Sonny Boy Williamson - Nine Below Zero

I just had to post one more from Sonny Boy. He is outrageously great on that harp.

Sonny Boy Williamson - Keep It To Yourself

He knows how to blow that harp!

Mary Travers - There Is A Ship

I'm still in mourning for Mary Travers, who left us in 2009.

You Really Got A Hold On Me

Classic Lennon vocal.

JJAMZ - Never Enough

Live from a clothing store of some sort.

Baby You're A Rich Man

This song is saying we have everything we need right within ourselves, I think.

I Shall Be Released

This is not a great version of this Dylan song, but when you have Joni Mitchell, Mama Cass, and Mary Travers singing it, you have to listen at least once.

Bob Dylan - Don't Think Twice, It's Allright

It's a demo, and I love it.

Crosstide - Angeles (Elliott Smith Cover)

And finally, perhaps the best of the lot, Crosstide's inspired take. 

Loren Radis - Angeles (Elliott Smith Cover)

This is the second of my "Angeles" covers triple shot. Hope you people are having a terrific Wednesday. If you get a second and you have the means, send the president's campaign a few bucks, we gotta win this thing. KTWS time is 2:44 pm and the skies are clear in the city of Gainesville.  

A Lot Like Birds - Angeles (Elliott Smith Cover)

Nice job covering a tough song under adverse circumstances and in a weird hat too.

Real Love

This song gives me the chills.

Money

I can't find any information about the so-called "Capricorn Tapes", but these were probably recorded at Decca, where the Beatles--here with Pete Best on drums--did not get a contract. But George Martin knew what to do with the Liverpool boys, yes he did. And the boys knew what to do with Pete Best.

Bob Marley - Concrete Jungle

This guy was a flaming genius.

Sexy Sadie

Classic Lennon.

Help!

It's the full album. Lennon said that at the time, "Help" was the most honest song he had ever written.

John Lennon - Gimme Some Truth

Money for dope, he says...money for rope.

Counting Crows - Round Here

From March 31, 1994. At the time, I hated these guys. May have never been more wrong about a band. 

Rilo Kiley - With Arms Outstretched

To commemorate their 15th anniversary Pitchfork has posted a list of the top 200 albums of those 15 years, 1996-2011, as selected by their readers. As one might expect, Radiohead dominated list with three albums in the top 10. Nauseating omissions include seminal albums by Mountain Goats, The Hold Steady and Rilo Kiley.

Luckily Taylor Johnston at Music for Kids Who Can't Read Good steps in and fills the void with his own list of 20 albums snubbed by Pitchfork's readers and all three of the aforementioned bands are on it.  

Tegan and Sara - I Know I Know I Know

"It's me and you..."



"What else are we here for?"

Foo Fighters - All My Life

Head Foo Dave Grohl recently expressed his love of the Beatles. 

Gayatri Mantra

I just felt like sharing this beautiful mantra with the world today.

Don't Let Me Down

You have to dig those crazy helmets that British cops wear...

Michael Kiwanuka - Bones

New video from the British soul singer. (h/t YANP). He offers up a playlist in USA Today.

John Lennon - Instant Karma

One of Lennon's best songs.

Smashing Pumpkins - Spaceboy

I used to really like Smashing Pumpkins in their early 90s heyday. As the band went through the process of shedding all its members, with the exception of noted ego maniac singer Billy Corgan, their music inevitably went in a direction I didn't care for and I stopped paying attention. Now they are relegated to the nostalgia pile--this song being an especially fond remembrance, though one that is somewhat spoiled by a seemingly endless string of reports that Corgan has said something annoying (like this one). As Steven Tyler once said, "Lord, it's too bad."

The Exciters

Here I go again...whenever the Station Agent posts a cover of an old song, I can't resist the impulse to post the original. In this case, even Linda Rondstadt's cover is really old, and the original? Well, the original was "Tell Her" and had a few incarnations, it seems, before the Exciters got a hold of it in 1962.

Linda Ronstadt - Tell Him

I'm going through my first Linda Ronstadt phase. This song is pure fluff. Dig it.

John Lennon - Stand By Me

The Station Agent prefers Lennon's version to the original by Ben E. King. So this post is dedicated to Jay Allbritton, the Station Agent of The Walrus Speaks.

Gravitron - Schrodinger's Cat

From a recent show in Spartanburg, SC, opening for Southern Culture on the Skids.

How?

Lennon was always asking questions, most of all, about himself. He never accepted any answer for long. I can relate to that.



I just couldn't resist posting Ozzy Osbourne's version.

Tegan and Sara - Nineteen

Tour starts next month.  Get there!

Soundgarden - Fell on Black Days

The band is back in November. 

Nirvana Live at the Paramount

This is Nirvana at its finest. Fantastic sound on this clip. Enjoy. 

Paul McCartney - Temporary Secretary

Is this super-early dubstep? Not that I'm into dubstep. I'm glad my daughter has gotten over it, actually, thank you very much. Anyway, you can't say McCartney didn't try new things.

1980.

Rage Against the Machine - Guerrilla Radio

Newly minted Republican VP candidate Paul Ryan has referred to Rage Against the Machine as his favorite band. How this is possible I have no idea. Does he possess ears? RAtM guitarist Tom Morello isn't having it since, as he puts it, Ryan is the machine against which they rage. Co-option is not an option.

BBC Recording, If I Fell

Sweet. 1964.

Omar Don't Scare

No, he don't. You feel me?

Elliott Smith - Alameda

From 1997. Magical. 

Don't Let The Sun Catch You Crying

Gerry and the Pacemakers. Friends of the Beatles from Liverpool. 1964.

John Lennon - Woman

I like hearing the more raw version.

Omar Tells It Like It Is

A walking, talking dramatic argument for gay rights, I would say...if you don't know what I'm talking about, you must watch The Wire.

Omar Little Rules

One of the greatest characters in American television, ever.

Lisa Loeb and Nine Stories--Stay (I Missed You)

When I turned twenty on August 15th, 1994, this was the number one song in the land. 

The Walrus Speaks Supports Pussy Riot

If you don't already know about Pussy Riot, you must. This group went into a Moscow cathedral to protest the 69 going on between Putin and the Russian Orthodox Church, which supports Putin and his politics.



Here is more of their music. 



22 year old Moscow State University student Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, mother of a four year old girl, explains the situation in jail. But, "Alexei Nikiforov, a federal prosecutor, has demanded prison for the trio because they 'abused God'." How does the prosecutor know that God feels abused? How does he know that He and She (the Divine Couple) don't feel honored that Pussy Riot is standing up for the truth? 

The Weathergirls - It's Raining Men

I had never heard of the Weathergirls or this song, until just now while listening to Jon Stewart explain to Bill O'Reilly that "raining men" should not be taken literally. O'Reilly said he knew that...but with O'Reilly it's hard to tell...

Watching The Wheels, Stripped Down

This is from Double Fantasy Stripped Down. I didn't even know about this until a minute ago. I must pay attention!

John Coltrane - Blue Train

Why don't we just go crazy and post an entire album of John Coltrane? 1957.

Thelonius Monk

What the hell, let's have a little jazz this afternoon...from Denmark, 1966.

Sleater-Kinney - One Beat

One world, one beat. Thank you very much.

Wild Flag

Is it the last part of "Racehorse"? I can't rightly tell. At one point I was afraid Carrie was going to smash her guitar. What's up with the shoes at the end, Station Agent?

Tulasi Maharani

This is my Shyama-Krsna Tulasi in Alachua, Florida, July 13, 2012. Jaya Tulasi Devi!

Desaparecidos - MariKKKopa

This one's for Sheriff Joe. 

In My Life

2012 is The Year of John Lennon. Why? Because people say the world is going to end. So we're going to hear from The Walrus.

Gotye - Somebodies: A YouTube Orchestra

For the last eight months I've been posting a long line of covers of Gotye's "Somebody That I Used to Know". For all the ones I've posted dozens, if not hundreds more went up on YouTube and elsewhere on the web. No song released in the history of the web has spawned so much creativity.

Now Gotye brings those covers together in an ultimate mashup. The coveree is now the coverer. 

Sleater-Kinney - One More Hour

I am getting into this band. Better late than never.

Way Down In The Hole

It's The Five Blind Boys Of Alabama, Season One.

The Wire.

George Harrison - Dark Horse

One of the better tracks from Harrison's 1974 album, Dark Horse.

John Lennon - Nobody Told Me

I watched The U.S. vs. John Lennon last night. Everyone should see it.

Gold Motel's Howler Session

From back in January.

Across The Universe

Today is the Appearance Day of A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, 1896-1977.

Only Son - It's A Boy

This band is the project of former Mold Peaches guitarist Jack Dishel, who is married to the fabulous Regina Spektor. Surprised I haven't heard of this band sooner. It's quite good.

Today Is Shri Krishna Janmashtami

He steals the yogurt that his mother Yashoda has made, feeds it to the monkeys, and then claims the yogurt is no good--even the monkeys do not want it.

So charming!

James Heartfield - Chloe Dancer

"I'm proud to say I won't forget the time spent lying by her side. And a dream like this must die..."

Kiersten Holine - Dreams (Fleetwood Mac Cover)

Excellent bedroom cover of the Fleetwood Mac classic. 

Why Cannabis Should Be Legal

You can argue with John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, but I wouldn't.

Yoko Ono - Walking On Thin Ice

Cynthia was good at calligraphy. Yoko was outrageous. I guess that it explains it, right?

A Day In The Life

I think this song was banned by the BBC...

Chris Cornell - Man of Golden Words

"Tell me Mr. Golden Words, how's about the world?"

Jack White - Blue Blood Blues

From last night's set that closed out Lollapalooza in style.

John Paul Carmody - Life By The Drop

Nice cover of a great Stevie Ray Vaughn song. 

Rilo Kiley - My Slumbering Heart

Am I asleep or awake?

Elliott Smith - Son of Sam

Today would have been Elliott's 43rd birthday. His absence was felt, as it so often is, yesterday while I watched the stream of Lollapalooza. I couldn't help thinking about how great it would have been to see him in the mix with Jack Black, Florence + the Machine and At the Drive In.

Girl

She acts as if it's understood. That's been my experience, anyway.

Nowhere Man

Certainly one of Lennon's greatest songs.

Rockyard - Rolling in the Deep

Here's another cover from Rockyard. Digging it.

Sleater-Kinney - Jumpers

A very dynamic performance.

2012 - The Year Of John Lennon

"Strawberry Fields Forever" is one of Lennon's greatest songs.

Rockyard - All That She Wants

This version of Ace of Bass's questionable 1992 runaway hit single "All That She Wants" by Rockyard is more of a reinvention than it is a cover. While this is a bit of a novelty, the band is absolutely amazing.  This has all the aspects that good heavy music should have.

Catch the Lollapalooza Live Stream this Weekend

YouTube is streaming the festival here. Plenty of solid acts coming up, among them are some of my favorites--Afghan Whigs, Tame Impala and The Shins. Tomorrow Alabama Shakes, Givers and Red Hot Chili Peppers are featured. The show blows up on Sunday with a killer line up that features Of Monsters and Men, The Gaslight Anthem, At the Drive In, Florence and the Machine, Jack White, and Childish Gambino among others.

Here's Soundgarden's set from 2010:

Radiohead - The Bends

"...and I wish it was the 60s,
I wish I could be happy, I wish, I wish, I wish
That something would happen..."

John Lennon - Number Nine Dream

It seemed so very real...

John Lennon - Mind Games

I'll recite that mantra.

Meiko - Leave The Lights On

From her performance on KCRW.

Wild Flag - Romance

Paul's new favorite band.

Conservative Kid Bashes Obama

I get a kick out of this. The number one reason to not vote for Obama--because we have no idea whether or not he is an American citizen--is classic. What a hoot.

Rilo Kiley - Does He Love You?

From their performance in Santa Monica on October 15, 2007.

Please Please Me, Full Album

Oh yeah.

From Me To You

I'm going to let this post stand for my daily post of John Lennon, in The 2012 Year of John Lennon extravaganza here at The Walrus Speaks, although the song, as the Wikipedia article says, is one of the very few that were truly co-written by John and Paul. George Martin, the Beatles' producer, asked for a song as good as "Please Please Me," and although I doubt the song lives up to that standard, nevertheless it was the Beatles' first number one.

I highly recommend the Wikipedia article. It is very interesting.