At 82 Ringo Starr remains full of energy and a true inspiration
Today, Ringo Starr has turned 82 years young. I say “young” even though he’s not just seventeen, you know what I mean. But while the man may be an octogenarian, to me, he remains young at heart and full of amazing energy. I can tell you one thing: If I make it to 82, I’d be happy to have 50% of Ringo’s vitality!
I also like Ringo’s simple message of peace and love. During a time of significant change and deep division in this country and when much of the rest of the planet is pretty messed up as well, we need peace and love more than ever. Yes, you may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.
As Ringo usually does, today, he’s celebrating his birthday and peace and love message with a little help from his friends. According to a recent statement on Ringo’s website, he and his wife Barbara Starkey will be joined…by family and friends, including current All Starrs Steve Lukather, Edgar Winter, Colin Hay, Warren Ham and Gregg Bissonette, as well as friends Benmont Tench, Jim Keltner, Richard Marx, Matt Sorum, Ed Begley Jr, Linda Perry, Diane Warren, Roy Jr and Alex Orbison.
They will gather together in Los Angeles for Ringo’s annual Peace & Love Birthday event, and at Noon give the traditional “Peace and Love” exclamation. This year Artemis Music Space Network, through the International Space Station (ISS) will amplify that message not only to the entire planet but up into Earth’s orbit and to the stars. That’s certainly a remarkable effort!
I’d like to acknowledge today’s happy occasion by celebrating Ringo’s music, borrowing from a post I published a year ago. I’m adding a Spotify playlist at the end.
It Don’t Come Easy – non-album single, April 1971
Photograph – Ringo, November 1973
No No Song – Goodnight Vienna, November 1974
Wrack My Brain – Stop and Smell the Roses, October 1981
In My Car – Old Wave, June 1983
Drift Away (featuring Tom Petty, Steven Tyler and Alanis Morissette) – Vertical Man, June 1998
Walk With You (duet with Paul McCartney) – Y Not, January 2010
Postcards From Paradise – Postcards From Paradise, March 2015
We’re on the Road Again – Give More Love, September 2017
Let’s Change the World – Change the World (EP), September 2021
Here’s the aforementioned Spotify playlist, which includes both the above tunes, as well as some additional songs.
And, remember, wherever you are at noon today, Peace and Love!
Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band shine at New York City’s renowned performance venue
I finally got to see Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band Tuesday night at New York City’s storied Beacon Theatre. While as a huge Beatles fan I can’t quite explain why this didn’t happen years ago, I know one thing for sure: The night turned out to be a great memorable experience that was worth the wait!
At the beginning of the concert, which kicked off shortly after 8:00 p.m. with no opening act, Ringo noted that after various previously cancelled attempts he was glad to be back on the road. Based on the vibe he projected throughout the gig, those were honest words from a close to 82-year-old artist who still loves to perform.
The Beacon Theatre framed by construction scaffolding. And, nope, that black Mercedes wasn’t Ringo’s limousine.
One sad note: All Starr member Edgar Winter was absent. Ringo explained he had come down with COVID. Since his keyboards had been set up, I assume Winter literally must have found out just hours before the gig. But as professional musicians do, they decided the show must go on. Not only do I join Ringo who wished Winter the best, but I also hope nobody else from the band and the supporting staff got infected and the long postponed tour can go on.
Another bit of a bummer: I didn’t capture any video. You can thank the Beacon Theatre’s usher police. I’ve rarely seen ushers constantly pacing back and forth and telling people not to take photos or videos. Granted these are the official rules but, come on, regular concert visitors snapping some photos or taking some video aren’t doing this for profit.
Yes, there is a smile behind that bloody mask!
Well, other than taking a couple of pictures, I didn’t want to become a troublemaker, especially when the performer’s key motto is ‘peace and love’. Instead, I’m relying on YouTube videos captured by some other terrible violators! None of the clips was captured Tuesday night, but they are all from the current tour and feature Edgar Winter. And while he was defintely missed, the group did a great job without him.
Speaking of the All Starr Band beyond Ringo, each member had moments when they truly shined. The first two I’d like to call out are saxophonist Warren Ham, who also played flute and harmonica and sang vocals. Then there was British guitarist and bassist Hamish Stuart, a co-founder of Scottish funk and R&B group Average White Band, aka AWB. Check out their and and the band’s great rendition of AWB’sPick Up the Pieces, off their 1974 eponymous sophomore album. And, yep, that’s Steve Lukather on bass, who occassionally traded the instrument with Stuart.
Colin Hay, best known as songwriter, guitarist and lead vocalist of Aussie band Men At Work, stood out on vocals, still sounding like business as usual in the ’80s, especially on Men At Work songs. Here’s Overkill, a tune from the band’s sophomore album Cargo, released in April 1993. Check out Hay hitting high notes at around 3 minutes. Hay also perfectly nailed the high notes on Toto’s Africa, a vocal highlight of the night. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find a clip that did the performance full justice.
Steve Lukather was great on guitar. Here here’s rocking out on Hold the Line, Toto’s debut single from October 1978, which gave them a big hit from the get-go. When anouncing the tune on Tuesday night, Lukather said he was 19 years old when Toto recorded that tune, adding in a few months he’s turning 65. I’ve always loved that song!
So where the heck is Ringo in all of this, you may wonder. Well, to begin with, he shared drumming responsibilities with Gregg Bissonette, and they both looked like they were having fun behind their kits. And then, of course, he also did some singing. Here’s Photograph, co-written by him and George Harrison, and first released in September 1973 as the lead single of Ringo’s eponymous third studio album that came out in November that year.
Following is the setlist from Tuesday night: • Matchbox (Carl Perkins cover) • It Don’t Come Easy (Ringo Starr song) • What Goes On (Beatles cover) • Rosanna (Toto cover feat. Steve Lukather) • Pick Up the Pieces (AWB cover feat. Hamish Stuart) • Down Under (Men At Work cover feat. Colin Hay) • Boys (Shirelles cover feat. Ringo Starr) • I’m The Greatest (Ringo Starr song) • Yellow Submarine (Beatles cover feat. Ringo Starr) • Cut the Cake (WAB cover feat. Hamish Stuart) • Octupus’s Garden (Beatles cover feat. Ringo Starr) • Back Off Boogaloo (Ringo Starr song) • Overkill (Men At Work cover feat. Colin Hay) • Africa (Toto cover feat. Steve Lukather) • Work to Do (Isley Brothers cover feat. Hamish Stuart) • I Wanna Be Your Man (Beatles cover feat. Ringo Starr) • Who Can It Be Now? (Men At Work cover feat. Colin Hay) • Hold the Line (Toto cover feat. Steve Lukather) • Photograph (Ringo Starr song) • Act Naturally (Johnny Russell cover feat. Ringo Starr) • With a Little Help From My Friends/Give Peace A Chance (Beatles cover feat. Ringo; John Lennon cover)
Tuesday night’s gig was the second of three dates Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band did at the Beacon Theatre. Tomorrow night, they play Count Basie Theater, a great venue in Red Bank, N.J., before moving on to State Theater in Easton, Penn. (June 11) and Providenc PAC in Providence, R.I. (June 12). The current leg of the North American tour wraps up in Clearwater, Fla. on June 26. Part 2 starts in Bridgeport, Conn. on September 23. The full current schedule is here. If you haven’t seen Ringo yet and like his music and the All Starr Band concept, I can highly recommend the show!
15th All Starr Band features Steve Lukather, Colin Hay, Warren Ham, Hamish Stewart, Greg Bissonette and Edgar Winter
…We’re on the road again/We’re on the road again/We’re on the road again/We’re gonna play some rock ‘n’ roll, that’s true/Now we’re heading down the highway to play for you...
The above excerpt from We’re On the Road Again, the opener of Ringo Starr’s 2017 studio album Give More Love, was my first thought when getting a recent email reminder for my scheduled upcoming gig by Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band at New York City’s storied Beacon Theatre. This prompted me to check on the status of their tour, which had been derailed twice in 2020 and then again in 2021 due to you know what! It’s now official. Ringo and his revolving cast of prominent bandmates are back on the road, the best news I’ve heard in a long time!
The tour kicked off on May 27 in Canada at Casino Rama in Rama, Ontario. An announcement on Ringo’s website notes the show marked the fifth time the band launched a tour at that venue after 2001, 2003, 2006 and 2014. The large casino, hotel and entertainment complex is located on the reserve land of the Chippewas of Rama First Nation.
Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band perform at Casino Rama on Friday, May 27, 2022. PHOTO BY DARREN EAGLES /PHOTO
“It’s loose,” Ringo told the Toronto Sun when describing the atmosphere at Casino Rama and explaining why the band chose the venue yet again to kick off another tour. “For a week we live here and we just go to the same stage. It’s good being in the same vicinity as where we’re rehearsing.”
Following are some clips taken by concert attendees of both the initial May 27 show and the second Rama date of May 28. First up: It Don’t Come Easy, which has always been one of my favorite Ringo tunes. The song, which he co-wrote with George Harrison who also produced it, first appeared as a non-album single in April 1971. It was Ringo’s second solo single. The tune may be titled “it don’t come easy”, but you don’t get the sense performing it posed any bigger challenge to Ringo who is turning 82 in July and seems to be in superb shape!
While Ringo undoubtedly is central to the All Starr Band, the idea behind the live “rock supergroup”, which he founded in 1989, has always been to go beyond Ringo’s songs and showcase tunes by the band’s members. Now in its 15th iteration, the group features longtime members Steve Lukather (of Toto), Colin Hay (formerly of Men At Work), Warren Ham, Hamish Stuart (formerly of Average White Band) and Gregg Bissonette, as well as alumni Edgar Winter whose first tenure was from 2006 to 2011. Speaking of Edgar, here’s Free Ride, a song written by Dan Hartman and originally recorded in 1972 by the Edgar Winter Group. Yeah, baby, this rocks!
How ’bout some Aussie music. Ask you shall receive. Here’s Colin Hay with Men at Work’s Down Under. One of the band’s best-known tunes, Down Under appeared on Business As Usual, the group’s debut album released in November 1981. Hay’s proposition of the vegemite sandwich still sounds pretty tasty.
Three clips in, you may wonder, and no Beatles? Agree, this borders on a crime. Here’s Octopus’s Garden, one of two songs Ringo not only sang but also wrote for the band. The second one was Don’t Pass Me By. He penned Octopus’s Garden during a boating trip with his family in Sardinia after he had walked out on The Beatles during The White Album sessions in 1968. Of course, we know the rest of the story. When Ringo returned, he found his drum kit covered with flowers, thanks to George, and Octopus’s Garden ended up on Abbey Road, the actual final Beatles album, even though it was released in September 1969, eight months prior to Let It Be.
Let’s do one more: With a Little Help From My Friends combined with a snippet of Give Peace a Chance, the show finale. With a Little Help From My Friends, off Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, was among the final songs John Lennon and Paul McCartney truly wrote together. Give Peace a Chance, recorded May 31, 1969 at a “bed-in” Lennon staged with Yoko Ono in a room at Queen Elizabeth’s Hotel in Montreal, was Lennon’s first solo hit.
Here’s the setlist from the May 27 show, as reported by the Toronto Sun: • Matchbox • It Don’t Come Easy • What Goes On • Free Ride • Rosanna • Pick Up the Pieces • Down Under • Boys • I’m The Greatest • Yellow Submarine • Cut the Cake • Overkill • Africa • Work to Do • I Wanna Be Your Man • Johnny B. Goode • Who Can It Be Now • Hold the Line • Photograph • Act Naturally • With a Little Help From My Friends/Give Peace A Chance
“I can’t wait to get back out on the road and play,” Ringo said in the above statement that was issued in February. “This is the longest I’ve been off the road in years – up until 2020 I was touring every year with the All Starrs – and I’ve really missed it. Making music in the studio has been great, and it certainly saved me during the pandemic, but nothing beats playing live with great musicians in front of an audience. I love my fans and they love me and it’s going to be wonderful to be peace and loving and playing for them again.” That’s the spirit!
Tonight, Ringo and His All Starr Band are playing CMAC in Canandaigua, N.Y., before moving on to Boston’s Wang Theater on June 2 and Hanover Theater in Worcester, Mass. on June 3. The full tour schedule is available here.
Sources: Wikipedia; Ringo Starr website; Toronto Sun; Songfacts; YouTube
To any more frequent visitors of the blog or folks who know my music taste otherwise, this post shouldn’t come as a huge surprise. As somebody who digs blues and blues-rock, I simply couldn’t ignore Brother Johnny, Edgar Winter’s blazing new tribute to his older brother and Texas blues legend Johnny Winter, which came out last Friday (April 15). Sure, packing an album with impressive guests like Joe Bonamassa, Keb’ Mo’, Billy Gibbons, Joe Walsh and Ringo Starr doesn’t automatically guarantee a great outcome but, man, this album truly cooks!
In addition to renditions of Johnny Winter originals Mean Town Blues, I’m Yours and I’m Hers, Stranger, Guess I’ll Go Away and Self Destructive Blues, the 17 tracks on Brother Johnny feature a number of classics the guitar slinger from Beaumont, Texas covered, such as Johnny B. Goode, Jumpin’ Jack Flash and Got My Mojo Workin’. There are also two new songs written by Edgar Winter.
According to this Rock & Blues Musereview, the idea for a tribute album first emerged in the wake of Johnny Winter’s death in July 2014 at the age of 70. “Many people immediately started trying to convince me to do a Johnny Winter tribute album,” Edgar recalled. “But I was totally devastated, and the timing just didn’t feel right to me.”
Edgar added, “It wasn’t until after I completed the Rock ‘N’ Blues Fest, a tour we were meant to do together with our respective bands, that the idea of a tribute record started to take form.” Looks like from there it still took quite a bit of additional time for the project to materialize, but the wait was certainly worth it. Let’s check out some of the goodies!
The fireworks start with the opener Mean Town Blues, featuring Joe Bonamassa on badass slide guitar. First released on February 18, the track is one of three songs that appeared as singles ahead of the album. Johnny Winter originally recorded Mean Town Blues for his 1968 debut album The Progressive Blues Experiment.
On Lone Star Blues, one of the tunes penned by Edgar Winter, things turn acoustic, sparse and personal. Keb’ Mo’ does a neat job on what sounds like a resonator guitar and also shares vocals with Edgar. “I don’t think this album would be complete without at least one, heartfelt, personal tribute from me to my brother–in the form of a song,” Edgar wrote in the album’s liner notes, as separately reported by Rock & Blues Muse. Well, I was born in Beaumont left when I was in my teens/I hit the highway, going down to New Orleans/I was playing music, searching for just what life means…
One of Brother Johnny’s standouts is I’m Yours and I’m Hers, featuring Billy Gibbons and Derek Trucks. Winter included this original tune on his eponymous sophomore album that came out in April 1969. With Trucks arguably being one the best contemporary slide guitarists and Gibbons being no slouch either, you just know this rendition has to be good. Well, check it out!
This review wouldn’t be complete without highlighting Johnny B. Goode, a track Winter recorded for his third studio release from October 1969, a double album somewhat misleadingly titled Second Winter. Johnny B. Goode became a regular of Winter’s live set. On Brother Johnny, the Chuck Berry classic is delivered with help from Joe Walsh (lead vocals), David Grissom (lead guitar), Bob Glaub (bass) and Gregg Bissonette (drums). Meanwhile, Edgar Winter demonstrates his saxophone chops with a nice solo. Additional vocals are provided by guitarist Phil X. Yes, Johnny B. Goode has been covered a million times, but this is just a killer rendition.
Let’s do one more: Jumpin’ Jack Flash. Winter included what is one of my all-time favorite Rolling Stones songs on his first live album Live Johnny Winter And, released in March 1971. Johnny Winter And was actually the name of Winter’s band at the time. This new version features the above-mentioned Phil X.
Some additional comments about the other musicians on the album. The above-mentioned Gregg Bissonette provides drums on all tracks except Stranger, which features Ringo Starr. Sean Hurley and Bob Glaub share duties on bass. Other guests include Doyle Bramhall II, John McFee, Robben Ford, Warren Haynes, Steve Lukather, Michael McDonald, Doug Rappoport, Bobby Rush, Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Waddy Wachtel.
The album also features the late Taylor Hawkins who provides lead vocals on Guess I’ll Go Away. This marks the ex-Foo Fighters drummer’s first posthumous recording following his untimely death on March 25, as reported by Rolling Stone.
Here’s a Spotify link to the album.
The album was produced by Edgar Winter and Ross Hogarth. According to Discogs, his previous production credits include artists, such as Melissa Etheridge, Ziggy Marley, Rita Coolidge and Gov’t Mule. The album appears on Quarto Valley Records. According to Rock & Blues Mule, label founder Bruce Quartowas and remains a loyal and enthusiastic fan of Johnny, classic rock, and blues music. It was his positive energy that made Edgar realize that the time to pay musical respects to his departed brother had finally arrived.
Brother Johnny is a true labor of love. The one thing I find a bit unfortunate is the total absence of female artists. It certainly cannot be for lack of talent. Bonnie Raitt, Melissa Etheridge, Shemekia Copeland, Ana Popović, Dani Wilde and Sue Foley are some who in my mind could have been great fits. I understand Raitt and Wilde have shared the stage with Johnny Winter. Of course, there could be legitimate reasons for what on the surface does look a bit surprising.
Sources: Wikipedia; Rock & Blues Muse; Rolling Stone; Discogs; YouTube; Spotify
A selection of newly released music that caught my attention
For those of you who celebrate, Happy Easter or Happy Passover; otherwise, happy Saturday! It’s time again to check for newly released music. All featured tunes in this post appear on albums that came out yesterday (April 15). Without further ado, let’s get to it!
Kurt Vile/Wages of Sin
My first pick this week is Kurt Vile, a Philadelphia-based indie rock singer-songwriter. Prior to launching a solo career in 2008, Vile co-founded Philly rock band The War on Drugs in 2005 and was their lead guitarist until 2009. To date, he has released nine solo albums including his latest titled Watch My Moves, stylized as (watch my moves). Initial work on the album started in 2019 during the tour that supported Vile’s previous studio release Bottle It In. We all know what happened next. Vile used the pandemic to build a home recording studio where he and co-producer Rob Schnapf worked on the majority of the tracks during 2020 and last year. Here’s Vile’s rendition of Wages of Sin, a song written by Bruce Springsteen during the Born in the U.S.A. recording sessions, which he released as an outtake on his 1998 box set Tracks.
Jerry Paper/Just Say Play
Jerry Paper is the music project of Lucas Nathan from Los Angeles, who Apple Musicdescribes as an experimental pop musician. Here’s more from Jerry Paper’sprofile: First surfacing during the early 2010s with a series of limited cassettes and LPs, Paper wrote woozy, lo-fi tunes in their bedroom using cheap keyboards, often singing existentialist lyrics relating to anxiety and hopelessness over smooth, Muzak-like backing tracks. On-stage, they would don a flower garland or silk robe, and give deadpan monologues related to their songs. Their subsequent recordings became more ambitious, but they still remained infatuated with blatantly synthetic keyboard tones imitating real instruments. In 2016, they released the lush, elaborate Toon Time Raw!, on which they were accompanied by BadBadNotGood (credited as Easy Feelings Unlimited). This brings me to Jerry Paper’s new album Free Time and Just Say Play. There’s just something about this bouncy tune, co-written by Nathan and Jonathan Tatelman.
Flock of Dimes/It Just Goes On
Flock of Dimes is a solo project by Jenn Wasner, a singer-songwriter hailing from Baltimore, Md. She first gained recognition as co-founder of indie folk-rock duo Wye Oak, which she formed with Andy Stack as Monarch in mid-2006. After five Wye Oak albums and a collaboration record with songwriter and producer Jon Ehrens, which appeared under the name Dungeonesse, Wasner released her Flock of Dimes debut If You See Me, Say Yes in September 2016. Her latest release Head of Roses: Phantom Limb is a compilation of previously unreleased songs, live takes and demos. Here’s the official video of the nice opener It Just Goes On.
Edgar Winter/Rock ‘n’ Roll Hoochie Koo
For my final pick, I have to give a shoutout to fellow blogger Hotfox63, who coveredEdgar Winter’s new album the day before it came out. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have known about Brother Johnny, a smoking all-star tribute to Edgar’s older brother and blues-rock guitar virtuoso Johnny Winter. While Johnny sadly passed away in July 2014 at the age of 70, his legacy surely lives on, and Edgar has done a beautiful job celebrating it. He got a little help from some friends, such as Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Keb’ Mo’, Billy Gibbons, Joe Walsh, Steve Lukather and Ringo Starr. Here’s a great rendition of Rock ‘n’ Roll Hoochie Koo, a song written by Rick Derringer. It first was recorded by Johnny Winter and his band Johnny Winter And, which included Derringer on guitar. The tune appeared on their eponymous album from 1970. Edgar Winter’s version features Steve Lukather showing off his impressive guitar chops. Check out his badass solo – Lawdy mama, this rendition is just cooking and makes me smile!
As usual, here’s a Spotify playlist featuring the above and a few additional tunes. Hope you enjoy!
A selection of newly released music that caught my attention
Another Saturday is upon us, and this means it’s time to take a fresh look at newly released music. All featured tracks in this post appear on releases that came out yesterday (September 24). Without further ado, let’s get to it!
Third Eye Blind/Goodbye to the Day of Ladies and Gentlemen
Third Eye Blind are an alternative rock band founded in San Francisco in 1993. In the early 1990s, singer-songwriter and guitarist Stephan Jenkins set out to start the group. He worked on early material with bassist Jason Slater that resulted in the band’s first demo. In their early years, Third Eye Blind experienced frequent line-up changes. After Slater’s departure, guitarist Kevin Cadogan joined with whom Jenkins developed a songwriting partnership. In June 1996, the group signed with Elektra Records. Despite significant challenges, Third Eye Blind’s eponymous debut album finally appeared in April 1997. It reached no. 25 in the U.S. on the Billboard 200, also charted in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and has sold more than six million copies, becoming the band’s best-selling album to date. Third Blind Eye have since since released six additional records including their latest, Our Bande Apart. Here’s the nice opener Goodbye to the Day of Ladies and Gentlemen penned by Jenkins who also wrote or co-wrote all of the album’s remaining tracks.
Jesse Malin/Greener Pastures
Singer-songwriter and guitarist Jesse Malin started his career in 1980 when he was only 12 years old as frontman of New York hardcore group Heart Attack. In 1991, he co-founded D Generation, a glam punk band, in which he continues to perform as lead vocalist to this day. After the group’s break-up in 1999 (they reunited in 2011), Malin launched a solo career. Influenced by Neil Young, Steve Earle and Tom Waits, he changed his sound. His solo debut The Fine Art of Self-Destruction first came out in the UK in October 2002 before it appeared in the U.S. in January 2003. Eight additional solo albums by Malin have since been released. Here’s Greener Pastures, a beautiful tune from Malin’s new Americana-oriented album Sad and Beautiful World.
Mac McCaughan/The Sound of Yourself
According to his profile on Apple Music, Mac McCaughan wears multiple hats. He is a co-founder of the seminal indie band Superchunk, founder and leader of Portastatic, a former member of Seam and Go Back Snowball, and co-owner of Merge Records, one of America’s most successful and influential independent labels. Despite his success, McCaughan has strayed little from his punk rock principles in terms of both music and business, and after more than 25 years of making records, he opted to launch a belated solo career in 2015 with the release of the synthy Non-Believers...While Superchunk continued releasing albums of the high-energy fuzz pop they were known for, McCaughan furthered his deepening fascination with synth sounds, collaborating with ambient harpist Mary Lattimore on a series of improvisations that was released in 2019 as the New Rain Duets album by the Three Lobed label. This brings me to his latest solo release, The Sound of Yourself. Here’s the title track. I like it!
Ringo Starr/Let’s Change the World
Only six months after Zoom In, Ringo Starr is out with another EP, Change the World. Of course, I couldn’t ignore it! Just like the previous EP, the four tracks were recorded at Starr’s Roccabella West studio, according to a recent announcement on his website. “I’ve been saying I only want to release EPs at this point and this is the next one,” he commented. “What a blessing it’s been during this year to have a studio here at home and be able to collaborate with so many great musicians, some I’ve worked with before and some new friends.” Guest artists include Joseph Williams and Steve Lukather, both from Toto, as well as Joe Walsh and Nathan East, among others. Here’s the title track co-written by Williams and Lukather. Backing vocals were provided by Amy Keys, Zelma Davis, Billy Valentine and Darryl Phinnessee. Let’s Change the World perfectly fits the hope and optimism Ringo Starr continues to radiate at age 81 – I just love the man!
Sources: Wikipedia; Apple Music; Ringo Starr website; YouTube
Celebrating music with six random tracks at a time
Welcome to another installment of The Sunday Six, my weekly recurring feature where I stretch out across different genres and different decades to celebrate music I dig, six tracks at a time. This edition features blue-eyed soul/R&B, Americana rock and Stax soul, bookended by two beautiful guitar-driven instrumentals. It touches the ’60s, ’70s, ’80s, ’90s and 2021.
Marisa Anderson & William Tyler/Hurricane Light
Kicking off this post is beautiful instrumental music by Portland, Ore.-based guitarist and composer Marisa Anderson. From her website: Marisa Anderson channels the history of the guitar and stretches the boundaries of tradition. Her deeply original work applies elements of minimalism, electronic music, drone and 20th century classical music to compositions based on blues, jazz, gospel and country music, re-imagining the landscape of American music…Classically trained, she honed her skills playing in country, jazz and circus bands. Originally from Northern California, Anderson dropped out of college at age nineteen to walk across the US and after more than decade of wandering landed in Portland, Oregon, where she currently lives. Hurricane Light is a track from Anderson’s new album, Lost Futures, which appeared on August 27 and which she recorded together with William Tyler, a fellow guitarist from Nashville, Tenn. I find this music super relaxing. It’s got a cinematic feel to it, which perhaps isn’t surprising. Anderson’s website also notes she writes scores for short films and soundtracks.
Boz Scaggs/Lowdown
Let’s jump back 45 years to a very cool tune by Boz Scaggs. Lowdown, which features a seductive funky bassline and is smooth at the same time, is from Scaggs’ seventh studio album Silk Degrees released in February 1976. Co-written by Scaggs and then-future Toto co-founder David Paich, the song also became the highest-charting single off the album, climbing to no. 3 in the U.S. on the Billboard Hot 100. In Canada, it peaked at no. 2. It also charted in the UK and Australia. BTW, that neat bassline was played by David Hungate, another soon-to-become original member of Toto. And there was a third musician who would join Paich and Hungate to form Toto the following year, together with Steve Lukather and Bobby Kimball: drummer Jeff Porcaro. Scaggs started his career in 1959 in high school as vocalist in Steve Miller’s first band The Marksmen. The two musicians continued to play together in a few other groups, including Steve Miller Band. After staying with them for the first two albums, Scaggs secured a recording deal for himself and focused on his solo career. He is still active and has released 19 solo albums to date, the most recent of which, Out of the Blues, appeared in July 2018.
Steve Earle & The Dukes/I Ain’t Ever Satisfied
When my streaming music provider served up I Ain’t Ever Satisfied the other day, I was immediately hooked. I’ve listened to some of Steve Earle’s catalog, but there is a lot left for me to explore. I Ain’t Ever Satisfied, written by Earle, appeared on his sophomore album Exit 0 from May 1987, which he recorded together with his backing band The Dukes. The album placed in the U.S. and Canadian mainstream charts at no. 90 and no. 36, respectively, and earned Earle two 1988 Grammy nominations for Best Male Country Vocalist and Best Country Song. Earle has released 21 studio albums to date, including collaborations with Del McCoury Band and Shawn Colvin. His most recent album J.T., a tribute to his oldest son Justin Townes Earle who passed away from a drug overdose in August 2020, was released in early January this year. I previously reviewed it here.
Son Volt/Driving the View
Alternative country and Americana rock band Son Volt are a recent discovery for me. They entered my radar screen with their latest album Electro Melodier, which came out at the end of July. I featured a tune from it in a previous Best of What’s Newinstallment. The group around singer-songwriter and guitarist Jay Farrar was formed by him in 1994 after the breakup of Uncle Tupelo, another alt. country outfit he had co-founded in 1987. Son Volt’s studio debut Trace appeared in September 1995. To date, the band has released 10 albums. In addition to Farrar, the current members include Chris Frame (guitar), Mark Spencer (keyboards, steel guitar), Andrew DuPlantis (bass) and Mark Patterson (drums). Here’s Driving the View, a great track from Son Volt’s third studio album Wide Swing Tremolo that appeared in October 1998.
Wilson Pickett/In the Midnight Hour
Next we’re going back to 1965 and Memphis, Tenn. for some sweet soul music recorded at the Stax studio. By the time Atlantic recording artist Wilson Pickett recorded In the Midnight Hour, Stax founder Jim Stewart had signed a formal national distribution deal with Atlantic Records, a contract that would come to haunt him when Atlantic Records was sold to Warner Bros.-Seven Arts in 1967 and Stax would lose the rights to all Atlantic-distributed recordings between 1960 and 1967. Coming back to a happier subject, In the Midnight Hour was co-written by Pickett and guitarist Steve Cropper, a founding member of Stax house band Booker T. & the M.G.s, who also was the label’s A&R man. M.G.s members Al Jackson Jr. (drums) and Donald “Duck” Dunn (bass) participated in the recording session. In the Midnight Hour, which appeared in June 1965, also was the title track of Pickett’s sophomore album released the same year. The tune became Pickett’s first no. 1 on Billboard’s R&B singles chart and his highest charting song at the time on the mainstream Billboard Hot 100, where it reached no. 21. Just a timeless soul classic!
Robben Ford/A Dragon Tail
For the last track in this installment, we’re going back to the present time and a killer instrumental by guitarist extraordinaire Robben Ford, off his new album Pure that came out on August 27. Ford, who began playing the saxophone at age 10 before he discovered the guitar as a 13-year-old, has had a remarkable career. He has collaborated with Miles Davis, Joni Mitchell, George Harrison, Charlie Musselwhite, Larry Carlton and Little Feat, among many others. His solo debut Schizophonic, a jazz album, came out in 1976. Ford has since released close to 30 additional records under his name. This doesn’t include any of his collaboration albums. While primarily being associated with blues, Ford has played many other genres, including jazz, rock and funk. He has been nominated for five Grammys and was named one of the “100 Greatest Guitarists of the 20th Century” by trade publication Musician magazine that folded in 1999. Here’s A Dragon Tail from Ford’s above mentioned new album. Check out this amazing sound!
Sources: Wikipedia; Marissa Anderson website; YouTube
I realize this is the second Clips & Pix post in a row about a tune I already covered previously, but when I spotted this live rendition of Pamela by Toto on YouTube, I simply couldn’t resist publishing it. This was recorded during a one night special event on November 21, 2020, featuring Toto’s new line-up. And, boy, do they sound awesome!
After the end of Toto’s 2018-2019 40 Trips Around the Sun Tour to celebrate their 40th anniversary, it looked like they were done. Not so! The above event was the first time the band performed with their new formation. In addition to long-time members Steve Lukather (guitar, vocals), Joseph Williams (vocals) and David Paich (keyboards, vocals), Toto’s 15th incarnation includes Steve Maggiora (keyboards, backing vocals), Dominique “Xavier” Taplin (keyboards), Warren Ham (saxophone, percussion, backing vocals), John Pierce (bass) and Robert “Sput” Searight (drums).
Fifteen line-ups sounds like awfully many. And as bands go through multiple changes, things don’t necessarily get better. It can take time to become a true unit. In this case, all of the above musicians not only sound top notch but also do a nice job playing together. In my opinion, the standout is Searight. While I’m not a drummer, to me, he has great rhythmic feeling and is simply a joy to watch. Pay particular attention to him!
Pamela, co-written by Paich and Williams, first appeared on The Seventh One, Toto’s seventh studio album released in March 1988 – one of their best, in my view. Sadly, it was the last studio album with Jeff Porcaro, the band’s fantastic original drummer. It certainly can’t be easy to fill his shoes, but Searight looks like he’s the guy to do it!
Toto has already announced a major new tour. I guess there are still many fans out there, and it’s probably also lucrative for them to go on the road. The Dogz of Oz World Tour is scheduled to kick off in Germany in July 2022. If they come to my neck of the woods, I will seriously consider seeing them again.
Here we are on another Sunday to explore the diversity of music six tunes at a time. Today marks the official start of summer and, boy, it’s certainly hot in my neck of the woods! But I take sun and heat over a dark and cold winter day any day. Regardless of the weather in your area and how you may feel about it, I hope you find something you enjoy among my picks for this new installment of The Sunday Six.
Jesse Colin Young/Song for Juli
Starting us off this time is a beautiful, largely instrumental track by Jesse Colin Young, co-founder and lead vocalist of The Youngbloods. When I stumbled across Song for Juli the other day, I immediately felt it would make for a nice Sunday Six opener. If you’ve read some of the weekly feature’s previous installments, you may have noticed my preference to start these posts on a softer note. After the dissolution of The Youngbloods in 1972, Jesse Colin Young (born Perry Miller) resumed his solo career he had first started in the early ’60s. That pre-Youngbloods phase had yielded two solo albums: The Soul of a City Boy (April 1964) and Young Blood (March 1965). Song for Juli is the title track of Young’s fourth solo album, a folk rock-oriented record that appeared in October 1973. The tune about his first child Juli was co-written by Young and the child’s mother Suzie Young, Young’s first wife. Young who last November turned 79 remains active and has released 13 additional albums to date. His most recent one is titled Dreamers and came out in February 2019.
The Turtles/Wanderin’ Kind
Every time I hear a song by The Turtles, I’m amazed by their great harmony singing. That being said, their biggest hit Happy Together, which I featured in a previous Sunday Sixinstallment, is the only tune I’ve known by name, though I’ve heard some of their other songs. Well, now I can add Wanderin’ Kind, the opener of The Turtles’ debut album It Ain’t Me Babe from October 1965. The tune is one of the record’s four original tracks that were all written or co-written by the band’s lead vocalist and keyboarder Howard Kaylan. Fun fact from Wikipedia: Since at the time The Turtles recorded their first album their members were still underage, they required written permission from their parents to pursue the project. During their original five-year run from 1965 to 1970, The Turtles released six studio albums. In 1983, Kaylan and Turtles co-founder and guitarist Mark Vollman revived the band and have since toured as The Turtles…Featuring Flo and Eddie. They remain active and are planning to go on the road in the U.S. later this summer as part of the Happy Together Tour 2021.
Toto/Pamela
The other day, fellow blogger Music Enthusiast included Toto in an ’80s post, reminding me of a band I’ve listened to on and off since 1982 when they released their hugely successful fourth studio album Toto IV. Pamela is the opener of The Seventh One, which is, well, Toto’s seventh studio album that came out in March 1988. The tune was co-written by keyboarder David Paich and lead vocalist Joseph Williams. Among the features I’ve always dug about Pamela are Jeff Porcaro’s drumming and the cool breaks. Sadly, it turned out to be Porcaro’s final regular studio album with Toto. He died on August 5, 1992 at the age of 38 from a heart attack caused by coronary artery disease resulting from cocaine use. Following Toto’s second hiatus that started in October 2019 after the end of their last 40 Trips Around The Sun tour, they are back in business as of October 2020. A live album titled With a Little Help From My Friends, which captures a special lockdown performance from November 2020, is set to appear on June 25. Toto have also announced their next tour, The Dogz of Oz World Tour. Currently confirmed dates are for Europe starting in Bonn, Germany in July 2022. Paich and Williams are still part of the band’s current line-up, as is guitarist Steve Lukather, Toto’s only founding member who has continuously played in all of their incarnations.
Lord Huron/Mine Forever
Kudos to fellow blogger Angie from The Diversity of Classic Rock, who recently did a great feature on new music that includes Lord Huron, one of her picks that got my immediate attention. The indie folk rock band was initially founded in Los Angeles in 2010 as a solo project of guitarist and vocalist Ben Schneider. After recording and releasing a few EPs all by himself, Schneider started adding members for support during live shows and Lord Huron’s first full-length album Lonesome Dreams from October 2012. Apart from Schneider, the band’s current line-up features Tom Renaud (guitar), Miguel Briseño (bass, keyboards) and Mark Barry (drums, percussion). Mine Forever, written by Schneider, is a track from their new album Long Lost released on May 21. The tune perfectly illustrates what attracted me to Lord Huron, which is their amazing moody sound of layered voices, jangly guitars and expanded reverb. It has a cinematic feel to it. Check it out!
Bob Marley and the Wailers/Is This Love
The first time I heard of Bob Marley must have been on the radio during my teenage years back in Germany. I assume it was Could You Be Loved, his hit single from 1980, which got lots of play on the airways. What I remember much better is how I further got into his music. It was the excellent live album Babylon by Bus, which my best friend had gotten around the same time. Released in November 1978, the double LP captured performances by Bob Marley and the Wailers, mostly from three concerts in Paris in late June 1978. One of my favorite tracks from that album has always been Is This Love. Written by Marley, the tune first appeared on Kaya, the tenth studio album by Marley and his band, which came out in March 1978. There’s just something infectious about reggae. That groove automatically makes me move. Unfortunately, Bob Marley passed away from cancer on May 11, 1981 at the age of 36.
U2/Vertigo
The time has come again to wrap up another Sunday Six. As has kind of become tradition, I’d like to do so with a rocker: Vertigo by U2. I first got into the Irish rock band in the mid-’80s with their fourth studio album The Unforgettable Fire. From there, if I recall it correctly, I went to the live album Under a Bloody Red Sky, which in turn led me to U2’s earlier records. My favorite The Joshua Tree from March 1987 was still nearly three years away. After the follow-on Rattle and Hum, released in October 1988, I became more of a casual U2 listener. I think they have had decent songs throughout their career. Vertigo, the lead single from the band’s 11th studio album How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb from November 2004, was an acquired taste. The Edge’s more straight hard rock playing was quite a departure from what I consider his signature sound on The Unforgettable Fire and The Joshua Tree album. At the same time, I respect that U2 don’t want to do the same music over and over again. While Vertigo hasn’t become my favorite U2 tune, I’ve come around and think it’s a pretty good song.
A selection of newly released music that caught my attention
Usually, I keep my forays into newly released music to four tunes. This installment includes two more tracks. Why? Easy, ‘coz I can! On a more serious note, unlike other weeks where I feel more challenged to find music that sufficiently speaks to me, I discovered these tracks fairly quickly. And since I couldn’t quite decide on four, I ended up taking all six. Except for the final song, all tunes are included on releases that appeared yesterday (March 19).
Mason Lively/Love Ain’t Done a Damn Thing
Mason Lively is a country/Americana artist from Victoria, Texas. According to his website, he grew up in a country music atmosphere. His appreciation for the genre can be traced back to his childhood. Though he enjoyed and was exposed to many types of music, he would listen to artists like Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, and Ray Price to name a few. Growing up, while also being influenced by Blues and Classic Rock, Mason started to take interest and study the songwriting of artists from his home state’s music scene like Robert Earl Keen, Pat Green, Hayes Carll, and many more. As a result, when he started playing guitar at age 14, Mason claims that song-writing “sort of snuck up on him” not long after that. Lively’s debut album Stronger Ties appeared in April 2018. Love Ain’t Done a Damn Thing is a track from his new eponymous sophomore album.
Michigander/Let Down
Jason Singer, performing as Michigander, is a singer-songwriter hailing from Midland, Mich., who has been active since 2014. His artist profile on Apple Music describes Michigander’s music as a rich blend of hook-driven and radio-ready indie rock with electronic flourishes and earnest, big-hearted storytelling that invokes names like Lord Huron and Mumford & Sons. He is a self-taught multi-instrumentalist who spent his formative years building a sonic persona that looked to a wide array of influencers, including Coldplay, Rush, James Taylor, and the White Stripes. After honing his skills playing solo sets, Singer relocated to Kalamazoo in 2014 and began operating under the Michigander moniker. In 2016 he issued the nostalgia-driven single “Nineties,” which garnered over a million online streams. Looking to capitalize on the success of the single, Singer turned his one-man solo project into a fully-fledged rock & roll band and hit the road, sharing bills with contemporaries like Ra Ra Riot, Tokyo Police Club, and Twin Peaks, and released the group’s debut EP, Midland, in 2018. The following year saw the band ink a deal with C3 Records and issue a second EP, Where Do We Go from Here? Well, I suppose the answer is Everything Will Be Ok Eventually, Michigander’s latest EP. Here’s lead single Let Down. I have to say I find this tune quite catchy.
Alice Phoebe Lou/Dusk
South African singer-songwriter Alice Phoebe Lou first entered my radar screen in July 2020, when I covered her then-latest single Touch in a previous Best of What’s Newinstallment. As noted there, Lou grew up on a mountainside in South Africa, attending a local Waldorf school that cultivated her innate love of music and the arts. She made her first visit to Europe at 16, a life-changing journey that first saw her taking her songs to the streets. Lou returned home to finish school but as soon as she was able made her way back to Europe, specifically Berlin. Armed with just her guitar, a small amp, a passel of distinctive original songs, and an utterly intoxicating voice and charm, she soon built a devoted fan following, not just in Berlin but around the world as tourists and passers-by from faraway places were so captivated by her music that they began sharing it amongst friends and social media. Lou self-released her debut EP, Momentum, in 2014, followed two years later by her acclaimed first full-length, Orbit.Dusk, written by Lou, is from her new album Glow. Just like I felt previously, her music falls outside my core wheelhouse but there’s just something about it.
Ringo Starr/Waiting For the Tide to Turn
Just like his ex-Beatles mate Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr kept busy during the pandemic. One of the results is a new EP titled Zoom In. A statement on his website notes it features 5 songs all of which were recorded at Starr’s home studio between April-October 2020...Joining Starr were musicians Nathan East (bass), Steve Lukather (guitar), Bruce Sugar (synth guitar), Benmont Tench (piano), Charlie Bisharat (violin), Jacob Braun (cello), and Jim Cox (string arrangements and synth strings). Dave Grohl, Ben Harper and Jenny Lewis also joined Starr in the home studio, and all contributed to the first single, Here’s To The Nights. I previously covered it here…Ringo co-wrote “Waiting For The Tide to Turn” with his engineer Bruce Sugar, adding Tony Chen and his extensive reggae roots; “This was something my engineer Bruce Sugar started, but it didn’t have a lot of words, so we wrote it together. I did my version of reggae and what was great was we had Tony Chen, who played with Bob Marley and lives here in LA, come over and play on it. He said, ‘hey Mon, that you on drums mon?’ and I said yes, and he said ‘great drums mon, very reggae!’ and my heart swelled! It was so great coming from him.” Ringo and reggae was something I didn’t expect, but I think it came out pretty well!
Joyce Wrice/Chandler
Joyce Wrice is an R&B and soul artist from Los Angeles. There isn’t any background on her website and Facebook page, so I’m relying on a news story by MTV. Chandler is the opener of Wrice’s debut album Overgrown. The release follows a series of EPs and publishing covers on YouTube for 10 years. Some of her influences include Missy Elliott, Aaliyah and Sade. Apparently, she is also influenced by her Japanese heritage and Buddhism. “One of the things that I’ve learned through my Buddhist practice is to create opportunities within the obstacle or the struggle,” Wrice pointed out to MTV News. “It’s actually helped me to dig deeper and not be swayed by the situation and keep pushing through.” This tune has a cool vibe. I can hear some early ’70s Marvin Gaye in here.
Tigers Jaw/New Detroit
American rock band Tigers Shaw were formed in Scranton, Pa. in 2005. The group was started in high school by Ben Walsh, who played drums at the time, and Adam McIlwee (guitar, vocals). A few months later, they were joined by Brianna Collins (keyboards, vocals). The band released their debut album Belongs to the Dead in October 2006. By the time of their eponymous sophomore album from September 2008, Tigers Shaw had grown to a five-piece and Walsh had switched to guitar and vocals. He and Collins remain part of the current formation that also includes Colin Gorman (bass, rhythm guitar) and Theodore Roberts (drums). According to their Apple Musicprofile, the band’s music evolved from pop punk to Emo to indie rock. New Detroit is from their sixth studio album I Won’t Care How You Remember Me, which appeared on March 5. I really like how melodic and catchy this song is!
Sources: Wikipedia; Mason Lively website; Apple Music; Ringo Starr website; MTV News; YouTube
Christian's Music Musings 