Today: The late Brian Jones passed away in 1969 – 43 years ago

July 3, 2012 Egil 2 Comments

From Wikipedia:

Lewis Brian Hopkins Jones (28 February 1942 – 3 July 1969), was an English musician and a founder member of The Rolling Stones.

Jones’ main instruments were the guitar and the harmonica, but he played a wide variety of other musical instruments and was a talented multi-instrumentalist. His innovative use of traditional or folk instruments, such as the sitar and marimba, was integral to the changing sound of the band.

Originally the leader of the group, Jones’ fellow bandmembers Mick Jagger and Keith Richards soon overshadowed him; especially after they became a successful songwriting team. He developed a serious drug abuse problem over the years and his role in the band steadily diminished. He was asked to leave the Rolling Stones in June 1969 and guitarist Mick Taylor took his place in the group. Jones died less than a month later by drowning in the swimming pool at his home on Cotchford Farm in East Sussex.

Original Stones bassist Bill Wyman stated about Jones: “…he formed the band. He chose the members. He named the band. He chose the music we played. He got us gigs … Very influential, very important, and then slowly lost it – highly intelligent – and just kind of wasted it and blew it all away.”

The Rolling Stones – “Carol” – 1964:

In the spirit of Brian Jones.. and considering that the crucial blues masterpiece “Muddy Waters at Newport 1960” also has it’s birthday, I choose this album as album of the day:

Other July-03:

Continue reading Today: The late Brian Jones passed away in 1969 – 43 years ago →

Neil Young, Rock, The Best Songs, video of the day

Video of the day: Almost cut my hair – CSNY

July 2, 2012 Hallgeir

1974 (7 min.):

2009 (4 and a half minute), without Neil Young but good version, but those other guys also knows how to handle a guitar:

Both good, but the 1974 version is out of this world!

Allmusic Review

by Lindsay Planer

This David Crosby anthem of rebellion and personal freedom was recorded on January 9, 1970, at Wally Heider’s “Studio C” in San Francisco. It is likewise one of the few songs from Déjà Vu to have been recorded live by CSN&Y. The truly inspired interaction exhibits the raw and unabashed fury that became synonymous with the supergroup’s “electric” material with sizable instrumental contributions from all four. However, there is no doubt that it is Crosby who dominates the proceedings with perhaps the most impassioned lead vocal of his career. “Almost Cut My Hair” also amply demonstrates the three-way electric guitar “cross talk” between Crosby, Stephen Stills, and Neil Young. This is most prominent during the instrumental break prior to the “When I finally get myself together…” verse.

There is an extended and unedited version of this break included on the Crosby, Stills & Nash box set. This song is also notable for first popularizing the phrase “let[ting] my freak flag fly” — which took on new meaning in the late ’80s after Crosby served a year in a Texas prison. He began performing the song with a lyrical alteration to the line “…it increases my paranoia, like looking in my mirror and seeing a lit up Texas trooper.”

A blistering solo version featuring Black Crowes vocalist Chris Robinson can be heard on Crosby’s live release It’s All Coming Back to Me Now… (1994) (audio only):

Lyrics, Almost Cut My Hair:

Almost cut my hair
It happened just the other day
It was getting kind of long
I could have said it was in my way

But I didn’t and I wonder why
I feel like letting my freak flag fly
And I feel like I owe it to someone

Must be because I had the flu for Christmas
And I’m not feeling up to par
It increases my paranoia
Like looking into a mirror and seeing a police car

But I’m not giving in an inch to fear
Cos I promised myself this year
I feel like I owe it to someone

When I finally get myself together
I’m gonna get down in some of that sweet summer weather
I’m going to find a space inside to laugh
Separate the wheat from the chaff

Cos I feel like I owe it, yeah
Said I feel like I owe it, yeah
You know I feel—- like

I owe it yeah to someone

– Hallgeir

Bergenfest, Featured Articles, Great Bands, Interview, Tom Petty

The Rise of The South – Bergenfest 2012 – a talk and some pictures

July 1, 2012 Hallgeir

All photos by Hallgeir (click on them to get better quality, if you want even better resolution, feel free to contact us)

Concert review from Bergenfest 2012

From their official Facebook page:

A band calling themselves “The South” in spite of being from Trondheim, Norway need to have their compass in order

When you hear The South’s self titled second album, produced by Bent Sæther of Motorpsycho, it becomes clear that this sextet has a remarkable grip on their rock history, both the map and the terrain.
They actually lift what many hold to be the zenith of rock, the music of Little Feat, Grateful Dead and The Band from the first half of the 1970’s, into our time.

Bringing with them marvellous songs, the tightness of a good oldfashioned BAND and vocal harmonies to die for.

When we decided to go to Bergenfest this year we decided to try to get an interview with The South, they’re so obviousley right up our alley, they embody most of the musical styles that JV is about. They use the rich musical past to create fresh new songs. The press people at Bergenfest said we could get a 15 minute talk, we were happy just to get an interview.

We met in the “lounge” at the hotel where both The South and we stayed. We talked for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

I’ll be the one:

The South are:

Alexander Pettersen – Vocals, guitar
Terje Uv – guitar, steelguitar
Stein Spjelkavik – Guitar, Keys, vocals
Sander Olsen – Keys
Pål Brekkås – Bass, vocals
Stian Lundberg – Drums, vocals

Continue reading The Rise of The South – Bergenfest 2012 – a talk and some pictures →

Country, Music Calendar

Today: Chet Atkins passed away in 2001 – 11 year ago

June 30, 2012 Egil

From Wikipedia:

Chester Burton “Chet” Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001) was an American guitarist and record producer who, along with Owen Bradley, created the smoother country music style known as the Nashville sound, which expanded country’s appeal to adult pop music fans as well.

From Allmusic:

Without Chet Atkins, country music may never have crossed over into the pop charts in the ’50s and ’60s. Although he is an exceptionally talented guitarist with hundreds of solo records to his credit, Atkins’ largest influence came as a session musician and a record producer. During the ’50s and ’60s, he helped create the Nashville sound, a style of country music that owed nearly as much to pop as it did to honky tonk.
— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Industry awards

Country Music Association

1967 Instrumentalist of the Year
1968 Instrumentalist of the Year
1969 Instrumentalist of the Year
1981 Instrumentalist of the Year
1982 Instrumentalist of the Year
1983 Instrumentalist of the Year
1984 Instrumentalist of the Year
1985 Instrumentalist of the Year
1988 Instrumentalist of the Year

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

Inducted in 1973

Grammy Awards

1971 Best Country Instrumental Performance with Jerry Reed – Me and Jerry
1972 Best Country Instrumental Performance – “Snowbird”
1975 Best Country Instrumental Performance with Merle Travis – The Atkins-Travis Traveling Show
1976 Best Country Instrumental Performance – “The Entertainer”
1977 Best Country Instrumental Performance with Les Paul – Chester and Lester
1982 Best Country Instrumental Performance – Country After All These Years
1986 Best Country Instrumental Performance with Mark Knopfler – “Cosmic Square Dance”
1991 Best Country Instrumental Performance with Mark Knopfler – “So Soft, Your Goodbye”
1991 Best Country Vocal Collaboration with Mark Knopfler – “Poor Boy Blues”
1993 Best Country Instrumental Performance with Jerry Reed – Sneakin’ Around
1993 Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award’
1994 Best Country Instrumental Performance with Asleep at the Wheel, Eldon Shamblin, Johnny Gimble, Marty Stuart, Reuben “Lucky Oceans” Gosfield & Vince Gill – “Red Wing”
1995 Best Country Instrumental Performance – “Young Thing”
1997 Best Country Instrumental Performance – “Jam Man”