There’s a song called “Elephant Talk” by King Crimson, which lampoons the talk industry. Then there was a band called Talk Talk.
Back in 1966, there was a great garage-rock hit single called “Talk Talk,” by The Music Machine, and I could talk and talk about talk and gossip about gossip and babble and bicker in my role as rock critic, but I think I love it more when musicians talk back, or fight amongst themselves, especially if it inspires them (us) to give more impassioned performances. If there’s a theme to this week’s top ten list, I guess this is as good as any.
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The Fall
Okay, I’ve loved this band since 1983’s Perverted By Language, which I still find one of their best albums, but unfortunately I couldn’t make their San Francisco show because I was playing the same night. Rumor has it that it was Mark E. Smith and his wife’s second or third show with a new band hastily assembled after he split with his previous lineup due to an incident in Arizona in which the frontman for his opening band, The Talk, exacerbated tensions within The Fall and hurling a banana at Smith. Though I don’t know every side of the story, I feel like I’m playing into exactly what the singer for The Talk wants, by giving him free publicity for being a jerk. I never heard anybody talk about The Talk until this incident, and now they’re the talk of the town. Oh well, who knows, the shakeup within The Fall at least may lead to very inspired passionate shows, and I’d be curious to hear anybody’s report of how these shows with the new lineup went.
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Hudson Bell
San Francisco based Hudson Bell is a band led by none other than Hudson Bell, who has just released their third album on Monitor Records, and opened for Destroyer at Cafe Du Nord with their beautiful melodic post grunge electric set. Though Hudson is also an excellent acoustic guitarist and songwriter, as evidenced on his first two, self-released albums, the band’s current two-guitar attack, which also features Chris Palmatier, who produced the second Continuous Peasant album, on guitar, opts for a more lush swirly indie-rock jam-band feel (like the louder side of Neil Young, Dinosaur, Jr., or Stephen Malkmus), more than his songwriting. It makes for a great live show, and I ain’t complaining, but I think it would be an even better show if he incorporated at least one or two of his more acoustic songs into future sets. Maybe this will happen more as his reputation grows and he gets to stretch out his live set as a headliner. FYI: My apologies to the folks at Monitor Records for getting Hudson Bell’s new label wrong in last week’s column
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Brett Eugene Ralph
Though a legend in his native Louisville, heralded by such luminaries as Will Oldham (aka Bonnie Prince Billy), who did a double-sided 7” with Ralph’s band Rising Shotgun and released Fading Out(Ralph’s mid 1980s’ hardcore band)’s album on his Palace Records a few years back, Ralph has remained largely under the radar on the national scene. His new, as yet unreleased, album with his Kentucky Chrome Review may very well change this. In the meantime, he’s appearing for a rare bay area appearance, with such local musicians as Greg Ashley of Gris Gris fame), Paula Frazer (ex-Frightwig; ex-Tarnation), Sorcerybird, Tanya Brolaski, myself and others
on Monday May 15 at The Ivy Room (858 San Pablo Ave.) in Albany, CA.
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Citay and Julie Napolin
Back around 2000, when I lived in Brooklyn, I used to jam with a bunch of guys, including Shawn Vandor, who lived a block from me. While Shawn ultimately joined me for my one-off Anne Sexton tribute band in 2001, I lost touch with the others, including his sometime collaborator Ezra Feiberg. Fast forward five years later, on the other side of the continent, he shows up at a solo performance by Julie Napolin, the singer/songwriter for By Land And Sea. Turns out Ms. Napolin has just joined forces with the band Ezra (formed in the wake of his new album (produced by Tim Green of The F**king Champs and Nation of Ulysses), which has been getting alot of press attention as of late for its mix of Black Sabbath muscle with Beach Boys harmonies. In Citay, Napolin gets to hone her sidewoman chops on flute, keys, and acoustic guitar in addition to singing. While I still feel more simpatico with Napolin’s own songwriting, I love when things like this happen. It makes me feel that, yes, there is a scene that I’m somehow part of, even if it’s currently defined by such terms as ‘psych/folk’ or ‘freak folk,’ which may not entirely accomodate the rawer punk/folk kind of sounds I prefer, but, hey, at least it’s something.
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David Lee Roth
I’ve never been a fan of David Lee Roth, even if I must admit to liking some aspects of the early Van Halen, but I recently heard a great quote by him
which made me respect him much more. I’ll have to paraphrase it here; “the reason why so many rock critics prefer Elvis Costello to me is because rock critics LOOK more like Elvis Costello than me.” Thanks David, I needed that. Now, I got one question for you: do you really tiptoe gently to light the menorah?
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Kinky Friedman
Speaking of lighting the menorah, have you ever heard Kinky Friedman’s excellent song, “Ride ‘Em Jew Boy?” If not, find it now!
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Willie Nelson
Speaking of iconic Texas musicians, who are trying to make an impact on politics (Kinky by running for governor, and Willie Nelson by opening a gas station called BioWillie. I thought I’d send out belated birthday wishes, and also offer a paraphrase from Willie, that tops the quote from David Lee Roth above: ‘99% of the world’s lovers are not with their first choice; that’s what keeps the jukeboxes spinning.” Man, I could write a whole essay on the profound insight into the American way of life that statement cuts to….
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Jolie Holland
Speaking of Willie, and people who have gotten to open for him, Jolie Holland is now on tour supporting her third album. A few months back, she took some time out to play some fiddle as well as lend some vocals for a new Continuous Peasant song. I just wanted to say thank you!
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Lou Reed, Legendary Hearts
Released in 1983, and often considered a sequel to The Blue Mask, Legendary Hearts has never been one of my favorite of Reed’s solo albums. Like many, I’ve taken it as axiomatic that even Reed’s best solo efforts are not as good as the worst Velvet Underground albums. But beyond that point of agreement, I generally disagree with those who hold up The Blue Mask and Street Hassle insofar as I shamelessly champion the ‘slighter’ Rock And Roll Heart for instance. In any event, digging out Legendary Hearts at a record party recently (whetted by the fact that Will Oldham recently covered the title song in concert), I realized how great much of the songwriting and singing is on this album (check out “Betrayed” and “The Last Shot,” in particular) and put my finger on the problem. It’s the sound made by the combination of Fernando Saunders’ bass and Robert Quine’s guitar. Now, I’m a huge Quine fan, from his work with Richard Hell and The Voidoids and even with Matthew Sweet, but, here, for whatever reasons, in tandom with Saunders, Quine seems to soften the edges of Reed’s sound. It has some of that muddy, yet antiseptic, sound that characters Bob Dylan’s 1983 effort, _Infidels_as well. Dylan’s album is perhaps his best collection of original songs in the past twenty-five years. I wouldn’t go so far to say the same of Legendary Hearts, but a ‘naked’ version of these songs would not be an unwelcome addition to any box set.
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The Von Bondies
Since I began this top ten list with an example of anger as a publicity stunt, I thought a fitting end would be to recall that incident a few years back when Jack White notoriously punched the lead singer of this Detroit band. There’s been a lot of talk that the whole thing was staged, that Jack White actually liked this band alot, and had even talked them up to some extent prior to this incident. But the punch had more to do with getting people, at least in the press, to pay attention to this band. Even if one doesn’t believe this conspiracy theory (and I’m not sure i do), one can be thankful that White didn’t try to punch Loretta Lynn , even if it gets me thinking that maybe a Bonnie Bramlett style punch to my jaw from Jolie Holland or David Berman may not hurt all that much, though I’m not planning on throwing any bananas at either of them any time soon.
