Wednesday 28 November 2012

Ziggy Stardust Revealed!

     I always thought that one of the coolest parts about the lyrical aspect of David Bowie's music was the way he wrote about characters he made up. Of all those characters-Major Tom, Queen Bitch and the like- Ziggy Stardust is the most celebrated and recognized. After all, Bowie wrote a whole album about Ziggy. Recently I've been listening to the album more carefully and have been putting some pieces together. Now, I don't want this to sound like a conspiracy theory or anything. But I'm beginning to believe the Ziggy character is based upon Marc Bolan.
     The official character based on Bolan which can be found on Ziggy is Lady Stardust- and by the way I think that is a beautiful and perfectly appropriate name for his character. But the Ziggy character also seems to be quite similar to Marc, even though some of Marc's characteristics that can be found in Ziggy were revealed after the album was released.
     Ziggy was an amazingly talented singer-guitarist...like Marc Bolan....who fit in with the glam rock scene and image.

Ziggy really sang, screwed up eyes and screwed down hairdo
Like some cat from Japan
He could lick'em by smiling, he could leave them to hang...

     The song describes how Ziggy is consumed by his ego, and how the other members of the band faded in his image.

Became the special man, then we were Ziggy's band
    
     There are also references to the violent action taken by fans of the band. Marc Bolan and T. Rex were known for having rowdy and dangerous fans in the form of, principally, teenagers; teenage girls at that who would do anything to get to Marc; and violent fans who would threaten to injure the musicians if they didn't live up to their expectations.

So we bitched about the band and should we crush his sweet hands

When the kids had killed the man I had to break up the band

     Marc Bolan started to feel pretty disillusioned about his fans after the initial rush of T. Rex Mania was over, which is shown in the line

The kids were just crass, and he was the nazz, with god-given ass

     Which is followed by

He took it all too far, but boy, could he play guitar

     Which can easily be linked to the way that Marc's ego got to his head.
     But the full album tells the story of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars and the Marc references don't end there. The song Ziggy seems to tell the story of where Marc was at in the present time 1872, and where he was heading in the near future. Rock And Roll Suicide, the amazing song which concludes the album, is an astonishing prediction of what happened later to Marc: more disillusionment, a falling out with himself, and depression, feelings of anger and confusion and lonliness, to a rock star who was past his hey day and wasn't sure where to go from there.
     To fully understand the link between those feelings and Marc, one would have to look at the press reaction Marc Bolan received. Marc was a trememdously sensitive guy and didn't handle the sharp criticism he was receiving at the time very well. The fans' admiration and the love for the music kept Marc in the business but as early as 1972 he was telling reporters and friends that the music industry wasn't worth the pain it caused. When the initial glory was over, Marc fell into depression fast. And in the course of the next few years his persona and character was consumed by negative energy, and alcohol. He walks down a road quite similar to that of the character in Rock And Roll Suicide.
     Well, there you have it. Maybe Bowie wrote Ziggy with Marc in mind (keep in mind they were close friends and great influences on each other) and maybe he didn't but it hardly seems coincedental. 

As a note on further reading, Charles Shaar Murray wrote a terrific essay on Marc Bolan in Creem Magazine in 1972 titled Hello, I'm Marc Bolan, I'm A Superstar. I strongly recommend it to fans of T. Rex and appreciators of good writing alike.

 

Friday 16 November 2012

Underrated Musician #5: Graham Bonnet

Yeah, remember this guy? Graham Bonnet, best known for his work for Rainbow in the late 70s (he sang on their album "Down To Earth") often finds himself to be at the end of many of my jokes, but I've been listening to him a little less selectively lately and he really isn't bad at all.
Bonnet with Rainbow, Marbles and Alcatrazz, made some music that was interesting to listen to (if not necessarily anything else.) His voice was tinged with traces of a Spinal Tap quality but he didn't let it limit him-he had some really great songs. All Night Long and Since You Been Gone by Rainbow have evidently got to be the best...although I will admit that I prefer the Joe Lynn Turner sung live versions of the songs, they're good. Really good. Another song on the same album I've been  really addicted to by them lately is "Makin' Love." Very catchy.
How to describe Bonnet's talent, I'm not sure. An add for the Rainbow album back in its day used the word "firey," and I suppose that's not bad. Spinal Tappy too, works. He doesn't have the greatest vocal quality I've ever heard but like I said he made it work. He screamed well, love what he does with the third verse in All Night Long. He inflected well and his songs were interesting to listen to, and unpredictable- you never knew how he was going to sing the next line.
Sadly his personality seemed to contain the same quality- Bonnet was a notorious and sloppy drunk, a trait that made him hard to work with. As a result he never lasted long with any band.
But sticking to a nicer side- Bonnet improved Rainbow from where Dio had brought them (And then Joe Lynn Turner brought it even farther.) He helped define their sound and sang some damn good songs. Now where he falls into the "underrated" category is simple enough- people just don't know who he was. In North America Rainbow never made it that big, and the Graham Bonnet was the most insignificant period in their career. But he was great- he really was- and unique, which is something I only appreciate more and more- and I thank him.
 
 


'The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars' Is The Greatest Album Ever

The title, although long, expresses the main idea this article covers. The more and more I listen to that album and the more obsessed I become with David Bowie the more that statement seems totally true to me. So here are ten good reasons (out of a million) that it is just that.
 
1. It's INTERESTING. Like, some albums, you've heard him once and you just don't need to hear it again, maybe it's total AOR or all the songs sound the same. Each song is unique and interesting and creative.
2. Killer band. I mean, who sings better than Bowie, who's a better guitarist than Mick Ronson? The whole albums is full of genius musicianship and unusual sounds.
3. The quality of the songs. Each and every one of them is fabulous. Five Years. Soul Love. Moonage Daydream. Starman. It Ain't Easy. Lady Stardust. Star. Hang On To Yourself. ZIGGY STARDUST. Suffragette City. Rock And Roll Suicide. Wonderful, wonderful songs. I've got to declare Ziggy and Suicide to be my favorites though.
4.It's totally timeless. I mean, some of those other glam songs remind you of a strange era more than they make you think of other things. The songs on this album don't just represent glam rock, they represent music at its finest.
5.The lyrics are epic. Bowie was a gifted and witty lyricist,and although I'll confess a bit of it goes over my head, I know it's all important, meaningful stuff. Tell me if Ziggy Stardust is not the most ingenious account of a rock star ever.
6. The Marc Bolan referrences. I mean, I idolize Bolan, love him as much as I love Bowie, so I think it's cool that Bowie pays hommage to him. I appreciate anything positive I hear about Marc Bolan because Marc recieved a lot of harsh, unfair criticism in his time and in my opinion it drove him to depression and drinking and ultimately caused his death. Lady Stardust is his official character but I have a strong theory that Ziggy was based on him too, which I'll save for a later post.
7. You never get tired of it. At least, I listen to it ten times a day and I'm not tired of it yet.
8. It tells an interesting story and holds to a great concept without getting irritating. I mean, you look at guys like ELP who did concept albums which make you want to punch them in the mouth. Ziggy loosely follows a great concept- the all too real rise and fall of a rock band. And he tells it with Bowie flair.
9.It's long and satisfying. For example Van Halen put out good albums with solid songs but as a whole they leave an unsatisfied taste in your mouth. Like they just didn't give you enough. Ziggy gives you eleven songs of good length and doesn't drag for a moment, or go by too fast.
10. It's David Bowie, what more must be said?
 
 

Friday 9 November 2012

Ritchie Blackmore: The Great Debate

     All I've ever heard about Ritchie Blackmore comes in the form of split decisions and mixed emotions. Why can't anybody just make up their mind on what they want to say about that guy?...
But whether he's really a miserable, irritable prick or a nice but troubled guy is a question that nobody seems to have a straight answer on and that ought to be clairfied.
     Personnally I'm inclined to believe the favorable things about Ritchie. I'm not declaring him to be perfect. Of course he's far from a saint. But from all I know of Ritchie I'd like to decide that he is really a good person at heart, yet suffers strongly from insecurity. You know, some guys just don't feel comfortable with themselves and that seems to be Ritchie. For all we know, something traumatizing happened to him during his childhood, or he was raised a funny way, and as a result self-confidence isn't his forte. You never know and you can't judge until you know, right?
     Ian Gillan may disagree with me... I take no sides in the Gillan/Blackmore debate because I love and admire both musicians. They've both been important parts of the development of rock music and left one hell of a legacy behind them, and they're both good people. What really happened there was an ego clash. Some people just don't get along...and we should all be glad they got along long enough to give us some great music before eventually their conflicting musical ideas just drove them apart.
      In Circus magazine in 1973, Ritchie complained about unsatisfaction with Deep Purple's music and blamed Gillan and Roger Glover for the sound he disliked, yet he also claimed that he wrote most of DP's music. This proves to some extent, Ritchie's lack of irresponsability. Everybody who has known Ritchie agrees that yes, he is a pain in the ass to work with, but mostly because he was a perfectionist. Maybe you've heard about the times Ritchie Blackmore broke his guitar on stage because he was frustrated with what he felt was a lacking performance on his part.
     And if you go on YouTube or the Internet or whatever and search "blackmore-gillan fight" you'll find no shortage of articles of course. In one YouTube video on the matter Ian Gillan blamed insecurity for most of Ritchie's peculiarities...and Ritchie stated he was going to jump Gillan with a group of friends. That also supports Ritchie's being insecure.
    Maybe I'm not doing a very good job of showing Ritchie's good side, which I still feel is dominant. As we all know, Ritchie split Deep Purple after Glenn Hughes and David Coverdale joined the band due to greater insatisfaction with the band's music. He even went as far as to state that the funk and soul side Hughes and Coverdale brought to the group was lowly "spade music." Well, what can I say about that... Deep Purple Mark Three wasn't worth much, especially in the shadows of their former glory. (As much as I love Tommy Bolin don't get me started on Mark 4...) Splitting really was the right thing for Ritchie to do just then, and he went and formed Rainbow.
     Forming Rainbow, the band that brought us Dio and Joe Lynn Turner, really was the smartest thing Ritchie could have done at that point. Not only did he give us a wonderful rock band which released loads of good and versatile music, but he put himself in a position where he could make music he was fully satisfied with and so, he gave us the best music he could have. Ritchie was the indisputed leader of Rainbow, which gave him the freedom to do basically whatever he liked within the group. He was never the kind of guy who coped well with stress and so Rainbow relieved him of this. When Ritchie felt like getting more commercial, he did so; and although many members of Rainbow came and went because of this mentality of his he kept himself happy and gave us the best of his talents.
    Joe Lynn Turner, Rainbow vocalist from 1980-1984, had positive things to say about the moody musician. From an interview with MelodicRock.com:

You try to make yourself available, don't you?I sure try to. I really do. There's nothing worse than being inaccessible. I don't mean that about like Ritchie because I thought that he was a very accessible person, but just misunderstood.
Ok.
I mean that. I mean, he's always accessible when you want him. But at the same time he just didn't like many peoples approach to him.
So he backed off because he felt that he didn't really want to put himself through this.


And I think that what Joe said there captured the essence of Ritchie Blackmore perfectly. Ritchie wasn't a bad guy, or an unaccessible guy. He was shy and insecure and didn't like dealing with people much. You can understand that, can't you? Ritchie knew the music industry and the true nature of the people in it all too well. He was a smart guy and he knew what to do and what not to do to assure he never got fucked around. If Ritche pushed himself to be the kind of rock star with a very public life and did interviews all the time, he probably would've become so unhappy with the course of things, and may have would up with depression or by killing himself.
     So there you have the ultimate feeling on Ritchie- private, misunderstood, mysterious, and mostly shy and insecure. For the love of rock and roll music get off his back. If you really dislike him that much personally then try to focus more on his work and music. (And if you don't care for both then just put Ritchie out of your thoughts.) Cause he really isn't a bad guy or a bad person- just a really smart and sensitive person who was pushed into doing some dishonorable things by knowledge of human nature and fear for what may have become of him otherwise. And I say, God bless you, Ritchie Blackmore.

 

Saturday 22 September 2012

Tuesday 11 September 2012

L-U-V...MADONNA?!

While on vacation I found myself watching an awful lot of MTV because it was seemingly the only English station at my relatives' place in Ibiza...and a video I soon found that was in heavy rotation was the new Madonna song, Give Me All Your Love. Now, pardon me if I start rambling here, but SERIOUSLY. Remember when back in the 80s Give Me All Your Love was a Whitesnake song or what certain non-music experts called ZZ Top's single, and Madonna was a sleazy yet talented young singer who made some major contributions to the world of pop music? And so what the hell happened here? Now Madonna, you have aged very nicely but that doesn't change the fact that you are over fifty years old. Some call your recent efforts an attempt to prove that you're still current and popular and defying the title of "aging pop star" which is being placed upon your dyed-blond head, but face it. You ARE an aging popstar who hasn't done anything worth listening to since the 90s. You couldn't just retire and go on writing lame children's books with good morals, and leave us with the image of a pretty, talented musician in our minds, no. You had to just go on anyway degrading yourself to the level of modern pop music by doing just another suck ass song with *shudder* Nikki Minaj of all people. You can't just give it up as you should have a long time ago. Please, Madonna. Leave the trash to the new generation of music and stop contributing to the world of CRAP. We all thought you were a little-just a little-more than that.

Friday 7 September 2012

Underrated Musician #4: Michael Fennelly

Okay now, seriously, WHAT IS THE DEAL WITH THIS GUY? I mean, he got good reviews on his "Lane Changer" album back in 1974 and I thought his music sounded interesting so I looked him up. Now, some of these obscure guys you find are okay, or they sound decent or whatever, but not up to standards of what you hear on the radio. This guy is good. I mean he's GOOD. I mean who the hell would listen to White Lion or Motorhead when there are musicians like Fennelly out there who are just so much better? His music is versatile, he had the best backing musicians and above all else he wrote good songs worthy of the likes of Led Zeppelin-actually the thought of some of his rockers being Zeppelin-written isn't too far out a statement. His voice contains traces of Billy Squier- or I should say Billy Squier's voice contains traces of Michael Fennelly cause Michael was out there first. But sadly and for a reason I do not understand, Fennelly's two solo albums just didn't sell, and his only commercial success came with his group Crabby Appleton, who reached #31 on the Billboard charts with "Go Back." Appleton was great too, really, very unique sounding. Fennelly stopped recording after his first two albums didn't sell...so unfair. If there's one musician out there who deserves more recognition, it's Michael Fennelly above all else.


Tuesday 14 August 2012

Joe Lynn Turner Wore A Wig And So What?

     Rainbow being my favorite band at the moment and Joe Lynn Turner being my idol, I Google'd his name the other day only to find the words most associated with his name included "bald," "without wig" and "hairpiece".
     OH COME ON.  Our hangups on Joe Lynn Turner concerning his hair are just plain stupid. Over the Internet people are more concerned with his hairdo then the man or the music. Give the guy a break. Maybe at sixty-one with a head of hair like that it's more then obvious that he wears one, so why even bother pointing it out? Does it matter that much? Joe was a rock god of a musician with one hell of a legacy behind him. If he can make himself look better than he would normally, why shouldn't he? As nice as his hair looked on him back in the day... it just isn't that important.  What's even less important is whether it's his or not. Remember Joe for his personality and for his music, for who and what he was and not what he wears on his head. For the love of Rainbow, leave him alone!
 

Sunday 12 August 2012

Jon Lord: 1941-2012

I spent the last few weeks in vacation in Ibiza, visiting relatives (hence why I didn't post anything for a while) and just got back a few days ago to the terrible news that Jon Lord's life had been claimed by pancreatic cancer on July 16th. For those who don't know, Jon Lord was Deep Purple's legendary keyboardist and the true force behind their ear-shattering sound. His death shouldn't have come as too much of a shock as he'd been battling the disease since 2011, but is no less tragic then it would've been had it been sudden. RIP and God Bless you, Jon, and if there is a heaven you're in it.

Thursday 28 June 2012

Kevin Ayers' Carribean Moon...AKA The Gayest Thing I've Ever Seen.

For all you art-rockers out there, I'm sorry, I love Kevin Ayers, but I just laughed hysterically upon seeing this music video. And I thought Elton John was gay...

July birthdays

1-Debbie Harry of Blondie
3-Brian Jones dies, Jim Morrison dies
5-Robbie Robertson of the Band
9-Mitch Mitchell of Jimi Hendrix, Bon Scott of AC/DC
10-Rik Emmett of Triumph
11-Ritchie Sambora of Bon Jovi
12-Chris Wood of Traffic dies
18-Nico dies
19-Bernie Leadon of the Eagles
22-Don Henley of the Eagles
25-Jim McCarty of the Yardbirds
26-Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones, Karac Plant (Robert's son) dies

Wednesday 20 June 2012

Whatever happened to Jefferson Airplane???

The difference in the music caused by the evolutions of Jefferson Airplane and Fleetwood Mac are similar in that there were three main stages in both of their careers. But looking at it all critically, the difference between early and late JA is much greater then early and late FM- mainly for the reason that the Airplane came out earlier and lasted longer, I guess. And one thing I actually find quite cool about JA is that their music really did move with the times. Each album they did represented the current state of popluar music when it was made- without ever sounding jaded or burnt out. That may be attributed to the ever-chaning line-up... Their music never did disapoint though. And although I personally favor the music of the Airplane stage in their career, I'm glad they weren't that married to their psychedelic roots that when the time came to move on, they weren't stuck with what they were known for, they had room to grow, expand and move on.
The first incarnation of the group was formed in San Francisco in 1965, and quickly became known as one of the best bands around in the Summer of Love '67. The very first line-up was Marty Balin, Paul Kantner, Signe Toly Anderson, Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady, and Skip Spence. The following year Anderson left and was replaced with Grace Slick. The band became a nation wide hit when White Rabbit and Somebody To Love began scaling the charts.
In the early 70s, the Jefferson Airplane became the Jefferson Starship as the band's music and style changed to accomodate the new times. In 1975 they found great success with the album Red Octopus and the hit single "Miracles." While this was quite a departure from their heyday, the fans still bought it, and the group kept evolving. By the mid 80s they had dropped the Jefferson from the name, now to be known simply as Starship. They recruited vocalist Mickey Thomas, who brought new life and energy to the band and bring songs like "Jane" and "We Built This City" to life.
So how did the ultimate symbol of the late 60s music become a 70s pop band, and then (gasp) and 80s Pop Band??  Like Fleetwood Mac and like what I said earlier, Jefferson Airplane/Jefferson Starship/Starship represented the times and had no sentimental attatchments to their roots. I'm sure the die hards shudder when they hear what they produced as Starship (and rock fans in general as we watch their videos) but give them a break. A psychedelic band would never have made it outside of the 60s, no matter how good they were. So let's remember them as they were and as what they became- none of it was that bad at all.

Wednesday 13 June 2012

Underrated Musicians #3: Bob Welch

Bob Welch's recent passing inspired me to talk about him a little more in depth, and I figured he would be a suitable character for the Underrated Musicians column because, well, he really was underrated. I mean, he had loads of great songs, but how often do you hear them on the radio or anything? (I know I don't hear them.)
Bob was born on July 31st, 1946, in Los Angeles, into a family much involved in show biz. He was taking French at UCLA when he dropped out to join various local bands, singing and playing guitar. He was invited to join Fleetwood Mac in 1971, and helped define their melodic, poppy sound that the band later went multi-platinum with in Rumors.With F, he did five albums- Future Games (1971), Bare Trees (1972), Penguin (1973), Mystery To Me (1973), and Heroes Are Hard To Fine (1974). He left the band in 1974 after many cases of difficulties within the group that made working with them increasinglly difficult. He was replaced by Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckinham.He redefined himself in the late 70s and early 80s with a successful solo career, spawning hits like Ebony Eyes and Sentimental Lady.
Bob Welch sued Mick Fleetwood, and John and Christine McVie for unpaid royalties, and was later excluded from the band's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
You know, that last part especially really wasn't right. That he would even have unpaid royalties issues, and that they would do that to him. He remained friends with FM after he split them- some members at least. In one of my late 70s Circus Magazines, I've got pictures of him jamming on stage with Stevie Nicks and everything...About his death, Stevie Nicks had to say that "He was an amazing guitar player - he was funny, sweet - and he was smart - I'm so very sorry for his family and for the family of Fleetwood Mac - so, so sad."
God Bless you, Bob, and rest in peace.

Thursday 7 June 2012

Bob Welch:1945-2012

I broke down and cried when I heard today on the news that Bob Welch died today. He commited suicide by gunshot around 12:45 today in his home in Nashville, and his wife found his body. He was 66 years old.Oh God, I just can't believe it. We've lost a lot of good people this year-Whitney Houston, Levon Helm, Donna Summer, Adam Yauck, and now Bob Welch.Well, my deepest sympathies go out to Bob and all who knew him.RIP and God Bless you, man.

Bob Welch-Ebony Eyes

Tuesday 5 June 2012

The Worst Joke Ever

Q: What has nine arms and sucks ass?
A: Def Leppard

Why I love this joke-it is darn funny.
Why this is the worst joke ever-Why pick on Def Leppard? I mean it. Def Leppard were a damn good band. Real, real good. They definetly did not suck ass. I would definetly prefer this joke if it was directed at a real lame band like Steelheart, but the nine arms thing only works for the one and only Def Leppard.

Whatever happened to Fleetwood Mac?

Around the time I became interested in classic rock music, I decided to do some extensive research on Fleetwood Mac, always having liked their commercial music and curious as to their roots. You can sure as hell bet that I was surprised to find stuff like the Bob Welch era, you know, Hypnotized and all that, which is quite a departure from the well known stuff like Dreams and Don't Stop. Well, that shock was nothing compared to how I felt when I discovered English blues band Fleetwood Mac with Peter Green. I mean, they kicked ass! I love stuff like The Green Manalishi and all that, you know, just darn good classic British blues rock. Peter Green was one of the best blues guitarists England ever produced, which is quite the compliment.
But I guess the question many people are still asking is What the hell happened to Fleetwood Mac? How could this heavy blues band become famous for pop ballads? Well, in 1970 Peter Green basically went nutso and then quit the band. He was replaced by the American guitarist/songwriter Bob Welch, and around the same time John McVie married former Chicken Shack musician Christine Perfect. The music made by Christine and Bob changed the music's direction completely, guiding them away from their blues roots and towards a more melodic, pop-oriented song. And you know, in this case I'm not scoffing at them.They didn't sell out or anything, they just progressed into something new. When Bob Welch left, Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham joined, and the band practically said goodbye to their roots forever as Buckingham and Nicks' music pushed them even further towards the mainstream.
There you go. For all the curious out there, this is essentially the career of Fleetwood Mac and how they evolved from Black Magic Woman (bet you didn't know they wrote it first, not Santana!) to Go Your Own Way. Enjoy the following recording of my personal favorite Fleetwood Mac song.

The Green Manalishi


Underrated Musician #2:Rick Grech

Rick who?
If that was your initial reaction after viewing the post title, then you're not alone. Grech isn't too well-known a guy anyway. But you have definetly been missing out on some darn good music if you aren't familiar with the name.
Rick Grech was born in Bordeaux, France, on November 1, 1947, and was originally of Ukrainian descent. He moved to England when he was young and became a well-known bassist through his work with the group Family. After putting out two albums with Family, he joined supergroup Blind Faith with Steve Winwood, Ginger Baker and Eric Clapton. The band was a short-lived project, and only put out one album (which I assure you is one of the greatest ever released) and after their breakup Grech joined Traffic,with whom he released another two albums before being booted for his drug problems. One album was released in 1974 titled Rick Grech: The Last Five Years, featuring highlights from his career and music from Traffic, Blind Faith and Family. He worked as a session man until his retirement from the music industry in 1977. Best examples of his talent would be tracks such as Had To Cry Today and Sea Of Joy from the Blind Faith album, both featuring strongly Jack Bruce-influenced base riffs. Grech also played violin, viola, cello, guitar, mandolin, keyboards and drums.
Rick Grech passed away on March 17, 1990, aged 43, from liver and kidney failure due to alcohol consumption. So, for whatever reason he may be so underrated, God bless and  Rest In Peace Rick Grech.

Friday 1 June 2012

Underrated Musician #1: Mick Taylor

This shall begin what will be a regular feature commemorating the terrific forgotten musicians of rock and roll, and the ones who never did get as much recognition as they deserved. My first Underrated Musician is Mick Taylor, known best as a member of the Rolling Stones from 1969 until 1974.
Mick  Taylor had a difficult role to fill in the group as Brian Jones' replacement, a job which I believe he filled very nicely. The music the Stones made during this period- Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers, Exile On Main Street, Goat's Head Soup and It's Only Rock And Roll can easily be considered to be the best music they ever made. Before joining the Rolling Stones, Taylor was a member of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, filling the position once held by Eric Clapton and later Peter Green (who went on to form Fleetwood Mac). He played on two sessions for Let It Bleed, and then was made a full member of the band. Although Mick Taylor was not the musician that Brian Jones was in the sense that Jones could play seemingly any instrument ever made, he was definetly one of the most brilliant guitarists who ever lived. I'd go as far as to say his playing rivalled Keith Richards'...
So why did Mick Taylor never get the recognition that the rest of the band did? There are many reasons, of course. He was very shy and stayed away from the public eye. But a lot of the trouble came from within the band. Mick Jagger and Keith Richards definetly weren't as nice as they could've been to him.
I'm guessing that it's mostly because of jealousy reasons- Mick Taylor was doing a good deal of writing for the Rolling Stones during this period. Not to mention he was much younger and far better looking then Mick and Keith were. Mick split the band in 1975, also for unknown reasons, but I usually figure it was just because of this attitude he was getting from Mick and Keith, and because he wasn't getting proper writing credits on their songs. The Stones never were quite the same again after he left, and really didn't do that much great stuff with his replacement, Ron Wood. Don't get me wrong, I love Woody and I love the Faces. I just don't think he was right for the Stones. Or maybe he was but the rest of the band was out of ideas for songs.
So for whatever reason he may be more or less forgotten, I consider Mick Taylor to be one of the true great musicians who has ever lived. Long live and God bless you, Mick!

Wednesday 30 May 2012

Why You Should't Scoff At Hair Metal

The term "hair metal" unfortunately condemned the genre of music to a future of ridicule and a popularity refined to the teenage audience, but you know, hair metal produced some of the most catchy and memorable songs, some great videos, and of course, some classic haircuts. And I guess those bands kind of did it to themselves, especially with the names (As much as I love Cinderella, the name itself doesn't sound too manly) and the outfits and stuff, but they really do deserve some respect. They were what they were, and they were harmless. (Not to themselves, but to the fans. At least harmless if you don't read the bios.) Next time the DJ warns you that they'll be playing a song by Motley Crue, Def Leppard, Whitesnake, Poison, Cinderella, Guns N' Roses, Skid Row, Warrant, Ratt, Autograph, Bon Jovi, Night Ranger, or David Lee Roth comes on the radio, don't scoff, TURN IT UP!
NOTE: I do NOT support the power ballads, acoustic ballads, Tesla, or (shudder) Van Hagar.
Enjoy the following classic videos if you wish:

Warrant-Down Boys

Cinderella-Coming Home
Bon Jovi- Living On A Prayer



Canadian Rock Music, A Brief Summary

     I'll admit it here, I am a (not-so proud) Canadian, meaning I get to listen to the same old regurgitated Canadian rock music all the time here up north that the rest of the world doesn't get to hear. So, the following is the handy guide to the rest of the world who have not had the opportunity to hear some of our best (and worst) exports.
TRIUMPH Our best band in my opinion. Triumph is often known as just another wannabe-Rush band, and there are numerous similarities between their music. They're both from Ontario, they both have three members, they both play prog-metal, the singers have high voices. But c'mon, let's cut the crap, Triumph is their own band, and I do believe the similarities are coincedental. Triumph's 1979 blockbuster Just A Game, 1981's Allied Forces, and my personal favorite, 1987's Surveillance, are three of the greatest albums ever released in the field of progressive metal, and bona fide classics. Favorite tracks include Just A Game, Magic Power, Fight The Good Fight, Headed For Nowhere, Somebody's Out There, and, of course, the epic Lay It On The Line.
RUSH Not much needs to be said here. I guess everybody knows Rush. Oh, there's nothing wrong with them. I'm just a bit sick of people going, "Oh yeah, Canadian Rock, Rush..." When they weren't doing retarded concept albums they put out some killer stuff. Favorite tracks include Tom Sawyer, Limelight, The Temples Of Syrinx, Distant Early Warning, Subdivisions, and Freewill.
THE GUESS WHO Oh, gross, gag, yuck! Moving on to...
NEIL YOUNG Who put out the odd decent thing but mostly annoyed people ever with his pleading politics and whiny voice. Let's talk about someone else. I do like...
BRYAN ADAMS I guess everybody knows him too, but for good reason. Bryan was good. I mean, he had some whiny sappy stuff in the 90s and all, but hey, didn't they all? He put out some genuinely good albums and lots of fun, poppy rock music. Favorite tracks include It's Only Love, One Night Love Affair, Somebody, In The Heat Of The Night, Fits Ya Good, and Run To You.
LOVERBOY If you don't know the name of the band, maybe you remember "Working For The Weekend." You may have even heard it on the hilarious Saturday Night Live skit with Patrick Swayze and Chris Farley playing Chippendale dancers. Loverboy had one of Canada's strongest guitarist-singer pairings, Paul Dean and Mike Reno, who entertained radio listeners throughout the 80s and to the present time- in fact, last year Mike Reno was co-host on Vancouver's Rock 101 morning show. Favorite tracks include Turn Me Loose, Working For The Weekend, The Kid Is Hot Tonight, You Take Me To The Top, and Loving Every Minute Of It.
STREETHEART I am difficult to impress when it comes to covers, but Streetheart did some genuine darn good ones as well as loads of great original material. The best covers are the Stones' Under My Thumb, the Small Faces' Tin Soldier, and Them's Here Comes The Night, and good originals are Action, Miss Plaza Suite, What Kind Of Love Is This, and Look In Your Eyes.
HARLEQUIN The perfect example of what happens when you have a fantastic rock band with a bad producer, bad manager, and odd-sounding name.Harlequin never caught on the way they should have, although killer songs like Sweet Things In Life, Innocence, Thinking Of You, Superstitious Feelings and I Did It For Love prove their true potential.
APRIL WINE April Wine are definetly one of the Canadian bands you just hear way to much of up here. The best word I can use to describe their work is simply lame. I mean, the singer's voice isn't too bad or anything, but the all-around effect of their music is just lacking. I like their song "Fast Train" a good deal though, and their cover of Bad Side Of the Moon by Elton John is far better then the original.
TROOPER Classic Vancouver rock by what appears to be a darn good group of guys. They never had anything real heavy, but check out Two For the Show and Pretty Lady for pretty ballads, Boys in the Bright White Sports Car and Raise A Little Hell for spunky rockers, and their anthem, We're Here For A Good Time, a genuine good-times song.
COLIN JAMES Colin James isn't bad at all, and tends to lean on the bluesy side. Five Long Years is a really great, soulful song with a likeable sound. Why'd You Lie is a good example of his vocal range, and Voodoo Thing, Chicks And Cars, Just Came Back, and Keep On Loving Me Baby are radio favorites.
54-40 Now, 54-40 have exactly two songs worth listening to, One Day In Your Life and Miss You. Other then that, I wouldn't spend my time listening to them.The music was decent and the lyrics weren't bad, but the singer's voice just wrecked lots of the vocal hooks.
TRAGICALLY HIP 90s group who enjoyed singing about Canadian history and stuff like that, but who had the same predicament of 54-40-the singer's voice just wasn't all that good. They weren't all bad though, and the content of the songs like 38 Years Old, 50 Mission Cap, Blow At High Dough and New Orleans Is Sinking is nothing to laugh at. Personal favorites are Courage, A Place To Happen and Little Bones.
BIG SUGAR Digging A Hole wasn't bad. If I Had My Way wasn't bad, Better Get Used To It wasn't bad. (Turn The Lights On sucks pretty hard though.) HOWEVER, I lost all respect from Ontario's somewhat-popular blues trio when I first heard their cover of Dear Mr. Fantasy. If you are a Traffic fan, you will be insulted by their cover, and if you have a cynical sense of humor, you may just laugh at it.