#iain matthews

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It is very funny to me how accurate the drawings on the What We Did On Our Holidays album cover are... like

They nailed it.

[goawaywithjae]

Huge thanks to Chiara Aurelia (Peacock's HYSTERIA!) and Fairport Convention's Iain Matthews for their (separate) interviews. These columns already ran online in previous weeks, before running in print in outlets like the Chicago Tribune, Baltimore Sun, Orlando Sentinel etc.

I've been keeping busy! 😊

[respective]

My taste in music in 20 albums

On Instagram I was challenged by @piahinckle to choose 20 albums that greatly influenced my taste in music. One album per day, for 20 consecutive days. No explanations (mostly), no reviews, just cover images on my Instagram @rialdrummer.

Proceeding from the first posting on December 11.

Max Roach and the M’Boom ensemble “Re: Percussion” the album is sometimes called. I heard this in the early ‘80s at a time I was getting interested in the history of jazz and particularly jazz drummers. Had the good fortune to see Max’s quartet (Cecil Bridgewater, Odean Pope, Tyrone Brown) at the old Yoshi’s, around the time of the “Scott Free” album.  This M’Boom record planted a seed for my later musical explorations in the ‘90s and started an appreciation for me of Max Roach as bandleader and conceptualist. I’d already heard some of his work with Charlie Parker. A decade later my band was covering “Morning / Midday” and “Jamaican Sun” by this group and I was email pals with Omar Clay’s partner.

The Mamas and the Papas “A Gathering Of Flowers”.  On the turntable constantly during my late high school years. Released between the ’68 breakup and the ’71 reunion. Interviews on the record with Cass and John hint at the glories and disappointments felt in the group.

Van Morrison “Tupelo Honey”. Great songs, ace band. The title track is really a classic (Cassandra Wilson’s cover is further evidence). Gary Mallaber (vibes) and Ronnie Montrose (guitar) stand out to me.

Family “Fearless”. United Artists was a label that took chances on musical artistry and signing Family was a commercial risk.  I found this album in 1973 in a cutout bin and it had only been out for 18 months.  The album is in turns gritty and pretty. All songwriting, playing and singing contributions are excellent, with John Wetton playing a key role on guitar, bass and vocals.

Rory Gallagher “Irish Tour ‘74”. Songs burned into memory from my days as a record store clerk and DJ. Most of my friends in the day were Rory fans going back to his band Taste and a few of us saw him at UC Santa Barbara around 1974.  If I had to pick one Rory record…  Watch him on YouTube.

“The Drums”. Prez Records in Santa Rosa was a destination store for me in the ‘80s and I found this used 3-album set for cheap there.  Introduced me to Art Blakey (“Ala Mode” remains a favorite song of mine), Connie Kay playing with Milt Jackson, Dannie Richmond, Paul Motian and many more great tracks.

Iain Matthews “Valley Hi”. Michael Nesmith cut a lot of great sides within and after The Monkees. To my ears almost nothing by him surpasses the achievement of helming this album.  I’ve followed Matthews’s career going back to his brief time in Fairport Convention up to the last decade and I know he’s not crazy about this record but to me it’s absolutely a gem.  Songs by Randy Newman, Jackson Browne, Steve Young (“Seven Bridges Road” before the Eagles recorded it) among others.

Gil Scott-Heron “Pieces Of A Man”. It had to be a long shot that an AM rock station would put “Lady Day and John Coltrane” on their playlist but that’s what KRLA in Pasadena did. And so I heard it and began an appreciation of Gil Scott-Heron that I continue to hold.

Marc Benno “Minnows”. This was another AM radio long shot in 1971 and KRLA won the day again for “Speak Your Mind”. A ballad that ebbs and flows in intensity.  Jim Keltner’s drumming first caught my ear on this song. This was around the time that Benno was playing rhythm guitar with The Doors on the L.A. Woman sessions, and after his collaborations with Leon Russell on the Asylum Choir albums. Many friends of mine also appreciate this album.

Weather Report “Sweetnighter”. Previously unaware of Wayne Shorter and Joe Zawinul, I saw Weather Report in July of 1973 and “Boogie Woogie Waltz” convinced me that I needed to dig more deeply into this music.

Fairport Convention “What We Did On Our Holidays”. Along with the records that Nick Drake would make a few months later, sums up for me some great years of British “folk rock”.

10cc “Sheet Music”. Between their first two albums this one comes out on top for me. It’s close. I was a fan from the release of “Rubber Bullets”.

Harry Belafonte “Calypso”. “Jamaica Farewell” was likely the first set of song lyrics I memorized. Mum had his playing often in our apartment in the late ‘50s.

Brinsley Schwarz “Nervous On The Road”.  I like this best of the band’s records (it may be because adding Ian Gomm to the band was so complimentary to the talents of Nick Lowe, Brinsley, Bob Andrews and Billy Rankin). For this pick I could have swapped out Dave Edmunds’s “Get It” or the Rockpile album “Seconds of Pleasure” but since the list is supposed to describe how my tastes were influenced it makes sense to refer to early period Brinsley.  Made me a Nick Lowe fan for life.

The Monkees “Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd.”.  My introduction to the group. I hadn’t seen the tv show at that time (November and December 1967) at least as far as I recall. Coming at them strictly through these tracks I was impressed by songwriting, production, vocals, guitars and humor.  Not bubblegum, at all.

“Pat Metheny Group” By September 1978 I was being introduced to ECM albums by a friend. I’d enjoyed previous ones but that month when I heard the first notes of “San Lorenzo” something resonated with me that hasn’t stopped.

Graham Parker and the Rumour “Stick To Me”.  This is a rough-and-ready collection produced by Nick Lowe. Drumming by Steve Goulding, guitar leads by Martin Belmont are highlights. The title song, “Soul On Ice”, “Clear Head” are standouts in a great set making this my favorite GP album for all time.

The Gary Burton Quartet with Eberhard Weber “Passengers”.  I think this was probably the beginning of my awareness of Gary Burton’s albums. A great introduction. As a vibes player myself there are major lessons and enjoyment for me throughout his catalog.

Love “Forever Changes”. Surrounded by Love fans in my 20s but not giving the group much time of day then, I locked into the band’s and Arthur Lee’s artistry in my 40s. Like so many people I now appreciate every song on this classic album. Was fortunate to catch the 2003 edition of the band at The Fillmore.

Gene Clark “No Other”. After leaving The Byrds, Clark wrote and recorded many excellent songs showcasing his poetic and melodic gifts. This album is the top of the mountain for me, and public appreciation for the songs and the production have grown greatly in the 50 years since its release. YouTube has video of a tribute tour for the album from a decade ago.

RUNNERS-UP

Elvis Costello and the Attractions “Imperial Bedroom” and “This Year’s Model”

XTC “English Settlement”

Beach Boys “Summer Days (and Summer Nights!)” and “Sunflower”

(Many) Iain Matthews records across the decades, along with titles by his Fairport mates Sandy Denny, Dave Mattacks, Richard Thompson, Ashley Hutchings, Judy Dyble. A nod too to drummer Martin Lamble who had a playing style so well suited to their early records.

Buffalo Springfield “Retrospective”

Carpenters “Ticket to Ride”

Rolling Stones “December’s Children”

The Move “Shazam”

Joni Mitchell “For the Roses”

Bruce Springsteen “The Wild The Innocent and the E Street Shuffle”

Beatles single “Rain” b/w “Paperback Writer”

Man (The Man Band from Wales) "Back Into the Future"

[allwhiterain]

Matthew Lillard and Angelina Jolie as “Cereal Killer” and “Acid Burn” in Hackers (1995) directed by Iain Softley

[musiconspotify]

Iain Matthews - How Much Is Enough (2024) .. Volume One …

[americanahighways]

REVIEW: Iain Matthews “How Much Is Enough”

REVIEW: Iain Matthews “How Much Is Enough” #iainmatthews @iamthatswine @americanahighways #americanamusic #folkmusic #howmuchisenough #americanahighways #writtenbyahuman #buymusic

Iain Matthews – How Much Is Enough This is a consistent artist. Iain once fronted the legendary English folk rock band Fairport Convention (the first 3 LPs) & that alone should validate his position in music. Many performers from Iain’s era have begun to retire. There’s little to prove after a decades-long career. What’s left to write about? Meeting a young girl in tight jeans at the grocery…

[julio-viernes]

Amelia Earhart fue pionera de la aviación y la primera mujer en cruzar el Atlántico en 1932. Cinco años después se embarcó en un vuelo sin retorno alrededor del mundo. Su avión desapareció sin dejar rastro, jamás se encontró. La figura de la aviadora y el misterio de su desaparición en 1937 han resultado fascinantes para el mundo de la música pop y rock durante décadas.

En el recuerdo de los buenos aficionados el LP folk- country rock “In Search of Amelia Earhart” de Plainsong, una de las bandas de Iain Matthews de Fairport Convention. Publicado en 1972, fue el primer álbum dedicado a la aviadora.

Pero mucho tiempo antes, en 1939, dos años más tarde de la extraña desaparición de Amelia, el primero que compuso una canción sobre ella fue el cantante country Dave “Red River” McEnery. Titulada “Amelia Earhart’s Last Flight”, fue un éxito inmediato después de que la interpretara en TV durante la Feria Mundial de Nueva York.

En total se han publicado unas dos docenas de canciones que hablan de Amelia Earhart o la mencionan de algún modo. La mayoría de ellas salieron después de los 60 debido al creciente interés en Earhart impulsado en parte por el redescubrimiento de "mujeres olvidadas” durante la segunda ola del feminismo.

Más canciones:  “Amelia” de Joni Mitchell en 1976, “I Miss My Sky (Amelia Earhart’s Last Days)” de Heather Nova o “Amelia Earhart vs. the Dancing Bear” de The Handsome Family.

[haveyouseenthismovie-poll]

[soapdispensersalesman]

Hackers (1995)

Dir. Iain Softley

Costume design by Roger Burton

[of-fear-and-love]

Matthew Lillard in Hackers (1995)

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[swallow-wind]

🧡💫🍂

[isavedyouthewaltz]

Matthew Lillard bogarting the fries in Hackers (1995) directed by Iain Softley

[allwhiterain]

Matthew Lillard and Angelina Jolie as “Cereal Killer” and “Acid Burn” in Hackers (1995) directed by Iain Softley

[da-vedere]

Hackers (1995) ☰