dufusdownbeat

dufusdownbeat Has Moved!

2009-12-29T06:46:00.006-05:00

dufusdownbeat is taking a hike. The new domain is http://dufusdownbeat.wordpress.com/. Please click over to pick up where this, the original site left off. And please add this new address to your bookmarks, blogrolls and feed readers.

I'll see you at our new home. Keep on rockin'!

Unusual Rock and Roll Christmas Songs (7)

2009-12-27T06:36:00.000-05:00

For our last "unusual" Christmas rock tune we go back to 1974 when Greg Lake took a break from buddies Emerson and Palmer to record a song he'd written protesting the commercialism of Christmas.

I Believe In Father Christmas was apparently misinterpreted as being anti-religious and Lake was surprised by it's success. The song shot to #2 in 1975 and is Lake's only hit solo release.

ELP later recorded the song for their 1977 album Works Volume II.

They said there'll be snow at Christmas

They said there'll be peace on Earth

But instead it just kept on raining

A veil of tears for the Virgin's birth

I remember one Christmas morning

A winter's light and a distant choir

And the peal of a bell and that christmas tree smell

And their eyes full of tinsel and fire

They sold me a dream of Christmas

They sold me a Silent Night

And they told me a fairy story

'Till I believed in the Israelite

And I believed in Father Christmas

And I looked at the sky with excited eyes

'Till I woke with a yawn in the first light of dawn

And I saw him and through his disguise

I wish you a hopeful Christmas

I wish you a brave New Year

All anguish pain and sadness

Leave your heart and let your road be clear

They said there'll be snow at Christmas

They said there'll be peace on Earth

Hallelujah Noel be it Heaven or Hell

The Christmas you get you deserve.

La la la la la la la la la la....

Unusual Rock and Roll Christmas Songs (6)

2009-12-26T06:53:00.000-05:00

Well, I hope everyone had a great Christmas and got all the CDs you were asking for! We conclude our week of unusual rock Christmas tunes today with what has become a modern day classic.

In 1971, John Lennon and Yoko Ono recorded Happy Xmas (War Is Over). The song was intended as a protest against the Vietnam war but has become a Christmas standard. Countless musicians have covered the song. But I like the original.

So this is Christmas
And what have you done
Another year over
And a new one just begun
Ans so this is Christmas
I hope you have fun
The near and the dear one
The old and the young

A very merry Christmas
And a happy New Year
Let's hope it's a good one
Without any fear
And so this is Christmas
For weak and for strong
For rich and the poor ones
The world is so wrong
And so happy Christmas
For black and for white
For yellow and red ones
Let's stop all the fight
A very merry Christmas
And a happy New Year
Let's hope it's a good one
Without any fear
And so this is Christmas
And what have we done
Another year over
And a new one just begun
Ans so this is Christmas
I hope you have fun
The near and the dear one
The old and the young
A very merry Christmas
And a happy New Year
Let's hope it's a good one
Without any fear
War is over over
If you want it
War is over
Now...

Unusual Rock and Roll Christmas Songs (5)

2009-12-25T06:58:00.001-05:00

Merry Christmas! I just had to include this song from U2 this week and today seemed like the most appropriate day to do it. Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) was co-written by Phil Spector and originally sung by Darlene Love in 1963. It had been intended for Ronnie Spector of the Ronettes.

U2's version was released in 1987 after having been recorded at a sound check in Glasgow, Scotland during their Joshua Tree tour. It was later included on the compilation album A Very Special Christmas, with Darlene Love providing backing vocals.

It's Christmas ... baby, please come home
Yeah

The snow's comin' down / Christmas
I'm watchin' it fall / Christmas
Lots of people around / Christmas
Baby, please come home

The church bells in town / Christmas
They're ringin' a song / Christmas
What a happy sound / Christmas
Baby, please come home

They're singin' 'Deck the Halls'
But it's not like Christmas at all
I remember when you were here
And all the fun we had last year

Pretty lights on the tree / Christmas
I'm watchin' 'em shine / Christmas
You should be here with me / Christmas
Baby, please come home
Baby, please come home
Baby, please come home

They're singin' 'Deck the Halls'
But it's not like Christmas at all
I remember when you were here
And all the fun we had last year

If there was a way / Christmas
I'd hold back these tears / Christmas
But it's Christmas day / Christmas
Baby, please come home / Christmas
Home / Christmas

Baby, please come home / Christmas
Baby, please come home / Christmas
Baby, please come home / Christmas
Home / Christmas

Baby, please come home / Christmas

Unusual Rock and Roll Christmas Songs (4)

2009-12-24T06:41:00.000-05:00

Well it's Christmas Eve and what better unusual Christmas rock song to profile than 2000 Miles by Chrissie Hynde and the Pretenders. The song was released in November of 1983, followed by inclusion on the group's third album Learning to Crawl.

The album was aptly titled. The group had seen considerable shake up following the drug deaths of two members. Here's a live performnce of the song from the mid 90s.

He's gone,
2000 miles,
Is very far.
The snows falling down.
It's colder day by day.
I miss you.
The children were singing,
He'll be back at Christmas time.
And these frozen and silent nights,
Sometimes in a dream,
You appear.
Outside under the purple sky,
Diamonds in the snow,
Sparkle.
Our hearts were singing,
It felt like Christmas time.
2000 miles.
Is very far through the snow
I'll think of you
Wherever you go.
He's gone,
2000 miles,
Is very far.
The snows falling down,
It's colder day by day.
I miss you.
I can hear people singing,
It must be Christmas time.
I hear people singing,
It must be Christmas time.

Unusual Rock and Roll Christmas Songs (3)

2009-12-23T06:51:00.000-05:00

Our third unusual Christmas rock song is one of the first I recall hearing that wasn't by Bing Crosby, Dean Martin or Elvis or some such artist. Little Saint Nick by the Beach Boys was released in 1963 at the height of their popularity, when I was 11 years old. I thought it was pretty cool. Written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love, the song borrows heavily from their hit Little Deuce Coupe.

The song was re-recorded in 1964 for release on The Beach Boys Christmas Album.

Oooooooo
Merry Christmas Saint Nick
Christmas comes this time each year
Oooooooo oooooooo
Well, way up north where the air gets cold
There's a tale about Christmas that you've all been told
And a real famous cat all dressed up in red
And he spends the whole year workin' out on his sled
It's the little Saint Nick
Ooooo, little Saint Nick
It's the little Saint Nick
Ooooo, little Saint Nick
Just a little bobsled we call it old Saint Nick
But she'll walk a toboggan with a four speed stick
She's candy-apple red with a ski for a wheel
And when Santa hits the gas, man, just watch her peel
It's the little Saint Nick
Ooooo, little Saint Nick
It's the little Saint Nick
Ooooo, little Saint Nick
Run run reindeer
Run run reindeer
Whoaa
Run run reindeer
Run run reindeer
He don't miss no one
And haulin' through the snow at a frightenin' speed
With a half a dozen deer with Rudy to lead
He's gotta wear his goggles 'cause the snow really flies
And he's cruisin' every pad with a little surprise
It's the little Saint Nick
Ooooo, little Saint Nick
It's the little Saint Nick
Ooooo, little Saint Nick
Ahhhhhh
Oooooooo
Merry Christmas Saint Nick
Christmas comes this time each year
Ahhhhhh
Oooooooo
Merry Christmas Saint Nick
Christmas comes this time each year
Ahhhhhh
Oooooooo
Merry Christmas Saint Nick
Christmas comes this time each year

Unusual Rock and Roll Christmas Songs (2)

2009-12-22T06:30:00.000-05:00

Welcome to Day 2 of our week long look at unusual Christmas rock songs. Today's tune comes from a favourite artist of mine - Chris Rea. Driving Home For Christmas was one of two new tracks on the compilation album New Light Through Old Windows, released in 1988.

When first released, the song reached #53 on the UK charts. Re-released in 2007, the song hit #33, the first time it had cracked the UK Top 40.

Driving home for Christmas

Oh, I can't wait to see those faces

I'm driving home for Christmas, yea

Well I'm moving down that line

And it's been so long

But I will be there I sing this song

To pass the time away

Driving in my car

Driving home for Christmas

It's gonna take some time

But I'll get there

Top to toe in tail-lights

Oh, I got red lights on the run

But soon there'll be a freeway

Get my feet on holy ground

So I sing for you

Though you can't hear me

When I get through

And feel you near me

I am driving home for Christmas

Driving home for Christmas

With a thousand memories

I take look at the driver next to me

He's just the same

Just the same

Top to toe in tail-lights

Oh, I got red lights on the run

I'm driving home for Christmas, yea

Get my feet on holy ground

So I sing for you

Though you can't hear me

When I get trough

And feel you near me

Driving in my car

Driving home for Christmas

With a thousand memories

Unusual Rock and Roll Christmas Songs (1)

2009-12-21T06:53:00.001-05:00

Welcome to Christmas week at dufusdownbeat. This week, in the days leading up to Christmas, I thought I'd post every day and share with you some of my favourite not-so traditional Christmas songs from the world of rock and roll.

First up is Fairytale of New York from the Pogues and Kirsty MacColl. Released in early December 1987 it hit #1 in Ireland and #2 in Britain. The song comes from the album If I Should Fall From Grace With God. I love this song. It was voted Best Christmas Song Ever 3 years in a row from 2004 through 2006 in polls sponsored by VH1 UK.

It was christmas eve babe
In the drunk tank
An old man said to me: won't see another one
And then they sang a song
The rare old mountain dew
I turned my face away and dreamed about you
Got on a lucky one
Came in eighteen to one
I´ve got a feeling
This year´s for me and you
So happy christmas
I love you baby
I can see a better time
Where all our dreams come true.

They got cars big as bars
They got rivers of gold
But the wind goes right through you
It´s no place for the old
When you first took my hand on a cold christmas eve
You promised me broadway was waiting for me
You were handsome you were pretty
Queen of new york city when the band finished playing they yelled out for more
Sinatra was swinging all the drunks they were singing
We kissed on a corner
Then danced through the night.

And the boys from the NYPD choir were singing Galway Bay
And the bells were ringing out for christmas day.

You´re a bum you´re a punk
You´re an old slut on junk
Lying there almost dead on a drip in that bed
You scumbag you maggot
You cheap lousy faggot
Happy christmas your arse I pray god it´s our last.

And the boys of the NYPD choir's still singing Galway Bay
And the bells were ringing out
For christmas day.

I could have been someone
Well so could anyone
You took my dreams from me
When I first found you
I kept them with me babe
I put them with my own
Can´t make it out alone
I´ve built my dreams around you

And the boys of the NYPD choir's still singing Galway Bay
And the bells are ringing out
For christmas day.

Off Beat - Tell Laura I Love Her

2009-12-19T06:55:00.002-05:00

Earlier this week, while showcasing Leader of the Pack, we talked about the musical genre of "death discs". There's no better example than Tell Laura I Love Her. Singer Ray Peterson had an American hit with the tune in 1960, while Ricky Valence took it to #1 in the UK later the same year.

Ray Peterson's claim to fame prior to 1960 was a little song called The Wonder of You, later made popular by Elvis. Following "Laura" Peterson had something of a hit with Corrina, Corrina but his popularity never really matched that associated with his death disc.

Here' Sha-Na-Na takes "Laura" for a spin...

Laura and Tommy were lovers
He wanted to give her everything
Flowers, presents, but most of all, a wedding ring

He saw a sign for a stock car race
A thousand dollar prize it read
He couldn't get Laura on the phone
So to her mother, Tommy said

Tell Laura I love her
Tell Laura I need her
Tell Laura I may be late
I've something to do, that cannot wait

He drove his car to the racing grounds
He was the youngest driver there
The crowed roared as they started the race
Around the track they drove at a deadly pace

No one knows what happened that day
Or how his car overturned in flames
But as they pulled him from the twisted wreck
With his dying breath, they heard him say

Tell Laura I love her
Tell Laura I need her
Tell Laura not to cry
My love for her will never die

Now in the chapel where Laura prays
For her poor Tommy, who passed away
It was just for Laura he lived and died
Alone in the chapel she can hear him cry

Please Mr. Postman

2009-12-17T06:35:00.001-05:00

Some might think it was originally performed by the Beatles in 1963 or by the Carpenters in 1975, but it was the girl group the Marvelettes who first had a hit with Please Mr. Postman in 1961. While there's some discrepancy over the writing credits for the tune, the one constant in the various versions include Brian Holland of Motown's hit-making team Holland-Dozier-Holland.

Legend has it that the instrumentation in the studio was provided by Motown session players known as the Funk Brothers, which included Marvin Gaye on drums.

The song put the Marvelettes on the charts and gave Motown it's first #1 hit, paving the way for their more popular successor, the Supremes.

Leader Of The Pack

2009-12-15T06:27:00.001-05:00

One genre dufusdownbeat has sadly slighted is Girl Groups. Well, this week we rectify that.

The Shangri-Las formed in Queen's New York in 1963 and was made of of two sets of sisters: 14 year-old lead singer Mary Weiss and her 17 year-old sister Betty, and back up singers and identical twins Marge and Mary Ann Ganser, 16 years of age. While they recorded as a quartet, they often toured as a trio because Betty didn't like to tour.

In late 1964, the Shangri-Las were looking for a follow-up to their recent hit Remember (Walking In The Sand). They found it with something called Leader of the Pack. The song is among the pantheon of a genre referred to as the "dead disc" and includes such songs as Dead Man's Curve by Jan and Dean, Tell Laura I Lover Her by Ray Peterson, and the Cavaliers Last Kiss.

The group issued one original album, lasted a couple of years and at the height of their success toured with the Beatles, James Brown, Dusty Springfield and the Zombies.

The following clip is from Steve Allen's The Tonight Show with a cameo from Robert Goulet.

Off Beat - You Don't Bring Me Flowers

2009-12-12T06:55:00.001-05:00

Here's an amazing performance of a song with an amazing history.

You Don't Bring Me Flowers was originally intended as a theme song for a Norman Lear television show. It never came to be, but Neil Diamond came across the tune, added a couple of verses and put it out in 1977. Around the same time Barbara Streisand released a version of the same song. A radio Program Director in Louisville Kentucky combined the two versions and began airing the "virtual" duet. The song was so popular Diamond and Streisand recorded the real thing and it shot to #1.

While the Diamond/Streisand version is the definitive one - although it's a little too syrupy for my tastes - my favourite performance of the song has got to be by the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain. If you enjoy this bit, look up the UOGB on You Tube. You won't be disappointed. They're a hoot. Their performances of Shaft and Teen Spirit, for example, are a riot.

Sub-Rosa Subway

2009-12-10T07:02:00.000-05:00

In the mid 70s, as FM radio was coming into it's own in Canada, there was a song getting a lot of airplay that many listeners thought was the new disc by the Beatles. Sub-Rosa Subway had a Beatlesque sound to it and the vocals were dead ringers for John Lennon and Paul McCartney.

The song was about Alfred Ely Beach, the man responsible for building the New York city subway system. But the group wasn't England's Beatles. In reality it was Canada's Klaatu, a progressive rock trio formed in Toronto in 1973. The group was named after the extraterrestrial in the film The Day the Earth Stood Still.

Their most famous song was Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft, a version if which was covered by the Carpenters in 1977. "Occupants", to some degree, from their first album 3:47 EST and particularly the song Sub-Rosa Subway gave rise to rumours the Beatles had reformed and recorded new music. Alas, it was not to be. Klaatu disbanded around 1982.

Eve Of Destruction

2009-12-08T06:58:00.002-05:00

For a 13 year old living in Canada the Viet Nam war was not something top of mind for me. But I was into music and in 1965 a guy named Barry McGuire began to climb the charts with a tune called Eve of Destruction.

The song was everywhere. It was on the radio. My buds and I used to sing it. And McGuire performed it on every television music show beamed into my rec room.

McGuire was a member of the New Christy Minstrels, an American folk-singing outfit, and had co-written their hit Green, Green. He left the group in 1965, laid down the vocal track to the P.F. Sloan written Eve of Destruction and before the record producers had a chance to clean the track up it was leaked and started to get airplay.

McGuire was fortunate. The song was first offered to the Byrds, who turned it down.

Funnily enough, in the 70s McGuire became a born-again Christian and for the longest time refused to sing the song again. In the 60s, however, it was the anthem of a generation.

Barry McGuire - Eve Of Destruction
par scootaway

Off Beat - I'm Fed Up

2009-12-05T06:57:00.003-05:00

I don't know what this is, who Alizee is, how she ever got to be as popular as she is, and why she doesn't seem to own any regular clothes. But the whole package made me laugh. The lip-syncing, the lyrics, the little nymph/Lolita act...well you get the picture. And, hey, It's a catchy tune!

Alizee is from France and apparently she's had quite the international hit with I'm Fed Up. Here she sings the French version (with subtitles), J'en ai marre. Boy, I love the French people.

Bubbles and water
Legs up for hours
My goldfish is under me
To bathe for hours
Makes my mouth water
I’m “foamely” ecstatic

It’s not a problem
I lazy ‘round
Bubbly and stubborn
I lazy ‘round
Melon and water
Is just a dream
It makes me wonder
Is it a “sin” ?

Bubbles and water
Legs up for hours
“Bombs”, you keep away from me!
Today lying low
Twisting up my toes
I swim in such harmony
So what bothers me:

Chorus :
I’m fed up with loneliness
With my uncle overstressed
Fumbling, crawling for something
That never shows, just a dream.
I’m fed up with creeps crying
Over the past, such a sin
Not to be cool, but a fool
If I could mess up their rules.
I’m fed up with your complaints
Baby, well I’m not a saint!
Fed up with the rain, the plane…
That makes me throw up again.
I’m fed up with all cynics
Bathing caps and all critics
I’m fed up with being
fed up! Poor me !

Bubbles and water
Legs up for hours
My goldfish still under me!
Delight of pleasures
Aquatic treasures
A place out of misery, my fantasy

White Bird

2009-12-03T07:15:00.002-05:00

It's A Beautiful Day formed in 1967 in San Francisco. They achieved moderate success but nowhere near the popularity of some of their "summer of love" contemporaries.

Their leader, David LaFlamme, had been a violin soloist with the Utah Symphony Orchestra

Their best known song, White Bird, comes from their self-titled initial album, released in 1969. And it demonstrates the group's unique approach to music, a catchy fusion of rock, jazz, folk and classical genres. The group split up in 1974.

Hang On Sloopy

2009-12-01T06:39:00.000-05:00

In the mid 60s, a group called the Strangeloves were riding high with a song called I Want Candy. They'd been touring with the Dave Clark Five and had been playing a tune called Hang On Sloopy. The Dave Clark Five liked it so much they were about to record it. But the Strangeloves had other ideas. They gave it to an outfit called Rick and the Raiders, led by 17 year-old Rick Zehringer - later known as Rick Derringer - and they put it out under the name of The McCoys. In October 1965, it hit #1.

Of course Derringer went on to play with the Johnny and Edgar Winter bands, had a decent solo career marked by the hit Rock and Roll Hoochie Koo and has been an in-demand session guitarist, perhaps most notably with Steely Dan.

The song has since been adopted as the football fighting song of Ohio State University. And it's played at home games of the Cincinnati Bengals, the Cleveland Browns, Cavaliers and Indians, not to mention the Columbus Blue Jackets.

In 1985, the Ohio General Assembly designated Hang On Sloopy as the official rock song of Ohio.

Off Beat - You've Never Even Called Me By My Name

2009-11-28T06:54:00.003-05:00

I've long been a fan of Steve Goodman and was saddened by the songwriter's death in 1984 at the age of 36 of leukemia. He had a way with words and a sharp wit, evidenced by his self-given nickname late in his life of "Cool Hand Leuk".

In the early 70s Goodman was performing at a Chicago bar, opening for Kris Kristofferson. Kristofferson was so impressed he introduced him to Paul Anka who brought him to New York and produced some demos which resulted in his signing with Buddha Records.

Goodman has written many songs for other people. For example, Arlo Guthrie had a hit with City of New Orleans. And David Allan Cole had a hit with one of my favourite Goodman tunes You've Never Even Called Me By My Name, a witty poke at country music and...love.

The song was co-written by another of my favourite songwriters - John Prine, although Prine refused to be listed as the song's co-writer. As the story goes, Goodman bought Prine a jukebox with his royalties.

So here's the non co-writer, singing the song he wrote with Steve Goodman...

And if you were wondering about the Steve Goodman version, here's a bonus...

You Never Even Call Me By My Name
(AKA The Perfect Country & Western Song)
©Steve Goodman and [although he won't admit it] John Prine)

(as sung by Steve Goodman in London, Aug 8, 1976)

[spoken] This is a song I wrote with John Prine 4 years ago (1972) and we tried to put into one song, everything that had ever been in any of the country and western songs we had ever heard. Tried to put it all into one song. Serves us right. This is what came out:
Well it was all I could do to keep from cryin'
Some times it seems so useless to remain
You're the one who always tried to change me
And that is why I will always stay the same
Chorus:
But I'll hang around as long as you will let me
I never minded standing in the rain
You don't have to call me darlin', darlin'
But you never even call me by my name
No, you don't have to call me Freddy Fender
You don't have to call me Charlie Pride
You don't have to call me Merle Haggard anymore
Even though you know you're on my fighting side
Chorus- this verse only:
And I'm gonna hang around as long as you will let me
I never minded standing in the rain (when nights are cold and lonely)
You don't have to call me darlin', darlin'
But you never even call me by name.
[musical by mouth improv done in a Merle Haggard-like tone -no words]
[spoken] I've seen my name, a few times in the phone book
[spoken] And on the neon sign above the bar I used to own
[spoken] And there's only one thing I'm really sure of was that sucker
You're gonna hear it when my savior calls me home
[spoken] That's a lot to get into one song. We left out all the good stuff. Dallas, dope, divorce, dead dogs, trains prison Christmas, mothers, farms, and trucks. Mothers, prison, trucks, trains, farms, Christmas, and dead dogs are essential, you can't have a good country song without them things. And with all due respect this song needs mothers, prison, trucks, trains, farms, Christmas and dead dogs and is that it? Whatever it is - it's also 4 minutes long already (they're going 'when's he gonna end, when's he gonna end in the booth back there') So I'll just tack this verse on the end here-
Ever since the dog died and mama went to prison
Ain't nothin' round this old farm that's been the same
[Spoken] You know when mom broke out last Christmas
She drove the getaway laundry truck into a train
Chorus:
But I'll hang around as long as you will let me
I never minded standing in the rain
You don't have to call me darlin', darlin'
But you never even call me by my name

Absolutely Right

2009-11-26T06:29:00.003-05:00

As a music-loving teenager in Ottawa, Canada's capital, I can recall high-school dances and local concerts with Canadian groups making their tours. April Wine, Lighthouse, Chilliwack, The Guess Who and 3s A Crowd were just some of the acts that stormed through our city.

There were local groups too. One popular band was the Staccatos formed in the mid 60s. They always seemed a cut above the rest of the local groups so it came as no surprise when news came they'd struck out for Los Angeles in an effort to make a dent in the American music scene. Three attempts and a name change to The Five Man Electrical Band later and they hit it big with Signs.

In the early 70s they based themselves in L.A. and toured for several years with such acts as The Allman Brothers, Sly and the Family Stone, The Jefferson Airplane, fellow Canadians Bachman, Turner, Overdrive and many others.

In 1972 they released the album Coming Of Age which spawned the hit Absolutely Right. Our local boys had made good! But fame was fleeting. By 1975 they'd broken up and returned to Ottawa. But for a moment there...

Love Potion #9

2009-11-24T07:07:00.000-05:00

The Searchers apparently took their name from the 1956 John Wayne film of the same name, directed by John Ford. The group formed in the late 50s and went through various line-ups before they achieved hit records in the 60s.

At one point they gave the Beatles a run for their money on the English pop charts and were the second Liverpool group after the fab four to chart a hit in the States with Needles and Pins in 1964.

Love Potion No. 9 was written by Leiber and Stoller and originally recorded by the Clovers in 1959. In 1965 The Searchers' version reached #3 in the States.

Off Beat - Living With A Hernia

2009-11-21T06:48:00.000-05:00

Who can forget James Brown singing Living In America in 1985's Rocky IV? Well, I confess that when I think of Living In America, this is the song I think of: Living With A Hernia by Weird Al Yankovic. It's an hilarious parody.

Turns out Yankovic's performance was filmed on the same stage as Brown's. The parody was one of the tracks on Weird Al's 1986 album Polka Party. Yankovic didn't win any awards for his parody. But James Brown won a Grammy for Best R&B Performance in 1986.

Weird Al Yankovic - Living With A Hernia (Official Music Video) - Watch a funny movie here

Help me out! Dig!
All I do is grunt and groan
Hurts me to walk anywhere
Went to see my physician, Dr. Jones
He took my trousers off, told me to cough
Doctor says there ain't nothin' to discuss
He tells me any day I might have to wear a truss

Living with a hernia
All the time, such aggravation
Living with a hernia
Gonna be my ruination
Living with a hernia
Got to have an operation
Feel so old

Too much back pain
Good gawd, drives me insane
Can't run, barely crawl
Got a bulge in my intestinal wall
Walk real funny, bless my soul
Can't play tennis and it's hard to bowl
You can't even do the splits now... Say it!
Better call it quits now
Now I'm sick of all this dancin' anyhow

Living with a hernia
Hurts me bad in a tender location
Living with a hernia
Had enough humiliation
Living with a hernia
Got to have an operation

I live with a hernia
Can't get up, can't bend over
Now I live with a hernia
Wait a minute...
You may not be familiar with the common types
Of hernias that you could get
So just settle down, let me clue you in
There's incomplete
Epigastric
Bladder
Strangulated
Lumbar hernia
Richter's hernia
Obstructed
Inguinal and Direct

Living with a hernia...Rupture!
I said it's causin' me such irritation
Living with a hernia
Have to have my medication
Living with a hernia
I feel bad!

I Want Candy

2009-11-19T06:49:00.001-05:00

The Monkees, perhaps, are the best example - or worst, depending upon your point of view - of a manufactured pop group who scored significant chart success. But The Strangeloves aren't that far behind. The Strangeloves were 3 guys from New York who said they were former sheep farmers from Australia. Their story went that they got rich over a new form of sheep crossbreeding and used their millions to start a rock group. Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein and Richard Gottehrer, at the time succesfull record producers, adopted the monikers Giles, Miles and Niles Strange and a musical conceit was hatched.

The fictitious brothers ran into a bit of a problem in 1965 with the success of I Want Candy. It ranked so high on the charts the demand to tour as live artists forced them to send out the session musicians who performed in the studio. But they could lip-sync, as this clip demonstrates... Hey, in 1965 what did I know. I was 13 and I thought they were kinda cool.

Massachusetts

2009-11-17T06:26:00.001-05:00

The Gibb Brothers were born in England and moved to Australia where they grew up. Their early success, such as it was, was achieved down under before returning to England in the mid-60s. This is the period of the Bee Gees career that I like. They may have been more popular at the forefront of the disco scene, earned more money and sold more records but Barry, Maurice and Robin could sure write and perform pop hits in the decade beginning in the mid-60s.

In 1967, the Bee Gees burst upon the scene with such hits as New York Mining Disaster 1941 and To Love Somebody both from the erroneously titled 3rd album Bee Gees 1st. But one of my favourite early Bee Gees songs appeared on their next album - Horizontal - Massachusetts. Massachusetts was the Bee Gees first #1 hit and it was the second song to be played on BBC1 when it went on the air in September 1967 in response to such pirate radio stations as Radio Caroline being formally outlawed by Britain's Parliament.

While written by the Gibb Brothers, the song was originally intended for The Seekers. However, they turned it down.

Off Beat - Hot Rod Lincoln

2009-11-14T06:31:00.003-05:00

In the early 1960s, I recall the older brother of a buddy of mine asking me if I'd ever heard the song "Hot Rod Lincoln". I hadn't, so he brought an LP over to my place and we gave it a spin. What a hoot. It must have been the version by Johnny Bond released in 1960. The original was written and recorded by Charlie Ryan in 1955 in response to a 1951 hit called "Hot Rod Race".

There's a great version of the song by Asleep At The Wheel, but the 1972 version by Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen would seem to be the best known. It's from their first LP - Lost In The Ozone. Cody and his Airmen formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan in 1967 before migrating to San Francisco and later Texas, where they disbanded in 1976. Cody went on to sustain a solo career. Hot Rod Lincoln remains his biggest hit.

My pappy said "Son, you're gonna drive me to drinkin',

if you don't stop drivin' that Hot Rod Lincoln."

Have you heard the story of the hot rod race,
where the Fords 'n' Lincolns were settin' the pace?
That story is true, I'm here to say,
that I was drivin' that Model-A.

It's got a Lincoln motor and it's really souped up,
that Model-A body makes it look like a pup.
It's got eight cylinders and uses 'em all,
got overdrive that just won't stall.

With a four-barrel carb and a dual exhaust,
with 4-11 gears you can really get lost.
Got safety tubes but I ain't scared,
the brakes are good, tires fair.

Pulled outta San Pedro late one night,
the moon 'n' the stars was shinin' bright.
We was drivin' up Grapevine hill,
passin' cars like they was standin' still.

All of a sudden in the wink of an eye,
Cadillac sedan passed us by.
I said "Boys that's the mark for me,"
by then the tailight was all you could see.

Now the fellas ribbed me for bein' behind,
so I thought I'd make the Lincoln unwind.
Took my foot off the gas'n'man alive,
I shoved it on down into overdrive.

Wound it up to a hunderd an' ten,
my speedometer said that I hit top end.
My foot was glued like lead to the floor,
that's all there is an' there ain't no more.

Now the boys all thought I'd lost my sense,
them telephone poles looked like a picket fence.
They said "slow down, I see spots,"
the lines on the road just looked like dots.

Took a corner'n'side-swiped a truck,
crossed my fingers just for luck.
My fenders was clickin' the guardrail posts,
the guy beside me was white as a ghost.

Smoke was comin' from outta the back,
when started t' gain on that Cacillac.
Knew I could catch him, I thought I could pass,
don'tcha by then we'd be low on gas.

We had flames comin' from outta the side,
you could feel the tension, man whatta ride.
I said "look out boys, I got a license to fly,"
and that Caddy pulled over and let us by.

Now all of a sudden she started knockin'
down in the dip she started to rock.
And I looked in the mirror, a red light was blinkin',
the cops was after my hot rod Lincoln.

They arrested me 'n' they put me in jail,
'n they called my pappy to throw my bail,
'n he said "son you're gonna drive me ta drinkin'
if you don't stop drivin' that hot rod Lincoln.

Lonely Teardrops

2009-11-12T06:52:00.002-05:00

He influenced a considerable number of artists - Van Morrison and Michael Jackson among them - and his spirited performances earned him the nickname "Mr. Excitement". Jackie Wilson is often cited as a key artist in the transition of rhythm and blues to soul. He started out in the mid to late 50s as a member of the R&B group the Dominoes, but he's far better known for an almost 20 year solo career that ended abruptly in 1975.

In a tragic circumstance, Wilson suffered a massive heart attack while performing in a Dick Clark show, while singing his 1958 hit Lonely Teardrops. As he reached the line "...my heart is crying..." he fell head-first to the stage. The blow left him comatose for eight and-a-half years and he eventually passed away in 1984 at the age of 49.

Summertime Blues

2009-11-10T06:53:00.002-05:00

In 1958, Eddie Cochrane hit the airwaves with a teenage anthem of angst called Summertime Blues. It peaked at #8. Among other things, the song speaks to the then voting age in the United States of 21. While it was subsequently lowered to 18, Cochrane never got to exercise his democratic right. Ironically he was killed in a car crash in Britain at the age of 21 in 1960.

The group Blue Cheer did a credible cover of Summertime Blues in 1968 but for my money the definitive version of the song was by The Who on their 1970 Live At Leeds LP, one of the greatest live albums of all time. Here's a performance from the Monterery Pop Festival.

Off Beat - Jolly Green Giant

2009-11-07T06:59:00.000-05:00

Good things from the garden

Garden in the valley

Valley of the jolly - ho, ho, ho - Green Giant

The Jolly Green Giant has been shilling peas, niblets corn and other assorted vegetables on TV since the early 50s. Of course, without the benefit of colour television he wasn't green when he started out. He was more a scary black-coloured, stiff-moving giant.

Nevertheless the Green Giant had an impact to such an extent he had a rock and roll tune written for him. In 1965, the Kingsmen, famous for their 1963 hit with incomprehensible lyrics - Louie, Louie - went to #4 on the charts with Jolly Green Giant. A listen and look at the lyrics soon indicates that for teens of the day, this wasn't their mother's jolly Green Giant...

In duh valley of duh jolly... (Ho - ho - ho)

Heard about the Jolly Green Giant (potatoes)
He's so big and mean (artichoke hearts)
He stands there laughin' with his hands on his hips
And then he hits you with a can of beans

He lives down there in his valley (Brussels sprouts)
The cat stands tall and green (spinach)
Well, he ain't no prize, and there's no women his size
And that's why the cat's so mean
One day he left His valley pad
I mean to say This cat was mad
Now listen 'round He wasn't gone long
And then he ran into an Amazon
Well, this changed his whole complexion (broccoli)
He had never seen such a beautiful sight (corn)
Well, he looked at her
And she looked at him
And she almost passed out from fright
He looked at her Thought, "what a dilly"
He touched her once She slapped him silly
This was something He had never sensed
He looked at her As she commenced
Now listen, pal This ain't no fluke
I can't see goin' with a big green kook"

You've heard about the Jolly Green Giant (eggplant)
Don't let his troubles cross your mind (celery stalks)
He couldn't get Sally, so went back to his valley
The cat was color-blind

Creep

2009-11-05T06:45:00.000-05:00

We forgo our 70s spotlight today to continue with our post-Halloween theme this week. What better rock song to highlight Halloween than Creep by Radiohead. The band's most popular song ever had a rather rocky and uncertain beginning. Recorded and released in 1992 the song wasn't at all popular until it was released as part of Radiohead's first album, Pablo Honey. Indeed, as a single, the song sold only 6,000 copies in their native Britain and peaked at #72 on the British charts.

But with the release of the album and it's popularity on MTV the song became so popular in the United States it was re-released in Britain.

One thing I didn't realize is that the song borrows heavily from the Hollies tune The Air That I Breathe, so much so the Hollies shared songwriting credits in the liner notes of Pablo Honey.

The lyrics of the song describe a drunken fella following a woman around trying to get her attention. But his insecurities get the better of him and he gives up trying. And so, in his estimation, he's a creep!

Zombie

2009-11-03T06:42:00.000-05:00

It must subconsciously have something to do with Halloween's coming and going last weekend but dufusdownbeat leaves the 60s and 70s behind this week to spotlight a song that actually has absolutely nothing to do with ghosts and goblins, Zombie by The Cranberries.

Every once in a while this song rumbles around in my head and I find myself muttering under my breath "ZAH-OM-BEE, ZAH-OM-BEE". It's just so damn catchy.

It was written by Dolores O'Riordan, the group's pixie-like lead singer - best known for her changing hair colours and styles throughout the years - and was a hit track from the 1994 album No Need To Argue. It's about the unrest in Ireland and it's written in memory of two boys killed in an IRA bombing in Warrington.

The Cranberries decided to take a rest in 2003 and O'Riordan launched a solo career. She's issued two solo albums. She joined the Cranberries in 1990 when they were known as The Cranberry Saw Us by answering an ad in the paper for a female lead singer. She showed up with a rough version of "Linger" and the rest is musical history.

Off Beat - Troglodyte

2009-10-31T06:44:00.001-04:00

"What we're gonna do right now is go back..." to 1972 and that crazy off beat song from The Jimmy Castor Bunch - Troglodyte.

Castor began his career as a do-wap singer in the late 50s in New York and replaced Frankie Lymon in The Teenagers before switching to the saxophone in 1960. In 1972 he formed the Jimmy Castor Bunch who reached their peak with the release of their first album and a cut from that LP called Troglodyte otherwise known as "Cave Man".

Troglodyte, which hit #6, was the groups highest charting effort. This video is a hoot...

Do You Feel Like We Do?

2009-10-29T07:06:00.001-04:00

At 18, having already spent 3 years as lead singer and guitarist of The Herd, Peter Frampton joined up with Steve Marriott of the Small Faces in 1968 to form Humble Pie. Three years and 5 albums later Frampton embarked on a solo career.

In 1973 he released Frampton's Camel, a moderately successful LP that contained a tune called "Do You Feel Like We Do". A catchy tune, Frampton featured it in his live performances where it received significant crowd reaction, prompting him to include it on 1976's "Frampton Comes Alive". The album became the #1 selling live album of all time where it sat in the record books until it was eclipsed by - in order - live sets by Garth Brooks, Bruce Springsteen and the Eagles.

The track and the album defined his sound for the rest of his career. I recall it being the first time I'd ever heard the "talk box" although Frampton picked up on it in some session work for George Harrison's "All Things Must Pass".

In 1975, Prior to the release of Frampton Comes Alive, he performed the song on Burt Sugerman's Midnight Special, staple weekend viewing for any serious rock fan because of it's excellent and eclectic rock performances... This is a classic performance!

Jennifer Eccles

2009-10-27T06:55:00.000-04:00

Since their formation in the late 60s, Graham Nash has been an integral part of the various incarnations of groups bearing his name: Crosby, Stills, Nash; Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young; and Crosby and Nash - not to mention his solo efforts from time to time. But prior to the supergroup known as CSN and its legendary spin-offs, Nash was also an integral part and founding member of The Hollies.

Formed in the early 60s, the group charted their first tune in Britain in 1963 and their first American album the following year. The British music media often dubbed them "the third group" after the Beatles and the Stones and in the early days they recorded "made-to-order" songs written by such folks as Graham Gouldman, later of 10CC. Between 1963 and 1969 the Hollies placed a phenomenal 20 hits into Britain's Top 40, many of them co-written by Nash, along with band-mates Allan Clarke and Tony Hicks.

Of course, Nash left the Hollies in 1968, met up with David Crosby and Stephen Stills and the rest is musical history. Before he departed he co-wrote his last Hollies' tune, one of the most popular in their songbook to date.

Off Beat - Do The Freddie

2009-10-24T06:27:00.000-04:00

In the 1960's there were some truly weird and wacky rock acts. Some achieved success due to a certain look or gimmick. One such group was Freddie and the Dreamers, a band associated with the British invasion of the early to mid 60s. The Dreamers managed to sustain their popularity for about 3 years with top 10 hits such as I'm Telling You Now and You Were Made For Me.

The group, though, was oriented more to teeny boppers, much like Herman's Hermits say, than to rock and roll fans of other British bands such as the Beatles, the Who and the Rolling Stones.

And Freddie and the Dreamers really scraped bottom when they attempted to create a dance craze in the States based on their song "Do The Freddie". Their 1965 album of the same name even included diagrams and instructions from dance instructor Arthur Murray.

1980's Rolling Stone History of Rock and Roll says of the group:

"...Freddie and the Dreamers [had] no masterpiece but a plentitude of talentless idiocy and enough persistence to get four albums and one film soundtrack released ... the Dreamers looked as thuggish as Freddie looked dippy ... Freddie and the Dreamers represented a triumph of rock as cretinous swill, and as such should be not only respected but given their place in history."

Witness for yourself...

The Boxer

2009-10-22T06:45:00.000-04:00

Tom and Jerry, more famously known by their real names Simon and Garfunkel were perhaps the most popular folk/rock group of the 60s. Tom and Jerry formed in 1957 but it was Simon and Garfunkel that achieved success in 1965 with the single Sounds of Silence. An acoustic version appeared on their debut album Wednesday Morning 3A.M. But the title track of their next album Sounds of Silence, added electric guitars and drums. In 1967, their music formed the soundtrack to the film The Graduate further rocketing the duo to fame. I remember my Grade 11 English class studying Simon and Garfunkel lyrics. Listening to those songs in the classroom wasn't like school work at all.

In 1970 they issued Bridge Over Troubled Water, their sixth and last LP. It won them Grammies for best song and best album in 1971. In 2004 Rolling Stone ranked them #40 in the 100 Greatest Artists Of All Time. Simon and Garfunkel have each enjoyed successful solo careers, Simon perhaps more so. And, for lucky fans, they've reunited for several special performances and recordings.

One of my favourite cuts off Bridge Over Troubled Water has to be The Boxer. In a bit of a change-up today, I'm sharing a cover-version performance of our highlighted song. Alison Krauss and Shawn Colvin are a couple of angel-like songbirds who really do this tune justice. And we don't often highlight women here, so I'm righting a past wrong. The performance also features dobro player extraordinaire Jerry Douglas. It all takes place in 2007 when Simon was awarded the first-ever Gershwin Prize For Popular Song.

Ripple

2009-10-20T07:03:00.003-04:00

Monday night New York's Empire State Building was apparently lit up in tie-dye colours to honour the Grateful Dead. In my 60s mind all I could think was "Far out, man." The Dead was one of those bands that creeped into America's (and Canada's) consciousness first in the mid to late 60s and on throughout the 70s and 80s. They have a catalogue of far out music. Stories of their group home in Haight-Ashbury, their days on the road and Dead Heads abound.

Jerry Garcia shunned the spotlight as the band's leader and spokesperson but this role fell to him nevertheless. Hey, why not? After all he named the band. The story goes that Garcia, high on some chemical, plunked his finger down (his good one) into either the dictionary or Encyclopedia Britannica and it came to rest on grateful dead. The rest is rock and roll history.

One of my favourite Dead tunes is Ripple. It's a track from one of the iconic Dead albums American Beauty, which showcased the first pairing of Garcia and mandolinist David Grisman. It wouldn't be the last time they made sweet music together either as part of the Dead or in several side projects.

According to Wikipedia, Ripple is widely considered one of the best Grateful Dead songs and one of the most beautiful and poetic songs in popular music. You'll get no argument from me...

Off Beat - I'll Never Smoke Weed With Willie Again

2009-10-17T06:51:00.003-04:00

He's perhaps best associated with with the country music outlaw movement of the 70s, but Willie Nelson was a struggling, yet successful Nashville songwriter in the 60s and an iconic American performer for the last several decades. His run ins with the law are well documented from tax evasion to getting busted for pot possession in 2006 at the age of 73. Indeed, it was his predilection for pot that inspired Toby Keith and his songwriting partner Scotty Emerick to pen Weed With Willie. It was released on Keith's 2003 album Shock'n Y'all.

The song is based on an incident when Toby and Scotty visited Willie on his tour bus to talk about Willie and Toby doing a duet of Beer For My Horses. Willie agreed, the song went to #1 but not before the trio had a smokey night to remember and the inspiration for a song.

There's a story about the marijuana advocate saying he'd cut back on his weed intake. When asked if he'd done it for his health, Willie said "No, it's just getting harder to find the good stuff."

I'll Never Smoke Weed With Willie Again - Click here for this week’s top video clips

I always heard that his herb was top shelf

I just could not wait to find out for myself

Don't knock it til' you tried it, Well I tried it my friend

And I'll never smoke weed with Willie again

I learned a hard lesson in a small Texas town

He fired up a fat boy and passed him around

The last words that I spoke before they tucked me in

Was I'll never smoke weed with Willie again

I'll never smoke weed with Willie again

My party's all over before it begins

You can pour me some old whiskey river my friend

But I'll never smoke weed with Willie again

I hopped on his old bus, the Honey Suckle Rose

The party was Vegas it was after the show.

Alone in the front lounge with just me and him,

With one parting puff grim creeper set in.

I'll never smoke weed with Willie again

My party's all over before it begins

You can pour me some old whiskey river my friend

But I'll never smoke weed with Willie again

Now we're passing the guitar and telling good jokes

I know ones a-comin' cause I'm smelling smoke

No I do not partake, I just let it pass by

With a smile on my face and a great contact high

I'll never smoke weed with Willie again

My party's all over before it begins

You can pour me some old whiskey river my friend

But I'll never smoke weed with Willie again

In the fetal position with drool on my chin

I messed up and smoked weed with Willie again

I'm Your Captain

2009-10-15T06:38:00.001-04:00

In 1972, I shelled out a couple of bucks of my hard earned money on a double album called Mark, Don and Mel - 1969-71. Mark, Don and Mel were, of course, Grand Funk Railroad and the LP captured the power-trio's hits to date in studio and live performances.

The band came together in 1968 in Flint Michigan with Mark Farner on guitars, keyboards and lead vocials; Don Brewer on drums and lead vocals, and; Mel Schacher on bass. Their big break came as the result of a dynamite perfomance at 1969's Atlanta Pop Festival. By 1970 the group was selling more albums than any other American band and while the critics loathed them the fans loved them, making the group a major rock concert attraction.

In 1972 the band added Craig Frost on keyboards. In a case of "what might have been", the group's first choice to add to their sound was Peter Frampton. But Framption had just signed a solo contract with A&M Records.

I'm Your Captain first appeared on Grand Funk's Closer to Home album in 1970. Luckily for me it closed out my double-album purchase in 1972.

Not Fade Away

2009-10-13T03:56:00.001-04:00

In 1964, the Rolling Stones released their first album The Rolling Stones - England's Newest Hitmakers. The first cut on their first album was the Buddy Holly, aka Charles Hardin, hit Not Fade Away.

The song wasn't even on the earlier British version of the untitled album. Indeed, it was first released as a single with Nanker Phelge/Phil Spector penned Little by Little on the B-side in Britain and Lennon/McCartney's I Wanna Be your Man in the US and Canada. Unless you're a Stones fanatic you may not know Nanker Phelge was the name affixed to tunes written by all 5 Stones.

Not Fade Away was the Stones' first Top Five hit in the UK.

Most of the tracks on the album reflect the Stones affinity for American rhythm and blues, including tunes by Willie Dixon and Chuck Berry. Tell Me was the only Jagger/Richards song on the LP. Who knew that would change and these guys would still be rockin' 45 years later.

Off Beat - I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow

2009-10-10T06:56:00.002-04:00

I just loved this movie, particularly the soundtrack. For me, one of the musical highlights of the film was George Clooney performing I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow with his two cronies who as a trio called themselves the Soggy Bottom Boys...

The song is a traditional American folk song first recorded in the early 1900s. In O Brother Where Art Thou the Soggy Bottom Boys are actually Alison Krauss and Union Station, more specifically group member Dan Tyminski.

The song was a hit in the movie for the Soggy Bottom Boys and in real life receiving the CMA for single of the year and a Grammy.

The song has been covered by hundreds of artists including Peter, Paul and Mary, Joan Baez, Judy Collins, Waylon Jennings, Rod Stewart, Denny Laine, Jerry Garcia and The Dillards.

And it was covered by Bob Dylan on his self-titled first album from 1962.

Here, Dylan performs the song on his first televised appearance in 1963.

Genesis - Part II

2009-10-08T06:53:00.002-04:00

While on tour to promote The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway in the mid 70s, Peter Gabriel told his band mates he'd be leaving the group at the end of the tour. The band decided to carry on without him.

After auditioning over 400 lead singers to find a replacement, Genesis reached within and promoted drummer and back-up singer Phil Collins to take over lead singer duties. To help out on drumming duties the group engaged Yes and King Crimson drummer Bill Bruford for their 1976 tour, hiring former Weather Report and Zappa drummer Chester Thompson in 1977.

The four-man line-up's first album was A Trick of The Tail. Recorded in October and November of 1975 and released in February of 1976, the LP hit #3 in the UK and remained on the charts for 39 weeks - more popular than any Genesis album to date.

Entangled is a moody, melancholy track from Trick Of The Tail written by keyboardist Tony Banks and guitarist Steve Hackett marked by the jangling of several 12 string guitars and Bank's Mellotron. It's apparently Bank's favourite track on the album. Here's a live performance from 1976.

Hackett left Genesis in 1977. And then there were three...and have been ever since.

Genesis - Part I

2009-10-06T06:34:00.001-04:00

Genesis is one of those groups I and my CD player revisit periodically. There's a lot to revisit as they've been around for over 40 years and the group has gone through several line-up changes as they've refined their sound.

They came together in 1967 and issued two albums before guitarist Steve Hackett and drummer Phil Collins joined Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford and Peter Gabriel in the "classic" Genesis line up in 1970.

The "Gabriel era" from 1970 to 1975 is one of my favourites, characterized by lengthy tracks on theme and concept albums and stage shows with elaborate costumes and lighting effects. This incarnation of Genesis released 4 albums: Nursery Cryme, Foxtrot, Selling England By The Pound and the epic double-LP The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway.

Nursery Cryme is seen as a not very polished album compared to the production values of the albums that followed. But it is seen as a significant departure from the group's previous album, likely due to the influence of Hackett and Collins

Released in 1971, Nursery Cryme produced the 10 minute The Musical Box which was to become a staple of the group's live performances. The following clip is from a Belgian television performance in the early 70s. It runs close to 10 minutes so a little patience is required here. But from a rock music historic artifact the performance is amazing. Note Gabriel's flute and base drum playing...

We'll continue our Genesis two-parter Thursday with a look at the group post-Gabriel.

Off Beat - Up Against The Wall Redneck Mother

2009-10-03T06:46:00.001-04:00

Ronald Clyde Crosby was born in 1942 in Oneonta, New York. However, he's better known for where he took up residence in the 70s - Austin, Texas - and by his stage name - Jerry Jeff Walker.

Walker calls his style of music "cowjazz" and is usually associated with the country-rock outlaw genre popularized by Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Guy Clark and Townes Van Zandt.

His best known and most often covered song is Mr. Bojangles. But one of my Jerry Jeff Walker favourites is the Ray Wylie Hubbard-penned classic Up Against The Wall Redneck Mother.

He was born in Oklahoma,

His wife's name's Betty Lou Thelma Liz

And he's not responsible for what he's doing

Cause his mother made him what he is.

And it's up against the wall Redneck Mother,

Mother, who has raised her son so well.

He's thirty-four and drinking in a honky tonk.

Just kicking hippies asses and raising hell.

Sure does like his Falstaff beer,

Likes to chase it down with that Wild Turkey liquor;

Drives a fifty-seven GMC pickup truck;

He's got a gun rack; "Goat ropers need love, too" sticker

And it's up against the wall Redneck Mother,

Mother, who has raised her son so well.

He's thirty-four and drinking in a honky tonk.

Just kicking hippies asses and raising hell.

Well,

M is for the mudflaps you give me for my pickup truck

O is for the Oil I put on my hair

T is for T-bird

H is for Haggard

E is for eggs, and

R is for REDNECK.

Up against the wall Redneck Mother,

Mother, who has raised her son so well.

He's thirty-four and drinking in a honky tonk.

Kicking hippies asses and raising hell.

He's up against the wall Redneck Mother,

Mother, who has raised her son so well.

He's thirty-four and drinking in a honky tonk.

Just kicking hippies asses and raising hell.

Sara

2009-10-01T07:09:00.001-04:00

One of my favourite Dylan periods has got to be the mid-70s. If the Bootleg Series Volume 5 from 2002 had have been issued on vinyl I surely would have worn out the grooves. Volume 5 of the acclaimed bootleg series documents the fall 1975 tour of Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue. The tour has been referred to as a travelling caravan and included such musicians as Joan Baez, Joni Mitchell, Roger McGuinn, the fabulous Scarlet Rivera, David Bowie's former lead guitarist Mick Ronson, Kinky Friedman and T Bone Burnett.

Before heading out on tour, Dylan had just completed recording his 17th album Desire. Many of the musicians on the album were retained for the Rolling Thunder Revue. Emmylou Harris, who sang on the album, was unfortunately unavailable to tour. While the album wasn't released until January of 1976, much of it's content was played on the tour.

Dylan hired Sam Shepherd to make a movie about the tour, focusing both on and off stage. The resulting Renaldo and Clara, released in 1978, bombed. But the tour was a huge success, at least thefall leg of it. A spring follow-up not so much. Dylan, in the moment as it were, would often paint his face for his performances. Those performances included the Desire LP closer Sara.

Sara has been referred to as Dylan's most public display of his private life. It was written for his then wife in the hopes of saving a faltering marriage. Married in 1965, Bob and Sara Dylan finally divorced in 1977.

Devil In Disguise

2009-09-29T07:03:00.001-04:00

In August of 1968 the Byrds released their sixth album, the seminal Sweetheart of the Rodeo. But this album went in a different direction from previous Byrds albums and was marked by a change in band membership. Singer/guitarist David Crosby and drummer Michael Clarke had departed after album #5, The Notorius Byrd Brothers, and had been replaced by drummer Kevin Kelley and multi-instrumentalist/singer Gram Parsons.

Parson's influence is all over this classic album, an album that took the Byrds in a whole different direction - alt-country (before there was a name for it!). There are conflicting stories on why Parson's vocals were stripped from several songs and replaced by Roger McGuinn's. Some say it's because he had contractual problems with his previous label. Others say McGuinn was unhappy with the degree of Parson's input. Nevertheless, the songs in question were only issued with Parsons vocals 22 years later on the Byrds Set in 1990.

Nevertheless, within a year Parsons and Chris Hillman had formed their own group, the iconic Flying Burrito Brothers with basssist Chris Etheridge, steel guitarist "Sneaky" Pete Kleinow and former Byrds drummer Michael Clarke.

The five released their own album, a natural follow-up to the countrified "Sweetheart", The Gilded Palace of Sin.

Not unlike "Sweetheart" the Burritos LP didn't sell well. Today, however, the 2 LPs are at the top of the alt-country heap and are responsible for influencing such acts as Wilco, Sun Volt, the Jayhawks, Lucinda Williams and Emmylou Harris who sang with Parsons in the 70s before he died.

Devil in Disguise, from Gilded Palace of Sin was originally called Christine's Tune but was changed because the woman it was written about didn't like her name being used.

Off Beat - Being Green

2009-09-26T07:08:00.001-04:00

The song isn't off beat but the performance certainly is. In 1970, Kermit the Frog performed Being Green on Sesame Street. 1970! Geez, I was the ripe old age of 18. I hadn't realized Sesame Street had been around that long. I think Kermit might be older than I am!

Now, I was too old for Sesame Street so I first came across this song on the album Hard Nose the Highway by Van Morrison - a great album by the way - and for years I thought he wrote and was the first to perform the song.

Turns out, the song was written by Joe Raposo specifically for Kermit's character, as performed by Jim Henson, in the first season of the ground-breaking children's television show. The song was meant to teach children to be happy with themselves, starting out with Kermit lamenting his greenness but by the end of the song he's quite comfortable with it, singing "It's beautiful! And it's what I want to be..."

And Van Morrison wasn't the first artist to cover the song. That distinction goes to Frank "It's Not Easy Being Chairman of the Board" Sinatra on the 1970 LP Sinatra & Company.

Magic Fingers

2009-09-24T07:09:00.001-04:00

I never saw the movie, but in 1971 I rushed out and bought the double album 200 Motels by Frank Zappa. Why? Because Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan were key fixtures with the Mothers of Invention. Perhaps you know them better as Phlorescent Leech and Eddie respectively. No? Ha ha, okay. Sit back and prepare yourself for a little rock and roll trivia.

Mark and Howard were founding members of the 60s rock group The Turtles who had some decent hits such as Happy Together and Dylan's It Ain't Me Babe. When The Turtles broke up in 1970 Mark and Howard made the switch from a syrupy-flavoured pop-group to a musical outfit completely at the other end of the rock and roll scale - the Mothers of Invention.

But the duo couldn't refer to themselves as The Turtles or use their real names due to a dispute with their former record company White Whale. Hence the moniker Flo and Eddie. The two made four albums with Zappa before striking out on their own. Their third album was the epic soundtrack 200 Motels.

Imagine this. The movie starred Theodore Bikel, Keith Moon and as Zappa, Ringo Starr. The treatise on touring in the 70s was backed by the Mothers and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and was filmed in 11 days at Pinewood Studios in England on a budget of $600,000.

For a 19 year-old in 1971, I was suitably impressed with such song titles as Mystery Roach, Redneck Eats, Shove It Right In and Half A Dozen Provocative Squats. And after a few spins on my turntable I was in Zappa nirvana. Here's Zappa, the Mothers and Flo and Eddie doing Magic Fingers...with a brief intro from Ringo in character...

That Was Only Yesterday

2009-09-22T06:42:00.001-04:00

Formed in 1967 Spooky Tooth was one of the few English blues/prog groups of the time with double keyboards - piano and organ - which played a key role in their distinctive sound. The group disbanded in 1974 after several personnel changes with members going on to play with Mott The Hoople, Humble Pie and Stealers Wheel.

It's most famous offspring was organist/vocalist Gary Wright who went on to a hugely successful solo career and is best remembered for the synth-laden hit "Dream Weaver".

In 1969, Spooky Tooth issued their second album aptly titled Spooky Two, reagrded as the best LP they ever issued. I recently purchased Spooky Tooth - Lost In My Dream - An Anthology 1968-1974 an excellent overview of their discography. I highly recommend it. Anyway, it made me go looking for video performances by the group. Here, from their second album, is a 1969 TV performance of That Was Only Yesterday...

Off Beat - Cocktails For Two

2009-09-19T06:24:00.001-04:00

Spike Jones was a wacky musician who led a band called the City Slickers in the 40s and 50s. His satirical covers of popular songs garnered him a huge following. He was kind of like the Al Yankovic of his day. In fact, Weird Al has cited him as a significant influence. He's also said to have influenced such artists as Frank Zappa, the Beatles and the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band.

He was a master of many mediums: records, radio and television. He wrote and recorded a tune in 1942 for a Disney award-winning movie that was originally banned - Der Fuehrer's Face.

For me, one of his most memorable songs was perhaps Cocktails For Two. Wikipedia explains:

The romantic ballad "Cocktails for Two", originally written to evoke an intimate romantic rendezvous, was re-recorded by Spike Jones in 1944 as a raucous, horn-honking, voice-gurgling, hiccuping hymn to the cocktail hour. The Jones version was a huge hit, much to the resentment of composer Sam Coslow.

As with all Spike Jones tunes, the performance was as key as the arrangement...

All Right Now

2009-09-17T07:19:00.003-04:00

For my money Paul Rodgers and Queen just aren't a good fit. No one can replace the flamboyant Freddie Mercury. But there was a time I really dug Paul Rodgers and that was the early 70s when he was lead singer of the British blues outfit Free.

When the band formed in 1968 Rodgers, at 18, was the oldest member in the band. Bass player Andy Fraser was all of 15 and had already spent some time playing with John Mayall's Blues Breakers.

Free released 2 so-so albums but in 1970 their third release Fire and Water took off largely on the strength of the hit single All Right Now.

The group began to fall apart in 1971 due to chemical differences and finally broke up in 1973. Rodgers and drummer Simon Kirke went on to form Bad Company.

But here's where it all started...

Walk Don't Run

2009-09-15T06:37:00.001-04:00

They served as an influence to the Beatles, the Beach Boys, Stephen Stills and John Fogerty, among others. When asked to name the most influential rock guitar solo, Joe Walsh said he would have to include the entire song "Walk Don't Run" because it changed so many guitar players' lives.

Formed in Tacoma, Washington in 1958, the instrumental group the Ventures' first hit came in 1960. They'd originally heard Walk Don't Run on a Chet Atkins album and rearranged it. Some say it opened the door to surf music. It certainly opened the door for the Ventures who had a string of hits throughout the 60s including the theme from Hawaii Five-O.

The Ventures have made hundreds of albums and have sold over 100 million records throughout their career. They're associated with the surf music genre but are quick to say they aren't a surf band. While their popularity in the States faded in the 70s they remain wildly popular and continue to tour in Japan. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008.

Here's a 1964 performance of Walk Don't Run from Japan...

Off Beat - Leningrad Cowboys

2009-09-12T06:37:00.001-04:00

This week's "off beat" feature takes a bit of a different twist focusing on a group, not so much a song. A buddy of mine got me interested in The Leningrad Cowboys several years ago and I've been a big fan ever since.

The group was born as a fictional band in the 1989 film Leningrad Cowboys Go America. Who knew they would catch on? But they did and they've been going strong for 20 years.

Funnily enough, the Leningrad Cowboys aren't from Russia. They're from Helsinki Finland. But their Russian stage shtick, their unicorn pompadours and their half-metre sharp, pointy shoes have helped make them the cult favourites that they are.

In 1993, the Cowboys performed a concert with the full 160-member Russian Alexandrov ensemble in Helsinki, Finland. A film of the concert, Total Balalaika Show, was released the following year. One of the songs from the film was Knockin On Heaven's Door...

Don't Touch Me There

2009-09-10T06:33:00.002-04:00

In the early 70s a bunch of transplanted musicians from Arizona got together in San Fransisco to form an odd little collective called The Tubes. Their self-titled first album was produced by Al Kooper and contained the absurd anthem White Punks On Dope. The song and the album would set the stage for what was to come.

Lead singer Fee Waybill (an alias) led the group through elaborate live concert performances that cost a pretty penny to produce. But expensive or no, they resulted in the Tubes garnering a reputation as the best live rock act ever.

Throughout their career their producers included the aforementioned Kooper, Todd Rundrgren and, wait for it, David Foster.

It was their second album, Young and Rich in 1976, produced by Ken Scott that yielded my favourite Tubes recording Don't Touch Me There. The song was arranged by Jack Nitzsche. Here's a live performance from 1979.

If you're interested in what The Tubes are up to today visit their website.

Dirty Water

2009-09-08T06:24:00.002-04:00

In the summer of 1966, I was a 14 year-old Yohawk-wannabe wandering the streets of Ottawa with my skateboard in search of the perfect sloped roadway. The other youth "gang" in those days was the Squirrels. We were kinda like Ottawa's answer to Britain's Mods and Rockers - without the violence. One of the coolest songs from our summer of tight faded jeans and suede desert boots was Dirty Water, a shuffling bluesy tune about Boston.

But guess what. The group that sang with such authority about the river Charles was an outfit from Los Angeles. The Standells formed in 1962 and finally in 1966 hit the charts with Dirty Water. It would be the biggest hit of the Standells' career.

A little trivia: Singer Dick Dodd was the group's drummer. In his younger days he was a Mouseketeer. Prior to the group's break-up in 1968, future Little Feat founder Lowell George played guitar with the group.

The song lives on. It's been played after every Red Sox Victory at Fenway Park since 1997.

Here's a relic of a lip-synced performance of Dirty Water from back in the day...

Off Beat - Ol' Ben Lucas

2009-09-05T07:10:00.001-04:00

He's a true renaissance man. If indeed, someone so politically incorrect could be one. Kinky Friedman started out in a band called King Arthur and The Carrots while a student at the University of Texas. In 1971, he formed his second band Kinky Friedman and the Texas Jewboys and gained a following on the coat tails of Gram Parsons, the Flying Burrito Brothers and other country rock groups.

The difference with Kinky's music was how politically incorrect his lyrics were. Songs like Asshole From El Paso and Get Your Biscuits In the Oven and Your Buns in the Bed had audiences rolling in the aisles. His songs were so out there that in 1975 he and his group taped a show for Austin City Limits that never aired.

In 1976 Kinky toured with Bob Dylan and his Rolling Thunder Review but by the 80s his music career was going nowhere and he turned to writing. He started cranking out detective novels and they're some of the funniest books you'll ever read.

He wrote an ongoing column for Texas Monthly magazine until he ran as an independent candidate for governor in 2006. Rumour has it he'll run as a Democrat in 2010. Asked about his stand on abortion Kinky is reported to have said, "I'm not pro-life and I'm not pro-choice, I'm pro-football".

These days Kinky sells his own brand of cigars and salsa and runs the Utopia Animal Rescue Ranch. For those who want to visit or drop him a note he can be found at his website. Here's the Kinkster performing Ol' Ben Lucas...

Ol' Ben Lucas had a lot of mucus

Comin' right out of his nose.

He picked and picked till it made you sick

But back again it grows.

Well, ol' Ben Lucas had a lot of mucus

Comin' right out of his nose.

He picked and picked till it made you sick,

But back again it grows.

When it's cotton picking time in Texas,

Boys, it's booger picking time for Ben.

He'd raise that finger mean and hostile

Stick it in that waitin' nostril,

Here he comes with a green one once again.

All right, pick it, Eric!

Ol' Ben Lucas had a lot of mucus

Comin' right out of his nose.

He picked and picked till it made you sick,

But back again it grows.

Everybody!

Ol' Ben Lucas had a lot of mucus

Comin' right out of his nose,

He picked and picked till it made you sick

But back again it grows.

Wonderful Tonight

2009-09-03T06:20:00.001-04:00

Where does one begin when one tries to highlight Eric Clapton? In the 60s Clapton played with John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, The Yardbirds, Cream and Blind Faith. His solo career has carried him through the decades to the present day. I saw him in concert a couple of years ago and the man's still got it, although he was aided by two supporting lead-guitarists, including guitar phenom Derek Trucks.

But I'm a big fan of the Clapton of the 70s - the period of Derek and the Dominos, Delaney and Bonnie and Friends, 461 Ocean Boulevard and so on. And my all-time favourite Clapton song from that era has to be Wonderful Tonight.

Any fan of Clapton knows the background to the inspiration for the song. George Harrison's former wife Patti Boyd and Eric Clapton were living together. He was waiting for her to get ready to go to a Buddy Holly tribute organized by Paul McCartney. In the time it took Patti to get ready, Clapton had written the song. Patti wasn't just Clapton's muse. Harrison had written Something and For You Blue for her too.

Wonderful Tonight was off the 1977 album Slowhand. The 70s were hard on Clapton in terms of his dependence on drugs and alcohol. In his memoirs, Clapton talks about how things got so bad he'd perform while lying down on the stage. He's not lying down in this slowed-down, passionate performance. Close to it but...

Charlie Watts To March To Beat Of Different Drum

2009-09-02T10:31:00.005-04:00

***Update***

On September 5, the source for this story backtracked and a story confirming Charlie Watts WAS NOT leaving the Stones was published by Undercover.com

It's being reported today that Charlie Watts is packing it in as a Rolling Stone. If true, the departure of the 68 year-old "Wembley Whammer" will leave the remaining Stones shattered.

Watts is the original and only drummer for the Stones and together with original band mate and bass player Bill Wyman contributed to the greatest rhythm section in rock and roll.

Wikipedia relates a famous anecdote about Watts.

...in the mid-1980s, an intoxicated Jagger phoned Watts's hotel room in the middle of the night asking where "his drummer" was. Watts reportedly got up, shaved, dressed in a suit, put on a tie and freshly shined shoes, descended the stairs and punched Jagger in the face, saying: "Don't ever call me your drummer again. You're my fucking singer!"

Here's a glimpse of Charlie at work on Monkey Man...

Green River

2009-09-01T07:15:00.001-04:00

John Fogerty, Doug Clifford, and Stu Cook met in high school and formed a bar band called the Blue Velvets. Fogerty's brother Tom joined the band and they signed with Fantasy records as the Golliwogs. Lead singer Tom stepped aside for brother John and the group and it's swamp-rock style began to gain popularity. In 1968, the newly renamed band released it's first album, the self-titled Creedence Clearwater Revival.

The group disbanded in 1972 after an output of 7 albums but in the late 60s none could foresee this nor the decades of legal and financial wranglings amongst band members which for years prevented Forgerty from performing his own songs.

But as 1969, drew to a close CCR had undertaken several significant tours, amassed a considerable fan base, performed at Woodstock and released their third album Green River. Here's a performance of the title track.

Off Beat - Ballad of Thunder Road

2009-08-29T06:57:00.002-04:00

Robert Mitchum a singer? Well, yeah, apparently. And not only did he sing The Ballad of Thunder Road he co-wrote the song and based the music on an old folk-dance tune his mom used to sing to him. The song was the theme to the movie Thunder Road, a 1958 film about a moonshine runner. Mitchum starred in the movie, produced the film, co-wrote the screenplay and reputedly directed much of the film. 1958 was evidently a busy year for Robert Mitchum.

A little rock and roll trivia: The movie inspired Bruce Springsteen's 1975 song Thunder Road and is referenced in 1988's Copperhead Road by Steve Earl.

Mitchum's character - Lucas Doolin - dies in the song, not to mention the movie - a familiar tune storyline of such 50s and 60s hits as Leader of the Pack, Tell Laura I Love Her and Deadman's Curve.

BALLAD OF THUNDER ROAD

Let me tell the story, I can tell it all
About the mountain boy who ran illegal alcohol
His daddy made the whiskey, son, he drove the load
When his engine roared, they called the highway Thunder Road.

Sometimes into Ashville, sometimes Memphis town
The revenoors chased him but they couldn’t run him down
Each time they thought they had him, his engine would explode
He'd go by like they were standin’ still on Thunder Road.

(CHORUS)
And there was thunder, thunder over Thunder Road
Thunder was his engine, and white lightning was his load
There was moonshine, moonshine to quench the Devil’s thirst
The law they swore they'd get him, but the Devil got him first.

On the first of April, nineteen fifty-four
A Federal man sent word he’d better make his run no more
He said two hundred agents were coverin’ the state
Whichever road he tried to take, they’d get him sure as fate.

Son, his Daddy told him, make this run your last
The tank is filled with hundred-proof, you’re all tuned up and gassed
Now, don’t take any chances, if you can’t get through
I’d rather have you back again than all that mountain dew.

(CHORUS)

Roarin’ out of Harlan, revvin’ up his mill
He shot the gap at Cumberland, and screamed by Maynordsville
With T-men on his taillights, roadblocks up ahead
The mountain boy took roads that even Angels feared to tred.

Blazing right through Knoxville, out on Kingston Pike,
Then right outside of Bearden, they made the fatal strike.
He left the road at 90; that’s all there is to say.
The devil got the moonshine and the mountain boy that day.

Cry Me A River

2009-08-27T07:00:00.000-04:00

I've always loved this guy. His growling shout and retarded-inspired air guitar mannerisms are his trade mark.

In 1969, Joe Cocker and The Grease Band embarked on an American tour. They released an album called With a Little Help From My Friends and played a little music fesitival called Woodstock. The rest, as they say, is history. Cocker's rendition of that Beatles tune is one of the highlights of not only the festival but of all live rock and roll performances.

Shortly after Woodstock, Cocker released Joe Cocker!, toured further and made many television appearances. At the end of the year, tired and burned out he refused to tour any more and dissolved the Grease Band.

But Cocker had to meet contractual obligations whether he wanted to tour or not and so he quickly assembled another group to head out on the road. The outfit was called Mad Dogs And Englishmen and was comprised of 30 musicians, led by pianist Leon Russell.

The tour, and the group, lasted about 4 or 5 months but it spawned, in my estimation, one of the all time greatest live rock albums and rock concert films Mad Dogs and Englishmen. Here's a performance of Cry Me A River...

Need Your Love So Bad

2009-08-25T06:32:00.001-04:00

When someone says Fleetwood Mac, one's thoughts immediately go to the killer supergroup of the mid-70s with Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks. But Mac was a very successful blues band a decade earlier in Britain formed by guitarist Peter Green and his former John Mayall Blues Band mates drummer Mick Fleetwood and bassist John McVie, after whom the band was named.

Mac's self-titled first album was released 1968. They'd release 9 more albums as a blues outfit before the release of their second eponymous release in 1975 after Buckingham and Nicks joined Fleetwood, McVie and McVie's wife Christine who had been the band's organist since 1970.

After dallying with LSD and following bouts of schizophrenia, in 1970 Peter Green left the group he had founded.

In an obviously lip-synced performance, here's Green and a very young looking Fleetwood and Mac performing a Ray Charles-inspired arrangement of Need Your Love So Bad...

Off Beat - Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! That Cigarette

2009-08-22T06:32:00.000-04:00

Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! That Cigarette topped the charts for 6 weeks in 1947. Written by Merle Davis it was performed by western swing star Tex Williams and his band Western Caravan.

Tex was a heavy smoker, putting away 2 packs a day. Born in 1917 he died at the age of 68 in 1985 of...you guessed it...cancer. He'd cut back to a pack a day after he learned of his disease.

The most famous version of the song was performed by Tex. Other versions include those by Sammy Davis Jr., Willie Nelson, Phil Harris, Jimmy Dean, Commander Cody and Asleep at the Wheel. Here's a latter-day live performance by Tex Williams...

Smoke! Smoke! Smoke!(That Cigarette)

Now I'm a fellow with a heart of gold
And the ways of a gentleman I've been told
Kind-of-a-guy that wouldn't even harm a flea
But if me and a certain character met
The guy that invented that cigarette
I'd murder that son-of-a gun in the first degree

It ain't cuz I don't smoke 'em myself
and i don't reckon that it'll hinder your health
I smoked 'em all my life and I ain't dead yet
But nicotine slaves are all the same
at a pettin' party or a poker game
Everything gotta stop while they have a cigarette

CHORUS
Smoke, smoke, smoke that cigarette
Puff, puff, puff until you smoke yourself to death.
Tell St. Peter at the Golden Gate
That you hate to make him wait,
But you just gotta have another cigarette.

In a game of chance the other night

Old dame fortune was good and right
The kings and queens they kept on comin' around
Aw, I was hittin' em good and bettin' 'em high
But my bluff didn't work on a certain guy
He kept callin' and layin' his money down

See, he'd raise me then I'd raise him
and I'd say to him buddy ya gotta sink or swim
Finally called me but didn't raise the bet!
--Hmmph! I said Aces Full Pal -- I got you!
He said, "I'll pay up in a minute or two
But right now, i just gotta have another cigarette."

CHORUS

Now the other night I had a date
with the cutest little gal in any state
A high-bred, uptown, fancy little dame
She said she loved me and it seemd to me
That things were sorta like they oughtta be
So hand in hand we strolled down lovers lane

She was a long way from a chunk of ice
And our pettin' party was goin' real nice
And I got an idea I might have been there yet
So I give her a kiss and a little squeeze
Then she said, "Tex, Excuse me Please
But I just gotta have a cigarette."

CHORUS

Hocus Pocus

2009-08-20T06:44:00.001-04:00

Thijs van Leer on keyboard and flute and guitarist Jan Akkerman were at the heart of 70s Dutch rock band Focus founded in 1969. Their second album Moving Waves was released in 1971 and made an international hit of the band largely on the strength of the single Hocus Pocus.

Focus would release 6 more albums in the 70s while going through a series of line-up changes. Akkerman, for example, left in 1976. Five more LPs were released between 1985 and 2006 but none ever enjoyed the success of 1971's Moving Waves. Their 1973 live album At The Rainbow does come a close second.

Here's a live performance of Hocus Pocus from 1973. It's got everything: smart guitar riffs, drum and flute solos and...yodelling! I love it.

Summer In The City

2009-08-18T06:32:00.001-04:00

Yesterday over on my humour blog I was telling folks about the heatwave we've been experiencing here in the Ottawa region and that we really couldn't complain as it comes on the heels of the rainiest July on record. In classic rock terms, I guess you could say that lately it's been quite the Summer In The City. How's that for a segue?

Summer In The City by the Lovin' Spoonful hit #1 forty-three years ago last week, August 13, 1966. Little known fact: the song was co-written by Mark Sebastien, brother of the Spoonful's John Sebastien. The other members of the group were bassist Steve Boone, vocalist-drummer Joe Butler and Canadian guitarist Zan Yanovsky. Yanovsky and Sebastien were immortalized in Creeque Alley by the Mama's and Papa's owing to the early 60s circles in which they travelled and the groups in which they performed in New York City:

Zally said, "Denny, you know there aren't many

Who can sing a song the way that you do; let's go south.

"Denny said, "Zally, golly, don't you think that I wish

I could play guitar like you.

"Zal, Denny, and Sebastian sat (at the Night Owl)

And after every number they'd pass the hat.

The group had it's foundations in jug band music and came together in 1965. But the Lovin' Spoonful's original line-up had a short life. Yanovsky left in 67 after a drug bust and Sebastien struck out on a solo career in 68. The hit making ceased by 1969. But in 1966 all they were thinking about was Summer In The City...

Off Beat: Does Your Chewing Gum Lose It's Flavour On The Bedpost Overnight

2009-08-15T06:53:00.000-04:00

Released in the late 50s by skiffle artist Lonnie Donegan, Does Your Chewing Gum Lose It's Flavour (On The Bedpost Overnight) became a huge hit both at home in the UK and in the States in the early 60s. I remember hearing the song and loving it on the radio in Toronto as a little kid.

I didn't know who Lonnie Donegan was back then. I just thought the song was hilarious. But Donegan racked up 24 Top 30 hits in Britain and was the most popular British recording artist until the Beatles came along. Speaking of which, Donegan influenced many British musical acts of the 60s, including a little skiffle group called The Quarrymen - the precursor to the Beatles. Donegan died at the age of 71 in 2002, while on tour in Britain. Here's a 70s performance of Does Your Chewing Gum...

RIP Les Paul

2009-08-14T07:02:00.000-04:00

At the age of 94, Les Paul passed away yesterday. Lester William Polfuss has often been referred to the "father of modern music". He was not only an extraordinary jazz guitarist but a pioneer in the development of the solid-body guitar, not to mention an innovator in the studio, developing such techniques as overdubbing, delays and phasing and multi-track recording.

Paul and his wife Mary Ford, toured and performed for 13 years together until 1962, earning 36 gold records and 11 #1 pop hits. They divorced in 1964, she tired of the hectic pace of touring. In 1952, Gibson began production of the Les Paul Gibson guitar. Here's a Les Paul Custom from 1980.

Guitarists who made the Les Paul their axe of choice include The Who's Pete Townsend, Steve Howe of Yes, jazz great Al Dimeola and Led Zep's Jimmy Page. Eric Clapton was responsible for the guitar's resurgence when he played one in the early sixties.

Paul and Ford were inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1978 and when Jeff Beck inducted him into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988 he said, "I've copied more licks from Les Paul than I'd like to admit".

A fairly decent overview of Les Paul's career and a discography can be found here.

Les Paul and then wife Mary Ford demonstrate multi-track recording in this vintage version of How High The Moon

We've Got To Get Ourselves Back To The Garden

2009-08-13T06:16:00.003-04:00

There are two significant rock milestones occuring this week. Tomorrow, August 14th is David Crosby's 68th birthday. And then August 15th is the 40th anniversary of the music festival to end all music festivals: Woodstock. How do the two connect? Woodstock was Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young's second-ever live performance and launched the supergroup on an extraordinary career into the 1970s and beyond.

Crosby, a former member of the Byrds, joined up with the Hollies' Graham Nash and former Buffalo Springfield member Stephen Stills to create some of the sweetest harmonies I have ever heard. They were joined by Stills' former Springfield cohort Neil Young on an on-and-off basis. This augmented participation actually began at Woodstock as Young sat out the group's acoustic set and refused to be filmed participating in their electric set. They've come together from time to time over the years. Their most recent outing was in 2006 as all 4 toured to support Young's Living With War CD.

Here's CSNY's performance of Blackbird at Woodstock, minus Y.

Undun

2009-08-11T07:01:00.002-04:00

In 1969, Canada's Guess Who issued the album Canned Wheat which was a big hit in Canada and contained the ballad These Eyes which made them the first Canadian group to hit the Top 10 in the United States.

Formed in Winnipeg in 1960 under the original moniker The Silvertones, which was later changed to Chad Allen and the Expressions, the group had it's first big hit in 1965 with Shakin All Over. To create the impression they were another British invasion group the record company credited the track as performed by Guess Who? The name stuck, Chad Allen didn't and Burton Cummings replaced him. The rest as they say is history.

From 1967 to 1968, the Guess Who had an opportunity no other Canadian group could hope to match. The CBC ran a teen music show Monday thru Friday called "Let's Go". The Guess Who appeared every Thursday from 5:30-6 p.m. Canadian youngsters were exposed every week to this fabulous group from, of all places, Winnipeg. The CBC publicity shot above shows the group prior to Chad Allen's departure. Rounding out the group are co-lead singer Burton Cummings behind the organ, Randy Bachman on guitar, bassist Jim Kale and drummer Garry Peterson.

They were a fantastic cover band but Cummings and Randy Bachman quickly became the Lennon/McCartney of Canadian rock writing and performing hit after hit. Here's a latter day performance of another Canned Wheat track - Undun - apparently Randy Bachman's favourite Guess Who song and originally released as the "B" side to Laughing.

Oh, yeah, today is bassist Jim Kale's birthday! Happy birthday, Jim.

Off Beat: Witch Doctor

2009-08-09T06:37:00.000-04:00

In 1958, the novelty song Witch Doctor hit #1 in America. The song was written and performed by Ross Bagdasarian, Sr. - better known as David Seville.

Witch Doctor was the first occasion that Seville experimented with tape speeds in the recording studio. His most successful use of varied tape speeds was with Alvin and the Chipmunks. They released Christmas Don't Be Late in 1959 and never looked back, launching a career of records, cartoons and television shows. Here's Seville on the Ed Sullivan show in the 50s "performing" Witch Doctor...

Can't Get It Out Of My Head

2009-08-06T06:43:00.001-04:00

They may not fall precisely into the category of "classic rock" but "the English guys with the big fiddles" amassed 27 Top 40 singles in Britain and the United States during their 14 years of popularity. The Electric Light Orchestra was the brainchild of former Move member Roy Wood and his pal Jeff Lynne and when they burst upon the scene in 1970 no one had ever seen anything quite like them before - an "electric" rock and roll band with a "light orchestra".

Wood departed the band after ELO's first album, leaving musical wunderkind Lynne as the driving creative force over the remainder of the band's successful career. In later years Lynne would go on to produce other artists apart from ELO such as George Harrison as well as the Travelling Wilburys who, after two amazing albums came to an abrupt end with the death of Roy Orbison.

ELO's fourth album, Eldorado - A Symphony, really put the group on the map and the first single from the album, Can't Get It Out Of My Head, gave the group it's first top 10 hit in the States. Here's a performance from a 70s Australian TV show. Note Jeff's 70s hair...

Itchycoo Park

2009-08-04T07:56:00.004-04:00

In August of 1967, the Brit-mod group the Small Faces released one of the most popular songs of their career. There are several stories behind the origins of Itchycoo Park, a song originally banned by the BBC because of its overt drug references. The true one seems to be that the song's title is based on the nickname of a public park known for it's scratchy nettles (Itchy Park).

The Small faces were formed in 1965 and broke up in 1969. Steve Marriott went on to form Humble Pie with Peter Frampton. The remaining members were joined by former Jeff Beck Group members Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood and peformed as the Faces then Rod Stewart and the Faces until 1975. By then Stewart was enjoying phenomenal popularity as a solo artist and Wood was touring with the Rolling Stones.

Here's the original line up peforming Itchycoo Park.

Off Beat: Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow

2009-08-01T06:44:00.000-04:00

In 1962 the novelty song Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow by the Rivingtons was a huge hit. The song capitalized on the doo-wop phenomena of the time but the lyrics, if lyrics you could call them, made absolutely no sense. The song was The Rivington's first and biggest hit. Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow was the basis for last week's off beat song Surfin' Bird. The song's been covered by several groups. Here's a performance from the Beach Boys in 1964, who having performed it in concert decided to include it on their Beach Boys Party album. The clip includes a bonus performance of Hawaii...

Low Rider

2009-07-30T06:03:00.000-04:00

Rock-funk fusion band War was formed in 1969 and fronted by Eric Burdon, former lead singer of the Animals. They were a fusion of two sorts. Their music encompassed rock, funk, jazz, Latin music, R&B and raggae. And the band line up was multi-ethnic; a fusion of races and cultures.

Burdon and War released several hits in the early 70s including the classic Spill the Wine. But Burdon and the rest of the members parted ways while on a European tour in 1970. Luckily for us War still had some great songs in them including Why Can't We Be Friends and the funky Low Rider released in 1975.

Louie, Louie

2009-07-28T06:30:00.003-04:00

The vocals by lead singer Jack Ely have been referred to as sounding "like Donald Duck on helium", but regardless The Kingsmen had a hit on their hands in 1963. Louie, Louie was actually a Jamaican love song written in 1955. Several groups covered it, from Paul Revere and the Raiders to Iggy Pop.

The song had notoriety associated with it. Because the Kingsmen's version was virtually unintelligible, some radio stations banned the single because they thought it was laced with profanity. At one point the FBI got involved but after a 31-month investigation reported that they were "unable to interpret any of the wording in the record". After 31 months they still couldn't make out the words!

Nice hat, Jack!

Here's the lyrics from The Kingsmen's 1963 version of the song. This was what the fuss was all about!

Louie Louie, oh no, me gotta go,
yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, baby.
Louie Louie, oh baby, me gotta go.

A fine little girl, she waits for me.
Me catch the ship across the sea.
Me sailed the ship all alone.
Me never think I'll make it home.

Louie Louie, oh no, me gotta go,
yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, baby.
Louie Louie, oh baby, me gotta go.

Three nights and days I sailed the sea.
Me think of girl constantly.
On the ship, I dream she there.
I smell the rose in her hair.

Louie Louie, oh no, me gotta go,
yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, baby.
Louie Louie, oh baby, me gotta go.
OK, let's give it to 'em right now

(guitar solo)

Me see . . .

Me see Jamaica, the moon above.
It won't be long me see me love.
Me take her in my arms and then
I tell her I'll never leave again.

Louie Louie, oh no, me gotta go,
yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, baby.
Louie Louie, oh baby, me gotta go
I said we gotta go now
Let's step on out of here
Let's go!

Off Beat: Surfin Bird

2009-07-26T06:15:00.002-04:00

Surf-rock group The Trashmen released Surfin Bird in 1963. The Trashmen may have sounded like they hailed from California but they were actually from Minneapolis.

Surprisingly, The Trashmen released 14 albums but they are most famous for this #4 hit.

I'm Sorry Neil But You Ripped Me Off

2009-07-24T16:20:00.004-04:00

As far as I'm concerned the most anticipated release in virtually all of rock and roll history is a bust. Neil Young's Archives Volume One certainly busted me, and for what?

Oh I thought I was so smart. I convinced my wife to get me a Blu-Ray player for Father's Day in anticipation of the second-coming of box sets. And then, instead of paying $399 Cdn. at the CD store I saved myself $85 by ordering through Amazon.ca. And then I watched it.

I use the word "watched" advisedly because what I watched, save for one darkly lit "performance disc" (the previously released Massey Hall concert) and his drug-induced 70s film Journey Through The Past, was 7 Blu-Ray discs of turntables turning and reel-to-reel tape machines reeling. And so was I when all was done.

Now don't get me wrong. I love Neil Young. The ex-pat Canadian is right up there with the rest of my holy trinity of rock: Eric Clapton and Bob Dylan. And the music on the discs is fascinating, both in terms of audio quality and, as a Neil Young completist, historically, taking us back to his boyhood group The Squires in Winnipeg in the early 60s.

The packaging is great too, as are the so-called hidden features on the discs such as biographical notes, photos and newspaper clippings.

Unfortunately, there's next to no video of performances of Neil. When I heard he was capitalizing on Blu-Ray technology I thought he had some great performance footage to share with fans. Half of the anticipation of this long-awaited collection had to do with seeing how he took advantage of the latest technology available to him. But I was sorely mistaken as is anyone else who bought the over-priced and equally over-hyped DVD or Blu-Ray versions of this box set.

I hope this changes for subsequent volumes. Otherwise, the cheaper CD version of the box set will suffice.

Neil, I saw you perform twice in the last year, and the year before with Crosby, Stills and Nash. I was hoping for more. I'm really disappointed.

Running On Empty

2009-07-23T06:35:00.001-04:00

This week's 70s Thursday feature looks at Jackson Browne, an artist who struggled significantly until finally making it. Early in his career he was better known for writing songs for other people such as Joan Baez, Tom Rush, Linda Ronstadt, the Byrds and the Eagles.

Browne signed a record deal with Asylum Records in 1971, the home of the "California sound" of the 70s and recorded and released 4 albums before the blockbuster Running on Empty live album. Running on Empty was recorded while on tour but in addition to live concert performances included tunes recorded on his tour bus, backstage and in hotel rooms. Running On Empty was released in 1977. Here's a performance of the title track from 1979...

Happy Birthday Don

2009-07-22T06:02:00.000-04:00

Eagles founding member, drummer, lead vocalist and co-writer Don Henley turns 62 today. Happy Birthday, Don. Don formed the Eagles in 1972 with Glenn Frey, Bernie Leadon and Randy Meisner after a stint as Linda Rondstat's back-up band. After several line-up changes the Eagles broke up in 1980 and at that time Henley and Frey were supported by Don Felder, Timothy B. Schmidt and Joe Walsh. The same line up reunited 14 years later with their Hell Freezes Over tour and album.

In the years in between Eagles activity, Henley launched the most successful solo career of the core members of the group, releasing 3 albums between 1982-89 before a contract dispute with his record company prevented him from releasing any more. Today he continues to perform as a solo act and with the Eagles. The following song from his solo catalogue is one of my favoutite Henley tunes...

Crossroads

2009-07-21T06:35:00.000-04:00

One critic called it the greatest live rock solo ever and he was referring to Eric Clapton's guitar solo during a performance of Crossroads by Cream at San Francisco's Winterland Ballroom in March of 1968. Cream's original version of the song had bassist Jack Bruce handling the vocals but in this version it was Clapton front and center.

Clapton, Bruce and drummer Ginger Baker formed Cream in 1966. Clapton had left the Yardbirds following the recording of "For Your Love" because he felt the band was forgoing it's blues roots in favour of a more commercial approach.

Cream issued four albums in it's short 2 year life - Fresh Cream, Disraeli Gears, Wheels of Fire and Goodbye. Clapton went on to form Blind Faith with Steve Winwood, Rick Grech and Ginger Baker.

Off Beat: My Balogna

2009-07-18T06:06:00.002-04:00

The second in our weekly Saturday series of off beat or silly songs is My Balogna by Weird Al Yankovic, a parody of The Knack's 1979 hit My Sharona. Yankovic, who first reached the top ten with the album Right Outta Lynwood and single White and Nerdy in 2006, launched his career close to 30 years ago with My Balogna. He's had some hilarious hits parodying famous artists and their songs over the years but it all started with this video from the pop prankster...

The Hangman and the Papist

2009-07-16T06:29:00.005-04:00

I first became aware of the Strawbs in the early 70s with the release of their album From the Witchwood in 1971. In those days Rick Wakeman was still with the group before joining Yes. But the group was first formed in the mid-60s by Dave Cousins and known at that time as the Strawberry Hill Boys, a bluegrass group. The line-up has changed over the years. For example, Richard Hudson and John Ford left to from Hudson Ford in 1973 and evolved into The Monks in the late 70s. There is a version of the band that continues to tour to this day and a new album was released last year.

But my favourite incarnation was the version with Wakeman. Here's that line-up performing The Hangman and the Papist from From the Witchwood in 1972.

Friday On My Mind

2009-07-14T08:07:00.002-04:00

Anyone remember this catchy song? Friday On My Mind was the first international hit by The EasyBeats, released in 1966. The EasyBeats were an Australian band, formed in 1964 and relocated to London, England two years later. The group broke up in 1969.

Trivia note: Key songwriting member of the EasyBeats George Young is AC/DC's Angus and Malcolm Young's older brother and produced AC/DC's first six albums. He and former band mate Harry Vanda formed another group after the EasyBeats demise, the Australian band Flash and the Pan.

Happy Birthday Roger

2009-07-13T06:00:00.001-04:00

One of my favourite 60s bands was the Byrds. They wrote and performed great songs and did amazing covers of Bob Dylan tunes such as Mr. Tambourine Man and My Back Pages. A big part of their distinctive sound was Roger McGuinn's unique voice and Rickenbacker guitar. Roger turns 67 today.

There were many permutations of the group from it's inception in 1964 to its disbandment in 1973, including a reunion album of the original members in 1973. McGuinn preserved the franchise as best he could before finally going solo, and playing and touring with Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Review in the mid 70s. Here's a 1973 performance of Eight Miles High, a tune originally recorded in 1966. Gene Clark of the original Byrds penned the lyrics about an experience on an airplane trip to England. At the time, many listeners - and radio executives - thought it was about drug use and several radio stations banned it. Hey, it was the 60s!

The Byrds Over the Years

(Wikipedia)

Roger McGuinn – guitar, vocals (1964–1973)
Gene Clark – tambourine, guitar, vocals, harmonica (1964–1966, 1967, 1973)
David Crosby – guitar, vocals (1964–1967, 1973)
Chris Hillman – bass, vocals (1964–1968, 1972-1973)
Michael Clarke – drums (1964–1968, 1973)
Kevin Kelley - drums (1968)
Gram Parsons – guitar, piano, vocals (1968)
Clarence White - guitar, vocals (1968–1973)
John York – bass, vocals (1968–1969)
Gene Parsons – drums, vocals (1968–1972)
Skip Battin – bass, vocals (1969–1972)
John Guerin – drums (1972–1973)
Joe Lala - drums (1973

Off Beat

2009-07-11T07:59:00.005-04:00

Today we begin a new feature that, with luck, will appear regularly each Saturday. The title doesn't refer to syncopation but rather silly, novelty or off beat songs. Many of these songs I grew up with in the 50s and 60s. Of course I was just knee-high to a grasshopper in the 50s you understand but many of these songs ran on the radio in those days and helped get me hooked on music.

Our first selection comes from the height of the cold war and the height of the sci-fi craze of the 50s. In 1958 Sheb Wooley capitalized on when our imaginations were piqued by movies about aliens and UFO's with The Purple People Eater...

Mohammed's Radio

2009-07-09T06:19:00.002-04:00

In the 1970s I discovered Asylum Records, the record label created by David Geffin solely to provide Jackson Browne with a recording contract. Asylum had some pretty great artists in addition to Browne such as The Eagles, Joni Mitchell and Linda Rondstat. But one of my favourites was an artist signed in 1976, Warren Zevon.

Zevon played with the Everly Brothers and toured with Manfred Mann in the 60s and attempted to launch a solo career in the early 70s. His songs were often, dark, sardonic and funny - sort of macabre version of Randy Newman. The big boost to his career was provided by record label mate Jackson Browne who allowed Zevon to perform in the middle of Browne's concerts. That's where the following priceless performance of Mohammed's Radio comes from. Sadly, Zevon died of cancer in 2003 at the age of 56.

Live For Today

2009-07-07T06:08:00.001-04:00

The Grass Roots was an American band with a string of hits from the mid 1960's into the 1970's. The group went through several incarnations, the first version being the brainchild of songwriters P.F. Sloan and Steve Barri.

In the so-called "summer of love" (1967) The Grass Roots hit the airwaves with Live for Today. Here's a lip-synced performance from The Holloywood Palace TV Show with a lame introduction by Jimmy Durante. Hey, we had to take our rock n roll where we could find it!

Happy Birthday Ringo

2009-07-06T12:32:00.002-04:00

We couldn't let this one go by without acknowledgement. Today is Richard Starkey's birthday! Better known as Ringo Starr, the former Beatles drummer turns 68. The key to his success? Act naturally...

Willin'

2009-07-02T08:47:00.002-04:00

Blues, R&B, country, funk and rock and roll. Little Feat was all of those things. While the band continues to perform to this day, the version with co-founder Lowell George was, for me, the definitive edition Little Feat. Tragically, George died of a massive heart attack at the age of 34, 30 years ago this week - June 29, after a solo concert in Washington, D.C.

George was a member of the Mothers of Invention before starting Little Feat and often told the story of being fired by Frank Zappa for trying to get the Mothers to do a song he had written. Zappa, not a drug user, didn't like the drug references in the song. Many have covered the song over the years but few have matched Little Feat's version of Willin'. Here's a performance of the song from 1977...

I been warped by the rain, driven by the snow
I'm drunk and dirty, don't you know
And I'm still
Willin'

And I was out on the road late at night
And I seen my pretty Alice in every head light
Alice
Dallas Alice

Chorus
And I've been from Tuscon to Tucumcari
Tehachapi to Tonapah
Driven every kind of rig that's ever been made
Driven the back roads so I wouldn't get weighed

And if you give me
Weed, whites, and wine
And you show me a sign
I'll be willin'
To be movin'

I've been kicked by the wind, robbed by the sleet
Had my head stoved in, but I'm still on my feet
And I'm still
Willin'

Now I smuggled some smokes and folks from Mexico
Baked by the sun, every time I go to Mexico
And I'm still

[chorus]

Talk Talk

2009-06-30T07:34:00.001-04:00

The Music Machine was pretty much a one hit wonder group from the mid-60s. Their sound was characterized as "American garage rock/psychedelic". Talk Talk came from the first of two albums, Turn On, released in 1966. Too bad the group broke up in 1967. Growing up, I thought this song was great...

Gone Fishin - Cleetus Take The Reel

2009-06-29T05:56:00.002-04:00

A buddy and I are taking off for Temagami, Ontario this week for our annual trek to do a little fishin'. Through the marvels of modern technology I've post-dated a couple of items for the week.

Speaking of fishing, we kick things off with this take-off of "Jesus Take The Wheel" called "Cleetus Take The Reel" by Tim Hawkins. Carrie Underwood, look out!

Michael Jackson

2009-06-25T19:04:00.006-04:00

Michael Jackson died this afternoon of "cardiac" arrest". Say what you will regarding the skin pigmentation, plastic surgery and "little boy" controversies but Michael Jackson was a musical dynamo who began his career as a child musical and TV star. I wasn't the biggest of Michael Jackson fans but I certainly recognize the contribution he made to the world of music and music videos.

Here's a performance back before all the craziness started from when he was about 13 years of age. The song is Ben from the movie of the same name. The song was originally offered to a young Donny Osmond who was unable to record it because he was on tour. RIP Michael.

Reelin In The Years

2009-06-25T07:21:00.000-04:00

Well we ran our first 60s flashback Tuesday. Today is our first look back at the 70s. Kickin' us off is Steely Dan, often referred to as a jazz-rock outfit, who wryly named themselves after the steam-powered dildo in William Burroughs' novel The Naked Lunch.

The mainstays of Steely Dan were Walter Becker and Donald Fagen each of whom have issued solo albums throughout the years. The group was very popular during the 70s in particular, issuing 7 albums throughout the decade, beginning with their debut rlease Can't Buy A Thrill. Here's a performance of a cut from that album "Reelin' In The Years"...

Papa's Got A Brand New Bag...

2009-06-23T06:31:00.000-04:00

...And Dufus Got a Brand New Blog. Welcome to the first official week of dufusdownbeat where we'll take a look back at some of the acts from the 60s and 70s, share a bit of musical history and run some classic clips.

The "hardest working man in show business", the "godfather of soul" James Brown seemed like a likely artist to formally get us started. He rose to fame in the 50s and 60s with an amazing stage show comprised of synchronized back up singers, a chuggin' rhythm section and a honking horn section. Here's an all-too brief medley of Papa's Got A Brand New Bag and I Feel Good from the Ed Sullivan Show in the mid-60s.

And Now A Word From Our Sponsor

2009-06-21T06:42:00.000-04:00

It's the first day of summer and for me a new beginning!

Welcome to dufusdownbeat and thanks for stopping by. This blog is an extension of nonamedufus, a humour blog and represnts a milestone in it's evolution. What began as primarily a photo and picture blog has pretty much morphed into written posts focussing on political and observational humour.

While I'm into both humour and music it was getting to the point where they didn't always co-exist. So the next logical step appeard to be the creation of a separate music blog and hopefully this will focus the other blog exclusively on humour. I hope you enjoy this approach and I look forward to your visits and your comments at both blogs. Feel free to add yourself to my followers widget, too.

At the outset and until I completely comprehend what I've gotten myself into with an additional blog, I'll try to stick to the following publishing schedule:

Monday - nonamedufus
Tuesday - dufusdownbeat 60s
Wednesday - nonamedufus
Thursday - dufusdownbeat 70s
Friday - nonamedufus

I'm sure there'll be additional posts during the week and on the weekends but a post a day, alternating between the two blogs sounds good for now as a minimum.

Wish me luck, and I hope you keep coming back. Thanks!

Happy Birthday Ray

2009-06-21T06:12:00.000-04:00

Ray Davies can ride the bus at reduced fare today. It's his 65th birthday. Ray and his younger brother Dave co-founded the Kinks, one of the few groups associated with the "British invasion" to attain considerable longevity. Ray played guitar, sang and wrote most of the band's hit songs. Their first big hit came in 1964 with You Really Got Me

One of my favoutite Kinks songs is Lola. Here's a performance from 1970.

Happy Birthday Ray.

Happy Birthday Brian

2009-06-20T15:41:00.000-04:00

He's been called "one of the few undisputed geniuses in popular music" and today he turns 67. The life of Brian Wilson, his brothers and bandmates reads like a rock and roll soap opera: a domineering father as a manger, alcoholism, narcotics, neuroses, mental illness and death. The Wilsons and their extended family suffered it all.

But there were good times too, at least for their fans, as their complicated harmony-laden hits attest. The Beach Boys were big. But they would have been bigger were it not for the British invasion and the Beatles.

"God Only Knows" has got to be one of my all time favourite Brian Wilson/Beach Boys tunes. It was one of the many highlights from the classic Pet Sounds album. Here's a performance from Brian in 2003.

Happy Birthday Ann

2009-06-19T10:23:00.000-04:00

Heart's Ann Wilson ,the older of the dynamic Wilson sisters, is 59 today. Heart burst on the scene in the 70s and many peole thought they were a Canadian group because they lived and worked out of Vancouver. Turns out they were from Seattle, Washington. Ann's younger sister Nancy is an amazing guitarist. Back in the day I had never seen a woman play the guitar quite like that. She was mesmerizing. Here's a live performance of Barracuda from 1977...

Happy Birthday Paul

2009-06-18T08:19:00.000-04:00

Sir Paul McCartney is 67 today. It seems not that long ago Paul was singing "When I'm 64". My how time flies. McCartney of course was a founding member of the revered Beatles and knew fellow member and songwriting partner John Lennon since childhood. After the Beatles split up Paul went solo and then formed a new group called Wings, of which his then-wife Linda Eastman was a member. Silly Love Songs was one of their hits...

Paul McCartney's website can be found at http://www.paulmccartney.com/ Happy Birthday Sir Paul.

Favourite Musical Artists

2009-06-17T18:37:00.000-04:00

The following artists and groups are among my favourites. I believe they're truly responsible for the greatest tunes and melodies out there, influencing many, many artists who have come after. They've been just cruising through my consciousness for years...