boombox – visions of backbeat

Every now and then an album like this pops up that appeals to so many of my musical sensibilities all at once that I am left to wonder how it slipped past my nets.  I mean, I listen to a lot of stuff!  Like…tons!

But slip past Boombox did, although only by a few years which is nothing in musical time.  “Visions of Backbeat” dropped in 2004, so I wasn’t too far off, but what singer/songwriter Zion Godchaux and producer/DJ Russ Randolf came up with is pretty transcendent.

They originally met while working on the Heart of Gold Band album “At the Table.”  Zion is the son of Keith and Donna Godchaux (who formed Heart of Gold Band) who were an integral part of the Grateful Dead during some of my favorite Dead years.  Soon after meeting with Russ though, the two had formed Boombox and started recording in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. The area itself is known as a hotbed of American roots music, and some of those sounds definitely find their way into Boombox’s music…but that isn’t all.

To try and label this music as any lone genre is pretty much impossible, because the duo have incorporated so much into their work.  Hip hop, rock and roll, psychedelic, blues,electronic and jam band roots all seem to float in and out of every track with ease.  All with that deep funky back beat.   Unique is the only word that comes to mind.  Uniquely American.

In my head, I can’t help thinking American rock/St Germain.

Their first big hit “Stereo” was one of the big stand outs on this album, but don’t go thinking that that is all there was.  This baby is as  solid as concrete.

I haven’t had a chance to catch them live yet, but that is now on my short term bucket list since I hear they put on a hell of a show.  If you like what you hear here, I also recommend their new album “Downriverelectric” which includes this bitchin’ version of “Shakedown Street.”

Check their website HERE.

Download the whole she-bang at Amazon for $8!  Bargain!

songs everyone should own: muddy waters – champagne and reefer

You know those eCigarettes that were all the rage for about five minutes?

Some super genius figured out a real use for them…by selling marijuana chargers for them now.

On a side note, this song was written by Muddy Waters, another super genius who understood what a person truly needs in life.

Off his “King Bee” album…Cheap DL at Amazon!

ike & tina turner – the soul of ike and tina & dynamite

So the other week I decided to open an ING savings account, because…who doesn’t want to earn 1% interest on their money.  I gotta say it was a mistake.

After closing my savings account and transferring my cash to my checking account, I filled out their online forms and waited for the go ahead to transfer my money over.  A few days went by and …nothing happened.

I got worried and called to find out what the deal was, and was informed by the Customer Service rep that while my routing number was fine, my account number was invalid.  Now, I don’t know about you, but I have a hard enough time deciphering the hieroglyphics on the bottom of my check as it is.  So I asked the guy which number, specifically that he needed.  He told me it was all the numbers after the routing number (I had originally only given them the last five.)  I gave him the new number, he said it should all be kosher in a day or two, and I waited.

When nothing happened four days later, I called again.  I talked to another rep who I went over the same info with and he said it was all fixed and would be ready in a few days.  WRONG!!!

Jump ahead four days later when there is still no activity.  I call ING again (notice that I’m doing all the contacting.)  This time the  rep tells me my account has been deleted, and she goes to find out why.  The next thing I know I’m talking to some harpy who informs me that my account number was still invalid and that ING would be terminating any business they had with me.  I protested that all I wanted to do was give them my money, she insisted that they had tried to contact me about this issue…which was a lie because no one from ING ever tried to contact me!!!  EVER!

So I guess ING doesn’t need your money.  Fuck ING!!!  <<<That’s the moral of my story.  Fuck them right in their fucking asses!!! And fuck their customer service too…

Now on to things that are far more awesome, I give you this sparkling reissue of two of Ike and Tina Turners most bad ass albums…The Soul of Ike and Tina and Dynamite.  First of all I gotta say I’m loving these two for one package deals.  It’s nice that someone finally realized that a CD can hold over an hour’s worth of music and anything less was a waste of space.  As a bonus they even threw in five bonus tracks to round it all out!  These two gems from 1960 and 1962 catch Ike and Tina doing what they do best…producing some of the most high energy, gritty, dark, funky southern music.

What makes it even better was that the two original albums weren’t even recorded as albums.  These were just compilations of their many hit singles of the day, so you don’t get the typical handful of hits with a bunch of filler.  You get ALL HITS.  And when it comes to Ike and Tina, this is exactly where you want to be. It’s also got the world famous Ikkettes on back up too! It’s got the kind of musical power on it like “Worried and Hurtin Inside,” “Letter from Tina ” and “I Had a Notion” guaranteed to make you the hero of the next soul BBQ you attend.

I’ve listened to this collection at least ten times since I discovered it a month or two ago.  If any of this sounds good the folks at Emd also gave the same treatment to another two early sixties albums with:Ike and Tina Turner Don’t Play Me Cheap / It’s Gonna Work Out Fine.  So if this album gave you an ear boner, you’ll definitely blow your audio load over the other one too.

Only $9 on amazon for the downloadable version!  But if you google the fucker you might find it cheaper…or free.  Just sayin.

mixes everyone should hear: dj zak hamburg – music for grown ups

If you’re like me and were born in the seventies, then this mix should tied you over nicely.  DJ Zak Hamburg and the AOR disco team bring you an hour and forty-two minutes of seventies, eighties and nineties remixes and edits for hungry ears.

It’s a nice way to welcome the coming of fall.  Check the set list.

1. tame impala – solitude is bliss (the time & space machine remix)
2. dark captain light captain – questions (hatchback’s multiple choice dub)
3. le sale – ohnobono (still haven’t edited what i’m looking for)
4. white elephant – sir john (mark E remix)
5. little river band – light of day (two mamarrachos edit)
6. black sabbath – planet caravan (dj steef edit)
7. blondie – heart of glass (phantom & hold’s glass heart edit)
8. led zeppelin – no quarter (eleventhirtyeight edit)
9. fleetwood mac – sara (bobby lost & fear of theydon’s lost baghwan mix)
10. pink floyd – the wall (rayko balearic edit)
11. faith no more – midlife crisis (virgin magnetic material remix)
12. pixies – where is my mind (young edits balearic anxiety mix)
13. lindsay buckingham / fleetwood mac – big love (appo’s bigger love edit)
14. captain beefheart – observatory crest (fear of theydon’s indian summer dub)
15. the popes – bastards (mudd’s moule frite mix)
16. nine inch nails – closer (virgin magnetic material remix)

Free download too…which always makes me happy. Grab it HERE.

the allman brothers – in memory of duane allman – last concert at the fillmore east 1971(bootleg)

I figured I might eventually get around to the Allman Brothers…but with a concise note from Dave on my Suggest an Album Everyone Should Hear page, I finally made it so.

Thanks for the note Dave!

Seriously. When you have a music collection that’s several hundred gigs…and not to mention the thousands of records, it gets tough trying to remember the best ones without a little help.

Recorded at the Fillmore East in 1971, this concert captures the band’s original line up of Gregg Allman, Duane Allman, Dicky Betts, Berry Oakley, Butch Trucks and Jai Johnson.  It was the last set ever played at the Fillmore East before it was shut down…and around three months before Duane was killed in a motorcycle crash in Macon, Ga.  A year later a traffic accident would also claim the life of Berry Oakley. The band that remains today is good, but not nearly as young, hungry and complete as it was here.

But this concert captures what is, for me at least, the original Allman Brothers displaying what made them so special in the first place.  Excellent musicianship, amazing jams and that southern tinged jazz rock and blues that really made them famous. Even Bill Graham, the man who had seen it all in the music industry, was blown away by their performance. The guitar work here is stunning…especially on Statsboro Blues and Whipping post, but it’s the 12 minute version of In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed that really hits all the right notes.

Better yet, you get a smoking 18 minute version of You Don’t Love Me to top off the whole show.

There are a couple of recordings of this performance available, the commercial release of The Allman Brothers Band at Fillmore East is nice, but shortened with editing and mainly culled from the first nights show.  Then you have The Fillmore Concerts which have much more material and are more even then the first release, but are still edited down a bit and mixed from two nights.  Why record company’s insist on this is beyond me.

This bootleg version is an excellent soundboard recording and covers the real last show in all it’s glory.  If you like the Allman Brothers, want to like the Allman Brothers or even just like a solid jam session…you do a lot worse than grabbing this little nugget HERE 1, HERE 2, HERE 3, HERE 4 and HERE 5.

peter green’s fleetwood mac – fleetwood mac

So, I’m still unemployed…which gives me lots of time to blog. (yay!)

And I started school again,  which at least helps focus my time as I work towards my degree in restaurant management, and signals the return of semester breaks…which is what I am on right now. So let the writing  and drinking commence!

When you think of Fleetwood Mac, you usually think of Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks…but the story actually starts long before their arrival with guitarist Peter Green from John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers…who was originally brought in to replace Eric Clapton.  When Green left the Bluesbreakers, he started playing with Mick Fleetwood in two different bands.  He wanted to start a new band, and he really wanted John McVie on bass…so much so that he called this new band Fleetwood Mac.

You’ll find no cocaine rock here.  No gypsy ballads, no string section…  What you will find is a masterpiece of the British Blues scene. A no frills journey from classic covers to inspired original works.  I also recommend the next two albums (“Mr Wonderful” and “The Pious Bird of Good Omen”) which are both rooted in the same tradition.  They even came out with a boxed set that has all three… if you’re down.

Available for download or purchase from Amazon for about $10…not bad!  But I have seen digital copies floating around… if you were to Google it.