Tag: Saturday Matinee

Saturday Matinee – Pathé Luxury, Leon Redbone, Tuba Skinny, Kelly Finnigan & The Atonements

From Wiki:
The Pathé Brothers of France went into the photographic business in 1896. In the early 1900s, Pathé became the world’s largest film equipment and production company, as well as a major producer of phonograph records. In 1908, Pathé invented the newsreel that was shown in cinemas before a feature film.
[The future of the past found here.]

Leon Redbone could scat-sing better than almost anyone, and there’s proof with his cover of Tommy McClennan’s Bottle Up And Go (aka Step It Up And Go recorded by Blind Boy Fuller and many others). If someone in the audience pulled out a camera to take his photo, when the flash went off, he’d stop the song, jump for his camera and take a shot of them. He’d wait as the Polaroid image developed, (“Hmmm. Not a bad likeness”) and pick up the song right where he left it. He kept those photos, too.

Tuba Skinny plays Blind Boy Fuller‘s Untrue Blues.

Kelly Finnigan & The Atonements resurrect the ghost of Otis Redding. Great soul R&B.

Tomorrow is only two days from yesterday, so we’ll see you back here then. Have a great  weekend and stuff.

 

Saturday Matinee – Babylon Bee, Rag’n’Bone Man & Sonny and his Wild Cows

The Babylon Bee stings again!

Don’t ask my opinion, don’t ask me to lie, then beg for forgiveness for making you cry.
Rag’n’Bone Man does heavy duty soul.

Live from Budapest, Sonny and his Wild Cows rock it. A popular band in Hungary (and across Europe) they cover 40s & 50s American blues, R&B, rock & roll, rockabilly, swing and country. Free music download at their awesome website, too.

Well looky here. It’s the weekend. Have a great one, and we’ll see y’all back here tomorrow, rain or shine.

Saturday Matinee – The Ides of March, Lucky Chops & GA-20

“This is really a monster song; no matter which dial you punch on that radio, you’ll hear this one.”
I don’t know about punching dials, but The Ides of March helped bring the horns back into rock with Vehicle (1970).

Lucky you. It’s Pizza Day via Lucky Chops.

Nice cover of Mel London‘s Cut You A-Loose.
GA-20 came onto my radar relatively recently, and they definitely got the sound.

Looks like it’s gonna be a nice weekend despite what everyone says. See you back here tomorrow.

Saturday Matinee – Blackberry Smoke, Valerie June & The Delta Saints

Blackberry Smoke lies on the trackalacka with their cover of Aerosmith’s Hangman Jury (1987).

Valerie June  began recording and performing in 2000 (at the age of 19) and plays a combination of blues, gospel and Appalachian folk that she calls “organic moonshine roots music.”

Self-proclaimed “Bourbon-Fueled Bayou-Rock” band from Nashville, The Delta Saints  lay down some serious heavy worry. They opened for Blackberry Smoke in 2014.

I think that’ll do for now. Have a great weekend (enjoy it while weekends are still legal) and we’ll see you back here tomorrow.

Saturday Matinee – Guitar Wolf, Robert Gordon & Wesseh Freeman

Guitar Wolf mixes The Ramones, Link Wray, rockabilly & 1977 punk and they call it “jet rock ‘n’ roll.” Don’t know how I missed these guys – they make some great noise.

Robert Gordon took Marshal Crenshaw‘s catchy tune and added just a pinch of psychobilly. The band includes Danny Gatton and Lance Quinn on guitars, Tony Garnier on electric bass and Shannon Ford on drums.

Wesseh Freeman from Monrovia, Liberia, was almost completely blind. He built his guitar from an oil can, a neck shaped with a machete, and strings from bicycle cables.  Amazing story despite a sad ending: he was 41 when he was struck by a car and died in 2018. [h/t Octopus]

That’ll do it for this episode. Have a great 3-day weekend, don’t drive through the deep water, and we’ll see you back here tomorrow.

Saturday Matinee – Byrd Theater PSA, John Fred & His Playboy Band, The Tractors & Tom T. Hall

The Byrd Theater in Richmond, VA has played the same PSA before every movie since the early ’80s, and the audience recites every word along with it. From the comments:
“Wow, takes me back. the crowd participation was one of the best aspects of this PSA, a whole theatre saying “sssssick!” was amazing.”

According to John Fred & His Playboy Band,  Judy had cantaloupe eyes. (The color version of this 1968 promo video was poor quality, so the guy who posted it converted it to black and white.) The song was co-written by baritone sax player Andy Bernard and lead singer John Fred Gourrier, both of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Bernard pawned some memorabilia on Cajun Pawn Stars (2012, Season 2, Episode 14).

Mama’s little baby goes trippin’ in the kitchen with a different take on the traditional folk song by The Tractors.

“The Story Teller” Tom T. Hall, best known for Harper Valley PTA, passed away yesterday at the age of 85. R.I.P. to a great songwriter.

A lot of disturbing news flying around these days, but we’ll get past the insanity somehow.   Meanwhile have a great weekend, cherish family and friends (except for, um, you know) and we’ll see what happens tomorrow.

Saturday Matinee – Bench, Eric Bibb, Pepe Ahlqvist w/ the Wentus Blues Band, & the Sad Sam Blues Jam

Such a touching story. In clay.
[h/t Mme. Jujujive]

“America, for all of its associations with pain and its bloody history, has always been a place of incredible hope and optimism. To be American, and particularly to come from New York City, is to be blessed.” – Eric Bibb

Eric Bibb was interviewed in April 2019 by Charlie Heat at Kensaltown Live. Jump to 01:12 for some stompin’ blues.

Finnish blues rocker Pertti “Pepe” Ahlqvist & the Wentus Blues Band, live in Borås, Sweden (2004). Scandi blues at its best.

Let’s go one more. The Sad Sam Blues Jam features sisters Sadie Johnson (Vocals/Guitar) and Sam Johnson (Bass), with Krista Hess (Vocals/Guitar) and Matt McCarthy (Drums). Sam Motter is the wailin’ sax player. That’s what they sounded like in 2014 while still in high school!

Looks like that’ll do it for now. Gonna see if I can unclog the sidebar widgets that WorpDress arbitrarily farked up, but other than that, have a great weekend and we’ll be back tomorrow with more roughage.

Saturday Matinee – Kitty, Daisy & Lewis, Jerry Jeff Walker & The Stones

Kitty, Daisy and Lewis Durham are a quirky group of siblings from London who play a mix of R&B, blues, soul, punk, rock and roll, and West Indian music. This one sounds a bit swampy to my ear, and their version of Polly Put Your Kettle On is a good ‘un. More about them here.

Jerry Jeff Walker (1942-2020) in Austin, Texas, 2014. He had a successful run in the 1970s and never stopped having fun. (Anyone who can write a song about relieving yourself in the breeze has my vote.)

This obscure band from the UK has great potential, but damn are they ugly. Cool song, though.

That’s it for now, see you tomorrow, a/c or not.

 

Saturday Matinee – The Great Ottowa Outbreak, Improv Everywhere, Pomplamoose & Widespread Panic

Straight Outta Gondwana: The Great Ottowa Outbreak of 2016 recorded on video. [Related post here.]

This is a fun one, and Improv Everywhere didn’t need much of a flash mob. More info here. [h/t Jonco]

“It’s such a shame that you became such an issue. Oh dear Johnny, I’ll miss you.”

Breakup songs can be so sad when a family is involved. Pomplamoose is a husband-and-wife team: singer-songwriter and bassist Nataly Dawn and multi-instrumentalist Jack Conte (CEO of Patreon).

Widespread Panic Stop Breaking Down Blues, Orpheum Theatre, Memphis, TN, October 19, 2014. [Jump to 01:12 to skip the noodling.]

That’s a wrap for this edition of The Saturday Matinee. See you tomorrow and we’ll do laundry.

Saturday Matinee – Barbara Mandrell, Ry Cooder, John Lee Hooker & Bonnie Raitt

Steel guitar prodigy Barbara Mandrell appeared numerous times on The Johnny Cash Show. (This one is from the 1976 Christmas Special.)

I asked a comely waitress, “Is this a new teaching?” She said, “There is no God but God, and Ralph Mooney is his name.”

Ry Cooder, one of the greatest slide guitar players ever, paid tribute to Mooney in 2018.

Let’s stay with the slide. Bonnie Raitt & John Lee Hooker (1912, 1915, 1917, 1920 or 1923-2001) got down and dirty in 1991.

That’s a wrap – for now. Have a great weekend, stay cool if it’s hot, relax if it’s not, and we’ll be back tomorrow with something.