..This is Billy Gibbons putting on a blues guitar clinic, of restraint and intensity. He’s not exactly holding back but he’s not showing off either. It’s all tone and feel, with attention to every note and lick, and the perfect intention.. … More ZZ Top “Blue Jean Blues” (1975)
Elvis Costello has been a lot of things in his astounding forty-years-and-counting musical career: post-punk prototype, new wave renegade, encyclopedic musical raconteur, image-bending iconoclast, standards revivalist, acerbic pop culture polemicist, hook-mastering marvel, and whip-smart wordsmith. What he has never been is sloppy. So whether it was a quirk of his songwriting style, or a subtle … More Elvis Costello “Accidents Will Happen” (1979)
“Don’t ask me how I got this way / Oh, that’s asking too much” cries Whitney Rose amidst the whirlwind chorus as she rattles off the title line ‘I’m In A Rut’ an appropriately repetitive 28 total times. Only her delivery is so rapid-fire, gaps collapsed between the few words and syllables.. … More Whitney Rose “In A Rut” (2020)
..The King Of The Blues, Mr. B.B. King, resplendent in a glittery tux jacket and wincing in apparent pain at the impossibly high note he’s managed to hit on his renowned Gibson guitar “Lucille”.. … More B.B. King “I’m Moving On” (1991)
Who’s the most successful duo of the rock era? I think most people’s first reaction would rightfully be Simon & Garfunkel, while some would choose The Everly Brothers. Upset picks could go to Sam & Dave, The Carpenters, or Jan & Dean. They’d all be wrong.. … More Hall & Oates “Back Together Again” (1976)
Over the years, rockers seem to have exhibited some curious ideas about sisters, but in particular little sisters. The thought occurred to me recently when hearing Elton John’s much-forgotten rave-up ‘Your Sister Can’t Twist (But She Can Rock and Roll)’ – not explicitly about a “little” sister, but with the lyric.. … More Rolling Stones “Dance Little Sister” (1974)
..Rather than try to record what he’d conceived of as his far-reaching “super-incubated encyclopedia of everything,” he returned, instead, to one of his earliest listening roots: pop/rock music, songs formulated and stylized to leave a first impression of “nice” rather than “challenging.” … More Maxshh “Song For Dad” (2020)
..on the occasion of the 30th anniversary tribute concert to Bob Dylan. As they set forth into Dylan’s 1964 classic ‘My Back Pages,’ the procession of participants taking a turn went as follows: Roger McGuinn, Tom Petty, Neil Young, Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, and George Harrison. Talk about a murderers’ row!.. … More Bob Dylan “My Back Pages” (1964) [performed 1992]
It’s two songs, really. The second part – the seemingly endless rounds of classic chord progressions and never-to-be-matched guitar wailing – made it what it is, arguably the greatest rock song of all time. But would it be remembered that way without the first part, that sweet, melancholic ballad written and sung by perhaps the … More Lynyrd Skynyrd “Freebird” (1973)
Another weird week, in a string of weird weeks. Another 19 songs. Another Covid 19 Playlist. Unlike my prior effort, no self-imposed, OCD-driven, 1970’s-only restrictions for this one, so I can now give ‘Strange Days’ the opening slot it deserves. Lots of cautions lately to please ‘Don’t Stand So Close To Me,’ ‘Keep Your Hands … More Another Covid 19 Playlist
