If you’re dead , I wanna hear your stuff.

I’ve been looking at some of my aural preferences in the pop genre, and an interesting trend is in play. I tend to gravitate towards pop artists with mental problems that died penniless and in relative obscurity. Aside from the obvious ones I’ve written about (Judee Sill, Gene Clark, Curt Boettcher) combined with some I’ve yet to write about (Nick Drake, Dennis Wilson, Syd Barrett) you could say that a serious chunk of what I listen to falls into this category.

The other category is just plain dead and there are several corkers here as well. James Brown, Steve Marriott, Marvin Gaye, Lennon, Hank Williams and many others are all freaking dead. OK, so much of this is happenstance. I am after all 47 years old and time does march on. Even though everybody in “The Wizard Of Oz” is dead there is no curse on the movie. It’s just that it was made in 1929.

Somewhere along the way I became pretty jaded towards new music. This is pretty much my problem as opposed to music’s. There is plenty of good new music being released if one has the time and/or inclination to find it. Alas, therein lies the rub. During the post punk wars of the early to mid eighties, I had plenty of free time to find these bands, and plenty of disposable income to blow on records. Most of what was out there I hated too, but thanks to college radio I found stuff like Husker Du, The Replacements, The Smiths and others that made the ‘80’s a memorable decade. However, It was still a million miles away from the mainstream.

Eventually real life got in my way. But something else happened, too. I started in on the “how did I miss out on THIS?” kick. I found that by going backwards I could find lots of things that floated my boat and then some. By gravitating towards music message boards on the internet combined with the input from my infinitely musical younger brother, I was able to unearth metric tons of music that had been around forever that somehow missed me. Some was ultra obscure, but there were good chunks that were popular and right under my nose.

For example, I could never get past the tye-dye culture and the hippie-dippie mentality of The Grateful Dead. I could not hear the music because I couldn’t bear to witness the lifestyle. Once that barricade was broken though, an entire floodgate was opened (Airplane, Love, CSNY, Moby Grape, Buffalo Springfield) and I suddenly had a backlog of music to listen to just like the old days. All it took was a little de-snob-ification.

So I started to go back even further. Between Sinatra, Fitzgerald, Williams, Armstrong and others, I had lots of catching up to do. I figured that if something new came down the pike it would find me and if it didn’t, it probably was not that good to begin with. Well, this was wrong too.

One of the main reasons I started to ignore new music in general was because I was unhappy with the trend towards pop idols manufactured in board rooms for maximum consumption. To me this was a step backwards for the industry as a whole. Like living through Pat Boone and Frankie Avalon all over again. The edgier stuff was just too damn edgy with most of the lyrics I could only decipher as “kill all the white people”. It became easier and more fruitful to just go backwards and dig deep.

This year though, some newer things happily found their way towards me. These artists have bolstered my spirit and given me a glimmer of hope about the future. Did I finally come around, or is it just that newer more diverse types of music are actually finding an audience in an industry that now is taking more risks to keep itself afloat? I’d like to think the answer lies somewhere in the middle. Anyway, it’s nice to be back. I’m still more apt to go backwards than forwards, but at least I’m willing to dip my toe in the water again.

IFC's Dinner With The Band

IFC's Dinner With The Band

The Independent Film Channel has had some kick ass original programming in it's short lifespan and it's newest offering "Dinner With The Band" is no exception.
Master Chef Sam Mason hosts the show from what looks like an abandoned Brooklyn warehouse with a different musical guest each month.

Sam is a bit of a clumsy interviewer, but that's obviously not his strong suit. He's there for the cookin' and he did some bold things in the kitchen like sprinkling instant freeze-dried coffee grounds on onion rings. Flat iron steak and an interesting mustard/bacon/coffee (yep, more coffee) gravy rounded out the menu.

Then his guest this week, Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings played their first of two tunes for the show. The first. "Let Them Knock" was a soulful vocal performance by Ms. Jones with the obligatory tight R&B big band accompaniment.
Jones can really sing, displaying range to spare while delivering pitch perfect soul. She was also delightful in the kitchen , very genuine and funny.

The show claims that these musical guests are among Sam Mason's favorite independent groups in and around NYC , and if SJ and the Dap-Kings are any indication he has very good taste in music. Sam rounds out the half hour with a drink recipe that put a nice bow on the proceedings.

All in all, another great show on IFC. The basis of which combines food and music.
Hmmmm...kinda reminds me of a blog I know about......

Gene Clark

Gene Clark was in the Byrds. No he’s not the dude with the funny glasses, that was Roger McGuinn. He’s not the guy in the suede fringe hunting jacket either, that was David Crosby. Gene never really had a persona or image. What he was though was the principal songwriter in the band between 1964 and 1966, writing or co-writing tunes such as “Here Without You” , “Set You Free This Time” , “I’ll feel a Whole Lot Better”, “She Don’t Care About Time” and most notably, “Eight Miles High”. Despite writing songs like this and being the lead singer casual fans of The Byrds probably could’nt even give you his name. All they know about is the guy with the funny glasses and the 12 string Rickenbacker singing Dylan. And that is a damn shame.

The Byrds burned brightly like a comet in the ‘60’s. Their influence reached across the globe. Even the Beatles were not immune, with George sporting a 12 string Rick of his own around the time of Rubber Soul. That album cover by the way shows The Beatles in suede hunting jackets through a fish eye lens, which was eerily similar to an album released by The Byrds just months prior.

Comets unfortunately burn out though, and there were just too many egos in the band to keep it going. The other members resented the fact that Gene’s songwriting royalties were netting him more dollars than the rest of them. So Gene was the first to leave in 1966. Looking at his early solo stuff with collaborators Doug Dillard and Chris Hillman, there is a definite leaning towards a country/western, bluegrass style. This was no accident. Clark after all was born in Tipton, Missouri and devoured Hank Williams records in much the same way as Brian Wilson glommed onto the Four Freshmen.

Much of what would become Country folk/rock in the early to mid seventies owe a considerable debt of gratitude to Gene. Bands like The Eagles, Pure Prairie League, even the later incarnations of Fleetwood Mac drew off of his influences.

Gene however, would never attain the solo success he so richly deserved despite continuing to work and releasing a sizeable solo output much of which was ignored by record promoters and radio. After kicking around the late ‘60’s writing songs for The Flying Burrito Brothers and others, Clark would finally release his first proper solo album in 1971. It was a long road to get there. The Burritos wanted Gene to replace Gram Parsons, but Gene had a drinking problem combined with a fear of flying that quickly scotched those plans. He even replaced Crosby in the Byrds for a month or two, before leaving the band again after one of his panic attacks.

So in 1971, Gene Clarks solo album came and went. It was only commercially successful in the Netherlands , of all places. Sometimes referred to as the “White Light” album, it is a revelation in the Psych/folk genre if there is such a thing. The album includes the gorgeous “For A Spanish Guitar”, the only song I’ve ever heard Bob Dylan ever quoted as one he wish he had written. If that praise is not high enough , check out Gene’s cover version of Dylan’s “Tears Of Rage” which is damn near if not the definitive version. Clark’s unwillingness and/or inability to do promotional tours of the material didn’t help matters either, and also contributed to the records quick disappearance.

A few years later, after recording more material that would not initially even be released and even rejoining and recording with yet another reincarnation of The Byrds , Gene Clark was signed to Asylum records as a solo artist in 1974. This would result in one LP, arguably his magnum opus. Titled “No Other”, it was produced with a large budget of session musicians, back up singers and eight of the greatest songs ever placed on a single LP. It seemed like Clark’s work was always ahead of the times by about two to three years. Listening to it today, it confounds the mind how this album could not have been a hit especially when compared stylistically to records like Rumours, Hotel California, and even Steely Dan’s Aja which all would be released just two to three years down the road.

There would be more albums and more collaborations as the years went on, but always in relative obscurity and without mainstream success. Serious health problems like ulcers and years of heavy drinking would eventually claim his life on May 24th 1991. His songs can be found on albums like Tom Petty’s “Full Moon Fever” and most recently the Robert Plant/Alison Krauss Grammy winner had three Gene Clark compositions included. Among critics and his peers, Gene Clark is a legend. However in the eyes of the general public he has still yet to have his day in the spotlight.

Something different to do with Pork Tenderloin

Cut on an angle into one inch thick slices. Drege in seasoned flour. Sautee in olive oil on medium high heat for about 3 minutes per side in an oven safe skillet. I had 2 tenderloins so I did this in 2 batches.

While thats cooking , prepare the sauce

1 cup orange juice
3 tablespoons wine or cider vinegar
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 clove minced garlic
1 teaspoon chili powder
about one and one half leeks, minced

Mix this up and pour it over the pork after sauteeing. Finish in a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes. The sauce will thicken into a glaze. The chili powder gives it a nice little kick, almost like a General Tso's chicken phenomenon. Served with Broccoli and carrots sauteed with a little more diced leek to bring it all together.
I would definitely make this again.

Scallops Provencale

Really great -super easy - 1 pound of sea scallops-you may have to butterfly them if they're nice big ones. Drege 'em in flour, shake off the excess and fry them in 2 to 3 tablespoons of butter on medium high till golden brown on both sides. Salt and pepper in the pan. Add 1/2 cup of chopped shallots, 2 cloves chopped garlic and a quarter cup of chopped fresh parsley adding a bit more butter if needed. After it sautees for 2 minutes add a third cup or so of white wine. Sautee for one more minute or until you get a nice sauce. Serve it up.

Frank

Frank Zappa and the curious tale of Lumpy Gravy

Earlier this year, The Zappa Family Trust released “Lumpy Money”, a comprehensive sonic document of two records Frank Zappa released in 1968. One was called “We’re Only In It For The Money”, and the second titled “Lumpy Gravy”. One record (WOIIFTM) was an aural bitch slap towards the flower power generation. It also had some scathing commentary about our nation at that time, in that even though the hippies were only “younger, dirtier versions of their parents” they still didn’t deserve to be beaten, herded into jails and in some cases murdered.

“Lumpy Gravy” was an entirely different animal. A structured collage of sounds interspersed with spoken word dialogue and musical fragments. These fragments were actually taken from a session recorded more than a year previous. “The Mothers Of Invention” were Zappa’s band and they were signed with MGM records. Capitol Records however, had signed Frank Zappa as a solo artist. Both parties believed that his MGM contract allowed him to work on outside projects as long as he did not sing or play on the finished product. The product was a radical departure from his MGM output. This was a full-blown orchestral piece, using no less than 40 musicians at any one time.

MGM records disagreed with Zappa’s interpretation of his contract and sued Capitol. It would be nearly 18 months before the two parties would settle out of court, with MGM agreeing to purchase “Lumpy Gravy” from Capitol. However, the original 20 minute 47 second piece no longer existed in it’s original form. During the legal hassles, Zappa had dramatically altered the piece by chopping it up, shuffling around the pieces and adding spoken dialogue along with other recordings from his vault. The final result was a masterwork from a tape editing standpoint, with all of it done personally by Frank with splicing tape and razor blades. Musically however, it was entirely different from it’s original aim.

It would be many years before Zappa would be recognized as a composer of “serious music” as opposed to a rock and roll band leader and guitarist. The original Lumpy Gravy sessions however prove in no uncertain terms that this guy was so ahead of the curve back in 1967 that it wasn’t even funny. Restored to it’s original order on the aforementioned box set, it is easily THE highlight on a collection jam packed with highlights.

The music also puts into context the direction Zappa was going in with albums like “Uncle Meat” and pieces like “Peaches En Regalia” which would be released on his “Hot Rats” album only a year later. The original “Lumpy Gravy” suite if you will, contains both the playfulness and exuberance of “Peaches”. It also features much of the experimental spirit of the “Uncle Meat” LP. It is most importantly, a lost nugget in Zappa’s musical history. Previously only available as a low fidelity bootleg, the box set returns those historic sessions to their original glory. Kudos to Gail, Dweezil and the Zappa family trust for doing so, and I cant wait to see what they have in the pipeline for future release.