Sorry for the late notice, but if anybody’s around, I’ll be reading some fiction here on Sunday eve:
Rhymes with Birds at the Petri Space
A night of poems and prose by acclaimed local writers (plus free food and cheap boos)
June 8 at 7:30pm
114 Forrest St. buzzer 15
Take the L to Morgan. Take the Bogart exit, turn right out of subway onto Bogart. Walk on Bogart to Flushing.
Forrest st. is the diagonal street across Flushing and Flushing Farms. (directions) (More info.)
“Tangled Up In Blue” – Bob Dylan (download)
“Silvio” – Bob Dylan (download)
recorded 30 June 1988, Jones Beach, Wantagh, NY
“Tangled Up In Blue” – Bob Dylan (download)
“Silvio” – Bob Dylan (download)
recorded 19 May 1998, San Jose Arena, San Jose, CA
(files expire June 12th)
Bob Dylan’s so-called Never-Ending Tour launched 20 years ago this week, on June 7th, in Concord, California. Though Dylan claims in Chronicles that he’d been inspired to hit the road by figuring out a new way of singing, the tapes don’t bear this out entirely. For the most part, Dylan’s singing was still the insanely caricatured tweeting that made Real Live and Dylan and the Dead such bummers. It would take a few years for him to relax into the new mode of phrasing. Compare the above versions of “Tangled Up In Blue,” recorded in June 1988 and May 1998, respectively. The older version is just bloody awful, all kinds of rubbery, nasal melodrama. The ’98 rendition is typical of the period, totally confident.
All of which is to explain why “Silvio” — a fairly minor Dylan tune, lyrics by the Grateful Dead’s Robert Hunter, from 1988’s Down in the Groove — was such a Never-Ending staple. On the ’88 version, the grating upper register yawls that mar the rest of the show are entirely absent. The take from a decade later is slower and clearly improved, but the difference in strategies is almost negligible. Minor as it was, “Silvio” was maybe the template for the gentleman-on-the-skids persona Dylan developed during the Never Ending Tour, and picked up officially on 1997’s Time Out of Mind — all of which informs the excitement bubbling beneath Dylan’s voice as he stops rushing the phrases in the second verse, a new pleasure for him in a decade of dead ends.
Though songs from these albums — all older stuff I’ve been digging — have and will likely continue to turn up in Frow Shows and various blog posts, the albums don’t easily lend themselves to mp3ification. Mostly, they’re just brilliant vibes.
And the Hits Just Keep on Comin’ – Michael Nesmith (1972)
The former Monkee, singing and playing acoustic guitar, is accompanied only by pedal steel legend Red Smith. The humor is wry, a backcountry depot in the land of Head and Elephant Parts.
Rev. Louis Overstreet with his sons and the congregation of St. Like’s Powerhouse Church of God in Christ (rec. 1962, rel. 1995)
Great gospel from Arhoolie, found in the FMU archives. There’s a lot here: some beautiful blues (“Two Little Fishes”), ecstatic chants (“Yeah Lord! Jesus Is Able”), and amazing vocals by Overstreet. The warm recording quality puts it totally over the top.
Wow/The Magick Fire Music – Jackie O Motherfucker (2000-2001)
Like a perfectly melodic middle ground between SYR-era Sonic Youth and ’72-’73 Dead jams. I suspect this is the beginning of a long and beautiful friendship. So much more to be had. Hooray for prolific collectives. (Word, Sancho.)
Quarteto Em Cy – Quarteto Em Cy (1972)
Apparently a pre-tropicalia vocal group, this self-titled disc from ’72 is damn well sublime, just endlessly pleasurable: girl group/Beatles harmonies and strange, lush arrangements. Not coming out of the rotation any time soon.
Valborgmassoafton – Yukio Yung (1991)
Wikipedia sez that dude is a crazy prolific mofo, and — from the sound of this disc alone — I believe it. It’s like Devo meets the Mothers. Delicious use of synths, adventurous at every turn, and never predictable: jazz solos with doubled kazoos, fuzzy baroque interludes, Residents-like dance breaks, alien chants… and somehow it all holds together. Maybe it’s the cassette hiss. (Thx, Mutant Sounds, check it there.)
“Creep” – Prince (download)
recorded live at Coachella, 26 April 2008
(file expires June 8th)
And, so an act of civil disobedience against His Purple Dudeness: Prince Rogers Nelson covering Radiohead’s “Creep” at Coachella. At first, I was bummed to find out that the alleged soundboard circulating was a fairly audiencey audience recording, but — besides Prince’s performance itself, which Clappy so bitchingly deconstructed — what unfolds is that it’s not Prince’s song, it’s not even Radiohead’s. It belongs entirely to the crowd.
A few people seemingly recognize it at first, and there is a smattering of definite cheers. Somebody mentions James Brown. Somebody else repeatedly chants “whoo” or maybe “booooo.” Hard to say. There’s another wave of cheers at 1:10, but the music still sounds like a vaguely generic Prince arpeggio (though it’s also obviously “Creep”) and it doesn’t compare to what happens at 1:45, when Prince actually starts singing.
Then, a wave of noise rolls over the crowd. “Awesome!” somebody says almost immediately. People go, predictably, apeshit, and a dozen conversations spark up in mic range. Presumably, there’s some fierce texting going down, too. After the first big peak, the band passes through the opening changes again. Except now the crowd knows what it is, and begins clapping along — and with extraordinary dullness, as if they bought the hype and are already being ironic about it — which continues through the next verse before fading. The dull clapping continues, a little quieter, as Prince busts out his falsetto. Somebody even laughs.
But then Prince shreds fucking balls again, in an old-fashioned, gas-guzzling wank, and it’s awesome, despite a weird sinking feeling in a crowd that’s not sure if it’s ready to be as wistful as they feel, nostalgic for a time when Radiohead was simply another post-grunge guitar band with a genuine summer hit, but already preparing to yearn for the present moment, surely to immortalized in Flickr sets, text messages, viral videos, and blog postings. If His High Exalted Mothersquonking El Purple Duderino (if you’re not into the whole brevity thing) doesn’t have them all purged first.
o Accepted baseball wisdom begins to mutate.
o A pro-Willets Point gentrification blog (including a link to an AM NY piece on ” 0, 2757074.story”>the Mayor of Willets Point.”
o Charting salary v. performance on big league teams in real time.
o Slate publishes some travel writing on baseball in the DR.
o A Baseball in Science Fiction bibliography.
o Mmmm, Tokyo Giants food.
o Giuseppe Franco for Mets manager! (Who? Him.)
o Dude traded for 10 bats in Texas.
(The 666th post on wunderkammern27.com! m/_ )
Episode 45: Genghis Cohen Triumphant!
Listen here.
1. “Real Talk” – R. Kelly (from Double Up)
2. “Frow Show Theme” – MVB
3. “Favorite Sweatshirt On” – Mixel Pixel (from Let’s Be Friends)
4. “Dam Maro Dum (Take Another Toke)” – Asha Bhosle with the Kronos Quartet (from You’ve Stolen My Heart)
5. “Jan Pahechan Ho” – Van Shipley (from Bollywood Steel Guitar compilation)
6. “I Just Dropped In To See What Condition My Condition Is In” – Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings (from Daptone 7-Inch Singles Collection, v. 2 compilation)
7. “Could Have Been – Lee Fields (from Daptone 7-Inch Singles Collection, v. 2 compilation)
8. “Is There Any Body Here Who Loves Jesus?” – Rev. Louis Overstreet (from Rev. Louis Overstreet with his sons and the congregation of St. Like’s Powerhouse Church of God in Christ)
9. “Between Me and You Kid” – Mudhoney (from Five Dollar Bob’s Mock Cooter Stew EP)
10. “Etude #7: Ballad” – Marc Ribot (from Exercises in Futility)
11. “Can I Sleep In Your Arms?” – Willie Nelson (from Red-Headed Stranger)
12. “Hula Blues” – Sol Hoopii (from Hula Blues: Vintage Steel Guit Instrumentals from the ’30s and ’40s compilation)
13. “Moonglow” – Bud Melvin (from Return of Bud Melvin)
14. “Typical Hippies” – Lucky Dragons (from Dream Island Laughing Language)
15. “Hydrophone” – Max Eastley (from Rediscovered Musical Instruments split LP)
16. “Window To Mars” – Elf Power (from In A Cave)
Despite the time off, these mostly lie on the latter side of the equation.
o Nicholson Baker on “The Charms of Wikipedia” in the New York Review of Books.
o Jim O’Rourke interviews Kiyoshi Kurosawa, circa 2005.
o Cloud advertising. Amazing technology, like something out of Dubai or Wonders, Inc. Less-than-inspiring use.
o Ezra Klein on “The Future of Reading” in the Columbia Journalism Review.
o A Wired profile of Japanese internet superstar Hiroyuki Nishimura.
(Back to regular posting after Memorial Day.)
Essays/articles/features:
DIY Gondry: Even Better Than The Real Thing (Paste) (with Silencer of Music short film!)
Doses Wild, Dark Meat profile (PaperThinWalls.com)
Hammer, Tongs, and the DIY Inspirado of John Rambo, Son of Rambow/Hammer and Tongs profile (Paste)
Live:
Dark Meat at Cake Shop, 20 April 2008 (Village Voice blog)
Dump at Maxwell’s, 24 April 2008 (Village Voice blog)
Bent Festival at DCTV, 24-26 April 2008 (Village Voice blog)
Lou Reed at the Highline Ballroom, 5 May 2008
Albums:
In A Cave – Elf Power (Village Voice)
Superfuzz Bigmuff: Deluxe Edition – Mudhoney (Paste)
Walk It Off – Tapes ‘n’ Tapes (Paste)
Attack and Release – The Black Keys (Paste)
Pancho and the Kid – Chris Barron (JamBands.com)
Songs:
“Nurses 5 Float Past” – Hallelujah the Hills (PaperThinWalls.com)
“Miami Ice” – Icy Demons (PaperThinWalls.com)
“Shoulder Full of You” – Blitzen Trapper (PaperThinWalls.com)
“We Both Go Down Together” – Colin Meloy (PaperThinWalls.com)
Movie:
Shine A Light (Paste)
Print:
o Paste #42 (Ben Gibbard cover): Philip Glass blurblets, Hammer and Tongs profile, I’m Not There reassessment
o Paste #43 (Scarlett Johansson cover): “Running Into Stonehenge” essay, album review of the Silver Jews, Be Kind Rewind reassessment.
o June Relix (Tom Petty cover): album reviews of Phish, Imaginational Anthem, v. 3; book reviews of Sonic Youth, Bob Dylan Drawn Blank
Episode 44: The Return of Jerry Garcia Marquez
Listen here.
1. “20th Century Fox Fanfare” – Alfred Newman (from The Essential Alfred Newman Film Music Collection)
2. “Is Chicago, Is Not Chicago” – Soul Coughing (from Ruby Vroom)
3. “Katie’s Been Gone” – The Band (from The Basement Tapes)
4. “Frow Show Theme” – MVB
5. “Espiral” – Cineplexx (from Picnic)
6. “Majesty” – The Music Tapes (from Music Tapes for Clouds and Tornadoes)
7. “Worlds Approaching” – Sun Ra and His Astro Infinity Orchestra (from Strange Strings)
8. “Positively 4th Street” – Jerry Garcia and Merl Saunders (from Live at Keystone)
9. “Why Not Your Baby?” – Doug Dillard and Gene Clark (from The Fantastic Expedition of Dillard and Clark)
10. “Take Me” – Karen Dalton (from In My Own Time)
11. “Opportunity to Cry” – Willie Nelson (from Crazy: The Demo Sessions)
12. “Roll With the Flow” – Michael Nesmith (from And the Hits Just Keep on Comin’)
13. “After the Gold Rush” – Neil Young (from After the Gold Rush)
14. “I’m Not There” – Sonic Youth (from I’m Not There OST)
15. “Take Care” – Big Star (from Third)
