Michael Jackson Why Wait ’till he’s Dead?
Jun 30, 2009 Rants
That MJ was a tremendous recording artist is beyond doubt, although popularity does not guarantee quality – just remember the Spice Girls phenomena.
What really annoys me is that lots of people are going out and buying MJ records. Let me explain that a bit better. It is not that people are buying his records per se. It is that they are buying them just because he is dead. If they liked MJ’s music then why didn’t they buy the CDs when he was alive? Dieing is a good career move.
Tags: deaths, michael Jackson, rock music
Little Feat’s Lowell George Died on this Day 1979
Jun 29, 2009 On This Day
Lowell George died of a heart attack on this day in 1979.
George founded Little Feat at the suggestion of Frank Zappa in 1969 after Zappa heard some of George’s songs. George was in the Mothers at the time and he took Roy Estrada Zappa’s bass player into Little Feat. The line up for Little Feat was completed by drummer Richie Hayward and Bill Payne (who had failed an audition to join the Mothers).
After a couple of albums Estrada left to work with Beefheart (strange how most posts seem to have a Beefheart/Zappa connection, well, maybe not too surprising) There were another 5 or 6 albums the most successful of which was 1978’s Waiting for Columbus. The band finnally split in early 1979.
At the time of his death George was on tour in the USA promoting his solo album Thanks, I’ll Eat it Here.
Tags: classic rock music, love rock music, loweel george, lowell george, On This Day
More Records That Changed The World
Jun 28, 2009 About and things
I have published an article about records that changed the world of music. You can read it here.
I was quite happy with the list but now I have my doubts, where is Dylan, Wreckless, Jimi? That is the trouble with lists, 10 may be a convenient number but it is not big enough and I am sure that any arbitrary number would not be right either. If I just kept adding more and more records (and I could) then nothing would make it to the blog.
If I could add just one record I think that it might just be Sun RA’s Pictures of Infinity. That, however, to acknowledge his ground breaking body of work rather than just for that one record.
Don’t ask…
Jun 28, 2009 Uncategorized
Thisa is just one of those things that you have to do when you have a site.
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That Brought a Smile to their Faces
Jun 27, 2009 On This Day
What’s in a name? The band Smile was just not cutting it, perhaps a new name?
After much deliberation they decided on the new name and in 1970 gigged with it for the first time. Queen was the name, and it seemed to work for them – or it might have had more to do with the talent within the band.
Rocked Around the Clock
Jun 26, 2009 On This Day
In 1955 on this day Decca Records (remember them?) announced that Billey Hailey had sold More than 3 million records, in just 13 months.
These days, when new sensation follows new sensation, it would be unusual for the sale of a single to continue for so long, or to sell so many copies. Formats have changed of course. LPs were not the format of choice then being more aimed at jazz and classical music rather than pop. That did not really change until the 60s.
Michael Jackson
Jun 26, 2009 Departures
MJ died overnight as I slept in the UK. While I am not going to go into details of his life (follow this link to WikiP if you want that stuff) his contribution to music is worth comment.
MJ is significant to Real Rock and Blues for 2 reasons. Firstly, it is difficult for many (younger) people to appreciate that in the early 60’s there was white music and there was black music, certainly in the USA – less so in the UK. The Jackson 5 used rock guitar (white rock guitar) on some of their (black) pop music. For association with that action that helped breakdown racial divides in music MJ is worthy of mention. Not that as a young boy he would have been the main decision maker, but he was there.
Secondly, when I was asked to write an article about 10 records that changed the world of music Thriller was in there. Until Thriller each album spawned one or two singles. With Thriller the paradigm changed. 7 of the tracks were hits in the USA. All around the world singles taken from Thriller were hits, and lots of them. Post Thriller, music companies were looking for albums to be mere collections of hit singles rather than somewhere where an artist could breath (alright getting carried away a bit there).
One thing is for sure Thriller is the biggest selling album of all time. It is likely to remain so as so many people now download their music.
Commercial Radio Stations the End of Civilisation?
Jun 23, 2009 Rants
This is not as stupid a question as it first appears. At least, not if you think that music is important. I believe that music is one of the foundations of society. It predated written communication and probably the spoken word. Rhythm and melody is with us before we are born. Babies in the womb respond to music. They respond to the rhythms of the heartbeat of their mothers. We assimilate basic rhythms as we grow up, music becomes part of us.
Our lives are dominated by sounds and music almost as much as they are by light and images. We pay musiciansand singers a fortune to use their skills and talents to reflect and sometimes change our lives. Well, some of them get paid a fortune. In history balladeers were feted and valued, and this is how it should be. Music has developed from the streets be it Blues, rock and roll, Punk, Folk etc. In the modern world there is a disease. It is that growing and spreading scourge of all thinking human beings, disposable, irrelevant, musical pap.
Bubblegum for the ears has always been around. One of the main culprits responsible for the growth of this rubbish has been the MOR commercial radio stations. These radio stations use music is the filler between inane quizzes and adverts. These stations provide a diet of extended jingles and tell us that it is music. They demand shorter tracks to play, they ignore any music that may make us think (they do not want us to do that). They ignore any music that may make us upset. Their prime requirement is to have a safe platform for their adverts.
Music, real music, must challenge and excite. The purpose of music, of all art, is to reflect, challenge and change. The growth and development of civilisation goes hand in hand with questioning. One of the prime sources of that questioning is music. Real music exists but it is under threat from the dumbing down of the broadcast media. That way lies the end of civilisation as we know it.
Tags: classic rock music, live music, love rock music, real rock and blues, rock music
So Rock and Roll Alice!
Jun 23, 2009 On This Day
I once read an interview with Iggy Pop in which he claimed that he invented diving into the audience at rock concerts and then surfing the crowd. The thing is, the first time he tried it (in the heat of the moment all adrenalin and stuff) the crowd moved away so that he did not land on them….. You would think that having tried it once with that result you would not try it again.
Anyway on this day in 1975 Alice Cooper fell off the stage in Vancouver ( not claiming to have started the draze) whereas Iggy just dented his ego when he did it Alice broke 6 ribs. Now, given Alice’s shows wouldn’t have expected him to carry on with the tour? Nah, he cancelled several dates after this fall.
Departed on this Day
Jun 22, 2009 Departures
Judy Garland died on this day in 1999 while Fredastaire died on this day 2 years earlier.
OK so are you asking whether JG & FA are really “real rock” people? Too right they are. FA was obsessed with perfection but what made him real rock was his refusal to treat the audience as dummies.
As for JG she lived the rock’n'roll life before R’n'R.
Tags: deaths
