Subject: Re: Rhinofy-Bobby Keys Primer
Hi Bob,
Horns don't often get the respect they deserve in rock/pop/r&b, so many thanks for the nice tribute to Bobby Keys. We in the Uptown Horns -- Crispin Cioe, Arno Hecht, Bob Funk, and Larry Etkin (who replaced original trumpeter Hollywood Paul Litteral) -- toured with the Stones on their Steel Wheels/Urban Jungle Tours; we first met Bobby in late August, 1989, onstage at Nassau Coliseum, which the Rolling Stones were using a rehearsal room in advance of that tour. We bonded immediately, and for the next year and a half, he became a member of our horn section. . . and we remained friends going forward. Besides doing 115 Stones shows worldwide with Bobby, we did some recording session work during that period where we pulled him on the dates with us, including two songs on Weird Nightmare: Meditations on Mingus, Hal Willner's tribute album to Charles Mingus (Keith Richards, Charlie Watts and longtime Stones backup vocalist Bernard Fowler also performed with us on that album).
Bobby couldn't really read music, but any time we gave him notes to play in a section part, he would lock in with our sound instantly -- always in tune, on time, and with the right attitude. With the Stones, Bobby was like the ultimate garage-band sax player, which made sense to me, because the Stones were, especially in their early days, pretty much invented the form, as the ultimate and original r&b/blues-based garage band par excellence (and for a telling and heavily sourced look at their '60s incarnation, I recommend Paul Trynka's excellent new biography, ). But Bobby Keys was also a solid sender of an all-around ace soloist in his heyday, as evidenced on the records you mentioned, and on big, mainstream pop hits like "When I Need You", by Leo Sayer.
On the road, I constantly badgered Bobby with questions about his growing up in Texas and playing in teenage groups with Buddy Holly, hanging out with rock sax god King Curtis, hard partying with Keith Moon and John Lennon, etc., and he invariably took the time to regale me with stories and inside details that I still treasure. And of course, I probably got into a little trouble here and there with Bobby, including one or two possible naughty bits . . . but I felt like I was walking alongside the real history of rock 'n roll hanging out with Bobby, so somehow it always seemed to make sense -- even when it was a walk on the wild side.
He came up with more funny improvised one-liners and phraseology than any stand-up comedian I've ever known (except for maybe Richard Belzer).
Once we were standing in a hotel lobby in Vienna, Austria, and a journalist walked up to Bobby and asked, "Mr. Keys, what are the Rolling Stones really like?". Without hesitation, Bobby turned to the guy and, in his unmistakable northwest Texas twang, drawled, "Buddy, those are some straight-up,
carte-blanche m*ther-f*ckers!"
We'll miss Bobby Keys.
All the best,
Crispin Cioe
__________________________________________
From: Eric Carmen
Re: Rhinofy-Bobby Keys Primer
Hi Bob,
A quick, funny story re/ Bobby's sax solo on "Brown Sugar."
One night, during the "Boats Against The Current" sessions, I was sitting in my hotel room at The Sunset Marquis with David Wintour, who played all the brilliant bass stuff on that album. We were listening back to some of the takes we had recorded that day, over a small set of stereo speakers, and we heard someone knock on the door. I got up and opened the door, and there was a guy standing there, and he asked what we were listening to. I told him, and asked him who he was, and he said "Jimmy Miller." I thought "Jimmy ('You Can't Always Get What You Want') Miller? And he said "Yeah," so we invited him in.
At some point, a bit later, I thought I might ask him a few questions about some sounds that he recorded that had always intrigued me, so I said something like "Bobby Keys' sax on "Brown Sugar", how did you get that sound? It almost sounded like you put it through an amp, turned up loud, to get that slightly 'distorted' sound." He thought for a minute, and then said "I think we blew the mic up."
And that was that. Brilliant!
Eric
__________________________________________
From: Spencer Davis
Subject: RE: Jack Bruce
Believe it or not, Jack was one of my closest friends.
I was with him right from the beginning,when he played at the Twisted Wheel in Manchester circa 1963.
The band then was the Graham Bond Organisation.
Line-up - Graham Bond, Dick Heckstall-Smith, Ginger Baker and Jack.
I opened for them playing 12 string gtr.and harmonica.
I shared the dungeon-like dressing room with them, but not their heroin!
__________________________________________
From: Dennis Tufano
Subject: Thank You!!!
Bob
As the original voice of the Buckinghams I wanted to...
Thank you for your piece on our recordings. Man, I appreciate your take on our music.
Good recordings of good songs with honest performances. It means a lot.
I find it resonates in audiences the same way. I tour as a solo now, since the mid seventies, two guys from the band reformed the band without Marty Grebb or me but…anyway, just wanted to acknowledge your posting.
It was anything but "Kind Of A Drag" (funny…skating rink reference…I used to call out in concert during solo ALL SKATE!, COUPLES ONLY)
I'm in SOCAL too.
be well.
Dennis Tufano
__________________________________________
From: Carl Giammarese
Subject: The Buckinghams
Bob,
Thank you for that very nice piece on The Buckinghams, very well written and creative, we appreciate it. We are grateful that we still have a great fan base that still wants to hear our music. I along with the other original Buckingham Nick Fortuna will be part of the 2015 Happy Together Tour, so hopefully we'll meet up during the tour.
Once again, thank you and best regards,
Carl Giammarese
__________________________________________
Subject: Amanda Marshall
Hi Bob
Thanks for acknowledging the Amanda Marshall debut album.
I read your dailies daily, and i know the music community at large needs your insights.
When Amanda and I first met, many of the songs that made the final roster were written already. For the life of me I didn't think that a singer in her early twenties would be open to doing some of the songs that I had co-written with Dean McTaggart or Christopher Ward, but to my surprise Amanda listened to songs like Trust Me and Beautiful Goodbye and simply said "I like them". She was fittingly open minded. She had the wisdom to know that she could put her own spin on the songs.
When I played the pre-existing Birmingham just once for her she said "let me try it. I said "ok let me play it a few times so you can learn the melody" and she replied "it's ok I got it". I pressed record but I doubted that anyone could have retained that kind of melody on one listen. I certainly couldn't. Amanda nailed it. It was stunning. In fact her first take contributed portions of the final vocal. The entire album felt like we were all being liberated to express freely without any sense of obligatory compliance to radio format. That's why we all got in to music - to express ourselves.
Thanks again Bob, all the best
David Tyson
__________________________________________
From: Kevin Martin
Subject: Re: When It's Love
Bob, I love you, thank you for this! Van Halen changed my life at the age of 10, made me want to be a singer in a rock band. I loved Dave but I also was the first of my friends to embrace Sammy and the bands new direction.
Eddie and Alex and Michael always pushed the envelope, they made it ok for me to allow pop music into my "rock and roll dreams" and for that I will forever be grateful.
"Why can't this be love?" is and always will be one of my all time favorites, thank you for reminding me how much Van Halen means to me and my career, couldn't imagine a life of music without them in it!!
Sincerely,
Kevin Martin
"Singer"
Candlebox
__________________________________________
From: Russ Titelman
Subject: Re: Raphael Ravenscroft
Stuck In The Middle With You was the last great Leiber and Stoller
production. A truly great record.
__________________________________________
Subject: Re: Ravenscroft...and Steve Marcus
So glad you wrote this post.
That solo represents everything you talk about - it's an iconic moment. Those come by witches brew only.
Take a listen to Steve Marcus' Half a Heart (it's not on spotify):
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-kxG4U_1uv0
It appears the progression of things was:
- Rafferty hears the Marcus sax part
- lays it down as a guitar part in the Baker Street demo
- subconsciously (we may assume) says "I've always envisioned this as a sax part"
- Books Ravenscroft and either plays or explains the part to him
- Ravenscroft gets his alto and blows the iconic line
I'm not suggesting it detracts from Raphael's moment. Just another fascinating look at the "actual" convolutions of the creative process, once we pull back the shiny curtain called "the product".
Peace,
Eric Chaikin
Topanga, CA
__________________________________________
From: Eric Chaikin
Subject: Re: Ravenscroft, The Part, ...and Larry Coryell
Re: Ravensroft... I forgot about the Larry Coryell version.
So the sequence of events is:
1) 1968. Steve Marcus records jazz/rock album "Tomorrow Never Knows". All songs are covers, except the Gary Burton original 'Half a Heart'. Marcus plays the Baker Street part on sax. Larry Coryell is in the band.
- Album: http://www.allmusic.com/album/tomorrow-never-knows-mw0000321733
- Song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kxG4U_1uv0
2) 1976. Larry Coryell releases "Birdfingers", containing Half a Heart. Plays The Part on guitar. It actually has lyrics if you listen long enough. Really awful.
- Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0uiNIdxufQ Larry Coryell – Half a Heart
3) 1978. Gerry Rafferty writes/records Baker Street, demo with The Part on guitar, sounds a lot like Larry Coryell, but ... BETTER.
- Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bcXRkMs0fs
4). 1978. Rafferty records final Baker Street version, w/ Ravenscroft on sax. Ravenscroft gets his alto sax from the car, and... transcends.
And while the guitar "plumes" make that song as much as the sax part, Ravenscroft's playing is the capstone in the arch.
__________________________________________
From: Gogi Gupta
Subject: Re: It's All About The Data/Lady Gaga
Hey Bob -
Great letter below, I have to correct Scott Cohen's version of events.
There were two guys (Jason Carrasco and myself) in Cambridge, not one guy in Boston. Also, the team at IGA was incredibly diligent about that campaign, they funded it at full throttle for 34 months. Aaron Foreman (now at Sonos), Lee Hammond (still at IGA) and Dyana Kass get a lot of credit for building and building and building instead of hitting cruise.
;-)
Great stuff, keep it up and feel free to name drop (we'd certainly love you for it).
Best,
Gogi Gupta
Founder | Gupta Media
__________________________________________
From: Marty Ross
Subject: Re: Music School
Totally agree. When I was 8 I could play guitar as good as most semi pro players. my parents would bring me out at parties and I loved hearing people applaud a squeaking kid singing and playing Simon And Garfunkel( they were current) ..... I had the ears of the record industry when I was 19 .. But I had nothing to say! I landed a spot on a TV show in my late 20s and was in all the teenie bopper mags. I was on all the Solid Golds and American Bandstands. I had nothing real to add and the 15 minutes was undeserved ... I had nothing to say.... Now after years of getting paid for for mostly pointless TV and Film songs I think I finally have something to say.... but who gives a s**t? I don't! americans want inspiration to be divine, to come from young people and I see it and understand it. I'm an old musician.. And not a 82 year old blues or jazz guy that starts selling units after the skillset has withered with Dave Grohl belching "you should hear this guys first 18 albums!".Gee ..let's
start educating music to our kids and as far as us old timers....hmm... What about a "50 and over only " American Idol on the Hallmark Channel?
__________________________________________
From: Stratis Morfogen
Subject: Re: The Echo Chamber
I'm a big fan! Love your pieces. Actually look fwd to reading each article then I save it or fwd them to other music execs and basically say see I told you so. Lol
I think you should do an article on the ones that are making a killing on YouTube by adapting to the fans and what they want.
Maddi Jane (who we rep at MSOCB.com) w 325 million views and 1.2 mil subscribers generates a deep six figure income since 11 years old and now she's 16. When Maddi released "If this was a movie" cover by Taylor swift and generated 20 mil views - Taylor said in an interview after Maddi Jane had such huge success w my song which I didn't factor in as a single i then released it immediately and it went top 10 in a week.
Matty B - 4 million subscribers w 750 million views at the ripe age of 12 years old makes a strong 7 figures a year and laughs at any label that approaches him and his father / mgr and explains we can do this and that and they don't bother to return the big execs (at the top 3 labels) phone calls because there is nothing they can do for them to justify taking 20-30% of their 360 w what they both generate.
These two kids have got it right and embraced the new economy 3-5 years ago and it's taking now to finally watch the labels take notice to make it work for talented artists that the public so be it 10-15 year olds go crazy for both these kids. Btw together they sold out the Nokia Theater in LA - Gramercy Theater in NYC etc.
__________________________________________
Subject: Re: The Echo Chamber
From: Andre' Cholmondeley
Preach!!!
I have pretty much this conversation almost daily.
Whatever. Yeah everyone wants EVERYTHIONG ELSE to change and get cheaper or FREE or more accessible. They LOVE IT!! Musicians who HATE the once a month on tour they may have to PAY FOR INTERNET...boo hoo!!!
yet they want the 1989 pay structure, the signing bonus, the $18.99 f**king CD, even after we found out they cost the label, what, $0.79 to make..????
Everyone LOVES the free instagram, free gmail, free effects apps, free soundcloud, free facebook, free reverbnation, free Audacity recording, free video editors. Free free free apps on their iPads...thousands of dollars of synthesis stuff, effects, word processing, promo tools, massive file sharing memory FREE!!! etc etc.
Yet... PAY ME LIKE IT'S THE 80s dammit!!! I'm an ARTIST...but I don't actually want the pay scale of a painter or sculptor. Just the honor of thinking I'm Dali or McCartney.
__________________________________________
@jamespoulos - Public doesn't want bad music. So suddenly the price of the old product, via tech filtering out bad music, crashes.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
-- powered by phpList, www.phplist.com --
Friday, 5 December 2014
Rhinofy-Bobby Keys Primer
"Brown Sugar"
Rolling Stones
Because it's his most famous track.
Although legendary and still heard with frequency today you've got no idea how big this was in 1971, when it was released. And one of its main features was Bobby's sax solo. His work lives on, even if he does not.
"Live With Me"
Rolling Stones
Because it was his initial work with the Stones.
"Beggars Banquet" is the best, "Sticky Fingers" the most famous, but "Let It Bleed" is my favorite, for its bookends of "Gimmie Shelter" and "You Can't Always Get What You Want" if nothing else. When "Let It Bleed" was big, it was not gigantic, it was only after its release that the Stones took their initial victory lap as the "World's Greatest Rock and Roll Band."
"Live With Me" was in the middle of side one, and back when we used to play our albums throughout, we knew it by heart, still do.
"Can't You Hear Me Knocking"
Rolling Stones
Few are mentioning this in the obits, but it's the first one that went through my brain when I heard the news of his passing. The song changes groove in the middle and Keys is featured, it's a tour-de-force.
"Happy"
Rolling Stones
On Keith's signature tune, Bobby rips.
"Casino Boogie"
Rolling Stones
A personal favorite.
That's the problem with history, that which was not mainstream then is nearly forgotten today.
People forget that "Exile On Main Street" was a dud upon release. It went straight to number one and then faded almost instantly. But knowing I was going to see the tour I stayed up all night listening to the double album and was enraptured by "Casino Boogie," talk about a GROOVE!
"Emotional Rescue"
Rolling Stones
Nearly a novelty song, Jagger's falsetto gives one that impression. But it was so much fun hearing it come out of the car radio speaker. And Bobby trades licks with Keith after Mick's spoken word/rapping part.
"The Letter"
Mad Dogs & Englishmen
One of the greatest tours in rock and roll history, it made Leon Russell a star and left Joe Cocker drunk on the sidelines. Bobby Keys was on the tour, and is featured on this reworking of the Box Tops' classic "The Letter."
"The Wanderer"
Dion & The Belmonts
Even Keys wasn't sure if it was him, but he was definitely at the session.
"Whatever Gets You Thru The Night"
John Lennon
From Lennon's "comeback" album, "Walls and Bridges."
By this time McCartney had put out the deservedly monstrous "Band On The Run" and was the Beatle carrying the torch, but this ran right up the chart and peaked at number one, the only time John hit that position solo in his lifetime. Sure, the track features Elton, but even Bobby more.
"What Is Life"
George Harrison
John wasn't the only Beatle Keys knew, Bobby played on this, the second single from "All Things Must Pass," Harrison's three record set released right around this time forty four years ago.
P.S. Keys played with Ringo too!
"There Goes The Neighborhood"
Sheryl Crow
Her best album and undeservedly forgotten. "Globe Sessions" is where she proved all her naysayers wrong, she created something that would top the charts if released today, and Keys is featured on this, the second single from the LP.
"Down"
Harry Nilsson
Talk about forgotten... "Nilsson Schmillson" was monstrous, mostly on the back of the cover of Badfinger's "Without You," which at this late date seems to be owned in the public consciousness by Mariah Carey, but the truth is this album was playable throughout, and all the cuts sounded different, Harry crooned, he rocked, he even did the novelty thing with "Coconut," the "All About That Bass," of its day. Either you know "Nilsson Schmillson" or you don't, if you don't, pull it up and marvel. "Down," with Bobby, closes side one.
"Edward"
Nicky Hopkins
Talk about forgotten...
Nicky was the superstar sideman of his day, even bigger than Keys, but the sands of time have buried his name, if not his work. I bought "The Tin Man Was A Dreamer," Nicky's solo album, which was quite playable, and its best track, "Edward." features Keys.
"Let's Get It On"
Marvin Gaye
Talk about iconic... Marvin does not get enough credit, this was when he was finally doing it his way, this cut was monstrous, and Bobby was part of the allure.
"Call Me The Breeze"
Lynyrd Skynyrd
The definitive cover of J.J. Cale's composition featured Keys.
"Don't Ask Me No Questions"
Lynyrd Skynyrd
I actually prefer this trackmate from "Second Helping," even though I recognize "Call Me The Breeze"'s magic. Once again, Bobby is featured.
"City Drops Into The Night"
Jim Carroll
All the hype was about "People Who Died," but this is the best cut on "Catholic Boy," it's one I quote seemingly every day...
"I'm just a constant warning to take the other direction"
It wouldn't be the same without Bobby Keys's sax playing.
"Had Me A Real Good Time"
Faces
From "Long Player," featuring Ian McLagan, who also departed this mortal coil this week, December is a rough month, do your best to make it through.
Bobby's on it.
"Slunky"
Eric Clapton
From God's first solo album which curiously was not a huge success, even though it's one of his absolute best, he had to wait for the follow-up, "Layla," for further adulation. This is the opening cut, with Bobby playing a big part.
"Only You Know And I Know"
Delaney & Bonnie & Friends
Once upon a time, this was the famous iteration, not the one from Dave Mason's superb initial solo LP "Alone Together." Bobby's all over this album featuring Eric Clapton, Mr. Mason and so many more.
"Night Owl"
Carly Simon
Her cover of her beau JT's song on her biggest LP, "No Secrets." Bobby's on it.
"There's Only One"
Graham Nash
From "Songs For Beginners," my favorite of Crosby, Stills & Nash's initial solo LPs. At this late date "Stephen Stills" gets all the credit, but listen to the lyrics on this and the rest of the album, and to Keys's sax.
"Poor Poor Pitiful Me"
Warren Zevon
Obscure until Linda Ronstadt changed the lyrics, included it on one of her albums and made it ubiquitous. Bobby's an integral part of the original.
"Take It Or Leave It"
Eric Carmen
From "Boats Against The Current," Eric Carmen's follow-up to his solo debut with its multiple hit tracks, most specifically "All By Myself." It sank like a stone, but "Boats Against The Current" is one of my favorites.
And many more...
Yes, Bobby Keys is all over the history of rock and roll. He may not be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but even better he's all over the hits, the songs we know by heart.
Spotify link: http://spoti.fi/1vOVofJ
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
-- powered by phpList, www.phplist.com --
Rolling Stones
Because it's his most famous track.
Although legendary and still heard with frequency today you've got no idea how big this was in 1971, when it was released. And one of its main features was Bobby's sax solo. His work lives on, even if he does not.
"Live With Me"
Rolling Stones
Because it was his initial work with the Stones.
"Beggars Banquet" is the best, "Sticky Fingers" the most famous, but "Let It Bleed" is my favorite, for its bookends of "Gimmie Shelter" and "You Can't Always Get What You Want" if nothing else. When "Let It Bleed" was big, it was not gigantic, it was only after its release that the Stones took their initial victory lap as the "World's Greatest Rock and Roll Band."
"Live With Me" was in the middle of side one, and back when we used to play our albums throughout, we knew it by heart, still do.
"Can't You Hear Me Knocking"
Rolling Stones
Few are mentioning this in the obits, but it's the first one that went through my brain when I heard the news of his passing. The song changes groove in the middle and Keys is featured, it's a tour-de-force.
"Happy"
Rolling Stones
On Keith's signature tune, Bobby rips.
"Casino Boogie"
Rolling Stones
A personal favorite.
That's the problem with history, that which was not mainstream then is nearly forgotten today.
People forget that "Exile On Main Street" was a dud upon release. It went straight to number one and then faded almost instantly. But knowing I was going to see the tour I stayed up all night listening to the double album and was enraptured by "Casino Boogie," talk about a GROOVE!
"Emotional Rescue"
Rolling Stones
Nearly a novelty song, Jagger's falsetto gives one that impression. But it was so much fun hearing it come out of the car radio speaker. And Bobby trades licks with Keith after Mick's spoken word/rapping part.
"The Letter"
Mad Dogs & Englishmen
One of the greatest tours in rock and roll history, it made Leon Russell a star and left Joe Cocker drunk on the sidelines. Bobby Keys was on the tour, and is featured on this reworking of the Box Tops' classic "The Letter."
"The Wanderer"
Dion & The Belmonts
Even Keys wasn't sure if it was him, but he was definitely at the session.
"Whatever Gets You Thru The Night"
John Lennon
From Lennon's "comeback" album, "Walls and Bridges."
By this time McCartney had put out the deservedly monstrous "Band On The Run" and was the Beatle carrying the torch, but this ran right up the chart and peaked at number one, the only time John hit that position solo in his lifetime. Sure, the track features Elton, but even Bobby more.
"What Is Life"
George Harrison
John wasn't the only Beatle Keys knew, Bobby played on this, the second single from "All Things Must Pass," Harrison's three record set released right around this time forty four years ago.
P.S. Keys played with Ringo too!
"There Goes The Neighborhood"
Sheryl Crow
Her best album and undeservedly forgotten. "Globe Sessions" is where she proved all her naysayers wrong, she created something that would top the charts if released today, and Keys is featured on this, the second single from the LP.
"Down"
Harry Nilsson
Talk about forgotten... "Nilsson Schmillson" was monstrous, mostly on the back of the cover of Badfinger's "Without You," which at this late date seems to be owned in the public consciousness by Mariah Carey, but the truth is this album was playable throughout, and all the cuts sounded different, Harry crooned, he rocked, he even did the novelty thing with "Coconut," the "All About That Bass," of its day. Either you know "Nilsson Schmillson" or you don't, if you don't, pull it up and marvel. "Down," with Bobby, closes side one.
"Edward"
Nicky Hopkins
Talk about forgotten...
Nicky was the superstar sideman of his day, even bigger than Keys, but the sands of time have buried his name, if not his work. I bought "The Tin Man Was A Dreamer," Nicky's solo album, which was quite playable, and its best track, "Edward." features Keys.
"Let's Get It On"
Marvin Gaye
Talk about iconic... Marvin does not get enough credit, this was when he was finally doing it his way, this cut was monstrous, and Bobby was part of the allure.
"Call Me The Breeze"
Lynyrd Skynyrd
The definitive cover of J.J. Cale's composition featured Keys.
"Don't Ask Me No Questions"
Lynyrd Skynyrd
I actually prefer this trackmate from "Second Helping," even though I recognize "Call Me The Breeze"'s magic. Once again, Bobby is featured.
"City Drops Into The Night"
Jim Carroll
All the hype was about "People Who Died," but this is the best cut on "Catholic Boy," it's one I quote seemingly every day...
"I'm just a constant warning to take the other direction"
It wouldn't be the same without Bobby Keys's sax playing.
"Had Me A Real Good Time"
Faces
From "Long Player," featuring Ian McLagan, who also departed this mortal coil this week, December is a rough month, do your best to make it through.
Bobby's on it.
"Slunky"
Eric Clapton
From God's first solo album which curiously was not a huge success, even though it's one of his absolute best, he had to wait for the follow-up, "Layla," for further adulation. This is the opening cut, with Bobby playing a big part.
"Only You Know And I Know"
Delaney & Bonnie & Friends
Once upon a time, this was the famous iteration, not the one from Dave Mason's superb initial solo LP "Alone Together." Bobby's all over this album featuring Eric Clapton, Mr. Mason and so many more.
"Night Owl"
Carly Simon
Her cover of her beau JT's song on her biggest LP, "No Secrets." Bobby's on it.
"There's Only One"
Graham Nash
From "Songs For Beginners," my favorite of Crosby, Stills & Nash's initial solo LPs. At this late date "Stephen Stills" gets all the credit, but listen to the lyrics on this and the rest of the album, and to Keys's sax.
"Poor Poor Pitiful Me"
Warren Zevon
Obscure until Linda Ronstadt changed the lyrics, included it on one of her albums and made it ubiquitous. Bobby's an integral part of the original.
"Take It Or Leave It"
Eric Carmen
From "Boats Against The Current," Eric Carmen's follow-up to his solo debut with its multiple hit tracks, most specifically "All By Myself." It sank like a stone, but "Boats Against The Current" is one of my favorites.
And many more...
Yes, Bobby Keys is all over the history of rock and roll. He may not be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but even better he's all over the hits, the songs we know by heart.
Spotify link: http://spoti.fi/1vOVofJ
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
-- powered by phpList, www.phplist.com --
Wednesday, 3 December 2014
The Echo Chamber
I'm sick and fucking tired of all you musicians and musos who believe your viewpoint is the only one that counts, who live in a bubble of your own device, loyal to the past and mad at anybody who strays from your viewpoint. Furthermore, you just keep digging your hole deeper, especially with your hour plus albums.
What the internet has allowed is for the consumer to gain control of the music experience. And it turns out these listeners and fans don't want to do it your way, and you just can't fathom that.
You want them to listen to albums.
You want them to pay a lot.
You want them to be concerned with your concerns even though you're not concerned with theirs. That's right, the consumer has his own bills, his own challenges, but yours are so much more important, because you're an artist with the weight of the world upon your shoulders, HORSESHIT!
I didn't make streaming the default, the fans did. They embraced YouTube as the definitive music service. To deny this is equivalent to denying P2P in 2000. The labels did that, to their great disadvantage. But now the labels are trying to live in the future, investing in these new services, and all you can do is bitch that they're making bank. Meanwhile, you complain that your royalties for streaming are a pittance when the truth is you can go independent and you don't, you want Big Daddy to take care of you, you're forever living in your parents' basement.
And we've got to be soft on Jack Conte because his heart is in the right place.
BULLSHIT!
If that were the determining factor we'd have to support terrorists, hell, they believe in what they have to say!
But the truth is online ideas are dissected, torn apart and put back together again. But somehow artists see themselves as immune. No one can say shit about their stuff. Hell, people give me shit all day long, it goes with the territory. There's no crying in baseball and there's no crying on the internet.
So please rid yourself of your loyalty. Please stop the knee-jerk defense of your musician brethren. Please start looking outward as opposed to inward.
Well, inward when you're creating, but when it comes to business...
You're not entitled to earn a living.
You're not entitled to attention.
The public determines the price of goods, not you.
Don't tell me the value of something, it's irrelevant if no one wants to pay that. Jimmy Iovine agitates for lower streaming subscription prices, to enhance adoption, and you keep stating they should be higher because of all the work you put in. You know nothing of scale, I wonder if you even know how milk and bread get to your counter.
But Jimmy won't talk to you. Everything he does is behind closed doors with people who count.
Because that's the modern America. Where those with education and power want nothing to do with the rabble-rousers, because the public is ignorant. Leave it to the musicians and there'd be no recorded music business. They'd be too busy arguing amongst themselves. That's why business people are needed, to add order.
So rant all you want. About the inequities of music.
But somehow those who succeed are making more money than ever before. And if you think you were screwed you're unaware your music isn't good enough or your personality sucks. Getting along is paramount, no one wants to deal with a prick.
Labels are scouring the world for that which they can sell. They'd sign you if they thought they could make money.
And if you make niche music, too bad. People have been talking about the death of classical for eons, orchestras are challenged, but somehow you need to survive. At least write a symphony as good as Mozart, okay?
And stop clinging to the way it used to be.
Albums were cardboard collections of 78s.
The Beatles created the modern album paradigm. Because all the songs hung together. And their albums were way under an hour.
And music was cheap.
As were concert tickets.
But MTV blew up acts and the CD rained down coin and somehow you expect it be the same as it ever was. Sprint lowers prices for switchers but you want to raise them. T-Mobile changes the paradigm, having people buy their handsets, but you want everybody to jet back to the past.
Get out of the echo chamber. Stop talking to your fellow musicians and start talking to the fans. And know if you want to be rich you've got to appeal to casual fans.
And that most musicians are not gonna make it.
And that the way you see it is not the way most people do.
But if something contradicts with your world view you can't handle it. Whoop-de-doo! Have a good ride on the rails to irrelevance!
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
-- powered by phpList, www.phplist.com --
What the internet has allowed is for the consumer to gain control of the music experience. And it turns out these listeners and fans don't want to do it your way, and you just can't fathom that.
You want them to listen to albums.
You want them to pay a lot.
You want them to be concerned with your concerns even though you're not concerned with theirs. That's right, the consumer has his own bills, his own challenges, but yours are so much more important, because you're an artist with the weight of the world upon your shoulders, HORSESHIT!
I didn't make streaming the default, the fans did. They embraced YouTube as the definitive music service. To deny this is equivalent to denying P2P in 2000. The labels did that, to their great disadvantage. But now the labels are trying to live in the future, investing in these new services, and all you can do is bitch that they're making bank. Meanwhile, you complain that your royalties for streaming are a pittance when the truth is you can go independent and you don't, you want Big Daddy to take care of you, you're forever living in your parents' basement.
And we've got to be soft on Jack Conte because his heart is in the right place.
BULLSHIT!
If that were the determining factor we'd have to support terrorists, hell, they believe in what they have to say!
But the truth is online ideas are dissected, torn apart and put back together again. But somehow artists see themselves as immune. No one can say shit about their stuff. Hell, people give me shit all day long, it goes with the territory. There's no crying in baseball and there's no crying on the internet.
So please rid yourself of your loyalty. Please stop the knee-jerk defense of your musician brethren. Please start looking outward as opposed to inward.
Well, inward when you're creating, but when it comes to business...
You're not entitled to earn a living.
You're not entitled to attention.
The public determines the price of goods, not you.
Don't tell me the value of something, it's irrelevant if no one wants to pay that. Jimmy Iovine agitates for lower streaming subscription prices, to enhance adoption, and you keep stating they should be higher because of all the work you put in. You know nothing of scale, I wonder if you even know how milk and bread get to your counter.
But Jimmy won't talk to you. Everything he does is behind closed doors with people who count.
Because that's the modern America. Where those with education and power want nothing to do with the rabble-rousers, because the public is ignorant. Leave it to the musicians and there'd be no recorded music business. They'd be too busy arguing amongst themselves. That's why business people are needed, to add order.
So rant all you want. About the inequities of music.
But somehow those who succeed are making more money than ever before. And if you think you were screwed you're unaware your music isn't good enough or your personality sucks. Getting along is paramount, no one wants to deal with a prick.
Labels are scouring the world for that which they can sell. They'd sign you if they thought they could make money.
And if you make niche music, too bad. People have been talking about the death of classical for eons, orchestras are challenged, but somehow you need to survive. At least write a symphony as good as Mozart, okay?
And stop clinging to the way it used to be.
Albums were cardboard collections of 78s.
The Beatles created the modern album paradigm. Because all the songs hung together. And their albums were way under an hour.
And music was cheap.
As were concert tickets.
But MTV blew up acts and the CD rained down coin and somehow you expect it be the same as it ever was. Sprint lowers prices for switchers but you want to raise them. T-Mobile changes the paradigm, having people buy their handsets, but you want everybody to jet back to the past.
Get out of the echo chamber. Stop talking to your fellow musicians and start talking to the fans. And know if you want to be rich you've got to appeal to casual fans.
And that most musicians are not gonna make it.
And that the way you see it is not the way most people do.
But if something contradicts with your world view you can't handle it. Whoop-de-doo! Have a good ride on the rails to irrelevance!
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
-- powered by phpList, www.phplist.com --
Tuesday, 2 December 2014
Billboard's New Chart
Keep it simple stupid.
That's what Steve Jobs knew that nobody at "Billboard" seems to understand.
Don't give me formulas, give me reality.
The only thing that counts is listens. Sales are irrelevant. Especially of albums.
But the whole industry is based on albums so they don't want to throw out the baby with the bathwater, they come up with this inane hybrid chart and then trumpet it as the answer. Once again, the music industry is a step behind, part of the problem, not part of the solution.
Streams only. They represent what people are listening to.
As for sales... They're tanking. Keeping them alive is like continuing to install FireWire on Macs. It worked, but it's been superseded by Thunderbolt. Then again, the people making these decisions can't tell the difference between USB and MP3.
Can someone look to the destination? Can someone admit that streaming has already won and as a result the winners in the music derby might not be the same? Can someone wrap their heads around the fact that the majority of streaming revenues go to rightsholders, and how they divvy it up with their partners is subject to contract?
Industries that satisfy themselves and not their consumers are headed for extinction. We see it over and over again. Whether it be the greedy cab companies or the overpriced hotel industry. They didn't see Uber and Airbnb coming. But who wants to ride in a filthy cab with a driver on the phone who jolts to a stop? Who wants to stay in a hotel only to discover that the price they were quoted resembles not a whit the final bill they're tendered?
People haven't listened to albums from start to finish since the advent of the CD.
Macs don't come with disk drives. Neither do Chromebooks, which are infiltrating educational institutions, but we've got a whole industry based on selling disks no one wants.
Furthermore, hard drives are dying, it's all about access, and you want me to buy files?
Just round up all the streaming services and give us a ranking. Hell, we don't even need to know how many listens there were. Just put them in order based purely on that one statistic, with no malarkey involved. None of this crap about track equivalent albums and x number of streams equaling a sale. Huh? What is that? Do you see Netflix telling us how many views equal one DVD?
Come on.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
-- powered by phpList, www.phplist.com --
That's what Steve Jobs knew that nobody at "Billboard" seems to understand.
Don't give me formulas, give me reality.
The only thing that counts is listens. Sales are irrelevant. Especially of albums.
But the whole industry is based on albums so they don't want to throw out the baby with the bathwater, they come up with this inane hybrid chart and then trumpet it as the answer. Once again, the music industry is a step behind, part of the problem, not part of the solution.
Streams only. They represent what people are listening to.
As for sales... They're tanking. Keeping them alive is like continuing to install FireWire on Macs. It worked, but it's been superseded by Thunderbolt. Then again, the people making these decisions can't tell the difference between USB and MP3.
Can someone look to the destination? Can someone admit that streaming has already won and as a result the winners in the music derby might not be the same? Can someone wrap their heads around the fact that the majority of streaming revenues go to rightsholders, and how they divvy it up with their partners is subject to contract?
Industries that satisfy themselves and not their consumers are headed for extinction. We see it over and over again. Whether it be the greedy cab companies or the overpriced hotel industry. They didn't see Uber and Airbnb coming. But who wants to ride in a filthy cab with a driver on the phone who jolts to a stop? Who wants to stay in a hotel only to discover that the price they were quoted resembles not a whit the final bill they're tendered?
People haven't listened to albums from start to finish since the advent of the CD.
Macs don't come with disk drives. Neither do Chromebooks, which are infiltrating educational institutions, but we've got a whole industry based on selling disks no one wants.
Furthermore, hard drives are dying, it's all about access, and you want me to buy files?
Just round up all the streaming services and give us a ranking. Hell, we don't even need to know how many listens there were. Just put them in order based purely on that one statistic, with no malarkey involved. None of this crap about track equivalent albums and x number of streams equaling a sale. Huh? What is that? Do you see Netflix telling us how many views equal one DVD?
Come on.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
-- powered by phpList, www.phplist.com --
Rolling Stone Crowns U2 Number One
As Jann Wenner and Bono mash the gas pedal towards the cliff of irrelevance.
In other words, how can "Rolling Stone" be so tone-deaf? This single-handedly reveals the inanity of the shenanigans behind the "Rock and Roll Hall of Fame," this illustrates how baby boomers have to get out of the way to let the younger generations flourish. If you think U2's album whose name I can no longer remember counts, if you think albums matter, if you think by continuing to polish this turd it will gain traction, you work at "Rolling Stone" or are in U2 or both.
Despite a self-congratulatory phony press, the truth is credibility reigns. With every wart exposed, it's important you show you're in bed with your fans, not the fat cats who run this country who are evidence of everything wrong with it. "Rolling Stone" imitated "Blender" and made all their reviews short, not knowing "Blender" lied about its numbers and was heading for extinction, but this same magazine can't realize its place in the spectrum, can't understand that to be relevant you've got to be honest?
Why don't they just get rid of the music. Why don't they just call it the Matt Taibbi publication. That's right, "Rolling Stone" made Taibbi a star, he's everything the musicians are not. While Bono keeps cozying up to heads of state Taibbi keeps revealing their bad behavior, refusing to apologize all the while.
That's what's wrong with America, all the damn apologizing. It would be one thing if these people really made a mistake, but the truth is they're afraid of being excoriated by the press and public, they're afraid to own their identities. And if they truly say something heinous they should burn in hell for it. Apologizing does not erase behavior, never. We can learn from our mistakes, but it seems like these celebrities never do.
And getting much less attention is "Rolling Stone"'s gigantic victory last week, bringing down the Greek system at UVA. That's right, in one well-researched report about date rape the publication threw light on the situation and caused the university to blink. These damn colleges, they're just factories for the administration to get rich off athletes who don't study while the rest of the students party. Once upon a time, college was about learning, about becoming a better person, now it's all about a job. Let me tell you, you're gonna lose that job. And if you don't know the liberal arts you're never going to be able to pivot, never mind come up with that great idea to begin with.
So "Rolling Stone" still has power. Why did it commit such a faux pas by naming U2's album number one? Does the magazine believe it still lives in the pre-Internet era, where no one can comment upon its decision? Instead, the magazine is now a laughingstock, beaten up online, the younger generation who abhor Bono and his band pushing ever further away from it and refusing to read the good articles that are in the publication.
Let's start with U2. Forget about the album. It's done. Over. History.
You need a hit. And you'd be better off recording a new one than trying to pull one out of that turkey you foisted upon us.
If you're really desperate, do a Christmas song. At least you'll get spins.
And "Rolling Stone," which once came down on the side of file-traders, can you please bury the album, know that no one listens that way anymore and to declare an overlong opus as important is ridiculous? Can you stop giving every album a three star review? Can you stop putting loyalty over the news?
That's right, this elevation of U2's crap smacks of nothing so much as loyalty, old school entertainment business, the same one that got U2 into this mess to begin with. At least Jimmy Iovine produced U2, what exactly is your connection to the band again Jann?
And it will make no difference. Almost no one will check out the album as a result of this endorsement. The negative will outweigh the positive by far. Music is like sports...it's all about the achievement, the work. And U2 did not deliver. Sorry, no amount of spin will change that.
Meanwhile, the musos are trumpeting that which no one can relate to and the youngsters are listening to pop and everybody else has tuned out. "Rolling Stone" has done a disservice to the industry. Doused any flames left.
Music is more ubiquitous than ever before, but everybody involved wants to kill it by playing by the old rules.
Except in the festival world. That's where music lives today. We need even more. Destination events where people can be exposed to music and the ethos it engenders, so they'll partake further.
You can't lie in a live performance. You can't steal it either.
And no one wants to watch it on their computer.
They want to be there.
Why has our nation devolved into self-congratulatory crap when the truth is we're caving from within? Where is Devo when you need them?
"50 Best Albums of 2014": http://rol.st/1B5Rjbw
FURTHERMORE, TO MAKE SPRINGSTEEN NUMBER TWO IS TO MAKE ME PUKE!
The best thing Springsteen did in the past year was cover U2 yesterday. Springsteen is irrelevant to everybody but his fans. His voice is a rasp and he's so caught up in his own echo chamber that he can no longer see reality. He's not a saint, not in the city or New Jersey. He's got to cut something as meaningful about the hard times in America as he did about AIDS in "Streets of Philadelphia," he's got to pull his head out of his ass and realize to be relevant you've got to make something everybody likes, not just your fans. And by making this mediocre album number two Wenner shows that he's in cahoots with Jon Landau, running the R&RHOF as their fiefdom. Yes, Yes can't be inducted and we have to hear again and again how Bruce is still relevant? Come on!
"A Rage on Campus: A Brutal Assault an Struggle for Justice at UVA": http://rol.st/11Cs0z8
This one article is better than both the U2 and Springsteen albums combined. Read it, it'll be more fulfilling. And know that it had more impact, UVA suspended their fraternities in the wake of it.
"UVA suspends fraternities after report on gang rape allegation": http://cnn.it/1pPAxte
But unlike Bono and Bruce, the unheralded writer of the "Rolling Stone" piece, Sabrina Rubin Erdely, was driven by a search for truth as opposed to a desire for success. You can feel her passion for the story when you read it. It's everything music is not. Illustrating once again that a lone outsider with desire and some talent can topple the usual suspects perched atop the pedestal.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
-- powered by phpList, www.phplist.com --
In other words, how can "Rolling Stone" be so tone-deaf? This single-handedly reveals the inanity of the shenanigans behind the "Rock and Roll Hall of Fame," this illustrates how baby boomers have to get out of the way to let the younger generations flourish. If you think U2's album whose name I can no longer remember counts, if you think albums matter, if you think by continuing to polish this turd it will gain traction, you work at "Rolling Stone" or are in U2 or both.
Despite a self-congratulatory phony press, the truth is credibility reigns. With every wart exposed, it's important you show you're in bed with your fans, not the fat cats who run this country who are evidence of everything wrong with it. "Rolling Stone" imitated "Blender" and made all their reviews short, not knowing "Blender" lied about its numbers and was heading for extinction, but this same magazine can't realize its place in the spectrum, can't understand that to be relevant you've got to be honest?
Why don't they just get rid of the music. Why don't they just call it the Matt Taibbi publication. That's right, "Rolling Stone" made Taibbi a star, he's everything the musicians are not. While Bono keeps cozying up to heads of state Taibbi keeps revealing their bad behavior, refusing to apologize all the while.
That's what's wrong with America, all the damn apologizing. It would be one thing if these people really made a mistake, but the truth is they're afraid of being excoriated by the press and public, they're afraid to own their identities. And if they truly say something heinous they should burn in hell for it. Apologizing does not erase behavior, never. We can learn from our mistakes, but it seems like these celebrities never do.
And getting much less attention is "Rolling Stone"'s gigantic victory last week, bringing down the Greek system at UVA. That's right, in one well-researched report about date rape the publication threw light on the situation and caused the university to blink. These damn colleges, they're just factories for the administration to get rich off athletes who don't study while the rest of the students party. Once upon a time, college was about learning, about becoming a better person, now it's all about a job. Let me tell you, you're gonna lose that job. And if you don't know the liberal arts you're never going to be able to pivot, never mind come up with that great idea to begin with.
So "Rolling Stone" still has power. Why did it commit such a faux pas by naming U2's album number one? Does the magazine believe it still lives in the pre-Internet era, where no one can comment upon its decision? Instead, the magazine is now a laughingstock, beaten up online, the younger generation who abhor Bono and his band pushing ever further away from it and refusing to read the good articles that are in the publication.
Let's start with U2. Forget about the album. It's done. Over. History.
You need a hit. And you'd be better off recording a new one than trying to pull one out of that turkey you foisted upon us.
If you're really desperate, do a Christmas song. At least you'll get spins.
And "Rolling Stone," which once came down on the side of file-traders, can you please bury the album, know that no one listens that way anymore and to declare an overlong opus as important is ridiculous? Can you stop giving every album a three star review? Can you stop putting loyalty over the news?
That's right, this elevation of U2's crap smacks of nothing so much as loyalty, old school entertainment business, the same one that got U2 into this mess to begin with. At least Jimmy Iovine produced U2, what exactly is your connection to the band again Jann?
And it will make no difference. Almost no one will check out the album as a result of this endorsement. The negative will outweigh the positive by far. Music is like sports...it's all about the achievement, the work. And U2 did not deliver. Sorry, no amount of spin will change that.
Meanwhile, the musos are trumpeting that which no one can relate to and the youngsters are listening to pop and everybody else has tuned out. "Rolling Stone" has done a disservice to the industry. Doused any flames left.
Music is more ubiquitous than ever before, but everybody involved wants to kill it by playing by the old rules.
Except in the festival world. That's where music lives today. We need even more. Destination events where people can be exposed to music and the ethos it engenders, so they'll partake further.
You can't lie in a live performance. You can't steal it either.
And no one wants to watch it on their computer.
They want to be there.
Why has our nation devolved into self-congratulatory crap when the truth is we're caving from within? Where is Devo when you need them?
"50 Best Albums of 2014": http://rol.st/1B5Rjbw
FURTHERMORE, TO MAKE SPRINGSTEEN NUMBER TWO IS TO MAKE ME PUKE!
The best thing Springsteen did in the past year was cover U2 yesterday. Springsteen is irrelevant to everybody but his fans. His voice is a rasp and he's so caught up in his own echo chamber that he can no longer see reality. He's not a saint, not in the city or New Jersey. He's got to cut something as meaningful about the hard times in America as he did about AIDS in "Streets of Philadelphia," he's got to pull his head out of his ass and realize to be relevant you've got to make something everybody likes, not just your fans. And by making this mediocre album number two Wenner shows that he's in cahoots with Jon Landau, running the R&RHOF as their fiefdom. Yes, Yes can't be inducted and we have to hear again and again how Bruce is still relevant? Come on!
"A Rage on Campus: A Brutal Assault an Struggle for Justice at UVA": http://rol.st/11Cs0z8
This one article is better than both the U2 and Springsteen albums combined. Read it, it'll be more fulfilling. And know that it had more impact, UVA suspended their fraternities in the wake of it.
"UVA suspends fraternities after report on gang rape allegation": http://cnn.it/1pPAxte
But unlike Bono and Bruce, the unheralded writer of the "Rolling Stone" piece, Sabrina Rubin Erdely, was driven by a search for truth as opposed to a desire for success. You can feel her passion for the story when you read it. It's everything music is not. Illustrating once again that a lone outsider with desire and some talent can topple the usual suspects perched atop the pedestal.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
-- powered by phpList, www.phplist.com --
Getting On The Right Track
1. Focus on music not money. There's too much talk about grosses and too much bitching about Spotify. Amazon rolls out robots and we all ooh and ahh, there's forward motion in the music business and everybody complains. Change is inevitable, the future comes, the social landscape will be rearranged...best to acknowledge this and move forward as opposed to trying ineffectively to hold it back. Yes, people will lose their jobs because of Amazon robots, the same way recording studios closed and CD plants too. This is sad, but this has become the story of the music business, what we have lost instead of what we have gained. This sends the wrong message to the consumer. Yes, there are rabid fans embracing the work of artists. But in order for music to be healthy once again we need to reach the casual consumer, who can tell you the difference between the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus but not that between Iggy Azalea and Ariana Grande.
2. If you fail come back to the marketplace quickly. The Fire phone was a disaster. But instead of licking its wounds, Amazon is now hyping its aforementioned robots. When there's a failure in the music business the act retires for a year or two and is oftentimes forgotten by time it returns. Create often. Failure is inevitable. One hit trumps a raft of disasters.
3. The SoundScan chart ruined music. Because there was a different number one each week. The business will burgeon when it becomes comprehensible, when the same tracks dominate for a period of time. The chart is all about satisfying the industry, not the consumer. The industry wants to divvy out number ones, wants to influence dying retail. But when a record slips off the chart it's usually gone for good, whereas movies come and go on the chart but then they get another life on DVD, pay cable, Netflix... The film chart position pays long term dividends in terms of advertising. Music chart positions are momentary.
4. Focus on what people are listening to, not what they're buying. Buying an album does not mean one listens to it, oftentimes people only listen to the hit. Streaming, whether it be on YouTube or Spotify, indicates what is truly popular. Note to the wannabe...not everything is popular, never was, never will be.
5. The "Voice" is good for television, it's bad for music. Because it's a karaoke show and the music business depends on a steady stream of new hits. We need to extol the songwriter, who is sometimes the performer, not the face. Otherwise we're focusing on the zit, not the acne. And acne is an infection, and that's the goal of music, to infect people.
6. Acknowledge the inability to get a song out of your head is a good thing. That's the key to Meghan Trainor's "All About That Bass." You may go on in your holier-than-thou fashion that it sucks, but if you hear it once you can't stop singing it to yourself. We need more of that.
7. Embrace experimentation. Today's artists are so worried about losing traction that they just replicate what they've done before. Test limits.
8. Identity and edge are everything. All the tech titans have rough edges. Hell, Travis Kalanick has dominated the news cycle and Uber just gets bigger. Whereas "artists" dress up instead of down and keep paying penance to their sponsors. Who can believe in that?
9. Utilize your power. Musicians dominate social media. But they don't use it to move music forward. Only oldsters like Bob Geldof and Bono seem to understand the power of music to open the discussion, to change things. Young artists can do this too. But they have to be educated, they have to realize the advantage, they have to understand that if you don't stand for something, you don't stand for anything at all.
10. The music business is the canary in the coal mine, everything happens to it first, yet everybody in it keeps complaining about this change. People run from those who whine, offer no insight and refuse to get with the program. Artists have to give hope. Hope to consumers who too are affected by the new world and are trying to navigate their way. Music needs to run shotgun with these people. Music needs to be indispensable. We've got to stop the warring within and acknowledge it's nearly impossible to break through and boost those who do. The biggest story of the year was Taylor Swift's media campaign and resulting sales. I wish she wasn't a front for Max Martin, but everyone agreed her social media campaign was brilliant, the ancient sales construct of a million copies in a week was repeated everywhere, her disdain for Spotify made headlines. Why wasn't there a concomitant news story when Avicii's "Wake Me Up" became the biggest track in the history of Spotify? Why do you hate on
EDM? Why do we not realize that music done right is not formula, but cutting edge variations on the bedrock basics? You've got to be able to sing, write and play or get out of the way. We've got to separate the pretenders from the winners. And your job is to dethrone said winners. Not to bitch that they've got your spot, but to do something better that trumps them.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
-- powered by phpList, www.phplist.com --
2. If you fail come back to the marketplace quickly. The Fire phone was a disaster. But instead of licking its wounds, Amazon is now hyping its aforementioned robots. When there's a failure in the music business the act retires for a year or two and is oftentimes forgotten by time it returns. Create often. Failure is inevitable. One hit trumps a raft of disasters.
3. The SoundScan chart ruined music. Because there was a different number one each week. The business will burgeon when it becomes comprehensible, when the same tracks dominate for a period of time. The chart is all about satisfying the industry, not the consumer. The industry wants to divvy out number ones, wants to influence dying retail. But when a record slips off the chart it's usually gone for good, whereas movies come and go on the chart but then they get another life on DVD, pay cable, Netflix... The film chart position pays long term dividends in terms of advertising. Music chart positions are momentary.
4. Focus on what people are listening to, not what they're buying. Buying an album does not mean one listens to it, oftentimes people only listen to the hit. Streaming, whether it be on YouTube or Spotify, indicates what is truly popular. Note to the wannabe...not everything is popular, never was, never will be.
5. The "Voice" is good for television, it's bad for music. Because it's a karaoke show and the music business depends on a steady stream of new hits. We need to extol the songwriter, who is sometimes the performer, not the face. Otherwise we're focusing on the zit, not the acne. And acne is an infection, and that's the goal of music, to infect people.
6. Acknowledge the inability to get a song out of your head is a good thing. That's the key to Meghan Trainor's "All About That Bass." You may go on in your holier-than-thou fashion that it sucks, but if you hear it once you can't stop singing it to yourself. We need more of that.
7. Embrace experimentation. Today's artists are so worried about losing traction that they just replicate what they've done before. Test limits.
8. Identity and edge are everything. All the tech titans have rough edges. Hell, Travis Kalanick has dominated the news cycle and Uber just gets bigger. Whereas "artists" dress up instead of down and keep paying penance to their sponsors. Who can believe in that?
9. Utilize your power. Musicians dominate social media. But they don't use it to move music forward. Only oldsters like Bob Geldof and Bono seem to understand the power of music to open the discussion, to change things. Young artists can do this too. But they have to be educated, they have to realize the advantage, they have to understand that if you don't stand for something, you don't stand for anything at all.
10. The music business is the canary in the coal mine, everything happens to it first, yet everybody in it keeps complaining about this change. People run from those who whine, offer no insight and refuse to get with the program. Artists have to give hope. Hope to consumers who too are affected by the new world and are trying to navigate their way. Music needs to run shotgun with these people. Music needs to be indispensable. We've got to stop the warring within and acknowledge it's nearly impossible to break through and boost those who do. The biggest story of the year was Taylor Swift's media campaign and resulting sales. I wish she wasn't a front for Max Martin, but everyone agreed her social media campaign was brilliant, the ancient sales construct of a million copies in a week was repeated everywhere, her disdain for Spotify made headlines. Why wasn't there a concomitant news story when Avicii's "Wake Me Up" became the biggest track in the history of Spotify? Why do you hate on
EDM? Why do we not realize that music done right is not formula, but cutting edge variations on the bedrock basics? You've got to be able to sing, write and play or get out of the way. We've got to separate the pretenders from the winners. And your job is to dethrone said winners. Not to bitch that they've got your spot, but to do something better that trumps them.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
-- powered by phpList, www.phplist.com --
Monday, 1 December 2014
Amanda Palmer At The First Unitarian Universalist Church
How do you build a career from the ground up?
People pay lip service to this, but they want a shortcut, they want someone to help them, but just like in the rest of this Republican-defined nation you're on your own in the music business, if you build it they may not come, but if you entice them, if you bond with them, you can build an audience and survive.
I was surprised to find people lined up two hours in advance.
I was further surprised when the auditorium filled up. Capacity is 700, there were more than 600 there, with only a few seats left in the balcony. And they paid to be part of Amanda Palmer's book tour, $18-$23.
Think about that. Book tours used to be for free. Back when authors thought their audience was reviewers, instead of knowing that their audience was readers, and in today's world unless you have a special, preexisting relationship with readers, you're doomed. Publishing, like music, has little left in marketing funds. Either you can stay home or mobilize your fans. And if you haven't started building a fan list years before, you won't get much traction.
So the "show" began with Amanda reading. She knew the words were not enough, that it was about a PERFORMANCE! Honed during years on the road. The so-called 10,000 hours. I can read the book at home, but can I see the author enunciate slowly and emphasize the words therein? I won't go to readings because that's what authors believe they are. No, readings are performances. In this case with the lights low, with the audience enthralled.
And then Amanda surprised them. She performed. On the piano.
Audiences love surprises. Some rules of marketing always apply. Promise little, deliver more.
And then I interviewed her.
Wherein I learned Amanda considered her biggest mistake to be focusing on everyone instead of her core.
That's the truth. Are you a pop artist or a niche one? Other than the Foos, all rock artists are niche, own it. Ariana Grande is pop. Taylor Swift declared herself pop. Mainstream country is equivalent to pop. Everybody else is toiling in the niches.
Have no illusions about it.
You're never going to be a household name, certainly not for your music. In a world where it's impossible to get everybody's attention, only the mainstream does. So, be happy where you are. Don't dream about world domination unless you have a direct pipeline to Max Martin, sorry.
But unlike so many of the popsters, Amanda was honest. She spoke from the heart about what others will not. About her abortion. About her decision, as of now, to not have children. We're all confused, we all have more questions than answers, used to be our stars reflected our lives back upon us. Today they keep going on about how much better they are than us. Which is why pop comes and goes, but niche artists with fans are forever.
And Amanda's "book doula," Jamy Ian Swiss, performed some of his world class magic.
And then the assembled multitude asked questions.
More so, they testified. How Amanda was a beacon in their lives, how she got them through.
Now Amanda Palmer has become both a poster girl and a target for figuring out the newfangled game. She blogs, she tweets, she raises money on Kickstarter and considers her life her art. It's all consuming. There's no borderline between what's on stage and what is not. Because today no one can hide behind the curtain. You must be three-dimensional, you must reveal your warts and your thoughts and...
So this is much different from those bitching about the high cost of the road, the low payments of Spotify, this is an artist who's forging her own way, the way everybody used to do it when music drove the culture and you were addicted to your turntable and not your smartphone.
And it does not matter if you like her music, it does not matter if you become a fan, because it's not for you...you skeptical soul who believes your chance has been stolen and therefore you must tear everyone else down.
The tools are at your disposal. Most of them can be utilized for free. But one thing necessary is inspiration, and then follow-through. Sounds simple, but they're the core of art. Sure, you might be able to divine what's a hit, but can you conjure one up all by your lonesome?
So, like in the rest of the world, there's a divide between the haves and have-nots in the music world. And if you don't have it and want it, you've got to play by the rules of those who do, following the pop formula above. Otherwise know that it's now easier and cheaper to reach those who do care and monetize them than ever before.
As a result, Amanda Palmer's book, "The Art Of Asking," entered the "New York Times" nonfiction chart at number 7. Why did she get this deal with Hachette? Because she had 8 million views of her TED Talk and the publisher knew she would sell her book.
What are you doing to sell your music? Dunning gatekeepers who don't care? Bitching online that the successful suck?
Look within. Make fans one by one.
Know that you too can be Amanda Palmer.
Oh no, you probably can't. You can't work hard enough in high school to get into Wesleyan. You can't live without money in your bank account for most of your twenties. You can't handle the rejection that comes along with the glimmer of adulation. You can't get down into the pit with those who care, preferring to knock on the doors of those who don't.
It's simple.
But walking the steps is not.
"An Evening With Amanda Palmer: The Art of Asking Book Tour": http://www.ticketfly.com/purchase/event/672553
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
-- powered by phpList, www.phplist.com --
People pay lip service to this, but they want a shortcut, they want someone to help them, but just like in the rest of this Republican-defined nation you're on your own in the music business, if you build it they may not come, but if you entice them, if you bond with them, you can build an audience and survive.
I was surprised to find people lined up two hours in advance.
I was further surprised when the auditorium filled up. Capacity is 700, there were more than 600 there, with only a few seats left in the balcony. And they paid to be part of Amanda Palmer's book tour, $18-$23.
Think about that. Book tours used to be for free. Back when authors thought their audience was reviewers, instead of knowing that their audience was readers, and in today's world unless you have a special, preexisting relationship with readers, you're doomed. Publishing, like music, has little left in marketing funds. Either you can stay home or mobilize your fans. And if you haven't started building a fan list years before, you won't get much traction.
So the "show" began with Amanda reading. She knew the words were not enough, that it was about a PERFORMANCE! Honed during years on the road. The so-called 10,000 hours. I can read the book at home, but can I see the author enunciate slowly and emphasize the words therein? I won't go to readings because that's what authors believe they are. No, readings are performances. In this case with the lights low, with the audience enthralled.
And then Amanda surprised them. She performed. On the piano.
Audiences love surprises. Some rules of marketing always apply. Promise little, deliver more.
And then I interviewed her.
Wherein I learned Amanda considered her biggest mistake to be focusing on everyone instead of her core.
That's the truth. Are you a pop artist or a niche one? Other than the Foos, all rock artists are niche, own it. Ariana Grande is pop. Taylor Swift declared herself pop. Mainstream country is equivalent to pop. Everybody else is toiling in the niches.
Have no illusions about it.
You're never going to be a household name, certainly not for your music. In a world where it's impossible to get everybody's attention, only the mainstream does. So, be happy where you are. Don't dream about world domination unless you have a direct pipeline to Max Martin, sorry.
But unlike so many of the popsters, Amanda was honest. She spoke from the heart about what others will not. About her abortion. About her decision, as of now, to not have children. We're all confused, we all have more questions than answers, used to be our stars reflected our lives back upon us. Today they keep going on about how much better they are than us. Which is why pop comes and goes, but niche artists with fans are forever.
And Amanda's "book doula," Jamy Ian Swiss, performed some of his world class magic.
And then the assembled multitude asked questions.
More so, they testified. How Amanda was a beacon in their lives, how she got them through.
Now Amanda Palmer has become both a poster girl and a target for figuring out the newfangled game. She blogs, she tweets, she raises money on Kickstarter and considers her life her art. It's all consuming. There's no borderline between what's on stage and what is not. Because today no one can hide behind the curtain. You must be three-dimensional, you must reveal your warts and your thoughts and...
So this is much different from those bitching about the high cost of the road, the low payments of Spotify, this is an artist who's forging her own way, the way everybody used to do it when music drove the culture and you were addicted to your turntable and not your smartphone.
And it does not matter if you like her music, it does not matter if you become a fan, because it's not for you...you skeptical soul who believes your chance has been stolen and therefore you must tear everyone else down.
The tools are at your disposal. Most of them can be utilized for free. But one thing necessary is inspiration, and then follow-through. Sounds simple, but they're the core of art. Sure, you might be able to divine what's a hit, but can you conjure one up all by your lonesome?
So, like in the rest of the world, there's a divide between the haves and have-nots in the music world. And if you don't have it and want it, you've got to play by the rules of those who do, following the pop formula above. Otherwise know that it's now easier and cheaper to reach those who do care and monetize them than ever before.
As a result, Amanda Palmer's book, "The Art Of Asking," entered the "New York Times" nonfiction chart at number 7. Why did she get this deal with Hachette? Because she had 8 million views of her TED Talk and the publisher knew she would sell her book.
What are you doing to sell your music? Dunning gatekeepers who don't care? Bitching online that the successful suck?
Look within. Make fans one by one.
Know that you too can be Amanda Palmer.
Oh no, you probably can't. You can't work hard enough in high school to get into Wesleyan. You can't live without money in your bank account for most of your twenties. You can't handle the rejection that comes along with the glimmer of adulation. You can't get down into the pit with those who care, preferring to knock on the doors of those who don't.
It's simple.
But walking the steps is not.
"An Evening With Amanda Palmer: The Art of Asking Book Tour": http://www.ticketfly.com/purchase/event/672553
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
-- powered by phpList, www.phplist.com --
Sunday, 30 November 2014
Fleetwood Mac At The Forum
As they should be.
Once upon a time our bands graduated to the arenas where the basketball teams played, now we've got our OWN PLACE!
That's right, music lives at the Forum. And if you've never been, get in your automobile and make a pilgrimage to where there's no scoreboard, no sports paraphernalia, only music. Where you can partake of the elixir that once was.
That's right.
There may be screens, but this is positively a pre-MTV experience. Back when it was all about the music.
And it was all about the music last night.
It brought tears to my eyes. A hole has been filled. As Mick Fleetwood indicated, the circle is now complete. With Christine McVie back in the band the ship is righted, the Lindsey/Stevie show has a counterweight, and the balance is such that your baby boomer heart will thump and you'll remember what once was and hopefully will yet be.
"Listen to the wind blow
Watch the sun rise"
Opening cut side two. We all bought the second album of this configuration of the band without being implored to do so but because we had to, the same way a kid today lines up for an iPhone.
That's right, we're sitting in the darkened arena and the band is singing about an unbreakable chain with Christine doing harmonies for the first time in sixteen years and Mick pounds the skins and John holds down the bass and Lindsey picks the notes and Stevie emphatically sings and you just cannot believe that this is happening. It's not quite the Beatles coming together, but it's close.
It was like hell freezing over and the Eagles reuniting but at a point in time where you could see the end in sight.
That's right, even children get older, and I'm getting older too.
How did this happen?
In a world that's trying to push us aside, one in which so little makes sense, where we don't know the people in "People," as the tunes washed over us we were comfortable in our own skin. Because if Stevie Nicks can admit her age, we can admit ours.
She told a long story. Of being born in 1948. It was astounding. This info is all over the web, but no one born before the sixties will say so. But Stevie told of meeting the one year younger Lindsey in San Francisco at age 17, forming a band, and slugging it out for TEN YEARS before she and he became who you know them as now.
They paid their dues. Which is why they're so damn good.
OVER MY HEAD
"You can take me to paradise
And then again you can be cold as ice"
This was the one. We knew "Station Man," we knew who the band was, but when this hit the airwaves we smiled, we became infatuated, the album infected the populace, we had a new favorite, based completely upon the music, image was secondary, there was so little info back then, all we had was what came over the speakers, unless we went to see them live, and when I saw them that summer at Anaheim Stadium opening for Loggins & Messina and Christine sang this from behind her electric piano a memory was forged that I cannot forget.
YOU MAKE LOVING FUN
That's what my girlfriend told me.
It's these little moments of honesty that stick with you, that make up a life. Back when you're still exploring, when you're not looking for Ms. Right Now but Ms. At All, when you still fumble, when you're still insecure, but when your blood is frothing and connecting is the most important thing in the world to you. Actually, it still is.
DREAMS
"Listen carefully to the sound of the loneliness"
No one sings about this anymore, no one reflects upon the human condition, life is one big party with everybody connected and no one unhappy.
Hogwash.
Life is about alienation, about feeling DISCONNECTED! You're looking for a rock to hold on to, and in the seventies it was music. That's right, the SEVENTIES, they get a bad rep, but they were just as important as the sixties, when everybody knew how to play, you had twenty four tracks to record with and enough sound reinforcement equipment to render your sound live.
And we did all our listening at home. Music was not portable, the Walkman was years off. We'd sit in our bedrooms with our stereos, everyone had one, with our few albums and spin them throughout over and over again believing if we could just meet the people who made the music our lives would be complete. And that's what it felt like last night, like the people on stage were gods, descended from the heavens, and if you could just tell Christine and Stevie your story they'd nod and understand. You went to the gig to get ever closer, to the sound that was keeping you alive.
I'M SO AFRAID
Guitar heroes. Before anybody could be a deejay, do you hear me Paris Hilton, guys stayed inside instead of playing sports and practiced and practiced until not only could they lay down the English licks but come up with some of their own.
If he wasn't already in the R&RHOF with this band, Lindsey Buckingham would be entitled to membership based upon his performance last night, whereupon he wrung notes from his axe that we knew by heart that didn't sound quite like anybody else's, because the essence of greatness is forging your own way, not hiring the gun of the moment to replicate what everybody else does. That's right, if the under thirty generation were exposed to Lindsey's picking Guitar Center's revenues would skyrocket, because not only are you mesmerized you can't stop wondering how he does it and wonder if you can too.
WORLD TURNING
Another Lindsey extravaganza...
"Everybody's trying to say I'm wrong"
Just go on the internet, naysayers abound, raise your head and they'll try to make you conform to their vision, whereupon they forget you and go on to stalk other prey. To be an individual in 2014 is harder than ever, let your freak flag fly and you're derided.
"Maybe I'm wrong but who's to say I'm right"
Got that? Not the extreme confidence of the techies who never look inward, who never question themselves, who only plow forward. And unlike digits, life is complicated, chiaroscuro, anybody who says they've got the answers is lying or deluded. And what we needed was the fury of sound in our ears to keep us hewing to our own path. We sang these songs to ourselves to help us through, we still do.
DON'T STOP
Bill Clinton's theme song.
I'm not sure if tomorrow will be better than before, but I'm sure as hell that yesterday's gone. How can that be? I can handle losing my hair, that's exterior, but why do I have all these aches and pains? Why has society decreed that I no longer count? Why is "old" a pejorative?
I know that what I used to think was important is not. That our nation is inundated with hype, it's one big enterprise based on making you feel inadequate as it sells you stuff you don't want and don't need. Cars are an appliance, the movies are irrelevant and you start to realize it's only about yourself and your own experiences, everything peripheral fades away, what remains is a few good meals, and a bunch of conversation, life is not what's in your wallet but what goes in your eyes and ears.
Tomorrow is here every damn day.
And I'm thrilled to wake up and see it.
SONGBIRD
It was Christine's evening. It was only fitting they rolled out her piano and she finished the evening with this.
Imagine walking over a hill and seeing your high school class intact. Older, wiser, but still here.
That never happens anymore. The sick and the dying make it impossible. And if Malcolm Young can get dementia, that means you can too. You feel invulnerable, but that's positively false. They'll get you in the end. And all your survivors will have is their memories, of you and so much more.
We don't have pics. We'd meet someone and recognize them the next time by the image in our brain. We weren't always in touch. And we made a pilgrimage to the show to experience the one constant, the music.
We know these songs by heart. These expressions of joy, trial and tribulation that mirrored our own experiences. We may not have been in a band, but we broke up, ran into our exes, tried to figure out how to soldier on. But now our parents die. The world changes. And we can't make sense of it all.
But then you go to the Forum to see Fleetwood Mac and you're stunned. That they can still do it, that they still want to do it, and everybody is here, everybody feels just like you.
Fleetwood Mac was unique. Not only because they had a long history before they broke through, were a blues band that morphed into something completely different, but because of the yin and yang, the women counterbalancing the men. Stevie and Christine inspired because they weren't trying to be boys, they were positively women demonstrating that was enough.
And we loved them for it.
And it was palpable last night.
As Christine tickled the ivories, illustrating once again that music is a skill, that must be developed, that we marvel at.
As Stevie told the tale of her dream coming true, imploring us to follow ours.
As Lindsey admitted he was once closed off and is now open. Personal development, we've all gone through it. The youngsters think they know everything, we know no one can.
And the two constants, John and Mick, held down the bottom, pumped the blood through the system, looking worse for wear, but able to do so as efficiently as ever.
Shall we all live long and prosper.
Well, at least longer and happier.
I know I'm happier after last night.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
-- powered by phpList, www.phplist.com --
Once upon a time our bands graduated to the arenas where the basketball teams played, now we've got our OWN PLACE!
That's right, music lives at the Forum. And if you've never been, get in your automobile and make a pilgrimage to where there's no scoreboard, no sports paraphernalia, only music. Where you can partake of the elixir that once was.
That's right.
There may be screens, but this is positively a pre-MTV experience. Back when it was all about the music.
And it was all about the music last night.
It brought tears to my eyes. A hole has been filled. As Mick Fleetwood indicated, the circle is now complete. With Christine McVie back in the band the ship is righted, the Lindsey/Stevie show has a counterweight, and the balance is such that your baby boomer heart will thump and you'll remember what once was and hopefully will yet be.
"Listen to the wind blow
Watch the sun rise"
Opening cut side two. We all bought the second album of this configuration of the band without being implored to do so but because we had to, the same way a kid today lines up for an iPhone.
That's right, we're sitting in the darkened arena and the band is singing about an unbreakable chain with Christine doing harmonies for the first time in sixteen years and Mick pounds the skins and John holds down the bass and Lindsey picks the notes and Stevie emphatically sings and you just cannot believe that this is happening. It's not quite the Beatles coming together, but it's close.
It was like hell freezing over and the Eagles reuniting but at a point in time where you could see the end in sight.
That's right, even children get older, and I'm getting older too.
How did this happen?
In a world that's trying to push us aside, one in which so little makes sense, where we don't know the people in "People," as the tunes washed over us we were comfortable in our own skin. Because if Stevie Nicks can admit her age, we can admit ours.
She told a long story. Of being born in 1948. It was astounding. This info is all over the web, but no one born before the sixties will say so. But Stevie told of meeting the one year younger Lindsey in San Francisco at age 17, forming a band, and slugging it out for TEN YEARS before she and he became who you know them as now.
They paid their dues. Which is why they're so damn good.
OVER MY HEAD
"You can take me to paradise
And then again you can be cold as ice"
This was the one. We knew "Station Man," we knew who the band was, but when this hit the airwaves we smiled, we became infatuated, the album infected the populace, we had a new favorite, based completely upon the music, image was secondary, there was so little info back then, all we had was what came over the speakers, unless we went to see them live, and when I saw them that summer at Anaheim Stadium opening for Loggins & Messina and Christine sang this from behind her electric piano a memory was forged that I cannot forget.
YOU MAKE LOVING FUN
That's what my girlfriend told me.
It's these little moments of honesty that stick with you, that make up a life. Back when you're still exploring, when you're not looking for Ms. Right Now but Ms. At All, when you still fumble, when you're still insecure, but when your blood is frothing and connecting is the most important thing in the world to you. Actually, it still is.
DREAMS
"Listen carefully to the sound of the loneliness"
No one sings about this anymore, no one reflects upon the human condition, life is one big party with everybody connected and no one unhappy.
Hogwash.
Life is about alienation, about feeling DISCONNECTED! You're looking for a rock to hold on to, and in the seventies it was music. That's right, the SEVENTIES, they get a bad rep, but they were just as important as the sixties, when everybody knew how to play, you had twenty four tracks to record with and enough sound reinforcement equipment to render your sound live.
And we did all our listening at home. Music was not portable, the Walkman was years off. We'd sit in our bedrooms with our stereos, everyone had one, with our few albums and spin them throughout over and over again believing if we could just meet the people who made the music our lives would be complete. And that's what it felt like last night, like the people on stage were gods, descended from the heavens, and if you could just tell Christine and Stevie your story they'd nod and understand. You went to the gig to get ever closer, to the sound that was keeping you alive.
I'M SO AFRAID
Guitar heroes. Before anybody could be a deejay, do you hear me Paris Hilton, guys stayed inside instead of playing sports and practiced and practiced until not only could they lay down the English licks but come up with some of their own.
If he wasn't already in the R&RHOF with this band, Lindsey Buckingham would be entitled to membership based upon his performance last night, whereupon he wrung notes from his axe that we knew by heart that didn't sound quite like anybody else's, because the essence of greatness is forging your own way, not hiring the gun of the moment to replicate what everybody else does. That's right, if the under thirty generation were exposed to Lindsey's picking Guitar Center's revenues would skyrocket, because not only are you mesmerized you can't stop wondering how he does it and wonder if you can too.
WORLD TURNING
Another Lindsey extravaganza...
"Everybody's trying to say I'm wrong"
Just go on the internet, naysayers abound, raise your head and they'll try to make you conform to their vision, whereupon they forget you and go on to stalk other prey. To be an individual in 2014 is harder than ever, let your freak flag fly and you're derided.
"Maybe I'm wrong but who's to say I'm right"
Got that? Not the extreme confidence of the techies who never look inward, who never question themselves, who only plow forward. And unlike digits, life is complicated, chiaroscuro, anybody who says they've got the answers is lying or deluded. And what we needed was the fury of sound in our ears to keep us hewing to our own path. We sang these songs to ourselves to help us through, we still do.
DON'T STOP
Bill Clinton's theme song.
I'm not sure if tomorrow will be better than before, but I'm sure as hell that yesterday's gone. How can that be? I can handle losing my hair, that's exterior, but why do I have all these aches and pains? Why has society decreed that I no longer count? Why is "old" a pejorative?
I know that what I used to think was important is not. That our nation is inundated with hype, it's one big enterprise based on making you feel inadequate as it sells you stuff you don't want and don't need. Cars are an appliance, the movies are irrelevant and you start to realize it's only about yourself and your own experiences, everything peripheral fades away, what remains is a few good meals, and a bunch of conversation, life is not what's in your wallet but what goes in your eyes and ears.
Tomorrow is here every damn day.
And I'm thrilled to wake up and see it.
SONGBIRD
It was Christine's evening. It was only fitting they rolled out her piano and she finished the evening with this.
Imagine walking over a hill and seeing your high school class intact. Older, wiser, but still here.
That never happens anymore. The sick and the dying make it impossible. And if Malcolm Young can get dementia, that means you can too. You feel invulnerable, but that's positively false. They'll get you in the end. And all your survivors will have is their memories, of you and so much more.
We don't have pics. We'd meet someone and recognize them the next time by the image in our brain. We weren't always in touch. And we made a pilgrimage to the show to experience the one constant, the music.
We know these songs by heart. These expressions of joy, trial and tribulation that mirrored our own experiences. We may not have been in a band, but we broke up, ran into our exes, tried to figure out how to soldier on. But now our parents die. The world changes. And we can't make sense of it all.
But then you go to the Forum to see Fleetwood Mac and you're stunned. That they can still do it, that they still want to do it, and everybody is here, everybody feels just like you.
Fleetwood Mac was unique. Not only because they had a long history before they broke through, were a blues band that morphed into something completely different, but because of the yin and yang, the women counterbalancing the men. Stevie and Christine inspired because they weren't trying to be boys, they were positively women demonstrating that was enough.
And we loved them for it.
And it was palpable last night.
As Christine tickled the ivories, illustrating once again that music is a skill, that must be developed, that we marvel at.
As Stevie told the tale of her dream coming true, imploring us to follow ours.
As Lindsey admitted he was once closed off and is now open. Personal development, we've all gone through it. The youngsters think they know everything, we know no one can.
And the two constants, John and Mick, held down the bottom, pumped the blood through the system, looking worse for wear, but able to do so as efficiently as ever.
Shall we all live long and prosper.
Well, at least longer and happier.
I know I'm happier after last night.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
-- powered by phpList, www.phplist.com --
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)