Just a quickie here – I’ve gotten several emails from people following my last big post on Mazzy Star, asking for the other two songs I referenced but didn’t include. Happy to share, they’re excellent:
Cherry Blossom Girl (Hope Sandoval version) – Air
Asleep From Day (with Hope Sandoval) – Chemical Brothers
This could be the most bizarre thing I’ve seen all week.
As Jerry Yeti says, “Is Taylor Hicks super cool or is Snoop losing his edge?” Either way, bet you’ve never heard Gin & Juice with harmonica before.
PS – EZArchive is giving me fits, so if you are having trouble downloading something, try back. I won’t remove any of the newer files for a few days here.
This made me smile today because it reminds me of something that near happened to me once in Edinburgh (minus the army helmet). Plus, it is a good segue into a few more covers & live tracks from the 2006 Pearl Jam tour thus far that are begging to be shared:
From the expanded Vedder interview in Rolling Stone
Vedder: “I went through this f*cking yearlong period where I wore helmets all the time. It was like army helmets that I’d find, or just like whatever. It was this kind of analogy, like I need a helmet…I felt like…it’s just funny looking…sleeping in a f*cking army helmet.
I remember one day after a Lollapalooza gig, I woke up in a hotel in an army helmet and a T-shirt. And, I heard a live band playing. I thought it was a live band. So I went out the door to see if it was live. I had to know — was that a real stand-up bass? Or were they just playing music in the atrium or whatever? So I pushed the door open, went to look, you know, and I looked back and the door just went [makes a clicking sound].
So I’m standing in the hotel, in this atrium thing and I’ve got an army helmet on and a T-shirt.
RS: In like your underwear? Nothing?
Vedder: “Nothing; army helmet and a T-shirt. I was thinking, ‘Aww, this is really bad.’ And so I go down to the maids, but they won’t let me in. I don’t know anybody else’s room number. Everyone’s got a pseudonym. I don’t know who’s what. And, so I take the T-shirt off, wrap it around the back, put the army helmet over the front, go down in this glass elevator, it’s Easter Sunday — this all starts to hit me — it’s Easter Sunday, there’s all these people in their Easter [best]. It was somewhere in the Midwest like Milwaukee or something. I had to walk through the people, and parents were hiding their kids from this freaky guy. It must have been like a real apparition. Then — sorry I got into this story; I’ll just finish it — but the funny thing is that I actually waited in line. There was a line at the front desk. I actually waited in line behind two other people. It was kind of a Tarzan goes to Vietnam look or something. And then of course you get to the lady, tell her your problem, locked out of your room and, of course, she asks for an ID. That’s when I lost it.”
TUNES:
Beast of Burden – 5/10/06
(Stones cover) Loose like the one from Brixton Academy 7/14/93. Only been played live maybe 3 times.
Save It For Later – 5/17/06
(English Beat cover)
Around The Bend – 5/19/06
Lovely little gem from No Code, rarely played live
Can’t Explain – 5/19/06
(The Who cover) This was played live by PJ for the first time at the 11/7/95 San Diego show that I was at. This version is acoustic; the crowd enthusiastically sings along.
Dead Man Walking – 5/19/06
The first PJ song I ever saw performed live, at the pre-show opener, San Jose 11/4/95. The website is wrong, says the first time it was played was 1998 (and that it has only been played 4 times live) – maybe they don’t count solo pre-sets with just Vedder.
Hard to Imagine – 5/19/06
A great unreleased song, only been played a few dozen times live.
Kick Out The Jams – 5/22/06
(MC5 cover)
Forever Young – 5/24/06
(Dylan cover for Bob’s birthday) First time ever played live.
Good to know that I’m not the only one who can get huggy and emotional after drinking:
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Richard Ashcroft Arrested at Youth Club
From The Sun, 6/21/06
RICHARD ASHCROFT was arrested this week after bursting into a youth club and demanding to work with the baffled teens. Witnesses say the former VERVE frontman appeared drunk and looked like a tramp as he began swearing and refusing to leave. Staff called cops and Ashcroft was taken into custody for a couple of hours, then given an £80 fixed penalty fine for disorderly behaviour and released.
One eyewitness told me: “He was very strung out and close to tears at one point. He kept saying he wanted to work with kids, that he wanted to do ‘good things’. “He wasn’t aggressive, in fact he was quite charming and friendly. He kept hugging some staff and kids. But when the police arrived he was almost begging to be arrested. They told him to go quietly but he wouldn’t.”
The singer, famous for songs like The Drugs Don’t Work and who earned the nickname “Mad Richard” during his Verve heyday, entered The Bridge club in Chippenham, Wilts, just before 8pm on Monday. The club is near where his wife Kate’s family live. Around 60 youngsters in their early teens were relaxing and playing games when he arrived.
The witness said: “It was surreal and we couldn’t believe it at first. He looked like a tramp. He was dishevelled and unshaven, with filthy clothes, and there was saliva caked around his mouth. “He was off his head, although he wasn’t slurring his words. One of the staff said, ‘You’re the spitting image of Richard Ashcroft’. And he said, ‘That’s because I am.’ When they asked what he was doing there he said, ‘I’ve just come to see the kids. I want to see what’s going on in the youth club.’”
Ashcroft then announced he would like to work with the youngsters but the woman in charge of the club told him he would have to go through the proper channels.
The insider added: “He kept swearing and saying, ‘I’m Richard, I’m going to be doing some youth work here. You’ll be seeing a lot more of me, this is my first night.’ The woman was getting more and more anxious and rang her boss and I think he told her to call the police.”
Ashcroft then slumped on a sofa and the kids gathered around and asked him: “Are you really a rock star?”
When a lone police officer arrived, the star was seen arguing with him outside. The insider said: “He started getting aggressive towards the policeman and was swearing and asking him what his ‘f***ing problem’ was. The officer called for back-up and a patrol car arrived and took him away.” A spokesman for Wiltshire Police said Ashcroft was arrested for a public order offence and taken into custody. A police source added: “It looked like he was drunk. He was discharged once he had calmed down.”
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It’s the first day of summer, the longest day of the year. My lovely city started the day off right with the annual Street Breakfast. Pancakes, eggs, little boxes of milk and juice — all prepared & served by soldiers (so do I call it grub? or chow? or something like that). They close off the streets for the hardy souls who get downtown between 6am and 8:30am (guess which end of the spectrum I was closer to? Anyone who knows me will heartily echo “8:30! You got there AFTER 8:30!”). There was live music with a band whose lead singer looked like Bo Bice (a bit unfortunately). It was an excellent way to welcome the summer and enjoy the community spirit.
Here is a little playlist I have been assembling for the last month or so as the weather steadily turns warmer and minds turn to lighter things. This is a blend of old and new; let me tell you why. Summer is not just about you, right here & now in 2006, my friend. Somehow with the advent of June, it’s every summer you’ve ever lived before, and those from before you were born. It’s about drive-ins and clam bakes, love-ins and hip shakes. It’s about being eight years old and bored out of your mind all summer long, seeing how fast you can ride your bike, and laying on your back looking at clouds for hours. It’s about the summer before freshman year when you’d spend hours at the pool hoping to see your summer crush. And it’s about whatever fabulous things you will do this year, standing by the grill with friends, laying on the sand nursing a Corona, or dancing your arse off at some humid outdoor concert.
So this is an aptly broad soundtrack of songs that remind me of a bunch of different summers. From the kitschy appeal of Lily Allen to the sunkissed goodness of The Zombies, there’s something here for all the faces of summer. If you have the computer space, can I urge you to download the whole mix and listen to it front-to-back several times? It’s not supposed to be a pick-and-choose endeavor; there’s a flow here, people! A mix tape from me to you, so TRUST ME.
01. “LDN” – Lily Allen
(walkin’ round London, narrating – an extremely likeable female version of Mike Skinner)
02. “Good Day” – Luce
(just feel good listening to this, so positive & pleasant)
03. “Pleasant Valley Sunday” – The Monkees
(retro goodness recreating a sunny weekend morning – “the local rock group down the street is tryin’ hard to learn their song . . .”)
04. “The Compromise” – The Format
(this is a FABULOUS song, from their new CD Dog Problems)
05. “Brandy (You’re A Fine Girl)” – Looking Glass
(I remember singing this with my brother in the summer, listening to the radio)
06. “July! July!” – The Decemberists
(something about crooked French Canadians, but it fits so well)
07. “A Summer Song” – Chad & Jeremy
(could a song SOUND any more like summer?)
08. “Island In The Sun (live)” – Weezer
(where I wish I was, with a riff that distinctly reminds me of Summer 2001)
09. “Summertime” – Josh Rouse
(“I remember cigarettes, tube socks, sunburns, and long blonde hair“)
10. “All I’m Thinkin’ About” – Bruce Springsteen
(a summer driving song, on a long, winding road)
11. “Plan Of The Man” – The Ms
(hard to believe these Chicago fellows are modern, what with all the wooo wooo wooos)
12. “Harmour Love” – Syreeta
(the infectiously poppy opening/closing song from the movie Junebug)
13. “California Pt. 2” – Mason Jennings
(“Where the next nearest neighbor lives miles away, I’ll never have to mow the lawn. Right on.”)
14. “I Get High” – Fastball
(yes, it’s Fastball, but forget “The Way” and listen to this soulful Beatles-esque piano ballad)
15. “Long, Sweet Summer Night” – The Thorns
(Matthew Sweet, Pete Droge, Shawn Mullins – supergroup, superb song)
16. “I Wanna Hold Your Hand“ (Beatles cover) - Al Green
(Unh. “Shut up Al Green.” Teenage nostalgia never sounded so funky)
17. “I Need Direction” – Teenage Fanclub
(it’s like including a Beach Boys song without including one. Perfect)
18. “Paper Scratcher” – Blind Melon
(a completely underrated gem off their self-titled debut album, LOVE the harmonies)
19. “When U Love Somebody” – Fruit Bats
(another modern band that sounds so fantastically retro, this time with handclaps)
20. “Summertime” (demo) – The Zombies
(it is NOT summer without The Zombies. It’s just not. This is the classic Gershwin tune.)
21. “This Time Of Year” – Better Than Ezra
(for a newer song, this feels pretty dang nostalgic to me. “There’s a feelin’ in the air, just like a Friday afternoon . . .”)
22. “Sleepwalk” – Santo & Johnny
(no better way to end a summer night than with this tune, an open window, and a breeze)
NOW WE’RE TALKIN: DOWNLOAD THE WHOLE MIX AS A ZIP
The way I burn it, it fits on one CD for portable goodness.
Let the summering begin!
One of the mini-reviews I submitted to the Westword was a few words about the new Matt Nathanson live album: At The Point (2006, Acrobat Records). Since they didn’t run it, lemme tell you what I wrote, since that is our topic for today.
“Until you’ve seen a Matt Nathanson concert, it’s impossible to understand how he could combine his melancholy, wrenching acoustic songs with an acidic sense of humor — and even the occasional Rick Springfield cover or Prince singalong. This live album captures those moments, and the setlist draws from several of his releases, providing a balanced introduction to this talented (and bitingly funny) young songwriter.”
I am getting more and more into him weekly, and find myself putting his music on random while I work every time I am near the computer. Here is a small sampling of tracks off the new album, but all of them are excellent & recommended.
“I Saw“ – The line where he sings, “I still wake up burning through everything” always makes my throat tighten a little and my eyes burn — it took me a bit by surprise to react like that but for some reason the honesty in his voice on this line stings.
“Romeo & Juliet“ (Dire Straits cover) – Matt says, “So, I’ve never played this song live, and I don’t know if it’s gonna work, but I was at a friend’s house last night in NYC and we were talking about great songs — and this is a great song.”
“Answering Machine“ – The crowd always heartily sings along with this lovely melodic chorus. The lyrics are so biting for such a pretty song: “I met a new one and she looks just like you / She gives me everything that you didn’t want to / And maybe I don’t need saving after all / She sticks in my ribs almost better than you did.”
“Straight to Hell“ (Drivin And Cryin cover) – Nathanson has a great ear for a good song, meaningful lyrics, a beautiful melody and the songs he covers (while sometimes done in jest) are often transformed into something more arresting than the original. I’ve never cared for Drivin and Cryin, but I do here.
I heartily recommend downloading this entire live album (on eMusic and iTunes) and, even more so, seeing Matt Nathanson when he comes through your town. You will not have more fun at a show this year.
I just noticed on his website that he is playing a free show this Thursday night (June 22) in downtown San Jose as part of the Music In The Other Park summer concert series. Can’t go wrong with free + Matt Nathanson. He rocks Cleveland on Saturday, and will be at Austin City Limits in September. (Now come back to Colorado!)
. . . In addition to hoisting a pint to calm my nerves after a tense, hard-fought game today pitting England against Sweden (ending in a draw, but how I rooted for a Brit win) – I would be heading to the British Museum. I took a seminar class on Michelangelo when I was studying abroad in Florence, and as such I consider myself fortunate to have seen most of his finished works and many of his drawings and sketches. But this exhibit brings together some that I have not seen. I love the anatomical power and grace of Michelangelo’s human forms.
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Michelangelo Draws Night Crowd
Associated Press article, 6/8/06
LONDON – The British Museum said Thursday that it will stay open until midnight for the first time to meet the demand for access to its exhibition of the works of Italian master Michelangelo. More than 140,000 people have visited “Michelangelo Drawings: Closer to the Master,” since it opened at the end of March.
Now the 247-year-old museum will remain open until midnight every Saturday until the show closes on July 25.
“The exhibition has been such an overwhelming success that we wanted to find a way to let more people see the show before the end of its run,” said director Neil MacGregor. “This really is a unique opportunity to spend your Saturday night with a master of the Italian Renaissance.” The exhibition is a study of the Renaissance artist’s life from his earliest pen drawings to his late, haunting crucifixions.
It reunites material not together since the posthumous dispersal of works from Michelangelo’s studio in 1564. The works come from collections in the British Museum, the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford and the Teyler Museum in Holland.
The museum’s first Michelangelo exhibition in 30 years features 90 drawings and a collection of thumbnail sketches and red chalk studies that trace the evolution of the painting of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican.
The exhibition took a record 11,000 bookings before it even opened, beating the previous record of 3,670 advance bookings set by an exhibition of Persian art.
We went to the coolest Italian-themed outdoor festival in Denver yesterday afternoon – La Piazza dell’Arte. Chalk drawings on the sidewalk & some authentic gelato in Larimer Square; it doesn’t get much better than that.
The artwork ranged from original compositions to copies of some gorgeous masterpieces such as Bouguereau and Jacques Louis David, reproduced large-scale.
The tagline was “Just like the Sistine Chapel, only upside down.” I was in heaven.
(Note about the songs: 4 out of the 5 this week are YouSendIt, EZArchive is down again today. I’ll fix it when I can, been trying all morning.) 10:57pm – FIXED!
“Magic Blues“
The Ronelles
One might think (as I did) that this is an all-girl R&B doo-wop band, judging from the name. But then you’d be wrong. This is swaggering, pleasing garage rock with a heavy dose of retro sound from up-and-coming Glaswegian quartet The Ronelles. “Magic Blues” is the opening track, a fantastic loose bluesy number that makes me think of early Stones or a playful outtake from Oasis. The recently-released debut album Motel (on Neon Tetra Records) is excellent, full of rough guitar riffs & crunchy harmonies with an edge that pays homage to ole’ school folks like Jerry Lee Lewis and Chuck Berry. The Ronelles are slowly building a passionate fanbase with opening slots for bands such as Kings of Leon and The Zutons. If I were in a band, this is the kind of music I think I would find most cathartic to make. Buy this CD – 36 minutes of furious goodness.
“Powers“
Blackalicious
Yep, seriously. This track makes me jump up and dance in my stripey socks like nobody’s business. The ultimate summer party song, droning deep lead vocals, a sick backbeat, teasing electric guitar licks, and a gospel-y chorus. Uh huh. Shake it. This song ROCKS. Oh, and even better — it was FREE for a short time from eMusic, on the Anti Records sampler. Originally from Blackalicious’ 2005 album The Craft.
“String of Blinking Lights“
Paper Moon
I think I found this Paper Moon song over on Chromewaves, and clicked to download because of the description which likened this Canadian band to Ivy or The Cardigans, but with a “denser, meatier sound and lyricism and without the Euro angle.” Sounds good to me. Pleasing pop from their new album Broken Hearts Break Faster Every Day (on Endearing Records). Sample some of their other sounds on eMusic on the Intercontinental Pop Exchange No. 2 album.
“Got To Have It“
Soul President
Way back in the beginnings of this blog, I linked up to the Salon Magazine Audiofile page. It definitely pays to check here regularly, as they have a whole string of great, free mp3s from a wide range of styles (this week it’s Juana Molina, The Stills, recent songs include Sonic Youth, Ray Davies, and Ane Brun). A few days ago they posted this old-school gem, and it’s been rockin’ through my earbuds all weekend — echoey vocals, rat-a-tat opening and some good “unh” and “hah” business all throughout. This is from the newest compilation in the Eccentric Soul series (from Numero Group): The Big Mack Label, which is a fascinating resurrection of some obscure Detroit soul & doo-wop that slipped through the cracks.
“When The Night Turns Cold“
Tobias Fröberg
More Swedes, please. I swear, they are infiltrating! This is a quirky song, yes, from (UK label Poptones‘ newest signee) Tobias Fröberg. Starts out with fascinating bongo percussion line and sports a sort-of odd singalong chorus, but it’s clean and bright and I like it. From Somewhere In The City, coming late this August (on Cheap Lullaby Records in the US, Poptones in the UK).
Oh, and my computer’s hard drive got filled this weekend. Yikes. Didn’t see that one coming. I have to do some serious spring cleaning in order to keep you livin’ in the freewheeling new-music lifestyle to which you have become accustomed from me & this blog.
My dad is the best dad in the world. Just look at how happy I was on his shoulders at Disneyland. And the magic is – he’s never stopped being as great of a man as he was in that picture to my five-year-old eyes; although he did shave that beard (when I was 16) and that was an improvement in many ways. But other than that, he rocks on as a fount of perpetual wisdom, a wonderful sense of humor, and a grab-and-shake-me hug whenever I need it.
I love you, Daddy! Happy Father’s Day.
Have A Little Fun With Me – Glen Phillips
Father and Daughter – Paul Simon
Father and Son (with Fiona Apple) – Johnny Cash
I will, Paul. I will.
(Happy 64th birthday to Paul McCartney – ’tis a day that once seemed so far away)
“When I’m Sixty-Four” – The Beatles
Name: Heather Browne
Location: Colorado, originally by way of California
Giving context to the torrent since 2005.
"I love the relationship that anyone has with music: because there's something in us that is beyond the reach of words, something that eludes and defies our best attempts to spit it out. It's the best part of us, probably, the richest and strangest part..."
—Nick Hornby, Songbook
"Music has always been a matter of energy to me, a question of Fuel. Sentimental people call it Inspiration, but what they really mean is Fuel."
—Hunter S. Thompson
Mp3s are for sampling purposes, kinda like when they give you the cheese cube at Costco, knowing that you'll often go home with having bought the whole 7 lb. spiced Brie log. They are left up for a limited time. If you LIKE the music, go and support these artists, buy their schwag, go to their concerts, purchase their CDs/records and tell all your friends. Rock on.
I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS is brought to you by Fuel/Friends LLC. Ownership of all audio and visual material displayed here remains with their creators and/or owners and is cited accordingly.. Illustrations by Luke Flowers. Design & Layout by Dayjob.
