This song sounds like it was tossed off in a matter of 20 minutes, which includes any time required to get the band set up and ready to record. One look at their equipment list will tell you how that’s possible; garage sale drum set, two guitars, one amp. But that’s the beauty of Hound Dog Taylor. His songs are ramshackle and raw, like each one was captured in its energetic first take. Any more time spent to improve the sonic quality, tuning included, would rob his music of what makes it so much fun.
Archive for July, 2010
“Take Five” by Hound Dog Taylor, from Natural Boogie
Posted in 2008 on July 29, 2010| 1 Comment »
Hide The Coleslaw
Posted in sundry on July 16, 2010| Leave a Comment »
I had just started enjoying my food when a hand appeared to my left, robbing my plate of a slice of ham. It was Craig alright, and I looked up just in time to see him slap it against Christopher’s face. I was laughing too hard to expect it to continue when that same warm slice hit my cheek. And so began another Becker Stampede on July 10th, this time in Goodells.
Among the highlights were golf cart rides around the ponds, the incredible food, a bean bag toss showdown, feeding the catfish every morning, enjoying the gardens, and a wonderful visit with Grandma Parker in Marlette. And since no family gathering at Terramor Farm is complete without a crazy side project, Dad came up with one involving a step ladder, a water pump, and a pitchfork, which actually worked.
Being together with the entire family is a rare occurrence but the feeling it produces is powerful and lasting, even if it means putting up with displaced lunch items.
“Foul Owl” by Boomer & Travis, from In The Heat Of The Night soundtrack
Posted in 2008 on July 16, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Back when television offered only what broadcast over UHF and VHF frequencies – usually about six channels total, but depending in which direction your antennae was pointed – I fondly remember staying up late to watch In The Heat Of The Night with Dad and Craig; Christopher wasn’t old enough to join us.
There’s a scene where a creepy café guy uses a knife to open the jukebox, and once the song starts playing he gives us a little dance. This scene was originally shot using a different song, the already popular “Li’l Red Riding Hood” by Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs, but a licensing problem prevented its use in the film. Quincy Jones co-wrote this substitute and it fit perfectly, just like how the rest of his score fits the entire film. It propels the action sequences, creates suspense, and helps remind us what the Deep South was like in the ‘60s.
“And Casper Wept.”
Posted in movies on July 15, 2010| Leave a Comment »
I used to wonder what made a documentary great. Was it just the subject matter that I liked or the way it was presented? After watching The Devil & Daniel Johnston the answer was clear. It has to be both.
At an early age Daniel Johnston was unable to fit in with his surroundings. While under his parents’ Christian umbrella his siblings got jobs, got married and had families. Even his friends – though artists themselves – understood life’s practical side, but Daniel wasn’t buying any of it. This wasn’t due to a rebellious phase; he was simply following his own agenda and understood little else. He drew, made films, recorded music – he also worked at McDonald’s – but nothing about what he created was studied or modeled after anyone’s work. As a lifelong friend recalls during an interview, if he wanted to draw he simply grabbed some paper and started drawing. But as he became increasingly fixated on his hobbies, specifically his songs and the messages behind them, he’s diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
His life story is heartbreaking but has its share of triumphs, the greatest being that this film exists. Assembled from hundreds, maybe thousands, of pieces from his archive I can’t imagine the process of sifting through everything, knowing that only a fraction could be used to summarize his life so far. Home movies, short films, drawings, photos, cassettes of music and conversation, performance footage, and interviews span a period of over 40 years. His family, friends, and business partners – even a few celebrities – talk about the effect he’s had on their lives yet each story feels like a mini documentary in itself with Daniel at its center.
Comparisons will be made to Syd Barrett, Roky Erickson, and Brian Wilson but on a more personal level I couldn’t help being reminded of the late John Wright of Port Huron, Michigan. Like each of them, Daniel Johnston followed an individual path but their lives had striking similarities.
“Cruel Lips” by Graham Parker, from Your Country
Posted in 2004 on July 15, 2010| Leave a Comment »
I certainly didn’t have an appreciation for Graham Parker when I saw him warm up for Journey in 1979. Those two artists seemed as likely a match as when Prince warmed up for The Rolling Stones. However, when Squeezing Out Sparks was finally reissued in 1996 it became the cornerstone of my growing interest in Graham Parker’s music. The release of Your Country slipped by me but I eventually found it one day by accident. After all these years his writing is strong as ever; snarling and biting in one song, sensitive and touching in the next. The influence of country music makes it a perfect home for this duet with Lucinda Williams.
Where Project Runway meets Wall Street
Posted in out & about on July 6, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Traffic slowed down as we approached the high school and I could see a line of cars leading through the parking lot. The whole thing looked like what precedes the Academy Awards ceremony. A constant stream of families shuffled toward the school entrance. Cameras flashed taking multiple shots of students from every conceivable angle. I couldn’t believe how people were dressed and how they looked, especially the girls. The run on hair products and makeup at local stores must have left shelves empty. This was how our community recognized – and promoted – 8th Grade Graduation, that important scholastic milestone.
As we inched passed the greeters and ticket-takers to reach the auditorium’s foyer, I witnessed behavior from parents that made me feel embarrassed to share their same zip code. Frantically communicating on cell phones, their common concern was where they could get the best shot. How’s the balcony look? What about the angle? Is the backlighting better up there? What about the main aisle? Entrance? Stairs? Stage? There was so much mayhem and yelling it felt like I had been dropped onto the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Once inside the auditorium there were few seats left. As it was, Simeon had to sit on a folding chair.
Before the ceremony the audience was shown pictures of students on a theater-sized screen. But after the screen disappeared and the lights kicked up we heard the start of “Pomp and Circumstance” – the 27-minute version. Any shorter and it wouldn’t have been long enough for all 253 students to walk down the aisle and take a seat on stage. And every time two more students appeared back at the entrance, another set of parents rushed in to get more pictures.
My eighth grade graduation was a little different. Scheduled during a school day as another boring assembly, it took place in the hot stuffy gym without parents or visitors. Mrs. Braden gave her speech on citizenship, the same one she read every year. “Citizenship. What is Citizenship?” Then it was over.
On stage Cassielle looked poised, confident and eager to start high school, but I wondered what was really going through that mind of hers. The next day I asked, “Did it signify anything or mean anything to you, the ceremony?” When she said it meant nothing to her I wasn’t even tempted to fake my way through another speech about “turning points” and “new beginnings.” She already heard plenty of that while waiting patiently for the whole thing to end.
Finally. Something far more irritating than the voice of a rock radio DJ.
Posted in out & about on July 3, 2010| Leave a Comment »
I was waiting in the car for my son when I decided to turn on the radio. “Oh, it won’t kill me,” I thought, and there’s even a chance of hearing something I’d like. After scanning several stations I landed on one whose music sounded interesting, so I kept it there. After the song finished there was a long pause before anyone started talking and I looked forward to catching the name of the artist, the album, the song, and the call letters of the station. But what I ended up hearing was the voice of a 5-year-old attempting to read Shakespeare with a mouthful of peanut butter. Pausing in all the wrong spots, no inflection whatsoever, stumbling over words, way too quiet – I was surprised to have understood “listener-supported” and “Madison,” but caught nothing more. Then, the music continued, so I kept listening. When Simeon got in the car he asked, “What’s this?” “I’m not sure,” I said. “Let’s see if we can find out,” knowing we didn’t stand a chance. After the song ended we were met with more dead air and eventually that same annoying voice. When the equivalent of one sentence dribbled out of the announcer’s mouth Simeon jammed his finger on the power button and yelled, “Man, what’s his problem!”
If given the opportunity to broadcast music that, for once, was stimulating, why wouldn’t you care enough to make sure listeners understood what it was? We were reliving that scene from Ghost World, where Steve Buscemi lashes out at the DJ’s voice coming from his own car radio, only this was worse. I can at least understand over-caffeinated rock DJs, even if their delivery is like “being jabbed in the face.”
3 Mulligans 