blues for Maceo rough mix

My good friend and musical guru, Maceo ( his User name) recently suggested that we combine forces and construct another in our random series of musical guides,

His chosen subject was blues / funk/ rock.

as ever with me, I carefully went through the CD's on my "playlist " pile, choosing those that resonate...
I then booted my PC up and compiled an 82 minute mix of blues, only one track from my original list!!!

So, for your entertainment and my embarassement, here's the rough mix of that initial creative burst.

I can't guarantee that any of these tracks will make the final cut - I might discard them all, but it's a work in progress and a chance for us to get back on that blogging podcast train...


I kick off with a live track from "The Dodge Brothers", The skiffle band put together by Mark Kermode, the Observer's film critic. It was gonna be a track off their new CD, "The Sun Set" but I loved the singer's introduction.

Then we've got a boogie shuffle from an ex boxer! Paul Thorn is an exception that proves the rule - witty, articulate, cynical and funny. 

Then a track from Bill Kirchen's latest CD - a reworking of his Commander Cody track " Truck-stop as the end of the world" I chose this as was too "in the zone" to dig out my CC Cd and rip the original version .
Then it's a new discovery for me, Corey Stevens - looks like a SRV clone, but plays more like Albert King .
Then a curve ball ( well, it's my podcast and I'll throw it in) Black Dub - Daniel Lanois and friends from the fantastic debut . This is one of several instrumental on the album,a firm office favourite last month.
Then the first "classic" blues number - Sean Chambers explosive reading of "Rock Me Baby". I think he's now fronting a resurrected "Blackfoot" but he can sing and play the blooz like a good'un.
Then it Billy Jones. Why he's not a mega star, I don't know. I stumbled over him on you tube, got hooked and now own 4 CD's. This is a Chicago blues rewrite of the Mother In Law joke with a twist.
Next up is Chris Anderson. Don't know much about him, but just listen to thr luyrical tones as he sings and plays on this. I downloaded the track then ,thanks to the web, ordered the CD from him, and it's fab.
Next up, the man of the moment, Mr Gary Clark Jnr, stomping and strutting his way to the top.
Follow that ,they said. So here's an alternative mix of Greg Allman's "I've got news for you" , more woodsy than the final version on his album "searching For Simplicity"
Next Up, Jess Rodens shows how to mix a full flight RnB band with a soul voice and a great song. The Ballad Of Big Sally, recorded live for the BBC back in the 70's.

Pat O'Bryan next - Don't know anything else about him, stumbled over this album, downloaded it, keep playing this track - the soundscape is wide open and sends the hairs on my arms into spasm.

Which is apt as the next track is the second of my "classic tracks" , It's Red House , by Prince. But not the "Rave Unto 2000" DVD version, but a more focused and tight club gig version from Le Bataclan in Paris from 1999.

I thought I'd better put a P track as he acts as the anchor for our musical interaction.Also I've been on a "dry " month and not been playing anything by him, despite obtaining some nice original silver boots via e bay etc. 
Nearly there now. Dirty Dave Ostin sounds like a bit player from "Sons Of Anarchy" and for all I know, he could be, but this is a great rip roaring modern American Guitar Hero letting rip - no excessive shredding or fretboard doodling, just straight forward blues rock.

And then, finally, a hint of where I'm at with my current listening  - "Freakpower" by "Freakpower" from their first album. Freakpower were formed by the Artist latterly  known as Fatboy Slim .
Far more soulful than his solo big beat tunes, and diametrically opposite the white boy pop of the House Martins.

I’ve tired to provide a wide palette of blues for this, and am fully aware that not every track will strike a chord with everyone, but they all deserve at least a listen…

And if you like one enough to go out and buy a CD, well ,job jobbed as we say

G

A really special birthday

The wife has a birthday on the 1st of May.
So, what can I do to make it special...

Brain goes into meltdown seeking inspiration, and am flailing around without success until I see a Facebook note.
BBC Radio 4 is recording a show featuring Mike Scott and Steve Wickham from the Waterboys talking about their album "Fisherman's Blues" as it's nearly 25 years old.
the show is called "Master-tapes".
No' I'd never heard of it either.
But, in for a penny , a pair of tickets to the recording would be a good present for a long time fan ( that's both of us)
So I fill in the BBC application web site, don't tell her about it as not sure we would get tickets.

Then the e mail arrives, confirming 2 x tickets for the recording of the show on Friday 26 April, 7 pm at the BBC Maida Vale studios.

I tell her what I've done, she's over the moon..
But worried as the ticket doesn't guarantee admission - it's a first come, first served queue on the night, as it's a small intimate acoustic gig and a  questions and answer session with her heroes. All good.
Then I read on - for the second part of the show, they invite the audience to ask the artist questions and ask for questions to be mailed to them in advance.
So, being a smart ass, I mail off four questions as questioners get preferred access.

Good move.
As I received a mail from the producers saying they liked one of my questions and could I et them know if we were going, and tell them a little about me...

Come the day, we leave Reading on a train, not knowing how long the journey would take, so we allowed plenty of time to get there, find somewhere to eat and then enter the historic Maida Vale studios.

It's actually very easy to get there from Reading. At Paddington it's only 1 stop on the Bakerloo line.
So easy that we were there at 4.30.
Maida Vale is the only place in the known universe that doesn't have a Starbucks, a Pret, a Costa or even a McDonalds.
Obviously if you can afford to live there you get food delivered.
We did find a little where we enjoyed a drink with Mark and Layla ,2 more early bird fans who'd traveled up from Bristol.
We then went back to queue as none of us wanted to miss out ( I had guaranteed entrance, but they were all worried that they might not get in..)
We were 14, 15, 16 and 17 in the queue..
Which by 6.30 stretched all along the front of the building.
Everyone was lovely and all were chatting, comparing war stories and bonding in the evening sun.
Then we were ushered in.
All I can say about the facilities is that the license fee is not being wasted on frippery and ostentatious decoration.
The studio corridors were more shabby school chic than imperial palace...
No "green room " booze, or tea or coffee for anyone, just another queue in a corridor as lots of people with BBC lanyards ignored everyone ... Not Waterboys fans then!
AS  potential questioners, we were "fast tracked" in and allocated the front 2 rows of chairs, arranged , school assembly like around a grand piano , chairs, PA and lights.

As you can see, we were front row, centre stage, about 8' from the piano stool.

Pretty good birthday treat this is turning out to be...

The PA set up was playing the CD, but I had to stifle a snigger as it was skipping... You'd think the BBC would have state of the art facilities. No, we were in the corner of a seedy school hall listening to a faulty CD on a PA smaller than the one I use at work. 

No matter, the atmosphere is a mix of anticipation and trepidation  Everyone nervously looking around as no one from the BBC was taking charge...

The producer came out, thanked every one for coming, explained what was going to happen and then introduced the host, John Wilson who then brought out the stars - Mike Scott and Steve Wickham. displayed his credentials as a fan by running us through his personal Waterboys war stories and getting everyone settled.

We were then off, with Mike on vocals, guitar and piano and Steve on fiddle.

We had music, chat, jokes, confessions, curve ball requests from the presenter resulting in a jig version of "The Whole Of The Moon" and many more songs played perfectly feet in front of us.

There was only one stop for a retake, and that was a technical BBC issue , not a mistake from the musicians.

At he end of the first part of the show, they carried on playing, an impromptu mini gig for us.

The second part was questions from the audience, interspersed with more music, jokes and stories from Mike.

We had the story behind " And A Bang On The Ear" which was not a traditional Irish term of endearment, but a phrase uttered by an engineer during the recording session.

The funniest story was how they enlisted Tomas McKeown to narrate "The Stolen Child" - the story involves a bottle of whisky, long haired persons knocking on doors in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night and being told to "fek off"...

Well, the presenter was rattling off names and getting through questions and I'd not been called, time was running out , perhaps I'd not get picked..

But no, I was announced as the final question, and in his intro, John mentioned that the evening was part of Jane's birthday present and wished her happy birthday.

She was mortally embarrassed and I was so thrown off kilt that I fumbled my question..

Then it was all over, recording was finished and we could all go...

but Mike and Steve played a couple more songs for us, then we though t it was all over...

Mike was doodling away a the piano and seemed to be looking at Jane.

A couple of chords later,he launched into the song - he was playing "Happy Birthday"to Jane.

Steve Wickham joined in and we sat there , transfixed.

So that was just the cherry on the icing on the cake!

Jane gets to see her hero talk, play and then he , spontaneously , sings to her.

She was totally overwhelmed, as everyone joined in.

 A very special moment that we will never forget.

Thank You Mike Scott and Steve Wickham - true gentlemen of song.

Afterwards, Mike and Steve signed my vinyl copy of " Fisherman's Blues " and each wished Jane a Happy Birthday.

And finally, Jane plucked up the courage to go and thank Mike for that special moment and I took this picture of them 

After that , it was a short glide back to the Underground with our new friends, we made tentative plans to meet at the Waterboys concert in Oxford in December .

So Thank you BBC, Mike and Steve for giving Jane a truly special birthday present that she is still buzzing over and will remember for the rest of her life...

Now, what do I do for next year's birthday???

Everything I Do Gonh Be Funky

Prince And The Revolution 1985 Live @ Syracuse NY

Oh yes! The legendary simulcast...
I remember this being on 2 x VHS tapes and just having to sit and watch the full 18 minute Purple Rain extravaganza with awe.
Now, here it is in all it's glory thanks to you tube ( until P decided to issue a "Cease and desist" notice!

enjoy while you can :)

forthcoming podcast - digital couscous mixtape version

I'm back on my Arabic trip again...
So I thought I'd try to construct a  journey through my collection that reflects how the Far east and Middle East  influences have resulted in some stunning pieces of music across genres.
As ever,with all journeys through a musical map, I took a few wrong turns, a couple of detours and ended up in a different continent
Somehow South America made a bid for membership of the United Arab States of Funk and sound bombed the mix , planting some hot funk slap bang in the middle of things... but, hey, I't's my journey and I'll detour where I want to- a journey through Eastern phrases via a side street of jazz, the valley of the blues , via a track on the beach

I hope that someone will listen and feedback. Hopefully you'll like what you hear enough to go and purchase a tune or and album ( if you are a pre digital type) from the featured artists...

digital coucous

1) All for You (Shankar)
2) Wind of Change (Hawkwind)
3) Colour Line (Asian Dub Foundation)
4) Return to Innocence [extended 'live' mix] (Enigma)
5) Ethnicolor II (Jean Michel Jarre)
6) Blue Desert Caravan (Soundstream)
7) Fimme Some (Grupo Fantasma)
8) Facing East (Thievery Corporation)
9) Venice Beach (The Egg)
10) Grand Parade (Mark Isham)
11) Pablo's Blues (Gare du Nord)
12) Morocco (di Meola, Ponty & Clarke)
13) Heavy Tune (Gong)
14) Far Away (Demis Roussos)

Warren Haynes with Brad Whitford + Joe Bonamassa -- Guitar Center's King...

a fine jam... Brad Whitford is a bit out of his depth, but then, up against Warren and Joe... poor man!!

I love the blues....

Phil RetroSpector - Bluebird Blackout

another amazing mash up from Phil Retro Spector. this is a work of art ,no question...

Phil RetroSpector - A Thousand Secrets

mash ups - love 'em or hate 'em., but when they are good, like this, they are too good to be buried away on you tube.
check it out...

Forwards into the past we go...

Or a return to vinyl...

For those of you old enough to wax lyrically about the joy of vinyl, it's perceived "warmth", "sonic balance" and "organic"feel, I had ,not 2 words, 2 letters to counter these statements with : C and D.
I was fortunate in that I got my hands on a first generation Philips CD player and copies of the first albums released on CD - Dire Straits " Love over Gold" and Eurythmics "Sweet Dreams" before the player was available.
I loved it - no crackles, no hiss, no turning the album over after 20 minutes... bliss.
I can still remember listening to "Telegraph Road" in my room, the lights out , watching a thunder strom roll over my parent's house, waiting for the lighting to replicate the cover. The music filled a room, crisp drums, layers of texture, no skipping, no wow and flutter from warped vinyl, nothing between my ears and the sound.
That was it.
I was off to the HiFi shop as soon as I could afford a player,and I put down hard earned cash for the first in a long line of CD players . I've gone from Technics to Sony to Marantz to Cambridge Audio, back to Marantz and am back with Cambridge audio again.
In fact, I'm listening to Pink Floyd "Meddle" through it as I type.
My first CD purchases were Led Zeppelin "Houses Of The Holy" and The Waterboys " This Is The Sea".
Since then, I've managed to divest myself of all the vinyl I'd collected , repalcing it with CD, then replacing the CD with the remastered CD, then upgrading to the "definitive " remaster deluxe versions of albums that have been a part of my life for those 30 years - Step forward Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Prince,Hawkwind, Climax Blues Band - all have made this journey with me.

Last week, the nagging at the back of my mind about the feel and look of vinyl combined with remembering the ritual of preparing to listen to a piece of music - choosing the album, removing the inner sleeve, sliding the vinyl out and onto the turntable, choosing the correct side, then placing it gently onto the anti static mat, cleaning it with the micro fibre brush, raising the tone arm, positioning the stylus over the run in groove then lowering it onto the rotating album became a full force gale.
Perhaps it's a reaction to getting older, maybe the realisation that I can no longer sit and devout 80 minutes without interruption to a CD, or maybe giving up alcohol has rekindled a previous addiction?
Whatever the reason, I ended up purchasing vinyl for only the second time in 30 years-The first was me treating myself to the ltd German special edition of the Storm Corrosion Album, which, with stereotypical German efficiency came as a CD / DVD / Blu Ray / double vinyl set, in a gatefold sleeve!!! That was how the beast was woken - Prog rock gatefold sleeves. The artwork, the care that went into the design of the whole album caused memories of fold out sleeves, posters, lyric sheets, all in stunning colour and 12" x 12" formats.
All those works of art that were taken for granted- I wish I'd kept them - The Zeppelin Physical Graffiti sleeve with the windows, "In Through the Outdoor " with it's brown paper outer sleeve that contained one of eight different colour wash pictures, the Hawkwind sleeves that folded put and were enough to send you in search of space just by looking at the art, The Prince sleeves, iconic and powerful in their messages, the long forgotten SF artworks, the "double live" gatefold in concert shots that captured the energy and power of a band in full live mode.

So, I trotted off to Sound Machine, determined to just buy a couple of albums for the artwork and the half remembered feeling of holding the album and unwrapping it, that ritual of preparation, now replaced by the sliding of a silver disc into a black box, or by the touch of a mouse button..
And I struck gold - 2 x Jess Rodens  albums that have never been available on CD and a trio of Prince albums , "Around The World In A Day" with it's psychedelic cover that only hints at the music squashed into those grooves, "Purple Rain" with the iconic Rock Star on a Motorbike at night ,pouting cover, with the typeface and the tracks split between side one and side two... Sorry. All getting a bit weird here.
I also succumbed to temptation to purchase "Sign O the Times" on vinyl, as it was the first Prince album I'd gone straight to CD for on release, so felt a little guilt for not having owned the vinyl .

I then had the task of removing my old Dual turntable form under the bed where it had been stored for the last 15 or more years, reconnecting it and seeing if it worked.
After a lot of rerouting wires, checking plugs etc, it was ready to go.
Sign O The Times album, side 4, " The Cross" cued up and ready to go.
The turntable still turned at a constant 33 1/3 rpm. The tone arm still floated across to take up postion, and the dampening on the move into the run in was good.
The crackle of the stylus slipping into thr groove brought a memory flashback to my first "proper" Hi Fi record deck, a Garrard one ( they were made in Swindon, my Grandmother worked there) and the anticipation was still a rush.

The music kicked in, quieter than CD , so the volume was adjusted , and it sounded good. Very good.
Hmmm. Where were the crackles? what about the clicks? the "muddy" sound of vinyl that bright shiny digital CD over wrote?
Well, either my ears have lost the ability to discern the fine points of difference, or I listen to things more holistically  now as it sounded great.
In the interests of fair play, I'm now going to put on a vinyl copy of "Lovesexy", the 3rd of the Prnce albums acquired that day, and the CD too.
Well, the Cd is "Brighter", has more "punch", the bass is more "Bassy" , but the vinyl sounds fine, more crackly, sure, but that adds to the experience, a bit like good black pepper on a meal, that finishing touch to a meal.
in fact vinyl listening is like eating a rich dish - a treat every now and then ,worth the extra effort for a special occasion,an indulgence , a guilty pleasure..
The artwork is the main reason for me revisiting vinyl country, but the ritual of listening is a pleasure too and one I'm glad I was brave enough to take the trip.
So , after a nag, the turntable has been reinstated , hidden in thr hi fi cupboard, not on top as it "clutters the room even more" , we have a small selection of vinyl that will expand under carefully controlled laboratory conditions ( ie charity or bargains from secondhand shops, chosen for cover art aesthetics primarily) and my love affair with music continues unabated.
In fact, Lovesexy is sounding very, well , sexy - now this is not all down to the power of vinyl, more to do with the fact that this is the first time I've listened to it in a couple of years. In fact, the crackles on this pressing are coating it with a veneer of nostalgia that is a little too much bathos , so back to CD we go...
but not before we admire the beauty of the Paisley Park design on the record label. Why can't they reproduce this on the CD?