Blues

Review: Black Keys Return With Party Anthem “Beautiful People (Stay High)” Co Written With Beck, Oh, Yes!

~ kcorsini ~ 8 Comments

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Now that the holidays have passed and we’re in that grey, horrible grip of winter signalling the slow slog that is January (and February, for that matter), I found myself succumbing to SAD – seasonal affect disorder. If you’re a fellow suffer, you’re not alone… reach out if you need help. I was beginning to wonder how I was going to survive all of these sub zero temps and frigid arctic air…then this morning we had an ice storm…Yay! The answer for me, at least in 2024, in terms of getting through this time of year has been a plethora of new rock n roll!! Music is always the answer. Accompanying the snow flurries that many of us have suffered has been a flurry of new music! We’ve had new songs – and better yet, the songs herald new LPs on the way – from the Black Crowes (“Wanting And Waiting”) and Liam Gallagher/John Squire (“Just Another Rainbow”) to name but a few.

Around the same time I discovered that first new Crowes song in 15 years, I stumbled upon a new song from the Black Keys, “Beautiful People (Stay High).” B&V hasn’t been around that long and this new album Ohio Players will be the 4th album from these guys in that short time span. They’re so old school they’re cranking consistently kick ass music out almost every year! We’ve had Let’s Rock (2019), their blues covers LP Delta Kream (2021), and the great Dropout Boogie (2022). That’s not counting a solo Dan Auerbach LP, Waiting On A Song. They’re describing the upcoming Ohio Players as their “party record” and I don’t know about you, I’m ready for a good party. If “Beautiful People (Stay High)” is any indication, this feels like it’s going to be a pretty wild party indeed!

Ohio Players – I love that name, as I loved the soul band from the 70s, the Ohio Players… their LP covers got me through puberty – will see the Black Keys (Dan Auerbach, guitar/vocals; Pat Carney, drums) coming full circle. They collaborated on the upcoming disc with Beck, the man who took them out on tour as opening act early in the Keys career. I read somewhere that Pat Carney, then but a young man, got backstage at a Beck concert and actually got to meet Beck, his first celebrity “brush with fame.” The Keys had been talking about collaborating with Beck for 20 years and they finally made it happen. I’ve been leaning into Beck’s more acoustic stuff of late, like his song from last year, “Thinking About You,” but I’ve always dug his upbeat stuff like Odelay. He certainly brings his upbeat side to “Beautiful People (Stay High).” It’s one of two songs the Black Keys and Beck wrote together. I don’t know if Beck was involved in the production or not… I would suspect so.

The track starts off with a choppy, Beck-ish beat complete with handclaps and funky guitar… several funky guitars. It sounds like Beck sings the opening line, “All those beautiful people say, Hey, all those beautiful people stay high.” Beck’s voice falls away and then Auerbach sings the verses. The track has a big “Na na na, never comin’ back down,” in the chorus that I’m guessing will soon be sung by everyone in the arena. I’m not known for my prowess on the dance floor (I’m a wallflower), but if this track doesn’t get you up and moving around, you might require the services of a medical professional. There are horns and back up singers and about everything else you can imagine. This is a big noisy, slinky rock n roll song. Here’s the video.

The lyric, “Hard as it’s been to begin once again, Just a friend on the wind seekin’ shelter, There’s a crack in the sky and a light from on high, I get higher and higher when I’m with her,” may just be how I felt when I first met my wife. This is the sound of a man coming out of the darkness and back into the light. I could imagine John Travolta and Uma Thurman from Pulp Fiction getting down on the dancefloor to this song. Although the influence of Beck is stamped on this song, I still get the underpinnings of that blues rock vibe that the Keys specialize in.

For my money, the Black Keys are one of the best bands around these days. They still play that great ol’ blues based rock n roll. They are just consistently great. I love that they’re expanding their sound pallet and bringing some funky Beck influenced groove to the party.

Stay warm, stay safe, it’s awful wintertime but we’re almost through January. There’s more new music popping out this January than I’ve ever seen… even I’m having trouble keeping up, but I sure like trying to!

Cheers!

Review: The Black Crowes Return To Classic Sound With New Song “Wanting And Waiting”

~ kcorsini ~ 4 Comments

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It’s no secret that I’ve been a huge fan of the Black Crowes since I first heard “Jealous Again” while I was driving around in my car in 1990. Granted, it wasn’t until I heard “Hard To Handle” that I drove to the record store and bought their landmark debut Shake Your Money Maker, but man am I glad I did. We shared our thoughts on that great debut album’s 30th Anniversary box previously. The Black Crowes were our new Stones for the 90s, or so we thought. They stood out to me because they played solid blues rock – very Faces, Humble Pie, Stonesy – in a world full of Grunge. In a universe of flannel shirts, they had leather pants on.

But alas, as I wrote in my piece The Mark of Cain: When Brothers Form Bands, when siblings form bands it can sometimes lead to some explosive chemistry. The Brothers Robinson were no exception to that sad rule… Much like the Brothers Gallagher in Oasis, their battles were legendary. (Liam does have a great new song out right now by the way, with ex-Stone Roses’ guitarist John Squire, “Just Another Rainbow”). The Crowes broke up shortly after putting out 2001’s Lions but reunited in 2008 and put out a couple of strong late career records but the reunion didn’t “hold.” Frankly, I thought that was it for the Black Crowes.

But then, in late 2019 (I believe, my timeline for what happened pre and post COVID is a bit off) I read in a magazine that the brothers had tried to rebuild their relationship as brothers, as human beings. If they could do that they might consider a band reunion. Thankfully for the Robinson Family Thanksgivings, the two managed to sort out their personal relationship. They were going to tour in 2020 to celebrate the aforementioned Shake Your Money Maker‘s 30th Anniversary but, pandemic. There were signs of life for the band, however. Late in ’20 they released “Back Door Santa,” a Xmas song even I can get behind and I don’t love Xmas songs. In ’21 we got the box for Shake Your Money Maker and there were some great outtakes and a live concert that everyone should hear. In ’22 they released a great EP of cover songs from ‘72 entitled, creatively 1972. It was clear the reunion was holding but they were taking only tentative steps toward new music.

After celebrating their fabulous second album last fall with a deluxe box, Southern Harmony & Musical Companion – Super Deluxe, the rumors began that new Crowes music was on the way. Last Friday we finally got some new Black Crowes when they released their first new song in 15 years. The new track is “Wanting And Waiting,” which describes my feelings about new Crowes music… I’ve been wanting it but man I have been waiting a long time. It turns out, it was worth the wait!

As far as personnel on this song/album, I know that Chris Robinson (vocals), Rich Robinson (guitar) and former Crowes member Sven Pippien (bass) play on the song. Sven is apparently the only past member invited to the reunited version of the band. I assume that the folks who played on 1972 played on this record, but with the mercurial Robinsons, who knows: Isaiah Mitchell (guitars), Joel Robinow (keyboards), and Brian Griffin (drums). Of course, Rich could be playing all the guitar parts. I’ve scoured the internet but couldn’t come up with any answers…

“Wanting And Waiting” starts off with a grinding, galloping guitar. When the organ kicks in the song just soars. I have to admit when I first heard it it had echos of “Jealous Again,” in a good way. Chris Robinson is in his usual fine vocal form. I love the big chorus. This isn’t a sad song about waiting for a lover… it’s more of an energetic expression of one man’s frustration. Who likes waiting anyway? I may have to put this track on my Waiting Playlist. “I’m nothing but lonely, waiting and wanting, wanting and waiting for you…” I think we’ve all been there. This track even has some backup vocalists ala Southern Harmony’s best tracks. I just love this song. What a great way to reintroduce themselves. Here’s the track:

Turn this one up loud! There are several new songs that have come out of late, including the Liam Gallagher/John Squire track I mentioned earlier but “Wanting And Waiting” is my favorite of the bunch. Who among us couldn’t use a little more blues rock in our lives these days.

Cheers and stay warm out there… I don’t remember I saw the sun…

Playlist: We Kick Off 2024, As Usual, Looking Back 50 Years to… 1974

~ kcorsini ~ 7 Comments

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Let me start off on this, my first post of 2024, by saying a belated Happy New Year. Man, 2024… it’s a year that would have sounded like something out of science fiction when I was a kid. As usual it was a lovely Xmas followed by the Rock Chick’s immediate dismantling of all things Holiday around the house. I haven’t seen trees come down that fast outside of oil companies decimating the Amazon in a long time…well, actually when I think about it, since last year, I suppose. The Rock Chick is ruthlessly efficient. New Year’s Eve has never been my thing… this year, after a lovely dinner with close friends, I was in bed and asleep before midnight which rarely happens. I hope your celebrations were all festive and safe. I am a little bummed I didn’t stay awake long enough to hear the gun fire that usually rings in the New Year… oh well, maybe next year.

After the family left and the Rock Chick dismantled the decorations, I was left in that gray space between Xmas and New Years. Work was slow and I was off a number of days. As usual it was a time for leftovers, whiskey and rumination. Many people spend that time, when one year is winding down and another about to begin, looking forward and making resolutions like quitting coffee, joining a gym or taking up walking, or “to be more positive.” I gave up coffee for exactly one day. And I will never be tricked into that whole “Dry January” thing again. I’m actually one of those people who spend the last part of any given year looking backwards. Other than rock n roll, ruminating about the past is my only other hobby.

For the last several years, inspired by a post/playlist I did on the landmark year in rock n roll, 1971, I have started off every year with a playlist that looks back 50 years. Well, I didn’t start off 2022 with my 1972 playlist, but it was posted in January. It wasn’t until last year, 2023, that I decided it was a prime opportunity to start a new year by looking back 50 years, in that case to 1973. Now that my first post in two successive years has been a playlist looking back half a century, can we call it a B&V tradition? I probably need to wait a few more years of doing this before I lay that moniker on this thing. I’ve always been a bit of a musical historian and I’ve really enjoyed looking back in time for the sounds of the 70s over the last few years and this year I’ve turned my focus to 1974.

I’ll be the first to admit for the years 1971 to 1973, I don’t have a lot of recollection of the music or really anything else from those years. I was, as Tom Petty said and I’m fond of repeating, “a boy in short pants.” But I have to admit as I researched this music there was much that came back to me from 1974. I was becoming a little older, although still a kid, and more aware of the world. That was the year two families – the McKenna’s and the Peters (both names changed to protect the innocent) moved into the neighborhood. They were both families with three kids (all boys) and they were all sports obsessed. They were always outside throwing some kind of ball around. Even though prior I’d been a bit of a “stays inside all day” introvert, suddenly I found myself being pulled into the world by these loud raucous sets of brothers. I remember we were all lumped into a “team room” at school that year which meant we had two teachers instead of one. It was a combination of two full classes. I remember Mrs. Frye being somewhat of a thug… clearly she’d been a prison guard in a former life. I also remember being forced to wear polyester leisure suits at family gatherings for holidays… nobody light a match my jacket and huge collar might catch on fire. I remember all of society having an Almost Famous vibe.

It was a heavy time. Watergate finally overcame criminal thug Richard Nixon. He became the first American President to resign the office late that summer. OPEC, which had begun an Oil Embargo against the U.S. in 1973, still held a firm grip on the daily news. But the news item I seem to remember most was the story of heiress Patty Hearst who was kidnapped by the Symbionese Liberation Army a group of very aggressive far-left terrorists. Pretty soon, she started showing up at bank robberies toting a machine gun. It was like seeing Paris Hilton rob a convenience store. Had she joined the SLA? Was it Stockholm Syndrome? Who can say? Because she was descended from the Hearst media family, believe me it was in the news a lot. There were so many great movies that year: Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein featuring the brilliance of Mel Brooks and Gene Wilder. The Godfather 2, The Towering Inferno and The Longest Yard (featuring Burt Reynolds!) were all movies I’d have to wait till I was older to see. At least I had prime Kojak in season 2(!) to keep me entertained… best cop show ever.

Beyond Kojak, we also had the music. I can remember hearing some of these songs on the radio of my mom’s car and naturally at the pool in the summer over the giant loud speaker. They put a microphone in front of a transistor radio and that was the “stereo” down at the neighborhood pool, but it was better than nothing. Perhaps because of the heaviness of the times, it was year that saw a bit of nostalgia for the 60s. The hippies had left the communes, cut their hair and gone to work at insurance companies. It’s understandable that they showed up in droves to see Bob Dylan reunite with the Band or CSNY back together again at the local baseball stadium. And who can forget California Jam in April that year. Deep Purple and Emerson, Lake & Palmer headlined… not surprised by Deep Purple, but ELP? Even typing that name makes me feel 1974. Sabbath was there and in the early days of MTV they had all these videos filmed at Cal Jam, rocking hard in front of that big rainbow behind the stage. Ah, what a time.

I have to say, as I assembled the many songs I chose for this playlist, I realized that mellow music had really started to take over the mainstream. It didn’t help that a number of harder rocking bands didn’t put out albums in ’74: Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, the aforementioned Black Sabbath and Paul McCartney & Wings all sat out that year. The general mellowness, highlighted by a lot of piano and acoustic guitar was almost as if the rock establishment was inviting the Punk movement to spring up. Don’t get me wrong there was still some great, harder rock – Deep Purple, Aerosmith, Queen and Montrose all show up. Great debuts from Bad Company, Kiss, Rush and solo debuts from Ronnie Wood and Robert Palmer. Reading the artists on this list is like a who’s who of 1974: Eagles, Steely Dan, Joe Walsh, Doobies, Ronstadt, the Dead, Bonnie Raitt, Elton. There was also some great soul from Smokey, Aretha, Parliament, Sly Stone, and Al Green. It makes for a pretty good blend. At least, I hope you like it.

As usual with our playlists, I always recommend turning on the “shuffle” or “random,” whichever you like to call the twisty arrow thing. Or you can always listen in order, whatever your vibe dictates. I base these lists on the release date of albums – we’re all about the “long players” here at B&V – and I choose only 1 song per album. I have listed the songs below by Artist, Album Title, “Song Title.” They came to me rather organically so we swing from soul to metal to mellow. If there’s a song that pops up you don’t like, skip it. Or, better yet, if there’s a song I didn’t put on here from an album from 1974, please recommend it in the “Comments” section and I might add it. Here’s the playlist, with my musings on each track below.

  1. Big Star, Radio City, “September Gurls” – A classic, classic song that was virtually ignored in 1974. It’s criminal that more people didn’t discover this band back in the 70s. Although admittedly, I only discovered Big Star through the Cinemax series Quarry.
  2. Joe Walsh, So What, “Turn To Stone” – From the solo album Joe released right before joining the Eagles. If you listen you can hear Henley and Frey warbling in the background. One of the greatest riffs ever… and yes, this was the second time Joe recorded the song.
  3. Grand Funk Railroad, All The Girls In The World, Beware!, “Some Kind Of Wonderful” – While I’ll admit to always getting Grand Funk, Bachman Turner Overdrive and the Guess Who mixed up… I always dug this song. It makes me wanna clap my hands over my head…maybe hold a lighter up in the air. And yes, this sums up my thoughts on the Rock Chick pretty well.
  4. The Doobie Brothers, What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits, “Eyes Of Silver” – I could have picked a number of songs from this album, including “Black Water” which is on my Playlist of Favorite Country Rock Songs, but I’ve always dug this track.
  5. Steely Dan, Pretzel Logic, “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number” – Monster hit from the third Steely Dan LP, which heralded the end of their touring days.
  6. Bobby Womack, Lookin’ For A Love, “Lookin’ For A Love” – Classic soul track originally done by the Valentino’s. Bobby’s version may be definitive, but I really dig the J. Geils Band version.
  7. Bob Dylan (& the Band), Planet Waves, “Forever Young” – Dylan reunited with the Band to record this classic album which I believe is the only studio album the (entire) Band played on with Dylan. Although, I could be wrong about that. Classic track covered by many including Joan Baez and Rod Stewart.
  8. Graham Nash, Wild Tales, “And So It Goes” – I may need to reevaluate Wild Tales for inclusion on my list of Best CSNY Solo/Duo Albums. I listened to this again and it really sounded great. Clearly further study is needed. Neil Young plays piano on this song and it totally has his vibe all over it.
  9. Gram Parsons, Grievous Angel, “Love Hurts” – Nazareth actually might have the more famous cover of this song but I’ve always been partial to this version from Gram’s posthumous release Grievous Angel, probably because he’s singing with Emmylou Harris. Although Roy Orbison’s version is pretty damn good too.
  10. Linda Rondstadt, Different Drum, “I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight” – I love Linda Rondstadt, but I especially love when she covers great stuff written by Dylan, Jackson Browne, Warren Zevon or Lowell George. This is an exceptional Dylan cover that may belong on my Playlist of Favorite Dylan Covers… She really puts the country swing into it.
  11. Gordon Lightfoot, Sundown, “Sundown” – Sadly, we lost Gordon last year. Great track from an oft overlooked artist. I heard them use it on the James Spader show The Blacklist a few years ago and immediately put it in high rotation here at the B&V labs.
  12. Dolly Parton, Jolene, “Jolene” – With Dolly newly inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame, I felt I had the right to include this classic… I also like the covers by the White Stripes and Miley Cyrus (yes, Miley Cyrus, what a voice).
  13. Deep Purple, Burn, “Burn” – Along with Sabbath and Zeppelin, Deep Purple were considered one of the Three Horsemen Of the Heavy Metal Apocalypse. I still hear elements of prog in this song…but maybe that’s just me.
  14. Kiss, Kiss, “Cold Gin” – From Kiss’ debut. I’m not huge into Kiss but a song about drinking gin had to make it on a B&V playlist. It was on one of my first Playlists, about Drinking.
  15. Aretha Franklin, Let Me In Your Life, “Until You Come Back To Me (That’s What I’m Gonna Do)” – Perhaps not one of her iconic classics, but not a bad track from the Queen of Soul.
  16. Jimmy Buffett, Living In 3 / 4 Time, “Come Monday” – Alas, we lost Jimmy Buffett just a few months ago. I’m not a huge fan but I love what he did for the environment (Save A Manatee Club, https://savethemanatee.org/).
  17. Johnny Winter, Saints And Sinners, “Stray Cat Blues” – Great, great Stones’ cover. Johnny was the real deal… on a song about a young girl that is likely not cool.
  18. Queen, Queen II, “Seven Seas Of Rhye” – Epic, hard rock from Queen. Great riff but that Freddie Mercury galloping piano always grabs my ear too.
  19. Aerosmith, Get Your Wings, “Train Kept A’Rollin'” – Aerosmith covering the Yardbirds. Oh, yes. A track we put on our Playlist: Favorite Train Songs.
  20. Rush, Rush, “Working Man” – From Rush’s debut album. I included this one on my Labor Day Playlist… for the working stiff in all of us. Their first truly epic song.
  21. Elvis Presley, Good Times, “I’ve Got A Thing About You Baby” – The King, near the end, rattles off this track that was a hit on the country charts. Alas we only had three more years until we lost the King.
  22. Smokey Robinson, Pure Smokey, “Virgin Man” – I dig Smokey, but uh, I have to admit this song completely baffles me. Even when I was a virgin, no one thought I was… Great vocal.
  23. Eagles, On The Border, “Already Gone” – A song I loved to listen to whenever I went through a breakup… “I will sing this victory song…”
  24. Peter Frampton, Somethin’s Happening, “Doobie Wah” – Funky rock song about the joys of smoking pot. I’m more of a whiskey man myself, but to each their own.
  25. Dr. John, Desitively Bonnaroo, “Mos’ Scocious” – I just love a little New Orleans flavor on a playlist. Reminds of a trip to the Big Easy where a couple of friends of mine thought the cab driver was a Russian spy… the Cold War was well over? That’s why everyone should avoid Jagermeister.
  26. Lynyrd Skynyrd, Second Helping, “Sweet Home Alabama” – Lynyrd Skynyrd’s angry response to Neil Young’s songs “Southern Man” and “Alabama.” Neil responded by writing “Powderfinger” and offering it to them. They declined but the friendship was on.
  27. J.J. Cale, Okie, “I Got The Same Old Blues” – J.J. Cale was such a great songwriter. I love the gravel in his voice here. And yes, this was another track Clapton covered. I get the feeling Clapton just followed Cale around singing what he sang in the 70s.
  28. Richard & Linda Thompson, I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight, “When I Get To The Border” – The lead off track from the couple’s landmark album.
  29. The Kinks, Preservation Act 2, “Money Talks” – A track that should have been on my Songs About Money Playlist. I may have added it…
  30. David Bowie, Diamond Dogs, “Rebel Rebel” – Great riff, great song. We truly miss Bowie. Almost Stonesy.
  31. New York Dolls, Too Much Too Soon, “Stranded In The Jungle” – I love this song, but I know more than one person is going to reach out and say, “WTF is this?” The Dolls were sowing the seeds of punk rock that would spring up and shake rock’s foundation in only a few years.
  32. Bad Company, Bad Company, “Can’t Get Enough” – From the ashes of Free sprang Bad Co… One of my favorite tracks from their debut. What a riff. And who can get enough?
  33. Billy Preston, The Kids & Me, “Nothing From Nothing” – Classic song, one might also think of it as a standard. Billy had played with the Beatles (on Let It Be) and the Stones. The ultimate keyboard sideman!
  34. Rufus (Chaka Khan), Rags To Rufus, “Tell Me Something Good” – I just saw Chaka inducted into the Rock Hall. It immediately had me singing this track.
  35. Grateful Dead, From The Mars Hotel, “U.S. Blues” – Great track from the Dead. Also on my July 4th Playlist.
  36. Elton John, Caribou, “The Bitch Is Back” – I believe Elton may be referring to himself as the titular character.
  37. James Brown, Hell, “My Thang” – The real funk. Amazing track.
  38. James Taylor, Walking Man, “Walking Man” – Great song from a weak album.
  39. Jerry Garcia, Garcia (Compliments), “Let It Rock” – Jerry goes solo and covers Chuck Berry in a way that only he could do. I love this version of the oft covered track.
  40. Parliament, Up For The Down Stroke, “Up For The Down Stroke” – My younger brother had a Parliament/Funkadelic album in his crate. George Clinton is a genius. I’m not sure I can comment further on this title as there’s nothing I can say that won’t sound vulgar.
  41. Stevie Wonder, Fullfillingness First Finale, “Boogie On Reggae Woman” – “I’d like to see you in the raw, under the stars above.” This song only contributed to my confusion over what the term “reggae” meant. I didn’t realize it was a genre of music…I thought it might be an aphrodisiac like Spanish Fly and I was too afraid to ask my parents. But if it made this woman dance naked, outside no less, I figured it must be powerful stuff. Turns out I was right…
  42. Eric Clapton, 461 Ocean Blvd, “I Shot The Sheriff” – Speaking of reggae, Clapton doing the classic Bob Marley track. I think Clapton inadvertently (along with the Stones) helped break reggae to a broader audience.
  43. Sly & The Family Stone, Small Talk, “Time For Livin'” – Sly’s prime was behind him but what a great song. “Time for livin’, time for givin’…” Who couldn’t use more time for that.
  44. Barry White, Can’t Get Enough, “Can’t Get Enough Of Your Love, Babe” – I dated a girl over on the East side of town who once called Barry, “the Walrus of Love.” Ouch. Anyway, this is one of the greatest tracks of all time. Put it on next Valentine’s Day and see for yourself…
  45. Little Feat, Feats Don’t Fail Me Now, “Rock N Roll Doctor” – I could ride Lowell George’s slide guitar on this song all the way home.
  46. Harry Nilsson, Pussy Cats, “Many Rivers To Cross” – John Lennon produced this album and this Jimmy Cliff cover sounds so mid-70s-Lennon to me. It’s a shame Harry blew out his vocal chords during a wasted, late night studio jam with Lennon where McCartney and Stevie Wonder dropped by… A missed opportunity by the two drinking buddies.
  47. Leonard Cohen, New Skin For The Old Ceremony, “Chelsea Hotel #2” – A track he wrote about Janis Joplin. He always said he regretted letting people know that it was about Joplin and listening to the lyrics it’s easy to understand why he’d feel bad. Kind of a dick move, Leonard. Great track but I get a mean-spirited vibe around the edges. I do love the line, “You told me again you prefer handsome men but for me you’d make an exception…” Sounds like something the Rock Chick would say to me…
  48. Bachman-Turner Overdrive, Not Fragile, “Roll On Down The Highway” – If I ever do a Highway Playlist, this track will be on it. I like the Donnas cover as well.
  49. Tina Turner, Tina Turns The Country On!, “He Belongs To Me” – Sadly we just lost Tina, and I had to include her doing this Dylan cover to honor her memory. I always liked her earlier stuff but Tina doing Dylan on a country covers album… I’m intrigued.
  50. Judas Priest, Rocka Rolla, “Rocka Rolla” – Early, fierce metal from Judas Priest.
  51. Ronnie Wood, I’ve Got My Own Album To Do, “I Can Feel The Fire” – The title of this album was a jab at his Faces bandmate Rod Stewart who was fond of saying that to the Faces when he didn’t wanna work on their music. Ronnie wrote this and “It’s Only Rock N Roll” with Mick Jagger during an evening of jamming. Mick talked him into giving him “It’s Only…” and he’d give Ronnie this song. You can hear Mick singing the co-lead/harmony vocal as a thank you.
  52. Fleetwood Mac, Heroes Are Hard To Find, “Heroes Are Hard To Find” – I feel like I’ve said this a lot on this playlist, but having lost the wonderful Christine McVie only a year and a half ago, I had to include this great song from her.
  53. Randy Newman, Rednecks, “Lousiana 1927” – Randy Newman is Mark Twain with a piano. I considered the title track, but there is something so stately about this song…maybe it’s the strings. I used this on my Virtual Vacation: 50 Songs For 50 States playlist.
  54. Jackson Browne, Late For The Sky, “Late For The Sky” – Title track from his best album… a true masterpiece.
  55. J. Geils Band, Nightmares…And Other Tales From The Vinyl Jungle, “Must Of Got Lost” – This is, hands down, my favorite J Geils Band song.
  56. Electric Light Orchestra, Eldorado, “I Can’t Get It Out Of My Head” – Great ballad from a band that I’ve always thought was derivative of the Beatles… but my friend Doug loves them… so here it is.
  57. Joe Cocker, I Can Stand A Little Rain, “You Are So Beautiful” – Joe Cocker singing a song I wish I’d written for the Rock Chick. Stripped down to voice, piano and strings, man what a song.
  58. Gene Clark, No Other, “No Other” – Title track from a masterpiece album. What a vibe. If this record couldn’t break Gene Clark commercially, nothing was going to do it. I wish it had.
  59. Lou Reed, Sally Can’t Dance, “Sally Can’t Dance” – From Lou’s follow up to Berlin, one of the grimmest records of all time. Surprisingly, this remains Reed’s highest charting album in the U.S.
  60. Robert Palmer, Sneakin’ Sally Through The Alley, “Sneakin’ Sally Through The Alley” – Palmer’s solo debut album is one of my favorites from him. When he sings on this song, “Trying to double talk, get myself in trouble talk, catching myself in lies…” I can’t help but smile. We’ve all been in that jam, baby.
  61. Bonnie Raitt, Streetlights, “Angel From Montgomery” – Raitt’s version of this John Prine song may be definitive? Maybe I’m just fond of this one…
  62. Traffic, When The Eagle Flies, “Walking In The Wind” – This is a touch on the obscure side, but what a great song. I can’t believe I never heard this song on the radio… well, at least in KC.
  63. The Who, Odds & Sods, “Long Live Rock” – This epic song was recorded in ’72 but wasn’t released until 1974 on the aptly titled vault release Odds & Sods. “We were the first band to vomit in the bar and find the distance to the stage too far,” pretty much sums up the Who ethos if you ask me.
  64. Rod Stewart, Smiler, “Mine For Me” – This album is always maligned and admittedly it’s not up to the standards of Rod’s previous 4 albums, but there are gems like this Paul McCartney written song to be found. I’ve always wondered if there is a McCartney version of this song but I’ve never found it.
  65. John Lennon, Walls And Bridges, “Scared” – The howling wolf that starts this track sets the tone. Being on Nixon’s “Enemies List” and facing deportation, he was indeed frightened…
  66. Montrose, Paper Money, “Connection” – Sammy Hagar’s first band. Always loved their take on this Stones track from Between The Buttons.
  67. Billy Joel, Streetlife Serenade, “Los Angelenos” – Great track about Los Angeles… Love the keyboards.
  68. Jethro Tull, War Child, “Bungle In The Jungle” – This song divides Tull fans but I always liked it.
  69. Tom Waits, The Heart Of Saturday Night, “(Looking For) The Heart Of Saturday Night” – Waits purportedly wrote this song for Frank Sinatra… It would have worked for Ol’ Blue Eyes, but I’m glad Tom kept it. The man knows how to set a mood.
  70. The Rolling Stones, It’s Only Rock N Roll, “It’s Only Rock N Roll” – I love this song and the album it comes from. And true, it may only be “rock n roll, but I like it.” Indeed I do.
  71. Supertramp, Crime Of The Century, “School” – A track we included on our Songs About School list. One of my favorite Supertramp songs.
  72. Bob Marley & The Wailers, Natty Dread, “Lively Up Yourself” – One of the all time great Marley songs. Sadly, it’s not on Legend, but if you dig into Bob’s catalog you’ll find a ton of gems like this song.
  73. Van Morrison, Veedon Fleece, “Streets Of Arklow” – An obscure little ballad that makes me feel like I’m in a small village in Ireland. I can almost feel the cobblestones under my feet and the sea breeze in my hair…ghosts of Vikings trailing me… Also later beautifully done by Van and Mick Hucknall as a duet.
  74. Al Green, Explores Your Mind, “Take Me To The River” – Al’s original version… later covered by the Talking Heads. I love Al, but the Heads might own this song for me. Don’t get me wrong, this original version is absolutely great.
  75. Thin Lizzy, Nightlife, “Still In Love With You” – Great ballad where you can feel the anguish in Phil Lynott’s voice. Searing guitar solo.
  76. Queen, Sheer Heart Attack, “Killer Queen” – Queen with their second album of the year. The monster hit still stands up well today.
  77. Ringo Starr, Goodnight Vienna, “No-No Song” – I love Ringo, but have never been a huge fan of his music. This song always made me laugh… it’s almost a novelty song. But it’s Ringo, so it’s groovy. Peace & Love.
  78. Sweet, Desolation Boulevard, “Fox On The Run” – Hard rocking guitars, a synth, a giant arena rock sound… What isn’t in this song.
  79. Ohio Players, Fire, “Fire” – People may forget how huge the Ohio Players were in the early to mid 70s. I remember… probably because of the album covers… I was impressionable. This song is an absolute classic.
  80. Linda Rondstadt, Heart Like A Wheel, “Willin'” – Our second entry from Ms. Rondstadt. I love when she sings Little Feat songs! Hearing the lyric “And if you give me weed, whites, and wine
    And you show me a sign I’ll be willin’… to be movin’…” in Linda’s voice just hits me different, in a good way.
  81. George Harrison, Dark Horse, “Far East Man” – Harrison voice, much like Harry Nilsson’s on song #46 on this list, was fried. He should have delayed his tour and recorded when his voice was back in shape. I’ve always liked this track which was also recorded by Ronnie Wood who co wrote it.
  82. Jimmy Buffett, A-1-A, “A Pirate Looks At Forty” – The perfect track to end our look at 1974 with. A party guy starts to look at 40 and wonder if changes might be in order…

That’s it folks. I know this one was a really long post, but I’ve been sitting around since Xmas listening to 1974’s music and thinking about this for a long time. Other than Guns N Roses new track, “The General,” that’s all I’ve been doing… I might have had a little pent up writing in the ol’ chamber. I hope y’all enjoy this as much as I did putting it together. Again, if there are any great tunes from ’74 I missed, let me know in the comments.

Again, Happy New Year! I think we’ve got some great stuff coming out this year and am really looking forward to another year here at B&V! Cheers!

B&V’s Best of 2023: Our Favorite New LPs & Vault/Reissues/Live Releases

~ kcorsini ~ 3 Comments

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I can’t believe the Earth has made another journey around the sun and it’s already December and time for our annual, year-end, “Best Of” lists. It seems just like yesterday I was sitting around the B&V labs, dreading January – which thankfully wasn’t dry this year – researching music from 1973 for a playlist. When I started this blog, as I stated in my Mission Statement, I intended to focus on older artists making new music. I was probably deluding myself as my focus was never going to be that narrow. I wasn’t thinking about all the great vault releases/reissues that come out every year. That’s the stuff the artist kept in the can over the years. And while I have to say, in 2023, there wasn’t a ton of new music from our classic rock heroes, what little there was released was of amazingly high quality.

I have started my year-end post a number of times with a quote from Don Henley, “It was a pretty good year for fashion, a lousy year for rock n’ roll.” I really can’t say that about 2023. I could never complain about the year that the Stones, after 18 years, finally decided to put out an album of original material. There was so much great stuff put out in the universe, including an amazing slate of concerts this year. It’s always nice to have a show to look forward to. My first show this year was Bush, a band I’d kinda given up on until their last LP came out, The Art Of Survival. Bush tore the roof of the joint and for bonus points, one of my favorite new bands, Starcrawler opened up. The Rock Chick talked me into seeing Springsteen again and man, am I happy she did. It was one of the best, if not the best concert I’ve ever seen from the E Street Band… of course I didn’t get to go to The River tour show in ’79…(bygones Brewster). I also traveled to Vegas to see U2 at the Sphere and Billy Idol two days later. Believe it or not, I saw ex Traffic guitarist Dave Mason on Martha’s Vineyard this summer… but that’s a long story. Closer to home I saw 311 and the Struts this year in small venues and both were fabulous. Guns N Roses at a local baseball park was pretty epic as well. I certainly did my part to support live music this year. Buy the ticket, see the show, people.

Of course, raucous evenings at live shows weren’t the only story of rock n roll in 2023. We lost a lot of great ones this year. In the span of about a week we lost Tony Bennett, Sinead O’Connor and ex-Eagle Randy Meisner. That was a tough stretch. We’d started off the year losing guitar virtuoso Jeff Beck and ex-Byrd, ex CSNY member David Crosby. Croz was in the midst of a great late career renaissance so that stung. It was also quite the gut punch to lose songwriter/guitarist Robbie Robertson from the Band. It started to feel like legends were dropping left and right. We also lost Jimmy Buffett and Tina Turner. I wasn’t a huge fan of those last two artists, but their influence and cultural impact can not be overstated. Man, tough year, indeed.

Some artists went old school and only released a stray single, like artists used to do in the 70s. Back then it was common for a band to issue a single and not put it on the next album. Of course we all still collected 45s back then. The Faces, McCartney, the Who and so many others used to do that. I guess everything old is new again and we had a handful of great non-album singles this year. Beck released the heartbreakingly beautiful “Thinking About You.” Lenny Kravitz is ready to sex you up on “TK421.” Guns N Roses continued their string of releasing Axl Rose’s old songs from the Chinese Democracy sessions as new material with the release of “Perhaps,” a track I actually really like. In a surreal collision of two worlds Al Green covered Lou Reed’s “Perfect Day,” a song I used to play for the Rock Chick and the daughter when they were collectively pissing me off… and Al’s version is sublime. Best of all, Paul McCartney went in and used some high tech to finish “Now And Then,” the Beatles’ final song. Oh my, how I love that song. It’s so easy to miss a great single when it comes out… check out each of these tracks, I think you’ll dig them.

Without further adieu, here are our favorites from 2023… If you haven’t checked these albums out, I urge you to do so while you’re trying to drowned out relatives over the next week or so… These lists are in no particular order and do not imply a stack ranking. The links to our original reviews are embedded.

Best New Albums 2023

  • Iggy Pop, Every Loser – Right out of the chute 2023 exploded with a rock n roll banger from Iggy. This album was produced by the white-hot Andrew Watt who will appear a couple times on this list. This is Iggy’s most Stooges sounding album in years.
  • Depeche Mode, Momento Mori – Depeche Mode’s (Dave Gahan, vocals; Martin Gore, guitar/keyboards/vocal) first album since the death of founding, longtime member Andy Fletcher. While he didn’t play on the record, Fletch’s presence is all over this dark, intense record. It’s a grower, it takes a few spins to get into it, but that doesn’t mean Momento Mori isn’t superb Depeche. “Ghosts Again,” for me, ranks amongst their best songs.
  • Metallica, 72 Seasons – Metallica do one thing but they do it very well. This hard ass metal album is one of their best. These guys are on the harder end of the B&V spectrum but they’re so genius it’s worth the hearing loss.
  • John Mellencamp, Orpheus Descending – The best album of protest music that you’re ever going to hear. “Hey God” is one of the best tracks Mellencamp has ever done. We’re not a political blog here, I’m a lover not a fighter, but this music is topical, rousing and just kick ass.
  • Queens Of The Stone Age, In Times New Roman… – After some almost funky LPs, Queens return to their harder, earlier sound. I really dug this record.
  • Greta Van Fleet, Starcatcher – After the somewhat tenuous second album, The Battle At the Garden Gate, GVF returned with a great third record. Never underestimate the “sophomore slump”… it’s hard to overcome but GVF are back on the right track. “Meeting The Master” is an epic tune that deserves to be cranked up to 11.
  • Pretenders, Relentless – Chrissie Hynde and the gang follow up the great Hate For Sale with another great album, Relentless. It’s nice to see these guys on a roll. “Let The Sun Come In” was my summer jam.
  • The Rolling Stones, Hackney Diamonds – I can’t believe it took 18 years for the Stones to follow up A Bigger Bang, but what a glorious way to return. With spectacular tunes like “Angry” and “Sweet Sounds Of Heaven,” this Andrew Watt-helmed album is a latter day Stones’ classic.
  • Peter Gabriel, i/o – Speaking of long waits between albums… Peter waited 21 years between records but this is another triumphant return. i/o is much like Momento Mori in that it’s a grower… you’ll need a few spins on this record before it clicks, but when it does, man what a great record. This is truly a work of genius.

Best Vault/Reissues/Live LPs of 2023

This is such a delightful mixed bag of box sets, live LPs, stuff from the vaults and even an EP… it was a delightful year for rock n roll.

  • Starcrawler, Acoustic Sessions EP – Starcrawler strip down several songs from their last LP, She Said, for a groovy 70s, country rock vibe. This band continues to impress me.
  • Pink Floyd, Dark Side of the Moon – 50th Anniversary – The Live At Wembley ’74 concert where they performed Dark Side in it’s entirety for one of the first times, finally sees official release after being bootlegged for… well, almost 50 years.
  • The White Stripes, Elephant – Deluxe Edition – The White Stripes’ classic album with a complete concert from that tour. Fabulous stuff. This was the first tour I saw these guys… ah, memories.
  • The Who, The Who With Orchestra: Live At Wembley – I just loved this combination – The Who with a big orchestra – and with so many live records already out there, what a nice twist. This album boasted some surprisingly powerful performances.
  • Stephen Stills, Live At Berkeley ’71 – A wonderful snapshot of Stills at the peak of his powers. A nice cameo from David Crosby for a few tracks. Great live album that I’m stunned he left in the vaults all these  years.
  • Bob Dylan, Shadow Kingdom – The great soundtrack from a Covid-era streaming thing he did. Even with no drummer these songs come off as urgent and fresh. Dylan did once say, when praising a drummer, “He’s almost as good as no drummer at all.” The man is constantly reinventing his music.
  • Neil Young, Chrome Dreams – The legendary, oft bootlegged, unreleased LP from ’77 finally sees official release. I also have to give Neil some honorable mention for releasing the additional four songs from Ragged Glory which were all epic tracks!
  • Talking Heads, Stop Making Sense (Deluxe Edition) – The legendary live album expanded to include all the songs from the movie on it’s 40th anniversary. One of the best live albums/movies ever.
  • Stevie Nicks, Complete Studio Albums & Rarities – The title is a little misleading… this isn’t the complete set of her “rarities” and unreleased stuff, but there are enough here to make this a very intriguing listen. It even includes her great cover of the Buffalo Springfield’s “For What It’s Worth.” Stevie has been so great for so long, check this box out.
  • Fleetwood Mac, Rumours Live – Speaking of Stevie Nicks, her erstwhile band Fleetwood Mac dug into the vaults and released a complete concert documenting the tour for their legendary 1977 album. This complete show from L.A.’s Forum is like traveling back in time.

There it is folks, our favorite list of new albums and our list of vault, live LPs, EPs and reissues with bonus material. Did we miss anything? If you’ve got an album or a single you think we should have mentioned, by all means share it with us in the comments. I’d love to hear your thoughts on 2023’s rock n roll.

I hope everybody has a happy and sane holiday season over the next week or so. Stay safe out there and don’t drive drunk. There’s no upside in that. Hopefully you’ll all wake up on Xmas morning – if you celebrate Xmas – and Santa will have put all your rock n roll wishes under your tree in nicely wrapped packages… When I wrap a package it looks like the cat wrapped them… oh well. My skills lie elsewhere. I am looking forward to 2024 with possible LPs from Lenny Kravitz, Social Distortion and Billy Idol. The Stones have announced they’re touring… don’t be surprised if I wander into a stadium or two on that one!

Cheers and Happy Holidays!

Review: Black Crowes ‘Southern Harmony & Musical Companion (Super Deluxe)’ – Revisiting Their Classic Second Album

~ kcorsini ~ 7 Comments

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The Black Crowes have just released a box set for their landmark second album – and how many second albums can we say that about, that it’s a classic? – Southern Harmony And Musical Companion. The box is modeled much the same way as the Shake Your Money Maker – 30th Anniversary box from a few years ago in that it’s a three disc box with the original album, a disc of outtakes and finally a concert disc from the “High As The Moon Tour” from 1992-1993. I still wonder why I didn’t include the Crowes and Southern Harmony on my list of bands who defied the “sophomore slump.” Maybe because their debut album was so strong? While I love this album and if you don’t own it this is a nice package, I do think the box is flawed. And at (currently) $97, it’s a bit pricey for a three disc set.

As I have stated before, I got on the Crowes band wagon in 1990, shortly after I’d returned from my corporate exile in Northwest Arkansas. I remember hearing “Jealous Again” in my car and that was all it took. I may have even heard this song when I still lived in Arkansas. However, I did wait until I heard their Otis Redding cover “Hard To Handle” before I headed down to the CD store in Westport to pick up the album. Man, am I glad I did. Blues rock had largely been supplanted in the 80s by Hair Metal. Those bands all wanted to look and sound like Van Halen – few did – and that wonderful connection to rock’s roots in the blues was severed. When the Crowes surfaced, they took me back to that classic Stones/Faces vibe that I sooo love. The Stones are my Alpha and Omega. In a world dominated at the time by Grunge, here was a band singing the blues and lamenting how they were “Seeing Things.” Oh, yes!

By May 12th in 1992 I was home in Kansas City and in that classic successful phase of life known as, “Moved back in with my parents.” So I can only guess that my first time hearing the first single “Remedy” had to be in the car. Mom didn’t appreciate high volume rock n roll the same way I did. She almost had a heart attack when I played some Sabbath at full volume… I didn’t know she was home…Anyway, at the time I remember reading in Rolling Stone magazine that the Crowes were putting out their second album. I was primed for some new Crowes but second albums can be difficult… the sophomore slump is real. As ready as I was for new Crowes in 1992, I was not emotionally prepared for the power of that first single, “Remedy.” God, what a song! It leaped from the speakers and grabbed me by the lapel and slapped my face. That riff was huge and heavy and wonderful. I steered the car immediately to the record store. I remember visiting a guy I knew in Dallas at the time and I couldn’t stop singing “Remedy.” I kept blowing the lyric, “Baby, baby why you dye your hair…” and I was singing, at the top of my lungs, “Baby, baby why you dry your hair…” Yes, there was drink involved. It’s hard to stay sober in Texas.

The first half of Southern Harmony is about as good as the Crowes ever got. And believe it’s sublime rock n roll, dripping with blues feel. The opener “Sting Me” did just that. That track led to “Remedy,” my favorite Crowe’s tune. But just when you’d been pummeled into submission, in a good way, here comes the acoustic guitars (which weren’t heard a lot back then outside of the Unplugged Series) with “Thorn In My Pride.” “Bad Luck Blue Eyes, Goodbye” perhaps my favorite of their bluesy stuff, follows and at that point I’m in need of a shot of bourbon and fan. After that they just rock out. Listening to the entire album yesterday while I drove down to the DMV (yet again), it was those deeper, harder rock tracks that grabbed my ear. “Hotel Illness” was always a favorite. “Black Moon Creeping” is a sledgehammer of a rock song as is “No Speak No Slave.” “My Morning Song” is a great slide riff. There’s not a bad moment on this album. And then, just to freak me out, they cover a deep track of Bob Marley’s, “Time Will Tell.” Acoustic reggae on a blues rock album, Hell, yes!

As mentioned, the first disc in the box is the original album in all it’s glory. It’s been remastered and as usual they’ve cranked up the sound to 11 so it’s pretty damn loud aka “brickwalled.” But if you’ve never owned the album it’s still a great listen. Disc 2, for me is usually where the gold is found. Although, and this is where I think this disc is flawed, there’s only 9 tracks on the outtakes disc. I have to think these guys were on such a roll they had more in the can than just these 9 tracks. The last four tracks are “In Studio Live” versions of tracks on the album: “Sting Me (Slow),” “Sometimes Salvation,” “Blue Eyes Bad Luck, Goodbye” and “Black Moon Creeping.” Those are nice to have but far from essential. The “Sting Me (Slow)” version is one that I already had as bonus track. It is, as advertised, a “slow” version of “Sting Me” which is interesting.

Half the bonus disc filled with “In Studio Live” is just meh for me. However, that said there are 5 nice outtakes that every Crowes fan will dig. “99 Pounds” is quintessential Crowes, but it has been released prior to this and yes, I already have the song. “Miserable,” which I reviewed earlier, is a great track. I like the slow burn blues track more each time I hear it… and it does explode into a jam at the end. They do a ripping “In Studio Live” cover of Dylan’s “Rainy Day Woman No 12 & 35,” (the “everybody must get stoned” song). I do so love Dylan covers… “Boomer’s Story” is a nice bluesy number. It would have fit perfectly on the album. I really like this song. “Darling Of The Underground Press” is an acoustic blues number that knocks me out. Over bluesy acoustic there are stabs of electric guitar. As much as I love “Time Will Tell,” (nobody covers Bob Marley!), I would have rather had this track on the finished album.

Disc 3 is a concert from the tour for Southern Harmony, which was known as the “High As The Moon” tour. This was the first tour me and my friends saw the Crowes and man, were they awesome. As an aside, the Rock Chick saw the Crowes on their first tour when they opened for Aerosmith. She said she was more impressed with the Crowes that night than she was with Aerosmith. There’s a reason I call her the Rock Chick, but I digress. I saw pretty much the same setlist as they played in Houston, where this concert was recorded… this was only a couple of weeks before we – Storm Cat, the Accountant and I – saw them. Storm Cat liked the show so much a few months later he jumped in a car with two stoner cooks from where he worked and drove up to St Joseph, Missouri to see it again… kudo’s Storm!

No one is a bigger fan of a live album culled from the then current tour that bands put into these box sets than I am. It’s also usually where the gold is. Guns N Roses shows from the Use Your Illusions tour is a case in point. I don’t know how many times I’ve walked out of a concert and thought, “that should be the live album, just release this show.” Of course nowadays, bands actually do that. I purchased the Springsteen show I saw in February here in KC right after I saw the show and I love that live album! There was a real opportunity for the Crowes on this live disc. However, they edited all the Shake Your Money Maker live songs from the concert off this disc. They also did a Bob Marley cover that night and they cut it off. You get each Southern Harmony track live plus a “Jam” they put together. It’s good but as they say down south, it’s like kissing your sister. If they’d released the whole show I’d be 100% in. It doesn’t help that the bootleg of the entire show has been out there for 30 years… Sigh. They blew this one. Give us the whole concert – especially at $97!

As much as I love the Black Crowes – I even loved the EP they did last year 1972 – I can’t recommend this box as a purchase. First and foremost, it’s too expensive. The price may come down after the first of the year so keep an eye out and you may get it cheaper. The outtakes disc is far too short and contains too many “In Studio Live” songs that are already on the LP in a superior version. And finally, they edited the concert down which is, in this Rock Historian/Complete-ist view, a sin. This is going to be a set that you’ll want to stream – especially those first 5 outtakes – and the concert. While disappointing as edited, the live performance is still somethin’. This is some peak Black Crowes on these slender discs.

Cheers and Happy Holidays!

Playlist: Our Favorite Songs About The (Sometimes) Exquisite Pain of …. Waiting

~ kcorsini ~ 6 Comments

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I had the distinct displeasure this week of having to deal with an issue with the county I live in. As fate would have it, I couldn’t resolve the issue on-line like civilized societies do. I had to drive over to an old, historic courthouse on the east side of town where I spent more than my share of time… waiting in line… in the cold. As I stood there my mind began to roam, searching for anything to distract myself from where I was. Naturally my mind drifted to rock n roll. I am who I am. Before I knew what was happening, Tom Petty’s voice was running through my skull…”the waiting is the hardest part.” After being told I was in the wrong line, the mental jukebox in my mind, ever on “shuffle,” quickly jumped to the Who and “This is no social crisis, just another tricky day for you.” I began to realize there are a bunch of great songs about “waiting.” And, it has been a while since we’ve done a playlist… so here we are.

When you say the word “waiting” or “wait” to someone it likely conjures a bad feeling. We all want that instant gratification these days. But waiting is not always as bad as say, being at the DMV. Now that we’ve blown through Thanksgiving and are into the thick of the holidays, I suppose a lot of people are anxiously, joyfully waiting for Christmas. I don’t necessarily get that, as I’m on record as being a bit of a Scrooge. If you think about it, waiting is a integral part of life. When we’re little kids, we can’t wait to be older and more autonomous. When puberty hits, we can’t wait to… kiss a girl or boy, go on a date and likely we’re impatient for more temporal experiences. When we’re a young adult we can’t wait for our careers to take off or to find a spouse or soulmate. When you’re married some folks can’t wait to have kids, although for the life of me I never got that one?

Waiting, when I think about it, is just the time between realizing you want something and actually getting it. There can be something exquisitely painful about that time. The anticipation between the time you meet someone you consider special and that first kiss can actually be quite exhilarating. What’s that old saying my father was fond of, “Good things come to those who wait.” My dearly departed friend Tom always used to say, “Pappy, let the game come to you,” which is just a sporty way of saying, “just wait on it.” For every miserable waiting room at the doctor’s office or airline gate you’re stuck in while your flight is delayed yet again – I am an absolute horror in an airport when I’m delayed – there are more positive waiting experiences in life. Patience, as they say, is a virtue… and admittedly a virtue I’m sorely lacking in.

Most of us when forced to wait on something, allow our mind to do anything it can to distract us from the pain of waiting. For some of us, standing in the cold outside the Truman Courthouse, waiting causes us to start thinking of rock songs to put on a playlist… I know, I should seek help. But what if, in those moments of having to wait for something, we just allowed ourselves to be in that moment. Finding contentment in stillness. To soak in all the wisdom that the universe is sending our way while it makes us wait. We’re all waiting for a door to open, we might as well focus on those moments we actually have rather than always put our minds forward into some imagined future or into some other cloud to take us away from the now, from the “wait.” In a dark sense, we’re all sort of waiting to die… might as well enjoy the ride before we punch out. As they say, life won’t wait for anybody, so might as well stop waiting to live… put on some music, pour something strong and enjoy the wait.

As usual with our B&V playlists, I’m all over the place stylistically. We go from AC/DC to well, Carly Simon (which is a first). You can play this thing straight through or you can use the “shuffle” button, which I advise on this one. While we go from screaming rock n roll to mellow acoustic stuff, if you can’t take that roller coaster ride… you can either wait for the next song or hit fast forward. It’s up to you. I feel like there’s a lot of wisdom here… well, that and horny musicians who can’t wait for a little “love.” If there’s a song about waiting you love, and I missed it, put it in the “comments” and I’ll add it. Remember these playlists are ours, not mine. My comments on the songs, below.

  1. The Who, “Another Tricky Day” – I love this song. It’s from one of those LPs probably only l love. How many of us have thought, “You irritate me, my friend… this is you having fun, getting burned by the sun…this is no social crisis this is you having fun.”
  2. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, “The Waiting” – They play this song during challenges at NFL games now. It’s the inspiration of today’s playlist.
  3. Van Halen, “I’ll Wait” – This is one of my favorite VH keyboard tunes. It’s always felt like it was written from the view of a stalker or maybe took inspiration from Dorothy Stratten’s story.
  4. The Doors, “Waiting For The Sun” – This reminds me of college, sitting on the curb outside this little bar that opened at 6am… Me and Stewie sitting there waiting for the bar to open…having been up all night.
  5. Led Zeppelin, “Fool In The Rain” – Proof that Led Zeppelin had a sense of humor. From their final studio album, In Through The Out Door.
  6. The Beatles, “Wait” – Do the Beatles have a bad song?
  7. The White Stripes, “I Can’t Wait” – Great blues rocker from the Stripes. Superb drumming from Meg White, drummer extraordinaire.
  8. Ozzy Osbourne, “Life Won’t Wait” – So many of us are on the sidelines, waiting for something. Jump in, baby, life isn’t gonna wait.
  9. George Harrison, “Awaiting On You All” – Preachy George, but still a great song from All Things Must Pass.
  10. B.B. King, “Waiting On Your Call” – Back when people still used phones to call people… how many of us can remember sitting by the phone, waiting to hear from that certain someone? From the sensational One Kind Favor.
  11. The Beach Boys, “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” – I despise the Beach Boys, but it would have been criminal to omit this story of a young high school couple wishing they were…”older.”
  12. Guns N Roses, “Patience” – I always chuckle when I think of Axl Rose preaching patience. Zen Axl? I just saw GnR in concert and it was fabulous.
  13. The Supremes, “You Can’t Hurry Love” – A first for us here at B&V with a Supreme’s tune. I’ll never forgive Phil Collins for his awful cover.
  14. Chris Isaak, “Waiting For My Lucky Day” – Luck favors the prepared but I can completely relate to this track.
  15. Buffalo Springfield, “It’s So Hard To Wait” – Dreamy country rock from one of my favs, the Springfield.
  16. Norah Jones, “Waiting” – The voice of an angel.
  17. Fugazi, “Waiting Room” – A Rock Chick tune that I just fell in love with when she turned me onto it.
  18. The Runaways, “Waitin’ For The Night” – I used to consider the Runaways a guilty pleasure. Now I just think they kick ass.
  19. Bonham, “Wait For You” – From John Bonham’s son Jason’s first band.
  20. George Harrison, “Don’t Let Me Wait Too Long” – Wonder folky rock song where our hero is beseeching his woman to move things along…
  21. Peter Wolf, “Waiting On The Moon” – Every day I feel like I’m waiting for the moon to rear it’s beautiful face. I’m like the Stones, “the sunshine bores the daylights out of me…” I included it on our playlist of tracks about the Moon.
  22. Little Steven & The Disciples Of Soul, “I’ve Been Waiting” – From Little Steven’s fabulous solo debut album.
  23. Bob Marley & the Wailers, “Waiting In Vain” – I used to play Bob Marley and this song to soothe the savage beasts in my house…
  24. Roger Waters, “Wait For Her” – Perhaps Waters’ most lush, gorgeous ballad.
  25. Stevie Nicks, “I Can’t Wait” – This track is a near miss for me. It’s when cocaine started to send Stevie off the rails. Stevie put out a great box set this year of her collected works.
  26. The Velvet Underground, “Waiting For The Man” – Lou Reed singing about waiting for his drug dealer. It’s on our playlist, Songs About Heroin as well.
  27. The J. Geils Band, “Wait” – The J. Geils Band’s early bluesy stuff is such a treat.
  28. The Beatles, “Please Mr. Postman” – “You gotta wait a minute, wait a minute…” Does anybody write letters anymore? I haven’t written a letter in 30 years.
  29. Green Day, “Waiting” – From Green Day’s last masterpiece…
  30. No Doubt (featuring Prince), “Waiting Room” – I didn’t like No Doubt until I saw them live. Gwen Stefani has sort of tarnished this band for me… but I had to include this weird song as Prince is on it.
  31. The Rolling Stones, “Waiting On A Friend” – One of my all time favorites from Tattoo You. “Making love and breaking hearts, it is a game for youth…”
  32. Buddy Holly, “Crying, Waiting, Hoping” – I’ve always been more of a Chuck Berry guy, but I do dig Buddy Holly. He was a huge influence on almost every 60s rocker.
  33. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, “Waiting For Tonight” – There’s nothing quite like night time…
  34. Bob Dylan, “Can’t Wait” – Dylan, sounding like a disembodied spirit who is tired of waiting around.
  35. Eric Clapton, “She’s Waiting” – “She’s waiting for another love…” I went through this once.
  36. Talking Heads, “Memories Can Wait” – A great, menacing deep track from the Talking Heads.
  37. Pretenders, “The Wait” – One of my favorite tunes from the Pretenders. Their latest LP, Relentless, is certainly worth checking out.
  38. David Bowie, “I’ve Been Waiting For You” – From one of my favorite late period Bowie LPs, Heathen.
  39. LIndsey Buckingham, “Wait For You” – Lindsey’s solo career is hit and miss but this one is a winner.
  40. The Black Crowes, “Waitin’ Guilty” – Bonus track from the great box set for Shake Your Money Maker.
  41. Foreigner, “Can’t Wait” – I bought Inside Information, which was way past Foreigner’s prime, at a truck stop in southern Arkansas and used to crank this particular tune up loud as I toured “the Southlands.” Some tracks are only for me…
  42. The Kinks, “Tired Of Waiting For You” – One of those early, primal Kinks tunes.
  43. The Jayhawks, “Waiting For The Sun” – A great song from a band the Rock Chick turned me on to…
  44. Beck, “Die Waiting” – I wasn’t crazy about Hyperspace, but I really like this song. And let’s face it, who amongst us hasn’t felt that we could “die waiting.”
  45. AC/DC, “Ain’t No Fun (Waiting Round To Be A Millionaire)” – Bon Scott at his most hilarious. And yes, it’s no fun waitin’ round to be a millionaire, so can somebody help me with this one please?
  46. Ozzy Osbourne, “Waiting For Darkness” – Sadly, in my late 20s, early 30s, I didn’t have to wait for darkness, I was already in the heart of it.
  47. Elvis Costello, “Waiting For The End Of The World” – From his great debut album but then we’re fond of debut albums here at B&V.
  48. Lenny Kravitz, “I’ll Be Waiting” – Nice piano ballad that seems a lifetime away from his latest track, “TK421.”
  49. The Rolling Stones, “Tell Me” – Boy meets girl, girl leaves, boy hopes she’ll return. Rinse, repeat.
  50. Bruce Springsteen, “Waiting On A Sunny Day” – As I sit here in the grip of grim winter, yes, I am waiting on a sunny day.
  51. ZZ Top, “Waitin’ For The Bus” – Great, early ZZ Top.
  52. George Michael, “Waiting For That Day” – I’m not a huge George Michael fan, and he’s never been on a playlist before, but this one, I’ll make an exception for. It’s an amazing tune that sums up emotions I felt very keenly in my 20s… “My memory, serves me far too well.”
  53. The Byrds, “Wait And See” – The Byrds were a band I didn’t discover until recently, but I love most of their early stuff.
  54. Eagles, “Waiting In The Weeds” – Don Henley sounding hurt and creepy at the same time.
  55. The Cars, “It’s All I Can Do” – “to keep waiting for you…” It turns out, sometimes you should just move on.
  56. Kings Of Leon, “Wait For Me” – I don’t know much about Kings of Leon, but I love this song.
  57. Wilson Pickett, “In The Midnight Hour” – “I’m gonna wait till the midnight hour…”
  58. The Rolling Stones, “I Am Waiting” – So many great Stones tune. I should have included this one on my list of favorite deep Stones tracks.
  59. The Smashing Pumpkins, “Waiting” – Great outtake that should have made an album somewhere.
  60. The Black Crowes, “Been A Long Time (Waiting On Love)” – Latter day Crowes telling the timeless tale of a man’s relentless search for love.
  61. Jack Johnson, “Sitting, Waiting, Wishing” – Mellow strummer but catchy as heck.
  62. Garbage, “Temptation Waits” – Temptation certainly waits around every corner…
  63. Tom Waits, “Hold On” – From the brilliant Mule Variations.
  64. Sterephonics, “Hurry Up And Wait” – This seems to be my mantra at work these days.
  65. Jimi Hendrix, “Hear My Train A Comin'” – Lately it’s more like, “hear my plane a comin’.” But I like the idea of a man waiting for a train.
  66. The Donnas, “Don’t Wait Up For Me” – What a great little band the Donnas were…
  67. The Replacements” – “Can’t Hardly Wait” – Another band I need to explore more deeply. There’s always more music out there to discover.
  68. Bob Dylan, “Groom’s Still Waiting At the Altar” – One of Dylan’s best, late career, blues-rock songs.
  69. Johnny Cash, “Waiting On A Train” – What else would Johnny be waiting for? He’s the “songs about trains” King.
  70. Meatloaf, “Heaven Can Wait” – Spectacular ballad. Just piano and Meat.
  71. U2, “Are You Gonna Wait Forever” – Deep track from the Vertigo sessions.
  72. Lou Reed, “Wait” – I’m on a Lou Reed deep dive of late.
  73. The Rolling Stones, “Time Waits For No One” – If there was one song that conveyed the message of this playlist, it’s this one. Time, truly, waits for no one.
  74. Warren Zevon, “Trouble Waiting To Happen” – Me, from 13 to 35…
  75. Jimi Hendrix Experience, “Wait Until Tomorrow” – Another great tune from Hendrix. Does he get enough credit as a songwriter?
  76. Greta Van Fleet, “Waited All Your Life” – From this year’s great LP, Starcatcher.
  77. Carly Simon, “Anticipation” – Another first time appearance on our list for Carly. I’ve always liked this tune… too bad she sold it to a ketchup company for a commercial. I’d have guessed she had enough of that Simon & Schuster publishing money to do that?
  78. Foreigner, “Waiting On A Girl Like You” – A cheesy ballad that no one admits to loving but everyone does… It did perhaps signal the end of Foreigner’s arena rock days.
  79. Bruce Springsteen, “If I Should Fall Behind” – I thought I’d end on this very positive note… “If I should fall behind, I’ll wait for you.” I’m surprised this song isn’t played at more weddings.

There ya go! I appreciated everyone who waited long enough to get through this playlist of songs about Waiting. Again, if I missed an essential waiting song, please put it in the comments section and I’ll add it if it fits.

Whatever you’re waiting for out there, I hope it comes to you, especially in this holiday season. It can be a long dark ride… take of yourselves out there.

Cheers!

Black Crowes Release 2 Songs From Upcoming ‘Southern Harmony & Musical Companion (Super Deluxe)’

~ kcorsini ~ 10 Comments

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Oh my, now we’re talkin’ ’bout the good stuff!!

It was about two and half years ago that the Black Crowes, perennial favorites around here at B&V, put out a 30th Anniversary Edition of their debut album, Shake Your Money Maker. It was a great little package of the original album, outtakes/b-sides and a full concert from that tour. But then I love that album and debut albums in general. In 1992, the Black Crowes followed up that landmark 1990 debut by defying the “sophomore slump” and delivering an even better album with The Southern Harmony And Musical Companion. That’s often a difficult thing to do. So many bands have foundered on the rocks of the “difficult second album,” as Bono described it in his Rock Hall of Fame acceptance speech. And indeed, U2 is a prime example of the sophomore slump. There’s a cliche in rock music that goes: you have your whole life to write your first album and six months to write and record your second one.

I was still watching MTV in 1992, although at the time I was going through that successful period of life known as “moving back in with your parents,” and I know they didn’t have MTV. My dad would barely spring for basic cable. Anyway I saw the Crowes lead singer Chris Robinson being interviewed and he said something along the lines of, “We just set up and played live in the studio… we wanted to be eyeball to eyeball and just vibe the thing.” I thought that was cool but was still worried… I really liked these guys and I wanted them to succeed. I tend to root for rock bands the same way some people root for NFL teams or soccer, er I mean football, teams.

On December 1st the Crowes will release a Super Deluxe box set for Southern Harmony and it looks very similar to the Shake Your Money Maker package. It’s got the original album, outtakes/b-sides and part of a live concert from that tour. Coincidentally that was the first tour I saw the Black Crowes with my buddy Stormin’ at venerable Memorial Hall over in Kansas City, Kansas… not a bad seat in the house. To tease the new box they’ve released two songs that didn’t make the original album – an outtake, “Miserable,” and a b-side called “99 Pounds.” Had they released this last year, it would have likely been called a “30th Anniversary” package but I guess the brothers Robinson steering the Black Crowes ship decided to instead release their great EP 1972.

The first track I listened to was “Miserable.” Now I will admit to you, it didn’t grab me the way that the first Shake Your Money Maker (30th Anniversary) single “Charming Mess” did. But then “Charming Mess” sounded like it could be the Faces, and I love the Faces. But with “Miserable” you do get a classic sounding blues rock track and you will never hear me complain about that! It really sounds akin to what came out on the album. Thick, bluesy riffs, and Chris Robinson’s blues rock vocals. It’s a slow, almost mournful riff, like waking up hungover on a Sunday morning… but then at the ends kicks into high gear in a fast jam with Marc Ford and Rich Robinson digging in on guitar. It’s got some great piano from the late great Eddie Harsch. And who can argue with a lyric like “3 a.m. again, here I am, good for nothing, punched a hole in the wall… I might get up, go on out and paint the whole God damn town red…” Yeah, I’ve been there… it’s been a while… but oh, have I been there.

“99 Pounds,” in the interest of full disclosure is a tune I’m familiar with. It’s been out there for a while. This is a new mix. I think they originally put it out as a bonus track on “deluxe” CD versions of their original LPs. It’s a good rockin’ song. In this mix I hear the back up singers – the incomparable Barbara MItchell and Taj Harmon – more clearly on this new mix. I love what those ladies brought to this entire album so it’s nice to hear them more clearly. If “99 Pounds” doesn’t get you up and movin’ across the floor, nothing will… Here is a link to the tracks:

I can only hope we get the same quality of outtakes and b-sides on this box as we got from the Shake Your Money Maker set. There were some great covers on that box – Lennon’s “Jealous Guy” and Humble Pie’s “30 Days In The Hole.” I already have some concerns about the concert they’re including but I’ll save those thoughts for when the box comes out. It’s probably going to be a streaming only kind of set as the prices I’ve seen on the box are steep. For now, crank these two tracks up with a little southern sour mash and enjoy your upcoming Thanksgiving holiday… if you’re in the States.

Cheers! (No politics this Thanksgiving… unless you’re debating whose running the Stones, Keith or Mick?)

Tom Petty Releases ‘Mojo (Extra Mojo Version)’ With Three Additional Songs

~ kcorsini ~ 4 Comments

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While I realize today is the release date of the new Stones album, Hackney Diamonds, it’s also Tom Petty’s birthday. I can’t believe it’s been six years since we lost Tom. I feel that loss to this day. The man was only 66… actually less than three weeks away from turning 67. I feel like we’ve missed out on so much music he would have created. Luckily we’ve had some fabulous, posthumous releases like Wildflowers…All The Rest and An American Treasure to keep us connected with Petty and his Heartbreakers. On this day above all others I think it’s good for us to swing our focus back to Petty.

Towards the end of his career, after the slight misstep that was The Last D.J., Petty hit his stride in a big way. The last three LPs he released, Highway Companion (a 2006 “solo” album), Mojo (2010), and Hypnotic Eye (2014) were all great albums that are absolute career highlights. One of favorites from those late releases was Mojo. It was hailed as Petty’s “blues” album. I remember at the time reading a Petty interview and he said he’d been listening to bluesy stuff for a while and when he presented the idea of incorporating a more blues oriented sound into the  music, the Heartbreakers (Mike Campbell, guitarist extraordinaire; Benmont Tench, keyboards; Ron Blair, bass; Steve Ferrone, drums; Scott Thurston, utility infielder…er multi-instrumentalist), readily agreed with the idea. Now it’s probably obvious that I was going to be all in on a blues rock album, I’m on record as loving the blues… it’s the root of almost all the music I love.

But I have to say, while Mojo is very bluesy, I wouldn’t exactly describe it as a Petty’s “blues” album. It’s got more in common with the Rolling Stones, the Yardbirds or the Allman Brothers Band than it does with say, Howlin Wolf or Muddy Waters. The Heartbreakers really stretch on this record. And frankly, try on a few different styles, including a reggae styled tune, than just straight up blues. I had to drive to the outskirts of town yesterday to go to the DMV and I put on Mojo as I barreled down the highway and I must say… this album might be a better “Highway Companion” than the album that bears that name. And now the Petty camp has re-released the record, now dubbed Mojo (Extra Mojo Version) with three extra songs, only one of which was previously available.

There are a lot of great tunes on this record to begin with. If you haven’t ever lingered over this record, I highly suggest you do. The opening track “Jefferson Jericho Blues” is the pinnacle of blues rock. It leads into “First Flash of Freedom” a trippy almost Allman Brothers-esque track. At almost seven minutes it reminds of that bands’ tune “Dreams.” “Running Man’s Bible” is up next and in my ears this should  have been the first single. It’s bluesy but it slinks along. As always Mike Campbell’s guitar is searing. “A Trip To Pirate’s Cove” is another Allman-y kind of track. “Candy” is a chugging, straight blues number. With different lyrics it could have been a train song.

“No Reason To Cry” kicks off the middle of the album and it’s an acoustic driven, country ballad. Frankly, I had forgotten about this track until I was racing down the highway and it’s a beautiful song. And a nice change of pace on the record. “I Should Have Known It” may have blues flourishes but it’s hard rock. Petty almost snarls the lyrics over a monster riff. I always thought this was the first single but I may be wrong. The guitar solo at the end is worth the price of admission. “U.S. 41” is a great blues tune and if I ever do a playlist of “Road Songs” this song will be on it.

After the riffy “Takin’ My Time” and the slinky blues of “Let Yourself Go” with great harmonica no less, Petty does a great reggae influenced track, “Don’t Pull Me Over.” I love the blues but this song almost steals the whole show. It tells the tale of a pot smuggler… “Please Mr. Policeman… don’t pull me over.” There are so many highlights. “Lover’s Touch” is a great blues rock tune. “High In The Morning” is another tune that should have been a single. It’s a total ear worm of a track. “Something Good Coming” is another wonderful ballad…

Now to the reason for this post – the great bonus tracks. “Little Girl Blues” is a bluesy rave up that was available as an iTunes exclusive when the album came out. I never hear anybody talk about this song. It sounds like a late 60s blues rock band. There are also two tracks that had never been released before. “Help Me” is a cover of an old Sonny Boy Williamson II track. There were 2 unrelated Sonny Boy Williamson out there… it’s a long story. Petty and the Heartbreakers just kill on this cover song. They sound like the Animals. Great organ and bluesy guitar. I don’t know who plays the harmonica but get that man a beer! If I heard a band playing this song in a bar, I’d be sitting down, ordering something strong, perhaps a rye whiskey, and staying for a while. The other song, “Mystery Of Love” is a Petty original and I’m a little stunned it didn’t make it on the original album. It’s another slinky blues track. When Petty sings “I’ve done things I can’t defend…” I feel it in my solar plexus. I’m delighted to add this track to the pantheon of great Petty tunes.

If you’re a fan of Petty, Mojo, the blues or blues rock you need to hear these tunes. I bought them immediately this morning. Of course, I owned “Little Girl Blues” already. These two very strong blues tunes prove that Mojo wasn’t just a genre exercise for these guys. They were committed to the blues and they play it with passion and skill. If you’ve never heard Mojo before, I urge you to put on this Extra Mojo Version as soon as possible… maybe open a cold beer… and prepare to groove on the blues. Many people think of the blues as being depressing or sad music. This music proves that there can be a hell of a lot joy in the blues… and joy is in short supply these days…

Cheers! and Happy Birthday Tom, we all miss you down here at B&V.

New Song Alert: Stones Formally Announce ‘Hackney Diamonds’ With Jimmy Fallon – Release New Single ‘Angry’ – Oh, Yeah, Baby!!

~ kcorsini ~ 10 Comments

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I had to get up early for work today, but truth be told, I’d have gotten up early anyway as the Stones were set to do their album launch broadcast (on YouTube) for the new record Hackney Diamonds. Apparently the original album title was going to be Smash And Grab. The Stones – Mick Jagger (vocals), Keith Richards (guitar/vocals) and Ronnie Wood (guitar) – came on stage at a venerable old theater in London (the Hackney Empire, I believe) and were greeted by American talk show host Jimmy Fallon. I’m not a big Fallon fan, but he did reference an old, deep track from their early days, “Off The Hook,” and damn if that didn’t send me scurrying back to that song for a listen or two… Kudos Mr. Fallon.

The Stones seem loose and excited about the new record. The late Charlie Watts plays drums on only two of the songs and X-Pensive Wino drummer Steve Jordan plays on the rest of the songs. The Stones said they started recording in January and wrapped in February… They did confirm that Andrew Watt produced the record and erstwhile bassist Bill Wyman plays on one track. I was glad I had a few half hour to tune in.

The best part of the announcement this morning was the unveiling of the first single, “Angry.” Other than “Living In A Ghost Town,” this is the first new song from the Stones in the aforementioned 18 years. They did of course release the fabulous blues cover LP, Blue And Lonesome, but this is their first album of all new material and first new single in soooo long. Oh, the anticipation we’re all feeling down here at B&V. The Stones’ first singles, at least since I’ve been a fan, have been on the money. From “Miss You,” “Start Me Up,” “Undercover Of The Night,” to “Mixed Emotions,” and “Rough Justice” those first singles just always connected for me.

Have no fear, the new track, “Angry” ranks up there with all those great first singles of yore. The track starts with a drum beat that leads us to a signature Stones riff. Mick launches in with “Don’t get angry with me, I never caused you no pain…” And just like that the universe has a new Stones track and we’re off and running, baby. I love the wobbly guitar solo. At the end they jam as Mick repeats the chorus. This is a great first single from what promises to be a great new album. Every time I hear this song it grows on me even more, if that’s even possible. This is the music B&V was invented for. Here’s the song:

Beyond that, the Stones released a video for the album featuring the buxom Sydney Sweeney. I’m not usually a “video” guy, but I did thoroughly enjoy this video. While Sweeney is no Tawny Kittaen dancing on the hood of that car in the Whitesnake video, she acquits herself well. She’s riding in the back of a convertible down – I presume – Sunset Strip, dancing around in what can only be described as a “celebration of cleavage.” And if you’re going to celebrate something, why not cleavage? Who could possibly be “Angry” with that? Anyway, as she makes her way down Sunset, she’s surrounded on either side by Stones billboards from the past. I think I even spotted a Talk Is Cheap billboard. The billboards, through the magic of CGI, come alive and perform the track as Sweeney’s rag top car cruises down the Strip. Pretty cool concept. Here’s the video…

Oh, indeed! She even unironically plays air guitar. Be still my heart.

Oh my friends, I can’t tell you what a happy day this is. I’ve got my vinyl copy of the album pre ordered. I may buy this on CD too. Hell, I may re think my “no tattoo” policy after this. When the Stones put out an album – especially this album – it’s a big fucking deal. This will probably the last time we all get a new Stones album and a new Stones first single. Savor this moment people, we may not get another… although they did say they had 23 songs recorded and are only releasing 12… dare I hope for a sequel?

Turn this one up loud and please, don’t be “Angry.” Not with me anyway…

Cheers!

The Rolling Stones (At Last!) Poised To Release New Studio LP Of All Originals – ‘Hackney Diamonds’

~ kcorsini ~ 5 Comments

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I wish mere words could express the excitement we’re all feeling down here at B&V over the impending announcement of – at last! – a new Stones album to listen to. I’m happier than a man staring down a lumberjack breakfast of eggs, sausage and pancakes. I can’t believe it’s been 18 years since the exceptional A Bigger Bang. At the time when that album was released, in 2005, I remember thinking that the 8 years that had elapsed since 1997’s Bridges To Babylon was a long time. Yes, they did release the great blues cover album entitled Blue And Lonesome, that I just loved, but I’ve been longing for a new Stones album forever. As I’ve said before, for us at B&V, the Stones are the Alpha and the Omega of rock n roll.

There have been rumors for years the Stones were going to release something. Every year on the “projected new albums for the upcoming year” lists I see, the Stones are always there but nothing came. I’ve heard they started work on this album 8 years ago, in 2015. I’ve also heard they actually started in earnest only 3 years ago. It’s sad Mick and Keith couldn’t get it together for almost two decades. I’m guessing Keith is regretting that autobiography… A few weeks ago this cryptic ad was released:

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There are more Stones’ references in this ad than even I could come up with… Then the website was announced:

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If you go to that website you’ll see a countdown clock that indicates the Stones new album will be announced next Wednesday. Let’s hope a new single will also drop next week!! If you live in Paris or New York you may have also noticed the image that I placed at the top of this post is being projected on large buildings in your cities. Oh yes, my friends, the Stones are poised to take over the world… again. I need a shot of something strong!

What do we know so far?

In the producers chair this time around is Andrew Watt, who is extremely hot right now. B&V readers will likely recognize his name as he’s produced recent LPs, from Ozzy Osbourne – both Ordinary Man and Patient No. 9 – along with Iggy Pop’s great new record Every Loser and Eddie Vedder’s last solo LP, Earthling. I really like this move away from Don Was, who has produced their last three LPs, to Watt. He has a way of bringing out the classic sound of an artist. I’m sure the rock n roll purists are nervous about this as Watt has also produced albums by, gad, Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus. I actually think Cyrus is talented, just not my cup of tea. He’s also purportedly producing the new Pearl Jam album. I think the guy’s pedigree speaks for itself.

On drums, yes there will be tracks with the late Charlie Watts on drums. I’m sad they couldn’t get this album done with him. Steve Jordan who has been filling in for Watts on tour will play the balance of the drums. On bass, to augment Daryl Jones, Bill Wyman will return for 1 song which is purportedly a tribute track to Charlie. Paul McCartney is also rumored to play bass on another song. There were rumors and articles that Ringo was also on the album but those turned out to be spurious. It’s said that Elton John plays piano on a track. Elton guested on Vedder’s solo album so we know he’s in Watt’s Rolodex and he’s pals with Mick. I have not seen any indication that Mick Taylor is returning to play guitar on any tracks, but if they’re doing a Charlie Watts tribute track one would think he might be there too.

The Stones have really put the work in on this. I read somewhere that they didn’t want to do a “good” album. They knew after all this time, they needed to put out a “great album.” The way they hunkered down – Just Mick, Keith and Charlie – to write and lay down the basic tracks of A Bigger Bang produced a great album, and we can hope for the same here. A year ago I saw Keith interviewed and he just said, “We’ve got the songs, now it’s just down to “carpentry” to get them right.” Whatever that means. Keith talks as cryptically as an old jazz player.

Obviously, after 18 years, a new Stones album is a BIG FUCKING DEAL. And let’s face it folks, at the rate these guys have put out albums over the last thirty years, this may be the final new Stones album the world will ever see. Or better put, “Well, this could be the last time, maybe the last time, I don’t know…” And that, alone, is a big deal. I, for one, can’t wait to hear this thing. If 2019’s single “Living In A Ghost Town” is any indication, this should be some awesome music.

Cheers!

“Button your lip, baby, button your coat, Let’s go out dancing, go for the throat…” One last time…