School has started up, the boss is not happy, a family member is not doing well, the home improvement project is stalled, your to-do list is growing and you are simply, under pressure. Life does it's ebb and flow, you catch the wave and sometimes the wave catches you.
Today, Monday is a new day, what will it bring, what will you bring to it?
For me, it's Sunday morning, I'm in the shower going over that to-do list in my head thinking, why do I get myself in this hustle-bustle? I should be going to beach, the tourists are gone, I'm retired two years from my day job, what the hell?
I need to go for a walk. So, Mary Kit and I go for walk in our community, we then go to Costco, I watch a little football and my to-do list waits a little longer. Maybe, just maybe I've finally reached a place of peace because my hustle-bustle is mine, I own it. I start to write this blog, it's on my to-do list but music is a passion, so my rule now is passion always comes first. I know, nice to be a retired guy, I worked, I worked for it.
So I'm thinking about the song, Under Pressure by Queen with David Bowie. I'm thinking Freddie Mercury would have been 70 years old last week. I'm thinking David Bowie was a very remarkable person and these two people have left this world. But, they left us with so many wonderful songs, songs that touched our lives. Under Pressure is one of my favorite songs. I started playing the tape of the song in my head while in the shower yesterday and instantly started feeling better. When David Bowie leads the last chorus and the band soars, I think it's one of the most inspiring verses in rock and I get the tingle feeling every time I hear it.
I have no idea about your Monday, I wish you a prosperous one. I hope this song helps kick-start your work day.
In continuing my married musical couple's theme from last week's blog, Familial Brew with the Tedeschi Trucks Band, I just discovered a new band (to me) called Johnnyswim. I was watching a 2014 rerun of Daryl's House when Daryl Hall had Johnnyswim's Amanda Sudano and Abner Ramirez on Episode 65. I instantly liked Johnnyswim because Abner and Amanda are complementary singers who play off each other with a natural grace and respect. They also just look like a great couple having the time of their lives not to mention they just had a baby boy, Joaquin born in 2015.
As I was looking at their website and then YouTube Channel, I noticed they do a live video on Monday's called New Music Monday whenever they have a new song they just have written or just want share. Well, Johnnyswim, welcome to Monday Monday Music! So hey, I'm just a little copacetic with this duo as we got it going here on Monday morning.
So here is my Johnnyswim Youtube playlist as I love their positive energy together, not to mention they know how to kick off your Monday. Pre-order their new album, Georgica Pond.
Also, if you're wondering about their name, I think you'll enjoy this brief explanation from Abner that I got from the Johnnyswim Wikipedia page. Ramirez has joked that the name Johnnyswim comes from an anecdote about Sudano's childhood pet, a goldfish name Johnny. When the fish died, he floated to the top of his bowl and Sudano's mother tried to dispose of before Sudano found out. However, Sudano walked in and cried out,"No wait - he's alive! Johnny, swim!" From Wikipedia. Also interesting to note that Amanda Sudano's mom is the late Donna Summer.
This Saturday, September 3rd, I'm going to see the Tedeschi Trucks Band as the band stops in at Copley Symphony Hall in San Diego on their current tour. On September 4th, they play in Avila Beach, so just letting all my family and friends on the central coast know about it. I can't wait to see Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks as the power couple who managed to bring their personal and musical lives even closer together after their marriage in 2001. With the birth of their two children, it seemed natural to merge their two separate bands in 2010 and create one of the best Blues band going today.
I can't explain it, but every time I watch video of this band and see the interaction between Susan and Derek, I get emotional. Many times they are not even looking at each other, but you feel their love together with their full-band sound of guitars, horns, organ, double drum kits and fantastic backup singers. It's a hybrid lineup of musicians brought together from years on the road and this group is simply, family.
I just ordered their new album, Let Me Get By and here it is on Amazon if you want to order it.
Here is my new YouTube Tedeschi Trucks Band Playlist. Enjoy!
This past Saturday, I was part of a wonderful celebration at Alexandra and Jeremy Ouellette's wedding (#neverouelletteyougo) in Seattle. My family all came together for the event and I'm blessed for their love and the experience of being with Alexandra (my step-daughter) on this day. There is no better feeling in life than to be a couple in love and know you are with the one. There have been a million songs written about this feeling we call love and for me, The Talking Heads, This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody) simply says it so well.
So, we are at the reception, no scratch that, I mean the party, specifically the dance party that followed the wedding ceremony and we are all dancing and drinking a bit too. Hey after all, the fun couple is getting married here at a whiskey distillery. Anyway, about half way through, the DJ plays, This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody) and much to my delight, everyone is singing along and singing the entire song. Well, at that moment, I get the goose bumps moment when music and life are one, and I'm feeling, well love.
Here are David Byrne's lyrics and then two versions of the song, the first is the original that is a must for any dance party. The second, by Shawn Colvin is one of my favorite covers of all-time, and one that is kind of meant to listen to by yourself as it always brings a happy tear to my eye.
with love -
This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody)
Home is where I want to be
Pick me up and turn me round
I feel numb - born with a weak heart
I guess I must be having fun
The less we say about it the better
Make it up as we go along
Feet on the ground
Head in the sky
It's ok I know nothing's wrong... nothing
Hi yo I got plenty of time
Hi yo you got light in your eyes
And you're standing here beside me
I love the passing of time
Never for money
Always for love
Cover up and say goodnight... say good night
Home - is where I want to be
But I guess I'm already there
I come home - she lifted up her wings
I guess that this must be the place
I can't tell one from another
Did I find you, or you find me?
There was a time
Before we were born
If someone asks, this where I'll be... where I'll be
Hi yo
We drift in and out
Hi yo
Sing into my mouth
Out of all those kinds of people
You got a face with a view
I'm just an animal looking for a home and,
Share the same space for a minute or two
And you love me till my heart stops
Love me till I'm dead
Eyes that light up, eyes look through you
Cover up the blank spots
Hit me on the head
Ah ooh
I'm currently in downtown Seattle with my oldest and dear friend Bill DeVoe in his law office thinking of inspiration for a quick Monday Monday Music blog. I've got on my John Prine concert t-shirt from last October, so maybe that's my sign and should just go with it.
John Prine played in San Diego with his hero, Kris Kristofferson at the Civic Theater and it was great to see the two play together. Prine was so happy that his mentor and friend were together on the same stage as he shared his admiration towards Kristofferson and the influence he's had in his life.
I got to thinking of heroes and the difference of age between the hero and the one looking up to them. With Kristofferson (80) and Prine (69) it is just a bit more than 10 years. This got me thinking about all my musical heroes from the 1960's and 70's. Bill and I were born in 1955 at the tail end of the baby boom that started after World War II in 1945. It's amazing to see how many rock 'n' roll greats were born in the 1940's and became stars to us all born in the 1950's. If you look at this current picture of Prine and Kristofferson, and didn't know them, you would think that they were closer in age. I think about being 15 and the long list of rock heroes that were in their early, mid and late twenties and the difference of age and stature was just so enormous at the time. I really don't have much of point here, other than the importance of having mentors and heroes with that 10+ year gap to look up to, learn from and dream of your possibilities for the future.
I'll leave you with this one from October, 31, 2015.
Vevois a multinationalvideo hosting service founded as a joint venture between the world's two biggest music production companies, Sony Music Entertainment and Universal Music Group. Its shareholders now consist of these two companies as well as Abu Dhabi Media and Google/Alphabet Inc. after it took a 7% share in 2013. Launched on December 8, 2009, Vevo hosts videos syndicated across the web, with Google and Vevo sharing the advertising and similar benefits. from Wikipedia
Most people like myself see the vevo logo (now with a small v) on a growing number of YouTube videos and think, cool a HD quality video. The key word here is ADVERTISING as the big music corporations are looking for corporate streams of revenue as most music is now streamed FREE to the masses. In doing a little research for this blog, I was amused by several youthful males bemoaning vevo as pure evil and warning people to stay away by not watching any vevo music videos. I guess coming from the generation that PAID for music records, then tapes, then CD's and now MP3 downloads and streaming music, this is not so much a big deal for me.
Vevo is like network television in real time, it's funded through advertising. Nobody likes advertising getting in the way of their network TV shows, but you tolerate the advertising as you watch the Olympics on NBC this week for free (not counting your cable bill). Vevo also has those pesky ads, some you can skip and some you can't. Hey, I love skipping a 30 second ad just as much as anyone born in the 1990's. I even taught my 2 year old granddaughter to say, "go way" when watching children music videos together and an ad pops up. At four, she now knows to easily hit the Skip button.
For my Monday Monday Music blog, I love vevo as I get to present high quality video music to my faithful readers who enjoy my YouTube playlist from my weekly topic. I sometimes spend several hours finding YouTube videos to match the songs I need for a playlist. And, there is only so much poor concert YouTube videos one can stomach from uploaded mobile phone video cameras. For me, finding a quality YouTube video of a favorite song is a fun hunt to share through a playlist. So for this week, here is an eclectic vevo sampler of HD music videos that are typical of what you would see and hear in a Monday Monday Music blog. Enjoy!
This month my step-daughter Vinny (Alexandra) is getting married to her fiance, Jeremy Ouellette. Mary Kit and I will be making the trip in a couple of weeks to Seattle and look forward to the wedding and festivities with family and friends. We both wish them happiness and peace as they share life's journey together. Also, our dear friends Paul and Jane Hobbs son, Duskin is getting married this month too and we would like to wish Duskin and Ally all our best.
The song, For My Wedding written by Larry John McNall and sung by Don Henley is a favorite wedding song of mine. I once read in a interview with Don Henley that this is one song that he wished he had written himself. So here is to all the wedding couples, may these words, help them on their way.
For my wedding, I will dress in black
And never again will I look back
Ah, my dark angels we must part
For I've made a sanctuary of my heart
To want what I have
To take what I'm given with grace
For this I pray
On my wedding day
For my wedding, I don't want violins
Or sentimental songs about thick and thin
I want a moment of silence and a moment of prayer
For the love we'll need to make it in the world out there
To want what I have
To take what I'm given with grace
For this I pray
On my wedding day
On my wedding day
I dream, and my dreams are all glory and light
That's what I've wanted for my life
And if it hasn't always been that way
Well, I can dream and I can pray
On my wedding day
So what makes us any different from all the others
Who have tried and failed before us
Maybe nothing, maybe nothing at all
But I pray we're the lucky ones; I pray we never fall
On my trail run, songs inevitably start playing in my head that often begin the spark of a blog idea as I jog in the dirt alongside the brush and Eucalyptus trees. From suburban sidewalks and street traffic, I arrive at a greenbelt trail head that starts my hour routine of movement and solitary thought. I've come to cherish this time and call it, my moving meditation.
I almost always run in the morning with a Good Day Sunshine start to my day. On some days, if I get an early start, I will see no one on the trail. On other days, I will encounter my regular group of strangers that have a similar walking, running or biking route to me and I see all the time. This is a public access community trail and I also see a lot of new strangers as well. What I find fascinating (enough to write a blog about), is the spectrum of social skills when I encounter people especially in the close proximity of this winding trail. In fact, I believe there is a Murphy's Law of trail running, as it seems you're most likely to encounter an oncoming person (usually with their dog) at the narrowest parts of the path.
So, using my greeting skills, I initiate a hardy, "Good morning", "Hello", "Hi" (at least 90% of the time). To my regular trail pedestrians, I sometimes throw in a "Howdy" or something like, "Hey, isn't this just a great day!" I would say that people respond back, roughly 80% of the time. So one day, I decided to add a couple of visual prompts to my greeting by also waving "hi" coupled with a big smile. Over time, this has raised the percentage of non responses to now most people giving a verbal response or at least, a parroting hand wave back.
This past week was typical. I said to a couple of regulars I see every week on their daily walk, "Stay cool" (as temperatures are getting in the 90's here), this was followed by.....crickets. Then, about a mile up the trail, a woman initiates, "Good Morning" with a wave and big smile. I happily respond back, but the smile stays on my face for several more seconds as we pass. She has that morning sunshine beaming in her and she beamed it right at me, simply wonderful.
You see, we're having fun being on this trail, enjoying life with some of the best weather on earth (in San Diego). But often and I mean often, I encounter disengaged, grumpy, too busy to look away from their phone people, or the classic straight ahead stare of avoidance with the oncoming me in their path.
Now I'm not going to ever be remembered as starting world peace here, but I think it's important to express a positive attitude when encountering strangers, even if the result is- it makes only me feel positive in that moment. But just maybe in my dirt travels, I snapped a few people out of their funk. Maybe someone is taking a walk to get out of a funk and suddenly a welcoming Mr. Sun just runs by. I know, no big deal. But in our current times where intolerance is making an overt cultural comeback, we need to employ the power of kindness and respect to one another. The power of "Good morning" is the power of the sun as the two dance together in a simple exchange to connect with people on the human highway.
On three occasions on the trail, I've stopped one of my regular strangers and introduced myself. When we now see each other, we stop and talk for a couple minutes just to ask each other, "How ya been?" I now have three people who have moved up from the regular stranger category to the, "Good Morning Tony", "Good Morning Martin" and "Good Morning John" acquaintance status.
The first video below is a Ted Talk by Ali Ghambara. I meet Ali through my buddy Bill DeVoe on Cherry St. (outside of Ali's coffeehouse) in downtown Seattle on one fine morning this past spring. He greeted us with an enthusiastic, "Good morning" and we all had a brief street conversation together. I still remember his body language and hand shake expressing that it was good to meet and connect, he meant it.
Hope you can take the time to listen to Ali's talk and then listen to my Transcendental Good Morning Playlist, it is guaranteed to start your Monday off on a positive note.
The Rides are a kicking Blues band with Stephen Stills, Kenny Wayne Shepard and Barry Goldberg (on keyboards). Stills from Florida and Louisiana and Shepard from Louisiana bring a tradition of Delta Blues along with a complementary sharing of lead and rhythm guitar duties. The two are a powerful combination as they both play off each with mutual respect.
You have to hand it to Stephen for being the elder star here as he equally shares the stage with grace and style in a trio totally in sync with one another.
MK and I saw The Rides on June 1st of this year at the Balboa Theatre. This is a great old palace in downtown San Diego that was built in 1924. We had also seen David Crosby earlier this year at the Balboa and love the acoustics as David's voice was built for the place. Anyway, I love The Rides first two albums and what a pure delight to see them live at this venue and, see Stephen having such a great time!
Growing up, Stephen Stills was always one of my favorite musicians with a spectacular career in two of the most iconic bands in rock 'n roll history. Buffalo Springfield is one of the first bands that really grabbed my attention to "stop, children what's that sound" and listen to a unique band that just ended much too soon. Their second album, Buffalo Springfield Again is the first album I ever bought myself (with my paper route money, along with Jimi Hendrix's Are You Experienced). Then, the long ride with CSN and CSNY. His solo career with Stephen Stills, Stephen Stills 2 and Manassas are just great memories of music in high school.
Like many musicians whom became famous in the 1960's and 70's, it is nice to see artists like Stephen Stills still creating new music. You also come to recognize from the greats is their ability to be a collaborator, as their art and participation contributes to making a successful whole band album. Stills embodies this collaborative spirit and thus is one of the greatest band mates of all-time. This is also an inspiration for me personally, in that we all can keep on creating new things with new people and have fun at the same time. Look at Stephen's smile here in the studio with Barry and Kenny Wayne, that says it all.
In 2006, Cirque du Soleil under the direction of Dominic Champagne opened Love at the Mirage in Las Vegas. The show was written and directed by Champagne with musical direction by Sir George Martin and son, Giles Martin. Many of my close friends and family including Mary Kit and I, have created our own little mecca, in that we have made the pilgrimage to the Mirage many times to experience the show.
It has been ten years since the opening and Giles Martin and Dominic Champagne have a nice surprise for all the faithful as they have been working on a refresh of the original production for sometime now. Read this article by Robin Leach as Major changes at Cirque’s ‘The Beatles Love’ are two years in the making.
With the passing of George Martin in March of this year, "the 5th Beatle" who produced, composed, conducted and collaborated with The Beatles on all their original works, Giles continues his father's legacy as he carries the torch and keeps the lads fresh and in our hearts.
This Thursday, July 14th, Ringo, Paul with Olivia Harrison and Yoko Ono Lennon return to the Mirage to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the show and experience the latest version. If you have tickets to that show you are one lucky (or connected) individual! Mary Kit and I already have our tickets for an October pilgrimage where we will also see the Rolling Stones at the new T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, not to mention Ron White also at the Mirage. Ron White actually has a really funny bit that he does in his Netflix special about seeing Love (being a Mirage VIP and all).
Here is a short playlist to wet your whistle for the new show and a trailer for the new Ron Howard documentary in September, Eight Days A Week - The Touring Years (LA Times), that chronicles the boys touring days from 1962-66.
"Mudcrutch was formed in 1970 by Tom Petty and Tom Leadon, who had been playing together in a band called the Epics. Mudcrutch's lineup consisted of Tom Petty (bass and vocals), Tom Leadon (guitar and vocals), Jim Lenehan (lead vocals), Randy Marsh (drums) and Mike Campbell (guitar). Leadon and Lenehan left the band in 1972 and were replaced by bassist/guitarist/vocalist Danny Roberts. Keyboardist Benmont Tench also joined the band. Ricky Rucker was a part of the band for a short time. Mudcrutch served as the house band at Dub's Lounge in its hometown of Gainesville, Florida.
In 1974, Mudcrutch signed with Shelter Records and re-located to Los Angeles, California. The band released one single, "Depot Street" in 1975, which failed to chart. After Danny Roberts left the group, Petty invited Charlie Souza to take over on bass guitar and the band continued recording in Leon Russell's Tulsa Studio, and later at Leon's Encino California home. The band's record company broke them up in late 1975. Petty, Campbell and Tench went on to form The Heartbreakers in 1976 with fellow Gainesville natives Stan Lynch and Ron Blair.[1]" From Wikipedia
Now jump to the summer of 2016 as Mudcrutch just played and closed their tour here in San Diego, last Thursday (6/30/16) at Humphreys by the Bay. I missed the show but it looked and sounded great from the YouTube videos (with much thanks to s2seltaeb and BlissTanger YouTube Channels).
Mudcrutch isn't a household name like Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers and a lot of people don't know anything about this old/new band. I think they've keep this laid back approach intentional with little network television promotion pumping them up. They aren't doing this reunion and tour for the money and fame. This is about the music and it being played live in smaller venues
to a core group of dedicated fans.
I just got the Mudcrutch 2 album last week and love it. I also love this album cover and had to order a t-shirt replica online. The band and the album give you that early 70's mix of rock 'n roll, country and blues like so many bands were doing at the time that I just ate up as a teenager. I don't know if they recorded this album using older analog audio equipment like some bands are doing again, but it has that sound that says, 1971 is calling and wants you to listen to this.
So take a look and listen to my Mudcrutch Playlist below as I've collected music videos from the first 2008 album plus #2 and a few bonus concert covers too. Enjoy my friends.
Hi everyone, I'm back with hopefully a new blog every Monday! I've been having a great time going to lots of concerts, buying new music and I just got the itch to start sharing my passion for music with you again! A couple of weeks ago, I had the chance to see one of my heroes, James Taylor at the old Sports Arena in San Diego. They now call it Valley View Casino Arena but as they say, "you can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig." James and the band were fantastic and his voice just shined through. I took a video of the last sang, You and I again, from his latest album that I featured last year in my blog, James Taylor, for the long run, about his new album, Before This World. So here is my updated James Taylor playlist with apologies to my shaky hand and distance to the Walking Man on this first video.
And, a Happy Birthday today to my ol' buddy Bill DeVoe who shares the same birth year of 1955 with me. Bill this story and song is a bit like our lifetime friendship.
Love ya!
I was going to rattle off about ten, I will stop at two, you get the point. But, go ahead do a couple on your own...
Some may say, way too simplistic, a Christmas time answer. Maybe I'm just a simple guy, but Christmas presents us the essential question, How do we make peace on earth, goodwill to men? The answer is a process of love for us all. For me, it did not come from my Christian upbringing, it came from the eclectic experiences in this world and learning that it would be up to me to create my own acts of goodwill.
Christmas is a time to reflect. No matter your religion, non religion or spirituality, think of Christmas in America as the space in time where love becomes less confined. It provides an opening, to give beyond ourselves, to help people. Hopefully, our thoughts and actions of goodwill go beyond the Christmas bubble and we make a positive difference in the lives we touch, throughout the year. Music helps too. It provides a wonderful conduit to the process of understanding that leads to peace.
I want to end this year's Monday Monday Music blog with mostly an acoustic spirit of traditional and non traditional Christmas time music. Merry Christmas to all.
I grew up with Paul Hobbs in Santa Maria, California in the 1960's and 70's. We both lived on the west side of town and although we were only 5 blocks from each other (Alvin Ave. to Sunset), we didn't know each other until several years later. Back in the early 60's, each block had enough baby-booming children so that kids needn't venture too far to have a flock of friends.
Our neighborhood school was Robert Bruce Elementary. Paul was one year older than me and that may have been the chasm great enough to prevent an early meeting. That would change with the city Junior Olympics and a first face to face at the standing broad jump. We both remember that first encounter as our starting point, but it would be a few more years until we circled back.
By the mid-sixties, both of our families moved from the west side to the east side of town. My family moved to Tunnell St. and my next door neighbor and new friend was Ron Zieman. Ron and Paul's families went to the Methodist church and being in the same 8th grade class, they were close. When I entered junior high, the actual beginning of The Wonder Years, 1968-73, I was reintroduced to Paul, through Ron. We all became fast friends with the common bond of rock 'n' roll and riding our bikes everywhere. Paul's move, put him close to the Santa Maria Riverbed where we did things like act out our own imaginary movie scenes. We also explored much of the central coast with all our buddies through high school- Ron, Gary Hill, Steve Spencer, Jeff McCarthy and Ken Forman). Now, as life brings Paul and I together again on a more frequent basis, a lifetime of friendship is still played out in walks in that same riverbed, the conversation always engaging.
Paul is amazing on many levels. For me, he has always been a musician and I mean a real musician at a time when most of us were trying not to stab ourselves with the sharp metal protractor tool in geometry class. Sure he was learning his craft but man, listening to him play acoustic guitar in a small room was the biggest musical influence in my life. These were the wonder years of music, with many hours spent in Paul's or Ron's bedrooms listening to The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Byrds, Jimi Hendrix, Buffalo Springfield, Cream, James Taylor, Neil Young, Cat Stevens, Joni Mitchell and on and on. But Paul really listened. He practiced and played and sang many of these artists' songs, with his sound. I thought it was wonderful and felt lucky to be around him.
Paul, like many of his musical heroes evolved into a singer-songwriter himself. He is a very social person with many dear friends. He was raised in a loving family and ran with that to also become a great husband, father and now grandpa too. All ride the carousel of time with him. In his music, I hear themes of love and sometimes the separation of that love that goes out into the world or, from this world. These songs can also express the universal hope that love does come back around at some space in time.
I was in Santa Maria for Thanksgiving this year and had a chance to talk with one of Paul's life-long friends starting from the west side days, Paul Tognazzini. We all met as Paul and Jane Hobbs usually invite a large herd of family and friends (party of 10 this time) to Sunday breakfast. Paul Tog has gone through quite a battle with leukemia and I'm happy to say is still seizing the day and getting stronger every day. Anyway, I had a great breakfast conversation with Paul Tog and we talked about mutual childhood friends from the old blocks - Freddie Board, Philip and Gary Cooper, Albert Lopez to name just a few, and Paul Tog's little sister, Susie, who I had a crush on in the first grade.
I would be remiss not to mention the great friends that Paul H. has integrated with my circle that continues to this day with Ken and Vicki Forman. And even though I haven't seen these guys in a while but see them through Facebook or in talks with Paul- Jeff McCarty and Steve Spencer will always be friends, thanks to Paul. Paul loves his friends and his friends love him back. Oh, and that nefarious character Ron Zieman is still around too! (I'll probably get double pay-backs on that last comment.)
Recently, I've had the pleasure of helping Paul create a YouTube Channel for his music. He hasn't uploaded all his recordings, but has a good start that I hope will continue. Here, I've put together a YouTube playlist for your listening pleasure from his channel and hope you will share this with your friends, old and new.
and, Happy Christmas and a Merry New Year from John, Paul, George and Ringo
This past week I watched the documentary, Glen Campbell: I'll Be Me and it got me to thinking about my father who past away in 2014. My dad worked for the General Telephone Company and started his career as a Lineman in Santa Maria, California. In 1968, Glen Campbell released the Jimmy Webb song, Wichita Lineman and it has always made me think of my dad, kind of like his theme song. I've included the song in My 100 Songs YouTube playlist below as it continues to grow. So this one's for you dad.
This is a quick blog this week and my last on a weekly basis for a while. I need to focus on building my educational consulting business as things are starting to take off for me. I hope to continue to post Monday Monday Music blogs on a sporadic basis and hope you enjoyed the ones I have written so far. I'll keep adding songs to my list here and should be a pretty good mix of music to enjoy. Let's all just keep listening to all kinds of music as much as possible. Our minds are meant to be fed rhythm as it nourishes the soul and keeps us young. Take care my friends.
Don Henley and his Cass County Tour arrived at the Los Angeles Forum last Friday night. I told Mary Kit before we got the tickets, "I don't want you to be disappointed with this show because we might be listening to cowboy music all night." MK is more of an All She Wants To Do Is Dance kind of gal, but we are both huge Eagles and Don Henley solo career fans and jumped at the chance to see him. Without getting too involved here, let's just say Don has that special gift as a songwriter to make you feel that his words are your life. MK and I are obviously not unique in this feeling as this has been a key to his success. As for us, no other musician has tapped into that personal well of emotion more than Don Henley.
And speaking of relationships, Henley had the magic to add Shawn Colvin as his opening act on this tour. She is one of my favorite artists and I will reserve a future blog to just focus on her music. I recommend you go buy her new album, Uncovered. It is her second cover from another wonderful group of songwriters. Shawn setup this concert evening perfectly when she said that she basically writes, "breakup songs" and said, she loves the line by Trisha Yearwood that "sad songs make me so happy."
With that, we tap into the musical mind of Don Henley and his genius to entertain a full house at the Fabulous Forum with a crafted mix of his solo career, theme-selected covers and new songs. The new album pays country homage to his youth in Linden, Texas listening to music on the radio at home and in the car with his dad. The concert starts with about 30 old radios of various shapes and sizes hung from the ceiling with a spot light. The spot-lighted radios are synchronized moving quickly from one radio to the next with audio of an old radio dial changing stations, playing classic radio sound bites from the 40's to the early 70's.
Cass County has debuted at Number 1 on the Country charts and as Henley described during the concert, this is nothing short of "a miracle." But, as a (not in a box) rock legend, Mr. Henley knows a thing or two about making hits. He brings in a line up of home run hitters including, Mick Jagger, Miranda Lambert, Merle Haggard, Vince Gill, Martina McBride, Alison Krauss, Trisha Yearwood, Dolly Parton, Lucinda Williams and Stevie Nicks. If you're like me, you'd buy the album on the harmony vocals alone!
Here is the Set List of the Cass County Tour. Explore my Radio, Don Henley and the Cass County TourYouTube Playlist below with most of the 2015 tour set list order. I was able to video corral the Cass County songs from the album (except the bonus track of the Jackson Browne song, Here Comes Those Tears Again. I will add that to this playlist when it comes to YouTube). I've also ended the playlist with a couple of recent interviews that I think you will enjoy.
Last Friday, Mary Kit and I along with our good friends Ken and Vicki Forman and Paul and Jane Hobbs saw Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band at the Vina Robles Amphitheater in Paso Robles. MK scored the best seats she and I have ever had at a concert, second row, middle of the stage. I couldn't believe this gift when Ringo and the band came out. I was standing dead center 10 yards from a Beatle looking right at me, singing Matchbox. This was bucketlist fun and quickly realized it was going to be the best music party I'd ever experienced, surrounded by a bunch of like-minded boomers rocking out! All the pictures here were taken from my cell phone and I have to say, Ringo was so gracious and even leaned into many pictures being taken by people close to the stage. This was his party and he was going to make everyone feel the love.
If you have time, look at the first link above as it lists all the All-Starr Band lineups Ringo has put together since the first group of super musicians in 1989. The current list of band members have been together since 2012 and include:
If you are unfamiliar with the band's format, Ringo sings about a third of the time throughout the show and lets his other rock star mates play their hits. Here is the Setlist with live YouTube video clips of the songs from the band's various tour shows that you will enjoy watching.
I knew Todd Rundgren was in the band and was very excited to see him for the first time live. Todd is one of the great rock 'n' rock characters and was a fun showman playing his hits from the
70's and running all over the stage much of the night.
I was totally surprised that we were also going to a mini Santana concert with Gregg Rolie who was the lead singer and organ player in Santana. Rolie's voice and organ playing was fantastic.
I was equally taken by Richard Page who was the lead vocalist for Mr. Mister. Page is an excellent singer along with his strong bass playing. I loved his bass on Todd's song, Bang on the Drum All Day. I have to admit I was never a Toto fan but enjoyed Steve Lukather's lead guitar on all the band's songs including his Toto songs that greatly amped up the whole party atmosphere. And yes, I was actually dancing and singing along to Toto songs, it was that fun with everyone having a blast.
Ringo really knows what he is doing here. All of these musicians are great pros and you already know he has a knack for surrounding himself with talent. Ringo is forever a Beatle, keeping time and being timeless. At 75 he is in great shape, relaxed, happy and loved by everyone. Mr. Peace and Love is a class act and knows how to send everybody home with a huge smile on their face.
We love you Ringo!
Keith Richards is many things to many different people. The public mainly knows him for the legendary reputation of being the 'bad boy' mumbling substance abuser that inspired Johnny Depp's pirate. But if you know a bit about rock 'n' roll, you know that he is simply the best band leader of the genre. Like Count Basie as a supreme band leader, Richards crafted a rhythm of sound in the Rolling Stones that is unmatched in creativity and longevity. The best beat in rock 'n' roll is the Rolling Stones and Keith is the instrument through which Muddy Waters and Chuck Berry flow together.
Last night, I watched the new documentary film by Morgan Neville, Keith Richards Under the Influence on Netflix. Mr. Neville uses the backdrop of the the making of Keith Richards' new album, Crosseyed Heart (available @ Amazon) with photographs and video of Richards' live and musical influences, starting with his mother and grandfather. Keith talks about the meeting on the train, where Mick Jagger and Keith reconnect as former classmates with Mick carrying a Muddy Waters and Chuck Berry album under his arm. That story and many others make Neville's film a must see that you will enjoy. In a recent blog, I featured another Neville film, 20 Feet from Stardom. My favorite part of that film is Merry Clayton's experience who was brought into a midnight recording session to sing on Gimme Shelter in 1969. Gimme Shelter is one of the best rock 'n' songs ever where many musical elements all came together. Keith is rarely the front man, but always the architect. In Under the Influence, you'll see how he teams with Steve Jordan his drummer and collaborator to build the rhythm from the ground up. In the film, you will also see how Keith and Stones' drummer Charlie Watts create the structure for Street Fighting Man. I love this stuff, hope you like my playlist of somethings old and new this week.
Tonight, I see Mark Knopfler at Humphreys in San Diego with my good friend Mark Hunter. Humphreys is an outdoor venue by the San Diego Bay and famous for the free-loading kayackers who paddle up in the marina to take in the concert. It's wonderful to see a show there in the summer months because it's very comfortable at night with shorts and t-shirts and the comedians and musicians seem to love the place. The only drag are the small plastic chairs all tied together and the people are literally packed in like sardines on a flat surface. When you sit down, you pray for under 6 foot people in front of you, and no more that a 36 inch waist size next to you. I've been there enough to have both tall and wide and shorter and lean or combinations of both. When you get shorter and lean, you think the concert gods have blessed you for the evening. Maybe the kayackers are on to something...
Anyway, Mr. Knopfler is most famous for being the front man of the British band Dire Straits which by the way is one of the best rock band names ever. Beyond the name and the band's string of hits in the late 70's and 80's, Mark Knopfler is simply one of the best guitarists on the planet. His finger picking style made him famous with his first monster hit Sultan's of Swing (and with the distinction of being overplayed so much, it made my blog - GREAT Songs Ruined by Radio). However, most know him for the even bigger hit, Money for Nothing which propelled both the band and MTV's popularity in the 80's.
As usual, I have put together a playlist of YouTube video cuts that you may not be as familiar with including songs on Knopfler's current 2015 album, Tracker (available @ Amazon). Mark is also famous for being such a great collaborator with musicians such as Chet Akins and Emmy Lou Harris and I've included several in this playlist. He has also produced Bob Dylan and Randy Newman, has 9 soundtrack albums and 8 solo albums. Enjoy the prolific and gifted Mark Knopfler as I will live tonight!
As Paul Harvey used to say, "and now for the rest of the story." Here are four documentary films about the business of rock 'n' roll and the backup session players and singers who helped craft the hits we know and love. I recommend you watch all four and you'll better appreciate the people who helped create the arrangements, melody, beat and harmony for many classic recordings without getting much credit for the quality of their work.
The Wrecking Crew- The Wrecking Crew was a group of studio musicians in Los Angeles in the 1960s who played on hits for the Beach Boys, Frank Sinatra, Nancy Sinatra, Sonny and Cher, Jan & Dean, The Monkees, Gary Lewis and the Playboys, Mamas and Papas, Tijuana Brass, Ricky Nelson, Johnny Rivers and were Phil Spector's Wall of Sound. The amount of work that they were involved in was tremendous. Watch on Netflix
Standing in the Shadows of MOTOWN-
In 1959, Berry Gordy gathered the best musicians from Detroit's thriving jazz and blues scene to begin cutting songs for his new record company. Over a fourteen year period, they were the heartbeat on "My Girl," "Bernadette," I Was Made to Love Her," and every other hit from Motown's Detroit era. By the end of their phenomenal run, this unheralded group of musicians had played on more number ones hits than the Beach Boys, the Rolling Stones, Elvis and the Beatles combined. They called themselves the Funk Brothers.
Currently, this documentary only appears available to rent on Amazon for $2.99 here.
Muscle Shoals - Located alongside the Tennessee River, Muscle Shoals, Alabama has helped create some of the most important and resonant songs of all time. Overcoming crushing poverty and staggering tragedies, Rick Hall brought black and white together to create music for the generations. He is responsible for creating the “Muscle Shoals sound” and The Swampers, the house band at FAME Studios that eventually left to start its own successful studio known as Muscle Shoals Sound. Watch on Netflix
20 Feet From Stardom - Millions know their voices, but no one knows their names. In his compelling new film TWENTY FEET FROM STARDOM, award-winning director Morgan Neville shines a spotlight on the untold true story of the backup singers behind some of the greatest musical legends of the 21st century. Triumphant and heartbreaking in equal measure, the film is both a tribute to the unsung voices who brought shape and style to popular music and a reflection on the conflicts, sacrifices and rewards of a career spent harmonizing with others. Watch on Netflix
School has started up, the boss is not happy, a family member is not doing well, the home improvement project is stalled, your to-do list is growing and you are simply, under pressure. Life does it's ebb and flow, you catch the wave and sometimes the wave catches you.
