Music/Film: Jack White - Fly Farm Blues
Jack sings and accompanies himself on guitar on a track that was written on the spot during the filming of It Might Get Loud. Check it out. You can order up the vinyl from White's Third Man Records. Check out the trailer for the film here. It opens in NYC & L.A. today.
Comments (0) [Posted by Rooster] Print Email This
Music: Southern Fried Freight Train Fulla Boogie
Meant to post this yesterday but it took an extra day to recover. Lil' too much bourbon, not enough ice. We were blessed to catch a couple of the finest bands in the land on Friday night when North Mississippi Allstars and Hill Country Revue rolled through town. Modern Mississippi Hill Country 'lectric blues and rock & roll. If you haven't seen these ol' boys play live, you just ain't lived. Hill Country Revue started the show with Cody Dickinson - brother of Luther, son of Jim, and drummer for North Mississippi Allstars - slingin' an electrified washboard 'round his neck hooked up to some effects pedals. He proceeded to scratch out some wicked sonic vibrations like a whiskey-bent hillbilly Hendrix. With Chris "Big" Chew and Ed "Hot" Cleveland layin' down the funky gut-thumpin' foundation, the dual guitars of Kirk Smithhart and Cody Dickinson - yep, he does it all - soared in and out and settled into a head-noddin', ass-movin' groove that had the capacity crowd shakin' what their mama's gave 'em. Singer Daniel Coburn lit in with a sweet southern drawl, understated and perfectly fit to tie up the whole bundle. The Allman-esque jam "You Can Make It" had the hippies spinnin' and the rednecks grinnin' and the dirty, low-end crawl of "Lets Talk About Me And You" had everyone in a trance-like sway. Big brother Luther helped the boys out on a few songs showin' why he is one of the best guitarists walkin' this earth and why the Black Crowes are no dummies.
Then came time for North Mississippi Allstars to do their thing: whippin' everybody in the whole damn joint into a booty shakin' frenzy. There are few bands that can get a crowd movin' like these boys do. They don't just know their history, they own it and are doin' something brand new with it. Luther's slide is masterful. He makes the guitar smile and weep and sing. Magic freakin' fingers and a soul full of groove. While Chris "Big" Chew and Cody Dickinson supremely serve as the locomotive powering this southern fried freight train full of boogie. From start to finish, their set is a party - a southern summer porch gatherin' of friends, kickin' out hot, sweaty, foot-stompin' jams. There wasn't a person standin' still. Towards the end of their set the fellas from Hill Country Revue came back out to jam with everybody smilin', noddin' and having a good time. And Luther pulled out a homemade cigar box guitar with two strings and made that baby howl. That's right, a ceeeegar box! Here's a tease that my brother took. As I walked out of the venue, my face hurt. And I realized I had just smiled constantly for four hours, just from watchin' these boys play. Man. It's that kinda groove. It'll put a little warm southern sunshine in your soul and some shake in that ass.
Do yourself a favor and catch 'em when they come your way. You will be so glad you did. Here are their tour dates: NMA Hill Country Revue
And check out their pages: NMA Hill Country Revue
Posted in Music
Comments (0) [Posted by Catfish] Print Email This
Music: Levon Helm - By Jim James
Here's a piece by Jim James of My Morning Jacket on the great Levon Helm. It's from Rolling Stone's list of "100 Greatest Singers Of All Time"
Check out the whole list here.
"There is something about Levon Helm's voice that is contained in all of our voices. It is ageless, timeless and has no race. He can sing with such depth and emotion, but he can also convey a good-old fun-time growl.
Since Papa Garth Hudson didn't really sing, I always felt that, vocally, Levon was the father figure in the Band. He always seems strong and confident, like a father calling you home, or sometimes scolding you. The beauty in Richard Manuel's singing was often the sense of pain and darkness he conveyed. Rick Danko had a lot of melancholy to his voice as well, but he could also be a little more goofy. They were all different shades of color in the crayon box, and Levon's voice is the equivalent of a sturdy old farmhouse that has stood for years in the fields, weathering all kinds of change yet remaining unmovable.
The best thing about Levon is that he has so many sides, from the sound his voice gave to the Band's rich harmonies to how he can rip it up on songs like "Yazoo Street Scandal," "Don't Ya Tell Henry," "Up on Cripple Creek" and "Rag Mama Rag." He can pop in for sensitive moments, such as in between Manuel's vocals in "Whispering Pines." And he laid down one of the greatest recorded pop vocal performances of all time: "The Weight." I was fortunate to get to go to one of his Midnight Rambles a few years back when My Morning Jacket were recording up in the Catskills. To see him walk out on that stage and sit down behind the drum kit in person was a thrill. No one else plays the drums or sings like Levon, much less doing it at the same time.
There is a sense of deep country and family in Levon's voice, a spirit that was there even before him, deep in the blood of all singers who have heard him, whether they know it or not."
Posted in Music
Comments (0) [Posted by Skinny Earl] Print Email This
Music: Mornin’ Ya’ll
I'm amazed - My Morning Jacket
This song makes me happy. Enjoy for yourself.
Get well soon Jim James.
Posted in Music
Comments (0) [Posted by Skinny Earl] Print Email This
Music: Johnny Cash - One Piece At A Time
You know they built that car - the one from "One Piece At A Time." They built her for Johnny Cash. The song was written as an homage of sorts to the Detroit auto workers who built Cadillacs, but could never afford to purchase one. Wayne Kemp wrote it. He played lead guitar for George Jones and wrote a buncha great tunes, including "I'm The Only Hell My Mama Ever Raised" for Johnny Paycheck. According to blogger Ted Baylis, Bruce Fitzpatrick, (standing far right in the pic) owner of Abernathy Auto Parts and Hilltop Auto Salvage in Nashville, TN, was asked by the promoters of the song to build the vehicle for international promotion. Bruce had all the different models of Cadillac mentioned in the song when it was released, and built a Cadillac using the song as a model. The car was presented to Cash in April of 1976.
We stumbled upon a video Johnny did for that thing - and well, maybe a video wasn't quite the right thing to do at that point. Starts out real cool with a performance, and then at about the 45 second mark, the home movie clips start. I don't know what 'ol Johnny was on but he's shakin' it on the hood like a gal in a Sir-Mix-Alot video. But man, he's still Johnny freakin' Cash. As for the car, they had her parked out in front of the House of Cash (check out Steve Menke's great Johnny Cash site) for a few weeks way back when, wonder where she is now.
Posted in Music
Comments (0) [Posted by Catfish] Print Email This
