I'm not a vampire fan. But the Addams Family has reincarnated in the 21st century with True Blood, only now it has an edge.It's commercial high camp. But it also dabbles in a range of issues from sexuality to civil rights to religion and religious prejudice. Eastern religion, ancient religion, the occult, wisdom, ignorance, romance, despair, and a younger, better looking version of George W. Bush in league with the vampires of Texas. Now that's entertainment!
As always, I discover the most popular HBO stuff years after their premier. What can I say, I got rid of my cable.
Dedicated to the Right Reverend Richard Warfield, pastor of the Psychedelic Church and Founder-Acarya of the (Dedicated) League of Demons, out in Wimberley, Texas.
...about cannabis. Maybe it is just politics. Maybe the Big O does not have his hand in every little detail of his administration. But the official statement by the DEA--Barack Obama's DEA--that cannabis has no medical value and deserves to remain classified with heroin, is outrageous. Now, the President is a smart guy. He KNOWS that the DEA's statement is nonsense. If enough people contact him on this issue, he will listen. After all, he is a politician.
Performing in L.A. in 2004, the fifth person on stage is guitarist Mike Bloom, who currently has a very good solo album out on RK bassist Pierre de Reeder's label.
Feist's cover of the BeeGees "Inside and Out" does a much better job of conveying the theme of righteous love and devotion while updating the disco with healthy doses of electronica and indie rock.
Some people like the early Beatles better, some prefer the later Beatles. For me, it's just apples and oranges. They became better musicians with their instruments, there was more sophistication in everything, including the lyrics, but the melodies were always excellent. And I am a fanatic for melody.
We here at The Walrus Speaks--KTWS Radio--are continuing our year of mourning for Rilo Kiley, a band that makes it into my top five. The Station Agent saw their demise way before I did, but we both had hopes. Now, we are simply hoping for the release of their so-called B sides, which, I am here to tell you, are not B at all. I give them an A+. Especially "American Wife".
The Elected visited Rolling Stone magazine's offices recently to play a few songs. This one is called "Good Love" on the RS site, but it's a cover of Tom Petty's "You Got Lucky."
Lennon preferred the mono version of these early recordings. I guess I can see why, or rather, hear why. However, with this stereo remastered version, I can hear some stuff I hadn't heard before. So, I guess I like them both. You be the judge.
I said 'oh, do you really want to go down that road?' She said 'I don't know'. 'Sure beats sitting in the pick-up at night, crying your eyes out'. Yeah.
And the coast that you've seen though you're watching them weekly You've cursed all perfect days as you walked away I can hear you say, "Jenny, you're barely alive" Photo by John Perry
Continuing our year of mourning for the breakup of the greatest band of the 21st century (the Station Agent calls them one of the greatest bands of the century, but I haven't heard anything in their category yet) The Walrus Speaks proudly presents "Rilo Kiley's A Better Son/Daughter." It's the Station Agent's favorite.
Lennon does a rare guitar solo and it is great. You may not have heard this version, so check it out. I love it when the English gentleman with the pipe climbs the ladder to get a better listen of the Beatles.
The Walrus Speaks is going to be playing lots of Rilo Kiley as we mourn for them a full year. They very recently announced their break up. Here is the first song that I ever heard by Rilo Kiley, and quite possibly still my favorite. That voice, oh that voice...
Blind melon continues to live on with new singer Travis Warren. The band is playing in South America later this month and playing a couple of dates in the Midwest this September.
Here's one of the last songs they recorded with the late, great Shannon Hoon.
Once in awhile a great band makes a mediocre record and someone you never heard of covers it and does a great job. That's what Lizzy & Elana have done with Rilo Kiley's "When The Angels Hung Around".
Speaking of Rilo Kiley, I am in mourning for their split. It reminds me of the Beatles' break-up in 1970. Most of us knew in our hearts they were finished, and then finally Paul announced it. It did/does not feel good.
Farewell, Rilo Kiley--so far, the best band of the 21st century.
One of the best bands of the century, Rilo Kiley, have reportedly broken up. Thankfully, there's a load of unreleased material that will come gushing forth in the near future. Each of the band's four members have solo projects and bands for us to look in on. RK has been very special to Dr. Diego and I since before the inception of this blog. We, thankfully, got to see them play live in Orlando in 2007. I will report back any talk of a reunion in the coming years, because it's inevitable.
Here's the band live, asking themselves the pertinent question, "Are we breakin' up?" Sadly, Jenny and Co., yes you are.
Conor Oberst and Jenny Lewis have teamed up on several occasions over the years, always with fine results. In 2005, Jenny joined Bright Eyes in the studio for a song called "Napoleon's Hat," which was on a Hurricane Katrina relief album. In 2009, Lewis joined the Mystic Valley Band for a cover of Rilo Kiley's "Portions for Foxes". Back in 2006, Oberst, M. Ward and Ben Gibbard joined Lewis in the studio to cover the Traveling Wilburys "Handle With Care" on Lewis's solo debut Rabbit Fur Coat, which was released by Oberst's Team Love label. Oberst has joined Lewis and a variety of guests several times to play the song live--here is but one such occasion.
Now we have Lewis and Johnathan Rice, Bright Eyes' opening act on their European tour, joining Oberst and Co. for a rousing rendition of "Wrecking Ball" by Gillian Welch.
The original version of this song by the Beach Boys is the theme song for the TNT show Men of a Certain Age, which I have been watching at TNT's website, where the first season is streaming. The show's very good and the song has been stuck in my head now for weeks.
For me, there is no version of "The Star Spangled Banner" nearly as inspiring as the Hendrix version. But let's put to rest the erroneous belief that Hendrix was in the Air Force, served in Viet Nam, or was even a dutiful soldier. In fact, he lied about his time in the military and lied to end it. Here's an excerpt:
Hendrix got into trouble with the law twice for riding in stolen cars. He was given a choice between spending two years in prison or joining the Army. Hendrix chose the latter and enlisted on May 31, 1961. After completing basic training, he was assigned to the 101st Airborne Division and stationed in Fort Campbell, Kentucky. His commanding officers and fellow soldiers considered him to be a subpar soldier: he slept while on duty, had little regard for regulations, required constant supervision, and showed no skill as a marksman. For these reasons, his commanding officers submitted a request that Hendrix be discharged from the military after he had served only one year. Hendrix did not object when the opportunity to leave arose. He would later tell reporters that he received a medical discharge after breaking his ankle during his 26th parachute jump. The rock music journalist Charles Cross contended in his biography of Hendrix, Room Full of Mirrors (2005) that Hendrix feigned being homosexual—claiming to have fallen in love with a fellow soldier—in order to be discharged, but did not produce credible evidence to support this contention.
We don't honor the man with fairy tales. Anyone experienced with Hendrix knows that it was his questioning of American involvement in Viet Nam that should draw our attention. That and his music is his real legacy, his questioning of the status quo--as the portrait of him, above, implies. What it means to be American is a question each citizen must answer alone, but question we must. At any rate, that's what the Hendrix version means to me.
For traditionalists, here is a fine version, below. Now stand up and salute, Americans, or place your hand over your heart. If you have one.
I have found that those who don't like the music of my parent's generation cannot be brought to make their peace with it. You either like it, or you don't. My wife, my children, the Station Agent--reject Old Blue Eyes, and soundly. My eldest daughter has classified all music from Sinatra's era as "cemetery music". Well, that's life.
It's too bad Lennon and Sinatra couldn't have been friends. From what I have heard, Lennon was willing. Senior to the Liverpudlian by twenty-five years, you would think that Frank would have been mature enough to accept the hand of friendship offered by John. Not so. Here's a quote from Hoboken, New Jersey's most famous son:
Through the late fifties, Sinatra frequently criticized rock and roll music, much of it being his reaction to rhythms and attitudes he found alien. In 1958 he lambasted it as "sung, played, and written for the most part by cretinous goons. It manages to be the martial music of every side-burned delinquent on the face of the earth."
Martial music? Who's fighting?
I must admit that I have never liked Sinatra as a person. In addition, I'm not into his world view, his values, and his politics. Nevertheless, when I am in a very particular mood, nothing hits the spot like "That's Life". The cigarettes and whiskey aged that voice just right, didn't it? I'll toast one for Frank, and remember the old days.
