Song of the day: Anton Barbeau with The Corner Laughers – "Drinkin’ Horn"

I’m a fan of American twee-pop band The Corner Laughers, so when they have a new song it tends to end up here.

They have a new song:

Anton Barbeau with The Corner Laughers – Drinkin’ Horn“ (2013)

Song of the day: Bob Evans – "Go"

This here’s the new song by Australian singin’/songwritin’ guy Bob Evans:

Bob Evans – Go from Oh Yeah Wow on Vimeo.

or

I’d call that bright ‘n’ breezy.

If you have trouble with either of those videos for any reason (see comments below), try the song courtesy of SoundCloud:

Go by BobEvansMusic

Here’s another, not-as-new ditty from Mr. Bob:

Antibiotics by BobEvansMusic

I don’t mind both of those.

Song of the day: Hammerfall – "Blood Bound"

When I played Andy James’ guitar gymnastics (see yesterday’s post) to the 16-year-old of the household who has become a recent convert to power metal (why, Natalie, why?), she suggested I listen to a Swedish metal band called HammerFall. (Yes, they really are called HammerFall.)

The aforementioned 16-year-old power metal fan suggested a particular video of one of their songs called “Blood Bound”. (Yes, it’s actually called “Blood Bound”.)

I duly obliged, and spent the next four minutes laughing. I loved it.

HammerFall – “Blood Bound” (2005)

As I was experiencing “Blood Bound”, the young power metal fan offered the following appraisal:

“It’s just that awesome.”

I was going to go with “epic and mighty”, but that’s a bit of a cliché.

Incidentally, there’s a bit of “Blood Bound” that sounded familiar to me…

HammerFall – “Blood Bound“ (2005) (excerpt)

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T. Rex – “Get It On“ (1971)

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I know it’s not much of a coincidence, but it was there, and I heard it.

Official website
MySpace

Photo of the day

This photo was taken on Tuesday 25 February 1964:

On that day, those four musicians worked on these four songs in 6½ hours (with a one-hour lunch break):

The Beatles – “Can’t Buy Me Love“ (1964)

The Beatles – “You Can’t Do That“ (1964)

The Beatles – “And I Love Her“ (1964)

The Beatles – “I Should Have Known Better“ (1964)

At the end of the session they celebrated the lead guitarist‘s 21st birthday.

***

From The Beatles Bible:

10.00am, Tuesday 25 February 1964 (48 years ago)
Studio Two, EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Producer: George Martin
Engineer: Norman Smith

Although The Beatles had taped much of “Can’t Buy Be Love” while in Paris on 29 January 1964, the first scheduled recording sessions for the A Hard Day’s Night LP took place on this day. It was also George Harrison‘s 21st birthday, which was celebrated in the evening.

The Beatles were due to begin shooting their first feature film on 2 March, leaving them with little time for recording. There were two sessions on this day: the first began at 10am and ended at 1.30pm, and the second from 2.30-5.30pm, both in Studio Two at EMI Studios.

The first song to be tackled was “Can’t Buy Me Love”. Vocals and guitar parts were overdubbed onto the backing track recorded in Paris, after which the song was complete and ready to be The Beatles’ next single.

The group then turned their attentions to the song’s future b-side, John Lennon‘s “You Can’t Do That“. The Beatles finished the song in nine takes, only four of which were complete. The previously-unreleased take six was included on 1995’s Anthology 1.

In the afternoon session they worked on two songs which ended up on the A Hard Day’s Night soundtrack. “And I Love Her” was the first to be tackled. The Beatles recorded just two takes on this day; the second of these, the only complete run-through, was also released on Anthology 1. The group remade the song on the following day.

Also begun on this day was “I Should Have Known Better“. Three takes were recorded, but only one was complete. As with “And I Love Her”, the song was remade on 26 February.

Song of the day: Andy James – "More Guitar Notes Than You’ll Ever Need To Hear"

From the sublime to…

Andy James:

I will say this: he certainly knows his scales.

Andy James’ playing reminds me of….

Steve Morse – “Tumeni Notes“ (1990)

And if you want to know how that’s played:

By the way, the section of “Tumeni Notes” from 3:39-3:55 reminds me of the chorus of “Radar Love”.

In other words…

This

=

This

Andy James:
Official website
Facebook
Twitter
Wikipedia

Steve Morse:
Official website
Facebook
YouTube
Wikipedia

Educating Peter # 36

A couple of weeks ago for this series Michael suggested a song by American band The Pursuit Of Happiness called “She’s So Young”. I was thrilled, and inwardly shouted “Hallelujah!” (in a non-Christian way).

It’s because, for the first time in ages, Michael had suggested a song by a band I not only knew, but also liked a lot way back in that musically murky decade we call The Eighties.

Back then I really, really liked the band’s best-known song, “I’m An Adult Now”. I thought it was wizzo.

Unfortunately, and as is typical with my memory, “I’m An Adult Now” was the only song of theirs I remembered. “She’s So Young” was a bit of a mystery to me. Because I was interested in the band, I would have been interested in whatever they released. I’m sure I must have heard “She’s So Young” at some time. But I didn’t remember it at all.

Ah well. As I said to a friend the other day, one of the advantages of a poor memory is that you get to hear something for the first time more than once.

And so, with memory askew, let us rediscover something I probably heard in 1988:

The Pursuit Of Happiness – “She’s So Young” (1988)

Link

0:00-0:30 – I think I remember this. Maybe.

What’s unusual for me about this opening verse is that it doesn’t sound like a verse. With its jazzy chords, it sounds more like a middle eight, and as I listen to it I’m convinced the band has started this song with the middle eight.

0:30-0:59 – Nope. I still don’t remember it.

Those background vocals at 0:33-0:34 are lovely. And there they are again at 0:47-0:48. Lovely.

Come to think of it, this section sounds like a middle eight as well. Whatever it is, it’s catchy.

(Note to self: It’s the chorus, Peter. Choruses are supposed to be catchy.)

0:59-1:28 – Another middle eight verse. Nothing to mention here, because I’m sitting back and enjoying it, not noticing little things that might annoy me. (“It’s not annoying me.” How’s that for damning with faint praise?)

1:28-1:57 – Another chorus, with an enjoyable bass line from the bass player. Thanks, bass player! And sorry about not noticing the bass line when you played it in the first chorus.

1:57-2:29 – A flanged guitar solo – as a lot of guitar solos were in the 1980s. (Producers sure did love sound effects in the ’80s.) It’s not fancy or anything, so there’s not much for me to say about it.

2:29-3:36 – Another chorus (or two, because we’re getting to the end of the song).

At 2:56 there’s a fancy guitar chord, and that signals a repeat of the chorus. OK. Two choruses at the end of the song. I’m fine with that. Because this song is very pleasant, I’m guessing it’s going to fade out very slowly.

3:34-3:36 –Nope. It didn’t fade slowly. At 3:34-3:26 the band played a couple of jazzy chords, and then they all stopped.

3:37 – The band’s not playing anymore, because they all stopped.

***

I can’t let this post go without playing you “I’m An Adult Now”, the one song by The Pursuit Of Happiness that I remember. I must admit that I don’t think it’s as monumentally fabulous as I did way back when I first heard it, but I’ve enjoyed hearing it again after all these decades.

The Pursuit Of Happiness – “She’s So Young” (1988)

Link

The Pursuit Of Happiness – “She’s So Young” (original version) (1986)

Link

***

By the way, when Michael suggested “She’s So Young”, I didn’t remember the song he had chosen. I immediately remembered this instead:

Myracle Brah – “She’s So Young“ (1998)

    I think that is a great, great song. Why did I remember that “She’s So Young” but not the other one?

(I know why: because I think the Myracle Brah song is magnificent, and magnificent songs tend to stay in my head.)

Song of the day: The Swingle Singers – "A Boy And A Girl"

Wow.

The Swingle Singers – “A Boy And A Girl“ (2011)

I haven’t been heard singing that mesmerising since the last time I played Le Mystère des Voix Bulgares:

Or hearing Kathleen Battle singing a couple of the greatest tunes ever written:

Handel – Acis and Galatea: “Oh, didst thou know . . . As when the dove” (1990)
(Kathleen Battle, soprano; Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, conducted by Sir Neville Marriner)

Link

Here’s the chap who wrote “A Boy And A Girl”:

Wow.

Musical coincidences # 369

My friend Michael noticed this one.

No excerpts are needed…

Edison Lighthouse – “Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)“ (1970)

Link

Union Express – “Emily Knows“ (1971)

Link

Thanks, Michael!

Song of the day: Shake Some Action! – "Full Fathom Five"

I was contacted by a not-entirely-Australian chappy called James (Hi, James!). He’s not entirely Australian because he’s currently living in the land of Americans as the main dude in a band called Shake Some Action!.

(More information about James you may not be interested in: James grew up in Adelaide, the capital city of South Australia, the state I live in, and moved to Seattle in 2001, where he’s been a-livin’ and a-playin’.)

If you’re a fully-fledged, card-carrying power-pop fan, then you’ll instantly know why James called his band Shake Some Action!.

James told me about his Shake Some Action’s latest album, Full Fathom Five, and imprudently asked for my thoughts on it.

Here they are:

Shake Some Action! – Full Fathom Five (2013)

1. “Lost In Space“

I like the enthusiasm of this song, but for me there’s not much melody to hang on to. Those 12-string Rickenbacker guitars are catnip for power pop fans, but they’re not bewitching me because there are no memorable melodies or harmonies on top of them. Well, that’s what I think anyway.

2. “Nothing Can Stop Me Now“

Groovy drums to begin the song. And more catnip! I like the psychedelic singing. It’s druggy, maaaaaan. (“Cool out, daddy-o. You don’t get our scene.”) I also like the “Ooh la la”s in the middle eight of the song (1:26-1:38). I’m guessing that’s the middle eight, because it’s the only time those “Ooh la la”s appear.

I preferred this track to the opening one because I enjoyed the melodies more.

By the way I’m about make a recommendation. I’m not a fan of acronyms, so I won’t type RIYL. I’ll type the actual words instead, after the next paragraph.

Here’s my recomendation: if you like this particular song, then I’d like to point you in the direction of Australian band Deep Sea Arcade. They have an album full of this kind of thing. This is a representative track.

So, Deep Sea Arcade are recommended if you like “Nothing Can Stop Me Now”.

I think I should get back to the Shake Some Action! album…

3. “Soul On Fire“

Another groovy track. This time it’s courtesy of the bass line. I wouldn’t mind grabbing my bass and playing that myself.

This is my bass:

So I’d be playing the riff on that.

If you’re a musician, and you’re wondering why my bass looks a bit weird (i.e., not quite right), it’s because I’m left-handed, and play left-handed, but with the strings strung for a right-handed bass. My bass has a body for a left-handed player, and a neck that was originally on a right-handed bass. The right-handed bass that neck came from was what I learned to play on, but I played it left-handed because… well, because I’m left-handed.

(Note to self: Stop getting sidetracked, Peter. Get back to the song.)

I was surprised at the slightly sharp singing at 0:37 and even sharper at 0:42-0:44, because up until then the singing had been fine.

At the rate I’m writing this “review”, I will have spent all day on it. I need to speed things up.

4. “Lost Without You“

Well, so far I’ve liked the first three songs on this album. What about this one? I’ll press “play” and…

With its 12-string Rickenbacker guitar introduction, followed by a harmonised vocal melody with an acoustic-guitar-and-simple-beat accompaniment, this sounds very Merseybeat circa mid-’60s. I was enjoying being immersed in that soundscape (can you call Merseybeat a “soundscape”?) enormously, but I was brought out of it with flat singing from 1:13-1:15. Then I was brought right back to Earth with a big thud with some really dodgy singing from 1:22-1:24. I actually groaned when I heard it. (I was surprised James left that in.)

I’m spending way too much time complaining about someone’s singing (which, incidentally, even when it’s bad, is still better than mine). The short response to this song is:

I like it a lot – iffy singing notwithstanding.

5. “I Didn’t Know What To Say“

Ha! If you’ve ever wondered what a combination of “Love Me Do” and “Please Please Me” would sound like, then wonder no more.

Splendid.

Although, not so splendid was an aspect of the guitar solo (1:22-1:39) that irritated me. The bent notes weren’t bent enough for me. (I kept wanting them to go just a little higher.) And The bent notes at the end (1:38-1:39) were nowhere near high enough for my liking.

Ah well. It’s only a song. A song from 1963.

6. “Full Fathom Five“

Yep. I like this one as well.

James’ voice in this song reminds me of the guy in They Might Be Giants. What’s his name? Isn’t it John something? There are two Johns in They Might Be Giants, aren’t there? Hang on…

OK. James’ voice in “Full Fathom Five” reminds me of John Linnell from They Might Be Giants. But it’s not as nasal as Mr. Linnell’s, which means I enjoy James’ voice more.

I wasn’t going to say anything else about this song, because I enjoyed it, but as a bass player I’m compelled to state a grievance:

I think there are some poor note choices by the bass player from 1:27-1:33. (Some of those notes are just plain wrong.)

Trivia: The solo guitar and the chords played underneath it from 2:47-2:51 reminded me of the Hoodoo Gurus’ “What’s My Scene”.

7. “Shining Star“

Nice. And by “nice” I mean the guitar riff. Nice.

I like this – apart from some of the lyrics (e.g., “No matter where you are, you’re a shining star” and “you knock me out” etc.).

8. “The Girl With The Sun In Her Eyes“

The title of this song immediately reminded me of “The Man With The Child In His Eyes” by Kate Bush. Pardon me as I sigh when I remember “The Man With The Child In His Eyes”. Sigh…

Sorry about this. I’m going to have to listen to that Kate Bush song. I won’t be long…

OK. I’ve just listened to “The Man With The Child In His Eyes” (sigh). What a song.

Now back to this Shake Some Action! album…

I’m listening to “The Girl With The Sun In Her Eyes” now, and that vocal melody sure sounds like I’ve heard it somewhere else.

All this 12-string Rickenbacker action (especially from 2:07-2:29 in this song) is reminding me of The Turnback and their 2011 album, Drawn In Chalk.

9. “Underneath The Waves“

For me, the opening riff of this song came perilously close to the riff in Deep Purple’s “Black Night”. But then the rest of the band joined in and it became another Merseybeat/mid-1960s-inspired song (i.e., not Deep Purple).

10. “When The Sun Shines“

Another retro song – which is fine by me, because I’m enjoying this album a fair bit.

By the way, James’ voice in this song, and in most of the other ones, reminds me a lot of Andrew Cox from Australian band The Fauves.

I liked the Hammond organ solo (1:58-2:16). Groovy.

Oh, before I forget: the opening line (“Every night I see her through my window”, from 0:15-0:19) sounds a bit stalker-ish to me.

But I like the song.

11. “Rivers Of My Mind“

Mmm: jangle.

Here’s another example of a song title reminding me of another song. This time, “Rivers Of My Mind” made me think of “The Canyons Of My Mind” which, musically at least, is not all that similar to this song.

Speaking of reminders, at 2:03/04 in this song James sings the word “cellophone”. The Turnback (that band I mentioned when commenting on track 8) have a song called “Cellophane Sky“. So maybe James is familiar with The Turnback. Or not.

12. “The Way You Make Me Feel“

Another early Beatles homage.

I’m enjoying this a lot.

And yes, the title did remind me of this.

13. “Tomorrow“

I like this. Don’t love it, but I like it.

14. “Shotgun“

This one was a little more Creedence Clearwater Revival than The Beatles. I didn’t mind it.

***

Given that I wasn’t a huge fan of the last two tracks, I’d say this album would have been better at 12 tracks. But it’s pretty good anyway.

Peter’s Final Verdict: I heartily endorse this album.*

Finished!

(*With apologies to Art Linkletter.)

Musical coincidences # 368

My friend Michael (Hi, Michael!) spotted this coincidence. He said he was listening to songs in his collection that started with a “J” and came across a 1973 track by a Dutch band called Grass. He noticed something fairly noticeable…

Grass – “Just One Loser“ (1973) (excerpt)

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The Who – “Pinball Wizard“ (1969) (excerpt)

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Here are the full versions:

Grass – “Just One Loser“ (1973)

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The Who – “Pinball Wizard“ (1969)

Link