John on June 21, 2010
I’m not ashamed to say that I’ve liked Devo, ever since I first heard Jocko Homo. Most people know Whip It and that’s about it. That’s a shame because they actually had a handful of quite good pop/rock songs. One of my favorites was Gates of Steel. I had the live version on a 45 back when those used to exist. I was later disappointed when I heard the studio [...]
John on June 9, 2010
This is old, but new to me: They have a couple new songs out, one of which is sort of in-your-face atheism. Still hope the album is good.
John on May 7, 2010
Ed Driscoll posted this and I thought it was pretty cool: The Fab Faux – Abbey Road Side 2 (mostly) from The Fab Faux on Vimeo. Makes me want to break out my Rickenbacker.
John on April 6, 2010
This is a strange mash-up. Someone named Brad Smith has created an old video game version of the entire Dark Side of the Moon album. Point for creativity. Not sure it quite has the same effect.
John on April 1, 2010
I’m a huge fan of Buddy Holly. Not just the Weezer song (which is great) but the man himself. So it’s hard for me not to geek out a bit over some of the stuff that is going up for auction next month in Hollywood. Have a look: You have no idea how much I want that red jacket. Seriously, can you imagine walking into a party or social event [...]
John on January 12, 2010
Spent the whole of my blogging time today trying to get a correction out of Politico. Since I don’t have anything else at the moment, here’s one of my favorite songs of the decade: You say you wander your own land But when I think about it I don’t see how you can You’re aching, you’re breaking And I can see the pain in your eyes Since everybody’s changing And [...]
Tim - t.q.o. on December 2, 2009
Tips to make your holidays a little jollier… …sage advice sent by my happily married cousin (of some 25+ years) in Colorado.
John on October 18, 2009
Since my parents divorced when I was three, I spent weekdays with my grandparents while my mom was at work. My grandfather owned a car dealership in Richmond, VA but lived in a big house in Washington DC, right near Silver Spring, MD. He spent a lot of time in the car. Grandad, as I called him – though it sometimes became just dad, was a big presence in my [...]
John on August 19, 2009
From the New Yorker: Rolling Stone’s Michael Jackson issue is out, and the magazine has posted online several reminiscences of the star by other artists…One of the more interesting memories comes from Daryl Hall, who says that when he was recording “We Are the World” Jackson approached him and admitted to stealing from a Hall and Oates song for “Billie Jean.” Hall says that he told Jackson that he had [...]
John on June 6, 2009
In 1954 Errol Strachan (pronounced Strawn) was running a successful taxi business ferrying tourists around Nassau, Bahamas. Errol, unlike his twelve siblings, had always loved music. So when a local nightclub called the Cat ‘n Fiddle held an amateur singing contest, Errol entered. Winning first prize in the contest piqued his interest in entertainment as a possible career. He and his cousin “King Eric” formed a Calypso band and got [...]
John on March 5, 2009
I’ve only listened to it twice, so I can’t really say what I’ll think of it after a few more listens. Here’s my first impression though… This is, strangely, two albums in one. About half the tracks sound like the U2 of All That You Can’t Leave Behind and How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb with a touch of Achtung Baby thrown in. Specifically, I’ll Go Crazy, Get Your Boots [...]
John on February 27, 2009
Not a complete pan, but close: No Line on the Horizon is mostly restless, tentative and confused. It’s not terrible, but it feels like the work of musicians torn between the comfort of the present and the lure of one last run into the adventurous past. [...] On a few tracks, the Edge, drummer Larry Mullen Jr. and bassist Adam Clayton sound at home rumbling through the verses and blowing [...]
John on February 22, 2009
The album is out in just over a week. Here’s a live performance of the first single from this year’s Brit Awards: Not sure if this is based on that old line “A lie is halfway around the world before the truth gets its boots on” or if it’s just about sexy boots. Knowing Bono it’s probably both. Here’s what the recording process looked like.
John on January 7, 2009
Favorite song by George Harrison: Lyrics: What I feel, I cant say But my love is there for you anytime of day But if its not love that you need Then Ill try my best to make everything succeed Tell me, what is my life without your love Tell me, who am I without you, by my side What I know, I can do If I give my love now [...]
John on December 19, 2008
In a few more months: No Line On The Horizon, the new studio album from U2, will be released on Monday 2nd March 2009. Written and recorded in various locations, No Line On The Horizon is the group’s 12th studio album and is their first release since the 9 million selling album How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb, released in late 2004. The reason it took five years to get [...]
John on December 17, 2008
Great song from a band no one remembers called Seed…The song is called RAPTURE: Lyrics: Stay with me Find time waste it on me You’ll see the trouble I’ve been through today We can be like cats and creepy crawly Pick the bugs from my hair like a monkey Take an elephant ride down to the sea This is the last day of mine Stay with me Find time waste [...]
John on November 29, 2008
Scott at Nova Scotia Scott found this one. An all girl hard rock band is nothing special these days, that is unless they’re from Saudi Arabia: They cannot perform in public. They cannot pose for album cover photographs. Even their jam sessions are secret, for fear of offending the religious authorities in this ultraconservative kingdom. But the members of Saudi Arabia’s first all-girl rock band, The Accolade, are clearly not [...]
John on September 16, 2008
One of my favorite bands doing one of their best songs: If you’re wondering where you’ve heard these guys before, it’s probably Stacy’s Mom.
John on August 28, 2008
Somewhere on this blog I’ve already confessed my enjoyment of late 80′s Bach Rock. Now I have to go deeper into the confessional to expose even more ridiculous guilty pleasures. I really enjoy Power Pop. There I said it. In fact, depending how broad your categories are, its one of my favorite genres of music. Just to orient you a bit, I’m stretching this pretty broadly to include everything from [...]
John on July 17, 2008
A little something for U2 fans (like myself) to look forward to. Next week, the band is releasing remastered versions of its first three albums: Boy, October and War. According to U2.com, all three were remastered under the watchful ear of the Edge, so we can expect good things. Best of all, all three albums will be available in special editions with a second CD of rare tracks and outtakes. [...]
