On This Day – Bob Crashes
Jul 29, 2010 On This Day
On this day in 1966 Bob Dylan crashed his motorbike. Apparently he suffered serious neck injuries although their extent have never been fully confirmed. After the accident an ambulance was not called and was taken home in a car by his then wife Sara.
The crash, the circumstances of which were not fully explained, did have side benefits. Dylan was under a lot of pressure. The proofs for his book Tarantula were due for delivery, but not complete. He had been paid for a television special but it had not been recorded and after just finishing one tour another was already being planned.
After the crash his Bobness had time to analyze his direction, both personal and musically. He withdrew and did not tour again for 8 years.
Oops! Wrong video!
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Tags: bob dylan, classic rock music, love rock music, On This Day, real rock and blues
On This day – Be Bob a Lula
Jul 28, 2010 On This Day
On this day in 1956 Sweet Gene Vincent made his first TV appearance on the Perry Como Show. He performed Be-Bop-a-Lula which was still climbing the charts.
Be-Bop-A-Lula was written by Vincent, or his manager Sheriff Tex Davies, or Donald Graves (You pays yer money and takes yer choice) in 1955. He sang it on a radio show in Norfolk Virginia in 1956 and recorded a demo version, it came to the attention of Capitol Records who were looking for someone to rival Elvis. Rival Elvis ? Surpassed him I would have thought.
Tags: classic rock music, gene vincent, On This Day, rock and blues, rock and roll
EC beats Kiss hands down
Jun 24, 2010 On This Day
EC sold 100 of his guitars to raise money for his drug rehab clinic on this day in 1999. He raised almost $5,000,000
Kiss sold off some of their memorabilia on this day a year later in 2000. They raised $876,000. (first day of a 2 day sale).
I am no fan of EC but surely this does illustrate the gap between where he stands in popular culture and Gene Simmons’ position.
Tags: classic, classic rock music, love rock music, On This Day
On This Day 1969 – Bowie’s Oddity
Jun 21, 2010 On This Day
Can you believe that it is 41 years, to the day that Space Oddity was released by Bowie?
Neither can I, the rest as they say is history.
Oh yes, this is the original version…………..
Tags: bowie, classic rock music, rock and blues, rock music, space oddity
On This Day – The Stones’ TV Debut & First Single
Jun 7, 2010 On This Day
The Stones made their TV debut this day in 1963 on Thank Your Lucky Stars playing their first single C’mon.
It may come a surprise to some of the younger readers that The Stones were once a rock and blues band playing blues covers. Their first album, imaginatively titled The Rolling Stones featured songs by Bobby Troup (Route 66), Willie Dixon (I Just Want to Make Love to You), Jimmy Reed, Bo Diddly, Skip James, and Rufus Thomas.
It all goes to reinforce my view that without the Blues we would have no Rock or Jazz.
This is the magnificent Carol Barnes with Route 66….
The epitome of Blues The incredible Muddy.
Rufus walking his pet in the 60s
The Stones take their turn
Imitation is the greatest form of flattery. I am not knocking the Stones, we all build on the shoulders of those that went before. I just think that we do not laud those that went before enough.
Tags: Blues, blues music, chuck berry, classic rock music, muddy waters, On This Day, real rock and blues, rock and blues, rolling stones, rufus thomas, skip james, willie dixon
Small Faces Reunion (well, some of them anyway).
May 28, 2010 Rants, Uncategorized
The Small Faces will reunite to play the Vintage Festival (Goodwood August 13th). There are likely to be more dates and a tour announced in the near future.
Trouble is, it isn’t really The faces. It’s Some of them. Rod Stewart will not be there (too busy) he is going to be replaced by Mick ‘I am the best singer in the world’ Hucknall. Obviously, Ronnie Lanes will not be there (dead) he will be replaced by Glenn Matlock (ex-Sex Pistols). However, 3 out of 5 ain’t bad and Matlock is a proper musician (just ‘cos he was in the Pistols and a punk does not mean he could not play, quite the opposite).
My problem with the line up is the inclusion of the Haddock hounded Hucknall ( see previous about Hucknall for explanation). Rod Stewart may have been a cocky, jumped up jack-the-lad, raspy voiced, tit, but he was a
-
good
cocky, jumped up jack-the-lad, raspy voiced, tit.
Hucknall, does not rock, he does not have the voice to front a really rocking band. Would I go and see them? You betcha, then I could write about how crap they (he) were (was).
One really good part of this story is that Ronnie Wood has stopped drinking, a prerequisite for this booking and proposed tour. There had been fears for his health, and the health of the Stones. Perhaps Jagger’s talk did Ronnie some good, (see here). Although, if Ronnie is now sober why has the Faces gig and tour come before the Stones’ ? What else is hampering them from getting onto stage? Mick wants it Ronnies was up for it Charlie loves to play, with anyone anytime. What is left that could be getting in the way?
What is Keef up to at the moment?
Tags: classic rock music, faces, glenn matlock, live music, mick hucknall, real rock and blues, rock and blues, rod stewart, ronnie laine, ronnie wood, small faces
On this day – Sex Pistols’ God Save the Queen released in the UK
May 27, 2010 On This Day
1977, The Sex Pistols released a song to celebrate the Silver Jubilee of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II (God bless her, guv – Some Americans seem to think we all talk like Dick Van Dyke, for some reason). Apparently, the establishment did not understand the reverence within the song. “God save the queen, She ain’t no human being, And there’s no future, In England’s dreaming” Is quite obviously a good natured, typically British ironic comment.
150,000 of us understood and bought the single within a week.
Tags: classic rock music, On This Day, punk, rock and blues, sex pistols
A Haddock? Oh No Take It Away!
May 26, 2010 Rants
I can’t believe this but apparently his gingerness, the one known as Mick “I am the best singer in the world” Hucknall is scared of Haddock.
Tony Roebuck co-wrote ‘Fairground’ (apparently it was a hit) with the Ginger one – I have nothing against ginger people, just Hucknall – he sucks – revealed this strange but true fact after he (Roebuck) fell out with the less-talented-than-a-stone-singer.
Even stranger the big H is reported to have enjoyed relations with several well known ladies; Catherine Zeta-Jones, Martine McCutcheon, Helena Christensen and glamour model Kathy Lloyd among them. Go Figure, there is no correlation between female fame and taste.
Tags: classic rock music, fear of fish, haddock, mick hucknall, mick hucknall and haddock, real rock and blues, rock and blues
ON This Day – Brittain Needs A Fascist Dictator! David Bowie
Apr 26, 2010 On This Day
On this day in 1976 Bowie gave an interview in which he said that Britain would benefit from having a dictator and that he would be good at it. He also said that Hitler was the first rock star and that Hitler drew more fans than Jagger. Then there were the stories about his Nazi salute, the detention of Bowie’s train (yes he had a train) as it crossed between Russia and Poland. Lots of Nazi memorabilia, books, etc. were confiscated.
So what was it with Bowie at the time?
Bowie had been interested in Buddhism for some time (yes, this is relevant, honest). From there he moved (descended?) into an interest in the Occult, accompanied by an ever growing consumption of cocaine.
From a general interest in the occult came painting mystic symbols on the walls of his house, burning candles, and reciting rites to protect him from the evil ones who were trying to get to him. He also began to retain his hair and nail clippings and urine in bottles in the fridge so that they could not be used in magic rituals against him. In other words serious chemical induced paranoia.
From there he became aware that the Nazis were heavily involved in the occult. (The idea that they hunted the Ark of the Covenant is not just an invention of the Indiana Jones film’s writer). It is this interest in the occult that drew him towards the Nazi symbolism. It is even possible that he got to Nazi symbols via an interest in the Kabala.
The quotes ? Not quite as they were reported at the time, it would seem, Yes he said that Britain would benefit from a dictator, a socialist none not a fascist one, he also said that he thought that he would be quite good at the job………. Hitler the first rock star? If you think of Hitler in the terms of the public rallies and adoration of the crowds, then yes, you could make some sort of comparison. However, you really have to be off your head on something to think that comparing Hitler with anything other than the spawn of the devil is a good idea.
So there you have it, paranoia, caused by ingesting the whole of Columbia’s export trade on his own, and spiralling interest in the occult, combined to encourage Bowie to make some outrageous comments and act as a cretin.
Mind you there were some upsides for Bowie. It would seem that the comments broke just before the Bowie tour reached England. Ticket sales were poor before the comments, sold out afterwards. Remember, he had previous for playing the media. There was the Hunky Dory tour, poor sales up until the “I’m Gay” interview in the music press and, hey presto!, tickets sales soar.
So, what is the truth? Probably, drugs and a descent into paranoia. If you do not inhabit your brain for a length of time you are likely to do some strange stuff.
As for the Nazi salute. I saw the clip some time ago and went to look at it again but it has been taken down on YouTube. However, there is an equally shocking clip featuring a Nazi salute by Ringo! (Or he may just be waving to his fan).
Tags: beatles, bowie, bowie's nazi salute, classic rock music, david bowie, On This Day, rock and blues, thin white duke
On This Day – Ladies and Gentlemen, I Give You The Nerk Twins!
Apr 23, 2010 On This Day
On this day in 1960 The Nerk Twins played a couple of gigs at the Fox and Hounds in Caversham. As these were the only bookings fulfilled by the Nerk Twins that in itself would merit an ‘On This Day’ mention, the more so that the location was the world famous Fox and Hounds.
However, the reason why there is some interest in the Nerk Twins was that they later became part of a local pub band called the Beatles. After the artistic peak of playing to 3 people in Paul’s cousin’s pub Paul and John took the almost precedented step of turning their back on fame for the obscurity of rock band mediocracy.
Tags: beatles, classic rock music, john lennon, love rock music, On This Day, paul mccartney, rock and blues, the beatles, the nerk twins
