RIP Les Paul
Legendary guitarist, inventor, songwriter and overall pioneer Les Paul has passed away at the age of 94. The debt that popular music itself owes to Les is immeasurable. From his part in the creation of the solid-body electric guitar to the first multi-track recording in history his contributions are endless. As a performer, solo and with his late wife Mary Ford, he had scores of top-ten hits and sold millions of records. This particular recording, from the Chester & Lester recording sessions, has long been a favorite of mine.
Chet Atkins & Les Paul – “Over the Rainbow” (mp3) (from Masters of the Guitar: Together, 1978)
The Friday Five: August 7, 2009
Friday Five : ˈfrī-(ˌ)dā,-dē ˈfīv : On the sixth day of every week I hit the shuffle button on my iTunes and share my five and drop a little knowledge and insight for each track. Sometimes there is a playlist involved, sometimes there isn’t. Sometimes we have guest, but most of the time it’s just me. The rest is up to you, our friends and readers! Fire up your media player of choice and share the first five random track of your shuffle in the comments.
The Five:
Jason Mraz – “Life Is Wonderful” (from Selections for Friends, 2006)
Originally from his largely (and criminally) ignored Mr. A-Z, “Life Is Wonderful” is a beautiful bit of alliteration.
Wilco – “It’s Just That Simple” (from A.M., 1995)
A fine country ballad from the bands debut.
Chet Atkins – “Steeplechase Lane” (mp3) (from Chet Atkins: Guitar Legend: The RCA Years, 2000)
Originally from the long out of print Chet Atkins Picks on Jerry Reed.
Estelle – “No Substitute Love” (mp3) (from Shine, 2008)
Complete with a tongue in cheek quote from George Michael‘s “Faith” this is pure pop bliss.
Bryan Adams – “Heaven” (from So Far So Good, 1993)
It’s not “All I Need” but it will have to do.
What’s up next on your shuffle?
A Nudge in the Right Direction
Editor’s Note: Ah Sunday, it’s time to relax and you know what that means a glass of wine, your favorite easy chair and of course a few nudges in the right direction.
- The All Points West Music & Arts Festival is taking place this weekend at New Jersey’s Liberty State Park. Jay-Z took up the Friday night headliner slot vacated by the Beastie Boys and paid tribute by opening with the classic “No Sleep Till Brooklyn”. (link)
- ChordStrike has what could be the oddest “cover” that you’ll ever experience with an unlikely take on M.I.A.‘s “Paper Planes”. (link)
- It looks as if Foreigner has gone the Journey route with a Wal-Mart exclusive triple-disc new + greatest hits package and Matt over at Addicted To Vinyl has the details. (link)
- Jeff Vrabel introduces us to the ‘redonkulous’ trailer for Guy Ritchie‘s Sherlock Holmes and proved that even hundred old characters have fanboys. (link)
- Popdose chart master Jason Hare drops a Chart Attack from 1992 featuring En Vogue, Boyz II Men, Jon Secada and quite possibly one of the worst tunes ever. (link)
The Friday Five: July 31, 2009
Friday Five : ˈfrī-(ˌ)dā,-dē ˈfīv : On the sixth day of every week I hit the shuffle button on my iTunes and share my five and drop a little knowledge and insight for each track. Sometimes there is a playlist involved, sometimes there isn’t. Sometimes we have guest, but most of the time it’s just me. The rest is up to you, our friends and readers! Fire up your media player of choice and share the first five random track of your shuffle in the comments.
The Five:
Nickleback – “How You Remind Me” (from Silver Side Up, 2001)
I don’t know that I would say that I am a Nickleback fan. Truthfully, I am not even sure that I would say that I care for them at all, yet looming in my library is not one but three records by the band. Not quite heavy enough to be considered metal, and far too mainstream to be alternative Nickleback found a home on Top 40 radio and became the new millennium’s answer to Def Leppard. Seriously, putting these guys in the studio with Robert John “Mutt” Lange could yield the best selling record since Thriller. Wait… he produced their latest record. Somehow, I don’t own it.
John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman – “Lush Life” (from John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman, 1963)
Coltrane and Hartman’s relationship began in the late 1940s while doing stints in Dizzy Gillespie‘s band. The story behind “Lush Life’ goes like this, Coltrane and Hartman had decided on 10 songs for the album, but en route to the studio they heard Nat King Cole on the radio performing “Lush Life”, and Hartman immediately decided that song had to be included on the record. For me, this record stands as quite possibly one of the most romantic albums in recording history. Hartman’s syrupy baritone… Trane’s tenor vocal delivery… this is the real deal. If you’ve not had the pleasure of hearing this recording I implore to you click the link and pick it up, you’ll be glad you did.
Nice & Smooth – “Sometimes I Rhyme Slow” (from Ain’t a Damn Thing Changed, 1991)
The best hip-hop gives you a view into a world that you may otherwise not have access to. As a white kid growing up in upstate New York I was taken by the tales of the struggles of inner-city life. This particular track has always been a favorite, with it’s sample lifted from Tracy Chapman‘s somber “Fast Car” it embodied the hopelessness of dealing with addiction.
Young MC – “Bust a Move” (mp3) (from Stone Cold Rhymin’, 1989)
Okay, you’ve got the tune, here’s the video, commence with the booty shaking… Let’s have some action! Let’s have some asses wigglin’… I want some perfection! Bwaa-ha!
311 – “Love Song” (mp3) (from 50 First Dates, 2004)
Over 36,000 songs in my library… and this is the second time that 311‘s take on The Cure’s classic “Love Song” has made an appearance on The Friday Five in the last six months (no less). Let’s see what I had to say last time it shuffled up…
On occasion a cover song reimagines the original to such a point that it becomes its own unique entity (see John Cale’s “Hallelujah” and Jimi Hendrix’s “All Along the Watchtower”) and far surpasses the original. This is one of those cases. As much as I love the original, 311’s sun-drenched take on The Cure track captures the essence for me.Yep, I’d say that again. Oh, wait, I just did! I swear I’m a lazy bastard sometimes… but my guilt is to your benefit as I’m including a bonus track for your evil downloading pleasure! Here is a classic extended remix from a 1989 promo. The Cure – “Love Song (extended remix)” (mp3)
Okay, I’ve shown you mine… you know what to do!David Gray, “Fugitive”
David Gray has managed to exist just outside of my listening radar, crossing over here and there. What has always struck me is the depth of soul that he is able to breathe into every tune I’ve had the pleasure of hearing. That soul is abundant in the first single off his upcoming release Draw the Line due out September 22nd. Titled “Fugitive”, Gray says the image of Saddam Hussein being pulled out his spider hole inspired in part the lyrics for the song. The result is a striking and moving bit of singer-songwriter heaven which I’m sure will get many spins in the coming month and has me looking forward to the coming release.
For a peek behind the curtain Gray has shared this bit of film during the recording process:
Links: Official Site | on Last.fm | on MySpace
<div><div id=”c_s013FX69FvjCtpXOHcInsUnsw==”><div class=”ilike_content”> <ul class=”song_list_preview” style=”list-style:none;”> <li style=”overflow:hidden;”><a class=”song_play_btn” title=”Fugitive” href=”http://www.ilike.com/artist/David+Gray/track/Fugitive”>Fugitive</a> by <a href=”http://www.ilike.com/artist/David+Gray/David+Gray”>David Gray</a></li> </ul> </div> </div><script src=’http://www.ilike.com/api/s?c=1&k=s013FX69FvjCtpXOHcInsUnsw%3D%3D’></script><div id=”ilike_s013FX69FvjCtpXOHcInsUnsw==”><div style=”border-top:1px solid #dddddd;padding-top:5px;font-size:smaller;”>More <a href=’http://www.ilike.com/artist/David+Gray’>David Gray</a> music on <a href=’http://www.ilike.com/’>iLike</a></div></div></div>On Tour: Works Progress Administration
The music collective known as Works Progress Administration is heading out on tour to support their self-titled debut, which is to be released on September 15th.
At the core of Works Progress Administration (or WPA, for short) is the trio of ‘Founding Directors’ Glen Phillips (Toad the Wet Sprocket), Sean Watkins (Nickel Creek, Fiction Family) and Luke Bulla (Jerry Douglas Band, Lyle Lovett). In addition to the base is the group of ‘Executive Board Members’ consisting of Sara Watkins (Nickel Creek), Benmont Tench (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers), Greg Leisz (Joni Mitchell, Bill Frizell), Pete Thomas and Davey Faragher (Elvis Costello and the Imposters). The collective explains the origin of their name…
Works Progress Administration takes its name from FDR’s 1939 New Deal initiative, which put millions to work making buildings, bridges, theater, art and music. The original WPA was rooted in the values of community and creativity, and helped to keep the fire of human dignity burning through the darkest years of the Great Imposters.
Eschewing the usual “supergroup” clichés, WPA appears to be a truly community driven project with collaboration at every level. Vocal duties are shared across the board with each core member contributing lead vocals. The lead-off track “Always Have My Love” is an catchy uptempo number featuring Phillips lead vocals and layers upon layers of fiddles and pedal steel that give the track a depth that can sometimes be lacking in modern Bluegrass / Alt-Country recordings.
You can download “Always Have My Love” at the groups official site for the price of an email address (link)
Links: Official Site | on Last.fm | on MySpace | on Facebook | on Twitter
Click through for the groups tour dates…
Wu-Tang is for the Children!
It’s undeniable that Wu-Tang Clan are one of the most influential crews in hip-hop history, but trust me you’ve not seen them like this before. It may be LEGO® but it’s still raw so despite what O.D.B. thought you may want to keep your little ones from viewing this video.Wu-Tang Lego: Da Mystery of Chessboxin’ from davo on Vimeo.
Wu-Tang is for the kids
A Nudge in the Right Direction
Editor’s Note: Feels like it’s been a dogs age since the last time I posted some nudges. Here’s what’s got…
- nyctaper has a stellar soundboard recording of Built to Spill‘s July 19, 2009 show at Maxwell’s (link)
- Stereogum shares SPIN’s 20 Greatest Albums Of 2009 … So Far, discuss among yourselves (link)
- Yewknee‘s Summer Mix Series is in full swing and briming with excellent mixes from every end of the spectrum. Something for everyone (link)
- This week’s guest Fiver Matt Wardlaw over at Addicted to Vinyl brings three unlikely mash-up’s to light. Whatever you do, do not miss the last one (link)
- Ken Shane over at Popdose digs deep into the crates and comes back with a look at Jimi Hendrix‘s “Electric Ladyland” (link)
- Speaking of Popdose I’ll be joining Jeff Giles and Jason Hare on Friday for what is sure to be a memorable evening (link)
The Friday Five: July 24, 2009
Friday Five : ˈfrī-(ˌ)dā,-dē ˈfīv : On the sixth day of every week I hit the shuffle button on my iTunes and share my five and drop a little knowledge and insight for each track. Sometimes there is a playlist involved, sometimes there isn’t. Sometimes we have guest, but most of the time it’s just me. The rest is up to you, our friends and readers! Fire up your media player of choice and share the first five random track of your shuffle in the comments.
The Five:
Editor’s Note: I’m packing up and heading out early this morning to head to Hershey to see Jason Mraz and Dave Matthews Band tonight. In my absence Matt from Addicted to Vinyl has agreed to fill-in… see ya’ll next week!
Thanks Michael!
I want to start off this edition of the Five by paying tribute to one of Michael’s picks last week – “So Little Kindness” by Huey Lewis & The News. That sucker is proof positive that Huey and the boys still are, and will always be, the coolest. You’ll find that one on Time Flies….The Best of Huey Lewis & The News, if you missed it, but you can also find it on Plan B, their latest studio album to date, and one that comes highly recommended by yours truly.
On with this week’s Five!
Elizabeth and the Catapult – “The Hang Up” (from Taller Children, 2009)
We’ve got a venue here in Cleveland called The Winchester that is a wonderful place to see live music, and a place that you can always count on seeing someone cool in addition to whoever you came out to see. For those that love discovering music, (and isn’t that why we’re all here?) The Winchester is a godsend. I was out for the evening to see Greg Laswell, and also Elizabeth and the Catapult who were on the bill in the opening slot. I had heard the name, definitely was curious to see the band, and instantly became very happy that I had made an effort to get there early. I hope that Verve/Forecast has the horsepower to get this band some exposure, because with the right promotion, I think you’ll be hearing a lot more about Elizabeth and the Catapult in the next year.
Greg Laswell – “High and Low” (from Through Toledo, 2006)Prior to this week’s show, I didn’t own any of Greg Laswell’s stuff, something that very quickly changed after the show. “High and Low” was one of those songs that I instantly remembered liking from when I saw Laswell earlier this year. As someone that really loves sad and dreary songs, “High and Low” is one of the better sad songs I’ve heard in a long time.
Go-Go’s – “Beneath The Blue Sky” (from Talk Show, 1984)
I’ve been talking lots about The Go-Go’s and Jane Wiedlin in the past week with a good friend of mine, who apparently loves The Go-Go’s just a little bit more than I do – as demonstrated by her Go-Go’s inspired email address. Talk Show is arguably the best known album in the Go-Go’s catalog, and yet it is one of the only ones that is out of print. What’s up with that? It’s been on CD at least twice – the original issue, and a mid-90s reissue that quickly went out of print. Insert massive amounts of music fan regret here – I had the reissue, and sold it at some point when I needed money for a car repair job. Little did I know that they were planning to yank it from the store shelves. This is one of my favorite albums from the 80s, although truthfully, I’m more of a Bangles fan.
Rick Springfield – “Oblivious” (from Venus in Overdrive, 2008)
Snicker all that you want, but Rick Springfield has put out some great albums over the years – Living in Oz is probably my favorite from back in the day, and towards the end of the 80s, he dropped Rock of Life, another classic that not enough people heard. The good news is that he’s still making albums that are worth hearing, as recently as last year’s Venus in Overdrive. I never got around to writing about this one for my own site, but I really enjoyed the album a lot. It’s been a while since I’ve listened to it, and this one caught me by surprise on shuffle. Springfield has written some wonderfully dark songs that capture the essence of the inner romantic turmoil that one often faces. This is probably one of his best recent songs in that category. On a side note, I haven’t heard Springfield’s newest release, My Precious Little One. I guess I’m not quite ready to hear Rick singing kid tunes. Maybe next week? We’ll see.
Def Leppard – “Stand Up (Kick Love In Motion” (from Adrenalize, 1992)
While reading a Def Leppard show review earlier this week, I had to snicker at the following comment from one of the readers:
Onto Poison, I don’t like that they had to hold back as to not upstage Def. How could you not let Bret out on the catwalk to do Every Rose?
Answer: They’re probably worried that he’ll hurt himself. I like the Poison hits (which I grew up with) as much as anyone else, but the thought of those serious musicians in Poison “holding back” is comical. By the way, I’ve heard from several people (and it’s mentioned in the review above) that Bret’s voice is pretty roached this summer. That’s kind of a bummer, because Poison do put on a fun show normally, and it sounds like the shows this summer have been average at best.
Speaking of average, I’ve always been a big Def Leppard fan and it bums me out that Joe Elliott just can’t cut it live these days vocally. Sure, he was never the greatest singer, but you could always count on a great live show from Def Lep, and that’s unfortunately no longer the case. I did see them live in 2002 on the X tour, and they kicked ass. On that tour, they were opening most nights with the entire first side of High n’ Dry, which was just as awesome as it sounds like it would be. After that, I saw them a couple more times, including a tour with Journey, who with newly recruited lead singer Jeff Scott Soto, blew the Leps off the stage on a nightly basis.
Adrenalize is the last Def Leppard album that I really enjoyed, and it still gets a good amount of play even now in my world. On a related note, I do highly recommend the new deluxe edition of Pyromania, which has a kick ass second disc featuring a full live show from ’83. And as one that has had that live show on boot for years, it is a classic, let me tell you!
What’s on your shuffle? Thanks to Michael and Pete for the opportunity to guest here today on the Five!
The Friday Five: July 17, 2009
Friday Five : ˈfrī-(ˌ)dā,-dē ˈfīv : On the sixth day of every week I hit the shuffle button on my iTunes and share my five and drop a little knowledge and insight for each track. Sometimes there is a playlist involved, sometimes there isn’t. Sometimes we have guest, but most of the time it’s just me. The rest is up to you, our friends and readers! Fire up your media player of choice and share the first five random track of your shuffle in the comments.
The Five:
Raphael Saadiq – “Never Give You Up” (feat. Stevie Wonder & CJ Hilton)(from The Way I See It, 2008)
Raphael Saadiq took Neo-Soul to a whole new level with this record. Classic soul with a killer Stevie harmonica solo.
Huey Lewis & The News – “So Little Kindness” (from Time Flies… The Best of Huey Lewis & The News, 1996)
Everyone’s favorite little bar band and the subject of the latest installment of Rock Court over at Popdose (link)
Prince – “Dig U Better Dead” (from Chaos and Disorder, 1996)
Not my favorite, but one of the better tracks from this lackluster effort.
Fall Out Boy – “What a Catch, Donnie” (from Folie à Deux, 2008)Patrick Stump does his best Elvis Costello, only to be trumped by the man himself making an appearance.
Guns N’ Roses – “Paradise City” (from Appetite for Destruction, 1987)
Nice way to tie it up!
What next on your shuffle today?