Rock and Roll Is Here to Stay!

Today in rock history, Chuck Berry hits #2 on the R&B chart and #29 on the pop chart with the Chess single "Roll Over Beethoven." Little Richard hits #2 on the R&B chart and #33 (6/30) on the pop chart with "Slippin' and Slidin' (Peepin' and Hidin')" and #1 on the R&B chart and #17 (8/04) on the pop chart with "Rip It Up". Both singles are released on Specialty Records. This, then, is a red-letter day for fans of ‘50’s rock; these songs have been covered countless times by everybody from the Beatles and the Rolling Stones to Meat Loaf and Otis Redding, as well as just about every high school ‘50’s band (mine included). In 2004, "Roll Over Beethoven" was ranked number 97 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest songs of all time. Here are a couple of the more (shall we say) unkown cover versions of these songs. Thanks to http://rockhall.com/story-of-rock/today-in-rock/ and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roll_Over_Beethoven for the info, and keep on rockin’!

I Drink Alone...

... with nobody else...if you come to see Aces Wild Rockin' Blues Revue at the Ugly Mug tomorrow night, you can hear us play a killer version of this tune, as well as 29 other rockin' blues tunes! Hope to see you there, and keep on rockin', in a bluesy kind of way!

Summer of Love

Today in rock history, in 1967, the Monterey Pop Festival begins in California. 50,000 see first major US appearances of the Who, Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin, and the introduction of Otis Redding, Ravi Shankar and Hugh Masakela to rock audiences --plus Byrds, Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane and more. Ah yes, the "Summer of Love;" where were you in the summer of '67? I was a soon-to-be driving 16-year-old, just itchin' for the chance to hot rod around town in my parents' yellow '67 Mustang; that would come later, in August. In the meantime, we had all this groovy music a happenin' out in Monterey; obviously I didn't make the scene (I could barely get from the farm into "town," much less get out to California), but let's enjoy Eric Burdon and the Animals' documentation of the event, and keep on rockin'!

This F***ing Job

Speaking of employment, this one is dedicated to Mr. Who - hope it works out, and hope you still have one... keep on rockin' in any case!

It's Just a Kiss away...

Today in rock history, in 1941, Charlie Watts was born Charles Robert Watts in London, England. As well as being my namesake, Charlie is one of my favorite rock drummers, which is odd, since he really doesn't consider himself a rock drummer; his tastes have always run to jazz and R&B. No matter where his interests lie, he has always been an integral part of the Rolling Stones; guitarist Keith Richards went so far as to say in a 2005 Guitar Player magazine interview that the Rolling Stones would not be, or could not continue as, the Rolling Stones without Watts. An example of Watts's importance was demonstrated in 1993, after Bill Wyman had left the band. After auditioning several bassists, Jagger and Richards asked Watts to choose the new bass player; he selected the respected session musician Darryl Jones, who had previously been a sideman for both Miles Davis and Sting. Lately, "Watts At Scott's" was recorded with his group, The Charlie Watts Tentet, at the famous jazz club in London, Ronnie Scott's. In April 2009 he started to do concerts with "The ABC&D of Boogie Woogie" together with pianists Axel Zwingenberger and Ben Waters plus his childhood friend Dave Green on bass. Charlie has always been, to my mind, a minimalist, less-is-more kind of drummer, illustrated here by his use of the "traditional grip," his hi-hat work, and in his approach to "Gimme Shelter." Glad to see ol' Charlie is still doin' it at age 69! Thanks to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Watts for the info, and keep on rockin'!

It Takes a Lot of Water...

…to wash away New Orleans. Today in rock history, in 1940, Levon Helm (born Mark Lavon Helm), drummer and vocalist with the Band, is born in Marvell, Arkansas. I’ve always been a fan of Levon and the Band (any drummer who can keep a solid back beat while singing lead is aces in my book). The title of this blog comes from "Hurricane," a favorite Levon Helm tune of mine. “North of Nowhere,” my other band, is a fan too, and we play 4 or 5 Band and Levon Helm tunes. The Band broke up in 1976, but Levon went on to mount a very successful solo career. Here's Levon playing "Got Me A Woman" live in August of 2008. Come see us at the Windsor Bar near Hayward, WI, on July 17, and you can see and hear us play several Band and Levon Helm covers. Let’s celebrate Levon’s life and reaching 70 years – he’s still out there creating great music - Helm released Electric Dirt on his own label on June 30, 2009. The album won a best album Grammy for the newly created American category in 2010. He performed on the David Letterman show on July 9, 2009. He toured, in a supporting role, with the Black Crowes in 2009. Thanks to http://rockhall.com/story-of-rock/today-in-rock/ and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Levon_Helm for the info, and keep on rockin’!

"It's The Blues"

Today in rock history, in 1946, Johnny Moore's Three Blazers, featuring Charles Brown hit #2 on the R&B chart with "Drifting Blues". In 1948, The Ravens hit #8 on the R&B chart with "Bye Bye Baby Blues." These two early blues hits are cases in point to illustrate how music is constantly reinventing itself and nothing is really new. Even before these songs were recorded, you had Robert Johnson, Son House, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Skip James, etc, recording in the 20’s and ‘30’s; then you had the likes of Cream, The Yardbirds, Led Zeppelin, etc, discovering these tunes in the ‘60’s and introducing them to a new generation of fans. It’s like the lyrics to my song “It’s The Blues” go:

“(It started) down in Mississippi, In 1922; Now all the hippies, Are playin’ the blues, too; It’s The Blues, Nothin’ But the blues, They’re Playin’ the blues…”

(I don’t have a good recording of this song yet but I’ll get it up here as soon as I do). At any rate, I may be pointing out the obvious, but what goes around, comes around again. I’m just glad to finally be playing a blues band after being a fan all my life. Let’s enjoy some good blues now with Charles Brown’s rendition of his song “Driftin’ Blues.” Come see my band Aces Wild Rockin' Blues Revue at the Ugly Mug on 6-25, and keep on rockin’!