Music and Memory

Personal reflections based on the inspiration of songs. The "Fab Foundations" series (2020) is inspired by the music of the Beatles. "Master Blueprints" (2018) centered on Bob Dylan. "Under the Big Top" (2016) was on the Who. “Forever Young” (2014) was Neil Young centric. “Stepping Stones” (2012) focused on the Rolling Stones. The first 100 postings (the original "Gem Videos") emailed to friends and family and later added here are from 2008 and 2009; include songs from a variety of musicians.

Thursday, May 15, 2008

GMVW # 19: "Interchangeable Parts"

Gem Music Video of the Week # 19: Interchangeable Parts

Song: Shape I’m In by The Band

(Songwriter: Richard Manuel)

May 15, 2008

There are 2 bands I know of where the talent was/is pretty well evenly distributed amongst the members. One is R.E.M. The other was The Band. The members of The Band, Robbie Robertson (guitar), Rick Danko (bass), Richard Manuel (piano), Garth Hudson (organ), and Levon Helm (drums), were in many ways interchangeable parts: They could all play multiple instruments; other than Hudson, everyone sang; and they all wrote lyrics and songs. They were big fans of early Americana music (although all but Helm were Canadian), which was likely a big appeal to Bob Dylan when he asked them to be his backing band in the mid 60’s.

Perhaps due to this distributed talent, there was no center piece to The Band as a stage act. Looking thru a variety of live video footage, it appears they were always shuffling the deck on who was where. On New Year’s Eve, 1994, when Nancy (then pregnant with Charlotte) and I went to see them at the Paradise Rock Club in Boston, the stage set up was as funky as any I had ever seen: Helm (on drums) was on a circular sub-stage, jutting out into the crowd right of center. Danko mostly played on a plank-like runway. Hudson, on his massive Hammond organ, took up the entire left side of the stage. What a show! The Band stopped at midnight to pop a few bottles of champagne and chum up with the crowd, saluting the New Year in the process.

If any of them could be recognized as the leader of The Band, it was probably Robertson. On the flip side, Richard Manuel is probably the most overlooked talent, partially due to his self abuse life-style. It was this road-weary life style that Robbie Robertson felt compelled to end when he convinced the remaining members of The Band to host a breakup party in 1976. Many other musicians were invited to play in the event (including Dylan, N. Young, and Van Morrison), which was dubbed The Last Waltz (the remaining members of The Band later rescinded on this 'agreement' and carried on without Robertson).

Gem Music Video, “Shape I’m In” is a clip from that farewell show. Richard Manuel sings lead, and his appearance and demeanor fit the lyrics well. As with many great singers of the blues, his (and the rest of The Bands) personal struggles were the audiences gain. The Last Waltz reveals The Band as cohesive a unit as you could ever expect to see from 5 musicians.

A brief interview leading up to the song on the attached Gem, shows Robertson (along with Danko and Manuel) discussing a show they played many years earlier in Texas. The story is great, but equally revealing is how burned out all three of them appear. Life on the road had certainly taken its toll.

Eric Clapton, a veteran of several great bands, has stated that the only band he would have stuck it out with would have been The Band. Seeing them click on all cylinders in 'The Last Waltz' movie, I can certainly see why.

“Over yonder, peace in the valley

Come down town you have to rumble in the alley”

- Pete (just in the door from a week on the road myself)

Gem Music Video: Shape I’m In

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6-hG-fdrYM

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About the Video: Footage from The Last Waltz movie

Video Rating: 1

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Best Feedback: Fred

Awesome again. I loved that video of the last waltz

Thursday, May 8, 2008

GMVW # 18: "Album Orientation"

Gem Music Video of the Week # 18: Album Orientation

Song: Working Class Hero by John Lennon

Covered Here By: Green Day

(Songwriter: John Lennon)

May 8, 2008

On my way out of the Citarell residence several years ago (picking up the kids from another sleep-over with their cousins), Paul lead me out to the driveway, reached into his car and said “Dude, you should listen to this”, handing me his copy of the recently released Green Day album ‘American Idiot’. I balked, but he insisted I take it with me and give it a listen. He was sure I would like what I heard.

I was willing to take Paul’s word for it. After all, it wasn’t every day that he recommended a new album to me….but Green Day? Weren’t these guys just in it for the goof? Their first hit album, Dookie (1994), came across that way, and they had done nothing since then to change my mind. Don’t get me wrong….I can enjoy a band that’s all about the yuks (the Knack & Devo come to mind), but I have to like the sound, and Green Day simply did not connect with me on that most important level. I did enjoy the single off the new album ‘Boulevard of Broken Dreams’, but it’s a far stretch from a hit single to a solid album.

Paul was right, however….very much so! This album began to grow on me from the minute I popped it into the cd player. I listened to it (loudly) for weeks driving into work, and was reminded of just how great a feeling it could be to experience an instant classic, particularly from an unexpected source like Green Day. The song ‘Holiday’ was sensational, but the entire album was solid and more important, the songs worked together as a cohesive unit. How Green Day pulled it off at that stage in their career was to me, quite a feat. There’s nothing I can compare it to in terms of a band kicking into a higher gear.

Many musicians have proven they can pen the occasional hit song, but in my mind, it’s the entire album that is the true measure of a bands success in the studio. This is something you see much less of today. With the advent of MP3 and downloading music, the heyday of the studio album may have passed us by. It would be a pity if this were the case. Whether a true concept (‘Tommy’, ‘The Wall’, ‘School Boys in Disgrace’) or not, a good album has a certain feel and flow that can go much deeper with a theme (musically and lyrically) than a hit song can do on its own. The album ‘Who Are You’ by the Who has a loose theme related to the advent of punk rock and ‘out with the old (music), in with the new’. ‘Blood on the Tracks’ is a Bob Dylan autobiography. ‘Revolver’ by the Beatles may be the first great album, with a flow to the songs, one to the next, from beginning to end.  . ‘Exile on Main Street' by the Rolling Stones lifts each song to another level, simply based on the fact that together they make for a great album. Marvin Gaye's 'What's Going On' is an extraordinary collection of songs written about social awareness.

These are factors that cannot be captured in a ‘Greatest Hits’ album. Whether it’s a ‘Greatest Hits’, ‘Best of’, or more disguised titles like ‘Hot Rocks’, ‘Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy’; ‘Decade’, or ‘Shaved Fish’ (although I give credit to John Lennon for that creative title), the blending of hits collected from a variety of albums does little to capture the true essence of a band/musician in the way that an original studio album can do (live albums are another matter entirely).

To honor the album-centric focus of 'American Idiot', this week’s Gem Video will extract nothing from it. Instead, the Gem Video is a follow up single, Green Day's cover version of John Lennon's 'Working Class Hero'. I think it's the best studio cover since the Jimi Hendrix version of 'All Along the Watch Tower', and it's clear listening to it that the intensity Green Day brought to the album immediately preceding it was no flash-in-the-pan.

So, a thank you to Green Day, for keeping the faith alive, and to brother-in-law Paul for recognizing a great album when he hears one, and insisting I do so as well.

- Pete

Gem Music Video: Working Class Hero

http://www.metacafe.com/watch/wm-A10302B0000397138G/green_day_working_class_hero_official_music_video/

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About the Video: Made for MTV like video. “Green Day Idiot Club” off Greenday.com. Filmed in black and white. Music straight through.

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Best Feedback: I’ve misplaced the feedback to this email from Paul

Thursday, May 1, 2008

GMVW # 17: "Neither Rain nor Snow nor Sleet....."

Gem Music Video of the Week # 17: Neither Rain nor Snow nor Sleet

Song: Waterloo Sunset by The Kinks

Covered Here By: Ray Davies

(Songwriter: Ray Davies)

May 1, 2008

I've traveled many a mile to see concerts over the years, but there is only one show for which I may have risked life and limb, driving thru a blizzard from Boston to the Big Apple back in the winter of 1997. Looking back, there appear to be 3 reasons for this behavior: 1) the musician (Ray Davies; as discussed below); 2) the location (The Westbeth Theater Center in Greenwich Village; historic hotbed of folk & rock music); and 3) the company (Mac; a true friend, and the real rock music aficionado in this crowd <along with Jeff Strause>... thou shalt not pass on an opportunity to see a good show with Mac). Take any out of the equation, and I would likely have stayed home, but that was not to be the case. By the time we got South of Hartford CT, it was a white out. The only vehicles on the road were ours and snow plows the size of Godzilla. It was about here where Mac went pale. The drive down Merritt Parkway (a long version of Storrow Drive) was more like skiing. However we made it into Manhattan by dusk and found the Village under 2 feet of fresh snow. We even had enough time to wine and dine before heading to the theatre to see Davies, which was very memorable (likely bolstered by the challenge it took to get there).

Fred gets all the credit for bringing knowledge of the Kinks (of whom the aforementioned Ray Davies is the lead singer/songwriter) into our home back in high school. This was quite a stroke of good fortune for me considering how easily this band can get overlooked among their many contemporaries. I believe the Kinks to be the most under-rated band of their time. There are a number of reasons for this. For one, the Kinks signed their share of bad record contracts in the early years which resulted in a glut of overlapping albums and songs, making it hard for fans to track the bands musical progression thru their first decade. Second, in a world of eccentric Rock musicians Ray Davies just may take the cake. He has the talent to hobnob with other musical geniuses of his era, but for whatever reason, has never made those connections (the Kinks are the one 60's super group to have not played any of the big music events of the last 40 years, including Monterey, Woodstock, Altamont, Watkins Glenn, No Nukes, Live Aid Farm Aid, etc). Finally, the Kinks may be a victim of their own great music. Many bands, you can identify right off when you hear a new song. The Kinks sound is so diverse it’s hard to zero in on them unless you are trying.

You can’t blame Franklin Massachusetts for this lack of recognition. The Brady & Nicholson families alone have certainly done their fair share of marketing. The beginning of the Kinks 1980 concert video ‘One For the Road’ shows a number of Franklin-ites walking into the show (Providence RI). When Dave Davies (lead guitarist, Ray’s brother) played at a small club in Maynard MA (several times over 3 years) it seemed half the crowd was from Franklin (Jenny Nicholson even started a ‘Franklin’ chant half way thru the show).

Ray Davies and the Kinks bring a feel of nostalgia and historical context into their music. By listening, you can get a good sense of the world around them, particularly the Davies brothers (Ray & Dave), who were the 2 youngest in a family full of older sisters living in a poor section of London (Muswell Hill). Like Leonard Cohen (Gem # 13), their early music is also very poetic (Pete Townshend has often stated that Ray Davies should have been

Britain

’s Poet Laureate in the 60's). A perfect example is this weeks Gem video 'Waterloo Sunset', one of many great early Kinks songs. The linked version is from a recent event at the Roundhouse in London. Below that is a second song from that same event, 'Shangri La' (no one is better at cynical singing than Ray Davies, and this is one of his best). Finally, I have attached an early video of the Kinks singing 'Waterloo Sunset'.

“Dirty old river, must you keep rolling, flowing into the night…”

-- Pete

Gem Music Video: Waterloo Sunset (this link has been temporarily lost *Dec, 2009*. It’s a fantastic link without substitute (professionally done, huge choir backup). To get an early Kinks version, see the link 2 links below)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kp1n1tveCI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06oipehWqUg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fvDoDaCYrEY

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About the Video: Ray Davies Live at the Roundhouse, 2007 (Gem and 2^nd video). The 3^rd video is staged early Kinks.

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Best Feedback: Fred

Bravo.....that was awesome.

There is also a link to dedicated follower of fashion on the right side which I just listened to. Ray is very underrated.

"slip on your slippers and sit by the fire; you've reached your peak and you just cant get any higher...."

Good shite

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And: Madeline

Thanks Pete. I enjoyed that!

Madeline

Thursday, April 24, 2008

GMVW # 16: "Spiritual Undertones"

Gem Music Video of the Week # 16: Spiritual Undertones

Song: Beware of Darkness by George Harrison

Covered Here By: Eric Clapton

(Songwriter: George Harrison)

April 24, 2008

Way back when the depth of my rock music insight consisted of not much more than Sgt. Pepper & the Red Album, I remember a day coming out of church after a Sunday Mass with my good friend, Pete and his older brother Paul. The three of us walked up to one of the parish priests, Father Buchette, who handed back an album that Paul had lent to him several weeks earlier. The album cover, which I had never seen before, showed a heavily bearded man sitting in a chair in the middle of a field surrounded by a bunch of gnomes. At the time I recall thinking that this must be a spiritual album, and although Father Buchette’s critique appeared mixed, I was impressed that Paul found it important enough to ask one of our parish priests to listen to it.

Paul was always an avid Beatles fan. He had a collection of rare and valuable Beatles albums that were as amazing to look at as a great coin or baseball card collection. Paul’s collection did not stop with the collective Beatles, however. It carried through their solo careers. The cover of John & Yoko’s ‘Two Virgins’ album was a bit tough to look at (as was the Beatles ‘Butcher Cover’), but the rest of the collection was pretty darn neat. One time, as I thumbed through the collection with Pete, I came across that gnome-cover again. This time I had the time and inclination to examine it. The heavily bearded man was George Harrison, and the album was ‘All Things Must Pass’.

One of the many reasons the Beatles broke up was the tension between George Harrison and Paul McCartney over George’s 2-song limit per album. Because of this limitation, Harrison had built up quite a back log of songs by the early 70’s, much of which he unloaded on this unprecedented 3-album set, his solo debut.

‘All Things Must Pass’ was indeed spiritual, and so was the man who penned the songs. It was hilarious to many (including Harrison) that the Beatles spoof movie ‘The Rutles’ has 3 British actors playing Paul, John and Ringo, but a dark skinned, sitar strumming actor from India playing George. Harrison took his Eastern influences (including religion and sitar) very seriously and was not afraid to share his beliefs with others. This was important to me growing up, because Harrison (along with a handful of other rock musicians) was connecting dots with other aspects of my life, particularly my own faith. Without this added spiritual depth to rock music, I may have moved on to jazz or classical music long ago (Dad, I’m still working on the latter). Songs like ‘Every Grain of Sand’ (Dylan), ‘Bargain’ (Townshend/Who) and this weeks Gem ‘Beware of Darkness’ (off ‘All Things Must Pass’), along with many others, are to me, great, soul searching songs, often with a little edge to them.

Not long after Harrison was to ‘pass’ on himself, a number of great musicians got together to honor him. The ‘Concert for George’ was exceptional to me since it’s not often I enjoy a tribute show. Harrison’s own son is front and center during most of the show. Harrison’s solo songs and his songs with the Beatles were covered. Eric Clapton sings ‘Beware of Darkness’ in the linked Gem video of the week, which, despite the title, I believe is mostly a positive song/message.

To show that Harrison still had a sense of humor at the time of his ‘All Things Must Pass’ album, I’m also including another song from the same album sung at the same tribute concert. ‘Wah-wah’ (as in ‘blah, blah’) is a stab at Paul McCartney for all those years of holding him to 2 songs per album (or something along those lines). I have to give McCartney credit for joining in on the chorus at the tribute show (a number of the musicians smile over at McCartney during the song). It reminds me of a story I read in Rolling Stone one time about Don Henley jumping on stage at a night club to add backing vocals while a surprised Mojo Nixon sang his song ‘Don Henley Must Die!’.

Enjoy the music and have a great weekend.

Pete

Gem Music Video: Beware of Darkness (the ‘Concert for George’ version with Eric Clapton has been temporarily lost *Dec, 09*. This is Harrison in this link)

http://videos.sapo.pt/lzZPm2BjcY3z8clfG8H8

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=32086118

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About the Video: “Concert for George” after his passing

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Best Feedback: Tom

Hi Pete

This was an awesome write-up too - and I forwarded it to Tim, who's an avid Beatles fan, and Mike for education's sake.

Thursday, April 17, 2008

GMVW # 15: "Bass Lines"

Gem Music Video of the Week # 15: Bass Lines

Song: I’m the Man by Joe Jackson

(Songwriter: Joe Jackson)

April 17, 2008

Occasionally, the greatness of a song can be attributed to a single musical instrument. Most often, it’s the lead guitar or the piano. Rarely is it any other instrument. This is especially true for the bass guitar, which is typically in the mix simply to keep the beat, along with the drums.

It takes an unusual style for a bass player to step to the forefront of a rock song. One bass man who can do it is The Who’s John Entwistle. His bass playing has often been described as a lead instrument in the Who’s mix. The same case can be made for Joe Jackson’s bass player, Graham Maby, and it is Maby’s bass lines that make Joe Jackson’s ‘I’m the Man’ this week’s Gem Music Video. The pace of the song builds up to a mid-riff crescendo, and it is the bass guitar that leads the way.

Listening again to the lyrics to ‘I’m the Man’, I can’t help but think of the great movie ‘School of Rock’, where the lead character (played by Jack Black) rails against ‘The Man’. ‘The Man’ in the Joe Jackson song claims to have sold the public many a theme (hoola hoops, yo yo’s, skateboards, hit movies, etc). The video appears to have been hastily put together, showing Joe Jackson as ‘The Man’, bragging about his lifetime of accomplishments. The off-synch lip synching could be intentional (considering the con artist character that Jackson is portraying).

Other song’s for which playing ‘air bass’ in your living room is not all that unusual:

> Bill Wyman’s bass playing during the horn refrains in ‘Rocks Off’ (off the Rolling Stones ‘Exile on Main Street')

> Graham Maby’s bass lines in Joe Jackson’s ‘One More Time’

> The entire Quadrophenia album (also extraordinary for the drums, vocals, song writing, and guitar... did I miss anything?)

> Wyman’s ‘vrooming’ bass at the end of the Stones ‘Paint it Black’

> McCartney’s 11-note bass line near the end of the Beatles ‘Everybody’s Got Something to Hide Except For Me and My Monkey’ (off the ‘White Album’)

> Phil Lesh’s 5-note outburst near the end of the Grateful Dead’s ‘Truckin’

"Get out of the door and light out and look all around.... **1,2,3,4,5** " (it helps to hear this one live)

> Entwistle’s mid-riff in ‘Substitute’

> Entwistle’s bass lines in the refrains of ‘Won’t Get Fooled Again’

> Entwistle’s bass lines in ‘Dreaming From the Waist’ (off ‘Who by Numbers’)

> Mike Mills bass lines in REM’s ‘What’s the Frequency Kenneth’

> The bass lines in Van Morrison’s ‘Into the Mystic’

'I'm the Man' reminds me of the one time I can ever remember the stage getting rushed (through security) at Great Woods. So, pull out that air bass guitar, dust it off, and play along….

“I had a giant rubber shark and it really made a mark

Didja looka, looka lookit all that blood”

Gem Music Video: I’m The Man

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ooelrbOluFU

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About the Video: Made for MTV type video (rare)

Thursday, April 10, 2008

GMVW # 14: "The Bride Knows Me"

Gem Music Video of the Week # 14: The Bride Knows Me

Song: I Knew the Bride When She Used to Rock n’ Roll by Nick Lowe

(Songwriter: Nick Lowe)

April 10, 2008

Nancy and I are married 17 years this coming Monday. Reflecting back on the big event brings back a great many memories. Bob arrived a week early from

France

to keep me company. Steve borrowed a company-owned vehicle to make the trek down from

Canada

and in the process vastly expanded his service area (international, no less!). Fred gave a top-notch best man speech and put up with an oversized tuxedo. Mom & Dad did everything imaginable to make the day a great one.

…. and of course, Nancy married me.

Leading up to the wedding, the two of us put an awful lot of time into the reception song selection (what would and could be played and what would not be played). We had a great band to work with, lead by Andy and Amy King. They ended up learning at least 5 songs for us and weaved in others from our cd collection in cases where they couldn’t play the song of choice (the Who’s ‘Long Live Rock’ comes to mind, where Andy let me temporarily swing his microphone around ala Roger Daltrey). At one time Andy stated to me that it was the best ‘Gig’ they every played.

Gem Music Video of the Week, “I Knew the Bride When She Used to Rock n’ Roll” by Nick Lowe is what I think to be the best wedding dance song of them all. The video goes a bit overboard with the sad state of the groom, and it cuts out a bit short at the end, but it’s great nonetheless. Note the posters in the background at the pool hall.

I’ve also included some other memorable songs from that day all those years ago.

Happy 17th Anniversary, Nancy. Everyone else, Happy Recollections.

- Pete

Gem Music Video of the Week:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kn1CXbf2xF8

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It took me a while to track down a Van Morrison video of our 1st dance “Have I Told you Lately” ….and I refused to play the unnecessary Rod Stewart cover version, which was released later:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6888956852815483764&q=Van+Morrison+Have+I+told+you+lately&total=30&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=6

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Townshend & the Who rarely play Blue Red & Gray live (I never saw it, and I've been to many shows). I hit the jackpot with this one. Mom & I:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hqWP7uDsjPo

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Nancy & her Dad danced to Red River Valley:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9C0N7RpM1Q&feature=related

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Cutting the cake to the Beatles "When I'm 64".. and what a cake! (baked by Nancy's Godmother)

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6112520229550675940&q=When+I%27m+64&tot

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A few more selected dance songs:

Linus and Lucy (Peanuts theme song):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtaJKbtGKek

"Stop Twisting my ARm" .... a band favorite:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1663187966843897911&q=Stop+Twisting+My+Arm&total=86&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=0

Don McClean's "Winterwood" (for Mom & Dad):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYTJeHZqLG8

Closing Song... Bob Marley "Is this Love" (I had this slotted for it's own Gem

Video of the Week.... oh well):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EztmEF24fdo
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Finally, I recalled Fred giving me a pop quiz early in the morning on Lake Street when we were just getting up. He asked me what song came to mind as I looked forward to the day ahead. I put World Party "Put the Message in the Box" on the turntable:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=879361218771041937&q=World+Party+Message

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About the Video: The Gem is a made for MTV like video, but is very hard to find. One scene shows Nick Lowe in a pool room.

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