9.26.2008

Mystery at the Gun Club

I know that you have all been slavering at the mouth, waiting for my next blog. It would have come sooner, but I have been busy. Busy traveling, and reading, and buying more music.

Download The Gun Club's 'Come Back Jim' on Mediafire

or, maybe Download The Gun Club's 'The Fire of Love'

I was recently chided for ‘still’ buying music, but I don’t mind.
Because I know I’m right; I'm in the black and all that. (See below for an apologia of music purchasing- it's not what you expect...)
Thinking that it is goofball to buy music is simply false; in fact, I might go so far to say it's a LIE!!

Download The Gun Club's 'The Lie' on Mediafire
Or watch it !LIVE! on Youtube:


Plus, what would I spend my money on instead? I am running out of room for thriftstore kicks. I have already constructed a Foucaultian counter-archive (that means ‘lots of odd books’ about prisons, sexuality, state institutions, ‘abnormal’ individuals, militaries, and history history history). You know that I would just spend the $16.25 (no sales tax) on stickers from the dollar store (or worse, dollar store hardware/tools), caviar from Asian Invasion, SEPTA tokens, ceramic knickknacks or bric-a-brac, etc.
(just reflect for a moment upon how good this last part of this last sentence sounds and looks: “Caviar from Asian Invasion” [‘a’ and ‘i’ make such a good vowel-team!], and just say “Ceramic knickknacks and bric-a-brac” out loud. “My, what a Pleasant Blog!”)
I don’t need that junk.
Oh, what $16.25? I got *3* CDs in Portland for that paltry sum. All by one of my new favorite groups: GUN CLUB .



Right?!?!?




Big dramatic sweep. Wild-eyes and Snake-eyes. Very American: Blues, Country, Skuzzy, 'end-of-the-road' Guitars. My understanding is that Gun Club sort of helped spawn rockabilly (while not being rockabilly themselves), and the lead singer, Jeffery Lee Pierce (he’s one of those who writes almost all of the songs too) died young: drugs, prolly.
Listen to the way he sings, and tell me it’s not drugs that killed him. Look at him, and tell me if he doesn’t look like Brando crossed with Gerard Way.








Kid Congo Powers is in the band too, of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds fame, and also The Cramps.

A surprising amount of the Gun Club that I have is live; two full albums, and half of two more. Related to his death, and to label-related issues and troubles (some of their stuff is released on “Sympathy for the Record Industry”, as in, sympathy for the Devil). More interestingly, however, it’s probably related to how good they were live. A singer that sounds like he IS drugs, actually high, in front of you, live?: gots to be good, right?

Here’s the liner notes- in their entirety- from “Danse Kalinda Boom”:
”Yes its true kids, this is an authentic “live” album for the first time. In response to the overwhelming amount of illegal & incorrect recordings purporting to be “live” Gun Club albums, Kid Congo, Patricia Morrison & myself have found it necessary to release an “Authorized” live album representing the Gun Club experience at its best and as it truly went down. So guaranteed this is not an album of poor quality tapes licensed clandestinely to some dodgy label by disgruntled & frustrated ex-members. I can promise this record features the Gun Club at its “live” best and definitive line up. Rest in Peace. [signed] Jeffery Lee Pierce”

Funny- signed “Rest In Peace” to us ( but he dies); “disgruntled ex-members”; “how it truly went down”; “dodgy labels”. Plus, did he misspell his own name? Or did someone else write the whole thing- seriously undermining all the rhetoric of “authentic”- since the CD’s copyright date is 7 years after he died? A Real Jeffrey Lee M Y S T E R Y.



As promised, here is the apologia of buying music 'in this day and age':
First, if you just download it all, you are guided only by what you already know you like, or what someone else ‘knows’ to be ‘good’.
(On the other hand, presented with a random assortment of used CD’s or vinyl, you can find new stuff, get reminded of old stuff, and with CDs at least, give a little listen before a wholesale acquisition an entire downloaded back catalog, which, it may turn out, you don’t really like that much anyhow.)

Second, used music isn’t even really random, is it? It's better than random. Because someone had to like that CD enough to purchase it, so you actually have a built-in regulator of quality, although it’s far from failsafe: Cf. “ ‘knows’ to be ‘good’ ”. Whereas with mp3s, all that can be shown in someone else having it is that they probably have 'heard about it', and have the internet. Not a stellar recommendation, is it?}

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9.15.2008

Balds Have More FUN

Okay All right Hey:
I had a good, fine, wonderful day yesterday.
You couldn't be there- sad sad- so I am going to share good, fine, wonderful and fun music with you instead. FUN FUN!



First is a jangly little number (or, "lil' nummer") from an old old country group called the Carlisles.
You can tell they are old two ways:
they are a whole family,
and Chris Ruth has heard of them,
and even approves somewhat.
("They're no Stanley Brothers though, I tell you what.")

Download it here, after you have streamed it below:
The Carlisles - Rattlin' Daddy.mp3




FUN FUN!: I got a free coffee drink coupon, just because they forgot to warm up my pretzel! OH BOOHOO I had to wait about 45 seconds more! That coupon? Oh, it's worth like 5 bucks, because it says ANY COFFEE DRINK which means that motherfucker be gettin a Milkshake or somethin.


Here is a lovely little summer jam (it is still summer, despite the pants you wore the other night, even though you were dancing, dancing on the very highest floor, on the very highest floor of a gay biker disco)


Oh, I love this song: The Spinners "I'll Be Around".

FUN FUN!: Banana Republic made me look really good in the mirrors. I think it was all in the eyes: the bright fluoro lights made my eyes look different. Different from the beady black little spots that they are, so I looked less like a snake or a rat. Or a cockroach.
(I have to shop there, okay?- for professional clothes, like.)

FUN FUN!: I shopped all day in earnest and didn't have to spend any money!

Download The Dells - Wear it on our Face.mp3

Or, be stupid and just watch the Youtube video here:




Yesterday was so FUN FUN! that even today is FUN FUN!: I just saw not one but two parrots on one guy, and brian pointed out- the first parrot was fine- the second is just showing off: sheer hubris.

Here's one you would've heard at my house Friday:

The Whispers - Love Machine.mp3. Serious Booty disco madness.
"I'm just a love machine, and I won't work for nobody but you"!





Go ahead. Enjoy yourself: have some FUN FUN! with these songs.
Make a roommate play them while you take a shower in the morning. Play them when your anti-depressants run out. You know, so on and so on.
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9.05.2008

Wise Up: Jerry Butler

I just wised up to the great Jerry Butler. Choice!

I had one of his records, it turns out, but hadn’t listened to it yet. The other day I got about 40 records… for about fifteen bucks.
I bought so many records, that I had to buy a backpack in order to carry them all. It was Heavy!



Including the bag, Zoolander on VHS, 3 books (one about making Aarow brand dress shirts!), and the records, I paid 23 dollars. Bag + VHS + Books >/= $7.
Second Mile, I tell you, is nothing to fuck with.
I got New Edition, Temptations, JERRY BUTLER, The Moments, the Whispers, the shit, etc.

Mr. Butler has a strong, clear and clean voice. Reminds me some of Sam Cooke, but not so mournful. But that way that they can both sort of project a really manly sound, and never seem like they are straining at all: as if it were as easy as talking. That ease with the mic is why he’s called the Iceman.


So, of the three albums that I have, there are three distinctive “Butlers”.



One is full of simple soul songs. (Simple like a circle is simple: it’s perfect, smoothly elegant -- unimpeachable.)

“When a Man Loves a Woman” is on there, you see? Sounds like the early Temptations, with Smokey (think of “My Girl”, for instance). It’s called “Mr. Dream Merchant”.


One is partly Burt Bacharach Songs; more complex, and melodies that are always very bittersweet. More sad. “Moon River”. "Make It Easy On Yourself" (Burt) and even "Yesterday" (Beatles) but punched up with some more sophisticated arrangements.
This album is called “All-Time Greatest Hits”, but they really should have waited before stating “All-Time”, b e c a u s e….:


One is a FULLBLOWN Gamble and Huff Production. They all called it ICE ON ICE (……coooooooool……). Stompers, funky cuts, and NOW we get a little strain in that voice, cos the
S O U L
is getting loose! More like Otis, or even a not-high (and so, more restrained) James Brown. "Moody Woman" is a famous cut off of that album.

By the way, I once received a subpoena for the trial of James Brown. Of course, this particular James Brown was in Juvenile Court (he had mugged Adriel when I was with her months before- but he didn’t technically mug me. From me, he got NOTHING! Nothing, you hear!) in Philadelphia.
And, as I said and as you read, this album happened in Philadelphia too. Gamble and Huff (not humble or gruff) worked out of Philly, on Philly International records.
I really should have kept that subpoena; could've sold it on Ebay or something.
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