Mississippi John Hurt – Make Me A Pallet - Live! : April 15, 1965, at Oberlin College in Ohio :: ZEROSOUNDS

 A constant favourite here is the legendary Mississippi John Hurt. My brother Steve brought home an early selection with many of his greatest songs on Coffee Blues, Make Me a Pallet, I’m Satisfied etc etc . . . I was barely a teenager when first I heard this humble mellow voice and the beautiful finger style that is unmistakably Mississippi John . . . . .as Doc Watson (another of my brother’s great heroes) sang Have you  Heard John Hurt!

So here is the maestro live from Zero Sounds . . . . . . 

Mississippi John Hurt Live in Ohio 1965 - Zerosounds

Zero says:

John Smith Hurt, commonly known as Mississippi John Hurt was born in the early 1890's and is one of those legendary blues singers of the same generation at Son House, Big Bill Broonzy, Blind Lemon Jefferson and Charlie Patton. He started playing guitar at age 9 and worked on and off as a sharecropper, recording for Okeh and Vanguard Records but the resurgence of his career came when he was invited to play at the 1963 Newport Folk Festival.

Mississippi John Hurt did a live 21-song set on April 15, 1965, at Oberlin College in Ohio, a scant two years after his rediscovery in 1963, and a year before his death in 1966. Hurt was remarkably consistent as a performer, whether you listen to his famous 1920s Okeh tracks, his rediscovery studio work for Vanguard Records, or the handful of live shows like this one: the skill and delivery is always steady, professional, and charming. Among the highlights in this set is his intricate and atmospheric slide guitar work on "Talking Casey," one of the few times Hurt abandoned his trademark three-finger guitar picking style. This concert has been issued in various configurations and sequences by several labels under different titles and with different cover art over the years.*

Tracklist:

Nobody's Business But Mine 
The Angels Laid Him Away 
Baby What's Wrong With You 
Casey Jones 
Candy Man 
Lonesome Blues 
My Creole Belle 
Make Me A Pallet On Your Floor 
Trouble I Had All My Days 
C-H-I-C-K-E-N Blues 
Coffee Blues 
Shake That Thing 
Monday Morning Blues 
Frankie And Albert 
Salty Dog 
Spike Drivers Blues 
Here I Am, Lord, Send Me 
Talking Casey 
Hot Time In The Old Town Tonight 
I'm Satisfied 
Richland Women Blues

* so many releases for this set I assume it is in the public domain. If you know otherwise and want me to do something about it please do me the courtesy and drop me line first

Song(s) of The Day : The Bee Gees - Idea (1968) / FAIRPORT CONVENTION :: Tam Lin

• Track Name

  Idea

• Album

  Idea

• Artist

  Bee Gees

beegees:

Idea | Bee Gees

Bee Gees - Idea (1968)

The title track from their 1968 LP - it doesn’t seem to get much love compared to other tracks but it’s a great tune with cool guitar by Vince Melouney.

Just me and the mirror and my brain

as always from the magnificent Guess I’m Dumb . . . . .

and of course more relevant today is the glorious Fairport classic song . . . . Tam Lin

• Track Name

  Tam Lin

• Album

  Liege & Lief

• Artist

  Fairport Convention

Fairport Convention - Tam Lin (1969)

"But tonight is Hallowe'en and the faery folk ride 
Those that would their true love win at Miles Cross they must buy "

Matthew Perry +

 

A couple of folk quizzed me as to why I was so moved to post about dear Matthew Perry’s untimely death as Friends was long since over (actually a delightful family favourite as my Amy was once obsessed and watched every episode and she may not thank me for mentioning she could quote whole swathes of dialogue from it! ) and we weren’t maybe so aware of what he had been up to afterwards.

 

This goes towards an explanation that many of my friends here and elsewhere will understand: 

“While Matthew Perry will be remembered for the joy he brought through comedy, in later life the star regarded his work speaking out about addiction as his most important calling.
The actor faced a years-long battle for sobriety, opening up in his memoir about his alcoholism as well as dependency on methadone, Xanax and cocaine – at his darkest point, drinking two pints of vodka and popping 55 pills a day.”
He detailed 15 stints in rehab, 30 years of therapy and more than 6,000 Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, much at the height of his fame – after landing his Friends role with just $11 to his name.

In later life, he found joy in sponsoring others in recovery.
“The best thing about me, bar none, is that if somebody comes up to me and says: ‘I can’t stop drinking, can you help me?’ I can say yes and follow up and do it. That’s the best thing,” he said last year. Perry acted as sponsor to many.

Actor Hank Azaria, who said he's been sober for 17 years, added: "I want to say that the night I went into AA, Matthew brought me in. The whole first year I was sober, we went to meetings together.
"As a sober person, he was so caring and giving and wise," he said.
"And he totally helped me get sober."
Nuff said . . . . .

THE JIM KWESKIN JUG BAND - JUG BAND MUSIC 1965 | ZEROSOUNDS

Jim Kweskin Jug Band - Jug Band Music 1965 - Zerosounds

Zero says : 

At the peak of the American folk revival, Jim Kweskin & the Jug Band reintroduced an essential component into folk music: fun. While thousands attended the March on Washington in 1963 and others traveled to the South to participate in voting drives, Kweskin and his partners in crime played kazoos and washboards in Boston coffeehouses. For every time Joan Baez sang "We Shall Overcome," the Jug Band sang "Blues My Naughty Sweetie Gives to Me." While conservative commentators of the time may have seen such irreverence as the beginning of the folk revival's end, others clapped their hands and stomped their feet as the band sang "My Gal" and "Rag Mama" with happy abandon.

This artifact of the '60s folk revival (and the band's second album for Vanguard) is no less entertaining for its historical significance. In fact, it's aged better than most folk and rock albums of the era. Kazoos are funny that way. So are songs by the band's inspirational elders: Memphis Jug Band, Gus Cannon's Jug Stompers, and Blind Boy Fuller. The song by the band's contemporary, Spider John Koerner of the folk-blues trio Koerner, Ray & Glover, is pretty humorous, too. Whatever hipster coffeehouse audiences thought of Geoff Muldaur singing Chuck Berry, here's betting they eventually wrote it off as just another joke. 


Tracklist:

Blues My Naughty Sweetie Gives To Me 
Jug Band Music 
I'm A Woman 
Morning Blues 
Vamp Of New Orleans (Sadie Green) 
Don't You Leave Me Here 
Somebody Stole My Gal 
K.C. Moan 
Good Time Charlie 
Jug Band Waltz 
Whoa Mule Get Up In The Alley 
Memphis 
Ukelele Lady 
Rag Mama

Now I always liked a Jug band! I blame the Lovin' Spoonful who’s Jugband Music had a profound effect but I had heard of the Jim Kweskin Jug Band early (60s?) and wondered about their ‘exotic’ origins . . . . . this is a nice introduction that sadly did not travel to these shores at the time as far as I recall!

Pass me a slug from that wonderful jug! 

Another in the Series of Singles bought when they came out :: Robert Wyatt and the Swapo Singers - The Wind of Change (1985)

WIND OF CHANGE - ROBERT WYATT & The SWAPO Singers - Zerosounds

Zero says:

"Though his band had broken up and he was in debt to Chrysalis Records, Jerry Dammers was on a hot streak in 1985. Right on the heels of producing and releasing the political pop of 'Nelson Mandela' which went to the top of the U.K. pop charts and raised awareness about Mandela's continued imprisonment, he next turned his sights and attention to the situation in the country right next door to South Africa: Namibia.

With The Special AKA in disarray and 2-Tone Records on its last legs, Dammers enlisted Robert Wyatt, the former drummer of The Soft Machine, a popular solo artist in the U.K, and a outspoken political activist and paired him with the SWAPO Singers. SWAPO (South West Africa People’s Organisation) was the national liberation movement of Namibia that was then at war with the Apartheid-led regime of South Africa. The single produced and arranged by Dammers was released on Rough Trade Records and musicians on the single included a who's who of 2-Tone musicians including Lynval Golding (rhythm guitar), Dick Cuthell (cornet), Annie Whitehead (trombone) and Jerry Dammers (piano, synths and guitar).

The pairing of Dammers and Wyatt was a match made in political pop heaven. Wyatt's solo work during the early 1980s was increasingly political, and he became a member of the Communist Party of Great Britain. In 1982, his interpretation of Elvis Costello's Falklands War-inspired song "Shipbuilding", the last in a series of political cover-versions, reached number 36 in the UK singles chart.

 During an interview in The Mirror from 2008, Wyatt admitted to being a fan of The Specials, "I think the last time I felt really in tune with pop music was when The Specials were around. I used to love going to see them, such an exciting band.” Dammers confessed his admiration for Wyatt, stating. "What I like about Robert is that he comes from an era that wasn’t just about money. Discovering music was the important thing. He’s kept that spirit alive.”The single and its B-side 'Namibia' were recorded on August 30th 1985 at the Power Plant and released with a video that fall in the U.K. Twenty five years later the song sounds just as catchy and danceable as 'Nelson Mandela' and it features some great musicianship like Wyatt's smooth and steady vocals, a hall of fame worthy horn line courtesy of Dick Cuthell and subtleties like the way Annie Whithead's trombone line shadows Ernest Mothle's bass line on Dammer's brilliant arrangement. Many thanks to Liam Ska for posting the song on his blog and for inspiring me to tell a bit more about the story behind the song and its impact on helping to raise awareness about SWAPO and the situation in Namibia in the mid-80's." 


Tracklist:
A - The Wind of Change
B - Namibia

Both 7” & 12” versions

Again I bought the 12” of this when it came out and still have it!

SWAPPERS

SWAPO

SWAPPERS

SWAPO

SWAPO

 OCTOBER

As the clocks go backwards in signalling the end of summer on it’s last day and we are terribly saddened to hear of the death of the wonderful, warm, kind and funny actor Matthew Perry (1969 - 2023)  . . . . .the darkness descends as the witchy season comes upon us and I wanted to share some songs for autumn . . . . . . . . the wolves are running (John Masefield - Box of Delights)

Kate Rusby - introduces Hunter Moon (which we have not long said goodbye to . . . )

Chansons Innocentes II

E. E. Cummings

hist     whist 

little ghostthings 

tip-toe 

twinkle-toe

little twitchy 

witches and tingling 

goblins 

hob-a-nob     hob-a-nob

little hoppy happy 

toad in tweeds 

tweeds 

little itchy mousies

with scuttling 

eyes     rustle and run     and 

hidehidehide 

whisk

whisk     look out for the old woman 

with the wart on her nose 

what she’ll do to yer 

nobody knows

for she knows the devil     ooch 

the devil     ouch 

the devil 

ach     the great

green 

dancing 

devil 

devil

devil 

devil 

     wheeEEE

Donovan

Season Of The Witch

"Season of the Witch" is a song by Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan from his third studio album, Sunshine Superman (1966). The song is credited to Donovan, although sometime collaborator Shawn Phillips has also claimed authorship. 

"Season of the Witch" was recorded at the CBS studios in Hollywood, California, where most of Sunshine Superman was recorded.  According to Donovan, he and Phillips wanted a "rock-combo sound" for the song and chose some local musicians from the local clubs. They included Lenny Matlin on keyboards, Don Brown on lead electric guitar, Bobby Ray on bass and "Fast" Eddie Hoh on drums. Donovan played the second guitar part, as he explained in his autobiography:

I played a white Fender Telecaster Electric Guitar on "Witch," chunking down on the chord pattern, wailing a chilling chorus. A major seventh with an open G, to D 9th with a G-flat bass (Bert Jansch chord). The riff is pure feel.

In a retrospective song review for AllMusic, Lindsay Planer commented: "Few songs so perfectly reflect the dawn of the psychedelic pop era as aptly as Donovan's 'Season of the Witch' ... Both lyrically as well as musically, the languid and trippy contents project a dark foreboding atmosphere [and] a sort of sinister tale of paranoia and the paranormal". John Bush called the song "easily [one of the two] the highlights of the album ... a chugging eve-of-destruction tale"

The pair ultimately collaborated on several songs, including "Season of the Witch", for which Phillips (though uncredited) composed the melody. Phillips also appeared on several of Donovan's albums, including Fairytale (on which Phillips is credited as writer of "Little Tin Soldier"), Sunshine Superman, and Mellow Yellow.[citation needed] Through Donovan, he met The Beatles and contributed backing vocals on "Lovely Rita” . . .from Wiki

Walter de la Mare

 

GUITARS : Paul’s Epiphone Casino (GQ Magazine 2020)

"I have an Epiphone Casino, which is one of my favourites. It’s not the best guitar, but I bought it in the 1960s. I went into a shop on Charing Cross Road and asked the guys if they had a guitar that would feed back, because I was very much into Jimi Hendrix and that kind of thing.

“I loved that kind of stuff and so I wanted a guitar that was going to give me feedback, as none of the others could. So they showed me the Casino. Because it’s got a hollow body, it feeds back easier.

“I had a lot of fun with that. That’s the guitar I played the 'Taxman' solo on and it’s also the guitar I played the riff on 'Paperback Writer' with. It’s still probably my favourite guitar.” 

- GQ magazine, August 2020.

TAXMAN - 

PAPERBACK WRITER

Song For A Sunday - Fiona Apple :: I Know [When The Pawn . . . . . .]

Fiona Apple

I KnowFiona AppleWhen The Pawn…

I had followed Fiona Apple’s music for a while now and yet had no idea she was that staggeringly beautiful for some reason! Isn’t she stunning?! Talented AND beautiful  . . . . . life is just so unfair!

again an update . . .  no cut n paste for the track above so here ’tis on YouTube!

 MATTHEW PERRY

Terrible sad news of the death yesterday afternoon (coming in the early hours of the morning here) found possibly drowned in his jacuzzi at 54. We all felt warm towards Matthew I like to think, he seemed like a brother and in reality his book showed us exactly how vulnerable he truly was. Of all the people mentioning his loss almost everyone mentions his kindness and I believe it. A sensitive and clearly troubled soul and yet comic timing genius for some, his struggle with alcohol and painkillers was well documented and he wanted it discussed despite his relapsing “60-70” times. He will be sorely missed and lets face it we need all the comedic actors we can muster in these challenging times. I would have liked to have known you . . . . 

No more pain now, Matty

 

The GUARDIAN report of Matthew’s death

The Incredible String Band: Albums 1966 - 1970 | URBANASPIRINES (9 albums)

The Incredible String Band 1966 - 1970 - URBANASPIRINES

"The Incredible String Band (sometimes abbreviated as ISB) were a British psychedelic folk band formed by Clive Palmer, Robin Williamson and Mike Heron in Edinburgh in 1966. The band built a considerable following, especially in the British counterculture, notably with their albums The 5000 Spirits or the Layers of the Onion, The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter, and Wee Tam and the Big Huge. They became pioneers in psychedelic folk and, through integrating a wide variety of traditional music forms and instruments, in the development of world music."

Now I have said quite lot about following The Incredible String Band and I only recently posted ‘Painting Box’ as a song of the day and this therefore from Kostas is a great introductory biog and introduction to their music starting as it does with their work with Clive Palmer. I followed them about the time of the release of 5000 Spirits and left them when Mike started his solo work (Smiling Men With Bad Reputations is still a favourite) and have pretty much everything he released on his own as well. The last time we saw them was in Leicester when I was at the Art school there and we noticed posters or handbills possibly done by students that they had stuck on lampposts advertising “The Increbidle Strong Bond” which we began to refer to them as for the rest of the time we followed them. 

Around the time the scientology message was coming through I fell out with them and was bitterly disappointed they had followed anything thing so crass and controlling as the thought control cult. Robin and his partner and Mike continue to make music as far as I am aware and it is reported that Rose became Lady Mayoress of the Welsh town of Aberystwyth [sic]. Licorice seems to have disappeared into the Arizona desert where she is said to have set off hitchhiking and has not been heard of since 1990. Whether she nestles still in the malign bosom of Scientology is doubtful but possible and when last heard from Rose certainly mentioned that there was a strong ‘possibility she was dead'

 Mike talks about Smiling Men . . . . . . . 

every year I usually post Mike’s Feast of Stephen as a memory of the time of year and to remember my brother Steve . . . . . . . . it makes me feel safe and winterful! (it’s a word!)

so here’s another track from the album

Flowers of The Forest

something you can dance to on a Saturday?

Why of course

Call Me Diamond . . . . . . . (check out the sax solo Dudu Pakwana!)

Remembering . . . . here on the extraordinary TV show with Julie Felix far ahead of its time here Robin and Mike do the Half Remarkable Question . . . . . . 

The Incredible String Band  - Live

Home again, home again, jiggety jog!

 Just a morning spent at my local hospital! Thanks guys  . . . . . Sealyman and Diamond Dave!

Usual stuff, five vials of bloods for them to play with, a new kind of scan ( I have had most!) a Fibroscan and liver monitoring, oesophageal problems and on it goes . . . . . . . .’bloody' hell! Surprised she could get a vein (they’ve been having trouble lately!) veins popping all over the gaffe and still she was a pro and reaped enough to fill a cup!

Anyhoo . . . . . this is for you guys!

 

AFK BRB hopefully . . . . . laters potaters . .  🏥🌡🩸🩺💉💊

Elvis Costello And The Attractions - Cleveland, Ohio 1977 | VOODOO WAGON

Elvis Costello & The Attractions - Cleveland OHIO 1977 - Voodoo Wagon

More from Elvis from our El Capo di Tutti i Capi !

"Via Silenziosa”

[El Capitano Silent Way]

over at HQ and The VOODOO WAGON (I’ve fallen off it myself! Many a time!)

Elvis Costello And The Attractions

Agora Ballroom
Cleveland, Ohio
December 5, 1977
 Soundboard or FM Source FLAC format!

Set list:
01.Welcome To The Working Week
02.(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes
03.Hand In Hand
04.Waiting For The End Of The World
05.No Action
06.Less Than Zero
07.The Beat
08.No Dancing
09.Big Tears
10.Blame It On Cain
11.Little Triggers
12.Radio, Radio
13.You Belong To Me
14.Pump It Up
15.Lipstick Vogue
16.Watching The Detectives
17.Miracle Man
18.Mystery Dance

P.S. this is REALLY good quality and even better than the one t’other day!

here . . . . .at The STOMP!

maybe a little tweak with the equaliser to Rock or RnB even and the bass boost is great otherwise it is a clear as a bell!

[check it out hear!]

Carro Voodoo

Happy 60th birthday to Natalie Merchant, born in Jamestown, New York on this day in 1963 | ‘SISTER TILLY’

 

Sister Tilly
Natalie Merchant

A universal message to the sisterhood

"I’m thrilled to announce that the fourth and final video for 'Keep Your Courage' has been released today for the song “Sister Tilly"

This song holds a very dear place in my heart and on the album. I created Tilly to celebrate the lives of several beloved female friends who are aging rapidly or have recently passed away. These are mother, auntie, and sister figures to whom I owe so much for all the nurturing love and care they gave me throughout my life. These women made up the generation who came of age during the mid 1960s-mid 1970s and the video features archival footage of them, vibrant and powerful.  

When I have performed this song live over the past six months, I can feel its resonance with the audience. We all seem to have known someone in our lives with Tilly qualities. I can tell that I’m not the only one who feels an urgency to give these women their due respect. Thank you to Machine Street Projects, Robert Edridge-Waks, and all the film archives who allowed their footage to be used in this impactful piece."

#keepyourcourage #sistertilly #nataliemerchant

ALSO

Because the Night

Natalie Merchant

Happy 60th birthday to Natalie Merchant, born in Jamestown, New York on this day in 1963. They can't hurt you now, because the night belongs to lovers.

Because The Night

10,000 Maniacs

21.04.1993... MTV Unplugged @ Sony Music Studios, New York, US.

"Because the Night" is a song written by Bruce Springsteen and Patti Smith that was first released in 1978 as a single from the Patti Smith Group album Easter. A well-known acoustic version was recorded by 10,000 Maniacs in 1993 for MTV Unplugged, with a few lyrical alterations. The recording gained considerable radio airplay and reached #11 on the Billboard Hot 100. A live version with lead vocalist Mary Ramsey was also included on their 2016 album Playing Favorites.

After the recording but before the release of MTV Unplugged, original lead singer and main songwriter Natalie Merchant left the band to pursue a solo career. She was replaced by Mary Ramsey. Merchant announced her departure from the band on MTV on August 5, 1993, saying she "didn't want art by committee anymore." Merchant later recalled. "The last 10,000 Maniacs gig was the first time I'd got drunk in nearly two years. I laughed a lot and threw lots of flowers out of the hotel window."

Album      : MTV Unplugged

Released : October 28, 1993