English musician, singer-songwriter and record producer, bassist for The Who
POPULARITY
7 episodes with John Entwistle
8 episodes with John Entwistle
3 episodes with John Entwistle
2 episodes with John Entwistle
3 episodes with John Entwistle
3 episodes with John Entwistle
3 episodes with John Entwistle
3 episodes with John Entwistle
2 episodes with John Entwistle
World renowned guitarist/vocalist Godfrey Townsend joins us to talk about his massive career in music backing up and playing with many legendary artists including, John Entwistle, The Yardbirds, and Todd Rundgren. He's also done tribute shows covering the music of Eric Clapton's (Clapton is God-frey) and music of George Harrison!
Rock Talk Studio: Reviewing Rock 'n' Roll Books and Documentaries
The Who at two very different stages of their career is presented not only visually (this book has over 500 pictures!) but also with an engaging narrative. Teenage Wasteland: The Who at Winterland, 1968 and 1976 is an innovative approach. One that succeeds because it found a way of delivering all these pictures with comprehensive coverage of The Who during a pivotal time in the bands career. *Want to win a free copy of Mike Campbell's memoir Heartbreaker? It's easy, just send me an email to sign up. You can find a link to my email address below. *Reminder this is for US citizens only**Want to stay on top of the world of Rock N Roll Book and Documentaries? That's also easy. Sign up for the Monthly BLAST!! the newsletter that comes out on the last Friday of the month that features book buzz and doc news, recently released titles, top 5 lists, and more. Just shoot me over an email at the address below and say Big Rick, send me that Blast!!Support the showemail Big Rick at:info@rocktalkstudio.com
Barry and Abigail discuss Who's Next by The Who (submitted to our Jukebox by the late great Todd Sider, Barry's brother-in-law and Abigail's uncle) and sample Afternoon Showers, Sold Out, and PB Chess Pie from Orchestrated Minds Brewing in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.Many thanks to Davy Martin, Owner and Head Brewer of Orchestrated Minds, for sitting down with us to discuss his brewing philosophy and his impressive collaboration and distribution strategy!Barry mentioned the 1979 Who concert in Cincinnati where people lost their lives and the WKRP episode that referenced this event.Barry saw The Who play in Raleigh, North Carolina, in 1989! See the setlist here, or listen to the full concert here! Barry's concert highlight that night was Boris the Spider.Read about the re-launched Who tour after John Entwistle's death.Barry recommended Love Reign O'er Me as an example of Roger Daltrey's vocal prowess.Abigail entered Getting In Tune into the Abigail Hummel School of Speaking Smartly About Music with a comparison to Wings' Live and Let Die. Subsequently, Barry entered Going Mobile into the AHSOSSAM with a comparison to East Bound and Down by Jerry Reed.We briefly discussed Rock of Ages (2012), the movie musical filmed in South Florida while Abigail was in high school. Read about the filming and the landfill mountain that got the Hollywood sign treatment!Listen to John Entwistle's isolated bass track from a live performance of Won't Get Fooled Again.Our next Jukebox episode will be Phobia by Breaking Benjamin, submitted by Barry's brother and Abigail's uncle, Derek Hummel, Sr. This episode is scheduled to drop on May 16, 2025.Up next… Animal by Ke$haJingles are by our friend Pete Coe.Visit Anosmia Awareness for more information on Barry's condition.Follow Barry or Abigail on Untappd to see what we're drinking when we're not on mic!Leave us a rating or a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify!Facebook | Instagram | Bluesky | YouTube | Website | Email us | Virtual Jukebox | Beer Media Group
In this epic episode, we embark on a sonic exploration of The Who's towering anthem "Won't Get Fooled Again." We explore the song that encapsulates the very essence of rock music-- its intensity, grandeur, and unyielding spirit. We dive deep into the tumultuous history behind one of the most ambitious projects in rock history, The Who's Lifehouse, and how it gave rise to an album that, despite its fraught genesis, stands as a masterpiece of the genre. From Pete Townsend's futuristic visions to the band's quest for a universal musical connection, we unravel the tapestry of a song that has been both celebrated and misunderstood. With a careful ear, we dissect the iconic keyboard riff, Keith Moon's explosive drumming, John Entwistle's virtuosic bass lines, and Roger Daltrey's soul-stirring vocals. This episode isn't just a tribute to a classic track; it's a deep dive into the heart of rock music and the relentless pursuit of artistic vision. "Won't Get Fooled Again" Pete Townshend Copyright 1971 Towser Tunes, Inc., Fabulous Music Ltd. and ABKCO Music Inc. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
In episode 50 of Rock Camp: The Podcast, longtime counselor and bassist for P!NK joins David Fishof, Britt Lightning, and Miles Schuman for a wide ranging discussion on growing up with legends like Ronnie Wood and John Entwistle, touring with P!NK and Cher, being a counselor at camp, and more! Don't miss this special episode as we celebrate our big 50th! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
In this epic episode, we embark on a sonic exploration of The Who's towering anthem "Won't Get Fooled Again." We explore the song that encapsulates the very essence of rock music-- its intensity, grandeur, and unyielding spirit. We dive deep into the tumultuous history behind one of the most ambitious projects in rock history, The Who's "Lifehouse," and how it gave rise to an album that, despite its fraught genesis, stands as a masterpiece of the genre. From Pete Townsend's futuristic visions to the band's quest for a universal musical connection, we unravel the tapestry of a song that has been both celebrated and misunderstood. With a careful ear, we dissect the iconic keyboard riff, Keith Moon's explosive drumming, John Entwistle's virtuosic bass lines, and Roger Daltrey's soul-stirring vocals. This episode isn't just a tribute to a classic track; it's a deep dive into the heart of rock music and the relentless pursuit of artistic vision. "Won't Get Fooled Again" Pete Townshend Copyright 1971 Towser Tunes, Inc., Fabulous Music Ltd. and ABKCO Music Inc. Take advantage of our discount code lovethatsong and save 15% off t-shirts & merch from your favorite bands at OldGlory.com! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
If you were to make a list of the musicians who made some of the most beloved recordings in rock music, the name Jerry Shirley will come up over and over again. In addition to his role as drummer in Humble Pie, he has worked closely with luminaries like B.B. King, John Entwistle, and of course, Syd Barrett. In this episode, he sits down with Phil Salathé to discuss his long and storied career, and to share stories from his work with Syd in the studio and live. We also investigate a few mysteries in the process, including an enigmatic Syd outtake that's stymied researchers for decades. You won't want to miss it!
If you've ever suffered from wrist pain after spending hours perfecting a John Entwistle bass solo, you'll know that spending extended periods hunched over a bass guitar can cause all kinds of hand and arm problems, back pain, and even nerve damage. In this podcast, we talk through Scott's recent health scare and share some advice to ensure that your “bass face” is a grimace of ecstasy rather than agony!
If you've ever suffered from wrist pain after spending hours perfecting a John Entwistle bass solo, you'll know that spending extended periods hunched over a bass guitar can cause all kinds of hand and arm problems, back pain, and even nerve damage. In this podcast, we talk through Scott's recent health scare and share some advice to ensure that your “bass face” is a grimace of ecstasy rather than agony!
Brushing aside the cobweb spray and luminous flashing skulls, we ring rock and roll's doorbell in pursuit of both tricks and treats. Among which you'll find … … the gothification of entertainment … Harry Potter, Creedence Clearwater and Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings. … Donald Trump dancing to Jeff Buckley. … why Phil Lesh was the heart and soul of the Grateful Dead. … John Cooper Clarke playing a 23,000-seater and the rise of Spoken Word. … Bah! Humbug! The full horror of Halloween and its infernal TV specials. … Allen Ginsberg's International Poetry Incarnation at the Albert Hall in 1965. … Rihanna's dietician, therapist, spiritual advisor and hospitality liaison manager. … the auditions for the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. … the curse of having everything you want. … John Lennon imprisoned in the Dakota – without the internet! And his mishandling of an Austin Maxi. … Helen Mirren's thing about Kurt Cobain. … why Phil Lesh, John Entwistle, Jack Casady and Paul McCartney were a breed apart. … when Mark King's father kicked him out of the family home. … plus Abraham Lincoln, Fields of the Nephilim, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, Eraserhead, the Batcave and birthday guest Matthew Elliot wonders if anyone had greater love songs written about them than Rosanna Arquette (by Toto and Peter Gabriel)? Mama Tried by the Grateful Dead. Just LISTEN to Phil Lesh's bass playing:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MP4gy0TBDfUFind out more about how to help us to keep the conversation going: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Brushing aside the cobweb spray and luminous flashing skulls, we ring rock and roll's doorbell in pursuit of both tricks and treats. Among which you'll find … … the gothification of entertainment … Harry Potter, Creedence Clearwater and Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings. … Donald Trump dancing to Jeff Buckley. … why Phil Lesh was the heart and soul of the Grateful Dead. … John Cooper Clarke playing a 23,000-seater and the rise of Spoken Word. … Bah! Humbug! The full horror of Halloween and its infernal TV specials. … Allen Ginsberg's International Poetry Incarnation at the Albert Hall in 1965. … Rihanna's dietician, therapist, spiritual advisor and hospitality liaison manager. … the auditions for the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. … the curse of having everything you want. … John Lennon imprisoned in the Dakota – without the internet! And his mishandling of an Austin Maxi. … Helen Mirren's thing about Kurt Cobain. … why Phil Lesh, John Entwistle, Jack Casady and Paul McCartney were a breed apart. … when Mark King's father kicked him out of the family home. … plus Abraham Lincoln, Fields of the Nephilim, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, Eraserhead, the Batcave and birthday guest Matthew Elliot wonders if anyone had greater love songs written about them than Rosanna Arquette (by Toto and Peter Gabriel)? Mama Tried by the Grateful Dead. Just LISTEN to Phil Lesh's bass playing:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MP4gy0TBDfUFind out more about how to help us to keep the conversation going: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Brushing aside the cobweb spray and luminous flashing skulls, we ring rock and roll's doorbell in pursuit of both tricks and treats. Among which you'll find … … the gothification of entertainment … Harry Potter, Creedence Clearwater and Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings. … Donald Trump dancing to Jeff Buckley. … why Phil Lesh was the heart and soul of the Grateful Dead. … John Cooper Clarke playing a 23,000-seater and the rise of Spoken Word. … Bah! Humbug! The full horror of Halloween and its infernal TV specials. … Allen Ginsberg's International Poetry Incarnation at the Albert Hall in 1965. … Rihanna's dietician, therapist, spiritual advisor and hospitality liaison manager. … the auditions for the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. … the curse of having everything you want. … John Lennon imprisoned in the Dakota – without the internet! And his mishandling of an Austin Maxi. … Helen Mirren's thing about Kurt Cobain. … why Phil Lesh, John Entwistle, Jack Casady and Paul McCartney were a breed apart. … when Mark King's father kicked him out of the family home. … plus Abraham Lincoln, Fields of the Nephilim, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, Eraserhead, the Batcave and birthday guest Matthew Elliot wonders if anyone had greater love songs written about them than Rosanna Arquette (by Toto and Peter Gabriel)? Mama Tried by the Grateful Dead. Just LISTEN to Phil Lesh's bass playing:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MP4gy0TBDfUFind out more about how to help us to keep the conversation going: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Full Rig Details: https://www.premierguitar.com/videos/rig-rundown/matt-freemanMatt Freeman's Bass Bunker: https://youtube.com/@MattFreemansBassBunker This summer, a Bay Area punk-rock extravaganza rolled across the world. In support of the 30th and 20th anniversaries of their records Dookie and American Idiot, Green Day arranged the summer's best stadium-rock tour, with support from Smashing Pumpkins and fellow Bay bashers Rancid. PG's Chris Kies met up with Rancid bassist Matt Freeman just before the tour's stop at Nashville's Geodis Park. In this Rundown, in addition to trotting out his breadwinner bass rig, Freeman tells Kies his bass origin story, including his early and enduring influences, and shares how he developed a unique playing style suited to his smaller hands. Later, tech Warren Lee takes over to give us the scoop on Freeman's backstage rack. Tune in to get the details.Shop Matt Freeman's Gear:Fender American Pro II P Bass: https://sweetwater.sjv.io/daxa3QFender Bassman 800 Head - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/da44O3Fender Bassman 810 Neo 8x10" Bass Cabinet - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/baEe4xAvalon U5 Class A Active Instrument DI and Preamp - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/y2GGqBFender Precision Bass - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/daxa3QFender Nickel Plated Steel Bass Strings -https://sweetwater.sjv.io/Y9WWRKFull Rig Details: https://www.premierguitar.com/videos/rig-rundown/matt-freemanMatt Freeman's Bass Bunker: https://youtube.com/@MattFreemansBassBunker Subscribe to PG's Channel: http://bit.ly/SubscribePGYouTubeWin Guitar Gear: https://bit.ly/GiveawaysPG Don't Miss a Rundown: http://bit.ly/RIgRundownENLMerch & Magazines: https://shop.premierguitar.comPG's Facebook: https://facebook.com/premierguitarPG's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/premierguitar/PG's Twitter: https://twitter.com/premierguitarPG's Threads: https://threads.net/@premierguitarPG's TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@premierguitar[Brought to you by D'Addario: https://ddar.io/wykyk-rr]0:00 - Nita Strauss & D'Addario0:15 - Matt Freeman & Chris Kies Intro0:46 - Custom Fender American Pro II P Bass (Chambered)3:39 - John Entwistle is Matt Freeman's Biggest Influence5:17 - Dunlop Tortex .60 mm picks & Playing Style7:55 - Rig Rundown & D'Addario8:26 - Fender American Pro II P Bass9:51 - Trying to Play Other Basses11:17 - Fender Bassman 800HD Head & 8x10 Cab12:33 - Matt Freeman's Bass Bunker Channel13:38 - Fender Nickel Plated Steel Bass Strings14:32 - Avalon U5 DI & Way Huge Pork Loin15:48 - D'Addario Strings© Copyright Gearhead Communications LLC, 2024#guitar #bass #rigrundown #rancid #bassguitar #bassist #bassplayer #mattfreeman #punk #punkrock
The Five Count recently had a chance to speak with musician Steve Luongo. Steve is best known as a member of The John Entwistle Band. He's also played with people like Jack Bruce, Eddie Money, Todd Rundgren Ritchie Blackmore, Joe Walsh, Billy Squier and many more. Get the new album John Entwistle: Rarities Oxhumed, Volume Two now! https://youtu.be/VbDHxei98fM?si=ZsuW5LLtrfxzkm11
Time Travelin' Top 40 E159 Brandon Vogt talks with Steve Longo bandmate of John Entwistle on the new project “JOHN ENTWISTLE'S RARITIES OXHUMED – VOLUME TWO” See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
30- The Who -A Quick One (Reaction Records in the UK and Decca in the U.S ) Released December 9, 1966, Recorded August 30- November -1966 The Who's A Quick One (1966) is the band's second studio album and marks a significant step in their evolution. The album showcases the individual songwriting talents of each member: Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey, John Entwistle, and Keith Moon, with Townshend emerging as the standout composer. The title track, "A Quick One, While He's Away," is a nine-minute mini-opera that foreshadows Townshend's later work on Tommy and is a clear highlight of the album. Known for its eclectic mix of styles, the album reached No. 4 on the UK Albums Chart but only No. 67 in the U.S. Despite not being universally considered their best work; the album was instrumental in solidifying The Who's reputation as one of the most innovative rock bands of the 1960s. The single "Happy Jack" also saw success, peaking at No. 3 in the UK and No. 24 in the US, marking the band's first significant American chart presence. A Quick One is significant for showcasing the growth of a band that would become one of the most celebrated in rock history. Curated Spotify Playlist https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7I6dzYc5UJfko8unziRMWf?si=02cb54f0a19e4e3c Album on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/album/6f4mqM3RNAfO1t6XeeUa8P?si=hOzPkblNQOOI_qBFxhiXvw Album on YouTube https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL47ACAF82B659E0AE&si=0i0zYZV_fSunEtx2
Steve Luongo is the curator of more John Entwistle music as we discuss on this brand new Fake Show podcast with host Jim Tofte...enjoy!!!
An ode to a pot plant, a Dimland Radio Pedantic Moment: No one has lived through 2020s yet, John Entwistle's biography and memory, and a nice note from an old friend. The show notes for the latest Dimland Radio are here: https://dimland.com/2024/08/12/dimland-radio-8-10-24-show-notes/
Finally, a song that is unequivocally about the sun! Covers by: Richie Havens, Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, Womack & Womack, John Entwistle, Randy Bachman, Jacob Collier ft. Dodie, Bumblefoot Tidal playlist here
Pete Townshend intended the fifth studio album from The Who to be a science fiction rock opera called “Lifehouse,” as a follow up to the rock opera “Tommy” released in 1969. After conflicts with their band manager and issues just managing the complexity of what Townshend envisioned the project to be, the rock opera was shelved, and the follow-up was made into a more traditional album entitled Who's Next.The group began recording the album at Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger's house, using the Stones' mobile recording studio, then moved to a more traditional studio in London. Most of the album is made up of songs originally intended for the Lifehouse project. Who's Next would see the Who make significant use of synthesizers and other keyboard sounds on this album, making the synthesizers a more integrated part of the songs than on previous albums. Drummer Keith Moon's style was also more formalized than before, and the overall album was focused on a good sound where previous albums were perhaps tilted toward a sonic projection of the image of the band.Who's Next would contain some of the most iconic songs that the band produced, and retrospectively is considered by many to be the best album The Who ever produced. The album would reach number 1 on the UK charts, and number 4 on the US charts.Rob brings us this iconic album for today's podcast, and friend of the show Mike Fernandes sits in for Bruce this week.MobileThis lighter song is a celebration of life on the open road. Roger Daltrey steps aside as Pete Townshend takes over lead vocal duties. Daltrey actually was not present at the recording of this song, leaving Keith Moon (drums), John Entwistle (bass), and Townshend (vocals, guitar, keyboards) to record it as a power trio.A BargainOften misconstrued as a love song to a woman, this track actually is about a relationship with God. It contends that sacrificing everything for a relationship with God is not a sacrifice at all, but a bargain. Much of Pete Townshend's work is inspired by eastern mysticism.Won't Get Fooled AgainThe last track on the album is an 8 1/2-minute epic. It was originally intended as a closing number to the "Lifehouse" rock opera. The lyrics offer a critique of both government and revolutionary change, summarized in the phrase "Meet the new boss, same as the old boss." Townshend was inspired to write this song after chasing Abbie Hoffman off the stage at Woodstock.Baba O'Riley The title of the lead track to the album is a combination of two of Townshend's mentors, Indian spiritualist Meher Baba and American Composer Terry Riley. The repeated phrase "teenage wasteland" was inspired by Townshend's observations of youths at Woodstock strung out on acid. ENTERTAINMENT TRACK:The Beat Goes On by Sonny & Cher (from the television variety show “Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour”)The singing duo Sonny and Cher started this sketch comedy and music show in 1971. It would run for 3 years until their divorce. STAFF PICKS:Sweet City Woman by The StampedersWayne brings us a banjo-laden hit from a Canadian trio. The lyrics were inspired by an encounter with a girl with wild eyes who came from the prairie to start life in the big city. It hit number 8 on the US charts and number 1 in Canada. It also won a number of Juno awards in 1972. You may remember it from an episode of "Better Call Saul."Take Me Home, Country Roads by John DenverLynch keeps the banjo hits coming with a signature song from John Denver. It went to number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, and would become one of four official state songs for West Virginia. Denver recorded this song in only two hours.Nobody by the Doobie Brothers Mike brings us a lost song from the first album by the Doobie Brothers. Neither this song nor the album charted when it was released, but it displays a number of riffs and styles which would become staples of Doobie Brothers songs. It was re-released in 1974 after the group had achieved success, and it reached number 58 on the Billboard Hot 100.Maggie May by Rod Stewart Rob closes out the staff picks with a hit single off Stewart's third solo album "Every Picture Tells a Story." The lyrics describe the contradictory feelings of a boy in a relationship with an older woman. The inspiration was a true encounter Stewart had with a woman at the 1961 Beaulieu Jazz Festival. The song went to number 1 in Australia, the US, the UK, and Canada. INSTRUMENTAL TRACK:Orchid by Black SabbathWe close out with a surprisingly soft instrumental from an ordinarily more heavy hitting band. Thanks for listening to “What the Riff?!?” NOTE: To adjust the loudness of the music or voices, you may adjust the balance on your device. VOICES are stronger in the LEFT channel, and MUSIC is stronger on the RIGHT channel.Please follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/whattheriffpodcast/, and message or email us with what you'd like to hear, what you think of the show, and any rock-worthy memes we can share.Of course we'd love for you to rate the show in your podcast platform!**NOTE: What the Riff?!? does not own the rights to any of these songs and we neither sell, nor profit from them. We share them so you can learn about them and purchase them for your own collections.
On the June 27 edition of the Music History Today podcast, Elvis comes back, John Entwistle goes out like a only a rock star can, a smile turns into a queen, and John Lennon finally becomes legal. Also, happy birthday to Lorrie Morgan and Leigh Nash of Sixpence None the Richer. For more music history, subscribe to my Spotify Channel or subscribe to the audio version of my music history podcasts, wherever you get your podcasts from ALL MUSIC HISTORY TODAY PODCAST NETWORK LINKS - https://allmylinks.com/musichistorytoday --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/musichistorytodaypodcast/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/musichistorytodaypodcast/support
Rock legends (including 2 Rock n Roll Hall of Fame Inductees) share stories from their time playing, recording and touring with The Who! From studio chaos to replacing the irreplaceable, gruelling tour dates to backstage drama, you'll get a glimpse into the minds and actions of icons Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey, John Entwistle and Keith Moon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Rock legends (including 2 Rock n Roll Hall of Fame Inductees) share stories from their time playing, recording and touring with The Who! From studio chaos to replacing the irreplaceable, gruelling tour dates to backstage drama, you'll get a glimpse into the minds and actions of icons Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey, John Entwistle and Keith Moon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Label: Decca 32896 djYear: 1971Condition: MPrice: $14.00Here's a beautiful promo copy of this amazing single by Who bassist John Entwistle. If you haven't heard the amazing hard-rocker on the A side, you're definitely missing out on one of the best rarities in classic rock! Have a listen to the mp3 snippet in our jukebox to hear what I'm talking about. The flip is a more typical Who-sounding outing. Note: This copy comes in a vintage Decca Records factory sleeve. It has pristine Mint vinyl and audio, and the labels grade very close to Mint. (Note: This scan is a representative image from our archives.)
Book Vs. Movie: TommyThe 1969 Rock Opera Vs. The 1975 Movie“Musicals in March”"The Who's Tommy" is a rock opera written by Pete Townshend and performed by the English rock band The Who. It was first released as a double album in 1969 and later adapted into various stage productions, including a highly successful Broadway musical. The story revolves around a young boy named Tommy Walker who becomes deaf, dumb, and blind after witnessing a traumatic event. Despite his sensory impairments, Tommy discovers an extraordinary talent for playing pinball and becomes a messianic figure for his followers. The rock opera has been adapted into various forms over the years, including a 1975 film directed by Ken Russell and a Broadway musical that premiered in 1992. Which did we (the Margos) prefer, the original album or the 1975 movie adaptation?In this ep, the Margos discuss:The Who and their place in rock historyRobert Stigwood & Ken RussellThe.The cast of the 1975 film includes Roger Daltrey (Tommy,) Ann-Margret (Nora,) Oliver Reed (Frank,) Elton John (Pinball Wizard,) John Entwistle (bass player,) Keith Moon (drummer and Uncle Ernie,) Paul Nicholas (Cousin Kevin,) Jack Nicholson (The Specialist,) Pete Townshend (guitarist,) and Tina Turner as the Acid Queen.Clips used:The Acid QueenTommy (original 1975 movie trailer)ChampagneSmash the MirrorThe Pinball WizardThere's a DoctorWe're Not Gonna Take ItMusic by Pete Townshend.Book Vs. Movie is part of the Frolic Podcast Network. Find more podcasts you will love Frolic.Media/podcasts. Join our Patreon page “Book Vs. Movie podcast”You can find us on Facebook at Book Vs. Movie Podcast GroupFollow us on Twitter @bookversusmovieInstagram: Book Versus Movie https://www.instagram.com/bookversusmovie/Email us at bookversusmoviepodcast@gmail.com Margo D. Twitter @BrooklynMargo Margo D's Blog www.brooklynfitchick.com Margo D's Instagram “Brooklyn Fit Chick”Margo D's TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@margodonohuebrooklynfitchick@gmail.comYou can buy your copy of Filmed in Brooklyn here! Margo P. Twitter @ShesNachoMamaMargo P's Instagram https://www.instagram.com/shesnachomama/Margo P's Blog https://coloniabook.weebly.com/ Our logo was designed by Madeleine Gainey/Studio 39 Marketing Follow on Instagram @Studio39Marketing & @musicalmadeleine
Book Vs. Movie: TommyThe 1969 Rock Opera Vs. The 1975 Movie“Musicals in March”"The Who's Tommy" is a rock opera written by Pete Townshend and performed by the English rock band The Who. It was first released as a double album in 1969 and later adapted into various stage productions, including a highly successful Broadway musical. The story revolves around a young boy named Tommy Walker who becomes deaf, dumb, and blind after witnessing a traumatic event. Despite his sensory impairments, Tommy discovers an extraordinary talent for playing pinball and becomes a messianic figure for his followers. The rock opera has been adapted into various forms over the years, including a 1975 film directed by Ken Russell and a Broadway musical that premiered in 1992. Which did we (the Margos) prefer, the original album or the 1975 movie adaptation?In this ep, the Margos discuss:The Who and their place in rock historyRobert Stigwood & Ken RussellThe.The cast of the 1975 film includes Roger Daltrey (Tommy,) Ann-Margret (Nora,) Oliver Reed (Frank,) Elton John (Pinball Wizard,) John Entwistle (bass player,) Keith Moon (drummer and Uncle Ernie,) Paul Nicholas (Cousin Kevin,) Jack Nicholson (The Specialist,) Pete Townshend (guitarist,) and Tina Turner as the Acid Queen.Clips used:The Acid QueenTommy (original 1975 movie trailer)ChampagneSmash the MirrorThe Pinball WizardThere's a DoctorWe're Not Gonna Take ItMusic by Pete Townshend.Book Vs. Movie is part of the Frolic Podcast Network. Find more podcasts you will love Frolic.Media/podcasts. Join our Patreon page “Book Vs. Movie podcast”You can find us on Facebook at Book Vs. Movie Podcast GroupFollow us on Twitter @bookversusmovieInstagram: Book Versus Movie https://www.instagram.com/bookversusmovie/Email us at bookversusmoviepodcast@gmail.com Margo D. Twitter @BrooklynMargo Margo D's Blog www.brooklynfitchick.com Margo D's Instagram “Brooklyn Fit Chick”Margo D's TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@margodonohuebrooklynfitchick@gmail.comYou can buy your copy of Filmed in Brooklyn here! Margo P. Twitter @ShesNachoMamaMargo P's Instagram https://www.instagram.com/shesnachomama/Margo P's Blog https://coloniabook.weebly.com/ Our logo was designed by Madeleine Gainey/Studio 39 Marketing Follow on Instagram @Studio39Marketing & @musicalmadeleine
This week's Prog-Watch is all about the STRANGE! With fabulous music from Roger Taylor, the Moody Blues, the Samurai of Prog, Michael Penn, Abel Ganz, Deep Purple, Saga, John Entwistle, ELO, the ESP Project, Guy Manning, Karnataka, Kate Bush, Edison's Children, Ultravox, and the Who! All in 90 minutes!
We fetch another round of barrel-aged beers for this episode, but with a twist: all four beers are aged in different kinds of brandy barrels. We explore the world of sweet brandy barrels and how they work on different styles, and we are totally surprised by our takeaways. Also, we talk mixed drinks, New Year sugar fears, John Entwistle, cooked malt, surprising personal revelations, and Jolly Rancher complaints. (Such a fine barrel.) Beers Reviewed Third Space Brewing - Wisconsinator (Doppelbock aged in Wollersheim Distillery brandy barrels) Central Waters Brewing Company - Peach Brandy & Maple Barrel-aged Barleywine (English-style barleywine with honey aged in peach brandy barrels & Bliss maple syrup barrels) Maplewood Brewing Company - Black Seed (Wheated stout aged in apple brandy barrels) Half Acre Beer Co. - Cherry Brandy Benthic 2022 (Cherry brandy barrel-aged stout with coconut and vanilla)
"Tunes of the Season: Phish, Grateful Dead, and Merry Jams"Larry Mishkin discusses Christmas-themed songs performed by various artists, including The Who and Grateful Dead. Larry delves into The Who's rock opera "Tommy," particularly focusing on the song "Christmas" and its critical reception. He transitions to discussing Grateful Dead's rendition of Chuck Berry's "Run, Rudolph, Run" performed at the Felt Forum in 1971 and analyzes its significance in the band's repertoire.Larry further explores the potential residency of bands like Dead & Company at the Sphere in Las Vegas, following U2's shows there. He touches on Phish's upcoming performances at the same venue and discusses the difficulty in acquiring tickets for these highly anticipated shows.Later, Larry reminisces about New Year's Eve shows by various bands, specifically mentioning Grateful Dead's memorable performances during the countdown. He also features unconventional Christmas renditions by Phish and Jerry Garcia with David Grisman..Produced by PodConx Theme – Rock n Roll ChristmasIf you were in the Mishkin household earlier this morning, you might have heard this blasting out of the speakers:INTRO: ChristmasThe WhoFebruary 14, 1970University of Leeds, Leeds, England aka “Live At Leeds”The Who - Christmas - Live At Leeds (with Footage) (youtube.com)2:00 – 3:17 "Christmas" is a song written by Pete Townshend and is the seventh song on The Who's rock opera Tommy. On the original LP, it opens the second side of the album. Tommy is the fourth studio album by the English rock band the Who, first released on 19 May 1969.[2] Primarily written by guitarist Pete Townshend, Tommy is a double album and an early rock opera that tells the story of Tommy Walker and his experiences through life. The song tells how on Christmas morning, Tommy's father is worried about Tommy's future, and soul. His future is jeopardized due to being deaf, dumb, and blind.[2] The lyrics contrast religious themes such as Christmas and Jesus Christ with Tommy's ignorance of such matters. The rhetorical question, "How can he be saved from the eternal grave?" is asked about Tommy's condition and adds speculation as to the nature of original sin and eternal salvation. In the middle of the song, "Tommy can you hear me?" is repeated, with Tommy responding, "See me, feel me, touch me, heal me." "Christmas" was praised by critics. Richie Unterberger of AllMusic called it an "excellent song."[5]Rolling Stone's Mac Randall said it was one of several "prime Pete Townshend songs" on the album.[6] A review in Life by Albert Goldman considered it beautiful and highlighted the song's "croaking chorus".[7] James Perone said it was "perhaps one of the best sleeper tracks of the collection." Townshend came up with the concept of Tommy after being introduced to the work of Meher Baba, and he attempted to translate Baba's teachings into music. Recording on the album began in September 1968, but took six months to complete as material needed to be arranged and re-recorded in the studio. Tommy was acclaimed upon its release by critics, who hailed it as the Who's breakthrough. Its critical standing diminished slightly in later years; nonetheless, several writers view it as an important and influential album in the history of rock music. The Who promoted the album's release with an extensive tour, including a live version of Tommy, which lasted throughout 1969 and 1970. Key gigs from the tour included appearances at Woodstock, the 1969 Isle of Wight Festival, the University of Leeds, the Metropolitan Opera House, and the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival. The live performances of Tommy drew critical praise and revitalised the band's career. Live at Leeds is the first live album by English rock band the Who. It was recorded at the University of Leeds Refectory on 14 February 1970, and is their only live album that was released while the group were still actively recording and performing with their best-known line-up of Roger Daltrey, Pete Townshend, John Entwistle and Keith Moon. The album was released on 11 May 1970 by Decca and MCA in the United States,[2] and by Track and Polydor in the United Kingdom. It has been reissued on several occasions and in several different formats. Since its release, Live at Leeds has been ranked by several music critics as the best live rock recording of all time SHOW No. 1: Run Rudolph RunGrateful DeadFelt Forum at MSG, NYCDecember 7, 1971Track No. 10Grateful Dead Live at Felt Forum, Madison Square Garden on 1971-12-07 : Free Borrow & Streaming : Internet Archive0:11 – 1:54 Run Rudolph Run"[2][3][4] is a Christmas song written by Chuck Berry but credited to Johnny Marks and M. Brodie due to Marks' trademark on the character of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.[5][note 1] It was published by St. Nicholas Music (ASCAP) and was first recorded by Berry in 1958, released as a single on Chess Records.It has since been covered by numerous other artists, sometimes with the title "Run Run Rudolph".[16] The song is a 12-bar blues, musically similar to Berry's popular and recognizable song "Johnny B. Goode", and melodically similar to his song "Little Queenie", the latter of which was released shortly after, in 1959.During its initial chart run, Berry's 1958 recording peaked at number 69 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in December 1958.[22] Sixty years later, the single re-entered the Hot 100 chart at number 45 (on the week ending January 5, 2019), reaching an overall peak position of number 10 on the week ending January 2, 2021, following its third chart re-entry, becoming Berry's third top-ten hit and his first since 1972's "My Ding-a-Ling". In doing so, it broke the record for the longest climb to the top 10 since its first entry in December 1958, at 62 years and two weeks.This Ciip:Out of Brokedown Palace and into You Win AgainPlayed a total of 7 times.This was the first timeLast: December 15, 1971 Hill Auditorium, Ann Arbor, MI SHOW No. 2: Little Drummer BoyPhishJuly 3, 1999Coca Cola Lakewood Amphitheatre, Atlanta, GAPhish - The Little Drummer Boy - 7/3/1999 - Atlanta, GA (youtube.com)Start to 1:30 Out of Contact to close the second set. Played it again as the first encore (into, Won't You Come Home Bill Bailery starring Page's dad, Jack, on vocals and kazoo. "The Little Drummer Boy" (originally known as "Carol of the Drum") is a Czechoslovakian popular Christmas song written by American composer Katherine Kennicott Davis in 1941.[1] First recorded in 1951 by the Austrian Trapp Family, the song was further popularized by a 1958 recording by the Harry Simeone Chorale; the Simeone version was re-released successfully for several years, and the song has been recorded many times since.[2] In the lyrics, the singer relates how, as a poor young boy, he was summoned by the Magi to the Nativity of Jesus. Without a gift for the Infant, the little drummer boy played his drum with approval from Jesus' mother, Mary, recalling, "I played my best for him" and "He smiled at me". Phish has only performed the song three times during the month of December – the debut performance segueing out of “Mike's Song” and into “Whipping Post,” a tease during the 12/28/94 “Weekapaug Groove,” and jammed out of the “YEM” vocal jam (12/2/99) (which melted down until Jon was left singing it to close the set). But the song was jammed out of season during “My Friend, My Friend” (3/18/93) and “Stash” (7/15/93), and teased during “Weekapaug Groove” and “Big Ball Jam” (4/9/94), “Wilson” (8/13/97), “Silent in the Morning” (7/4/99), and "Wilson" (4/16/04). This version is generally considered to be Fishman's most memorable version. SHOW No. 3: God Rest Ye Merry GentlemenJerry Garcia and David GrismanNovember 9, 1991Warfield Theater, S.F.God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen - Jerry Garcia - Bing videoStart – 1:37Out of The Two Sisters to close second set "God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen" is an English traditional Christmas carol. It is in the Roxburghe Collection (iii. 452), and is listed as no. 394 in the Roud Folk Song Index. It is also known as "Tidings of Comfort and Joy", and by other variant incipits. An early version of this carol is found in an anonymous manuscript, dating from the 1650s it appeared in a parody published in 1820 by William Hone. Story here is the way Jerry and David play so tight, trading off leads and filling in gaps. A great sound for a traditional tune. There are many sides of Jerry and we don't get to see all of them. Nice to take a break from the traditional Dead stuff and take a look in at what else Garcia was doing during that creative period of his life. SHOW No. 4: Stagger LeeGrateful DeadDecember 30, 1985Track No. 6Grateful Dead Live at Oakland Coliseum on 1985-12-30 : Free Borrow & Streaming : Internet ArchiveStart – 1:32 As is made clear by the opening lyrics, this is a tale about events that unfolded and played out on Christmas: “1940 Xmas Eve with a full moon over town”. On some occasions, Jerry was known to substitute in “Christmas” Eve. "Stagger Lee", also known as "Stagolee" and other variants, is a popular American folk song about the murder of Billy Lyons by "Stag" Lee Shelton, in St. Louis, Missouri, at Christmas 1895. The song was first published in 1911 and first recorded in 1923, by Fred Waring's Pennsylvanians, titled "Stack O' Lee Blues". A version by Lloyd Price reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1959. The historical Stagger Lee was Lee Shelton, an African-American pimp living in St. Louis, Missouri, in the late 19th century. He was nicknamed Stag Lee or Stack Lee, with a variety of explanations being given: he was given the nickname because he "went stag" (went to social events unaccompanied by a person of the opposite sex); he took the nickname from a well-known riverboat captain called Stack Lee; or, according to John and Alan Lomax, he took the name from a riverboat owned by the Lee family of Memphis called the Stack Lee, which was known for its on-board prostitution.[2] Shelton was well known locally as one of the Macks, a group of pimps who demanded attention through their flashy clothing and appearance.[3] In addition to those activities, he was the captain of a black Four Hundred Club, a social club with a dubious reputation. On Christmas night in 1895, Shelton and his acquaintance William "Billy" Lyons were drinking in the Bill Curtis Saloon. Lyons was also a member of St. Louis' underworld, and may have been a political and business rival to Shelton. Eventually, the two men got into a dispute, during which Lyons took Shelton's Stetson hat.[5]Subsequently, Shelton shot Lyons, recovered his hat, and left.[6] Lyons died of his injuries, and Shelton was charged, tried, and convicted of the murder in 1897. He was paroled in 1909, but returned to prison in 1911 for assault and robbery. He died in incarceration in 1912. The Grateful Dead frequently played and eventually recorded a version of the tale which focuses on the fictionalized hours after the death of "Billy DeLyon", when Billy's wife Delia tracks down Stagger Lee in a local saloon and "she shot him in the balls" in revenge for Billy's death. Based on the traditional song "Stagger Lee", "Stagolee" or "Stack O'Lee." Robert Hunter wrote a version that he performed solo, and Jerry Garcia subsequently re-ordered the lyrics and rewrote the music for the Grateful Dead's version. More recently Bob Weir has also been performing some of the older traditional versions with Ratdog. Dead released it on Shakedown Street, Nov. 8, 1978 Played 146 times by the Dead1st: August 30, 1978Last: June 18, 1995 Giants Stadium OUTRO: Santa Clause Is Coming To TownBruce Springsteen and the E Street BandCW Post University, Greenvale, NYDecember, 19756Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town (Live at C.W. Post College, Greenvale, NY - December 1975) - Bing video2:15 - 4:00 Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" is a Christmas song featuring Santa Claus, written by J. Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie and first recorded by Harry Reser and His Band.[1] When it was covered by Eddie Cantor on his radio show in November 1934 it became a hit; within 24 hours, 500,000 copies of sheet music and more than 30,000 records were sold.[2][3] The version for Bluebird Records by George Hall and His Orchestra (vocal by Sonny Schuyler) was very popular in 1934 and reached the various charts of the day.[4] The song has been recorded by over 200 artists including Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters, the Crystals, Neil Diamond, Fred Astaire, Bruce Springsteen, Frank Sinatra, Bill Evans, Chris Isaak, the Temptations, The Pointer Sisters, the Carpenters, Michael Bublé, Luis Miguel, and the Jackson 5 A rock version by Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band was recorded on December 12, 1975, at C. W. Post College in Brookville, New York, by Record Plant engineers Jimmy Iovine and Thom Panunzio.[14][15] This version borrows the chorus refrain from the 1963 recording by the Crystals.[16] It was first released as a track on the 1981 Sesame Street compilation album, In Harmony 2, as well as on a 1981 promotional, radio-only, 7-inch single (Columbia AE7 1332).[17][18] Four years later, it was released as the B-side to "My Hometown," a single off the Born in the U.S.A. album.[19] Springsteen's rendition of the song has received radio airplay perennially at Christmastime for years; it appeared on Billboard magazine's Hot Singles Recurrents chart each year from 2002 to 2009 due to seasonal air play. Live performances of the song often saw the band encouraging the audience to sing some of the lyrics with—or in place of—the band's vocalists (usually the line "you'd better be good for goodness sake", and occasionally the key line "Santa Claus is Comin' to Town" as well). Sometimes, concert crowds would sing along with the entire song, and the band, who were known to encourage this behavior for the song, would do nothing to dissuade those audiences from doing so, instead welcoming the crowds' enthusiasm. This version remains a Springsteen concert favorite during the months of November and December (often concluding the show), and the band is among the few that keep it in their roster of songs during the holidays. Dead & Co at the Sphere?Phish – sold out fast Merry ChristmasHappy Holidays .Produced by PodConx Deadhead Cannabis Show - https://podconx.com/podcasts/deadhead-cannabis-showLarry Mishkin - https://podconx.com/guests/larry-mishkinRob Hunt - https://podconx.com/guests/rob-huntJay Blakesberg - https://podconx.com/guests/jay-blakesbergSound Designed by Jamie Humiston - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamie-humiston-91718b1b3/Recorded on Squadcast
This week's Prog-Watch is a themed special all about Windows and Doors, with tons of tasty tunes by Kansas, Magnum, Great Pacific Orchestra, Gardening Club Project, Jakko Jakszyk, Rewiring Genesis, K2, the Moody Blues, Mostly Autumn, World Trade, GPS, Pilot, Tony Lowe and Alison Fleming, Zebra, John Entwistle, Pete Townshend, Steeleye Span, and Panic Room!
The Who and Quadrophenia is the new book by Martin Popff and it takes a detailed look at the making and response to the Who's second double album rock opera. The book is now available from Motor Books, wherever you find your reading material.For more information, check out Martin's website.Plus, Heidi just saw Ringo Starr perform and gives us her full review.
In this episode of Music Defender, Joe tries to explain what's great about a non-rocking, slickly produced, soft-Eighties, Keith Moon-less Who. Good luck, say Michael and Kalli, while co-host Max is still studying the American Dream in Germany.
Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 2002. Show notes: In 2002, Jay became a first-time dad and didn't get much sleep Jay turned 35, Phil turned 33 Phil was newly single, met his current wife John Entwistle died the classic rock star death Napster officially called it quits after lawsuits Owning music is an outdated concept now Nickelback had the top song of the year Charts had a mixture of nu metal, hip hop and pop Phil's non-top 5 albums: Doves, Sleater-Kinney, Flaming Lips, Spoon, Trey Anastasio, Dave Matthews Band, Interpol, Black Keys, Sonic Youth, GBV, Tom Petty, Bowie Jay's non-top 5s: McLusky, Hot Snakes, Trail of Dead, Elvis Costello, Broken Social Scene We never saw a lot of the rock videos of this era This was the age of the MP3 blog To be continued Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple Podcasts. Subscribe and write a review! The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.
Episode 166 of A History of Rock Music in Five Hundred Songs looks at “Crossroads", Cream, the myth of Robert Johnson, and whether white men can sing the blues. Click the full post to read liner notes, links to more information, and a transcript of the episode. Patreon backers also have a forty-eight-minute bonus episode available, on “Tip-Toe Thru' the Tulips" by Tiny Tim. Tilt Araiza has assisted invaluably by doing a first-pass edit, and will hopefully be doing so from now on. Check out Tilt's irregular podcasts at http://www.podnose.com/jaffa-cakes-for-proust and http://sitcomclub.com/ Errata I talk about an interview with Clapton from 1967, I meant 1968. I mention a Graham Bond live recording from 1953, and of course meant 1963. I say Paul Jones was on vocals in the Powerhouse sessions. Steve Winwood was on vocals, and Jones was on harmonica. Resources As I say at the end, the main resource you need to get if you enjoyed this episode is Brother Robert by Annye Anderson, Robert Johnson's stepsister. There are three Mixcloud mixes this time. As there are so many songs by Cream, Robert Johnson, John Mayall, and Graham Bond excerpted, and Mixcloud won't allow more than four songs by the same artist in any mix, I've had to post the songs not in quite the same order in which they appear in the podcast. But the mixes are here -- one, two, three. This article on Mack McCormick gives a fuller explanation of the problems with his research and behaviour. The other books I used for the Robert Johnson sections were McCormick's Biography of a Phantom; Up Jumped the Devil: The Real Life of Robert Johnson, by Bruce Conforth and Gayle Dean Wardlow; Searching for Robert Johnson by Peter Guralnick; and Escaping the Delta by Elijah Wald. I can recommend all of these subject to the caveats at the end of the episode. The information on the history and prehistory of the Delta blues mostly comes from Before Elvis by Larry Birnbaum, with some coming from Charley Patton by John Fahey. The information on Cream comes mostly from Cream: How Eric Clapton Took the World by Storm by Dave Thompson. I also used Ginger Baker: Hellraiser by Ginger Baker and Ginette Baker, Mr Showbiz by Stephen Dando-Collins, Motherless Child by Paul Scott, and Alexis Korner: The Biography by Harry Shapiro. The best collection of Cream's work is the four-CD set Those Were the Days, which contains every track the group ever released while they were together (though only the stereo mixes of the albums, and a couple of tracks are in slightly different edits from the originals). You can get Johnson's music on many budget compilation records, as it's in the public domain in the EU, but the double CD collection produced by Steve LaVere for Sony in 2011 is, despite the problems that come from it being associated with LaVere, far and away the best option -- the remasters have a clarity that's worlds ahead of even the 1990s CD version it replaced. And for a good single-CD introduction to the Delta blues musicians and songsters who were Johnson's peers and inspirations, Back to the Crossroads: The Roots of Robert Johnson, compiled by Elijah Wald as a companion to his book on Johnson, can't be beaten, and contains many of the tracks excerpted in this episode. Patreon This podcast is brought to you by the generosity of my backers on Patreon. Why not join them? Transcript Before we start, a quick note that this episode contains discussion of racism, drug addiction, and early death. There's also a brief mention of death in childbirth and infant mortality. It's been a while since we looked at the British blues movement, and at the blues in general, so some of you may find some of what follows familiar, as we're going to look at some things we've talked about previously, but from a different angle. In 1968, the Bonzo Dog Band, a comedy musical band that have been described as the missing link between the Beatles and the Monty Python team, released a track called "Can Blue Men Sing the Whites?": [Excerpt: The Bonzo Dog Band, "Can Blue Men Sing the Whites?"] That track was mocking a discussion that was very prominent in Britain's music magazines around that time. 1968 saw the rise of a *lot* of British bands who started out as blues bands, though many of them went on to different styles of music -- Fleetwood Mac, Ten Years After, Jethro Tull, Chicken Shack and others were all becoming popular among the kind of people who read the music magazines, and so the question was being asked -- can white men sing the blues? Of course, the answer to that question was obvious. After all, white men *invented* the blues. Before we get any further at all, I have to make clear that I do *not* mean that white people created blues music. But "the blues" as a category, and particularly the idea of it as a music made largely by solo male performers playing guitar... that was created and shaped by the actions of white male record executives. There is no consensus as to when or how the blues as a genre started -- as we often say in this podcast "there is no first anything", but like every genre it seems to have come from multiple sources. In the case of the blues, there's probably some influence from African music by way of field chants sung by enslaved people, possibly some influence from Arabic music as well, definitely some influence from the Irish and British folk songs that by the late nineteenth century were developing into what we now call country music, a lot from ragtime, and a lot of influence from vaudeville and minstrel songs -- which in turn themselves were all very influenced by all those other things. Probably the first published composition to show any real influence of the blues is from 1904, a ragtime piano piece by James Chapman and Leroy Smith, "One O' Them Things": [Excerpt: "One O' Them Things"] That's not very recognisable as a blues piece yet, but it is more-or-less a twelve-bar blues. But the blues developed, and it developed as a result of a series of commercial waves. The first of these came in 1914, with the success of W.C. Handy's "Memphis Blues", which when it was recorded by the Victor Military Band for a phonograph cylinder became what is generally considered the first blues record proper: [Excerpt: The Victor Military Band, "Memphis Blues"] The famous dancers Vernon and Irene Castle came up with a dance, the foxtrot -- which Vernon Castle later admitted was largely inspired by Black dancers -- to be danced to the "Memphis Blues", and the foxtrot soon overtook the tango, which the Castles had introduced to the US the previous year, to become the most popular dance in America for the best part of three decades. And with that came an explosion in blues in the Handy style, cranked out by every music publisher. While the blues was a style largely created by Black performers and writers, the segregated nature of the American music industry at the time meant that most vocal performances of these early blues that were captured on record were by white performers, Black vocalists at this time only rarely getting the chance to record. The first blues record with a Black vocalist is also technically the first British blues record. A group of Black musicians, apparently mostly American but led by a Jamaican pianist, played at Ciro's Club in London, and recorded many tracks in Britain, under a name which I'm not going to say in full -- it started with Ciro's Club, and continued alliteratively with another word starting with C, a slur for Black people. In 1917 they recorded a vocal version of "St. Louis Blues", another W.C. Handy composition: [Excerpt: Ciro's Club C**n Orchestra, "St. Louis Blues"] The first American Black blues vocal didn't come until two years later, when Bert Williams, a Black minstrel-show performer who like many Black performers of his era performed in blackface even though he was Black, recorded “I'm Sorry I Ain't Got It You Could Have It If I Had It Blues,” [Excerpt: Bert Williams, "I'm Sorry I Ain't Got It You Could Have It If I Had It Blues,”] But it wasn't until 1920 that the second, bigger, wave of popularity started for the blues, and this time it started with the first record of a Black *woman* singing the blues -- Mamie Smith's "Crazy Blues": [Excerpt: Mamie Smith, "Crazy Blues"] You can hear the difference between that and anything we've heard up to that point -- that's the first record that anyone from our perspective, a hundred and three years later, would listen to and say that it bore any resemblance to what we think of as the blues -- so much so that many places still credit it as the first ever blues record. And there's a reason for that. "Crazy Blues" was one of those records that separates the music industry into before and after, like "Rock Around the Clock", "I Want to Hold Your Hand", Sgt Pepper, or "Rapper's Delight". It sold seventy-five thousand copies in its first month -- a massive number by the standards of 1920 -- and purportedly went on to sell over a million copies. Sales figures and market analysis weren't really a thing in the same way in 1920, but even so it became very obvious that "Crazy Blues" was a big hit, and that unlike pretty much any other previous records, it was a big hit among Black listeners, which meant that there was a market for music aimed at Black people that was going untapped. Soon all the major record labels were setting up subsidiaries devoted to what they called "race music", music made by and for Black people. And this sees the birth of what is now known as "classic blues", but at the time (and for decades after) was just what people thought of when they thought of "the blues" as a genre. This was music primarily sung by female vaudeville artists backed by jazz bands, people like Ma Rainey (whose earliest recordings featured Louis Armstrong in her backing band): [Excerpt: Ma Rainey, "See See Rider Blues"] And Bessie Smith, the "Empress of the Blues", who had a massive career in the 1920s before the Great Depression caused many of these "race record" labels to fold, but who carried on performing well into the 1930s -- her last recording was in 1933, produced by John Hammond, with a backing band including Benny Goodman and Jack Teagarden: [Excerpt: Bessie Smith, "Give Me a Pigfoot and a Bottle of Beer"] It wouldn't be until several years after the boom started by Mamie Smith that any record companies turned to recording Black men singing the blues accompanied by guitar or banjo. The first record of this type is probably "Norfolk Blues" by Reese DuPree from 1924: [Excerpt: Reese DuPree, "Norfolk Blues"] And there were occasional other records of this type, like "Airy Man Blues" by Papa Charlie Jackson, who was advertised as the “only man living who sings, self-accompanied, for Blues records.” [Excerpt: Papa Charlie Jackson, "Airy Man Blues"] But contrary to the way these are seen today, at the time they weren't seen as being in some way "authentic", or "folk music". Indeed, there are many quotes from folk-music collectors of the time (sadly all of them using so many slurs that it's impossible for me to accurately quote them) saying that when people sang the blues, that wasn't authentic Black folk music at all but an adulteration from commercial music -- they'd clearly, according to these folk-music scholars, learned the blues style from records and sheet music rather than as part of an oral tradition. Most of these performers were people who recorded blues as part of a wider range of material, like Blind Blake, who recorded some blues music but whose best work was his ragtime guitar instrumentals: [Excerpt: Blind Blake, "Southern Rag"] But it was when Blind Lemon Jefferson started recording for Paramount records in 1926 that the image of the blues as we now think of it took shape. His first record, "Got the Blues", was a massive success: [Excerpt: Blind Lemon Jefferson, "Got the Blues"] And this resulted in many labels, especially Paramount, signing up pretty much every Black man with a guitar they could find in the hopes of finding another Blind Lemon Jefferson. But the thing is, this generation of people making blues records, and the generation that followed them, didn't think of themselves as "blues singers" or "bluesmen". They were songsters. Songsters were entertainers, and their job was to sing and play whatever the audiences would want to hear. That included the blues, of course, but it also included... well, every song anyone would want to hear. They'd perform old folk songs, vaudeville songs, songs that they'd heard on the radio or the jukebox -- whatever the audience wanted. Robert Johnson, for example, was known to particularly love playing polka music, and also adored the records of Jimmie Rodgers, the first country music superstar. In 1941, when Alan Lomax first recorded Muddy Waters, he asked Waters what kind of songs he normally played in performances, and he was given a list that included "Home on the Range", Gene Autry's "I've Got Spurs That Jingle Jangle Jingle", and Glenn Miller's "Chattanooga Choo-Choo". We have few recordings of these people performing this kind of song though. One of the few we have is Big Bill Broonzy, who was just about the only artist of this type not to get pigeonholed as just a blues singer, even though blues is what made him famous, and who later in his career managed to record songs like the Tin Pan Alley standard "The Glory of Love": [Excerpt: Big Bill Broonzy, "The Glory of Love"] But for the most part, the image we have of the blues comes down to one man, Arthur Laibley, a sales manager for the Wisconsin Chair Company. The Wisconsin Chair Company was, as the name would suggest, a company that started out making wooden chairs, but it had branched out into other forms of wooden furniture -- including, for a brief time, large wooden phonographs. And, like several other manufacturers, like the Radio Corporation of America -- RCA -- and the Gramophone Company, which became EMI, they realised that if they were going to sell the hardware it made sense to sell the software as well, and had started up Paramount Records, which bought up a small label, Black Swan, and soon became the biggest manufacturer of records for the Black market, putting out roughly a quarter of all "race records" released between 1922 and 1932. At first, most of these were produced by a Black talent scout, J. Mayo Williams, who had been the first person to record Ma Rainey, Papa Charlie Jackson, and Blind Lemon Jefferson, but in 1927 Williams left Paramount, and the job of supervising sessions went to Arthur Laibley, though according to some sources a lot of the actual production work was done by Aletha Dickerson, Williams' former assistant, who was almost certainly the first Black woman to be what we would now think of as a record producer. Williams had been interested in recording all kinds of music by Black performers, but when Laibley got a solo Black man into the studio, what he wanted more than anything was for him to record the blues, ideally in a style as close as possible to that of Blind Lemon Jefferson. Laibley didn't have a very hands-on approach to recording -- indeed Paramount had very little concern about the quality of their product anyway, and Paramount's records are notorious for having been put out on poor-quality shellac and recorded badly -- and he only occasionally made actual suggestions as to what kind of songs his performers should write -- for example he asked Son House to write something that sounded like Blind Lemon Jefferson, which led to House writing and recording "Mississippi County Farm Blues", which steals the tune of Jefferson's "See That My Grave is Kept Clean": [Excerpt: Son House, "Mississippi County Farm Blues"] When Skip James wanted to record a cover of James Wiggins' "Forty-Four Blues", Laibley suggested that instead he should do a song about a different gun, and so James recorded "Twenty-Two Twenty Blues": [Excerpt: Skip James, "Twenty-Two Twenty Blues"] And Laibley also suggested that James write a song about the Depression, which led to one of the greatest blues records ever, "Hard Time Killing Floor Blues": [Excerpt: Skip James, "Hard Time Killing Floor Blues"] These musicians knew that they were getting paid only for issued sides, and that Laibley wanted only blues from them, and so that's what they gave him. Even when it was a performer like Charlie Patton. (Incidentally, for those reading this as a transcript rather than listening to it, Patton's name is more usually spelled ending in ey, but as far as I can tell ie was his preferred spelling and that's what I'm using). Charlie Patton was best known as an entertainer, first and foremost -- someone who would do song-and-dance routines, joke around, play guitar behind his head. He was a clown on stage, so much so that when Son House finally heard some of Patton's records, in the mid-sixties, decades after the fact, he was astonished that Patton could actually play well. Even though House had been in the room when some of the records were made, his memory of Patton was of someone who acted the fool on stage. That's definitely not the impression you get from the Charlie Patton on record: [Excerpt: Charlie Patton, "Poor Me"] Patton is, as far as can be discerned, the person who was most influential in creating the music that became called the "Delta blues". Not a lot is known about Patton's life, but he was almost certainly the half-brother of the Chatmon brothers, who made hundreds of records, most notably as members of the Mississippi Sheiks: [Excerpt: The Mississippi Sheiks, "Sitting on Top of the World"] In the 1890s, Patton's family moved to Sunflower County, Mississippi, and he lived in and around that county until his death in 1934. Patton learned to play guitar from a musician called Henry Sloan, and then Patton became a mentor figure to a *lot* of other musicians in and around the plantation on which his family lived. Some of the musicians who grew up in the immediate area around Patton included Tommy Johnson: [Excerpt: Tommy Johnson, "Big Road Blues"] Pops Staples: [Excerpt: The Staple Singers, "Will The Circle Be Unbroken"] Robert Johnson: [Excerpt: Robert Johnson, "Crossroads"] Willie Brown, a musician who didn't record much, but who played a lot with Patton, Son House, and Robert Johnson and who we just heard Johnson sing about: [Excerpt: Willie Brown, "M&O Blues"] And Chester Burnett, who went on to become known as Howlin' Wolf, and whose vocal style was equally inspired by Patton and by the country star Jimmie Rodgers: [Excerpt: Howlin' Wolf, "Smokestack Lightnin'"] Once Patton started his own recording career for Paramount, he also started working as a talent scout for them, and it was him who brought Son House to Paramount. Soon after the Depression hit, Paramount stopped recording, and so from 1930 through 1934 Patton didn't make any records. He was tracked down by an A&R man in January 1934 and recorded one final session: [Excerpt, Charlie Patton, "34 Blues"] But he died of heart failure two months later. But his influence spread through his proteges, and they themselves influenced other musicians from the area who came along a little after, like Robert Lockwood and Muddy Waters. This music -- or that portion of it that was considered worth recording by white record producers, only a tiny, unrepresentative, portion of their vast performing repertoires -- became known as the Delta Blues, and when some of these musicians moved to Chicago and started performing with electric instruments, it became Chicago Blues. And as far as people like John Mayall in Britain were concerned, Delta and Chicago Blues *were* the blues: [Excerpt: John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers, "It Ain't Right"] John Mayall was one of the first of the British blues obsessives, and for a long time thought of himself as the only one. While we've looked before at the growth of the London blues scene, Mayall wasn't from London -- he was born in Macclesfield and grew up in Cheadle Hulme, both relatively well-off suburbs of Manchester, and after being conscripted and doing two years in the Army, he had become an art student at Manchester College of Art, what is now Manchester Metropolitan University. Mayall had been a blues fan from the late 1940s, writing off to the US to order records that hadn't been released in the UK, and by most accounts by the late fifties he'd put together the biggest blues collection in Britain by quite some way. Not only that, but he had one of the earliest home tape recorders, and every night he would record radio stations from Continental Europe which were broadcasting for American service personnel, so he'd amassed mountains of recordings, often unlabelled, of obscure blues records that nobody else in the UK knew about. He was also an accomplished pianist and guitar player, and in 1956 he and his drummer friend Peter Ward had put together a band called the Powerhouse Four (the other two members rotated on a regular basis) mostly to play lunchtime jazz sessions at the art college. Mayall also started putting on jam sessions at a youth club in Wythenshawe, where he met another drummer named Hughie Flint. Over the late fifties and into the early sixties, Mayall more or less by himself built up a small blues scene in Manchester. The Manchester blues scene was so enthusiastic, in fact, that when the American Folk Blues Festival, an annual European tour which initially featured Willie Dixon, Memhis Slim, T-Bone Walker, Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee, and John Lee Hooker, first toured Europe, the only UK date it played was at the Manchester Free Trade Hall, and people like Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Brian Jones and Jimmy Page had to travel up from London to see it. But still, the number of blues fans in Manchester, while proportionally large, was objectively small enough that Mayall was captivated by an article in Melody Maker which talked about Alexis Korner and Cyril Davies' new band Blues Incorporated and how it was playing electric blues, the same music he was making in Manchester. He later talked about how the article had made him think that maybe now people would know what he was talking about. He started travelling down to London to play gigs for the London blues scene, and inviting Korner up to Manchester to play shows there. Soon Mayall had moved down to London. Korner introduced Mayall to Davey Graham, the great folk guitarist, with whom Korner had recently recorded as a duo: [Excerpt: Alexis Korner and Davey Graham, "3/4 AD"] Mayall and Graham performed together as a duo for a while, but Graham was a natural solo artist if ever there was one. Slowly Mayall put a band together in London. On drums was his old friend Peter Ward, who'd moved down from Manchester with him. On bass was John McVie, who at the time knew nothing about blues -- he'd been playing in a Shadows-style instrumental group -- but Mayall gave him a stack of blues records to listen to to get the feeling. And on guitar was Bernie Watson, who had previously played with Screaming Lord Sutch and the Savages. In late 1963, Mike Vernon, a blues fan who had previously published a Yardbirds fanzine, got a job working for Decca records, and immediately started signing his favourite acts from the London blues circuit. The first act he signed was John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers, and they recorded a single, "Crawling up a Hill": [Excerpt: John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers, "Crawling up a Hill (45 version)"] Mayall later called that a "clumsy, half-witted attempt at autobiographical comment", and it sold only five hundred copies. It would be the only record the Bluesbreakers would make with Watson, who soon left the band to be replaced by Roger Dean (not the same Roger Dean who later went on to design prog rock album covers). The second group to be signed by Mike Vernon to Decca was the Graham Bond Organisation. We've talked about the Graham Bond Organisation in passing several times, but not for a while and not in any great detail, so it's worth pulling everything we've said about them so far together and going through it in a little more detail. The Graham Bond Organisation, like the Rolling Stones, grew out of Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated. As we heard in the episode on "I Wanna Be Your Man" a couple of years ago, Blues Incorporated had been started by Alexis Korner and Cyril Davies, and at the time we're joining them in 1962 featured a drummer called Charlie Watts, a pianist called Dave Stevens, and saxophone player Dick Heckstall-Smith, as well as frequent guest performers like a singer who called himself Mike Jagger, and another one, Roderick Stewart. That group finally found themselves the perfect bass player when Dick Heckstall-Smith put together a one-off group of jazz players to play an event at Cambridge University. At the gig, a little Scottish man came up to the group and told them he played bass and asked if he could sit in. They told him to bring along his instrument to their second set, that night, and he did actually bring along a double bass. Their bluff having been called, they decided to play the most complicated, difficult, piece they knew in order to throw the kid off -- the drummer, a trad jazz player named Ginger Baker, didn't like performing with random sit-in guests -- but astonishingly he turned out to be really good. Heckstall-Smith took down the bass player's name and phone number and invited him to a jam session with Blues Incorporated. After that jam session, Jack Bruce quickly became the group's full-time bass player. Bruce had started out as a classical cellist, but had switched to the double bass inspired by Bach, who he referred to as "the guv'nor of all bass players". His playing up to this point had mostly been in trad jazz bands, and he knew nothing of the blues, but he quickly got the hang of the genre. Bruce's first show with Blues Incorporated was a BBC recording: [Excerpt: Blues Incorporated, "Hoochie Coochie Man (BBC session)"] According to at least one source it was not being asked to take part in that session that made young Mike Jagger decide there was no future for him with Blues Incorporated and to spend more time with his other group, the Rollin' Stones. Soon after, Charlie Watts would join him, for almost the opposite reason -- Watts didn't want to be in a band that was getting as big as Blues Incorporated were. They were starting to do more BBC sessions and get more gigs, and having to join the Musicians' Union. That seemed like a lot of work. Far better to join a band like the Rollin' Stones that wasn't going anywhere. Because of Watts' decision to give up on potential stardom to become a Rollin' Stone, they needed a new drummer, and luckily the best drummer on the scene was available. But then the best drummer on the scene was *always* available. Ginger Baker had first played with Dick Heckstall-Smith several years earlier, in a trad group called the Storyville Jazzmen. There Baker had become obsessed with the New Orleans jazz drummer Baby Dodds, who had played with Louis Armstrong in the 1920s. Sadly because of 1920s recording technology, he hadn't been able to play a full kit on the recordings with Armstrong, being limited to percussion on just a woodblock, but you can hear his drumming style much better in this version of "At the Jazz Band Ball" from 1947, with Mugsy Spanier, Jack Teagarden, Cyrus St. Clair and Hank Duncan: [Excerpt: "At the Jazz Band Ball"] Baker had taken Dobbs' style and run with it, and had quickly become known as the single best player, bar none, on the London jazz scene -- he'd become an accomplished player in multiple styles, and was also fluent in reading music and arranging. He'd also, though, become known as the single person on the entire scene who was most difficult to get along with. He resigned from his first band onstage, shouting "You can stick your band up your arse", after the band's leader had had enough of him incorporating bebop influences into their trad style. Another time, when touring with Diz Disley's band, he was dumped in Germany with no money and no way to get home, because the band were so sick of him. Sometimes this was because of his temper and his unwillingness to suffer fools -- and he saw everyone else he ever met as a fool -- and sometimes it was because of his own rigorous musical ideas. He wanted to play music *his* way, and wouldn't listen to anyone who told him different. Both of these things got worse after he fell under the influence of a man named Phil Seaman, one of the only drummers that Baker respected at all. Seaman introduced Baker to African drumming, and Baker started incorporating complex polyrhythms into his playing as a result. Seaman also though introduced Baker to heroin, and while being a heroin addict in the UK in the 1960s was not as difficult as it later became -- both heroin and cocaine were available on prescription to registered addicts, and Baker got both, which meant that many of the problems that come from criminalisation of these drugs didn't affect addicts in the same way -- but it still did not, by all accounts, make him an easier person to get along with. But he *was* a fantastic drummer. As Dick Heckstall-Smith said "With the advent of Ginger, the classic Blues Incorporated line-up, one which I think could not be bettered, was set" But Alexis Korner decided that the group could be bettered, and he had some backers within the band. One of the other bands on the scene was the Don Rendell Quintet, a group that played soul jazz -- that style of jazz that bridged modern jazz and R&B, the kind of music that Ray Charles and Herbie Hancock played: [Excerpt: The Don Rendell Quintet, "Manumission"] The Don Rendell Quintet included a fantastic multi-instrumentalist, Graham Bond, who doubled on keyboards and saxophone, and Bond had been playing occasional experimental gigs with the Johnny Burch Octet -- a group led by another member of the Rendell Quartet featuring Heckstall-Smith, Bruce, Baker, and a few other musicians, doing wholly-improvised music. Heckstall-Smith, Bruce, and Baker all enjoyed playing with Bond, and when Korner decided to bring him into the band, they were all very keen. But Cyril Davies, the co-leader of the band with Korner, was furious at the idea. Davies wanted to play strict Chicago and Delta blues, and had no truck with other forms of music like R&B and jazz. To his mind it was bad enough that they had a sax player. But the idea that they would bring in Bond, who played sax and... *Hammond* organ? Well, that was practically blasphemy. Davies quit the group at the mere suggestion. Bond was soon in the band, and he, Bruce, and Baker were playing together a *lot*. As well as performing with Blues Incorporated, they continued playing in the Johnny Burch Octet, and they also started performing as the Graham Bond Trio. Sometimes the Graham Bond Trio would be Blues Incorporated's opening act, and on more than one occasion the Graham Bond Trio, Blues Incorporated, and the Johnny Burch Octet all had gigs in different parts of London on the same night and they'd have to frantically get from one to the other. The Graham Bond Trio also had fans in Manchester, thanks to the local blues scene there and their connection with Blues Incorporated, and one night in February 1963 the trio played a gig there. They realised afterwards that by playing as a trio they'd made £70, when they were lucky to make £20 from a gig with Blues Incorporated or the Octet, because there were so many members in those bands. Bond wanted to make real money, and at the next rehearsal of Blues Incorporated he announced to Korner that he, Bruce, and Baker were quitting the band -- which was news to Bruce and Baker, who he hadn't bothered consulting. Baker, indeed, was in the toilet when the announcement was made and came out to find it a done deal. He was going to kick up a fuss and say he hadn't been consulted, but Korner's reaction sealed the deal. As Baker later said "‘he said “it's really good you're doing this thing with Graham, and I wish you the best of luck” and all that. And it was a bit difficult to turn round and say, “Well, I don't really want to leave the band, you know.”'" The Graham Bond Trio struggled at first to get the gigs they were expecting, but that started to change when in April 1963 they became the Graham Bond Quartet, with the addition of virtuoso guitarist John McLaughlin. The Quartet soon became one of the hottest bands on the London R&B scene, and when Duffy Power, a Larry Parnes teen idol who wanted to move into R&B, asked his record label to get him a good R&B band to back him on a Beatles cover, it was the Graham Bond Quartet who obliged: [Excerpt: Duffy Power, "I Saw Her Standing There"] The Quartet also backed Power on a package tour with other Parnes acts, but they were also still performing their own blend of hard jazz and blues, as can be heard in this recording of the group live in June 1953: [Excerpt: The Graham Bond Quartet, "Ho Ho Country Kicking Blues (Live at Klooks Kleek)"] But that lineup of the group didn't last very long. According to the way Baker told the story, he fired McLaughlin from the group, after being irritated by McLaughlin complaining about something on a day when Baker was out of cocaine and in no mood to hear anyone else's complaints. As Baker said "We lost a great guitar player and I lost a good friend." But the Trio soon became a Quartet again, as Dick Heckstall-Smith, who Baker had wanted in the band from the start, joined on saxophone to replace McLaughlin's guitar. But they were no longer called the Graham Bond Quartet. Partly because Heckstall-Smith joining allowed Bond to concentrate just on his keyboard playing, but one suspects partly to protect against any future lineup changes, the group were now The Graham Bond ORGANisation -- emphasis on the organ. The new lineup of the group got signed to Decca by Vernon, and were soon recording their first single, "Long Tall Shorty": [Excerpt: The Graham Bond Organisation, "Long Tall Shorty"] They recorded a few other songs which made their way onto an EP and an R&B compilation, and toured intensively in early 1964, as well as backing up Power on his follow-up to "I Saw Her Standing There", his version of "Parchman Farm": [Excerpt: Duffy Power, "Parchman Farm"] They also appeared in a film, just like the Beatles, though it was possibly not quite as artistically successful as "A Hard Day's Night": [Excerpt: Gonks Go Beat trailer] Gonks Go Beat is one of the most bizarre films of the sixties. It's a far-future remake of Romeo and Juliet. where the two star-crossed lovers are from opposing countries -- Beatland and Ballad Isle -- who only communicate once a year in an annual song contest which acts as their version of a war, and is overseen by "Mr. A&R", played by Frank Thornton, who would later star in Are You Being Served? Carry On star Kenneth Connor is sent by aliens to try to bring peace to the two warring countries, on pain of exile to Planet Gonk, a planet inhabited solely by Gonks (a kind of novelty toy for which there was a short-lived craze then). Along the way Connor encounters such luminaries of British light entertainment as Terry Scott and Arthur Mullard, as well as musical performances by Lulu, the Nashville Teens, and of course the Graham Bond Organisation, whose performance gets them a telling-off from a teacher: [Excerpt: Gonks Go Beat!] The group as a group only performed one song in this cinematic masterpiece, but Baker also made an appearance in a "drum battle" sequence where eight drummers played together: [Excerpt: Gonks Go Beat drum battle] The other drummers in that scene included, as well as some lesser-known players, Andy White who had played on the single version of "Love Me Do", Bobby Graham, who played on hits by the Kinks and the Dave Clark Five, and Ronnie Verrell, who did the drumming for Animal in the Muppet Show. Also in summer 1964, the group performed at the Fourth National Jazz & Blues Festival in Richmond -- the festival co-founded by Chris Barber that would evolve into the Reading Festival. The Yardbirds were on the bill, and at the end of their set they invited Bond, Baker, Bruce, Georgie Fame, and Mike Vernon onto the stage with them, making that the first time that Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker, and Jack Bruce were all on stage together. Soon after that, the Graham Bond Organisation got a new manager, Robert Stigwood. Things hadn't been working out for them at Decca, and Stigwood soon got the group signed to EMI, and became their producer as well. Their first single under Stigwood's management was a cover version of the theme tune to the Debbie Reynolds film "Tammy". While that film had given Tamla records its name, the song was hardly an R&B classic: [Excerpt: The Graham Bond Organisation, "Tammy"] That record didn't chart, but Stigwood put the group out on the road as part of the disastrous Chuck Berry tour we heard about in the episode on "All You Need is Love", which led to the bankruptcy of Robert Stigwood Associates. The Organisation moved over to Stigwood's new company, the Robert Stigwood Organisation, and Stigwood continued to be the credited producer of their records, though after the "Tammy" disaster they decided they were going to take charge themselves of the actual music. Their first album, The Sound of 65, was recorded in a single three-hour session, and they mostly ran through their standard set -- a mixture of the same songs everyone else on the circuit was playing, like "Hoochie Coochie Man", "Got My Mojo Working", and "Wade in the Water", and originals like Bruce's "Train Time": [Excerpt: The Graham Bond Organisation, "Train Time"] Through 1965 they kept working. They released a non-album single, "Lease on Love", which is generally considered to be the first pop record to feature a Mellotron: [Excerpt: The Graham Bond Organisation, "Lease on Love"] and Bond and Baker also backed another Stigwood act, Winston G, on his debut single: [Excerpt: Winston G, "Please Don't Say"] But the group were developing severe tensions. Bruce and Baker had started out friendly, but by this time they hated each other. Bruce said he couldn't hear his own playing over Baker's loud drumming, Baker thought that Bruce was far too fussy a player and should try to play simpler lines. They'd both try to throw each other during performances, altering arrangements on the fly and playing things that would trip the other player up. And *neither* of them were particularly keen on Bond's new love of the Mellotron, which was all over their second album, giving it a distinctly proto-prog feel at times: [Excerpt: The Graham Bond Organisation, "Baby Can it Be True?"] Eventually at a gig in Golders Green, Baker started throwing drumsticks at Bruce's head while Bruce was trying to play a bass solo. Bruce retaliated by throwing his bass at Baker, and then jumping on him and starting a fistfight which had to be broken up by the venue security. Baker fired Bruce from the band, but Bruce kept turning up to gigs anyway, arguing that Baker had no right to sack him as it was a democracy. Baker always claimed that in fact Bond had wanted to sack Bruce but hadn't wanted to get his hands dirty, and insisted that Baker do it, but neither Bond nor Heckstall-Smith objected when Bruce turned up for the next couple of gigs. So Baker took matters into his own hands, He pulled out a knife and told Bruce "If you show up at one more gig, this is going in you." Within days, Bruce was playing with John Mayall, whose Bluesbreakers had gone through some lineup changes by this point. Roger Dean had only played with the Bluesbreakers for a short time before Mayall had replaced him. Mayall had not been impressed with Eric Clapton's playing with the Yardbirds at first -- even though graffiti saying "Clapton is God" was already starting to appear around London -- but he had been *very* impressed with Clapton's playing on "Got to Hurry", the B-side to "For Your Love": [Excerpt: The Yardbirds, "Got to Hurry"] When he discovered that Clapton had quit the band, he sprang into action and quickly recruited him to replace Dean. Clapton knew he had made the right choice when a month after he'd joined, the group got the word that Bob Dylan had been so impressed with Mayall's single "Crawling up a Hill" -- the one that nobody liked, not even Mayall himself -- that he wanted to jam with Mayall and his band in the studio. Clapton of course went along: [Excerpt: Bob Dylan and the Bluesbreakers, "If You Gotta Go, Go Now"] That was, of course, the session we've talked about in the Velvet Underground episode and elsewhere of which little other than that survives, and which Nico attended. At this point, Mayall didn't have a record contract, his experience recording with Mike Vernon having been no more successful than the Bond group's had been. But soon he got a one-off deal -- as a solo artist, not with the Bluesbreakers -- with Immediate Records. Clapton was the only member of the group to play on the single, which was produced by Immediate's house producer Jimmy Page: [Excerpt: John Mayall, "I'm Your Witchdoctor"] Page was impressed enough with Clapton's playing that he invited him round to Page's house to jam together. But what Clapton didn't know was that Page was taping their jam sessions, and that he handed those tapes over to Immediate Records -- whether he was forced to by his contract with the label or whether that had been his plan all along depends on whose story you believe, but Clapton never truly forgave him. Page and Clapton's guitar-only jams had overdubs by Bill Wyman, Ian Stewart, and drummer Chris Winter, and have been endlessly repackaged on blues compilations ever since: [Excerpt: Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton, "Draggin' My Tail"] But Mayall was having problems with John McVie, who had started to drink too much, and as soon as he found out that Jack Bruce was sacked by the Graham Bond Organisation, Mayall got in touch with Bruce and got him to join the band in McVie's place. Everyone was agreed that this lineup of the band -- Mayall, Clapton, Bruce, and Hughie Flint -- was going places: [Excerpt: John Mayall's Bluesbreakers with Jack Bruce, "Hoochie Coochie Man"] Unfortunately, it wasn't going to last long. Clapton, while he thought that Bruce was the greatest bass player he'd ever worked with, had other plans. He was going to leave the country and travel the world as a peripatetic busker. He was off on his travels, never to return. Luckily, Mayall had someone even better waiting in the wings. A young man had, according to Mayall, "kept coming down to all the gigs and saying, “Hey, what are you doing with him?” – referring to whichever guitarist was onstage that night – “I'm much better than he is. Why don't you let me play guitar for you?” He got really quite nasty about it, so finally, I let him sit in. And he was brilliant." Peter Green was probably the best blues guitarist in London at that time, but this lineup of the Bluesbreakers only lasted a handful of gigs -- Clapton discovered that busking in Greece wasn't as much fun as being called God in London, and came back very soon after he'd left. Mayall had told him that he could have his old job back when he got back, and so Green was out and Clapton was back in. And soon the Bluesbreakers' revolving door revolved again. Manfred Mann had just had a big hit with "If You Gotta Go, Go Now", the same song we heard Dylan playing earlier: [Excerpt: Manfred Mann, "If You Gotta Go, Go Now"] But their guitarist, Mike Vickers, had quit. Tom McGuinness, their bass player, had taken the opportunity to switch back to guitar -- the instrument he'd played in his first band with his friend Eric Clapton -- but that left them short a bass player. Manfred Mann were essentially the same kind of band as the Graham Bond Organisation -- a Hammond-led group of virtuoso multi-instrumentalists who played everything from hardcore Delta blues to complex modern jazz -- but unlike the Bond group they also had a string of massive pop hits, and so made a lot more money. The combination was irresistible to Bruce, and he joined the band just before they recorded an EP of jazz instrumental versions of recent hits: [Excerpt: Manfred Mann, "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction"] Bruce had also been encouraged by Robert Stigwood to do a solo project, and so at the same time as he joined Manfred Mann, he also put out a solo single, "Drinkin' and Gamblin'" [Excerpt: Jack Bruce, "Drinkin' and Gamblin'"] But of course, the reason Bruce had joined Manfred Mann was that they were having pop hits as well as playing jazz, and soon they did just that, with Bruce playing on their number one hit "Pretty Flamingo": [Excerpt: Manfred Mann, "Pretty Flamingo"] So John McVie was back in the Bluesbreakers, promising to keep his drinking under control. Mike Vernon still thought that Mayall had potential, but the people at Decca didn't agree, so Vernon got Mayall and Clapton -- but not the other band members -- to record a single for a small indie label he ran as a side project: [Excerpt: John Mayall and Eric Clapton, "Bernard Jenkins"] That label normally only released records in print runs of ninety-nine copies, because once you hit a hundred copies you had to pay tax on them, but there was so much demand for that single that they ended up pressing up five hundred copies, making it the label's biggest seller ever. Vernon eventually convinced the heads at Decca that the Bluesbreakers could be truly big, and so he got the OK to record the album that would generally be considered the greatest British blues album of all time -- Blues Breakers, also known as the Beano album because of Clapton reading a copy of the British kids' comic The Beano in the group photo on the front. [Excerpt: John Mayall with Eric Clapton, "Ramblin' On My Mind"] The album was a mixture of originals by Mayall and the standard repertoire of every blues or R&B band on the circuit -- songs like "Parchman Farm" and "What'd I Say" -- but what made the album unique was Clapton's guitar tone. Much to the chagrin of Vernon, and of engineer Gus Dudgeon, Clapton insisted on playing at the same volume that he would on stage. Vernon later said of Dudgeon "I can remember seeing his face the very first time Clapton plugged into the Marshall stack and turned it up and started playing at the sort of volume he was going to play. You could almost see Gus's eyes meet over the middle of his nose, and it was almost like he was just going to fall over from the sheer power of it all. But after an enormous amount of fiddling around and moving amps around, we got a sound that worked." [Excerpt: John Mayall with Eric Clapton, "Hideaway"] But by the time the album cane out. Clapton was no longer with the Bluesbreakers. The Graham Bond Organisation had struggled on for a while after Bruce's departure. They brought in a trumpet player, Mike Falana, and even had a hit record -- or at least, the B-side of a hit record. The Who had just put out a hit single, "Substitute", on Robert Stigwood's record label, Reaction: [Excerpt: The Who, "Substitute"] But, as you'll hear in episode 183, they had moved to Reaction Records after a falling out with their previous label, and with Shel Talmy their previous producer. The problem was, when "Substitute" was released, it had as its B-side a song called "Circles" (also known as "Instant Party -- it's been released under both names). They'd recorded an earlier version of the song for Talmy, and just as "Substitute" was starting to chart, Talmy got an injunction against the record and it had to be pulled. Reaction couldn't afford to lose the big hit record they'd spent money promoting, so they needed to put it out with a new B-side. But the Who hadn't got any unreleased recordings. But the Graham Bond Organisation had, and indeed they had an unreleased *instrumental*. So "Waltz For a Pig" became the B-side to a top-five single, credited to The Who Orchestra: [Excerpt: The Who Orchestra, "Waltz For a Pig"] That record provided the catalyst for the formation of Cream, because Ginger Baker had written the song, and got £1,350 for it, which he used to buy a new car. Baker had, for some time, been wanting to get out of the Graham Bond Organisation. He was trying to get off heroin -- though he would make many efforts to get clean over the decades, with little success -- while Bond was starting to use it far more heavily, and was also using acid and getting heavily into mysticism, which Baker despised. Baker may have had the idea for what he did next from an article in one of the music papers. John Entwistle of the Who would often tell a story about an article in Melody Maker -- though I've not been able to track down the article itself to get the full details -- in which musicians were asked to name which of their peers they'd put into a "super-group". He didn't remember the full details, but he did remember that the consensus choice had had Eric Clapton on lead guitar, himself on bass, and Ginger Baker on drums. As he said later "I don't remember who else was voted in, but a few months later, the Cream came along, and I did wonder if somebody was maybe believing too much of their own press". Incidentally, like The Buffalo Springfield and The Pink Floyd, Cream, the band we are about to meet, had releases both with and without the definite article, and Eric Clapton at least seems always to talk about them as "the Cream" even decades later, but they're primarily known as just Cream these days. Baker, having had enough of the Bond group, decided to drive up to Oxford to see Clapton playing with the Bluesbreakers. Clapton invited him to sit in for a couple of songs, and by all accounts the band sounded far better than they had previously. Clapton and Baker could obviously play well together, and Baker offered Clapton a lift back to London in his new car, and on the drive back asked Clapton if he wanted to form a new band. Clapton was as impressed by Baker's financial skills as he was by his musicianship. He said later "Musicians didn't have cars. You all got in a van." Clearly a musician who was *actually driving a new car he owned* was going places. He agreed to Baker's plan. But of course they needed a bass player, and Clapton thought he had the perfect solution -- "What about Jack?" Clapton knew that Bruce had been a member of the Graham Bond Organisation, but didn't know why he'd left the band -- he wasn't particularly clued in to what the wider music scene was doing, and all he knew was that Bruce had played with both him and Baker, and that he was the best bass player he'd ever played with. And Bruce *was* arguably the best bass player in London at that point, and he was starting to pick up session work as well as his work with Manfred Mann. For example it's him playing on the theme tune to "After The Fox" with Peter Sellers, the Hollies, and the song's composer Burt Bacharach: [Excerpt: The Hollies with Peter Sellers, "After the Fox"] Clapton was insistent. Baker's idea was that the band should be the best musicians around. That meant they needed the *best* musicians around, not the second best. If Jack Bruce wasn't joining, Eric Clapton wasn't joining either. Baker very reluctantly agreed, and went round to see Bruce the next day -- according to Baker it was in a spirit of generosity and giving Bruce one more chance, while according to Bruce he came round to eat humble pie and beg for forgiveness. Either way, Bruce agreed to join the band. The three met up for a rehearsal at Baker's home, and immediately Bruce and Baker started fighting, but also immediately they realised that they were great at playing together -- so great that they named themselves the Cream, as they were the cream of musicians on the scene. They knew they had something, but they didn't know what. At first they considered making their performances into Dada projects, inspired by the early-twentieth-century art movement. They liked a band that had just started to make waves, the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band -- who had originally been called the Bonzo Dog Dada Band -- and they bought some props with the vague idea of using them on stage in the same way the Bonzos did. But as they played together they realised that they needed to do something different from that. At first, they thought they needed a fourth member -- a keyboard player. Graham Bond's name was brought up, but Clapton vetoed him. Clapton wanted Steve Winwood, the keyboard player and vocalist with the Spencer Davis Group. Indeed, Winwood was present at what was originally intended to be the first recording session the trio would play. Joe Boyd had asked Eric Clapton to round up a bunch of players to record some filler tracks for an Elektra blues compilation, and Clapton had asked Bruce and Baker to join him, Paul Jones on vocals, Winwood on Hammond and Clapton's friend Ben Palmer on piano for the session. Indeed, given that none of the original trio were keen on singing, that Paul Jones was just about to leave Manfred Mann, and that we know Clapton wanted Winwood in the band, one has to wonder if Clapton at least half-intended for this to be the eventual lineup of the band. If he did, that plan was foiled by Baker's refusal to take part in the session. Instead, this one-off band, named The Powerhouse, featured Pete York, the drummer from the Spencer Davis Group, on the session, which produced the first recording of Clapton playing on the Robert Johnson song originally titled "Cross Road Blues" but now generally better known just as "Crossroads": [Excerpt: The Powerhouse, "Crossroads"] We talked about Robert Johnson a little back in episode ninety-seven, but other than Bob Dylan, who was inspired by his lyrics, we had seen very little influence from Johnson up to this point, but he's going to be a major influence on rock guitar for the next few years, so we should talk about him a little here. It's often said that nobody knew anything about Robert Johnson, that he was almost a phantom other than his records which existed outside of any context as artefacts of their own. That's... not really the case. Johnson had died a little less than thirty years earlier, at only twenty-seven years old. Most of his half-siblings and step-siblings were alive, as were his son, his stepson, and dozens of musicians he'd played with over the years, women he'd had affairs with, and other assorted friends and relatives. What people mean is that information about Johnson's life was not yet known by people they consider important -- which is to say white blues scholars and musicians. Indeed, almost everything people like that -- people like *me* -- know of the facts of Johnson's life has only become known to us in the last four years. If, as some people had expected, I'd started this series with an episode on Johnson, I'd have had to redo the whole thing because of the information that's made its way to the public since then. But here's what was known -- or thought -- by white blues scholars in 1966. Johnson was, according to them, a field hand from somewhere in Mississippi, who played the guitar in between working on the cotton fields. He had done two recording sessions, in 1936 and 1937. One song from his first session, "Terraplane Blues", had been a very minor hit by blues standards: [Excerpt: Robert Johnson, "Terraplane Blues"] That had sold well -- nobody knows how well, but maybe as many as ten thousand copies, and it was certainly a record people knew in 1937 if they liked the Delta blues, but ten thousand copies total is nowhere near the sales of really successful records, and none of the follow-ups had sold anything like that much -- many of them had sold in the hundreds rather than the thousands. As Elijah Wald, one of Johnson's biographers put it "knowing about Johnson and Muddy Waters but not about Leroy Carr or Dinah Washington was like knowing about, say, the Sir Douglas Quintet but not knowing about the Beatles" -- though *I* would add that the Sir Douglas Quintet were much bigger during the sixties than Johnson was during his lifetime. One of the few white people who had noticed Johnson's existence at all was John Hammond, and he'd written a brief review of Johnson's first two singles under a pseudonym in a Communist newspaper. I'm going to quote it here, but the word he used to talk about Black people was considered correct then but isn't now, so I'll substitute Black for that word: "Before closing we cannot help but call your attention to the greatest [Black] blues singer who has cropped up in recent years, Robert Johnson. Recording them in deepest Mississippi, Vocalion has certainly done right by us and by the tunes "Last Fair Deal Gone Down" and "Terraplane Blues", to name only two of the four sides already released, sung to his own guitar accompaniment. Johnson makes Leadbelly sound like an accomplished poseur" Hammond had tried to get Johnson to perform at the Spirituals to Swing concerts we talked about in the very first episodes of the podcast, but he'd discovered that he'd died shortly before. He got Big Bill Broonzy instead, and played a couple of Johnson's records from a record player on the stage. Hammond introduced those recordings with a speech: "It is tragic that an American audience could not have been found seven or eight years ago for a concert of this kind. Bessie Smith was still at the height of her career and Joe Smith, probably the greatest trumpet player America ever knew, would still have been around to play obbligatos for her...dozens of other artists could have been there in the flesh. But that audience as well as this one would not have been able to hear Robert Johnson sing and play the blues on his guitar, for at that time Johnson was just an unknown hand on a Robinsonville, Mississippi plantation. Robert Johnson was going to be the big surprise of the evening for this audience at Carnegie Hall. I know him only from his Vocalion blues records and from the tall, exciting tales the recording engineers and supervisors used to bring about him from the improvised studios in Dallas and San Antonio. I don't believe Johnson had ever worked as a professional musician anywhere, and it still knocks me over when I think of how lucky it is that a talent like his ever found its way onto phonograph records. We will have to be content with playing two of his records, the old "Walkin' Blues" and the new, unreleased, "Preachin' Blues", because Robert Johnson died last week at the precise moment when Vocalion scouts finally reached him and told him that he was booked to appear at Carnegie Hall on December 23. He was in his middle twenties and nobody seems to know what caused his death." And that was, for the most part, the end of Robert Johnson's impact on the culture for a generation. The Lomaxes went down to Clarksdale, Mississippi a couple of years later -- reports vary as to whether this was to see if they could find Johnson, who they were unaware was dead, or to find information out about him, and they did end up recording a young singer named Muddy Waters for the Library of Congress, including Waters' rendition of "32-20 Blues", Johnson's reworking of Skip James' "Twenty-Two Twenty Blues": [Excerpt: Muddy Waters, "32-20 Blues"] But Johnson's records remained unavailable after their initial release until 1959, when the blues scholar Samuel Charters published the book The Country Blues, which was the first book-length treatment ever of Delta blues. Sixteen years later Charters said "I shouldn't have written The Country Blues when I did; since I really didn't know enough, but I felt I couldn't afford to wait. So The Country Blues was two things. It was a romanticization of certain aspects of black life in an effort to force the white society to reconsider some of its racial attitudes, and on the other hand it was a cry for help. I wanted hundreds of people to go out and interview the surviving blues artists. I wanted people to record them and document their lives, their environment, and their music, not only so that their story would be preserved but also so they'd get a little money and a little recognition in their last years." Charters talked about Johnson in the book, as one of the performers who played "minor roles in the story of the blues", and said that almost nothing was known about his life. He talked about how he had been poisoned by his common-law wife, about how his records were recorded in a pool hall, and said "The finest of Robert Johnson's blues have a brooding sense of torment and despair. The blues has become a personified figure of despondency." Along with Charters' book came a compilation album of the same name, and that included the first ever reissue of one of Johnson's tracks, "Preaching Blues": [Excerpt: Robert Johnson, "Preaching Blues"] Two years later, John Hammond, who had remained an ardent fan of Johnson, had Columbia put out the King of the Delta Blues Singers album. At the time no white blues scholars knew what Johnson looked like and they had no photos of him, so a generic painting of a poor-looking Black man with a guitar was used for the cover. The liner note to King of the Delta Blues Singers talked about how Johnson was seventeen or eighteen when he made his recordings, how he was "dead before he reached his twenty-first birthday, poisoned by a jealous girlfriend", how he had "seldom, if ever, been away from the plantation in Robinsville, Mississippi, where he was born and raised", and how he had had such stage fright that when he was asked to play in front of other musicians, he'd turned to face a wall so he couldn't see them. And that would be all that any of the members of the Powerhouse would know about Johnson. Maybe they'd also heard the rumours that were starting to spread that Johnson had got his guitar-playing skills by selling his soul to the devil at a crossroads at midnight, but that would have been all they knew when they recorded their filler track for Elektra: [Excerpt: The Powerhouse, "Crossroads"] Either way, the Powerhouse lineup only lasted for that one session -- the group eventually decided that a simple trio would be best for the music they wanted to play. Clapton had seen Buddy Guy touring with just a bass player and drummer a year earlier, and had liked the idea of the freedom that gave him as a guitarist. The group soon took on Robert Stigwood as a manager, which caused more arguments between Bruce and Baker. Bruce was convinced that if they were doing an all-for-one one-for-all thing they should also manage themselves, but Baker pointed out that that was a daft idea when they could get one of the biggest managers in the country to look after them. A bigger argument, which almost killed the group before it started, happened when Baker told journalist Chris Welch of the Melody Maker about their plans. In an echo of the way that he and Bruce had been resigned from Blues Incorporated without being consulted, now with no discussion Manfred Mann and John Mayall were reading in the papers that their band members were quitting before those members had bothered to mention it. Mayall was furious, especially since the album Clapton had played on hadn't yet come out. Clapton was supposed to work a month's notice while Mayall found another guitarist, but Mayall spent two weeks begging Peter Green to rejoin the band. Green was less than eager -- after all, he'd been fired pretty much straight away earlier -- but Mayall eventually persuaded him. The second he did, Mayall turned round to Clapton and told him he didn't have to work the rest of his notice -- he'd found another guitar player and Clapton was fired: [Excerpt: John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, "Dust My Blues"] Manfred Mann meanwhile took on the Beatles' friend Klaus Voorman to replace Bruce. Voorman would remain with the band until the end, and like Green was for Mayall, Voorman was in some ways a better fit for Manfred Mann than Bruce was. In particular he could double on flute, as he did for example on their hit version of Bob Dylan's "The Mighty Quinn": [Excerpt: Manfred Mann "The Mighty Quinn"] The new group, The Cream, were of course signed in the UK to Stigwood's Reaction label. Other than the Who, who only stuck around for one album, Reaction was not a very successful label. Its biggest signing was a former keyboard player for Screaming Lord Sutch, who recorded for them under the names Paul Dean and Oscar, but who later became known as Paul Nicholas and had a successful career in musical theatre and sitcom. Nicholas never had any hits for Reaction, but he did release one interesting record, in 1967: [Excerpt: Oscar, "Over the Wall We Go"] That was one of the earliest songwriting attempts by a young man who had recently named himself David Bowie. Now the group were public, they started inviting journalists to their rehearsals, which were mostly spent trying to combine their disparate musical influences --
Norcos y Horchata / aloha motherfuckers norcos y Horchata / everyones a expert . detroit . ep album last year..damn missed it got to check it outLas Yakets / San Jose / Regresa El Rocanrol ....costa rico... june Gunk / back in line / first demo sessions .....tokyo...may nypriceRancid / New American / tomorrow never comes fastbacks / ramblin Rose / z2fastbacks / roll away the stone / bike toy clock giftthe bobbyteens / hurt for you / estrus kamikaze ass chomp n stompj fred & the playboys / boogie children / red hot boppers vol 2TRASH / Nnervous / this is complete trash .....UK Punk band formed 1976 in Weybridge, Surrey. Signed to Polydor and released two singles on the label. Auditioned in front of Roger Daltrey and John Entwistle for the role as a mod group in the film 'Quadrophenia', but didn't get the part. Split in 1979cretin 66 / farmer john / burnin rubber out of hells garage....99 kansas brimstone howl / solitary man / mammon b side 09the interlectuals / the girl the cow and the country / black! Domina ! Now! 04 Italian garage punk band from Rome started in 1999 as a duothe come ons / promise me / salvo of 24 gunshots ....garage rock band founded in 1999 in Detroit.creamrs / baltic lover..may single jersey cityMonomen / swampland / set it on fire ..tribute to scientistPrecious few / train kept a rollin USPunk from the 60'srancid / hellbound train / tomorrow never comes fall-outs / dug my grave / the estrus lunch bucket / seatlethe electras / action woman / Nuggets : original artifacts from the first pyschedellic erathe rollers / jack the ripper / trans world punk rave upthe courettes . hop the twig / Boom! Dynamite - An introduction to The Fabulous Courettes good comp to introduce us and canadian dm bob and the deficits / mother of earth / salvo of 24 gunshots tribute to gunclubhamburg german doing louisianna swampthe bottle rockets and the sermon / vb and a cigarette / bside girl my girl goblin records / austrialiacheater slicks / cany't you hear my heartbeat 09 bside erotic womenpaul revere and the raiders / steppin out / nuggets original artyfacts from first pysch erashelley stevens / secret love / heroes of the night vol 2 the locomotions / come and get it / the loco,otions 03 columbia neckties / hot butt love / wht change you moves / Aalborg, Denmark. 02gino and the goons / free and easy split lp with dirty coal train ...garagem records portugalLos Paniks / blue moon / The Panik Kontroversy ...family spree recordings spainhexxers / bones by my bedside / Freaks With The Savage Beat 04angry adults / nothing gonna change my mind / dust and weight ep june nyp finlandthe outcasts / smokestack lightning / texas punk groups from the sixtiesloli and the clones / i hate your guts / P.S. we hate youthe pleasers / dont give me no lip child / trans world punk rave upthe yellnuts / young punks / split single with mutant love single 2019denvermotorbike / pressure cooker / motorbike vocals burriedthe cowboys / pie in my eye / the bottom of a rotten flower
Today's 41 & Done! flashback is from one of the Zoo's London broadcasts when Roger Daltrey and the crew called John Entwistle at home.
The Macon Bacon baseball team fought for the rights of bacon lovers everywhere. 41 & Done! flashback - calling the Who's John Entwistle with Roger Daltrey. 4 Random Facts. Song Stories. 41 & Done! flashback JDB got peed on. Pierre Robert's arrival and full hang.
This week on Rockonteurs, Gary and Guy chat to drummer Jerry Shirley from Humble Pie.With some fascinating tales of working with Syd Barrett, John Entwistle, Steve Marriott and many more. He's a lovely fella with some great stories. The Syd Barrett film, ‘Have You Got It Yet' is out now at selected cinemas.Sign up for Rockonteurs Extra to enjoy bonus episodes, video clips, exclusive listener Q&A's and access to early bird tickets for our next live show. Find out more at www.Rockonteurs.comRockonteurs is produced by Ben Jones and Ian Callaghan for Gimme Sugar Productions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
This week's show, after a small snatch of Gordon Lightfoot: brand new Damned, Crocodiles, Wedding Present, Flyying Colours, 1984 Draft, Black Watch, and Mist Double, plus John Entwistle, Bettye Lavette, Mamas & the Papas, Wilson Pickett, Jimmie Davis, ...
Jimmy Ryan has been Carly Simon's guitarist since the 1970s. He's an American artist, composer, producer, and author with a career that has spanned six decades. Beginning at seventeen, he and his college band, The Critters, had their first top forty hit, “Younger Girl,” which was followed by three charting albums and two more top forty hits, “Mr. Dieingly Sad” and “Don't Let The Rain Fall Down on Me.”In 1970, Jimmy's friend, Carly Simon, called him to put a band together for her. She was rising fast on the US and British top 40 charts with “That's The Way I've Always Heard It Should Be,” as well as her first album “Carly Simon,” on which Jimmy played guitar. Jimmy went on to perform with Carly on most of her future albums and continues to work off and on with her to this day. He's the guitar soloist on many of Carly's hits, the most memorable being “You're So Vain,” and the Academy Award winning song of the year, “Let the River Run,” from the movie, Working Girl. Aside from Carly Simon, Jimmy's also recorded with numerous superstars including no less than: Paul McCartney, Mick Jagger, Luther Vandross, James Taylor, Cat Stevens, Jim Croce, John Entwistle, Elton John & Kiki Dee, The Doors, Rod Stewart, and many more, earning him six gold records and one platinum record. As a studio musician Jimmy has recorded alongside legendary session players, like: Jim Gordon, Claus Voorman, Jim Keltner, Nicky Hopkins, Will Lee, Steve Gadd, Lowell George, Robbie Robertson, Paul Shaffer, David Sanborn and many more. Along the way, he found time to perform in the original Broadway production of Hair. And he was a principal actor and musician in the Broadway production of “Pump Boys and Dinettes.”Jimmy has scored music for TV, creating themes and music for NBC News, CNBC, MSNBC, Lifetime, USA, and PBS. He's also composed, arranged, and produced music for over 500 radio and TV commercials for clients like: Doritos, McDonalds, IBM, Ford, Nikon, Pizza Hut, Budweiser, Chevy, Coke, Diet Coke, and more.In April 2019, he and his touring band, The Hit Men, were honored with the first ever Road Warrior Award from the Nashville Musician's Hall of Fame. In 2022, Jimmy published his memoir, Behind: Autobiography of a Musical Shapeshifter. It's a fascinating look at the life of a musician working at the highest levels of the music industry, especially the life of a working rock musician.And please be sure to stick around at the end of the show for a real treat. Jimmy has generously loaned us an unreleased song that he wrote and produced, Slow Burn.
This week's Prog-Watch is a themed special to mark the tenth anniversary of the program! Hear great music from John Entwistle, Led Zeppelin, Pilot, The Yardbirds, Roy Harper, Paper Lace, Supertramp, IQ, Landmarq, Spring, XTC, Steve Thorne, Kerry Livgren, The Strawbs, The Jelly Jam, and ZZ Top! All in 90 minutes!
In today's episode Guy Pratt talks about his stint with Pink Floyd, studio dates in LA with Madonna and Michael Jackson, and the 1964 Jazz Bass that he got from The Who bassist, John Entwistle. Heads up: there's even a cameo question from The Darkness' Justin Hawkins!In this episode you're going to learn:How Guy landed the gig with Pink FloydWhat he played on Madonna's Like a Prayer.All about his go-to Jazz Bass (christened ‘Betsy')His infamous session for Michael Jackson's Earth Song.And much, much more.
Jimmy's latest project a memoir, called Behind – Autobiography of a Musical Shapeshifter, is available worldwide at all major booksellers. Snag a copy here: https://amzn.to/3wzfAs7 Jimmy Ryan is a composer, producer, arranger, and author. His career has spanned sixty-three years and is still going strong, having recently performed at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, 2022 Induction Ceremony with triple Grammy winner, Olivia Rodrigo to inaugurate his long-time friend and former bandmate, Carly Simon. His college band, The Critters had their first top forty hit, “Younger Girl” and landed three charting albums and two more top forty hits, “Mr. Dieingly Sad” and “Don't Let The Rain Fall Down on Me.” Jimmy played on Carly Simons' Anticipation album, and went on to work on most of Carly's future albums and continues to work with her to this day. He was the guitar soloist on almost all of Carly's hits, the most memorable being “You're So Vain,” and the Academy Award-winning song of the year from the movie, Working Girl, “Let The River Run.” On Carly Simon sessions, he has recorded/collaborated with major artists including Paul McCartney, Mick Jagger, Luther Vandross, James Taylor and many more, earning him seven RIAA Certified Platinum Records/CDs. Jimmy has recorded with numerous artists including Cat Stevens, John Entwistle of the Who, Elton John & Kiki Dee, Tommy James, Jimmy Webb, The Doors, Andy Williams, Martha Reeves, and Rod Stewart. Jimmy played guitar on Andy Williams' #1hit “Solitaire”. Jimmy created the theme for NBC News that ran nationwide from 2003 to 2009 on many local NBC stations. In 2005, he wrote the themes and background music for all of the CNBC financial shows that aired on six continents worldwide, many of which are still running to this day. Jimmy also scored the nationwide launch campaign for MSNBC. In 2020, Jimmy composed the music for The News With Shepard Smith on CNBC. Jimmy has also written music for The Discovery Channel, Lifetime, USA Network, and PBS scoring the Nova movie of the year, The Pluto Files – with Neil deGrasse Tyson. In collaboration with the History Channel, he composed music for major exhibitions at the Smithsonian Institution. Jimmy has also composed, arranged, and produced music for over 500 radio and TV commercials for clients including Doritos, McDonald's, IBM, Ford, Nikon, Pizza Hut, Budweiser, Chevy, Mennen, Palmolive, Hess, Hasbro, Downy, Clearasil, Arby's, Coke, Diet Coke, Modells and more. Jimmy's latest project a memoir, called Behind – Autobiography of a Musical Shapeshifter, is available worldwide at all major booksellers. Snag a copy here: https://amzn.to/3wzfAs7
David Crosby was famous for nearly 60 years, a celebrity sustained by records, tours, brushes with the law and serial disagreements with old pals and collaborators (he was the very definition of a non-team player). We look back fondly at various stops along the way - his upscale background, his role in the Byrds, his ‘Will Scarlet in Robin Hood' haircut and unsexy cape ensemble, CS&N as the soundtrack to a West Coast American fantasy, the time the Beatles played him the unreleased A Day In The Life, a public fallout with Neil Young and a tuxedoed Graham Nash's last show with the Hollies with the piss-taking Crosby in the dressing-room. Plus “It's Not You It's Me” – classic records that leave us cold: fight-starting suggestions include albums by Patti Smith (“that bawling harridan with her jive muse”), Nirvana, Love, Neil Young, Cat Stevens, Arctic Monkeys and the Beatles. Did the Who start to decline from the moment John Entwistle began growing facial hair? Discuss.Grab your EXCLUSIVE NordVPN Deal by going to https://nordvpn.com/yourear to get up a Huge Discount off your NordVPN Plan + 4 months for free! It's completely risk free with Nord's 30 day money-back guarantee!———-Subscribe to Word In Your Ear on Patreon and receive every future Word Podcast before the rest of the world, with full visuals, and ad-free!: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Drummer, producer, visual artist and designer Steve Luongo (Rat Race Choir, TorQue) takes the guest seat on this week's You, Me and An Album to discuss Jethro Tull's Thick as a Brick. Steve talks about why this album is special to him, which parts are his favorites and whether he considers Jethro Tull to be a prog band. He also delves into the John Entiwistle Oxhumed rarities albums he has been working on.Al talked about some other prog rock suites that were released around the same time as Thick as a Brick, and in doing so, he incorrectly stated that “Supper's Ready” comprises the second side of Foxtrot by Genesis. Al is mortified at this error, as he is a fan of Steve Hackett's instrumental, “Horizons,” which kicks off Side 2 before “Supper's Ready” embarks on its 23-minute run.Steve mentioned a video of West Side Story's “America” that includes performances from both the 1961 and 2021 versions. Here it is! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0jVQT0BrzwKeep up with Steve and his many projects!Twitter: @drumcrusherInstagram: @steveluongo4realWebsite: steveluongo.comFor more information on John Entwistle Rarities Oxhumed, go to johnentwistle.com.For the time being, Al is on Twitter at @almelchiorBB, and this show has accounts on Twitter and Instagram at @youmealbum. Be sure to follow @youmealbum to find out in advance about upcoming guests and featured albums for this podcast.The show is also now on Mastodon. @youmealbum@mas.to.Al launched You, Me and An Album: The Newsletter earlier this year and has brought it back after a hiatus. You can subscribe for free to get Al's monthly posts, but paid subscriptions give you access to weekly posts. Please consider trying a paid subscription as it also helps to support this podcast! https://youmealbum.substack.com/1:24 Steve joins the show2:35 Is Jethro Tull a prog band?4:02 Steve recalls how he got introduced to Jethro Tull's music6:19 Steve explains why Jethro Tull resonated for him more than some other bands7:19 Steve details why he chose Thick as a Brick for this episode8:50 Al compares Thick as a Brick with other early ‘70s prog suites10:51 Steve gives an example of how Jethro Tull is “orchestral”14:41 Is Thick as a Brick a parody of prog rock?16:06 Steve and Al agree on their favorite part of the album17:40 Why aren't rock flautists more of a thing?19:49 Steve learned a lot of lessons about drumming from Thick as a Brick23:34 Steve would still love the album even if he weren't a drummer26:22 Steve wonders how the various parts all came together28:36 The drum solo…too much or just right?31:29 Steve singles out the key difference between Thick as a Brick and Aqualung35:05 Steve talks about some music that he appreciates as a listener (as opposed to as a drummer)43:11 Steve discusses a couple more standout sections of the album47:24 Would Steve rather listen to a remixed version of this album?49:34 Steve talks about current projects, including the John Entwistle rarities albums
For the first time, Groove - The No Treble Podcast interviews a drummer. Steve Luongo and John Entwistle worked together for 15 years on Entwistle's solo work. We caught up with Luongo to discuss the legacy of The Ox.
Face Dances is the ninth studio album from the Who, and the first release after the death of drummer Keith Moon three years earlier. During those three years the Who would release the film Quadrophenia and the concert retrospective film The Kids Are Alright. Front man Roger Daltry would try out acting, and Pete Townshend would release his second solo studio album. When the group got back together for Face Dances, Phil Collins expressed an interest in joining the band. However, Kenny Jones (Small Faces, Faces) had already been asked to join. John “Rabbit” Bundrick also contributed keyboard work on this album, and would eventually join as a full time member of the Who. These joined previous members Daltry, Townshend, and bassist John Entwistle. The album was highly anticipated, and was a commercial success, reaching number 4 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and number 2 on the UK Albums chart. Critical reviews were mixed at the time, and the band has expressed some friction with producer Bill Szymczyk who conducted the final mixing without the full band's input. Regardless, the album is a staple of early 80's rock and many of the songs have achieved a timelessness about them.Brian brings us this album for today's podcast. You Better You BetThe first single and lead-off track to the album was a staple of the new cable station - MTV. It was the Who's last top 20 single, reaching number 18 on the Billboard Hot 100. Townshend developed the song during a period of clubbing with the daughter of a friend. The video was a black and white studio session. Don't Let Go the CoatThis deeper cut was the second single, and was inspired by Townshend's guru Meher Baba and his statement that his followers “hang fast to the hem of my robe,” meaning to stay true to his teachings. It also may have been inspired by Townshend's parents who would pick him up after his binges on drugs and alcohol.The Quiet OneBassist John Entwistle takes an unusual turn as lead singer on this self-referential deep cut. It was the B-side of the single “You Better You Bet.” Entwisle said it was a song trying to explain that he wasn't really quiet, but that he started being quiet and got stuck in the pigeon hole of that label.Another Tricky Day“This is no social crisis, just another tricky day for you...fella!” John Bundrick inspired this song, and it claims that what we're going through is nothing unique, but is just another tricky day. The song is the final track on the album, and the video is in the same style as the first single - a black and white studio session. ENTERTAINMENT TRACK:Main theme from the television series “Dynasty” John Forsythe, Linda Evans, and Joan Collins starred in this prime time soap opera. STAFF PICKS:Skateaway by Dire Straits Bruce brings us a song about a girl who skates around the city, ticking off the drivers, weaving in and out of traffic, and listening to the local rock and roll station on her headphones. This is the lead single from the Dire Straits album Making Movies, and the album title is pulled from the lyrics of this song.Precious to Me by Phil SeymourDrummer, singer-songwriter, and guitarist Phil Seymour wrote this song with a throwback doo-wop feel. This is the first single from his first solo album. It hit number 22 on the Billboard Hot 100. Seymour also contributed backing vocals to Tom Petty's “American Girl” and “Breakdown.”He Can't Love You by the Michael Staley Band Wayne features a one hit wonder featuring saxophonist and E. Street Band member Clarence Clemons. It made it to number 33 on the Billboard Hot 100, and was the 40th song played on MTV. The Michael Stanley Band is big regionally in Ohio.I Love a Rainy Night by Eddie RabbitBrian's staff pick is a crossover country hit. It hit the top of both the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot Country charts. It describes the feeling that comes from a good rain at night. Rabbit started writing the song in the 60's, but didn't develop it until this album. INSTRUMENTAL TRACK:Toccata by SkyThis prog rock group covers the classical piece "Toccata and Fugue in D minor" by J.S. Bach made it on the British singles charts.
Baxie talks to drummer, producer, and artist Steve Luongo. Steve was not only the best friend of the late John Entwistle from The Who--he also helped compile an amazing collection of rarities, demos, and unreleased tracks from Entwistle's sizeable library of solo work entitled "Rarities Oxhumed, Volume 1". We talk about their friendship, performing together, and about their collaboration that lasted until Entwistle's death in 2002. Very interesting stuff! You can hear it on Apple Podcasts, SoundCloud, Spotify, and on the Rock102 website!
Journey founding guitarist Neal Schon returns with stories about nearly starting a band with bassist John Entwistle of The Who fame, and how he and Entwistle ended up taking a last-minute trip to Donington to see their pal, Eddie Van Halen and Van Halen play live. Neal talks about Journey's upcoming 50th Anniversary and how he started the band out of Santana with one-time Santana guitar tech, Herbie Herbert as manager. He reveals who he hopes to bring out on Journey's 50th Anniversary Tour next year, and why Steve Lukather and Toto were the perfect touring partners this year! Neal speaks to the ever-growing popularity of “Don't Stop Believin'”, what it was like to perform the song onstage at America's Got Talent with Kodi Lee, Teddy Swims, and an orchestra, and his friend Sammy Hagar's reaction to Journey's new studio album, “Freedom.”Purchase the new Journey album “Freedom”: https://journeymusic.com/Big thanks our sponsors!Bosch Tools: learn more at https://www.boschtools.com/us/en/SlingTV: check out https://www.sling.com/ for special offers Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro: learn more at https://www.samsung.com/us/STAY CONNECTED:TikTok: @TalkIsJerichoInstagram: @talkisjericho @chrisjerichofozzyTwitter: @TalkIsJericho @IAmJerichoYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ChrisJerichoFozzyhttps://www.webisjericho.com/
© 2020-2025 Ivy Podcast Discovery LLC
