Hard Boppin with Mulgrew Miller
There’s always time to kick back, relax, and take in some good classic-style jazz. Mulgrew Miller is an amazing pianist (as you’ll hear). He is a veteran of Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, and has gone on to success as a leader of his own trio. Last year saw the release of “Live at Yoshi’s, Volume 2”, recorded in 2003 at the Bay Area’s premier jazz club, Yoshi’s.
This one caught my ear recently while listening to Sirius Pure Jazz. Hope you enjoy it…
From Live at Yoshi’s, Vol. 2Terminator X Goes Off
So I’ve been going through my boxes of old cassettes, and am starting the arduous task of converting them to mp3. The first to get the treatment was ‘Terminator X & the Valley of the Jeep Beats’. As the DJ for Public Enemy, T.X certainly made his mark as one of the most original and vibrant DJ’s in hip hop. In 1991, he released this debut solo album, bringing in a wide variety of mostly obscure guests: Bonnie & Clyde, Juvenile Delinquintz, Spacey B Experience, etc.
But he did pull in Chuck D. and Sista Soulja for “Buck Whylin”. He also goes reggae with the track “DJ is the Selector”, sung by Dubmaster. From the old school, here’s a little taste of Terminator X.
Terminator X:
Vendetta…The Big Payback > Buck Whylin’(mp3) |DJ is the Selector(mp3)- Buy the album used on Amazon.
I wish I could quit this song
One more on the mellow side before I launch into some newly converted cassette tapes (yes, cassettes!) from my past. So who’s seen Brokeback Mountain? I probably won’t until I run across it on HBO or Cinemax, but if this song is any indication, the soundtrack is worth a listen.
My knowledge of Rufus Wainwright’s work is pretty much limited to that great version of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” that I first heard while sitting down to some popcorn and the movie Shrek. Beautifully done. And so is this one.
Rufus Wainwright:
The Maker Makes(mp3) from the Soundtrack to Brokeback MountainThe Poet Game
It’s tough enough keeping up with all of the new music out there when you’re still discovering great music from years past. It’s a perpetual cycle, but that’s what is so great about music: you’ll never hear it all, and there’s always something hiding waiting to be unearthed. Like this song here? I don’t know much about Greg Brown, but every time I hear his songs, I like them. Especially this one I heard recently. Soft, heartfelt, and simple.
Greg Brown: The Poet Game (mp3) – from The Poet Game, 1994.
The Poet Game
Down by the river junior year
walking with my girl,
and we came upon a place
there in the tall grass where a couple
had been making love
and left the mark of their embrace.
I said to her, “Looks like they had some fun.”
She said to me, “Let’s do the same.”
and still I taste her kisses
and her freckles in the sun
when I play the poet game. Read the rest of the lyrics.Good Night Ned
My college partner in crime, Jason, noticing my recent trend of reaching way back into my past (80’s Prince), emerged recently with an email containing the Beastie Boys version of ‘Bennie and the Jets’, as sung by Biz Markie. He “originally had it as a floppy pull-out 45 from that Beastie Boys zine, Grand Royal. Like a perfume insert from one of those (you’re-not-a) beauty magazines, except it reeked of beastibizfunk.” Amen brother.
Beastie Boys w/ Biz Markie:
Benny & the Jets(mp3) – found on The Sounds of Science (1999)Ah hell, here’s one more old school classic I was reminded of recently on Sirius BackSpin:
EPMD:
You’re a Customer(mp3) – from Strictly Business (1988)Like me, Jason recognizes The Three Amigos as a timeless classic (he noticed my singing bush reference recently), and threw in
My Little Buttercup(mp3) for good measure.“It’s a sweater!!”
Will’s a Piece of Work
Check out this Will Kimbrough song. Jimmy Buffett fans will recognize it, he covered it on his ‘License to Chill’ album. Will is a Mobile, Alabama native whose guitar skills have made him a much sought-after side man for the likes of Rodney Crowell, Buffett, and Todd Snider (Will co-produced ‘East Nashville Skyline’). He also has time for working on his solo stuff – pretty impressive resume.I just like this type of sound. A laid back country-rock vibe, a Bo Diddley-ish beat kicking in, smart-ass lyrics… good stuff.
Will Kimbrough:
Piece of Work(mp3) – from Home Away- Buy his albums from his web site.
this is not music
One day Prince will compile and release all of the great 12″ extended remixes of his glory days. By request, here’s another: the extended “Alphabet St. (this is not music, this is a trip)”. Excuse the background vinyl noise.
Prince:
Alphabet St. (this is not music, this is a trip)– mp3 – original version found on LovesexyP.S. A question for anyone out there who converts LP’s on to their PC’s: any recommendations for good software to efficiently remove the background snaps, crackles, and pops? I used Microsoft Plus Analog Recorder for a while, but it takes … a … long…time.
Marah Live Video
Thanks to Zack from the great city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, we have video from Marah’s performance at Mad Planet in Milwaukee last week. Here they are singing “Barstool Boys” from their fantabulous 2000 release, ‘Kids in Philly’. Dave and Serge Bielanko are in vintage rock star form, and as a bonus, you get some quality Serge stage banter.Click here to see the video.- Buy Marah music.
- Check out their tour info.
Sly as a Loon
For some reason, I sat through the entire broadcast of the Grammies last week. Of course it was great to see the Boss perform “Devils & Dust” and sit in on the Wilson Pickett tribute (singing “In the Midnight Hour” with Sam Moore).
Watching poor Paul McCartney sing “Yesterday” along with Linkin Park while Jay Z “uh-huh”ed and “yeah”ed in the background was one of the sadder moments for me. I don’t get it. Watching the immodest and overrated Kanye West lose awards did put a smile on my face though.
But the jaw dropping moment had to be when Sly Stone shuffled out during a reunion / tribute to the Family Stone (along with the ubiquitous Joss Stone, John Legend, Fantasia, etc.). Hunched over, with a gold jacket and a giant peroxide Mohawk, he sang a few bars of “I Want to Take You Higher” and then was on his way. The man looked to be about 10 shades of crazy – priceless!!
So naturally I dug through my LP’s and dug out a great song Sly did with Jesse Johnson (former guitarist for The Time), ironically named “Crazay”.
Jesse Johnson Featuring Sly Stone:
Crazay(mp3) – Found on ‘Shockadelica’, Jesse’s 1986 album.- Check out a video of Sly on the Dick Cavett show, circa 1970, here on Screenhead.
- Buy Sly & the Family Stone music on Amazon.
Prince Unleashes his Fury
Okay, IckMusic has admittedly turned into a Prince blog the last several days. Juuust one more post and I’ll move on (maybe). There have been several requests for the mp3 to Prince’s new tune “Fury”. I can’t supply you with a link to buy the studio version yet because there apparently isn’t one available. If anyone comes across the song for sale, please let me know and I’ll get a link up here right away.
For now, a couple things:
Go pre-order 3121, which comes out on March 21st.
And here is an mp3 from Saturday night:
Prince:
Fury(mp3) from 02/04 performance on Saturday Night Live.
