Jazz attracted me because in it I found a formal perfection and instrumental precision that I admire in classical music, but which popular music doesn’t have.
~Django ReinhardtDjango Reinhardt was the first hugely influential jazz figure to emerge from Europe — and he remains the most influential European to this day…
~Richard S. Ginell (allmusic.com)
A tribute video from youtube – w/ video of our man:
Continue reading Jan 23: The late Django Reinhardt was born in 1910
…1968’s Lady Soul proved Aretha Franklin, the pop sensation, was no fluke. Her performances were more impassioned than on her debut, and the material just as strong, an inspired blend of covers and originals from the best songwriters in soul and pop music.
~John Bush (allmusic.com)
Chain of Fools – Live 1968:
Continue reading Jan 22: Aretha Franklin released “Lady Soul” in 1968
“That man I shot, I didn’t know him
I was just doing my job,
maybe so was he”
Brighter Than Creation’s Dark is the seventh studio album released by Drive-By Truckers. It was released on January 22, 2008 in the United States. Recorded during and after the acoustic Dirt Underneath Tour, the album features a more stripped down, and country based sound not seen since their sophomore releasePizza Deliverance.
A Ghost to Most (official video):
The album’s title is taken from a line in a Mike Cooley song entitled “Checkout Time in Vegas”. Wes Freed once again provided the album artwork. According to guitarist Patterson Hood, the band’s decision on the name of the album was greatly influenced by the Freed’s artwork. Hood also said that the album was recorded with much ease and did not require compromises.
Continue reading Jan 22: Drive-by Truckers released Brighter Than Creation’s Dark in 2008
Them Again is the second album by Them, lead by singer and songwriter Van Morrison. The album was released by Decca Records in the UK on 21 January 1966 but it failed to chart. In the U.S. it was released in April 1966 where it peaked at #138 on the Billboard charts.
| Released | 21 January 1966 (UK), April 1966 (USA) |
|---|---|
| Genre | Rock |
| Length | 48:21Decca (UK), Parrot PA 61008; PAS 71008 (USA) |
| Producer | Tommy Scott |
It’s a great record and often overlooked and unfavourably compared to Them’s debut. It is allmost as good. You owe it to yourself to check it out.
Two of the original Van Morrison songs included on the album, “My Lonely Sad Eyes” and “Hey Girl”, can be seen as precursors to the poetic musings of Morrison’s later Astral Weeks album, released in 1968. “My Lonely Sad Eyes” begins with the words, “Fill me my cup, and I’ll drink your sparkling wine/Pretend that everything is fine, ’til I see your sad eyes.” The title implies that the sad eyes belong to the singer but the lyrics address the singer’s love interest. It reminds me of Rolling Stones at their most soulful.
My Lonely Sad Eyes:
The song “Hey Girl” has a pastoral feel to it, enhanced by the addition of flutes and in Brian Hinton’s opinion is a “dry run for ‘Cyprus Avenue'” from Astral Weeks.
Hey Girl:
Continue reading Jan 21: Them Again by Them was released in 1966
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“Find out who you are and do it on purpose.” ― DollyParton “Don’t get so busy making a living that you forget to make a life.”
“I tried every diet in the book. I tried some that weren’t in the book. I tried eating the book. It tasted better than most of the diets.” |
Continue reading Jan 19: Dolly Parton was born in 1946 Happy Birthday