Self Portrait The Day

21 Apr 2012

 BIG O Update!

There's been some great posting on Big O since dear brother Levon passed away t'other day..........these included a tribute largely featuring Emmy-Lou Harris

 get it here . . . . . Levon Helm Tribute

A set from Levon's Band from November last year featuring Kris Kristofferson........

get it here . . . . . . . Levon Helm Band 2011

Also some oddities and some beauties!
Oddity no. 1 The Bob Dylan AJ Weberman tapes of 1971 featuring the eponymous cracker-barrel Weberman's telephone calls to His Bobness

It's weird![what did you expect? ED] . . . . and very funny [so who's weird here? ED].......get it here The Weberman phone calls

Regular visitors (who? ED) will note my delight in Nanci Griffith and Big O have posted possibly one of the best quality boots this listener has every heard.....OK it's an FM broadcast but heck, you may as well be there. Wonderful set from the Cambridge Folk Festival of 1992. Download it NOW!
You won't be sorry!

Get it here . . . . . t'is a wonderment!      Nanci Griffith Cambridge Folk Festival 1992

Following that little gem they posted the Basement Tapes version One Hundred and Thirty Nought.....now I know you have pretty much got this all by now [who the heck ARE you talking to? ED] but it's from the collection of the ubiquitous Philip Cohen so if you don't have this version it's really worth a punt!

Get it here (them! ED)  Basement Tapes Reels 1 & 2

And another gem posted this week from my heroes above many many others, a set from The Doors from Dallas Texas 1968

Look at that track list! Everyone a classic! Get it here . . . . . The Doors DALLAS 1968

It's worth checking the text that Big O post for this one

Live at the Dallas Memorial Auditorium, July 9, 1968 (Tuesday). A very good mono(?) audience recording. This is from Greg Shaw’s tape.
“This is the best-sounding source (Greg Shaw’s tape) for The Doors’ 1968 show in Dallas. I balanced the channels on this source to bring them more to the center, applied ClickRepair to clean up some loud clicks/pops, and also did some speed-correction. This recording is unusual in that the sound gradually moves from one channel to the other during the performance almost like a flange effect. This is native to the original transfer/bootleg and there was little I could do to correct it. If you’ve never heard this source for Dallas ‘68 or you’ve only heard high gen sources, then you’re in for a treat. This is a great sounding audience recording. ‘Light My Fire’ fades in and fades out due to a tape cut in the middle of the song.”
- Porsche.
The show was shared at The Traders’ Den in March, 2012 by “holdingcell” - Thanks! The following notes were included.
“A truly amazing night with exceptionally great performances one after the other. Only the absence of ‘The End’ avoids saying that the show just couldn’t get any better. Jim gives an inspired and occasionally powerful performance just like his band. In the middle of ‘Break On Through’ during the silent part something had happened because Jim coughed some which earned several laughs from the audience. After that he performed with apparent determination even finishing the song unusually.
“Highlights include ‘Backdoor Man’ which features a classic Morrison laugh, a storming version of ‘Five To One,’ the haunting ‘Crystal Ship’ following the first public appearance of Jim’s poem ‘Texas Radio And The Big Beat.’ An impressive ‘Money’ - where Jim find great comfort singing it at the end from full throat. ‘When The Music’s Over’ is another classic and contains everything that makes The Doors so unique. The performance is filled with unpredictable moments: Jim chatting with the crowd, laughter, missing lyrics (instead of “With your ear down to the floor” he sings “Which your ear down..”), moans, groans and improvisations but meanwhile (the atmosphere is)… tense. After the spectacular performance the audience enthusiastically applauded the band then Jim asked:
“Well, what do you guys wanna hear now?” The whole auditorium immediately began shouting requests mainly ‘Light My Fire,’ and ‘The End.’ “One at a time!” Jim requested. Then suddenly “Fuck! Oh, what do you wanna hear?” which again made the crowd laugh. After a few seconds he suddenly bursts into “Wake Up!” which opened the closing, much requested ‘Light My Fire.’ The Doors are now one of the biggest bands in America and by playing and selling out arenas making over $35,000 a night. The show (or parts) has been filmed by the Doors’ film-crew.”
- Buda
Excerpts from Stephen Davis’ book on The Doors, Jim Morrison: Life, Death, Legend (2005)
“The Doors went back on the road with their film crew.
“In Dallas on July 9, a laugh opened Jim Morrison’s almost complete Texas Radio and the Big Beat, a new kind of poem/song inspired by the imperative preaching that Jim heard on late-night Bible Belt radio. He also taunted the cops guarding the stage, mocking them, trying to get them to overact for the film crew. In Houston, next night, he performed spontaneous verse compositions in the middle of ‘Back Door Man’ using the routines ‘Can the wind have it all?’ and ‘We tried not so hard maybe we tried it too hard.’
“Poetic interjections in ‘When the Music’s Over’ included ‘Winter Photography’ and ‘Count The Dead and Wait Till Morning’, material culled from his recent notebooks. Delving into R ‘n’ B to alleviate his boredom with the much requested ‘Crystal Ship’ and ‘Light My Fire’, Jim launched the band into ‘Little Red Rooster’ and ‘Who Do You Love?’ Working the police again, Jim tried to get the kids to rush the stage. The cops responded lining the stage, blocking the band from the crowd’s view. Jim yelled out ‘If you all aren’t gonna come up here, I guess I’ll have to try to get through ‘em….This is your last chance!’ The cops pulled up even tighter, surrounding the band, and the show was over.” p. 267
Even after all these years, Jimbo still sounds fresh. His goading of the police doesn’t sound like part of the “act”. Ray was probably pissed by that. The Doors as musicians don’t suck. The music is gothic. Bold, dramatic and sometimes ugly. Not ugly - ugly. But ugly - uncomfortable. The Doors are an experience. This early show supposedly was filmed. Show us the video already.

And finally the beautiful and staggeringly talented Norah Jones posted today (Sunday)

She was on Jools Holland this week and once again took my breath away (what even with your eyes shut? ED - what CAN you mean? )
she and Jool shared a piano to do a Cab Calloway style song (Huh? ED) and Jools mentions the Little Willies ( a favourite band and go and buy there latest album here! For The Good Times - The Little Willies ) and a version of the Kris Kristofferson 'For The Good Times' which must stand as one of the finest love songs ever written!

From the Johnny Cash Tribute Norah and Kris together . . . . 
Enjoy! I know I did!