This week's musical miscellany

I've gotten way behind on my weekly collections of interesting and noteworthy musical tidbits, so let me see if I can catch up . . .

The biggest news of the past few weeks was the announcement of the 2011 Class of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  This year's inductees include Dr. John, Tom Waits, Neil Diamond, Alice Cooper, Darlene Love, and Leon Russell.  Congratulations to them all!

Dr. John, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee, Was 'Surprised' By the News (Andy Greene, Rolling Stone)

Dr. John a deserving Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee (Keith Spera, NOLA.com)

Tom Waits issues statement regarding his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (Randall Roberts, Pop & Hiss/LA Times)

Neil Diamond, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee, Says He Feels 'Very Lucky' (Andy Greene, Rolling Stone)

Alice Cooper, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee, Was 'Elated' When He Got the News (Andy Greene, Rolling Stone)



Chuck Berry collapsed during his performance New Year's Night at Chicago's Congress Theater.  He was assisted offstage but returned, only to be led off again.  He apologized to the crowd before leaving, getting in a few of his famous duck-walk steps on his way out.  He was examined by paramedics at the venue and apparently refused hospital treatment, leaving instead in a limousine.  His agency posted an official statement on his website Monday, stating that "he is fine and has returned to his home near St. Louis."

The NPR blog All Songs Considered asked its readers to comment on why Chuck Berry matters, even though modern rock sounds almost nothing like it did in Berry's heyday.  It's simple: One must know what the rules are in order to break them and create something original, and Berry helped write the rule book. His signature, driving riff is at the very foundation of rock and roll, and all of the innovators who've come after him - the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and Bob Dylan are only three - went through him first. One revolution inevitably inspires another.

"If you tried to give rock and roll another name, you might call it 'Chuck Berry.'" - John Lennon

"To me, Chuck Berry always was the epitome of rhythm and blues playing, rock and roll playing.  It was beautiful, effortless, and his timing was perfection.  He is rhythm supreme.  He plays that lovely double-string stuff, which I got down a long time ago, but I'm still getting the hang of.  Later I realized why he played that way--because of the sheer physical size of the guy.  I mean, he makes one of those big Gibsons look like a ukulele!" - Keith Richards

‎"In my universe, Chuck is irreplaceable . . . All that brilliance is still there, and he's still a force of nature. As long as Chuck Berry's around, everything's as it should be." - Bob Dylan, from his latest Rolling Stone interview (#1078).  

Official Statement from Chuck Berry's Agency, CMG Worldwide

Before his collapse, Berry was complaining, cutting songs short (Dave Hoekstra, Chicago Sun-Times)

Chuck Berry's Collapse Reminds Us How Much He Matters (Bob Boilen, All Songs Considered/NPR)

Berry performs at least once a month at the St. Louis venue Blueberry Hill and other tour dates as they are announced on his website.  I see a road trip at some point in my future!

Just a few days before his Chicago performance, his first hit "Maybellene" turned 55 years old.  Get well soon, Mr. Berry, and long may you rock!

Levon Helm was also recently hospitalized, but has since been released and has returned to performing. Helm has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD); a cold aggravated the condition, and he was admitted to a New York hospital for nearly a week, forcing him to miss a scheduled Midnight Ramble at his Woodstock home and studio.  He was released on December 17 and performed at the Ramble the next night.  Levon, we love you, and we're glad you're feeling better!

Levon Helm hospitalized, but OK (John W. Barry, Poughkeepsie Journal)

Levon Helm home from hospital (Poughkeepsie Journal)

The music world lost Captain Beefheart on December 17 and Stealers Wheel's Gerry Rafferty on January 4.  Rest in peace, gentlemen.

Captain Beefheart Dead at Age 69 (Maura Johnston, Rolling Stone)

Don Van Vliet, Known To Rock Fans As Captain Beefheart, Dies (Rick Carr, NPR)

Captain Beefheart: A Rock Critic Fable (Mitch Myers, All Songs Considered/NPR)

Gerry Rafferty dies at 63; Scottish pop singer-songwriter had a hit with 'Baker Street' (Keith Thursby, LA Times)

Remembering Songwriter Gerry Rafferty (NPR)

RIP Gerry Rafferty, Whose 'Baker Street' Changed the Sax Solo (Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone)

Robbie Robertson has announced the release date for How To Become Clairvoyant, his first solo album since 1998's Contact From the Underworld of Redboy.  It comes out on April 5, just in time for my birthday - thanks, Robbie!  Now if only you'll tour, my year will be complete . . .

How To Become Clairvoyant, Robbie Robertson's First Album in Over a Decade, Is Due Out April 5, 2011 on 429 Records (Digital Journal)

The album art is up on the front page of Robbie's official website.  The title track was previously released on the HBO series True Blood and is included on the show's latest soundtrack.  You can preview another song, "When the Night was Young," here.  

Two movies and a musical:  The Phil Ochs documentary There But For Fortune opens today at the IFC Center in New York City.  Director Kenneth Bowser and Ochs' brother Michael will be present tonight and tomorrow night at the 7:20 and 9:30 showings.  Wish I could be there!

While researching something for a friend yesterday I ran across the blog A Warehouse On Tchoupitoulas. Apparently there is a film in the works about the late, legendary New Orleans musical venue The Warehouse, which during the '70 hosted everyone from The Who to the Allman Brothers to Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue. The Grateful Dead played the inaugural weekend, and their subsequent arrest for drug possession inspired their classic "Truckin'"; the Doors played their final concert there.  The filmmakers are trying to raise $40,000 to pay for the film's soundtrack.  Take a look at the blog, and donate if you feel so inclined.  Good luck, y'all - I really want to see this film!

(P.S. If anyone out there can tell me the exact location of the Warehouse at 1820 Tchoupitoulas, I'd be grateful.)

A Gram Parsons musical? Yes, please - especially when it sounds this good.  Grievous Angel: The Legend of Gram Parsons wrapped a West Coast tour in October, and there are rumors of an East Coast tour in the works.  Check out a video from the show, and you can preview other tracks from the soundtrack and order a copy of it here.



Neil Young and Daniel Lanois are on the cover of the current issue of American Songwriter, and the unabridged interview by Jann Uhelszki is available to read online. 

Neil is also on the cover of the latest issue of MOJO.  Try their Neil Young "Name The Album" quiz - it's just as hard as the previous Dylan one!

Speaking of Dylan, my favorite of Rolling Stone's recent playlists is from Patti Smith - she focuses on Bob Dylan's love songs.  Bob is not primarily known for his romantic ballads, yet Patti and I are in agreement that few songwriters can turn heads quite like the Bard of Hibbing.

"What is sadder than 'One Too Many Mornings,' more troubling than 'Ballad in Plain D' or more poignant than 'Love Minus Zero'? And from a female point of view, what testament is more breathtaking than the words, "Love you more than madness" in 'Wedding Song'?"

What indeed, Patti.  Check out the the rest of her list here: Patti Smith: Bob Dylan's Love Songs 

And here is perhaps my favorite version of "Love Minus Zero/No Limit," from Bootleg Series Vol. 5: Live 1975 - The Rolling Thunder Revue. 

The Washington Post recently featured Dylan in their "On Success" section.  In response to the recent Wall Street Journal concert review I wrote about earlier, several commentators offered essays answering the musical question, "Are there age limits on success?" Some, like Virginia Bianco-Mathis', are laughable and extremely out-of-touch; to say that a Pulitzer Prize-winning songwriter - make that the first rock songwriter to be given such an award - in the middle of a golden career renaissance, and whose shows regularly sell out, has "flopped" as a touring act says more about Ms. Bianco-Mathis than it does about Dylan.

My favorite is by Seth Kagan, who offers the following astute observations:

"If your primary aim is to establish a legacy, then, sure, leave while at the top of your game. But that is a more selfish motive than a true artist pursues. The expression and application of creative skill and imagination is the ongoing destination of every creator worth his or her salt. That is what Dylan continues to do . . . As long as he can wrangle a stage, he is entitled. And all the pundits who spin their thread on his dime have a choice. They can spit and castigate or they can take note of an aged poet and his mysterious process."

Or to put it in that mysterious poet's own words, "he not busy being born is busy dying" - a great meditation for a new year.

Facebook Campaign: Neil Young to Perform on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon

Yes, I started this, for no other reason than because it would be hilarious to see them together.  It worked for Betty White's fans, didn't it?

If you'd like to see Neil Young perform with Jimmy Fallon (as Neil), "like" this page and tell your friends.

In the meantime, here's a peek backstage immediately following Bruce Springsteen's performance with Jimmy last week.

Happy birthday, Neil Young

He's 65 today, and long may he run.

To kick off my celebration of all things Shakey, I'll begin with the song that started it all for me.  Here's Neil performing "Helpless" with The Band at The Last Waltz.  From their ragged-but-right barbershop harmonies to the ethereal counterpoint of Joni Mitchell from behind the scrim, it's nothing but pure magic from start to finish.  Favorite moment: At 4:04, when Neil saunters over and joins Rick and Robbie on their mic.

My favorite album of Neil's is Harvest Moon.  I've raised a few eyebrows among fellow Neilers with that choice, but I stand by it.  I don't say it's his best; I say it's my favorite - there's a difference.  Harvest Moon has a romance to it - a gentle, disarming sweetness, and a depth of feeling, that I find utterly irresistible.

Here's a lovely performance of "Harvest Moon" from the concert film Neil Young: Heart Of Gold (now apparently out of print), filmed at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium during the 2005 Prairie Wind concerts.  Dig the harmony vocals of Neil's wife Pegi and the ever-flawless Emmylou Harris, as well as that broom action.



As Neil's fans know, he can turn on a dime.  For every album of mellow country-rock, he's got another full of electric fire and brimstone.  Here's Neil with Crazy Horse Live At The Fillmore 1970, performing "Down By The River."  I'm not one usually for extended guitar jams, but I never tire of listening to the dueling axes of Neil and Danny Whitten.  Neil once said: "Hey, every musician has one guy on the planet that he can play with better than anyone else.  You only get one guy.  My guy was Danny Whitten" (Shakey, p. 389).  Listen and hear why.



Neil's restless pursuit of his muse is what I find most fascinating about him; he can sing about loving his baby one minute, and shooting her the next - and there's something about that quavering, fragile tenor of his that makes you believe him, no matter what he's singing about.  We human beings are nothing if not in a constant state of change, and more than anyone else Neil's music brings that home for me.

His latest album is the Daniel Lanois-produced Le Noise, and for my money it's the best thing he's done in years.  It's just Neil alone with a guitar, and was recorded inside Lanois' L.A. mansion.  As simple as that sounds, don't be deceived (or denied!) - it's anything but simple.  At an age when many of his contemporaries are content to rest on their laurels, Neil is still seeking, still searching, still asking questions, still willing to try new things.  Because of this he is still creating exciting music, and this particular record is one of the most moving and powerful I've ever heard - from anyone.

In the following video, Lanois discusses the album's genesis and his work process at length.  Besides working his sonic wizardry on the songs after they were recorded, he used the structure of the house itself to help create and shape their sound.  Fascinating stuff.  (Mr. Lanois, if you are reading this and are in need of an apprentice, I am available and willing to relocate!)



Le Noise: The Film is the visual equivalent of the sound on the album - expansive yet intimate, and shot through with an aura of light.



This year's Bridge School Benefit Concert was especially noteworthy for the reunion of the surviving members of Buffalo Springfield (which I mentioned in my very first blog posting).  In recent interviews Richie Furay has hinted that we may see more of "Buffalo Springfield Again," and Rick Rosas has also expressed hope that this will happen.  Keeping my fingers crossed over here, guys!

Here's one of my favorite videos from the reunion - Neil singing "I Am A Child," followed by Richie on "Kind Woman."



For all of its highs and joys, 2010 has also been a tough year for Neil.  He lost two of his dearest friends and collaborators, L. A. Johnson and Ben Keith, and just this week his electric car project LincVolt was badly damaged in a three-alarm warehouse fire in San Carlos, California.  Neil, if you see this, I'd just like to say that "what we lose in the fire is never gone," and the thoughts and prayers of many are with you - on your birthday and always.

Happy birthday, Gram Parsons

He would have been 64 today.

To celebrate his memory, here's a few of my favorite songs/videos.  The first is my preferred version of his most famous duet with his protégée Emmylou Harris, Boudleaux Bryant's "Love Hurts."  It's taken from a radio interview that Gram, Emmylou, and N. D. Smart recorded for Boston's WBCN station during the 1973 Fallen Angels tour.  It opens with a snippet of their conversation with host Maxine Satori, and then segues into the song.  The bone-chilling beauty of their harmonies shines through the inferior sound quality of the tape.  They always sang this one like they meant it.

This recording is included on the Rhino Records collection Gram Parsons: The Complete Reprise Sessions, a set which I highly recommend.



Next up is my favorite clip from Gandulf Hennig's fine documentary film Gram Parsons: Fallen Angel. Fellow Flying Burrito Brother and Mississippi native Chris Ethridge explains the genesis behind their song "Hot Burrito #1."  Film of Gram is sadly scarce; this doc contains some of the only footage of him known to exist.  Yet the all-too-brief glimpse of we have of Gram singing this song sold me immediately on his charm, charisma, and ability to put a song across to his audience.  And he knew it, too - notice at 1:11 how he turns to his bandmates with a huge grin on his face.

(I had the good fortune to meet Chris Ethridge at a symposium in his hometown of Meridian earlier this year.  He's a very sweet man, and when he speaks of Gram it's obvious how much he still loves and misses him.  Ethridge still performs around the Meridian area; I need to make it back up there and catch him live someday soon.)



Next up is another live video of Gram - again from the Fallen Angels tour, this is he, Emmylou, and company performing "Big Mouth Blues" during their four-night residency at Liberty Hall in Houston, Texas.  Present at these shows was a young Steve Earle, who has said that he "left a little bit in love and absolutely certain of what I was going to be when I grew up."  Neil Young and Linda Ronstadt joined the band on stage during the third night; it was the first time Ronstadt and Harris met, and another made-in-heaven vocal match was born (David N. Meyer, Twenty Thousand Roads, pp. 388, 390 - the most recent and thorough bio of Gram to date).

The video is grainy and plagued with a few pitch problems, but still worth viewing to see Gram and Emmy in action.  It's from an out-of-print Sierra Records VHS called Together Again For The Last Time.  Sierra is about to release an ambitious, decades-in-the-making box set, Gram Parsons: The Early Years, which will include a newly-remastered DVD of this film complete with bonus footage.



Finally, here's a fan video of my favorite Gram-penned song, "A Song For You."  The photographs are of turn-of-the-20th-century Florida and Georgia, where Gram divided his childhood.  It opens with a brief audio segment of Gram explaining the meaning behind the song; this is also included on The Complete Reprise Sessions.



The fine blokes over at Missing Parsons, in conjunction with the Sin City Social Club, have opened their guestbook for fans to post birthday greetings for Gram.  These will later be added to the Room 8 guestbook at the Joshua Tree Inn, where Gram spent his final earthly moments.  From these entries they will choose one winner to receive their book Live Fast, Die Young: Misadventures in Rock & Roll America, as well as a copy of the soundtrack CD and a T-shirt.

Most fans know the role Joshua Tree plays in Gram's story, but I've been surprised to find how many aren't aware that his final resting place is actually in Metairie, Louisiana.  Gram's stepfather Robert Parsons collected his remains after the infamous corpse-burning episode and flew them to New Orleans, where they were interred in a private ceremony at the Garden of Memories on Airline Drive.  For many years, only a simple, circular stone marker the size of a 45 record marked his gravesite, much to the consternation of his fans.  In 2005, shortly before Hurricane Katrina devastated the area, his family replaced this with an ornately carved bronze slab.  The new marker remains, though oxidized by the floodwaters.  You can see images of both gravestones here.

I've visited his Metairie grave three times now.  As I was leaving the cemetery that first time, I felt a deep sadness over the thought that he was buried in a place he didn't want to be, and surrounded by strangers to boot.  Yet as I made my way back to I-10, a casual glance at a road sign revealed a fact startling to this student of the blues: Airline Drive also happens to be the southern terminus for Highway 61.  Now I can't imagine that that's the reason Robert Parsons chose this cemetery for Gram's burial.  Nevertheless, in some way I found it oddly apropos - what better place for him to rest than alongside America's storied musical road?

You may bury my body down by the highway side
(Spoken: Baby, I don't care where you bury my body when I'm dead and gone)
You may bury my body, ooh, down by the highway side
So my old evil spirit can catch a Greyhound bus and ride
- Robert Johnson, "Me and the Devil Blues"

It don't matter where you bury me
I'll be home and I'll be free
It don't matter where I lay
All my tears be washed away
- Emmylou Harris, "All My Tears" (Julie Miller)

(Gram Parsons' grave, taken by me on October 11, 2009)

This week's musical miscellany

This week the cable/satellite TV network Ovation has been celebrating "American Revolutionaries: Rock N Soul" with a series of fine music films and documentaries.  So far, the lineup has featured Johnny Cash: Half A Mile A Day, Jim Jarmusch's Neil Young: Year Of The Horse, Legends of Rock 'N' Roll  Live, Jimi Hendrix: American Landing, and Mahalia Jackson: The Power And The Glory - all highly recommended.

Tonight, Ken Mandel's Masters Of American Music: Bluesland airs at 9 pm EST.  The 1993 PBS doc traces the development and influence of the blues on American music and culture; the artists profiled include B. B. King, Mississippi Fred McDowell, Big Bill Broonzy, Muddy Waters, and Chuck Berry.  I've not seen this before, and I'm looking forward to it.  Ditto for tomorrow night's Janis; the 1974 Howard Alk biopic of rock's first female superstar will also air at 9 pm EST.

Both films have encore showings immediately following at 11 pm EST, and if you missed any of the others, Ovation will rebroadcast them at various times over the weekend.  Check out their schedule here.

Other items I've enjoyed this week: to celebrate the recent release of Bob Dylan's Bootleg Series Vol. 9 and the Original Mono Recordings box set, Columbia Records has produced both a short documentary film about the recording of the Witmark Demos and a cute faux-retro PSA advising us all to "Stick With Mono!"



Rolling Stone also debuted a new music video for Dylan's "Guess I'm Doing Fine," which uses archival footage of both Dylan and New York in the '60s.



If you're on the fence as to whether or not the Mono box is worth it, this review on Soundspike details the sonic differences between these remastered reissues and their previous CD incarnations.  I know what I want for Christmas this year!

I discovered a great new (to me) music blog the other day, courtesy of the fine folks at No Depression. Dustin Ogdin's tale of how he finally came to appreciate the music of Dylan and Peter Rowan in some ways mirrors my own musical journey.

One producer/musician I'm always eager to listen to is Daniel Lanois.  He's about to take to the road with his latest project, Black Dub, and you can preview the band's new album on NPR.

Robert Plant's recent appearance with the reformed Band of Joy at the BBC Electric Proms is available for listening here.  Better hurry, though - it will only be online for one more day!

While I'm waiting for Life and Vintage Vinos to arrive in my mailbox, I see Keith Richards has just told BBC Radio 6 that the Rolling Stones are working on new material and that a tour is in the works for 2011.  Listen to the interview here:



And in other Keef news, proof that sometimes angels do indeed have dirty faces.

Song of the moment: I Don't Want to Talk About It

You probably know this song from Rod Stewart's cover version, recorded at Muscle Shoals in 1975 for his Atlantic Crossing album.  It was a hit on both sides of the pond, reaching #1 on the UK Singles Chart (1977) and climbing into the top fifty on the Billboard Hot 100 (1979).  The band Everything But The Girl would have another top-ten UK hit with it in 1988.

It's too bad the song's composer has never had the same amount of exposure.  Georgia-born Danny Whitten is best remembered as one of the founding members of the rock group Crazy Horse.  Written with Nils Lofgren, "I Don't Want to Talk About It" was included on the band's 1971 self-titled release, which would sadly be Whitten's last.  He had been abusing heroin since the late '60s, and his alcohol and drug addictions were spiraling out of control - to the point that bandmate Ralph Molina finally sacked him during rehearsals for Crazy Horse's upcoming support tour.  On November 18, 1972, Neil Young gave Whitten $50 and a plane ticket to Los Angeles when he proved unable to keep up with the other musicians during the recording sessions for Harvest.  Young received a phone call at his Bay Area ranch later that night - Danny was dead at 29 of an overdose of Valium and vodka.

Young's deep grief over the loss of his friend and musical cohort can be traced through several of his songs (such as "Don't Be Denied" - written the day after Whitten's death - and "The Needle and the Damage Done") as well as through entire albums (the dark, edgy Tonight's The Night).  Young admitted to his biographer Jimmy McDonough that he "felt responsible.  But really there was nothin' I could do - I mean, he was responsible.  But I thought I was for a long time. [...] Danny just wasn't happy.  It just all came down on him.  He was engulfed by this drug.  That was too bad.  Because Danny had a lot to give, boy.  He was really good" (Shakey, pp. 389, 390).  And this mournful, haunting ballad - augmented by Whitten's soul-weary lead vocal, the CSN-esque backing harmonies from the rest of the Horse, and the shimmering slide guitar from guest musician Ry Cooder - proves it.  

I can tell by your eyes that you’ve prob’ly been cryin’ forever,

And the stars in the sky don't mean nothin’ to you, they're a mirror.

I don't wanna talk about it, how you broke my heart.

If I stay here just a little bit longer,

If I stay here, wont you listen to my heart, whoa oh, heart

If I stand all alone, will the shadow hide the color of my heart;

Blue for the tears, black for the nights we’re apart

And the stars don’t don't mean nothin to you, they're a mirror.

I don't wanna talk about it, how you broke my heart.

If I stay here just a little bit longer,

If I stay here, wont you listen to my heart, whoa oh, heart?

My heart whoa oh heart

I don't want to talk about it, how you broke my heart.

If I stay here just a little bit longer,

If I stay here, wont you listen to my heart, whoa oh, heart?

My heart whoa oh heart.

My heart whoa oh heart.

My heart whoa oh heart.

(lyrics courtesy of Wikipedia)