What I am Listening to : TOY

To badly paraphrase a certain former Secretary of Defense, you are born with the artists you have, not the ones you wish you had. For me, the 80s were a nadir for some great artists- The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and David Bowie. While also mining the treasure of his previous records, I do follow on all of his new material. I actually am an advocate for his 90s work. Flawed sure, but it’s not as bad as it seems Tin Machine has become a punchline, but the album is fine. I do think Black Tie White Noise is not good, but I love the ambition. Outside is ambitious and flawed, though certainly it would be a highlight in anyone else’s career. I know not everyone loves Earthling, and it’s got a 90s production vibe, but it’s a great beginning to end listen. Hours similarly misses some hopeful artistic heights, but has more good than bad. For some “off” decades, I’d still take Bowie over the decades of most any other artist. Admittedly, time brings perspective but there’s some great moments in there. Which brings us to “Toy” - an interesting idea of an album of older Bowie songs getting new life. Famously, it was shelved and eventually Heathen was the next release. Heathen is as good or better than anything 20 years before it. While it got some plaudits, I feel it was probably deserving of more. I’m not sure Toy would have moved the needle of the listening public. It seems the risk outweighs the reward. We will never know of course, but Heathen seems like the more acceptable product. Ironically perhaps, as much as I dutifully bought every Bowie product hitting the market, I didn’t chase down the bootlegs that seemed to get shared heavily on the internet. 20 or so years later, listening to Toy doesn’t particularly strike me like his other releases. I find it a very average album and I can only imagine that would have been my reaction back then. One unfavorable Big Media Outlet review says Toy's flaw is it that it has 60s melodys and 90s production. It is an interesting discussion of course. As a Bowie fan, I don’t prefer Toy over many of the albums I already mentioned, but I am glad we have it. I don’t know the right answer, but outside of releases that seem purely exploitative, I hope artists can understand the reverence that comes with this posthumous product. In death, it likely gets received the way Bowie intended it- a product for the fans, not to be reviewed by the critics. So hopefully you will see my jabs at Toy are not meant to insult. It is “extra” product. Bowie (or whoever made the decision) - much like Tin Machine- was torn by commercial pressures and sharing material with his fans. Lastly, there’s some great moments on Toy. Much as previous generations might dig through B-sides- there are unearthed treasure here. Additionally, from an artistic point of review, it makes me wonder if it helped Bowie transition to Heathen- with its well selected covers and the approaching return to creative peaks. On the extended box, one of my favorite early Bowie songs is “In the Heat of the Morning” which I hadn't heard until the Beeb sessions discs were released.

Loretta Lynn: An Appreciation

Let me start by saying traditional country music isn’t very hip and cool. Now, there’s a crowd that appreciates it (which I fall into). Johnny Cash broke through 20 years ago and there are a few songs you will hear in a non country bar like “Jolene” or “Mama Tried” but they are few and that has only happened recently. And yes, a big country single sampled Webb Pierce last year but that age has gone It, however was the sound of my childhood when I spent time with my Grandma, which was often So this isn’t the Loretta Lynn appreciation post you thought it would be. I don’t need to tell you what a badass Loretta was. “Coal Miner’s Daughter” is on the short list of best populist American song ever written, and you can imagine how much competition that category has. There is the saying that Lynn has had more songs banned from country music than all male artists combined. She herself has listed 8 including legitimate classics like The Pill and X Rated. Check out the Cocaine and Rhinestones podcast for a breakdown of why that claim is likely true. At age 72, when most artists are resting on their laurels, she made the ambitious and acclaimed Van Lear Rose with Jack White. But this is not a post about that. There are plenty of places you can read about her place in history. I often was left with my grandma’s cassettes which were a history of country music. Now, it didn’t extend to that present moment (a time I actually followed the country charts and they were exciting) but it had a lot of the Nashville Sound orchestral ballads of the likes of Jim Reeves and Eddy Arnold through the countypolitan 70s and the Urban Cowboy sound of the early 80s. Now, there are some great moments in country. I recognize that now and I recognized that somewhat then (for example, Freddy Fender wasn’t particularly exciting but he has some great moments), but I was looking for those kind of moments in what was not easily accessible music for me. I found it. Now, top of the list was Hank Williams, but I have written about him at length. The artist that stood out to me was Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn. Conway and Loretta are on the shortlist of country royalty. There’s George and Tammy (and George and Melba), Porter and Dolly (and Kenny and Dolly) and Johnny and June and in modern revisions, Emmylou and Gram, but there aren’t many others. Even if I wasn’t a big Twitty fan, there was something undeniable about the pairing. Oh come on, regardless of genre, is there a better back and forth duet than “You’re the reason our kids are ugly”. There was authenticity when the two sang which showed up in classic songs like “After the fire is gone”. These songs were 180 degrees from what I was otherwise listening to at the time, but it was the most compelling of a long list of possibilities. There’s a lot of Conway and Loretta references in Blake Shelton’s #1 “Honey Bee”. Country music has changed a lot but it will never forget Conway and Loretta.

Album Review- Spiritualized - Everything Was Beautiful

My first real exposure to Spiritualized was 1997s Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space. It was not just a bit of a mind blowing album, it was also a bit of a slow burner. Think of it in terms of something contemporary to it like OK Computer or Urban Hymns or Time Out of Mind. It was loved but maybe not as celebrated, and as trends change, it remains a great album but never gets praised as a Radiohead/White Stripes/My Bloody Valentine style greatest album. Of note, I was never a big Spaceman 3 fan and as a friend of some pretty huge Jason Pierce fans, I know that his current direction is something that I enjoy a lot more than maybe others do. Everything was Beautiful is quite literally a continuation of 2018’s Nothing Hurt. Without context, it might be in the ballpark of any other Fat Possum release- some kind of modern gospel blues album created by a kid whose idea of country is that 70s era Rolling Stones and Flying Burrito Brothers. The guest list on this album includes Nikki Lane, one of the more exciting voices in alt country on “Crazy”. The lyrics feel intimate doubling down on a certain outlaw vibe. I can’t help but think of Mercury Rev, a band that I could write the same review about changing the reference to 98’s Deserter’s Songs and more explicitly embraced traditional country similarities by recording an album of Bobby Gentry songs. Yet what to make of an album with a song that is written as an homage to the Fun House Stooges. To crib from Waylon, I’m not sure that Gram Parsons would have done it that way. Nor would I feel comfortable saying this sounds like a different band than the one who recorded Ladies and Gentleman. Best Thing You Never Had sounds like something off Exile On Main Street, yes, but turns up the noise for a modern sound. Closer track I’m Coming Home Again sounds like it could be described a thousand different ways. It fits perfectly in that psychedelic/ Velvet Underground kind of way that won’t scare anyone who heard the previous songs off My criticism of EWB is that it isn’t much different from the last few Spiritualized albums (since And Nothing Hurt came out of the same sessions, that can hardly be a harsh criticism). My counterpoint is that those albums now seen steps to the goal of a fully realized album that is his best in a decade and reaches some of the highs of L&GWaFiS. 2022 - Fat Possum

Cover Posts- Going Up by Coil

Any discussion of covers has to include “Tainted Love” about as popular a song as there ever has been. I’m a big Soft Cell fan and Marc Almond always says he regrets pairing it with another cover “Where did our love go?” and shutting himself out of song royalties. (In 2002, Soft Cell recorded “The Night” - a Four Seasons song that was the band’s second choice in 1981, and a great song, but not the greatest song) I have no idea how that works when Rihanna samples that record, but I get it. When ever anyone talks to me about covers, I almost always bring up the Coil version of that song. I mean the original is great. Soft Cell brought it to an 80s nonstop erotic cabaret and Coil turned it into a dirge. It is often mentioned as a lament to the AIDS pandemic. It’s a moving piece of music I’m going to pick another unusual Coil cover though. If you’re not already aware, Public Broadcasting in the US shows a bunch of 70s and 80s British programs. I can’t imagine I was ever the target audience for some of the older sitcoms, but I became a huge fan of Are You Being Served. 2005’s Going Up is the theme to that 70s television program, and is also unrecognizable as such. Once again, it’s built into something more. In this case, a tribute to band cofounder Jhonn Balance who passed in 04 and the elevator (that on the show) that went to Men’s clothing is a more metaphysical stairway to heaven. 2005 - Threshold

Cover Tunes- Viva la Vida by Pet Shop Boys

I am not really a Coldplay fan, but I like a few songs and Viva La Vida is undoubtedly a great song. On the other hand, I am a big Pet Shop Boys fan. Here’s a couple of things that seem ironic 1- As an electronic duo, it would seem contrary that their live albums would be good. I don’t know about this particular band, but I often hear stories from friends who have seen the band’s peers in concert and usually there are bad reviews Now, the Pet Shop Boys aren’t your usual band, and I think they really try to make it a party. Additionally, the mixture of songs in medley form seems to work well. I may never get a chance to write about 2010’s “Pandemonium” - a fantastic live album- or some of their other live records, so this will have to do. So my statement is that even if it’s been a decade, I still love it. 2- Point two is that I really love the band’s choice of covers. Again, Neil Tennant is an amazing lyricist- one of the best of his generation - but the band has some well placed covers- Always on my Mind and Go West Anyway, I love this. That’s the post 2009 - Parlophone

Cover Tunes- Focus on "Der Kommissar"

One of my favorite songs of youth was Der Kommisar by After the Fire. That song was a cover of a song by Falco. As much as I love that song and as long as a career the band had (four albums), it it odd that i don’t think I have ever heard another song the band did I vaguely remember radio stations playing both versions, though I could be misremembering somewhat since Falco would have an American hit or two of his own later and there were other NDW artists who had English and German hits (Nena, Peter Schilling). While I prefer the After the Fire version as an English speaker and they add some variety to it, I definitely love Falco. Plus while I consider the After the Fire video one of the iconic ones of the time (among many of that time), credit to Falco for basically pulling it off with just a bluescreen What’s interesting is this little video which is, I think, an Australian countdown show where they play all the versions. I would not be surprised if radio statins did play the two back to back. But what people might not know, is with Faldo’s success and a rush to make it a hit internationally, not only did After the Fire do a version, but Laura Branigan performed a song that layered new lyrics over the same melody and gave us “Deep in the Dark”. I know I’m not a huge Branigan fan, but I can’t help but think how multi faceted she was. I can’t think of too many pop stars in recent years that would compare. I appreciate that “Gloria” is now at a classic level few songs reach. It is another case where artists are distilled to one or two songs. I mean she’s not in a genre I listen to much, but hey she had a voice. “Self Control” is on the short list of best songs of the 80s Anyway, I get a kick out of looking back at the days of Der Kommisar Fever.

Cover Tunes- Under My Thumb by The Who

I always find it a bit weird. when rock legends cover their peers. For example, on the incredible Join the Dots boxed set, the Cure cover Joy Division and Depeche Mode. In 1967, The Who covered The Rolling Stones to support raising bail for a Keef n Mick drug bust with the single “The Last Time” and the b-side of “Under my Thumb” Perhaps one day, someone should curate a compilation of all the songs inspired by the Stones getting in trouble (the Clash’s 1977 “Jail Guitar Doors and the Stones’ own “We Love You”) “Under My Thumb” hasn’t aged well lyrically, though that is up to debate (more on Wikipedia which has a few theories including one about it being about a guitar) Musically, however, that fuzzy bass and marimba- it’s a classic I wouldn’t suggest trying to Out-Stones the Stones but there are a couple of versions of some significance. Canadian band Streetheart (a precursor to Loverboy) had a top 20 hit in Canada in 1979. It gets described as a disco rock hybrid, but if I didn’t know any better, I would have guessed mid 80s Glam/Arena rock. I can definitely see the appeal. Social Distortion did a revved up version in their style in 1996 The Who’s cover eventually landed on the expanded edition of their Odds and Sods collection. YouTube comments can be brutal but I actually like the cover. Not saying it’s better, but it does sound like a Who song. Keith’s drumming propels it and it feels like a Pete and Roger song of that time. 1967 - Track

Cover Tunes- Kronos Quartet - Purple Haze

I think the Kronos Quartet is great I’m embarrassingly not overly well versed in their work outside of knowing quite a bit about their career and the Nuevo disc. Perhaps a deep dive is needed some day Their career is so vast, you should just go lot their Wikipedia page, but I will try. So here goes, I think the Kronos Quartet are probably the musical act that would be the best entry into classical music from a rock fan’s ears. (I could surely be forgetting someone and Frank Zappa probably had that title before he passed, but that feels like a proper statement. They have worked with some of the biggest modern classical names- Part, Gorecki, Reich, Glass, Riley and the aforementioned Zappa. They have recorded with a who’s who of music- Cafe Tacuba, Pat Metheny, Asha Boshle, Taraf de Haidouks, Dave Matthews, Nelly Furtado, Amon Tobin, Faith No More, Joan Armatrading and The Tiger Lillies. They have performed live with McCartney, Bowie, Waits, Bjork, the National, and Allen Ginsberg. I would have to say their biggest commercial moment that I can recall was the Requiem for a Dream soundtrack. In 1986, they recorded their self titled album for Nonesuch Records and ended it with a cover of Purple Haze. I think most everyone would agree that it’s a fitting tribute to someone who was really a great American composer. I do see the comments on the YouTube page and it’s not perfect - you have to make room for Mitchell and Redding’s contributions, too but it’s pretty fun. 1986 - Nonesuch

Cover tunes- Heart Full of Soul- Chris Isaak

I love a good cover song and wanted to post a variety- some serious, some funny, some known, some obscure. I’m going to start with a fairly straightforward cover. The original is a classic- - The Graham Gouldman-penned "Heart Full Of Soul". A 1965 hit for the Yardbirds. A #9 hit in the US and #2 in the UK I have to admit that even if there are better singers than Keith Relf, I can’t imagine anyone else singing it. I also have seen performances of it (and lip synched or not) my brain goes to Jeff Beck rocking out. This song was the first single Beck played on after Eric Clapton left the band. I won’t spend much more time here but if you don’t know, I’m a pretty big Yardbirds fan. I heard this cover a long time ago and it can be found on the self titled 1987 Chris Isaak album. I am a big Chris Isaac fan. He’s such a left field performer in comparison with other artists of his time. He has spent a lot of time converting classic 50s rock but I love his original work even more Anyway, I have to admit this is a pretty neat cover- really adding *ahem* soul to the original. I feel I’d be remiss not to add Rush covered the song in 2004 for the Feedback EP. I’m not the hugest Rush fan, and I suspect if you are, you’ve probably heard it already. But if not, look it up- it feels like. Modern version- faithful to the original, but doing it in a way that would probably cause many modern listeners to prefer it 1987 - Warner Bros

Cover Tunes- Focus on Roxy Music- More Than This

Many moons ago I would blog about a lot of cover songs- some big hits, some obscure, some sincere, some humorous, some better, some worse. Years, even decades later- I am going to take a week to revisit a few and ask who prefers the cover and who prefers the original. I will post 3 or 4 couplings and I will try to do every day this week- but I might skip a Sunday or Saturday- depending So, one of my favorite band's is Roxy Music. I was hooked when I heard their debut. It is a near perfect album. I cannot overstate how much I like "ReMake/ReModel (and Virginia Plain for the matter, which was added to the US edition). It is proto-punk, it is space rock, it is Stooges-style jazz punk. It is perfection. From there, of course, where do you go? Country Life is nearly perfect, too, and there are gems throughout. I bought the Ferry/Roxy compilation early in my teens, but it has been worthwhile to go deeper. When I got into music, Ferry was a fairly successful solo musician, even though his style didn't line up with a lot of what was on radio or MTV. I have always liked his solo career, but only have really begun to love it in recent years. Ferry is no stranger to covers, of course. This single (More Than This from 1982 Roxy Music swansong album Avalon) followed their cover of Lennon’s “Jealous Guy” (which is another great original/cover pairing where both songs are classics) and would make it 10 #102 on the US charts. I would be here awhile if I named all of Ferry’s covers but “A Hard Rains A Gonna Fall”, “Like a Hurricane", "In the Midnight Hour" and “Lets Stick Together" are well known, and he did an entire album of Dylan covers in 2007. I would be remiss if I didn't mention the two Bryan Ferry Orchestra albums, which are essentially Ferry covering himself in 1920s/30s/40s styles and are fantastic. Yes, I had my doubts, but love these records. As far as 10,000 Maniacs, their version went to #25 in 1997. As much as I love the original, the cover is one of my all time favorite songs. Like so many 90s bands, I felt their was so much hype about the 10,000 Maniacs at the time, but I really was a fan. In retrospect, they seem such an unlikely crossover hit (and to continue the thread- their most famous hit was a cover of a song that was a hit for another musician- and probably that musician's most famous song- and it was also a cover. I suppose that's a tribute to all involved- Natalie Merchant and Patti Smith were fantastic performers on top of being amazing lyricists). The ironic thing is I never did chase down the Mary Ramsey album. I surely need to someday. I feel she was in a spot where she was never going to make anyone forget Natalie, but unlike say, Gary Cherone, she was an integral part of the band because of her relationship with John Lombardo in Maniac sideproject John and Mary, and playing on a couple of "Our Time in Eden tracks and the MTV Unplugged album. Of note, the song became a popular concert cover over the years for Blondie and Robyn Hitchcock and of course, all probably remember it was sang by Bill Murray in Lost in Translation.

Album Review- Dave Stewart- Ebony McQueen

One of my favorite “lost” albums is “Greetings from the Gutter” - a 1995 album by Dave Stewart. But more about that later. The Eurythmics were definitely one of the biggest bands of the 80s. I don’t think it’s surprising that the two ensuing solo careers don’t match the level of the duo previously. (Ok, perhaps the only issue with Annie Lennox’s career might be she chose to go a different direction than what I would have preferred). In retrospect, perhaps Stewart was more successful than anyone might have guessed. “Lily was Here” featuring saxophonist Candy Dulfer was a Top 15 chart hit in the US in 1990. I can’t find any chart information on Stewart’s Spiritual Cowboys album but it had decent sales and exposure based on my experience. “Gutter” isn’t a perfect album by any means, but one of its biggest strengths is how deftly Stewart navigates through various genres. I bring that album up as an introduction to Stewart’s latest album. “Ebony McQueen” is solo Stewart on steroids. It is being marketed as a biography, a musical, a possible film, a photo book and a five disc album set. At 26 tracks and just over 80 minutes (the old standard CD running time), it’s certainly a double or triple album and surely more Stewart than anyone will ever need. Like Gutter, it never quite nails that perfect Eurythmics radio single. But it also has those moments that impress. Once again, The Beatles, Kinks and Bowie influences are on display, mixed with a variety of Caribbean, blues and theatrical sounds. It will be one of those albums that critics likely get right- a bit of indulgent mess that only the artist will love. Dave either knowingly or unknowingly prods the critic with a song called “What’s the F*cking Point”. Still, there’s some good stuff here and I suspect there are a few listeners that will gravitate to this album like I did to a Stewart album nearly 30 years ago. 2022 - Bay Street Records

Album Review- Steve Earle- Jerry Jeff

ONE NAUGHTY WORD NEAR THE BEGINNING of the video- Hope the performance makes up for it- otherwise skip to about 45 seconds in Steve Earle is one of my favorite artists. His recent album is the third in a trilogy of tributes to his mentors- Townes Van Zandt, Guy Clark and Jerry Jeff Walker. As a fan, these are generally among my least favorite Earle albums and reviewing almost seems unfair. Because these are homage pieces and jumping on points for new listeners. Are tribute albums ever going to be better than the real thing? No but they serve a purpose and you can’t be too harsh on a artist for putting out heartfelt product, and to be fair I am not all that familiar with the depth of these men’s work. (As an aside, I really do love the JT album and artistically think it is well done. It sounds like a Steve Earle album and is different from the originals in all the right ways. It is the kind of album that one will enjoy and then sit right down and listen to both versions) A couple of things stand out - one is Steve seems to slip into a Jerry Jeff persona. Earle has put himself in the position where he obviously wants to respect the music. Which leads to the second thing, when you listen to JJ it’s clear where Earle got his influence especially when he does some rambling of his own, or sings a particularly pensive song. Oh and I probably should remind that Earle is one of my favorite, if not my favorite artist, so this isn’t criticism. Jerry Jeff is a fine listen. If I am pushed to review, I will say that it’s not quite as good as Guy in what I would expect to return for repeated listening but it sure does it what it advertises, and that was getting me to check out the work of one Jerry Jeff Walker. 2022 - New West

Album Review- The Dream Syndicate- Ultraviolet Battle Hymns and True Confessions

The Dream Syndicate have a rather fascinating story. Four albums in the 80s that solidify their reputation as one of the great American indie bands, though never quite breaking through like REM (to be honest, few did). Then a 20 year career for Steve Wynn which generally was well received. But nothing really prepared listeners for a second run of Dream Syndicate that has been surprisingly fulfilling. I got into the Dream Syndicate through a pretty obvious spot- the 1992 Rhino comp. That album called Tell Me When It’s Over is just about as close as one can get to perfect. It takes a bunch of the bands classic debut album and cherry picks from later records. The reunited Dream Syndicate is now four albums in and they all seem quite different. 2017’s How Did I Find Myself Here seemed drawn from the late 80s albums- with a focus on lyrics and smart songwriting. 2019’s These Times felt like a continuation but in retrospect, is also a bridge to 2020’s The Universe Inside. The Universe Inside felt like a big moment and a changed band. As with seemingly everything the band it has done, not everyone shared the same opinion- but at least this felt like the consensus that this was something special. This was a band bent on psychedelic jazz-influenced jamming. While “jam band” is a bad word in some circles, the album was pulling in from sources as disaparate as Coltrane, Crazy Horse and Hawkwind. The 21st Century iteration of the Dream Syndicate is so unpredictable from album to album that it is almost predictable that the follow up to The Universe Inside would be completely different. And it does, Ultraviolet Battle Hymns and True Confessions is a throwback to the band’s debut. That album had a heavy Velvet Underground influence - sparse instrumentation, over complicated lyrics, goth overtones and that sneaky subtle great guitar interaction - influential sounds that bubbled up most prominently in bands on the Alias Records and Flying Nun record labels in the late 80s and on a number of various major indie labels in that golden era of the 1990s. Dream Syndicate are now near the front and again at the end of that implied shades-wearing lineage that includes every one from Yo La Tengo to Black Rebel Motorcycle Club to Parquet Courts. It should be little shock that review of UBH&TC are once again all over the place, though most are highly complimentary. Personally, for me, I rather enjoy it. Like their debut disc, some songs are better but the whole collection hangs together quite well. I know comparing the two records is quite unfair, so I will simply say my experience of the record is that it is one that I can listen to in its entirety and want to do the same tomorrow. 2022 - Fire Records