The Boss in Oslo (Bosslo?)
Well, the time is upon us. Bruce kicks off his US leg of the Seeger Sessions tour tomorrow night in Mansfield, Mass. To tide us over, here are a few from last Saturday’s show in Oslo, Norway.
Bruce Springsteen & TSSB:
My City of Ruins|Devils & Dust|Pay Me My Money Down(my 2 yr old daughter’s song of the year!) – Live, Oslo, Norway – May 20, 2006Hard-Fi and the Premier Ickmusic Contest
You’ve hit on the premier Ickmusic contest!! You’ll find it at the bottom of this post….. Continuing down the path of recent British-themed posts (The Style Council, The Clash, Robert Plant), today we take a look and listen to Brit band Hard-Fi. Their debut album, ‘Stars of CCTV‘, has been very well recieved in the UK (it hit #1 on the UK album charts in January). Their biggest gigs to date have been opening for Green Day at Milton Keynes Bowl northwest of London, and they just wrapped up a five night stand (May 14-18) at the Brixton Academy in London (one of a short list of bands to do five straight nights there: The Clash, Bob Dylan, The Prodigy, and Massive Attack being the others). Did anyone out there catch any of these shows?
The band rose out of Staines, a town just outside of London (the town that the great Ali G proclaims to be from). Every good band has that charismatic front man, and Richard Archer plays that role in Hard-Fi (as well as the songwriter).
So hear and see for yourself. Here’s some Hard-Fi goodness coming your way….
Hard-Fi: Hard to Beat (Video in Quicktime) | Also Windows Media Player: Hi, Lo
Hard-Fi: Middle Eastern Holiday (Real)
Live From The Manchester Apollo, 7 May 2006
Middle Eastern HolidayGotta ReasonTied Up Too TightFeltham is Singing OutUnnecessary TroubleBetter Do BetterCash MachineHard To BeatMove On NowStars Of CCTVLiving For The Weekend
Now, the premier Ickmusic contest: For a brand spanking new ‘Stars of CCTV’ CD… What is the only nightclub in Hard-Fi’s hometown of Staines, Middlesex, England? Email the answer to me. I’ll select a random winner from the first ten correct answers. We’ll ship to the U.S. or U.K. (sorry to all you others!) Good luck!
UPDATE: We gotta winner! Kevin from Cary, North Carolina correctly answered with Cheekee’s. Well done Kevin. Your Google skills are impeccable. A few of you answered Simply Neon, which isn’t a nightclub, but a neon light manufacturer. Ah well. Stay tuned for more exciting contests like this!
Quote of the Day: “There’s a lot of people out there who don’t like the fact that we’ve connected with them and jumped all that kind of scenester shit, all those bands walking around dressed like they’re from a fucking charity shop when you know they’ve got money. It gets on my tits.” – Richard Archer
My new favorite saying is officially “It gets on my tits.”
Prince does, um, American Idol
Do you really think I’d let this one slide by without a comment? Yeah, the rumors from a few weeks ago proved true after all. Prince showed up on the season finale of American Idol. He came out unannounced to sing “Lolita” and “Satisfied” with his twin backup singers. Unlike the other special guests of the evening, he wasn’t paired up with one of the Idols (thankfully).
Oh yes, my friends, what an absolutely star studded lineup of special guests: Dionne Warwick! Al Jarreau! Toni Braxton! Mary J. Blige! (somebody shut her up please!) David Hasselhoff weeping in the audience!
I had actually walked away after I realized this was a 2 hr episode, and went straight to CNN.com for my yearly ritual of finding out who won before the West Coast announcement. It was there I saw the potentially frightening news that Prince performed (oh no!!) by himself (phewww). So back to the TV I went. So is this a sellout? A savvy marketing move? Probably both. It should move some ‘3121‘ units, and hopefully produce some tour dates (finally).
So what are your thoughts (Prince fans and non-Prince fans alike)?
Biking with the Fambly Cat
Whatever happened to the music video? I don’t know, maybe I’m just getting older, but I do know that you have a better chance of winning the lottery than seeing one on MTV or VH-1. Yeah I know, we have MTV2, VH-1 Hits, and Fuse and so on, but it’s rare that I’ll see any contemporary video that captures my interest (now Vh-1 Classic, that’s another story!).
That is, until I caught the new Grandaddy video for “Where I’m Anymore” (online of course). It’s back to basics weirdness, Jason Lytle on a bicycle, riding along in a grove of trees and a typical American suburban neighborhood, singing his song with in inanimate cat (the Fambly Cat, I assume).
It’s sort of indicative of the current state of Grandaddy, all that’s left is Jason. He just finished up a short promotional tour with some in store acoustic performances and radio interviews. From what I understood from his WOXY interview, he’s heading back to his new home in Montana to live the quiet life. ‘Just Like the Fambly Cat’ is sadly Grandaddy’s swan song, but I’d bet Jason will be soaking up some inspiration out there in the Big Sky Country and it won’t be too long before we hear his melodic, poetic tech-organic-space tunes again….
It’s downright depressing to me that Grandaddy is no longer. I only saw them live once, opening for Elliott Smith in the early 00’s (once again, I think). I never saw a full show. Will I ever? No Fambly Cat touring? What gives?
The Ickmusic Fambly Cat (Jefe)
Prince after hours at the Fillmore
One of the coolest parts about being a Prince fan is, if you’re lucky, catching one of his patented ‘aftershows’. I’ve only seen a couple in my day, one at the Utopia nighclub in Las Vegas (’97 I think), and another at the Electric Ballroom in Tempe, AZ (’97 too I guess… gee gotta love my memory these days). To see him perform in an intimate setting in the late night hours (his prime time hours) is a real treat. They’re relaxed, funky, extended jam sessions.
This aftershow from 2001’s Hit n Run tour is no exception. In the early morning hours of April 29th, 2001, Prince, his band the NPG, Larry Graham (formerly of the Family Stone and Graham Central Station, and apparently the man responsible for steering Prince toward the Jehovah’s Witnesses), Sheila E., sax man Najee, and Kirk Johnson’s band the Fonky Baldheads, took the stage at the Fillmore in San Francisco for some after hours jamming.
The quality here is excellent. Make sure to check out “Joy in Repetition” (a great ‘Graffiti Bridge‘ tune), “Paisley Park”(f** yeah!) from ‘Around the World in a Day“, and please oh please listen to his guitar work on “Oye Como Va”. You’re in for a treat…….
Prince (with the NPG, Larry Graham, Najee, Sheila E., Milenia, and the Fonky Baldheads)
Hit N Run Aftershow
The Fillmore, San Francisco
April 29th, 2001The Daisy ChainDo Right Woman – Do Right Man(sung by Rosie Gaines)Carwash(sung by Rosie Gaines)Ain’t No Way(sung by Rosie Gaines)Joy in Repetition(feat. Najee on Sax)Paisley ParkSantana Medley(feat. Sheila E.)Oye Como VaCome OnFonky Baldheads(Tracks played over PA system)Alphabet St.Outro
Hangovers with Jason Collett
Once again demonstrating my prowess of being on the cutting edge of what’s going on in the music scene, I just discovered this Jason Collett song recently (thanks again, Sirius). It’s been out for a year now, it’s been posted by many mp3 bloggers (my man Craig at Songs:Illinois being one of the first, of course), but I’ll be damned if I’m not gonna throw it on ol’ Ickmusic, because it’s new to me! Besides, I have another related song to go along with it, a theme if you will, so there.
The theme being hangovers of course. I’m 35 now. I’ve had many a hangover in my day. None in recent memory since those crazy party days seem to be a thing of the past with this whole “wife and kids” deal I have going now. My mom will remember one of my worst hangovers. 20 years old. Summer job. My mom woke me up at an ungodly hour to go to the ol’ machine shop for my daily sweeping, painting, and forklift operating. I stumble out of bed, stagger over to the flight of stairs and proceed to fall down them. Bad hangover. That only made it worse. You should have seen how close I parked the front end of my mom’s station wagon to the garage wall the night before. She wasn’t pleased with me that day.
So yes, the song is “Hangover Days”, a happy-go-lucky roots-rockety duet with Jason Collett and Emily Haines. Jason is from Broken Social Scene, a musical collective of sorts from Toronto.
Jason Collett: Hangover Days- from Idols of Exile
The alt-countryish vibe, the hangover subject, and the duet brought to mind this song by the Supersuckers, which showed up on their “country album”, ‘Must’ve Been High’. Lead singer Eddie Spaghetti and Amy Nelson sing softly about the beauty of sharing a hangover.
The Supersuckers:
Hungover Together(mp3) – from Must’ve Been HighStyle Council, part two
What kind of a person would I be if I didn’t follow up with the rest of the Style Council show? A wretched one, that’s what. So here’s part two of the Style Council’s 1984 Milan show. The first half is here.
So I’ve been checking out Paul Weller’s impressive web site, and am looking forward to jumping in to some of his newer stuff. There’s a great video page on there with some cool live performances. It doesn’t indicate where the live footage is from, but it looks like one of those great British gatherings like maybe the Isle of Wight Festival. Paul is releasing a new live double album on June 12th too. We Yanks can pre-order it here. You Brits can pre-order it here.
Part II, Milan, 24October, 198411. Le Depart12. The Paris Match13. The Whole Point Of No Return14. Me Ship Came In!15. Money-Go-Round16. Headstart For Happiness17. Strength Of Your Nature18. Speak Like A Child19. One Nation Under A Groove(Parliament cover)
An Evening with The Style Council
It’s obvious I’ve been on sort of a live music kick lately, so why not some more? I first heard about The Style Council the way a lot of people discover music: an older sibling. My brother Steve was a big fan of theirs way back when, and truth be told, I never gave the SC much of a chance. But I did like their sound. I like-a-tha soul, and these boys had the soul. White boy soul, but soul nonetheless.
The Style Council was formed in 1983 by guitarist and vocalist Paul Weller. Weller belonged to one of the great British bands to rise out of the mid-70’s punk revolution: The Jam. Not satisfied with the direction the band was going, and in need of more soul, R&B and jazz influence, he joined up with keyboardist Mick Talbot to form the Style Council (much to the chagrin of Jam fans).
So I got a hold of a live recording from their heyday, 1984 (the year I got soul / r&b / funk crazy when I discovered Prince). I thought I’d post half of the show, and post the other half in a few days if the interest is there. I also will be checking out a 1980 Jam show I came across. But for now, Ladies and gentlemen, the Style Council….
The Style Council
Milano Teatro Tenda, Milan, Italy
October 24, 1984-
Big Boss GrooveMy Ever Changing MoodsYou’re The Best ThingA Man Of Great PromiseMick’s UpIt Just Came To Pieces In My HandsLong Hot SummerDon’t Do ItShout To The Top!Infearing Beat- Le Depart
- The Paris Match
- The Whole Point Of No Return
- Me Ship Came In!
- Money-Go-Round
- Headstart For Happiness
- Strength Of Your Nature
- Speak Like A Child
- One Nation Under A Groove
Buy the Style Council’s Greatest Hits
-
Bruce Tour Debut: Ramrod
From May 12th in Milan, Italy, here’s the Seeger Sessions debut of “Ramrod” (original version found on ‘The River‘). You should be able to hear the music through the screams and singing of many many loud Italians. So yeah, the quality aint great, but it’s still fun to hear. The vino was flowing May 12th in Milan….
Bruce Springsteen & TSSB:
Ramrod(mp3) – live 05/12/2006 MilanoGrandaddy at Good Records
Last Tuesday, the great Modesto, Calif. band Grandaddy released their final album, ‘Just Like the Fambly Cat‘. I first discovered Grandaddy when I heard ‘The Sophtware Slump‘ in 2000, a collection of dreamy, gentle, electro-space-pop with awesome songs (and song titles) like “Broken Household Appliance National Forest”, “Jed The Humanoid”, “Chartsengrafs”, and “The Crystal Lake”.
So last Tuesday, singer/guitarist/keyboardman Jason Lytle and drummer Aaron Burtch got together at Good Records in Dallas for a full set of Grandaddy acoustic goodness.
Jason Lytle & Aaron Burtch (from Grandaddy)
May 9th, 2006
Good Records, Dallas, Texas
[Buy some Grandaddy music]introThe Go In The Go-For-ItJed the HumanoidSummer Here KidsXD-Data IIGo Progress ChromeLaughing StockSummer…Its GoneHewlett’s DaughterProtected from the RainToday I Started Loving You Again (Merle Haggard cover)DisconnectyChartsengrafsJeez LouiseSarah 5646766Jed’s Other Poem (Beautiful Ground)Fare Thee Not Well MutineerEl Caminos in the WestDreaming My Dreams With You (Waylon Jennings cover)Miner at the Dial-a-ViewElevate MyselfThe Crystal LakeAisle Seat 37-DJason speakingNothing BigLevitz
