Month: October 2017

Playlist: The B&V Halloween Rock Playlist (Sorry, No “Monster’s Mash”)

~ kcorsini ~ Leave a comment

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Boy, how times have changed. The television commercial build-up to Halloween almost rivals that of Christmas in it’s excess. In between almost constant commercials for candy, which frankly, like bourbon I’m highly susceptible to, you’ll see commercials for all manner of Halloween costumes. This year, for reasons unclear to me, there seems to be a SuperHero theme to all the kiddy costumes. I see Spiderman, Superman and in a nice gesture to the girls, Wonder Woman. That’s not how it was when I was a kid. Every year, I’d ask if we were going to get a costume and every year my dad made me go as the same thing. He’d get out an old suit coat. He’d dress me in old jeans and a dirty t-shirt, wipe black shoe polish on my chin to make it look like I was unshaven and voila, I was what he called, a hobo. Every fucking year I went out to trick or treat as a hobo, which was an old time-y word for a homeless person. My father wouldn’t even spend the 50 cents to get me a fake beard, and believe me, shoe polish doesn’t come off easy… It was the cheapest costume available and took literally no planning for my parents to put together. Not that I’m bitter… It wasn’t like that when I met the Rock chick. The first year we did Halloween, she dressed her daughter up in the most elaborate Padme costume, in the full make-up and headgear from The Phantom Menace. It was impressive, although slightly embarrassing when prior to seeing her elaborate costume I asked, “Do you want to borrow one of my old suit coats for the hobo costume?” only to receive blank stares.

I was watching the news the other day and they had a pre-Halloween trick-or-treating event at Arrowhead Stadium, home of my beloved if not star-crossed Chiefs. That’s another thing that’s changed since I was a kid, the manner of how kids trick or treat these days. Everybody goes to the mall or work or some other controlled environment to do their trick-or-treating. Again, not so when I was a kid. After outfitting me as a hobo, basically unrecognizable, my parents would send me and my friends out alone. We roamed all over the neighborhood and beyond. And this wasn’t just me and my friends, there were mobs of kids running wild in the streets, every where you went. God knows what sort of predators we managed to slip past… If you were to do that today, the State Child Care folks would show up with a van and take us all to foster care.

I haven’t even mentioned the hooligan-ism we were out there promoting. Everybody I trick-or-treated with had lifted a few eggs from the fridge for throwing at houses (I couldn’t steal eggs, my mother was so frugal she counted ours) and a roll of toilet paper or two for unsuspecting trees. We were like a roving gang of homeless hobo’s hell bent for destruction. Nowadays, every kid who used to come by the house, when I lived in a house, had their parents with them, standing out on the sidewalk, typically rolling a wagon with a cooler of beer perched on it. Where’s the danger, people?

I’d begun to reach the stage in life where I would treat all holidays like Thanksgiving… I show up, eat, drink, watch football and try to nap. That gets awkward if we’re in a bar or at a party… But then, something happened to change my opinion of this new Halloween. A number of years ago, the Rock Chick and I went to a Rocktober concert featuring none other than the Cult. These were all adults, the 21-and-over crowd, and as it was a few days prior to Halloween, all these young adults were dressed in costumes. Half the women were dressed as slutty nurses and the other half were dressed as slutty vampires. Stop the press, I thought, perhaps the danger and fun had returned to Halloween… This might be something worth investigating…

Nowadays, I live downtown. I can see the Halloween partier’s comings and goings from my local taverns and restaurants from the safety of my rooftop… No little kids come by, they can’t get past the moat. The Rock Chick misses seeing the children in their costumes, but that doesn’t bother me. But I realized after last year, that I needed some music to go with my bourbon and over-sized Reese’s peanut butter cups. My father was always a fan of that awful tune, “Monster’s Mash.” He’d laugh like a kid when that came on. This year I decided to put together a little play list of my own. I looked for ghosts, witches, goblins, warlocks, devils, demons and the like. I was looking for something that would provide me with that old school, dangerous, evil vibe. Turn it up loud, and whatever you do, don’t let anybody give you an apple when you’re trick-or-treating… I learned that the hard way when I was a kid…

*Editors Note: Our readers and friends supplied so many additional songs beyond our 35 that we’ve reposted the Spotify playlist to reflect the longer list. Search for BourbonAndVinyl.net to find us.

  1. AC/DC, “Hell’s Bells” – You’ve got to start the Halloween playlist with a tune that sets the atmosphere…. that tolling bell!
  2. Van Halen, “Running With the Devil” – Who else to run with on Halloween?
  3. Bad Company, “Evil Wind” – “Evil wind, pay me no mind…”
  4. The Cure, “Lullaby” – A song where creepy Robert Smith imagines being eaten by an even creepier spider.
  5. Fleetwood Mac, “Sisters of the Moon” – Stevie Nicks gets her funky witch on.
  6. Paul Simon, “The Werewolf” – We’ve got witches, we need a werewolf.
  7. The Faces, “Wicked Messenger” – The Faces doing a dark Dylan tune… spooky, baby.
  8. Slash (featuring Ian Astbury), “Ghost” – Ironically, ghost was another easy costume my parents dressed me in by merely throwing an old sheet over my head.
  9. Talking Heads, “Psycho Killer” – Real life monsters are scarier than any folk tale…
  10. Queens of the Stone Age, “Head Like a Haunted House” – There was a place in my neighborhood that they said was haunted… we didn’t trick-or-treat there… not sure I’d go there even today.
  11. Dave Matthews Band, “Halloween” – An especially tortured vocal for the holiday.
  12. Alice Cooper, “Welcome To My Nightmare” – You gotta invite the King of Scary to the party.
  13. Derek and the Dominos, “Evil” – Clapton covering a Willie Dixon song originally done by Howlin Wolf…
  14. The Who, “Boris the Spider” – Yeah, cheesy but I love the bass line.
  15. AC/DC, “Evil Walks” – Yes, I could have put the whole AC/DC catalog on here… This one feels like trick-or-treating music.
  16. Bruce Springsteen, “A Night With the New Jersey Devil” – A rare blues tune from the Boss… tortured vocal and harmonica…
  17. Rob Zombie, “Living Dead Girl” – I just love Rob Zombie and all his scary music.
  18. The White Stripes, “Little Ghost” – “Little ghost, little ghost, one I’m scared of the most.”
  19. The Jeff Beck Group, “Ain’t Superstitious” – “… but a black cat just crossed my path.”
  20. White Zombie, “American Witch” – A quick return to the list for Rob Zombie, scary bastard.
  21. Credence Clearwater Revival, “Bad Moon Rising” – Another great mood setter for Halloween.
  22. The Cult, “The Witch” – I was surprised at the large number of witch songs out there… this is a great one.
  23. Motley Crue, “Shout At the Devil” – I’m not sure what good the shouting will do, but yes, please do shout!
  24. Red Hot Chili Peppers, “Warlocks” – We have plenty of witches, nice to see the male side of the equation covered. Scary and funky!
  25. Ozzy Osbourne, “Bark At the Moon” – I can’t get the video image from my head… Ozzy running around as a werewolf. Howl, Ozzy, howl.
  26. INXS, “The Devil Inside” – There’s a little bit of good and a little bit of evil in all of us… except of course, my Sainted Mother, she’s all good.
  27. The Rolling Stones, “Midnight Rambler” – What’s scarier than a serial killer?
  28. David Bowie, “Scary Monsters & Super Creeps” – Cold, spooky, synthesizer and howling guitar.
  29. Ryan Adams, “Halloweenhead” – “Head full of tricks and treats…”
  30. Black Sabbath, “The Wizard” – One of two Sabbath tracks here.
  31. John Lennon, “Scared” – How else are you supposed to feel on Halloween?
  32. Metallica, “Enter Sandman” – Only Metallica can take the fable of the Sandman and make it this menacing.
  33. Black Sabbath, “Lady Evil” – Yes, it’s another Sabbath tune, but this one is sung by Dio. “There’s a place just south of Witch’s Valley…”
  34. Alice In Chains, “Man In The Box” – All of that “Jesus Christ, deny you maker” stuff sounds like the Exorcist to me. Scary track and yet I’m still not sure what it’s about.
  35. The Rolling Stones, “Sympathy For the Devil” – Isn’t this the crux of Halloween? “Pleased to meet you…. won’t you guess my name?”

As usual, I probably missed a few choice tunes, so season this playlist to taste, as they say. If you feel like it, please add your ideas for other Halloween songs in the Comments section.

Trick or Treat?

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A Few Words On The Passing of Fats Domino, RIP Fats

~ kcorsini ~ 1 Comment

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All of us here at B&V were sad to learn the news about the passing of Fats Domino today at the age of 89 years old. For me, Fats Domino was one of those “Mount Rushmore” type of Founding Father’s of rock and roll, along with Elvis and Chuck Berry (I’d include Johnny Cash with that group, but then I’d get the argument he was country… it all comes from the same place folks). With his brilliant boogie-woogie piano, Fats certainly invented the “roll” part of rock and roll. His music was not only a foundational part of rock ‘n’ roll, but was also the root from which sprang all the pop (i.e. non-Jazz) music from New Orleans ever since. Fats led to Allen Toussaint who led directly to Harry Connick, Jr… Oh to be in the Crescent City tonight…

Fats’ single, “The Fat Man,” is believed to be the first rock ‘n roll single to ever sell 1 million copies. It has been argued it was the first song to be described as “rock ‘n’ roll.” Listening to that song I can understand why it’d be described as rock and as roll…that piano, baby! What I liked about Fats, is through his string of hits in the late 50’s and early 60’s his sound never altered (much like the Stones). He knew what he did well and he kept doing it. Such a great list of songs, “I’m Walkin’,” “Walkin’ To New Orleans,” “Blue Monday,” “Ain’t That A Shame,” and of course “Blue Berry Hill.” All of which are fundamental rock songs that should be taught in grade schools.

When I was a kid, I wasn’t much into music. Music, at the time, was my brother’s thing and well, anything he was in to, naturally I gravitated away from. We had this old record player in our shared room. It only played singles, or as they used to be known, 45s. My dad has this old rack of 45s he’d collected in his youth. My parents weren’t much into music when I was growing up and dad basically handed those singles over to my brother who treated them like the Lost Arc. He was right to do so, I just wasn’t smart enough to know better. Anyway, I can remember my brother playing all those songs… there was Johnny Cash, Dion, Buddy Holly, Elvis Presley, there was even a few Beatles singles. And there was Fats. Listening while my brother played the crap out of those old 45s was what slowly drew into the musical web I find myself tangled in today. I need to thank my brother and Fats for that…

One of the first posts I wrote for BourbonAndVinyl was about a tribute album for Fats that had come out to raise money for Katrina (Satellite Radio, Katrina and Goin’ Home: A Tribute to Fats Domino). I had been riding in my car and I heard Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers doing Fats’ “I’m Walkin’.” I got home and immediately began doing research to find that tune, it was that great. And sadly, it’s another stark reminder for me  how tragic it was to lose Tom Petty at the tender age of 66, but I digress. Anyway, I found out that after Katrina hit his hometown of New Orleans it was thought that Fats had perished. He refused to leave his home because his wife couldn’t travel. Fortunately it was discovered Fats was alive and well… in the wake of all that destruction Fats turned the incorrect and early news of his demise into a tribute record to raise money for New Orleans. I don’t know anybody who could have pulled the kind of talent that Fats did for this tribute album… Not one, but two Beatles, Paul McCartney and a remix of an earlier John Lennon cover were included. Besides Tom Petty, Fats was able to recruit Robert Plant, Elton John, B.B. King, Lucinda Williams, Norah Jones, Randy Newman, Lenny Kravitz, Neil Young… the list goes on and on. It was a pretty special album and it all hung together so well because everybody stayed true to that great Fats sound.

Make no mistake folks, a true pioneer into what we call rock has slipped this mortal coil… RIP Fats! Tonight I’ll be sampling from his greatest hits, ‘Goin’ Home: A Tribute To Fats Domino’ and a nice bottle of Templeton rye… I don’t usually drink on school nights, but for Fats, I’ll make an exception.

Cheers!

 

LP Review: Robert Plant, The Sensational ‘Carry Fire’

~ kcorsini ~ 4 Comments

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It was early my freshman year of high school when Led Zeppelin’s final album, ‘In Through The Out Door’ came out. Say what you want about Zeppelin’s swan song, it’s still amazing that they could put out that kind of quality record when the drummer was a raging alcoholic and the lead guitarist was strung-out on heroin. Ah, the 70s. ‘In Through The Out Door’ ushered in a different kind of vocal from Robert Plant. He wasn’t the shrieking banshee of ‘Zeppelin II’ any more, he was actually singing. Purportedly, Bonham and Page felt ‘In Through the Out Door’ was too “mellow” and were making plans for a more rocking follow-up when Bonham sadly passed away. For my part, I think “In The Evening” is a great rock tune. When your guitarist is sitting in a dark room with only a candle for light, comatose on heroin, it’s hard to put together an album that sounds like ‘Presence.’

At my high school, there was a group of guys who put up a sign-up sheet in the lunch room when Zeppelin announced their US tour. The guys had arranged to rent a bus that would take anybody who had the money up to Chicago, the nearest concert venue that Zeppelin was to play on that tour. Zeppelin rarely played Kansas City… there was a story, probably apocryphal that they’d been booed off staged early in their career in KC and they eschewed returning. I heard that same story about Bad Company, so who knows. Anyway, I can remember the dejected look on the faces of the guys who rented the bus when the news of Bonham’s sad passing was announced by our high school, lunchtime DJ. They had been so close to seeing Zeppelin, yet so far. I’m still surprised they let us play music in the lunchroom, my school was run by fascists.

And so, with a foolish, massive intake of vodka, Led Zeppelin, a pillar of 70s rock ‘n’ roll and well, rock ‘n’ roll in general, had toppled. I felt like I’d missed a great party… well, not missed, but only managed to get in on the tail end of the party, after all the pretty girls had left. I was, however, consoled in 1982 when Plant emerged with his first solo album. Those of us of a certain age still love ‘Pictures At Eleven.’ Plant’s singing on that record was more akin to what he did on ‘In Through The Out Door.’ Anybody looking for “The Immigrant Song” style of singing from Plant should have known back then, it wasn’t happening. “Burning Down One Side” is one of Plant’s best rock tunes… “How could I fall, without a show…” is a lyric that I only understand on a visceral, non-intellectual level, yet still love.

Thus began, for me, a life long devotion to the solo music of this brilliant artist. There is very little in Plant’s career that I could say I don’t like. I wasn’t crazy about his side-project The Honeydrippers but only his album ‘Shaken N Stirred’ could be described as missing the mark (way too much synthesizer). I love that Plant has gone through different phases of his career. He’s always searching, always testing his limits. He’s collaborated with different musicians at different times, always tinkering with his sound and approach. If that’s not the hallmark of an amazing artist, what is?

After a brief reunion with Jimmy Page for the Page-Plant albums and tours, both of which I saw (and was amazed by), Plant returned to his solo career with a covers album, ‘Dreamland.’ Despite it being mostly covers, I loved ‘Dreamland.’ It marked another evolution in Plant’s vocals. They started putting his voice right up front and augmenting it with more nontraditional, world-music kind of sounds. That sound carried through the exceptional album of originals, ‘Mighty Rearranger’ and led to the ‘Raising Sand’ project with Alison Krauss. ‘Raising Sand’ was a lot more successful than I think Plant was prepared for. If his reluctance to get Zeppelin back together is any indication, I think Plant shies away from the expectations to out-do his past… I doubt we see him do anything else with Krauss on a major scale ever again, much like Zeppelin.

Since the Plant-Krauss thing Plant simply returned to releasing great solo albums. ‘Band of Joy’ was produced by the lead guitarist of the Krauss album, Buddy Miller and boasted a  great harmony vocal from Patty Griffin. Band of Joy was the name of Plant’s first band with Bonham and the album by that name was Plant looking back to rootsy covers. I really thought that was a great, overlooked album. He followed that up with 2014’s ‘lullaby…and the Ceaseless Roar,’ an exceptional album. ‘lullaby’ is the type of album this blog was founded on: a great, latter day album from a more mature artist that’s criminally overlooked. The first single from that record, “Rainbow” is one of my all-time favorite Plant tunes… although even I’ll admit, that’s a long list. The man has a golden voice.

I mention the album ‘lullaby…and the Ceaseless Roar,’ because the sounds on that album really inform Plant’s stunning new record, ‘Carry Fire.’ His backing band, the Sensational Shape Shifters is back – Skin Tyson, Justin Adams on guitar, Dave Smith on drums, Billy Fuller on bass, John Baggot on keyboards and (the secret weapon in the band) Juldeh Camara on West African instruments. Plant and his band are pulling together American roots music, folk, traditional Welsh, African, rock and roll and “world-music” into a swampy gumbo of sound. As has been the case since ‘Dreamland’ Plants vocals are right up front in the mix, where they belong.

It’s easy to describe Plant’s music as a little mellower or quieter nowadays, but again, when you compare most music to say, ‘Physical Graffiti’ it’s probably going to sound mellow. The first single, “The May Queen” (reviewed earlier, Robert Plant: “The May Queen,” The New Song From The Upcoming ‘Carry Fire’) is wonderful up-beat acoustic number not dissimilar to “Gallows Pole.” It’s a perfect introduction to this music. The pace quickly picks up with the rocking guitar crunch of “New World…” You quickly realize on first listen, this album is special.

Plant then takes a huge left turn with the ballad “Season’s Song” which reminds me of the lush “Song To the Siren” from ‘Dreamland.’ Love remains the topic on the next track, “Dance With You Tonight.” All four of these tracks go in different sonic directions yet it’s all held together as a whole by Plant’s vocals… I just love where his voice is right now. He even manages a touch of politics in the topical “Carving Up the World… A Wall and Not a Fence.” I love Plant’s hippy, 60’s vibe. He’s like that cool  hippy uncle who let you drink beer before you were legally able to.

“Keep It Hid” is an atmospheric number that just seems to get better with each repeated listen. I love the guitar solo on that one…  “A Way With Words” is another piano driven ballad with a honey sweet vocal. The title track, “Carry Fire,” in another stylistic turn, has a middle eastern vibe that makes me feel like I’m sitting in a hashish den in Morocco with Plant while exotic women dance in veils around us… but that just might be me.

There are guitar driven songs here, like “New World…” and “Bones of Saints” that I think rock. Again, it’s not “Misty Mountain Hop” but they are rocking tunes. Plant’s vocals drop an octave and it’s hold on til the finish line time… The way Plant sings, “No, no, no, no, no, no no” in the latter track just grabs me…that and he name checks a Robert Johnson track, “Last Fair Deal Gone Down.”  With Plant, some of the non-verbal, singing, where he just holds an “o” or moans is as effective as when he’s singing words, if that makes any sense. He is probably the most charismatic singer I’ve ever heard. I don’t mean his physical presence when I speak of charisma, I’m talking about the sound of his voice. It’s an intoxicating, seductive instrument.

The album ends on another atmospheric, almost dark track, “Heaven Sent.” When Plant sings the lyric, “There’s an angel at the gate, singing a stolen kiss,” he could be singing about himself.

This album is great from start to finish. This is definitely a must-have record and for those of us down at B&V, it’s a candidate for album of the year. It’s a huge deal when an artist of the heft and talent of Robert Plant puts out a record. Everyone should hear this album. I can only hope I get a chance to catch him when he tours…No renting a bus this time around… Turn this one up and enjoy.

 

LP Review: Beck, ‘Colors,’ An Uneven, Disappointing Foray Into Sugar Sweet, Pure Pop

~ kcorsini ~ 4 Comments

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I so wanted to love this album. It’s been such a long time since Beck has put out an “upbeat” record, it felt like ‘Colors’ was long overdue…

Beck’s career started with the great 90’s “slacker” anthem “Loser.” That song was everywhere and we all loved it… “I’m a loser baby, why don’t you kill me.” It seemed to capture the mid 90’s, grunge zeitgeist in one, funny, word-packed song. His wordplay on that song almost had me convinced he was Bob Dylan’s illegitimate son. I thought, this song is funny, but this is obviously a one-hit wonder. We’ll never hear from this Beck kid again… Like most people, I didn’t take the time to check out the fabulous album that “Loser” came from, ‘Mellow Gold.’

In my mind Beck’s career seemed a lot like the Beastie Boys. The Beastie’s had captured the spirit of the mid-80s with their party anthem “Fight For Your Right (to Party)” in much the same way as Beck in the 90s. We all thought the Beasties were one-hit wonders as well. No one ever expected them to disappear for three years and return with their masterpiece, 1989’s ‘Paul’s Boutique.’ It appears there was a lot more to these Beastie Boys than we realized. And in much the same way, no one expected Beck to return in 1996 with his masterpiece, ‘Odelay.’ It was only then that many of us turned back to ‘Mellow Gold’ and thought maybe we should have seen it coming. It seems there was more to this Beck character than we realized…Isn’t it funny how life is really a bunch of a repeatable patterns… not to go all Zen on you.

While ‘Odelay’ set the template for much of what followed from Beck, dark, alternative rock dressed up with some pop flourishes and samples, Beck did take a left turn on his follow-up record, ‘Mutations.’ It would have been easy for Beck to follow-up ‘Odelay’ with ‘Odelay 2 – Son of Odelay’ or ‘Odelay, the Sequel.’ If you know what I mean… anyway, ‘Mutations’ was an acoustic-based album full of dark meditations. I especially liked “Nobody’s Fault But Mine,” and “Cold Brains.” In many ways, ‘Mutations’ set up Beck’s parallel career. He’d come out with a noisy album or two but then retreat to his acoustic side much in the same way that Neil Young used to do.

‘Mutations’ was followed by Beck’s funky, porn-soundtrack-like ‘Midnight Vultures.’ I wasn’t as big a fan of that one, but it veered more toward’s Beck’s ‘Odelay’ sound. He followed ‘Midnight Vultures’ with the sensational acoustic album, ‘Sea Change.’ Inspired by the break-up of a long relationship, ‘Sea Change’ was Beck at his most emotionally naked. As a man who is no stranger to that feeling, I really responded to ‘Sea Change.’ True to form, after ‘Sea Change’ Beck veered back to his noisier side. He released a series of records that were all uniformly strong. My pick of the litter is ‘Guero.’

In 2008 Beck released the oft-overlooked ‘Modern Guilt.’ It was produced by the infamous Danger Mouse and while it was as strong as anything he’d put out since ‘Sea Change’ it didn’t really have a hit single that took off. It remains, for me, one of his stronger albums. It’s very alternative rock, but with anything Danger Mouse, there are pop-flourishes. The lyrics tend toward the darker side of Beck’s experience. “Orphans,” and the title track really stuck out for me… It was while filming a video for one of the singles that Beck hurt is back. Apparently it was pretty serious. It was thought that he would never be able to perform again.

Hence, we didn’t hear from Beck again until 2014 when he returned, thankfully healed, with another masterful, acoustic album, ‘Morning Phase.’ While the Rock Chick is always more drawn to his noisier stuff, she put ‘Morning Phase’ into high rotation without any prodding from me. I was glad to see him back but I had to wonder… would Beck ever really rock out again. It was two years ago in 2015 that Beck put out “Dreams,” which I thought was a one-off single, but it’s actually on ‘Colors.’ Over a year and a half ago, Beck put out what I thought would be a first single to an upcoming album, which I guess it eventually became, “Wow.” (Reviewed on B&V previously, Beck’s New Single, “Wow”…”Giddy Up, Giddy Up”), making this the slowest album roll out since The Pretenders released the first single from ‘Learning to Crawl’ in 1982 and didn’t release the album until January of 1984, unheard of back then. “Wow” was a vintage Beck song. It’s catchy, it has pop-flourishes but at it’s heart lies an alternative rock song. But after it came out… we just had to wait. And wait. And wait. Until finally this last week Beck released the new album, ‘Colors.’ He did tease the record with the release of a couple more songs also reviewed here, Beck: Two New Songs, “Dear Life,” “Up All Night,” And Finally, New LP ‘Colors’ Slated For Oct.

‘Colors’ was produced by the now ubiquitous Greg Kurstin who’s work on Liam Gallagher’s first solo album was recently reviewed on B&V. Kurstin is probably more well known for working with Adele….which probably should have been a sign of things to come. I heard Beck interviewed on SiriusXM radio and he said while playing live he realized that much of his music is rather mellow. He went into the studio with the conscious plan to make an “upbeat” record that would get people moving when he played live. I’m guessing that the songs on ‘Colors’ will have that desired reaction.

All of that said, however, Beck and Kurstin have altered Beck’s formula here. Rather than alt-rock songs with pop flourishes, this is pop music with alt-rock flourishes. I was stunned at how shallow this record is. “No Distractions” sounds like it could have come from Katy Perry. He sings the words, “Boogie to the left, boogie to the right.” My God man, where is the guy who wrote “Baby, you’re a lost cause?” The song “I’m So Free” is probably the worst thing I’ve heard Beck put out. I typically try to stay as positive as I can, there’s enough negativity in the world, but “I’m So Free” is just unlistenable. He pronounces the word “free” like my daughter’s friends, “fruh.” The horror, the horror.

“Up All Night” was a song that I liked on first listen. But after a few spins I find myself skipping it. It sounds like something Weeknd recorded. So much of this record passes by, sounding the same, with little to no lyrical content to attach to. “Colors,” “Seventh Heaven,” and “Square One” are all nice, tight, danceable pop tunes. I’m just not a fan of nice, tight, danceable pop tunes, or pop tunes of any kind.

There are some positives. I still love the track, “Wow.” All the stuff that he released early, “Dreams,” and the great, Beatlesque “Dear Life” are great tunes. There is one ballad on the album, “Fix Me,” that is more in tradition with what I’d expect from Beck. It’s not that I would begrudge any artist the freedom to try different things, wear different hats, but this album left me cold. The Rock Chick gave it one listen and was done with it and she’s as big a Beck fan as I am. I hate to say it, but Beck just missed the mark here. Although, I’m sure he’ll see some dancing at his next show… I just won’t be there.

Sadly, I can’t recommend this album. However, I would recommend checking out the select tracks mentioned above and in previous reviews… If life is a set of patterns, I look for a stunning acoustic record up next from Beck… and I’d be OK with that…

Cheers!

 

 

 

LP Review: David Crosby, The Beautiful ‘Sky Trails’

~ kcorsini ~ 5 Comments

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My path to the solo music of David Crosby was somewhat circuitous. By the time I graduated high school, I was already a big Neil Young fan. My college roommate Drew turned me onto Crosby, Still, Nash &/or Young and really expanded my knowledge of Neil Young’s solo catalog. I was always more into the yang of the Stills/Young part of the band than the yin of Crosby/Nash. Or are Stills/Young the yin and Crosby/Nash the yang? I can never keep that straight. Anyway, over time I began to realize that songs like “Deja Vu,” “Long Time Gone,” and “Guinevere” were amongst my favorite songs from CSN/CSNY. Crosby’s impassioned harmony vocal on “Ohio” is the thing of legend. There is something so distinctively sweet about David Crosby’s vocals…the guy was probably humming a counter-melody to his ultrasound whilst still in the womb… if they did ultrasounds back then?

In college, I was too busy burying myself deeper and deeper into Neil Young’s catalog to really explore any of the other members of CSN’s music. I finally got around to checking out Stephen Stills’ early solo work and his brilliant double-LP with Manassas. Eventually this meandering musical spelunking led me to the classic duo albums Crosby did with Graham Nash. Those guys are just meant to harmonize together. Two of their early records, are simply put, must-haves. ‘David Crosby/Graham Nash’ from 1972 and ‘Wind On The Water’ from 1975 are exceptional showcases for Crosby and Nash’s ability to bring out the best in each other. Crosby’s “Carry Me” and “Mama Lion,” both of which I believe were written about the passing of his mother, were the tracks that first jumped out at me from ‘Wind On The Water.’

Finally, years later, after Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young put out the box-set, triple-disc live album ‘1974’ I realized it was time to start checking out David Crosby’s solo stuff. The only thing I was really familiar with was the song “Drive My Car” from ’89’s ‘Yes I Can,’ his first LP after his stint in jail. It was while I was in college that Crosby famously melted down and ended up in a prison in, I believe, Texas. I always liked “Drive My Car,” it’s a great tune, but for whatever reason, maybe it was the legal stuff, I didn’t explore Crosby’s solo stuff any further. I did really like the songs Crosby contributed to CSNY’s reunion album, released around that same time, ‘American Dream,’ especially, “Compass,” a harrowing acoustic journey through his addictions. Yet, I never jumped in…

After the release of ‘1974,’ I finally went back to his first proper solo album, ‘If I Could Only Remember My Name.’ What a stunner of an album that was. I’ve read in several places that it’s considered a “cult classic.” I just call it a classic. It was this bizarre amalgamation of folk, jazz with a good dose of psychedelia thrown in. I absolutely love the record. I know it went gold, but it’s surprisingly an album that you only rarely hear about. “Cowboy Movie” is an epic tune with both Jerry Garcia (who arranged and helped produce the album) and Neil Young on guitars. I’ve always been surprised that “Laughing” wasn’t a huge hit. It’s a beautiful song, amongst Crosby’s best.

The rest of Crosby’s solo career was sporadic. It wasn’t until 2014’s ‘Croz’ came out that the critics started to notice his solo recordings. He returned quickly in 2016 with the spare, acoustic LP ‘Lighthouse’ produced and cowritten with Snarky Puppy’s Micheal League. ‘Lighthouse’ was a return to and a publicly admitted homage to ‘If I Could Only Remember My Name.’ It’s an unvarnished, almost under-produced gem of a record. While I didn’t hear anything as immediately impactful as “Cowboy Movie” I certainly appreciated the effort. After ‘Croz’ and ‘Lighthouse,’ it was official: David Crosby was on a late-career hot streak!

Now, merely a year after ‘Lighthouse,’ David has returned with his superb new album, ‘Sky Trails.’ Cheap Trick, Van Morrison and now David Crosby all putting albums out in successive years… it feels like the 70s again. The album is produced by his son, James Raymond who also plays a lot of the instruments on the album. There’s some great acoustic guitar work on this album and while I can’t find credits, I think its both Raymond and Crosby playing. Crosby has worked with Raymond before and I do think Crosby does better in collaborative situations, be it this one, Jerry Garcia on his first record, Micheal League on ‘Lighthouse’ or Graham Nash on those classic Crosby/Nash albums.

I kept reading that there were some songs on here that were Steely Dan-jazzy type songs. I was skeptical about that until I saw that former Steely Dan member Michael McDonald had cowritten a song here… I will say, the opening track, “She’s Got To Be Somewhere” is a funky Steely type keyboard with saxophone song that wouldn’t have sounded out of place on ‘Aja.’ It’s a great track but it’s really the only Steely Dan-like track I hear here.

The epicenter of the album for me are the two overtly political songs, “Capitol,” and “Sell Me A Diamond.” Although in his 70’s it’s nice to see that his old hippy protest spirit is alive and well. “Capitol” is the best protest track Crosby has written since “Stand And Be Counted.” I dig the righteous rage. “Sell Me A Diamond” is a brilliant tune and reminds me of some of the stuff CSNY did on the wrongly maligned ‘Looking Forward’ album (It wasn’t perfect but it wasn’t that terrible, folks). “Diamond” has a soaring chorus and a nice little pedal steel. I love the coda of the song, where Crosby repeats “Makes conflict free sound good to me…”

There are some great quieter moments here. Crosby duets again on this record, like on ‘Lighthouse’ with Becca Stevens on the title track and their voices harmonize like Crosby’s and Nash’s. It’s a spare, acoustic number punctuated with light saxophone. It’s an ethereal song about being lost out on the road and a true highpoint here. “Before Tomorrow Falls On Love,” cowritten with Michael McDonald, is a piano/vocal number with a great jazz vibe. I feel like I’ve just walked into a hip jazz club and there’s a guy singing at the piano. Crosby also beautifully covers Joni Mitchell’s “Amelia.” I know they go way back and she has had some health issues of late… it’s a nice gesture to hear Crosby sing one of her songs. “Somebody Home” is an atmospheric acoustic/vocals tune with just the right amount of organ and some more pedal steel and naturally, another great vocal.

Towards the end of the first half is another favorite of mine, “Here It’s Almost Sunset” that has some beautiful percussive elements with a sax that almost sounds like early Sting and Branford Marsalis. It’s a beautiful melody that drifts by like a cloud. There are just so many moods here. And through out are Crosby’s spectacular vocal performance. His voice brings all these different moods and tempos together, it’s the common thread. Toward the end of the album comes “Curved Air” with some great percussive elements and almost Spanish-guitar type riffing. It’s just great.

This is the most enjoyable, consistent thing I’ve heard Crosby do since ‘If I Could Only Remember My Name.’ It’s great to hear a more mature artist exercise his beautiful vocal instrument against these various musical backdrops. It still has that folky/jazzy vibe of his first record and I mean that in a good way. This is the kind of record that often gets overlooked out there in today’s market but is definitely worth the investment. Pour your next nightcap and drop “Home Free” on the stereo and drink in the night.

Cheers!

LP Review: Liam Gallagher, ‘As You Were’ A Pleasant Surprise From an Unpleasant Man

~ kcorsini ~ 4 Comments

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I know that many of you out there have given up on Oasis and it’s famously feuding Gallagher brothers. When I posted my review of the first two tracks from Liam Gallagher’s superb ‘As You Were’ (Liam Gallagher: The First Two Songs From “As You Were”) one reader, commenting on something else I’d written, famously said, “Not even you can convince me to listen to Liam Gallagher again.” And I totally get that sentiment. I’ve posted before about bands formed by brothers and other than the Allman Brothers, it’s never really turned out very well. And when you think about the Allman Brothers, that didn’t exactly turn out well for Duane…but as usual, I digress.

As is well documented in the pages of B&V, I was never terribly into Oasis. However, with the dawn of the new millennium came my relationship and now marriage to the Rock Chick. While I remain delighted by this wonderful woman and all the great things and great music she’s turned me on to, she also brought Oasis into my life. And, as I’ve said before, if you put aside the stupidity and antics (fist fights on stage?), the music was really great. Now, I’m the first one to say they were somewhat derivative of the Beatles and later on derivative of the Stones. That said, 2005’s ‘Don’t Believe the Truth’ and 2008’s ‘Dig Out Your Soul’ were both great, largely ignored, late career gems.

After their rather nasty split, also somewhat reminiscent of how the Beatles split up (alas, without the hateful songs about each other), Noel Gallagher, the songwriter/guitarist formed Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds. The rest of the band formed Beady Eye, led by Liam. While over the years the Rock Chick got me to warm up to Oasis’ catalog of music and she loved the Beady Eye thing, I was more lukewarm on it. There was nothing as grand as ‘Champagne Supernova’ to be found on their first LP, ‘Different Gear, Still Speeding.’ Beady Eye didn’t even release their second album in the U.S. I read an interview with Noel and he said something like, Liam needs to put out a solo album, step up and put his name on something. While apparently the two don’t speak, Liam must have been reading and now has delivered his first solo album, ‘As You Were.’

This weekend, as the Rock Chick and I are prone  to do, we got in the car and toured around Kansas City… we like to explore parts of the town we haven’t been to in a while. I believe the Rock Chick is secretly looking for a new place for us to move to, but I just roll the window down and turn up the music. I spent all day Saturday listening to ‘As You Were’ and I have to say, it’s a great album. Everything sounds better in the car… This new Liam Gallagher is a really pleasant, enjoyable listen… I probably can’t describe Liam that way, but hey, the music is great.

While I’ve only heard a few tracks from Noel Gallagher’s new band, I think I can state, without too much fear of being wrong, that this is the most Oasis-sounding record that either of them have made since the band broke up. Liam worked with a trio of different producers, each of whom was a multi instrumentalist. Greg Kurstin, Dan Grech-Marguerat and Andrew Wyatt all get a production credits for different tracks. The best track here remains “Chinatown” which is one of those great ethereal ballads with a great vocal from Liam. I was surprised to find that Andrew Wyatt actually wrote “Chinatown.” I mention this merely to point out what a large contribution the separate producers made to this album.

“Wall of Glass” is a squalling rocker and a great opening track. “Greedy Soul” is another great rock tune with a pounding drum beat. “You Better Run” is another driving tune, with big drums and an acoustic strum that carries Liam’s vocals forward. “I Get By” is another big loud Oasis-y rocker. “Come Back To Me” is another really great upbeat tune. I really like Liam’s vocal on “Come Back To Me,” he’s impassioned and the song is hooky as hell. I know I’ve described this as sounding like Oasis, but it definitely has Liam’s imprint.

While I like all those rockers, its some of the slower, more meditative songs that bore into my brain. As mentioned, “Chinatown” is just a great song that I can listen to all day. I’m stunned Liam didn’t write it… “Paper Crown” is a wonderful, spare acoustic ballad. “Universal Gleam” is one of the most beautiful things Liam has ever committed to tape. “I’ll give you universal gleam, I’ll help you fix your broken dreams,” is a just great lyric. It’s like he’s reaffirming his commitment to his fans. “I’ve All I Need” is the Rock Chick’s second favorite track, after “Chinatown” and it’s another great vocal from Liam. It’s a beautiful lyric as well, written as a plea to a lover… “If all I have is you, then darling please be true…” I will admit he name checks at least two Beatles songs in the lyrics, “Tomorrow Never Knows” and “All Things Must Pass,” but like Picasso said, “Good artists borrow, great artists steal.”

I was stunned, considering the multiple number of producers, what a consistently good album this is from start to finish. From the rocking tunes to the ballads this album is strong all the way through. Having literally spent all day Saturday with it in the car, this album grabs you on first listen but it’s the repeat listens that will reward you. I know that Liam and Noel’s public squabbling has turned a large majority of people off, but if you liked Oasis you will like this album. Hell, I wasn’t crazy about Oasis but I like this album. And yes, Liam’s stupid Twitter rants about his brother are hard to take, we have to set that aside and remain objective… And while Liam isn’t the most pleasant man, his album certainly is…

This one is a perfect album for a Saturday afternoon drive… roll the window down and turn this music up!

Playlist: The B&V Best Tom Petty Album/Deep Tracks

~ kcorsini ~ 9 Comments

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*Picture taken 6/2/2107, Kansas City’s Sprint Center

If you’re like me this has been an awful week. The loss of Tom Petty has left an enormous void in the Rock N Roll Firmament. The man was a National Treasure. More than that, his songs made him feel like a friend. I can’t count the number of people who have reached out to me over the course of the week who are as upset as I am about his passing. From people I knew in high school to college roommates to people I work with, people keep texting or calling. Arkansas Joel reached out, he knows what a huge Petty fan I am. One of my friends texted me and said, “Petty, what a badass!” Indeed, my friend, indeed. Needless to say, I remain distraught over this untimely loss. It’ll take a long time to shake this one off. I know a lot of you are feeling the same way I am, and if this blog can bring you any solace, that you’re not alone, my job is successful… The tributes by famous rock stars from Bruce Springsteen to (believe it or not) Coldplay with R.E.M.’s Peter Buck have been amazing. (Yes, I still hate Coldplay, just a little less right this moment).

In the old days, during times like these, I’d lock myself in my apartment with a fifth of rye and Petty’s entire catalog of music. Since I’m married now, I can’t lock myself away, but I can sequester myself in a room with a liter of rye (nice to see that booze has gone metric) and Petty’s entire catalog. It took me three days to get through all of the Tom Petty I own, only taking breaks to sleep, go to the restroom and get more ice for the rye… I can only marvel at the man’s songwriting prowess and the power of the Heartbreakers as a band. They could rock with the hardest bands around and bring it down to play the most intricate, beautiful ballads. I feel like they were always under-rated. Mike Campbell (guitar), Ben Tench (keyboards) and yes, Stan Lynch (erstwhile, estranged drummer) deserve special notice for their individual talents and contributions. I can’t imagine what those guys and Petty’s family are going through right now. As bad as I feel, I know those individuals are suffering infinitely more.

When I first heard the news about Petty, I was out at Arrowhead Stadium. People were playing his music and you could hear different groups playing different songs. I heard “Free Fallin'” a couple of times. “Here Comes My Girl” and “Don’t Do My Like That” came floating over the wind from different directions in the parking lot. “Running Down A Dream” was played by the heavy metal enthusiasts in the pick-up truck next to me… Petty’s music was truly universal. While I love all of those tunes, having spent three days listening to Petty’s whole catalog, I have to say, there was SO MUCH more music there.

Every single one of Petty’s albums has those signature singles (and from the old days signature videos). But to go along with those, there were always album cuts that never received any airplay on radio, which for any other band would have been hits. Side 2, song 9 for Petty would have been the lead off track for most bands. After three days of intense listening, I put together the following playlist of those album tracks or perhaps more appropriately “deep tracks.” I went through each album (and tried to grab at least a song from each), each box set and tried to cull through some of the lesser known, or less famous tracks. When I was done, I had a list of 64 songs. I did a lot of soul searching as I winnowed this list down to twenty-seven cuts. It truly was not easy but I think this is a good representation of some of the great music that Petty and the Heartbreakers did that didn’t get the exposure of his hits – from rockers to ballads. If you’re a “greatest hits” type fan, this collection might help you delve further into Petty’s catalog. If you’re a big fan, you’ll likely recognize most of these tunes and hopefully, in this dark time, you will smile like I did when I heard them (or occasionally tear up). If the Rock Chick will help me figure out how, I’ll be putting this play list out on Spotify under the creative title, “BourbonAndVinyl Petty Deep Tracks”

I’ve seen lists like this from “major publications” and oft times they list tracks that aren’t readily available like say, bootlegs. Rolling Stone magazine did a list of 100 Springsteen songs and one was a song he’d performed once and had never committed to tape. I consider that kind of a dick move and have tried to avoid that if I can… And while there are an almost infinite number of songs I could have put on this list…I chose these because they jumped out at me. Think of this as a primer instead of the definitive list.

  1. “Breakdown (Live In Capitol Studios),” DJ Promo Only – So after decrying Rolling Stone for using bootlegs and unobtainable tracks on their lists as a dick move, I start off with an unobtainable track… I know, dick move. “Heal thyself physician…” This is the definitive version of this song and I pray some day it’ll be released. It’s the only version of “Breakdown” that my local radio station, KY/102 used to play. A friend slipped me a copy recently and it’s amazing… the band is loose and the drums start off almost sloppy, then Campbell’s guitar stabs it’s way into the mix. Petty’s vocal is impassioned but his rant at the end is funny.
  2. “Hometown Blues,” Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers – Petty’s early work was always compared to the Byrds, but the drums on this upbeat rocker sound almost Bo Diddley-like.
  3. “Restless,” You’re Gonna Get It! – Petty’s second album gets lumped into he “sophomore slump” category but that’s only because it’s sandwiched between his seminal first record and his first masterpiece, Damn The Torpedoes. This is a great track from an underrated album.
  4. “Casa Dega,” Damn The Torpedoes – Deluxe Edition – “Casa Dega” was actually originally released on the exceptional box set, Playback, but it sprang from the sessions for Damn the… One of many great “baby what’s up” songs.
  5. “Louisiana Rain,” Damn The Torpedoes – This was always one of my favorites from side 2 of Torpedoes. There’s a country version on Playback.
  6. “Nowhere,” Damn The Torpedoes – Deluxe Edition – It’s a testament to how strong the material on Torpedoes was that they left this rocking track off. I love the riff.
  7. “Nightwatchman,” Hard Promises – This song is such a great demonstration of Petty’s signature sense of humor. It’s a great track and actually got a little radio play. Funky and rocking.
  8. “Straight Into Darkness,” Long After Dark – This album was sort of the soundtrack of my first breakup… While “You Got Lucky” and “Change of Heart” got the radio play, this track captures the emotion of a breakup better than anything else on the record.
  9. “Dogs On The Run,” Southern Accents – Great, soaring rock from the Heartbreakers…”Honey, ain’t it funny how a crowd gathers around anyone living life with out a net.” I can actually testify to the truth of this… oh, my misspent youth…
  10. “Spike,” Southern Accents – My buddy Drew told me that for whatever reason, Wichita radio actually played this song a lot. I heard an interview with Petty on the radio once and he said, “In Wichita we play “Spike” and they go nuts…” This is Petty’s funniest, funkiest songs. There’s a great live version on the Live Anthology as well.
  11. “Runaway Trains,” Let Me Up, I’ve Had Enough – Another song which may be considered a breakup song… I see a theme here… Actually I see it more as a song about moving on from a situation and the regrets that brings. Beautiful, atmospheric Petty.
  12. “Out In The Cold,” Into The Great White Open – A good, old-fashioned, Heartbreakers, ass-kicking rocker. It’s like they looked at each other at the beginning of this track and said, “Meet me at the finish line…” Full-tilt rock.
  13. “Time To Move On,” Wildflowers – There were many times in my younger days where I needed to tell my resilience and stubbornness, boys pack your bags, “it’s time to move on…” I wish I’d learned this lesson earlier. The music sounds almost like an old Johnny Cash train song.
  14. “Cabin Down Below,” Wildflowers – While “You Wreck Me” was one of the Heartbreakers greatest rock songs, it sort of overshadowed other great rock tracks like “Honey Bee” and this great barn-burner of a tune.
  15. “Girl On LSD,” bootleg, probable inclusion on the extended version of Wildflowers, due any time now…- I know, another dick move. I hope this song comes out soon with the rest of the material left over for Wildflowers. It’s actually a love song disguised as a drug song.
  16. “Waiting For Tonight,” Playback: Nobody’s Children – This great song was actually released as a single to herald the arrival of Playback, but disappeared pretty quickly. I thought it was an underrated gem of a tune that deserved another listen.
  17. “Travelin’,” Playback: Nobody’s Children – This rocker is a great traveling tune. If, and I know it’s inevitable, I do another road-song playlist, this song will be on it. I would have loved to hear this live…Alas.
  18. “Swingin’,” Echo – Most Petty fans will know this song. My friend Stormin actually saw him sing this one live on the final tour, in Denver. “Like Sonny Liston…”
  19. “Have Love Will Travel,” The Last DJ – Last DJ is always derided as Petty’s “angry” album. There are some great tracks on this record, and this is one of them. I love when he sings, “how about a cheer for all those bad girls.” I saw this song performed live and the every woman in the crowd screamed!
  20. “I’m Walkin’,” Goin’ Home: A Tribute To Fats Domino – Petty, bringing his Florida swampy sound to a Fats Domino swampy Louisiana song. What’s not to love here. This was a great tribute album and one of the first things I reviewed on B&V… I have a real soft spot for this tune.
  21. “Down South,” Highway Companion – I loved this album but it got almost no airplay. This is a great travelogue of a song… “Gonna head back down south, gonna see my daddy’s mistress.” Petty was such a brilliant lyricist.
  22. “Big Weekend,” Highway Companion – Great party song, great road song… “If you don’t run you rust…” This could be the B&V theme song.
  23. Mudcrutch, “Topanga Cowgirl,” Mudcrutch – Petty reunited with his original outfit, Mudcrutch with Campbell and Tench, who eventually morphed into the Heartbreakers and put out this great album. This is my favorite song on the album because I think it captures the loose, country-rock spirit of the entire album.
  24. “It’s Good To Be King (Live),” Live Anthology – “It’s Good to Be King” is a great song but anybody who ever saw Petty in concert knows that the song exploded when they played it live. Petty and Campbell would jam on their guitars on this song for over 12 minutes. It’s a great live cut and the definitive version of this song. Kudos to Campbell on this one.
  25. “High In The Morning,” Mojo – Great, funky little bluesy number from a great funky, little blues album. “He’ll be high in the morning and by evening, he’ll be gone.”
  26. “U Get Me High,” Hypnotic Eye – Petty’s last album was a great one. This song is a favorite of the Rock Chick and mine… It’s an unconventional love song.
  27. Mudcrutch, “Hungry No More,” 2 – I was lucky to see this tour, again with my thanks to my old pal Stormin. I really like this record, but I love this song. It’s a soaring, beautiful ballad. The resolve and strength in Petty’s voice on this one gives me hope.

I’m sure there’s tracks that I missed on this, that many of you like. If you have any suggestions for additions, please suggest them in the comments section. It’s a tough time in rock and roll when our heroes are passing unexpectedly. Take care of yourself out there and we’ll get through this together.

 

 

RIP Tom Petty, 1950 – 2017, A Devastating Loss: The Composer of the Soundtrack to My Life Is Gone

~ kcorsini ~ 11 Comments

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*Brilliant photo taken from the inside album sleeve of ‘Damn The Torpedoes’

As far as Mondays go, yesterday was one of the worst. I’ve never liked Mondays… I awoke to the horrible news that some nut job had shot up a music festival in Las Vegas. Add to that, the usual Monday work “horrible-ness” brought on by my Corporate Masters and it was already shaping up to be a bad day. But then the unspeakable happened. My friend the Jean-Genie texted to tell me the devastating news that Tom Petty, music icon, songwriter, singer/guitar player, legend had suffered a massive heart attack and was in critical condition. I was out at the Kansas City Chiefs’ Arrowhead Stadium when the news he had passed came…then, weirdly, it came out that maybe he wasn’t dead, that he was fighting. I could hear Petty’s music all over the parking lot. Perhaps there was hope… Alas, it was false hope. I just can’t believe Tom Petty is gone…. too soon, too soon. He was only 66. I just saw him on the 40th Anniversary Tour in June… (Concert Review: Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Kansas City, 6/2/2107)

Tom Petty was one of only a handful of artists I can say have written the soundtrack to my life. I own every album, box set, live box set, literally everything that Petty ever put out. His music is a constant in my life, like the North Star. Petty always said that the reason the Heartbreakers weren’t “bigger” was because they were always so consistent. I would argue with Tom a little on that point… I think Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers were spectacular. My heart goes out to his family, his band and all of my fellow Petty fans out there. Its going to be a tough few days…this one is gonna leave a mark. In his honor, I will be shuffling his entire catalog…which might take a while…

It was awful to lose David Bowie a couple of Januarys ago, but Bowie was always so “otherworldly” that he seemed distant. Tom Petty felt like a friend… someone you could sit next to at a bar. He wrote about things that everybody understood: love, loss, driving real fast and of course the South. While he was a part of the 70s southern-California music scene that included the Eagles and Fleetwood Mac, Petty and his Heartbreakers always remained firmly rooted in the Florida south they grew up in… and lets face it, they also rocked a lot harder.

So many memories…. so many. I will share but of a few of my own memories…I know all of us have similar memories of the man and his music.

I can still remember being in Junior High School and buying my first Petty LP, ‘Damn The Torpedoes,’ his first masterpiece. I would just stare at his picture, above, on the inner sleeve and wonder, where did this cool, long-blonde-hair guy, smoking a cigarette come from? I’ve always loved that picture. I figured he was the coolest person in the world… “Don’t Do Me Like That,” and “Refugee” were the big hits, but as a skinny kid with acne, “Even The Losers” was the tune that felt like it was my anthem. KY/102 used to have this bootleg of “Breakdown” that sounded like it was recorded in a bar, not even a club, a bar… that was for me the definitive version of that song. I’d do anything to get a copy of that, I’ve never been able to find it. After ‘Damn The Torpedoes’ and hearing that version of “Breakdown” I bought his first two, fantastic albeit overlooked LPs, ‘Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers,’ and ‘You’re Gonna Get It’ and I’ve been buying his albums on the day they came out ever since.

‘Hard Promises’ was his second masterpiece and was the album he was going to name ‘$8.98′ after his dumb ass record company threatened to charge $9.98 for “premium” artists’ albums. He always fought for his fans… I can remember breaking up with my high school girlfriend when I went to college to the strains of “You Got Lucky” and “Change of Heart,” songs which still evoke those memories (I was the one who was lucky, and it was her that had the change of heart). His music has literally been that much a part of my life. It was during those college years, that I finally got to see Petty and the Heartbreaks live, on the “Pack Up The Plantation Tour” in support of ‘Southern Accents,’ which is a flawed but still essential Petty record and one of my favorites… “Rebels” and “Dogs On The Run” are always in high rotation here at B&V. That was the beginning of a lifelong series of Tom Petty concerts for me… I even got to see Tom and the Heartbreakers backing up Bob Dylan at Sandstone Amphitheater… I thought the solo Petty/Heartbreaks portions of the show were the best parts.

I was living in exile, in Arkansas, when ‘Full Moon Fever’ came out, Petty’s first “solo” album. I hated living there and I hated my very challenging job… every morning I’d put on “I Won’t Back Down” and that song gave me the strength to get in my car and drive to work each day. By the time Petty was touring for that LP, I’d moved back to KC (I guess I did “back down” after all). My friend Stormin’ and I weren’t going to go to the show, we were both broke, but our friends who had tickets convinced us to go down to Kemper and scalp tickets. Some guy sold us 10th row tickets for below face value. Our seats were better than our pals… The show was amazing, but up in the top deck, in a hallway in the roped off section of the arena behind the stage, a couple in silhouette danced to the music…. they were better stage props than even the wooden Indian and those two seared the memory of that show into my mind.

“Wildflowers” was such a masterpiece, it remains in high rotation for the Rock Chick and I to this day. “You Wreck Me” is such a great rock song. I was thrilled that at the 40th Anniversary show in June, he played a small, acoustic set from that record. There’s not a bad moment on there… They should hand that LP out at every music appreciation class on every college campus out there.

After ‘Wildflowers’ one could say that Petty’s star started to fade a bit. There were still sold-out concert tours, but radio had changed and classic rock guys weren’t getting played on the radio any more. I always loved the dark, rocking album, ‘Echo,’ but it didn’t do as well as ‘Wildflowers’ and Petty reacted with the angry, ‘Last DJ,’ an album I still own… there are some good tracks on that record, like all of his records…”Dreamville” and “Like a Diamond” are great songs… That’s just it, even on his rare weaker moments, there were always great songs on those records.

Petty’s last three records, ‘Highway Companion,’ ‘Mojo,’ and ‘Hypnotic Eye’ rank up there amongst his best work. Alas, without the broad radio airplay that artists used to enjoy in the old days, I’m not sure those albums ever got the exposure they so richly deserve. When you take those records and add in the two albums he did with his superb “side-project” Mudcrutch, his latter body of work is incredible. I urge everyone to check those albums out, they’re essential Petty listening. That late career hot streak is one of many, many reasons Petty’s untimely, early demise is such a tragedy. The man had so much more music in him.

I know this post has meandered a bit and that I’ve indulged in my own personal memories and experience with the man and his music. I remain devastated. I will cherish the memory of the many of his concerts I saw over the years. I’m so glad my friend Stormin’ helped me get tickets to his final KC show this June… I fear I might have missed it if he hadn’t reached out. I wish I’d taken my daughter to see him when I had the chance… like my friend Stormin’ did for his daughter, I turned mine onto Petty early on… These rock stars who come through town, I’m telling ya, buy the ticket, they might not come back… especially these days. We all share his wonderful body of work which will live on for generations… But make no mistake, the world is a dimmer place today without Tom Petty than it was yesterday.

It’s a long, dark ride. Take care of yourselves and those you love…

“I’m gonna free fall, out into nothing, gonna leave this world for a while…” I miss the man already….