured in a show at BB King's NYC club on June 29. "A celebration of the Organ, bringing together old school and new school backed by an All-Star Band." Sounds like a good time.

Entered at Fri Apr 29 18:35:33 CEST 2011 from (90.239.100.88)

NorthWestCoaster

Subject: Nordic Countries

It should have been _three_ kingdoms and _two_ republics. Sorry.

Entered at Fri Apr 29 17:57:41 CEST 2011 from (90.239.118.98)

NorthWestCoaster

Subject: Watching Royal Wedding on tele.

How can a nation which is able to produce such a wide range of terrific ladies' hats and festive classical music with heavenly lightness and eternal brightness... How in earth(pooh)... I mean how can you produce poor RINGO STARR as your internationally best known drummer?!

Entered at Fri Apr 29 17:22:50 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Kevin J: Thanks. I then went to the follow-on link (above) to hear "I Shall Be Released". Listen to how Richard sings the word 'lonely' - his unfortunate specialty, it seems.

Entered at Fri Apr 29 16:57:40 CEST 2011 from (74.203.77.122)

Jon Lyness

Subject: Lonesome Suzie

The lyrics might be a bit over-the-top, admittedly. But the ache in Richard's voice makes the song indispensable for me. A line like "She's always losing so she sits and cries and shakes" might look flat on paper, but just listen to what Richard does with it. One of his best vocal performances ever, in my opinion.

Entered at Fri Apr 29 16:48:06 CEST 2011 from (74.203.77.122)

Jon Lyness

Subject: The Band, The Beatles

Adam, enjoyed your posts as always. I'm 38 and my musical tastes have evolved much like yours...hit the Beatles hard in high school, and still do like them very much but OD'ed on them somewhat and don't revisit them quite as often these days. Discovered the Band in my early 20s, and boy, that was it for me. It's an apples-to-oranges comparison, but the Band quite hooked me in a way no other band has...and the timing was fortunate, because I've had the pleasure of seeing Levon and Garth in various shows through the 90s and 00s, and even caught Rick in club shows a number of times in the 90s before he sadly passed away. I continue to find new meanings and shadings in the Band's work, and get a tremendous amount of enjoyment out of the various post-1976 projects as well as the OQ albums.

One other thought (re Band vs Beatles) is that the spicy blend of musical genres that the Band's music represents strikes a particular chord with me...there's a breadth and depth to their musical influences that I find uniquely compelling, and it's turned me on to countless other talented artists that I likely would never have known about.

Entered at Fri Apr 29 16:47:20 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

Subject: A blast from Festival Express

See this link and be amazed that just 6 short/long years later The Last Waltz happenned........Imagine if Peter had been so upfront to ask "So Your Majesty, is is Eleanor Rigby or Lonesome Suzie then?"

Entered at Fri Apr 29 16:36:21 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Calvin: Thanks for the correction re "Village Green", which I was muddling up with "Muswell Hillibillies". Interesting timing re VG and MFBP though, suggesting that neither influenced the other. (I'm assuming that the Wikipedia article on VG is largely accurate.) What's your take on the Scarlet Pimpernel?

Brien Sz: I think pretty much the same about the Beatles as you. Like most of their middle and later stuff, love some of it, own very little of it, and listen to very little of that - and like you partly because you still can't avoid hearing them in this culture. I'm happy to accept that "Eleanor Rigby" was a sonic milestone at the time, but I've never really liked it. My point yesterday about McCartney tying up the loose ends in the last verse, plus the idea that that's pretty much how he addresses the ambiguous morality of "The Weight" in "Carry That Weight" / "The End", got me wondering if that was/is a general propensity of Paul as songwriter.

sadavid: My very favourite bit of "Elenore" is the use of "et cetera". Brilliant!

Even those of you non-Canadians who are aware that we're in the closing days of a federal election up/over here will likely have found BEG's political post yesterday (the one about Bob Rae and the NDP government in the Province of Ontario 20 years ago) to be way too "Inside Baseball". I'm here to made a Band link for you: the Ontario Legislature is housed in a large pink sandstone building that is called by many of its denizens - including me back in the day - The Big Pink. Rae's leftish Minister of Finance, Floyd Laughren, was widely known in the press and on the street as Pink Floyd.

Entered at Fri Apr 29 16:20:22 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

I must admit I didn't watch the wedding but that was because I stayed up thru most of the night mixing some album stuff and slept in very late. But Peter is quite right: when the old planes turn out, there's a moment to be savoured, for me not only because of my nationality but because my paternal Grandad was the shop foreman at Hawker! A fine Kingston-upon-Thames institution, now sadly (but inevitably) knocked down in favour of poxy apartment blocks

I am not particularly Royalist (more so that my father in law who passed away this week though; he timed that right to avoid enduring what he would have called a crass waste of taxpayers money!) but like many have nothing but good things to say about our Queen. She does still have the requisite gravitas and seemingly can bring joy to the world by smiling at it. Great that at 85 she still seems as robust as ever - it's only when negotiating stairs or standing for a long period that some "effort" is visible, a gentle stroll seems as natural as ever.

Todd/Simon: Eric Clapton seems to be a common ground among those that end up liking music of (generally) an earlier age group. Layla used to be the theme tune to the Jasper Carrot show, and I remember asking Dad what it was at about age 11 or 12. To wean me of the (I almost shudder now) Iron Maiden albums that my friends and I were into he triumphantly produced his old copy of Wheels of Fire and the die was cast. Dad also encouraged me to listen to the Stones, Johnny Winter, Bloomfield etc and from there I started buying my own stuff - in fact Dad got the bug again and bought all the Hendrix, Stills, Young and suchlike stuff he'd never got around to in the 60s/70s and I "discovered" San Francisco and Traffic (hence my bug for, and eventual adoption of the Hammond) because Dad was far more of a blues purist. One common ground we shared was Hot Tuna and the Dead - we each bought stuff by them. I think it was my liking for the Dead's WD & AB that convinced him it was time to break out the brown Band LP. At a time when most kids would shun their parents, my Dad and I were out in force emptying record fairs of stock, to the point where one day Mum said "oh, I wish you wouldn't encourage him". To me!

Entered at Fri Apr 29 16:17:14 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Just a clarification -- With the mono LP versions of the early Airplane albums you won't hear drastic differences or alternate vocals & instrumentation. What you get is a more punch & focus, especially with Jack Cassidy's bass. Also, the mono version of "Surrealistic Pillow" has a tad less reverb than the drenched stereo version. It is with a couple of the mono singles that you'll hear a few significant changes. I haven't done a direct comparison between the 45s & LPs, so I don't have complete list of variances. With you do lose with the mono mixes, of course, is the spacey stereo effects bouncing from channel to channel.

Entered at Fri Apr 29 15:20:40 CEST 2011 from (203.160.29.153)

Fred

Peter: Her Majesty & I exchanged smiles (and waved to each other) when she drove past my home in the 70s. It was a rainy June day, she wore a green (I'd never seen that shade of green before and haven't since) outfit with matching chapeau, I was waving and grinning like any little kid is want to do in such a situation. Or eyes meet and ...well, a gentleman never tells. : )

Entered at Fri Apr 29 15:14:10 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

RTO: Yes, the early Airplane LPs were available with dedicated mono mixes, not fold-downs of the stereo versions. In addition, some of the mono singles featured slightly different mixes than the counterpart mono album versions. For instance, the single version of "The Ballad of You and Me and Pooneil" begins with a different feedback sound.

Kevin: I can still remember a listening session where I played MFBP for some of my college dorm mates at the University of Georgia in the fall of 1968. They never heard it before and were blown away. We were in my friend's room in the basement of Reed Hall, which is located in a quadrangle behind Sanford Stadium, listening on one of those portable stereo record players that were popular at the time. That I still have vivid memories of this is a testament to how much that record influenced me & my friends at the time.

Entered at Fri Apr 29 14:41:48 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

You get swept up in it. The music was magnificent, mainly Parry too. The pageantry, everything. We watched from 9 a.m. to the balcony kiss. Now off to a party. The fly past too. I don’t think anyone who isn’t British really understands how we feel when those three planes, the Lancaster with the Spitfire and Hurricane either side fly low over London.

Back when my oldest son was a baby, the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh visited Poole to open the theatre. We were right at the front and he was dressed in red and could wave vigorously. The royal car stopped right by us. The Duke looked at us and pointed out the baby waving to the Queen. He got the full direct royal smile and a personal wave. And her full smile lights up the day in a strange way. However cynical you might be or have been before, there’s a magic in it. A lot of people got that magic today.

Entered at Fri Apr 29 13:40:38 CEST 2011 from (76.66.26.99)

brown eyed girl

Highlight videos of the other Royal Wedding.

Entered at Fri Apr 29 13:29:41 CEST 2011 from (76.66.26.99)

brown eyed girl

One's life is for sharing...

Kevin J!! The NDP is a party for organized labour, small business, intellectuals...Yes, there is a left-wing caucus. It has always been my party. If it was truly a socialist party; it would be called one. Former NDP leader Bob Rae did a lot of damage when he implemented the Social Contract. As a teacher my yearly increments for three years were frozen. One colleague calculated that we lost 10 grand in the total scheme of things. He broke a contract between organized labour, albeit a professional one. I ran into him at the Eaton Centre one day and he said he was sorry.....Well, not about the contract....hee, hee.....He really did bump into me. imagezulu's Ma on Easter told me not to vote NDP; I told her not to vote Conservative!! She's from Eastern Europe so......We'll never see eye to eye.....and that's ok. In my own family, while growing up, my beloved Grandpa who I lived with would vote Liberal federally and NDP locally. I vote NDP because I'm left of centre and that's that! Btw, Layton and his partner Oliva Chow used to live in a Co-op on Jarvis Street. A lot of the people in my Co-op will be voting for Jack again. I find in general the Liberal party will implement many of the Conservative policies in the end. At least with the Conservative party you know what you're getting.....They are pro big business and pro profit at the expense of working people. Some of my friends vote NDP as well, but some vote Liberal and Conservative too......Yikes!!!! imagezulu votes like his Ma!!!! I guess we're like Mary Matalin and James Carville.....except we're farther apart politically....

Entered at Fri Apr 29 13:17:11 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

Entered at Fri Apr 29 11:40:08 CEST 2011 from (59.101.33.77)

dlew919

and never, ever, ever, worry what others think of you. And if you're ahead of your friends, you'll be there when they catch up. And if they don't catch up, you'll have enjoyed the ride, and met others along the way. and that's a great experience too.

Entered at Fri Apr 29 11:11:37 CEST 2011 from (41.97.144.60)

Empty Now

Entered at Fri Apr 29 10:49:40 CEST 2011 from (41.97.144.60)

Empty Now

Subject: revised version

Norbert : thanks for the link
------- --------- ---------------

Translation of selected verses – Leo Ferre, "Mister Georgina" [song linked above]

You play every night for wages that make no noise
Because your job is to make them dance, not to make them think

….

The only friend you got is your bagpipe, You play Schubert it's more expensive

….

A piano is like the horizon, It is played all horizontal
You your piano and its blaring You fuck them on the vertical
On comparsita

…..

It made us a bit sore ... finished! Music! IN YEAR 2000 NO MORE MUSIC
and yet it was beautiful

* georgina is an argotic Italian (Roma) word for accordion

Entered at Fri Apr 29 10:42:42 CEST 2011 from (41.97.144.60)

Empty Now

1 - Something particular in life randomly catches my attention
2 - Above a certain level of catchness, I start observing patiently this something
3 - then I ponder for a while whether what I am observing is truly that which is observed
4 - I search the human words which express the most clearly and the most accurately both observations
5 - there's always a most relevant occasion to diffuse the whole thing

-------- ---------- ---------------

in the linked above clip, if one observes patiently he recognizes q,ong the crowd George Harisson (of the Beatles)

Band Connection: where Clairvoyance is, Charlatanism promptly follows

Entered at Fri Apr 29 10:33:51 CEST 2011 from (75.34.38.166)

Adam2

It's awesome being around for all this recent Band activity. Robbie's new album is great. Every time I hear Won't Be Back, I just automatically hear the ghost of Richard Manuel (the late, 1978 growling Richard voice). The Band lives on.

Entered at Fri Apr 29 08:34:15 CEST 2011 from (68.145.189.105)

george morenstein

Homestead Industries of Calgary did my roof and they were not only the best price i received, but did a fantastic job. Just ask for George Morenstein 403-389-6780

Entered at Fri Apr 29 05:44:03 CEST 2011 from (69.177.200.206)

Todd

Subject: My amp goes to 11

Adam, I was 22 in 1988. There were not many in my social circle at that time that were listening to 60's and early 70's music as I was. A friend of mine called my listening tastes 'Throwback music". Didn't bother me too much. The funny thing is the 60's music seemed older then than it does now, and much of the 80's music now seems very dated. A lot of the 60's classics have become timeless.

I played in a few groups back in those days. Mostly with friends who I already knew. There was one fellow who I met with a few times to play. He was not a friend. He wanted to start an Eric Clapton tribute group. I really had no business trying to play Eric Clapton.....above my ability really, but I figured that I could probably handle the rhythm guitar parts and he could play lead. This fellow was quite a few years older than me, but was the type who was still living in his Mom's basement. Nice enough guy but a little quirky. His pre-jam / rehearsal ritual was to drink a pot of black coffee before we even picked up the guitars. I was happier with a couple of beers, so we would sit quietly....him drinking coffee and me drinking beer. Once the caffeine kicked in he would strap on one of his many guitars and the jamming would commence. He had a bunch of guitars lined up in a semicircle around him as if he was at a gig....even though we were only in his Mom's basement. And he had a Marshall stack. I on the other hand had one guitar and a small 60 watt amp. Loud enough for typical basement jamming, but it was no match for his tower of sound. It really bothered him that my amp was so small...but we soldiered on. Mostly I would play the two chords to Clapton's song 'Cocaine' or the chords to 'After Midnight' forever while he played endless solos. There was no bass, no drums, and no singing. It was pretty sad.

It only lasted about three sessions before I lost interest. OK I really lost interest after the first session, but I was trying to be polite. He really wanted me to be able to lay louder, and my little Roland Cube 60 amp just wouldn't cut it. Wonder if that dude has any hearing left.

Entered at Fri Apr 29 02:09:40 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Entered at Fri Apr 29 01:18:15 CEST 2011 from (75.34.38.166)

Adam2

Last weekend I had another small jam at a Saturday night party I was at. Same crew almost - my Grateful Dead loving friend was much too drunk to play, leaving me with the previously mentioned drummer friend and another guitarist/drummer (who is also into the punk/heavy/thrash stuff). We actually had some fun jams with my friend playing drums, and the other guy playing guitar. I was beyond excited to play, as I'm not as into the whole party scene as others are (the possibility of playing music was the reason I went in the first place, really!) Not that I didn't have a few refreshments myself. But at the end of it all, a few people were discussing guitar playing and the heavy metal kid who I was playing alongside said to me "You know, these guys are saying how they love my guitar playing, that you and I are both great guitarists. But honestly Adam, you are the much better guitarist. I'm into the metal and heavier stuff, but you just lay back and fit right in the groove. And then when you come up front, you get right into their heads and then just f**k 'em!" It was honestly one of the best compliments I've ever gotten, for someone with a completely different taste and approach to music recognizing what I was trying to pull off. All that week I had been listening to the Band and Robbie in particular, and that night even I knew I really pulled off some great guitar work. I got in some excitingly raw blues playing and bending, just emotional work that I got straight from Robbie. So for someone else to recognize and respond to that in such a way, it really moved me.

So in situations like that, I don't even consider any other bands that have as gigantic an influence as The Band. I'm honored that people would be impressed with my musicianship at all, but when they are, I can say confidently, 100%, that I got that from The Band.

Entered at Fri Apr 29 00:56:06 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

I always equate The Kinks to music hall - a theme that appeared a lot in UK pop as the sixties went on. Fairport, on the other hand, embraced deeper folk heritage and did something with it - like I view the OQ. You could think a Fairport tune was traditional when it was an original, and the same with (say) Rag Mama Rag. I'm not sure the Kinks fall in that category?

Entered at Fri Apr 29 00:47:21 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

I've often said to myself that the Brown LP and Abbey Road would do me if times got REALLY hard!

Entered at Fri Apr 29 00:43:09 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

Entered at Fri Apr 29 00:38:07 CEST 2011 from (75.34.38.166)

Adam2

Entered at Thu Apr 28 23:57:49 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

David P: Re: The Dawes – we can only hope………though I do doubt it………….Your description of hearing the opening sounds on MFBP sent me back for a listen – thank you……Just wish I could transport myself back to 1968!……….I was only a few years old, single and in addition to the glories of MFBP……The Montreal Canadiens were about to win the Stanley Cup!!

Sadavid: Amongst all the gobbledygook written here lately on songs - you managed to write an original take…….not easy to do - so bravo……… But really, even Peter was being unusually soft-shoe in describing a likely verdict as “overwhelming”………..A Band fan might well prefer “Lonesome Suzie” over “Eleanor Rigby” but in terms of rating the better song, I would be shocked if the number was not 100 out of 100 for ER if such a contest were to be held.

Marge: A tear for the sad loss of the Canadiens last night but Steve is likely doing somersaults up above in anticipation of Canada possibly having a real socialist as Prime Minister………………Folks are jumping out windows on Bay Street here in Toronto at just the thought of having Jack Layton run the country at some point after May 2.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 23:30:02 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Volunteers just shades Crown of Creation (as I said to RTO) but Volunteers is their ultimate album for me.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 23:03:46 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

D, are the mono Airplane albums completely different mixes? The first Traffic LP (Mr Fantasy) in mono has wholesale changes: different guitar solos, different vocals here and there. Please confirm that this isn't the case so i don't have to spend $100 on a mint mono original of ABAB!

Funnily enough, along with your comments and the "official" mono status of Beatles albums that became prominent again in the recent remasters, I find that Mono is good for Cream. The horribly compressed muddy production of Disraeli Gears just isn't there in Mono.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 22:59:08 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

David, you are not alone. Baxters is my favourite JA release too! I always used to love Jorma's "Last Wall of the Castle" when all I had was a cheap Castle Records 2-LP set compilation.

Then I bought a copy and my idea of a truly psychedelic album was never the same again. Pepper? Bahhh! Fairground effects? Give me "Spare Chaynge" or "Two Heads" any day!

Peter and I spoke on the phone about JA the other day and we both agreed that Bark wasn't one we dipped into that often. "When The Earth Moves Again" has a certain "oh, shit! People like The Band not our cosmic schtick these days" feel about it, and this trend had started on Volunteers (I'm sure PV won't mind me adding that he offered that as his favourite JA album) and there's even more of that on Long John Silver. I do sometimes crank up the closing "Eat Starch Mom" on that album if I have a midweek day off from work and am doing the household chores. And I MEAN crank it!

Entered at Thu Apr 28 22:34:08 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

RTO: As strange as that album is in places, it's still my favorite Airplane album, along with "Surrealistic Pillow", particularly the mono LP versions. Recently I've been enjoying two Baxters mono singles -- "The Ballad of You and Me and Pooneil" b/w "Two Heads" and "Watch Her Ride" b/w "Martha". It's nice to hear standalone cuts, with their unique mono mixes, without the cross-fades linking the songs together.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 22:32:44 CEST 2011 from (75.34.38.166)

Adam2

Entered at Thu Apr 28 22:24:59 CEST 2011 from (79.202.185.40)

Norbert

Subject: Music as a wapon

"Music is adaptable, so the melodies, beats, and dynamics can be adjusted to reflect its message and enhance its impact on the listener. For example, politicians use musical fanfare at public rallies to build the momentum of the crowd and generate an emotional response in support of their causes, as is seen in political campaign songs and the protest songs of the 1960s and 1970s. In this way, music provides a weapon of social change which can be used to achieve specific goals because the lyrics, together with the melody and rhythms, take on different and more significant meanings than those that appear on the surface. By promoting ideas and, often, inviting the listener to sing along in groups as a shared experience, music helps achieve the goals of the propagandist. Besides the instantaneous generation of emotions, the most effective propaganda songs have qualities that make them memorable while relaying their messages in a fashion that is not too emotionally extreme to be accepted. (War Songs, 1) Music permeates the spirit in ways that written words alone cannot do. It is readily retained in memory; therefore people who seldom engage in reading can be reached by music."

"If He Can Fight Like He Can Love, Good Night, Germany!"

check the link for an interesting read.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 21:40:52 CEST 2011 from (136.167.102.118)

Dave H

Entered at Thu Apr 28 21:21:21 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

When I said unpsychedelic about MFBP I used the term to distinguish it from two kinds of album: 1) Sgt Pepper, whose recurring themes, bubblegum keyboards and general "not just four scousers with three guitars and a drumkit" and which, until MFBP came along, remained the most influential LP even over a year after release, and 2) The USA's own (far more guitar-centric) take on psychedelia, most notably the acid rock from Frisco.

To me, After Bathing at Baxters or Anthem of The Sun would be classed as psychedelic albums. Not just the material, but the approach to instrumentation (long jams and improvised passages) and recording (both feature a mix of live and studio material woven together).

MFBP does have some qualities of the era but I wouldn't say this is necessary evidence of psychedelia. Robbie's opening guitar figure on ToR has modulation, but this is something that a guitar amp gave you as early as 1961, or by the late sixties you could get a preamp that would match a guitar to a Leslie speaker. I believe the actual ToR sound was achieved by using a kind of leslie simulator that Garth made, but you could get roughly the same effect by using the vibrato channel of a Vox AC30 or a Magnatone amp like Buddy Holly used. Nothing new there.

Garth's whacky organ pitch pends - are they psychedelic? Not really; Lowrey sold demonstration records featuring this "glide" effect as they called it, where a straighter-than-straight organist would showcase all the features of a Lowrey, usually the flagship Festival model like Garth had. I've got a very early sixties LP by an American organ player who used a Lowrey rather than a Hammond (Eddie Baxter is the guy) and he uses the effect to create big-band like arrangements with implied trombone.

Rock had changed; twangy guitars and little reedy "96 Tears" organ tones were over the hill. Its fair to say that about 1966-68 the modern instruments, amplifiers and other sound-changing accessories that took rock and pop away from the twang era were either first released, or the increasing experimentation with existing equipment ushered in the "new" rock sounds that we still hear today. Marshall amps, keyboards like the Mellotron and Baldwin harpsichord, wah pedals, fuzztones - you name it. Now, the psych era happened to occur in this same period, and the "anything goes" attitude of the creative forces of that era guaranteed that many of these new sounds would become part of rock vocabulary. And many stuck.

I think that is the case with MFBP - there are then-current SOUNDS used so it remains contemporary. But Anthem of the Sun it is not!

Entered at Thu Apr 28 20:37:33 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

Win RR's "HTBC" collector's set on "Wolfgang Vault."

Entered at Thu Apr 28 20:26:28 CEST 2011 from (131.137.35.83)

sadavid

No argument that "Eleanor Rigby" is iconic; it's one of those that grab the ear in the first half-second (and takes you back to where you once belonged) even on the thousandth hearing. Arresting images -- I'm still a little horrified about the face in the jar -- and kudos for what I take to be an anti-church statement. On the other hand, even back in the day it struck me as trying-too-hard-to-be-literary.

It's full of nice hard nouns that make the images -- dirt, church, socks, face. "Lonesome Suzie," by contrast, has hardly a noun that's not a pronoun, and these exceptions are concept nouns, and relationshippy at that: friend, problems, understanding. It's all internal, could've been written by a blind man, where "E. Rigby" is all surface. "Lonesome Suzie," for me, has the great virtue of sincerity. It's really too bad about the alternate take, which always intrudes on (and seems to have permanently fouled up) my appreciation for the original.

And let's spare a thought for the other "Elenore" which in a galaxy far, far ago I had on 45 rpm b/w "Surfer Dan" (if memory serves). I don't know if Flo, Eddie or both was / were responsible, but there's a lot of skill in those sly, stupid Turtles lyrics: "Elenore, gee I think you're swell / and you really do me well . . . ."

Entered at Thu Apr 28 19:53:32 CEST 2011 from (72.196.146.10)

Calvin

Thanks for the Info on Doug Sahm, its a unique experience at this, mmmmm, level of experience age wise to run itno an artist with such a deep catalouge who you 1) Like what youve heard so far and 2) had only known by name and 2-3 songs up to a few weeks ago. Its a wonderful thing.

Bill,

I seriously doubt if the Kinks Village Green's Presevation Society was an Echo of the Band's first three albums considering the Village Green tack was recorded in 1966, as were a few songs on the album, and they went into the studio to finish the album in May of 1968, before Music From The Big Pink came out.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 19:39:41 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Entered at Thu Apr 28 19:30:49 CEST 2011 from (74.108.27.233)

Joan

I agree that they are about lonesome women, but for me the comparison ends there. My feeling about Eleanor is it feels more like "reportage. kind of like this is a description of the lives of the lonely people in our society. Lonesome Suzie has more of a song of love and sympathy. I can feel Richard's own pain and his sensitivity. "Why are you so sad and I am there for you if you want me to be. Its just how I feel it.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 19:17:16 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Don't forget Robbie's otherworldly guitar sound on the opening track. That's the first thing that caught my ears when the needle dropped down on side one, after I bought the LP when it was first released. The guitar was played through a "black box" designed by Garth, which generated a rotating Leslie-like effect. That may not be described as psychedelic, but it was pretty far out.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 19:01:58 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Thu Apr 28 18:56:40 CEST 2011 from (217.5.150.250)

JTull Fan

The only comparison I can see is that both groups were insulated from what their peers were doing at the time and they blazed their own unique musical trails. The Band were also darlings of the critics whereas Tull have never been. As for Dharma for One and Cat's Squirrel? Bleh! I can go without This Was personally. Long time Tull bassist and Fairport Convention member Dave Pegg is on record as a Rick Danko admirer and said if he could be in any group of his choice it would have been The Band.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 18:50:23 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

Subject: Elvis Mystery Train

Link is to the Elvis version of Mystery Train.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 18:46:58 CEST 2011 from (90.239.84.164)

NorthWestCoaster

Subject: Near Empty

My paper fax machine says: NEAR EMPTY. Any relative of yours?

Entered at Thu Apr 28 18:44:03 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

On MFBP, “not being psychedelic”. remember that the best-known track on release was This Wheel’s on Fire. The Julie Driscoll version (UK #5) with its spacey vocal was definitely classed as psychedelia at the time. Wiki says:

With its use of distortion, the evocative imagery of the song's title and the group's flamboyant dress, this version is closely associated with the psychedelic era in British music.

So I don’t think we saw MFBP as a “reaction” to psychedelia.

I’m not the first (or the second or third) to compare Lonesome Suzie and Eleanor Rigby. I thought it was pretty much a standard critical opinion. Later, I’ll listen side by side. I don’t think I’ve ever done that. Eleanor Rigby was a major departure in music, and in lyrics too.

Greil Marcus’s “Mystery Train” was the first book with decent essays on The Band. Full of minor error, but at the point it appeared, the best we had. And he could still write in a comprehensible way. He sees Mystery Train. Elvis’s last Sun recording as a pivotal performance. Forget the arrangement and backing. That’s all irrelevant. Elvis is singing it, and if we were all sitting in a bar discussing this and Levon were with us, I have a strong feeling he’d be in my corner on that one point. Elvis flat out on Mystery Train is untouchable. No, I can’t think of any 1960s or 70s or 80s performances as good as The Band’s take on Mystery Train. That wasn’t my point. Neither Levon with The Band, nor Rick solo, touch Elvis on this one. By the time The Band came along, Elvis was too far gone to compete. So, the fragment of Elvis doing “I Shall Be Released” is dwarfed by The Band version.

Paul Simon … I’ve been listening to the “Live 69” bonus CD today. Interesting. They took along LA’s finest (Blaine, Osborn, Knechtel and Carter Jnr), but in the most impressive bits used only Paul Simon on guitar, or only Larry Knechtel on piano … only Garfunkel and Knechtel play on Bridge Over Troubled Water, weeks before the LP came out, and it’s stunning. They didn’t seem to need the band at all, and started and ended without them. In fact, one track only, Mrs Robinson is near unlistenable. That’s because there’s a horrible high pitched beep sound punctuating bits on the right speaker. Whether it’s misguided guitar, or misguided keyboard or a fault, I don’t know, but it sounds horrible. As Roy Halee had fully recorded three concerts, I’m amazed it’s on there, unless it was on all of them. I’d have electronically removed it. But they don’t play it well either. I suspect that they hadn’t integrated themselves into playing live with a group. The band are fine elsewhere, because they’re understated and subtle. Audience applause is high volume and too long and too obtrusive … easily solved, I’d have thought.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 17:33:51 CEST 2011 from (41.97.221.13)

Empty Now

indeed English is human language, too human

Entered at Thu Apr 28 17:21:46 CEST 2011 from (41.97.221.13)

Empty Now

Subject: How I Became Clairvoyant

This is the mental scheme of perception of the real, I remember I adopted for ages :

1 - Something in life particularly catches my attention
2 - Above a certain level of catchness, I start observing this something
3 - then I ponder for a while whether what I am observing is exactly what I observed
4 - I develop the best way to express both observations in human words
5 - I translate it in English, and post in The Band GB
6 – if Illka Jauramo likes the thread, the whole thing is to be stamped under the sign of Clairvoyance
7 – if Illka Jauramo finds the thread trivial, the whole thing is to be stamped under the sign of Dirt Farming
---- ------- -----------

It started with an ancient saying I heard in Constantine "After Passover, the sky is clear forever"
linked above, un article "The Sukkot-Passover Rain Continuum" by Jason Elbaum, Copyright © 1995 - 2011 Aish.com, it's not the perfect document, but the best document currently available on the net
this makes a good "break point", not the final point on the question
------- --------- ----------

WARNING : no reason to restart the feud, notice that a career of Dirt Farming is far from being less honorable than a career of Clairvoyance Preaching

Entered at Thu Apr 28 17:05:23 CEST 2011 from (74.203.77.122)

Jon Lyness

Subject: Phoebe Snow

BEG, thanks for the link to Phoebe Snow doing You Send Me. In 2000, I went to a Levon and the Barnburners show here in NY, and Phoebe Snow did a surprise guest spot with a performance of Bring It On Home To Me... and blew everyone away with it, as you can imagine. She had such a fondness for those early soul gems. I had no idea who she was at the time, but was immediately hooked, and it was wonderful to see her return to live performance in 2008-9. Todd, agree 100% re Into the Mystic... won't ever forget that.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 16:44:57 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Entered at Thu Apr 28 16:25:15 CEST 2011 from (131.137.35.83)

sadavid

Subject: Formerly Bros.

David P: that looks like a winner . . . the lead review on Amazon sez, "If comparisons are helpful, I had the same sense of "This is it!" . . . as I did when I first heard . . . "The Brown Album"--many years ago."

Entered at Thu Apr 28 16:19:17 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

RtO": Back to 3MiaB, who can read the part where they encounter the corpse without thinking of Ophelia of Hamlet, Millais and NLSC? (On a lighter note, who can read about the dead dog without thinking of gourmet night at Fawlty Towers?)

Sticking with literature, I will trot out my theory that the literary hero of the young and foppish Ray Davies was Sir Percy Blakeney, aka The Scarlet Pimpernel. Besides the look of the guy, there's "Dandy", there's "A Well Respected Man" and there's the capper, "Dedicated Follower Of Fashion" with a borrowing straight from the book: "They seek him here, they seek him there ...".

RtO again: Sticking with the Kinks, a case can be made that their arc, circa '64-'71, was in some ways closer to the Band than Fairport's was. We have a little blues and R&B band that evolves into something all its own, focussing on their real and imagined cultures within a wavering sense of time. While I don't see anything Kinksish in the Band's music (unlike, say, the Doors with "Hello I Love You"), I do hear the concerns of the Village Green material as an echo of the Band's first three albums.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 15:34:52 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Entered at Thu Apr 28 15:22:11 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Calvin: Check out Doug Sahm's 1995 album "Last Real Texas Blues Band" for some smooth blues stylings. Even earlier, one of my favorites is his cover of T-Bone Walker's "Poppa Ain't Salty" from 1971's "Return of Doug Saldana".

Entered at Thu Apr 28 15:09:05 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Subject: Mystery Train

The Paul Butterfield Blues Band recorded a fine version of "Mystery Train" on their eponymous 1965 debut album, featuring some blazing lead guitar from Michael Bloomfield.

Scotty Moore borrowed some of the guitar licks on Elvis' cover version from another "Little Junior" Parker song, "Love My Baby", which was the flip side of the original 1953 Sun recording of "Mystery Train" (see link). The great Floyd Murphy (brother of Matt "Guitar" Murphy) played guitar for Little Junior's Blue Flames.

Todd: Thanks for your concern. We were lucky in the metro Atlanta area and dodged a bullet last night, but others suffered devastation.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 14:44:36 CEST 2011 from (72.196.146.10)

Calvin

I was thinking about the definition of Blues lately. I was on sort of a Howlin Wolf binge last month and the last few days Ive been discovering the catalouge of Doug Sahm-who is frequently described as a blues artist. Unless i havent got to that period of his career I just dont see it. But that's possible as the Sir Douglas Quintet/Doug Sham/Texas Tornadoes Discography is somewhere in the mid 30s original release wise.

Anyway, just musing this morning and wondering if anyone else has spent much time with Doug Sahm.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 14:23:21 CEST 2011 from (69.177.200.206)

Todd

Subject: Mystery Train

Well, I'm a sucker for good blues harp. Mystery Train was always a favorite of mine from TLW. Butterfield's vocal may sound slightly under rehearsed as far as being in sync with the others, but the energy and harp playing is top notch. I don't think of Elvis at all when I hear it. It becomes it's own thing.

Loved and still love 'Lonesome Suzie' from MFBP. I think it's stock dropped a notch when the alternate version was released on the Band CD remasters. The alternate version was novel to hear, but is weaker, and sounds watered down in it's passion and intensity. But the original I still rate highly, and it along with 'Tears of Rage' is what really pulled me into The Band experience way back when. 'Eleanor Rigby' is a haunting Paul McCartney song with nice orchestration from George Martin. Richard's 'Lonesome Suzie' is up there with Sam Cooke and Otis Redding. To me it's at a whole other level.

Hoping that David P. and others in the Southern U.S. are riding these storms out OK. Some pretty nasty weather recently.

B.E.G., Thanks for the photography link. Some very interesting street photography there.

A shame about Phoebe Snow. A few years back she did an amazing live version of 'Into The Mystic' with the Levon Helm Band. "And when that fog horn blows I will be coming home".....her voice and those horns......goosebumps.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 14:09:59 CEST 2011 from (193.35.132.43)

RTO

Entered at Thu Apr 28 13:54:10 CEST 2011 from (59.101.33.77)

dlew919

levon's great, rick's great, richard's great, robbie's great, garth's great... butterfield: not so great...

Entered at Thu Apr 28 13:28:28 CEST 2011 from (76.68.82.79)

brown eyed girl

Now, if I want to hear the bluezzzz.....I'd rather hear Phoebe Snow's "Just To Be With You"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
G.E. Smith and Johnnie Johnson are here too! You can't miss Johnnie's trademark large ring as he plays.....just as I saw him perform with The Weber Brothers at Toronto's Silver Dollar.
We've all lost Phoebe Snow as a singer-songwriter. Amy Helm has lost her Godmother......

Entered at Thu Apr 28 13:06:18 CEST 2011 from (59.101.33.77)

dlew919

And you were, as always, exactly correct. Sorry i didn't post earlier.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 12:54:59 CEST 2011 from (76.68.82.79)

brown eyed girl

PHOEBE SNOW!!!!!!!!

"..........and then she opens her mouth and the music just TAKES her and the true power and beauty--the heart and soul--of this woman come POURING out, ensnaring you until all you see is gorgeous everywhere :)"

Entered at Thu Apr 28 12:54:32 CEST 2011 from (75.34.38.166)

Adam2

Entered at Thu Apr 28 12:48:22 CEST 2011 from (76.68.82.79)

brown eyed girl

The mystery of The Band. I just cringe everytime I hear the words "Mystery Train". I don't skip Neil Diamond's "Dry Your Eyes" but I skip "MT" at TLW and everywhere else. So what makes me tick or tock?

"The best lack all conviction
while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity"
"Now you figure out where I'm at"

Louuuu channelling W.B. Yeats

I posted yesterday an absolutely outstanding and moving example of Phoebe Snow's vocal range in her cover of Cooke's "You Send Me". She performed with Jools Holland, David Sanborn and.....??? Check it out again as you watch the faces of the other musicians who are there with her. No one commented.....I could have highlighted her most famous song "Poetry Man" that some thought was about Jackson Browne, but wasn't.....Instead I chose a song that really showed what Phoebe Snow was really capable of.....I could watch that video over and over again......

GARLAND JEFFREYS' GIGS

Saturday 4.30 New York, NY
Highline Ballroom

Saturday 5.7 Woodstock, NY
Levon Helm's Midnight Ramble!!!

Friday 5.13 Buffalo, NY acoustic co-bill w/ Graham Parker!!!!
Kleinhans Music Hall

Tuesday 5.24 Teaneck, NJ
Bob Dylan Birthday Celebration w/ Professor Louie & The Crowmatix, Soulfarm
Mexicali Live

Friday 6.10 Fall River, MA
Narrows Center for the Arts

Sunday 6.12 Annapolis, MD
Rams Head Tavern

Saturday 6.18 Northampton, MA
Iron Horse Music Hall

Wednesday 6.22 New York, NY
The Bottom Line - New York on My Mind w/ Loudon Wainwright, Roseanne Cash, Willie Nile & more
River to River Festival

Saturday 6.25 Sellersville, PA
Sellersville Theater

Saturday 8.20 Wespelaar, Belgium
Swing Wespelaar Festival

June 7 is when Garland's "The King Of In Between" CD is available

From The New Yorker: "The material is as uncannily fresh and forceful as the songs on his début record, from 1973. The Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, native specializes in an endearing snarl over an insistent, sinuous beat, and when he sings “twenty-two stops to the city,” on the new song “Coney Island Winter,” you’re on that train."

Entered at Thu Apr 28 12:44:30 CEST 2011 from (75.34.38.166)

Adam2

Entered at Thu Apr 28 12:15:46 CEST 2011 from (134.174.21.2)

Tim

Subject: Wolfgangs Videos

Looks like the Whole Last waltz is up and some from 83 tour.. interesting.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 12:10:22 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

As for Lonesome Suzie being a poor mans Eleanor Rigby - I would have never made that assumption or connection. Don't see/hear it.

Entered at Thu Apr 28 11:19:51 CEST 2011 from (75.34.38.166)

Adam2

Entered at Thu Apr 28 09:26:46 CEST 2011 from (59.101.33.77)

dlew919

Subject: Paul Simon - will he be forgotten?

A strange review, but for the simonistas out there, you may find it interesting...

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Adam2

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Adam2

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Peter V

BTW, I don't think any of the five Band members would disagree on demonstrating Mystery Train. See Levon's narration on the Elvis documentary. I can't see that covers try to top the original. They're tibutes, homages, stuff people love to play and to hear.

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Peter V

Criticism? Yes, that’s the point of debate. When I started teaching ELT / ESL in 1971 we also played songs in the language laboratory because stereo headphones were still a novelty and students loved hearing music through them, and we always devoted ten minutes to a song. Mainly it was Simon & Garfunkel (unrivalled clarity of diction) and Beatles, but among the tapes someone had done was Blood, Sweat & Tears version of Lonesome Suzie. I used it a few times, then swiftly replaced it with The Band. I used that a lot, which is maybe why I started to go off it. But I think really it was getting back into The Beatles again much later in an intensive way, and it really did feel like the poor man’s Eleanor Rigby.

Mystery Train? It’s like every Band cover. Very well done, i.e. if I wanted to demonstrate the joys of Mystery Train to a Martian, I’d be torn between Junior Parker and Elvis. I wouldn’t even consider playing The Band.

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Adam2

I agree with how you said Big Pink and The Band are just such high quality. For me, I put those (along with Stage Fright!) on a higher level, just superior albums that transcend time. I just don't look at the rest of the catalogue as "not as good" as those first three. We were blessed to get those first three albums... the rest is just gravy! And as dlew said, I don't get disappointed that the other albums aren't as amazing as the first three. Those albums confirmed The Band were human. It's just that those first three were so amazing, beyond the talents of anyone else (even themselves perhaps).

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dlew919

RTO: agreed - it's a sort of - after all, JT are English/Scottish and the Band are North American, and JT were able to ride certain waves successfully (prog rock, folk, et cetera.)

Adam2: I take it that when someone says 'x' song is 'awful', it's still far more awesome than many other artists' works.

David P. (SPOILER ALERT): I always love the story of the writers of 'The Big Sleep' writing to Chandler asking him who murdered the chauffer. After a long period of time, he wrote back with some irritation stating he didn't know...

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RTO

I agree with Simon about finding individual comments fascinating. I find that it is interesting to see what makes who tick (we know that Peter doesn't care for reliance on blues standards; you know I don't like things too polished and perfect etc..) and I think that not only is there so much about the OQ that folk can get their teeth into different facets of it, but moreover it is healthy that, among people with a common interest, the OQ are NOT above criticism. A bunch of sycophants all patting the same back day in and day out would be sickeningly naff. Keep the debate (that may well include some criticism) coming, I say.

I must admit I find the fact that Big Pink seems to be mentioned as an album of some dissatisfaction a surprise, but there! My admission of not only disliking Mystery Train but also never playing NLSC more than once every two years also raised a few eyebrows higher than Roger Moore's. Great. Some discussion. Other than that, we may as well all pack up other than add our names to a list of people that says "We, the undersigned, think The Band's back catalogue is flawless and beyond criticism" and say good night...(which is exactly what I will say because it's half past four in the morning here and I only got up for a pee and a drink of water, but noticed I'd left my laptop on while I was in the kitchen!!!)

Seriously, all - what is a forum without debate? A few choice revelations and questioning of what is regarded as messianic by some and just a bloody good rock and roll band by others gets people talking. Let's keep that.

Good morning!

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Adam2

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Al Edge

Heavyweight post that last one Si. With you every step.

Posts that good, that insightful, that incisive don't come around that often.

Scousers here, scousers there, scousers every fuckin where, Na na na na na na na na nah

:-0)

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Adam2

There's another photo from London 1971 in the Robbie interview. I can't wait for the Royal Albert Hall live album. I'm so excited.

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sadavid

Subject: setting the tone

Jed: this one's pretty good . . . poor Derek (II) might as well have gone for coffee . . . .

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Jed

Part of the problem I have when listening to RR's guitar playing is the matter of expectations.Like you noted the ambiance of the music on Big Pink,there was more there then met the eye(or ear,in this case).Well,the same is true for RR's playing--the folkish,yet clearly electric rhythm or the stinging,piercing leads--it illuminated & brightened the world.It wasn't a rebellion by not playing long drawn out leads,but an evolution of the power of the guitar,sometimes demonstrated by the way one holds the pick or moves the fingers.And,RR was the master of the detail in his playing,always setting the tone perfectly.So,it's difficult to accept watching or hearing RR out of sync & the expectations are high--that he'll blow the place away simply through one or two notes & how he bends them just so....no,he couldn't do that @ Crossroads,but he's done it often @ the RRHOF jams.I'll never forget watching Paul McCartney watching RR play some really wild leads...Paul was stunned & RR was milking it in a nice way!

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RTO

Simon: thanks for that. I was wondering what you were on about with the Small Faces WBTYM until I played it just now - and there are the Chest Fever intro chords (not the organ fugue; the intro of the song 'proper' with a slightly different feel taking the song out. So, yes! Actually, I was trying to find a way to factor the two Immediate Humble Pie albums into that piece; there's stuff there definitely. That lovely Wurlitzer piano tune "Cold Lady" springs to mind, as well as stuff like "Shaky Jake", the non album B-side "Wrist Job". But like so many, there's a very British side to them as well, like "Silver Tongue" and that infuriating baroque middle section in what would be my favourite "As Safe As Yesterday Is".

Fred - Likewise (ie thanks for the feedback), and yeah, the archive site is a goldmine, eh? I often pick a date at random and find a Dead gig! Not too random, though - '66-'72 is my rough tolerance. Haven't heard any Little Feat but have enjoyed a couple of NRPS gigs on there.

Bill, sadly I missed out on the Jerome Klapka Jerome period here. But just knowing that it WAS discussed at some point gives me faith in humanity again.

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David P

Film history trivia time -- What movie featured two Nobel literature prize winners in its credits? The answer is "To Have and Have Not", directed by Howard Hawks. The film, co-starring Humphrey Bogart & Lauren Bacall, was loosely adapted from Ernest Hemingway's novel, with a screenplay co-written by William Faulkner. Mr. Faulkner also co-wrote another screenplay for Mr. Hawks, an adaptation of Raymond Chandler's "The Big Sleep", which also featured Bogart & Bacall.

Kevin: So Dawes is going on tour -- An excellent opportunity for Robbie to pop in to play a guest set on just a few dates, without having to spend a lot of time on the road.

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Empty Now

Peter V : thanks for the excellent mark, the character Lee [Goodwin] is a bootlegger, the dominant mood of Sanctuary is "the impossibility of sainthood"

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David P

Peter: We are in the middle of wild turkey hunting season here in Georgia, but that calls for shotguns with special birdshot loads rather than rifles.

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Simon

As regards MFBP I think that for those of us who were introduced to the Band via that album it's a bit like a first love situation. As Al said years ago in the GB you have to take it in the context of it being the only music by them you'd heard at that point. I also don't quite agree with the assertion that MFBP was defiantly unpsychedelic ... that's not the way I hear it. I sense a kind of inky, dusky, slightly futuristic sound (mainly from Garth's innovations), a sort of Stonesy, 'British mid-range' thing (as it's sometimes called). Lyrically cryptic but in a good way that drew you in. I also detect a fair bit of Motown influence too.

I remember Bumbles making a great point about how younger listeners coming to the Band tended to see them as standing in opposition to acid rock/psychedelia when really they were just kind of standing off to one side and mooching, faintly amused but absorbed in their own thing. I'm sure they donned the odd floral shirt/tripped out in the woods/listened to Hendrix/Cream etc., maybe just not as much as everyone else at that time. And I don't doubt they were just as committed to being as good as Ray Charles, Bobby Bland and whoever else they doted on [paraphrasing Bumbles].

But I'm still genuinely intrigued how two people can hear something in a totally different way. Like Jed's gentle insistence that Robbie's performance at the Crossroads benefit gig was a stinker. I went back and revisited that clip and I think it's pretty damn good ... sure he hesitates a little but then gets down with some real exciting cutting tone and stringbending. Again, interesting how people can have different takes on something.

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RTO

David, I like a bit of early JT too but can see why your Band comparisons raised an eyebrow. Your reasoning is true but I can't help but remember the half hour live versions of Dharma for One and general UK trait of riff-mongering that would compel me to side with your sceptics. Let's also not forget Cats Squirrel, a reworking of a blues tune favoured by a certain act who a certain guitarist broke up because they were nothing like The Band...

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Peter V

David, be careful. I've seen enough films with a Southern Gothic setting to fear those might just be rifles.

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sadavid

Imagine Shelby Foote talking about JRR's new band - he'd have to spell it out before you'd realize it wasn't The Doors . . . .

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Kevin J

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Jeb Stuart

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Peter V

I had to buy my 3rd or 4th copy of Bridge Over Troubled Water today, to get the "Live 69" so-called bonus CD. Virtually all people buying the set will already have the theoretical main attraction of Bridge and be really after the Live set, produced by Roy Halee. The Band connection is Fred Carter Jnr, who joined Hal Blaine, Joe Osborn and Larry Knechtel in the band for the 69 tour.

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David P

Bill M: Unfortunately, due to the weather patterns of late here in the South, the pines are snapping with a sharp crack, akin to the report of a rifle.

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Kevin J

Regarding BEG’s links to the Kurt Anderson interview (yesterday’s GB)………………..In addition to his comments on making albums with attention being paid to listening to it from beginning to end……………whether it changes anyone’s views on the work is of course a personal thing but at least one does know that an effort was made to have the thing hold together in that way which is more than can be said for a majority of new releases these days ( How did he put it…”No one ever asks you what your favourite chapter of a book was just whether you liked the book or not”….)………………….The point that stood out for me in the interview was his comments on the Band checking the tapes out on that 1966 tour with Dylan out of concern that they really were not playing that well at first….and that it really did take some time for them to get their act together with Bob………………also a bit startling when Anderson makes the comment about the Band being so mature by the time Big Pink came out and Robbie corrected him by saying he was just 24 at the time.

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dlew919

Fantastic. split into two halves - with a 20 minute interval, the first half was really good. The second half kicked. Just marvellous stuff... Martin Barre played the electric guitar like a sitar in one song co-written by Anushka Shankar. Anderson blew the flute like a man possessed. A great bass player (Goodier), and a marvellous drummer and unbelievable keyboardist.

I've said (and was sort of shot down in flames, but I stick by it) that in some ways JT are the English equivalent of the Band: eclectic, traditional, yet unique. the closer 'Locomotive Breath' nearly brought the house down...

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Bill M

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David P

Bill M: And, for Band connections, there's that other epic from Rodney Dangerfield's favorite poet, Longfellow's "Evangeline: A Tale of Acadie".

"This is the forest primeval. The murmuring pines and the hemlocks,
Bearded with moss, and in garments green, indistinct in the twilight..."

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Bill M

RtO: Were you onboard the SS GB a few years ago when "Three Men in a Boat" was discussed? Oddly enough, though it's English, I found more Band in it than Fairport. Looking at the Penguin edition, the first full paragraph of page 179, starting "But the river, chill and weary ..." is clearly in the rhythm of Longfellow's "The Song of Hiawatha" - as is the preceding paragraph to a lesser degree. (I looked it up at the time, and the rhythm was actually borrowed from a classic form of early Finnish literature, and Norwestcoaster will surely confirm.) Longfellow and Hiawatha both strike me as more Band than Fairport. As does the banjo in 3MiaB, which brought in mention of Maugham's "Cakes and Ale", in which appeared a banjo-playing old man, supposedly based on author Thomas Hardy.

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David P

Walker Percy's "The Moviegoer" is a quintessential New Orleans novel. I re-read it a while back following hurricane Katrina. Mr. Percy was a lifelong close friend of Shelby Foote, the noted Civil War historian. Of all the authors on that Time magazine list, Mr. Percy, along with Richard Farina's friend Thomas Pynchon and Ken Kesey, at one time might have listened to "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down".

Robbie & Dawes really played a cranked-up version of "He Don't Live Here No More" on Jimmy Kimmel's late night show early this morning. It was the best rendition I've heard so far, even the guitar solo seemed to flow smoother. Shaking off the rust, it's evident that the more Robbie plays with this group, the better they sound. Who knows, maybe soon they'll take the opportunity to play a full set of songs.

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Simon

bob - I'll drop you a line in the next few days. Hope all is well with you.

Al - Thanks very much for the Dixie piece (I almost typed "post" ;-o)) ... great stuff and much to ponder and mull over. Thinking about MFBP I can also recall you posting an excellent tribute to that album ... I've got a feeling you posted it during that period between Christmas and New Year but I'm not sure which year. That might be something to repost as I'm getting the feeling that some people don't really care for the album. I mean, Kevin J claiming it's only got two good tracks on it! (No offence Kevin but surely you jest?).

Anyway here's a true story about the Blitz, something that I only discovered about ten years ago. The Wiki page on the Liverpool blitz cites the most serious single incident when a hit on an air raid shelter in Durning Road caused 166 deaths. I found out from my mum that on that very evening my gran had discussed with another family in their street - the Shapiros - whether or not to use the Durning road shelter (it was about a hundred yards away from their Nuttall Street house) or to go elsewhere (a school about half a mile away). My mum thought that they may have drawn straws as they often did or perhaps my nan just had a hunch to mix up the routine. Anyway the Durning Road shelter took a direct hit - one of those parachute devices - and a lot of the poor souls who died were scalded to death as they were huddled around a boiler in the basement. Every time I pass Durning Road it always gives me pause for thought.

There's also a nice documentary about Sir George Martin currently on the iPlayer and he and Ringo discuss the bombings. It's a nice tribute to the man and he's quite frank and honest, especially with regard to his hearing problems.

Rob - Sterling work old chap. An excellent read. If I may also make a couple of additions ... you mentioned "Wham Bam Thank You Mam" by the Small Faces. This is just my speculation but I've always thought that track displayed a slight Chest Fever influence: slightly cryptic lyrics with possible references to exotic nookie. Or maybe not.

Here's something from a Mojo Special "Led Zeppelin and the story of 1969", from a piece by Nick Kent:

" ... the most acclaimed debut of the year by far was The Band's Music From Big Pink. On his boathouse in Pangbourne that summer, Jimmy Page listened carefully to the album, and was impressed enough by what he heard to later incorporate the baroque organ sound featured prominently on one track, Chest Fever, onto one of Led Zeppelin's earliest recordings, Your Time Is Gonna Come."

John Paul Jones has also confirmed that Chest Fever was one song they rehearsed but I don't think it was captured on tape. I'd also cite the Leslie'd guitar solo on Good Times Bad Times as being influenced by Robbie's sound on Tears of Rage. That's just a guess though.

All in all great work, Rob.

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brown eyed girl

Program: Tavis Smiley
Episode: Rock Icon Robbie Robertson
Rock icon Robbie Robertson explains why he's so transparent at this point in his life and describes his new CD, 'How to Become Clairvoyant'-- one of the most talked about projects of the year.

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Fred

RTO: I enjoyed reading your mini-Opus.

I don' t know if you know about this, but if you click on the link above it will take you to a site that has Grateful Dead shows available for listening. Until a couple of years ago, the shows were downloadable, now they're only streamed. From what I heard it was Mrs. Garcia who put a stop to the free downloading (I can neither confirm nor deny if that is true or not)

If you dig around the listening archives in the site a lot of other stuff is downloadable. Don't know if you're a Little Feat fan, but if you are they've got some good stuff uploaded (the Ultrasonic shows from 1974/1975 are very good).....and it's all free.

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brown eyed girl

You Send Me Phoebe Snow

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brown eyed girl

Kevin J...Thanks for the heads up.
Robbie Robertson Performs "He Don't Live Here No More" on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

Phoebe Snow did a duet with Garland Jeffreys...."Reelin'" from his "One-Eyed Jack" recording . Both of them soared on this song as they're exceptional singers.
She will join the other angels.....

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Peter V

Aren't they wonderful, though? And she's eight months pregnant. Imagine a two hour show of this, which I've seen twice this year.

Brien - on a new language, the repeated line in the song is "What shall I do?" I'm reminded of my editor fifteen years ago from NYC saying categorically "The word "shall" is unknown in American English." I suggested she might like to read the Constitution (which is actually a different use, but never mind!)

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Brien Sz

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Adam2

I love Go Down Moses by Faulkner.

Also, I think the release of The Band's 'Royal Albert Hall 1971' live album is coming soon. On The Band's Facebook page (which I think is run by Robbie's son?) mentioned the rumored release, and said that more details should be known in a few weeks. I took note of the date, and 2011 is indeed the 40th anniversary of the Royal Albert Hall gig, so I think that's a pretty good sign. So June 3 2011 release or announcement? Hopefully, let's keep our fingers crossed.

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Peter V

Faulkner's "Go Down Moses" is the one that shouts out. But Robbie mentions reading Faulkner somewhere. I'm inspired to re-read "Sanctuary."

Entered at Wed Apr 27 10:13:11 CEST 2011 from (41.97.222.233)

Empty Now

The drinking man knelt beside the spring. "You've got a pistol in that pocket, I suppose," he said.
Across the spring Popeye appeared to contemplate him with two knobs of soft black rubber.
"I'm asking you," Popeye said. "What's that in your pocket?"
The other man's coat was still across his arm. He lifted his other hand toward the coat, out of one pocket of which protruded a crushed felt hat, from the other a book. "Which pocket?" he said.
"Dont show me," Popeye said. "Tell me."
The other man stopped his hand. "It's a book."
"What book?" Popeye said.
"Just a book. The kind that people read. Some people do."

[… … …]

Popeye stood in the door. His hat was slanted across his face. He took a cigarette from his pocket, without producing the pack, and pinched and fretted it and put it into his mouth and snapped a match on his thumbnail. "There's a bird out front," he said.
The woman did not look around. She turned the meat. "Why tell me?" she said. "I don't serve Lee's customers."
"It's a professor," Popeye said.
The woman turned, an iron fork suspended in her hand. Behind the stove, in shadow, was a wooden box. "A what?"
"Professor," Popeye said. "He's got a book with him."
"What's he doing here?"
"I don't know. I never thought to ask. Maybe to read the book."

William Faulkner – "SANCTUARY" First published in 1931

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Peter V

Entered at Wed Apr 27 09:57:35 CEST 2011 from (99.141.48.246)

Adam2

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Peter V

Subject: Jools Holland / The Unthanks

This is the way to start your day. The Unthanks performing "Queen of Hearts" on Jools Holland last night. ( It's also "accent training" for phoning SPIN CDs in Newcastle for Brien.)

Entered at Wed Apr 27 08:36:05 CEST 2011 from (207.200.116.74)

PutEmUp(Friend0

Surviving Beach Boys Members have reunited for a single to benfit Japanese Tsunami Relief efforts.

Bruce , The Boss, spent the week working with American Idol singers, teaching them how to deliver a song confidently.

Entered at Wed Apr 27 08:19:29 CEST 2011 from (76.99.245.65)

Peter M.

Subject: Holy shit, Mavis at a Ramble!

Just announced 8 hrs ago, Ms Mavis at a special Friday night Ramble, June 3rd. Down to standing room only seats already...

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dlew919

Subject: Completists

A decent article on the subject.

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Ari; Agreed. RTO

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Ari

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Serenity

Haven't done this in a long time, so hope some of you guys enjoy it.

This Week in Rock History:

Bruce Springsteen Breaks Into Graceland

By Stacey Anderson

April 25, 2011

This week in rock history, Bruce Springsteen trespassed on Elvis's property, Joy Division played in concert for the final time, rock critic Lester Bangs died, the Eagles reunited in style and TLC diva Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes passed away.

April 30, 1976 - Bruce Springsteen hops the fence at Graceland

Anyone who's attended a Bruce Springsteen show knows that the man can talk a blue streak: his legendary three-hour sets are littered with long anecdotes, and there's no story the Boss loves telling more than the time he got booted from Elvis Presley's front porch. In 1976, while in Memphis on their hugely successful Born to Run tour, 26-year-old Springsteen and his E-Street Band cohort Steve Van Zandt decided to pay a 3 a.m. visit to Graceland. When he saw lights blazing inside the mansion, Springsteen climbed over the wall and ran to the front door; just as he was about to ring the doorbell, he was intercepted by security. Explaining his newfound rock fame and his recent covers of both Time and Newsweek, Springsteen poured on the charm and begged to be let inside – but instead, the unimpressed guards told him that Presley was out of town (which was true) and escorted him promptly to the sidewalk.

Elvis died at Graceland the following year. Regardless, he is united forever with Springsteen on the cover of Born to Run, where the Boss's guitar strap proudly bears an Elvis fan club button.

April 25, 1994 -

The Eagles perform their Hell Freezes Over reunion show

In the Eighties, whenever pressed about an Eagles reunion, frontman Don Henley always retorted, "When hell freezes over" – to no great surprise, because bad blood ran deep in the L.A. rock band's breakup. Their 1980 live album, Eagles Live, credited numerous attorneys alongside the terse liner notes, "Thank you and goodnight" – and after its release, the group split and each band member embarked on solo careers for the next decade and a half, to varied success.

The last active lineup of the Eagles (singer Don Henley, guitarist/singer Glenn Frey, guitarist Joe Walsh, guitarist Don Felder and bassist Timothy Schmit) reunited in 1993, in presence at least, for the music video for country singer Travis Tritt's cover of "Take it Easy." One year later, they reformed to record the Hell Freezes Over set on MTV, which was quickly released as a live album and debuted at Number One on the Billboard charts. The companion tour was also a runaway success, as were the album's two Top 40 singles, "Get Over It" and "Love Will Keep Us Alive." Hell Freezes Over has now sold over six million copies.

April 25, 2002 - Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes dies

The spitfire rapper and "L" of iconic R&B trio TLC, Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes was a flashy fixture of Nineties hip-hop. Her rhymes brought both humor and poignancy to the trio's many hit singles, including "What About Your Friends" (on 1992's Ooooooohhh... On the TLC Tip), "Waterfalls" (on 1994's CrazySexyCool) and "No Scrubs" (on 1999's FanMail). Lopes was easily the most controversial member of TLC: she picked feuds with her bandmates in the press; burned down the house of her boyfriend, Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Andre Rison; and often wore condoms over her left eye (in homage to her nickname and also safe sex). She was the founder of the Lisa Lopes Foundation, a charity for neglected and abandoned youths.

Lopes died in a car crash while vacationing in Honduras. She was 30. Her grave at Hillandale Memorial Gardens in Lithonia, Georgia is visited annually by hundreds of fans, many of whom leave coins at the base of her the sculpted likeness – for reasons that have never been explained.

Until next time LOVE AND PEACE xoxoxoxo

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Charlie Y

Subject: Phoebe Snow

I only got to see Phoebe Snow in concert one time--in the summer of 2008, shortly after her daughter had passed away. It was a very emotional, amazing concert. She greated fans after the show and seemed to be a lovely person. I know she was a friend of Levon and a lot of Woodstock area musicians. She will be missed.

Entered at Wed Apr 27 00:45:23 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Guys, thanks a lot for a warm reception to my article. It's a funny old world when you are English but like to listen to and indeed perform American music.

It's easier with blues, somehow - I think it is a colour thing because everybody knows it is black music that white folks play - on either side of the pond.

With stuff like The Band, it's a whole lot different. It's not dissimilar to owning a 30s house and stone cladding it if you don't go about it the right way!

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RTO

You'll be up all night? Spare a thought for me as I try to find a Fairport link to Three Men in a Boat...

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JQ

If this is the broad category that turned them on, consider the stories of Flannery O'Connor and Eudora Welty. And then add in a Faulkner novel.

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Peter V

The Sot-Weed Factor to brown album must have something. Ebenezer Cooke, Poet Laureate of Maryland.Pirates? John Smith? Pochahontas? Rude stuff with eggplants? It's still escaping me. I bet he mentions the Flying Dutchman somewhere in his odes on 18th century sea travel. I'm off to bed and will no doubt wake frequently trying to puzzle it out.

Pizzas were easy.

Entered at Tue Apr 26 23:03:48 CEST 2011 from (91.42.240.164)

Norbert

If it wasn’t the pizza’s let’s take a look at the books. From TIME’s pick of the 100 best English-Language novels from 1923 to the present, the period: 1958-1968, the decade before MFBP. Our band member must be influenced by these books? These books give us inside in the Band’s songwriting? (or where it just the movies from that time? Levon's stories?). Anyway while putting this list together I noticed that in 1968 there is NO masterpiece book listed ....and there is MFBP ….

1958 A Death in the Family (1958), by James Agee

1958 The Death of the Heart (1958), by Elizabeth Bowen

Naked Lunch (1959), by William Burroughs

Things Fall Apart (1959), by Chinua Achebe

Rabbit, Run (1960), by John Updike

The Sot-Weed Factor (1960), by John Barth

To Kill a Mockingbird (1960), by Harper Lee

Catch-22 (1961), by Joseph Heller

The Moviegoer (1961), by Walker Percy

The Golden Notebook (1962), by Doris Lessing

A House for Mr. Biswas (1962), by V.S. Naipaul

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1962), by Ken Kesey

Pale Fire (1962), by Vladimir Nabokov

A Clockwork Orange (1963), by Anthony Burgess

Herzog (1964), by Saul Bellow

The Spy Who Came in From the Cold (1964), by John le Carre

The Painted Bird (1965), by Jerzy Kosinski

The Crying of Lot 49 (1966), by Thomas Pynchon

Wide Sargasso Sea (1966), by Jean Rhys

The Confessions of Nat Turner (1967), by William Styron

1968 non listed --- MFBP

Entered at Tue Apr 26 22:37:15 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

It's revealing how Robbie describes his new album in the interview with Kurt Anderson. For him, it's not just a collection of songs. He espouses an old school premise, at odds with the younger generation's penchant for downloading only the bytes & pieces of an album that catches their fancy after an initial cursory streaming through computer speakers.

"I like albums...This record that I just made is to me a musical journey. Put it on at the beginning and it's a ride until the end. It isn't about "Oh here's a couple of good ones, the rest of the stuff doesn't really seem to matter.' It is really the journey."

In light of my unfavorable first impression, maybe I need to listen to HTBC with this approach in mind.

Entered at Tue Apr 26 22:28:18 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

Entered at Tue Apr 26 21:18:14 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

Entered at Tue Apr 26 20:11:34 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

RTO: Thank you for taking the time to write that piece on the influence of MFBP…………………I usually learn something when I read what you write – in this case about pre-Dudes Mottt the Hoople……………….

Ray P: Appreciated your thoughts on Dylan in Vietnam………………..agree that it is hilarious the way some folks gets into a tizzy over things they don’t understand…….or even care to learn about.

Entered at Tue Apr 26 19:47:23 CEST 2011 from (74.108.27.233)

Joan

RIP Phoebe Snow. We grew up in the same town. Both "Jersey Girls"

Entered at Tue Apr 26 19:07:10 CEST 2011 from (41.97.201.218)

Empty Now

right now - Constantine 54°F - Oslo 59°F

it will quickly change

Entered at Tue Apr 26 18:59:02 CEST 2011 from (41.97.201.218)

Empty Now

weather of Oslo, the one in Norway

Entered at Tue Apr 26 18:52:49 CEST 2011 from (41.97.201.218)

Empty Now

Subject: Re: Bill M -- did you ever heard about Ftira ?

Bill M : like this old regular of the same show, I ended believing to have rights over my host to use his GB for bookmarking links of very personal concern and extra The Band interest. When it happens to have a GBer specially the one called Bill to share it, I am simply flattered

I once posted about an "abnormal" for the season, but regular very localized weather phenomenon in Constantine. The popular name of this weather is "Ftira", at the origin the local name of the flatbread Jews do on Passover.
Cold temperature, rain, snow in some years, in the midst of a Mediterranean spring. But also the ultimate cold weather of the year. "After Ftira, the sky is clear forever" (proverb).
This very local phenomenon has a metronome regularity, whereas Passover dates vary over the years. Ftira is always punctual for the rendezvous.
Moreover, the last decade perturbations of global weather didn’t perturb the local rule, see the link : Constantine weather today, it's in real time – compare with the temperature in Oslo for The Band connection

As everybody knows in The GB, my interest is popular linguistic: Passover == Flatbread == localized weather phenomenonm the 3 have only one name in Constantine : Ftira

. Another unpleasant side of my recent posts is the reediting aspect [but youtube/wikipedia improved] . At the light of this regularity, likely that 3000 years ago they relied on cooking to count time, or in modern and technical terms, to calibrate and size the hourglass : "Akhenaton, Akhenaton, stop pouring the sand and close the glass! Itzak hade done it flat"

Thanks Bill. I started suspecting that pizzas have more success than matzos in The Band world

Entered at Tue Apr 26 17:45:13 CEST 2011 from (99.235.255.183)

Serenity

DAVID P: Thanx for the link. Here's an additional obit/bio I received in my inbox this AM.. May she RIP...So sad, as she was a great lady.

NEW YORK, N.Y. - Phoebe Snow, a bluesy singer, guitarist and songwriter who had a defining hit of the 1970s with "Poetry Man" but then largely dropped out of the spotlight to care for her disabled daughter, has died. Snow, who was nominated for best new artist at the 1975 Grammys, died Tuesday morning in Edison, N.J., from complications of a brain hemorrhage she suffered in January 2010, said Rick Miramontez, her longtime friend and public relations representative. She was 60. Snow's manager, Sue Cameron, said the singer endured bouts of blood clots, pneumonia and congestive heart failure since her stroke.

"The loss of this unique and untouchable voice is incalculable," Cameron said. "Phoebe was one of the brightest, funniest and most talented singer-songwriters of all time and, more importantly, a magnificent mother to her late brain-damaged daughter, Valerie, for 31 years. Phoebe felt that was her greatest accomplishment."

Known as a folk guitarist who made forays into jazz and blues, Snow put her stamp on soul classics such as "Shakey Ground," ''Love Makes a Woman" and "Mercy, Mercy Mercy" on over a half dozen albums.

Not long after Snow's "Poetry Man" reached the Top 5 on the pop singles chart in 1975, her daughter, Valerie Rose, was born with severe brain damage, and Snow decided to care for her at home rather than place her in an institution.

"She was the only thing that was holding me together," she told the San Francisco Chronicle in 2008. "My life was her, completely about her, from the moment I woke up to the moment I went to bed at night."

Valerie, who had been born with hydrocephalus, a buildup of fluid in the brain cavity that inhibits brain development, was not expected to live more than a few years. She died in 2007 at age 31.

Over the years, Snow found time to sing on Paul Simon's song "Gone at Last" and tour with him, as well as perform at the Woodstock 25th anniversary festival in 1994, as part of a soul act that included Thelma Houston, Mavis Staples and CeCe Peniston.

Snow was also recruited by Steely Dan's Donald Fagen to participate in the New York Rock and Soul Revue, which took her, Charles Brown, Michael McDonald, Boz Scaggs and others on tour and into New York's Beacon Theatre to record a rollicking live album in 1991.

"Occasionally I put an album out, but I didn't like to tour, and they didn't get a lot of label support," she told the Chronicle. "But you know what? It didn't really matter because I got to stay home more with Valerie, and that time was precious."

She was born Phoebe Ann Laub to white Jewish parents in New York City in 1952, and raised in Teaneck, N.J. Though many assumed she was black, Snow never claimed African-American ancestry. She changed her name after seeing Phoebe Snow, an advertising character for a railroad, emblazoned on trains that passed through her hometown. Snow quit college after two years to perform in amateur nights at Greenwich Village folk clubs.

Her first record, "Phoebe Snow," came out in 1974, and showed off her songwriting chops on a selection of tunes that spanned blues, jazz and folk. Hit-bound "Poetry Man" took the record to No. 4 on the album charts, but her success was uneasy.

"There are turning points in everyone's life where you decide if you're going to sink or swim. My insecurity wasn't serving me well at all. It was really a stumbling block," she told The Associated Press in 1989.

Rumours abounded that Jackson Browne was Poetry Man. "No, no. It's somebody you wouldn't know. People just thought Poetry Man was Browne because he was the first act I toured with," Snow told USA Today in 1989.

After 1976's gold-selling "Second Childhood," Snow's subsequent albums found smaller audiences. Through the 1980s and into the 1990s, Snow sang commercial jingles — for companies including Michelob, Hallmark and AT&T — and performed live here and there.

Inexperienced in the music business, she broke a number of contracts with record companies and others, and found herself embroiled in a number of lawsuits and severe financial problems. Snow's husband, musician Phil Kearns, left her while Valerie was still a baby.

She sang the theme for NBC's "A Different World" and the jingle "Celebrate the Moments of Your Life" for General Foods International Coffees. She also sang at radio host Howard Stern's wedding to Beth Ostrosky in 2008 and for President Bill Clinton, who asked her to perform at Camp David during his presidency.

In 2003, she released the CD "Natural Wonder," her first album of new, original material in 14 years. Her other albums include 1989's "Something Real," and 1981's "Rock Away." In 2008, she released a live album titled "Live" and a best-of CD in 2001.

Until next time LOVE AND PEACE xoxoxoxo

Entered at Tue Apr 26 17:04:48 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Peter V: I know you're busy, but please accept my thanks for the calzone idea; it improves things immensely.

Entered at Tue Apr 26 16:47:14 CEST 2011 from (74.203.77.122)

Jon Lyness

Subject: Phoebe Snow

David P, that is heartbreaking news. RIP Phoebe, you will be sorely missed.

Entered at Tue Apr 26 16:44:55 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

If the Band were pizzas … Garth would be the Four Seasons, laden with every rich possibility in the book . Levon would have to be the Americano with pepperoni and chili. Not that he’s peppery or hot-tempered or anything, but because he’s American. The Levonistas think there’s something slippery about Robbie, so would choose the Marinara. But I’d choose the “Custom” because it inspires creativity even if it’s three anchovy toppings, one artichoke and some rocket (rugola). Rick would be the Margherita. Straightforward. A down to earth balanced blend. Richard would be Calzone. That’s folded over with the topping in the middle. That’s because while you can cook one side of a normal pizza on an iron, the cheesy side blocks up the steaming holes and you ruin your shirts.

I have to stop this and do some work!

Entered at Tue Apr 26 16:34:45 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

RtO: Yes, "Country Girl" got a fair bit of FM airplay here when it was released. Likely the last Brinsley Schwarz song that did. From to "Ballad Of A Has-Been Beauty Queen" to "Indian Woman" to "Country Girl" - yes the Dylan/Band influence is apparent in just the titles.

Speaking of Band influences, here's a quote from a book of mostly jazz reviews by Gene Santoro (who he?): "Tim Berne slamdunks postpunk noise, soul-music alto, and Ornette into an unban-hipster argot. Bill Frisell bleeds post-apocalypse raunch into a keening pedal-steel longing for a big sky. Wayne Horvitz swirls The Band and Monk and Sonny Clark together. Marty Ehrlich jumps off from Muhal and Braxton." Muhal is Muhal Richard Abrams; an earlier article in the same book mentions that Abrams' pre-AACM Experimental Band had Charles Stepney on vibes; Pat B will appreciate that there's also another tangential connection to Rotary Connection - a mention of Minnie Ripperton's piano-playing brother. Speaking of AACM (Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians), I saw a CD reissue of a '60s (?) concert of theirs and was surprised to see that the personnel included Fontella "Rescue Me" Bass.

Empty N: I wonder how they counted out 18 minutes 3000 years ago? Imagine the scene: "Rachel, Rachel, stop cooking! The Pharoah's coming and we must run for our lives." "Stop your fussing, Itzak. He can't possibly make it in less that 20 minutes and I have a new recipe idea that can get us out of here in 18." The rest is history.

Entered at Tue Apr 26 16:33:25 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Subject: R.I.P. Phoebe Snow

Phoebe Snow passed away early today from complications resulting from a brain hemorrhage she suffered in Jan. 2010. Ms. Snow made several guest appearances with the Levon Helm Band in recent years. Her beautiful, soulful voice will sorely be missed.

Entered at Tue Apr 26 16:16:41 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

You already know I loved it Rob but it deserves mention on here.

You've taken on an ambitious task and come out with a really fine piece that I'm sure enhances the perspective of most of us as to the significance of The Band's impact.

I think the piece has oodles of really informed, insightful and interesting snippets and takes on stuff which I'm sure will be new to many - including yours truly - Chas Clarke - who'd have thunk it. Rabbit, rabbit, rabbit. But I do love the slant you've deduced on that aspect. Nice. Unique take and compelling.

Nice one Rob

Entered at Tue Apr 26 15:22:29 CEST 2011 from (63.88.115.195)

Carmen

See web page for Band related artists putting out new CD's.

Entered at Tue Apr 26 13:22:44 CEST 2011 from (41.97.201.218)

Empty Now

Entered at Tue Apr 26 13:15:22 CEST 2011 from (41.97.201.218)

Empty Now

Subject: RAH

only 2 events worth archiving in The Royal Albert Hall official TIMELINE linked above :

1 - HM The Queen, 29 March

2 - Muhammad Ali, 19 October

Entered at Tue Apr 26 12:44:25 CEST 2011 from (76.67.19.210)

brown eyed girl

THE BATTLE OF DIXIE & ROBBIE ROBERTSON
Friday, April 15, 2011

"People are now denied the use of the song because the ‘politically correct’ say that it is offensive. It’s a form of cultural genocide."
— South Carolina State Senator Glenn McConnell on “Dixie”

American Icons: Dixie
"This is the tune the nation brought to war."

"It’s been a century-and-a-half since a minstrel tune called “Dixie” debuted in New York. The song went viral, and soon North and South alike were whistling “Dixie.” With the outbreak of the Civil War, “Dixie” became an anthem of the antebellum way of life. And today we are still..."

Bonus Track: Elvis Sings "Dixie"
Bing Crosby sings "Dixie" video

Marc Goodman from Toronto
"Finally got around to listening to this episode featuring Robbie Robertson (and indirectly an homage to Bob Dylan) and then the story behind "Dixie". One of the best versions of Dixie I have ever heard was in what has to be one of the quirkiest films ever to come out of a camera. "Masked and Anonymous" features kick-ass version of Dixie being played and sung by Dylan." http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0319829/
Apr. 21 2011 10:21 PM

Entered at Tue Apr 26 11:44:43 CEST 2011 from (76.67.19.210)

brown eyed girl

ROBBIE ROBERTSON GOES NONFICTION

Bonus Track: Kurt Andersen's full conversation with Robbie Robertson

Bonus Track: Robbie Robertson discusses his favorite The Band song, "Rag Mama Rag"

Entered at Tue Apr 26 11:38:31 CEST 2011 from (76.67.19.210)

brown eyed girl

"SANTA MONICA, Calif., April 13, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Robbie Robertson's How To Become Clairvoyant (429 Records/Macro-Biotic Records) debuts at No. 13* on The Billboard 200 today, marking the highest debut and highest chart position for Robbie's solo works in his career. The album also debuted in the Top 5 of the Top Internet Albums (No. 4), Top Current Rock Albums (No. 5), Top Independent Label Current Albums (No. 5) and Independent Small Chain Core Stores (No. 2) charts and ranked No. 12 on the Top Digital Albums chart.

The New Yorker called it "thoughtful, as intimate as an Elliott Landy photograph"....

I brought HTBC for my friends to hear yesterday while we drove to the far east end of the city. They saw Robbie with me at Toronto's Canadian Music Week.....not much reaction one way or another. I think one of my friends has never forgiven Robbie for not having a meet and greet the way Daniel Lanois did......

Entered at Tue Apr 26 11:24:48 CEST 2011 from (76.67.19.210)

brown eyed girl

Robbie Robertson and pals triumph, and more

...."his departure from The Band in “This Is Where I Get Off” — offering up answers to questions that must have plagued him most of his life. Not a great deal is revealed, though the album offers Robertson’s pleasant growl, some gentle, bluesy grooves and a whole lot of tasteful instrumental work. In many ways, How to Become Clairvoyant is at once Robertson’s most honest and least overtly ambitious recording. It’s the reassuring voice of an old friend counting his blessings way down the road. And that’s worth a listen."

Greg Quill...Who Bill M, Blind Wille McTell and I saw perform with Garth Hudson and others

Hey RTO...imagezulu does most of the cooking as well. Since Easter Monday was a holiday for some of us; I took over. I went out with friends later and by the time I came home for dinner, he had almost finished barbequing. Most of the men in my family, also are the cooks in their households.
Btw, when we make pizza, sometimes we make it on whole wheat naan bread with tomato garlic sauce. My favourite pizza in Ontario is in Port Hope. I hope one day to finally visit Italy.....Also, my older brother used to cater to some musicians when they came through Kitchener, Ontario. He told me that Stevie Ray Vaughan wanted a chicken meal. Hmmm....Simple Minds and Annie Lennox? When he saw Robbie in a Yorkville restaurant, he couldn't remember what he ordered but did remember he tipped well like Keith Richards? At the time I was disappointed he didn't call me. He didn't want me to stalk Robbie; I said nooooo.....I would just be reporting to The Band site. ;-D

Now when I saw Lowe, Costello and Minke DeVille....Was Dave Edmunds at the same gig? I was really there for Mink DeVille and Elvis Costello.

Entered at Tue Apr 26 10:14:29 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Entered at Tue Apr 26 09:48:07 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Subject: Isle of Wight 1969

The Band were part of one of the slowest changeovers. According to the Isle of Wight website (linked) they came on three hours after the previous act, and then had a 40 minute gap between them and Dylan. Apparently, they were unsatisfied with the sound. Well, it was a field.

Entered at Tue Apr 26 09:34:51 CEST 2011 from (41.97.176.193)

Empty Now

no Band connection in the link, a must reading

Entered at Tue Apr 26 09:18:08 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

The last two years, hand over from support bands to headliners has been pretty seamless, with twenty minutes sufficing at shows I've seen. That's how it always used to be, because both road crews would wade in and help move everything. Then we entered a long era where one crew watched until the first finished, then started. The difference stems from more complicated equipment obviously, but also "band education". In the late 60s / early 70s, all the big college gigs in the UK (on a weekly basis) regularly had four bands sharing a modest sized stage. Crowds were fast to start a slow handclap or boo if crews were poncing around switching over. And in those days, each band would likely have its own small PA system and mixers, rather than a huge rented in board and system working for everyone.

I also think that some bands have become more savvy about support bands and gear. Trembling Bells and Unthanks used the same drum kit for example … not that many drummers would like that.

My reaction to the GD is that there were always "unco-operative" bands who didn't give a shit about the other band. That was a powerful (and dangerous) example. It also would be coming in from outside the "system." There were motorway stops where bands and crews regularly mixed at 3 a.m, and if a local band had behaved that way, they would have been "remonstrated with". As I've pointed out before, so thin were late night food places in the 60s (once you were off the far fewer motorways) that there were known milk dispensing machines where you'd find three Ford Transits parked in the early hours. Instead of truck stops, there were "ice cold milk" machines on the street, with a machine dispensing Cadbury's Dairy Milk chocolate next to them. The milk came in plain or strawberry flavour. There was one between Bristol and Bath. Another on the main road out of Southampton. I could still point out the exact locations. It's hard to believe now, but bands would detour ten miles to get to one. Around London, they'd drive out to Heathrow Airport where you could actually eat.

Entered at Tue Apr 26 03:07:41 CEST 2011 from (59.101.33.77)

dlew919

I can't separate it - Robbie brought songs, and earthshattering guitar. Rick bought a voice, bass, fiddle. And as Ronnie Hawkins said, those danko boys have different (or whatever he said) ears. Richard - drums, piano, voice, song. Garth... Garth.... Levon: drums, mandolin, voice...

With a gun to my head, Garth, but I'd change my mind anyway later.

Entered at Tue Apr 26 02:40:17 CEST 2011 from (66.81.243.198)

Elkhorn Slim

well Im not sure about becomming claiavoante but mayb my Dog Virgil Cane dose ,

Entered at Tue Apr 26 01:34:51 CEST 2011 from (72.230.109.86)

Bashful Bill

Subject: Garcia a wanker?

Just checking in to find pizza being revisited in guestbookland and Peter calling Garcia a wanker. I can only imagine what that's about, but some years back I recall posting here that on that Pizza Tapes version of Long Black Veil Garcia doesn't even sound like Garcia. He also sings a nice Amazing Grace and Man of Constant sorrow. I also recall them doing House of the Rising Sun on that album, but I don't think Garcia sang it. I'll have to dig it out, I recall really liking it when they released it but I don't think I've listened to it since. Garcia really seemed to shine whenever he played with Grisman. They usually played stuff which both of them loved and I think he was very relaxed when they got together to play

Entered at Mon Apr 25 22:54:39 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Entered at Mon Apr 25 22:36:18 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

RtO: I forgot all about "Country Girl", another Brinsley Schwarz record that got a fair bit of FM play when it was new. The linked video's well worth a watch - and hang in there a bit. When it comes to "Indian Woman", do you think they saw her wearing a sari or deerskin?; I'm thinking the latter.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 22:33:46 CEST 2011 from (70.28.32.74)

Landmark

Yes John D they were of the same time and era. As I recall in those "Pre-Rock/ Mantovani FM" days, the evening deejay was the big wheel whereas nowadays, it is the "morning man" who brings in the big ratings and ad dollars. I could be wrong about that however I am are dealing with old memories. Fond as they are but possibly faulty as well.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 21:47:06 CEST 2011 from (99.254.209.45)

John D

Subject: Landmark

Dean Hagopian!! A man I never met; but I knew enough people who did and they had nothing but the greatest respect for him. I heard he was a giant in the business and a real character. I did however work with a good friend of his who was a legendary DJ at CFOX and that was Dave Boxer. They were of the same era I believe. When I was with CJFM on Mountain street in the 70's, Ted was downstairs at CJAD. Another wonderful character and a fine newsman. I don't have any stories; but I know people who do; from that time.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 21:46:18 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Subject: Bill M

Bill, I'll take your word for it. I know the song you mean and always turn it off after the first thirty seconds!

Interestingly enough, they had a song called "Indian Woman" that got left off the first LP (linked) but which survives for posterity as a German TV performance. I can think of at least - oh, ALL of them - songs that could have been pulled in favour of this. And this isn't THAT breathtaking - but good in a sub-"Wooden Ships" kind of way. Bob Andrews' organ playing is particularly good and Brinsley gets particularly Stills-like at 3:50!

I think you hit the nail on the head by suggesting that something was just not there in the early days but got an awful lot better quite quickly. I would suggest that it applies to BS in general rather than just Nick as a bassist. You have to remember that the night of the Fillmore hiccup, they were opening for Van Morrison who had his "Moondance" band on and was in stunning form. They had a crash course in "good" and put it into place immediately.

If you let the clip play out it should take you to another performance - this time from 1975 and covering Clover's "Love Is Gone"; the difference is staggering; THAT'S the no-frills, classy American sounding act I was writing about a few days ago.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 21:25:11 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Entered at Mon Apr 25 21:23:13 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Sorry to jump down your throat on that one, Peter. It is no mean feat trying to defend two of your favourite acts at once when either one of them could have behaved like multiples of the epithet that Brinsley hurled at Jerome!

Your point about electrical safety is well taken and endorsed this end 100%. The Leslie cabinet - a fine, unearthed piece of equipment that has no direct mains connection and relies on the organ to power it - is a known killer and were I more spiritual I would offer prayers of thanks after every outdoor gig I have ever done.

I'm sure that Garcia was as capable of acting as described on some days. I don't know if I could handle being the unwitting messiah for every stoned fungoid in every town I rocked up in just to play some music. By the same token, nobody wishes the Brinsleys had made it bigger more than I - but if you drill down it is not difficult to understand why sometimes, and it has nothing to do with the quality of music.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 21:11:13 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

No, Peter - I said that Brinsley CALLED him a wanker. I didn't confirm anything about Captain Trips' status as an onanist whatsoever!

It could well be that the Brinsleys pissed off down the pub for most of the afternoon and came back in sufficient time to give the Grateful Dead about 30 minutes notice to move all their gear - and we all know how much tie-dyed Fender equipment the GD were toting from the many pictures of the Euriope '72 tour (ie lots!). That's exactly what they did (meaning "went down the pub all afternoon") when supporting Wings - Macca made a point of ensuring the support act got time for at least a basic soundcheck every day and the Brinsleys threw it back in his face by going down the pub and not bothering.

Thus, Garcia should be considered no more of a wanker now than he was before my post, Mr V!

Entered at Mon Apr 25 21:01:54 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Tying a couple of discussion threads together brings the mind the 1993 recording featuring Jerry Garcia, David Grisman & Tony Rice. Mr. Garcia's copy was apparently stolen by a pizza delivery guy and later bootlegged. Mr. Grisman later released an official version on his Acoustic Disc label in 2000 appropriately entitled "The Pizza Tapes". This acoustic set from three great musicians includes a cover of "Long Black Veil".

Entered at Mon Apr 25 20:49:18 CEST 2011 from (74.203.77.122)

Jon Lyness

Subject: Alexis P. Suter Band with Garth Hudson

BEG's clip of Alexis P. Suter with Garth led me to this one -- Alexis' band covering The Shape I'm In with Garth on piano. Looks like he's having fun. Check it out!

Entered at Mon Apr 25 20:48:36 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Jerry Garcia – you confirm via Brinsley that he was a wanker. I always suspected as much. How many died through 240 volts in a mic or guitar? 99% of British musicians would have used the “C-word” for a musician forcing his fellows to play electric in rain. Indefensible attitude. “Wanker” is far, far too mild. I only wish Jerry had expressed that reluctance to Led Zep’s crew in that era. That would have been the end of him. And good riddance. I know people who died from unearthed equipment. Not funny. I now put Garcia down as "total arsehole."

In general, road crews in that era co-operated. No doubt the GD didn’t understand the score in the UK. Because agencies booked bands in blocks, most crews knew each other and found co-operation the best move. Brinsely Schwarz would have had a crew of two at most, I suspect. The GD, like Hawkwind who copied them, would have had lots and lots. Two working and ten wankers (or more). Hawkwind’s crew spent most of their time trying to steal stuff from other bands (leads etc). They were loathed on the circuit. Lemmy turned it into a career.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 20:42:39 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Subject: Bill M

There's a Dingwalls Concert that was (kind of) a second volume of Greasy Truckers (see link). Looks like Gong fulfilled the Hawkwind role on that one (ie for the hygienically challenged)!!

Well the webmaster may have castigated you for the besmirching of Nick Lowe's bass work, Bill! No sympathy! As an occasional bassist myself, if a few more people played bass like Nick Lowe and less like Jaco Pastorious, i'd be well happy. IMHO the music world went to pieces the minute the rhythm section felt they were entitled to a bigger share of the action. Give me Ringo and Nick over Jon Hiseman and Jaco any day of the week!!

That said, the first BS album is "BS"! Surprising that it was the widely played LP over the water as on home turf it meant nothing. "Despite It All" was the first one that people generally bothered with and remains one of my favourites.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 20:30:44 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Entered at Mon Apr 25 20:18:03 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Entered at Mon Apr 25 20:16:29 CEST 2011 from (91.42.238.7)

Norbert

p.s. come to think of it, remarkable that one can trace the musician’s personality back over the kind of pizza he eats and vice versa. As they say, you are what you eat.

Anyway those pizzas formed the band. Listen closely, with an open mind to their giant legacy and you’ll find all those Marina’s and Margherita’s back in Garth organ, Levon’s beatings on the drums, Rick’s bass, Richard’s voice and Robbie’s guitar solo’s.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 20:09:47 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Joan, thanks for the feedback and I'm with you on thin crust, all day long. That's how you get them in Italy, and despite the fine efforts of NY or Chicago.....you get my drift!

Entered at Mon Apr 25 20:04:03 CEST 2011 from (74.108.27.233)

Joan

Peter. Pizza without tomatoes and cheese? Wouldn't that be just plain flat bread? Didn't we have a great GB debate as to who had the best pizza? Chicago deep dish or NY thin crust? I vote for thin.

Rob, greet article. Thank you for posting it.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 20:00:40 CEST 2011 from (91.42.238.7)

Norbert

Lars,

There have been bigger mysteries revealed .... my guess (and please correct me):

Robbie: the veggie pizza [Robbie is the guy for such a thing ]

Levon: the bucket of KFC Chicken [just to tease Robbie? Did the feud begin over a pizza and a bucket of chicken?]

Richard: the sausage double cheese with black olive [all or nothing, could be even frozen as Bill M suggested]

Garth: the plain cheese one[Garth]

Rick: plain cheese [this one I’m not sure about, maybe Levon and Rick shared some chicken, or Rick had Garth switched pizza]

Entered at Mon Apr 25 20:00:38 CEST 2011 from (70.28.32.74)

Landmark

I lived across the street from the Forum, on Atwater for many years. The Moustache was long gone by then. As Bill would remember, I saw "All The Young Dudes" there which featured Bob Segarini, who came from the band, The Wackers, which also featured Randy Bishop, who worked with the GB's very own Pat B. Thanks for the memories.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 19:44:21 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

Landmark....thanks by the way as through you last week, I did find a link to my favorite Garfield song - above link......thinking of Montreal……My first serious girlfriend lived on Lincoln Street (2324 as I recall) which was right behind the old Montreal Forum and also just a 30 second walk to a crazy/sometimes great rock club called The Moustache – caught a few interesting acts there in the late 70’s early 80’s………………….

Entered at Mon Apr 25 19:42:11 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Bill did you see my earlier reply about GD/Brinsley Schwarz? I kind of buried it by posting another lengthy piece!

Entered at Mon Apr 25 19:36:08 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Entered at Mon Apr 25 19:20:42 CEST 2011 from (70.28.32.74)

Landmark

Easter doldrums indeed! Dean Hagopian has been around since I was a little tyke, if not longer. I do not know if he has a show or slot these days, the last I recall, he hosted a Sunday night oldies show. He still does plenty of radio commercials and if you know his voice, you will recognize it on countless phone directories (Purolator for instance). I recall he hosted a television special that was a reunion of Montreal musicians from the mid-60's era, Corky Laing being the best known. The name Ted Blackman brings back memories as I knew him personally in the late 70's. He was a columnist for the Gazette, starting in the sports department. He also was a broadcaster for many years on CJAD and a noted bon vivant in his day. I had money invested in a pool when he got his own morning show on CFCF. The pool was based on who could pick the correct day that he would miss his shift (5:30 AM). I thought I nailed when I saw him, fall ass over backwards inro a snow bank while a snowblower made its way down Crescent Street. Not to be as he managed to sober up and make it in. He later was living with one of the McGarrigle sisters, which one, I can't recall. If John D. is lurking about, I'm sure he could flesh out things further and chip in his own memories, as he once mentioned that he was in town in the mid 70's

Entered at Mon Apr 25 19:15:16 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

Entered at Mon Apr 25 18:52:42 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Like most, I was really looking forward to Robbie's return to recording, only to be disappointed. After reading about the long process of the project, I wonder if there was too much emphasis placed on the technical aspects of recording all the cool layers of music, diluting any spark of spontaneity captured in the heat of the moment in the studio. Even the aforementioned acoustic guitar solo on HDLHNM sounds as if it was a Pro-Tooled overdub.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 18:42:44 CEST 2011 from (41.97.252.252)

Empty Now

Thanks for the precious informations

Al : so YOU WERE IN RAH ! this is a great mark

in reality behind the melting of fun and seriousness of my previous post, its presence alone in this forum is a proof of where I would have been 6/2/71 if I had to chose (with the obligatory Super 8 mm Camera in hand and a suffiscent supply of film loads)

[arms crossed in shield over my head to counter random items thrown by the GBers]

Entered at Mon Apr 25 18:05:11 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

PART 3 – CREATING NEW MUSIC INFUSED WITH TRADITIONAL ROOTS

(PREAMBLE: One thing that Anglo-Americana had in common with the earlier blues boom was very simply imitation of a music with absolutely no ties to the performers’ own heritage. Industrialisation of the UK had led to member nations, particularly England, less reliant on the land and with that the decline of the extended family set up to work the farm and bring the harvest home. In places such as the USA and Germany, that homely scenario of a hearty communal meal after a hard day’s work, often with a little too much to drink and the inevitable breaking out of some musical instruments for a sing-song would thrive far later than in the UK, and the old songs (and dances) were largely forgotten until Cecil Sharpe set about collecting them as is well-known. Unlike many of their American contemporaries, many UK pop and rock musicians first picked up an instrument to imitate the Elvis, Hank Marvin or, inevitably later on The Beatles. By and large, the skiffle movement is the nearest the UK ever got to the kind of evensong that was the norm in land-working nations, and is a different entity as it encouraged novices to have a go. Thus, the folk club was the only route to hear traditional English music; even then, played by revivalists rather than by individuals who had known their native folk music through childhood and it was deeply ingrained to the bone that by the time they made electric music, it was there subconsciously. Jerry Garcia (bluegrass banjo) and the Wilson brothers (barbershop acapella vocals) are just two examples of successful American rock/pop artists that went into their careers with a solid grounding in a folk music of some description. There was, to my knowledge, NO UK equivalent outside of liturgical music, where an understanding of our own folk music was naturally bred.)

This case study is almost exclusively about the formative years of Fairport Convention; a unique example of an act that could see the value in what The Band achieved and applied it to their own situation, rather than simply copying the end product.

The Muswell Hill band, formed in 1967 - with key players Richard Thompson, Simon Nicola, Ashley Hutchings and Martin Lamble already in place early on – always set out to be different to the average blues-based bands so prevalent in 1967 London. Admiring the dynamics of Jefferson Airplane, the band added one male and one female singer to ape the format of Marty Balin and Grace Slick. These were Ian Matthews and Judy Dyble, and the band recorded one album in this format for Polydor records in 1968.

In 1968, Dyble was replaced by Sandy Denny who brought a new standard of musicianship to the band – a veteran of the folk clubs, Denny had worked with The Strawbs and solo, working to much tighter standards than the rest of the band had hitherto. Denny also brought a love of traditional English music from her club experience and this would prove crucial in marking Fairport out from the crowd over the next year or so.

Due to their working relationship with American producer Joe Boyd, the group heard many of the “Basement Tapes” songs and other pieces of semi-obscure or unreleased Dylan. “I’ll Keep It With Mine” was tackled on “What We Did On Our Holidays” (their first album featuring Denny and also their first for Island Records) and Richard Thompson particularly was struck by the first two releases from The Band. Already a blossoming songwriter, Thompson’s growing ability and inspiration from MFBP led to some great moments on their third LP “Unhalfbricking”. “Cajun Woman” from Thompson showed early evidence of Americana filtering through (Matthews left Fairport around this time but they gained veteran folk-club fiddle/mandolin player Dave Swarbrick) in the use of fiddle allied to a rock beat, not to mention the Cajun lady in the song title. The album included fine versions of Dylan again: “Percy’s Song” (a 1963 outtake; Matthews still in Fairport when it was recorded and he provides a fine lead vocal) and (of more relevance to this piece) basement sessions song “Million Dollar Bash”. Fairport were getting better and better with each album; on their next they would finally hit their stride. Sadly it would take a fatal road accident (that claimed the life of drummer Martin Lamble) to shake the band up and get them making some decisions for the future.

The addition of Swarbrick, allied to Denny’s own folk roots and the impressive emergence of Thompson as a creative source dominated such decisions. The Band, they rationed, had demonstrated that you could create a body of songs that were informed by native folk values but was a new music for the rock album generation. This decision was well taken as Anglo-Americana, simply apeing The Band, was not making use of their UK folk influences, while simply playing electrified versions of traditional tunes (which had already been done by Steeleye Span) denied their creative input. This blueprint demonstrated a better understanding of what went into MFBP (and especially “The Band” that followed it) rather than, like so many, simply taking the end product and imitiating it.

With new drummer Dave Mattacks on board, the band delivered “Liege and Lief”, their seminal masterpiece. This still featured some traditional tunes, but reworked so extensively that they simply sat among the superb originals in a seamless body of work. Opening cut “Come All Ye” setting the pace and the scene so effectively like “Across The Great Divide” does on “The Band”, Fairport had nailed their goal big time – to do for English music what The Band had done with American. To this day, many people consider that the album has never been close to having an equal. Certainly Steeleye Span were far more traditional; one exception is possibly Lindisfarne’s debut “Nicely Out of Tune” although the original material is without the Band influence so readily tangible and lacks the gravitas of Fairport (or The Band).

Denny and Hutchings left Fairport Convention in late 1969, the band still very much in emotional turmoil after the crash. Denny formed Fotheringay before embarking on a solo career that ended along with her life, tragically early in 1978. Hutchings remained active in folk rock and founded The Albion Band among other projects.

Thompson stayed for one more album, “Full House” and the band again pulled out some fine examples of English rock that you could (like “Rag Mama Rag” or “TNTDODD”) be forgiven for assuming to be traditional standards. “Doctor of Physick” echoes the often crude message of many an old English song of a girl’s loss of innocence, whereas “Walk Awhile” is a good spirited rocker with another Band trademark of shared verses employed in a native framework. The loss of Denny was regrettable at a time when Fairport should have capitalised, but this first all-male line-up delivered a more muscular sounding (due in part to the far more solid bass work of new man Dave Pegg) collection of songs and if anything took their Band influences a step further: for the first time they were “self contained” in that the instrumentalists shared the lead vocals; Denny’s fear of flying had also cost Fairport the chance to tour extensively and it was the 1970 all-male band that first played the USA. With a growing body of original songs, blistering electrified jigs and reels and even the odd Chuck Berry encore, Fairport Convention were never more on fire and ready to be reckoned with as a live act. They took England to the American stage just as The Band themselves would take America to the Royal Albert Hall the following year.

And there we leave the story, as Richard Thompson would also depart before completion of the next Fairport album. The band would last for many years more and despite a brief hiatus still hold their place in folk-rock royalty. But after the departure of Thompson it can be argued that they were never as innovative again (despite a fairly strong follow up in “Angel Delight” and a credible attempt at a concept album in “Babbacombe Lee”; both 1971; remaining founder Nicol quit thereafter), and certainly more content to play more traditional music. Thompson remains one of the most respected writers, performers and guitarists to this day - perhaps due a solid understanding of English and Celtic roots music led to his own emergence as a strong writer – but whether the young guitarist and fledgling songwriter infatuated by The Band and, unlike so many, intelligent enough to understand the formula rather than the outright answer would be the same man without this most American of influences is another story!

Entered at Mon Apr 25 17:47:53 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

Bill….our posts crossed……….I don’t know about any Dean recordings…...As a teenager, I helped out at a telethon of some sort late 70’s and he was there and seemed a great guy……….I mentioned this to my brother at the time and I recall him telling me that Dean was one of the great Montreal radio guys of all-time………I would catch him on some AM shows from time to time while in Montreal but obviously missed out on his times as an influential music DJ………………I do recall memorably catching a show that an excellent Montreal sports radio personality Mitch Melnick did with Ted Blackman and Dean Hagopian and they discussed music……It was jaw dropping stuff as their collections and taste ( all three ) was off the charts………………..not the usual cretins that occupy most sports call-in shows to say the least.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 17:39:20 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Subject: Oh, a few things

BEG: There is NOTHING like the remnants of a Sunday roast. I too refry all the leftover roast veg (beleive it or not I am the cook in our house) and agree that they make the best home fries there are.

I'm also a firm believer that the best Cottage Pie is made with by mincing the remnants of a roast beef joint. Although there is only Mrs RTRO and I, we generally buy large meat joints as you just don't get any gravy out of small ones. Mondays, I'll cut a few slices of the cold beef to serve with the home fries as a quick meal, leaving time for mincing the rest, chopping an onion, and dicing any leftover boiled carrots or swede and then frying that in a little oil a with a touch of black pepper and italian seasoning. Hey presto - freezable portions of mince and veg base that you can make a cottage pie, chilli or spag bol with as your mood dictates, with minimal extra ingredients on the day of usage. Convenience food CAN be home fare, I firmly believe.

Your pancakes sound delicious but I'm still recovering from the homemade Key Lime pie that my dear mother made for us yesterday. Very nice it was - used condensed milk, freshly squeezed lime juice and zest and a dark chocolate biscuit base. Mmm-mmm.

Enough of cuisine! Bill M, there is more than the evidence of Shining Brightly to see the GD in Brinsley Schwarz. Don't know if you are aware of it but over here there was an event commemorated on a 2-LP set called "Greasy Truckers Party" in 1972. The event featured Hawkwind (who I am with Peter on; too loud and basic - best thing about them was Stacia), Man (our Grateful Dead!) and brinsley Schwarz so was basically a UA records event for charity. It was a limited release so the vinyl is rare (I paid £30 for mine over fifteen years ago) but the CD release has the complete sets from all bands. And voila! Brinsley Schwarz doing "Going Down The Road Feeling Bad". (Spotify URL attached). There is a bit of guesswork on the lyrics ("Ain't gonna be treated this-a-way" is replaced with a different line) - my guess is that they did it off the cuff but it is a good rendition.

Sadly there is a less happy tale regarding the two acts. Brinsley told me he had a row with Garcia at the Bickershaw festival later in 1972, after the Dead set their gear up so far forward that the Brinsleys (who were on immediately prior to the GD) gear had to be set half in the open in front, on a very wet day. They appealed to Garcia to get the crew back and just move the gear back a touch but Garcia (who no doubt had given the crew the afternoon off) was evasive and all "Aw, shucks..." about it. Brinsley called him a wanker (and if you've ever spoken to BS you'd know he is not one for bad language; very well-spoken) and the band played on with an electrical shock risk ever looming, but the afternoon brightened up.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 17:31:39 CEST 2011 from (67.250.113.92)

Lars

Subject: The Band's favorite pizza

In a catering rider from 1996, the following was to be provided to the tour bus for the trip home:
Bud & Beck's beer (in bottles only), Coke Classic (in bottles only) & Evian spring water;
One bucket of KFC Chicken;
Four Pizza Hut thin crust cheese pizzas with following toppings: 2 plain cheese only;
1 veggie pizza;
1 sausage double cheese with black olive.

I'd love to know who preferred what.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 17:28:36 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Norbert: As much as our guys may have been pizza purists in the early days, one must admit that by the mid '70s at least Richard had turned to the frozen variety - which he of course ironed.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 17:27:30 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

Entered at Mon Apr 25 17:21:08 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Kevin J: Well put, re HTBC. Not only does volume show off the brilliant guitar work, it also lets you hear Winwood's remarkable work on organ - as noted here last week by another poster. Richard Bell was kinda like that: he'd play this amazing stuff at what were to me frustratingly low volumes. I guess both Winwood and Bell came to the conclusion that the organ was a colouring instrument rather than a lead one. And thanks for the Hagopian tidbit - news to me. I believe that Hovaness was with Walter Rossi when I saw him at the ElMo, with Angelo Finaldi on bass. Because it will wake Landmark out of the Easter doldrums, I will also mention that Dean did at least a couple of his own 45s - one with the Regals (a Staccatos feeder group) and a later one or two backed by the Staccatos themselves. Am I absolutely right on that?

Entered at Mon Apr 25 17:17:04 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

I've got a book on pizza history. Apparently both the Greeks and Romans had pizza, it says, but without tomatoes. Or cheese.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 17:14:04 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

FOOTBALL Al. Glenn Hoddle. Well, he thought with his feet. I was ignoring his dumb pronouncements on life, the universe and everything, and thinking only of his ball distribution which allowed others to shine. Also, didn’t they say as England manager, in training he liked to demonstrate skills that none could emulate? But it’s all regional bias. Harry Redknapp lives down here in Poole, as does Jamie, and Darren Anderton, and Tottenham tend to be the local team of choice. Harry is a local hero as the best manager Bournemouth ever had. Also now Southampton is in the same division as Bournemouth, we’ve deserted 30 years of supporting them and gone back to hating them.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 17:07:16 CEST 2011 from (79.202.187.173)

Norbert

Brown Eyed Girl thanks for the receipt, let me, in return, define something about The Band and their lust for pizzas, real pizzas. Due to the fact that the young Band (Ronnie Hawkins & the Hawks, The Hawks & Levon and the Hawks) were on the road a lot, it’s no secret that they ate a lot of fast food but their favorite however was: PIZZA (Across the Great Divide: “He wrote the first lines on a greasy box” (that must have been a P.B. [Norbert]) This Wheel’s on Fire : “slices of Pizza” , Mystery Train “Pizza boxes piled up against a pink wall”).

There are only two (original) pizza recipes: 1) the Marinara & 2) The Margherita (which is the luxurious version of the Marinara). Richard, Rick, Levon, Garth and Robbie knew this and they refused to eat any other pizzas, cause they aren’t real pizza’s, pineapple or shish kebab doesn’t belong on a pizza (I'm proud the knew that back then already). A fine pizza is formed by hand (and hand only), backed in 60 sec. at 500 gr.C (905F) in a stone oven above an oak fire. That’s what I like about our Band, not only talented musicians, but they knew to pick their pizzas too.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 17:05:31 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

Subject: Link - Encore of the best soccer/football bit ever

Todd: As good a description of the talent quotient as is possible I would think…………….

MFBP: Take any 100 music people and play MFBP and Brown Album back to back…..my position is that 95-98 out of 100 would choose Brown as the superior work…..the 2-3 that didn’t would be because of an overwhelming love for “The Weight”……Desert island…..and the Briown album is in my top 5 always……..MFBP doesn’t make top 100 if the island was so accommodating.

David P: I have been playing HTBC in the car for a few weeks now………………Loud It just gets better Where the first album had the U2 clunkers that killed momentum and Storyville had great songs but not enough guitar……….The guitar on HTBC is exquisite throughout and I find the instrumentals perfectly placed in sequence………Interestingly, “She’s Not Mine” which I had first thought far too murky - really reveals itself after repeated listens………………………..and again, I repeat that the guitar solo in He Don’t Live here No More” is to standard rockers what MFBP was to the “hate your mother” rock scene of 1967/68.

Bill M: Another interesting tidbit is that the drummer in Moonquake was the brother of a well-known and great Montreal radio man – Dean Hagopian

Entered at Mon Apr 25 16:40:33 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Kevin J / Landmark: My favourite Moonquake song is "Don't You Try To Be My Baby" from the same album. 3:30 at the link above. Jakob August Geisinger was in a great little Montreal instrumental combo with Bob Parkin and Wally Rossi in the early '60s. As Bob and the Messengers they did just one 45, "Splash Down" in the "Telstar" mode. Then they signed on with Wilson Pickett, whose drummer was Buddy Miles. Then they left Pickett and added some other guys and recorded a brilliant LP for ABC in New York - Influence. They also moved to Toronto and became part of the Yorkville scene, which is why first Geisinger (replacing Bruce Palmer) then Rossi were called into the reunited Luke and the Apostles. August is on that group's one 45, the brilliant "You Make Me High", which is well worth finding on YouTube. Then it gets confusing, as Rossi, initially with August and then with Prakash John, completed a post-Luke Apostle album that eventually came out as Charlee, while also reuniting with Bob Parkin and Buddy Miles to record Miles' great "Them Changes" 45, and August joined Canuckistani pop-rock megastar Michel Pagliaro before hiving off with fellow Pag bandmembers as Moonquake.

Here's an interesting tidbit about "The Weight" that organist / producer Lance Anderson (whose Band-related credits include Garth's "Live at the Wolf" CD and the "2B3: Toronto Sessions" album):

"I was watching the Bravo special on the early T.O. music scene, and thoroughly enjoyed it. Great vintage footage. I am proud to say that I have played with at least 80 percent of those wonderful artists.

"Seeing The Hawks reminded me of something Garth Hudson told me when we were working on his Live at the Wolf CD. He went through all the lyrics of The Weight and told me the back stories to Carmen, Anna Lee, Nazareth Penn. etc. and then he let it slip that the missing beat in the "and, and and' section at the end of the chorus was actually an edit that their producer John Simon had done. He cut off one beat. (If you count it from the first "and" until they come back in, it is seven beats.)

"This made me laugh as I had played this tune many times, and it always gets screwed up at this section. especially if you do a solo because no one is sure without the vocals when to come back in. I played a short series of concerts with Garth and one night for an Encore he said "Why don't we do The Weight, but let's do it straight." Luckily I knew what he was talking about, because when the Band performed it live they usually did it as two 4/4 bars. In the Last Waltz they relearned it as on the record, but it never felt right to them.

"So there you go. for all you people who have got lost in that tune .... it was an EDIT !!"

RtO: Thank you for that most-excellent work! A few things came to mind. One is that not only the Brinsleys channel our guys, they also channelled the Dead, especially on "Shining Brightly". Another is the group Mapleoak, which was initially - on their one 45 - Kink refugee Peter Quaife and three Canadians in London who Quaife had hooked up with on the basis of their R&B prowess. (As a sidenote, two of them had been in a post Neil Young version of the Mynah Birds with Rick James that was renamed the Flying Circus when they decided to go with their new guitarist, Bruce Cockburn, while James was sidelined.) When Quaife left, the others dumped R&B and recorded, still in London, for Decca, a Band-ish country-folk-rock LP that includes a couple of otherwise unrecorded Cockburn numbers, including "Flying Circus". A third regards Mott the Hoople; a song I heard frequently when I started to listen to FM radio in the early '70s - - was Hoople's decidedly non-Bandish "You're Too Fucking Slow". I loved it but they disappeared from view until Dudes. Fourth, and by far the most significant, is the Beatles; I'd say that the song "Get Back" was very much influenced by MFBP, and that the morality of "The Weight" is spread across two songs on "Abbey Road" - "Carry That Weight" and "The End".

Entered at Mon Apr 25 16:33:02 CEST 2011 from (216.121.194.179)

S.M.

When I think of Garth I think of Spock - if he was so smart- why wasn't he Captain?

Entered at Mon Apr 25 16:15:54 CEST 2011 from (76.68.82.13)

brown eyed girl

Speaking of organs. While I'm making a country breakfast for my bunny, I'm listening to John Patton's organ from "Blue John"...first song is "Hot Sauce".
So this one's for Rozzzz.
I'm making blueberry/dark chocolate chip/banana pancakes, home fries from roasted potatoes, scrambled eggs with tomatoes and bell peppers and parmigiano-reggiano cheese. I can't believe we're out of red onions! Oh well.....I'll just add more cheese.

How To Become Clairvoyant, Robbie Robertson's New Album, Debuts At No. 13* On The Billboard 200, To Become The Highest Chart Debut Of His Solo Career

Thanks Todd. Check out my link for a female photographer that didn't even want to be known....Vivian Maier Her Discovered Work. As for the cover of HTBC....It works for me as I'm into "new age" things myself. I think he's trying to say that he's living a more wholesome life now and the fact that he's opening up some old wounds; he's releasing the toxins in his body and moving forward. Again....Ooops! This is a The Band site....I shouldn't talk like that! ;-D I don't like every song on this record, but it satisfies my soul. An acquaintance who cuts my bob hair cut had Adele's latest "21" (I've downloaded 4 songs and have her first solo "19") playing in her salon and told me that she'll be buying HTBC. She's 50 and has always been into music like myself. However, she was more into the Queen Street scene where I was never trendy and liked many genres of music.

Levon's last two recordings didn't do the same as I've said before....only two songs on each solo recording are on my Nano. I've always been into universal themes in music...not Americana....I'm a different The Band fan.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 16:14:33 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Peter, the Hoddle comparison for JRR is a bit unfair. You have to remember that unlike JRR, Glenn Hoddle is as thick as shit.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 15:52:21 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

I obtained a copy of the vinyl version of Robbie's "HTBC", a featured release from last week's Record Store Day. The good news is that the 2-LP gatefold edition, mastered by Ron McMaster at Capitol Studios, sounds great from a technical standpoint. The 180-gram vinyl of my copy is dead quiet between the grooves and, by spreading the cuts out on four sides of the two records, presents a full dynamic range void of any grainy digital anomalies.

After a few repeated listenings, however, I have to admit that the songs themselves fail to really grab me on an emotional level. I'm reminded of the films of Robbie's friend Martin Scorsese. They're visually stunning and crafted with great care but, beneath the surface, they seem lacking soul. They take the viewer on a complex journey, ultimately draining, rather than imparting emotions.

Perhaps the album's Macro-Biotic label says it best for me, as it portends some sort of regimen of whole grains, vegetables & beans. As a meat & potatoes type of guy, I come away from the servings with a gnawing hunger for more tasty substance and less bulk. Robbie, who in the past displayed a great narrative gift, now seeks clairvoyant insight. Maybe the album will bring more fulfillment after repeated listenings but, so far, I find mundane reflection rather than keen perception in the lyrics. After a 13-year wait, I expected much more than this.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 15:16:53 CEST 2011 from (69.177.200.206)

Todd

Subject: Talent

Levon is the most rhythmically talented
Robbie is the most conceptually talented
Rick is the most harmonically talented
Garth is the most experimentally talented
Richard is the most soulfully talented

But that’s just the beginning of their collective talent

I believe they each would have achieved some success and would have hooked up with other talented musicians. It wouldn’t have been the same unique combination that gave us The Band, but they all would have had musical careers of some sort. The cream always rises to the top, and these guys had music in their bones.

B.E.G., thanks for the info about Robbie’s album cover photography. I agree with Robbie that Anton Corbijn is a great photographer, but HTBC is a not great example of his photography. I realize that Robbie was probably trying to go for something different, and didn’t want a cookie cutter glossy headshot, but at some point, a portrait of a person should be a portrait of that person. That photo is not a portrait of Robbie Robertson. It may be a character study of a mysterious figure, but I thought that one of the points of this album was that it was a little more autobiographical and that Robbie was telling us a little more about himself. He was “letting us in” so to speak. That cover doesn’t achieve that goal. It’s a very approachable album on a human level. It’s not a very approachable cover.

It’s not horrible photography, but it misses the mark.

Click on the above link for a gallery of photos from Arnold Newman, one of the greatest environmental portrait photographers of the 20th century. Many fine examples of photography that are unconventional in many ways but also achieve uniqueness and tell us a little about the subject. Arnold Newman passed a way a few years ago, but the style that he pioneered is still valid.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 15:12:07 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

I guess we were all a bit pissed Pete.

It was the '71 final [Charlie fuckin George... spit]. I'd persuaded all the lads to go on a reconoitre of the Albert hall in advance of the concert on that morning we'd landed.

Maybe it was 10 hours. Too many brown mixed.

:-0)

as for the team. Garth in goal, blocking it with his mighty organ. Robbie midfield maestro centre stage :-0). Richard crooning his way up one wing. Rick on the other talking to the crowd. Levon centre half thumping seven kinds of shite out of Johan Cruyff like he was a bass drum.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 15:04:40 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Mon Apr 25 14:55:51 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

If they had played, which positions would they play in? Over to you, Al.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 14:50:34 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Yes, and Earl Van Dyke plays on the Motown Revue Live in Paris, which I found last year. Another classic instrumental is "Ain't Too Proud To Beg" by J.J. Jackson.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 14:48:29 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

I reckon all five would have signed for Panathanaikos and by an amazing yet simple twist of fate [note the clever Dylan link] :-0) appeared in London that very same night that they actually did appear.

BTW - Empty - you'd never have made it - it's a 2 hour walk. The game would have been over before you got to your seat but why would you have gone anyroad when they were actually playing for Panathanaikos?

Good fun this :-0)

Entered at Mon Apr 25 14:45:04 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Subject: "Hammond Karaoke" for PV / Most talented Band member

Peter, the ultimate example of replacing the vocal with a Hammond part is surely the Motown LP "Earl Van Dyke - That Motown Sound" (see link). Very collectable, and unlike many rarities worth every penny for the music itself!

Garth is the most talented member of The Band. Not only is he as essential as the others to the OQ, but can dowse for water.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 14:02:07 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Brien prompted it! What ifs are fun. If The Hawks had gone their own way in May 1966, or like Micky Jones stayed on salary but not gone to Woodstock, I think three at least would have had a pretty fast track to success. Robbie was already known as a hot shot guitarist. Blonde on Blonde enhanced that. He’d have got plenty of invitations. I just thought about that Bill Wyman session with John Hammond. The Mick Taylor slot? Whether a job as lead guitarist would have nurtured his songwriting is a different question.

Rick was the only guy to have sung with the electric Dylan, which got him noticed. A great bass player who could sing like that? Invitations. I reckon both would have ended up in high profile bands. They never had a bass player … it could have been CDSN or CDSNY. Probably a country-rock band. Flying Burrito Bros to Eagles?

Garth is such an unusual genius that he’d have ended up as a producer, or in something like Weather Report. Richard, it would have been luck. He seemed backward about pushing himself forward. It would have been ‘Will someone notice his talent?’ But then again, all the Canadians knew it already, as well as people who’d seen them in the South. Levon, having missed the highest profile bit of the Dylan tour, may have found it more difficult to get noticed again. But he might have drifted to LA, met up again with Leon Russell etc and made it that way. Would his singing have got him noticed without the material Robbie provided, though? Or would he have been a trio of most wanted drummers with Jim Keltner and Steve Gadd?

I don't think any would have been anonymous, but I doubt that their careers would have been so spectacular at the start without each other.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 13:46:31 CEST 2011 from (76.68.82.13)

brown eyed girl

Four Photos of Robbie Robertson
'The Late Show with David Letterman' at the Ed Sullivan Theater - Arrivals. New York City, USA - 05.04.11.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 13:33:48 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

Entered at Mon Apr 25 13:33:26 CEST 2011 from (76.68.82.13)

brown eyed girl

Wow. I haven't seen Tavis Smiley since he was on BET network. Robbie really gets around these days! He's covering all his bases.

Robbie Robertson transcript on Tavis Smiley Show airdate April 22, 2011

Tavis: I want to talk about your storytelling in just a second. Hey, Jonathan, put this cover back up for me. I love the music on the project, obviously, but I love this cover and I love the title. Tell me about the title. Tell me about this cover. I love this shot.

Robertson: This is a friend of mine who took this, Anton Corbijn. He's one of the great photographers of all time, in my opinion. He did a lot of work for this project. He did a lot of things. One of the things that's really enjoyable about working with him too is he takes these pictures in 30 seconds. You know, a lot of these guys are in there, they're having you bend over backwards and do stuff. This is nothing. He just does it and makes it happen.

He took a picture of me that I had - there's this magazine. Then there was another that I had and it said on the magazine, "Become clairvoyant." So he said, well, let's use that. So all of these pieces to the puzzle started fitting and that's why I wanted to work with him.

Tavis: You referenced earlier in this conversation, Robbie, the notion of storytelling. I note, obviously as your fans do, that you do that awfully well in your writing, number one. But I also read the other day that you've signed a three-book deal with - as a matter of fact, I just saw Jon Meacham the other day at Random House.

You got a three-book deal with Random House and they think that you are, obviously, a pretty good storyteller to give you a three-book deal. Talk to me about your process for storytelling and what makes a good story, what makes a good storyteller. Just talk to me about storytelling.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 13:19:18 CEST 2011 from (76.68.82.13)

brown eyed girl

Alexis P Suter and Garth Hudson Photo

Entered at Mon Apr 25 13:17:12 CEST 2011 from (76.68.82.13)

brown eyed girl

vidgirl26 on Jan 20, 2011
Garth Hudson Joined Alexis P. Suter at The Falcon in Marlboro NY

Entered at Mon Apr 25 13:13:58 CEST 2011 from (76.68.82.13)

brown eyed girl

I hope every bunny had a hoppy Easter.

Robbie Robertson The Band Man Plays On
Wilhelm Murg from Indian Country Today Media.com:"When do you think your next solo album is coming out?"

Robbie:"I don’t know. I’m just trying to stay in the moment. I’m just trying to do what I do today really well. Making this album was one of the most enjoyable musical experiences I ever had, so I do have a thrust for more of this. If I had my way, all I would do for the next couple of years would be to write songs for a new album and write my autobiography, but I have many other things I’m working on. So I’m just going to have to see how it all rolls out."

Entered at Mon Apr 25 13:07:27 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Rick Danko was the most talented bass guitarist.

I was going to type ten more sentenceslike this (two each) but got tired.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 12:39:45 CEST 2011 from (203.160.29.153)

Fred

Does there have to be "a most talented" member of The Band?　Aren't all 5 talented enough to be crowned "the most talented" simultaneously?

Entered at Mon Apr 25 11:18:39 CEST 2011 from (216.165.58.52)

ari

I asked my roommate, who knows the Band quite well at this point for I play them incessantly has said many times that Levon is the most talented band member. I told him Robbie wrote the songs, he is well aware. He said "how can anyone sing and drum like that". His favorite song from Last Waltz is Such A Night. He is of Japanese-Mexican descent.

I won't say who I think the most talented member is but I want to hear what everyone else has to say. I love them all by the way.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 10:56:47 CEST 2011 from (41.97.252.252)

Empty Now

Entered at Mon Apr 25 10:42:01 CEST 2011 from (41.97.252.252)

Empty Now

Subject: a set of tedious questions for the elite of the GB

On a Wednesday 2nd June 1971, or The Band-RAH versus Ajax- Panathinaikos

1 – in London, UK, what is the distance between the Royal Albert Hall and Wembley Stadium ? (please forward both numbers : in miles and in minutes, if possible)

2 – at what time GMT started The Band concert RAH ?

3 – at what time GMT started the match Panathinaikos vs Ajax 1971 champions league/european cup final ? [link above]

4 – In case the two events were simultaneous, where would you liked to be ?

I often evoked the thread in the GB. I think if I were in London that evening, I would have been in RAH for "Rocking Chai"r then go quick to Wembley for the goal of Van Dijk then back to RAH for "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" than Wembley for Haan goal, etc…

Entered at Mon Apr 25 09:32:03 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

In 1966, “Anne Mason with Little Mac and The Boss Sounds” released an answer disc to Wilson Pickett’s In The Midnight Hour, called You Can’t Love Me (In The Midnight Hour). Like the original 1965 hit it’s credited to Pickett / Cropper. The B-side, In The Midnight Hour, is the same backing track with her vocal replaced by a Hammond line. In the UK, with its love of Hammond driven instrumentals, it was flipped so that the throwaway B-side became the A side. Not only that, ‘Mac’ became ‘Mack’ and Anne Mason not only suffered the indignity of relegation to the B-side, but had her name erased altogether.

The instrumental A-side is considered a Northern Soul classic, and appears on Ace's "Where it's AT" series of Atlantic rarities (as do Levon & The Hawks). I've had that side on the CD for years. The original disc with the female vocal B-side is hard to find … I found one at a Record Fair on Friday at a reasonable £3 (it has a fair bit of surface noise … mint, it goes for £20 or more). I started trying to find out about it. Google reveals very little, except that a lot of people love the record. And no one knows anything about Anne Mason,

Entered at Mon Apr 25 08:33:39 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

I saw Mott the Hoople in Norwich either late 69 or early 70. I remember they did two 66 Dylan covers … one was Like A Rolling Stone, the other I'm not sure. Ian Hunter went into a long intro about Norwich railway station and being stoned that stuck in my mind. They were very good. A friend and I used to correspond on bands we'd seen and we swapped the letters a few years back, which are a useful memory aid. I just looked. Rob's connection is there. I put "the piano player (i.e. Ian Hunter) sounds like Mike Harrison and sings like Greg Ridley" (both Spooky Tooth). I noted they did Laugh At Me (Sonny Bono) and made it "sound like Dylan"and as an encore … for the Kinks connection … You Really Got Me.

I was used to Hull, where we had social secretaries choosing the bands who later became major rock managers. The social secretary my last year was Ed Bicknell, later to manage Dire Straits and play in the Notting Hillbillies. When I moved to UEA at Norwich, the selection of weekly bands was noticeably much poorer. Edgar Broughton, Piblotko, Screaming Lord Sutch & The Savages, Keef Hartley, Graham Bond's Magik. All I remember as dreadful. I'd seen Graham Bond a few years earlier and he was brilliant. By the Magik line-up the effects of drugs and madness were all too apparent. Keef Hartley was dull. Edgar Broughton ranted "Out Demons Out." Or maybe it was just a different year and it was fashionable to stumble about stoned playing badly. A year later, it was even worse with Principle Edwards Magic Theatre, truly the most laughably incompetent crew ever to stand on a stage advertised as a "concert." Oh, and Hawkwind. The smelliest and loudest band I'd seen.

Anyway, Mott the Hoople stood out, and I was into The Band and made the connection, even though at that point I don't think the 1966 boots were around. I first got "Royal Albert Hall" as it was called early in 1971.

Actually, the best band I saw that year was Raahsan Roland Kirk on the "Volunteered Slavery" tour. That's one of my dozen best concerts.

Entered at Mon Apr 25 02:05:59 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Roger, I've only just thought - you mentioned Fairport without having seen the whole piece. You will LOVE part 3! But for now...

PART 2 – THE WHITE AMERICAN INFLUENCE ON SMALLER UK ACTS

(PREAMBLE: The influence of black American blues music within the UK was legendarily rife in the sixties and continues to this day. From Leadbelly via Lonnie Donegan, through Jimmy Reed via the Stones and ultimately the instrumental workouts of Freddie, B.B. and Albert King(s) via Mayall, Cream and Fleetwood Mac (or, indeed the organ stylings of Jimmy Smith, Jimmy McGriff and Brother Jack McDuff via Georgie Fame, Graham Bond, Zoot Money & Brian Auger), you don’t have to look too far to find an example of the gritty, urban sounds of Chicago and Memphis that appealed to British teenagers, soon to become leading lights on the UK music scene. Far less common was the influence of white American folk music (assuming Elvis Presley is considered to be negro-centric) and MFBP changed this in a big way, especially in the post-Sgt Pepper music scene and the aforementioned singles/albums divide that remained in its wake.)

To return to the UK, post Sgt Pepper, there were further choices if you took the route of an “album” act. Blues, thanks mainly to early Cream and Fleetwood Mac, had evolved from twangy Bo Diddley covers into mature, sustaining attempts at Freddie King’s “The Stumble” and that ilk. Armed with a Les Paul and a couple of Marshall amps and speaker cabinets, you were laughing. You could be a “heavy” blues band. For the more arty and intrepid, some of the trappings of psychedelia, albeit knocked into 1969-shape were still available if you went “progressive” – add a mate with a Hammond organ who could play quasi-classical runs and a singer who could regurgitate the works of Tolkien into lengthy, multi-part “suites” and you were good gear for the times.

Enter MFBP as the saving grace of more melodic acts that didn’t play blues, didn’t have progressive inclinations, but were certainly not a pop singles act. For the first time, a blend of American country music with a rock-savvy approach had been shown as an alternative discipline. This was a lifeline to many such British acts that were simply a good live act but didn’t fall into either of the neatly determined “album” demographics mentioned above. Country rock – a classification The Band hated – had hit the UK and made for danceable music that nevertheless translated into concerts and albums rather than singles vying for chart placement.

Mott the Hoople, a struggling Midlands act previously known as The Silence, added front man Ian Hunter in 1969, and found they had a huge Dylan fan as their singer and main writer. The heritage of The Band and their former mentor was well documented and currently favoured, so when Mott the Hoople released their debut album in 1969, they delivered (amazingly for those that only know of their commercially successful releases that commenced with Bowie’s gift of “All The Young Dudes” in 1972) one of the most accurate reconstructions of 1966 Dylan that there is. Hunter, then mainly featured on electric piano, would front the band and sing his songs in a very Dylan-influenced manner, with the Al Kooper/Garth Hudson like fills of organist Verden Allen very much to the fore. (organ and piano again – still not a widely adopted template). Mott the Hoople would show further American stylings on their next two albums, most notably “Wildlife” in 1971 where (future Bad Company lynchpin) guitarist Mick Ralphs would step more to the fore and his own love of another American act – Buffalo Springfield – showed clearly. The group would come close to splitting in 1972 until Bowie showed an interest – and the rest is history.

Many who took up this newfound Anglo-American approach were disenchanted singles acts trying to escape that circuit and break into the world of album artists. The perfect example is former Parlophone act Kippington Lodge – through with the pop singles world having fared less well than hoped – and to underline this shift in direction, changed their name, to that of guitarist Brinsley Schwarz. Through the years with Kippington Lodge, members had come and gone. By the change of style in 1969 the nucleus was Schwarz, organist Bob Andrews (original organist Barry Landerman having disagreed with the abandonment of pop and thus accepted an offer to join Vanity Fayre). Drummer Bill Rankin had recently joined the ranks, which were completed by bassist/vocalist and former school chum of Schwarz – one Nicholas D. Lowe.

Having been burnt already at the false hope of pop chart success in Kippington Lodge, it is ironic that one of their first actions as Brinsley Schwarz was to answer an advertisement for a band (“with own songs”) and pass the audition. The agent was Famepushers Ltd and the long and convoluted tale of building a pleasure resort, funded against an Omar Sharif movie (fronted with Omar’s money), to repaid by a successful rock music venture that leads to a contrived launch showcase at the Fillmore East that goes horribly wrong is one of the best known in rock music legend. Thus, burnt twice, Brinsley Schwarz returned to the UK licking their wounds and vowed never again to have anything to do with hype or showbiz. Their status as fans of The Band already is proven – United Artists Records A&R man Andrew Lauder witnessed them covering “Chest Fever” long before the Fillmore trip. However, as The Band reacted themselves to the psychedelia, Brinsley Schwarz gained from their heroes an example of a no-frills act that played their music, their way. The group immediately cut excessive instrumental passages from their music and began to find their own style. By 1971’s “Silver Pistol” LP, Nick Lowe had emerged as a prolific writer with a Band-inspired blend of Anglo-Americana, underpinned by economical instrumentation and, like Garth Hudson, flourishes and colours of organ by Bob Andrews. They would refine this approach over time and by 1974 were churning out such classics as Lowe’s “(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace Love & Understanding” before calling time the following year. Schwarz and Andrews would play their Band-inspired instrumental roles out one more time as key members of Graham Parker & The Rumour. At last, they had found their Dylan!

Former Chris Farlowe guitarist Albert Lee formed Heads, Hands and Feet with (near veteran, even then!) Chas Hodges, formerly of Joe Meek stable act The Outlaws and thereafter club circuit favourites Cliff Bennett and the Rebel Rousers. Songwriters Tony Colton and Ray Smith were able to provide mature, quality material and in Lee they had an unusual advantage: one of very few UK guitarists to eschew blues in favour of fluid country phrasing. With Hodges more than able to swap from bass to piano (where he is best known in latter days) and rattle off some fine country fiddle, the group provided some of the most breathtaking Anglo-Americana that ever there was. Lee’s status as one of the most in-demand country guitarists led him to work later with such names as Emmylou Harris and The Everly Brothers. Higher praise for an Englishman trying to perfect American music cannot be imagined!

The 1972 “First Album” by Regal Zonophone artist Roger Morris (backed by sundry Grease Band-ers and other “heavy friends”) is a curious disc. It has been cited as a spiritual cousin to Brinsley Schwarz’s “Silver Pistol”, though your author found it to be a far more authentic Band pastiche and thus arguably far more derisive than the work of Lowe and company. But it has a charm and Morris’s originals do hold up. On one hand you can play “guess the Band song” (“Poor Lucy” is a near-facsimilie of MFBP-era and eventual Basement Tapes cut “Katie’s Been Gone” set to a shuffle beat; “Golightly’s Almanac” is “W.S. Walcott” lyrically) but other tracks like “Trail of Tears”, though showing some paint-by-numbers Band-inspired harmonies and melodic influence, are nevertheless quite impressive.

The acceptance of MFBP (and “Basement” bootlegs, of course) led to the searching out of other American music for inspiration. The Byrds “Sweetheart of the Rodeo” was another well-received LP, as were the early releases of the Flying Burrito Brothers. If anything, the last named act gave a flavour of purer country by including, rather than organ or mandolin, the genre-defining pedal steel guitar into the UK rock-buying scene. The instrument gained further notable exposure thanks to the cameo from Jerry Garcia on the far-reaching CSNY song “Teach Your Children”. By 1970, both UK acts Cochise and Matthews Southern Comfort began to use the instrument as a key ingredient to their sound, and this resulted in some of the most American sounding music to come from British soil. Cochise, arguably the lesser-remembered of the two named examples, featured B. J. Cole on the pedal steel, dobro and cello, and their self titled debut shows a curious and endearing mix of the instrumentation of country allied to original songs. Guitarist Mick Grabham, like the members of Brinsley Schwarz had been in an outright pop act (Plastic Penny in his case) and sought to create more rewarding, original music. The group would record three albums in total with such notable guests as Steve Marriott and ace guitarist Caleb Quaye stepping by to lend a hand on their second and most successful release “Swallow Tales” in 1971.

Matthews Southern Comfort were probably the most successful in the period discussed here, as Mott the Hoople would have to leave the style behind to find success. Fronted by ex-Fairport Convention vocalist Ian Matthews, the group was formed after his amicable departure from Fairport due to his desire to explore American music more closely than the native folk heritage of the UK that Fairport were heading towards (more of this later). Veteran pedal steel player Gordon Huntley was central to the sound of this very American sounding band, who of course scored a hit with their arrangement of Joni Mitchell’s “Woodstock”. The song, Huntley’s steel work and the CSN influenced choruses (ironically CSNY’s own arrangement of the song was far harder edged) was pure California in all but blood.

There were others: Brinsley Schwarz labelmates Help Yourself took a slightly more West Coast approach than strict Band - but British sounding they were not. Respected vocalist Jess Roden fronted the band Bronco whose debut “Country Home” is a treat for fans of Anglo-Americana. To close this section, it may be worth noting that while many of the acts named either had a short lifespan, failed to find commercial success or had to change direction to achieve it, most of the protagonists of the Anglo-Americana period remain afloat in the industry, arguably far more successfully than those of the blues or progressive boom (outside of the very elite: Clapton, Winwood etc) or at the very least went on to bigger things. Cochise guitarist Mick Grabham joined Procol Harum in 1972, drummer Willie Wilson joined Quiver (just prior to the lucrative hook up with the Sutherland Brothers) while bassist Rick Wills co-founded Foreigner alongside stints in the reformed Small Faces and bass duties on old pal David Gilmour’s (all but recent) solo outings. From Brinsley Schwarz, as well as the Schwarz and Andrews forming The Rumour behind Graham Parker as previously discussed, both Ian Gomm and Nick Lowe have enjoyed some success as solo artists, most notably Lowe who has, at last, achieved not only commercial reward via an unexpected cover in a lucrative movie score, but found a late elder-statesman style that has captured the imagination of the public. Albert Lee and B. J. Cole remain standard setters in their instrumental fields, requested by name. Perhaps the biggest irony is the runaway success of Chas Hodges as part of the recently retired duo Chas N’ Dave – ironic in that one so well versed in American music should find their biggest rewards from reverting to London “knees-up” style songs. Or is it ironic? A Londoner born and bred, Hodges has possibly done exactly what The Band did and, slapstick ingredients aside, created original music with definite local roots. That is the other facet that the success of MFBP provided, and where we are headed in the closing part of this article…

Entered at Mon Apr 25 01:54:56 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Roger, thanks for your kind words. MPBP on Ray Davies is a funny one, eh? Because he was so profundly English, he did have that "native" sense as you say...but of course there is "Muswell Hillbillies" with a slightly more Transatlantic style, isn't there!

To round up Roger's antics with The Guardian, here is a link to a page by Viz (the esteemed Bacons) that was done for The Guardian back in 2009. Linked so that Brien can limber up for his phone call to Newcastle. There is a bit of colourful language but it does illustrate the accent "porfectly"!

Entered at Mon Apr 25 01:18:35 CEST 2011 from (62.7.176.46)

Roger

Excellent article Rob, with a fascinating focus. I'm looking forward to more. MFBP came out shortly after the Basement Tapes began circulating in London. They had a combined impact. Fairport Convention were clearly influenced by both. Further, after the awful tragedy of their van crash in May '69 (an incident which took the life of Richard Thompson's girlfriend - who designed clothes for Cream and was honoured in the title of Jack Bruce's 'Songs for a Tailor') Fairports, after nearly splitting, holed up in Big Pink style in Hampshire for months while working on Leige and Lief.

Some have compared the Kinks to the Band in the way they have developed an English equivalent to Americana. Hasn't Ray Davies said something to the effect of: 'The Stones took Route 66 but we kept to the M6'. Any indication of the impact of MFBP on Ray Davies? Almost finished the crossword (they're all available online) watching The Bee Gees...

Entered at Mon Apr 25 00:48:38 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Subject: Calling in Garth fans...the ultimate home accessory!

Mine was £485 over here (where they are allegedly rarer). I think it is optimistic for the price but would have happily paid twice the amount I did.

Entered at Sun Apr 24 23:52:00 CEST 2011 from (77.31.3.231)

Jerry Dignos

Subject: Pledging My Love (The Hawk)

I am an avid fun of Ronnie and I have some music collections of him. However, there is one thing I've missed and I seemed could not get it anywhere... the song title: Pledging My Love! I really love it but I find no way to get it from any of the following: iTunes, Amazon, Napster etc.. because I am not residing in the United States of America or UK. I hope by the Grace of God I would have this ONE. Really I am extremely desperate as I could not get it. Thank you very much and God Bless You. Jerry Dignos

Entered at Sun Apr 24 23:12:39 CEST 2011 from (79.202.166.214)

Norbert

Entered at Sun Apr 24 21:44:02 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

You can all blame Al for this, friends - he suggested I post it to the GB in three parts so here goes. Any feedback much appreciated, even "absolut drivel"!!!

Enjoy, Rob Millis (there you go Roger).

THE BAND: INFLUENCE ON THE LATE 1960’S UK MUSIC SCENE AND THE BIRTH OF ANGLO-AMERICANA

That “Music From Big Pink” had a profound influence across the rock/pop music world upon release in 1968 is a given; spearheading – along with the more singles-orientated work of Creedence Clearwater Revival – a return to structured, often traditionally-influenced songs and a move away from the trappings of psychedelia. In the USA, even acid-rock ringleaders like the Grateful Dead (who delivered two of their strongest and – crucially – most accessible albums in Workingman’s Dead & American Beauty) and Jefferson Airplane (key members Jorma Kaukonen & Jack Casady formed side project Hot Tuna and gradually devoted more and more time to it as the parent band ran out of steam) saw the sense of a return to the simple values of a good song, and the requisite ensemble approach to deliver it.

Psychedelia was all but over by the end of 1968 anyway, and as an interesting aside it is perhaps worth noting that the members of The Band never really embraced it. It is documented that it was rejected out of hand by several members who didn’t care for the self-indulgence of the loose, improvisational styles of the era, and nor did The Band see the value in short-lived “fads”. Moreover, in 1967 when the movement was in full swing, The Band was holed up in Woodstock, writing for themselves and still heavily involved with Bob Dylan. It would be interesting to have seen the results had Dylan not suffered the famous motorcycle crash. His reaction to the acid-rock scene, by way of a 1967 album release, is forever denied to us. Having recently blazed a trail around the world with The Hawks creating some of the most electrifying, mercurial rock music the world had ever experienced, a 1967 Dylan album and tour could have pushed rock music in a very different direction, whether it be an earlier return to structured songs, or a psychedelic Dylan that may even have denied the Big Pink & John Wesley Harding period as we know it.

But what of the influence of Big Pink (hereafter referred to as “MFBP”) on the United Kingdom? Considerable. Interesting, too, that several different approaches came in reaction to this inspirational music by the time it hit the UK. Let us now explore these varied and disparate strands that all spring from Music From Big Pink.

PART 1 – THE UNTOUCHABLE HEAVYWEIGHTS

(PREAMBLE: The UK scene of 1968 was still very much reeling in the aftermath of Sgt Pepper and thus it is doubtful that anything less powerful and anti-rebellious as the distinctly unpsychedelic MFBP could have made such an impact. The album versus singles band divide had occurred, with “hit parade” pop gradually going the way of the chicken-in-a-basket circuit and the album bands, with psychedelia itself waning, looking to the replacement scenario: progressive rock. Often retaining the lengthy instrumental approach that psychedlia had ushered in and also gaining a heavier sound, the progressive scene ensured the divide between a singles and album band widened almost daily.)

Of course, this didn’t affect some people – the “royalty”. That the Beatles and the Rolling Stones made singles AND albums was never anything but expected. It is therefore fitting that arguably the first influential instances of the abandonment of psychedelia occurred from these two giants of rock & pop. Famously each adopting white covers, “The Beatles” (known rather more widely by the colour of the cover) and “Beggars Banquet” both showed a return to simpler rock and roll and bluesy values. While the Beatles release still contained some avant-garde moments, these mostly reflect the mood of John Lennon at the time, although he also contributed much of the return-to-basics material (“Revolution”, “Yer Blues”). McCartney led the way back to rock & roll with “Back In The USSR”, while George Harrison, enigmatic as ever, was the member publicly raving about MFBP, an opinion that he held strongly thereafter.

The Rolling Stones are little harder to pin down in terms of MFBP influence. An oft-cited explanation for the move towards simpler, rootsier music is their embarrassment at their botched attempt at the harder-edged, gutsier take on Sgt Pepper that was expected of them. Amid a year rife with drug busts, “Their Satanic Majesties Request” limped out in late 1967 to little fanfare (despite the now-collectible holographic sleeve) after a plethora of delays and cancelled release dates. Put simply, psychedelia was not the Stones, yet it was harder for them on many fronts: the traditional rivalry between themselves and the Beatles put immense pressure on them for a big splash of their own after Pepper was released; their stronger ties to the counterculture, use of drugs and general “bad boy” personae were such that very few would even consider they were not capable of a psychedelic heavyweight.

But the Stones were a far bluesier act than the Beatles, so in many ways were better placed to make a recovery. And recover they did – “Beggars Banquet” considered to this day to be not only a return to basics but one also to match-form. “Parachute Woman” showed a distinct reunion with the bluesy shuffle, and yet there is more sophistication to post-1967 Stones; witness the mandolin on “Factory Girl” and arguably a far whiter American influence in “Dear Doctor” than previously shown by the guys that aped Bo Diddley, Chuck Berry and Jimmy Reed. This, if there is any, could be evidence of MFBP infiltration, as one thing The Band never were (post Levon & The Hawks days where they rubbed shoulders with Sonny Boy Williamson and introduced more R&B to their own act at the expense of Hawkins’ rockabilly) is a black American styled act. After Dylan, their black influences would never be as transparent again until their covers LP “Moondog Matinee” in 1973 where Sam Cooke, Lee Dorsey and Clarence “Frogman” Henry were all represented.

For the ultimate claim of MFBP impact on the UK’s upper echelons, the well-known tale of Eric Clapton obtaining an acetate, even visiting The Band amid hopes of being asked to join, remains the best concrete example. Already disenchanted with Cream (who at the time were falling apart on a personal level) MFBP was the breath of fresh air Clapton needed and ushered the end of his days as the ear-splitting Gibson-toting virtuoso. He didn’t quite get this return to basics in next venture Blind Faith (including ex-Cream drummer Ginger Baker pretty much guaranteed that the idea Clapton had to collaborate with Winwood* on shorter songs and simpler values would fall to bits, both during sessions for the sole LP and more than ever in their ill-fated concerts), but his collaborations with Delany Bramlett (with George Harrison often in tow) paved a way for this MFBP influence to prevail, and by “Layla & Other Assorted Love Songs”, the transformation from guitar god to well-rounded songwriter and performer was complete.

(*Winwood, too, after the collapse of Blind Faith set about his solo debut that manifested into the reformed Traffic for “John Barleycorn Must Die”. The inclusion of a folk tune as the title cut, and a far more structured approach even allowing for some instrumentals very much suggests the work of a man whose best friend Eric had enthusiastically shared his MFBP acetate! Closing cut “Every Mother’s Son” in particular shows the chorale influence of “Tears of Rage”. Winwood’s high vocal register and prowess as an organist made for a fine showing at this post-MFBP style.)

It seems a long time ago now that Sir Elton John was a relative newcomer to the album market, but in 1970 he wore his Band heart on his sleeve more pointedly than most. With long-term lyricist Bernie Taupin also an admirer of The Band, “Tumbleweed Connection” was a premium quality slice of Anglo-Americana from the beautifully appointed album sleeve through to the grooves on the disc inside. No matter – one J. R. Robertson has been known to enjoy the record, John’s third solo album and one which proved a crucial milepost in his ascension from anonymous covers album sessioneer to solo superstar (and Knight of the Realm!).

One interesting point regarding UK heavyweights is the relationship of influence between The Band and Procol Harum. “A Whiter Shade of Pale”, though it transparently includes the work of Bach (of whom, Band organist Garth Hudson recommends as daily chorale reading for any serious piano student) showcases the (then) little explored combo format of organ and piano plus just one guitar versus the norm of one keyboard player and a couple of guitars. Some of Procol Harum had seen Dylan backed by The Hawks in 1966, but the early, big-hitmaking days of the British act pre-date any major public exposure to The Band in their eventual guise. By taking the combo format behind Dylan that night - themselves lacking a Dylan-style front man despite having Keith Reid as lyricist, but having a fine singer in Gary Broker, in the Danka/Manuel “range” - it is just possible that Procol Harum gave the world the first taste of what The Band would sound like, long before any leaked acetates were knocking about. Judging by the first taste – to wit, MFBP opener “Tears of Rage” – they did a pretty good job!

It could even be the example of Procol Harum that inspired Island Records act Art to add a second keyboard player (Gary Wright – who is American) and become Spooky Tooth. Procol or not, it was to MFBP that Spooky Tooth looked in 1968 for a non-album 45 cover of “The Weight”. Aside from this, their next LP “Spooky Two” would feature several songs showing an American influence (try “I’ve Got Enough Heartache”), however Spooky Tooth were still inclined to riff it up with the best of them and thus are slightly beyond the focus of this piece.

Entered at Sun Apr 24 21:19:44 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Oh, it was Pete Feenstra and he was trying to plug a duo I did with my dear friend Gary Brewer. Those who remember the London live scene in the early eighties may remember Gary from the act "Little Sister".

Entered at Sun Apr 24 21:17:12 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Where does it say that? It's very kind but not remotely fair. I have done about six paid sessions in my life and spent the rest of my organ playing career in London blues bands.

Is it Araucaria today? The wife will be disappointed as she hates to miss one of his/hers.

Entered at Sun Apr 24 21:05:14 CEST 2011 from (62.7.176.46)

Roger

I'm sitting here struggling over the Guardian holiday crossword and I found myself diverted by RTO's RM references. Hello Rob Millis. The google page I checked with says:"Rob is one of the top Hammond sessioneers on the circuit". And Ian Mclagan's on in Winchester in August, not June....

back to Auracaria...

Entered at Sun Apr 24 19:25:12 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Jan, be prepared to find my lengthy ramblings about the influence of MFBP on the UK music scene when you get back to work! I emailed it to you yesterday to do with what you will after getting a rudimentary thumbs up from Peter V that you would probably be interested. Didn't think it appropriate to post it in chunks here.

Entered at Sun Apr 24 18:09:22 CEST 2011 from (99.235.255.183)

Serenity

Have a good day. Mine will be very busy with family.

Here's a snipit from my e-mails. So nice of Emmy Lou.

TORONTO - Emmylou Harris says that late Montreal folk legend Kate McGarrigle was "one of the most extraordinary musicians" she's ever known.

McGarrigle died of cancer last year at age 63, and Harris's new disc "Hard Bargain" — which comes out Tuesday — has a delicate tune devoted to the memory of the captivating singer-songwriter called "Darlin' Kate."

"I really do miss Kate a lot," Harris said softly during a recent interview in Toronto. "I think she was one of the most extraordinary musicians I've ever known. Her playing, her guitar playing, was exquisite. Obviously piano, organ, banjo. ...

"Her songwriting, just so beautiful, and her singing. And the two of them together just made a sound that thrills my soul. But really, this song was about losing a friend."

Over a wispy acoustic guitar and piano, Harris sings a simultaneously hopeful and mournful tribute, which ends with the line: "If there was one name I could consecrate/ It would be yours, it would be Kate."

She said she met the McGarrigles — sisters Kate and Anna, whose diverse songwriting earned plaudits from around the world — back in the '70s, when they shared a record label.

They grew closer in the late '80s, when Harris invited the sisters to sing on her 1989 album, "Bluebird," which also featured a cover of the McGarrigles' "Love Is."

She also invited them to work on her Grammy-winning 1995 album "Wrecking Ball," which was produced by Canadian Daniel Lanois.

Until next time LOVE AND PEACE XOXOXOX

Entered at Sun Apr 24 16:09:13 CEST 2011 from (41.97.222.172)

Empty Now

Subject: Most talented band member :

GARTH HUDSON

by birth?

they are all brilliant – WRONG – some of them are all brilliant

Entered at Sun Apr 24 16:00:41 CEST 2011 from (71.246.9.74)

bob w.

A brief reference to her relationship with Bob Dylan and his proposal. Pops approved. She was concerned about what Dr. King might think. Above all, Mavis said she simply wasn't ready to be married.

Hard to believe the Staples never won a Grammy. Mavis won one for her recent work with Jeff Tweedy.

Entered at Sun Apr 24 14:35:21 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Peter, the piano part of The Weight - done properly - most certainly is no picnic and it is no surprise that Garth & Richard swapped for that tune.

As a part, it is often imitated to give a flavour of The Band, particularly the big octave climbs that sit under the chorus. I often chuckle that these folk probably don't realise that it is virtually a one off scenario and they would be better off with a steady piano and some "gurgling" organ if they want to nail a potted snapshot of the OQ. Live versions of Look Out Cleveland (particularly the RAH 71 performance) showcase my favourite interplay between the two keyboards: GH pulls out some runs that are almost funny and RM's (great initials for a keyboard player) piano is solid as rock underneath.

But you are right about the bedrock of piano on MFBP and in general the organ and piano complement each other better than on any other Band LP. I've said it thousands of times before but even just the intro to We Can Talk is enough to have made me glad I bought that album.

And, indeed - the drying up of RM (great initials for a songwriter) as a creative source is the biggest shame of the OQ history for me. Listen to "Sleeping" and weep, friends...

Entered at Sun Apr 24 13:28:31 CEST 2011 from (91.42.243.170)

Norbert

Subject: war engines

Whilst typing the previous post, my colleague Theo dropped by. He’s a motorman by birth (always black edged fingernails), and although not a mechanic, he has restored several old motorcycles. Now he had with him a beautiful 1942 English military Ariel (Theo in style with a suitable, long, green military jacked and pot helmet). On request Theo kicked the 350cc engine alive, after several brutal attempts and some oil spill on the driveway, a magnificent one cylinder sound POW ….POW filed the quiet Eastern German street, at every lamppost a giant blast. Ignition to set “for” or “later” by hand, max speed about 60miles (but 50 miles is more than enough on such a machine).

Those war engines didn’t have a piston spring as they presumed those motorcycles wouldn’t survive long, but this one did, now almost 70 years old. It was left by British soldiers in Belgium, than used for years by a Dutch doctor and from his grandson Theo bought the machine (it was stored in the bedroom of a flat on the second floor for years, they dragged it all the way up there by hand). Anyway which 4 cylinder 250bhp Honda can top that?

The link is a 1942 Harley, although another motorcycle it looks like it (from a dsitance).

Entered at Sun Apr 24 12:01:13 CEST 2011 from (79.202.170.116)

Norbert

Peter, Happy Easter read thank you, although we part at Julie Driscoll's, but at Julie's Tube I found Constantine P. Cavafy's (who doesn't know the man) " The Recipe Of Ancient Greco-Syrian Magicians" and that's fair enough.

Said an aesthete: "What distillation from magic herbs

can I find - what distillation, following the recipe

of ancient Greco-Syrian magicians - that will bring back to me

for one day (if its power doesn't last longer),

or even for a few hours,

my twenty-third year,

bring back to me my friend of twenty-two, his beauty, his love.

What distillation, following the recipe

of ancient Greco-Syrian magicians, can be found

to bring back -as part of this return to the past- the little room we shared."

Entered at Sun Apr 24 11:28:59 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Uncut reviews the reissue of Mercury Rev's "Deserters Songs" this month, and includes a Q&A with Jonathan Donahue.

UNCUT: Approaching Helm & Hudson to play with you must have been nerve-wracking.

DONAHUE: Yeah, it was. Nobody wants to be rejected by somebody that they feel inspired by. It was Amy Helm, Levon's daughter, who whistled on the outro of "Opus 40." She gained a certain whistling fame from this and went to whistle on a burger chain TV ad which she claimed made her hyndreds of thousands of dollars.

(That's what it says. I don't discount the possibility that Amy was taking the piss out of Donahue, or Donahue taking the piss out of UNCUT).

Entered at Sun Apr 24 10:49:58 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

On reading all the new Band articles, I had a few hours in the car on Friday and decided to go through MFBP very loud, and try to imagine doing it with fresh ears. I was trying to remember how it felt when I first heard it and there was little information about The Band. There is major interference from later knowledge, and that’s inevitable.

First off, when I first heard it, I assumed Tears of Rage, To Kingdom Come, In A Station were all the same singer. I thought Robbie on the second was Richard. The first different lead was apparently Rick on Caledonia Mission. I’ve castigated myself for cloth ears since … but it was a reasonable conclusion. Then comes The Weight which was already very familiar when I first heard the album in a booth at W.H. Smith. That was a different voice again, and a Southern accent. And it was the single. The run of Band charting singles then mainly featured Levon lead vocals.

On to Side Two, and Levon’s oft-repeated statement that “Richard was our lead singer” is borne out, though Rick takes two leads and they all join in on We Can Talk. As Side Two kicks off, I remember that We Can Talk hit me as the obvious second single at the time. It never happened. They weren’t good at choosing singles.

Back to Rick for Long Black Veil. Here later knowledge kicks in. We know Levon had just returned and that The Weight was the last song written. So he got the lead on three out of five verses. The other bit of later knowledge would lead to the assumption that they’d thought it through to a degree and assigned the lead vocals before Levon got back. That led me to think “casting director” a role Robbie claimed he was doing with vocals by the Brown album. So Long Black Veil. Levon had the most obvious “cowboy” voice. As a casting director, you’d have assigned it to him, I think. Except that one suspects Rick brought it to the table … remember he’s reading “C&W Hits” on the cover of Moondog Matinee. Also, you know that Rick can carry off the seemingly sentimental with assurity evry time … as he was to do with It Makes No Difference. But Levon’s voice gets blended in on verse two, which gives the required effect.

Chest Fever is great, very familiar etc.

Then you get that closing run of three. The one that people have said they skip. Lonesome Suzie was a favourite of mine at the time and that affection lasted two or three years. Now I don’t like it. It’s too clearly sub-Eleanor Rigby, but not as good, lacking the full jump in instrumentation or the lyrical quality. I realized how often I’ve skipped it myself since about 1972.

This Wheel’s On Fire? I keep saying the 90s Band were mad not to feature it. BUT, I prefer the Julie Driscoll version. I know, I know … it’s just that her icy voice nailed the song and defined it for me. I do know when I first heard the album, I thought her version better.. When I finished with MFBP, I had to pull off the road to find her version on my iPod. I still prefer Julie. Also, I think the Byrds did it just as well, or even better than The Band. But the Band should still have done it.

I Shall Be Released? It falls in a group with Tears of Rage / In A Station / Lonesome Suzie … 40% on Richard on slower gentle stuff. It got killed by all the events it was sung at. It was the B-side of The Weight, and for a year, I played both sides on the jukebox at university while I read the free morning papers and had a coffee, so incredibly familiar.

The thing that stood out, as well as the best rhythm section I’d ever heard, was how prominent piano is throughout the album, and how well it’s played … not the fill in rhythm piano of later years. But Garth took the piano for The Weight. Is it harder? The tragedy of the lost talent of Richard Manuel screams out. He was Robbie’s equal as a composer on that album, he was the most highly featured singer, and his instrumental work was great. Even by the Brown album, it was slipping past him fast. And it wasn’t just “Robbie taking over”. It was Levon getting far more lead vocals – rightly, as it fitted the mood, he deserved it and it was equal share out time rather than coming late to the party. Our Robbie-Levon duality, the two competing controlling forces that are the powerhouse in getting groups into prominence, was back in force.

Entered at Sun Apr 24 10:17:31 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

How would you negotiate rights? They’re virtually all with estates … Danko, Manuel, Butterfield, Gene Clark, Skip Battin. You’d have to assume that you were dealing with one entity in each case. You have fixed expenses with mechanicals on the songs, but you don’t have to negotiate those. Then how much is left after the massive discounts amazon take?

I conclude that it can only be done as a labour of love, rather than a profitable exercise, and that the amount left to pay the performers would be small. I’m delighted someone is getting them out there.

Entered at Sun Apr 24 09:32:27 CEST 2011 from (216.165.58.52)

Nameless

Most talented band member? Though they are all brilliant. I'd like to know what some people think. If anyone gets angry, that'd just piss me off.

Entered at Sun Apr 24 02:29:23 CEST 2011 from (96.30.174.20)

joe j

Subject: Keep On Running

Link to Spencer Davis Group. With Finnish subtitles? Ilkka please. Lots more of this concert available with little Stevie on both guitar and organ.

Entered at Sat Apr 23 23:54:24 CEST 2011 from (24.124.99.203)

ray pence

Subject: Zimmerman in Vietnam

Most, perhaps all of you know that Bob Dylan played his first concert in Vietnam. You may also know that his performance there, similar to his gigs in China, generated criticism because of the human rights records of those nations and the charge that the Chinese and Vietnamese authorities "censored" or at least screened his set lists before granting permission.

I, like a fairly large number of Americans including a great many Vietnam War veterans, have visited Vietnam, officially known as the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. In 1995 I spent one month there. It's a beautiful country and the people are even more beautiful. Vietnam is also desperately poor and developing.

My hosts during that visit included two brothers from California who served as Marines during the war and had set up an English language school in Ho Chi Minh City/Saigon. These men told me they received a warmer welcome when they returned to Vietnam in comparison to how their own country treated them after the war.

Ronald Reagan's administration made the first serious overtures to Vietnam for normalizing relationships even though Bill Clinton officially normalized them (and got lots of flak for it). The Vietnamese have been very, very accommodating, by just about all credible accounts, in helping with the Missing in Action/Prisoners of War issues. I wonder if the US would be so accommodating to the Vietnamese if the situation was reversed? And I wonder why so few people know or even care what Agent Orange did to the Vietnamese and their country? It took decades for this country to care about their own veterans and Agent Orange, but its effects continue in Vietnam, and for people who had nothing to do with the war.

I am not going to make apologies for Vietnam's government. All I know is that the Vietnamese people are good people who have a lot of pride in their country and their culture. I have never encountered people who are more hospitable than the Vietnamese. And while they are not pleased with many things about their government, they insist on running their own affairs, after having been given orders by outsiders for centuries--China, France, Japan, the US, and the USSR all tried to control Vietnam and they all failed.

You can tell I'm a little fired up by this. I'll get to the point. I think that most of the criticism leveled at Dylan for playing in China and Vietnam is some of the worst hypocrisy I've heard, especially when it comes from someone like Maureen Dowd of the New York Times--a corporation that you can be sure does plenty of business with China.

The US business community decided long ago make China a major partner. Vietnam was admitted to the World Trade Organization recently. I know very, very few people who don't own lots and lots of Chinese-made goods. And Vietnam is making more and more of the shoes and clothes sold in the US.

Before anyone in the US goes putting down Dylan for playing in China and Vietnam, they ought to take a quick look in the mirror and an even quicker look around their homes to see if they might be part of whatever problem they have with those countries. I am not saying that people shouldn't criticize China and Vietnam--they should. But that criticism won't mean much until someone figures out a way to make it louder than the sound money makes when it talks.

I should also point out that the NY Times has had a couple of stories about Robbie in the last month, one of which advocates an end to "the feud," and that these stories have of course generated their own feuds on the message boards. Goodness gracious, this is tiresome, and so are these people.

Entered at Sat Apr 23 21:15:13 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Sat Apr 23 21:11:36 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Brien, just get yourself a copy of UK "adult" (in a sense of being fairly explicit and/or "toilety" rather than level of intellect) comic Viz and read "The Bacons". It is written in such away that you read it in a Geordie accent ("flowers" is written floo-ahs, "no holes" as nee hurls, "turkey" as torkey etc..). Then, when you've done that for a while, phone up and order with confidence. Ah, Tyneside on a Saturday. Good cheer, plenty of ale...Rachel Unthank clog dancing....

Entered at Sat Apr 23 20:10:52 CEST 2011 from (74.108.27.233)

Joan

Subject: Future competion for Robbie & Eric

These kids are amazing.

Entered at Sat Apr 23 19:54:56 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

Entered at Sat Apr 23 19:38:17 CEST 2011 from (74.108.27.233)

Joan

Arr you impugning the "Lawn Giland" accent? We make ourselves totally understood, even in Brooklyn. :-)

Entered at Sat Apr 23 18:58:30 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

Entered at Sat Apr 23 18:15:46 CEST 2011 from (130.244.196.90)

Ilkka jauramo

Subject: PV

FYI RTO. For ten years ago when I was a deputy we had a regular named PV.

Entered at Sat Apr 23 17:09:04 CEST 2011 from (86.173.160.144)

RTO

Brien just say "Hoy canny lad, can you hoy us a Rick Danko CD oot in the purst?" and they'll oblige, I'm sure.

Entered at Sat Apr 23 17:05:53 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

If that doesn't work, e-mail me and I'll order you one from the UK.

Entered at Sat Apr 23 16:28:45 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

Entered at Sat Apr 23 16:01:49 CEST 2011 from (86.173.160.144)

RTO

You do have to wonder sometimes; I remember working in a record shop when Sundazed put out Jefferson Airplane's complete Monterey festival set. It didn't last long and apparently that was "grey". That is not to impugn Sundazed as a label who I believe are totally above board.

Entered at Sat Apr 23 15:53:59 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Sat Apr 23 15:47:13 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

There's a little flurry of releases in this month's Record Collector. All are on amazon.co.uk.

Rick Danko: Live at the Tin Angel, 2CD live, Philadelphia 1999

Danko / Manuel / Butterfield: Live Lone Star, NYC, 1984

Byrds Tribute Band: Flagstaff, Arizona, NOT the much bootlegged "Star For Every Stage" from Evansville.

Quite a surprise to see them all advertised today.

Entered at Sat Apr 23 15:30:16 CEST 2011 from (41.97.138.114)

Empty Now

Subject: part 4/2

.... national hero by whom came moments of joy and pride, felt in both languages

Entered at Sat Apr 23 13:13:00 CEST 2011 from (41.97.138.114)

Empty Now

C O E X I S T

Entered at Sat Apr 23 12:57:35 CEST 2011 from (41.97.138.114)

Empty Now

this song give me the chill - Salvatore Adamo

Entered at Sat Apr 23 12:54:47 CEST 2011 from (41.97.138.114)

Empty Now

Subject: siamo tutti neri (we are all black) - 1/2

They were called "Italian immigrants" in the beginning, “Italo-Belges” during the mid of the 20th century, today they are simply called “Belges”

I lifted the post title from a commemoration of one century of Italian immigration in Belgium organized in 2006 by the Institut Jules Destrée; whose motto was “We are all black! Going up from the bottom, all minors are also black: Belgians, Italians, of all nationalities ...
-------------------

A la moutouelle is the Italian distorted pronunciation of Mutuelle == “The Mutual Insurance”

a popular satiric (cynic) song, the tune is evocative of “O Sol Mio” sung since in the past by the low class people of Wallonie who, as everywhere in the world in similar situation, consider the immigrant

. full of ethnic clichés and far beyond the condoned bounds of what the Americans call Political Correctness, portraying the average Italian immigrant as a mass of social opportunists

rough translation every word is Italian distorded, original song linked

A la moutouelle, life is beautiful
I left my beautiful Italy
I worked only two years
I got sick, it's wonderful
I'm still under therapy

La moutouelle is a good deal
Imagine it is, I became employee
When it comes to my retirement age
I will sell ice cream, spaghetti, chestnuts

I'm paid for, I break no p****
In my country it’s impossible
Not that I am dishonest
But I take advantage of the situation

Entered at Sat Apr 23 12:52:51 CEST 2011 from (91.42.241.75)

Norbert

Entered at Sat Apr 23 12:01:55 CEST 2011 from (86.173.160.144)

RTO

Hi Al - got your email yesterday evening and responded. Enjoy!

Entered at Sat Apr 23 10:00:40 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

...that's worrying me. It's the ghost of Floyd P.

aaaaaaaahhhhhh!!!!!!

:-0)

Entered at Sat Apr 23 04:24:41 CEST 2011 from (99.235.255.183)

Serenity

Good show for those who enjoy country music. All the women are being honored by fellow performers, who perform their songs. So nice to see John Fogerty again. He gave tribute to the Judds. Wynona and John sang "Rollin' On The River". Great performances for 2 hours. At least you don't hear them [some, that is], screaming their heads off.

CYA soon xoxoxo

Entered at Sat Apr 23 03:08:13 CEST 2011 from (96.30.174.20)

joe j

Link is to a fantastic cover of 'Positively 4th Street' by Johnny Rivers.

Entered at Sat Apr 23 02:01:44 CEST 2011 from (67.250.113.92)

Lars

Subject: Sitting around with my back to the wall

I dunno, Norb. Al's being VERY quiet. I'm already holding a shotgun, pistol and a baseball bat.

For anybody who can make it to the Falcon (Marlboro) in an hour, Garth is supposed to be sitting in with the main act tonight. It's probably going to be packed, though.

Entered at Fri Apr 22 22:59:57 CEST 2011 from (79.202.172.27)

Norbert

Subject: Lars

Lars, I'm sure Al will forgive you.

Entered at Fri Apr 22 22:10:05 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Subject: Brien Sz(etzer!)

Brien, it is Setzer that gave me a hankering for an old school "upright" cocktail drum kit for the studio. Check out Bernie Dressel's sterling tubsmanship in the link above.

Mrs RTO does not share my enthusiasm and is unmoved at the claims that the upright format will mean it can tuck neatly away and you wouldn't know it was there. She'll soften, though...

Entered at Fri Apr 22 19:07:17 CEST 2011 from (74.198.87.62)

Kevin J

See link for another review of HTBC and the comments from Sebastian on the Net strategy.....of which we here were somewhat aware.....

Al: Permission to post "Stay with Me" daily if you so choose - love it!

Entered at Fri Apr 22 18:32:23 CEST 2011 from (99.235.255.183)

Serenity

Subject: Good Friday to you all, and the "fighting" marines..

Hope your day is going well. My link is a goodie. It will make you smile/laugh. Hope you like it??

Until next time LOVE AND PEACE XOXOXOXO

Entered at Fri Apr 22 17:49:31 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

Entered at Fri Apr 22 17:38:09 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

My mum told me that every winter in the 1920s, the snow was over the window sills in the Welsh valleys.

1976 … we'd just bought (or got a mortgage on) our first flat. It was in a village in the New Forest over a motor bike shop, which got broken into every Saturday night by squaddies from the local army base. I don't wish to impugn the intrinsic honesty of British armed forces unjustly, but that's what happened to most of the shops in the village. Anyway, the New Forest was a tinderbox, and on our second week, we found the road home closed by the police because there was a major forest fire. Being stupid, we took a back way in through a farm. When we got there, we saw armed soldiers on the street (the first time in my life), and were told to get the car off the street. There were buses lined up, and ambulances. Little did we know that the army base was the biggest strategic petrol dump in the country, and that fires had started on three sides simultaneously. We were told we would be evacuated. The soldiers said it was an IRA attack. We went to the pub and found ourselves speaking to two very frightened Irish guys, who didn't dare go outside because of their accent. Anyway, the fire got controlled a few yards from the first petrol store. It turned out to be arson … but by three twelve year old local kids. I'm sure I told this story before.

Entered at Fri Apr 22 17:09:03 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Yeah, I noticed the Gibson bass. A bit token, no? I guess at kleast they didn't go for the Ampeg which would have been milking it. I mean, it's not as if I own two Lowrey organs, so...oh, hang on...I'll get my coat

Entered at Fri Apr 22 16:50:32 CEST 2011 from (67.250.113.92)

Lars

Subject: The war was over and the spirit was broken

AL- You know I love you and I'm too tired to hurt anybody, anyway. If my post came off as a macho-bullshit- testosterone rant, them I apologize. I just look back at some of the stupid things I did as a young man and I wish I could borrow some of that energy now, to work on my lawn. All of it "seems like a dream now, it was so long ago."

I guess if I had it to do all over again I would have fled to Canada instead of joining the Confederacy.

The link is to my favorite Band song "Acadian Driftwood." from "Night At the Palladium." I couldn't find the original on Youtube.

The rain is moving in tomorrow...I gotta get the lime down on my lawn. Slowly.

Entered at Fri Apr 22 13:51:52 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

Subject: Howard Johnson '80s commercial.

Great six-minute collection of '80s commercials posted by Tony LoBue on facebook. Approx three-minutes into the video is Howard Johnson (RoA, TLW & Levon Helm Band) pushing Lite beer. Very cool :). Some other great commercials, including '84 cars w/ CD players.

Entered at Fri Apr 22 13:29:23 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

RR on Tavis Smiley.

Entered at Fri Apr 22 12:56:44 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Wow. is that Wisconsin joe?

Hard to imagine right now as believe it or not we're in the middle of a heatwave over here.

Talk about unpredictable British weather. I remember one Easter when we were down in south wales valleys at mag's folks and we got snowed in with 5foot drifts. Pete will recall it i'm sure. think it was the same year as the long hot summer of '76.

On balance I think I'd just about opt for being here Joe. ;-0)

Entered at Fri Apr 22 12:25:49 CEST 2011 from (96.30.174.20)

joe j

We had a big dump of snow last night. Got to drag out the shovel again. This diggin in the snow is getting preetty old.

Entered at Fri Apr 22 12:01:35 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Subject: Has a rock intro ever bettered this?

The Faces of course.

:-0) So good he posted it twice. [Actually being honest it's for the benefit of joe whose eyesight is clearly failing. I don't mind not getting credit for most things or even being slagged off but I draw the line at not being credited for a killer link like this] :-0)

Great posts Empty and Lars. Dark horses. ;-0)

PS If it had have been Lars who mis-credited the Faces link I clearly wouldn't have pulled him up since I value keeping my head on my shoulders :-0)

Entered at Fri Apr 22 11:51:22 CEST 2011 from (41.97.233.76)

Empty Now

Thanks, you hit the point. (I was at a parsec lower level), but Fausto Coppi was the mythical hero and example to follow for this generation (in Belgium) I stopped practicing as I reported below around 68? Eddy Merckx was unknown or at least not at the same legendary level

correction : GITANE without "s" is the bicycle brand, with "s" it's a cigarette brand

Entered at Fri Apr 22 11:39:22 CEST 2011 from (203.160.29.153)

Fred

Empty Now: where you the Faustino Coppi, the Gino Bartali or the Eddy Merckx of Constantine? : )

Entered at Fri Apr 22 11:13:13 CEST 2011 from (41.97.233.76)

Empty Now

Subject: the eternal beginner with his fleeting knowledge

Lars . Thanks for the post "Music while training". You Are Full Of Energy

I often posted about football, tracks athletics, rugby, and even base ball. However it might surprise some of you to know that the only sport I practiced at the competition level was cycling, with the all the folklore which goes with it as teenage dreams of championship and glory, though bicycle race is the less remunerated sport.

This is how the story ended. My ultimate last road race was also the first I almost won. At the final sprint short before the arrival line, I was ahead, then I slightly looked back to appreciate the distance beyond the pack and enjoy the euphoria of the first victory. The handlebar turned to the right in the course of the same movement, (It is the elementary error that no beginner commit, at the time the bikes were not self-stabilized, you loose the handlebars the front wheel doesn't follow a straight line, it was a "Gitanes") and fortuitous coincidence, my left foot came out of the stirrup and slipped forward between the spokes, blocking the forward wheel, at 30 km/h. Some who witnessed the scene told me that I did a somersault me and my bike along, landing on the bismuth. I retrieved my spirits long after, with a shirt all shredded, bandages, etc.

Band Connection : just as what happened for The Band, the GBers first discovered my sporting career through the last public appearance

In the link above : Marc Herremans "Johnnie Walker" tells his take of his own experience and amazing personality. Amazing is also the song selected for the clip. This is actually The Band related, various are The Band related situations

Entered at Fri Apr 22 08:38:25 CEST 2011 from (122.59.251.42)

Rod

From what I've heard of the Dawes on Youtube I like their sound more than Robbie's new album. The Gibson Ripper is a sure give away of their Band influences

Entered at Fri Apr 22 08:28:19 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

One of the pleasures of Top of The Pops in the 70s was seeing what The Faces would get up to. They weren't the only ones, but they'd switch instruments for the mimed bits and generally fall about. A good time was had by all.

I blame the size of a hit that "Sailing" was for Rod's plunge into lack of cred. It was just TOO big. In fact, last time I heard it was at the funeral of a neighbour who was a sailor in WW2. It seems to have become the rule for nautical send offs. In fact, the words fit well.

Entered at Fri Apr 22 06:04:40 CEST 2011 from (74.198.87.36)

Kevin J

Bill M & Landmark and Joe: Having some fun on a Friday night inspired by that Garfield........enjoy my favorite Montreal album by Jack August and friends....Still rank the Moonquake album cover as one of my all timers......and this song as simple as it is never fails to hit the mark for me......enjoy the link...

Entered at Fri Apr 22 05:57:43 CEST 2011 from (24.124.99.203)

ray pence

Subject: not bad review of HTBC, Aussie via Austin

Deceptively terse but admiring and accurate. Shows that the impact of the Internet/sound bites/text messaging on prose doesn't always have to nauseate.

Entered at Fri Apr 22 05:43:03 CEST 2011 from (67.250.113.92)

Lars

Subject: Music while training

When I was young and full of energy I used to box as a light heavyweight (amateur, of course). I trained in three different gyms during my three years. The first one wouldn't allow music because they said it weakens you, which I thought was nonsense, but I followed the coach's instructions. I spent a year just getting my body parts in all the right spots as I threw the punches-- he was a perfectionist.

The second gym was in Florida and the ex-boxer in charge let me play music in the cassette player nearby the heavy bag. I'm not a BeeGees fan, but I found "Edge of the Universe" was good to work out with. I like the way the punches slapped the bag as I listened to that song.

The third gym was after I quit boxing for a few months, the headaches were bothering me. My third coach was Floyd Patterson and he wasn't as nice as he seemed to be when I met him in the streets of New Paltz, where we both lived. Very strict and sometimes sarcastic, yet still likable. He used to stand behind the heavy bag and after I'd throw a right hand he said I never got my glove back to my face fast enough. Sometimes he'd wait for a right hand to land, then he'd reach around with his left hook and slap my right cheek with the palm of his left hand. Real loud. "I TOLD you to get your right hand back faster."

It made an impression. But Floyd was a good man; he just had a harder side to him than most of the public got to see. We were still somewhat friendly when I gave it up for good.

Entered at Fri Apr 22 04:04:36 CEST 2011 from (68.58.62.171)

Steve L

Subject: Dawes-New Album

I received an email notice for Dawes announcing their upcoming release. They mention backing up Robbie in London and on Letterman. The album cover art on the attached link had me thinking of Levon and "The best seat in the house". Free download of a track available as well. Happy Easter to all.

Entered at Fri Apr 22 03:30:47 CEST 2011 from (173.178.214.140)

Landmark

Subject: The F@#$ng Treadmill!

Joe I can sympathize. As someone who joined a gym for the first time, several months ago, I am finally getting around to putting together appropriate music for the treadmill and elliptical machines. I have essentially thrown out just about everything I ever listened to in order to get the the music I wish to work out to. So far my quest is allowing me to re-discover plenty of Motown and soul. The song I have linked is the building base to my workout music. So whether you work out or not, give it a listen and enjoy. This song always brings out a big smile for me!

Entered at Fri Apr 22 01:45:52 CEST 2011 from (96.30.174.20)

joe j

Right on right on right on. Loved it Landmark. It's been a long time. Loved the 'Stay With Me' link too RTO. Really the first music I've listened to all week. Except for that mix tape. I thought I was being so effin smart when I bought that treadmill. I never counted on the music she might play. I'm thinking bad thoughts . So help me God, if there is a God.

Entered at Thu Apr 21 23:33:20 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Entered at Thu Apr 21 23:10:11 CEST 2011 from (91.42.232.162)

Norbert

I just opened my blackberry messenger, selected the contact, viewed the menu, and selected "Ping Contact." The contact was immediately receiving a message that said "PING," the phone executed my personal settings.The ping was Band related.

Entered at Thu Apr 21 22:57:38 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

Bob F: I stuck it out through “A Night on The Town” but it was hard to take after that though the first side of “Footless and Fancy Free” was very good as I recall with “You’re Insane” a particular favourite at the time ……………RS was a glorious talent for a period – 1968-1975 - and for me the best rock n roll singer on the planet for some of it……………

“Stay with Me”: Agree Al………no band ever fell about better……………….makes one want to puke at the pretentiousness of some of the new bands on the scene….I mean really…. It’s just rock n roll…………have some fun………..In their own way that is what I love about Arcade Fire……..they have fun live at the same time delivering very good music.

Entered at Thu Apr 21 22:11:32 CEST 2011 from (70.28.32.74)

Landmark

Hey Kevin,Have you found this one on your own?

Entered at Thu Apr 21 22:04:13 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Peter, I have sent you a rough for you to giggle at and smother with red pen! Al, I'll send you a copy when you ping me a mail.

I take it that if it is 8 pages of 12pt Times NR (which it is) I ought to trim it slightly?

Entered at Thu Apr 21 22:01:38 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Tin Soldier and Afterglow for me, with Plonk's Song of a Baker trailing by a nose. In a hooligan kind of way, Wham Bam Thank You Mam is one I often dip into, musing what Humble Pie might have been with Mac on the organ...

Entered at Thu Apr 21 21:06:35 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

The 1966 DJ is still a good friend.On my playlist "All or Nothing" sits between Satisfaction by Otis Redding and Um, Um, Um, Um. Um. Um by Major Lance. Not far away is Ride Your Pony by Lee Dorsey and Mercy, Mercy by Don Covay. Few white artists made the cut among this company … Chris Farlowe with Out of Time. Let's Hang On by The Four Seasons … and … He Don't Love You by Levon & The Hawks.

Entered at Thu Apr 21 21:00:26 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

I have a Playlist entitled "Le Kilt" after the disco I haunted in the mid 60s. Among the greatest soul stuff, Stevie Marriot on "All or Nothing" sits so seamlessly that you don't see the join. As does Spencer Davis Group with Keep on Running and Somebody Help Me. The very best of white soul. (Well, add The Box Tops).

Entered at Thu Apr 21 20:14:35 CEST 2011 from (74.108.27.233)

Joan

Thanks for that clip Sadavid. I wish they would have pointed their camera at the stage when Rick was singing instead of the buffet table.

Jeff, that Bob Weir clip was sort of pathetic. It just kind of "sat" there. No one looked like they were having any fun. I think the drummer was yawning at one point :-)

Entered at Thu Apr 21 19:21:34 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Subject: Has a rock intro ever bettered this?

The Faces of course.

:-0)

PS I'll be in touch Rob asap.

Entered at Thu Apr 21 19:01:21 CEST 2011 from (70.28.32.74)

Landmark

Bill,the photos you're talking about were from the Arms concerts from the mid 80's. They were a series of concerts to help purchase hyperbaric chambers that Ronnie Laine claimed to get relief from, after the onset of his MS. The big draw was the fact that the three lead guitarists from the Yardbirds were all together on stage. I believe I once posted a link from the original Albert Hall show of Jeff Beck singing "Hi Ho Silver Lining" here. As for the Small Faces, I've always been partial to "The Universal" whcih was Steve Marriot singing in his garden with over-dubs put on later as well as "Afterglow".

Entered at Thu Apr 21 18:09:16 CEST 2011 from (131.137.35.83)

sadavid

Subject: razorbacks and bobwire

A contemporary CBC-TV news feature on the Clinton Inauguration and "Ronnie Hawkins' excellent American adventure."
Cameos from most of The Band (Mk. II 3.b.iv).

Entered at Thu Apr 21 17:53:30 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Kevin J: I'm sure the biggest chunk of Baldry's medical bills were paid by people like you and me - which is as it should be. Which is not to undermine the value of Rod's contributions or intentions. Medication can be hellishly expensive.

RtO: I too love Marriott's voice, though I don't see how it can be characterised as 'black'. My personal favourites are "Itchycoo Park", "All Or Nothing" and the live 45 version of "Tin Soldier" (which is positively exhausting), all by the Small Faces, though there are times when Humblie Pie delivering "Thirty Days In The Hole" live hits the spot. I almost saw him/them in Melbourne in '82, but bailed for reasons that I don't recall. (I also don't recall if he/they were billed as the Small Faces or as Humble Pie; I do recall that my reason for even considering going was that the keyboardist at the time was Goldy McJohn of Steppenwolf.)

BEG: I posted that TLW tribute info a couple weeks ago - maybe when you were off on March break or something.

Entered at Thu Apr 21 17:12:42 CEST 2011 from (86.183.225.185)

RTO

Oh well, "I Know You Rider" was never the most interesting song, was it? Just something to hang off the end of "China Cat Sunflower".

Forgot to respond to you about NRPS the other day; totally agree that the debut is the one to get excited about.

Entered at Thu Apr 21 16:02:33 CEST 2011 from (86.183.225.185)

RTO

I see what you mean, and if the new venture is completely different then so be it. I was referring to at least three recent ventures that are, with varying original member involvement, thinly veiled attempts at providing a surrogate Grateful Dead. One of which, (The Dead) to my ears and sensibilities as a Deadhead, was perfectly acceptable and didn't need changing.

For my money, Lesh "and Friends" is the way to present solo projects as in terms of membership and content, the format is infinitely variable according to his whim!

Entered at Thu Apr 21 16:00:38 CEST 2011 from (12.25.140.82)

PutEmUp(Friend0

Entered at Thu Apr 21 15:50:06 CEST 2011 from (129.42.208.177)

Bob F.

Subject: The Faces

Kevin J, your absolutely right. The Faces were Rock Stars in the best possible way. The first time I saw them was at The Capital Theatre in Port Chester, NY. They were the headline act on a bill with The Grease Band(without Cocker) and Savoy Brown. I saw the 11:30pm show. I had never seen anything like The Faces. A true "oh my God" moment. I loved everything they did and everything Rod did up to and including 'Atlantic Crossing'. The last thing he did that didn't make me sick was his version of 'People Get Ready' with Beck.

Entered at Thu Apr 21 14:45:26 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

Maybe the reason Weir doesn't do as has been suggested is because he's been down that road and now, with enough money and security locked up (one would imagine) he can once again venture down the path less taken and work on other forms of creative expression. Or maybe he just feels like working with other people. If you have the means and confidence as well as the creative aptitude to continue making new music and musings - why not. My goodness..., to just perform the same dog and pony show over and over again would be boring. I understand their is a fan base that needs to be fed but as is evidenced, there is a plethora of work available to explore and these guys tend to come around from time to time to appease the beast but because the incarnation isn't of ones particular liking doesn't mean that the efforts cannot be enjoyed. It often is on the individual to tear down their own walls of perception and enjoy what is presently being offered.

Entered at Thu Apr 21 14:11:17 CEST 2011 from (86.183.225.185)

RTO

Jeff, I don't know why Weir doesn't stick to Ratdog, and for fuller reunions why this whole Furthur thing seems to have replaced The Dead. Why you would opt for a band with a tribute band Jerry and a different drummer instead of basically the GD with Jeff C on organ and Warren Haynes ably filling Garcia's shoes with a pretty well balanced mix of Garcia's signature licks and his own strong personality is beyond me. Ratdog, Phil & Friends for individual projects and The Dead for bigger reunions. Simple!

Peter, we MUST see Mac, indeed. I want him to sign the "Everything Mac" booklet I got with my computer! I'm sure he'd laugh at that.

Entered at Thu Apr 21 10:52:09 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Thu Apr 21 10:39:30 CEST 2011 from (76.99.245.65)

Peter M.

Subject: Plonk, Ronnie Lane, Woody, Keith and Mac

Peter, Bob F, Bob W, Todd, et al... I hear regularly from Ian McLagen, and he's right about Ronnie Lane (yeah, it was Woody in The Birds). Mac feels that Plonk was left out in the musician/songwriter hall of fame. In Mac's shows for the past couple of decades, he's always spoken to his audience about what a treasure Lane was. All you have to do is go back to the "Rough Mix" album. Everyone who played in any of their friends' bands weighed in, with a contribution or two from Rabbit Bundrick, Pino Pallidino, Clapton (on not just guitar, but subtle stuff like the dobro). What a gem of a record! Mac plays half a dozen beauties from that album at various times that he plays outside of Austin. I've heard both written reports, and firsthand, about who paid hospital bills. Keith and many others were involved in this beautiful human's end stage fight against MS. And Mac is Ronnie Lane's biggest fan and supporter.

Entered at Thu Apr 21 10:29:54 CEST 2011 from (41.97.201.229)

Empty Now

Subject: great movie, great director, great all

stop the picture at exactly 2:25 (link above, with the Pause button), examine it enough time. The look and the expression in the eyes of Marlon Brando alone epitomizes the fundament of everything that must be understood in the rest of the story, this image also provides the pictorial quintessence look-and-feel of the English man of always, in all his greatness. For sure Marlon Brando is not an English, he is a great actor

at 2:52 - the first encounter between Marlon Brando and Jose, the anthological phrase "Your Bag Senhor"
in the Ialian original version, it was "Sacchetto Massa", that which should translate as "Your Bag Massa" in the American dubbed version, the local consumption criteria prevailed on the authenticity of the fiction

Entered at Thu Apr 21 08:49:10 CEST 2011 from (12.25.140.82)

PutEmUp(Friend0

Subject: Yosemite

RTO,and anyone else interested, Weir has a new band Scaring The Children with Jackie Greene, Rob Wasserman ( who is amazing) and Jay Lane. On this page there is a vid of them doing I Know You Rider. Don't expect a lot ,and you won't be disappointed.

While I admire his career, talent, and fortitude, I do think Bob is way past the point he should have tried adapting to the limitations time has placed on his vocals, and I would include making different choices of performance material in that adaptation. I also think that unless sometime soon he's auditoning for a film role as Yosemite Sam, hwe's way past due for thinning out that stache.

Entered at Thu Apr 21 08:47:44 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Nothing new … but the Pete Townsend clip (talking about The Faces) reminds me that The Who and Rod stewart & The Soul Agents both played my local, the Disques A Go Go, a cellar club within weeks of each other. The tale I’ve repeated here since reading Ian McLagan’s autobiography is how Keith Moon “took out a contract” (Sopranos style) on McLagen, and “Uncle Pete” as he called him, paid them more not to do it.

Entered at Thu Apr 21 03:16:47 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

BEG: Nick Lowe dabbled in journalism; he fancied himself as a war correspondent but became disillusioned when all he seemed to get were flower shows. Elvis Costello came from the background of operating the new fangled computer at Elizabeth Arden cosmetics! "Punch The Clock" tells that tale.

So we are agreed that Marriot ate Rodney up for breakfast and spat him out then? Good! People rave about Eric Burdon, Steve Winwood and both are great - but for me the most convincing "black" UK voice was always Marriot, no question. Like Ronnie Lane, a sad, sad loss.

Al: thanks for your kind words! Can you email me at rob millis 74 at hot mail dot com (less the spaces and...you know). Inspired by your own efforts, I have half written a piece on the influence of MFBP specifically on the UK scene. Would be interested in your thoughts as don't feel it appropriate to unleash it here yet

Kevin: I'll check your link tomorrow, as want to rattle off a bit more of my article first. Sadly, blinkered as I am, I doubt it'll change my opinion of Rod Stewart. His refusal to participate in the Faces reunion is understandable enough for his own reasons, but the knock on effect was that (spit!) Mick Hucknall fronted them, For facilitating that, wittingly or no, Rod should be (Mussolini style) hung from a tree upside down and stoned to death, IMHO!

Entered at Thu Apr 21 02:17:30 CEST 2011 from (74.198.87.83)

Kevin J

RTO......The above clip is Townsend's take on who was paying the medical bills........enjoy......I'm doing my fu*king taxes.......what was it Bill Preston once said.....

Entered at Thu Apr 21 01:54:07 CEST 2011 from (76.69.84.91)

brown eyed girl

If I want to listen to The Faces, I have to put on "Itchycoo Park" and "I Don't Need No Doctor". We're repeating ourselves again.....

RTO...Graham Parker evinces sarcasm in his voice....delivers very insightful lyrics. I kind of saw him as the Dylan of England....He also liked reggae which was a bonus for me. Again....I'm mostly drawn to writers in bands who sing in an idisosyncratic manner. I knew the name Brinsley Schwarz but didn't know anything about him. When Costello first came to Toronto and played at The El Mo.....It was extremely hard to get tickets. I had to wait until he played a larger venue at Massey Hall. Willy DeVille ragged on them in the papers for not dressing cool. I also saw him and his band at our Heat Wave Festival in 1980....along with The Pretenders, B 52's and many others......"My Aim Is True" was his masterpiece. He was really able to craft his lyrics (I think he was in journalism before?) here and the epitomized the energy of New Wave....He had it all.

For the reggae fans out there.....I only found out recently that in October....Gregory Isaacs (known as "Cool Ruler" and "Lonely Lover"...Lovers rock - style crooner..."passed. He was only 59. I bought a cassette of his called "IOU" while in Jahmaica. I also would tape music from the radio and you could go into shops and have them make cassettes for you. The third time I was there, I finally found Dennis Brown's cover of "My Girl". I didn't have iTunes then. His huuuuge hit was "Night Nurse".

The first time I visited Jamaica in 1989; my friends took me everywhere for the two week holiday.....Montego Bay, (crystal blue water and absolutely stunning foliage), Kingston, (their family had homes in both places).....Uhhhhh....Things were a bit tense here even though everyone saw me with my black friends. Unfortunately the day they took me to Marley's first large home on Hope Road where PM lived....it was closed on Sundays!!! Ugggggh!.....Savannah Lamar, (great spice factory), Ocho Rios...(Dunn's River Falls)....another friend had an establishment here where there was also a skating rink inside....and we visited the countryside where my friends grew up......no running water and electricity in one home but a lot of sensimillia growing everywhere....lol Yup, one of my friends' nephews would smoke a spliff as long as Marley's.....His grandma kept telling me to not bring anything across the border going home.....The scary thing was that when we arrived in Toronto.....The dogs were out as we were in line at Pearson International Airport....I was afraid they'd smell the ganja on my clothing.....Now my NYC friend did smuggle.....once.....and .....The partiers gravitate to Negril where there are kilometers and kilometers of breath taking beaches (just like in Vardero, Cuba) where the young can have their fun.....I was checking out the culture myself.....Well....We did have children with us too.

I hope everyone has a peaceful long weekend whatever you celebrate.....

Entered at Thu Apr 21 01:16:26 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

I don't think we actually know if Rod Stewart was ever a "mate" of Mac - he may well have just tolerated him as a token Marriot replacement!

Interesting though - I thought that Keith Richards paid Plonk's medical bills?

Entered at Thu Apr 21 00:24:13 CEST 2011 from (71.246.9.74)

bob w.

As for Ronnie Lane.....what a wonderful and unique musicality he brought to every one of his songs. He was a very special musician.

Simon, hoping you are well. Drop a line when you find time.

Entered at Thu Apr 21 00:14:39 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

Subject: A song for April

Ronnie Lane & Pete Townsend

Entered at Thu Apr 21 00:07:18 CEST 2011 from (69.177.214.91)

Todd

Love that 'Rough Mix' album which also features the guitar stylings of Eric Clapton, otherwise known as one of the HTBC dynamic duo.

At the Costello Spectacle taping last year, Elvis talked about Nick Lowe's production style on the early EC & the Attractions albums. When they were having trouble getting a certain sound that Nick wanted, Nick told Elvis to "make it sound like Dinosaurs chomping on cars."

Entered at Wed Apr 20 23:12:07 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Thank you, Ronnie WOOD. There's a Slim Chance of me getting anything right these days.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 22:44:45 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

RTO: Rod Stewart has done some whacky things in his day…….but my take on class includes things more than just making a guy pay storage bills on gear…………………or sending Elton John an ice box for Christmas when the slightly more extravagant Elton had sent him a Picasso………………….please know that Rod Stewart without any fanfare paid Ronnie Lane’s medical bills in the last years of his life and also completely unknown to most paid all of Long John Baldry’s medical bills during the last part of his life…………Not a bad guy after all……………….As to Ian McLagan – slagging an old mate from stage is bad form – at least in my book.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 22:42:52 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

I've always been a big fan of the Faces, from back when they were "Small" with Steve Marriott, and later when they got larger recognition with Rod Stewart. Last month I picked up a copy of that great 45 single "Itchycoo Park" b/w "I'm Only Dreaming" on the Immediate label. My favourite Faces song has to be "Ooh La La". And don't forget Ronnie Lane's collaboration with Pete Townsend -- "Rough Mix", another classic album!

Entered at Wed Apr 20 22:25:44 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Enjoyed your posts Rob.

:-0)

Entered at Wed Apr 20 22:24:21 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Many many thanks for the ian mc video Bob. Not seen it before.

How beautiful and moving to see the depth of love he had for his great mate. Those words of Itchycoo Park - I simply never realised they were about those South East london debris's. Funny you should put up those videos about the Liverpool bombings. We literally grew up on debris's just like those Ronnie and Ian did.

Ronnie lane was the Gene Clark of British pop/rock music. Criminally underrated. I play his stuff all the time Bob. Can't wack a bit of kuschty.

:-0)

Entered at Wed Apr 20 22:20:41 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

Subject: Maybe I'm Amazed - The Faces

….and the Pulitzer Prize for reporting on all things the Band for 2011 goes to Mike & Kim…….great stuff all around….and Clips of the year to bob w and RTO…….didn’t ya just love that Dutch interviewer when he asked “So which one is Rod Stewart?”………The Faces were my favourite band during those great years as a kid when stuff like that mattered ……………..the great days when rock stars looked and dressed like rock stars and not trash collectors….

JQ: Robert Plant has demonstrated good taste dating back many years ( indeed even in the might Zep he championed Joni Mitchel and others of that ilk and helped steer a more interesting path than might have been the case otherwise…) and he really is to be applauded for his last few studio efforts and tours……….but my oh my what a millstone that Zeppelin catalogue is to him with respect to touring other material…………………..

Entered at Wed Apr 20 22:14:44 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Yes, and that's not the first time Ian McLagan (a Hammond hero!) has voiced similar concerns.

When Mac wondered where his Hammond B3 had gone, Rod apparently sent him a bundle of storage invoices to pay before he could get it back. The point being that Mac didn't even want it put into storage and HAD wanted to take it back with him all along...class act Rod Stewart.

But let us not let this ruin our enjoyment of An Old Raincoat or Gasoline Alley, eh?

Entered at Wed Apr 20 22:14:53 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

Relix names The Last Waltz as #7 out of the fifty top concerts starting in '59.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 21:59:48 CEST 2011 from (71.246.9.74)

bob w.

Here's the clip.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 21:55:02 CEST 2011 from (71.246.9.74)

bob w.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 21:47:13 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Subject: Bobs W & F

Ronnie Lane, what can you say? "You're So Rude" ranks as my favourite Faces cut, and "How Come" is always a delight to hear again (see link). My good pal Steve Simpson (in the video playing accordion and gingerly tapping his feet!) and Charlie Hart have recently slung a version of Slim Chance back together again to celebrate the music of the late great man. Steve plays guitar and mandolin in this as he did later in Slim Chance; the linked clip is early and features Graham Lyle on mandolin. The great Geraint Watkins handles piano and accordion duties in the reformed band so it should be a treat.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 21:37:32 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

BEG, the Nick Lowe/G Parker/Costello circle (ie the heavyweights that came good out of "pub rock") hold a very special place in my heart. For starters, I have dined out shamelessly copying the style of Bob Andrews on the organ for years (ie playing "songs" like Bob/McLagan/Garth/Al Kooper rather than the jazz-blues of Jimmy Smith style). Secondly, Nick is a hero as a songwriter and is finally getting the accolades he has long deserved.

Costello, with Nick producing, turned out "the best album Brinsley Schwarz never made" in My Aim Is True. Elvis was a never less than upfront and blatant admirer of the Brinsleys whose earlier pub pand "Flip City" allegedly went as far as including EIGHT of Nick's B Schw-era songs in his set. Thus with his hero at the helm, and Clover doing the duties behind Elvis (or Declan if you prefer), the great USA-influenced sound allied to a "more Nick than Nick!" songwriter was bound to result in a masterpiece. For my money it did, and although it sounds a little mean spirited given there have been some great moments, Costello never bettered the debut for me.

The Band, of course, have links with Brinsley Schwarz due to their visit for a rehearsal but also, much like Elvis and Nick, the wide-eyed admiration of the group that the Brinsleys had. It was conversation about the OQ that got me talking to Brinsley and was the common ground that got his guitar out again, albeit for a short-lived and ultimately fruitless venture. But it was fun. To come full circle - along with the OQ, the original four piece Clover were a big hit on the Brinsleys turntable back in the day. Brinsley himself turned me onto their great album 'Forty Niner", well ahead of the Huey Lewis era and much more rustic and downbeat. I still play it lots!

It took me a while to get into Graham Parker, but I did. Were it not for the presence of Brins and Bob (two of my favourite instrumentalists as I have said) I may not have bothered, but with hindsight I would have been the one who missed out. Like Dylan, you have to dig deeper than the vocal delivery!

Entered at Wed Apr 20 21:36:49 CEST 2011 from (71.246.9.74)

bob w.

I'm sure Peter meant to point out Ronnie Wood as the featured member of The Birds.

Bob F., I am a huge fan of Faces and Ronnie Lane. "Debris" is also atop my list of great Ronnie Lane songs. They (Faces) were a brilliant rock and roll band in their day.

Always loved "Cindy Incidentally" {link}.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 20:49:49 CEST 2011 from (41.97.216.167)

Empty Now

"Slaves on vast Portuguese sugar plantations are ready to turn their misery into rebellion - and the British are ready to provide the spark. They send agent William Walker (Marlon Brando) on a devious three-part mission: trick the slaves into revolt, grab the sugar trade for England...then return the slaves to servitude"

Entered at Wed Apr 20 20:39:42 CEST 2011 from (41.97.216.167)

Empty Now

to free the island from the portuguese

Entered at Wed Apr 20 20:36:57 CEST 2011 from (41.97.216.167)

Empty Now

Subject: related : Queimada (Burn)

Gillo Pontecorvo used to make films very near to real history. Queimada (screened under Burn! title in USA)

1- by the end of the 19th century a British agent (Marlon Brando) lands in the fictional island of Queimada in West Indies, then a Poruguese Possession
2 - he cleverly forms a slave (Jose) to lead a revolt and to free the portuguese from the Island
3 - the slave turned revolt leader, next head of State, fails to govern the Island for lake of handleness over the international sugar trade
4- he asks help from the British allies, the British help and own everything
5 - too late Jose starts a 2nd and failing revolt against the new and much far skillful occupier : Great Britain

there's a strong quote from Marlon Brando when the British Army arrests Jose and discuss the way to execute him "Jose was a revolution hero, he is now a charismatic leader for his people, if you execute him, you will offer them a martyr and a legend, the legends are eternal. The best profit for the Empire business is to make Jose return to the unsignifying poor life from where i brought him" again the anonymous"

what actually happend in the following

Entered at Wed Apr 20 20:27:14 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

I've read somewhere that Moby Grape are RP's lifelong favourite band. In more recent years it all starts to bear fruit!

Entered at Wed Apr 20 20:22:59 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Ronnie WOOD, surely Peter?

Entered at Wed Apr 20 20:04:14 CEST 2011 from (74.108.27.233)

Joan

BEG thanks for posting that Garland Jeffries. I love the NY skyline. Every Time I drive over the Bridge into Manhattan, I still get the same thrill

Tracy What happened? I think this place has been very calm and respectful lately. I hope you'll reconsider. You have a lot to add to this place.

I like the Doors. In 1968 "Light My Fire" sounded like nothing else that was around. It was kind of a stoned sound, and I think a lot of us were there at that time. Most of it hasn't held up, but it sure had an excitement for the times. Morrison was your quintessential "Mood bad boy". He basicly was petulant/arrogant but it had its effect. He was different.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 18:46:03 CEST 2011 from (166.129.205.40)

JQ

We saw these folks last night. Most of it was straight off the record with band members Buddy Miller & Patty Griffin taking a couple of their own. Lots of Southern Gothic & gospel sounds. He covers Richard Thompson, Townes Van Zandt & Barbara Lynn. A number of songs featured top notch harmony singing (5-part) - one of the best I've heard with regard to the vocal clarity at volume. The Led Zepp medley was the low point but it quieted down the lager-louts.

If he follows the popular progression I'd say a new album of country standards will be next

Recommended.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 18:44:00 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

Numerous Nick DeRiso blog posts about The Band members over recent yrs.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 18:42:50 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

Recent Bob Margolin interview w/ Q & A about Muddy's '75 Woodstock album & working w/ Levon & Garth.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 17:59:06 CEST 2011 from (129.42.208.177)

Bob F.

Subject: Ronnie Lane

Peter V, I was just listening to Ronnie Lane. He wrote so many great songs. I think The Faces song 'Debris' is my favorite of his.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 17:50:05 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

A week or so back I mentioned the British band "The Birds" which featured Ronnie Lane. They were doubly unlucky. They started out as The Thunderbirds, and had to change when Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds objected. So they shortened it to The Birds, and had three Decca singles and were just starting to get somewhere when the success of The Byrds wiped them out. I picked up a CD last week "The Collectors Guide to Rare British Birds." It's good, R&B boom stuff with attitude.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 17:28:07 CEST 2011 from (129.42.208.177)

Bob F.

Subject: Garland and The Rumour

The Rumour played with Garland after they split with GP. They were part of the band on Escape Artist and did the tour for that record. Wonderful shows! Garland's new song 'Coney Island Winter'is so good and available from Amazon.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 17:13:05 CEST 2011 from (59.101.33.77)

dlew919

What happened? I'm confused...

Entered at Wed Apr 20 16:45:57 CEST 2011 from (216.121.194.179)

S.M.

Are you saying RR dyes his hair?

Entered at Wed Apr 20 16:37:19 CEST 2011 from (63.88.115.195)

Carmen

Subject: More Doors

I like the Doors. I like the fact that Morrison (like the BAND) was differant than the rest of his peers. He was wearing Black when everyone was wearing flowers. He was his own man.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 16:29:54 CEST 2011 from (69.177.214.91)

Todd

Subject: Moonlight Drive

Peter V., Re: ‘Moonlight Drive’ I’m not familiar with the early version, but I can’t imagine that you would like the final version much better....same band..same singer. The version that I’m most familiar with is the original single, which I have on a 45.

Funny, I listened to it again last night and still like it, but not as much as when I was 15 years old. I also revisited the album ‘Morrison Hotel’ last night and now think that might have been one of their best. ‘Peace Frog’ is a funky little number, and ‘Land Ho’ is a lot of fun. ‘Maggie McGill’ is pretty heavy. They were definitely shifting more towards a blues based vibe by that point (I’m know that milieu will not convert Peter V.)

It struck me that a lot of their early vibe reminds me of Jefferson Airplane. I think Grace Slick is the better singer, but the Doors musical ideas were more consistently expressed. i.e.: less experimental, but having stronger continuity.

I didn’t know Morison personally and have actually not read that much about him, so I can’t speak to whether he was pretentious or not. I mostly know him from the albums and the occasional magazine write-up. I’ve heard that the Oliver Stone movie is full of inaccuracies and shouldn’t be viewed as a documentary. My feeling is that he’s probably no more pretentious than Van Morrison or Mick Jagger or any other number of rock stars.

What I do think that he did well was to incorporate music and poetry, and I think that his motives were pretty pure as far as trying to keep some integrity as a poet. I don’t think he ever really saw himself as a singer. And supposedly he turned down offers to use the Doors music in things like automobile commercials in the early days even when others in the group wanted to do it. Like them or not, they had a pretty clearly defined sound and identity and kept it going longer than anyone probably thought was possible.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 16:30:07 CEST 2011 from (63.88.115.195)

Carmen

Subject: RR

Beg - thanks - I have them all -

Regarding RR and his ability to attract a younger population - just put a few younger names like Morello and Reznor on your CD and who knows? I would never have looked into Morello if he was not on the CD so it works both ways.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 16:21:38 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Brien: At least the hood covers the hair, as Robbie must have good genes, or he doesn't agree with Robert Hunter's take on aging:

"Every silver lining's got a touch of grey"

Entered at Wed Apr 20 16:10:26 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

Entered at Wed Apr 20 15:52:37 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

It seems obvious that the cover photo for Robbie's new album is aimed at the younger demographic. When it comes to attire, Robbie can't seem to please, as I can remember a time when he was criticised for favouring pink scarfs and Armani suits.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 15:51:09 CEST 2011 from (131.137.35.83)

sadavid

Subject: "Lester Bangs's basement"

Article purports to discuss "what it means to have all music instantly available."

For sure times ain't now nothing like they used to be, but I read the piece and Im still not sure what it means.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 15:37:11 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

PV, I too have a handful tunes by the Doors on my iPod. Songs I genuinely like but ultimately wouldn't miss if they weren't there. Moonlight Drive IS one, then a couple of other cuts from Strange Days and the rest from LA Woman. Not many to start with and all from two albums.

It IS Jimbo for me too. Pretentious arsehole indeed. The organist in me also has an issue with Ray Manzarek having that awful Gibson/Vox/Farfisa sound long after everybody else switched to a "proper" organ. Why I cannot fathom - a very gifted player, no question, but the wheezy old combo organ surely was ill-advised once the budget for something decent - and a crew to handle it - was there, especially when the band were trying to set their trademark dark and brooding atmosphere and in comes Ray like chipmonks! Later on, of course, he would use an electric piano more and more and I think it suited the latterday band and individual player's style a whole lot better (there - the opposite of what I said about Keith G in the GD!) and hence my liking of LA Woman a lot more than most of their earlier output.

Robbie Kreiger definitely at his best when the bottleneck is out, no question. I'm sure I read that in early rehearsals, Ray set a groove and a bassline going and Robbie made the most fearsome sliding wail with his bottleneck that Ray said "there's our sound, right there!"

Entered at Wed Apr 20 14:45:27 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

Great job, Peter!

Entered at Wed Apr 20 14:07:10 CEST 2011 from (76.68.81.50)

brown eyed girl

Yessss RTO! The times I've seen Garland solo and with his band either in NYC or Toronto...no Brinsley......but Al Freedman who is a real sweetheart. Now I did see Nick Lowe and Elvis Costello and Mink DeVille at Massey Hall around this time too.....I've been so lucky seeing so many great shows in Toronto and NYC.
I also really dig Graham Parker! I had a fantastic time seeing him and his band at our Masonic Temple Lars in the late seventies or early eighties.

Dhani Harrison, Ben Harper, Joseph Arthur Form New Band “Fistful of Mercy”

Ok, I'm gone like the wind....but I will be back again....

Entered at Wed Apr 20 13:56:02 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

And "his band", as is often the case, appear to be The Rumour! That's definitely Brinsley on the left, and bassist Andrew Bodnar next to him. I guess Graham Parker was doing his laundry that evening!

Entered at Wed Apr 20 13:41:00 CEST 2011 from (76.68.81.50)

brown eyed girl

"Taken from a German TV special from the late 70's, this clip features Garland Jeffreys and his band performing the hit song 'Matador' live. You notice Garland's dreadlock style? :)"
....and he talks about feeeeeeelings!

Hey Carmen. I can burn those songs for you if you'd like to exchange some music? cabbagetowngirl at hot mail dot com

Entered at Wed Apr 20 13:28:28 CEST 2011 from (63.88.115.195)

carmen

Subject: RR

BEG- I had Shine Your Light in my bakers dozen for sure. Every time I listen to HTBC, I come away with something else. Winwood does not get the credit due for his playing on this CD. She's Not Mine is also a standout track for Winwood's playing.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 12:26:03 CEST 2011 from (76.68.81.50)

brown eyed girl

...and this one for all you NY'ers out there!!

"New York Skyline" says it all. My city - the city I love. I don't know who loves it more - me or Lou Reed, but it's a hell of a town. It's taught me everything I know and perhaps, everything I need to know. Of all the songs I've written, this is one of my favorites and the album that it comes from, Ghostwriter, will always be uniquely special to me. The song sure does bring back memories.
All the Best,
Garland

Entered at Wed Apr 20 12:19:25 CEST 2011 from (76.68.81.50)

brown eyed girl

Hey Tracy. What's up? The only thing I could think of that's troubling you is your post re thank you's on CDS? After your post some posters were teasing you about who should be thanked. I don't think they meant any malice.....but they did go on too much. Am I right? Anyway, I always thought you didn't post as much as you used to because you're too busy writing books! I really enjoyed your first book Tracy.... If you are really done.....Why give those people the satisfaction that they got to you? Post more or ignore... Please let me know what's really bothering you. You gave so much of your time and effort to your Robbie site at one time. I sense there are some things that have really disappointed you...... I'm lucky that I genuinely dig Robbie's solo work. Some of his performances on TV shows demonstrate that his voice is totally shot from soooooo many interviews and years of smoking but his voice on HTBC is fine.....for me. Hope to hear from you here or by email. Now all you testosterone filled boyzzz who were teasing....Get back here and apologize! As Edge said Tracy.....You're waaaaaaay beyond all this....waaaaaay beyond.

Thanks Todd. I only have Ollabelle's first recording. I prefer them live, but the song that's showcased got to me. ;-D As for Robbie's marathon interviews....pretty soon, instead of saying we were on the road for sixteen years; he'll be talking about that one year where he answered so many questions about The Band and his solo work....the same questions over and over and over.....that he burned out.

"Surrender was released on Epic records in 1982, as part of the GUTS FOR LOVE album. The version you're listening to was recorded in my studio apartment for French TV.

I liked the makeshift way of recording while the cars were passing by the open window." Garland Jeffreys

Garland with Levon Helm on May 7 at Levon's Ramble.....Now, not only is he a great writer who stands for something.....but he's a very warm and affectionate kind of NY guy....and.....can he sing, sing, sing....in the spirit of Frankie Lymon and Bob Marley.....How's that Edge? Can ya feeeeeeel all the gush, gush, gushing on your screen?! :-D

Bill M....Why don't you post the info re The Band Tribute in Port Credit this Saturday? Levon's Godson Jerome Avis and Lance Anderson who've I've also seen perform with Garth and Maud in Barrie will be performiing? I remember he wore some pretty colourful socks....lol If I do show up it will be with "Mr. Maximus" and his partner and if imagezulu doesn't have to work; you'll finally get to meet him. He's completely the opposite of me....very similar dynamic with NB and NG who've you also met like myself.....but just as passionate about music.....but digs other genres of music more.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 11:54:13 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

I have enjoyed the bonus tracks very much. I arranged them on my computer to double up with the final versions. I enjoy listening to these evolutions in the making and find them highly entertaining as well as interesting. The track Houdini is very good but I can see why it was left off the final product as the flow of it seems different than the other songs - I don't know why but its a sense I have, maybe RR wasn't quite able to figure out how to fully complete the work but thought highly enough of it that he wanted to share it in some fashion.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 11:34:38 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Not sure what's gone on Trace but the GB's most seasoned comer and goer would heartily implore you not to leave on what seems a sour note. You're way way way beyond that.

Besides, you'd be way too much missed with your fine writing.

Just looked for your last major post but couldn't locate it. Maybe you'd be kind enough to re-post it so I can have another read.

I recall thinking at the time it was a really fine considered read though if I'm correct it wasn't gushing about Robbie which kind of makes it a rarity round these "Tronno" parts. :-0)

As I've not heard the album yet apart from three songs I can't say one way or the other if I go along with your take but I'm all for having a mixed stew of diverse views. I mean Jeez, Trace, would you believe there's actually some folks on here who think I talk shite.

Me included.

:-0)

At least, get it off your chest Trace. It won't do any harm and it'll likely do you the power of good.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 10:39:18 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Todd: What I actually have is "Moonlight Drive (early version)" from the Elektra box set. Should I download the final version?

Entered at Wed Apr 20 10:29:02 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Just played Moonlight Drive. You see, I do listen to advice here! I’ll never get past Jim Morrison’s voice, a bit like Mrs V with Neil Young. She loved Simone Felice’s live version of Long May You Run last week, but wouldn’t give the original a chance. Same with k.d. lang on Helpless, Cowboy Junkies on Powderfinger, Prelude on After The Gold Rush. She likes Neil Young songs as long as somebody else is singing them. In Morrison’s case, the more I read about him, the more he sounds like a pretentious arsehole, so unfortunately it’s not just his voice, it’s his entire personality.

Hello I Love You, however, is brilliant. What they manage to do is recreate garage band … Louie Louie, Hang on Sloopy, 96 Tears (especially 96 Tears), but it’s just a few years later, so it’s a deliberate re-creation, but sounds like the real thing. I like Light My Fire by The Doors. I heard the Jose Feliciano hit version the other day, but it’s a bit like Richie Havens, I don’t know why I don’t like Jose Feliciano or Richie Havens, but I don’t. In Feliciano’s case it was the excessive praise he garnered from old showbiz types. Kind of rock for people who really don’t like rock. And he always used to walk around with that dog with a sign "Blind dog." I watched it on TV once and I reckon that dog could see perfectly well. Richie Havens attempting Just Like A Woman and Here Comes The Sun was similar, and to be cruel, his speech defect just grates. I lump them together in my mind.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 07:00:32 CEST 2011 from (69.177.214.91)

Todd

Subject: This and That

B.E.G. The Ollabelle song where Glenn sings about Angie, the Brown Eyed Girl, is titled ‘Call On Me Brother’. The video is from the house where they did some recording for the album “clubhouse style” up in Athens, NY by the Hudson River. It’s about 30 miles Northeast of Woodstock.

Thanks for the link to the John Wilson interview with Robbie. One of the better interviews I’ve heard lately. Robbie sounds pretty relaxed, and his answers don’t have the canned feel that they sometimes do, when the same questions have to be answered again and again.

Sadavid, the article on timing was pretty fascinating. Interesting stuff with the research on drummers.

PSB, Thanks for the review. You supplied good perspective for those who may not have followed Robbie since the Band days. I’m still mulling over the album myself. I keep coming back to my thought that it could have been 10 songs instead of 12. The only thing that’s really starting to bother me about the album is the cover art. The photographer Anton Corbijn is known for his solemn style, but maybe it’s a little too moody for my taste. Maybe it’s the hood……

What I do like about the artwork is inside the gatefold of the CD that uses a Hawks era photo of Robbie that has sort of an Andy Warhol treatment combined with some Mondrian influences. It’s pretty effective.

Peter V, recently you were wondering why ‘Moonlight Drive’ by the Doors was on your iPod. That may have been my doing. Sorry. I remember pushing that one a couple of years ago to you, and you mentioned that you didn’t have it at the time. Guess it didn’t really impress?

The thing about ‘Moonlight Drive’ I like is that it really encapsulates in one song, the strength and personality of what Jim Morrison brought to the Doors. ‘Light My Fire’ was the hit, but to me that’s more of a Robbie Kreiger construct. ‘Hello I Love You’ is just too choppy and simple. Almost like a machine. But ‘Moonlight Drive’ features Morrison as poet, but still in control….none of ‘The End’ shenanigans or Lizard King pastiche. There’s something pure about ‘Moonlight Drive’.

“Let's swim to the moon
Let's climb through the tide
Penetrate the evening that the
City sleeps to hide
Let's swim out tonight, love
It's our turn to try
Parked beside the ocean
On our moonlight drive”

It may not be Shelley or Keats, but for Rock & Roll poetry it’s not too shabby. Robbie Kreiger’s bottleneck guitar adds some ambiance. But if Morrison isn’t your cup of tea, then there’s probably not much that will change your mind. In my younger days I listened to a lot of The Doors. Not as much once I discovered “The Band”. The albums that I feel have held up well are ‘The Soft Parade’ and ‘L.A. Woman.’

Entered at Wed Apr 20 03:01:00 CEST 2011 from (12.25.140.82)

PutEmUp(Friend0

Entered at Wed Apr 20 02:40:11 CEST 2011 from (75.34.39.48)

Adam2

Entered at Wed Apr 20 02:38:20 CEST 2011 from (68.171.231.80)

Bill M

Tracy: ... and that lesson is ...?

Entered at Wed Apr 20 02:25:58 CEST 2011 from (99.146.124.13)

Tracy

I am proud to say that I am done with The Band Guestbook.

I have learned a life lesson.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 01:05:02 CEST 2011 from (76.68.82.241)

brown eyed girl

Thank you Peter for the heads up!
Here's Robbie on BBC Radio 4 on Front Row today.
John Wilson interviews Robbie at around 11:50.

Entered at Wed Apr 20 00:37:42 CEST 2011 from (76.68.82.241)

brown eyed girl

"Helpless"...Buffy Sainte Marie

Many thanks to Peter Stone Brown for a very fair and well written article on Robbie's HTBC.
It was a real treat to read an article by a singer-songwriter who has actually been a part of The Hawks and The Band's history as well during The Band members solo work.
Lucky you Peter Stone Brown!
I don't need to search for anymore articles.

"They get slightly better on “She’s Not Mine”.
I disagree here as I really look forward to this particular song. They get a lot better here.....The song just rolls along for me and the atmospheric music and personal details in lyrics and Robbie's raspy and sexy voice....love it!

Entered at Tue Apr 19 22:26:30 CEST 2011 from (72.78.36.246)

PSB

Subject: Answer to Bill

Bill, I was talking about the introductory stories in the film that usually led up to each act. The ladies thing, for Joni Mitchell, the whatever it was for Van,and most of the rest of the intro's. They seemed manufactured. I always felt they ended up detracting from the film instead of adding to it. i thought the only one that really worked was having Ferlinghetti right before Dylan. They should have done what they did at the show and have Tura Lura introduce Van.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 22:22:25 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

Entered at Tue Apr 19 22:16:42 CEST 2011 from (83.160.180.22)

Ragtime

PSB, great to see someone writing down exactly what I was thinking. You must be clairvoyant. I could have said it myself, errr, well, less eloquently than you, that is.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 22:03:38 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Bill M: Actually I believe Peter's point was that "mighty gap" of creativity was four years, as NLSC was the first album of new material since "Cahoots" in 1971. In comparison, during the three year period between 1968-1970, they had produced an album of new material each year. Decades later in 2001 Robbie would reappear in tv commercials for the GAP clothing retailer (which also owns the Banana Republic).

Entered at Tue Apr 19 21:36:21 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Really Peter? You do surprise me! Two lead guitarists get together on something and the result is the long-winded indulgent tune of the album? There's a thing.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 21:35:28 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Tue Apr 19 20:26:22 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Entered at Tue Apr 19 20:20:53 CEST 2011 from (74.108.27.233)

Joan

Excellent review.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 19:52:29 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Fine piece of writing that PSB. Illuminating.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 19:28:58 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Entered at Tue Apr 19 19:24:07 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Tue Apr 19 19:18:14 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Robbie Robertson is on BBC Radio 4 "Front Row" in about an hour from now (19.15 BST). May well be streamed.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 18:54:09 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Al E: Yes - I think Clapton dabbed it on before writing "Anyone For Tennis".

Entered at Tue Apr 19 18:49:49 CEST 2011 from (72.78.36.246)

PSB

Subject: My take on Clairvoyant

Here's my review of the new Robbie album.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 18:28:01 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Ha ha.

I heard it was Eau de Billie Jean King that was all the rage over there

Something in the water, so they say. :-0)

Entered at Tue Apr 19 18:09:27 CEST 2011 from (131.137.35.83)

sadavid

Subject: drummers have different brains

Scientific studies of Time and The Brain.
If you're impatient to get to the part about drummers, search on "London."

Entered at Tue Apr 19 16:27:38 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Al: Eu de Cologne may be fine for some, but our guys favoured the earthier Eu de Billie Joe.

Peter V: "You can't raise a Cane back up" sounds vaguely related to "Ain't no more cane on the Brazos", no? And for other reasons we're able to point to the term 'raising cane' (meaning the same as 'raising hell'), and so Springsteen's 'Adam raised a Cane'.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 16:23:07 CEST 2011 from (95.147.182.218)

michelle

Subject: Humble Pie

Thankyou Al, has made me feel a bit better about my rant! yes, Brown Eyed Girl, does seem a little male orientated here, bit scary! Sorry Al but I am from Ascot in lovely rural Berkshire,do not have any horses in the paddock, not yet anyway, and I do not eat croissants! a good Ascot Ale wood do nicely,I do have roots elsewhere though, hey my cousin is from Simcoe, Ontario! enjoying all your comments especially regarding American Civil War, fascinating stuff. I will let you know, Al, which comments in your article jarred with me, thankyou for giving me chance to explain! best regards, Michelle

Entered at Tue Apr 19 15:44:40 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Entered at Tue Apr 19 15:36:56 CEST 2011 from (69.177.214.91)

Todd

Subject: Ollabelle CD

B.E.G., I think April 23rd is when the funding for the project closes. I think they'll still need to master it, do artwork, and produce the CD's. My best guess is that it will be at least a couple of months before actual CDs are ready to ship.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 15:29:23 CEST 2011 from (131.137.35.83)

sadavid

Subject: Virgil Caine as ultimate dupe

Peter V: I'd agree generally that most soldiers are dupes, because the croissant-eating classes con the gruel-eating classes into fighting the formers' battles. It's less clear that the "system necessarily drove down their own possibilities of earning a decent living" - because every economist that writes in the popular press tells me that more labour (e.g. more immigrants) makes more prosperity for everyone.

On "Yazoo Street Scandal," the phrase "Cotton King" sticks in Levon's throat a little; it ends up sounding like Senator Hammond's "Cotton Is King."

Entered at Tue Apr 19 15:18:25 CEST 2011 from (67.250.113.92)

Lars

Subject: Trivia

It's a little known fact that Alexander Stephens (who needed thick sneakers to reach a height of 5' 6") was a friend of Abraham Lincoln's before the War. Lincoln once beat Stephens 21-0 in a game of one-on-one basketball. Stephens was livid. Some historians consider this one of the causes of the American Civil War.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 14:27:48 CEST 2011 from (76.67.17.193)

brown eyed girl

I will read this article later.....The Abolition of slavery

"There are many different reasons why slavery was abolished. Some of the reasons were economic; some were the actions of the black slaves; some were the actions of white working class people, and some were the actions of the white middle class people. I will explain how each of these things contributed to the abolition of slavery in 1833."

Read more: http://socyberty.com/history/the-abolition-of-slavery/#ixzz1JyIIISJR

Entered at Tue Apr 19 14:19:34 CEST 2011 from (71.246.9.74)

bob w.

Some nice photographs of The Band and many others.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 13:58:22 CEST 2011 from (76.67.17.193)

brown eyed girl

Robbie is here in PBS American Roots Episode 4: Chapter 4: Native American.

Steve and Amy would love episode 6? which features Gillian Welch and others.

Hey Carmen...I forgot to add to the list Robbie's "Shine Your Light" and "Reflection - Adagio" from "Ladder 49". Yikes!! How could I have forgotten the songs that really helped me deal with grief....also hearing Steve Forbert's voice as well.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 13:37:31 CEST 2011 from (76.67.17.193)

brown eyed girl

Robbie, Paul Simon, Dawes, Scottish lass Amy MacDonald, Foo Fighters and Patti Smith are showcased here.

Hi Todd...I think the Ollabelle sight said we'd be getting our CD on April 24. The first time I heard Glenn Patscha sing the tune featured (name?)......I almost fell off my chair......cause he's singing about Angie his brown eyed girl! Thank you Glenn! ;-D

My understanding about slavery was that it had to finally be abolished 'cause the north was becoming industralized and needed free workers for the factories. Also, some of the crops in the south were becoming cheaper to buy abroad. Bluezzzz music originated here.......

Hi Michelle....As you can see....There are not many female posters here and we need some new voices here! Al will protect you if the pit bulls come out.
Claire and Jersey Girl.....Where are you??

Entered at Tue Apr 19 13:25:54 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Tue Apr 19 13:22:15 CEST 2011 from (59.101.33.77)

dlew919

but... would slavery have been abolished anyway? We can go over this adn over this... (and that's what makes it so enjoyable!)

Entered at Tue Apr 19 13:01:02 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Yeah but Pete on the plus side we'd have possibly had the kaiser [Franz B] alongside Bobby Moore at the back plus Gerd Muller alongside Geoff Hurst up front. The 1970 World Cup would have been a cinch. Then there's the umlauts over our 'U's'.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 12:54:55 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

I knew it.

Just knew that's what you'd be up to Pete. LOL :-0)

Entered at Tue Apr 19 12:26:43 CEST 2011 from (129.42.208.177)

Bob F.

Subject: Levon at UPAC in Kingston, NY

Levon and company doing a special birthday bash ramble at UPAC in Kingston on May 27. Special guests announced so far include Donald Fagen, Natalie Merchent and Marc Cohen.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 12:22:33 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

Entered at Tue Apr 19 12:06:27 CEST 2011 from (75.34.43.81)

Adam2

Entered at Tue Apr 19 11:56:52 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

George MacDonald Fraser's historical research was always meticulous. The two to read are Flash for Freedom (on slavery) and Flashman & The Angel of The Lord (on John Brown and abolitionism). As an aside in other books, Fraser says that Flashman fought on both sides at Gettysburg, and has a few other references to the civil war.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 11:37:54 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Tue Apr 19 11:33:26 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

(Al, Hammond might have buggered the South totally by saying that in 1858, leading the North and Britain to stockpile cotton in advance). Abolitionism? George MacDonald Fraser is the fictional read there.

The Civil War is of international interest, because it’s one of those points where theories of history clash. To the economic historian, the South had no chance and the war was a foregone conclusion. Few realized that the USA (meaning North) was already one of the most powerful industrial economies in the world. In Britain the romanticists who equated the South with the Cavaliers in the English Civil War certainly didn’t. Fortunately, the other view held.

For military historians, the excitement is the Hannibal factor where through tactics and determination the weaker side prevail. The ultimate expression is held to be The Battle of Britain. Going back to Al on the blitz yesterday, if Hitler had continued attacking the airfields, Britain would have lost that battle. Churchill cleverly bombed Berlin railway station… a gesture only, and Hitler in fury ordered the full out attack on civilians that diverted his resources from the airfields. But would Britain necessarily have lost the war? Though militarily, Germany was more powerful, Britain had all the human support and natural resources of a huge Empire, and crucially economic backing through lease-lend from the USA, which enabled it to win the Battle of the Atlantic. The economic historian would say the odds were still in the Allied favour, then once the “better late than never” flat-out military aid arrived, it was a foregone conclusion.

So on that “turning point” in history, is it true that if we’d lost the Battle of Britain, we’d all now be driving VWs, Mercedes, Audis and BMWS, cooking in Siemens ovens, making coffee in our Krups coffee makers and watching German football teams outplay England on our Sony and Panasonic TVs.

Hang on a minute … that’s happened. Feck. The economist would point to the crippling effect on our economy of repaying our huge lease-lend debts to the USA over fifty years. While we repaid, the “losers” got rebuilt.

I’d be interested to see if our Civil War experts here believe that the “Hannibal / Battle of Britain” factor could ever have given the CSA victory?

Entered at Tue Apr 19 09:57:26 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Thanks for your take on the 'slavery' aspect Dave.

Now I really really really am confused.

:-0)

Entered at Tue Apr 19 09:54:52 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

You sound just like me on a good day Michelle

:-0)

Why don't you point out the stuff that jarred with you. I'm sure it would add to the interest on here. I take it you're "South" in a USA sense and not poncey namby pamby UK sense....

....says the big hard case from Liverpule ;-0)

Entered at Tue Apr 19 09:43:23 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Many thanks for that post Pete. But is there any chance, for the less historically informed knobheads such as myself of you possibly interpreting both the overt and also the veiled yet clearly implicit implications of what you've posted in terms of the over simplistic and very likely incorrect 'slavery abolition' crusade that history has duped the likes of myself with.

:-0)

Entered at Tue Apr 19 09:28:36 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

I scrolled back, and can't see if I posted this before … last night I was struggling to e-mail, check the GB and find stuff on my iPad while waiting for an hour in a pub.

In UK shops, the DeLuxe edition (£12.99) with 12 tracks, plus the Deluxe disc with five "songwriting versions" and Houdini is more prevalent than the standard one (£9.99). The LP is a double LP set with an "Audiophile" sticker at £25, and has three tracks per side. I can't exactly remember, but I don't think it has the bonus tracks. At three tracks a side, it should be close to 12 inch single impact and quality.

I'm very struck, the more I listen to how it falls into two distinct halves (each too long for a first quality LP though). Tracks 1 to 6 hang together and have a definite consistent feel. 7 to 12 (from She's Not Mine) are diverse, and are possibly more innovative, but don;t, I think, flow smoothly, because the styles change.

Eric's Fear of Falling is the Crazy Mama of the set, a bit too long and too unvaried. I thought it the weakest track initially. Surprisingly to me, I took to it much more in its demo version on the bonus disc, then when I went back to the main disc, it no longer sounded weak, and I like it.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 09:14:09 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Dave H: exactly. I tried to post a comment on how the Virgil Caines or Kanes were the ultimate dupes, fighting to preserve a system that necessarily drove down their own possibilities of earning a decent living. I was on my iPad and gave up trying to insert backslashes from the third keyboard level down. The Wiki article on “King Cotton” is short, and clear. It gives the quote I half-remembered from James Henry Hammond:

HAMMOND: Without firing a gun, without drawing a sword, should they make war on us, we could bring the whole world to our feet... What would happen if no cotton was furnished for three years?... England would topple headlong and carry the whole civilized world with her save the South. No, you dare not to make war on cotton. No power on the earth dares to make war upon it. Cotton is King (1858).

The rest of what I was trying to say is also better said on Wikipedia (a statement I never thought I’d make) so I’ll cut and paste :

WIKI: Britain did not intervene because it meant war with the U.S. as well as loss of the American market, loss of American grain supplies, loss of Canada, and loss of much of the British merchant marine, all in the slim promise of getting more cotton. In spring 1861 warehouses in Europe were bulging with surplus cotton—which soared in price. So the cotton interests made their profits without a war.The Union imposed a blockade, closing all Confederate ports to normal traffic, so the South was unable to move 95% of its cotton. Cotton diplomacy, advocated by the Confederate diplomats James M. Mason and John Slidell, completely failed because the Confederacy could not deliver its cotton, and the British economy was robust enough to absorb a depression in textiles in 1862-64. As the Union armies moved into cotton regions in 1862, the U.S. purchased all the cotton available, and sent it to the mills. Production of cotton increased in India by a factor of 700% and also in Egypt. Because the South's long-range goal was a world monopoly of cotton, it devoted valuable land and slave labor to growing cotton instead of urgently needed foodstuffs. (END)

As I said in TNTDODD article, one of the subtle points was placing Virgil in a border state, Tennessee, where slavery was not the main basis of the economy. All in all, look at the map at the start of most editions of Huck Finn, because all the border states / down the river stuff is in that book. I knew I’d work The Duke & The King into a post.

Sugar cane (CANE) was the other major slavery-based crop in the Americas (though not USA). I don't think that had struck me before! British teen sensation of the early 60s, Eden Kane, has no link whatsoever to anything though.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 08:27:06 CEST 2011 from (75.34.43.81)

Adam2

There are a couple different versions of How To Become Clairvoyant: the standard edition, the Best Buy bonus disc edition, and the exclusive deluxe edition from Robbie's website (which I referred to as the "millionaire's edition" a few weeks back).

The Best Buy bonus disc has 6 tracks. The exclusive deluxe edition (from Robbie's website) includes all of those 6 tracks, plus 2 additional tracks (from the iTunes & Japan editions). Finally, the exclusive deluxe edition includes 2 tracks that are unavailable anywhere else.

I will buy the standard edition as well. The exclusive deluxe edition from Robbie's website gathers all the existing bonus tracks, plus 2 exclusive tracks (10 tracks total). I would gladly by that version, but since it is $300 and I really don't care about any of the packaging/vinyl/artwork, I'll just get the standard edition. This is where downloading is very valuable. Hopefully all the tracks from the exclusive set show up online.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 07:17:04 CEST 2011 from (69.177.214.91)

Todd

Subject: CD Shopping

B.E.G., I’m also looking forward to the new Ollabelle CD. I hope that it gets released soon. I think it’s pretty cool that they’re going to self-release it. They’ve been on Sony and Vanguard, but I think this could actually work out better for them, even if they move fewer units.

You mentioned ‘Wang Dang Doodle’ a few days back. Coincidentally, the first time that I met Amy Helm, I expressed my enthusiasm for her performance with the Barnburners of that song. But by that time, Ollabelle was on the front burner. I think they were just starting the Down From the Mountain tour, and ‘Wang Dang Doodle’ was kind of the previous chapter by that point. I still wish that a Barnburners CD had been released including that tune as well as others from their repertoire. Saw some good shows back in 2000 and 2001. I also like the version of ‘Shake a Hand’ that Amy used to sing.

Regarding the various version of HTBC, I stopped in our local Best Buy a day or two after the release date because I had read that they were going to carry a two-disc deluxe version as an exclusive for $13.99. I couldn’t find anything in the store and eventually asked someone for help. The 20ish year-old kid working there gave me a blank stare when I mentioned Robbie Robertson (I didn’t even bother bringing up the Band connection). But he offered to look it up for me on the computer. He said that the disc was listed in the computer, but that there was no record of them in the store. It didn’t sound like they were sold out. It sounded like they hadn’t arrived yet. I thought it was strange since it was a day or two after release, and I was actually wondering how they were going to sell any if a motivated customer specifically looking for a title couldn’t even find one to buy. (And they wonder why Brick and Mortar record store sales are struggling…Hmmph!)

Anyway I ended up buying the 40th anniversary deluxe edition of Derek and the Dominos Layla album. Because they had that. This now makes 5 versions of the album that I own. Original vinyl LP, Original 2 CD release, 20th anniversary edition, Single CD Remastered version, and now the 40th anniversary 2 CD deluxe edition. I may have to do an inventory and see if I have more multiple copies of ‘The Weight’ or the song ‘Layla’…..could be close.

After that, I scuttled on over to my local Barnes and Noble to see if they had HTBC. They obviously didn’t have the Best-Buy exclusive version, which I had been kind of interested in, but they did have the single CD version for $14.99. So the copy that I own is the standard 12 track CD release. On a positive note, the 20ish kid at Barnes and Noble not only knew who Robbie was, he brought me right to where the CD was, and mentioned that he had seen the Letterman performance. So a much better purchasing experience at B&N. I would have tried our local Borders, but it’s closing this month, and they are not bringing in any new product. I miss the days when we had smaller independent shops around with knowledgeable staff. It’s just not the same going into a place that also sells washing machines (Best Buy). Barnes and Noble is a little better because they also carry books, and seem a little better informed, but it’s still a big box store.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 06:38:04 CEST 2011 from (71.232.26.129)

Dave H

Entered at Tue Apr 19 06:29:19 CEST 2011 from (71.232.26.129)

Dave H

Quoting the Vice President of the Confederacy:

"Our new government is founded upon exactly the opposite idea; its foundations are laid, its corner-stone rests, upon the great truth that the negro is not equal to the white man; that slavery subordination to the superior race is his natural and normal condition. This, our new government, is the first, in the history of the world, based upon this great physical, philosophical, and moral truth..."

Entered at Tue Apr 19 02:32:54 CEST 2011 from (59.101.1.2)

dlew919

It's pretty well attested that the Civil War was about conflicting modes of government and economic issues, rather than slavery... slavery became an issue but only because it was easier for people to 'get'... though there were plenty of people in the South opposed anyway. Lincoln used slavery pragmatically, though I think (THINK) he was probably genuinely committed by the start of the war.

Entered at Tue Apr 19 00:14:40 CEST 2011 from (76.66.27.71)

brown eyed girl

For those of you who weren't able to see our Juno Awards show.
Apr 10, 2011

"The 2010 Juno Awards were chock-a-block full of great musical moments -- check out our Juno Show page on RockPeaks, which has a list of all the currently available streams on it. For our money, it was the Robbie Robertson introduced segment that celebrated four Canadian greats -- Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Gordon Lightfoot and The Band -- that proved to be the evening's highlight, drawing together the timeless music of those greats with outstanding performances from relative youngsters like Sarah Harmer, City and Colour, and The Sadies among others."

Entered at Tue Apr 19 00:12:29 CEST 2011 from (95.147.182.218)

michelle

Subject: 'absolut' drivel

Al, my apologies, I did not mean to be so rude, I do respect your comments and share a love of the band and the music with you, I could not understand the phrasing of some of your comments, I am from the South! and yes I did miss the 'e' from absolute! must have been having a very 'off' day!, sometimes when you are passionate about things sentimentality clouds your rational thinking! anyway, i am sure you are a great guy and will forgive me! look forward to yours (and others) comments, best regards, Michelle

Entered at Mon Apr 18 23:29:06 CEST 2011 from (86.169.140.150)

Dunc

Subject: Free church singing

This post is a link to Free church Gaelic singing. I feel that this is related to soul music certainly, and some people claim the blues.

There is no doubt that the musical link is because of the Scottish role in the slave trade. A couple of years ago I 'internet researched' and found churches in the South of the USA very similar to Western Isles of Scotland churches except there was a back door and gallery for slaves. I also found found an article stating that the last Gaelic speaking African American community died out at the turn of the century.

I've read about how artists like Sam Cooke moved from gospel to soul.

In the singing I've linked there is improvisation within limits. I can't explain because I'm not a musician.

Personally the last Gael in my family was my gran's dad who was a shepherd and died. The family moved to the town for work. I have no Gaelic links, but like Bob , my heart's in the Highlands.

I'm not religious, butI think the music is beautiful. But is there a link with soul?

Entered at Mon Apr 18 22:58:15 CEST 2011 from (131.137.35.83)

sadavid

Subject: what happens when you f__d

"The language of Ayapaneco has . . . survived the Spanish conquest, seen off wars, revolutions, famines and floods. But now, like so many other indigenous languages, it's at risk of extinction. There are just two people left who can speak it fluently – but they refuse to talk to each other."

Entered at Mon Apr 18 22:41:23 CEST 2011 from (76.66.27.71)

brown eyed girl

Bill M...It was my Jamaican friends who took me to their tropical paradise (for those who have...) three times who first told me about their herstory (the Jamaica Maroons) and why they may be "different" than other Caribbean groups. (see link). I think you get what I was trying to say about "ourselves as a people". I get what Kevin J believes as well. A couple of examples how Toronto is compared to NYC and not the other way around....We're the "little apple"....and it's not because NYC has half of our population....We're around 32 million. While in school as a student, Canada was always referred to as a branch-plant economy of the US. Our most famous musicians had to leave Canada due to economics and......The Canadian music industry in general seems to give accolades....only when the US south of us embraces them as artists. The last time I saw Louuu in Massey Hall; he commented on how if things were so great here why did Joni and Neil have to leave town? Truth be told.....I was more ticked off that Louuuu didn't menion the four Canadians from The Band!

David P...Do you see why it's important for Robbie to write his own story from his perspective then? There's Levon's truth.....Robbie's truth....and the "real" truth? Both of them remember the "facts" from their own biases and life experience.....as we all do.

My understanding is that the deluxe version that joe j has bought has the alternate takes. I only have the regular one at 14.99 (paid for by a gift card one of my students gave me for Christmas) so that I could meet with Robbie again and have him sign my CD. I asked Sebastian here if he could show us what the lithographs look like for the "millionaire's" version but no response. I've seen a clairvoyant twice....First time I was high, high, high for about a month. I think I was just entering a new decade and my life was looking up. She used Tarot cards, analyzed my hands down and up....She even commented on the way I dressed and how I needed to wear more colour....I used to wear a lot of black and the way I write my name....I noticed Robbie likes to take the last letter in his name and swoop the last letter on top of his name. She told me that I needed to change that.....not good for your spirit....I wasn't taking any chances.....lol.....My signature is not so loud anymore. The real clincher for me that something was happening here was when she told me what happened in my life which was a turning point when I was 28.....I knew then that she was the real deal. I also tried past life regression with her as an acquaintance (also a huuuuge music fan) used to see her weekly....but it didn't resonate with me. I'm a seeker.....always trying to understand myself and move forward.......Sometimes I get lost along the way, but I've always had a strong spirit or I wouldn't have survived many traumas in my life.....I'm also very lucky that I learn a lot from the students I've encountered over the years. I always tell them at the end of the year...."Thank you for the time we've shared together", as time waits for no one. My oldest student would be 29 years old now.

Robbie's HTBC came at just the right time....I was hungry for some real music where music is written and played by musicians that can reflect about their lives and can play their own instruments and write their own songs and music....and not just hooks or as Robbie commented at our Canadian Music Week talk....fluff.....or did he refer to some of today's "music" like a tissue...I will have to check my cassette.....Shoot! I should have bought it as a CD but I'm always trying to save on costs....lol There was no way I wanted just a download of his latest and maybe last piece of work (not including memoir here).....It's like how I still want to read books in my hands and see my books on my shelves....It's not the same for me to read on the internet. I have more fun finding links than reading the articles in this format.

This morning when I left home...The first song that came on my Nano was by Rollie! At the end of my work day.....Levon's "Blue House of Broken Hearts was the first song that came on....One of his all-time best vocals.
I'm sorry that I said some negative things about Levon in the past on this site.....I was very angry that his words in TWOF were seen as the gospel truth about Toronto's Robbie Robertson and the one who knew the Grand River like I did.......It was very disheartening to discover a fffff that until I found this site....I didn't know existed. I got caught up in the ffffff.......The only person I should be standing up for....is myself! Okkkkk.....I tend to blah, blah, blah......too much....I'll leave you with Levon's "Violet Eyes" playing right now......

Entered at Mon Apr 18 22:21:55 CEST 2011 from (71.246.9.74)

bob w.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 22:07:19 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Al, better to have watched Shenandoah and find yourself talking about a lengthy self-written piece on TNTDODD and the Civil War, than to have watched Straw Dogs and started chatting to some Cornish people!!!!!

Entered at Mon Apr 18 22:04:10 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Bill, I hear you about Chest Fever and We Can Talk - the same eccentricity and "awkwardness" that gives them such an endearing quality, and a lasting one at that. It's the lack of this character that puts me off NLSC type material - the "maverick" spirit was all but gone, replaced with flawless quality for its own sake.

Kevin - absolutely right to avoid the GD best of. Hang on for American Beauty, although if you pass a shop without that one but they do gave Workingman's Dead, just pick that up first.

Adam, Keith G was a great pianist, I totally agree. Replacement for Ron McKernan? Absolutely not. I don't listen to much GD post 1972, let alone 1974 so sympathise there. But I stand by my opinion that KG held the Dead back a bit because the lack of a tether to earth such as Pig (Danceable songs, dollops of quite nice harp and Hammond organ) resulted in the light, jazzy period that I can't get into at all (sorry Jeff!). Eyes of the World and all that - leaves me cold. It's not KGs musicianship I question - his work on the '72 tour with Pig still on board is, as I said before, exemplary piano playing. From that Wake/Mars/Allah period, only U S Blues is on my iPod.

Plus you got Donna with Keith! What was all that about? Added absolutely nothing, and when you consider that the GD are often derided for the quality of their vocals, you'd think that in the blend she might have tidied things up a touch. Not a bit of it! Ordered the "Steppin Out..." CD set which arrived today; namely the UK leg of the European 1972 jaunt, but unlike the original 3LP set, not "tidied". Donna comes through as the worst singer in the band!

Entered at Mon Apr 18 21:27:18 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Todd. Despite my manifest ignorance as to the full facts concerning why the Civil War happened, it is certainly the one war which really hits me on an emotional level so I can see why it might connect in such a way with anyone visiting the sites or attending re-enactments.

As far as I am concerned this, of course, is very surprising since my own father and so many of my own family fought in the Second World war and one uncle died in it.

I can't say exactly why a war 150 years distant does connect so powerfully. But it is the case and despite me mentioning Jonny Reb in the piece mine is an emotion that is stirred by the utter waste on both sides.

Perhaps, I really shouldn't have watched 'Shenandoah' all those years ago. :-0)

Entered at Mon Apr 18 21:09:12 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Entered at Mon Apr 18 20:58:26 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

Anyone catch Saturday Night Live this week…………………quite an extraordinary performance by an all female band with a black male singer……….have never seen anything like it…

Entered at Mon Apr 18 20:54:56 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

There's a guy here in Atlanta that's already written a hip-hop song called "Pants On The Ground", criticizing the current trend of young men wearing pants that sag well below the waistline. After performing it at an audition for American Idol, a video version went "viral" on the internet.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 20:44:42 CEST 2011 from (71.246.9.74)

bob w.

Bill, I'm fessin' up to taking full advantage of the $3.99 download from Amazon. Twelve tunes...no paper.....no plastic.....and no hunting when I want to hear it.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 20:12:40 CEST 2011 from (67.250.113.92)

Lars

Subject: Iron Men and Wooden Ships

I find myself drawn back here every hour or two. A chain saw sits on a stump at the edge of my backwoods. 15 bags of garden lime sit in waiting at the entrance of my garage. And the driveway needs patching from all the rain we got this past week. Thank God for priorities.

This linked song is considered by many to be a source of pride for Canada, sung by Stan Rogers and, in my mind, dedicated to Sir John Franklin and the 128 men who vanished in the high arctic in the 1850s. After their ships had been frozen in the ice, no one survived the long walk south to Hudson Bay and civilization.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 20:08:40 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

sadavid: I feel a Jagger/Connolly mash-up coming on - "You wouldna want me trews ta fall down now would ya?"

Entered at Mon Apr 18 20:05:37 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Bill M: At the outbreak of the Civil War the South was producing 2/3 of the world's supply of cotton. Textile factories in the North relied on this supply, as well as textile industrie in England & France, with 3/4 of the European supply coming from the South. So, in this way, this agrarian product of the South, rather than in decline, was on the rise, fueling the increasing demands of the developing textile industry throughout the world.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 19:58:17 CEST 2011 from (131.137.35.83)

sadavid

Subject: Trews take 2

The Trews (drafted by G. Hudson for "Move to Japan" on _GHPACCOTB_) won 2x awards at last week's East Coast Music Awards: DVD of The Year for _The Trews Acoustic_ and " Bell Aliant Fan's Choice Video of the Year" for "Highway of Heroes." The last inspired by the untimely death of the principals' erstwhile high-school classmate Nichola Goddard, the first Canadian female combat soldier killed in combat.

"Trews," by the way, appears to be a contraction of "trousers," which was the band's previous name. You need to use a highlands accent to get the effect. Which reminds me to mention that the recent French-language leaders debate (in the throes of our latest in what seems to be a continous string of Parliamentary elections) was highly entertaining television. They used simultaneous translation in voice-over, and the Liberal leader sounded like he grew up in the same neighbourhood as Billy Connolly. Our socialist guy had some kind of Irish / Welsh accent. Both the totalitarian and the separatist were gay, I think.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 19:42:36 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Re the BEG vs KJ thing, I'd say you're both right, in that deep-seated feelings of inferiority are often manifested in extravagant claims of superiority. And Steve, when exhibiting a superiority complex here, was, I'm sure, just chasing cars to have fun / pass the time til the laundry cycle was finished. On the internet, nobody can tell that your tail's wagging.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 19:06:31 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

Subject: "The Whole Person" magazine.

Website for what appears to be the magazine RR is holding onto for the cover of his "HTBC" album - "The Whole Person" formed in '78 & based out of Santa Barbara, CA.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 18:28:01 CEST 2011 from (68.199.152.229)

Jed

Think I saw those off red poly knit pants,perhaps during the same period.They had a hideous glory about them.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 18:00:06 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

American Beauty: Interesting weekend as I popped into four different record stores in Toronto. No American Beauty….only Grateful Dead was a “Best Of” collection…………I passed and will wait on the two 1970 albums as recommended………………Interesting though in that in all but one location “How To Become Clairvoyant” was sold out and the one location that still had a copy ( Yonge & Eglinton ) had only one and were sold out of the deluxe copy…All the sales guys repeated that it is amazing how quickly it is flying off the shelves…………………….Driving around on the weekend – the song “She’s Not Mine” was the one that kept growing on me………a lovely number with a few lines that like Dylan’s work just pop out as describing a feeling we have all had in relationships.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 17:34:13 CEST 2011 from (69.177.214.91)

Todd

The Pate article seems overly simplistic, and I think his ‘Acadian Driftwood’ comment misses the mark. Besides, wasn’t it brought up here a month or so ago that Robbie wrote that one while Luc Plamondon and his buddies from Quebec were chilling out at Robbie house in Malibu.

From Robbie’s response to Levon’s claims:
“He didn’t write one note, one word, nothing.”

I suppose this refers to the songs that are credited only to Robbie (although he could be talking about co-writes as well, since he only refers to being in the same room at the time and being supportive.) He’s specifically referring to Levon in that quote, but I suppose this could also refer to the other 3 for the songs that are only credited to Robbie. That they didn’t write “one note, one word, nothing.” (for the songs that have sole Robbie credits). I’m not sure when that quote originated, but I wonder if he would reword it today.

Just out of curiosity, what would being in the same room being supportive entail? Making coffee, fetching tea and cookies, keeping Robbie supplied with sharp pencils, tuning his guitar? If Robbie had sung more lead vocals, it’s starting to sound like this could have been a John Fogerty situation.

Al Edge, thanks for your Civil War / Dixie / Brown Album ruminations. As it happened, I went to a Civil War encampment and Battle reenactment this weekend, so your thoughts on the subject as well as the song were fresh in my mind. It was my first time attending such an event, and it had an interesting way of bringing some of the experience to life in a way I hadn’t really felt before. I was just there as an observer, not a participant, but the experience has a way of hitting one emotionally in addition to the history lesson part of it.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 17:31:33 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Mon Apr 18 17:20:46 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Whether one can draw much distinction between different brutal systems is another point. it's like "comparative atrocity," probably hard to tell the difference if you're in it.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 17:18:09 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Another thing that struck me this morning is that in some ways, "Chest Fever" and "We Can Talk" are cut from the same cloth. For whatever reason a line from the latter wheeled through my brain - "But I'd rather be burned in Canada than to freeze here in the south" - but my brain then added "Very much longer", and it seemed natural. Then I realised that a good number of lines from WCT can easily take the place of the swirling "It's long long when she's gone ..." bit from CF, which would easily fit WCT.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 17:05:45 CEST 2011 from (131.137.35.83)

sadavid

Subject: the history corner

Those interested in the institution of slavery might wanna check out Henry Louis Gates's PBS series beginning tomorrow: _Black in Latin America_. Brazil, for example, was the destination for almost 1/2 of the Africans shipped to the New World - nearly 5 million. And they were treated far worse than they were in North America - because the sea routes were shorter and the Portuguese had a better supply chain, it was cheaper to replace a slave than to feed and care for the one in situ.

Pynchon's _Mason & Dixon_ is a wonderful book; not sure how historically accurate, but feels authentic enough (altho I admit I understood maybe 70% of it) . . . .

Entered at Mon Apr 18 17:02:31 CEST 2011 from (71.246.9.74)

bob w.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 16:48:19 CEST 2011 from (67.250.113.92)

Lars

Subject: The Mason Dixon line

I had to go all the way to Norway (Stord) to visit one of my former exchange students, to discover this Mark Knopfler song about America.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 16:38:51 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

BEG: Speaking of Acadia, I trust you know that a considerable contingent of Maroons chose the option of moving to Nova Scotia after their revolution in Jamaica sputtered. And most of THEM opted for Sierra Leone after a couple years, I understand. Winter'll do that to you if it's not in your blood.

Given the apparent lack of agreement around the 'real' reasons and aims for the US Civil War, even after 2011-1861=150 years, what do you think the chances are of sorting out the 'truth' about the more recent invasion of Iraq any time soon? While I have no reason to dispute Peter V's assertion that the US South was a declining agrarian economy that would eventually have lost no matter what, a newspaper article last week pointed out that cotton was the basis of the bulk of the US economy antebellum. If that's anywhere near true, it seems worth noting that the rapacious Northerners did an apparently counter-intuitive thing is blowing apart that economy, which they now 'owned'. If the war wasn't about the institution of slavery to a large degree, then how come the end of the institution of slavery was such a big part of the outcome? I'm just asking on the basis of thoughts that came to mind this morning.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 16:38:15 CEST 2011 from (207.200.116.74)

PutEmUp(Friend0

Entered at Mon Apr 18 16:36:13 CEST 2011 from (203.160.29.153)

Fred

My perception of the tragedy suffered by civilians during wartime was always limited what my mother went through during WWII in Canada (nothing harsher than meat, sugar and gasoline rationing) and what my father (prior to seeing combat at 18 he worked on the railways when the strafing of trains by the RAF began) and his relatives went through in Northern Italy. Or to what I read in books (History major).

Living over here has given a different perspective to things. Every now and then at some construction site they still find an unexploded shell. Last year we had to evacuate the neighbourhood for an afternoon while the bomb disposal unit came in to get rid of a dud from 1945, found a short distance behind our apartment building.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 16:28:20 CEST 2011 from (71.43.66.106)

Dan

I read Al Edge's article with interest given the current movement by some educational authorities in the USA to sanitize Huckleberry Finn. Excising language to divorce a literary classic from its times is misguided. The strength of The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down is that it captured the Civil War so as to be relatable to Americans, including Richie Havens and Joan Baez. Seen in the context of the album, or its being adjacent to The Weight in The Last Waltz, the Band played a musical and visual role in integrating America without covering up any symbols, backgrounds or influences.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 16:16:32 CEST 2011 from (68.199.152.229)

Jed

I still smile every time I see a pic of Rick or Richard,often with my mouth wide open in shock @ some of their clothing choices.Very funny,but sweet memories.Here was the greatest Band ever dressed in the same weird polyester outfits! Some bands spent alot of time focusing on how they look & their individual styles--The Band seemed too busy with music & other things & picked up whatever was lying around,match or not! Very endearing! It's important to note that some of my favorite bluesman also relied on polyester suits,but they tended to match the outfits,whereas The Band just threw stuff on!

Entered at Mon Apr 18 16:11:02 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Bob W - thanks for the You Tube nod. Clearly the internet is now beginning to reveal stuff previously not seen I guess unless you really went delving. Those I saw show the city centre areas. The Bootle bombings were far more intensive as that was where the main docks were located. Couldn't find any on that. I'll look again.

Fred. Apologies. The Japan bombings are clearly unimaginable. Seems trite to say it but I guess the British World War II mindset is clearly fixed on conventional bombing tragedies.

Rob. Great post on current album uniformity.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 15:57:47 CEST 2011 from (203.160.29.153)

Fred

Entered at Mon Apr 18 15:31:51 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

BEG Angelina: In a strange twist, Robbie's return to recording and the attendant promotional campaign has resurrected discussion of Levon's accusations. Almost every review of his new album includes some mention of what long ago became known here as "the feud", and like the civil war that began 150 years ago, feelings of bitterness won't subside with time. It's as if the history of The Band as a performing group begins & ends at Winterland, a Fort Sumter without a resolution at Appomattox.

The latest volley from Stephen Pate begins with the misquote of Hunter S. Thompson, which has entered the world of urban legendhood. As I pointed out here in the GB not long ago, what Dr. Thomspson actually wrote was:

"The TV business is uglier than most things. It is normally perceived as some kind of cruel and shallow money trench through the heart of the journalism industry, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free and good men die like dogs, for no good reason."

He went on the add:

"...Mainly we are dealing with a profoundly dengenerate world, a living web of foulness, greed and treachery...which is also the biggest real business around and impossible to ignore. You can't get away from T.V. It is everywhere. The hog is in the tunnel."

These quotations originally appeared in a newspaper article entitled "Full-Time Scrambling" published in the San Francisco Examiner on Nov. 4, 1985. The piece, in which Dr. Thompson describes the TV satellite dish (with 200 channel capability) at his Woody Creek redoubt, was republished in his 1988 collection "Generation of Swine / Gonzo Papers Vol.2: Tales of Shame and Degradation in the '80s" (Summit Books).

Entered at Mon Apr 18 15:10:15 CEST 2011 from (71.246.9.74)

bob w.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 14:47:22 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Subject: The Liverpool Blitz

Actually, further to what i've just written about the concealment I'm pleased to say pertinent stuff does now seem to have been added to Wikipedia on the matter. Well done that person. Long overdue but better late than never.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 14:37:16 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Just seen that Jan has put the 'Dixie' piece up. Once again, humble thanks Jan for taking the trouble to dig it out. It's an honour to have something up on this unique site.

Also thanks for the kind words of so many GB'ers - David P, Joan, Fred, Dunc, Rob, Kev, Bill ;-0), Dlew, Lars, Angelina.

It was the least you could do after the feckin effort it took ;-0).

That last sentence was a joke btw Michelle. :-0)

Just to clarify a few things. First Angelina. No I'm not a professional writer. I'm flattered you could think it but no I never have been. Before doing the footy book now some 15 years ago the only things I'd written were songs. I've written loads of stuff since but the only pro stuff was a humorous football column for the Independent which lasted for around 8 weeks until they sacked the sports editor who'd asked me to do it. :-0)

That last line was not a joke btw

As for the matter of slavery. Lars, I'm simply dealing in a perception of ordinary Brit ignoramuses like myself. I realise the likes of yourself with more intimate knowledge can pinpoint the inaccuracies of such perceptions and I do apologise if in this instance my slant on it doesn't convey the true picture. The saving grace, I guess, is that it was incidental to the broader picture I was trying to convey.

Fact is nobody knows more than we Liverpudlians how history - even relatively modern history - can lie. Forinstance most recently the heinous Hillsborough lies were right around the globe before the truth could get its boots on. And many have stuck even despite their being proven to have been nothing more than outrageous sickening lies and smears perpetrated by establishment forces attempting a cover up and since publically discredited and retracted in their entirety.

And going further back, just try looking up World war two blitz on Google to see if you can unearth how North Liverpool and Bootle [my home] was decimated by German bombing and you will not find any evidence to convey that it suffered infinitely more bombing, deaths and damage than any town outside London.

By concealing the actual impact of the German air raids on the port of Liverpool and maintaining that their raids had had little or no effect on what was the key entry port for the crucial supply line from the USA and Canada, the Allies had a twofold objective.

First was to maintain morale in the rest of the country so they would not feel cut off from North american aid. Second was to convince the Germans that all their efforts had been fruitless.

The reality, of course, was thousands dead and wounded and the most intensive destruction of the war per square mile other than Dresden.

History lies and distorts. Fact.

Even so, many thanks for the points you made Lars. I promise to read up on it to correct my blissfully over-simplistic take.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 13:42:54 CEST 2011 from (76.66.27.71)

brown eyed girl

Robbie Robertson inducted into Hall of Fame
but did he really write those songs
Stephen Pate
April 4th, 2011

"The closest Robertson comes to authenticity is Acadian Driftwood and even then the real impact of the song is Cajun not Acadian, again from Levon Helm."

Entered at Mon Apr 18 13:35:53 CEST 2011 from (76.66.27.71)

brown eyed girl

NY Times
April 12, 2011
Memories From Big Pink: Robbie Robertson to Write His Life Story
DAVE ITZKOFF

“I come from a family who prided themselves, both sides, on memory,” he said. “And I was told growing up, constantly, that I was born with a really good memory. Then I became concerned when it seemed like it was cool to forget things. ‘You’re so cool you don’t remember this stuff.’ And I thought, God, I remember everything, and there’s nothing I can do about it now.”

His years of collaboration with Mr. Dylan will probably be one of the focal points of the memoir, but Mr. Robertson said he was not concerned about how Mr. Dylan might react to his portrayal in the book.

“I just have to tell these stories through my point of view,” he said. “I just can’t drag that kind of baggage with me. I really have to feel a sense of freedom in my storytelling. He could tell some of the same stories, actually, if he remembered them. I don’t know if he remembers them as good as I do.”

Entered at Mon Apr 18 13:30:20 CEST 2011 from (76.66.27.71)

brown eyed girl

Bob Dylan and The Band
Feb. 14, 1974
Forum in Inglewood

(l-r): Robbie Robertson, Dylan, Rick Danko, Richard Manuel and Levon Helm.
Credit: Kathleen Ballard / Los Angeles Times.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 13:24:59 CEST 2011 from (76.66.27.71)

brown eyed girl

Robbie Robertson: A good sense of direction

“He was very affected by the direction I wanted to go in, musically. I had done my guitar wailing with Ronnie Hawkins, with the Hawks and with Bob Dylan,” Robertson said, referring to two high-profile pre-Band employers. “When I was first doing that, it was really unusual. It was unique. Very few people were playing the way I was. By the time everybody caught up with that – including Eric and a ton of other people – it just started to feel obvious to me. I wanted to go in the opposite direction, where it was really about subtleties and emotion in the playing.

"If I could play one note that hurt you more than someone else playing 20 notes, that’s what I wanted to do. Eric said to me, ‘That’s it. That’s where I want to go.’ ”

Entered at Mon Apr 18 13:20:28 CEST 2011 from (71.246.9.74)

bob w.

Lars, thought you might enjoy this story.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 13:12:31 CEST 2011 from (76.66.27.71)

brown eyed girl

Al....You can't take seriously what Van's missus posts! ;-D

Peter....Jamaica Maroons explains it.

Heather Reisman's One!
The Backstage Pass on Robbie Robertson's "Superfans"
Posted by ZoomerStaff
April 8, 2011
Includes Video and photos

"In her gushing introduction, the Indigo owner — recognized in 2009 as one of the world's top 50 businesswoman by the Financial Times — noted the "pleasure" she had in listening to the album for the past two months. "I've listened to it well over 75 times, maybe more. It is absolutely perfection — it's like he's arrived at a moment of time to make this incredible music."

"You know what I think is interesting? Look at the crowd of people who turned out. It's clearly quite cross-generational... I think what is happening with people in our age group, is finding ourselves in this moment where there are a lot of cross-generational things going on. We got our history and what we're looking forward to, and we can mix it up with people with less history and more to look forward to, and still see something interesting happening."

Nomadic Mike...Gordon Lightfoot's there too.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 12:13:26 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

:-0)

Entered at Mon Apr 18 12:02:05 CEST 2011 from (203.160.29.153)

Fred

Entered at Mon Apr 18 11:39:04 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Cheers Michelle.

Well, that's certainly the last time I ever get the Missus to pass comment on anything I've written.

:-0)

Entered at Mon Apr 18 08:36:19 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

There were people in the north with commercial interests, and people with political expediency in mind, no doubt, and it’s a moot point whether Lincoln was in the second group, but all these states had actively chosen abolition, so there must have been widespread popular disapproval at the mildest, or revulsion at the strongest. Religion was a major element in abolition. Slavery hung on in Cuba until 1898. It’s still widespread in all but name in parts of Africa, and there have been a run of high-profile cases in London involving slaves of ruling families from the Arabian peninsula who have been brought to Britain. Well, the claim in court is they’re not slaves, but they’re not paid, worked around the clock, kept locked up, and abused at will. I feel strongly that we have to take off the blinkers and revive abolitionism. Our political expediency in turning a blind eye to it happening in our own country is deeply shameful.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 07:54:59 CEST 2011 from (75.34.43.81)

Adam2

Keith Godchaux was an amazing musician. Since I don't listen to any Dead from after 1974 anyway, I can't comment on his contributions from 1975-1978. But his playing from 1972-1974 was wonderful. Rick Danko and Keith play 2 songs together at the beginning of the Watkins Glen "Encore Jam". A Change Is Gonna Come and Raining In My Heart. Wonderful performances.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 07:48:21 CEST 2011 from (12.25.140.82)

PutEmUp(Friend0

Yeah, in the early days I was not a big fan of Mydland's. but, i was on hiatus from Dead shows also, couldn't stand what i was hearing.

Wake Of The Flood, is essential Dead. And yes, Ace is one motherfucker of a record.

New Riders, Rob? First record, Powerglide, Panama Red, all wonderful records.First one might be my favorite.

Tuna- Burgers- another amazing record form that era/scene. I used to catch Papa John's band sometine, in The Lone Star,& in Uncle willy's in Kingston. Caught one show , in the very late 80s or very early 90s i guess, where he did a show with Jornma and Jack. There was one or two years where they did some killer stuff, a show with Paul Kantner I caught, the aformentioned with Creach, another with David Bromberg. All things of uncommon beauty, beginning to end. I miss that, not enough gorgeous live music anymore,,, or maybe i;m just in the wrong place or too goddamn old to get out and catch it most of the time...used to be nothing to either postpone work or drive up to three hours each way without sleep. Or just stay wherever the show was. Today, the shows are far fewer,and I don't travel as easy.

On Mitterhoff, I agree, he is a talented gy...but, all the people Jorma's teamed with outside fo Tuna and brought along, a white heaired kid named Joey Ippolito or Joey Iaccone, big kid, was the best. Jorma had him around for years, mid and late 80s, then he disappeared.

Night, folks

Entered at Mon Apr 18 07:17:50 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Agreed. Mydland was a breath of fresh air after Keith Godchaux, who was GREAT on Europe 72, Ace..all that period. But the lack of B3 in the Dead from 73-79 was criminal; acoustic piano had never been a part of their sound (unless you include Constanten's avant-garde prepared stuff!) and though the two instruments together - neatly illustrating another great facet of the Band! - was fantastic around '72, the Dead needed organ. Look at the other part-timer guests they used: the great Merl Saunders, Howard Wales, Tom Constanten - all B3 men! Ned Lagin is the only marginal case, but like TC more of an electronica mate of Lesh's than a rock'n'roll pianist per se.

Godchaux alone, well known for refusing to play anything less piano like than a Rhodes (and even swapping an acoustic piano for that on a strictly "must" basis) cost the Dead a few years of their sound, IMHO. That's possibly why a few of us here (some even more than I, it would appear) would plump for a Garcia/Saunders disc not Wake of The Flood or Blues for Allah.

Sad indeed that Mydland succumbed to the well known curse of the GD keyboard player as he was proving a major part in latterday GD operations. Great bluesy singer, great organ player - the slightly more instrumentally proficient replacement for Pigpen they should have had in 1973! You mention that his death came just as he was hitting his stride - is this because you think he wasn't so strong earlier on? I don't think even Billy Preston or Garth could have rescued Shakedown Street or Gone To Heaven!!

Entered at Mon Apr 18 06:47:32 CEST 2011 from (12.25.140.82)

PutEmUp(Friend0

Aside from Bob, obviously, for me, Cobham, Johnson, & Cochran made The Midnites work. Although he has his moments, I never was a big fan of Kelly's, and Mydland, well, sadly he was getting much stronger as a writer and singer before he died.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 04:28:00 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Subject: Adam2's Van M link

I think it only fair to the lady (and to Van's taste!) to illustrate that Ms Lee IS quite a pretty lady and not quite so Pete Burns like as the Adam's link story showed!

Entered at Mon Apr 18 04:07:49 CEST 2011 from (75.34.43.81)

Adam2

This is the correct link. This one's a doozy for Van.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 03:59:12 CEST 2011 from (75.34.43.81)

Adam2

Subject: "Van and his mini Van: the true story of Van Morrison's love child at last" article

Entered at Mon Apr 18 03:40:15 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Wow, never really bothered with them; you generally didn't see their stuff in the UK. (Copies of Ace and Kingfish turn up far more often). Nice tight band, though - organ player is happening; lovely little fills and colouration. Thanks for that link guys!

Entered at Mon Apr 18 02:52:30 CEST 2011 from (24.218.200.216)

Tim

Subject: Bobby and the Midnites

Bob W. Thanks for posting that like to Bobby and the Midnites. I was a big fan, caught two shows around the time of those videos' always enjoyed Weirs solo stuff especially that first Bobby and the Midnites record.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 01:26:46 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Lars, you might be interested to know that, as a Brit, I can't help but feel after all the civil war material I have read (which is about four books, so not a great deal admittedly, but very varying tomes) that slavery WAS a convenient "angle" for the Union to go under the cover of. I know what you are trying to say 100% - as a remote, distant unaffected person with no lineage ties whatsoever.

That ushering in the end of organised slavery was a by-product of the Civil War IS one of the happiest events of world times, but I can well believe that it WAS a by-product, lower down the pecking order than retention of the Union.

Let's face it - we are talking about Governments here. All over the world, day in and day out, if they can find a public acceptance angle to get something else higher in their own priorities through, they will do that. And they always will. I think that is the truth of the matter in this and many cases and reported as such offers no slant on the good, everyday civvy folk of the Union OR the Confederacy. Probably not the military either. It is the Governments that can be criticised, and that'll never change, friends.

Entered at Mon Apr 18 01:06:00 CEST 2011 from (12.25.140.82)

putEmUp(Friend0

Entered at Mon Apr 18 00:44:14 CEST 2011 from (67.250.113.92)

Lars

Subject: What if there was a war and no one showed up....something like that

I have to admit that my last post was a bad idea and I already regret putting it in. I believed what I said, but it was a knee-jerk reaction to Al's excellent article that had one point in it that I found fault with. I'll give it an A-minus, Al. Good job.

This GB has been stellar recently. I don't want to sidetrack anybody. Just because I was in the Confederacy in a previous life is no reason for me to take it out on you fine people.

On the subject of Garth (a ways back), he was in fine form at the High Falls Cafe last weekend. He's one of our national treasures.

Entered at Sun Apr 17 23:49:41 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Another month and another round of monthly music magazines, each with a free sampler CD. Another round of interviews with another round of hopeful 21-40 year olds, bearded and be-plaid-shirted, often looking not unlike our beloved OQ, in a log cabin or similar timber rehearsal/recording space, dare I say “clubhouse” (not unlike our beloved OQ) and sometimes pictured with an esoteric collection of guitars, other acoustic folk instruments, organs and pianos (not unlike our beloved OQ). “Oh, their hearts are in the right place!” you say, “I’ll be sure to give their track a spin”.

Some, fair and square, you don’t care for upon listening so they lose that round outright. Others, though, captivate you and you try and hear some more of their songs – or if feeling particularly rash, even purchase an album on the basis of one track. Gosh!

At this stage, how many of you have had the same experience as I? Namely, that the rest of the album, or a rather large percentage of it at any rate, simply does not “do it” for you? Sometimes, the track you heard is simply a head and shoulders above the rest – not a new phenomenon: the strong lead song (“single” it used to be called, didn’t it?) and a lot of filler. But all too often in latter years this isn’t the problem. The issue is that the rest of the album sounds exactly the same. It is not a sense of quality that is at fault, nor composition, nor musical ability. A basic lack of DYNAMIC variation is the root of the ill.

Such was the backdrop to a conversation that my dear wife and I had in the garden of our local watering hole last night. Fleet Foxes were the example she picked, quite rightly, to illustrate this point. Track after track of first-class original material, allied to impeccably crafted arrangements and topped off with truly flawless (almost baroque) harmonies of such a standard that would have our guys and CSN patting them on the back with fatherly pride and the Grateful Dead simply bowing. But there is track after track of it, and you wait for the heads-down foot-stomper. It never comes.

We rationed that there are two reasons for this. The first is the snobbery and pigeonholing that being in a band with a record deal and a following entails now. The craftsmen such as FF wouldn’t include a rocker and nor would a rock band include a baroque moment or two. Compartmental correctness gone mad!

The other reason, we concluded, is the lack of experience in reading a non-tailor made, non-“home” crowd. Indie clubs cater for indie fans now in the same way as jazz clubs, folk clubs. The scenario of a large unknown crowd of people being entertained by a random act who are expected to “read the crowd and get on with it” has all but disappeared. The last stab at that was the old military base circuit that has dried up. A staple for British acts wanting overseas experience and boy did they get it – a hall full of drunk GIs demanding some good rock and roll for their Saturday night off. Like LHs Hawks circuit tales, the skills of dynamics and variety were beaten into rookie acts and they came home far more seasoned.

The lack of this kind of gig is, IMHO, having an impact on younger musicians who have been denied this workingman’s course in bandsmanship that simply being a great writer, virtuoso instrumentalist or having your marketing/PR well under control does not provide. Add this old fashioned skill-set back to people as talented as Robin Pecknold, the Low Anthem guys and a few others that spring to mind and you truly would start to see some flawless masterpieces again.

Right, I’m off to make a cup of tea after all that. Anybody else want one?

Entered at Sun Apr 17 22:14:00 CEST 2011 from (32.177.146.70)

JQ

Lars - I think if you read further you would find that some Union soldiers, particularly those from the NE where the abolitionist sentiment was strongest, could easily have carried an antislavery & save-the-union motivation as their cause. I see your point (it's an old argument), but I think it's way too black & white.

I think that if you dig into the "soldier's letters home" data you'll sometimes find that opinion. Those letters are just so well written anyway that they are worth it for that alone -

Entered at Sun Apr 17 21:11:01 CEST 2011 from (67.250.113.92)

Lars

Subject: The opening shot after reading Al's critique of "Dixie"

"Apprehension seems to exist among the people of the Southern States that by the accession of a Republican administration their property and their peace and personal security are to be endangered. There has never been any reasonable cause for such apprehension. Indeed, the most ample evidence to the contrary has all the while existed and been open to their inspection. It is found in nearly all the published speeches of him who now addresses you. I do but quote from one of those speeches when I declare that I have no purpose, directly or indirectly, to interfere with the institution of slavery where it exists. I believe I have no lawful right to do so, and I have no inclination to do so. Those who nominated and elected me did so with full knowledge that I had made this and many similar declarations, and had never recanted them." --Lincoln's Inaugural Address, about six weeks before the Civil War started.

I'm not questioning the motives of some abolitionist who fought to free the slaves. And I'm not questioning that the Union armies, in the process of preserving the Union, led to the freedom of the slaves in those southern states who were trying to secede from the Union. But I AM questioning that the Northern armies entered Virginia and the Confederacy for the purpose of freeing the black race from its bonds. They fought to preserve the Union. If freeing the slaves furthered their cause, then it was a by-product and not an initial goal.

"If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that. What I do about slavery, and the colored race, I do because I believe it helps to save the Union; and what I forbear, I forbear because I do not believe it would help to save the Union." (Lincoln's Letter to Horace Greeley, August 22, 1862).

Make no mistake, slavery was an evil and I'm thankful it was abolished, but I don't believe the average soldier on either side thought he was risking his life to abolish or preserve the institution of slavery. The North wanted to preserve the Union. The South believed they had the right to nullify the Union (state's rights). That was the basic conflict.

Entered at Sun Apr 17 19:57:14 CEST 2011 from (12.25.140.82)

PutEmUp(Friend0

Entered at Sun Apr 17 19:51:10 CEST 2011 from (12.25.140.82)

PutEmUp(Friend0

Entered at Sun Apr 17 19:46:06 CEST 2011 from (12.25.140.82)

PutEmUp(Friend0

Entered at Sun Apr 17 16:21:34 CEST 2011 from (216.121.194.179)

S.M.

Rotund Robbie will soon not be

A slimmer RR I do see

Mark the date one year hence

You'll all laud my clairvoyance

Entered at Sun Apr 17 16:17:15 CEST 2011 from (76.66.126.63)

brown eyed girl

Acoustic Street Video: Dawes, "If I Wanted Someone"

California natives Taylor Goldsmith, Griffin Goldsmith, Wylie Gelber, and Alex Casnoff (current videos show another member was added?) performed on November 3rd for WGTB's video series, Rolling.

"I want you to make the days...move easy."

Dylan and The Band helped each other grow musicially and lyrically and now it may happen for Robbie and Dawes. Did Sebastian turn Robbie onto Dawes? Apparently it was his manager who's radar was finely tuned?

Entered at Sun Apr 17 15:51:31 CEST 2011 from (76.66.126.63)

brown eyed girl

I think this one wasn't included with the other songs shared previously.
Robbie Robertson Ancestor Dance (Live)
Country; Italy
City; Regionale Di Agrigento.
With; Robbie Robertson Red Road Ensemble Coolidge Ulali Special
Guests: John Trudell (and bad dog) Buffy Sainte Marie American Indian Dance Theatre

Hi Al. You're a professional writer, right? Yeah, for those of us too young in 1968 to really appreciate The Band....Although, I know this is a sacriligous statement for some of you but I do remember that it was actually Joan Baez who kept the spirit of The Band alive in the mid-seventies on FM radio. The Band were always there for me but.....probably like some here of a certain vintage here, it wasn't until 1978 when things changed.....It was when I saw TLW at our Elgin Theatre two times in a row!......as I was totally blown away and mesmerized by The Band and all the other performers who were at the top of their game. It was Rick Danko who really caught my eye at the time as I was attracted to the "bad" boyzzz back in the day.....Robbie......Oh yeah.....His presence was felt....but he was out of reach emotionally.

As far as not caring whether four of the members were Canadian......CANADIANS DO CARE! ;-D
We're a people who grew up with an inferiority complex due to being sandwiched between a former super power and one now...although losing ground......
Robbie has not given up his Canadian passport...not sure about Garth as he's married to American Maud. Yes, Robbie's gone hollywood since the seventies.....It's his life. He only has to answer to himself and his higher power or creator or....

I can see more and more why artists have to have a huuuuuge ego....With all the critiques everyone has of their guitar playing, singing, songwriting, how they carry themeselves in public....without a huuuuge ego....or a very sensitive temperament like Richard Manuel......very difficult to survive.....and more importantly to actually live your life out of the constant spotlight and constant scrutiny. I'm very thankful that the members still alive are working and are healthy and I can still hope.......

Hei Norbert. The coke, smack and speed diet keep you real slim, whereas ganja has the opposite effect. Also, for most people as you age, your metabolism isn't the same. imagezulu reminds me all the time that he's still wearing the same jeans since he saw CCR in 1969. I know....It's time he changed those jeans!

Entered at Sun Apr 17 15:48:31 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

I know how these guys do it, Norb. It is called "having a home studio" and the associated sitting on your ass for long periods of time. I have PILED it on since I started work on my own project.

Al, I thoroughly enjoyed your article too. Nailed it, just as Dave Lewis said. It's not as if it's the fact that we are both Brits because I'm a Surrey kid and you're a Scouser, so there is a culture change there, and Michele, who wasn't keen, also reports a UK base. Thus, you must have nailed it. Maybe the prevalence of correct punctuation, Capitalisations and general respect for correctly formed sentences put Michele off, if the post naysaying the article is anything to go by!

Entered at Sun Apr 17 15:21:41 CEST 2011 from (79.202.180.122)

Norbert

Not that it matters, but it's a fact that bands, formed between 1957 and 1992 have gained a significant amount of prevalence overweight weight, particulary from 1987 to 2008 ("the fat years"), although Elvis did it sooner. Also be aware that The Band, but for Levon (- 1,34 pounds, = about 2,89kg), makes no exception on this!

A quick incidence statistic obesity artist scan scan reveals the following trend:

•58% of male lead guitar players are overweight 1987-2008

•67.6% of male bass guitar players are overweight 1987-2008

•34.4% of male drummers are overweight 1987-2008

•88.9% of male keyboard players are overweight n.y.-2008

Obesity Bands:

•88.9% of rock ‘n roll bands are overweight 1987-2008

•91.9% of country bands are overweight 1957-2008

•12.9% of head bang bands are overweight 1999-2008

•64.5% of metal bands are overweight 1987-2008

Total costs for overweight bands: $0.13 billion

Anyway, obesity Bands should visiting their local grocery store, purchase fresh fruits and visit their regular doctor, get their blood pressure checked and walk to their gigs.

p.s. hats off for the Stones: total band -3,21 pounds (-2.31%).

Entered at Sun Apr 17 15:05:22 CEST 2011 from (68.199.152.229)

Jed

The RR Clip of The Right Mistake vaguely reminded me of Sheryl Crow's My Favorite Mistake,allegedly written for Clapton.Has the circle closed?! RR sings pretty decently there & it's a nicely done song,but think how it might have sounded with Richard Manuel oozing out the real flavor from the song.Would've been interesting.As for RR's leads,and in light of my usual fascination with RR's "mathematical" playing(as Dylan called it),I found the lead lacking the routine sparkle that has made me love his playing.Similiar to his weak live performance with EC @ Crossroads,his playing just seems to lie there & lacks the energy I'm so used to hearing.Perhaps,he's just not as comfortable playing live since his leads on the album,albeit rare, are pretty good & his rhythm playing on the album was excellent.

Entered at Sun Apr 17 13:19:12 CEST 2011 from (71.246.9.74)

bob w.

Bobby and the Midnites

Entered at Sun Apr 17 12:33:16 CEST 2011 from (76.66.25.26)

brown eyed girl

Course Profile English: Contemporary Aboriginal Voices, Grade 11

Audio/Video
Duncan Campbell Scott: The Poet and the Indians. National Film Board of Canada, 1995. 56 min.
First Nations: The Circle Unbroken. National Film Board of Canada, 1998 (Series).
Robertson, Robbie. Contact from the Underworld of Redboy. EMI, 1998.

Aboriginal Voices Magazine – www.aboriginal voices.com
Robbie Robertson Songs–hollywoodandvine.com/robbierobertson/songs

No mention of The Band Website??!!

Entered at Sun Apr 17 12:20:13 CEST 2011 from (76.66.25.26)

brown eyed girl

Ministry of Education
The Ontario Curriculum
Grades 11 and 12

Native StudiesAboriginal Voices in Media Works
By the end of this course,students will:
–identify and assess forms of oral presenta- tion (e.g.,storytelling,poetry,music, CD-ROMs,video performances) that develop,maintain,and affirm Aboriginal relationships;
–analyse images of relationships reflecting an Aboriginal world view in the works of Aboriginal creators (e.g.,Dan Prouty, Robbie Robertson,Buffy Sainte-Marie)

Entered at Sun Apr 17 11:57:35 CEST 2011 from (76.66.25.26)

brown eyed girl

SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2011
Robbie Robertson – How to Become Clairvoyant
A critic's darling.

"How else would you explain the attention given To Robbie Robertson’s new release? Appearances on Letterman, The View, Jools Holland? Even an NPR review.

Who is this guy?

Now, 13 years after his last clunker, (*I don't agree here as REDBOY is my favourite Robbie solo because of the Native grooves fused with rock and techno and it's his most rebellious recording.) with current one due to themes explored and more guitar than usual.) he’s released something much better…

… for long time fans. Sure it’s listenable music to an unfamiliar audience, quite listenable, actually. But it’s the lyrics that set this apart from his songs over the last 20 years. Robertson has always been known as a story teller, and this CD reads like a logical extension of his work with The Band. A couple of the tracks even sound like he had a 70’s groove in mind (“When the Night Was Young” and “The Right Mistake”) in part due to the complementary backing vocals from Angela McCluskey, who unfortunately isn’t featured on more of the disc.

However, he no longer has the volume to rise above the din of the instruments. Accordingly, the music has to lie low, whether the band is in full momentum or even during a lead guitar duet (as opposed to a duel). It’s all good, but the mood is affected, likely positively for those who appreciate Robertson’s gifts and frustratingly for those who would prefer more evident musical payoffs."

Entered at Sun Apr 17 11:25:56 CEST 2011 from (122.59.251.42)

Rod

I much prefer Dave Rawlings approach - where he actually gets up and plays.

Entered at Sun Apr 17 10:18:00 CEST 2011 from (203.160.29.153)

Fred

Alan: a very good read.

JQ: thanks for the Nick Lowe link.

Entered at Sun Apr 17 09:33:09 CEST 2011 from (59.101.1.2)

dlew919

As, like you, an outsider to the US (though I'd visited the south as a teenager), Dixie explained it to me perfectly. You didn't have to agree with the sentiment to get the sentiment. It's great history, and great narrative. Your article nailed it!

Entered at Sun Apr 17 05:00:33 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

JQ, yes good news about a new Basher album, although I must say "At My Age" wasn't up there with the previous three for me. It'll be interesting to see if this is a return to late form. And as for the low-rent Ricky G imitation, if we led that style of humour in, we can damned well lead it out again!

Carmen/Jed - if there's one GD solo album I do play as much as the parent band, it is Bob Weir's "Ace". Now that IS a corker, n'est-ce pas?

Entered at Sun Apr 17 04:36:14 CEST 2011 from (12.25.140.82)

PutEmUp(Friend0

Entered at Sun Apr 17 03:26:47 CEST 2011 from (76.69.84.40)

brown eyed girl

Robbie Robertson 'The Right Mistake' On Later With Jools Holland 2011.mp4

I sold The Greatful Dead's "American Beauty" and "Workingman's Dead".

Entered at Sun Apr 17 02:23:27 CEST 2011 from (166.205.140.101)

JQ

RTO - that guy seemed like a R Gervais wanabe, just an unfunny interrupter to me; but then you guys lead in a lot of new humor styles, so I let it go.

Good news about a new record, eh?

Entered at Sun Apr 17 01:05:01 CEST 2011 from (76.116.186.96)

Carmen

Subject: Garcia Solo

Jed - I agree - I prefer Garcia solo to the Dead. Garcia play Dylan is a great CD.

Entered at Sun Apr 17 00:50:13 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Nice one JQ - Nick on good raconteur form as ever. Two things spring to mind, though:

1) Somebody comments that "he is like to music what Barrie Cryer is to comedy" and follows this by suggesting neither are much cop in their own right but know all the right people. The gambit is well said, but the explanation is an abomination. It's bad enough Nick being thought of like this, but Barrie Cryer? That would have scored no marks in a scientific exam, where the workings out are more important than a correct answer!

2) Isn't Mark Ellen a complete tosser! Disappointingly cringe-inducing.

Entered at Sat Apr 16 22:44:35 CEST 2011 from (166.129.173.125)

JQ

Subject: Nick Lowe

An interesting, funny and informative interview from yesterday -

Entered at Sat Apr 16 19:38:56 CEST 2011 from (95.150.139.108)

michele

Subject: al edge

absolut drivel, have read through your comment several times and cannot make any sense of what you are trying to say?

Entered at Sat Apr 16 19:09:55 CEST 2011 from (41.97.211.73)

Empty Now

Subject: 3 statements on a Saturday of outstanding knowledge

Anyone who ever visited this website inherently revealed a sign of veneration of The Band [including Robbie Robertson], for the reason that this site is THE BEST SITE dedicated to The Band in the internet

Anything ever posted or linked by Empty Now is inherently The Band Connected [Robbie Robertson included], for the reason that Empty Now is a Certified Origin fan of The Band

guitar solo [ 3:21 — 4:23 ] credited to Tim Renwick

Entered at Sat Apr 16 13:37:11 CEST 2011 from (76.67.18.164)

brown eyed girl

Robbie Robertson at Indigo Bookstore...The video of Robbie meeting fans is from chapters.indigo.ca.
April 15, 2011
Toronto

There was definitely a real buzzz when I was there waiting in line to see my favourite guitar player and one of a handful of favourite songwriters....
The others being Bob Marley, Van Morrison, Garland Jeffreys, Bob Dylan and Louuu.

I very quietly told Robbie that I was brown eyed girl from The Band Guest book. I wanted to show him all the scars....I didn't have much backbone in the early days here.....but instead I showed him my smiling face...He was all smiles as well.

Entered at Sat Apr 16 13:13:04 CEST 2011 from (76.67.18.164)

brown eyed girl

I still can't access (not available in my area) Robbie's performance of "The Right Mistake" last night on Later...Jolls Holland but here's the short video interview with Jools.

Entered at Sat Apr 16 13:07:14 CEST 2011 from (76.67.18.164)

brown eyed girl

Few photos of Robbie and with other guests on Later...Jools Holland.

Entered at Sat Apr 16 13:02:42 CEST 2011 from (76.67.18.164)

brown eyed girl

By Randy Lewis, Los Angeles Times
April 17, 2011

Robbie Robertson has a sense about 'How to Become Clairvoyant'

Bashful Bill...I've posted the download of "BT" many times...I guess after awhile we all repeat ourselves over and over again.

"But it didn't play out that way after Danko and Helm made solo albums and Hudson started working as producer of another group. "I remember going to the studio one day, and there was something we needed to finish up for another thing that we were doing together. I remember going to the studio and sitting there and thinking, 'Oh, I guess everybody's running late.' And I finally realized: Nobody showed up. And it was a sad moment for me. I thought, 'OK,'" — he said, taking a long pause, adding, — "I get it.'"

The sadness is evident — an emotion undoubtedly amplified by Manuel's suicide in 1986, and Danko's death 13 years later. But so is the pride Robertson holds for the body of work that started with "Music From Big Pink" in 1968 and continued, albeit with less consistency as the rigors of life on the road eventually caught up with the group, through its final formal studio collection, "Northern Lights-Southern Cross" in 1975."

Entered at Sat Apr 16 11:19:48 CEST 2011 from (86.169.140.150)

Dunc

Subject: Supporting the local shop

MIKE and KIM:Thanks for recent links, and, indeed, all your efforts. Could you flag up when the new film on Levon Helm is available on DVD? I, obviously, would love to see it.

Still waiting for my copy of HTBC from local shop. But am now familiar with three tracks, which I think are great. Thought Robbie was very good on Jools.

SEBASTIAN:Is your dad going to do any radio interviews over here? I can't find any notification in press.

BOB W:St Andrews and, indeed, all of Scotland looked fabulous in the sunshine last weekend.

ROGER:Thanks. Got tickets for Paul Simon.

BEG:Thanks for links.

SERENITY: Hope your daughter is getting better.

Al Edge:Thanks for your efforts. Really enjoyed your article.

Thank you all posters. Have genuinely enjoyed GB recently.

Have moved from playing the Impressions to Infidels by Bob. Really enjoy the guitar playing on this album - Mark Knopfler and Mick Taylor. Just a thought. Does Bob personally write all the guitar licks and there are many fine ones on this album?

Entered at Sat Apr 16 02:26:00 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

...or Mary Cavette, Bruce Bruno, Jerry "Ish Kabbible" Penfound...even the bloke that cooked the barbeque chicken in Helena was left out...Colonel Kudlets....Harvey Brookes the bass.... a right old "half-a-job" dedications section if you ask me.

Entered at Sat Apr 16 02:21:01 CEST 2011 from (76.67.16.77)

brown eyed girl

For now....Here's Robbie Robertson / The Right Mistake (Alternate_Version ). This version is not as polished as the one on the record but I love the groove here....again...The drum beats transport you to a Native Pow Wow. Crank it up! Yes, I am a card carrying "silly" Robbie fan.

Levon did it his way....Robbie is now.....doing it.....his way.

"You have your way.
I have my way.
As for the right way, the correct way, and the only way, it does not exist."
— Friedrich Nietzsche

"Without music, life would be a mistake."
— Friedrich Nietzsche

Two trips with the kidzzz today. First we were at an Ecco Show and then to Roy Thomson Hall with Toronto's Symphony Orchestra. "From Bach to the Future (The Beatles).....I said to one of my students that instead of hearing "Yellow Submarine".....We should have heard "TW". This student's gift card from Indigo Bookstore paid for my "HTBC" CD as well.

Entered at Sat Apr 16 01:59:19 CEST 2011 from (76.67.16.77)

brown eyed girl

LATER... WITH JOOLS HOLLAND
BBC TWO
April 15 (just awhile ago)
Legendary Canadian songwriter and guitarist, Robbie Robertson, chats to Jools Holland. See below video shown.

Video of Robbie performing "The Right Mistake" is there too but I can't access it here....yet....maybe in US? GB for sure! lol

There were so many hits on "Don't Do It" from four years ago because some of us saw it then and loved seeing it again! Some videos get taken down and then put up again. The same thing happened with Dylan and The Band at the Isle of Wight.

Entered at Sat Apr 16 01:53:15 CEST 2011 from (24.108.12.129)

BONK

...or Lou Miles and the shoeshine boys in front of the Brown Derby!

Entered at Sat Apr 16 01:29:00 CEST 2011 from (96.30.174.20)

joe j

Entered at Sat Apr 16 00:59:25 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

..no mention of Teddy the Hungarian or Freddie McNulty either. Haw haw haw!

Entered at Fri Apr 15 23:29:44 CEST 2011 from (72.230.109.86)

Bashful Bill

Subject: Deb

You forgot the fly.......

Entered at Fri Apr 15 23:09:57 CEST 2011 from (68.199.152.229)

Jed

Spent today listening and playing the blues.Muddy,John Lee Hooker,Lightning Hopkins,Howlin' Wolf,Albert King & B.B. King.Very nuanced music--you can really see what The Band took from listening to these blues.The beat,the textures,the stories,the feel & not overdoing the jam to the detriment of the song.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 21:56:21 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

Amateur video that includes supposedly one of Rick's last live performances. Rick appears approx 6 mins 40 secs into the video.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 21:27:43 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

Martin Scorcese appears in the artwork in the cd booklet(which I just got today) - better than a thank you in the notes I think.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 21:19:57 CEST 2011 from (71.246.9.74)

bob w.

sadavid, thanks for the Mix magazine link. It has been a while since I checked in there. I'm sure many of the posters here would find the "Classic Tracks" feature articles very interesting. I linked their piece on TNTDODD.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 20:44:14 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

I think some Garcia solo stuff is excellent - particularly the first LP for the mix of electronica and such chestnuts as Sugaree, Deal etc. And Keystone, of course. However, my lack of enthusiasm for most mid-seventies Dead also applies to quite a bit of Garcia stuff. The cleaner, jazzier approach and the curse of Keith & Donna! That said, It Must Have Been The Roses is a corker, a near-standard setter!

Entered at Fri Apr 15 20:39:30 CEST 2011 from (131.137.35.83)

sadavid

Subject: _How to Become Clairvoyant_: the making of

_Mix_ magazine's article on the album's production. Marius de Vries is quoted as saying some of the initial work with EC dates from 15 or 20 years ago - maybe why one track reminds me of "Tears in Heaven" or something of that EC-ballady ilk.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 20:35:06 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Bill M: Yes you're right, Mr. Carter started out in Nashville around 1959-60. After establishing himself as a first-rate session musician, he also got the opportunity to produce up & coming artists, no doubt thanks to the experience of working with Mr. Atkins and other established producers like Owen Bradley. When Dean Martin recorded a couple of songs he'd written, he gained even wider exposure. In 1968 Mr. Carter bought a 16-track studio in the Nashville area from the legendary Opry bluegrass duo Lonzo & Oscar. This led to even work work as a producer.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 20:28:51 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

……and selfishly……in contrast to Tracy’s plea……wouldn’t we all want to NOT thank Martin Scorsese……..I sometimes think that while we would most certainly be deprived of having the greatest rock n roll concert film ever made in our homes……..we also most likely would have seen 2 or 3 more RR albums over the years and more than likely some very good to great Band projects with contributions from the pen of Mr. Robertson……………………..Just think how a reformed Band would have been better promoted………..I was thinking about this as a clip played recently on local radio where Robbie was quoted – in response to a question on his concept for a First Nations Broadway play…as saying something along the lines of “No…No…this would be bigger and better than anything Cirque du Soleil do…….this would be much better than anything the world has ever seen……” Not an exact quote but something along these lines and it strikes you that he is referring to THE Cirque du Soleil that just happens to be the consensus best in the world at what they do……..Now no matter what you think of the man…….it does take a certain confidence to say such things……

Love these discussions of the session scenes back in the day……….I had not known there was ever really a pre- Tele period…..Hadn’t really thought about it but great stuff……….Guitar Player magazine has been featuring session stories with Steve Lukather in recent months and they are always fun to read………..Remember as a kid and the camera guys on the musical performances on TV never showed the hands – would drive me absolutely bonkers………..they would show Glen Campbell’s hair ( parted on the wrong side – my Dad used to always point out! ) for the full 3 minutes but not the hands!!!!!!! Notice the clip of Don’t Do It” had some hands of Robbie but no face…..very pre celebrity television……

Entered at Fri Apr 15 20:13:56 CEST 2011 from (86.169.140.150)

Dunc

Subject: Oran Mor

I may check that out Peter. Oran Mor is a beautiful building with paintings by Alasdair Gray (the guy who wrote Lanark).

Entered at Fri Apr 15 20:04:30 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

David P: Fred Carter may not have been first call, but he was something of a Nashville player by '63 or '64. He wrote, and maybe produced, Willie Nelson's "River Boy" around then, and also produced a couple of things, '62-'64, for a Ronnie Hawkins protege, Doug Lycett. Hawkins thought enough of him to import him back to Toronto to produce (and write songs for) artists on his short-lived Hawk label. I suspect it was also Hawkins who later ('67 or '68) sent Kelly Jay to record a pre-Crowbar 45 with Carter in Nashville.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 19:42:34 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Peter: The established "first call" Nashville Cats at the time were the older guys like Floyd Cramer, Grady Martin, Hank Garland, Harold Bradley and of course Chet Atkins. Around that time, former Hawk Fred Carter, Jr. got his foot in the door when he caught Mr. Atkins' attention, who began giving Mr. Carter work on sessions he was producing at RCA. Believe it or not, Mr. Carter's specialty was his tasty Telecaster licks. At the time, the Tele was more a part of the Bakersfield sound, and hadn't been used much by the a lot of the older Nashville guys.

In addition to Charlie McCoy, Kenny Buttrey and the other Nashville Cats on "Blonde On Blonde", another group of younger musicians included the original Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, Jerry Carrigan, David Briggs & Nobert Putnam, who left Rick Hall's FAME studio and relocated to Nashville. As the story goes, Mr. Briggs got his first big break there when Floyd Cramer was running late to a session for Elvis and Mr. Briggs got the call to sit in.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 19:40:39 CEST 2011 from (216.226.180.2)

Deb

Entered at Fri Apr 15 19:38:55 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Entered at Fri Apr 15 19:33:22 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

I’m appalled that you missed Al Kooper, John Hammond Jnr and God, Deb.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 18:45:14 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

Levon's "Ain't In It For My Health" rated one of best new rock docs.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 18:41:57 CEST 2011 from (216.226.180.2)

Deb

I don't recall our subjecting any other solo efforts by Band members to such scrutiny, but by all means let's not stop short. The ingrate also neglected to thank: his mother, his father, his stepfather, the plucky little sperm that found the ovum in the first place, the doctor who delivered him, the Iroquois Confederacy, Ronnie Hawkins, Wanda Hawkins, Stephen Hawking, Bob Dylan, Jack Ruby, the owners of Tony Marts, Le Coq D'or, and countless other places he's played,the guys who swept Yonge Street, the bus drivers who took him south, Levon's mama and daddy, Spike Jones, the guy who drives the St. Charles streetcar in New Orleans, and scarf makers everywhere. BTW, did Levon thank the Band on Dirt Farmer and Electric Dirt?

Entered at Fri Apr 15 18:34:27 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

NY Academy of Music "facebook" pg created by Michael Rocker. He is seeking input & pics from folks who attended & / or worked @ the venue, especially in the early to mid-'70s.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 18:13:15 CEST 2011 from (68.199.152.229)

Jed

As a huge deadhead,I always preferred JGB or Jerry solo work.More consistent.tighter & sweet as can be!

Entered at Fri Apr 15 18:04:19 CEST 2011 from (74.203.77.122)

Jon Lyness

Subject: Levon Helm Band with Emmylou Harris, 7/18/11, Central Park Summerstage

Tix just went on sale. Can't wait. (Fingers crossed for "Evangeline"!)

Entered at Fri Apr 15 17:46:32 CEST 2011 from (71.246.9.74)

bob w.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 17:11:45 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

I think Peter V's largely correct about the function of cover tunes as played onstage, but it must be a different thing when an artist decides to cover a 'standard' on album. Presumably they believe they have something to add - and often they're right. "Moondog Matinee" seems to be another kettle of fish. Why bother? is an understandable response, but I'm sure solid reasons must exist. I suspect that they lie more in the internal needs and workings of the Band and its members than in the commercial po-tential of the product. Perhaps we could see it as a prelude to TLW, where Robbie offers up a Gipper-like exhortation to "reach back to your/our roots on Yonge Street when we were young and tight and ruled the roost playing these kind of songs ... with the added bonus that you already know them backwards and forwards so won't have to labour over learning new songs. It'll be a walk in the park for pros like us. Let's get out there and show 'em what we're made of!!"

The thought occurred to me a couple of minutes ago that another of my departed classmates told me, as we drove out to some ex-urban field trip in '75, that he saw the Band as the world's best bar-band. (He was more of a prog-rocker at heart, and saw Spirit as the best overall.)

I'd like to thank ...

Entered at Fri Apr 15 17:11:06 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Sorry, careless - association of One Too Many Mornings with Rick is natural. It's fascinating that in "Bob Dylan In America" Wilentz actually got to listen to the between takes chatter proving once and for all that Rick was present.

The other thing that surprised me (and this time I did bother to walk upstairs and check) is the ages. Both Al Kooper and Robbie seem to indicate that these were older, experienced session guys and paint themselves as the the young rock guys walking into the studio of hardened C&W session players. As Wilentz points out, Kenny Buttrey was twenty-one, two years younger than Robbie, and Charlie McCoy only a year older.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 17:07:19 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

bob w: Thanks…………….Interesting thing that it was actually the release of Festival Express a few years back where I started to think that I might well have short-changed Jerry Garcia……….something about the vibe he gives off in that film tells you that there is a bit more than just a little something going on with him.

Great clip of “Don’t Do It”………………….Marty was apparently on a smoke break as the camera sure finds everyone but Robbie!! A couple of great from behind the kit shots ……..and for the wordrobe inclined……….Richard did have a certain “je ne sais quois” did he not?

Entered at Fri Apr 15 17:05:25 CEST 2011 from (12.25.140.82)

PutEmUp(Friend0

Entered at Fri Apr 15 17:00:03 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Peter: The missing credits from "Blonde On Blonde" would be from "One of Us Must Know (Sooner or Later)", as the title seemingly predicts the situation regarding the musician credits. Along with Rick, also missing from that New York session are Paul Griffin on piano, Bobby Gregg on drums and possibly Bill Lee on acoustic bass. The Nashville musicians, however, in the past almost never received liner credit on albums, and were used to being ignored. The inclusion of their names on "Blonde On Blonde" therefore came as a pleasant surprise and opened up new opportunites for session work, especially as more & more non-country artists came to Nashville to record in Dylan's footsteps. Since they were the up & coming sessions guys in Nashville, rather than the older A-list musicians, this certainly helped catapult their careers.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 16:48:49 CEST 2011 from (207.200.116.74)

PutEmUp(Jeff)

Entered at Fri Apr 15 16:40:50 CEST 2011 from (74.203.77.122)

Jon Lyness

Subject: Rockin' Chair -- live 1970, Festival Express

Beautiful.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 16:36:57 CEST 2011 from (207.200.116.74)

PutEmUp(Friend0

Entered at Fri Apr 15 16:27:17 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

The "thank you" routine is ludicrous on many albums nowadays. With film, it's a little different as every credit goes on IMDB, and listing your credits is important. On CDs it doesn't mean much. As we know, in the 70s people who guested on sessions adopted false names, or (like Rick on Blonde on Blonde for One Too Many Mornings) never got credited at all. It's gone too far the other way. It's interesting to compare the credits on my British ESL / ELT books and on the American versions. There are no credits on the British ones and most UK publishers rule that employees (editors, managers, marketing) cannot be credited, nor can free-lancers as they are doing paid work. They make an exception for illustration and photography because they retain intellectual copyright. The American versions take up a page listing everyone who had even the most peripheral involvement. I note that the author doesn't compile this, and I'd guess the musician is asked what THEY want, then other stuff just gets added.

I suspect that on movies, the hundreds of credits are partly promo saying "Look how big our production was." That might run over to CDs too. It happens with educational publishing where they print massive listings of educational establishments where it was "trialled." I know this often involves sending a proof copy with a sheet of tick the box questions. People tick all negatives, say it was crap, then find themselves credited in the trial. My main publisher, I'm pleased to say, never used this fake trialling ploy.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 16:12:24 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

The same Don't Do It live video clip was uploaded on youtube almost 4 yrs ago. It would be cool to see more from those shows.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 16:11:23 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

I'd like to thank sadavid for that last post, and Tracy for having sparked sadavid's last post, and Jan for having built and maintained this playpen for us, and Vint Cerf and Tim Berners-Lee for services without which, and all the faceless/nameless cableguys and telecomguys whose wires carry this stuff too and fro ...

Peter V: Interesting that TLW came out in '78, 33 years ago. My graduating class of '78 got itself together for the first time in 33 years just this past Sunday. Maybe a dozen didn't make it because they're too far away or were busy watching the Masters or something; another three didn't make it because they've passed away. One of those three is the friend I took to see the fancy premiere of TLW - at which John D (who I'd won the tickets from) and his fellow DJs turned up in tuxes. Years later the same friend, then in serious decline, got to go backstage to meet Garth and Maud (and Bill Avis) at BARK's TLW tribute.

Peter V: Speaking of TLW, they must've been really short of blue scarves if they'd already run out of them by the time they got to the Rs.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 16:08:53 CEST 2011 from (76.188.58.111)

Calvin

Actually I sort of wonder how RR has stayed on the radar as is getting so much play on AOC and getting all the press it has. He isnt exactly a household name among music fans under 45.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 15:41:44 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Subject: American Beauty Rosebud

The Band connections with "American Beauty", apart from the influence upon the Dead at inception, include Rick's cover of "Ripple" (with Levon & Garth) from "On Times Like These". In addition, Amy Helm, Teresa Williams & Larry Campbell, have worked out a beautiful arrangement of "Attics of My Life", which they perform at Levon's Rambles. (Link above to one such performance with guest Phil Lesh of the Grateful Dead). The Grateful Dead were among the groups, along with The Band, that joined the Festival Express tour of Canada in the summer of 1970. "American Beauty" was recorded shortly thereafter, and the Dead previewed one of the highlights of the album, "Friend of the Devil", on the tour. I would suggest this would have been a great song for The Band to cover in later years. (Sorry, I couldn't resist the Citizen Kane reference in my subject line.)

Entered at Fri Apr 15 15:31:46 CEST 2011 from (131.137.35.83)

sadavid

Thanks, joe j. Thanks, Haywards. Lovely. That Roosevelt boot sounds very tasty indeed. After all these years, it still amazes me how Mr. Helm can simultaneously play those patterns and belt out a great lead vocal . . . . The difference between The Band and M. Gaye is just the difference between R&R and R&B (or Soul, if you prefer) and the preference is sometimes a matter of mood (calzone or lo mein for dinner) and somewhat, generational. Start your disco crowd with some Stones and CCR and then see who votes for The Band . . . .

This business of thank-yous is a bit out of hand -- when there's thirty names on the roll, it's not sincerity, it's purely obligation (and lubrication). And why would you thank the PR person? Their "thanks," same as mine same as yours, is their paycheque. For service above and beyond, possibly a bonus, pad the resumé, on to greater more glorious accounts. Much of the success of the promo effort on this thing (no denying it's a tour de force) is due to the principal's willingness to get out on the road, press the flesh, do the same frickin interview a hundred frickin times.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 15:21:39 CEST 2011 from (196.30.40.22)

NUX

Interesting link,hope it works.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 15:04:11 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

Entered at Fri Apr 15 14:46:40 CEST 2011 from (72.230.109.86)

Bashful Bill

Subject: thanks, Mike&Kim, & Angelina, too......

I ended yesterday with Between Trains and started today with Don't Do It.........

Entered at Fri Apr 15 14:33:35 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

My tales of the pink registration card started me on a “whatever happened to Turner, Wilson and Wood?” train of thought. I checked on Friends Reunited and it seems they all did well. Malcolm Turner runs a successful chain of hair salons, and looks ten years younger than me in the photo in his Mazda sports car. Ignatius “Iggy” Wood is a Bishop, and William “Willy” Wilson describes himself as an “all round entertainer.” I didn’t think you could get stilletto heels in size 12, but apparently so. I’m glad the registration cards didn’t direct the course of our lives.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 14:14:34 CEST 2011 from (99.254.209.45)

John D

It makes one wonder how much more video there is of that show?

Entered at Fri Apr 15 14:11:20 CEST 2011 from (71.246.9.74)

bob w.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 13:34:41 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

Subject: Don't Do It (12/28/71) live video from the Academy of Music shows.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 13:06:59 CEST 2011 from (59.101.30.31)

dlew919

I blame butterfield, not Levon...

Entered at Fri Apr 15 12:56:06 CEST 2011 from (86.185.231.206)

RTO

I can see it both ways with the covers. Holy Cow is my favourite MM cut by a dozen country miles; likewise Don't Do It and generally the Rick and Richard covers. Levon, for me, shows early signs of the default blues band laziness we have discussed recently in I'm Ready and Ain't Got No Home, although the organ grinder in me adores his take on Didn't It Rain.

The turkey for me, the real "missed the whole point" scenario is Mystery Train. Good rock and roll turned into turgid, lumpen white funk with extra verses? Nah! Can it really be the same group that turned in a blistering Slipping & Sliding just three years earlier while the cameras rolled? THAT showed a true grasp of good rock & roll.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 12:49:37 CEST 2011 from (96.30.174.20)

joe j

Sorry, but the subject of my last post seems to have nothing to do with the content. It was intended for a rebuttal of some of Al Edge's comments re Big Pink that'll have to wait for another day.

Got my deluxe copy of 'Clairvoyant' yesterday. I'm saving it for a quiet time, maybe tonight.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 12:41:48 CEST 2011 from (96.30.174.20)

joe j

Subject: Suvla.... MFBP

Link is to a short article on Band boots.

My younger brother has more or less committed to spending the next ten years working on the MacKenzie River in the Northwest Territories and has decided to put his island home up for rent. Last weekend I had to get the place rent ready which involved hooking up the water from his gravity flow well, replacing the hot water tank etc. I also had to move a lot of his personal possessions to storage. That includes his (country) music collection. That's when I discovered the s.o.b. had nicked a dozen of my old records. Surprisingly he seems to have secret liking for sweet soul music: Main Ingredient, Chi-Lites, Pips. He also had my old copy of 'Cahoots'. Call me crazy but this is the first time I've heard the record in at least thirty years and it sounds so much better on LP than CD. I guess you can say that about most recordings but nevertheless...

Entered at Fri Apr 15 11:04:31 CEST 2011 from (41.97.234.220)

Empty Now

...and the color of the register card

Entered at Fri Apr 15 11:00:29 CEST 2011 from (41.97.234.220)

Empty Now

Subject: there's always something of interest

that captures one's attention in The Band GB

Mr Peter V : your Daphne friend have almost the same surname as I, excepted the first letter which is B in mine

as you know B and V are close consonant pairs, which in many languages transcript in function of the desk where somebody wants to sit in the classroom ;-)

Entered at Fri Apr 15 10:32:16 CEST 2011 from (99.141.41.141)

Adam2

Entered at Fri Apr 15 09:24:42 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Adam, I guess you’re talking about my Moondog Matinee article. It’s historical context. I was around when Holy Cow by Lee Dorsey was fresh. I was there when Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever by The Four Tops, and Baby Don’t Do It by Marvin Gaye were hot releases. I don’t for a moment think The Band thought they were bettering the originals, nor was that the intent. Apposite covers have a special function in an act. Levon did say they did Lee Dorsey (as well as / better than) Lee Dorsey, and while that might apply to He Don’t Love You, it doesn’t apply to Holy Cow, good as their version is. They get nearer to nailing it than they do on Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever which had the “cover encore” purpose. Many people do it. Simone Felice did Long May You Run, The Duke & The King do Helpless, Steeleye Span do To Know Him Is To Love Him, The Unthanks do Starless & Bible Black or Sexy Sadie, John Wetton Band did God Only Knows. The key is to be just slightly unexpected, change it to your style, and for it to be familiar to the audience. You’ll notice Loving You was never on any official release at the time.

Try this test. Get in a discotheque dance situation as a DJ. Put the lights low. Play a couple of great soul songs to warm up, I suggest Uptight by Stevie Wonder and Ain’t Too Proud To Beg by The Temptations. Then put Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever by The Four Tops on, and see it fulfill its purpose and fill the dance floor with people singing along. Repeat the process with The Band version. You will then see exactly why old Motown fans consider it feeble in comparison. With Holy Cow (which as I said, they do a lot better than Loving You), you’d put on sympathetic tracks from the era. I’d say Down Home Girl by Alvin Robinson, and Working in The Coal Mine by Lee Dorsey to go first. You really will see what I mean!

Entered at Fri Apr 15 09:10:12 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

For anyone new to the Dead who likes The Band, start with American Beauty. I know several people who would only give house room to American Beauty and Workingman’s Dead and nothing else. American Beauty is definitely the most accessible.

Credits. Paul Allen comes first on HTBC, but he is alphabetically advantaged. As we Vs and Ws can tell you, alphabetical disadvantage is so often overlooked in society. We languish at the end of lines, get lost in small print. At my primary school, in the first year, the girls had pink cards, the boys had blue cards in the register. This was the early 1950s when there were only the two genders. Anyway, in my first year, they ran out of blue cards, so all the boys with T, V and W names got pink cards, which followed them through the school from age 5 to 11. By age 11, with changes in classes etc, this was a daily horrible embarrassment, and the source of much cruel banter. It’s amazing I turned out as nearly normal as I am. I can’t tell you what Turner, Wilson and Wood suffered, but I’m sure their lives were horribly blighted.

I agree that the promotion person deserved a major credit. The press coverage, select TV dates etc are all just right. I see it was in the “Major releases” section at both small HMVs I visited this week, with multiple copies.

At least there’s no Prince-style “Thank you God” which is arrogance masked as humility, letting everyone know that you were selected for success by the deity, being one of the elect, “one of the chosen few who will march in the procession.”

Jeff, why would The Band be credited? This is an album by a man who finished with The Band when the TLW film came out in 1978. He was then 35, and already 20 years into his career. Another 33 years have passed since. In career terms, his post-Band life is more than 50% longer than his Band life. But I would personally like now to give thanks to Daphne who shared a desk with me at primary school when I was ten. When cruel jibes descended on me for having a pink register card, Daphne would say, ‘Don’t listen to them. I know you’re not a girl.’ To Daphne, I owe everything. Next time I write a book, she will be in the credits. But as we sat in alphabetical order, she was also alphabetically challenged (Venables), and I will shift the order to put her first. I haven’t seen her since I was eleven.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 07:06:22 CEST 2011 from (184.151.127.158)

Marge

Hey Kevin, It was actually a Norman, quite beautiful. Alas, I do not play. It was a Christmas gift from me a few years back, and Steve picked it up to play pretty much every day. He was really getting good. I miss hearing him play and sing, and laugh. Best to you.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 06:25:34 CEST 2011 from (207.200.116.74)

PutEmUp(Friend0

A huge thanks should go to The Band.The Band been promoting this record endlessly. And for any of you who are wondering, that defintiely includes the 80s & 90s Band. BTW, Jim Weider,Blondie, Earl Cates, should also get thanked. Fuck, all The Cates band should get thanked.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 04:12:24 CEST 2011 from (99.141.41.141)

Adam2

Following up on my previous Moondog Matinee post, I think the album and the covers the Band did are incredibly under-appreciated. Some will feel the need to "rate"/compared them to the original versions by the original artists, but to me that is completely missing the point. Moondog, and all their covers in general, were played to compliment the originals. The Band versions are how they heard them and were influenced by them. For cover versions, the original is always on a different level than subsequent covers by other people. "Holy Cow" by Lee Dorsey - is the original version the definitive version? Well, yes. It is the original version. Is The Band's version better or worse? Well, it's neither. It's not "better or worse" than Lee Dorsey's because Lee Dorsey's is the original, and the two should really not be compared side by side in the first place. The Band doing "Holy Cow" is The Band doing their version of "Holy Cow". The live covers often come up here, and many seem like they don't even enjoy them because the originals are "better". Again, that's not the point. When I listen to The Band's "Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever", I'm not disappointed because the track isn't "as good" as the Four Tops' original. If I wanted to hear the Four Tops version, I'd listen to that. It is on a different level than any subsequent covers. I listen to The Band's version to hear how the song sounded to The Band. I don't want to hear the Four Tops' singing or the Motown production when I listen to their cover. I want to hear Rick's country soul vocals, Levon's fat and solid drumming, Robbie's economical guitar work, Garth's wild card of sound, and the gloriously ragged backwoods harmonies of the three vocalists. The covers found on Moondog Matinee, and the ones they played live, are fantastic. Anyone who quibbles about this song or that not living up to the original version is missing the point.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 04:05:00 CEST 2011 from (99.146.124.13)

Tracy

Subject: Boston benefit for Morgan Huke

If anybody on here from around the Boston, MA area is looking for a good time, good music, and lots of fun, look no further than the Regent Theatre in Arlington, MA. We are putting on a benefit concert for music promoter Morgan Huke of Gloucester, MA. who has been affected by cancer and a rare disease called Binswangers. He is a tireless advocate and hardworking man who does not let any of his illnesses bring him down. He's always promoting new bands and working on schedules for locations. We absolutely adore Morgan. I have a stake in this too as he helped me put together a special event. Without him, I don't think I could make $3,000 for the safe driving fund possible.

Food and drinks will be provided, along with a teacup raffle we're still getting items for to ensure participants they won't be sorry in spending money on raffle tickets. There will be a giveaway for two airline tickets good for anywhere in the US. I will be making chocolate guitars in 50 varieties for the occasion. You get your choice with exotic flavors as peach cobbler, key lime, cheesecake, and banana split among the usual white, dark, and milk chocolate.

Music will be provided by Morgan's longtime friend James Montgomery, Andy Pratt, Charlie Farren, Erinn Brown Band, Henley Douglas Jr., Lisa Marie & All Shook Up, The Elle Gallo Band, Mia Dyson, Heather Rose, Ed Robinson, Diane Blue, Hirsh Gardner, Lydia Warren, Paula Karahalis, Summer McLaughlin & Frank Hawks.

April 22, 2011 at 6PM. Regent Theatre $20 for tickets. $30 for night of the show.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 03:05:04 CEST 2011 from (99.235.255.183)

Serenity

Subject: ROBBIE,etc,

Hi Guys. LINK is to ROBBIE's writing his memoir. Should be a goodie.

JOAN: Thanx for your concern about my baby [40 yrs.old]. She's coming along slowly. If she could only eat something it would help her, but she's stuck with baby food, and anything soft. Haven't heard about the biopsy, and that's what worries her and me. Thanks to FB, as it's the best way for her to keep in touch with me.

BRIEN SZ: I am a huge fan of the Civil War. I have the Ken Burns' docu set, but still watched it when PBS had it on last week. I have everyone of Danny Glover's "Civil War Journal" which was a great docu series from awhile back. I think it was on A&E. ROBBIE was right when he said it was a very "romantic time" in history.

BEG: Wonderful links from you and others..... Will send my addy very soon. A friend taught me how to delete all addy's to help control SPAM, so that's why you don't see it.

Keep up the good work you guys, love ALL the posts.

Until next time LOVE AND PEACE xoxoxoxoxo

Entered at Fri Apr 15 03:01:45 CEST 2011 from (99.146.124.13)

Tracy

Okay, so I finally broke down and got a copy of "How To Be Clairvoyant." As usual, I went straight for the credits. It's a normal past time of mine with everything albums, tapes, CDs. A few things of mention regarding credits and the CD sleeve.

I see there is now a VIP credits section in the gatefold containing the likes of Paul Allen, Arm Candy Andich, Larry Gagosian, and a few others. I'm a little surprised Jann Wenner didn't make the roster as Robbie seems to be a guest at many of his events and at the same table during the RRHOF inductions.

Also noticed in the inside credits of the CD some of the familiar names are listed such as Tony Berg and Penny Lambert. Along with those is "A very special thanks" to the Robertson children and ex. My question is, why isn't Martin Scorsese in the credits. The guy has been one of Robbie's closest friends for what thirty-five years and gets no mention while Gagosian gets a VIP credit? Scorsese is pictured in the CD booklet too, but no name given.

Nathaniel and Elsie are listed but not their famous drumming father, Russ? Did they have something to do with the album?

Who is Mr. No-paparazzi with his hand up, taken by Nimi Ponnudurai? Why is he there when this is a Robbie record?

I will admit that a big disappointment in all of this is not seeing a credit for PROMOTION. Whatever Judi Kerr has done can not compare to the individual who has relentlessly and passionately put their tail on the line in promoting. Everything from Robbie's website, to Facebook, to MySpace, and various other areas on the net which has made a ton of difference. I sure as hell hope Robbie appreciates the effort this individual has given. Tirelessly, lovingly... Shame on whoever put this CD together didn't think of this single credit for which I believe all of the fans who bought this latest record from this person's EFFORT! Congrats to that individual, hey and I never said I play nice, but one has to give credit where credit is due. Robbie's climbed the charts because of you. It's one thing to come up with a product, it's another to let an audience know it exists! Bravo! They should be Robbie's manager instead of Mr. Levine!

Entered at Fri Apr 15 01:50:18 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Bill, I hate to disagree (I'd pretty much have said the same thing had I not dwelt on it) but having listened to them both again tonight, it seems that American Beauty is the one for the uninitiated. One classic after another seamlessly - Box, Devil, Magnolia, Operator, Candyman - whew!. Then side 2 and Ripple, Brokedown, Till the morning, Attics and Truckin', no messing.

Kevin, the general advice that BOTH 1970 LPs are the ones still stands. but I reckon that if a one-disc purchase is the way, make it American Beauty.

Entered at Fri Apr 15 01:06:23 CEST 2011 from (24.218.200.216)

Tim

Subject: Winterland website

Not sure if this link has been posted before but a pretty good comprehensive history and lots of photos of the Winterland Ball Room including its demolition (some crazy inside shot taken while being ripped apart) sad..

Entered at Fri Apr 15 01:06:15 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Subject: The link I mentioned and forgot to post below!

Entered at Fri Apr 15 01:02:42 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Like Bill and Al have said, Lonesome S is a thing of beauty. For me the bittersweet sound of it is, sadly, the best metaphor for what I consider the biggest tragedy of all the OQ history - the drying up of RM as a songwriter.

Those who have known me for a few years will know of my particular fondness for We Can Talk. Never better was the dual keyboard role served than in the sheer joyous gospel of the introduction of that song; the early trademark "shout a line if you can" pseudo-shambolic vocal approach, the quirkiness (who else goes from straight feel into a clippety-clop shuffle for a middle 16 bars?). Unwittingly more psychedelic than anything Frisco!!!

In A Station, the "George Harrison" song. Isn't it just! Indian feel to the call and response harmonies, those ambiguous chord voicings. A treat!

It is not for nothing that Dylan chose to collaborate with RM more than RR. Tears of Rage will always be the "one song I'd love to open every gig with if only I could hit the vocal" for me. If I were Ray Lamontagne (see link), of course - it wouldn't worry me.

If I think of The Band in general, I think of myself in my early teens when Dad would put his copy of the brown LP on, and always associate ATGD and "that voice" as my potted snapshot of the Band. Even now. And RM's role on that LP is well enough documented not to dwell on here.

But "Sleeping" is the real gem - a gem that makes you yearn for the more which never came. That was it; the source was depleted. Tragic.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 23:48:55 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Thanks, Sebastian. Hard disc recorder set for Jools Holland - it screens either side of midnight and I have a 6am start on Saturday, so it'll be the recorded version on Sunday evening. Looking forward to it.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 23:23:01 CEST 2011 from (99.141.41.141)

Adam2

Entered at Thu Apr 14 23:15:16 CEST 2011 from (99.141.41.141)

Adam2

Sometimes it seems like Robbie is a clear-headed guy who doesn't deserve all the "pretentious" tags he's been given by some over the years. But almost just as often, he can lay it on a little thick. I was looking over the A Musical History liner notes for Moondog Matinee. Rob Bowman appropriately and surprisingly enough mentions Rick's involvement in Bobby Charles' 1972 album. But Bowman refers to "the opening track Small Town Talk". Has he even heard the album, or is he just assuming that is the opening track because of a renamed CD issue of the album? Or maybe it's just a mistake. Ok, that's fine I guess. But then he goes on, for about a whole page, to deeply analyze the "long rumored 'Works' project", about as uninteresting and unimportant lost Band projects could get. Robbie is quoted extensively (as he is throughout the liner notes to the box), explaining how he had the creative brilliant idea to do things with more avant-garde classical song structures, and how the other guys "just didn't get it and eventually I threw up my hands and said 'What the hell, I'll just write another song'." (paraphrasing). Robbie can really lay it on thick sometimes, and though I try to remain neutral, you have to admit it's pretty ridiculous to read stuff like that in there. I wish Rob Bowman was more objective in his notes and didn't resort to serving Robbie and turning out light-weight fluff a lot of the time.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 23:07:11 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Entered at Thu Apr 14 22:47:27 CEST 2011 from (71.246.9.74)

bob w.

Kevin, along those same lines I've always enjoyed the linked Jerry Garcia Band live album. One look at the setlist and you will have a good idea why.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 22:46:02 CEST 2011 from (24.108.253.172)

westcoaster

Subject: For all time.....my band favourite song

Hello Marge, so nice to hear from you I hope you are able to accomplish things the way you and your children would want them and be as comfortable as is possible.

Hi Jan, I really don't bother with that Facebook too much at all. I find myself coming to the desk less and less these days. Can't seem to get interested lately. Perhaps because I have a lot of other interests going on. I share some of the opinion expressed here, but not all. Some of my opinion may not be that popular and it doesn't interest me that much to pound away here at it.

Some good song ideas guys thanks. I liked that video Kevin.

This video I've put up I'm sure many have seen before. For a lifetime of listening to this song, this sound is as good as it ever was or will be. To see it live with the enthusiasm and talent displayed here at this time of our life is as good as it gets for me. Levon smiling and sounding as good as he did 40 years ago after what he went thru. Larry Campbells riff, and the horns bring it all to life.

At the same time, I've liked everything Robbie has done. His lifetime of creativity, musical scores and all has been great. I've always liked his singing. His self abuse with cigarettes for so long just took all the power from his vocals, and he didn't have a lot to begin with. Joe Cocker, Kenny Rogers, Bob Seger Lee Greenwood are all singers with that whiskey voice. Some with troubles from smoking, and as Kenny Rogers said in an interview I watched years ago, poor monitor systems, that cause you to strain and holler. I knew exactly what he meant, I've experienced that.

But Robbie Roberton is spot on with his phrasing in his vocals and his voice is a style that doesn't appeal to lots of people. There are power house voices with much more control, voices that are really an instrument. So you appreciate them all. If you look at the critics on Amazon.com of Robbie's latest work, there are a few negative ones, (for whatever reason), but far more 5 star reviews of people who have bought and are happy with what he has done. At the end of the day those are the ones that count, they sell more records.

I'm just going to fade back in to the wood work, and crank up Ophelia, and I'll be happy. Good for Levon that he can look and sound that good.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 22:27:00 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

Entered at Thu Apr 14 22:10:11 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Kevin, I see that while I was doing an Al-style post mortem, David arrived at the same conclusions. There you are, then: "Workingmans", "Beauty" and "Europe 72". Off you go, then....

Entered at Thu Apr 14 22:08:44 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Entered at Thu Apr 14 22:07:16 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Kevin, happy to help and I'm sure others will pitch in. Let's start from the first LP:

THE GRATEFUL DEAD (1967): A charming LP IMHO, but often considered unrepresentative, certainly rushed - in short, the sound of a freakout band in the hands of a record company straight guy. Very bluesy in places - founder vocalist Ron "Pigpen" McKernan in those days very much the frontman, not Garcia. Awash with loud guitars and Vox organ. Probably not a best first choice, but in a funny kind of way my favourite album. Maybe!

ANTHEM OF THE SUN (1968): Weird. Very trippy. Side one is a complex sound collage of studio recordings augmented by live tapes, and side two is the opposite, some raw live recordings spliced together and some studio passages added (not cheating though as not offered as a live LP per se). Essential listening from an Acid point of view but I'd recommend at least three titles before trying this. It is NOT a more sophisticated version of the debut, for sure.

AOXOMOXOA (1969): Still weird, but the acoustic guitars are starting to get dusted off and we are virtually back to shorter "songs". Except for a sound collage with Garcia chanting through a Leslie speaker ("What's Become of the Baby?") this does, in a funny kind of way, usher out the old psychedelia and in with the newfound shift to more regular songwriting - first LP with Robert Hunter involved. An engaging listen, and "Dupree's Diamond Blues" will be played at my funeral!!! A favourite, but again maybe not the best choice to kick off with.

LIVE DEAD (1969): The quintessential 2-LP sixties closer, jam packed with blistering guitar from Garcia and the band all on peak form at the Fillmore in 1969. Get it early on in your Dead-listening, but don't make it your first purchase.

WORKINGMAN'S DEAD & AMERICAN BEAUTY (both 1970): Now we're getting into territory that (for someone with a mutual liking for The Band) I would go for. Shorter songs, nice arrangements, psych tendencies all gone in favour of tuneful songs, pedal steel guitars, superb (by GD standards!!) harmonies and a fine body of work from Robert Hunter lyrically. Difficult to recommend one over the other (my favourite is American Beauty, but...) because these are very much like Revolver/Rubber Soul - a body of work with one only slightly more advanced than the other if you really dig deep. Definitely worth picking the pair up as a solid entry to The Dead for Band fans!

LIVE LP aka "Skull & Roses" but confusingly officially eponymous like the debut (1971): Not bad at all; opener "Bertha" has a place in my heart. More back to basics stuff with a couple of extended workouts. It's only problem is that the next year they released....

...EUROPE '72 (1972!): A document of that tour, 3-LPs and very good too, Has some favourites but also contains some great songs that would have been on the 1971 studio LP had the band recorded them: He's Gone, Ramble On Rose etc. Highly recommended.

In short: Get the 1970 studio LPs first, then Europe '72 and either the debut or Aoxomoxoa, and work from there. After 1972 it all gets a bit jazzy and clean for me; Pigpen died and the band lost something, despite his dominance waning over time and his organ playing being solid rather than special like the talents of Lesh & Garcia, Pig was very much part of the soul of the band.

Any help? Hope so!

Entered at Thu Apr 14 22:00:28 CEST 2011 from (131.137.35.83)

sadavid

Kevin J: in memory of recently relocated cosmic pharmacist Augustus Owsley Stanley III, alias Bear, why not try _History of the Grateful Dead, Volume One (Bear's Choice)_, alias The Grateful Dead Live At Fillmore East.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 21:58:03 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Kevin: Either of their 1970 albums, "Workingman's Dead" and American Beauty", would probably be the most accessible place to start. For a more adventurous sampling, featuring live cuts, I'd recommend the "Europe '72" 2-CD set.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 21:50:52 CEST 2011 from (75.82.11.95)

Sebastian

Robbie is gonna perform The Right Mistake tomorrow on Jools Holland. Very excited and curious to see how that translates live.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 21:41:20 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Thu Apr 14 21:34:57 CEST 2011 from (79.202.185.194)

Norbert

Subject: Groupon The Band

Since Groupon is booming and since we have this great Band group here at hand, groupon the daily Band deal please, share, spend, give, receive and save@2011

link: "Sensational Bass Toss Courtesy of Krist Novoselic" (Nirvana)

Entered at Thu Apr 14 21:25:00 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

Two of RR’s better songs were written for fallen friends…….“Between Trains” as a tribute to "Cowboy" Dan Johnson, an assistant to Scorsese on King of Comedy and of course “Fallen Angel” for band mate Richard Manuel………………as to production on BT…..yes a bit of that dated feel but the songs still works well for me perhaps because of the added knowledge of the emotion involved – on and below the surface……..a bit like the someone did me wrong line on “This is where I get Off” on HTBC....and no Bill M - I do not hear Richard's voice on lead........remember RR's cop on Richard on demo to "Twilight"

RTO/David P: Interesting in that I had planned on asking RTO today where one would go if given just one choice from Grateful Dead to get one properly initiated………..I have tried a bit in the past – they are a band my older brother loved but at the time I was getting into music, I just didn’t hear anything that grabbed a hold of me………as years went on……I also confess to being turned off the band for reasons that sometimes turn me off Springsteen – that is: the make-up of the fan base – tie-dyed right wing conservatives in the case of Grateful Dead and square headed simpletons in the case of The Boss………a bit silly I confess because at least in the case of Springsteen I really do love a good bit of his work…….Nebraska and The River especially…

Ignoring all that……..Is it the first allbum then?

Sadavid: Thank you….never has a jacket had a better run……..even recall an appearance with the late great Tom Snyder……..would you not have loved to have seen Snyder do RR………”So tell me young man……….this Band thing…..”

Entered at Thu Apr 14 21:16:24 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

Subject: Link to yesterday's Crown Publisher's RR autobigraphy press release.

Book will include childhood, Dylan & going electric & The Band.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 20:54:43 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Peter V: I keep forgetting to ask what three Doors songs you - in a monumentally surpring move - chose to include on your iPod. Off the top, mine would be "Light My Fire", "Roadhouse Blooze" and "You Make Me Real". But then there's "Touch Me" ... Maybe I'd dump LMF on the assumption that I'm bound to hear it on the radio (which is one reason not to have Beatles records).

Entered at Thu Apr 14 20:32:36 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

BEG: Thanks for the song. I'm sure that the verse, except maybe the first line, after the instrumental break - say 1:35, is sung by Richard and the he and Robbie trade lines and share lines back and forth for the rest of the song. As I said, more than BGVs.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 20:44:05 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

RR's best solo effort according to the Canadian charts.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 20:43:49 CEST 2011 from (74.108.27.233)

Joan

Great post! I could feel the excitement and wonder you felt on discovery. You've got my vote to post.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 20:40:55 CEST 2011 from (131.137.35.83)

sadavid

Jon Lyness: thanks for that link, one of the less cookie-cutter among the recent spate of interviews. And my first exposure to "Houdini," which is a lot of fun.

It strikes me that there's a thematic parallel between "Clairvoyant" and this tune . . . in "Clairvoyant" the plea in the chorus is "just tell me where to sign, and point me where to go." The kicker, of course, is that it ain't that easy.

In "Houdini," the protagonist asks his uncle to share the tricks of the conjuring trade, "but the number-one rule in this here game is to never divulge your secrets."

Pity about the riff that's just _too_ similar to Sly's "Thank You."

Entered at Thu Apr 14 20:20:05 CEST 2011 from (208.83.120.147)

Calvin

So am I the only one that finds Still Between Trains a tad dated with 80s sensibilities?

I was thinking about Reunions, talking about Robbie/Levon and the Byrds, and wonder if it jsut isnt a bad idea. As it probably wont live up to expectations and at worst you could get something like that god awful Byrd Reunion album. Franklly the MCH Albums were better.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 20:05:33 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

We have the stories of Cain & Abel, Charles Foster Kane and Virgil Caine, all citizens of different milieus.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 19:39:12 CEST 2011 from (74.203.77.122)

Jon Lyness

Subject: New Robbie interview with the UK's Telegraph

RR interview at the link. A few nice quotes I hadn't seen before.

"I started playing with Levon when I was 16. We were together seven or eight years before we made Music From Big Pink, out there honing our skills, travelling around, gathering music, stories and characters. So when it came time for us to really do our thing, there was a depth to that music. This wasn’t some guys that got guitars for Christmas."

Entered at Thu Apr 14 18:51:48 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

Link: Keith Richard "Love Hurts"

Music From Big Pink: I have always thought that a good comparison is the renowned film Citizen Kane. Citizen Kane was revolutionary on a number of fronts and set a new standard for direction……..and while the film hipsters, for years, before contrarian thinking became fashionable, fell over themselves to rank this film first on all “Best Of” lists…………I have always felt that it is a film that is ranked way above where it should be………………Perhaps had I been of the age where sitting through year after year of predictably made films, I would have been sufficiently knocked out by Kane to forever give it a place among the best of the best…but by the time I saw it I had already seen many films that were as good – technically and otherwise.

Similarly, I came to the Band by way of ROA in the late 70’s……………..I didn’t know anything about too many tie-dyed shirts or hate your mother lyrics but can imagine had I been in that orbit as Clapton and Harrison were then most likely I too would have been massively impressed by Music from Big Pink as they were…..But……As it stands, other than The Weight and I Shall be Released, I have trouble staying with any of it and no longer play it at all…………………As to the second album….take out the Jed Clampett reference and multiply everything else Al Edge said by two as it is simply one of the 2 or 3 true masterpieces in the history of rock n roll……….( Al: my vote would be that you re-release everything except the “song writing” one as a we really just concluded our annual debate without too much blood being shed. )

Cigarettes: talked to a singer last night and she claims Robbie’s singing is much improved live these days due to his quitting smoking years back……………have no idea as to any of this personal information in RR’s case but Tom Petty and Dylan are two singers that have really been hurt by prolonged association with tobacco…….a btw, the only two places where cigarette smoke should be mandatory: Basement jazz clubs and strip clubs…………….Pubs also seem to have taken a turn for the worse now that the non smokers have stepped in in bigger numbers.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 18:03:43 CEST 2011 from (86.185.231.206)

RTO

The mono reissue of the debut is tempting. Though considered (with some justification) rushed and unrepresentative, I love that LP and always will.

Just unpacked my first issue used copy of Aoxomoxoa that eBayed its way to me. Looking forward to hearing the original mix judging by web comments.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 17:52:56 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Al Edge: I really enjoyed your post, which was especially timely coming on the heels of the 150th anniversary of the opening shots of the Civil War. I was recently doing some research of the history of Atlanta in the decade or so following the end of the war. Many of the prominent citizens, who served as officers in the Confederate army and who survived, were still addressed by their rank preceeding their name, rather than as Mr. throughout their lives following the war. Ironically, modern Atlanta is now known as a city that literally grew out of the ashes of the Civil War and later, through the courageous efforts of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. & other leaders, has become known for its place in the history of Civil Rights.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 17:35:52 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Subject: Simon Felice in der 'pool

Cheers Pete. Sorely tempted but not easy just at the moment. Tickets are cheap as chips though.

It's at a place called the Shipping Forecast. Not been but it sounds ace. Maybe Si knows it.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 17:22:04 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

I thought of suggesting he could at least have gone round and helped Lars with a bit of wood chopping if he enjoyed it so much. I could have done … the whole thing was so informal. About half way, he stood up (he performed from a bar stool), said, ‘Sorry, I have to pee,’ and went off for two minutes. At the end he was by the door and shook hands with everyone going out. Honestly, I’ve never seen such an ovation from an audience that size and he seemed genuinely moved.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 17:05:42 CEST 2011 from (129.42.208.177)

Bob F.

Subject: Simone Felice at Byrdcliffe Thea.

Peter V, I'm reserving my seats for Byrdcliffe. You have great taste in music. If he's half as good as your saying it will be a show I don't want to miss! I know what your saying about seeing performers at the right moment. In the past few years I've felt that way when I go see Josh Ritter or Carrie Rodriguiz. The Lovin' Spoonful captured that feeling best in "Do You Believe in Magic". Thanks for the tip.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 17:05:41 CEST 2011 from (63.88.115.195)

Carmen

Subject: Between Trains

Thanks BEG - I do have a copy on CD as well created from an LP. I would just like to get a great remasterd version along with all of his other great movie work that you mentioned. He has an entire CD's worth of movie music that is some of his best work.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 16:41:38 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Thanks for promptings Jeff and both Pete's.

;-0)

This first one sort of deals with my own connection to The Band's music back in late '60's Liverpool. It's basically me trying to understand what the music meant to me and why it resonated so powerfully.

It may also convey to younger guys like Rob and Adam who weren't blessed with the opportunity to acclimatise to the music within the context of those vibrant and changing times why the first two albums carried such an impact for the likes of myself in terms of their underpinning theme essence just as much as their musical brilliance.

I should add that a dozen or so plays into 'Big Pink' back then I rarely ventured beyond lonsesome Suzie as to me the final two tracks simply never seemed to fit the bigger picture that was revealing itself to me.

Finally, I'll repeat for Jan. If you feel it's worthy of making permanent then I'd be once again honoured.

THE BAND’S GIFT; DIXIE AND BEYOND

What becomes the inevitable human tragedy of any war is a sentiment surely shared by all.

There are, of course, some who consider The Band's 'The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down' to be a song actually romanticizing – from a purely southern aspect – what were the unimaginable horrors of the American Civil War. For me, the song does exactly the opposite to romancing the subject matter. Indeed, I’d go further and proclaim 'Dixie' as one of the ultimate anti-war songs precisely because it manages to convey in such rare and authentic style the numbness felt by just one innocent victim of a war just as that war was drawing to its bitter and bloody end.

Through the song’s authentic sound; the simplicity and frankness of the protaganist's reflections we are somehow afforded a lens into the bleak realities the war has inflicted upon him and his kin. I find this far more the case than when listening to some angry outside commentator passing judgement a la, say, dear Bob Dylan.

Sure there's always a place for the more overt protestations about the evils of war as found within the likes of Bob’s polemics or Edwin Starr’s and Brucie’s anthemic condemnations. And I really do applaud the efforts of these artists. But give me rather the subtleties of The Band's reflections affording the listener space to determine the degree of his or her own condemnation.

As for the 'southern' aspect. Yeah, the song is penned from the perspective of the vanquished Confederacy. Yet as much as anything else, that is surely what provides it with its intrinsic poignancy.

The thing is whether or not factually it was a million miles from the reality of the struggle and whether or not we support the North's perceived banner of slavery abolition and/or oppose the South’s perceived support of that heinous practise, as far as the neutral observer is concerned it remains time’s own slant on history that has firmly established its own truth. And that truth is that the poor lil’ ol’ downtrodden South was mercilessly overwhelmed by the ruthless war machine of the great big bad heartless North.

Whether we like it or not for the majority of us it is Johnny Reb with his bandaged head and crutch for whom we all feel that tinge of sorrow.

But I’d like to set aside justified/misplaced loyalties for any side. For there is another aspect to 'Dixie', too. It is one that I’d rather concentrate upon and one I feel makes it inappropriate to begin to judge 'Dixie' outside of the broader context of the musical canvas The Band were creating back then.

I originally purchased the single 'Up on Cripple Creek' on its black Capitol label from Myerscough's record shop in South Road, Liverpool when it was first released in 1969. From memory, this was a month or so prior to the actual release of the Brown album.

When I got home and played it in the solitude of my tiny boxroom I can recall thinking to myself something along the lines of … "yeah, not bad, that fellas. Okay, so maybe not quite as good as 'The Weight' but you'll do for me boys...probably grow on me anyroad."

Following a few plays of ‘Cripple Creek’, I can recall turning the disc over and playing the song on the flipside. It was the one with the title that seemed far too lengthy and cumbersome to fit into any conventional song.

And stone me. How right I was. As it crackled and soared out of my Dansette like some 45 rpm history lesson, I was left stunned.

Now let’s be clear about the nature of my stunned reaction here. This wasn't in that typical 'bowl me over' sort of way you tended to get from hearing for the first time contemporary gems such as 'Heard it Through the Grapevine', ‘Hey Jude’, 'Like a Rolling Stone', 'Honkey Tonk Women'. Or other mind-blowing stuff like that.

No, this was altogether different. This was more of an enveloping of the sensory system.

Indeed, my initial thoughts were a sort of …”Now just whoah there a minute fellas!”. You can’t be doin’ this… you CANNOT do a song like this... nobody can…it's just not the way these things are done".

If you get my drift.

For starters it was far too sober and austere. And, even more to the point, too sobering. Far too profound, also. And too historical. And too clinical. In fact it was way too fuckin precise and perfect for the sort of rock song that lay within the basic human right expectations of your average keen rock fan.

And yet – bizarrely – it was, at the same time, also far more outrageous than any rock song you might ever care to name.

In Rock’s Bizarro universe, of course.

In this instance, the outrageousness stemmed from the fact that a young rock group could actually manage to create a song that sounded so mature; so battle hardened and world-weary.

Sure 'Big Pink' had kind of prepared us to expect rock music of real quality and maturity. Softened us up a mite. But it had not quite prepared us enough to expect this level of accomplishment. This was the musical equivalent of Sir Walter Scott for fucks sake. Its authenticity was ridiculous. And the sublimity and solemnity of its execution verged on the Berlin Philharmonic.

More than anything else, it really did sound like the men singing it had just trooped away from the horrors of Gettysberg. Or some other nightmare of the conflict. These were guys that were staking their testimony as to what had actually happened; or more pertinently to what they had actually witnessed happening.

Listening to their story as they chewed resignedly on their tobacco was infinitely more real than if you'd watched a score of films or documentaries on the subject. You could sense their angst; feel their weariness; share their pain. That the war had ripped them and their families apart was a given.

And, of course, when a while later the album did come out and you saw that brown sepia cover, you just knew that your inkling had been proved right. These guys WERE indeed straight off that famous battlefield.

Reflecting on why The Band's music so captivated me back then I can now see how the process must have transpired.

What 'Dixie' did – along with but undoubtedly more so than any of those other flawless songs on 'The Band' album – was to form for me a complete whole with the songs of the preceding 'Big Pink' album. It brought a certain symmetry to the proceedings.

By making the link, it afforded me the opportunity to begin to absorb – instinctively [most certainly not consciously] – the statement these fellows were trying to make.

That message was not so much a lien to preaching. Far from it. Rather they were merely to telling it the way it was. The way it had always been. The way they had been told it. They were relaying their heritage and, I suppose more to the point, proclaiming in a way what they and their kinfolk had stood for.

Sure, on their own, that first clutch of songs on 'Big Pink' had been something truly wondrous. In itself it was like nothing else that preceded it. The sheer togetherness and democracy of the sound had pulled you in and wrapped itself around you with its warmth and humour, its candour and its mystery. At the same time, its almost cavernous looseness had lent you the space to find your way into the songs alongside these master craftsmen. Paradoxically, their unparalleled tightness had made you gasp in awe. No feeler gauge in existence could ever get between these fellows.

Then there had been the voices, of course. These truly were dead ringers for something like you ain't ever seen…or heard. Why old Jed Clampett himself sounded positively Queen's English in comparison to these fellows. The thing was, you never knew who the differing wails belonged to.

The rot gut moonshine lead of one would melt into the proverbial country cousin drawls of two others till they all welded seamlessly. Then another would suddenly appear from round the corner to throw in a counter harmony like some friendly neighbour dropping in. And yet another would pop up his head as if through some underfloor hatch with some throwaway back-up line. At times it was as if half the entire neighbourhood were chiming in and out. You simply couldn't keep track.

It was great fun to try, though.

And the bottom line was, 'who cared if it said on the album sleeve notes that four of these fellows were from Ontario?' As far as their "you've got to keep the engine churnin" inflection evidenced, these guys were country bumpkin American. Pure and simple.

Yet, as the more delicately crafted delights of the 'Brown album' unfolded, things became that bit clearer. A fuller picture started to emerge. You got to piece together from just where all that homeliness and sense of community you had felt with 'Big Pink' had originated. Precisely why it had all sounded so authentic and so real.

The fact was The Band were actually offering you a thick slice of an American way of life that was in danger of slipping off the mainstream’s radar. And a huge dollop of American culture and history to boot. Sure, you never quite understood it all but one thing was for sure. You knew instinctively you were on pretty safe ground with these boys. These fellas were not out to dupe you. What you were hearing was no false trail.

In a nutshell it was an America that for quite some time had been obscured by events elsewhere. Events that had taken everybody else's eye off the ball. All except these sturdy fellows.

In my own case it was an America I really knew very little about. These were not just the Davy Crockett or Buffalo Bill Cody characterisations with which every kid in Britain was familiar. This was not simply Mississippi riverboats and lonesome tumbleweed blowing through some Wild West ghost town. We weren't just picking bales of cotton or hunting bison here. Nor was it simply a rehash of all that wonderful American popular music that had gone before. Sure there were snatches of all of these things. With The Band, though, there was so much more besides.

For this, rather, was the whole deal.

In other words, this was about the ordinary folks, the ordinary places and the ordinary music of those people and places. This was the ordinary everyday things. Not just the celluloid heroes or the stellar music or the glamorous settings. Sure they had their place too. They were all part of the same American melting pot.

The Band's take, however, was real – the America that lies within the heart and soul of every American. That sense of identity that must only come when a people come together in the way Americans have. Not so much a patriotism but more of an extended community.

It was a rare commodity, indeed. Who knows, perhaps unique to America. Certainly, we over in Britain do not have it on a national scale. Sure there exists a patriotism but nothing like this extended American neighbourhood. That American feel.

The Band's second album in tandem with their first, in particular the haunting and brutal honesty of songs like ‘Dixie’ managed to capture vital strains of that feel; much of the essential spirit of what that broad American community possibly meant. It made outsiders such as myself feel as if we could connect with it, too. Quite what it must have done to ordinary native Americans I can scarcely imagine – though clearly the delicious irony of the Band's achievement has not been lost on Jaime Robbie Robertson in the intervening years as he has sought to make reparations to natives even more indigenous whose ancestry he shares.

Whether the boys in The Band set out with such an idealist target in mind must remain open to conjecture. At times I believe they did. At other times, I'm not so sure. Of course, I know what I want to believe.

Sure people who are blessed from the heavens with such talent as they possessed would have harboured high artistic ideals. Inevitably, too, they were always going to retain an integrity consistent with those ideals. However, to entertain the notion that they were going all out to capture the very soul of their [four fifths] adopted homeland on vinyl is possibly stretching credibility. Then again, maybe it's not.

When all's said and done, perhaps they were simply doing their darnedest to be true to the gifts that had been bestowed upon them. The fact that their best was enough to create two artistic monuments to their country to rank with any others is simply Americans' good fortune.

And the rest of us mere mortals too, of course.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 16:38:23 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Thu Apr 14 16:33:56 CEST 2011 from (165.112.214.196)

Jan F.

Hey Westcoaster, haven't seen you on Facebook lately . . . . where ya been?

J.F.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 16:24:37 CEST 2011 from (129.42.208.177)

Bob F.

Subject: Garland at The Ramble

BEG, my wife and I are going to see Garland at The Ramble. The week before on 4/30, he's playing in NYC at the Highline Ballroom..

Entered at Thu Apr 14 16:00:23 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

RTO: One of the titles slated for release on Record Store Day this Saturday is a Rhino LP reissue of the rare mono mix of the Grateful Dead's eponymous debut album. I already have an original Warner gold-label LP, but may pick up the reissue.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 15:53:43 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

As I said, the UK release has been put back to June 13th. Yesterday "amazon resellers" were offering to ship it to the UK. They were all gone today. Then I tried to order it on amazon USA (shipping double the price of the CD) and it came up as "There is a slight problem with your order" and declined to continue. It looks as if they not only delayed UK release, but have somehow market blocked it. I'll get my son to mail me one.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 15:30:59 CEST 2011 from (66.102.79.162)

Nick

That's the first time I've heard Between Trains, finally...I've been listening to it on repeat...I love it because it's unlike so much of Robbie's solo work--the vocals aren't too subdued or too polished. It's got a little rawness to it that all of his solo stuff lacks

Entered at Thu Apr 14 14:55:16 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

I have to say that I'm really impressed with Paul Simon's new album "So Beautiful or So What". After repeated listenings, it's hardly left the CD tray.

"Between Trains" was a glaring omission from the 2-CD compilation "Director's Cut: Music from the Films of Martin Scorsese". The only song from "The King of Comedy" to make the cut was the needledrop of "Back on the Chain Gang" by the Pretenders". However, Van Morrison's cut "Wonderful Remark", featuring Robbie on guitar, has turned up on "Van Morrison at the Movies", as well as a couple of other comilations.

Brien: He may not be Levon, in the words of Sir Elton, but that's the great Jim Keltner on "Between Trains".

Peter M: Years ago, when I got to speak to Levon briefly backstage before a Barnburners show at the Cotton Club in Atlanta, I looked over my shoulder to see Bobby Keyes warming up on sax in the adjacent dressing room. Those same words you uttered immediately came to mind, but luckily I didn't shout it out embarrassingly.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 14:17:59 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

Entered at Thu Apr 14 14:08:32 CEST 2011 from (76.67.18.156)

brown eyed girl

What Would Levon Helm Do?: A When You Awake Guest Mixtape

Filed under: Mixtapes, Original Mixtape Series | Posted by: jody

Entered at Thu Apr 14 13:55:34 CEST 2011 from (76.67.18.156)

brown eyed girl

Hey Carmen....Here's "Between Trains" from "King Of Comedy".
I originally had on cassette but here it's from vinyl to download. It's on my Nano as well.

I have most of Robbie's soundtracks except for "Carny". From some of Robbie's work on soundtracks I really dig....

Any Given Sunday Volume 2 : "Carry Me", instrumental version of "Out of The Blue", instrumental version of "Amazing Grace" (better than Jeff Beck's version because you can feeeel his emotional guitar playing, whereas Beck is a technical genius)

Jimmy Hollywood: "Bad Intentions", "The Far Lonely Cry Of Trains"

Phenomenon: "Crazy Love" (one of his best guitar work ever) with Aaron Neville

Scrooged: "Christmas Must Be Tonight"

Entered at Thu Apr 14 13:35:25 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Send it to Jan, Al. I'm sure most of us can take 58,000 words. That's too short for a novel, after all.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 13:32:09 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Thu Apr 14 13:26:23 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

I'm not joking … Mrs V and a friend who has seen ten times as many concerts in his life as me were of exactly the same opinion. The Felice Brothers were OK. I listened to them. It wasn't Band-like. Some was weird. There were always a couple of outstanding ones (from Simone Felice). There was nothing to suggest that any of them were major artists.

Then move to the Duke & The King … two first-rate albums in rapid succession. People were raving to me bout how good Simon Felice solo was and I didn't believe them.If you look on their site, they got "best foreign album" awards in France and Italy last year. The UK press is raving about them. In retrospect, the last Duke & The King was the best album I bought last year. The charisma was outsanding, as was the 100% passion and commitment put into every song.

I saw Bowie (who I had seen before as Davey Jones & The Lower Third), just as Hunky Dory was released, at Southampton Guidhall, a modest sized venue and you knew "this guy is going to be a major star." I saw him again five or six months later, and he was the big star etc (and nowhere near as good). But I saw him right at "take-off" time … and remember he had been trudging the circuit for six or seven years at that point. As had Rod Stewart and Elton John when their careers shot skyward. I genuinely see him at that point, though his image is very much more Neil Young, and like Neil Young, he has the band and he has the solo stuff. The guy I was talking to said "This must be just like seeing Neil Young on his early acoustic solo shows." I think that sums it up. He's playing Woodstock on May 20th - check it out.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 12:58:20 CEST 2011 from (129.42.208.177)

Bob F

Subject: Simone Felice

Peter V, your comparing Simone Felice to David Bowie, Lou Reed, Neil Young and BOB DYLAN. I've never seen Simone Felice solo but I've seen The Felice Brothers several times. I don't know what to say. At this point you've written the most over the top post I've ever read. If it was April 1 I would be positive you were joking. Simone Felice in the same league as David Bowie, Lou Reed, Neil Young and BOB DYLAN? Wow! I really don't know what to say....

Entered at Thu Apr 14 12:32:19 CEST 2011 from (12.25.140.82)

PutEmUp(Friend0

Post the fuckers, maybe one day at a time..... Next thing you know, we'll be having GB Feud reenactments.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 12:22:01 CEST 2011 from (76.99.245.65)

Peter M.

Subject: Jool's show

I'm a really big fan of the Kuti family, from Fela, through Femi and Seun. Took all of my family to see Femi last summer. They all loved it! I only saw Robby's portion of Jools' show. Wish I had the opportunity to see Seun! Will watch for it elsewhere.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 12:12:00 CEST 2011 from (76.99.245.65)

Peter M.

Subject: Barnburners and stuff

I tried to post earlier, but it got lost in the ethers. I meant to say that I bought the soundtrack featuring "Between Trains" many years ago, and that the whole enchilada was worth it for just that one song. To balance it out, I also mentioned that I was a hardcore Barnburners fan. At one Barnburners show that my wife and I attended at Philadelphia's North Star Bar, I embarrassed myself. When the band was coming out, I yelled to my wife, "That's Bobby fucking Keyes!" just as the sound man cut the pre-recorded music. My shout out was loudly heard in the room just after the pre-game music was cut. But the band seemed amused by it. Had to testify. But didn't want to take it THAT public!

Entered at Thu Apr 14 11:58:52 CEST 2011 from (76.99.245.65)

Peter M.

Subject: Yo, Al

I'd love to hear your thoughts at that time. If you are up to it, feel free to send them my way... ninosaurus at comcast.net Bring it on.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 11:54:41 CEST 2011 from (203.160.29.153)

Fred

one team will win it all.

Remember you read it here first. : )

Entered at Thu Apr 14 11:40:15 CEST 2011 from (76.116.186.96)

Carmen

Subject: Between Trains

Great Song - I just wish that is was for sale in a ditigal format! RR is hot right now - getting strong reviews and good face time. Now is the time to put out a RR at the Movies CD so he can capture all of his great movie music on one CD similiar to what Van Morrison did.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 11:16:44 CEST 2011 from (76.67.18.156)

brown eyed girl

Sorry....I meant it was when I saw Ollabelle in New Jersey that I asked Amy about her cover of "WDD".....Thanks to Crabgrass who encouraged me to meet all members of the group. It was actually at The Silver Dollar where I saw Levon and The Barn Burners.....great show!

It Was a Fantastic Night at The Songwriter Hall of Fame
By madeline Apr 4, 2011

Entered at Thu Apr 14 11:13:57 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Band Stuff is a file in which I've kept most of what I've ever written on The Band. I've just managed to retrieve it from an old e-mail site whilst looking for what I've previously written on the topic of the songwriting creditation.

Believe it or not - and I know some on here will - :-0) the word count is over 58,000.

Anyroad, apart from the songwriting stuff - which is part of a huge piece I must have done on the feud as an entity - there are other big pieces which I think are interesting and may - or may not - merit a permanent place on What's New.

However, I certainly don't want to put such lengthy pieces up if my posting of such long pieces gets up the nose of any fellow posters. They've languished for so long now in my own e-mail ethos it's not going to break my heart not to put them up. But if anyone wouldn't mind seeing them then of course I'd be delighted and honoured to post them and let Jan decide if they're suitable for a permanent place.

BTW - If I don't get any response one way or the other then I'll take that as a nod of approval and post the feckers anyroad. So speak now or forever hold your piece.... or, rather, my pieces

:-0)

Entered at Thu Apr 14 11:08:49 CEST 2011 from (76.67.18.156)

brown eyed girl

Radio Interview: Ron Bennington Interviews Robbie Robertson

You can also stream full interview via same link.

Hey Serenity. Could you send an email? I seem to have lost many emails lately.

Todd and Ignatiious! Yeah! We'll have the new Ollabelle CD real soon thanks to the Kick Start program. Uhhhh.....Do either of you have Amy Helm singing, "Wang Dang Doodle" from the days with Levon and The Barn Burners when they played an outdoor gig in New Jersey? I asked her if she would ever sing that one again....but she said it wouldn't really fit in with Ollabelle's music but still......I'd love to hear her cover again!

Entered at Thu Apr 14 09:25:53 CEST 2011 from (122.59.251.42)

Rod

I really love their self titled album - the one with Frankies Gun. I always thought the drummer looked a bit like Levon.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 09:06:50 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Rob, I thought just that until last night. Really, this guy is SO good solo and the space so intimate that it doesn’t feel stripped down … just ‘personal.’ The Duke & The King are in the UK for the Suffolk Festival and for the Truck Festival in Oxford in the summer. And one for Jan … after the first part of his UK tour, the whole band appear in Bergen on April 29th,.

Rob, 2nd May he’s doing Bush Hall Music in Uxbridge … you should shift everything to get there.

Dunc, Glasgow is the 22nd at Oran Mor. Roger, Birmingham is the 26th at the Arcadian. Al, Liverpool is the 18th. The venue doesn’t come up when you click on the button … you just get a Google 3D map of Slater Street focussed on “Easy Snax” which is boarded up.

For the USA: Philadelphia 13th May, NYC 14th May, Fairfield CT 15th May, Woodstock 20th May.

Also, another for Rob. Ian MacLagan does The Railway, Winchester on the 8th August. I guess that will be in their rock venue “The Barn” rather than the acoustic space, “The Attic.” I say this because I was looking at the Ian MacLagan flier after ascending the narrow winding stairs, and said “I wouldn’t fancy getting an organ up this lot” and someone told me about their other room.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 02:10:52 CEST 2011 from (76.66.127.62)

brown eyed girl

30 Minutes with Robbie Robertson at ExploreMusic ! pt 1 with Jefffffff Woods.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 02:07:43 CEST 2011 from (76.66.127.62)

brown eyed girl

30 Minutes with Robbie Robertson at ExploreMusic ! pt 2

Jeff Woods from the Legends of Classic Rock chats with Robbie Robertson

Hey Joan! I hope you're doing well these days. You were able to a attend a show awhile ago?!

Those of you who will be attending Levon's Ramble with Garland Jeffreys on May 7.....Now that would be the one for us to attend Northern Boy and Northern Girl.....but not in our cards this time around.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 01:34:14 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Did he fix you with those eyes that say "I disembowelled a whole mail sack of ginger kittens for fun", Peter? Had it have been the full on Duke/King band I was going to make the trip down and see you there.

I get really pissed off that in the UK we have to make do with sodding cut down versions. Yes, logistics and touring costs, I know all that...but given how often it happens now I wish MTV Unplugged had never happened. I want drums! And valve guitar amps just slightly breaking up! I do NOT buy into the philosophy that acoustic = pure, adult and sophisticated like is made out to be. Bollocks! Zager & Evans or Johnny Kidd and the Pirates?

That said, you probably had a great night and I am not surprised as the mad-eyed one seems to have quite a dollop of talent. It's just that when you sent me a link to them originally, that lovely tremoloed guitar and loose-tuned drums were what made my heart go zing.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 01:02:51 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Just back from seeing Simone Felice solo at the Attic, an upstairs acoustic venue in Winchester. It's a tiny venue that sold out very fast indeed. We were second row, ten feet away? For quality, intensity and performance this guy has the charisma I still remember from David Bowie, 1971, or Lou Reed 1972. He's at the Neil Young / Dylan (well, some time ago Dylan) level. The most powerful intense singer I've ever seen that close up. Long, long ovations from a packed room where everyone seemed to know every word of the songs. Every song a gem … every song as good as the record or better. He put absolutely everything into every one of them. A great new song too, with lines about the New York Times. Don't know the title. Long May You Run as the first of three encores. This year I've seen two of the best dozen concerts of my life … Simone Felice tonight, and The Unthanks last month. Even the Decemberists, phenomenal though they were, are not this good.

If you have any chance to see him solo, or with The Duke & The King, grab it. With the right promotion, he really will be in the very first rank.

Entered at Thu Apr 14 00:03:45 CEST 2011 from (193.35.132.15)

RTO

Funny, as you can probably tell I have made April a Grateful Dead month. Your comment about sharing the wine and name swapping happened just as I was listening to Jack Straw off Europe 72: "We can share the women, we can share the wine / We can share what we got of yours, cos we done shared all of mine"...

Entered at Wed Apr 13 22:49:18 CEST 2011 from (131.137.35.83)

sadavid

Subject: for Kevin J

. . . a carpenter orders another four fingers of whiskey in a noisy bar . . . .

Entered at Wed Apr 13 22:13:02 CEST 2011 from (70.53.46.130)

Kevin J

Sadavid: Apparently RTO is sharing his wine with Joan as our names keep getting interchanged……………..and a btw……..Is Gwynne still wearing that brown leather jacket – surely you know what I am referring to……

David P: I don’t disagree with you on the spirit of” Between Trains”………..and Rick’s voice on “Sonny Got Caught by the Moonlight” also elevates that song.

Marge: I recall that you had put a really good guitar in the hands of Steve some years back – a Larrivee I believe – wonderful instuments but delicate and extra fussy with humidity changes………hope that you are playing it and best to you and the family.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 21:25:55 CEST 2011 from (41.97.213.33)

Empty Now

"Tell me Ragassuolo do you know a certain Mario who lives here around ?"
"People named Mario are one hundrerd here around"
"The Mario I'm looking for is a thief."
"They are still one hundred"

shortest-finest humour in Cinema -- Mario the character played by Renato Salvatori, in the movie "I Soliti Ignoti" (Big Deal Big Deal on Madonna Street) of Mario Monicelli (1958)

Entered at Wed Apr 13 21:13:44 CEST 2011 from (74.108.27.233)

Joan

Sadavid, re your comment about Celine Dion and song credits. I heard a Dolly Parton interview once where she talks about Elvis and Col Tom Parker. Early in her career,Parker come to her and said Elvis wanted to do one of her songs. She was so flattered until he informed her that the writing credits and residuals would come to Elvis. She objected, but he said that was the way it was done. Needless to say, she refused

Peter V: Fantastic, Wonderful! :-)

Marge, nice to hear from you. I think about Steve often when I'm on the GB. He is missed. I would have loved to hear his take on all of this. Thank you for checking in. Be strong!

Serenity I hope your daughter is OK.

BEG thank you for all the great "finds"

Entered at Wed Apr 13 20:58:48 CEST 2011 from (91.42.246.188)

Norbert

Just heard a man say it on the radio .... he could be right.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 20:53:40 CEST 2011 from (92.238.33.140)

RTO

Bill: Yes, that was a good take on "Fanny". And plausible - the Grateful Dead's opening number on their first LP ("The Golden Road To Unlimited Devotion") was allegedly named after a fanzine that a Frisco girl started; the first verse was about her. "See that girl, barefootin' along / Whistlin' and singin', she's a carryin' on..."

As for swapping ideas and when it starts to be songwriting, let's not forget that RM contributed the "two bits a shot" line to LIAC and even then didn't get a co-credit; ironically one where Levon did.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 20:41:59 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

I was lucky to get to see both the White/York/Parsons and White/Battin/Parsons lineups with McGuinn in concert from an onstage vantage points. The first performance was right after the release of "Dr. Byrds & Mr. Hyde", where I got to sit behind the amps at the back of the stage area. That's when I first noticed how Clarence White's string-bender mechanism worked.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 20:40:36 CEST 2011 from (24.108.253.172)

westcoaster

Subject: Who begat who???????

Sounds like one of those crazies in Monty Python giving the "Sermon on the Mount".

Who are you callin' big nose??? I'll smash you rbleedin' face oy wiw!........Well'e does 'ave rather a big nose.......

Entered at Wed Apr 13 20:33:10 CEST 2011 from (12.25.140.82)

PutEmUp(Friend0

Angelina, All these marvelous videos you link, Louu, Clark, Rick, The Band, Garland, one school teacher,.....school day,how do you do it? No doubt, it takes a lot of effort.... naw, I doubt... well, ya never know.... sometimes... do you give the search out as a class assignment? Maybe extra credit. Now that would be fair, a extra credit assignment. Everybody wins! Don't tell, it' ll take the mystery out of it. Sure been fun though, RR vids have contributed a lot to the discussion lately.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 20:24:24 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Entered at Wed Apr 13 20:17:45 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Calvin: That would be bassist/singer/songwriter Skip Battin, who played with McGuinn's last Byrds lineup for 3 years & 3 albums along with Clarence White and Gene Parsons. The late Mr. Battin also toured & recorded with later versions of the Flying Burrito Brothers and New Riders of the Purple Sage.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 19:42:27 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

Peter V: Yup, carnivals is Robbie. Don't forget the one at the edge of town, as Robbie so nicely put it in KH(WSC). I would think that a carnival in the south would have been MUCH more exotic - and thus memorable and write-aboutable - for the young Robbie than Toronto's Ex ever was or could have been.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 19:16:57 CEST 2011 from (72.196.146.10)

Calvin

But they arent the only ones, Thin Lizzy and a version of the Temps, as well as others Im sure, are on tour with a minor member and 3-4 guys who were never in the band proper.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 19:12:24 CEST 2011 from (90.239.129.11)

NorthWestCoaster

Subject: 1.) Kerouac, Ginsberg, Pound etc didn’t get cut in on Dylan. 2.) More Greatest Hits and Dunc

1.) I agree. Dylan is overrated at this point. 2.) I happen to have this double LP since the very beginning. HAPPY TRAUM's banjo playing made me to start with banjo. Good music from "New Morning" period as well. I have started to give away my LPs from 60s and 70s even to complete strangers but sorry Dunc, I'll keep this one forever!

Entered at Wed Apr 13 18:50:51 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

In the book "This Wheel's On Fire" Levon shares some stories about attending Saturday night tent show performances of F.S. Walcott Rabbit Foot Minstrels as a child in Marvell, Arkansas.

"Our favorite act was 'The Lady with the Million Dollar Smile', F.S. Walcott's big featured singer, who'd come on in the third quarter of the show. She was an armful. She wore bright dresses and had all her teeth filled with diamonds. She sang on all those real get-down songs like 'Shake A Hand'."

"I'd stare at the drummer all night because with those horns and that full rhythm section, the drums always looked like the best seat in the house. The sound of the cymbals and the snare drum popping with synonymous in my mind with Saturday night and good times. F.S. Walcott had a fantastic left-handed drummer, who I studied closely as I could from my seat...The left-handed drummer sat on my right, which put his tom-toms between me and him. So he's working the snare drum in front of him, favoring the band, and as he's getting ready to roll he's coming right around toward me. I'm sitting two rows back at the most. I'm probably in the front row, in fact, studying what he's doing for the whole two-hour show. I'm naturally right-handed, but people have always told me that I play left-handed. I have a technique, that's where it comes from."

Entered at Wed Apr 13 18:42:21 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

I'm enjoying the outtakes on the deluxe edition which finally turned up today. But I can see why Houdini is an outtake. On Houdini / W.S. Walcott / Life is A Carnival / Carny, one is led to think that carnival images: Robbie.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 18:40:22 CEST 2011 from (69.177.214.91)

Todd

Subject: Moo

Al, I don't think Bill was missing the point. More like deflecting it. But he illuminates the finer issue of why were some songs were co-credited and some weren't. Who made that determination. Was there any grey area?

Yes, Deb, the entire Mississippi Delta should be credited! Although I doubt they were all able to fit into the big pink house at the same time. Now it's time for me to bang my head on a rock. But I think I'd better avoid that flat one over there by the Dairy Farm. Skies are looking a little cloudy.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 18:34:30 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

:-0)

Entered at Wed Apr 13 18:30:57 CEST 2011 from (82.42.175.156)

Al Edge

Nice try Bill. But my radar picked it up by the third word of your second sentence. Oh and by the way you're completely missing the point Todd and me and possibly Jeff are making. Mind you, you're by no means alone in the esteemed company on here.

:-0)

Entered at Wed Apr 13 18:16:33 CEST 2011 from (216.226.180.2)

Deb

Entered at Wed Apr 13 18:07:54 CEST 2011 from (69.177.214.91)

Todd

Yes Jeff, I figured you were in a hurry. And I do try to avoid the use of the word mysterious whenever possible. However, "voodoo witchdoctor swamp boogie" has been know to creep into my vernacular from time to time. But only when there's a full moon.....and the fog starts rolling in from the bayou.

Bill M, I was thinking that some of those shared story / swapping ideas around moments may have ended up as some of the songs that have co-writes. But I was really wondering if there were any that didn't. Maybe some slipped through the cracks? W.S. Walcott (previously known as F.S. Walcott) for some reason seems like it could be a likely candidate.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 16:50:24 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Bill M: I've always thought that Richard probably laid down his vocal track first and Robbie later added his, using Richard's as a reference. So it's quite possible, as you suggested, that Richard sang a complete take of the song all the way through, and then Robbie sang over it, but Richard's vocal overpowers his at some points.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 16:05:46 CEST 2011 from (204.138.59.92)

Bill M

David P: Re the wonderful "Between Trains", I continue to believe that that's Richard's voice doing some of the lead singing. I also continue to believe that Robbie only sang at all because Richard couldn't come up with what was required in the time allowed, suggesting that there are likely full takes of Richard's attempts in the vaults somewhere. Wouldn't they be nice to hear?!

BEG: Was that Bill Dillon alongside Lanois on "Testimony"? I see he's on one song on Clairvoyant, keeping his run of Robbie records intact. Was surprised that he wasn't mentioned at all in Lanois' very interesting autobiog, "Soul Mining".

Peter V: I see you've put Robbie's clairvoyance lessons to good use. Well done. Also, re turns of phrase, I can't help but suspect that some of Levon's come from Hawkins, just like some of his stories in WoF.

RtO: Your reference to 'Fannies' got me thinking. Maybe the infamous Miss Fanny was really nothing more than the administrator of some fan club, and had asked the poor guy to collect some autographs for her while in Nazareth - and be sure to give them all my regards, will ya?

Entered at Wed Apr 13 15:57:12 CEST 2011 from (156.47.15.10)

David P

Calvin: Around 1990 Crosby, Hillman & McGuinn filed a lawsuit in Federal Court seeking an injunction preventing Michael Clarke from using the Byrds name with his various touring groups. The judge ruled in Mr. Clarke's favor, citing that he had been using the name with his groups for years and the other three original members, apart from an appearance at a Roy Orbison tribute concert and a couple of other dates, hadn't played together live using the name. So, from a legal standpoint, the three couldn't prove that they suffered actual damages from Mr. Clarke's actions, and I guess the incidental damage to the reputation of the group name wasn't a determing factor. I believe that both factions had tried to get a trademark/tradename registration at the time, so the original lineup evidently had not done so years before.

All the original group members put aside their differences and appeared together when they were inducted into the R&R Hall of Fame in 1991. Sadly, however, Gene Clark died of heart failure several months later and Michael Clarke died of liver failure in 1993.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 15:42:17 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

Current Rolling Stone issue features article on Robbie Robertson.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 15:35:22 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

Kansascity.com article on RR.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 15:29:43 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

Subject: Article on RR & his Random House memoirs.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 15:10:55 CEST 2011 from (216.114.128.38)

Mike & Kim Hayward

Subject: Artsbeat article on RR.

Memories from Big Pink.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 14:59:46 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Wed Apr 13 14:19:33 CEST 2011 from (76.66.26.84)

brown eyed girl

Robbie...Testimony with Lanois 1988

Entered at Wed Apr 13 14:12:27 CEST 2011 from (76.66.26.84)

brown eyed girl

I'm glad Youtube put this one back up with Robbie on Letterman from 1988.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 14:01:35 CEST 2011 from (76.66.26.84)

brown eyed girl

My favourite performance with Robbie and Dawes would be on Letterman's show. The lighting brings on a club-like atmosphere and it was their first live performance that we were able to witness....Somewhat more energy, confidence.

I was walking in the sundown
I was heading for the breakdown
When you're sleeping on the cold ground
Too far gone

Runnin on a red light
Lookin for a street fight
Higher than a lost kite.
Too far gone

Others weigh in....

"Yup. Love it.

Cathyelliott 3 days ago
@Cathyelliott ....you don't have to sell me....I love the song!! Plan to add it to
my daily drum practice!!

MrTreknation 3 days ago
I've been saying for awhile that Dawes are the closest thing to the band out there today. They were up at big pink in the fall (i visited a week later). The song is ok but I'm not going to hate on Robbie, he's 40 years past his songwriting peak...what do you expect? Always one of my favorite guitarist but not one of my favorite personalities.

vh84dlr 4 days ago
@vh84dlr ...you do realize that his new album "How To Become Clairvoyant" is a collaboration with Eric Clapton & that Clapton, Steve Winwood, Trent Reznor & Tom Morello play on it...This song is from that album....and how do you ever become 40 years past your peak...I don' t get that??

MrTreknation 4 days ago
Good fucking song. Love the band and drummer.

dunskie 4 days ago @dunskie ....opps...just realized the drummer is Taylor Goldsmith's brother Griffin!"

I was reading up on Gene Clark....one of thirteen children who seemed to always be trying to kill the pain.....

Entered at Wed Apr 13 13:53:36 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

Subject: Civil War Op-Ed

The link is for the Civil War buffs. I just read it this morning and thought some of you might like to read it.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 13:30:17 CEST 2011 from (72.196.146.10)

Calvin

Gene Clark's camp always floated the story that he never intended the Clark/Clarke/York grouping with Rick/Richard, Blonde and Rick Roberts thrown in to be billed as the Byrds. As the most he was OK with Byrds Tribute. Supposedly clubowners and such were lazy or whatever and just said Byrds. Who knows, but I always got the sense Crosby/Hillman/McGuinn always had a whole lot bigger mad on for Mike Clarke than Gene.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 13:04:17 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Entered at Wed Apr 13 12:59:14 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Straight Down The Line. Interesting. Sean Wilentz traces all the many quotes or lines or book titles Dylan used in songs, often with changes, like Koestler’s “Darkness at Noon” to … Darkness at the break of noon …

What I was saying about stories yesterday, or trying to, is that few Robbie lyrics can possibly translate as “a story he’s been told.” I always thought the influence of Levon’s stories would be phrases or expressions, as Levon has a great store of memorable ways of saying something. Ever since I read his account of Watkins Glen, I think “raining like a cow pissing on a flat rock” rather than “raining cats and dogs” or whatever. Expressions and turns of phrase are something Dylan used frequently … Wilentz traces the ones from Kerouac, Michael Gray traced ones from Pound and Eliot. My guess is that is what some of it boils down to at least some of the time with Robbie and Levon. Kerouac, Ginsberg, Pound etc didn’t get cut in on Dylan.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 12:54:56 CEST 2011 from (67.84.207.113)

Brien Sz

Subject: RR on Jools Holland

The link is to RR's performance on Jools Holland's show. Couple observations - first, the camera work on this show is far superior (movement and framing) than on either the Letterman show or the View. Since I know nothing about Jools I can only suspect that his show is setup to showcase music more than the other two. Also, the look of the studio setup allows for more cameras and movement. Second - it seemed the backing vocals were played up more on this version than the other two. Third - the lead had more punch here than in the states. 4th - of the three versions I think RR's vocals were best overall on Lettermans show.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 12:42:58 CEST 2011 from (71.246.9.74)

bob w.

Jeff Newsom, we keep you in our thoughts and prayers.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 12:26:53 CEST 2011 from (76.66.26.84)

brown eyed girl

Relix...3 page interview
Published: 2011/04/11
by Bill Bentley
Robbie Robertson: Seeing Around Corners

“I used that in the first song on the new record, but I got the title [“Straight Down the Line”] from the movie Double Indemnity, where Fred McMurray tells Barbara Stanwyck when they’re planning to kill her husband:

‘Yeah baby, don’t worry. We’re gonna do it straight down the line.’ Those kinds of lines never leave you.”

Entered at Wed Apr 13 12:06:25 CEST 2011 from (76.66.26.84)

brown eyed girl

HOW TO BECOME CLAIRVOYANT: A CONVERSATION WITH ROBBIE ROBERTSON

MIKE RAGOGNA
THE HUFFINGTON POST

Robbie even comments on current world politics....

Entered at Wed Apr 13 10:58:09 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Dunc, I have to confess to completism on Bob. I've lost track now because of various bootleg series and compilations, but for years the Australian 3CD set "Masterpieces" was heavily imported because it had a couple of hard to find tracks … the B-side Rita May, and George Jackson (Big Band version). I thought you needed the George Jackson single to get both sides, but I'm sure they're elsewhere by now. Then there's film stuff like Band of The Hand. This is an affliction. But if you're missing odd tracks like that, just send me a list.

Don't miss "Folksinger's Choice" - a great early radio show, released on CD last year.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 10:27:18 CEST 2011 from (86.169.140.150)

Dunc

Subject: Complete Bob Dylan Help

I've only got a few albums to get to be complete on Bob.

I think I'll go for it.

I don't want to collect all the versions of the Greatest Hits. Are there any other albums other than More Greatest Hits (blue cover) which I'll need because there is new music on it?

Entered at Wed Apr 13 10:20:36 CEST 2011 from (86.169.140.150)

Dunc

Subject: Various

Sometimes I wonder if I don't get it, Peter, because of age. Glasvegas are respected up here. But I do think I'm not catered for musically on TV in Britain.

I think you've predicted what the interview will be like on Friday. A couple of times I've read Garth say that the one thing he doesn't want to happen in his life again is to be asked another question about Bob Dylan.

Al. I play my Birds albums, Gene Clark Flying High anthology, the double The Fantastic Expedition of Dillard and Clark and Through the Morning Through the Night regularly.

Rob The Organ:Enjoyed the story. How's the album going?

Frustrated waiting for the local shop to get my album.

Entered at Wed Apr 13 09:43:01 CEST 2011 from (82.69.47.175)

Peter V

Al, back to Jools Holland: If the Beatles were reincarnated and did his show, he’d squeak “And now the fantastic the wonderful Beatles!’ which is all he ever says about anyone. I don’t like his Battle of the Bands format. Glassvegas were so poor, with dreadful material, that it dropped the level of the show. Seun Kuti was pretty good. I thought Ce Lo Green’s first number weakish, but the closer was the strongest performance on the show. It’s not a comfortable format. He doesn’t know how to speak to people either. He had Bootsy Collins on, talk only, for what? 45 seconds? Earlier I’d wanted to send a friend the YouTube Letterman with Robbie (they’d asked me whatever happened to The Band), and the YouTube Letterman with Levon doing Tennessee Jed, so I watched both again.

Letterman is a vastly better show host than Holland and knows and likes The Band. We used to get his shows a day late. They’re probably still on, but I don’t know where.

Anyway, he did say ‘More of that on Friday!’ (the extended edition) directly after Robbie. That might mean a 45 second chat. I have used my time machine to bring it to you in its entirety three days early:

Jools: Fantastic! Wonderful! So you were in The Band?’