Amy Winehouse steps out at the Mercury Awards
Speaking of Ms. Winehouse, who Michael mentioned in his Sharon & the Dap-Kings post (the Dap-Kings also being Amy’s backing band on Back to Black
), after going through what I would call a rough few weeks, she made an appearance at Tuesday night’s Mercury Awards in the UK.
I’m pulling for her. Though her voice harkens back to the 60’s soul singers, there’s something that’s fresh and original about her. I’m bummed that she cancelled her upcoming tour dates. I was excited about catching her in Austin. But the important thing is that she gets her shit straight, and judging by her performance of “Love is a Losing Game” Tuesday night, I think she’s on her way. Though I don’t think that classy husband of hers is doing any good….
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5LsdEqSQO4 336 278]
Come Over to Jeb’s Yard, Get Your Heaven Right Here
I heard another older song a few weeks ago that’s brand spanking new to me, courtesy of Sirius (where Steve Earle now has his own radio show on Outlaw Country – yipee!). This one is by Jeb Loy Nichols. Jeb made a unique musical journey from Austin, Texas to New York City to London. He’s been based out of the UK for some time now. In 2000, he traveled to Jamaica to record Just What Time It Is, a fusion of soulful pop, reggae, and a little country. The studio engineer was Stephen Stanley (Buju Banton, Burning Spear).
The song will reel a lot of you right in with its infectious sing-along chorus: “come ooon over to my yaard.” La la la la la… It’s a nice one!
Of the song, Jeb writes on his site:
I wrote this after the bulk of the album was already finished. Lorraine and I were cycling through Wadebridge, in North Cornwall, the lyrics came in a tumble, the whole thing was written in twenty minutes. I was pleased with the day, happy to be out of London, I’d recorded a record I liked and I was counting myself lucky. Things were looking up, I was doing what I wanted to do with people I admired, I was out of one thing and into another.
Take a listen (and don’t crap out before the chorus)…
Jeb Loy Nichols –
Heaven Right Here (Come Over to My Yard)(mp3)Buy: Just What Time It Is
(Amazon) |
Linkage: Official Site | MySpace
Review: Debbie Harry’s ‘Necessary Evil’
Gonzo takes the wheel for a review of Debbie Harry’s new album. – Pete….
(2007, Five Seven Music)
I have to begin by admitting two things. First, I’m a big Blondie fan. I have all of their albums on vinyl, minus the contract-filling Hunter. I’ve often said that New York City in the mid-late 1970s is my favorite music ‘scene’ of all time. Along with the Talking Heads, Patti Smith, The Shirts, Television and the Ramones, Blondie is one reason for my view. Secondly, I confess that I haven’t followed Debbie Harry’s solo career with any level of depth. That said, I was intrigued when given the opportunity to review Harry’s latest solo disc, Necessary Evil.
The album’s opening tracks set the tone for the rest of the album. In general, the songs on Necessary Evil retain Allen’s roots in the new wave and pop music of the late 1970s/early 1980s. Whether this is conscious or not, this aspect of Harry’s most recent work fits in well with the current trend of retro-new wave acts such as The Killers. Yet in addition to recalling Harry’s most well known work with Blondie, the album combines this aesthetic with contemporary conventions of indie rock and electro dance music. The result is admittedly not anything to write home about. While Harry is able to bridge the past with the present, the product of this marriage is sadly not particularly unique or groundbreaking. Still, that’s not to say that the songs are without merit.
However, the failure of the album is its lack of brevity. At 17 tracks, the disc gets to be a bit tedious. While I doubt that it would create a landmark album, trimming some of the fat on Necessary Evil could at the very least have led to a more solid and enjoyable disc.
In short, Necessary Evil is enjoyable for what it is. It isn’t earth-shattering, but it shows that Harry has maintained her competence in form and execution. Overall, I give it a solid ‘C’ grade.
Necessary Evil hits the shelves on 9/17 in the US.
Debbie Harry – Official Website
Debbie Harry on Myspace (featuring songs from the upcoming album)What the Kids are Listening to: Beautiful Girls
I know it’s Thursday and not Sunday, but I’ve had this one in my hopper for a day or so…
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lt6o8NlrbHg 336 278]
I’m going to turn on the cantankerous old man voice now: what in the heck are these kids listening to! A couple of weeks ago I had my son in the car with me and this lovely little ditty came on. My first thought was “Hmm, Ben E. King with a beat, interesting” and I was with it until I listened to the lyrics. Here’s a snippet:
You’re way too beautiful girl
That’s why it’ll never work
You’ll have me suicidal, suicidal
When you say it’s over
Damn all these beautiful girls
They only wanna do your dirt
They’ll have you suicidal, suicidal
When they say it’s overDid he really just say suicidal? More than that, is that my 9 year old singing along!? I’ll admit that merely typing the words “In my youth” hurts, but in my youth parent advocate groups would have had Mr. Kingston in court in a heartbeat for merely suggesting suicide is cool. And yet atop the Billboard 100 this tune has sat for three weeks and not even Fergie, Timbaland nor the mighty KanYe can seem to de-throne him.
I’m interested to hear what all the faithful readers of ickmusic think of this tune. Personally, and much to my son’s displeasure, this gets switched off at the first note anytime it comes on.
Buy: Sean Kingston
Link: Official Site | MySpace
Crazy Wonderful Indeed
It’d be easy to pass Amerie Mi Marie Rogers by as just another Beyoncé clone to be filed neatly before Ciara and Rihanna in the record industry’s attempt to strike gold more than once (as displayed perfectly by the latter’s more than 2 month stint atop the UK charts with her infectious “Umbrella”). It’s not that easy though, and Amerie is far from another clone.
With everything from the acid-jazz breaks of “Hate2LoveU” to the classic 80’s new-wave funk of “Some Like It” and “Crazy Wonderful”, Amerie delivers 13 tracks of pure funk. It may be a heady comparison but the overall record hearkens back to Sign O’ The Times era Prince. Covering ground from multiple styles while creating a cohesive album that really just makes you want to shake your behind and fall in love all at the same time.
While this record is not out in the states until August 21st, the UK crowd has had this record since May where it reached number 17 on the UK Album charts. Here’s a taste of what we’re in store for… check out “Crazy Wonderful” and pick up Because I Love It when it hits stores, or pick up the UK import which includes her 2005 breakthrough tune “1Thing”.
Amerie – Crazy Wonderful (MP3)
Buy: Because I Love It
Links: Official Site | MySpace
What the Kids are Listening To: Fergie
The five top songs on this week’s Billboard Top 100 are the same as last week. Boring, but I’ll continue on with week 2 of “What the Kids are Listening To”… this week, we look at Fergie’s “Big Girls Don’t Cry”. I can’t say the song does anything for me. Very manufactured, and very much targeted to all of the young heartsick girls out there. I gotta hand it to Fergie though, she’s risen from her roots on the TV show Kids Incorporated, through her time in the Black Eyes Peas, and emerged as a very successful solo artist. Not even a little on-stage squirt in her pants will deter her or her fans.
So here’s the video. It is me, or is she dressed like a blonde Milli Vanilli at the beginning? And I love the hard-ass punk look on her band, playing what couldn’t be any further away from hard-ass or punk.
Final verdict on this one: disinterested.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbDD5HLwifY&w=336&h=278]
What the Kids Are Listening to: Plain White T’s
Okay, so I’m 36 years old, not ancient by any means, but what I am realizing is how increasingly disconnected I am with the current popular music scene. So I’m inspired to start a new Sunday series called “What the Kids are Listening To”, a chance for us, the disconnected ones, to take a look and listen to what’s on the kiddies’ iPods. I’ll pick one out of the top 5 and we’ll all watch the video and comment. Be as nice or un-nice as you please (example, Jen from my recent Rihanna video post felt this way: “This song makes me want to dig out my eardrums with a fork.”)
Here’s this week’s chart:
I announced my affection for Rihanna and her sexy umbrella a couple of weeks ago, so tonight I pick the only non-R&B / hip-hop tune of the bunch, which is “Hey There Delilah”, a song by the Plain White T’s. It’s sentimental, catchy, acoustic pop. And you know what? Not bad! My first thought upon hearing it was that it wouldn’t sound out of place on an Old 97’s record. It has that mellow Rhett Miller vibe for sho’. Sure, it’s as sappy as a maple tree, but I’ll take it any day over “Party Like a Rock Star” or “Buy You a Drank”.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbJtYqBYCV8&w=425&h=350]
Check out the Plain White T’s album, Every Second Counts
.
Bryan Ferry’s Dylanesque
Bryan Ferry’s new album, Dylanesque, is released tomorrow. As the title suggests, it’s Ferry’s take on 11 Bob Dylan tunes. I jumped in to take a listen, and I have to say, I like what I hear.
He goes uptempo on “Simple Twist of Fate” – and succeeds. He also covers one of my favorite later era Dylan tunes: Time Out of Mind
‘s “Make You Feel My Love”. Tie me up and flog me if you wish, but I still think Garth Brooks has the best version of this song. It’s the sweet n’ sugary side of me I guess (the side of me that sings along to “The Rose” when I hear it).
The whole album is streaming at Spinner.com. Go on over and take a listen. And you can taste a couple of tracks here too…
Bryan Ferry – Positively 4th Street (Windows streaming) | Positively 4th Street (Real streaming)
Bryan’s Official Site.
Buy Dylanesque…
Sample the entire album on Spinner.com.
Rihanna’s Umbrella
You usually won’t find me too in touch with the Top 40 hits of the day (or the Hot 100 on Billboard), but Rihanna pulled me right in to this video. I could do without Jay-Z’s bantering at the beginning, but that’s what you get these days. Wherever you look on the charts, you get the obligatory Artist Name featuring currently hot hip-hop star. A quick scan of the Hot 100 shows:
- T-Pain Feat. Yung Joc
- T-Pain feat. Akon
- Bone Thugs-N-Harmony feat. Akon
- Gwen Stefani feat. Akon
- Fergie feat. Ludacris
- Fabolous feat. Ne-Yo
- D.J. Khaled feat. T.I., Akon, Rick Ross, Fat Joe, Lil Wayne, and Baby
- and a lot more
Maybe I’m old and grumpy, but that pisses me off (for no particular reason). And that Akon, what a class act he is.
But back to Rihanna. I genuinely like this song. What’s not to like about a hot 19 year old from Barbados. *slap* Snap out of it Pete.
To quote the great Borat: “Wa wa woo wah!”
Ickmusic Live: Gary Numan 1980
I know very little about Gary Numan. I’ve always been a fan of “Cars”, but beyond that, not much exposure to ol’ Gary. But I’m always seeking to paint in the bare spots of my musical canvas (like that?), and God knows, we all need to take a trip back to 1980 once in a while for some classic synth-heavy new wave.
So a quick Numanology…. born Gary Anthony James Webb in Hammersmith, West London in 1958… Put together a band in the late 70’s called Tubeway Army… 1979’s The Pleasure Principle
included his biggest hit, “Cars” – and was completely devoid of guitars… two of his biggest influences: David Bowie and Marc Bolan… he’s a flying nut, and was once arrested in India for “spying” during a flight around the world… he’s seen a resurgence in his career over the last decade, as time and perspective have him labeled by some as the “godfather of electronic music.”
Enjoy the show…
Gary Numan
Live in Santa Monica, CA
BBC Rock Hour, broadcast September 7, 1980Airlane
Me I Disconnect From You
Praying To The Aliens
M.E.
Films
We Are So Fragile
Are Friends Electric?
Conversation
Metal
Cars
I Die, You Die
Down In The ParkGary Numan’s Official Site | MySpace
Buy 1980’s Telekon
