Category: Music

Ever since the wife and I cancelled our cable and TiVo subscriptions, we’ve been watching a lot of PBS. Damn if that’s not a kick ass station.

Currently, we are addicted to The Blues, the seven part series produced by Martin Scorsese that is showing this week. The other night we watched The Soul of a Man, Wim Wenders’ look at the lives of Skip James, Blind Willie Johnson, and J. B. Lenoir. I was amazed by the stories of these men and how they lived and died playing the music they loved. Each story is one of sacrifice, hardship and suffering, but you knew that; it is the blues after all.

Blind Willie got that way after his mother threw lye in his eyes after a fight with his father. Skip James wrote and recorded for a record label that paid him $40 for his first session and then he drifted back into obscurity and became a preacher. He never heard those recordings. J. B. Lenoir died in a car accident when he was 38. He received poor treatment at the hospital and later died at his home of internal bleeding. He was a dishwasher at the time.

It truly was amazing to watch and listen to these men play. The blues is definitely made up of a simple structure, but to listen to these three different interpretations of the form is amazing. Skip James’ ethereal, high-pitched singing, Blind Willie Johnson’s powerful voice and J. B. Lenoir’s effortless guitar playing and playful personality each brought something different to the form. Each song and approach was so unique; I went out the next day and bought me some blues records.

The Complete Blind Willie Johnson

The Complete Early Recordings of Skip James

Mojo Boogie by J. B. Lenoir

How would you like to a) have Phil Spector produce your band and b) fire Phil Spector from producing your band?

Starsailor’s James Stelfox got the lucky job:

“I shot two straight brandies and just said, ‘Phil, it has been great working with you,'” he says. “‘But we feel we need to carry on.'” Spector seemed “slightly stunned” at first. “He said, ‘I understand. This is your baby. It’s your dream. Go realise it.'” The next time they met, he “wasn’t very amicable”.

Read the full story.

So, I’ve been searching for a vintage drum set for the past few months. In case you’re wondering, I’m looking for a Gretsch “round badge” kit from the late 50’s to early 60’s. I just crave that Charlie Watts sound. If you’ve got one, let me know.

That’s not the reason for this post. In my search for the perfect vintage drum set, I’ve been reduced to doing Google searches and going through page after page of results in hopes that they might hold that hidden drum bargain. Not surprisingly, I’ve come across a few nut jobs. Everything from patriotic, vietnam vet drummers to über-drum geeks to the scary “look at my drums in this black light!” types. Drummers Web is one such place.

It’s a virtual swap meet of questionable merchandise, lost souls, bad spelling, bad taste, poor web design, mean-spirited rants and just about everything else that makes this internet thing so insanely great.

Here’s a great rant about, uh, well, I’m not sure, but it’s definitely entertaining: If these guys are drummers………

And then there’s the obligatory fag debate: You’re a fag! No, you are!

But don’t take my word for it, try it yourself! Google search for “drummers”

Enjoy the moronity.

Okay, it’s time to get a little bit serious around here. Alejandro Escovedo has some health problems and needs your help.

“Following a show in Phoenix on April 26, 2003, acclaimed singer-songwriter and playwright Alejandro Escovedo collapsed and was hospitalized due to complications from Hepatitis C.”

He is currently recovering and undergoing treatment at his home, but his health bills are (believe it or not) staggering. Like many, many musicians, Alejandro does not have health insurance. A lot of people are giving money to help him out and you should too.

Take a moment to think about all of the musicians in America who struggle financially for years of their lives in order to make the art that they (and you) love so much. It pisses me off that there is ZERO support from our government for these people. Arts funding in America is a joke. Every year, funding is cut more and more and artists are discouraged from trying to do what they love.

When I was touring in Holland recently with Magnapop, we played with a Dutch band called Caesar. This band is doing pretty well in their country. They were number one on the independent music charts in Holland (only to be knocked out by the White Stripes), had a sponsorship deal with Converse, and were touring their asses off. Each member of this 3-piece band had part-time jobs to help with their rent. But, they also had assistance from the Dutch government. It’s a 3-year program and they have to fill out a lot of paperwork and jump through some hoops, but I thought that was amazing. They receive discounts on their rent (half price!) and other benefits just because they are musicians. And, of course, health care is not an issue for them, since health care in Holland is nationalized.

Contrast that with America where the arts are looked down upon by our government in terms of financial support and there are national scandals because some guy took some homoerotic photos with the government’s money. Big fucking deal. Let me tell you something. Art is integral to culture and culture is being slowly squeezed to death by our government. Artists need support and if our government isn’t going to give it to them, it looks like it will have to come down to the private citizen.

That’s why I just gave Alejandro Escovedo $30 of my hard-earned money.

Will someone with some inside knowledge explain to me what happened to Jeff Mangum? He put out two brilliant Neutral Milk Hotel albums and then pretty much disappeared. Last I heard, he was a DJ at some college station in New York.

I just listened to On Avery Island on the way to work and, once again, was blown away. Such poetic, interesting music. Me likey.

I started work this week on the new Luigi web site. Right now it’s just a “coming soon” page, but it will be bursting with content soon. Be sure to bookmark that muther.

In other Luigi news, we have a show this Friday, May 23rd at the EARL in lovely East Atlanta. The opening bands are The Liverhearts and Parade. Come on out, it should be a good time.

Well, it’s about time to get those sunglasses ready for the plane ride, as I’m hoppin’ on a jet plane tomorrow and heading out to Amsterdam to be a rock star for 2 weeks. I’m playing drums for the band Magnapop on their 2 week tour of Holland. I’ve always wanted to be able to play Europe and now’s my chance, thanks to the fine people in Magnapop. Another cool thing about the trip is that my wife will be joining us for the last week. It will be her first trip to Amsterdam and my second. It’s gonna be damn cool.

I’ll try and do some posting from Europe, but in case I don’t, you can track my progress from the itinerary below.

Date	City	Venue	Notes
th 24 apr:	Nijmegen	Doornroosje	(caesar + magnapop)
fr 25 apr:	Sneek	Bolwerk	(caesar + magnapop)
sa 26 apr:	Amsterdam	Melkweg	(caesar + magnapop)
mo 28 apr:	Hassel	M.O.D.	(caesar + magnapop)
tu 29 apr:	Tilburg	013 Batcave	(magnapop)
we 30 apr:	Katwijk aan Zee	De Schuit	(magnapop)
th 01 mei:	Eindhoven	Effenaar	(caesar + magnapop)
fr 02 mei:	Breda	Mezz	(caesar + magnapop)
sa 03 mei:	Apeldoorn	Gigant	(caesar + magnapop)
su 04 mei:	Opwijk	Nijdrop	(caesar + magnapop)
mo 05 mei:	Rotterdam	Bevrijdingsfestival	(magnapop)

Ciao!