Songs Of The Week, 2017: 7/1-7/7

Red Eyeliner- P. Hux
Mandy- The Rails
Hey Blue Eyes- Bruce Springsteen
Got To Be A Better Way- Corey Harris
Waitin' Guilty- Black Crowes
Cherokee- Kamasi Washington
So Long- Fischer-Z

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Quick Takes 3

 1. On July 4th, Elvis Costello quietly squeaked out a new single under his alias The Imposter. It is a fab cover of Paul Simon's "American Tune" backed with an equally fab EC original, "Lucky Dog." Check it out below

https://open.spotify.com/album/0XA827DfzH4RSk6ZwKe8Ht


2. For those of you who have been enjoying your vinyl since the dawn of man and have not just climbed aboard in recent years, may I just say that the recent Bob Ludwig remasters of the early Elton catalogue are to die for. "Tumbleweed Connection" sounds like the band is in your living room, assuming of course, you are also in the living room. Check those out HERE


3. You don't need to be a fan of Queen to absolutely love this video of 65K people passing the time while waiting for Green Day to take the stage in Hyde Park



4. Just finished Graeme Thomson's book on the late great Phil Lynott and Thin Lizzy.  It was difficult to fully enjoy a story about the slow demise of a such a troubled soul. I will say this. I do NOT understand why both "Chinatown" and "Renegade," Lizzy's first two studio recordings for Warner Brother, are regarded as garbage. I find both to be as good as anything they released during their Mercury run, and both are much better than most of what's found on their swansong, "Thunder & Lightning," which seems to get a lot more acclaim.

Here's a track from each.

Time To Sell My Sticks, Part 6: Lewis Nash

Another great Italian tenor, Joe Lovano, released a live CD in 2003 featuring his award-winning nonet. "On This Day...At The Vanguard," on Blue Note, is one of my very favorite jazz performances, and I recall a dozen or so years later, a few unfavorable reviews, mostly citing the recording, which has this incredibly effective vintage sound. Not everyone thought the same. This doesn't change the performance, which I think swings like a muthaf**ka, thanks to drummer Lewis Nash. Nash goes absolutely berserk at around the 6:44 mark and continues until about 8:44, but I suggest waiting it out so you can really sink into the pocket.

Available For Bar Mitzvahs and Hootenannies

Rehearsals are rehearsals. For what? In the case of The Hard Copies, who are Mark Zeray on vocals and guitar, Peter Roaman on bass and yours truly on drums and vocals, rehearsals are  to make music and have fun and on this day in 2014, we did. On any day, we do, but the results aren't always something I want to share. Hell, it's Independence Day.

From The "It Might Be Old News To You" Department

This post isn't about the genius of Bob Dylan. It is not a post trying to change the minds of those who "only like a few of his songs" or think "he has a terrible voice." This post is about one song, a song the "a bit more than casual fan" might recognize as "One Of Must Know (Sooner Or Later)" from "Blonde On Blonde," but here, with a different arrangement and different lyrics, it becomes "She's Your Lover Now," an unreleased track that can be found on the first "Bootleg Series" set and on the recent "Cutting Edge" collection.

Sometimes, when you least expect it, like yesterday when this song followed "Elenore" by the The Turtles, as my iPod shuffled along, a song will quite frankly, grab you by throat and do its best to kill you.  All I can say is, Holy Fucking Crap, Bob!



The pawnbroker roared
Also, so, so did the landlord
The scene was so crazy, wasn’t it?
Both were so glad
To watch me destroy what I had
Pain sure brings out the best in people, doesn’t it?
Why didn’t you just leave me if you didn’t want to stay?
Why’d you have to treat me so bad?
Did it have to be that way?
Now you stand here expectin’ me to remember somethin’ you forgot to say
Yes, and you, I see you’re still with her, well
That’s fine ’cause she’s comin’ on so strange, can’t you tell?
Somebody had better explain
She’s got her iron chain
I’d do it, but I, I just can’t remember how
You talk to her
She’s your lover now

I already assumed
That we’re in the felony room
But I ain’t a judge, you don’t have to be nice to me
But please tell that
To your friend in the cowboy hat
You know he keeps on sayin’ ev’rythin’ twice to me
You know I was straight with you
You know I’ve never tried to change you in any way
You know if you didn’t want to be with me
That you could . . . didn’t have to stay
Now you stand here sayin’ you forgive and forget. Honey, what can I say?
Yes, you, you just sit around and ask for ashtrays, can’t you reach?
I see you kiss her on the cheek ev’rytime she gives a speech
With her picture books of the pyramid
And her postcards of Billy the Kid (why must everybody bow?)
You better talk to her ’bout it
You’re her lover now

Oh, ev’rybody that cares
Is goin’ up the castle stairs
But I’m not up in your castle, honey
It’s true, I just can’t recall
San Francisco at all
I can’t even remember El Paso, uh, honey
You never had to be faithful
I didn’t want you to grieve
Oh, why was it so hard for you
If you didn’t want to be with me, just to leave?
Now you stand here while your finger’s goin’ up my sleeve
An’ you, just what do you do anyway? Ain’t there nothin’ you can say?
She’ll be standin’ on the bar soon
With a fish head an’ a harpoon
An’ a fake beard plastered on her brow
You’d better do somethin’ quick
She’s your lover now

Songs Of The Week, 2017: 6/17-6/30

Harry Hippie- Bobby Womack
Scorpio Red- The Holy Mackerel
Joy In Repetition- Prince
Head On- The Pixies
I Don't Remember Your Name- The Records
A.1 On The Jukebox- Dave Edmunds
New Mama- Neil Young
You Avoid Parties- The Posies
Vanity Fair- Squeeze
Jesus Is Going To Make Up My Dying Bed- Pops Staples
Everybody's Out Of Town- B.J. Thomas
Loveless- Paul Carrack
See You Tonite- Gene Simmons
The Scum Lives On- Demolition 23

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POWER Pop

Parthenon Huxley, or P. Hux if you will, has been making music for a long time, first as guitarist for A Man Called E. before that man formed Eels. Then, on his own, with a number of solid pop and rock records. He is also part of The Orchestra, a band of former ELO members. (In 2005, P. Hux released "Homemade Spaceship," a very fine collection of ELO covers.)

But it is 2001's "Purgatory Falls" that I keep going back to, a record about Huxley dealing with the death of his wife from cancer. The subject matter is pretty damn heavy for its running time of just a bit over a half hour. But it isn't all a downer. I find the whole thing quite remarkable. Genius actually.

It's a difficult listen, but completely worth the time. I hadn't thought about this record in a while, but the song below popped up on the trusty iPod, and I fell into the rabbit hole. All told, "Purgatory Falls" is a great record whether you know the backstory or you don't.