“There’s only forty people in the world and five of them are hamburgers”
May 27, 2011 About and things
Capt Beefheart, ‘Nuff said.
Tags: captain beefheart, rock and blues
The Don on Radio 4 Shock!
Nov 8, 2010 About and things
Imagine my surprise. There I was lisyening to Desert Island discs on BBC Radio 4 yesterday. The guest was the people’s poet Ian McMillan. He was playing discs that reminded him of his mother ansd father, typical romantic slush that normal working class adults listened to in the 40s. Then he said, almost hesitantly, that he wanted one song that he really liked, that his wife referred to as screaching cat music. It was Don Van Vliet himself. The wonderful Captain Beefheart! More than that it was the enourmously fantastic Moonlight on Vermont (although the Beeb did not broadcast the drum intro which is the best 7 seconds of music ever recorded – I know, I am biased)
Respect to Radio 4.
Here’s a bit more Van Vliet (can’t resist)
And a bit of Frank, for no real reason….
And more………….
And Finally, probably, my Fave Frank song.
Tags: beefheart, captain beefheart, classic rock music, desert island discs, don van vliet, ian mcmillan, love rock music, radio 4, real rock and blues, rock and blues, zappa
White Demin – The Best Band in the World?
Aug 6, 2010 About and things
The answer is obviously YES!
I first heard that there was a band that sounded a bit like The Magic Captain, playing with tme signatures and such. So I bought Workout Holiday. Tremendous! Just recieved ‘Fits’ and it just confirms my original decision. Not the Magic Band, but Bloody Good!
One thing that strikes me is that Fits was released in the UK before the USA. Does this reflect that we are better able to see talent than the usa? After all, Europe was a haven for the blues Gods, Hendrix had to come here, Patti Smith, Lou Reed, etc were first recognised by the British/Europeans.
In any event, White Demin are the best band on the planet.
Selling My Albums!
Mar 23, 2010 About and things
So, I still have 1,000 (ish) vinyl albums left. The other 6,000 were sold some years ago owing to a financial crisis (not on the scale of the recent monetary melt down, but not far short on a personal level). The man who bought them was very nice about it, very sympathetic, but at the price he paid he could afford to be. He almost broke his trousers trying getting to get the cash out of his pocket quickly so that I would not change my mind.
Anyway, I have not played them since we moved 7 years ago. Apparently, there wasn’t any ‘room’ for the deck as well as my CDs, amp, tuner, CD player (women have no idea about the importance of men’s stuff). I decided to sell them on Amazon (much better prices than eBay). I ordered the LP mailers began sorting them, looking at the Record Collector price guide, so much good news (I had no idea how much some crap LPs are worth!)
It seemed only fair that I should play them one last time before I listed them so that I could judge the quality, you understand. Also, Jane was going to be out for a few hours……
Out came the deck, with a new cartridge. I hooked it up to my trusy NAD amp and played the first disc from the box.
It was amazing.
I had forgotten how warm vinyl sounds. The depth, the brightness. When CDs were new we marvelled at the technology. So much music on such a little thing. 70 odd minutes on a CD only 45 on an LP, and easier to store, they had to be good. But, we forgot (at least most people did, of whom I was one) that vinyl sounds better. The record companies were only too delighted to sell their back catalogue again. Reissued first as ‘the first time on CD’, then as ‘re-mastered’ then as ‘the original mix’. And we were all seduced.
So, the deck now stays (well, Jane and I will have discussions but over my dead body….) and the albums stay.
Anyone want to buy 200 LP mailers?
Tags: amazon, ebay, rock and blues
Michael Jackson – The Funeral, Court Judgements, It Just Goes On….
Nov 17, 2009 About and things
Michael Jackson was a great singer. His personal and financial lives were a mess. The wrangle over money continues.
last week his father (Joe) lost his battle to get some money from the estate. He was also told that he could not challenge the executives named in Michael’s will. You will remember that Michael had a ’strained’ relationship with Joe. MJ had said that at some times during his life, both when a child and as an adult, he had felt physically sick at the sight of his father. So, not a normal close father son relationship, apparently.
It was a bit of a fractious day in court which ended with Judge Beckloff saying; “I don’t think he gets to step into this and create further litigation,” the judge declared. “Joe Jackson takes none of this estate. This is a decision his son made.” Seems fair to me.
Joe can, however, make a claim for living expenses on the basis that Michael was supporting him when he died. What sort of expenses? They include; Rent, $1,200. Dining out, $2,500. Entertainment & holidays, $1,000. Air travel; $2,000. Hotels; $3,000. Those are monthly expenses. The rent seems a bit low for a place in Las Vegas, but he got double his rent to eat out? Learn to cook is my advice. However, perhaps he did not need to rent a big place as he spent almost 3 times his rent on hotel rooms. As for the air travel, has no one in the USA’s C list celeb community heard of global warming?
Joe also gets $1,700 per month social security. What?
The funeral. Ah yes. You will remember that until he died Michael was, relatively, poor. that being one of the reasons he agreed to the daunting O2 schedule. However, the estate must be in good shape, what with the album sales and the film grossing squillions of dollars. It has to be to pay for the funeral.
The funeral took place on 3rd September and was really fit for ‘The King of Pop’.
$860,000 to Forest Lawn Cemetery for the purchase of plots in the family mausoleum and funeral charges.
$35,000 for funeral garments (presumably Michael’s).
$1,975 for the family’s wardrobe. (?)
$2,000 for the ushers’ costumes.
$3,682 to frame a photo of Michael (the one next to the coffin).
$959 for embroidery.
$11,716 for invitations (and prgrammes).
$30,000 for security and cars.
$15,000 for a funeral designer/director.
$21,455 for the ‘funeral repast’. (When I go there will be a couple of hundred quid behind the bar at my local).
In order to pay for the funeral Kathleen (Michael’s mother) filed papers with the administrators of the state for money to be released only 3 days before the funeral. They, obviously, had to agree. Apparently the papers said that without the funds being released that “the funeral will not proceed.” If that happened it would have caused Kathleen and the family “public embarrassment and added grief, along with the daunting task of having to make new arrangements.”
Surely they should have sorted out the money before arranging the funeral?
A statement for the family said;
“Mrs. Jackson and her family wish to honour her son by a funeral that seeks to offer solace to his multitude of fans and by which the family also may be comforted,” the attorneys said. The costs were substantial but “entirely commensurate with the decedent’s worldwide status as an entertainer and the world’s grief over his death.”
It is all such a mess.
Outside court on Tuesday, lawyer Howard Weitzman, who represents the administrators, said: “I would have done it less expensively. But it was Michael Jackson, who was larger than life. There’s no reason he should not have a funeral that’s larger than life.”
Isn’t there is something odd about saying that a funeral should be larger than life?
The funeral costs were on top of the costs of the Staple Centre tribute…………
Tags: joe jackson, kathleen jackson, michael Jackson, michael jackson funeral, michael jackson litigation, rock and blues
A New One From Jacko, Old Ones From The Beatles
Sep 27, 2009 About and things
A new single from Michael Jackson will be released on 12th October. Whether it would have been released if he was still alive I do not know.
In the last week the Beatles sold 2.5 million (remastered) albums in the US, UK, and Japan. A spokes person for EMI said “Beatlemania has returned, with fans new and old embracing these beautiful albums in their re-mastered and re-packaged forms. By putting the needs and desires of consumers first, the band are breaking new records around the world more than four decades after they first started recording. All of us at EMI Music are very proud to have been a part of this exciting project and to have delivered an insightful and globally executed marketing plan.”
So what it boils down to is this. MJ will have a song released that may not have seen the light of day if he was alive and the Beatles are topping the charts after 40 years. What does that say about the state of modern pop music?
BTW, don’t you just love the way that EMI were acting altruistically in releasing the remastered albums. They were “putting the needs and desires of consumers first”. If only the rest of the music business shared the same selfless motivation……
Tags: beatles, classic rock music, love rock music, michael Jackson
The Mercury Prize 2009
Sep 10, 2009 About and things
Well, once again the wrong artist won the Mercury prize.
Not that I have anything against Speech Debelle it is just that Led Bib are wonderful. Here’s the list of Nominations. What do you think?
The Nominees were;
SPEECH DEBELLE – SPEECH THERAPY
BAT FOR LASHES – TWO SUNS
FLORENCE AND THE MACHINE – LUNGS
FRIENDLY FIRES – FRIENDLY FIRES
GLASVEGAS – GLASVEGAS
THE HORRORS – PRIMARY COLOURS
THE INVISIBLE – THE INVISIBLE
KASABIAN – WEST RYDER PAUPER LUNATIC ASYLUM
LA ROUX – LA ROUX
LED BIB – SENSIBLE SHOES
LISA HANNIGAN – SEA SEW
SWEET BILLY PILGRIM – TWICE BORN MEN
I am not convinced about Florence, can’t stand Kasabian, and do not like the idea of Lisa Hannigan (Irish folk……). But apart from that quite a strong bunch. The Horrors are good, and I like Twice Born Men (even after a review in the Sunday Times that was suitable for Pseuds Corner).
Tags: BAT FOR LASHES, FLORENCE AND THE MACHINE, FRIENDLY FIRES, GLASVEGAS, KASABIAN, LA ROUX, LED BIB, LISA HANNIGAN, rock and blues, SPEECH DEBELLE, SWEET BILLY PILGRIM, THE HORRORS, THE INVISIBLE, the mercuries, the mercury prize 2009
Beatlemania to Sweep The World! (again)
Sep 9, 2009 About and things, rock and blues
There is going to be a worldwide growth in fabness. Mop tops will be back in fashion and lovable Liverpudlian accents everywhere. At least according to the media including a simpering Sunday Times this week, the reason?
The Beatles’ albums have been remastered and reissued together with a magnificent box set. The box set contains all the albums and costs a paltry (!) £169 while the albums cost about £11 each making the box set the most cost effective choice if you want to replace all your existing CDs and vinyl.
Now, most remastered CDs are less than impressive, more of a marketing opportunity than a valuable addition to your collection. From everything that I have read these reissues are different. From the fawning Sunday Times to an anonymous commenter on Yahoo Answers the verdict is that the reissues are like new records.
The original dynamics have been retained (original from the master tapes, not the bland CDs of the past). The trend has been to make the softer bits louder and the louder bits softer to make the overall sound more even. That may sound good on radio but does lose the original attack of the recording.
Overall, these reissues are well worth the money. I will be replacing Revolver (the only Beatles album that I own currently) as well as investing in Sgt. Peppers, Rubber Soul, and Past Masters. Past masters is an interesting album. It contains all those singles that never appeared in albums – seems strange these days that anyone would not issue all their singles on albums – but that is what happened way back when. As well as She Loves You, I Want To Hold Your Hand (so innocent) etc. there are some rarities. Well worth the money even for those of use who are Beatles completists (and I am certainly not one of those). What CDs should you avoid? Yellow Submarine has to be at the top of this list, absolutley useless more Monkees than Beatles….. Also avoid Beatles For Sale. The 4th album in 2 years, whoever thought that would be a good idea?
I was never a huge Beatles fan, (my mother liked them, hated those dirty and loutish Rolling Stones so guess which band I favoured?) but it is true that they were a good band and did change a lot of things for those that came later. I do have some quibble (quite a lot of a quibble, in fact) with John’s statement that they were the best rock band in the world, at least when they were playing in Hamburg. As virtually no one saw them in Hamburg it is hard to argue with him though.
Tags: beatlemania, beatles, beatles remasters, george harrison, john lennon, love rock music, paul mccartney, ring, rock and blues, rongo starr
White Denim
Aug 4, 2009 About and things, Uncategorized, rock and blues
I often read reviews of bands that refer to influences and there seems to be a settled list of arty influences claimed by most new bands with pretensions. That list includes Lou Reed (Velvet Underground), Frank Zappa, Captain Beefheart, The Doors, The Beatles. I usually ignore that bit of the review. When I read an article about White Denim some time ago I saw that one of them said “Zappa? yeah, but I think Beefheart has stayed with us more.” Now, that I could understand. That they would engage in a discussion about influences rather than just name check people was interesting.
Later I saw a review of the first album “Workout Holiday” which compared it with “Trout Mask Replica” (which, if you do not know is simply just the best rock album ever made, bar none). That, of course was rubbish, besides the reviewer was someone who’s judgment I did not trust. Then, in Mojo, there was a review of the second album “Fits”. In that it said that the comparison with “Trout Mask Replica” made on behalf of “Workout Holiday” was entirely justified. Now, here is a magazine I rate saying the same as the Sunday Times. I had to listen to White Denim.
Guess what?
The comparison between “Workout Holiday” and “Trout mask Replica” is entirely justified. These are not some lads trying to be The Magic Band. These are guys that seem to ‘get’ it. They are not reincarnations of Zoot Horn Rollo, The Mascara Snake, and Drumbo. They are their own people.
If you like the Captain you really should listen to the first album, you will not regret it.
Tags: captain beefheart, classic rock music, real rock and blues, rock and blues, white denim
Michael Michael Jackson – Why Wait Till He’s Dead ? (part 3)
Jul 26, 2009 About and things
I never thought when I started this blog that Michael Jackson would provide the first serial post, but then he was such a sad person perhaps I should have.
I said in the last post about Michael Jackson that we should expect lots of litigation. I am reminded by James (thanks James) that only in May of this year Ola Ray started proceedings against MJ. Ray played the girlfriend in the Thriller video. According to James she is an ex-playmate, but I do not know about that. She says that she is due a 2.5% of the revenues from the video plus SAG and AFTRA royalties (What are they?).
Another bit of litigation associated with Thriller was launched in January by John Landis, who directed the video. He claimed that he was owed 50% of “Thriller” video and documentary revenue.
So, Ray wants 2.5% Landis 50%, just how much would have been left for Jacko? Especially after he fought the litigation using one of his 13 (yes, 13) high profile and expensive lawyers. 2 things occur to me. First, in the late 50s (I think) there was a British film about an author who kept selling 10% of his successful play, he was a bit of an idiot, until his outgoings to agents, representatives etc. totaled 110% of the play’s takings.
The second thing that occurs to me is that you have no idea of the pressure that MJ must have been under. Financial, legal and personal. If it is true that his health was failing as badly as some are saying then undertaking such a large run of comeback shows must have been very daunting, and a desperate throw of the dice. If I was in that situation I think that I would want a sympathetic doctor as well………..
Tags: classic rock music, michael Jackson, michael jackson litigation, rock and blues
