Blues
When Doves Cry / Beautifully Broken
Dec 16th
It’s been a while since I’ve discovered a gem in my own music library – one that I don’t recall ever hearing. I’ve listened to Gov’t Mule’s 2003 live album (Deepest End: Live in Concert) before, but I don’t remember hearing what I heard tonight: a slow and bluesy “When Doves Cry” sung by Warren Haynes. Prince’s classic tune bookends the tune “Beautifully Broken”. Only the chorus is sung, but the way it weaves its way into the full song makes it one of the best interpretations of a Prince tune I’ve heard.
I’m sure there are a few groups in the jam band scene that have tackled Prince’s music. The only cover that comes to mind is Phish’s take on “Purple Rain”, which always seemed like more of an attempt to be humorous than a respectful and heartfelt interpretation of the work (must be the vacuum cleaner solo).
With an artist like Warren Haynes though, you can bet that he’ll put his heart and soul into any song he performs – and it’s evident here with “When Doves Cry” and “Beautifully Broken”. There’s a passion in the vocals and every pluck of his guitar string. And with a heavy duty powerhouse like Gov’t Mule backing it all up – well – I’m damn sure I’ll have this on regular rotation for some time to come.
Gov’t Mule – When Doves Cry / Beautifully Broken (mp3)
From The Deepest End: Live in Concert
Ick’s Pick (Week II): Derek Trucks Band
Jan 13th
Welcome to week II of my Ick’s Pick series – 52 weeks of hot new album action! My pick for the second “release Tuesday” of the year comes from the Derek Trucks Band. Derek Trucks is the nephew of original Allman Brothers Band drummer Butch Trucks, so grew up very musically inclined, to say the least. The “Derek” was in tribute to Derek and the Dominos, the blues-rock group put together by Eric Clapton, and whose album included the slide guitar work of Duane Allman. Derek was drawn to the slide guitar at an early age, and by the age of 11 or 12, was playing gigs in his hometown of Jacksonville, Florida.
Derek’s all of 29 years old now, and is already releasing his 7th album with the Derek Trucks Band – Already Free (his first DTB album was released in 1997, when he was 18 years old).
I’ve seen the Allman Brothers a handful of times, and only knew of Derek through his association with the band (he has toured and played in the band over the years). But I’d never taken the time to track down his work with his own band. So in listening to Already Free, there’s an instant familiarity, but at the same time, a sense of wonder at how mature and accomplished Derek and the band sound.
The album features some guests, including another guitar whiz, Doyle Bramhall II (he and Derek have been playing a lot with Clapton the last couple years), and Derek’s wife, blues singer/guitarist Susan Tedeschi.
Standout tracks for me include the album opener, a gritty cover of Dylan’s “Down in the Flood”; “Maybe This Time”, which features Bramhall on guitar; “Don’t Miss Me”, one of the many tracks featuring DTB vocalist Mike Mattison, with some great blues riffs and tempo changes; but my favorite out of the gate is “Sweet Inspiration” – a song written by Memphis/Muscle Shoals songwriters Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham (hear them do it). It’s a raucous and joyful gospel rave up, and it’ll have you dancing around the house. The Hammond B-3 intro sounds straight off the Stax label; and the combination of Mattison and Tedeschi’s harmonies, Derek’s slide guitar, the B3, and the amazing percussion work come together for 4 minutes and 39 seconds of halle-frickin-lujah! Track it down.
Buy: Already Free
Links: DTB Official Site | MySpace | Already Free EPK
DTB on Conan O’Brien last week (Jan 7) performing “Down in the Flood”:
Blues from the Rush Soundtrack
Sep 13th
Must be in a Bluuuues kinda mood. I’ve had the soundtrack to the movie Rush since it came out in December 1991 (Jason Patric, Jennifer Jason Leigh, and Gregg Allman as – what else – the drug dealer). Eric Clapton scored the movie, and contributed some extra songs too, most notably “Tears In Heaven“, written for his son Conor, who died tragically in March 1991 from falling out of his mother’s 53rd story apartment window in Manhattan. He was 4 years old.
Eric invited Buddy Guy to help out with this one – Willie Dixon’s “Don’t Know Which Way To Go”, an 11 minute immersion into everything that is great about the blues.
Buddy Guy w/ Eric Clapton – Don’t Know Which Way To Go
Buy
Clapton Joins the Bluesbreakers, Mind-Blowing Solos Ensue
Sep 13th
This is from John Mayall’s 70th birthday gig a few years ago. Buddy Whittington (from the Bluesbreakers) and Eric Clapton do things to their Fender Stratocasters that mere mortals like us can only dream of. Amazing. And a trombone solo to boot!
I just finished Pattie Boyd’s autobiography, and I’m just cracking open Clapton’s. I knew that drugs and drink played a role in Eric’s life, but holy schmoly batman, that is excess!
Northern Exposure: Son of Dave
Aug 31st
Son of Dave is Benjamin Darvill whom you may or may not recognize as part of Crash Test Dummies. As he so succinctly puts it, he has spent the last few years bringing “the Blues kicking and howling into the 21st Century” and if this recording is any measure I’d say he’s been quite successful. Darvill is a modern day troubadour with an impressive range and razor-sharp wit. While he begs comparison to Tom Waits, his delivery as a one-man band – stomping, looping and fighting his way through the record’s eleven tracks – sets him far apart.
The leadoff track “Old Times Were Good Times” is nothing short of funky and sets the tone for the next nine cuts. Must-listen tracks like “Lover Not a Fighter”, “Hellhound” and a cover of the WAR classic “Low Rider” all make this one record not to miss.
Son of Dave – Old Times Were Good Times (MP3)
Son of Dave Links: Official Site | on Last.fm | on MySpace
A Good Week for Tunes in Telluride: Steve Earle, Allison Moorer, Junior Brown, and Jonny Lang
Jul 10th
Top Left: Steve Earle works his dobro hard for the Sheridan Opera House crowd.
Top Right: Jonny Lang brings the blues in Mountain Village.
Bottom Left: Junior Brown rocks his guitar / lap-steel hybrid in Mountain Village.
Bottom Right: I ponder life’s great questions with a Franziskaner in hand.
Yes, folks, life was sweet last week. My wife and I plopped the kids into the truck and drove the 9 hours from the Phoenix area to the beautiful San Juan Mountains of southwest Colorado. We met up with my parents, my two brothers and their families for some 4th of July fun in Telluride, Colorado.
As you can see, the music gods were smiling on me during my vacation. Among the hiking, dining, and fly fishing (3 times, 1 brown trout, and a ton of fun) were these three great events that kept the Ickmusic vibe alive….
Review: Friday at the McDowell Mountain Music Festival
Apr 28th
When you show up to at a music festival to pick up your press credentials, and you’re handed a VIP pass with 12 free drinks ready to be punched, at a Sierra Nevada-sponsored festival, well – you just know it’s gonna be a great day. Nine hours later – after seeing and hearing the likes of Gov’t Mule, Robert Randolph and the Family Band, Grace Potter & the Nocturnals, the subdudes, Steve Reynolds Band, and Mikel Lander, Meridith Moore & Friends – I was right, it was great.
This was my second straight year at the Friday offering of Scottsdale’s McDowell Mountain Music Festival. It’s a young festival (this was it’s 5th annual), and with the impressive lineups, the great organization, and so much room at the Westworld venue to expand, it’s going to pick up steam and continue to grow each year. So on this Friday, my partner in crime was my friend Greg. Let me take you through our day…
Canned Heat Live
Feb 21st
I’ll admit to being an ignoramus about the band Canned Heat up until a few months ago. I was only familiar with two of their “hit” songs: “On the Road Again” and “Goin’ Up the Country”. Well, in my quest to expand my musical mind and historical perspective, I got a hold of this soundboard recording of a1970 concert.
Canned Heat formed in Los Angeles in 1965. Their main passion and drive came from the blues, and they were responsible for helping to revive the careers of Son House and Albert Collins. Their name comes from a 1928 Tommy Johnson song called “Canned Heat Blues”. Canned heat, AKA Sterno, is a cooking fuel basically, made up primarily of ethanol and methanol. Back in the prohibition days, people would water it down and drink it (or dip some bread into it – yum!). So there’s your canned heat lesson.
The 1970 incarnation of the band was made up of Al “Blind Owl” Wilson (guitar, harmonica, vocals – the voice behind the two songs mentioned above), Bob “The Bear” Hite (vocals, harmonica), Harvey “The Snake” Mandel (guitar), Larry “The Mole Taylor (bass), and Adolfo “Fito” de la Parra (drums).
Wilson would sadly pass away later that year in September of what an autopsy determined to be a bartituate overdose – what they ruled a sucide. He died at the age of 27. Who else died at 27? Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain, D. Boon of the Minutemen, and Pigpen of the Grateful Dead. Something about 27?
Enough of the morbidity. Check out some down home 1970 blues here from Canned Heat. If you’re anal about sound quality, this may bug you. It improves as the show goes on. But damn, it’s 36 years old (like me). We may be getting older, but we’re something to behold!
It’s worth it just to hear “Blind Owl” Wilson tear it up in his guitar solos. Enjoy!
Canned Heat
June 29, 1970
Boston, MA
“Boston Tea Party”
1. I Found Love
2. Catfish Blues
3. Bullfrog Blues
4. Gonna Find a New Woman
5. Killing Floor (w/ members of Kaleidoscope)
6. Bring It On Home
7. Kaleideheat Boogie Jam w/ Kaleidoscope *
* Kaleidoscope was a California psychedelic-folk band from the 60’s, built around the nucleus of David Lindley and Chris Darrow. They join Canned Heat for the last tune. Forty minutes of blues boogie jammin’.
- Check out Canned Heat on Playboy’s After Dark show from 1969. Hef also interviews The Bear between songs, and they discuss their love of old 78rpm records.
- Canned Heat’s All Music profile.
- Check out Canned Heat on Amazon.
- Canned Heat performing “Rollin’ and Tumblin’” at the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival.
Required for Music Lovers: Ten Days Out
Jan 31st
Pinetop Perkins. Willie “Big Eyes” Smith. Bryan Lee. “Wild Child” Butler. “Honeyboy” Edwards. Etta Baker.
These are names that could go forgotten if not for projects like Kenny Wayne Shepherd’s new CD/DVD release, Ten Days Out. I can’t tell you how impressed I am not only with this project, but with Kenny Wayne Shepherd. Before this project was brought to my attention, I didn’t know much about what was going on with Kenny these days. I remember him when we were hearing “Blue on Black” on rock radio ten years ago, when Kenny was only 19 years old.
So how cool is this project? Kenny teamed up with former Talkin Head Jerry Harrison (producer), the rhythm section for Stevie Ray Vaughan’s Double Trouble, and a film crew to take a 10-day drive through the South. They located some of the living legends of the blues, talked to them, and performed with them in different settings: living rooms, front porches, kitchens, cemetaries, and smoky clubs.
The resulting CD and DVD are intimate and wholly authentic: “What happened is what you hear,” said Shepherd, “We kept it as real as possible.”
Kenny of course is an amazing blues guitarist in his own right, and there’s plenty of Kenny on display here. But what really impressed me was his unselfishness, and his reverence for those that paved his way. What he and Harrison did with this project is important for American Blues. The DVD is a history lesson, a primer in the blues, and pays homage to some amazing talents and personalities who – let’s face it – ain’t gonna be around for long. Required viewing folks, required viewing. Kenny Wayne Shepherd has himself a new fan…
Check out the trailer here (in Quicktime):
Buy the CD / DVD Box Set of Ten Days Out for $19.97 on Amazon.
Official Site of Ten Days Out
Kenny Wayne Shepherd & B.B. King: The Thrill is Gone (Quicktime Audio) | The Thrill is Gone (Media Player Audio)
Happy Birthday to the King
Jan 8th
Ickmusic sends a shout out to the skies above….Happy 72nd Birthday Elvis!
I watched King Creole a couple of times over the holidays to help prime me for my trip to New Orleans. Here’s a quality moment from the film when Elvis the bus boy jumps up on stage at the request of the film’s heavy, Maxie Fields, played by Walter Matthau. The female lead sitting next to him is Carolyn Jones, aka Morticia Addams from The Addams Family.
Happy Birthday King!
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