Most of my generation probably best remembers this song as Club Nouveau’s 1986 synth-laden hit, but it was original recorded 15 years earlier by it’s writer, Bill Withers, who also sent it to #1. I’ll admit that the sentiment has a lot to do with why I like it, but before you jump on me for it, check this out… Read more »
Back in 2002, Dolly Parton covered (gasp) “Stairway to Heaven.” I’m sure most people’s first reaction was to be horrified that the singer who brought us “9 to 5” would dare to touch Zeppelin’s crown jewel, but if you excuse Parton’s pop country days and focus on her early and late periods, the idea should be at least compelling. I… Read more »
During the show, a friend remarked that Charlie Benante was among the best speed metal drummers, up there with Lars Ulrich. Another guy remarked that he prefered Pantera’s Vinnie Paul (which of course discredits his opinion entirely). But both forgot about Slayer’s Dave Lombardo who I’ve long considered the genre’s best and most definitive drummer. He was simply brutal. Charlie… Read more »
January 6, 2006, Ram’s Head Live, Baltimore, MD Twenty years ago, Spreading the Disease was perhaps my favorite speed metal album. It wasn’t as dark as Reign in Blood or as self-consciously serious as Master of Puppets. It was positive and fun. So when I was offered a ticket to see Anthrax, I agreed without a second thought. Anthrax might… Read more »
I try to avoid even thinking about Courtney Love, but my ill-advised subscription to Spin magazine made that impossible with the latest issue. The list (and it seems they focus more on lists than articles these days) this time was the 10 (or 20 or whatever) Most Influential Artists of the Last 20 years. And surprise, surprise, the gentle and… Read more »
Burn to Shine is a series of DVDs recorded live in houses scheduled for demolition. Both include great perfomrances by bands both well-known and lesser-known (see the website for a list), but what really makes these special is their wonderful human quality. They not only capture live music, but the final human experience in an old house that had seen… Read more »
Label: VirginReleased: September 6, 2005 Here’s the thing about the Rolling Stones, they’ve become the world’s greatest Stones cover band. I’m not going to spend any time with the specifics of the music here, I’m going to focus on the feel of the album. It’s second-rate Exile-era Stones material. If you liked the Stones in the early 70s, you’ll probably… Read more »
Speaking about one of his pre-Dead bands, Mother McCree’s Uptown Jug Champions, Weir said, “Playing in the jug band, I learned a healthy respect for the roots of music. You honor the roots of music, and you’re tapping into a vein – there’s juice in there.” I agree. It’s not just what made the Dead a great band (and like… Read more »
Here’s a backhanded compliment from allmusic.com‘s review of Sham 69’s Tell Us the Truth album: “Tell Us the Truth sounds passionate, belligerent, and kinda dumb, but that’s an improvement over Sham 69’s later work, where the band sounds overblown, strident, and really, really dumb.” I don’t mean to single allmusic out here, because I’ve seen this treatment of Sham repeatedly… Read more »
Here’s a new twist on the old battle of the bands thing. Instead of picking two bands that are musically similar, I’m choosing two bands that have something in their names in common. Sometimes its a common theme, sometimes they’re opposites, sometimes they just sound similar. It’s not as serious an exercise perhaps, but it might be fun. It was… Read more »