Category: Music

  • ODDS and ENDS: Christmas Shopping, Genesis, and Bitcoin Value

    ODDS and ENDS is my continuing series of random thoughts and follow ups…

    We have heeded the words of the economists about the supply chain and have ordered all of the kid’s Christmas gifts, so in a sense, we are done shopping for her. We just have to wait for everything to be delivered, which looks like it will be by Thanksgiving. That just leaves shopping for me and the wife. This will be the second year where we are buying gifts for ourselves, and I have to admit, I prefer it. We set a budget for each of us, and we won’t be disappointed. There is still a little wiggle room for each of us to get a little something for the other, which keeps it a little fun with a surprise on Christmas morning.

    I know nothing about Peter Gabriel era Genesis. I can say that I had no idea that Peter Gabriel was in Genesis until in 1991 or 1992 when Charlie Campbell informed me of this information. I was at Charlie’s house to talk about recording a cable public access show, and we started talking about music we liked, and that’s when he dropped the truth nugget that her preferred Peter Gabriel Genesis, as Phil Collins Genesis was a bunch of sell outs. Even with this knowledge, I never went and listened to Gabriel’s Genesis. Well, until today, when that memory popped into my head, and I have Spotify, so… Selling England By the Pound is the album of the day.

    As of this moment, my Bitcoin has gone down in value. I have lost $2.17, or a -6.2% evaluation. And I was hoping to buy a cup of coffee with my earnings, but now I owe Bitcoin a coffee.

  • Explaining Dead Rock Stars

    One of the many things that is very cool about having a six-year-old is that she is now getting interested into the music the wife and I like, and grew up with. This is a huge relief because I am very happy to be ditching “kiddie songs.” And I’ll take a stand on this one too; Kiddie Songs suck. There! Said it, and I’m not ashamed, and I’ll deal with the push back. Seriously, parents hate it, and kid eventually grow to hate it, so how can you call it good when at some point everyone hates it.

    Just saying…

    Now, the kid is getting into music, and we’re her guide. I have spent time sharing The Beatles with her, and she’s asked lots of questions. I had to explain to her that John was killed, and George died of cancer, so like in all life, she understands even musicians die, but we can still listen to the music they made. It has spurred a funny question anytime we listen to music she thinks is old, which is that she will ask us if the artist is dead, or if the band broke up.

    Last night, the wife was sharing Dolly Parton’s greatest hits, and the conversation came up about how Dolly writes songs, and other people will sing them. “Like who?” the kid asked, and we played the Whitney Houston version of “I Will Always Love You.” Oh, and the kid really liked that, so we started playing other Whitney Houston songs.

    And then the question came, “Is she still alive?” We told her the truth of how Whitney Houston died of a drug overdose, which I know doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to the kid, as she asked, “Why do people do things that hurt themselves?”

    Ah…. And then I know, that just about all the music you love was made by people using a lot of drugs. You know, like you shouldn’t do cocaine, but it seemed to help out Fleetwood Mac. It’s a sticky conversation, and I know this will come up again as she starts finding music she likes. We are starting to find the gray areas in life that are hard to explain.

  • Personal History: Radiohead and Mellowing Out

    I had talked recently about the sociological research which had showed that as a person ages, they become more conservative in their thinking. I wanted to also add to that, and I’m not breaking new ground here, but some people also mellow out, and don’t get as worked up as they used to. For me, music is one of those subjects.

    So, from about 14 to 28, I was pretty aggressive, and can fully admit, arrogant in my music opinions. (My Beatles fanaticism is unshakable; Do not challenge it.) In that vein, the year was 1996, and I fully believed and could conclusively prove that Radiohead was a one-hit wonder with “Creep,” and though a good song, a great band it did not make.

    And then my good friend John would not shut up about Radiohead’s last album, The Bends, which had come out in the spring of 1995. So, for over a year, every time I got in John’s car, I heard The Bends. At John’s place, he would play The Bends. I even remember one time coming back from a party, and John was driving someone else’s car, and he put on The Bends. I remember this clearly, because I started yelling at him to “turn off that lullaby music!” But it worked. His bombardment of that album on me, constantly, consistently, caused me to come over to the fandom of Radiohead, which lasts to this day.

    Though there was one rough patch, when Radiohead released KID A, which I didn’t get, and I didn’t like, and what I wanted was more songs like the one’s off of OK Computer, and the accompanying EP’s. But you know, they released more albums and Amnesiac was ok, and Hail to the Thief was an improvement, but In Rainbows was great, though King of Limbs was like going back to KID A, and then there was Moon Shaped Pool, which was cool.

    Anyway, KID A was the sore thumb for me, and to be honest, I hadn’t tried to listen to that album in maybe fifteen years. So, I got on a Radiohead kick last week, and started listening to all the stuff I liked, ignoring KID A. But I started thinking about the “mellowing” aspect of my life, and maybe it was time to give KID A another try. I mean, I have become very forgiving to 311, so KID A needs another shot.

    And I still don’t like it. Tried again to listen to KID A, and it’s just not my jam. I think I have to just chalk it up to one of those things I will never like in my life. Right up there with fennel, and the US version of The Office. I just don’t like them.

  • Personal Review: McCartney 3,2,1

    I’m a huge Beatle fan. I have listened to every album, bootleg, and out take that I could get my hands on. I have read books on the band, on their recording techniques, and individual biographies. Once in college, I spent a day in the library reading old magazine articles from the 60’s about them. I even played George Harrison in a play, not that that has anything to do with this, but I thought I would just add it.

    I had known about the HULU McCartney 3,2,1 for some time, but I just never got around to it. Not that I wasn’t interested in it, but Summer was Summer, and things got away from me. But, now that life is calmer, I was able to dedicate some time, and I wanted to dedicate time and focus on this.

    The show is just Rick Rubin asking Paul McCartney questions about his songs – Beatles and solo work – and then listen to the songs as the two guys break down the different tracks on each song. This didn’t strike me as a show for casual Beatles fans, but more like a deep dive for those of us who know about the Beatles process of using a four-track, and how they were excited to get an eight-track at Abbey Road, and all the crazy wizardry they, and the engineers like Geoff Emerick, and producer George Martin, could come up with. So, on that level, it was pretty in-depth. Also, Rubin’s producer’s ear, as well as clearly being a huge fan, helped in bringing up question about the dualistic sound the Beatles loved to play with.

    I enjoyed it greatly, but I was reminded about one very clear fact; the last guy standing gets to tell the story. (I am aware that Ringo could chime in, but what I get from him is that he’s happy with his version of the story. Nothing to add.) I’m not saying Paul was lying in the show, but I think he was clearly smoothing over some edges. No stories of disagreements, or late-night sessions that ended in frustration, only to be picked up again the next day with new and different ideas. But on the flip side of that, I do think Paul was the most complementary and honest in saying that many of his songs were influenced and made better by the other three.

    And in the end, isn’t that what happens to everyone as they age and look back; We remember the good parts and start to forget about the bad stuff. Luckily, there are tons of good songs to remember.

  • Woodstock ’99: A Remembrance

    On Saturday night, the wife and I watched on HBO, Woodstock 99: Peace, Love, and Rage. I thought the doc was good, worth watching, maybe I’ll review it later. What I thought the doc did well, was reminding me about the world I lived in around 1999, and that Summer.

    What I remember, (And that’s key here. This isn’t fact, this is an emotional response and memory from me, so it has the very high likelihood of being exceedingly inaccurate…) was that Woodstock ’99 was bullshit from the beginning.

    I was living in Arlington, TX at that time, and it wasn’t really surprising that no one I knew was going to the concert which was 1,500 miles away. In fact, I knew no one who wanted to shell out the money for the Pay-Per-View of the concerts. It was the first time that I remember that everyone my age thought of Babyboomers as sellouts who were only interested in taking as much money off Gen-X as possible. Example, the first Woodstock cost $18 to attend all three days. In 1999 dollars that would be $81. The promoters charged $180. Then there were the $4 waters, $7 sandwiches, and $12 pizza. I remember it being called Corporatestock.

    Then there were the bands, which for me were pretty much all shit. At that time, I think the only people I would have wanted to see were Live, Rage Against the Machine, Willie Nelson, Red Hot Chili Peppers. All the other headliners were Metal-rap cockrock bands. It was frat boy, cargo shorts, no shirt, backwards baseball cap garbage music that played to the worst instincts of young dudes that wanted to fight and get laid. But at the same time, that was the only rock music left. All the big grunge bands were no more by 1999, except for Pearl Jam, who was at a low point. The other half of music was taken over by pop and boybands. If you just wanted a rock band, it was a wasteland then.

    And when the riot, fires and craziness went down, my first impression was, yes, burn the that fake corporate thing to the ground. But I also remember the news coverage that came after; of the fighting, deaths, sexual assaults, lack of security, water and just basic sanitation. In my mind, it became a preventable bomb, or should have never happened in the first place. There were a lot of dirty hands in that mess

    The 90’s ended on a sour note just like the 60’s did with Altamont. And what also died that weekend was the nostalgia that the 60’s were worth replicating.