#dylan fender

[meadowcult]

Cool shot of Laura Les’ Jaguar from the 100 gecs / Machine girl / Chat Pile show in Pelham, TN, 2023.

[deadcactuswalking]

REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 27/01/2024 (Noah Kahan/Sam Fender, Benson Boone, Becky Hill/Sonny Fodera)

I think it’s this week that I’ve realised Noah Kahan might be a bonafide star. We’ll get more to it later, but “Stick Season” spends a fourth week at #1 - welcome back to REVIEWING THE CHARTS!

Rundown

As always, we start with our notable dropouts, which I define as songs exiting the UK Top 75 (read the FAQ) after five weeks in the region or a peak in the top 40, and this week wasn’t too busy but it did come with some fair losses. Therefore, we bid adieu to “When We Were Young (The Logical Song)” by David Guetta and Kim Petras, “Stop Giving Me Advice” by Lyrical Lemonade, Jack Harlow and Dave (might be back next week given the album), “Won’t Forget You” by Jax Jones, D.O.D and Ina Wroldsen, assisted by a (bizarrely, credited) “donk” edit featuring The Blackout Crew, “One of Your Girls” by Troye Sivan, “Me & U” by Tems and FINALLY, “Anti-Hero” by Taylor Swift. It feels like it’s been there forever.

When it comes to our returns, we see the oddity of Sam Fender returning to #35 assumingly because of a boost to “Seventeen Going Under” that resulted from… well, you’ll see, but otherwise, we only have a handful of notable gains that, during a pretty dreadful-looking week, show some promise, and no, I don’t mean “Someone You Loved” by Lewis Capaldi somehow still here at #59, more so “Praise Jah in the Moonlight” by YG Marley at #51, “Scared to Start” by Michael Marcagi at #47, kind of grew on me, and “Nothing Matters” by The Last Dinner Party at #41… and less so “Toxic” by Songer at #32, please, let’s not do this, and on that same pleading note, “Alibi” by Ella Henderson featuring Rudimental at #26… why?! I suppose on a good note, Flo Milli is up to #17 with “Never Lose Me” and I can’t really complain about Natasha Bedingfield’s second wind at #13 with “Unwritten”, but it is majorly a mixed bag over here.

Our biggest story, however, rests in our top five, as “Homesick” by Noah Kahan debuts at #5, thanks to a version with Sam Fender who, surprisingly enough, is actually credited by the Official Charts Company, probably because, well, it would have no reason to as high as this without him. More on that later, but for now, it’s pretty standard elsewhere - Jack Harlow’s “Lovin’ on Me” at #4, “yes, and?” by Ariana Grande at #3, “Murder on the Dancefloor” by Sophie Ellis-Bextor at #2 and of course, Mr. Kahan still sitting at the very top. Now we have a… considerably unpromising set of new songs to discuss, so I guess we’ve just got to trek through that, and our starting point is…

New Entries

#75 - “Coal” - Dylan Gossett

Produced by Dylan Gossett

There aren’t that many new arrivals this week but the songs apart from one all fall into being either by singer-songwriter types or working as faceless EDM, and if you’ve been following this blog at all, you’d know those two styles really aren’t my thing, but hey, an independent folk singer racking up a streaming giant with a song from last year, notching him licensing with Republic, it could be promising in the same way I like Zach Bryan or even Oliver Anthony, who I assume we will never see again but appears as a recommended song in Mr. Gossett’s Spotify search terms. One has to wonder why and how but first of all, the elephant in the room: Diamonds aren’t made from coal.

I found several articles, both from sustainable energy advocacy outlets like TreeHugger and the people selling diamonds like With Clarity, clarifying that diamonds cannot really be made from coal. Coal is an impure carbon whilst diamonds are purer and whilst pressure is involved in the process, it is not a simple “one equals the other” sum, since coal has too much organic matter to be made into crystalline diamonds, especially since you can see vividly in the colour of rarer diamonds to what other chemicals may be found in them. Now I’m tempted to believe these articles as they’re backed by science, but if I’m wrong and these articles are just using words I don’t understand to spread a mythical debunking of an already existing myth that diamonds originate from coal, which is actually true all this time, then I’ll stand corrected. For now, the main conceit of this song, asking why under all this pressure, how the Hell he’s still “coal”, doesn’t really make much sense, and the rest of the song reads like listing off proverbs and sayings that fit the part but he doesn’t fully understand them or tie them together. Singer-songwriters are supposed to weave stories, when this feels like playing word association with common and universal wisdoms. For all of Oliver Anthony’s imperfect wording, at least you can tie them together to refer to a specific viewpoint, seeing where those views align, without becoming vague “woe is me” platitudes that don’t hold much reason for said pity, or really any narrative detail. You might see this as nitpicking but when it’s just a guy with a guitar, he opens himself up for interpretation and autopsy, possibilities he seems to willingly flail away by displaying disappointingly little to even work with, and as the song fills itself up with non-verses, as tightly as this kind of song can be produced without a particularly impressive vocal performance, one starts to wonder what the appeal in this even is. It’s a non-song, let’s move on.

#71 - “Incredible Sauce” - Giggs featuring Dave

Produced by Payday and David Morse

The #1 album this week was Green Day’s best album in decades. I have a full first-impressions review of Saviors on my RateYourMusic listening log (exclusivelytopostown) and whilst I understand that sales factor in here, I’d have loved for the only song here that bucks the categorical trends I laid out earlier to be a cut from that record. Instead, we have a Giggs song from last year that I’m honestly surprised has yet to chart already, given the Dave feature and that it was released in August of last year. Apart from the… choice of a name, I still don’t really know what level of quality to expect from Giggs, outside of a comical menace that emerges largely from his attempt to be “laidback” that can more accurately be described as an active  coveting of his natural voice to sound much more relaxed than he really is, considering he’s never sounded comfortable with a flow he picks out, which becomes especially clear with Dave on the hook as he actually pulls off sounding effortless. Giggs’ delivery honestly reminds me of Dean Blunt’s satirical British rap project Babyfather more than anything, especially with the half-asleep cadences leaving so much dead air in this eerie, stagnant trap beat. The song doesn’t end with a piece of classic Dave wordplay, though he’s not on his A-game here comparing himself to Sonic the Hedgehog, it just ends with “Lingerie on a special occasion”… okay. That’s barely even a flex, why does it punctuate the track’s final moments? This is just another ugly showing of substanceless pretence from Dave over a pretty minimal beat with an absolutely worthless performance from Giggs, whose verses feel double the length and really halt any possible fun that could be had from Dave’s bite-size verse. Somehow, this ends up much like “Coal” - there’s just nothing here.

#39 - “Whatever” - Kygo and Ava Max

Produced by, well, Kygo

Speaking of nothingness, welcome back, Kygo and Ava Max… Jesus Christ. Okay, well, if anything is the saving grace this week outside of #5, it will be this.

I have just checked the sample credits, I have bad news. To delay the suffering, I will say that I kind of like the production here, the acoustics remind me of Avicii’s pretty seamless blend of folk pop with the anthemic festival house that defined much of his catalogue. Kygo has always been a detailed producer who pays much attention to ensuring his songs are as easy as possible on the ears, and he succeeds in the sense of this being a very pretty little tune with depths of cute synth pads, guitar rolicks and plucky percussion. Ava Max herself actually impresses me a tad here vocally, mostly because since this is a Kygo song, she can belt without clipping unnecessarily in the mix for once. However, and this is a big however, the main hook of the song, its crux, if you will, is a direct interpolation and rewording of the iconic melody to Shakira’s “Whenever, Wherever”, a 2001 single that debuted and peaked at #2 for two weeks in 2002 here in the UK, being kept off the top spot by Will Young’s double A-side of “Anything is Possible” and “Evergreen”. I can’t believe such a classic was blocked by not even Westlife, but a Westlife COVER, yet I digress, this is just a lazy and frankly obnoxious way of using the song’s chorus. Kygo is clearly dipping into the David Guetta pool of reskinning prior hits, and I will give it to him that he’s not just redoing a classic EDM track, this is largely a unique house single, but that may make the last-resort hook that much more disappointing. I’m disappointed in you, Kygo. Not you, Ava Max, you can just do whatever. Albania forever.

#36 - “Skin and Bones” - David Kushner

Produced by Rob Kirwin

Oh, we’re actually making David Kushner a thing, fantastic, that other song just had so much to offer, didn’t it? I feel like I can very quickly summarise this melodramatic, uber-serious noir piano ballad, deepened by some of the ugliest froggy-sounding snaps I’ve heard in pop music and only plunged further into sludge by Kushner’s insufferable lyrics, by just a stray observation. When I clicked on the Genius annotation for the first verse of this song, it was completely empty. At least to the first verse, there’s literally nothing there: an empty annotation box. It may just be a glitch on my part, or it was deleted for whatever reason, but regardless, I think this exemplifies how little this song has to offer: someone attempted to just touch upon the pretty self-explanatory first verse, attempted to offer some wisdom or deeper analysis that seems granted with the cinematic grandeur of it all, and couldn’t cough anything up. Once again, there’s just nothing here.

#34 - “Never be Alone” - Becky Hill and Sonny Fodera

Produced by Sonny Fodera

I mean… it has a pulse at least. In fact, this is much more interesting than I expected for Becky, and not necessarily in a lyrical front, simply because she does not need to do much more than recite boardroom word association over four-on-the-floor, but moreso with her vicious delivery, going into an attack that sounds like it was overpowering the mix before being blended a bit more clearly into the nostalgic breakbeat hardcore rhythm that punctuates a surprisingly long build-up into a… surprisingly unique drop. This is really just a flex show for Sonny Fodera here, but Becky stepped up to the plate to match his passion and energy, bringing more of a rough instinct to the trickling alien synth critter that grounds the 90s pads and rock-solid breakbeats into a killer pre-drop that genuinely took me aback, as did this drop, which completely ditches the breakbeats for a tense hardcore kick and more atmospheric, glitching pads that run through the mix like a spiralling staircase, as Becky’s vocalising becomes little more than an inhuman drone until it’s removed altogether. The intensity of the track, filling up the mix with padded quirks even when the breakbeats are relegated to simple fills, is genuinely unprecedented for Becky Hill, and I’m actually really glad that she is not only on hopping on much more effective and unique production, but stepping out of her comfort zone to riff and meander in a way that she never really lets herself do, even in her looser songs. I am honestly quite shocked, but this is fantastic. If this doesn’t smash like much of Becky’s tighter, more restrictive cuts have in the past few years, I will be immensely disappointed.

#18 - “Beautiful Things” - Benson Boone

Produced by Evan Blair

Sigh… one of my first thoughts when Kushner had success with “Daylight” was how much he seemed cut from the same cloth as Mr. Boone over here, and to be completely honest, the concept of the two charting the same week chased me in my worst of nightmares. Hey, at least my dreams have become reality! To be fair to Booner Boy here, he has what Khrushchev and Gossamer lacked: genuine lyrical detail in the verses. There is a certain dichotomy between the universalities of the choruses and pre-chorus compared to the pretty niche and incredibly lucky situation he’s found himself in during the verses, it almost reminds me of Tom Odell’s “Black Friday” given its wordy mundanity, but that’s only lyrically, as I don’t hear much here connecting the two sonically, especially given the faint bass and reliance on soaring guitars on “Beautiful Things” that makes it almost more of a pop rock tune, one that is surprisingly willing to ditch much of its initial build-up for a desperate screech over stop-and-start staccato guitar rhythms that go way harder than I expected. This is what I’ve been saying Lewis Capaldi should be doing for years, if these moan and drone singer-songwriter sadboys are going to have their voice fit over anything, it’s not basic adult contemporary swells, it’s melodramatic, no-holds-barred pop rock, and this honestly becomes pretty killer by that first chorus. The guy can let out a desperate cry, and I’ll be damned if he’s not convincing as he airs out his paranoia about this perfect relationship breaking down. The second chorus could use some deviation, but I’m a sucker for radio rock that takes itself way too seriously and considering his dire earlier material, this may as well be Mr. Boone: The Animated Series. I really want to hear more of this from this guy, and it seems that these last few songs may be the light at the end of the tunnel for an unpromising week.

#5 - “Homesick” - Noah Kahan and Sam Fender

Produced by Noah Kahan and Gabe Simon

Okay, it’s Noah Kahan: there is a base level of quality here and I am actually always excited to hear a new song from him because at least there’s always a lot to uncover and appreciate even if the song isn’t great or has some grating element throwing a spanner in the cogs. This is especially true with Sam Fender in play, as this raises the standard of quality to at least bearable and at its worst, it’s going to be an interesting and perhaps powerful narrative… and if we’re talking about lyrical detail, I mean, Kahan’s your man, almost too much so given some of the awkward wording in that original version from his Stick Season album. On hearing those church organs sliding just slightly off the careening heartland rock groove, I knew exactly why Mr. Fender ended up on this specific song, and this actually lets Kahan let out a little, have a little more fun as he vocalises playfully about his frustrations, delivered largely in the form of punchlines, about his slow small town, with the chorus being him breaking down and basically begging for a reason to grab him out of that place, even if it’s where he grew up, using an on-the-nose but still fun play on words with the term “homesick”. I do wish there was a bit more to its mid-section, it feels like it stagnates a bit once we reach the chorus for the first time, mostly structurally. I want to hear more of Kahan’s stray, funny observations, but we don’t really get more of that even with the ramped-up intensity and a guitar solo way too Weezer-coded for me to not get a stupid grin on my face.

As for the Fender version, well, this is the best-implemented anyone has been in these Kahan duets yet, given Fender brings a new verse giving a unique and personal story about the background of riots in northern England that informed his town, injecting further reason to why one may be Kahan’s form of “homesick”, but also, despite being more strikingly intimate and less darkly comic in his observations, finding a valid and heartfelt reason to live his life outside of that home town: the dreams his father set out for him lay far away from where they were instilled. It adds a lot of depth to the song, and whilst Kahan and Fender don’t play off each other incredibly well, they have a decent chemistry that from interviews with Dork and People seem to have arisen from very similar hapless upbringings and recurring topics in both catalogues. Additionally, I like Fender’s voice more than Kahan’s, and the harmonies fill out the  mix so it’s a tad more impactful, so I think this new version actually beats out the original. I’m also pretty happy that this week, starting off with a lot of mediocrity and not exactly a promising set of artists for me, personally, ended up surprising me with that three-track run by the end, and trailing off with two killer rock songs is the best way to make me feel a lot happier about a week as a whole.

Conclusion

I’m relatively predictable, especially when we get alt-rock on the charts, so I feel like despite how much I liked the Becky Hill song, it’s no surprise that Benson Boone ends up snabbing an insanely close Best of the Week for “Beautiful Things”. It was pretty much neck-and-neck with “Homesick” by Noah Kahan and Sam Fender, which is of course the Honourable Mention, and whilst I think that it is lyrically more insightful, there’s an instinctual raucousness to the emotion in The Booney One’s track that just hits that bit harder. As for the worst, I mean David Kushner obviously gets Worst of the Week pretty much effortlessly with “Skin and Bones”, but I do think I was just frustrated enough with Dylan Gossett to grant his song “Coal” with the Dishonourable Mention. At least Giggs wasn’t trying to say anything profound, and if he was, then I sincerely worry for him.

What’s on the horizon next? God knows, it’s January, but Justin Timberlake has a comeback single, Tom Odell has an album, it may be the week of even more whiny white dudes. Story of my life. Thank you for reading and I’ll see you perhaps a bit earlier than next week.

[whateverbringsyouthroughthenight]

The first Bob Dylan endorsement, the 1966 Fender print ads feature photos of Dylan taken by Don Hunstein in 1965 at the “Highway 61 Revisited” sessions.

[batteredshoes]

Like A Rolling Stone (Highway 61 Revisited, 1965)

Al Kooper on how he hustled his way into the making of Dylan’s cryptic fairy tale and all-time greatest song.

“I began my professional music career as a member of The Royal Teens in 1959, becoming a professional songwriter shortly thereafter and teaming up with lyricists Bob Brass & Irwin Levine. By 1965 I’d befriended producer Tom Wilson at Columbia Records at 799 7th Avenue in New York City. Tom was riding high as the producer of Bob Dylan, of whom I was a big fan. After a while, the others that worked on his floor got used to me coming and going whether Tom was there or not. Occasionally I’d “borrow” unreleased acetates of Dylan’s albums in progress and take them home overnight and make a tape copy for my own enjoyment. Tom would also invite me on occasion to the New York Giants football team’s Sunday games, where he had excellent seats. I was about 21-years-old but I knew when to speak and when not to.

Then one day, out of the freakin’ blue, Tom invites me to an afternoon Dylan session. It’s Wednesday June 16 and they’ve already done a day’s work on a handful of songs – one they’ve been calling Phantom Engineer but will turn into It Takes a Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry; another they’ve started and have all of today to get right. I’m carefully instructed to sit in the control room and be as invisible as possible.

The session is to begin at 2pm. So I get there at 12.30pm with my electric guitar and amp and begin to warm up like I truly belong there. After about ten minutes, Dylan comes blasting in the door along with a guitarist who has his guitar on his shoulder like a rifle. Only it’s raining outside and the caseless guitar is as wet as can be.

The guitarist is Mike Bloomfield. I’ve read about him in Sing Out! magazine – he is in the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, whatever that is. The other musicians are mostly a crew of dependable guys that do this for a living: among them, drummer Bobby Gregg, pianist Paul Griffin and bassist Joe Macho Jr. The only one I know by sight is Griffin. I had hired him a few times for songwriting demos. An excellent player and a really nice guy.

Bloomfield comes over to where I’m sitting with my guitar and says hello – he wipes the rain off his guitar with a rag and plugs into a Fender amp and starts warming up. This shocks me as I have never heard someone my age play with the skill and tone he has. I quickly put my guitar in its case, slide it under a bench, and get my ass into the control room where I actually belong (and just in time as Tom Wilson enters five minutes later).

The band begins to rehearse the song Dylan wants to start off with. Wilson begins getting sounds on each instrument. Paul Griffin is playing organ and Dylan is playing an electric Fender Stratocaster! This blows my mind - acoustic Bob goes electric! The song is over six minutes long and Bloomfield is instantly mesmerizing. After three takes Wilson moves Paul Griffin from organ to piano.

While they are moving the piano around and miking it. Everyone takes a break. I go out to the studio and sit at the organ which is fortunately still plugged in and turned on. It’s very complicated to turn an organ on and I haven’t acquired that knowledge yet. The piano is tuned. Wilson starts over the talkback: 'This is Like A Rolling Stone Take 4.' He pauses and sees me behind the organ. 'What are you doing out there?' he says and the other musicians laugh and, thank God, so does Wilson. He appears to relent and says, 'OK, this is Take 4.'

After the intro, I wait until everyone else plays a chord and then I come in. Pretty quickly I memorize the chords - there’s only five! - and then I begin to play parts. This is the first complete take of the session, so they play back all six minutes of it. Now I go in the booth and sit at the end of a bench. After the first chorus Bob says to Tom Wilson, 'Make the organ louder.' Tom says, 'You know that guy’s not an organ player, right?' Bob says, 'I don’t care – just turn it up in the mix!'

And that my friends, was the beginning of my soon-to-be real career.”

[berryblonde1975]

intro post <33

heyy my name is kaylei

im literally a minor so please don’t be weird

let’s me mutualss <3

my interests include: music, movies, books, poetry, writing, collecting pieces of physical media, baking, girlblogging, fashion, finding motifs and connections, etc..

favorite movies: bones and all, beautiful boy, brokeback mountain, girl, interrupted, lady bird, call me by your name, perks of being a wallflower, little women (2019), 10 things i hate about you, aftersun (fav directors: chris nolan, luca guad. sophia coppola)

fav music artists: the 1975, lana del rey, harry styles, jeff buckley, fiona apple, ethel cain, niall horan (seen 1x in concert), charli xcx, gracie abrams (seen 1x in concert), noah kahan, phoebe bridgers, zayn, julien baker, louis tomlinson (seen 1x in concert), role model (seen 1x in concert and 1 upcoming show), bob dylan, sam fender, the smiths, radiohead, del water gap, liam payne, the doors, hozier (1 upcoming show)

fav books/authors: SALLY ROONEY, Kafka, Nic and David Sheff, Plath, Bukowski, De Beauvoir, Moshfegh,

liam payne . rest in peace my love

my letterboxd: https://boxd.it/6RCX7

goodreads username: kaylei

[harrisonarchive]

On February 15, 2001, George Harrison took part in two web chats (with Yahoo and MSN).

George: “May God bless you all. Don't forget to say all you prayers tonight. Be good little souls. Lots of Love! George. :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)”

The full chat transcripts under the "read more" cut.

Yahoo! Chat Transcript
 George Harrison 02/15/01 ChatYahoo_Lisa: Welcome to Yahoo! Chat ChatYahoo_Lisa: We are here with George Harrison george_harrison_live: Hello! george_harrison_live: It's nice to be here! george_harrison_live: It's my first time on a computer... I'm pretty illiterate :) yahoomusic asks: What made you decide to re-issue All Things Must Pass now? george_harrison_live: It's the 30th anniversary and I'm in the process of remastering my entire catalog george_harrison_live: Which I want to get back into the stores george_harrison_live: So we started with that one george_harrison_live: and hopefully during the year george_harrison_live: We'll be able to come with the next batch and so on george_harrison_live: So that everything I have ever done will be available. morvyon asks: George, are you planning a new studio album? george_harrison_live: Yeah. george_harrison_live: I hope to put out a new studio album george_harrison_live: Possibly in November george_harrison_live: and I have at the moment many songs in various states of completion george_harrison_live: Possibly 35 songs that I have been working on over the years. yahoomusic asks: Do you surf the internet much? What types of things do you do online? george_harrison_live: No, I never surf george_harrison_live: I don't know the password. willowy_blonde asks: Hi, my boyfriend wants to know, he's a musician what's your fave electric guitar and do you still have "Rocky" your '61 fender strat? george_harrison_live: Hello willowy blonde! george_harrison_live: I still have Rocky! george_harrison_live: and he can be seen at Cyril's rare guitar shop on allthingsmustpass.com timbarwick asks: Will you be releasing Living in the Material World in a remastered/extra tracks version? george_harrison_live: Well, as I said before george_harrison_live: That will be the next one to be remastered george_harrison_live: I have to get into my tape library to find out if there are any alternate versions of anything. silbeat asks: Hi George! Glad to hear from you again! Are you planning to do any live performances? If so, where would you like to play? (Please include Argentina!!!). With love from Argentina. Sole, Mara, Silvi, Vale, Gilda, Ale, Sami and Graciela. george_harrison_live: Hello Argentina! :) george_harrison_live: At the moment I have no plans for live performances george_harrison_live: If I do later, I will certainly come to Argentina rbortega2001 asks: What did you think of Bob Dylan getting nominated for an Oscar? george_harrison_live: I think he should win it! george_harrison_live: I think he should win ALL the Oscars george_harrison_live: all the Tonys george_harrison_live: all the Grammys pcpalmiere asks: How has The Rutles influenced your career? george_harrison_live: I got all my ideas from The Rutles! george_harrison_live: particularly the 12-string Rickenbacker and slide guitar styles I got from Stig O'Hara. george_harrison_live: I met him once and he is a super chap. oldmanalex asks: Hello from Russia, George! Russian fans invite you to play in Moscow! Can you tell, will the Traveling Wilburys reform? Are there any plans to record something with Tom Petty, Bob Dylan and Jeff Lynne? george_harrison_live: Thank you Russian fans! george_harrison_live: I'll be there after Argentina! nattyrobbo asks: Hi George! I'm Natalie, an 18 y.o. girl from Australia, and I'm a HUGE fan. Any hints for a budding guitarist??? george_harrison_live: Yes. george_harrison_live: Buy a ukulele! mike_n_tex asks: George, do you ever see a reunion tour with you and Paul and Ringo? george_harrison_live: Stranger things have happened. flatcat65 asks: George, Which version of My Sweet Lord do you like best, your original or the new version? george_harrison_live: I like the new version better. george_harrison_live: Because it's new! george_harrison_live: and I like Sam Brown singing it. ChatYahoo_Lisa: Why did you re-visit it? george_harrison_live: At the time, the song was so popular and also so controversial that the most important thing about it for me was that it george_harrison_live: in it's small way george_harrison_live: conjured up a touch of spirituality george_harrison_live: something we are very short of... ChristopherClause asks: Hi George! Christopher here! Thank you for being such an inspiration! What was it like working with Phil Spector? Although I can hear his influence, your "influence" and leadership in the production is clear. God bless you, George! george_harrison_live: Phil Spector was prob the greatest producer from the 60s and it was good to work with him because I needed some assistance in the control box. george_harrison_live: Phil is very funny george_harrison_live: loveable george_harrison_live: we love him :) mebissy asks: I have several teenage friends who've just discovered All Things Must Pass. They were wondering about radio airplay. I explained that this was a re-mastered, etc. album - a re-release essentially. They, however (as do I) feel the music is just as cool as it was when you first released the work. Wouldn't it be great if a single was selected and the whole cycle could start again? george_harrison_live: It's nice to know that teenagers find All Things Must Pass *cool* george_harrison_live: As far as a single goes, george_harrison_live: I suppose that's really up to Capitol Records george_harrison_live: I have no objection! melissay1 asks: Hi, Mr. Harrison, how do you feel about the Beatles 1 album being top of the charts? george_harrison_live: It's very nice george_harrison_live: It's also nice that young children seem to be hearing it for the first time george_harrison_live: and I think as an alternative form of music for today george_harrison_live: it has its place alongside all this other stuff. captainwombat_2000 asks: Out of curiosity, why the garden gnomes on All Things Must Pass? george_harrison_live: Originally, when we took the photo george_harrison_live: I had these old Bavarian gnomes george_harrison_live: which I thought I would put there george_harrison_live: like kinda... John, Paul, George and Ringo george_harrison_live: gnomes are very popular in Europe george_harrison_live: and these gnomes were made in about 1860 george_harrison_live: so, while building the website george_harrison_live: the gnomes just seemed to get into it and we just couldn't stop them! gearfabasitwere asks: Is Indian music still a big infuence on your music? george_harrison_live: Yes! ChatYahoo_Lisa: anything particular? george_harrison_live: Check out U. Srinivas a South Indian electric mandolin player george_harrison_live: eat your heart out Van Halen! moosefalva101 asks: Following the incident at your house on Dec. 1999 has your outlook on life changed at all? george_harrison_live: Yes and no george_harrison_live: Adi Shankara an Indian historical, spiritual, groovy-type person once said george_harrison_live: "Life is fragile, like a raindrop on a lotus leaf." george_harrison_live: and you better believe it! Nicole_Paul asks: I am curious about your website and the way the cover photo is altered by adding roads and urban development to the picture. Does that symbolize anything? george_harrison_live: Yes. george_harrison_live: It symbolizes that our world is being concreted over. Haven't you noticed? bluejeanbaby42001 asks: George, you have quite a reputation as a gardener...What are some of your "pride & joy" plants? Love, Dianne george_harrison_live: Well, for the cooler climates (as in England) george_harrison_live: The current trend is definitely toward Miscanthus george_harrison_live: You'll find many lovely varieties george_harrison_live: try the Zebrensis and also the Malepartis george_harrison_live: However, george_harrison_live: if you're gardening in the tropics george_harrison_live: I think you'll find a lovely little ginger called Kahili :P a_t_m98 asks: Mr. Harrison.. what is the opening chord you used for "A Hard Days Night"? george_harrison_live: It is F with a G on top (on the 12-string) george_harrison_live: But you'll have to ask Paul about the bass note to get the proper story. hari_girl asks: What do you think of Eminem's grammy nomination? george_harrison_live: What's Eminem? george_harrison_live: Aren't they choclates or something? beatles_lvr asks: You started the "band aid" movement; who would you help today? Love you George!! george_harrison_live: Bob Geldof! Moyette asks: What did you record with Bill Wyman last month? george_harrison_live: :) An old Ketty Lester song called "Love Letters" sharonconcannon2000 asks: Why was "I Live For You" left out of the original mix? (I think it's lovely, thank you for putting out at last!) george_harrison_live: I didn't think that we had got a good enough take on it. george_harrison_live: Except for Pete Drake, the pedal steel guitar player. george_harrison_live: At that time, I had so many other tracks as well, george_harrison_live: so we just left it off. george_harrison_live: It did need patching up george_harrison_live: in the drum department. pcpalmiere asks: How close are you to releasing that boxed set of unreleased songs and demos you talked about in Billboard some time back? george_harrison_live: Well, hopefully during this year I should at least get out a new album and all the other boxes of unreleased demos could possibly follow in 18 months. I'm trying to get everything that has ever been done out there. It'll just take a little time. nikolaidisgm asks: George, what do you miss most about John Lennon? george_harrison_live: John Lennon. michaelcalcina asks: George: In the Anthology book, you talk about the unwound G string. What is that? I play guitar and I'm not sure what you're talking about. george_harrison_live: It's one of those little things that goes up your butt so that people can't see your pantylines. george_harrison_live: No, It's actually a 3rd string that doesn't have a winding around it. spongeweed70508 asks: Does Paul still piss you off (tell us the truth) george_harrison_live: Scan not a friend with a microscopic glass -- You know his faults -- Then let his foibles pass. george_harrison_live: Old Victorian Proverb. george_harrison_live: I'm sure there's enough about me that pisses him off, but I think we have now grown old enough to realize george_harrison_live: that we're both pretty damn cute! incantataa asks: Mr. Harrison, I was wondering if you might tell us a bit about your ideas on love. Romantic love, that is. I recall you having written some of the Beatles' most beatiful love songs. It would be interesting to hear how your religious attitudes have impacted your beliefs concerning romanticism. george_harrison_live: Well, the lover that we miss is actually God. george_harrison_live: The beauty that you see within each other is actually God. george_harrison_live: So, Krishna was the greatest romanticist. He had girlfriends on every corner! george_harrison_live: I can't seperate the two -- a beautiful girl is the divine mother, a beautiful man is the manifestation of potential. fabzzy asks: You're joking in a most Pythonistic manner tonight George.., it's great to hear you online!!! george_harrison_live: PISS OFF!! george_harrison_live: You nosy bastard! i_arcos asks: Is it true that you recorded "Homeward Bound" with P. Simon? george_harrison_live: I recorded that with Paul Simon on Saturday Night Live back in 1853. tnntxx asks: George, given the drug experimentation of the 60's, how do you feel about the legalitzation of pot? george_harrison_live: Well, I saw someone on TV last night pulling out huge loads of pot out of various fields in California. My feeling is... george_harrison_live: as long as you can go into a store and buy george_harrison_live: whiskey george_harrison_live: bourbon george_harrison_live: and all the rest of it george_harrison_live: then, a little grass is nothing. george_harrison_live: the authorities are just causing the price to be high -- 'scuse the pun. ckeavenyuk asks: Have you any tips to budding songwiters? Do you, as John apparantly advised you stick at it until you have finished it. george_harrison_live: Try and write some melodies. And some words that mean something. george_harrison_live: It is true that if you are on a roll, then it's best to finish it in one go. george_harrison_live: That's what Johnny said. kdtash asks: Any chance that the Dark Horse material, esp. Shankar Family and Friends will be released on CD? george_harrison_live: Well, along with my own catalog of records george_harrison_live: the other Dark Horse records george_harrison_live: hopefully will be finding a new home george_harrison_live: and coming out on CDs (remastered) sometime in the future. mp0071999 asks: Hey George will you be ever be back on Yahoo? george_harrison_live: Possibly. It's pretty painless for me. kyntire2001 asks: Happy Birthday (a little early). During your recent Internet video promoting All Things Must Pass, you pointed to an engraving on the back of your guitar. What did the engraving say? george_harrison_live: It's a Maclaren strat and it had a metal chassis number plate on the back. george_harrison_live: Thank you all! george_harrison_live: May God bless you all. george_harrison_live: Don't forget to say all your prayers tonight. george_harrison_live: Be good little souls. george_harrison_live: Lots of Love! george_harrison_live: George. george_harrison_live: :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) ChatYahoo_Lisa: Thank you sooo much for joining us....pretty please come back soon! george_harrison_live: Check out allthingsmustpass.com. george_harrison_live: for further entertainment! ChatYahoo_Lisa: Bye everyone!

MSN chat transcript - George Harrison, February 15, 2001

DishDiva : Welcome to MSN Live! Today we are pleased to welcome George Harrison to MSN. DishDiva : Please join me in welcoming Mr. George Harrison to MSN Live! DishDiva : Today we will be talking with George Harrison about the re-release of "All Things Must Pass." DishDiva : George, welcome to MSN Live! George_Harrison_Live : Hello, good evening! George_Harrison_Live : How's your father! How's your uncle? DishDiva : George, the Internet was not a part of your promotion last time around for "All Things Must Pass." What part does the Internet play in promotion for "ALL Things Must Pass" now? George_Harrison_Live : I suppose the fact that it is just like this and everyone is listening.It eliminates the time of someone printing up a Newspaper. DishDiva : SR says: Is it true that you were really asked to join the beatles because you knew all the chords to "Twenty Flight Rock"? George_Harrison_Live : No! Paul knew "Twenty Flight Rock" but I did too. DishDiva : Spockmiester55 Asks: What is the difference between the old and new release if any? George_Harrison_Live : The new release is remastered and is much much better to the record that existed up until now and it has five bonus tracks on it. It also has new packaging. DishDiva : Sherwood Asks: Will your other past releases receive the deluxe treatment as "Pass" did? George_Harrison_Live : It depends really. They will all be remastered. Whether the artwork will change, I don't know. It depends what we feel at the time and what the record company feels at the time. DishDiva : alina says: Do you remember how you felt making "All Things Must Pass"? DishDiva : jerryfender Asks: Don't you miss the old packaging with albums vs CD's? All Things Must Pass was great because even the box was huge! George_Harrison_Live : Twelve inch square artwork gets you more scope and greater impact.Those days the album cover used to be part of the overall package. It seems to become less important because it is smaller and not so many people are interested in the artwork. DishDiva : doodah says: Where were you spiritually then when you wrote the lyrics for "My Sweet Lord", and where are you now spritually, have you grown? George_Harrison_Live : Somebody said a very famous Indian saint said "if there is a God, we must see him. And if there is a soul we must perceive it." In the West they still argue if God really exists. Basically, I am in the same place. The song really came from Swami Vivekananda. DishDiva : iluvgeorge says: Will you be touring? George_Harrison_Live : At the moment, no. DishDiva : lidbaby says: Any musicians you like right now? George_Harrison_Live : Hoagy Carmichael. There are many, many, many musicians. DishDiva : babe says: Is most of what's been written about you pure rubbish? Is there any one book that's more accurate than any other? George_Harrison_Live : The one that is the most accurate is "The Beatles" by the Beatles. When a book is written by someone who doesn't like you, it may not be very good. DishDiva : WildingTangent Asks: Are you still writing and recording songs? How would your style of music these days? George_Harrison_Live : I am still doing that, yes. Hopefully, there will be one coming out at the end of the year. DishDiva : tedsblues Asks: Re: recording...analog or digital? George_Harrison_Live : I have always recorded analog except when I was in a live concert. Generally, I record on analog but I hear that digital these days are getting better. The bandwidth is getting better. DishDiva : arainyfriday Asks: Looking back, how do you view your book "I, Me, Mine"? If it were to be re-released, would you make changes based on perspective you have gained over the years? George_Harrison_Live : It was ok for the time. I thought it was well made. It was an excuse to have a nice leather book like the Bible.
 DishDiva : liam0241 Asks: What was the inspiration for the song 'Run of the Mill' George_Harrison_Live : There was an expression that came from Yorkshire where they made fabric. Run of the mill just means average. I was using that phrase more or less, because, the Beatles were just splitting up. I don't know if they had that expression in America. DishDiva : sasha says: Hi Mr. Harrison. My dad and I like your site. Did you do it? George_Harrison_Live : I am not a technician. But I sat with people from Radical Media. They came to my house and set up the computers. The technicians did it and I kept thinking of ideas.I didn't have a concept of what a website was and I still don't understand the concept. I wanted to see little people poking each other with sticks much like Monty Python. DishDiva : You can check out George Harrison's website at http://www.allthingsmustpass.com DishDiva : rico Asks: What do you wish you could do, that you have'nt done already? George_Harrison_Live : Dematerialize my body. DishDiva : OKRichH says: I consider this a great priviledge to chat with you. Was the recording of "All Things Must Pass" a fulfilling outlet for you? George_Harrison_Live : Yeah, at the time it was very fulfilling- a chance to do a record of my own material. DishDiva : Brit says: What's the most popular misconception about you that people have? George_Harrison_Live : That I am serious. Pisces are depicted as two fish going in opposite directions. Many people do not see the humorous side. It is just as big! DishDiva : Beat says: Are you interested in all in the different sounds that electronics can add to guitar sounds, or are you more of a 'back to basics' advocate? George_Harrison_Live : More of back to basics. I really like the sounds they had in the 50's. Now you just buy something and plug it in. You can sound like Jimi Hendrix or whoever and everyone sounds the same. DishDiva : jediprincess00 Asks: what would you like to say to the younger generation that looks up to you? George_Harrison_Live : Try to realize what the purpose of being in a body is. There is only one purpose really and that is what you have to try to not forget. Who am I? Where did I come from? Where am I going? DishDiva : George, it has been a pleasur having you as our guest tonight! George_Harrison_Live : Lots of love and kevlar to everyone! George_Harrison_Live : It has been nice talking to you. Please enjoy the website! Ask_Questions_Live : The preceding is ( c ) 2001 MSN Live Thanks to our guest, hosts and to everyone that came to today's chat! Please remember that due to the number of questions received, it was not possible for our guest to answer each one individually. Thanks for coming to MSNLive! DishDiva : Again, you can check out George Harrison's website at http://www.allthingsmustpass.com DishDiva : You can also pick up the re-release, including, "My Sweet Lord" online at http://eshop.msn.com DishDiva : The transcript of tonight's very special event will be available later at http://chat.msn.com/msnlive

[callitfatecalitkarma]

“His trademark is wearing formal suits, usually a different one for each show. Albert is usually seen playing an olympian white Fender Stratocaster, or bandmate Nick Valensi's Les Paul Jr. He is usually associated with the "rhythm" guitar portion of the majority of Strokes songs, and most solos are played by Valensi. The solos in which Albert does play are Last Nite, Trying Your Luck, Take It Or Leave It, Under Control, The End Has No End, Ize Of The World, and Vision Of Division. His solos tend to focus largely on more emotional, "bluesy"-type melodical work, and the guitar tends to have a cleaner, softer tone in comparison to Valensi's (with a noteable exception found in Vision Of Division). He often holds the guitar in a high horizontal position, similar to Bob Dylan and Ian Curtis.”

Albert Hammond Jr. [last.fm]

[doomandgloomfromthetomb]

Patti Smith Group / John Cale / Television - The Palladium, New York City, December 31, 1976

I finally got around to Sonic Life, Thurston Moore's recent memoir, this month! You can read a few of my quick thoughts about it (along with some other nice recommendations) in the latest edition of the Aquarium Drunkard Book Club. As I mention, I was a little surprised at how much I enjoyed Thurston's memories of his teenage years, way before Sonic Youth was even a twinkle in his eye — A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Fan? From the suburbs of Connecticut, Moore made countless trips into NYC to soak in the punk/CBGB/Max's worlds, catching shows by The Ramones, Suicide, the Dead Boys, Sid Vicious ... and Patti Smith, of course.

Thurston paints an evocative portrait of this New Year's Eve blowout, which doubled as Patti's raucous 30th birthday party. He was dangerously high on mescaline.

"We zombied our way down the street to the Palladium and found our seats, and I sat in a state of tenuous control as Television arrived onstage. I figured if I just maintained my cool, the mescaline's threat of wiping out my sanity would begin to subside and all would be okay. 'A song by Dylan' — were the only words I remember Tom Verlaine saying to the audience as the band began to play a plaintive cover of 'Knockin' on Heaven's Door.' By the time John Cale and his group came onstage, I felt as though I were sliding slowly down the side of a porcelain sink, managing only the barest of friction, my reality threatening to fall into a drain hole never to return. I was gripped by the fear of losing myself completely, another entry on the list of acid casualties. I concentrated on specific thoughts, pinpricks of salvation that I'd cling to, slip from, then hold on to again. I feared that if I closed my eyes, I would be forever vanquished."

Happy new year?! All these decades later we can enjoy the Palladium gig via dusty audience tapes — your call if you want to drop a tab of mescaline while you listen. Interesting to hear Television at this point, with Marquee Moon more or less in the can, playing a much larger venue than ever before. They'd just finished several nights in a row at CB's — which is maybe that's why they sound a littttttle bit tired. But there's plenty of sweet stuff, of course, including a truly go-for-broke "Kingdom Come." Billy Ficca, baby! Cale, meanwhile, happily provides a bad trip soundtrack for Thurston's bad trip — a short but powerful set highlighted by a maniacal "Guts" and an even more maniacal "Fear Is A Man's Best Friend." That guy sure could scream.

And what about the belle of the ball — Patti herself? Let's hand it back to Thurston, who had recovered a bit by the start of her set. Here, he describes the all-star finale with Fred "Sonic" Smith joining the melee.

"Fred and Patti had become an item. Now here was Fred onstage, unassuming and spectral, as Patti howled and whirled. With 'My Generation' culminating in obligatory destruction, all players would eventually leave the stage except for the two Smiths. Like Fred, Patti had a Fender Duo-Sonic strapped on, and she leaned her head on her sweetheart's shoulder as both their guitars emitted a whistling-bird noise of feedback through the amps. How this translated to everyone around me, I couldn't say. For me, it was an emblematic vision of all I would ever desire from rock 'n' roll — transcendence, devotion, sonic love."

[stopdoomscrolling-cafe]

playing the guitar

hey there! welcome back. let’s talk about why playing the guitar is such a fantastic hobby. 🎸

playing the guitar is a great way to relax and express yourself. it improves your hand-eye coordination, boosts your creativity, and can even enhance your memory and concentration. plus, it’s super fun and can be a great way to connect with others through music.

ready to start strumming? here’s a step-by-step guide to help you begin your guitar journey:

choose your guitar: decide between an acoustic or electric guitar. acoustic guitars are great for beginners because they’re straightforward and don’t require extra equipment like amplifiers.

get the right gear: you’ll need a guitar, a tuner, a few picks, and a capo. a guitar strap and a case are also useful.

learn the parts of the guitar: familiarize yourself with the different parts of the guitar, like the headstock, neck, body, and strings.

tune your guitar: use a tuner to get your guitar in standard tuning (E A D G B e). this is crucial for making sure your guitar sounds good.

learn basic chords: start with simple chords like C, G, D, and E minor. these are the building blocks for many songs.

practice strumming patterns: get comfortable with basic strumming patterns. this will help you keep a steady rhythm.

play simple songs: pick easy songs to practice, like “knockin’ on heaven’s door” by bob dylan or “three little birds” by bob marley. this will help you apply what you’ve learned.

practice regularly: consistency is key. try to practice a little bit every day to build muscle memory and improve your skills.

explore different genres: once you’re comfortable, try playing different styles of music like rock, blues, or folk to keep things interesting.

here are a couple of youtube videos to help you get started:

how to play guitar - easy first guitar lesson for beginners! by dylan laine

how to play guitar (your first guitar lesson) by fender

happy strumming! what kind of music are you excited to learn on the guitar? 🎶

[jamietarttsnorthernattitude]

For year in review pretty please - 2, 9, 14, and 19!

thank you thank you friend <3 from this ask game

2. What’s something new that you tried in a fic this year?

In false confidence, for the first time I covered the same bit of plot from two different POVs. I was really unsure of it, I thought it might be boring to the audience and worried I wouldn't be able to do Ted's POV justice, but I think it worked.

9. What fic made you feel the happiest to work on?

what do you call a greyhound in a heat wave?

14. What were your go-to writing songs?

False Confidence by Noah Kahan, Seventeen Going Under by Sam Fender, I Can Do It With a Broken Heart by Taylor Swift and Coal by Dylan Gossett, all were in my top 20 and definitely listened a lot while writing. I didn't make playlists for all my fics, but the ones for False Confidence and There Is No Other Land definitely got a lot of play time.

19. Share your favorite piece of dialogue

it's more than a line but a bit i love in you inhert the sins, you inherit the flames:

“How did Ted take it when you told him you only hired him to tank the club?” Rebecca took another sip of wine, “He forgave me.” “That arsehole.” “I know!” “I’m not Ted,” Jamie said, grey eyes locked on hers, but there wasn’t malice in them, just melancholy. “I know.”

[ometochtli2rabbit]

13.0.12.2.14

lajun[10] IX/B'ALAM[jaguar]- wuklajun[17] MAC

galactic tone: manifestation

sun sign: jaguar/white/north

commune and give thanks to mother nature - MAYA

mahtlactli [10] - OCELOTL [jaguar]

Tezcatlipoca | Tlazolteotl

tecolotl[great horned owl] | warriors of Tezcatlipoca

lord of the night: Chalchihuitlicue

trecena [10]: Xiuhtecuhtli

x: mahtlactli-once[11] - tezoztontli - NAHUA

According to www.mayanmajix.com, JAGUAR is is the god/goddess of gratefulness. It is also a day for feminine energy. So, here are some songs about being GRATEFUL/GRATITUDE/THANKS:

Grateful Dead: Touch of Grey

Cat Power: Could We

Dan Fogelberg: Leader of the Band

FKA Twigs: Thank You Song

Beastie Boys: Gratitude

Rita Ora: Grateful

The Bangles: Grateful

Bonnie Raitt: Thank You

Natalie Merchant: Kind & Generous

Nat King Cole: Lonesome and Sorry

Kehlani: Thank You

Dido: Thank You

Kris Kristofferson: Thank You For A Life

Diana Krall: Pick Yourself Up

Meshell Ndegeocello: Lovely Lovely

Sly & the Family Stone: Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)

Katy Perry: Smile

Freddy Fender: These Arms of Mine

The Marvelettes: He's A Good Guy (Yes He Is)

Earth, Wind & Fire: Gratitude

Ani DiFranco: Gratitude

Talking Heads: Thank You For Sending Me An Angel

Emmylou Harris: Thanks to You

Bob Dylan: Covenant Woman

Edith Piaf: Hymn to Love

Depeche Mode: Speak to Me

Alanis Morissette: Thank U

Ariana Grande: Thank U, Next

"Weird Al" Yankovic: Thank U, Next (Polkamania!)

Thalia: I Found Your Love (Gracias A Dios)

Charley Pride: Be Grateful

Sinead O'Connor: Thank You For Hearing Me

Art Garfunkel: Grateful

Simon & Garfunkel: For Emily Whenever I May Find Her

Olivia Rodrigo: All-American Bitch

Otis Redding: I Want To Thank You

Lady Gaga: Angel Down (Work Tape)

The Clash: Hateful

Sarah McLachlan: Song For My Father

Ella Fitzgerald: Dancing on the Ceiling

David Bowie: Station to Station

Joan Baez: Last Night I Had the Strangest Dream

The Beatles: In My Life

Lana Del Rey: The Grants

[woodsteingirl]

i love bob dylan’s commentary on poetry. he calls poe the “fender bender poet” and says the waste land was written to commemorate the death of abraham lincoln. like nobody else is doing it like that

[sweetdreamsjeff]

THE GOOD, THE BAD, & THE LAUNDRY WITH BRENDA KAHN

In Features, Interviews by Jason L.05.28.19

Originally published at Hard Rock RPM

Poet. Guitarist. Songwriter. Publisher. Activist. Mother. Brenda Kahn’s music career stretches from the anti-folk scene of the East Village in the early 1990s to a recently published book of poetry about parenting aptly titled The Good, The Bad, And The Laundry. Along the way, Kahn recorded with her friend Jeff Buckley, played Lilith Fair multiple times, ran a website focused on women in music, and answered the call when Bob Dylan wanted her to open a show. While she may have traded the drug dealers of Avenue A for her children and a life in the countryside, Kahn’s keen eye for detail continues to serve her well.

...

The Ryan Adams news was not the least surprising in terms of the issues that persist in the business. How much of that did you experience during your career? While I feel like the 90s were a hugely successful time for women in music, I am terrified to imagine what the artists were experiencing.

I think this is finally changing because of access to the internet. I wish I’d been able to google “Should I get a Fender or a Gibson guitar”.  Or “what are the chords to “Like a Rolling Stone” back when I was in high school. I met several guys along the way who treated me as total equals.  One of whom was Jeff Buckley who taught me the two drum beats I can play on a kit now. And my producer Tim Patalan on Outside the Beauty Salon, who handed me a guitar and said – “You play the lead.”

...

Any memories about touring with Dylan and Buckley that you could share?

Opening for Bob Dylan was one of those bucket list moments that seemed so unlikely, it wasn’t even on the list. We found out about the tour dates while I was in France doing a promotional tour for Epiphany in Brooklyn. My manager busted into the room and said he had good news and bad news.  The good news was I was going to open for Bob Dylan, the bad news was I wasn’t allowed to open for him solo acoustic. I had to have a band. I was in France, the show was in two weeks, and the guys I made the album with were all on tour with other artists. Of course, I said yes.  I had just written the song “too far gone” and the timing was all over the place.  I didn’t know if I would get in trouble, but the band dropped out and I did that one song solo acoustic.  The feeling of being on that stage, where you could hear a pin drop, singing to 6000 Bob Dylan fans… best ever moment.

With Jeff Buckley it was really different because we were friends.  I don’t have a lot of tour stories because we were in different vehicles, but we would hang out at sound checks and play blues songs sometimes or eat together, but mostly we played our shows and went onto the next town.  But my memories of Jeff are more about hanging out in New York.  We spent hours together doing nothing.  Shopping in random thrift stores or making up dumb songs on the guitar.  In my mind, I can see him wheeling my 50lb amp down 9th street to a gig at Brownies, I remember him calling me last minute to come see him open up for Patti Smith at Irving Plaza.

The one serious recording we made together came from a time we were in my apartment and he was playing my tele, this really beautiful riff, and I said, ‘I have something that might work for that’ and started reading these snippets of poems I had written in these tiny notebooks. After about 10 minutes he stopped and looked at me and said “four-track”.  So funny because now you would just pull up an app on your iPhone and click a button, but back then, you had to set up microphones and plugin guitars and set levels. Jeff had a reel to reel tape machine in his apartment.  Anyway, that song turned out to be “Faith Salons” and it’s one of the last things he recorded.  When I hear his foot tapping and his vocals in the background it gets me every time.

[deadcactuswalking]

REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 24/02/2024 (Dua Lipa, Djo, Calvin Harris/Rag'n'Bone Man)

Guess we know who’s winning the Civil War - Beyoncé’s “TEXAS HOLD ‘EM” usurps Vermont on the throne of the UK Singles Chart. Welcome back to REVIEWING THE CHARTS!

Rundown

It’s kind of calming to have a week where outside of some new entries, of which there are only a handful to begin with. So, as always, we start with the notable dropouts, which are songs exiting the UK Top 75 (what I cover) after five weeks in the region or a peak in the top 40. This week, we bid adieu to a small selection of songs but some of which are pretty important. Sure, I guess we can say good riddance to “MY EYES” by Travis Scott (featuring uncredited vocals from Justin Vernon of Bon Iver and Sampha) and “Body Moving”  by Eliza Rose and Calvin Harris without much fret, but we also see dropouts from the Barbie soundtrack with both “What Was I Made For?” by Billie Eilish and “Dance the Night” by Dua Lipa leaving, as well as Sam Fender’s “Seventeen Going Under” making yet another exit though I’m sure it’ll be back soon enough.

There isn’t much to speak of in our gains, either. The biggest story is probably our list of returns, since the new documentary, Bob Marley: One Love has people rediscovering the reggae legend’s catalogue. His greatest hits album is at #6 on the albums chart and two of his songs with the Wailers return to the top 75. Both songs peaked in 1980, with “Could You be Loved”, now at #51, peaking at #5 whilst Odyssey’s “Use it Up and Wear it Out” was #1 and “Three Little Birds”, now at #56, only peaking at #17, whilst “Don’t Stand So Close to Me” by The Police was #1. Marley would pass just one year after, of course, and it is pretty poetic to have his grandson in the top 10 right now, but just so this episode has some cool chart history trivia, how about we go through the several times these songs have charted? Different recordings of the two songs released in 1984 and 1985 peaked at #71 and #76 respectively. Joe Cocker’s cover of “Could You be Loved” peaked at #86 in 1997, and as far as I can find, no other covers of either song have charted, which kind of surprises me. After all, the latter was recently covered by Maroon 5, I figured they’d hitch a chart spot on name recognition but nope, not even a child singer Connie Talbot could do it in the talent show boom in the 2000s, so I guess Marley’s original really can’t be replaced.

As for the rest of our gains and returns, “Thank You (Not So Bad)” by way too many people who should know better is back at #73 and “Coal” by Dylan Gossett returns to #61. The gains include last week’s debuts, “Made for Me” by Muni Long and “Birds in the Sky” by NewEra at #48 and #44 respectively, “Lil Boo Thang” by the GOAT Paul Russell at #35 and, despite what the Official Charts Company would want you to believe, “Grey” by Yung Filly is at #33. There was an Aitch remix.

This week’s top 5 is actually pretty notable in terms of some shifting tides. We begin with ACR - search it up - striking Noah Kahan’s “Stick Season” down to #5, and then one of a few big debuts with Dua Lipa at #4 with “Training Season”, followed by gains for some white dudes making big moves: “Lose Control” by Teddy Swims at #3 and “Beautiful Things” by Benson Boone at #2, and finally, of course Queen Bey at the top. Now, we don’t have that wide of an array of new entries, or really, many at all, of which I’m pretty grateful for, so let’s zip through them.

New Entries

#66 - “Soaked” - Shy Smith

Produced by BeatBusta

Alright, I’ll bite… who the Hell is Shy Smith and why did they go with that… uncomfortable cover art? Well, this song is actually from 2021, and I assume through TikTok has gone viral, but this isn’t some indie artist as we typically see, this is a Canadian social media star, which makes this song seem a bit more like a joke. That’s a relief since despite being three years old, it sounds like Ciara made this in 2006 with the glassy synths, blocky Timbaland-esque production and squarrelling synth buzz, that is much more “in” now than it ever has been. Part of me understands completely therefore why this is charting now… but then another part of me doesn’t understand why this is charting at all. There’s really nothing to the stifled groove of the beat and it sounds like it actively strains Shy Smith to try having a personality. It’s so clearly going for semi-goofy seduction, but clawing actual intimacy out of this is as hard a job for me as it would have been for the vocal engineers, so I’m really not understanding this one.

#53 - “Whatever She Wants” - Bryson Tiller

Produced by TylianMTB

I always forget Bryson Tiller exists until he shows back up again, and I mean no offence by that as nothing has given me the impression that he’s not talented or a good person, but not a single song has clicked with me, despite having a lot of respect for his mostly singular lane and pioneering of the trap-soul sound. I can think of people who perhaps want to be Bryson Tiller, but I can’t figure out who Bryson Tiller wants to be other than, well, Bryson Tiller, and even if the music doesn’t resonate, I’m happy with that. Problem here is that he’s obviously trying to be Drake. He’s always been the easiest comparison to make with Tiller, but other than the more Detroit-influenced percussion, which really sounds like a typical trap rhythm with a Detroit choice of sounds more than anything, other than an elegant Orion Sum sample… this is just a Drake song. He goes for Drake flows, Drake melodies, even Drake’s uncomfortable whispery ad-libs. You could argue that the influence is mutual, but it is really difficult for me not to see a Drake fan taking the acapella, running it through a Drake voice AI and making something completely believable. Even the content is a slightly less embarrassing Drake riff, which just shows to me that he may be a unique singer, but not so much a rapper. Tylian’s beat is pretty good on this, I will admit, but I’m compelled by Mr. Tiller enough as a unique presence to care much about this. The train-like way the song keeps to an uptempo chug is actually pretty interesting though, it doesn’t feel like it ever wants to stop and take a breath, and Tiller does contribute to that, he’s not a total dud on his own song. He’s not really improving it either, though.

#19 - “Lovers in a Past Life” - Calvin Harris and Rag’n’Bone Man

Produced by Calvin Harris and watt

The petty part of me wants to say “2018 called” but this collaboration isn’t dated on arrival: Rag’n’Bone Man is another one of those artists I always forget about until they show up and I think this will just be a repeat of what I said about “Giant” all those years ago. He needs a rough layer of grit under him, not this flashy, sugary house track that he sticks out like a sore thumb over. Now it may not be dated on arrival but it is in execution: this is a tropical house song, and whilst Calvin Harris has always been good at mixing and making his stuff sound professional, this actually detracts from the character-void guitar and four-on-the-floor programming that all just feels rote. He even goes for an ATB-like guitar lick in the drop amidst the house pianos that just doesn’t sit well with me. I don’t dislike this - or at least not that much - I’m just confused by how either artist felt the need to make it, because it really does not work.

#11 - “End of Beginning” - Djo

Produced by Adam Thein and Djo

How do I even begin to pronounce that? Is he D-J-O, Duh-Joe, Joe, Sho? Oh, who am I kidding? It doesn’t matter, you know him as Joe Keery from Stranger Things. He was in a psychedelic band for a while but left and has solo work as a musician out now, with this taking from his second album and not actually released as a single, just a breakout solo hit. Is it good? Well, listen… I wish he knew he wanted Steve. The only buzz I had heard about this is that it sounded just like Mr. Lacy’s “Bad Habit” and well, I actively laughed when certain elements of the song came in because they hit nearly exactly the same way as in that song. This is most likely an influence and definitely not worth suing anyone over, but that’s primarily because neither song is any good. The lyrics are largely about his connection to his home city of Chicago as well as the acceleration of his acting career, making a point about how well, he’s still from Chicago! Whatever version you get of him, Chicago’s still in him. Yeah, it’s safe to say it doesn’t have the lyrical intricacies or at least, intriguing moments, that “Bad Habit” does, or even, and it pains me to say this, its sonic depth, so surely I should like this even less? Well, no. Djo Mama’s voice is a lot less pursuant and awkward than Steve Lacy, who also came up with some actual earworms that I respect but never want to hear again, whilst Djo here is just yapping over some synthpop. Which is fine. Have your fun. My opinion doesn’t matter at the end of the day. Just… maybe make acting a priority.

#4 - “Training Season” - Dua Lipa

Produced by Kevin Parker

I wish Dua found an interesting way to be good. This is a great, funky pop song, a worthwhile follow-up to “Houdini” with some excellent atmosphere mostly found in the dynamic mix that I’m sure Mr. Tame Impala had a lot of involvement with. It may not be a psychedelic song by nature, but there are transitory phases that absolutely show he was on the boards for. This feels like a sequel to “Houdini”, if that’s not already the intention, as Dua isn’t being the carefree love-them-and-leave-them anymore, she’s genuinely frustrated that she doesn’t have a more consistent and intimate relationship. She’s sick of being in control in these relationships - if they can be called such - and wants someone to go there, to actually mean something to her and put that effort in. Yet it doesn’t hit as much as I want it to… it may be the replacement of the rubbery bass from “Houdini” with a focus on soaring psychedelic synths and a guitar tone I’m not really big on in the chorus. Maybe it’s just that this funk-pop sound isn’t all that new and in that case, it’s impressive that Dua has made it this far without sounding boring.

Conclusion

With that said, she still obviously gets Best of the Week because good God, this was a mediocre set. Honourable and Dishonourable Mentions would be overly charitable probably, but I am going to give Bryson Tiller some benefit here, specifically because “Whatever She Wants” does have a decent instrumental, whilst Djo takes the Dishonourable Mention for “End of Beginning”, God, even the title is awkward. As for the worst, Shy Smith I think takes this handedly for “Soaked” but… will it even last a second week? I don’t know, it’s easily the least essential and least likely to last song that debuted. As for what’s on the horizon… I don’t know. Thank you for reading, rest in peace to Steve Wright and I’ll see you next week!

[gregorsamsa-ra]

patti smith, matthias grunewald, sylvia plath, john singer, toni morrison, frida kahlo, gina pane,, oscar wilde, el greco, george struikelblok, tracey emin, mark rothko, julia margaret cameron, jung boc su, ron athey, andrea mantegna, seamus heaney, nico, gustav mahler, paula rego, diane arbus, arvo part, bob flanagan, leonard cohen, ahn chang hong, francisco goya, nina simone, ulay, susan sontag, marina abramovic, edith piaf, edvard munch, louise bourgeois, beth gibbons, ian curtis, raimund hoghe, antony hegarty, maria callas, samuel barber, gunter bruce, francis bacon, arthur rimbaud, kae tempest, mike parr, david nebreda, pier paolo pasolini, sam fender, nick cave, ana mendieta, christian boltanski, leon golub, fabio mauri, david olusoga, kiki smith, maya angelou, hieronymus bosch, bobby baker, janis joplin, nan goldin, andrei tarkovsky, bob dylan, abel ascona, nancy spero, billie holiday, robert capa, sarah lucas, friedrich nietzsche, sonia boyce, steve mcqueen, fabrizio de andre', alda merini, letizia battaglia, nick drake, charles bukowski, iannis xenakis, rogier vander weyden, janine antonii, arvo parks, tracy chapman, jean genet, valie export, linda mary montano, william blake, john cooper clarke, hannah wilke, lou reed, tracey moffat, doris salcedo, rebecca horn, giacomo leopardi, santiago sierra, teresa margolles, regina jose' galindo, suzanne lacy

[oliverreedmasterass]

Do you think you could write the moment Jake and his dad went to the guitar center and Jake played Sunshine of Your Love by Cream and that one guy was amazed by it cause he was 12

LOVE this concept!!

Sunshine

Words: 2k

Warnings: N/A

Jake was in his messy room, sitting on the edge of his twin bed and strumming away at his Yamaha acoustic when Kelly stuck his head in. 

“Are you playing Heart?” he asked, hardly able to contain his awe. Jake quickly dropped his hands down to his side in surprise and gave a small nod. 

“Yeah,” he murmured. Kelly widened his eyes and let out an impressed chuckle. 

“I think it’s time.” 

“Time?” Jake asked as he carefully set his guitar behind him on the bed. “Time for what?” 

“Time for you to get an electric,” Kelly replied. This made Jake spring to his feet. 

“Are you serious?” he let his voice raise in glee. Kelly grinned at his son’s response and nodded his head. 

“The point of the acoustic was to make sure you got your form down. Now I’m no guitar expert, but I think it’s safe to say you can play that thing pretty well. You’ve earned the privilege.” 

Jake’s grin stretched from ear to ear. His dad had let him play his own electric guitar a few times before, but Jake always got distracted by the pedals and whammy bar, and the guitar was promptly taken away. Kelly’s mantra had seemed to become, 

“No need to try and replicate Jimi Hendrix’s Star Spangled Banner, son.”

Jake was frankly surprised that his dad thought he was ready to transition to an electric guitar. It was something he had craved for a lot longer than he would admit - he knew it would get him attention at school (the good kind) and he loved the sheer feeling of power that surged through his body with every electrifying chord he ripped out. The acoustic was fun to play, but it had transformed his fingers into a set of rugged, calloused nubs that he was constantly peeling dead skin off of. Plus, he wanted to play songs that weren’t off The White Album or Bob Dylan’s greatest hits. Sure, he thought that his playing had improved from when he first picked up the guitar at the humble age of three, but he still missed chords and mixed up strumming patterns. A part of him worried that his rendition of “Crazy On You” had been a fluke and he somehow tricked his dad into thinking he was ready. 

As if Kelly was reading his mind, he nodded back at Jake’s acoustic. 

“Can you play me something else on that?” 

Jake could feel his face turn bright red but he obliged, settling the guitar back in his lap and scanning his brain for the right song that was possible to play, but still impressive. Kelly leaned his back against the doorframe with his arms crossed and closed his eyes with a large beam across his face as Jake played “Heart of Gold”. After Jake finished the chorus, Kelly opened his eyes again and patted the doorframe. 

“I’m gonna grab my keys,” he excused himself. The second he was out of sight, Jake tossed the acoustic back down and held his head in his hands. 

“Oh my god,” was all he could manage to grunt out. He was finally getting an electric guitar.

For the entire drive down to Flint, Kelly had a field day coaching Jake on what guitars he should try out. 

“You can’t go wrong with a Fender, but also everyone plays the Fender so it’s not that special. Les Pauls can be fun. Did you know that Jimmy Page played a Les Paul?”

Jake stared out at the rolling green fields they were zipping by and tried to envision what guitar he would be playing for years to come. When he fantasized about it, he never really had a set guitar in mind; what was more important was how well he was playing it. Jake concentrated hard and attempted to conjure up an image of a guitar that felt like it was rightfully his. He was disappointed when he came up empty. 

“I don’t know what guitar I want,” he admitted out loud. 

“Looks are one thing, you gotta play a bunch of them to find one that really feels right.” 

That made Jake feel better, even though he still felt the magnitude of the situation weighing on him. Within the twelve years he had been alive, this was by far the biggest decision he had ever had to make. He wasn’t quite sure what to do with himself. 

Fifteen minutes later, Kelly pulled their family minivan into the Guitar Center parking lot and killed the engine, cutting off the Muddy Waters song that had been playing. 

“Are you ready?” he asked Jake. In response, Jake slumped back in his seat but, growing uncomfortable with the silence he was creating, eventually turned and nodded at his dad. 

“You bet,” he squeaked out. 

As he stepped in through the front doors of Guitar Center, Jake felt his eyes grow to the size of saucers. The place was like his own personal heaven: stunning guitars lined the walls, keyboards were tucked away in an adjacent room, and a kid around his age was bashing away on a set of drums in a soundproof room. Kelly lightly placed his hand on Jake’s back and led him deeper into the store since he seemed to be frozen in place. They found an employee and Kelly waved him down. 

“Hey there,” he smiled. “My son is looking for a guitar.” 

“Exciting!” the guy commented, nodding at Jake. “Got anything specific you’re looking for?” 

“Nope,” Jake replied. 

“All good,” the employee seemed prepared. “Feel free to grab a guitar off the wall and I can get it plugged into an amp for you.” 

Jake could feel his heart thunder in his chest. If he wasn’t so determined to find the right guitar, he would have booked it out of the store to hide in his dad’s car until he settled down. Everything was so exciting and nerve-wracking at the same time. It was a lot. 

“How about I pick the first one for you, bud?” Kelly asked down to Jake. Jake had a feeling that he was doing a pretty poor job hiding how much he was panicking. 

“Yes please,” he choked through the lump that was forming in his throat. Kelly gave him a supportive smile and led him to the back corner where a Squier Stratocaster was within reach. The employee removed it from its hook on the wall and motioned for Jake to take a seat on the closest cushioned stool. Jake plopped back and, before he knew it, the guitar was in his hands and buzzing to life as the employee plugged it into an impressive amp. 

“Go for it,” the employee encouraged him. Jake looked over at Kelly and saw that he was waiting expectantly. Jake retrieved a pick from his jean pocket and shakily brought it up to the strings. Unsure how loud it was going to be, he carefully played a D chord, which rang through the store. Jake could feel his face flush red again. “Strong sound, huh?” the employee turned to Kelly to converse. 

“That’s why I chose it,” Kelly agreed. “C’mon Jake, try and play something.” 

Jake licked his dried lips and cautiously played a few bars of a Black Keys song. Even though he messed up the first notes, he managed to let off the last note of the verse with a loud, echoing ring. 

“Not too bad,” the employee nodded in approval. Jake handed the guitar back to him and scanned over the wall. 

“I think I want to try another one,” he thought aloud. The guitar was nice, but it didn’t feel quite right.

“Go for it,” Kelly laughed. Jake stood from the stool and wandered to the other wall to scan over the more flashy guitars. His eyes were drawn to the cherry red finish over the standard black and white bodies, and he found himself reaching for a bright red B.C. Rich Rich Legacy Doubleneck. 

“Really?” Kelly asked Jake as he giddily returned to the amp. 

“I need to give everything a feel to make sure I find the right one,” Jake tried to defend himself. 

“There’s no way I’m letting you try out every guitar in this store,” Kelly protested. 

“People have done it before,” the employee interjected as he plugged the guitar into the amp. Kelly pinched at the bridge of his nose. 

“Please don’t do that to me, Jake.” 

“I want a red one, so I’ll only try those.” 

Kelly looked like he wanted to remind Jake that he needed to look beyond the exterior appearance of the guitar, but he held himself back. Once again the guitar roared to life and Jake closed his eyes in glee as he tried out a few licks he had been messing around with at home. His hands fumbled between the two guitar necks and, in defeat, he turned down the volume. 

“I don’t think this one’s it,” he admitted in defeat. 

“I could have told you that,” Kelly retorted. 

Jake returned back to the tall wall of guitars and put his hands on his hips as he scanned up and down each column. There were some guitars that he knew for certain he would never touch, like the pink Hello Kitty one, or the boring old Fender Telecaster. He wanted something rugged, something unique, something that was bound to make him feel like a rockstar. Jake’s eyes finally landed on a guitar and a soft “oh” escaped from his mouth. He was looking up at probably the most stunning guitar he had ever seen: a Gibson SG Standard. 

“Just like Pete Townshend,” Jake whispered in appreciation. He couldn’t take his eyes off of it, and was quickly joined by the employee. 

“Want me to take it down for you?” 

“Yes please.” 

Jake carried the guitar back to the stool and could feel the power charging through it even before it was plugged into the amp. The cable snapped and the guitar hummed to life, sending anticipatory tingles through Jake’s fingers. Jake took a deep breath and, without thinking, tore into “Sunshine of Your Love.” It was his favorite song to play: Eric Clapton really knew what he was doing when he wrote that lick. Jake could hear the bass and drums playing along with him in his head and closed his eyes to become fully immersed in the music. Colors and shapes started dancing in front of his eyes with each note and, before he knew it, he was rocking back and forth on the stool to the beat. The colors and shapes transformed into a stage, blinding lights, and a crowd in front of him. Jake continued playing to the cheers of thousands of fans like his life depended on it. It was a massive disappointment when the song came to a close. 

Jake opened his eyes and was greeted by the sight of the Guitar Center employee gaping at him, and his dad nodding his head in approval. 

“This the one, son?” Kelly asked. 

“I’d say so,” Jake agreed, holding the guitar close to his body. He didn’t want to let it go; the feeling he had while playing it was like nothing he had ever experienced before. Kelly seemed to understand the bond Jake had developed with the guitar since he let him carry it to the register, only letting go of it momentarily when the Guitar Center employee had to scan its tag. Kelly also let Jake pick out a guitar strap and a case, which only fueled Jake’s excitement more. While Kelly fished his credit card out of his wallet, Jake saw an older guy pointing in his direction to another employee. 

“Yeah, that guy’s pretty damn good - he can’t be more than twelve years old and he’s playing Cream. Can you believe that?” 

Jake couldn’t help but flash a toothy grin in the guy’s direction at his praise. He had known for a while that he loved playing guitar, but now it was clear to him that it was something he was meant to do, and that he should do for the rest of his life. 

“How are you feeling?” Kelly checked with him as they walked back out into the overcast afternoon to the car. 

“Alive,” Jake declared.