Cleveland Rocks!

I’m writing this post about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum mainly due to a large case of envy… Chris, our lead guitarist, (AKA “Whiskey and Rebellion” on his blog “Over the Green Hills”) is at this very moment spending some quality time winding his way through the museum. So, in his honor, a little history: the museum was conceived by leaders in the music industry in 1983, the first inductees were honored in 1986, but the concept didn’t have a home until the present museum was built in Cleveland in 1993. The list of first inductees reads like a who’s who of 1950’s rock, R&B, and soul: Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, Fats Domino, James Brown ,Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, Ray Charles, Sam Cooke and The Everly Brothers. As well it should: inductees become eligible 25 years after the release of their first record, and all of these fine performers would certainly be up for induction by 1986. Speaking of Cleveland rockin' - here's inducteee Chuck Berry with the E Street Band playing "Johnny B. Goode" in Cleveland in a 1995 benefit for the Museum. Thanks to http://www.rockhall.com/inductees/induction-process/ for the info, and keep on rockin’!

Got me a complication...

... and it's an only child... Mr. Whomamus (or was it me?) got me to thinking about other groups of that time period who lipsynced with varying degrees of competence. Here's the Music Machine, with "Talk Talk," the heaviest 1:58 ever committed to vinyl. Now the drummer sure seems to bangin' the skins (notice the movement and vibration), but there's a suspicious absence of cords, mics and amps. And what's with the gloves on the right hands of the guitarists - I'm the one who smashed up his hand a couple of weeks ago (don't ask), so I would be entitled to wear a glove while performing, but these guys...sheesh. At any rate, it's a good tune, enjoy, and keep on rockin'!

When my dime-dancing is through…

…I run to you. On today’s date in 1977 'Aja,' Steely Dan's most accomplished and popular album to date, is released. It is the group's first to be certified platinum (one million copies sold), and it reaches #3 on the album chart. It also wins Steely Dan a Grammy for "Best Engineered Non-Classical Recording." Back in the day, my roommate had this huge stereo – about a thousand watts per channel and these room-divider sized speakers – and used to play this album at house-shaking volume. “Just listen to the quality of this recording!” he’d shout – ok, I get it, I get it!! While he was crankin’ it up upstairs, I was down in the basement on the drums, trying to learn Steve Gadd’s solo at the end of the song. So check out this 1978 vintage promo commercial, and keep on rockin’!

Damned if I wouldn’t go to church on Sunday

… and look the Preacher in the eye. Here we have my band Whiskey and Rebellion’s cover of the Drive By Truckers’ song “Sinkhole,” a song about a man who can look his preacher in the eye after knocking off the banker who was trying to take the family farm and burying him in a…you guessed it… sinkhole. A song with an ominous riff that makes you feel that you are standing at the edge of the sinkhole, looking down into the abyss. Strong stuff, but a fun song to play; check it out, and keep on rockin’!
P. S. If you missed us last Friday at the Contented Cow, catch us this Saturday 10-3 at the Heidelberg Bar in Heidelberg, MN.

#9 #9 #9...

I couldn't let 09-09-09 go by without putting up a Beatles-themed post. Also, it's almost exactly 9:00 PM as I write this, so there's another #9 for you. Since this is a red-letter day for us Beatles fans, let me offer up my band's cover of "Come Together." I can tell you that Ringo's deceptively simple drum riff is not so simple, especially if you play it over and over and try to do it exactly the same way each time. Well, I did it, and we got through it; notice especially Chris' screamin' guitar leads during the breaks. Thanks for checking it out, and keep on rockin'!

Whiskey and Rebellion

My busy summer continues... I am now concentrating my time on a new band called "Whiskey and Rebellion," formed from members of North of Nowhere and with the addition of Dave on rhythm guitar and vocals. We're concentrating on southern rock - Cross Canadian Ragweed, Drive By Truckers, Tom Petty, etc, doing more of the obscure stuff (hey, when people walk into a club and hear a band doing a song they're not familiar with, they assume it's an original!). We've got some gigs booked in September and October, so it was time to try our sound in front of a crowd. Here we are doing a version of the DBT song "Puttin' People on the Moon." That's Max on bass, Dave on rhythm guitar and vocals, yours truly on the drums, and Chris on lead guitar. A fine time was had by all, and keep on rockin'!

How I Spent My Summer Vacation, Part 4

Well, my Constant Readers must think I've had a very busy summer, music-wise, and they're right, I have; and it's not over yet! Here's a vid of my band North of Nowhere playing a version of the Band's "The Weight," with yours truly on the Hammond. It's been a dream of mine since I got the thing a year ago to actually play the beast with the band in concert. Well, the concert had to be at my house, since the heavy old thing is a little hard to gig with, and I did fumble around a bit (you should have heard the song before it in the set - lost in the wilderness, I was - but we needn't go there). Also featuring my middle son thrashing away just fine on the drums. Support local music - go out and see a band tonight! and keep on rockin'!