Music Break

Here are yet some more old favorites of mine.  Starting off is my favorite Tom Petty song, with or without the Heartbreakers (in this case with), Jammin' Me.  Petty wrote the song with Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell and some guy from Minnesota named Bob Zimmerman.

I haven't kept up with new rock and roll music since the early 1990's.  The last "new" artist I remember noticing was Sheryl Crow.  A Change Would Do You Good didn't sell as well as some others from her, but it was still my favorite.  Here's the version of the video that did not overlay the song with acting sequences.

Great White had a hit with Once Bitten Twice Shy, written by Ian Hunter after he left Mott The Hoople.  Years later they were victimized by the tragic fire in a Rhode Island night club.

I'm not a huge fan of country, but I like this catchy tune from Mary Chapin Carpenter, Shut Up And Kiss Me.  She gets some help from some talented side musicians and a well-trained golden retriever.

Blue Oyster Cult had some success with Don't Fear The Reaper (which inspired the "more cowbell" skit on Saturday Night Live) and Burnin' For You, but my favorite of theirs is the title song from the Mirrors album.

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Are You Ready For The Michelle Obama Rap Album?

Yes, the First Lady is putting out a rap album, to be entitled Songs For A Healthier America.  No, she will not be singing (a term used loosely whenever applied to rap), but will only make cameo appearances in the videos of the songs.

Read more at The Daily Beast, the Rolling Stone, Spin and Grantland.

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J. J. Cale 1938-2013

Singer-guitarist-songwriter J. J. Cale, whose songs have been covered by a variety of rock and country musicians, passed away yesterday at Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, California at the age of 74, after suffering a heart attack.  Born John Weldon Cale in Oklahoma City, he would combine rock, country, jazz and blues influences to pioneer a style known as the "Tulsa Sound".  He adopted the knickname "J. J." to avoid confusion with John Cale of the Velvet Underground.

Read more at the Los Angeles Times, CNN, UT San Diego, USA Today, Classic Rock and Where's Eric.

Speaking of Eric, one of Cale's songs famously covered by Eric Clapton is Cocaine.

Clapton covered After Midnight in two different arrangements.  I think the slower second one was used in a beer commercial.  Here's Cale's original version:

For their Second Helping album, Lynyrd Skynyrd recorded Cale's Call Me The Breeze.

To close, this is Crazy Mama, the only J. J. Cale song I remember as an original version:

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Music Break - Happy 70th Birthday, Christine McVie

It's hard to believe, but Christine McVie turns 70 today.  It's even harder to believe that she left Fleetwood Mac 15 years ago.  But then, maybe there's something to be said for rockers who retire before they get old.

Before joining Fleetwood Mac, Christine Perfect played in the band Chicken Shack, recorded a solo album, appeared on some Fleetwood Mac albums as a guest musician, and then married their bassist John McVie.  Besides contributing some backing vocals and keyboards to their 1970 album Kiln House, she also drew the album's cover art.  As the group started rehearsing for the subsequent tour, they decided they needed a fuller sound and asked her to join.  This left her with a bit of a dilemma, since she had not yet recorded any of her own songs with Fleetwood Mac.  In order for her to take some turns as lead vocalist, they would have to play songs from her solo album or from her stint with Chicken Shack.  Get Like You Used To Be is from the latter variety, written with guitarist Stan Webb.  This rendition is from Christine's first tour with Fleetwood Mac, and includes Jeremy Spencer and Danny Kirwan on guitar.  Songs from this tour were later assembled into a live album entitled Madison Blues.  The YouTube user has labeled the video with Kirwan's name, but this is a Christine McVie song.

The first Fleetwood Mac album on which Christine McVie appears as a full member is Future Games, which was recorded in 1971.  Spencer had left the group and was replaced by American guitarist Bob Welch.  The only guest musician on the album is McVie's brother John Perfect, who plays sax and harmonica.  On her song Morning Rain, Welch plays an undistorted "clean" guitar, while Kirwan uses some distortion and wah-wah.

In early 1973, Fleetwood Mac released the Penguin album, with Bob Weston replacing Danny Kirwan on guitar.  Remember Me opens the album and includes Weston on slide guitar.

Later in 1973, the band released Mystery To Me, which concluded with the Christine McVie song Why.  This song features a slide guitar intro by Bob Weston, which reminds me a bit of Indian music.  The latter part of the song includes some harmony vocals to which Bob Welch may have contributed.  Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham would later add their voices to the live version of Why, when the two Bobs were no long in the band.  (As far as I know, Buckingham never did try to re-create Weston's slide intro.)

I have mainly included Christine McVie songs from before Buckingham and Nicks joined Fleetwood Mac, because I think that these earlier songs are as good as her better-known songs from after they joined.  But I have to include something from that slightly more recent era.  Say You Love Me is from the group's 1975 eponymous album.  Buckingham contributes some catchy electric guitar parts and plays rhythm on the banjo, which meshes with McVie's piano.  He and Nicks also provide some excellent harmonies.

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A Few Items

A few things I've run across in the last couple of days:

In a hospital in central New York, doctors intent on harvesting a patient's organs suddenly realized that rumors of her death had been greatly exaggerated.

The United States is no longer the world's fattest nation.  We've been overtaken by Mexico.  Sí, se puede....comer!

Two House Democrats have proposed a new National Historical Park - on the moon.  This would present a number of difficulties, starting with the fact that while the moon was explored by twelve Americans, is not United States territory.  And any Department of the Interior personnel assigned to such a park would face an exceptionally difficult commute.

A House Republican has inserted an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that would protect the religious freedom of military personnel.

If you're a legislator, please be careful how you write your laws.  A law in Florida that bans Internet cafes might also ban computers and smartphones.

This next item is two and a half years old, but still relevant in light of the recent Supreme Court rulings on "gay marriage".  This is a look inside the gay culture and the gay rights movement, from a former participant.

The Virginia Tech football team has lost a running back, due to his own fault.  This past April, Michael Holmes was charged with malicious wounding, a felony, for his actions in a fight that started between his then-girlfriend and an ex-girlfriend.  Holmes plea-bargained the charge down to assault and battery, a misdemeanor.  School policy allows a misdemeanor offender to be reinstated to his athletic team, but a student judicial panel decided to expel Holmes from both the team and the school.

Scuba divers off the coast of Alabama have discovered the remains of a 50,000-year-old forest.

It would appear that protesters outside the U.S. embassy in Cairo have some complaints about our president.  Like many teabaggers/hobbits/wacko-birds back here in the U.S., I say, "Join the club."  Thankfully, many Egyptians seem able to distinguish between Barry and America.

The recent train wreck in Quebec, Canada may have been the result of tampering.

To finish, a musical blast from the past.  Here's Nat King Cole and Billy Preston (age 11) performing Fats Domino's Blueberry Hill.

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Prancercise

Prancercise is an exercise system developed by woman in Florida named Joanna Rohrback, who was inspired by movements of horses.  Even so, she's actually against horse-riding.  Because her YouTube video uses some music that sounds like an instrumental version of Werewolves of London by Warren Zevon, some YouTube imitators have used Zevon's original song in their send-ups.  These people call themselves the First Decents, and apparently wish to organize a Prancercise 5K.

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Music Break: Songs About Trains

For this month's program, a few numbers about what might be my favorite mode of transportation.

To open, this is the Doobie Brothers with Long Train Running, written and sung by guitarist Tom Johnston, who also plays the harmonica solo.  At this time, the Doobies also included guitarist Pat Simmons, bassist Tiran Porter and drummers John Hartman and Michael Hossack.

From Fleetwood Mac's Kiln House album, Station Man was written by guitarists Danny Kirwan and Jeremy Spencer, along with bassist John McVie.  Kirwan sings the lead vocal and is backed up by Spencer and Christine McVie, who had not yet officially joined the band.  She also drew the album's cover art.  The song was later revived in the late 1970's when Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks were in the fold.

Speaking of stations, Cream found one of those in the White Room with black curtains.  I've always liked Eric Clapton's wah-wah guitar fills during the second verse.  Bassist Jack Bruce provides the lead vocals and Ginger Baker plays the drums.

In Casey Jones by the Grateful Dead, the engineer indulges in some self-inflicted chemistry.

Train Train by Blackfoot features not one but two guest harmonica solos.  The intro is played by Shorty Medlocke, who wrote this song, and who was the grandfather of guitarist/singer Rickey Medlocke.  The second solo is by Cub Koda, known better as the guitarist for Brownsville Station.  The younger Medlocke, who is now in Lynyrd Skynyrd, is joined by guitarist Charlie Hargrett, bassist Greg T. Walker and drummer Jakson Spires.

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I Drive Your Truck

Writing in National Review Online, Lee Habeeb tells the story of Paul Monti, who lost his son Jared in Afghanistan, and the way in which Mr. Monti copes with his loss.  Habeeb was deeply affected by an NPR radio show in which Monti told his story, and as it turned out, was not alone.  A Nashville songwriter listening to the same broadcast was likewise moved, and with the help of two co-writers, turned Monti's story into a song, which was soon afterwards recorded by singer Lee Brice.

This, of course, is but a brief summary.  Read the full story at the above link.

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Music Break - A Few More Old Favorites

To continue where I left off last month, here are some more old favorites of mine, some well-known, some not so much.

Aerosmith's 1974 Toys In the Attic album featured the hits Walk This Way and Sweet Emotion, but the cut I liked the most was Adam's Apple.

In 1980, Joe Walsh made his contribution to the soundtrack of Urban Cowboy with All Night Long.

Walsh had recently joined the Eagles, whose The Long Run album included a tribute to college fraternities, The Greeks Don't Want No Freaks, which included backing vocals by the band's road crew, known as the Monstertones, and by Jimmy Buffett.

Way back in the early 1970's, one of my brothers bought this single, Draggin' The Line by Tommy James.  This was a solo effort, done without his group The Shondells.  Ron Dante, who sang the lead vocal on Sugar Sugar by The Archies, sings some backing vocals.

To finish, I would be remiss not to include a tribute to keyboardist Ray Manzarek of the Doors, who passed away earlier today.  In Love Her Madly, Manzarek plays both piano and his trademark spooky-sounding organ.

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Music Break - Some Old Favorites

For this month's music break, I offer up some old favorites of mine.  Some are rather well known, and others more obscure, but that's just my tastes.

The first number Feel So Good, by Jefferson Airplane from their 1971 album Bark, written and sung by lead guitarist Jorma Kaukonen.  At this time, the band had lost founding lead singer Marty Balin and longtime drummer Spencer Dryden.  Kaukonen and new drummer Joey Covington stepped up to contribute some lead vocals, along with holdovers Paul Kantner (also rhythm guitar) and Grace Slick (also piano).  After one more studio album, Kaukonen and bassist Jack Casady left the Airplane, which would turn their side project Hot Tuna into their main gig.  Kantner and Slick would later regroup to create Jefferson Starship.

In 1981, Billy Squier released his Don't Say No album, which produced several hit singles.  My favorite song on the album was not one of them, but Too Daze Gone, a phrase that sometimes described how I felt back in those days.

During the 1980's, Joan Jett became famous with her cover of I Love Rock & Roll, but later came out with Fake Friends.

The 1972 double album Exile On Main Street by the Rolling Stones included Happy, which was sung by guitarist Keith Richards and released as a single.

During the early 1970's, the Edgar Winter Group had several hits, including the instrumental Frankenstein.  The band's style was a combination of Winter's blues influence and co-lead singer Dan Hartman's pop-rock, such as Hangin' Around.  Both are found on They Only Come Out At Night.

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Music Break

Resuming last month's theme of songs that are less well known that they might deserve, this first one is Trinity by Fleetwood Mac.  Written and sung by Danny Kirwan, played in concert in 1971, and then recorded during the sessions for their 1972 album Bare Trees, it was for some reason left off the album.  It would eventually be included 25 Years: The Chain, a compilation released in 1992.

From John Lennon's 1971 album Imagine, Crippled Inside features a dobro and a honky tonk piano.

Recorded during the 1960's and later appearing in a commercial for Hewlett-Packard is Picture Book by the Kinks.

Moving up to the 1980's, this is TV Dinners by ZZ Top, consisting of Billy Gibbons (guitar & vocals), Dusty Hill (bass & vocals) and Frank Beard (drums).  On this one, Gibbons sings the lead vocal and Hill plays keyboards.

Also from the 1980's is Men Without Shame by Phantom, Rocker and Slick, consisting of Slim Jim Phantom (drums), Lee Rocker (bass & vocals) and Earl Slick (guitar).  Phantom (real name James McDonnell) and Rocker (real name Leon Drucker) had previously been in the Stray Cats with guitarist-singer Brian Setzer.  Slick (real name Frank Madeloni) had previously recorded or performed with David Bowie and the above-mentioned John Lennon.

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We're NASA And We Know It

Some geeky musical satire about the Mars Curiosity Rover and its NASA operators back on earth:

This video came out about 6 months ago, but I only ran across it earlier today.  Other than a YouTube channel, I don't anything about its source.

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Music Break

This month's music break includes songs that are not all that well-known (at least on this side of the pond) but in my opinion, deserve better.

The British group T-Rex consisted of guitarist/singer/songwriter Marc Bolan, percussionist/backup singer Steve Peregrin Took or his replacement Mickey Finn, and whichever musicians they took (if you'll forgive the pun) into the studio with them.  Their live act most often included bassist Steve Currie and drummer Bill Legend.  Their most famous song is Get It On (Bang A Gong), which featured future Yes keyboardist Rick Wakeman on piano.  In Telegram Sam, Bolan sings about several characters, including Purple Pie Pete, Jungle-Faced Jake, and of course, Telegram Sam himself.  The song was a #1 hit in Great Britain, but failed to chart in the United States.  In the thumbnail, from left to right, are Legend, Finn, Bolan and Currie.

The next song is Dream On, not by Aerosmith, but by the Scottish group Nazareth.  The early 1980's video shows the band (singer Ed McCafferty, guitarists Manny Charlton and Billy Rankin, bassist Peter Agnew and drummer Darrell Sweet) as astronauts.

From the near side of the pond, but to our north, came the Canadian group The Guess Who, which included keyboardist/singer Burton Cummings, guitarist Randy Bachman, bassist Jim Kale and drummer Garry Peterson.  After Bachman left, they expanded to a two-guitar lineup with Kurt Winter and Greg Leskiw.  Hang On To Your Life features Bachman's screaming vocals, impressive guitar work from Winter and Leskiw, and a reading from Psalm 22.

After Randy Bachman left The Guess Who, he founded Bachman Turner Overdrive with his brothers Tim (guitar) and Rob (drums), and their friend Fred Turner (bass), with whom Randy would share the lead vocal duties.  Turner, famous for his vocals on Let It Ride and Roll On Down The Highway, sings the lead on Gimme Your Money Please.  The thumbnail shows, if I'm not mistaken, from left to right, Fred (who later trimmed his hair), Rob, Tim and Randy.  After several lineup changes, and some controversy about who owns the full name and who owns the abbreviation "BTO", Randy and Fred are back as Bachman & Turner.

Fleetwood Mac became hugely successful in 1975 after they added guitarist/singer Lindsey Buckingham and singer Stevie Nicks to the lineup. A few years earlier, the band included guitarist/singers Danny Kirwan and Bob Welch, along with keyboardist/singer Christine McVie, bassist John McVie and drummer Mick Fleetwood.  This is the title song of their 1972 album Bare Trees, written and sung by Kirwan, one of many (in my opinion) good but not well-known songs from the pre-1975 versions of Fleetwood Mac.

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The Te'o Hoax, And Some Other Stories

Manti Te'o is a college football player who recently completed his senior season with Notre Dame, the team losing to Alabama in the BCS Championship Game.  During the 2012 season, he endured the deaths of his grandmother, Annette Santiago, and his girlfriend, Lennay Marie Kekua, within days of each other.  Earlier during 2012, Te'o had learned that Kekua was in a car accident, recovered from the resulting injuries, graduated from Stanford, and then was diagnosed with leukemia, from which she eventually died.  There was one problem with all of this.  Te's and Kekua never met in person.  Their relationship was completely online.  All of these events, and Lennay Kekua's very existence, were a hoax.  The only remaining question is whether Te'o was purely the victim of this hoax, or was in on it.  Read more at Deadspin, CBS Sportsline, Newsfeed, Fox News and the Sporting News.

In other news:

From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, an Illinois woman survived for two days after her car skidded into a ravine.

From the Sioux City Journal, a tribute to Sioux City native Pauline Friedman Phillips, known to the world as Dear Abby.  She recently passed away at the age of 94.

From Yahoo News, a Florida man was killed when he was run over by his dog.

From Israel National News, about 4,300 of Nazi-seized advertising posters will be auctioned off in New York.

From WGRZ, Border Patrol agents have arrested a man who entered the United States illegally, by paddling across the Niagara River into Fort Niagara State Park.  (Full disclosure:  I have visited Fort Niagara.  It's in the northwest corner of New York state, on the east bank of the Niagara River where it empties into Lake Ontario.  If the sky is fairly clear, you can see Toronto on the other side of the lake.)

From Breitbart's Big Journalism, the NRA, which has been vilified in the wake of the Sandy Hook massacre, has a better approval rating than the president.

And finally, to return to our first topic, it seems that Manti Te'o might have been living out a song that I remember from the 1970's.

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Music Break

For the first music break of 2013, let's start off with the Bob Seger song Hands In The Air, which I completely missed when it came out in 1995 as the last track on his It's A Mystery album.

Last month, I found something by the original lineup of Yes.  Here's another one from Jon Anderson (lead vocals), Peter Banks (guitars, vocals), Tony Kaye (keyboards), Chris Squire (bass, vocals) and Bill Bruford (drums, percussion), called Looking Around.

One of the first new wave songs to become a hit is Pop Muzik by M.  The group was really a studio project by singer Robin Scott, who appears as a DJ in the video.  Two models lip-sinc the backing vocals, but they were really recorded by Brigit Novik, who intermittently appears dressed in blue and wearing headphones.

In 1972, the Hollies released the album Romany, which featured Swedish vocalist Mikael Rickfors, who replaced Allan Clark, who had left to go solo.  The other band members were guitarists Tony Hicks and Terry Sylvester, bassist Bernie Calvert and drummer Bobby Elliot.  Magic Woman Touch did not break the Top 40, but still got some airplay.  This video shows the band in the studio.

Speaking of Swedish vocalists, none have ever been as successful as Agnetha Fältskog, Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Björn Ulvaeus (also on guitar) and Benny Andersson (also on keyboards), collectively known as ABBA.  I remember hearing that they became the biggest corporation in Sweden, surpassing the auto maker Volvo.  While most of their songs featured lead vocals by either of the two women, Björn takes the lead on Does Your Mother Know.  Please pardon the dorky dancing, but that's the 70's for you.

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Happy Birthday, Beethoven

December 16, 1770 is the accepted date for the birth of Ludwig van Beethoven, who grew up to become one of the great composers of classical music.  (He was baptized on the 17th.  Since babies were normally baptized within 24 hours of their birth during that era, the 16th is thought to be his actual birth date.)  He was born in the German city of Bonn, and later moved to Vienna, where for a while he took lessons from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and also worked under Franz Joseph Haydn.  He died in 1827, leaving behind nine symphonies, more than 30 piano sonatas, one opera and many other works.

My own childhood piano lessons included quite a few of Beethoven's compositions, including his 8th sonata, known by the French title of Sonaté Pathetique.  This is a rendition of its second movement, played (as it were) by Schoeder in the movie A Boy Named Charlie Brown.

Over a century after Beethoven died, rock and roll singer-guitarist Chuck Berry came out with a song named Roll Over Beethoven.  In 1973, the Electric Light Orchestra took Berry's song and combined it with Beethoven's fifth symphony.  If Beethoven ever heard this version, he probably would roll over.

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Music Break

For this month's music break, let's begin with something from the original lineup of Yes.  From their second album Time And A Word, this is No Opportunity Necessary, No Experience Needed, written by Richie Havens.  Some of the instrumental sections, however, were taken from the opening theme from the movie The Big Country.  The original Yes included John Anderson (who later removed the "h" from first name) - lead vocals, Peter Banks - guitar & vocals, Tony Kaye - keyboards, Chris Squire - bass & vocals, and Bill Bruford - drums.  Soon after the album was recorded, Banks left and was replaced by Steve Howe, who appears in the video.  Anderson plays a guitar in the video, but most likely didn't play it on the record.

Here's something I ran across a year ago, and posted on AndRightlySo.  The Peanuts kids in A Charlie Brown Christmas take a cue from Sly and the Family Stone, and Dance To The Music.  The creator of this video did a good job combining cartoon action with the song's lyrics.

In England, the controversial English Defence League occasionally stages anti-sharia demonstrations, and sometimes gets arrested for it.  Whatever you think of them, they still have a catchy punk rock theme song.

The Hollies were a British band popular in the late 60's and early 70's.  Although going through several lineup changes, most of the time their lead singer was Allan Clark.  Original rhythm guitarist Graham Nash, who also occasionally sang lead, left in 1968 to form Crosby, Stills & Nash (& later Young).  In 1973, the Hollies had a minor hit with The Day That Curly Billy Shot Down Crazy Sam McGee.

Humble Pie was formed in 1969 by guitarists Steve Marriott (from The Small Faces) and Peter Frampton (from The Herd), bassist Greg Ridley (from Spooky Tooth) and drummer Jerry Shirley.  Marriott, Ridley and Frampton, in that order, share the lead vocals on Big Black Dog, something they commonly did during the band's first two years.  In 1971, Frampton left and was replaced by guitarist Dave "Clem" Clempson, who rarely attempted a lead vocal.  Afterwards, Marriott did most of the lead singing, with some help from Ridley.  The video show us man's best friend, including one who gets some symbolic revenge against a certain quarterback.

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Music Break - It's A Zoo

Here are a few songs that both man and beast may enjoy.  To start off, the Kinks sing about living like an Apeman, with the help of a piano player who looks like he belongs in one of the Planet Of The Apes movies.

Here's Nazareth with the title song from their album Hair Of The Dog.  The lyrics, however, express the idea a bit differently.

The youngest of nine musical siblings, Janet Jackson wrote and recorded Black Cat, a heavy metal departure from her usual R&B.

Another song with a harder edge than is normal for a given artist is Crazy Horses by the Osmonds, said to be inspired by cars and the air pollution generated thereby.  Jay and Merrill (also on bass) share the lead vocals.  I would love to learn what type of keyboard Donny uses for "yiiiii" sound effect.

To finish with something very different, this is Henry Mancini's Baby Elephant Walk, from the movie Hatari!.  I first heard this one listening to my mother's favorite easy listening radio station.

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Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes

From rightwing musician and Fox News contributor Steven Crowder, and quickly brought to my attention on Twitter, the Obama Change Song:

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Music Break

It's been over a month since I've posted a music break, which means that one is overdue.  To start off, a video I saw during my recent trip to Italy, Sempre Noi by Max Pezzali featuring J-Ax.

Here's one I listened to a few times back in the early seventies, Bongo Rock by The Incredible Bongo Band, who played it in a tempo slower than in the original version by Preston Epps.

In the early eighties, I ran across this one by an early lineup of Whitesnake, Would I Lie To You?...

...which should not be confused with Would I Lie To You? by the Eurythmics.

To finish, the Jimi Hendrix Experience version of the Beatles' Day Tripper.  Bassist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchell handle most of the vocals, with Jimi providing his usual guitar fireworks.  Before starting the song, they play a few bars of I Want To Tell You, written by George Harrison, which was later covered by Ted Nugent.

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