Hey Joe
The Leaves
Mira LP 3005
1966
The debut album by the Leaves is one of the better garage band albums of the mid-1960s. I first encountered the group on the "Nuggets" compilation which featured their only hit single, "Hey Joe." There are many covers of this classic song, but the Leaves' recording is my favorite of the fast versions of the song. With its crisp drumming, driving bass riff and ringing guitars it is a model of folk-rock power and it boasts an exciting instrumental break as well. John Beck delivers a passionate, urgent vocal that pushes the song to its limit. It is easily the best song on the album but there are enough other quality songs on the album to make it well worth seeking out. My favorite song after the title cut is "Dr. Stone" which was written by Beck and the band's bassist Jim Pons. Beck's wailing harmonica and the Bo Diddley style riff give the song a rhythm and blues feel that is combined with the song's folk-rock structure and jangly guitar to create a stimulating hybrid. "Too Many People" is another excellent song and was the band's first single in 1965. It is a garage rocker penned by Pons and the Leaves' original lead guitarist Bill Rinehart. It rocks hard and features rebellious lyrics that give it plenty of bite. "Just a Memory" was written by Rinehart's replacement lead guitarist Bobby Arlin and it has a nice Merseybeat sound to it. Arlin's "War of Distortion" is an odd little tune that sounds like a novelty song aside from blasts of fuzz guitar which help keep it in the garage genre. "Back on the Avenue" is a group composed instrumental that is punchy and energetic and features some fiery guitar work from Arlin and more wailing harmonica from Beck. The covers on the record are all decent but with one exception not particularly interesting. The exception is the group's version of "Girl From the East" by Bobby Jameson which he recorded on the cult album "Songs of Protest and Anti-Protest" which was released under the pseudonym, Chris Lucey. The song is a lovely folk-rock song featuring a slight raga element with a nice harmony vocal from the band on the chorus. It is one my favorite tracks on the album. There were practically as many covers of Allen Toussaint's "Get Out of My Life, Woman" as there were of "Hey Joe" back in the 1960s. The Leaves' version is lackluster but listenable thanks to some stinging guitar runs. They do a folk-rock version of "He Was a Friend of Mine" taken at a faster tempo than the Byrds' version on "Turn! Turn! Turn!" and it is also thankfully free of the Kennedy references that the Byrds imposed on the song. The Leaves' performance of Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart's "Words" lacks the drama and propulsion of the Monkees' superior version but is otherwise very similar. "Good Bye, My Lover" is based on the Searchers' version of the song and it is even credited to Searchers Mike Pender and John McNally on the label however it was actually written by Lamar Simington, Leroy Swearingen and Robert Mosley with Mosley issuing a single of the song in 1963 done in a rhythm and blues style arrangement. The Leaves' version is not as good as either of those versions but is still enjoyable thanks to a solid vocal from Beck. The band's cover of "Tobacco Road" is uninspired, arguably the weakest track on the album. Despite the handful of duds, I find this album consistently appealing. The songwriting is well above average by garage band standards and the covers are tastefully chosen. The record shows a lot of promise that alas went unfulfilled. The band's follow-up album on Capitol was disappointing and they broke up after it. The Leaves demonstrate the richness of the music of the mid-1960s. Even a relatively minor group like this was capable of making excellent music that still engages me nearly 50 years after it was recorded. Recommended to fans of the first album by Love.
This Machine
The Dandy Warhols
Beat The World Records/The End Records TE 252-1
2012
I loved the Dandy Warhols back when they released "The Dandy Warhols Come Down" and "Thirteen Tales From Urban Bohemia" but their subsequent albums greatly disappointed me. I didn't expect them to keep making the same record over and over but I found their exploration of new sounds to be self-indulgent and annoying. I gave up on them. Then last year I went to their show at the Wiltern to hear them play "Thirteen Tales" in its entirety and I'll be damned if I didn't fall in love with them all over again. The concert inspired me to check out their most recent studio album to see if maybe the magic was back. Not really, but I do like it better than any album they've released since "Thirteen Tales." The album starts promisingly with "Sad Vacation" written by Courtney Taylor-Taylor and the band's drummer Brent DeBoer. The song is driven by a heavy bass riff and features a stripped down sound that is a sharp contrast to some of the excesses of their previous albums. The song is a nasty break up song sung in a breathy voice by Taylor-Taylor. "The Autumn Carnival" was written by Taylor-Taylor in collaboration with David J from Love and Rockets and it sounds more like Love and Rockets to me than the Dandies. There is a strong 1980s vibe to it. It has pretentious lyrics that use the symbolism of a carnival to wax lyrical about hedonism which has always been one of Taylor-Taylor's favorite themes. He sings it in a breathy voice again which I find irritating. He breaks out his David Bowie voice to sing "Enjoy Yourself" which he wrote by himself. The song is startlingly personal and autobiographical as Taylor-Taylor croons about his pretty boy heyday when he "used to be cool." The song is about both nostalgia for the the past and enjoying the present. It sounds like Taylor-Taylor is missing his past success which he purposely undermined following the release of the film "Dig!" and "Thirteen Tales." DeBoer and Taylor-Taylor's "Alternative Power To The People" is an instrumental that sees the Dandies return to the dance floor. I never cared much for their dance music phase but the song is fast-paced and propulsive enough that I don't get bored. They slow down for Taylor-Taylor's "Well They're Gone" which is a cabaret style love song that he breathily intones like he is aspiring to be Leonard Cohen. It is a pretty song most notable for the theremin that runs through it giving it an eerie sound. Side one concludes with "Rest Your Head" a collaboration between Taylor-Taylor and Miles Zuniga of Fastball. The song uses the imagery of a train trip to discuss dealing with failure and pain, an apt metaphor for the Dandy Warhols' train wreck of a career. The song is one of the most mainstream style songs I've ever heard them play, it would fit easily on a Tom Petty album. Taylor-Taylor's voice sounds ragged and awkward, maybe there is a physical reason for so many breathy vocals on the record. The B-side opens with a dubious cover of Merle Travis' "16 Tons" which was a big hit for Tennessee Ernie Ford in 1955. Taylor-Taylor drawls out the song backed by a raucous rhythm and blues interpretation of the song driven by Steve Berlin's honking saxophone. It sounds like something you'd hear in a burlesque show. The Dandies have recorded plenty of oddball covers through the years but they usually don't use them as filler on their albums. Taylor-Taylor's "I Am Free" is another autobiographical song in which he expresses his happiness at overcoming his "darkest past" and being saved by the music inside of him. It is a surprisingly joyous song bolstered by an exuberant brass section. I interpret the song as Taylor-Taylor looking back on his twisted career and relishing an opportunity to set things right again. The song is one of my favorites on the album and it features one of Taylor-Taylor's best vocals. "Seti vs. the Wow! Signal" is another collaboration with Miles Zuniga. Lyrically it is one of the odder songs in the band's canon. It humorously recounts the story of the unusual radio signal detected in space by a scientist in 1977 as part of the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) project. Like "Rest Your Head" it has a commercial classic rock sound but I still like it. It sure beats the dreary drone of "Don't Shoot She Cried" which was written by DeBoer and keyboard player Zia McCabe. It is easily the worst song on the album and unfortunately the longest as well. This glacially slow dirge has some lyrics but all I can decipher is the song title which is repeated numerous times. I've complained about Taylor-Taylor's self-indulgence throughout his career but he's got nothing on his bandmates. "Slide" was written by DeBoer and clumsily describes a troubled relationship. It does not sound much like the Dandies, it sounds more like a U2 song given a psychedelic re-mix. I enjoy it for the most part but it gives the album a lackluster finish. There are too many duds on this record for me to proclaim "This Machine" to be a true comeback for the Dandies but it does make me hopeful for the future. I'm intrigued by the emergence of Taylor-Taylor's more mature outlook and his self-awareness. Musically though it does not sound very inspired. Taylor-Taylor once boasted "I sneeze and hits come out" but now he seems to be laboring to write compelling melodies. As much as he irritated me back then, I do miss the old Taylor-Taylor. His flamboyant narcissism and relentless self-confidence fascinated me and his music was truly exhilarating. This sounds more like a record from a broken man. He's even lost his voice to some extent. Nonetheless I do believe that Taylor-Taylor is too talented an artist to simply fade away. This record helps me believe he still has another great record left in him. In any case I'll keep listening and hoping. Recommended to people who like "The Black Album/Come on Feel The Dandy Warhols" better than "Welcome To The Monkey House."
Words and Music by Bob Dylan
The Hollies
Epic BN 26447
1969
This was the album that helped drive Graham Nash out of the Hollies and into the welcoming arms of Stephen Stills and David Crosby. I can see why Nash was pissed, after the adventurous psych-pop of the previous two Hollies albums "Evolution" and "Butterfly" this album was a huge step backwards. It has a terrible reputation which is not undeserved I suppose, but I still like it. I do think it is the worst Hollies album of the 1960s though and Dylan is poorly served by it as well. The songs get a poppy treatment and Allan Clarke frivolously sings the lyrics like he is still singing about Carrie Anne or bus stop romances. The group's ludicrous lounge-style performance of "Blowin' In The Wind" is the most egregious example of this, although considering the myriad covers of this song back in the 1960s I give the Hollies points for trying something different. This album would be better and more useful if the Hollies had attempted some more obscure Dylan songs. All the songs are very well-known aside from "Quit Your Lowdown Ways" and there is not a single song on here that has not been done better by Dylan himself or others who have covered him. The Byrds trounce them on "My Back Pages" and "All I Really Want To Do" (the Hollies' version features a steel drum solo!) Peter, Paul and Mary had better versions of "Quit Your Lowdown Ways," "When The Ship Comes In," and "Blowin' In The Wind" - at least you know they cared about the words. Dylan and Linda Ronstadt had better (and sexier) versions of "I'll Be Your Baby Tonight." Even Julie Driscoll had a better cover of "This Wheel's On Fire" as did the Band and Ian and Sylvia. Manfred Mann had the definitive version of "The Mighty Quinn," as did the Band with "I Shall Be Released." Dylan's own versions of "I Want You," "The Times They Are A-Changin'" and "Just Like a Woman" are infinitely preferable to the Hollies' covers. Numerous 1960s folk-pop acts from the Silkie to the Seekers to Jackie DeShannon, did Dylan better than the Hollies. So why do I like this album? I like it because it sounds like a Hollies album. As a Dylan record it is a travesty, but it is nonetheless full of the pop bliss the Hollies brought to the lightweight ditties they normally performed. The elaborate arrangements and enchanting vocal harmonies that were their trademark are prevalent throughout the album. For all their faults, the Hollies were masters at creating catchy pop music that sounded wonderful. I don't blame Graham Nash for leaving them, their commercial attitude stifled his artistic growth, but I'm not convinced that his subsequent career was any better than his work with the Hollies. "Crosby, Stills & Nash" is a far superior record from an artistic standpoint, but this album gives me more pleasure. Recommended to people who find Bob Dylan hard to listen to.
Platoon
Magic Lantern
Not Not Fun Records NNF 190
2010
I first heard Magic Lantern on KXLU and was excited by their trippy sound. I tracked down a copy of this album and was surprised to see that Cameron Stallones was in the group. Stallones is best known for his work under the name Sun Araw and has justifiably received much acclaim for his adventurous music. I used to work with Stallones in a film-related job. It was obvious that he was destined to go places but I figured he was going to be a successful filmmaker not a cult rocker. If I had known he was going to make terrific records like this one, I would have been nicer to him back then, ha-ha. The album opens with my favorite cut "Dark Cicadas" which is a hard riffing tune that sounds like a lost Hendrix jam except that the guitar playing is not nearly as good. It is energetic though with some compelling distortion and it holds my interest throughout. Like all the songs on the album this is an instrumental aside from some howls from Stallones. "Moon Lagoon Platoon" lays noisy guitar and keyboards over a hypnotic riff and some indecipherable singing from Stallones. It reminds me of "A Saucerful of Secrets" era Pink Floyd. The A-side concludes with "Planar/Sonor" which is another Hendrixian jam. It is the hardest rocking song on the record but I find it less exciting than "Dark Cicadas" although I do enjoy the cacophony that results. The B-side kicks off with "On The Dime" which sounds like jazz fusion akin to the Mahavishnu Orchestra driven by a straight ahead riff with the distorted sound of the guitars and keyboards noodling on top of the riff preserving the psychedelic sound of the rest of the album. It is a lengthy workout but I find it consistently stimulating. In contrast the closing number, "Friendship," starts out as a drone. As the song picks up steam a more pronounced riff emerges and builds in strength as the instrumentalists focus in on it with their solos. It reminds me of Can. This may not be the most original album out there (I think Sun Araw is much more inventive in his sound) but if you are a fan of psychedelic music, this album should push all your buttons. Recommended to fans of Wooden Shjips and Dead Meadow.
The Velvet Underground & Nico
The Velvet Underground & Nico
Verve V6-5008
1967
I started listening to this album again for my post on the VU's "Scepter Studio Sessions" record last year. It is not like I had completely stopped listening to it, it is one of the ten most important records in my life. However after over 30 years of playing it, I wasn't really hearing it anymore, I knew it too well. Hearing the acetate version opened up the record for me again. My copy is not an original pressing. It dates from the late 1970s when it was reissued by Polydor on the Verve label. It looks nice and sounds fine so I've never felt compelled to replace it with an original or any of the modern reissues. Originals were not hard to find in Berkeley back when I was there, but they were pricey and most of them had the banana skin sticker peeled off the cover revealing the pink banana underneath. This is such a rich album that it has been able to appeal to me in different ways as I have grown and changed. When I first got it I was an immature and naive teenager from the suburbs. Back then I was drawn to the shock value of "Heroin," "Venus In Furs," "There She Goes Again," and "I'm Waiting for the Man" with their vivid depictions of drug abuse, perversion and sexual violence. Those songs were already more than 10 years old when I first heard them but they were still so much more daring and dark than the classic rock crap I was hearing on the radio. I was as straight as they come and I got a big charge out of hearing Lou Reed singing about putting a "spike" into his vein. As I got into my 20s and 30s it was the music itself that appealed to me the most. I loved the slow/fast dynamic of "Heroin," the incessant pounding rhythm of "Run Run Run" and "I'm Waiting For The Man," the dissonant noise of "The Black Angel's Death Song" with John Cale mercilessly tormenting his viola and above all the band's fantastic assault on the eardrums with their epic workout on "European Son." That song still sounds so modern and exciting to me, it remains one of my favorite VU songs. However now that I'm an old fogey I find myself drawn to "Sunday Morning" and the three songs Nico sings on the album, "Femme Fatale," "All Tomorrow's Parties," and especially "I'll Be Your Mirror." The mixture of angst, ennui and tenderness in those songs appeals strongly to me. I like Nico as an artist and a singer more now than I did when I was young and I value her contribution to this record more than I did back when I first heard it. Cale has always been intellectual and cold as an artist and Reed was a sarcastic smart ass with a rock and roll heart. Neither conveyed as much feeling as Nico did as a vocalist. Nico made the group sexy and her sincerity and worldly persona gave them depth. The Velvets made great music without her, but I like them best when Nico was with them. This album is 47 years old but it still sounds fresh and invigorating, unlike a lot of the hippie music from that era. It captured the world that produced it as well as any record ever has. Lou Reed had a fantastic gift for observation worthy of a journalist and thrust into the frenzied environment of lunacy, perversion and creativity that surrounded Andy Warhol and the New York experimental art world, he responded with a record that is both a documentary portrait and an artistic analysis. It is not only a depiction of the energy and insanity of the 1960s but it also foreshadows the nihilism and narcissism of the 1970s. To borrow an expression from Jean-Luc Godard, this record is the truth at 33 and 1/3 revolutions per minute and it is delivered with music that is brimming with vitality and adventurousness. Cale, Reed and Nico went on to make a lot of great music after this album, but I don't think the music on this album has ever been surpassed, by them or any other rock artist. Recommended to people who think Andy Warhol's films are better than his paintings.
Pre-Creedence
The Golliwogs
Fantasy Records F-9474
1975
When Saul Zaentz died earlier this year, my first thoughts were of John Fogerty. I admire Zaentz's film productions and I love Fantasy Records' vast jazz library, which they put out in reasonably priced and nice quality re-issues many of which I have purchased. However when it comes to Fogerty's bitter feud with Zaentz, I am completely on Fogerty's side. I think Fantasy under Zaentz took advantage of Fogerty and treated him shabbily even by record company standards. This album is a classic example of that. All four members of Creedence Clearwater Revival were opposed to this release of their early recordings when they were known as the Golliwogs, but Fantasy ignored their wishes and released it anyway. I have mixed feelings about this. I sympathize with the band's embarrassment and feel that they should have control over what material gets released to the public, yet as a huge CCR fan I always wanted to hear this stuff and I have to admit that I'm pleased to have this record. I do understand why the band would be embarrassed by these songs. None of them are bad really, but most of them are derivative and sound nothing like CCR's mature recordings. The album is comprised of the 7 Golliwogs singles running in order, which I like since you get to easily track the band's development. The earliest single is "Don't Tell Me No Lies" backed with "Little Girl" which was released in late 1964. Like all the singles except the final one, it was composed by John Fogerty and his brother Tom. They share vocals on the A-side which is a punchy tune that sounds like a cross between the British Invasion and early sixties American pop like Jan and Dean. Tom sings lead on the inane "Little Girl" which resembles the Beach Boys, in particular "Surfer Girl." "Where You Been" and "You Came Walking" are from 1965. Tom sings lead on both. The former is a shameless retread of "Little Girl" with similarly trite lyrics. The B-side is a lot better. It is another British Invasion inspired song with a surf-style guitar break. "You Can't Be True" and "You Got Nothin' On Me" were also released in 1965. The A-side features John on lead vocal and I think he is a big improvement over his brother whose vocals I find kind of sappy. John is a grittier singer and this rhythm and blues style song is right in his wheelhouse. The song is not particularly distinguished but the group is starting to sound a little like CCR. The B-side is a rocking tune that is a duet with John and Tom and is obviously derived from Chuck Berry. The band is still searching for their sound but this single is a big improvement. "Brown Eyed Girl" and "You Better Be Careful" came out in 1966. This is another step forward. The A-side bares a suspicious resemblance to Link Wray's "Rumble" but it is still a fine song that would hold its own on a garage band compilation. John's excellent vocal and the band's tight instrumental attack are suggestive of the CCR sound. The riff-driven "You Better Be Careful" also has a classic garage band sound and although it sounds nothing like CCR, it is constructed a bit like the early CCR songs and shares their moodiness. "Fight Fire" and "Fragile Child" also came out in 1966. "Fight Fire" is another riff-driven garage band style tune with an instrumental break that sounds like it was inspired by Them's "Gloria." The jangly guitar riff and the song construction of the folk-rock style B-side reminds me of "The Little Black Egg" by the Night Crawlers. The Golliwogs third single of 1966 was "Walking on the Water" backed with "You Better Get It Before It Gets You." The A-side is a weird, melodramatic song distinguished by a smoking distorted guitar solo. The band re-recorded the song for the debut CCR album. The B-side is a slow rhythm and blues type song that sounds like the Rolling Stones until the rave-up kicks in. Here at the end of the song you can hear the embryonic sound of CCR. That sound is full blown in the final Golliwogs single from 1967, "Porterville" backed by "Call It Pretending." The songwriting on this final single was credited to the entire band. "Porterville" actually appeared on the debut album by CCR the following year and this single was re-released under the CCR name in 1968. "Porterville" is classic CCR highlighted by John Fogerty's tortured vocal, the band's powerful rhythmic drive and the song's swampy riff. "Call It Pretending" on other hand sounds more like Motown than CCR which is probably why it didn't make it on to the debut album. I know this record was only released because of record company greed and I'm sorry it caused the band unhappiness, but it was a remarkable journey from the Golliwogs to CCR and I am happy to have this vinyl history of it. Recommended to fans of the Standells.
New Multitudes
Farrar, Johnson, Parker, Yames
Rounder 116619129
2012
I was fortunate enough to catch these guys playing this album at the Mayan Theater in downtown Los Angeles and it was one of the best shows I've ever seen. The Mayan is an intimate venue and I got up close to the stage, close enough to bask in Yim Yames' aura as he shredded on bass. This album is a project in which modern musicians provide music for lyrics written by Woody Guthrie that he never recorded. The music is composed by Jay Farrar of Son Volt, Will Johnson, Anders Parker and Yames (aka Jim James), the leader of My Morning Jacket. The end result does not sound much like Guthrie, but I'm not complaining. I admire Guthrie, but I listen a lot more to Son Volt and My Morning Jacket than my Guthrie records. The sound is mostly alt-country and folk-rock and it manages to sound both contemporary and traditional at the same time. Farrar's "Hoping Machine" is my favorite track on the record. In the lyrics Guthrie urges the listener to keep hoping despite the problems of the world. The words are rather awkward and unwieldy but Farrar's high mournful voice makes them ring true and when the majestic "out of order" chorus takes off, the song becomes extremely powerful. It is a fantastic collaboration that in itself makes the project worthwhile. Parker's "Fly High" is more subdued and conventional. It is a sweet love song. The album hits another high with Yames' "My Revolutionary Mind." This is my favorite set of lyrics as Guthrie expresses his need for a left-wing lover because "ain't no reactionary baby can ease my revolutionary mind" after a hard day of class struggle. I presume that Guthrie intended the song to be humorous, but with Yames' sensitive treatment and gorgeous vocal the song becomes a heartfelt and soulful plea. It is a brilliant adaptation and as a bonus it concludes with a brief, noisy rave-up - Yames just can't help himself, the man was born to rock out. Johnson's "V. D. City" is a Springsteen-style rocker with the propulsive music adding punch to an apocalpytic portrayal of a city ravaged by venereal disease where "Syph Alley" and "Clap Avenue" are overrun by lost souls. The fast tempo continues with Parker's "Old L. A." which is alternative rock reminiscent of R. E. M. and supports a lukewarm paean to Los Angeles. Yames closes out the side with the folky "Talking Empty Bed Blues." Yames' plaintive vocal underscores the loneliness expressed in the lyrics. Side two opens with Johnson's "Chorine My Sheba Queen" which is a moody and romantic folk song that reminds me of Iron and Wine. Farrar takes his turn with "Careless Reckless Love" which is another album highlight. He uses an alt-country approach to the song investing the simple lyrics with great feeling. The song builds in strength as it goes along propelled by a fine guitar solo. Parker's final contribution is his best, the excellent "Angel's Blues." The song is a rocker built around a ringing guitar riff suggestive of Neil Young or Richard Thompson. The song is sexier than you might expect from Guthrie as he boasts about his romantic prowess. Even Jim Morrison never came up with a line as good as "I got more little angels, than you'll find in the promised land." Johnson's "No Fear" is a bluesy shuffle in which Guthrie looks forward to dying. I find the song a little monotonous but the lyrics are impressive and remarkably dark. Yames wrote the music for "Changing World" which is a minimalist folk song. The lyrics are about not being afraid to change and live the life one wants to live. Farrar finishes the album with "New Multitudes" which is about how the new generation will make the world a better place. I think Farrar's three contributions to the record are the strongest among the four collaborators. He really has a feel for Guthrie's vision. The rest of the record is good too, one of the best of 2012 in my opinion. I like the multifaceted portrait of Guthrie that it provides. I don't claim to be an expert on the man, but I have a bunch of CDs and albums of his work and I find the breadth of material covered on this album to be revelatory. I'm used to hearing Guthrie do old folk songs, union songs and earnest protest songs. On this record he writes about sex, death and loneliness as well as politics and I like him better for it. Kudos to Farrar, Johnson, Parker and Yames for giving these wonderful old songs life. If you are not a vinyl nut, you probably should buy the deluxe CD version of this album (which costs less than the vinyl LP) which gets you a second disc with 11 extra songs plus a booklet with facsimiles of Guthrie's original handwritten lyrics as well as his artwork. The album has none of that much to my chagrin. It is still a great record though that sounds wonderful and I'm happy to have it. Recommended to people who like "Another Side Of Bob Dylan" better than "The Times They Are A-Changin'."
