Category: Music

Saturday Matinee 1977 – The Tubes, The Sanford-Townsend Band & Manfred Mann’s Earth Band

The Tubes “WPOD” featuring Fee Waybill as Quay Lewd in 1977. I missed out on seeing them live, but I have a couple of their early albums. “Don’t Touch Me There” was one of my favorites; lotta talent in that band.

I remember that year (and the Winter of 77-78) and it was about that time I realized that I hated a lot of the garbage the rock stations were pumping (czech out the 1977 Top 100 Billboard List. Leo Sayer? Really?) My music preferences went rogue.

However, there are a couple of songs on that list that I secretly liked, like this one:

The Sanford-Townsend Band‘s “Smoke From A Distant Fire” was such an up-beat song, and it got the girls dancing. (Heh – the band was introduced by Helen Reddy.)

Two years later, Rickie Lee Jones recorded an almost identical song chord-wise, “Chuck E.’s In Love,” and I loved that one, too.

In 1975 Aerosmith came out with their classic “Walk This Way” and it climbed all the way up to No. 90 in 1977. Go figger. The only other song on that Billboard List that I remember liking much was this one:

Manfred Mann’s Earth Band‘s version of Bruce Springsteen‘s “Blinded By The Light” was more popular than the original and made it to No. 36 on the Billboard Top 100 for 1977. (BTW, Mann was never the lead  singer. He was the keyboardist.)

Have a great Fathers’ Day Weekend folks, appreciate all that your dad does (or did) for you, and we’ll see you back here tomorrow.

The .Gif Friday Post No. 394 – Camel Bite, Dog Catcher 2 & a Van Halen Embarrassment.

Camel Bite

Dog Catcher 2

Van Halen Embarrassment

[Found here, here and here. Related .gif here.]

Saturday Matinee – Animals & Mirrors, The Doghouse, The Greg Johnson Set & The Fabulous Thunderbirds

Animals and mirrors [via].

Beware of The Doghouse. Been there. I overlooked the first Valentine’s Day post-marriage as I considered it to be a dating holiday. I ate damp corrugated cardboard for months [via].

The Greg Johnson Set is a band from New Zealand, sounds like a traditional Irish band, performs “People Can’t Talk In This Town” from 1992. Somehow the concept of Freedom of Speech is being quietly vanquished [via].

Lets lighten it up a tad. How ’bout some great rippin’ by Jimmie Vaughan with The Fabulous Thunderbirds?

Have a great weekend. Be back here tomorrow for more powerful stuff.

Saturday Matinee – Pensen Paletti, Wayne Hancock, Doc Watson & Aerosmith

THIS is pure awesome. Pensen Paletti [aka Peer Jenson of the Monsters of LeiderMaching] wired up his acoustic guitar and added drum synth keys. Wait for the Theme To Peter Gunn.

“Milk Cow Blues” was originally recorded by Sleepy John Estes in 1930. This version is a kinda late night early morning retro country thang performed by Wayne Hancock & Co.  in 2008. Hoy hoy hoy, indeed. Here are two other versions:

Doc Watson was awesome.

Aerosmith did a nice cover of “Milk Cow Blues” that had nothing to do with the 1930 original that I can tell, but at least they worked in some Chuck Berry riffs.

Have a great weekend, folks, and we’ll be back here tomorrow whether you like it or not.

[Note that the Utoobage link for Sleepy John Estes’ “Milk Cow Blues” is not the same song.]

Saturday Matinee – G.E. Smith, Buddy Guy & Danny Rockabilly

The very underrated G.E. Smith‘s Top Ten Seconds on SNL.

We may have posted this one before, but so what. It’s awesome. Buddy Guy‘s “Damn Right I Got The Blues.

So let’s wrap up this bad baboso with Danny Rockabilly and His Clan. [Music is cool, vid might not be safe for kids.]

Have a great weekend, folks, and remember those who sacrificed their lives on this Memorial Day weekend.

White Trash Rock

White Trash Guitar

[Image from here.]

Kinda Jumpy and Jivey Hot Links

Fans of Tacky Raccoons

To all my Friends!

Techno-pumpin [via].

Mr. Toot, by Ylvis. It’s not what you think it is.

Green and Brown.

Hank Penny wants to pet your poodle.

Best Frank Zappa composition ever. Ruth Underwood was awesome.

Must see. Pay attention to what the Imam says.

Joey Ramone’s mom talks about Joey Ramone with Joey Ramone. Jump to 00:02:00 [via].

Laugh tracks suck donkeys. [Cue Laugh Track].

The Tricks and Traps of New York City. Not much has changed.

Have a great weekend folks and be back here tomorrow, for tomorrow’s another day.

 

 

Saturday Matinee – R.I.P. B.B. King (1925-2015)

BB King

The Blues had fallen out of favor in the U.S. recording market in the 1960s, as it was considered retro and passé. Many talented blues musicians from the ’40s and ’50s were left with few options until British rock bands took notice and revived the genre by covering various classic American blues songs, often without credit, which fomented a resurgence of interest in the original recordings. The British were largely responsible for restarting the careers of such notables as Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf. Even early blues-based rock and rollers Chuck Berry, Little Richard and Bo Diddley got career boosts, and all were more popular in England than they were in the United States at that time.

Riley B. “Blues Boy” King was one of the greatest bluesmen of all time, known for his roaring vocals and understated guitar solos. He paid the cost to be the boss, and this BBC documentary from 1972 is amazing. There’s no posing, no strutting or preening, just straight talk about influences and style in a refreshingly honest manner. There’s no point in posting other B.B. King videos here because this one covers it all.

R.I.P. Mr. King. That’s one hell of a legacy you left us.

Big Ol’ Green Honkin’ Hot Links

Kermit Afro

Russian landslide is creepy [via].

Vote for Gil Fulbright [via]. He’s as honest as honest can get. Honest.

Vote for Josh. He’s even more honest than Gil.

dc10
Yep. Pretty sure that was the first animated .gif.

Conceptual Ambient Sound Art. I made it to 02:45.

This is kinda fun: The Daily Potato News.

Life Is Beautiful (1997) is a movie that everyone of all ages should see IMO.

His great achievement in life involves rolling a ball.
“What do you think you are?! I am!” What a dork.

A mile of sheep [via].

THIS is awesome. A Rockabilly tribute to The Ramones.

[Top image of Disco Kermit with a ‘fro from here.]

Saturday Matinee – Tributes to Ben E. King, Johnny Cash & The B-52’s

Tribute to a great singer Ben E. King, who passed away 30 April 2015, as performed by an a cappella group featuring Grandpa Eliott Small.

Prior to his solo career, Ben E. King was a key member of The Drifters, a doo-wop group founded in 1953 and fronted by Clyde McPhatter. King replaced McPhatter as lead singer in 1958, and the New Drifters were born. Most of King’s hits were written by the team of Jerry Lieber and Mike Stoller, prolific songwriters of the time.

Tribute to Johnny Cash (1932-2003) on beer bottles [via].

Tribute to the B-52s by Full Blown Cherry. Yeah, it’s a crappy video, but watch what they pull off. They’re not amateurs, and by 02:50 a roadie has to hold the amp down. Any three-man band that can pull off a Rockabilly Tribute To The Ramones gets my full respect.

Have a great weekend folks, be back here in a few minutes.