My Bloody Love

Okay there are moments in my musical listening that I completely missed, even though I had the tape in my hand growing up I really did not want to know about a band called My Bloody Valentine. I remember taking off the plastic that covered it and just putting it away. Why did I buy then to let it collect dust you ask, well because I guess. I sure wanted to know what it was, but at my age I did not want to know, this tape I had in my had was being listened to and I am not sure liked by some people that I hung around with. These are the same people who got me into what was called back in my day college rock. Yes that was the term for Green R.E.M, Cure, Smiths, Lush, Pixies, and other stuff that I kinda got into at the time. The My Bloody Valentine more then likely was above the college rock friends that I had. I just got the tape because the artwork of the guitar was cool. I did not listen to that tape until 1995 when my friend handed me a mix tape with one of the songs on it.

On this wonderful was my first listens of Blur, Pixies, Yo La Tengo, Flaming Lips, some other Radiohead beside "Creep," and others. It was a full 100 minute cassette with all kinds of cool things. The song by MBV was called "Loomer" it was a piece of music that sounded out of tune, but it had a interesting quality to it that I somehow missed all together. The music on this tape was a good tactic for my friend who had all these used at his CD store. I came in one day telling him how much I loved this or that and he have a CD stack with most of the music just waiting for me to grab something. Looking back, I think I would bought them all. This pile had some interesting stuff that I know now that I listen pretty religiously. Some of these bands I still see in concert. Examples, would include Radiohead, Primal Scream, Spiritualized and others. It was an interesting era for me to listen to a group of bands and really love and play them all the time in my car.



For about maybe three years I listened to this music because it was something that was a bit better then classic rock. It was about in 1996 (late) early 1997 that I rejected all this music for Downtown scene in New York City. I had about two years where I listened to the Downtown NYC Jazz scene. The music of the the early 1990's for me was so much better then hearing "Stairway to Heaven" for the 200th time. It was for me the time I really faithfully watched MTV 120 Minutes. I would see videos of this show or acts who played on stage and I would come to see my friend armed with music to listen to. I remember hearing Jesus and Mary Chain and loved the songs. It was different time where once in a while a alternative song would seep into the music that 120 minutes played into the mainstream. That is how Weezer got started. Really!!!

I really did enjoy that music that was part of my daily listen. It kind of took over what I was doing. I got into so much it became a blur. I grabbed that tape of MBV and put it on for the first time. The music engulfed me like the ocean current would take away the tide. I think I finally got that music. I understood it for the first time and at this point I really loved what I was listening to. The music was awesome and the lush guitar work was wonderful. The music even created a new genre of music called Shoegaze and with that a new world opened up for other artists to try and attempt to replicate.



Now that Kevin Shields is in better health and is slowly returning to the scene, he's explained that Loveless was something of an albatross for him, that he never could find a proper way to follow it. He should be comforted by the fact that no one else has been able to follow it, either. I've long dreamt of an album that was "Like Loveless , but more ," but I haven't found it. And so many hundreds of albums have tried. Perhaps this is the sound of a single idea perfected. We should move on and continue to explore the vast spectrum of sound and feeling music provides, but we'll always return to Loveless for what it alone can deliver. (pitchfork)

The album is considered a classic; it it worth it? Yea, I would say so, It's an album I don't play enough of it now, but once in a while I love to put it on and just really go and put myself in another place. The music is surely different then what was out there and what is out there now. I am not sure the magic could be created again. The album is unique and for me I love that. It might be the reason I like Jeff Buckley. If you ever hear or research his album Grace and the time it came out; who in their right mind would list Nina Simone as an inspiration. Same goes for MBV Loveless listen to this and really scratch your head and go "wow." Take a listen for yourself and maybe you can understand what it is to be unique. Enjoy!!

Who Are The Move???

Remember that box set of Sixties music I got one day at the record store I have told you about a few times where I found music on their that I should listen to? Well that box set introduced me to another great lost treasure, The Move. Yes, this band is maybe on of the most underrated bands of it's era. The Move were distinctly British, but they were one of the best bands to come out of the 60's. It's too band that they never made it here. Like the band Pretty Things these two bands are some of the reason I love British Psychedelia. The music of The Move has me scratching my head every time I listen to them. The music sounds like a opus of three bands playing on a mix of everything from late 60's music to well crafted pop songs to whatever they could do and they did it very well.

Such ever-changing leads can lend excitement but it can also lend confusion, especially when the group enthusiastically mixes up Who-inspired art pop with three-chord rock & roll oldies and more than a hint of British eccentricity. Add to that, the album had a long, convoluted birth of 14 months, a long span of time in pop music, but it was an eternity in the mid-'60s, when styles and sounds were changing monthly. The Move were releasing singles during this time so they weren't absent from the scene, but they did happen to be set upon a course of cutting singles when their peers were crafting album-length epics, something that separated them from the pack, making them seem eccentric...and The Move needed no help in seeming eccentric. (AM)



The Move sounded so new that their 1968 debut still sounds unusual, ping-ponging between restless, kaleidoscopic pop and almost campy salutes to early rock & roll, punctuated by the occasional foray into the English countryside and, with the closing "Cherry Blossom Clinic," psychic nightmare. When I heard them on my box set I asked my friend about them and he handed me a 100 minute cassette tape full of curios and wonderful songs that I never knew about. Their music to me was and still is very fresh. They even covered the Moby Grape song "Hey Grandma" and even that sounded very like their own. Each song on the first Move have a unique quality about them that I have never heard in other bands. The music has a sound that would be like if you took all the bands of the Psych era and put them in a blender and you got The Move.

I even think their singles were something of a work of art. Songs like "Flowers in the Rain" and "I Can Hear The Grass Grow" are works of art. "Flowers in the Rain" was the first song I heard and that is what got me hooked. Even songs like "(Here We Go Around) The Lemon Tree" is totally a work of pop magic. Look at this brief lyrics for "I Can Hear The Grass Grow"

My heads attracted to
Magnetic wave of sound
With streams of coloured circles
Makin' their way around

I can hear the grass grow
I can hear the grass grow
I see rainbows in the evening

The music that goes with this is quite addicting to listen to. This is vivid, imaginative music -- almost too vivid. It to me works really well.


Unique? Yes! This music is fun and one of my favorites. I suggest you try this music too. It might be a band to tell your friends. While your friends point out The Kinks, Spencer Davis, The Animals and maybe The Who, you should say with authority The Move. Give them a listen and you will be glad you did. The Move is one band that is one of the great unsung bands of it's era. Try them and I know you will love them. Enjoy!

John Mayall in Laurel Canyon

When I was in High School I really wanted to hear a lot of music. I had this book, which I have told you about before where it discussed most of the music that was out during the 60's. It talked about certain periods of music to certain styles as well. It even devoted it's chapter to some genres of music. In the 60's the British Blues scene was something that I wish was around to watch. I wish I was seeing the Yardbirds in 1963, or John Mayall with Eric Clapton or even seeing Savoy Brown or even early Fleetwood Mac tear up Blues scene. The book explained how vibrant this scene was. It gave me the reason to find that time machine.

In the book they talked about the famous album John Mayall and The Bluesbreakers Featuring Eric Clapton. They talked about how great that album was. Yea, it was great I bought it under that recommendation. I liked the Eric Clapton and John Mayall collaboration, but I wanted to hear more. According to the book I was reading it told me that some of his other albums were just as good. I needed to look for more of his material. I was also told that beside Clapton playing guitar he had other worthy greats over the years. Some of these people include Peter Green and Mick Taylor.



I was excited to find more of his material. For the longest time it took me a while to find some of these albums. If I did find them they were expensive. I really did want to hear more of his music. About the time I was a senior in High School I had a friend who's father was a John Mayall fan. He told me that he could make me copies of the two he had. I was excited to hear these. He had the album Hard Road and he had one called Blues From Laurel Canyon. When he made me tape copies he told me that they both are two completely different listening. He too said he wanted hear more John Mayall after Bluesbreakers and these to him where the best. I got home and quickly put these in my tape player. I could now understand his reason.

The music on both were amazing. I really wanted to find these for myself. I knew if I played these tapes too many times the tape would break. It did not take me long to find one of them. Blues From Laurel Canyon was a cheap find at a Tag Sale. The record was in great shape. Hard Road album is one I am actually still looking for. I have digital copy but I am still looking for a great physical vinyl copy. The music here is not overplayed, but it's better then that. It keeps on wanting you more. The music is really well done. As a young adult I really enjoyed learning about new guitar heroes and who to listen for. It was the reason Peter Green was in Hard Road that I got into early Fleetwood Mac. When I bought that greatest hits of Fleetwood Mac and seeing his name on inside of the album. Blues From Laurel Canyon was different. They had some young guitar player (merely a teenager) named Mick Taylor. It did not take me long to get into where he went after his quick stint with John Mayall.



Well, in the world of recommendations. I suggest Blues From Laurel Canyon. I know everyone has Bluesbreakers With Eric Clapton. Blues... has a feeling of one continuous song and it is really great. Each person in Mayall's band is awesome and plays like it's there last moment on earth. It is also one of Mayall's best. Try this album and I am sure you will like it as much as I do. If you have a great stereo, the remastered edition is amazing. So go out and get this great album and afterwords you will understand why the Rolling Stones grabbed Mick Taylor to join the Rolling Stones. Enjoy!

Further Out Dave

When Bill Bruford was asked the question about his favorite Jazz albums on some show he was quick to point out two important albums that changed his life. The first one was My Song by Keith Jarrett, Jan Garbarek, Palle Danielsson and Jon Christensen and the other was Time Further Out by the Dave Brubeck Quartet. He mentioned to the interviewer that this was the Jazz he wanted to play. He was already in a variety of Progressive Rock groups when My Song came out and Bill mentioned that He wish he got the call from Keith Jarrett to play with him. He mentioned how these albums struck a perpendicular chord like no other albums.

On Monday Dave Brubeck turned 90 years young. The man who more then likely has scene it all in his lifetime. The music of Jazz has taken some unique and some really interesting turns and a man who not only can play a great piano had some young Anthony Braxton play Saxophones on an album. The music of Dave Brubeck is discussed in all those Jazz classes we take in High School or College. There is one exception to this rule. Who talks about the album called Time Further Out? It's a classic example of using different time signatures to keep you guessing that music does not have to be always in 4/4 time. I am guilty of listening to some great music that is not in the normal 4/4. I mean listen to Eric Dolphy Out To Lunch. There some crazy ones in that masterpiece.



When my History of Jazz professor mentioned how popular Dave Brubeck was in the each household of the late 50's early 60's I had to test this theory. I know my dad loved him so I turned around and asked him the question. How popular was he dad? My father responded by telling me how hip at one point was to own Time Out. He told me how great the music was and how cool it was to own at least one Dave Brubeck album in the collection. My father showed me seven in his. It will be something I always remember that my father's Jazz collection was not eclectic but it had some substance to it.

I asked him about Further Time Out and he told me he never had a chance to get that when he was younger. He told me he moved on to listening to the music of Chuck Berry and Ray Charles by then. I do give my father credit for introducing me some great music, but his choices were a bit odd. The oddness of Dave Brubeck was just the start. The music alone did not follow conventional form like other music of the day. I think that is what appealed to so many fans. He was hip and not square like the musicians of the time. I mean hearing Time Out or even Further Time Out was different is some way. I liked it and it was catchy.



The music of Dave Brubeck is timeless and what he has done for Jazz is some of the best music out there. His "Take Five" from Time Out is one classic. If you really want to hear some of his greatest music then listen Further Time Out. Even the song "Unsquare Dance" will have trying to bop along to his music. Take a different path in Jazz and try this album out. I am sure it will be a welcome addition the Miles Davis and the John Coltrane. Enjoy! Have a blast from the past with this one. Then when done with this album explore more Dave Brubeck and even at 90 he still amazes us with his music. Seeing him live is another story. Check him out and you know why he is on the high mountain of Jazz people.

BLOODCOUNT Tim Berne Style

When I graduated High School I told myself that I would set out by getting my degree and meeting new people and also listening to something new once a month. I was getting sick of the music I was listening to and I really wanted to explore new stuff. I started getting into some really unusual stuff. As I mentioned in some of my early blogs I was a frequent visitor of the Borders in the next town over from me. In their infancy they had very creative control of what was out there for the wondering eye like myself. The music department was filled with smart people who I became friends with and they would lead me in all kinds of musical genres and spectrum of what to listen to. From the 60's unknown Psychedelic music that I listen to more then ever now to 20th Century Classical. I had all types of music in my hand. There was a person who told me about Fela Kuti, to a person who explained the importance of Tori Takemitsu.

With this knowledge my music collection grew with it as well. There was a unwritten rule when I was there that I would get a discount on something that one of the music staff recommended to me. This discount always came in handy. When I came to the store (which was three times a week) There was always something on hold for me to listen to. If it was a promotional CD It was for me to keep. Once in a blue moon I would get that. I would come in and one of my friend would hand me a CD and tell me to listen to this. I would look down and scratch my head. I would agree to and really take the time to explore what they were telling me to hear.



One day I saw someone in their who had the same music that I had in my hand go up to the register and buy it. They would know his name and they would mention how both were familiar with that person's work and were excited to hear the new release. This happened way to much for me. One day I approached that person while looking at CD's. He told me that he worked at the record store across town and I should come visit. I asked the stupid question about all the stuff they were recommending was actually worth listening to. He laughed and told me that I had a lot to learn and that this is more than an education.

Over the course of the years we became friends. Beside Borders, I would go to his store. He mostly had common stuff, but once in a while he would have something different. He also had a used section and a cheap bin. This is where I got all my King Crimson and ECM tapes. I also found some great used CD's. 1996 he and I went to New York City for a Jazz Festival. This was the Jazz Festival sponsored by my new favorite venue at the time, The Knitting Factory. Over the course of the week were there we could see all the live music we wanted. The price was cheap, the hotel was not. We made a list of music we wanted to see. One that struck my eye was a free show at a place called Biblo's Tim Berne Bloodcount it said on the booklet of the festival My friend told me about how they are great and he never saw them live. We did a late night 10pm performance of them. It was one of the best shows I have ever seen. It was the Jazz I have never heard before.





The lineup was not to unique, but what they did with it was more then what I expected. Even the songs were very long by jazz standards. Some songs were twenty minutes others were twelve or more. The show was about two hours, but it was wonderful stuff. At the end of the show he told the crowd that he was a poor Jazz musician and wanted people to buy his stuff. I went to the table and picked up a shirt (which I still own) and a CD. That whole week was an education on what to listen to and what I should pick up next time I do my music shopping.

When I got back home my friend I went with handed me three CD's of Bloodcount. He told me he asked the record label to send him some stuff and they handed him two copies of Tim Berne's Bloodcount: The Paris Concert. These were all three volumes of of this Paris Concert from May of 1994. He told me what I will hear is almost the same stuff that I heard that night. It was really great stuff too. When I looked at the tracks I noticed that the songs were even longer then I heard. I mean there is one song that lasts over fifty minutes. The Jazz is not your typical Jazz, its a bit Avant-Garde., but trust me it's great stuff.



The music of Tim Berne is quite unique, but it is really worth some listen. You can get these as separate discs but who would want that. All three of these parts are great and really show what a wonderful Jazz ensemble can do. Don't take my word for it try these and I am sure you will understand why my passion of music is so strong. Enjoy and I am sure you will be thanking me later. Rock on!!!

No Other But Gene Clark

I was a fan of Classic Rock all through High School. I would listen to the radio stations all the time hear what new stuff I could listen to and eventually buy to add to my music collection. I would hear things that sounded great and then I would go to the store and go find them and buy them. I would then pick and choose certain artists to listen to more closely and buy more of their material from what they had out. I sometimes would have mental or physical lists of what I should listen too. Over the years I would revisit some of these artist to hear maybe a solo album if their was one to listen to. I would listen even to some bands other projects or just other bands that would from.

One of the bands I listened to religiously was the Byrds. The Byrds had a bit more history then a lot of the bands I was listening to at the time. The Byrds had Roger McGuinn who himself was a great musician and wonderful songwriter. They also had David Crosby who would (after he left) form Crosby, Stills and Nash. Both of them had some pretty good stuff after while in the Byrds or after they left the Byrds (Like David Crosby did). I liked a lot of the Byrds material enough even to buy the Box Set. When I got the box set I noticed that some of the songs were written by another member of the band. I kept on seeing Gene Clark. Three songs I liked by the Byrds were written by Gene Clark. I did not think much of it until I asked a teacher about this. This teacher was a man who loved the Byrds more then I did. He did not know much about what some of them did when they were not in the Byrds, but he followed them enough to give me some ideas. I asked him about Gene Clark. He told me how much he knew. It was enough to go inquire at the record store.



When I went to the record store I asked about solo Gene Clark albums. Even back when I first started collecting they were hard to come by. I was told that his music and song writing were some of the best they ever saw. Then he faded into obscurity and died. He did die a year before I finished High School, but I did not know much about him then. I did not get what I wanted by Gene Clark so I put it in the back of my head for another day. These albums he put out were expensive and I did not want to dive into something that I was not sure I was going to like.

Over the course of a few years I kept his music in my head, just in case I found it at some used record store. I did not see much until I was back in college. I found this compilation of his music. It was called American Dreamer 1964-1974. This retrospective did a great job of covering is wonderful music. The music on here helped me understand how much of a talent he was. I played a lot of that CD in my car and also while doing my homework. The music to me was way better then some of the stuff I was listening to at the time. When I got home I showed a friend this CD and he quickly showed me a CD that was one I should own. His copy was only a burned one, but he said this one was really great. This album was called No Other. He quickly pointed out that he would make me a copy of his burned edition, but told me to hold off till the remastered copy came out.



The time I waited for the remastered copy, I was on Limewire. I found a Gene Clark album called Echoes. With Echoes and American Dreamer I thought I heard everything. It was when I placed No Other in my CD player I realized what a talent Gene Clark was. It took me a few years to get a copy of the No Other re-issue, but it was worth the wait. In the meantime I read his biography that is called Mr. Tambourine Man: The Life and Legacy of The Byrds' Gene Clark. The book has a great story of a lost soul that should have been recognized for his wonderful talent.

The music on No Other is great. It should be one of the top 50 albums of all time. The music I am sure influenced people like Ryan Adams, The Jayhawks, Wilco among others. Even the bonus tracks of each song were keepers. The music is wonderful, the words are extraordinary and the life of and pain of Gene Clark is reveled. If you think the Byrds are a band that was a bit to much, and I am sorry if you think they are, maybe No Other is your speed. The music is not Byrds like at all, it is wonderful music from a truly gifted man. Enjoy!!

Sky of Kate Bush

The first time I heard Kate Bush was on a Peter Gabriel album called So. The album gave Peter Gabriel his megastar status. I liked the album. I also liked his female guest vocalist. I thought in the brief time he used her, he used her effectively. I wish I knew more about her then as I do now. The voice is utterly amazing. She has been copied many times before being talked about in woman's music since 1975. My love of female artists would have not been quite to my liking if it was not for Kate Bush. I remember my friend who always introduced me to all types of cool music and of really nice and peaceful type music would always show me something new. He one day handed me Kate Bush's Hounds of Love. He told me to take my time and listening to the tape and really soak in the vocals and the great sounds of what she has to offer.

I drove to meet up with him for dinner and in the five minute drive to where we had to go, I was already in love with her voice and music. I could not figure out how the hell I missed this in the first place. I sat in my car and my friend came over to me and asked what I thought in that five minute drive. I was speechless. I like what I heard. Her music was not punkish or in your face from the time that she put this stuff out. It was light and atmospheric and her voice was beautiful. It was not at all what expected. When I got to sit down with him I told him how much of a quick impression Kate Bush made on me. I really liked what I heard. It was very good.



After I gave back my friend the tape I graduated to Kate Bush's other stuff. I listened to early albums but I wanted new stuff. I had heard only one thing from her in 1993, but that was all she put out. I was eager to hear new fresh stuff. I am sure she had something to say. It seemed like forever that I would hear her voice again. I picked up most of her early work and re-listened to what she was singing. The album from 1993 did not make much of an impression. Even when I went back to school in 2000 I still was waiting and heard nothing. The friend who introduced me to her music

After a long break she came back in 2005 she put out a new CD. I did not buy it at first, but I waited for my friend to tell me how great it was. He told me he did not even know about a new CD until I told him. I finally did pick it up and it's full of lush vocals and wonderful great sounds. It has great guests like Eberhard Weber and Peter Erskine and Gary Brooker. The music is a welcome sound to the ears. This is a two-CD set of a finely constructed set of songs that engage without regard for anything else happening in the world of pop music. There's no pushing of the envelope because there doesn't need to be. The music is fun to the ears.



Listen to this and you too will be just as impressed as I am. Take some time and listen closely to what she has to say. Her music is wonderful and full of little treats along the way. What gets created for the listener is an ordinary world, full of magic; it lies inside one's dwelling in overlooked and inhabited spaces, and outside, from the backyard and out through the gate into wonder. Enjoy this music and I am sure you will be a lover her music forever. This is what makes good musicians even better. Have fun on your 80 minute Kate Bush journey. Enjoy!!