Wednesday, 13 June 2012

LINK: A peculiar review of Genre Peak

This is another one of those weird reviews where - after babelfish have done their own inimitable magick - I really don't know whether the reviewer likes the album or not. But I do, so I am posting it..








CD of Pop appeared in 2012 under the label Gonzo Multimedia

Once will not hurt, rather a label-oriented progressive rock sign a draft electronic music . Genre Peak is the brainchild of American keyboardist and percussionistMartin Birke , a veteran who started as a drummer in the late years 80 before going to programming percussion, synths and samplers. Curiously, after only two albums, and the departure of two colleagues with whom he had originally formed Genre Peak, Birke decided to release a compilation! It has anyway of remixes and two previously unreleased, recorded with the participation of the singer Percy Howard , with whom he also formed a trip-hop duo, Hardboiled Wonderland . Arrangements are dominated by spacey synths and orchestral or more artificial, a stamp of crystalline piano, programmed percussion, bass, sometimes real (a piece with the late ex-bassist of Japan , Mick Karn ) and a few guitars clear and ethereal sounds.Howard has a clear tone, medium or severe enough, recalling the occasion David Bowie by his intonation a bit dramatic. On the other hand, the singer Tara C. Taylor , the register is large enough, however, less prominent and finally, we hear the song of Birke himself clear enough but not transcendent. "Redux" also features a few instrumentals of various styles, such as "Rama" with its dark atmosphere, full of a sort of latent threat, slightly reminiscent of some titles Peter Gabriel , with the vaporous mixture of synths and percussion acoustic timbres electronic and mixed."Words Surround Us" is a mysterious title, heavily electronic with mesmerizing violins of Benito Cortez and spacey synths and cold, somewhat reminiscent of what could beSteven Wilson with Tim Bowness in No-Man to the beginnings of the group. We find this style on a few other songs such as "Blue Filter" and along "Point Of No Return".By cons, "Hell On The Surface", fully electronic and heavily laden rhythms, is closer to some form of techno / trance. If patches or more abstract orchestral keyboards are often superb, Birke seems fond of the sounds Battery artificial, dry and clacking, whose album is dotted. Matter of taste of course, but these sounds were already available long ago. They sound dated and are especially unattractive. It's pretty boring. Luckily, our man also offers more spacey songs, with beautiful piano tones and subtle percussion like on "No", the instrumental following the mysterious "Rama". Attention is struggling to stay again with the minimalist but little melodic "Microsphere 13" with its hazy sonorities and electronic punctuations that develop in a haphazard (note that Birke has another project called Microsphere !). In short, "Redux" is a hard uneven. There are obvious qualities: beautiful sounds on occasion, a certain concern for sound experimentation, melancholic moods and dramatic actors on some good songs by competent vocalists (especially Percy Howard ). That said, Genre Peak has limitations actually quite common in the world of electronic music including a lack of variation within the songs. The arrangements are sometimes a bit dry, the contrast is not evident between the voice warm keyboards and electronic rhythms and very cold, well programmed drum sounds with the snare drum or hollow metal which are not less. To be continued ... still Chronicle written by Mark M on 5/17/2012

LINK: Troy Donockley CD Review









Troy Donockley: Messages: A collection of music 1998-2001

Review by G. W. Hill

Well, with a compilation like this, one might not anticipate a lot of consistency and cohesiveness. Somehow, this collection manages to feel pretty organic in flow. Donockley is generally considered a Celtic prog artist, so a lot of this falls in that general direction. Still, it also has some definite symphonic textures. It’s quite an entertaining set.

Track by Track Review

Sights
This tune is very pretty and it has a lot of energy. It flows very well. There is a definite world elements and some symphonic texture.

For Him Who Will Never Return
Starting with Uillean Pipes, this is quite world oriented and pretty. As it grows out from there, the changes are gradual and that same basic element remains constant. This is a beautiful and quite organic piece of music.

Now Voyager
A female voice opens this and continues sans instrumentation for over thirty second. Then the instruments join in atmospheric, symphonic textures. Around the minute and a half mark those vocals drop away and the song gets a symphonic, progressive rock styled treatment as various spoken voices come over the top. It drops to more purely symphonic after a time, and then comes in with a more rock oriented motif. Still, that rock style isn’t like a rock and roll or crunchy sound, but rather like symphonic prog merged with Pink Floyd and Celtic music. It grows out into some powerful symphonic music.

Fragment
This is quite a mellow piece. It’s really not rock at all, but rather a chorale piece. The vocals are the real key element here.

Orkkahaugr
Coming in acoustic based, this has a lot of energy and builds out with some classic Celtic elements. It carries in that basic format for a while, but then drops way down for a symphonic sort of movement, more like chamber music. There are bits of crunch that come over the top, lending progressive rock to the arrangement. It works out to melodic Celtic based prog as it continues.

Finlandia
Jean Sibelius is definitely my favorite classical composer, and I don’t think it’s possible to be a fan of Sibelius and not love “Finlandia.” This is Donockley’s arrangement of the middle section of the composition. As one might guess, this piece is quite classical in nature. It’s also powerful and pretty and has some Celtic texture to it.

Dunmail Rising
This bursts in and then modulates out to a symphonic sort of section. The track continues by alternating those two elements in an intriguing arrangement. Later it works out to a delicate and complex symphonic arrangement that’s very pretty. As it builds out from there more rock oriented elements are heard in the rhythm section as the classical sounds weave over the top. This gets very powerful.

Pursuit of Illusion
There are both male and female vocals on this cut. It’s definitely quite classical in nature. It’s also very compelling and pretty.

Tunnels
This is quite an intriguing cut. It works through a number of changes and alterations. At times it’s more like pure (albeit organic) progressive rock. At other points it’s more symphonic in nature. This is an epic with a lot of majesty and mystery, but just as much delicate beauty. There is plenty of Celtic sound here, but a lot of other elements in place, too. I really like this one a lot. In fact, it’s probably the best track here. It’s surely the one with the widest scope. It’s very magical.

The Procession
As the title suggests, this little instrumental is a pretty and quite symphonic number to lead things out in style.

JON ANDERSON: Seattle, 6th June

http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/jon-anderson/2012/the-triple-door-seattle-wa-6bdf3ad2.html

For those of you who need to know such things, this was Jon Anderson's setlist at the Seattle gig on the 6th June..

LINK: Interesting article about Adam Wakeman

Rant ‘N’ Roll: Headspace

Rant ‘N’ Roll: Headspace

—by , June 13, 2012



If your father is the legendary Yes keyboardist Rick Wakeman, you’ve got a lot to live up to, especially if you start your own progressive rock band. The fact of the matter is that I Am Anonymous, the debut release from Headspace with Adam Wakeman on keyboards, shows more muscle than...

Read on...

LINK: Merrell Fankhauser Review

http://www.therocktologist.com/fankhauser-merrell---the-best-of-merrell-fankhauser.html

Disc 1:
1. Too Many Heartbreaks
2. She’s Gone
3. Lila
4. Supermarket
5. Drivin’ Sideways On a One Way Street
6. Girl I Am Waiting For You
7. I am Flyin Home
8. The Clouds Went That Way
9. One More Day
10. The Land Of MU
11. Blue Jay Blue
12. On Our Way To Hana
13. Garden in The Rain
14. Make a Joyful Noise
15. Dharmic Connection
16. Some of Them Escaped it All

Disc 2:
1. Calling From a Star
2. Alien Talk
3. Matthew’s Dream
4. Waterfall
5. Who Can You Call?
6. Workin’ In The City
7. Flying To Machu Picchu
8. Goin’ South
9. Queen Mu
10. Haiku Jam
11. Tale of Misty Mountain
12. Move to Higher Ground
13. Two Vegetarians
14. Surfin
15. When Merrell Met Jane
16. Tiki Lounge

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To say that Merrell Fankhauser’s career was marginally diverse would be a masterpiece of understatement. In the last four decades he tackled a truly extraordinary cocktail of musical genres, more or less successfully reaching from surf, folk rock and blues rock to spaced out psychedelia. Happily for all, compiled on a two CD set, this Merrell Fankhauser “best of” will undoubtedly satisfy anyone wanting a user friendly Fankhauser overview, as it brings joy for the more determined music collector too.

Check you secret pockets for any pills you may have unknowinglymisplaced because this is a trip where daydreams and imagination dance hand in hand. As soon as things get rolling we find Merrell Fankhauser perching on top of a weird mix of musical styles. Clearly Merrell was into everything and anything whenever the smallest opportunity popped up. Its fascinating how often this seemingly enthusiast like experimenting came up with extraordinary results. Even if extensive radio play remained elusive a good indication of the numerous possibilities was given. With “She’s Gone” Merrell and the Exiles walk the peculiar path between typical 60s R&B grooves and spongy The Beatles like tunes. “Driving Sideways (On A One Way Street)” drops in some extra acid and pychedelia, while “I am Flyin’ Home” draws parallels with a non offending Rare Earth caricature.

The MU period is presented with four numbers. Here lay a reminder of how unconventionally innovative this remarkable outfit really was. “One More Day” is a great blues inspired tune feathered with beach like lightheartedness while “The Land Of MU” dives straight into folk rock psychedelia. When going solo Merrell proves much mellower and theme focused. “On Our Way To Hana” sees him practicing hippie love, while “Make A Joyful Noise” and “Some Of Them Escaped It All” are again both folk tinged gemstones.

Disk two is a showcase of Merrell’s works from 1978 onwards. In this time experimenting with styles and moods became much more streamlined. At this point accessible stuff starts creeping in to the detriment of musical creativity Fankhauser is famed for. Much of Merrell’s personality gets lost with numbers like “Waterfall”and “Queen MU”. Here Merrell is at his best when dressing up in syntetisized colors of “Calling From a Star” and ska influenced “Alien Talk”. Notwithstanding the fact that Merrell’s style shifting may seem chaotic or at least hard to follow still the general consensus remains that surf is the best and the man’s most representative tool of trade. On “Two Vegetarians” he returns flashing some of the old surf magic. A quick dive into previously unreleased tracks proves to be a thing of mixed fortunes (just try tackling the fabricated melancholy of “When Merrell Met Jane”) except for the long running fans who will undoubtedly treasure these uncovered workouts. Speaking of those hard to come by moments, “Haiku Jam” is definitely worth checking out. “Surfin’ Prismo” may lack the spark and sparkle of his best works, but in the end still manages survive somehow as one of the disks bright spots.

JON'S LAST POSTBAG BEFORE HE LEFT FOR A FEW DAYS AWAY

Things have come to a pretty pass when photographs of a fat hippy making stupid faces and waving CDs about counts as news.

However I couldn't think of a better way of passing on the glad tidings that I have just received a CD from the lovely Helen McCookerybook, and will (if everything goes according to plan) be interviewing her next week for these hallowed pages.







GRAHAM IS IN CHARGE

We are off for a few days, and may be sighted in and about Rochdale where we shall be attending the wedding of G0nzo Daily spelling machine Lizzy C.

In the meantime, Graham Inglis will be in charge, so expect even more Hawkwind than normal, and various other bits of space rock.

Graham can be contacted on graham@cfz.org.uk and I am happy to say that I will be completely out of range of a computer until sunday, monday or possibly even tuesday.

Ha!

See you next week dudes and dudettes

DAVE CURTIS: Onward with Hawkwind to Stamford

Dear Jon,

Woke up Sunday 27th of May.

Hawkwind T-shirt nicely pressed and Doc Martens polished to a high sheen, Kissed Mrs C goodbye and drove down the A1 to the lovely town of Stamford.

Booked into my hotel and then headed for a pub I'd seen on the internet called the Green Man. Sat in there from Noon till about four drinking Scrumpy (will I never fuckin' learn) talking to some wonderful people from all over the world. Phoned Graham to tell him that the Hawkwind tour bus had been splattered with paint and then drank some more Scrumpy before staggering off to my hotel room. Sat down....Good night Vienna!

Woke with a start! Whaaaa! What time is it? Eyes wont focus, is that 7.50pm or 7.50 Monday morning? It's PM Thank God! I drag myself to the shower clicking the kettle on as I stumble passed. Coffee, I need strong coffee, fill the cup half full and neck it luke warm. Disgusting but effective.

Luckily for me The Corn Exchange theatre is just around the corner from my hotel so I got there in plenty of time. The stage was done up like a paint ball battle, all camouflage and foliage to tie in the cover of their new album Onward. New member too, Dead Fred is operating something but I cannot make out what as I am quite far back and what ever it is, its hid behind a bush and Richard Chadwick is behind him. Poor Richard, I could just make out his head now and again, I should have brought my opera glasses.

The Corn Exchange is a lovely little gem, run by volunteers apparently. They do a bloody good job but I think they are more use to productions of Puss in Boots rather than rock bands, they look a bit shell shocked at sight of the motley crew that has packed their beloved theatre to the rafters. Didn't see any spliffs in amongst the choc ices and ice lollies in the usherette's tray at half time.

Onward....the band are up for it and it sounds good from where I am sitting. New numbers and the classics are blasted through with aplomb. The dancers are up for it too and they seem to have a few new characters in their act. A green eyed demon and a goddess with long flowing dress and hair on stilts! Very big stilts! Wow.

It seems almost like a greatest hits gig because the crowd are treated to some absolute belters. 'Damnation alley' is a stand out!

All too soon its over as the chords crash in for 'Silver machine' and everyone goes home with a smile on their face.

Hawkwind have hit a rich run of form. Hurrah.

And me? I go back to my hotel avoiding the Green Man and it's dynamite Scrumpy.

Regards

Davey C

IT SEEMS THAT EVERYONE IS EXCITED ABOUT ERIK NORLANDER

In 2009, master keyboardist, Erik Norlander, went into the studio with a new set of virtuoso musicians to record re-imaginings of his favorite instrumental compositions as a project called "The Galactic Collective." In 2010, Erik released a preview of the project on CD-R through Chian Productions in Ohio. In 2011, Erik took the project on the road and recorded the results.

LINK: 5 Questions with former Yes singer Jon Anderson, who is Touring Solo

http://santacruz.patch.com/articles/5-questions-with-former-yes-singer-jon-anderson-who-is-touring-solo#photo-10292385

With the band Yes, singer Jon Anderson has sold more than 50 million discs since the late 1960s and his band's following has been so passionate, it has been written about as a religion.

Along with Pink Floyd and King Crimson, Yes is one of the cornerstones of progressive rock, a genre that infused classical and operatic sensibilities with rock. It told stories in long, elegaic songs miles and light years away from the three-minute singles that were the mainstay of popular radio, but not that far from what bands such as the Beatles tried in concept albums like Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.


For Yes fans it's tragic that the band hasn't been recognized by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which seems as predictable and slavish to fashion as the earlier stone-walled museums it tried not to be.

Anderson has left the band he co-founded and plays a rare Santa Cruz show June 21 at the Rio Theatre. Yes, meanwhile, goes on without him, using a singer from a Yes tribute band when itappears in San Jose August 14.

Anderson's show includes classic Yes material, new songs and stories told from five decades on the road. He's still working and constantly recording; he most recently released a beautiful single called Limitless Lives with Italian composter Marco Sabiu.


Anderson took some questions by phone from his home near San Luis Obispo, a place he fell in love with on a car trip.


Why aren't you touring with Yes?

I got very sick, as you know (he suffered acute respiratory failure) and they wanted to go off and keep making money and keep touring. They got a young Canadian singer who looked and sang like me. Then that didn't work and they got another one. After a year and a half they are just out there. It's not the best thing in the world for the legacy.

They are doing their thing. They love being on the road, but there's more to life than that kind of work. It's not really very healthy.

Why are you playing solo?

I still believe in the music, Yes music. Bands split up. The Beatles split up and that really pissed me off. It's disappointing as a real fan. I feel a bit of a heartache, but you get on with your life.
I'm 67 this year. I've toured and toured and toured and toured with Yes. This solo tour is more like a holiday. It's fun just putting on a good show. I play guitar, ukelele, dulcimer and I'll be selling a small amount of open painted jeweled cases, six per show. I love creating art work.

Are you still living in San Luis Obispo?

I live south of there. I've been living here nearly 15 years. I'm an American citizen now. I'm always in my studio working. I finished a dozen songs with a friend in L.A. I'm working on an album with Rick (Wakeman, Yes's keyboardist, who has also left the band).

What about your new song, Open, a symphonic-style piece with orchestral instruments that reminds me of Tales from Topographic Oceans?

It's a 20-minute piece of music that I started last spring and wanted to put out on my birthday (Oct. 24). People like it. Music is more than just having a hit record or being on TV. Music is more powerful than everything. I'll play some of it in concert. I wrote it on acoustic guitar. (You can get it here, or on iTunes.)


Why isn't Yes in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?

I just don't think the people in charge – I was there last year doing a show and I got on very well with them – they just don't recognize Yes as being very important. Maybe in 10 years time they will and we'll all get together.

For Jon Anderson tickets go here.

LINK: Great Rick Wakeman live CD review

http://dmme.net/reviews/reviews50.html#ifran
RICK WAKEMAN -
In The Nick Of Time
Gonzo 2012
Spaced out but not out there, another marvelous crusade of the Caped Wizard.
If the myriad of Rick Wakeman's studio works requires a guide for the uninitiated to not be playing a hit-or-miss game, the keyboardist's live recordings are always listener's gain. So while 2003's "Out There" is a quirky concept confection, on the road its excerpts lent themselves to a context which mixed time-tested classics with a newer material. Choosing from his vast catalogue never was a challenge for Rick, what with his improvisational bent, yet the situation Wakeman started that UK tour in was. Shortly before the first gig Damian Wilson, who sang on the album, vanished and, although a purely instrumental performance didn't pose a problem, the piano man called his choice voice Ashley Holt to step forward as he did many times before and supplant the suppleness of his predecessor with refined muscularity. Hence the title of this CD, a document of their heroics.
Both veterans are in their dramatic element on "No Earthly Connection" here, yet the main thread during those concerts was cosmic-centered - not for nothing Wakeman reimagined Steve Howe's "Wurm" and gave much string reins to Ant Glynne - so two fresh cuts, grand rockers "Out There" and the choir-enhanced "Cathedral In The Sky", provide a lot of space for the guitarist to fly. He does just that on the opener "Catherine Parr" that is expanded with the unreleased "Beware Your Enemies" where synthesizers take over from the organ, before drummer Tony Fernandez and bassist Lee Pomeroy give rhythms an impressive weight to which Holt's heavy lungs contribute nicely. Much lighter fares their groove on the slinky "White Rock" and "The Dance Of A Thousand Lights", led by Rick's elegant piano and faux orchestra and quoting the original "Journey". Such curious selection of tracks makes this album very interesting but the ensemble's delivery turns it into a celebration of sound.
Ah yes, there's also liner notes penned by the wiz himself whose raconteur skills are on par with his playing. Let's make it a good tradition, Rick, writing notes, OK?
****

GENRE PEAK - Lunchbreak in the studio



And check out the Gonzo Artist Page for Genre Peak (who are bloody fantastic by the way).

LINK: Jon Anderson live review


I had seen Yes during their 35th Anniversary Tour in 2004 and was so impressed by Jon Anderson’s voice which was as outstanding as ever after all these years. However, he had suffered from some life-threatening health issues since that time and had recovered, so I was eager to see if his voice had held up. In addition, I was also interested to see how his solo acoustic concert would compare to the Yes show I had seen and if it could keep my interest.



Read on...

Tuesday, 12 June 2012

DAVEY CURTIS: Hawkwind - Onward to Middlesborough

Dear Jon,

Middlesbrough town centre is a wacky place. Not only does have a busy duel carriage way on stilts snaking it's way through the rooftops of buildings but it also possesses two large music venues right next door to each other in permanent competition with each other.

On Wednesday 30th of May the Town Hall won the day for they hosted the mighty Hawkwind.

The Town Hall it self is great, all Gothic and foreboding, like something out of a Tim Burton film.

After a couple of jars in the Pig Iron pub across the road it was down into The Vault music venue of the Hall.

First up was support act Mr Quimby's Beard, a talented bunch of space rockers who also veered into Reggae and Dub territory within their music and it all went down very well with the crowd.

Then after a short break it was on to Hawkind who are promoting their new album Onward.

The stage was suitably adorned with green foliage and camouflage to tie in with the album design.

Dave & Niall opted for Hawaiian shirts, Mr Dibs a black kilt and bush hat, whist Tim sported a rather nifty white evening jacket. Unfortunately I could not make out what Richard Chadwick or Dead Fred had on because Richard was behind his kit and Fred was hidden behind some foliage operating something or other. It was nice to see Dave Brock up front for once because for awhile now he has opted to stand at the back behind synths and other assorted equipment.

Onward....first up they sounded great, a good mixture of new material and classics. The band seemed to really enjoying themselves and powered through the numbers with vigour. Tim Blake posing like the old pro he is with his synth-guitar, giving his Theremin some stick when needed. Mr Dibs had time to pull out his new toys. An electric cello and what I think was a Dan-electro Baritone guitar! Fantastic! It all seem to work well.
The light show was what you have come to expect from Hawkwind and was used to good effect. The young ladies they have dancing for them were 1st class and are always a joy to behold, although how she can walk about on such high stilts is beyond me.

The only minor quibble is the sound man keeps forgetting to turn Richard Chadwick's mic on when he sings Silver Machine as an encore. This happened when I saw them at Stamford too. But Hey Ho by the second verse he had realised his mistake and the crowd were in fine voice anyway. Hurrah.

All in all a very good night and the Hawks are on top of their game again.

Regards

Davey C

TODAY'S BEEFHEART STORY

This bunch of sales notes was actually the first that I had written in something approaching twenty years (since the first batch of Cockney Rebel CD reissues on EMI back in the early 1990s), and I think they are rather good. So, as I am the editor, I am reposting them.

Ha!

Don Van Vliet, (1941-2010) better known to his legions of fans as ‘Captain Beefheart’ was one of the most enigmatic figures in rock music. Unashamedly an artist, rather than a pop star, he ploughed his own idiosyncratic furrow through popular culture, producing some of the most peculiar and uncompromising music ever committed to vinyl. From the age of three he painted and sculpted, and had an obsession wityh animals and the natural world. As a teenager he was friends with Frank Zappa, and as early as 1963 they recorded a demo under the name ‘The Soots’. Sadly this was unsuccessful, and the world would have to wait a few more years before Beefheart’s own peculiar take on the blues would be heard by anyone outside his own particular posse of cronies. His first album, Safe as Milk came out in 1967, and Hunter Davies’ eponymous biography of The Beatles notes that John Lennon was an early fan. It is not surprising considering that the primal rock and roll that Lennon idolised and the peculiar surrealchemical blues of Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band, had much the same cultural genesis. Probably the most lauded album of the Captain’s career was the Zappa produced Trout Mask Replica which came out in 1969. Its mixture of jazz, blues, freeform improvisation and heavily structured avant-jazz weirdness proved too much for many listeners but ensured him a place in the history books. High profile fans of this album include the late John Peel, who would remain a champion of Beefheart’s until he died.

In 1972 Captain Beefheart released two albums; The Spotlight Kid and Clear Spot. He also toured the UK and Europe with the Magic Band, even performing two concerts at the Royal Albert Hall as part of an extensive British and European tour. On the 12th April, in the middle of the European leg of the tour Captain Beefheart and The Magic Band stopped off at the Beat Club studios in Bremen to film a session for later transmission.

Of the four song session filmed that day only one track has ever been broadcast. The band at that time included: Captain Beefheart (Don Van Vliet), vocals, harp. Rockette Morton (Mark Boston), guitar/bass. Zoot Horn Rollo (Bill Harkleroad), guitar. Orejon (Roy Estrada), bass. Ed Marimba (Art Tripp), drums. Winged Eel Fingerling (Elliot Ingber), guitar. Jon Kirkman describes the recordings:

“The session kicks off with a bass solo entitled ‘Mascara Snake’. This short piece was named after a former member of the Magic Band Victor Hayden, who had appeared on the Trout Mask Replica album. The solo is played by Mark Boston although at this point former Mothers of Invention bassist Roy Estrada had joined The Magic Band following his departure from Little Feat in early 1972". The other songs in the set here include a track dating back to Trout Mask Replica (‘Steal Softly Thru Snow’) and also a track that would feature on Clear Spot some eight months later (‘Golden Birdies’).


Tracks: 1. MASCARA SNAKE (BASS SOLO) 3:06 , 2. CLICK CLACK 1 3:44 , 3. CLICK CLACK 2 1:26 , 4. GOLDEN BIRDIES 1:58 , 5. BAND INTROS 0:56 , 6. I'M GONNA BOOGLARIZE YOU BABY 1 4:26 , 7. I'M GONNA BOOGLARIZE YOU BABY 2 5:02 , 8. STEAL SOFTLY THRU THE SNOW 3:33 , 9. I'M GONNA BOOGLARIZE YOU BABY 3 5:19.


http://www.gonzomultimedia.co.uk/product_details/15486

HEY REYNARD... SUPPER'S READY

Someone sent me this the other day, and I thought it was delightful. However, believe it or not, I have sent it to various friends and relations, some of whom didn't get it at all.

I wonder whether this could be the beginning of a series. Could we have a speciman of Salmo trutta holding a copy of Trout Mask Replica (the fish that was actually on the cover was a cyprinid of some sort). Could we have an aquiliform holding a copy of Steve Miller's Fly like an eagle or even a brown rat holding a copy of the eponymous debut album by The Stranglers?

You see where I'm going with this..

ANOTHER SLICE OF VINTAGE WAKEMAN

I must admit that I rather enjoy pootling around You Tube just to see what I can find. There are all sorts of bits of classic rock music history just waiting to be discovered...

A BRIEF GLIMPSE INTO THE WORLD OF CAPTAIN BEEFHEART

As regular readers will know, we (and by 'we' I mean Gonzo) have a Captain Beefheart DVD out very soon in the massively groovy (oh how I enjoy being in my early fifties and still being able to indulge in the patois from my childhood) 'Lost Broadcasts' series. Well, we have some very groovy Beefhearty stuff planned for you (my brother-in-law is a fan, and I try not to disappoint family) including a chat with one of the original Magic Band, and some exclusive bits and pieces from the DVD, but in the meantime I found the following, rather poignant article:

Near the end of the 100-page history that came with the 1999 box set Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band: Grow Fins, there's a heartbreaking story from one-time Beefheart guitarist/manager Gary Lucas, which happened in the early 1980s, close to the end of the Captain's (aka Don Van Vliet) recording career. Lucas and Van Vliet approached the latter's old high school pal and kindred 1960s iconoclast-crank Frank Zappa to retrieve the master tapes of Bat Chain Puller, an album the Magic Band had recorded for Zappa's label in 1976, before a lawsuit with Zappa's then-manager Herb Cohen stopped its release. When asked about taking the masters back, Zappa flatly replied: "I thought there might be a higher market value out there in 'BeefheartLand' if I didn't split up the set." By this point, Zappa had held the tapes for over five years, and the Band needed to fill the side of their last album, 1982's Ice Cream for Crow, so Zappa cut them a deal: "Well, I got a track about 12 minutes long called 'Do You Want a Pepsi?' Don sings on it. I wrote it." Needless to say, they declined.

Read on...

Check out the Gonzo Artist page:
http://www.gonzomultimedia.co.uk/product_details/15486

Monday, 11 June 2012

BOOK REVIEW: Morrissey and Marr: The Severed Alliance

Morrissey and Marr: The Severed Alliance Updated Twentieth Anniversary Edition
by Johnny Rogan
Paperback: 624 pages
Publisher: Omnibus Press; Upd Rev An edition (13 Jun 2012)
Language English
ISBN-10: 1780383045
ISBN-13: 978-1780383040

Once again I would like to thank those jolly nice people at Omnibus Press for having kept my leisure hours amused for the past week or so with this massive re-issue of a classic tome by Johnny Rogan. Bizarrely, in some ways at least, I should have read this book many years ago. Although I never particularly liked The Smiths, this is one of the classic rock music biographies and I am an avid reader of such things.

The really peculiar thing is that although, as I have said I never particularly liked The Smiths, this book enthused me enough to re-examine their music. And I now know where I was going wrong. Being an anally compulsive sort of cove, I have always approached listening to any band in the same way. I start at the debut album and continue through in chronological order. This has served me well on a number of occasions, but when I read that even the band themselves weren’t particularly enamoured with the mix on their eponymous debut album, this time around I started my investigations with their second (I refuse to call it their sophomore) album, and – much to my surprise – after two and a half decades of missing the point, I finally get The Smiths.

I had always quite liked Morrissey’s solo albums and in particular the 2006 offering Ringleader of the Tormentors, and had always annoyed purists by saying that his solo stuff was considerably better than The Smiths had been. Now, at least as far as the second and third albums; Meat is Murder and The Queen is Dead, I lay my shoulders down in shame. They are magnificent.

However, this is where the really bizarre thing comes into play. Although Rogan’s incisive prose finally turned me on to a whole slew of music that I had missed back in the day, there is nothing he said about any of the people concerned, especially Morrissey and Marr, that made me like them even a little bit. They both come over as cold, calculating and selfish, and one ends up feeling more than a little bit sorry for the lesser members of the band, and for the long line of people who did their best to manage them. I’ll re-phrase that; you feel a little bit sorry, but not very much, because most of them don’t come over as particularly likeable. But boy, Johnny M could play a mean guitar (and Johnny R can't half write).

Well done Mr Rogan.

ANY MAN WHO CAN DO THIS IS PROBABLY A GENIUS. HE CERTAINLY DESERVES ME BUYING HIM A PINT OR THREE


http://helmstone.wordpress.com/

THE BYRDS

As regular readers will know Gonzo is just about to put out a smashing Byrds DVD in the accclaimed 'Lost Broadcasts' series.

Well, the press machine is rolling into action, and herewith the first press cutting (ignore the typo in the hadline, it wasn't me for a change)...

AUBURN: Dear Liz has done it again!

YESTERDAY I WROTE:
It wouldn't be sunday in the Gonzo biz,
without a review of our Auburn Liz
still the only one I find,
who writes poetry in response to mine:

LIZ LENTEN WRITES:
I wouldn’t like to disappoint,
And now we’ve had the Sunday joint
I’ve found a little bit of time
To read your weekly bit of rhyme

You make sure that we’re up to date
With Gonzo artists, love or hate
them, Least we know what they have done
Your Sunday rhyming blog is fun

Thanks Hun...

FORTHCOMING CHRIS THOMPSON INTERVIEW

Chris Thompson, is to interviewed for the show on June 17th
PAPERLATE 730 http://www.paperlate.nl/

Live broadcast Sunday, June 17 , 2012, 19.00 – 21.00 p, on Zuidwest FM
http://www.zuidwestfm.nl/

Repeat Tuesday, June 19, 2012, 21.00 – 23.00 pm on Omroep Tholen Radio
http://www.omroeptholen.nl/

Podcast at:
http://www.zuidwesttv.nl/radio/gemist

LINK: Hawkwind & Nanobots – Holmfirth Picturedrome 3/6/12

Regular readers will know that Spece-Rock veterans Hawkwind have recently been on tour in the UK. We sent two of our mightiest reporter fellows (Graham Inglis and Ravey Davey Curtis) along to various gigs, and we have already printed several lots of pics and video andeven a review of the opening night. Somewhere along the line there will be reviews of the Stamford and Middlesborough shows from Davey C, and of the final show in the tour from Graham, but in the meantime, check this out..

Having caught Hawkwind at various places such as on the back of a van powered by a generator on a beach, the end of a pier and various festival tents I had been meaning to see them at the very nice Picturedrome in Holmfirth for some time. The weather frankly could not have been worse, and was typically playing up in true Bank Holiday weekend spirit but it was not dampening the enthusiasm of the large line waiting patiently to get into the venue. The door staff did a quick and proficient job of getting us in and out of the rain and almost straight away it seemed as though the venue was pretty much packed out and there were probably not a huge amount of tickets left available on the door.

After 43 years on their throne that is the way it should be for these space troopers. Hawkwind have so much history behind them that you could write a book about it and indeed several people have. As I prepared to watch them talking to people in the friendly crowd around I asked one person if he had seen them before and was told he had several times. He was 13 years old and hugging the barrier at the front of the stage expectantly with his proud 50 year old dad standing next to him. This is the spirit of the age that is Hawkwind!

Read on...
...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.