….in fact…….I’m Still Alive and Well……
I saw Rick the summer of 1977 when the live album containing this song was released. The concert was in Hollywood, Florida and the other band on the bill was Blue Oyster Cult. It was a killer show!
I’m old but not dead yet…..Rock On!
Speaking of BOC, let me leave you with this little ditty……
Would have been a great song with a little more cowbell 🙂
We lost Scott Asheton, the drummer for Iggy Pop and the Stooges, today. He was 64 years old. Scott’s brother Ron, the Stooges guitarist, had preceded him in death passing away in 2009. Here is what Iggy had to say about Scott:
Scott was a great artist, I have never heard anyone play the drums with more meaning than Scott Asheton. He was like my brother. He and Ron have left a huge legacy to the world.
If by some chance you aren’t familiar with the Stooges check out the following video recorded in 2010 over 40 years after their start in the late 1960s. Neither Iggy nor the band had lost any of their power across the years, and as you will see, their fans are just as devoted as they were in 1969!
Scott, you will be missed…..RIP my friend!
A message to readers of my blog. I know that my lack of recent posts has probably left some of you wondering what’s going on. Don’t give up on me or the blog……I will be back with more great stuff in the coming months!
“If there’s something wrong, speak up.” – Pete Seeger
I won’t bore you with a tribute to Pete today….if you want to read one, they are easy to find.
Instead, I ask each of you to think about which side you are on. Pete was always on the right side whether it was supporting the labor movement in the 40s, fighting McCarthyism in the 50, or marching for civil rights and protesting the Vietnam war in the 60s. We have issues today that are just as important as the ones that Pete sang about but very few people today seem to be willing to take a stand. If you want to honor the life of Pete Seeger pick a side, speak up, and make your life count.
I discovered Arthur Gee in 1972 in a record store in the mountains of East Tennessee while I was visiting my grandmother . I had never heard of him prior to seeing the album in the record store but the cover of his album intrigued me (see above) and I bought a copy. (Those days, well before internet, were a simpler time and it was not unusual for me to buy an album based on it’s cover. I found some really great music that way and a few clunkers as well to be fair.)
The only record player that my grandmother had was an old, crank driven, Victrola that looked a lot like this…..
It used a wooden needle (not kidding) and played old 78 RPM records so I had to wait about a week when to play the Arthur Gee record after I got back home to North Alabama.
I was pretty excited once I heard the record! Arthur had a very interesting voice and the style of the songs on the album varied from a typical early 70’s folk singer songwriter style to a touch of San Francisco 60’s psychedelia. I was definitely happy to have purchased the album. Let’s listen to a couple of songs from it…….
I’ll admit that Arthur fell off of my music radar screen pretty quickly and I unfortunately lost my copy of the album in the 90’s during a time when I moved from a house to a one room efficiency apartment and had to greatly pare down my record collection (that is a whole different story that we won’t discuss on the blog!). Even though I no longer possessed the album, I continued to fondly remember Arthur’s music. Something I heard last week make me think of Arthur (and his music) and motivated me to do this post.
As I started to research Arthur I was shocked about how little information about him and his music was available on the internet. I was only able to find the two songs above from the self titled Arthur Gee album that I had purchased back in the 70s. Shocking! I gradually found a few more tidbits of information…….
Arthur (if that’s his real name) was Canadian and recorded a few demo songs back in the late 60s, several of which were re-recorded for his debut album that I had purchased. There was a very limited distribution of these early songs on an album back in the late 60s that was credited to just Arthur. I’ve seen several online references to this album being re-released by a Swiss record label under the title of “In Search Of” but have not been able to locate a copy of it. Let’s listen to a couple of songs that I believe to be from that album. Note: two of the songs appear to be versions of the same song under different names (Confessions and Tea Garden)…….
I enjoyed these songs and can see how the Arthur Gee album that I had purchased in 1972 was a natural progression from them.
As I continued my research I discovered that these demos had brought Arthur to the attention of Robb Kunkel, Larry Ray and producer Bill Szymczyk who were starting the Tumbleweed Records label. They signed Arthur to their label and made his self titled album their very first release in 1971. In 1973, the label released a second Arthur Gee album, City Cowboy, on which Arthur was backed by the Whizz Band. I was only able to find a single song on the internet from that album, Green Countryside,……let’s listen……..
As you can tell Arthur’s sound had evolved between 1971 and 1973 but not in a good way in my humble opinion. City Cowboy would turn out to be Arthur’s last release and one of Tumbleweed Records last releases which went under in 1973.
I think Arthur had some real talent and should have achieved much more success than he did. Instead, he is yet another artist that time has forgotten! The most shocking thing from my research is how little information about Arthur is available today. If you are reading this post, and have any additional information about him, I would appreciate you sharing it by either contacting me via email or commenting on this post.
As always….let me know what you think……
This month is shaping up to be a winner with regards to new music releases. We’ve already talked about Bruce’s new album, High Hopes, which comes out next week. Today we are featuring two more albums that I’m really looking forward to……..
I can’t wait to hear Mark’s music reimagined with an orchestra backing her up.
An initial single, What’s Broken, has been released from the album and it features Mark Knopfler on guitar. If the rest of the album is this good we have a lot to look forward to, let’s listen…….
I hate doing “best of” lists! It is really hard to decided what’s best and I change my mind day to day. I can really identify with the sentiment of that great old song by the Loving Spoonful…..
But I have a post to so let’s make some decisions…..
Go In Peace – Sam Baker
She Will – Savages
There’ll Be Hard Times – Joe Matzzie
All The Kids – Iska Dhoof
Used – Ashley Monroe
And the best song of 2013 is Used by Ashley Monroe. This song speaks to me on a very personal level and I just can’t hear it enough!
Silence Yourself – Savages
Stories Don’t End – Dawes
Say Grace – Sam Baker
Let’s Be Still – The Head and The Heart
Like A Rose – Ashley Monroe/Same Trailer Different Park – Kacey Musgraves
I just couldn’t decide between these two albums so I’m recognizing both of them. There are some brilliant new female country singer/songwriters coming out of Nashville and these are two of the best!
And the album of the year is Stories Don’t End by Dawes. This album is close to perfect and has been my go to album since it was released this year. It shows the incredible songwriting growth of the band over the past few years and includes some amazing music. Here is one of my favorite songs from the album…..
At the scene of all I’ve left unlearned, in the directions to your house
In every swing I took to crack the code
I need a cold beer from a dressing room, I need a string of dates back out
I think there are a few of us that still belong out on the road
Trouble Will Find Me – The National
An incredible let down, and a big step in the wrong direction, after the brilliance of High Violet!
Springsteen and I
After being a rabid Bruce Springsteen fan for over 40 years I didn’t think that anything could make me love the man more than I already do. I was wrong! Springsteen & I is a movie about Bruce from the fan’s perspective and it shows that Bruce is not only a great musician but he is also a great human being. You need to watch it! I got an email from my friend Gerard from the Netherlands just this morning indicating that he had seen it and enjoyed it….you will too!
The rock world lost a true innovator today with the death of Phil Everly, one half of the amazing Everly Brothers. Their harmonies had a major influence on groups that would follow including The Beatles, The Beach Boys, and Simon and Garfunkel to name just a few. Phil will be missed greatly. Here’s a wonderful video of them performing (OK….they were obviously lip syncing) one of their early 60s hits called Cathy’s Clown (Phil is on the left in most of the shots in the video. His brother Don is singing lead on this one).
Here is a short but to the point documentary about the impact of the Everly Brothers on the music business (with some great insight from Warren Zevon….RIP Warren)….
Here’s a much more detailed documentary about the duo and their music. You need to watch this to truly appreciate their talent and what we’ve lost with the death of Phil.
RIP – Phil Everly
(For a great story about the Abandoned Luncheonette cover checkout this blog post)
Some people will tell you that the 70s were a vast wasteland for music. To those people I say….”You don’t know what the hell you are talking about!” Take a look at the unbelievable collection of albums that were released in the last three months of 1973 and I dare you to find another three months in any year that produced the same level of music quality and diversity. I’m proud to say that I have these albums in my collection.
So get ready….I have well over an hour of music below celebrating the best albums released at the end of 1973. Enjoy…….
Selling England By The Pound – Genesis
This is probably my favorite Genesis album of all time. It was back during the days when the band was fronted by Peter Gabriel (i.e. it was the “real” Genesis). I know what I like and here it is……
Time Fades Away – Neil Young
This is the rarest Neil album of all time to the best of my knowledge. I am lucky enough to have the vinyl album…I say that because Neil has never released this one as a CD. Here’s one of my favorite songs from Neil which is one of his most autobiographical numbers. It’s also a great New Years Resolution if you are still looking for one……Don’t Be Denied……
Quadrophenia – The Who
I’m quite sure that I’ve talked about this before…..Quadrophenia is my favorite album by the Who and this is my favorite song from that album…….
For Everyman – Jackson Browne
I think Jackson Browne may be the most talented singer/songwriter of my generation. I’m currently working on a major blog post that provides a critical analysis of a set of Jackson’s songs including the title song from this album. Since I will be talking about Everyman in that post, I have chose to feature These Days my second favorite song from this album……
Laid Back – Greg Allman
Wrapping up the October albums is Greg Allman’s first solo album which is a classic by anyone’s standards. I love Greg’s voice and he is a terrific songwriter as well. Here is Multicolored Lady from Greg’s album.
Abandoned Luncheonette – Hall and Oates
Before Hall and Oates produced their string of “Pop” hits they produced that absolute masterpiece. It is without a doubt my favorite for their albums and the title song from the album is stunning. Give it a listen and you will see what i mean…..
Piano Man – Billy Joel
What can you say about Billy Joel that hasn’t already been said? This is the album and the title song that started it all for him………
Mind Games – John Lennon
This was John’s fourth solo album. He started working on the title song during the Get Back sessions by his first band that you might remember as The Beatles :-). Let’s listen……
Keep on playing those mind games together
Raising the spirit of peace and love
I want you to make love, not war I know you’ve heard it before
Fergusile Park – Stealers Wheel
Stealers Wheel was a great but very much under appreciated group. Fergusile Park was the group’s second album and by the time the album was released it was down to the duo of Joe Egan and Gerry Rafferty each of whom was a great songwriter so I’ve chose to highlight a song from each of them from this album. First up is Star that was written by Joe Egan…..
Next up is Who Cares that was written by Gerry Rafferty. When I listened to this song back in 1973 I knew that Gerry was going to have a very long career. Unfortunately we lost Gerry way to soon back in 2011!
Stealers Wheel didn’t last long after this album. Gerry’s went on to have a great solo career while Joe’s career kind of faded away. Sometimes talent just isn’t enough…..the music business is tough.
Montrose – Montrose
Montrose was a powerhouse that featured Ronnie Montrose on guitar and Sammy Hagar on vocals. They rocked on their debut album which you can see for yourself by listening to the first song, Rock the Nation (written by Ronnie)……
Band On The Run – Paul McCartney and Wings
Not to be outdone by John’s release of Mind Games, Paul released this Wings masterpiece the very next month. The title song, with its three independent parts beautifully woven together, is an absolute classic……
Tales From Topographical Oceans – Yes
One double album featuring four sides of music each of which is made up of a single song. Yes it has to be Tales from Topographical Oceans. My favorite of the four songs….The Remembering…..see what you think……..
Ozark Mountain Daredevils – The Ozark Mountain Daredevils
The Ozark Mountain Daredevils were a very much under appreciated band. Their first, self titled, album featured one hit (If You Wanna Get To Heaven) but a lot of other great music as well. Today let’s listen to Colorado Song. I think you will like it……
Ridin The Storm Out – REO Speedwagon
The REO Speedwagon of the early 70’s rocked. While they would go on to have significant “pop” success in the 80s, I have always preferred their early stuff from the 70s. The title song from this album is my favorite…….
Wild Tales – Graham Nash
Graham’s second solo album was a great piece of work. Let’s listen to the final song from the album, Another Sleep Song……
So I’ve had a nice Holiday break…..I hope you have as well. My New Year’s Resolution for 2014 is to Follow My Arrow. Confused? Listen to the following song by newest musical obsessions, Kacey Musgraves, and it will make a lot more sense…..
Kacey is one a great set of talented country songwriters that that emerged in 2013 and I absolutely love her song Follow Your Arrow. You could do a lot worse than adopting the following lyrics from the song as your own resolution for this year.
Say what you think
Love who you love
‘Cause you just get
So many trips ’round the sun
Yeah, you only
Only live once
So make lots of noise
Kiss lots of boys
Or kiss lots of girls
If that’s what you’re into
When the straight and narrow
Gets a little too straight
Roll up a joint, or don’t
And follow your arrow
Wherever it points, yeah
Follow your arrow
Wherever it points
Here’s an acoustic live performance of the song that I though you might like as well…..
I’m a little behind in my “Forty Years Ago Today” posts so later today I plan to do a final post to catch you up on the album releases in the later part of 1973. Later this week you should be looking for my Best of 2013 (End Of The Year Music Review) post.
This year’s final Holiday Countdown post features Christmas Lights which was released digitally by Coldplay in December of 2010. I love the both the song and the video. Let’s watch and listen together….
Oh, Christmas lights, light up the street
Light up the fireworks in me
May all your troubles soon be gone
Those Christmas lights keep shinin’ on
Merry Christmas to everybody around the world….may the Christmas spirit continue throughout the coming year making the world a more peaceful place for us all!
I’m taking a couple of days off but will return soon to wrap up 2013 before New Years Day.
thebestmusicyouhaveneverheard 