Gotta Song Stuck in my Head...

Have a great weekend!

Tee Gee Eye Eff

Talking Heads/ Artists Only / Live 1978

Jerry Leiber, 1933-2011

Condolences to his family, friends, fans and disciples. The impact of the legendary Leiber & Stoller songwriting team (Leiber on the left there) on the history of rock music is incalculable. It's impossible to imagine the first decade of the rock era without their songs, and their influence on subsequent generations of artists left an indelible mark as well. Baby, that's rock 'n' roll.

Welcome Back, Blogger

Arrgh, a whole week without a post. Blog, I've missed you.

I'd forgotten just how demanding a profession teaching can be, when you do it right - that is, whole-heartedly. I've seen veteran teachers who mange to use their time more efficiently than I do (erm, and not just teachers, either). But there's a learning curve for me in teaching at this grade level, so I'm burning the candle at both ends.

The original idea for this blog was to have a free place to park my archives, with occasional newer posts. Then it turned into more fun than I should be allowed to have, and also a bit of a time suck. Now it's a hobby that I really miss having the time for. And blogging, too, can take up a lot of time if you do it right. If anybody wants to pay me for it, I can guarantee a steady stream of pithy posts every day. But for now it's catch as catch can.

So here's your "Friday Night" Video:

Last Night's Video

Time intervals are so arbitrary... let's go back to 1994, shall we?



BTW, Mr. Malkmus has a new long-player hitting the stores soon... assuming any stores near you still sell CDs.

The Great Wanda Jackson

Hard Headed Woman, circa 1956.

RIP Amy Winehouse

Just remember her before she became fodder for tabloids and comedians, when she was the fresh, clear-voiced young talent proclaiming over Mark Ronson's arrangements. Condolences to her friends and family, and may all troubled by addiction find the peace they need.

The Velvety Kids

Aterciopelados, or "the velvety kids," are from Columbia, and here is one of their many fine songs for your Friday Night Video:

 

Oh, and here's another....

Björkophilia

Björk Guðmundsdóttir has a new album, Biophilia, on the way, and the single "Crystalline" was released this week. As she explains it, the new work is the result of "a lot of research and reading" about structures in nature and in music – "where they are similar." This aligns with recent work by Oliver Sacks, for one. His 2007 book Musicophilia talks about they ways music interacts with our brain chemistry. I'm guessing the similarity in titles is no coincidence.

 Björk also commissioned some unique new musical instruments for the album, one of which is described in the video below. She kicks off the public introduction to this opus with a six-night stand at the Manchester International Festival tonight. To me, she's one of the most exciting, influential and original performers of the last few decades, and I hope the subsequent tour can land within a few hundred miles of here, at least.

   
The Gameleste - a custom instrument for Björk from Andy McCreeth on Vimeo.

Several Lifetimes Ago

Um, Andy Warhol's cinematography is a bit disorienting, but here you have the Velvet Underground, filmed at a rehearsal back in 1966. Several lifetimes ago.

RIP Peter Falk

When I was a kid, one of my favorite movies was The Great Race. As an adult, one of my favorites is Wings of Desire. And what they have in common is the great Peter Falk. Here he is in the latter film, playing himself:

Clarence Clemons 1942-2011

There are dozens of great jazz saxophonists. But when it comes to rock music, the true giants were King Curtis, Bobby Keys, and this guy. RIP Big Man.

Carl Gardner 1928-2011

Mr. Gardner, who died this week, was the leader and founder of the Coasters, 1987 inductees into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame.

All the Blacks

Prince, Jay-Z, Metallica, or Spinal Tap?

No matter how often somebody proclaims that ________ is the new black, the old black will always be.... black. Black is so suffused with symbolic meaning that it will always be a cultural mainstay, not just of fashion design, but for song titles, album titles, and, for our purposes today, band names. There are a boatload of band names using the word "black," and as part of a recurring feature here, we're going to try and sort them out.

So let's leave aside for the moment Frank Black and Clint Black; I don't think anybody's going to get those two mixed up. Likewise the suddenly ubiquitous Rebecca Black. Set aside also classic rockers Black Sabbath, and the Black Crowes, who are classic rockers born too late. Hardcore heroes Black Flag are  defunct since 1986. Reggae giants Black Uhuru dissolved their classic lineup about the same time. The Happy Mondays spinoff Black Grape is also out of business, as are several other succinctly named bands called Black.

And to simplify matters, let's briefly talk about the hip-hop bands first. The Black Eyed Peas are megastars now, and even if you didn't see the last Super Bowl, need no introduction. Highbrow rappers Mos Def and Talib Kweli put out one 1998 album together as Black Star, titled, helpfully, Mos Def & Talib Kweli are Black Star. Another literate alt-rap duo, Blackalicious, picked up the mantle in 1999, and are about to release their fourth album.

For our purposes, we're trying to tell the difference between 21st century rock bands with confusingly similar names. And that still leaves us with, at a minimum, the Black Keys, Black Lips, Black Kids, Black Angels, Black Dub, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, and Black Moth Super Rainbow.

Playing for Change: Gimme Shelter

The T.A.M.I. Show

I watched this DVD with my kids last night, who got as big a kick out of the go-go dancers as the music. It was filmed in 1964 at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. Almost all of it was terrific - unsurprising with Chuck Berry, James Brown, the Rolling Stones, Marvin Gaye, the Beach Boys, the Miracles and the Supremes on the bill. Brown stole the show, of course; after the third iteration of the cape routine, my 7-year-old commented "they should call him the King of Rock 'n' Roll!" But this one just slayed me; I've always loved this song, and she completely transcends the studio version:

Duke Ellington Trio

Here's some late-period Ellington for you:

Gil Scott-Heron 1949-2011

Gil Scott-Heron was a poet and musician and one of the true godfathers of rap music. His poltically-charged, jazz-tinged speech-songs were totally unique and hugely influential. Scott-Heron had just made a terrific comeback album after a stint in prison for a controlled substances violation. He will be missed.

Here he is making fun of Ronald Reagan:



UPDATE: This piece from the New Yorker is a useful rundown on GS-H's career.

Springsteen & Costello

Your Friday night video: "London Calling," live at the 2003 Grammys. With Elvis, Bruce, Dave Grohl & Little Steven van Zandt.

Saturday Night Video for the Continuation of the World

You know, something tells me the end of the world is going to be a bit more gradual than some folks expected. So until then.....