You Don’t Wanna Miss This

There is an extremely compelling documentary I would strongly recommend to anyone. At first, you may casually discard it, thinking of it as a music industry documentary. But, it is much, much more than that: it is a poignant reminder that we are all gifted with one life and how important the decisions we make are in regard to the quality of that life. Please forgive my tendency to wax poetic and read on.

“You’re Gonna Miss Me” is a 2005 documentary about Roky Erickson, a founding member of and the creative force behind the 13th Floor Elevators. The term “psychedelic rock” was invented by Erickson as a description of the new sound the band was pioneering. Best known for the hit single of the same name as the documentary, the band broke through the folk-based rock in San Francisco with a sound that became a template for many more bands to follow, including Big Brother & The Holding Company, Iron Butterfly, Love and Jefferson Airplane. Although the single was initially lauded for the use of an “electric jug,” the lasting impact of the band was Roky Erickson’s vocal prowess.

The film opens on Roky’s later life when, in a deep state of schizophrenia, his welfare is to be decided by a contest between his mother and his youngest brother. Filmmaker Keven McAlester, before revealing the outcome of this struggle, first provides a stark and riveting account of the history that led to that point, from the breakthrough success of the 13th Floor Elevators to ultimately dire drug experimentation and incarceration in a mental hospital then a release followed by a career recovery with Roky Erickson and the Aliens and finally a drug relapse accompanied by acute schizophrenic symptoms.

The full impact of Erickson’s story is realized only when you become brave enough to not harden yourself to the tragedy of poor life decisions. Instead, it is a startling statement about how we all come into the world the same: alone and unsheltered, often times discovering that the shelter provided by a family can be exactly the opposite. Our lives are at the same time preciously unique and horribly fragile. Finding the strength to understand and accept that every day we may make a decision (or more than one) that could change the course of our lives is a difficult thing to fully grasp and an impossible concept for many to embrace. And the act of not choosing to understand is, in fact, an oftentimes tragic choice in itself.

As the film unfolds, it is easy to feel sad for the present day state of Erickson’s life, but it becomes deeply more tragic as you discover the promise and talent that were left behind as the result of wrong turns. If you like music history, you’ll love this documentary; if you want to live your life to the fullest, you need this documentary. It’s available from Netflix.

Click here to view the 13th Floor Elevators performing “You’re Gonna Miss Me”

Give someone you love an Elbow

If you have not been paying attention to this year’s iTunes Music Festival, which runs through the month of September, NOW is the time to plug in! Today’s live stream was opening act Bat For Lashes followed by an hour-and-a-half concert by Elbow.

Why Elbow has never gotten bigger in the States is a huge mystery to me. 2008’s release, The Seldom Seen Kid, was something of a breakthrough to commercial success here. And, last year’s Build A Rocket, Boys built on that. But, they deserve even more attention. They are an incredibly complex band that is capable of shining at the basics in spite of their complexity.

The live-stream concert, which is still available on iTunes (and should be at least through the month of September), will make a believer out of you. All band mates are diversely talented, swapping instruments as the mood dictates. Frontman Guy Garvey is charismatically engaged with the audience, his beautiful voice giving nothing up in a live setting.

You’ll hear a satisfying span of music, from their bluesy rock to their epic compositions, backed by strings and brass. Few bands can handle equally well “raw” rock and roll and orchestral movements. Elbow is delightfully one of the best.

Go to iTunes now and see what I mean. Then buy every CD they have ever put out, including the “B-sides and rarities” collection, Dead In The Boot, which came out this year. You will not be sorry. In fact, I’m guessing you’ll come back here and thank me.

And, by the way, live-stream tomorrow (Saturday, September 8) includes Jack White. Hope you heard it here first.

Love it.

Lennon Lives On!

I’m not really certain why it is that Sean Lennon has garnered any spotlight that happens to be thrown in the direction of John’s children, but Julian Lennon continues to be the son who is best suited to carry on in John’s footsteps. With his 2011 release, Everything Changes, he has finally returned to the sensitive and poignant song writing that was on display in his earliest releases.

From the first moment of success that Julian had in the mid-80’s (with the single “Too Late For Goodbyes“), the comparisons to father John started, and not without good reason. His voice has the same tonal range, phrasing and emotional timber as John’s. In fact, it was these comparisons, combined with the success experienced in the 80’s radio climate, that eventually drove Julian in musical directions astray from the legacy left by John.

Not that the father/son relationship was one that engendered any loyalty to carrying on John’s music. Julian’s connection to his father as he was growing up in the 70’s was distant at best. There were times that he recalls as being more strongly linked to Paul McCartney (who wrote the song “Hey Jude” for Julian upon the occasion of John’s and mother Cynthia’s divorce) than John himself. He recounts that the best time he ever spent with his father was during the time John spent with May Pang. While with Yoko Ono, John’s connection to Julian was much more turbulent. Ironically, this unsettled childhood with its share of scarring eerily echoes John’s younger years with his dysfunctional family.

Everything Changes is a return to music, after a more than ten year absence, that possesses a new maturity and confidence. He has been noted to say that he believes this album contains music that is more true to himself than anything he’s done prior. It is musically sophisticated, melodically strong and certainly emotion-laden. It seems that, just as he has mellowed about his relationship with John, he has also accepted his own voice, apart from any of those former comparisons.

It’s impossible to forget that he is John’s son; his musical influence is too strong. But, the question really ought to be: why is it necessary to separate Julian from John? He is not the first of hundreds of contemporary musicians that carry a Beatles influence. The enjoyment comes from accepting the roots that Julian carries with him and then listening to his music with a non-judgmental ear. Everything Changes deserves that listen. After this release, I can only hope that Julian won’t wait another ten years to record again.

Take a listen to Disconnected to experience one of the best from Everything Changes. Click here to view video.

Glen Campbell provides a lot of “good time” hours

You may have heard me previously profess my love for the 2008 CD release, Meet Glen Campbell. On that disk, Campbell is “re-introduced” by covering contemporary material by such artists as The Foo Fighters, Jackson Browne, The Replacements and U2. The “can’t miss” tracks are “Sing” (Travis) and “Grow Old With Me” (John Lennon). They are beautifully produced, showcase Campbell’s still-crystal voice and legendary guitar licks, and, most of all, they are extremely poignant, recorded at that point in his career.

Now, he has released his final studio CD, Ghost On The Canvas, which is an even more emotion-laden and heartfelt collection of original material. Revealing to the world in 2011 that he is combatting Alzheimer’s disease, Campbell followed that announcement with the release of this CD and a supporting world tour. He was also paid tribute at this year’s Grammy Awards with performances by Blake Shelton and The Band Perry who were joined at the end by Glen Campbell himself for a rousing version of “Rhinestone Cowboy.”

Although Campbell’s vocals on the new disk aren’t as clean and smooth as on Meet Glen Campbell, they now carry a tone of wisdom and experience that is echoed in the material on the disk. Ghost On The Canvas includes songs contributed to Campbell by Paul Westerberg (who wrote the title tune), Jakob Dylan and Robert Pollard (of Guided By Voices). It also features guest performances by artists old and young who have been influenced by Campbell, including Chris Isaak, Billy Corgan, Dick Dale, Rick Nielsen, Brian Setzer and the Dandy Warhols!

But the strength of the disk is separate from the contributed material and performances. It is the honesty and musicianship of Glen Campbell himself as he writes and sings about his life and career. In the opening lines of “A Better Place,” the disk’s first track, he confesses “I’ve tried and and I have failed, Lord. I’ve won and I have lost. I’ve lived and I have loved, Lord, sometimes at such a cost.” Crooned with the slightest of twangs in his voice and featuring his gifted guitar picking, it is a powerful message as he follows up by admitting that “life’s been good to me.”

Throughout the disk you’ll find equally compelling song writing in tracks like the title song, “A Thousand Lifetimes,” “Strong” and “There’s No Me…Without You.” And interspersed throughout  are short musical interludes designed to represent different times in Campbell’s life while displaying the musical prowess that lifted him early in his career out of the famously talented group of studio musicians they informally called “the wrecking crew.”

The difficulty for me is that I’m afraid I won’t be able to find the words powerful enough to convince you how important it is for you to hear this disk. It is full of pathos, beauty and, ultimately, a joy for everything life has to offer. As if Campbell is using his own story to remind us that we all have a limited time here and the worst thing we can do is to not live life to the fullest. If I’ve made it sound maudlin, it’s not. If you think you won’t like it because it’s dated, it’s not.

It is an uplifting experience, this CD. It makes me sad that there won’t be another to follow, but more it makes me appreciate the truly important things in my life. As Campbell poignantly sings, “Some days I’m so confused, Lord. My past gets in my way. I need the ones I love, Lord, more and more each day.” It’s a lesson best learned by all of us.

Thanks for reading.

Click here to view the video for “A Better Place”

Click here to view the video for “Ghost On The Canvas”

Beam into morning.

During these days of economically recessed and emotionally depressed times, it’s a little harder to buy as much music as you might like. I’ve found myself thinking twice about any purchases I make and especially those involving new artists.  The criteria that seems to be working for me is to buy only those things that really sound new, fresh and unique.

In other words, when I hear someone new I ask myself “Is there any other artist currently making the same kind of music that I enjoy enough to not replace them with someone new?” Wolf Parade has a new single that i kinda like. But, it reminds me a lot of Vampire Weekend. Upon sampling more of the Wolf Parade CD, there’s not enough there to convince me to drop Vampire Weekend, a relatively new band that I really enjoy.

On the other hand, is there anyone currently doing what Fleet Foxes does (and doing it as well or better)? Not a chance. (If you know of an artist you think fits that bill, I’d appreciate you sharing.) And, in a long and roundabout way, that brings me to the whole point of this item: Morning Teleportation.

No one (and, I repeat…NO ONE) does what Morning Teleportation is doing. Sure, I’m a believer in that argument that says there’s nothing new under the sun anymore. At least most of the time. But that doesn’t mean that an artist can’t borrow what works best from their musical influences and put it all together in a fresh and exciting way. And that’s what this band from Bowling Green, Kentucky does!

You’ll probably hear snippets that remind you of Modest Mouse or King Crimson or Fleet Foxes or Primus or Yes or any combination of the above. It wouldn’t surprise me if you were to hear influences that I haven’t. The point is that when it’s all put together, it sounds like Morning Teleportation and no one else. This band truly is a unique and incredibly interesting voice in today’s music arena. Go ahead, give in, let yourself be teleported away.

Expand your mind. View Morning Teleportation’s video for Expanding Anyway.

THIS is priceless!

I love Jeremy Messersmith, the man with the golden melodies and angelic voice! That’s why this is so totally unexpected. Some of the “misunderstood” lyrics are a little out there, but don’t worry about how authentic they are. It’s much funnier if you don’t!
View the video for Jeremy Messersmith’s Misunderstood Lyrics Medley.  VIEW NOW. I MEAN IT.

Whatever happened to Jewel?

Jewel (Kilcher) has pretty much dropped off the radar in the last couple of years. Is it because of a progressively diminishing audience for her style of music? I don’t think so. I think it’s more a case of some serious career missteps and one significant life change. In 2003, she released the CD 0304 which was quite a departure from those that had preceded it. The CD was led by a single release called “Intuition” (remember it?) which “moved to a more pop-oriented sound… The song, which strays from her usual folk style with simple guitar instrumentation, starts off with a French accordion and experiments with dance-pop beats using synthesizers.” Was she (gasp) trying to cash in on the girl-pop singer trend at the time? In 2006, she released the CD Goodbye Alice In Wonderland, which was somewhat of a return to her acoustic style, but, in my opinion, she had already lost some of her fans who ditched her when she went “pop.”And, the disk may have been marred a little bit by her own indecision as to which direction she should be going.

In 2008, she married rodeo cowboy Ty Murray after a 10-year romance, and THAT life change seemingly impacted her career path as well because in 2006 she released Perfectly Clear, a country music album! Touted as a return to her country roots (which, indeed, her dad performed all of his life), it presumably appeased her acoustic fans while taking her on a different path for commercial success. Ooookay. But then in 2009 she released Lullabies which was again an extreme right (or left) turn in the career path as she described the release as a collection of lullabies “not just for children, but also adults.” If I’m a long-time fan of Jewel, what does that mean to me? Not sure. And to further confuse the issue, 2010 saw the release of Sweet And Wild, a second country music album. It wouldn’t surprise me if you have not heard of these last three CD releases (unless, of course, you follow the country charts).

The confusion about what to expect from her musically was compounded when she agreed to be a “celebrity competitor” on Dancing With The Stars. The fact that she bowed out with two fractured tibias before any audience saw her dance only further hurt her crediblity. (Plus, if I LOVED “You Were Meant For Me” from way back on her 1995 debut, why do I want to see her celebrity dancing on TV?!)

I’m editorializing here when I suppose that I know the answers to the gradual decline in the audience she first built. But, all of the moves (with the exception of marrying a rodeo cowboy which, I presume, was a matter of pure love) she’s made in the “noughties” seem to be designed to find greater commercial success. Ironically, I believe it’s pushed her further away from it.

If you want to know why this bothers me so, then listen to her sing “Ave Maria” (or any other track except “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”) from her 1999 Joy: A Holiday Collection. That voice of an angel is meant to be heard clear and crystalline, unburied by commercial production, “synth-pop” beats or too many twangs. I miss the early Jewel. And, if I could send one message to her right now, it might be “Who will save your musical soul?” But, that might just be me. If you think differently, please let me know.

Thanks for reading.

What is “False Metal”?

I love Weezer. I really like their 2010 release Death to False Metal, even though it’s not their strongest creative effort. It is, after all,  a mish mash of previously unreleased tunes, and you always have to ask why wasn’t this released before as you listen to each tune. The single “Turning Up The Radio” is maybe the strongest thing on the disk, although I really like “Trampoline” if you’re looking for something that sounds like vintage Weezer. But, really, what DOES “death to false metal” mean? Anyone?

Songs from the graveyard

If I DID have a “Top Ten CD’s of 2010” list, this would surely be near if not at the top. If you haven’t discovered Jeremy Messersmith yet, don’t wait a second longer. His music is special: it’s a throwback to real song writing instead of a plug-in to the music making business. Sensitive, beautiful, layered. How talented is he? Who else could write a lovely, haunting ballad about Star Wars and make it work! Please, please, give him a listen. And you can find his most recent, The Reluctant Graveyard, at his web site jeremymessersmith.com. Dig it.

View the video for “A Girl, A Boy and A Graveyard”

My Top 2010 Music Stories

Top Ten CD lists? Not any more. Why? Click here to see my picks for the top music stories of 2010!