Ginger Baker says his new band's debut album took just two days to record.
The iconic drummer – famous among rock fans mainly for his work with Cream – is set to tour in support of the debut record form his group, Ginger Baker's Jazz Confusion. The album, called Why?, was released this week.
Saxophonist Pee Wee Ellis, bassist Alec Dankworth, and percussionist Abbas Dodoo are Baker's bandmates in the new project.
And while Baker, 74, had fin recording it in the space of just 48 hours, he isn't looking forward to hitting the road.
He tells Esquire: We were all very pleased with it. It took us just two days. All the guys are great musicians, you know? We listen to each other and play off of each other. We enjoy it.
“If I had my choice I'd have a little button beside my chair here and I'd just press it and I'd turn up at a gig. Right after the gig I'd press it and I'm back home again. A beam-me-up-Scotty machine.”
AtlanticOn the morning of July 25, 1969, as record shop clerks sorted through the new releases, they had among their options the eponymous debut of an ambitious new group going by the simple, direct, and rather positive name of Yes. Little did they know that behind its unremarkable cover art lay the seeds for one of the most storied and envelope-pushing (and, at times, patience-busting) careers in progressive rock history. But then, musical treasures hidden in plain sight were surprisingly commonplace in the heady days of the late ’60s.
Indeed, at the time the London music scene was abuzz with an endless store of “progressive” rock sounds; a development primarily motivated (like all things) by the Beatles‘ remarkable evolutionary pace, but accelerated, of late, by the arrival of exciting new groups with new perspectives, like Pink Floyd, King Crimson and Procol Harum, to name but a few. It was out of this fertile primordial prog-rock soup, if you will, that Yes members Jon Anderson (vocals), Peter Banks (guitar), Tony Kaye (keyboards), Chris Squire (bass) and Bill Bruford (drums) took their first tentative steps via their debut’s eight, simultaneously formative but promising songs.
Having witnessed King Crimson — then the high point for art-rock invention – in concert a few months earlier, Yes brought a daring virtuosity and vigorous attack to both their original material (see the nearly proto-metal plod of ‘Beyond & Before’ and the endlessly shifting, widescreen ‘Survival’) and no doubt record-label appeasing covers of the Byrds‘ ‘I See You’ and the Beatles’ ‘Every Little Thing’ (both of them utterly transformed with jazz breakouts and frantic improvisations until the mere shells of the originals remained). By contrast, Anderson’s ‘Yesterday and Today’ and his first collaboration with Squire, ‘Sweetness,’ offered gentle respites and wistful balladry, while precociously well-rounded numbers, ‘Looking Around’ and ‘Harold Land’ introduced future Yes hallmarks like Anderson’s and Squire’s trademarked vocal harmonies and the latter’s forceful bass inspired by his hero, the Who‘s John Entwistle).
Al Atkins formed Judas Priest back in 1969. We talked about the early years of the band. He is still very active and has a brand new album out called Serpent's Kiss.
"69' saw me form 'Judas Priest' , i was now 22 years old and had always been more interested in the heavier side of music than the pop shit which was being churned out at this time in the UK"
Interview:
It’s a great pleasure Al to talk about your music! Let’s start with you childhood. Where were you born and what were some of your influences?
I was born in a town called West Bromwich which is just a few miles outside the city of Birmingham and is part of several other towns which make up what people call 'The Black Country' because of it's huge industrial past. It's actually become quite a famous small town now because of it's links with the rock artists that were born here ,i.e... Robert Plant (Led Zep) ,Phil Lynott (Thin Lizzy) and of course members of Judas Priest.......
Tell me in what bands were you as a teenager? Any releases from then?
One of my first bands in the 60's was called 'The Bitta Sweet' but unfortunately no recordings were made but we played on the same bill has some famous up and coming artists at this time like David Bowie, Rod Stewart, Cat Stevens and Elton John to name a few so it was a good learning start for me.....
Around 1969 you started your new band called Judas Priest. You played blues rock. That outfit lasted for about a year and then you joined with Freight, who were power trio at the times. How did this happened?
69' saw me form 'Judas Priest' , i was now 22 years old and had always been more interested in the heavier side of music than the pop shit which was being churned out at this time in the UK.....our first guitarist 18 year old Johnny Perry committed suicide and so i set up an audition for his replacement....one kid that came along was K.K Downing but although he looked the part with his trademark blonde hair he didn't get the job....the guy that we gave the guitarist job to was from the City and name Ernie Chataway.We played a mixture of music at the time like covers by Steppenwolf, Quatermass, Quicksilver Messenger Service, prog rock , blues to heavy rock...John Partridge(drums) and Bruno Stapenhill (bass) made up the rest of this four piece band. We signed a three year contract with London based 'Immediate Records',but not long after they went bust and with one lot of bad luck after another we decided to called it a day.
1970 , Undeterred i decided to try again with a new line up and went along to some rehearsal rooms called 'Holy Joes' and this is where i met up with K.K again who i must admit had come on a lot with his guitar skills, Ian Hill was on bass guitar and John Ellis on drums. They were a power trio called 'Freight' and the name i didn't like so i asked them if they needed a vocalist and if their answer was yes would they change their name to 'Judas Priest' , they all agreed and this would be a long road to the beginnings of the mighty Priest.....
Rob Ayling writes: "Thom the World poet is an old mate of mine from way back in my history. Even pre-dating Voiceprint, when I was running "Otter Songs" and Tom's poetry tapes and guest appearances with Daevid Allen, Gilli Smyth Mother Gong are well known and highly regarded. It just felt right to include a daily poem from Thom on our Gonzo blog and when I approached him to do so, he replied with in seconds!!! Thom is a great talent and just wants to spread poetry, light and positive energy across the globe. If we at Gonzo can help him do that - why not? why not indeed!!" (The wondrous poetpic is by Jack McCabe, who I hope forgives me for scribbling all over it with Photoshop)
COMIC CON SEXUAL HARASSMENT
IMAGINARY PECTORALS IRON MAN WONDER WOMAN
Genitals hinted @ yet film versions PG satisfied with red glow lipstick bombfire Black leather jumpsuits/Green Hulks with anger mis-managements.No Superman saves! Louis Lane invests!Tarzan and Jane!Patient as a Secretary. Iron Man's Ginger .Dark Knight's butler.Someone Saves Ya! In the last reel(Perils of Pauline)Serials morph into Star Wars (Western in Space).Harrison Ford.Heroines as heroin? We await sequels /franchises.Surprise!Advanced plot lines
pit hero vs anti-.Bikinis promote Star Trek/Wars.Complaints when female roles are thin,rare as steak.AVENGERS cast of Plenty-just to save one world from Time warp! Shifting deckchair Directors/distracting us from Reality(Shows By the time these get released,it will be time for a new format PLEASE HAVE YOUR BRAIN SCAN READY FOR INSPECTION@the entrance..
Barbara Dickson will be at Buxton Opera House on Thursday 31 July as part of Summer Pops Week 2014.
From her roots in the Scottish folk scene of the late 1960s through to mainstream chart success with hits including Answer Me, Another Suitcasein Another Hall, January, Februaryand the million-selling number one single, I Know Him So Well, Barbara Dickson has long since cemented her status as one of the UK’s best-loved performers.
As Scotland’s best-selling female album artist, she has earned six platinum, 11 gold and seven silver albums. She is also known for her successful stage career including the roles of the original Mrs Johnstone in Willy Russell’s long-running musical, Blood Brothers and as Viv Nicholson in Spend Spend Spend, both of which have won her an Olivier Award for Best Actress. Barbara was also awarded an O.B.E. by Her Majesty the Queen in the 2002 New Year’s Honours for her services to music and drama. With a new album of the songs of Gerry Rafferty released in 2013, she continues to record and play to sold-out audiences throughout the UK.
Rob Ayling writes: "Thom the World poet is an old mate of mine from way back in my history. Even pre-dating Voiceprint, when I was running "Otter Songs" and Tom's poetry tapes and guest appearances with Daevid Allen, Gilli Smyth Mother Gong are well known and highly regarded. It just felt right to include a daily poem from Thom on our Gonzo blog and when I approached him to do so, he replied with in seconds!!! Thom is a great talent and just wants to spread poetry, light and positive energy across the globe. If we at Gonzo can help him do that - why not? why not indeed!!" (The wondrous poetpic is by Jack McCabe, who I hope forgives me for scribbling all over it with Photoshop) ABUSERS
WORLD S GOT TALENT!
So
you have a jury
say
three or four faces you know
who
pass judgement upon souls who
have
survived auditions among thousands who wish
to
be THE ONE who wins-
a.a
recording contract
b.applause
and acceptance
c.paid
gigs because of this freebie
Nervousness,an
audience,soap opera camerawork
Tension,music,a
studio.Finally-a winner!
Which
makes all others losers.So 99% go home less
for
1% to feel more! PROMOTE EVERY VOICE!
Get
to your live open mikes and stand your ground!
A native of England, Geoff Downes, along with Trevor Horn, formed the British group the Buggles during which Downes played multiple keyboards to achieve a new wave techno pop sound. In 1979, they released their first album with the hit song “Video Killed the Radio Star,” which was No. 1 on the singles charts in sixteen countries, and the music video was the first to be shown on MTV.
Downes and Horn joined Yes (founded in 1968 by Chris Squire and Jon Anderson) in 1980, but the band split the next year, so he joined forces with guitarist Steve Howe (from Yes), bassist/vocalist John Wetton (from King Crimson) and drummer Carl Palmer (from Emerson, Lake & Palmer) to form the group Asia. In addition to recording and touring with Asia, Downes has also recorded a number of solo albums and collaborated with many other artists.
“[Heaven & Earth] is more of a general statement of two opposites working together. Certainly in some of the songs, you get a kind of push and pull of two extremes, so it has more to do with that. It doesn’t actually have any specific religious undertones.”
While currently active with Asia, Downes has also finished three albums with John Wetton and reunited with Bruce Woolley and Trevor Horn in 2010 as the band the Buggles performing “The Lost Gig” to raise funds for the Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability. In 2011, he participated in the recording of the new Yes album Fly From Here and rejoined the band as a full-time keyboard player.
The latest episode of our monthly webTV show from the CFZ and CFZtv, bringing you news on our activities within cryptozoology and natural history as well as the latest cryptozoological, and monster hunting news from around the world. I can't believe that we have done this every month for over six years now - 81 episodes. Golly!
This episode brings you:
CFZ in Summer
New faces
A bevy of newts
Rescuing a magpie
Rescuing a baby blackbird
Rescuing a vole
Fostering hedgehogs
A Yellow legged invasion
Weird Weekend 2914
An appeal for help
A mystery eel
Mystery caterpillars
Out of place birds
New and Rediscovered: New wallaby
New and Rediscovered: New sengi
New and Rediscovered: Rediscovered bat
Rob Ayling writes: "Thom the World poet is an old mate of mine from way back in my history. Even pre-dating Voiceprint, when I was running "Otter Songs" and Tom's poetry tapes and guest appearances with Daevid Allen, Gilli Smyth Mother Gong are well known and highly regarded. It just felt right to include a daily poem from Thom on our Gonzo blog and when I approached him to do so, he replied with in seconds!!! Thom is a great talent and just wants to spread poetry, light and positive energy across the globe. If we at Gonzo can help him do that - why not? why not indeed!!" (The wondrous poetpic is by Jack McCabe, who I hope forgives me for scribbling all over it with Photoshop) WHERE TO RETIRE
WHEN I FIRST DIED,I WAS HAPPY JUST TO BE
IN THE COMPANY OF FRIENDS WHO ENJOYED GOOD COMPANY
It did not matter that the cold and frost and poverty
meant we could not afford heating,air conditioning -even a fan
for the heat swung lazily atop ceilings.All climate is emotional!
Second Life ,i was an Avatar(Spirit Aviator!)so in love with life
i lost it!Third Life,i was practicing to be a cat.Such patience!
Fourth life i was a still life.A lake.A mountain.A deep forest.
Fifth was just reading books and watching movies.(no popcorn!
Sixth Sense intuited that this was an ongoing cycle
so in my Seventh Seal/Aura/Shakra,i simply surrendered
This is now my eighth turn of the wheel.Nine is perfection
Music Legends Jon Anderson and Jean-Luc
Ponty Announce Formation of New Music Ensemble -
The Anderson Ponty
Band!
Los Angeles, CA - Music legends Jon
Anderson and Jean-Luc Ponty announce the formation of a new ensemble - The Anderson Ponty Band! YES's original
singer/songwriter for 35 years, Jon Anderson has had a successful solo career,
which includes working with such notable music artists as Vangelis, Kitaro, and
Milton Nascimento. International jazz superstar Jean-Luc Ponty is a pioneer and
undisputed master of violin in the arena of jazz and rock. He is widely regarded
as an innovator who has applied his unique visionary spin that has expanded the
vocabulary of modern music. Together these two music icons form a musical
synergy that is unparalleled!
“A breakthrough feeling came as I sang
with Jean-Luc's music, to be in a band again is very exciting on many levels, we
will play and sing our way around the world and have fun, for music is pleasure,
music is all that is, music is God” - Jon Anderson
The Anderson Ponty Band also includes Jamie
Dunlap on guitars - well known as a film and television composer, most notably
'South Park'; Wally Minko on keyboards - virtuoso player and composer who has
performed and recorded with many worldwide stars including Pink, Toni Braxton,
Jean-Luc Ponty, Tom Jones and Barry Manilow; Baron Browne on bass who has played
with Steve Smith, Billy Cobham and Jean-Luc Ponty; and Rayford Griffin on drums
and percussion, who has played with Stanley Clarke Band, George Duke, Jean-Luc
Ponty and Michael Jackson. The band will visit the music created by Jon Anderson
and Jean-Luc Ponty over the years with new arrangements, virtuosic performances
and new energy, while creating new compositions as well.
The Anderson Ponty Band have been writing
and arranging old favorites during the past three months. They will be in
residence for three weeks in September at Wheeler Opera House in Aspen, Colorado
rehearsing, recording and playing a public performance on Saturday September
20th. An album will be finished in Los Angeles and is scheduled for release in
early 2015. Also, a videography documenting the making of the album will be
released as well as videos and performances. A world tour beginning in March
2015 is in the planning stages.
The Anderson Ponty Band announce the launch
of a Kickstarter campaign today July 25th beginning at 2PM Eastern. The campaign
will encourage fans and friends to become a stakeholder in the project. Numerous
tiers of donations will be rewarded by album downloads, premium CD/DVD packages,
VIP ticket access, merchandising, special one of a kind collectibles, special
meet and greets with the band and much more.
Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett insists he didn't ''b***ch'' about anyone when he was reunited with the band for a new BBC documentary.
The progressive rock pioneer, who was a member of the group from 1971 to 1977, met with the original line-up, including Peter Gabriel, Phil Collins, Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford, for the feature-length documentary: 'Genesis: Together and Apart'.
The musicians also had a press photograph taken recently for the first time in years, following their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010.
Steve told BANG Showbiz: ''It was very nice ... we spoke at length for about two hours to camera. We had lunch and it was the first time we'd got everyone in one room for quite some time.
''Everyone was talkative but there was a lot of pain and pleasure in equal measure. There's a lot to celebrate and there's a lot to remonstrate.
''I think we're all very honest about each other and that was good. I was able to say nice things, I don't think I said anything nasty or b**ch.''
Meanwhile, Steve, 64, performed a huge concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London last year and the footage has been released on DVD, titled 'Genesis Revisited Live at the Royal Albert Hall'.
(July 24, 2014) The road never ends. The road is intolerant of those snapshots of you as a kid drummer, playing pop tunes in Montreal, filing in behind the drum kit for traveling bands or playing pop tunes in a band called Bartholomew Plus 3.
“This all started when I was 11 years old,” Corky Laing, who knows a bit about the road and the music, said the other day. “I was actually sweeping the stage for the country club outside Montreal. Clean the stage and make sure the drums were all polished.They had acts come up form the Catskills and play. This weekend they had the Ink Spots, but the musicians’ union in Canada was on strike. They found me sweeping the stage and showed me how to do a bit of brushwork on the drums and I sat in with them.That was my first time behind the kit.”
Rob Ayling writes: "Thom the World poet is an old mate of mine from way back in my history. Even pre-dating Voiceprint, when I was running "Otter Songs" and Tom's poetry tapes and guest appearances with Daevid Allen, Gilli Smyth Mother Gong are well known and highly regarded. It just felt right to include a daily poem from Thom on our Gonzo blog and when I approached him to do so, he replied with in seconds!!! Thom is a great talent and just wants to spread poetry, light and positive energy across the globe. If we at Gonzo can help him do that - why not? why not indeed!!" (The wondrous poetpic is by Jack McCabe, who I hope forgives me for scribbling all over it with Photoshop) RAINING ON THE SPRINGS
CLOUD COVERED AUSTIN MORNING
10%
chance of rain.Cynics laugh!Heat factor 106!
Early
morning slip into Spring fed waters
Once
,snake,salamander,indigenous
Now,lovers
of these waters,convene
some
for dive,some float,a few do laps-these Springs
define
the core of Austin-green,living,in tune with flow
So
the demographics also mirror the water quality
Some
meditators,some yogis,some elderly folk
some
thin athletes.Early ones silent and smiling.
Like
visiting an ex-lover.You know others have been there
Yet
something brings you back to her.So each slips in
Then
dots ,circles,splotches on the surface tension
It
is raining on the Pool!Laughter erupts!Water to water kiss!
Elemental
this relationship.Some leave,confused.Some stay ,float
Water
is busy meeting its levels.Such public intimacy!Such indiscretion!
The opening notes on Yes‘ 21st studio album are like sonic comfort food: Guitarist Steve Howe teases an ethereal melody, his delayed notes conjuring the mystical waterfalls and hovering spaceships of any good Roger Dean cover. But the blissful vibe is temporary — moments later, Geoff Downes enters with a blaring synth pad, while new frontman Jon Davison stretches awkwardly into cosmic goo.
But just when you’re ready to write off opener ‘Believe Again‘ as a lukewarm retread, the chorus arrives, bassist Chris Squire anchoring Davison’s feather-light cries with an earthy warmth; then midway through, Howe unleashes a sinister guitar break, punctuated by Downes’ fusion synth squalls. In eight minutes flat, the track manages to frustrate and delight in equal measure — exemplifying the overall half-excellence of ‘Heaven & Earth.’
The high points here rank among Yes’ finest work in decades — but reaching those heights is never easy. ’The Game’ is as solid a straight-ahead pop song as they’ve written since ’90125,’ riding a wordless vocoder hook and a lovely guitar fade-out — but it’s marred by a vague, hippie-dippie lyrical style and a paper-thin drum sound that might as well be looped from a Casio. The acoustic ballad ’To Ascend’ wastes Howe’s yearning 12-string and lovely harmonizing from Squire and Davison, weirdly transitioning to a bouncy, anti-climactic new-age chorus (“Taking the time on a wing and a prayer / A wounded bird in the hand / With the eyes of a child / Come to understand“).
The songs — most of the time — aren’t the problem; it’s the way they’re captured on tape. Roy Thomas Baker, the man who once helped Queen realize their most grandiose sonic visions, doesn’t aim too high on ‘Heaven & Earth,’ offering the band a computerized sheen that doesn’t fit their organic, muscular strengths. The album was supposedly written and recorded on a tour-looming time crunch, and it often sounds like it: Alan White’s drums are often surprisingly loose, and a few sections (the timpani-synth intro to ‘Subway Walls,’ the chorus piano on ‘To Ascend’) feel stitched together and slightly out-of-synch, suggesting the players were never in the same room together.
Yes will release an expanded Special Edition version of “Songs From Tsongas - The 35th Anniversary Concert”, on September 23.
Originally issued in 2005, the updated project adds 70 minutes of material from a show in Lugano, Switzerland on the same tour.
Available on 2DVD, Blu-ray, 3CD and digital formats, the Special Edition of“Songs From Tsongas” contains two different concerts from Yes’ 35th Anniversary Tour in 2004, the last to feature the classic line-up of Jon Anderson, Steve Howe, Chris Squire, Rick Wakeman and Alan White.
In addition to the originally 2005 release, this DVD is packed with an additional 70 minutes of never-before-released highlights from Lugano.
Disc One of the Special Edition DVD contains the whole concert from the Tsongas Arena in Lowell, Massachusetts, previously spread across two discs. This epic show features tracks from across the band’s career including an extensive acoustic section and some tracks that have rarely been performed live.
...BECAUSE SOME OF US THINK THAT THIS STUFF IS IMPORTANT
What happens when you mix what is - arguably - the world's most interesting record company, with an anarchist manic-depressive rock music historian polymath, and a method of dissemination which means that a daily rock-music magazine can be almost instantaneous?
Most of this blog is related in some way to the music, books and films produced by Gonzo Multimedia, but the editor has a grasshopper mind and so also writes about all sorts of cultural issues which interest him, and which he hopes will interest you as well.
