Love it..

Skinhead Reggae!

Yeah, they played in New Brunswick, NJ, once. One of the advantages of being old, I guess. I also saw the Doors and Janis Joplin, and lots of other classic rock bands.

You SAW The Dolls? There are'nt many people , here, who can make that claim. Some people have told me they came to be Dolls fans by way of Johnny's music. With me , and , I guess , a lot of people , it was the opposite. I went and saw Johnny in '86 , even though I did'nt own any of his records (They were nearly impossible to obtain in Dallas , at the time.), I was just a Dolls fan , and had'nt even been one for a very long, though my Brother had their second LP when it came out , in '74.

I've talked to people who knew about Johnny in his lifetime , but did'nt become fans until later . It will have been 23 years in April.

Well! I didn't know about Born To Lose, either. I saw The Dolls play once, and later had one of his Heartbreakers albums, but I was only a casual Thunders fan during his lifetime, got more interested in him much after the fact. Anyway, yeah, let's hope the movie gets a decent run, I'd like to actually see it.

G.Wood , I saw a different trailer , a while back , it did'nt have all this interview footage. I did'nt know Adny Shernoff and Johnny went to Grade School , together. When Wayne Kramer was talking about starting a band with Johnny (Gang War) "Against all my best instincts" , they did their first - ever gigs (Two nights) in '79 at a club called Huey's , which was right up the street from where I live , now. The (Approximate) address is now a pizza place , Johnny would approve.

This film may be more successful than Lech Kowalski's "Born To Lose" ('97 ?) IF IT GETS A PROPER THEATRE TOUR  , and goes to DVD. I think "Born To Lose " was only shown , publically, four times - in New York , Chicago , Detroit , and , I believe , Toronto , each version edited differently for each screening (More of the Syl Sylvain footage FOR THE New York screening , a Wayne Kramer interview for Detroit that did'nt appear in the Chicago print , and maybe not the others , and so forth. I saw it in Chicago, it did'nt pull any punches. Let's face it , it's not a happy tale , but one that needed to be told. This film looks like it has a sense of humor , which is also good. Johnny could be funnier than Hell when he wanted to be.

"Looking For Johnny." Trailer here: http://www.colesmithey.com/filmblog/2013/12/looking-for-johnny-the-legend-of-johnny-thunders-trailer.html

I didn't know about this until today.

Really ? A documentary on The Alice Cooper Group ? How cool is that?  That's great , that you did'nt have to stand in a long line to meet him.   I did , at a Tower Records signing , and , while I did'nt mind , I could tell he was pretty tired by the time I got to my place in line. They originally let us  have three items signed , but , there were so many people there , they changed it to one . I opted to get my 7-11 Alice Cooper Slurpee cup signed. I met him outside the Hou$e of Blue$ after a show. I was with my friend , Dan , who'd been following Alice since '71 , but , had never met him , even tho' he'd lived in Phoenix much of his life.  Alice's handler tried to ask us to leave. He was polite about it.  Alice told him , no , it's  all right , and shook hands with us , and we just said hello , and told him what a great show it was.

Then , they walked away. No one else noticed Alice was there. I did'nt want to attract attention to him , but , they were about to leave the premises , anyway. I said , "Guys , Remember The Coop , huh?" , and he waved , without turning around.

BTW- I still like "Clones" , and Alice's electronic version of "Talk Talk" , but never got into "Flush..." that much. I love his version of "Ubangi Stomp " on "Lace and Whiskey".

I think Alice was supriesed I brought Flush the Fashion, he did say he still liked "Clones." There were only like 10 of us, it was some meet and greet thing I got hooked up with cause these Banger Films guys are doing a documentary thing on the Alice Cooper group.  Anyway, he was nice - very down to earth. 

That's a great picture. I met Alice , briefly , twice. He's very cool. I could see where over - zealous fans could , rightfully , piss him off , but , he was very polite when I met him. I have'nt listened to "Diamond Dogs" in a long time. But , I was watching Bowie's 1974 appearance on The Dick Cavett Show. IT IS'NT BAD , BUT , that BAD  soul sister stole the whole damn show.....I forget her name. Someone that became famous , later, I think , as did  Luther Vandross , who sang backing vox with Bowie at the time.... 

I got a good , not great , copy of "The 1980 Floor Show" , unfortunately , like my previous copy , The Troggs are only shown doing "Wild Thing" ("Strange Movies " and "I Can't Control Myself" were edited when the show was later rerun.). Fortunately , I have all three songs on video.        I heard something about the Brett Smiley reissue.  I don't know , but , I heard the whole "Gay" thing was a put - on to attract attention. But I also read that Smiley later DEVELOPED A BAD DOPE HABIT contracted AIDS or HIV.......which might be partly true. Not sure.        Did Alice appreciate a fan praising the less obvious stuff?

I may be late to the game here, but just found out this Brett Smiley single got reissiued last year

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfRXbZpi1H0

I've been trying to get a copy for a few years, guess I will settle for a reissue for now. I missed the boat on this Hector  - Wired Up 45 that was recently reissued with the "Wired Up" book. Sure it's obtainable if I put in some effort. 

I'm currently listening to Diamond Dogs album. The whole album is cool, Rebel Rebel even though it is a frequently played hit is a song I never tire of hearing. 

Also listened to the Hello album this morning. 

Oh and I just saw Alice Cooper last summer and got a Billion Dollar Bill. 

Hopefully this link works: Me meeting Alice Cooper and getting my copy of "Flush the Fashion" signed

http://www.flickr.com/photos/valleyboys/9242704330/lightbox/

Radio What Wave Playlist February 13/2014

This show was only supposed to run for an hour due to a hockey game, but equipment wasn't co-operating and the hockey game didn't end up being broadcast. Hence the long songs toward the end of the show, hoping/assuming they would get things working and I would be taken off air quickly for the hockey broadcast. So no hockey game and the 5 listeners that were going to listen to the game were disappointed! Maybe they dug the 30m of cool music while waiting...hahahahaha....

1. Almighty Rhombus....She Didn't Want Me....from a demo they sent us as they are back in town tonite at the Black Shire Pub.

2. Dustbin Flowers...Start Out With Nothing...from their self titled CD. The CD release party is tonite at Fitzrays.

3. The Standstills....Black Betty....from the Human Element CD. The Standstills are at Call The Office on saturday night.

4. The Standstills...Blues Radio....a demo they sent us a few years back, right around the time we had them on for a live to air.

5. Tuerto Loco....Nancy Sinatra....from a live to air 5/12/11. Tuerto Loco are playing the St Regis on Saturday night.

6. Bitchlove....Rita...from the brand new Stigma 7". Lathe cut, square and on clear PVC!! And limited to 50 handnumbered copies!!

7. Sphinxs....Bad Head...from the split 12" w/Miesha and The Spanks. Their last show is tonite in Toronto.

8. Pack AD....Big Shot...from Do Not Engage, their brand new release. They are coming to the APK on March 17th, St Patrick's Day.

9. The Mogs...Run Like Hell...from their El'Mogamundo CD on What Wave Records.

10. Kumari...She Was Mine...from a new 7" on Lost In Tyme Records. This is a UK band on a Greek label, which is an offshoot of the great fanzine of the same name.

11. Sound Xplosion....Every Day and Every Night....from another 7" on the Lost In Tyme Label!

12. Marshmallow Overcoat...13 Ghosts....from the 26 Ghosts CD. There's a double LP of the best of The Marshmallow Overcoat that is going to be out any day....records are at the pressing plant as this is being typed out!

13. XTC....Homo Safari...the flip side of Life Begins At The Hop, which is what i thought i was about to play.

14. Phil Upchurch....You Can't Sit Down....from a compilation LP called From Route 66 to The Flamingo on Stateside Records. A mod, R&B, soul, blues compilation with a lot of fine tunes on it....released in 1988.

15. XTC...At The Hop...from the 7" mentioned above...from 1978 and on clear vinyl. Picked this up at the record show here in London.

16.The Wild Ones....Come Around....from a brand new 7" on La Ti Da Records outta Victoria British Columbia. This is part of their singles club which I joined last year, and so far there's been some mighty fine records that have arrived due to that deal.

17. Needles/Pins....Outta This Place....as above and on La Ti Da Records!

18. Steve Adamyk Band...High Above...as above. Believe this one might be sold out already, but get in touch with La Ti Da if you're interested in it.

19. Roxy Music...Mother Of Pearl....from the Stranded LP from 1974. This track used to get airplay on FM rock stations back in the day, they mixed it in with all the heavier crap they played and it was like a breath of fresh air back then!

20. Dave Campbell....The Time Is Now....from the Finding The Real CD. New local CD you can grab for free at Grooves Records. I really really dig this song and it reminds me of that early 70's sound that was coming out of some of the cooler UK combos!

21. Roxy Music....A Song For Europe....from the Stranded LP....I had to play some longer songs around here because it kept sounding like they were going to get the hockey broadcast going, and it would take over the airwaves. But no, you got stuck with me and my outsider noise!

22. Shanker And Romps...I Wanna Kiss....from the Pancakin' CD. Duo from Ottawa that sound like they should be recording cool kids tunes! We had them in town and coupla years ago and they are so much fun live!

23. Fireball Grant...All Write Now....from a demo. We had Fireball Grant live to air back on Halloween!!

24. Kensington Hillbillies....Up The Rain....from their recent 7". Hamilton Clash inspired roots combo.

Justin used to  live in Chicago , and he comes back with semi - regularity. He probably knew The Okmoniks from when he was living in Arizona(?). He told Maximum Rock 'n'Roll that I was one of his key influences , along with Albert Ayler , Elvis Presley and The Cramps. I was deeply humbled (Seriously.). We were supposed to do an in-store together at a record store , but , I threw my back out carrying records and CDs up to a train platform. Silly wabbit , you should have taken a cab......So , I had to cancel , for the first time in my life. Our good friend , Derek (Bloodshot Bill) , had a big homecoming party in Chicago , when the ban on U.S. performances was lifted. NoBunny played , Bloodshot Bill , Tandoori Knights and White Mystery all played , too. Derek invited me to play , saying  " Go tell the club you want on the bill !". I told him , it's not that simple  You'd have to put in a request , yourself.  I was'nt on the bill , but , of course ,I wanted to go , anyway. BUT , i'D ALREADY MADE PLANS To go to MEXICO.

GOTTA HAND IT TO BOTH THOSE GUYS , NoBunny and Bloodshot Bill , they toured their BALLS off , playing house parties , busking , ANYTHING to get to  the next town.

I'm glad she is'nt saying it's because she does'nt think she has long to live. I hope she hangs on to the red , white and blue rosaries I gave her a few years ago. Somehow , I think she will.

Connexions , I was lucky enough to see The Dictators several times , the first time being in '90 , before the Punk Revival , when they could only draw about 150 people. But , I saw Dictators NYC ,recently  (Basically The Dictators minus Adny and Scott , and plus Daniel Rey and a new Bass player). They WERE The Dictators. No doubt about it. What that has to do with Political Incorrectness , nothing , except that The Angry Samoans opened.

The Dictators fuckin' rule. Bloodbrothers is one of my favourite albums ever. I'd love to see any of them live.

Matt said:

That's a funny Bluse Brother scene. It's been about a decade since I've seen that moive. 

I was joking about skrewdriver, because they are the most notorious whitepower/bonerhead/nazi....whatever band. I guess adding a "haha" at the end would have made it a more apparent joke rather than a serious question. Their first few singles and first LP are good punk records that are not nazi shit. Once they became a white power band, everybody quit except the singer, Ian Stewart and he got all new band members, kept the name, and started writing shitty songs. I kind of view them as two seperate bands. Two eras at the very least.

"Useless Eater(s)" is what thte nazis called the Jews. I believe it's what the whole song is about. "Hitler would have had e put to sleep" "I need to escape to the U.S.A., get out here and I'll be okay." I guess the song "Slut" is another un-pc song, so they are 2 for 2 on that ep. 

I saw the Dicatators on DFFD tour in Chicago, they were amazing. Since I've seen several shows of Andy Shernoff or Handsome Dick and Ross the Boss...unfortunately I doubt they will ever get together as one band again. Too bad, one of my favourites. I go to Manitobas bar everytime I'm in NYC. Cool Joint. 

not gonna talk all day , but , I want you to get the feelin- James Brown.

Forgot to mention , teh great scene where Henry Gibson , as the  Nazi  Party    leader, gets the tip that The Blues Bros. are hiding away at Addison and Clark ....."THAT'S WRIGLEY FIELD!"   " They'd better pray The POLICE get to them before we do !".......

when I saw "Public Enemies"  , I RECOGNIZED the area surrounding Dillinger's GF's apartment as being the underpass at the Addison Train station. When the sickass cops torture Dillinger's old lady, she reveals his hiding place on ADDISON....i WAS JUST WAITING TO SEE THEM DRIVE UP TO WRIGLEY FIELD , and say , "oh , shit.". 

SWT - One of many great scenes in a still - great flick. I'd argue it gets better with age ! I was here , in Chicago , visiting , when they were shooting teh movie. It was a very exciting time. I went to see Muddy Waters at The Chicagofest , already a major "I'm Not Worthy" , and Belushi and Akyroyd came out and did a short Blues Brothers set before Muddy came out. All for THREE BUCKS !!!!

Henry Gibson was great in this movie, so was Charles Napier as the leader of The Good OL' bOYS. They were portrayed  as bad guys , but , I think the seemingly unlikely inclusion of a Country band was a fond tribute too bands like The Sundowners , who played REAL Country in and around The Loop in THE 70's.

There were a lot of White Southerners who came to Chicago , just as the Blacks did , in the postwar job boom , and by the Late 50's ,they had a pretty healthy C&W scene. I'VE MET some of these guys , they were so cool to talk to.

I meant to say "Others contributed to the population explosion".......Computer's gone completely whacko.

Excuse the caps.

Matt , I thought about that , but ,I did'nt see a "HA HA" , so , I thought  you might have been saying you's heard about Skrewdriver's rep , but , not in detail.....Some people (Not you.) have it all wrong. I was at Waxtrax Records , one time (If you are or were based in Chicago , I hope you had a chance to go there.). I overheard two guys talking about Skrewdriver. One said "Their stuff is banned....But , there was another band in Texas called The Big Boys . The were sorta White Power , but funny!". HUH?!! I did'nt even bother correcting the moron.  I did lose interest in them when they cancelled every time I went to see them , but everyone knew they were anti - racist ,and had a Gay frontman.

I did'nt know ALL the members in the Chiswick lineup and the neo - nazi lineup of Skrewdriver were different , barring Ian Stewart (That was his name ? Like the sixth Stone? HA HA. WELL ,IT'S A COMMON NAME IN ENGLAND.)   . But , you're right, Two separate bands.

From talking to people who knew Mitey/ Mikey Vomit of The Vomit Pigs , it seemed he had little to no interest in politics , Left or Right OR EVEN DEAD CENTER. wHAT LITTLE INTELLIGIBLE LYRICS THERE ARE to "Useless Eater" , it sounds like he's using himself as a metaphor , eating and drinking and drugging while other people contribute to the population . It sounds like a direct reference to the Holocaust , yes, when you put it that way , but , he still seems to be just talking about himself.

"Slut" was on The Vomit Pigs ep? I just have the re- issue , of course , it's got "Baby's Playing Games" , "Art of The Insane" and "Useless Eater". I think "Slut" is on the Rave-UP compilation. Have'nt listened to it in a  while....

Whether Mikey choked on a hamburger , under the influence of Ludes , or it was something related ,seems unclear.     Oram St. In Dallas (Off Greenville Ave. , which used to be cool.)  was Punk Rock central , still , in the early 80's. A lot of people from the already - defunct Hot Klub DAYS (aND DJ's BEFORE it , which was right around the corner from Greenville and Oram.) lived there , and, of course, Mikey died there , at Bobby Soxx's place. I ran into Bobby a couple of times around there, back then. We were'nt really friendly. It's  not like I had a quarrel with him , really , I was just unimpressed.

Many years later , Darin Lin Wood from 68 Comeback and Fireworks lived there , and further up the road , Jack Starr lived out his last days.

That's a funny Bluse Brother scene. It's been about a decade since I've seen that moive. 

I was joking about skrewdriver, because they are the most notorious whitepower/bonerhead/nazi....whatever band. I guess adding a "haha" at the end would have made it a more apparent joke rather than a serious question. Their first few singles and first LP are good punk records that are not nazi shit. Once they became a white power band, everybody quit except the singer, Ian Stewart and he got all new band members, kept the name, and started writing shitty songs. I kind of view them as two seperate bands. Two eras at the very least.

"Useless Eater(s)" is what thte nazis called the Jews. I believe it's what the whole song is about. "Hitler would have had e put to sleep" "I need to escape to the U.S.A., get out here and I'll be okay." I guess the song "Slut" is another un-pc song, so they are 2 for 2 on that ep. 

I saw the Dicatators on DFFD tour in Chicago, they were amazing. Since I've seen several shows of Andy Shernoff or Handsome Dick and Ross the Boss...unfortunately I doubt they will ever get together as one band again. Too bad, one of my favourites. I go to Manitobas bar everytime I'm in NYC. Cool Joint. 

IT SOUNDED like you were saying that just seeing The Monkees on TV was an early motivation for you. It was for me , too. They made it look like being in a band was fun and adventuresome. But , anyone that's ever been in a band knows the adventures that come with it are'nt always fun.  I was seeing The Monkees on Saturday Morning TV (THE MONKEES were still together , just barely. ) , and I saw "Help!" around the same time (The Beatles were also still together , just barely.), and , of course , The Monkees were a revisionist version of The early Beatle films for the younger set.

I don't remember hearing The Stones , Raiders , or "Nuggets" hits on the radio in the Late 60's - Early 70's , though I must have. When I was 4-6 years old , maybe , The Beatles  were still saturating the airwaves.      That's cool that your Dad had such varied tastes in music , and turned you on to so many things at an early age. I learned about Slade , Bowie  and Alice Cooper in the early 70's from my oldest Brother. I REALLY THOUGHT SLADE WAS A BIG BAND (IN THE STATES.). BOWIE WAS ALL OVER THE ROCK MAGAZINES , BUT, EVEN THOUGH HE WAS FAMOUS , I don't remember hearing him on the radio at all until "Fame". They pitted him against Cooper in this Professional Wrestling - inspired "Shock Rock" or "Glitter Rock" grudge , when they were really good friends (Just like a lot of competing Wrestlers.).

Yeah I'd say the Monkees didn't get me cause they were over the top raw garage punk, it's just that I watched those shows every morning before school and the songs just stuck with me through out my formitive years. It's kind of hard for me to pin down a specific record. My dad had so many records and they were such a mix - Willie Nelson, Black Sabbath, UFO, Status Quo, Paul Revere, Stones,...the Monkees and KISS. So I was kind of listening to garage rock before I knew what it was, but I would also be listening to Slade or Bowie at the same time. 

So, yeah, I'd say the Nuggets is what first set aside this specific genere for me to  get into. Shortly after the Back from the Grave and Pebbles comps... I tried to seek out as many of those 45s as possible. 

MONKEES , Interesting answer. Of course , "I'm Not Your Steppin' Stone" was one of the first major Punk anthems ....."Pushin'  TOO hARD " , i THINK , WAS RECORDED FIRST. Of course , Paul Revere and The Raiders  did it first. Their version KILLS.  "She" , to me ,was a slower Punk song like "I Ain't Gonna eAT oUT mY Heart Anymore" by The Young Racals. "She " is what I call "Pity Punk". Even "Saturday's Child" has a great Garage riff. I FIRST PICKED UP "nUGGETS : tHE hITS" BECAUSE IT HAD SO MANY SONGS I LOVED FROM THe RADIO. I GOT RHINO'S STANDELLS COLLECTION , too.  In fact , I saw The Monkees on their first reunion tour, and they were playing "Nuggets : The Hits" between bands ! All these people , who were singing along to Gary Puckett , did'nt know these songs. My friends and I were dancing to "tALK tALK" , "pSYCHOTIC rEACTION", etc. Then they brought The Monkees out , in the middle of Blue Cheer's "Summertime Blues" , the only time I'd get to hear THAT on stadium speakers !!

As some of you know, one of my duties as a mild-mannered newspaper reporters is doing a weekly rock 'n' roll column for Pasatiempo, the arts and entertainment magazine of The Santa Fe New Mexican. In fact, I recently celebrated the 25th anniversary of Terrell's Tune-up

Here are a few recent columns. I'll update below if anyone is interested. 

And you can find 'em all at my music blog

A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican 
Feb. 7, 2014

Has Les Claypool “gone country”? Not exactly. His new album, Four Foot Shack, credited to Les Claypool’s Duo de Twang, could almost be mistaken for “Primus Unplugged,” except for the fact that Claypool’s usual sidemen have been replaced here by guitarist Bryan Kehoe. The group even plays a couple of acoustic takes on Primus classics: “Jerry Was a Racecar Driver” and “Wynona’s Big Brown Beaver.”

Like Primus, Duo de Twang features Claypool’s bass as basically a lead instrument. Kehoe, reportedly an old high school buddy of Claypool’s, plays a lot of slide guitar. The only percussion is what Claypool calls a “mini-tambourine-doohickey” played via a foot pedal.

The duo originally formed to play the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival in San Francisco. They definitely lived up to the “hardly strictly” part and then decided to make this album and do a small tour. (Alas, the closest they’re coming to New Mexico is Austin, during next month’s South by Southwest festival, and Snowmass, Colorado, in June.)

Too be sure, it’s obvious that Claypool likes country from 40 or 50 years ago. On this album you’ll find covers of Johnny Horton’s 1959 hit “The Ballad of New Orleans” (Claypool takes it, as Horton might have said, to places where a rabbit wouldn’t go) and Jerry Reed’s 1970 swamp-country masterpiece about a one-armed Cajun alligator hunter, “Amos Moses.” This is the second time Claypool has recorded “Amos.” Primus also took a crack at it on the 1998 CD Rhinoplasty.

While the Horton and Reed songs were big hits, Claypool also plows more obscure country-music ground. The duo does a version of “The Bridge Came Tumblin’ Down,” originally performed by Canadian country star “Stompin’” Tom Connors, who died last year at 77. The song has a good basic Johnny Cash chunka-chunka beat, with Kehoe doing some of his best slide work on the cut.

In many ways, Duo de Twang’s relation to country music is similar to what you hear on Merles Just Want to Have Fun, the album that Bryan & The Haggards and Eugene Chadbourne released last year. Both groups use C&W as a jumping-off place — before they jump into the sonic abyss.

But no, even with these songs, you’re never going to see Duo de Twang on the Grand Ole Opry. And you especially aren’t going to hear Claypool’s “Red State Girl,” a near-metallic-sounding ditty about a woman with breast implants made of recycled bottles who “wants to grow up to be Sarah Palin” and is fortunate enough to meet a young man with a tattoo of the Budweiser frogs (as well as a naked picture of the former Alaska governor, or so Claypool says).

As Claypool has shown with Primus and his many side projects, he loves wacky covers of a wide variety of songs, and despite the band’s name, most of the covers on this record are not from the world of country. On Four Foot Shack, he and Kehoe do a suave remake of the iconic surf instrumental “Pipe Line” (including “la la la” vocals on the bridge, where they sound like some lost battalion of the Russian army). The Duo makes Alice in Chains’ nightmarish “Man in the Box” even more nightmarish (with bluegrass mandolin). And the Bee Gees’ disco landmark “Stayin’ Alive” is transformed into an alien hoedown.

I still believe that Claypool’s most satisfying album is Primus’ Pork Soda, released more than 20 years ago. But even though this one doesn’t reach that level, it’s a doggone fun record. I hope that some staunch fans of acoustic roots music open their ears to it.

Also recommended:

* Spanish Asshole Magnet by Billy Joe Winghead. No, Billy Joe Winghead is not a person. It’s a band name, like Jethro Tull. Fronted by singer John (not Jono) Manson, the band, from my hometown of Oklahoma City, plays raw, obscene, metal-edged scuzz rock. I hear echoes of The Dictators, Joan Jett, Nashville Pussy, and The Hickoids (hey, they’re on The Hickoids’ label, Saustex) but definitely not Jethro Tull.

Did I mention obscene? Yes, nearly every song is packed with lewd language that unfortunately will limit radio play. Too bad. There are lots of rocking and frequently catchy tunes here. The title song is a tale of decadence and perversion that name-checks Frankie Goes to Hollywood and lifts a riff from the Hendrix song the title parodies.

Songs like “Dayglo Blacklite,” “Devil’s Advocate,” and “Gravedigger” are hard-punching rockers, the latter with a melody inspired by The Runaways’ signature song “Cherry Bomb.” Meanwhile the ferocious “Okie, Arkie and Tex” sounds like a grittier version of Guns N’ Roses before that band sunk beneath our wisdom like a stone. Billy Joe proves they can actually play it pretty on “Lana Don’t Go,” which has musical allusions to The Shangri-Las, Phil Spector, and other ’60s teen-drama rock.

Billy Joe also does a version of “Planet of the Apes” by garage-punk idols The Mummies. The band does it justice, but it’s only the second-most-remarkable cover on this album.

Without a doubt, the highlight here is the inspired medley of Broadway showtunes — I’m not kidding — that Billy Joe calls “Springtime for Argentina.” Yes, this is a combination of “Springtime for Hitler” from Mel Brooks’ The Producers and “Don’t Cry for Me Argentina” from Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s Evita. It’s a magical Okie punk-rock ode to a dictator and the wife of a dictator. The track becomes even more demented when you watch the video. It’s a crazed fascist puppet show that shouldn’t be missed.

This is followed by a slow, dreamy, synthy song called “With a Hate Like Mine.” After so much breakneck craziness from the previous songs, it might seem at first as if Billy Joe just ran out of steam. But as the six-minute song drones on with its iggly-squiggly computer effects and smoky atmospherics, it seems to transport a listener to a distant crazy dimension.

Enjoy some videos:






A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican 
Jan. 31, 2014

When you think of country-folk songwriters from Texas, you probably think of pickers and singers like Townes Van Zandt, Guy Clark, Ray Wylie Hubbard, The Flatlanders and Terry Allen. Not to mention Willie and Waylon and the boys.

Here's a couple of younger singer-songwriters from the Lone Star state whose music definitely is informed by all those greats, even though they don't sound much like your stereotypical Texas troubadours. Both these guys started out as "one-man bands," both are in their late 30s and I suspect they share a lot of the same fans. But they don't sound much like your typical one-man bands either. And come to think of it, they don't sound much like each other.

* There Will Be Nights When I'm Lonely by Possessed by Paul James. Though he frequently sings like a man possessed, this singer's name isn't "Paul James." It's Konrad Wert, a preacher's son born and raised in a Mennonite family in Immokalee, Fla. “Paul James” is a combination of his father’s and grandfather’s names. Wert's day job is being a special education teacher in an elementary school.

Jeopardizing forever his standing with one-man band purists (I suppose there are some of those out there) Wert on this album is joined by by an ad hoc band on some cuts, including a couple of Texas heavyweights -- steel guitarist Lloyd Maines and harmonica honker Walter Daniels. Fortunately, the extra musicians only enhance and don't clutter Wert's sound.

Possessed fans immediately will know this record, released late last year on the Hillgrass Bluebilly label,  is a Possessed by Paul James album by the opening notes of the first song, "Hurricane." It's Wert's fiddle, screeching, but not quite abrasive, soon followed by foot-stomping and a stand-up bass, drums and well as excited yelps by Wert, perhaps an invocation to the swamp demons who haunt his music.

Wert's on the fiddle on the next tune, "Songs We Used to Sing," as well. It's upbeat with just a hint of pop in the melody, though you're not likely to hear this on commercial radio. Drummer Cary Ozanian gets a good workout on this one.

On "Heavy," Wert ditches the band and switches to banjo. "Oh this life can get heavy," he sings in the refrain. The words seem to underscore the pressure that seems to propel his soaring vocals. "Dragons," also featuring Wert on banjo, is a shambling roadhouse blues. Wert roars and growls as Daniels blows sweet riffs on his harmonica. (Wert cleverly sneaks the titles of some his earlier albums in some of the lyrics on these two. His previous record Feed the Family is referenced in the first verse of "Heavy," while in the song "Dragons" Wert sings, "You've left me Cold and Blind," a sly wink to the title of his 2008 album.)

The title song, preceded by a minute-long fiddle solo, features an even more-intense-than-usual Wert stomping, fiddling and pleading for love, even though he sees some rough times "when we cry ourselves to sleep." The darkest song here undoubtedly is the slow, minor-key "Pills Beneath Her Pillow." It's about reckless and weary lovers. The woman keeps pills under her pillow, while the man keeps guns under his.. Wert in the chorus sings "Everyone is searching for love, everyone is fighting for love, everyone is killing for love and baby, oh, I'm dying tonight ..."

My favorite song on There Will Nights at the moment is a lighter piece, a sweet love/lust tune called "38 Year Old Cocktail Waitress." With some honky-tonk steel from Maines, Wert sings, "On the golf course road down in Mexico, she's my beauty queen / She wears a pink bikini, drinks an appletini, oh she's quite the scene.

* Nothin' But Blood by Scott H. Biram. Now I doubt that Biram would ever sing the praises of a woman who drinks appletinis. He seems like he'd be more attracted to straight-whiskey types. In fact, "Only Whiskey" is the name of one of the rowdiest tunes on, this new album by gruff-voiced Biram. "Only whiskey can sleep in my bed," he growls over his distorted electric guitar. (The album is scheduled for release next week by Chicago's Bloodshot Records.)

Like the best of Biram's works, there are plenty of rip-roaring, blues-soaked, booze-fired songs on Nothin' But Blood. "Alcohol Blues," (an old Mance Lipscomb tune) with a guitar hook similar to that in Cream's version of "Crossroads" and a string of obscenities I won't even try to sneak past the editors, definitely is one. And "Around the Bend" and " Church Point Girls" might just be the first recorded one-man metal band tunes in human history. Biram on "Bend" even manages a pretty good parody of the lizard-demon voice you hear in so many death-metal bands.

While Biram sings lustily of drinking, drugging, sex and sin, there are plenty of salvation songs on Nothin' But Blood as well. "Gotta Get to Heaven" is a happy song about a guy who apparently has wrestled with his sinful ways and won. Plus, tacked on at the end of the album are three "gospel bonus tracks" including oft-covered classics like "Amazing Grace" (featuring Biram's harmonica and ambient rain sounds) a rousing "John the Revelator" and one called "When I Die," which is credited to Biram, though it sounds as if it could be a hymn from deep within the foggy realm of American folk traditions.

Speaking of cover songs Biram, performs more of them than usual on this record. Besides the ones mentioned above, he does versions of folk gems like "Jack of Diamonds," I'm Troubled," (which is credited to Doc Watson, though it sounds much older), and Willie Dixon's "Backdoor Man," which is closer to Howlin' Wolf's version than the one by The Doors.

Biram at Corazon, Santa Fe 2011

While Biram is known best for his rambunctious and sometimes raunchy material, he also is quite capable of slow, pretty acoustic songs as well. He's proved that before, of course on songs like "Still Drunk, Still Crazy, Still Blue" from Something's Wrong / Lost Forever (2009) and "Broke Ass" from 2011's Bad Ingredients. On the new album "Never Comin' Home" is a sturdy country weeper, while the minor-key "Slow and Easy" is slow, though the narrator, drinking his wine to get "that same old high" sounds anything but at ease.

But the real standout is one called "Nam Weed." It's a story of a Vietnam vet pining about the good old boys back during the war. "Long time, back in Vietnam / I had some friends that could give a damn / They'd roll 'em up and smoke 'em down / Good weed back in Vietnam ..." Here in the USA, however, the nostalgic narrator is doing time for some unspecified crime. "All my friends were over there," he laments.

Both Biram and Possessed by Paul James show that, in case anyone forgot, singer-songwriters don’t have to sound self-absorbed and that folksingers don’t have to be self-righteous And both of them also prove that Texas hasn’t stopped making top-notch troubadours.

Here's a couple of videos:

A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican 
Jan. 24, 2014

Every year about this time I like to look back at some of the albums that I meant to review in this column over the past year but somehow never got around to it. There’s some good stuff here that doesn’t deserve to get left behind.

* The Big Dream by David Lynch. Back when I was becoming a fanatic for David Lynch films like Blue Velvet and Wild at Heart, not to mention his pioneering TV series Twin Peaks, I never imagined that one day I’d be listening to his music. But there were hints even then that he would be responsible for some intense, crazy sounds. Julee Cruise’s mysterious and hauntingly beautiful 1989 debut, Floating Into the Night, is made up of songs composed by Angelo Badalamenti, Lynch’s soundtrack meister at the time, and lyrics by Lynch. But Lynch didn’t do a solo album until Crazy Clown Time in 2011. Though not quite as striking as that album, The Big Dream is a continuation of the shadowy, surreal electro/clunky techno of Crazy Clown Time. If anything, the new work shows more of a country influence. No, you won’t mistake it for Willie or Waylon, but Lynch’s Montana drawl makes him sound like some lost cowboy in the Black Lodge. You have to give him credit. He is one of the few performers I know who can make a lyric like “I went down to the ice-cream store” (in “We Rolled Together”) sound sinister. And, hey, Dylan completists, Lynch does a cover of “The Ballad of Hollis Brown.” It’s not hard to see how this song, based on a real murder/suicide on a South Dakota farm, would appeal to Lynch.

* All Our Forts Are With You by Wild Billy Chyldish & The CTMF. Billy Chyldish, formerly Billy Childish, formerly Steven John Hamper, proves that there’s a thin line between angry young man and grumpy old coot. The songs on this album, according to the Damaged Goods label’s website, have lyrics that go back to 1977, when Billy, then working as an apprentice stonemason in England’s Chatham dockyards, first decided that he wanted to be in a punk band. Many of the songs here seem to be dealing with the death of punk as opposed to its birth. “Three punk rockers, but the punks are dead,” Chyldish snarls in the opening song, “The Headless Flowerpot Girl.” There are songs blasting “The Second Generation Punks” as well as “The Musical Rogues,” which include Nick Cave and The Pogues. (Hey, lighten up, Billy, I like those guys!) And in the title song, Chyldish sings, “I knew you, baby, when you didn’t know punk. … I knew you baby, before the lies of coke.” In addition to the punk-history songs, Chyldish pays tribute to some spiritual mentors. “On Moonlit Heath”has lyrics by British poet A.E. Housman. Even better is a garage-rock attack on Willie Dixon’s “I Just Want to Make Love to You.”

* All That Glitters by Pietra Wexstun & Hecate’s Angels. The third album by Hecate’s Angels is the most down-to-earth CD Pietra Wexstun has ever done — it’s not as otherworldly as Saints and Scoundrels (2004) and especially Hidden Persuader (2001). The emphasis here is on Wexstun’s warm vocals. (Unlike those previous albums, none of the 11 songs on Glitters are instrumentals.) When I say “down-to earth,” I’m speaking relatively. There are plenty of spooky atmospherics, mysterioso lyrics, and outright weirdness here. It’s easy to imagine strange little movies in your mind when listening to her songs. “When The Boys Come Out to Play,” with its ghostly background choruses, ominous melody, and what sounds like a sample of some radio preacher ranting in the background, could almost be the girl cousin of Brian Eno and David Byrne’s My Life in the Bush of Ghosts. Wexstun goes from bossa nova (“Dragging Me Down”) to white funk in “She Done Him Right (Mae West Sutra).” On “Lonesome Stranger” she makes a hammer dulcimer sound like a Martian lyre. My favorite is the opening song, “Take It Away,” which might be described as “rock noir.” I bet Wexstun’s husband, Stan Ridgway (who plays guitar on the album), wishes he’d written this tune.

* Rock Them Back to Hell by Left Lane Cruiser. This is a two-man trash/blues/stompband from Indiana. Like the Black Keys before them, singer/guitarist Frederick Joe Evans IV and drummer/ harmonica honker Brenn Beck have worshipped at the altar of Mississippi hill-country bluesmen like T. Model Ford and R.L. Burnside. Unlike The Black Keys, Cruiser has retained its primitive raunch. Yet the band is not afraid to play it pretty every so often, such as on the sweet and soulful “Coley.”

* Stiff Upper Lip and Trousers to Match by The Mobbs. “Blast Off!!!” — the raucous first track on this album — immediately reminded me of The Hives at the height of their glory. That is, if The Hives had thick Northampton accents. Yes, the guitar/bass/drums garage/punk attack is nothing new. But these guys play it with enthusiasm and humor. They’ve got some fine songs, “The Devil Writhed In,” “Crule Britannia” (is this a nod to the Bonzo Dog Band?), and “A Damned Good Thrashing!” among them.



* The Beautiful Old: Turn of the Century Songs by various artists. This collection, with musical production by Gabriel Rhodes, consists of covers of great old parlor songs from America and the British Isles. The best of these are “The Band Played On”sung by Richard Thompson and Christine Collister. (How could anyone not love this tale of Casey and his strawberry blonde?); “The Man on the Flying Trapeze” by Graham Parker (I still like the version in the Popeye cartoon best, but Parker does a decent job. I never knew this song had so many verses.); and “After the Ball” by Dave Davies (the ex-Kink captures the heartache at the center of this song). By the way, Garth Hudson, former keyboardist of The Band, plays on all three of these plus several more on the album.

* Reverse Shark Attack by Ty Segall & Mikal Cronin. If last year’s Segall album, Sleeper, was a little too soft and introspective for fans of his usual hopped-up lo-fi garage squall, this might be the perfect antidote. Originally released in 2009, the album was rereleased by the In the Red label early last year. With bassist/vocalist Cronin, Segall rips through eight songs with joyful fury. About half are less than two minutes long, but the final track, the title song, is a 10-minute adventure that alternates between quiet, loud, and louder. And if you missed my recent blog post about it, here’s some good news for local Segall fans. He’s playing at High Mayhem in Santa Fe on March 18 and at Albuquerque’s Launchpad the following night.