Thursday, March 11, 2010

TERRELL'S TUNEUP: SAN PATRICIOS GO BRAUGH

A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
March 12, 2010


If you get an emotional surge of patriotism in your soul when you hear the phrase “Remember the Alamo,” chances are you might not care for the new album by The Chieftains and Ry Cooder.

Or at least the subject matter. While some might not like the idea of celebrating those who fought hard against this country, it’s difficult to imagine that anyone could be unmoved by at least some of the wondrous collaboration that is San Patricio. Once you get swept into chief Chieftain Paddy Moloney’s magic, you might come dangerously close to forgetting the Alamo.

The inspiration behind this album is the story of the San Patricio Brigade, a band of predominantly Irish (although there also were a good number of German) immigrants, many of whom deserted the U.S. Army and joined the Mexican army to fight during the Mexican-American War.

Moloney and Cooder recruited their own brigade of musicians including Mexican band Los Tigres del Norte and Mexican American songbirds Lila Downs and Linda Ronstadt, as well as Irish actor Liam Neeson to record this tale. And there are lesser-known groups including Los Folkloristas and Los Cenzontles.

“If the Mexicans were there, there must have been music. I know for myself, if the Irish were there, there most certainly would have been music.” That’s what Moloney writes in the liner note of San Patricio. And he and his collaborators show what a sweet mix traditional Irish and Mexican music can be. Uilleann pipes and tin whistles play Mexican melodies. Mariachi mixes with Celtic themes. At one point, the "Mexican Hat Dance " becomes a jig.

Not all of the tunes deal directly with the San Patricios. In fact, “Persecución de Villa,” in which The Chieftains are joined by Mariachi Santa Fe de Jesus (Chuy) Guzman, is about Pancho Villa and the Mexican Revolution, which occurred more than 60 years after the Mexican-American War.

History lesson: In this country, the San Patricios were known as traitors. In Mexico, they are considered heroes who fought an invading Army. The war, derisively called “Mr. Polk’s War” (after President James K.), was controversial. Even Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, who served as an Army lieutenant during the conflict, sounded almost like Dennis Kucinich when he wrote in his memoirs, “To this day [I] regard the war, which resulted, as one of the most unjust ever waged by a stronger against a weaker nation.” The American Army suffered a desertion rate of more than 8 percent — more than for any other American war.

According to historian Martin Paredes, “Although the American Army was composed of recent immigrants, discrimination permeated through the ranks. Catholic prejudice and harsh treatment by Anglo-American superiors and the use of extreme disciplinary measures such as flogging added to the reasons for the desertions from Taylor’s ranks. ‘Potato heads,’ as the Irish were commonly called, were particularly singled out for harsh treatment.”

In a song called “Sands of Mexico,” Cooder sings, “ Now the Army used us harshly, we were but trash to them/Conscripted Irish farmers/Not first class soldier men/They beat us and they banged us/Mistreated us, you know.”

No, this was no picnic time for potato heads.

According to an article presented online by the Texas State Historical Association, “The Mexican government, aware of prejudice against immigrants to the United States, started a campaign after the Mexican War broke out to win the foreigners and Catholics to its cause. ... Mexican propaganda insinuated that the United States intended to destroy Catholicism in Mexico, and if Catholic soldiers fought on the side of the Americans, they would be warring against their own religion.”

Narrating “March to Battle (Across the Río Grande)” on San Patricio, Neeson recites, “We are the San Patricios, a brave and gallant band/There’ll be no white flag flying within this green command/We are the San Patricios, we have but one demand/To see the Yankees safely home across the Río Grande.”
Photo by Judith Burrows
The San Patricios were led by Sgt. John Riley, an Irish immigrant who had deserted the U.S. Army and fought hard for Mexico. But they made their last stand at the Battle of Churubusco (a name that came from the Aztec word meaning “Place of the War God”) in August 1847. Out of 260, only 75 survived. They killed at least 137 American soldiers and wounded nearly 900.

“We went down to Churubusco, but the devil got there first,” Cooder sings in “Sands of Mexico.” Many of the deserters were hung. “As I stand upon the gallows, it cheers the soul to know/History will absolve us on the sands of Mexico,” Cooder sings.

But Riley was in for a fate some might think worse than death. He was forced to dig the graves of some of his compatriots. He also received 50 lashes and was branded with the letter "D" (for "deserter") on his face — twice, actually. According to www.AmericanHeritage.com, “Since the letter was seared on upside down the first time, it was righted in a second branding.” Two years later, Riley would sue over this punishment, but a jury in Cincinnati ruled in favor of the government.

Again from Neeson in “March to Battle”: “We’ve disappeared from history like footprints in the sand/But our song is in the tumbleweeds and our love is in this land/But if in the desert moonlight you see a ghostly band/We are the men who died for freedom across the Río Grande.”

On a lighter note: My favorite Irish tune in recent weeks can be found on Black 47’s new album Bankers & Gangsters.

It’s a funny, upbeat song called “The Long Lost Tapes of Hendrix.” And yes, it’s about Jimi.

Leader Larry Kirwin sings, “One evening while out strollin’ a friend I chanced to see/He was begging behind a bottle on Spring and Bowery/He said ‘I got some news for you, only cost a couple of bob/About a buried treasure back home in Ballydehob.’ ”

But the treasure is as elusive as the wee folks’ pot of gold. To find the tapes, Kirwin has to confront a BBW bank teller — “200 pounds of sweet Maggie McGuire” — as well as an ominous “apparition in tie-dye.”

I’ll say no more, except “Purple Haze” never sounded so good on uilleann pipes.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

eMusic March

* Animal God Of The Streets by Kim Fowley. I met Kim Fowley -- producer, songwriter, Rock 'n' Roll Svengali, Sultan of Sunset Strip -- at one of the first South by Southwest festivals I attended back in the mid 90s. He was in the Austin Convention Center wearing a fairly psychedelic coat of many colors and was in the company of a sexy young singer he claimed to be "The Next Janis Joplin." (I listened to her cassette tape when I got back home. She was not the next Janis Joplin.) I don't even remember how our conversation started, but he was pitching this singer to me so intently you'd have thought I was some major producer. A film crew approached us and Fowley focused his pitch on the camera. Fowley ranted, the Next Janis Joplin slinked around looking sexy. I decided, what the hell, I held up the tape with a stern expression, nodding my head, as if I were the muscle in the entourage. I don't know where that camera crew was from, but what I'd give to have that footage!

So that's my Kim Fowley story. It has nothing to do with this album. Or maybe it has everything to do with it. His inspired quasi-political babblings of "Is America Dead?" definitely is the same voice I remember ranting about that singer at the convention hall.

Animal God was released in 1975, shortly before he was recruiting The Runaways. But it was recorded a few years before. (In "Is America Dead?" he mentions the fact that Woodstock was the year before., and he's not afraid to use the word "groovy.") The music is good stripped-down blues rock informed by psychedelia.

The first track "Night of the Hunter" sounds almost like Steppenwolf. And "Swamp Dance" is sweet and swampy. I'm not sure why Fowley attempted a cover of Link Wray's "Rumble." But "Hobo Wine" -- a pretty close relative of " Drinkin' Wine-Spo-Dee-Oo-Dee" sounds like something from a jukebox on skid row. I mean that in a good way, of course.

* 1950s Gospel Classics by Various Artists. Here's another happy find. This 25-song collection is a treasure chest of some great, if very obscure, gospel belters and guitar pickers.

There's Professor Johnson, who's got a Henry Green, Rev, Robert Ballinger, Deacon Leroy Shinault and the Rev. Anderson Johnson, who does a tune called "Death in the Morning," which either is a precursor to or a crazy bastard son of "O Death."

Sister Rosetta Tharpe's fans will immediately recognize a couple of her tunes here. Green does a version of "Strange Things" (though he does it as a dirge, not upbeat like Tharpe) and "God Don't Like It," which is done twice here by Anderson Johnson. If anything, his version, featuring his slide guitar, is even more jaunty than Sister Rosetta's. On one take, Johnson ends it with a disclaimer: "Now I wasn't talking about anyone, I was just singing my song." So despite the hell-fire lyrics, he's letting us know he's not really judging anyone. He sings it with a smile on his face and love in his heart.

* Bankers and Gangsters by Black 47. Just in time for St. Patrick's Day, a new Black 47 album. Sometimes Larry Kirwin gets a little heavy-handed when he gets going on the politics. The title track here for instance isn't all that inspired. And nothing here matches my favorite 47 song, "Forty Deuce" -- the story of real gangsters.

But there are a few standouts here. "Izzy's Irish Rose" is a fun look at a Hebrew/Celtic romance (and has a tasty little Irishfied blast of "Hava Nagila.") "Celtic Rocker" is a light-hearted look at the subculture that has grown around bands like The Dropkick Murphys, Flogging , The Young Dubliners, and, yes, Black 47.

And then there's "Long Lost Tapes of Hendrix." Check my Terrell's Tune-up column this Friday for more on that.

* Descending Shadows by Pierced Arrows Even though Dead Moon is gone, two-thirds of the band — Fred Cole and his bass player and wife of 40-plus years, Toody Cole — are back with another fine group, Pierced Arrows. The Arrows released an album called Straight to the Heart a couple of years ago on Tombstone.

And now comes their sophomore effort — and it's no slump,

The good news for Dead Moon fans is that the new trio sounds like a continuation of Moon's basic guitar/bass/drums sound. I suppose hard-core followers could argue over which drummer is better, Loomis or new guy Kelly Halliburton (no relation to Dick Cheney), but I don't see a major difference. The important thing is there was no cheesy attempt to update or "modernize" the sound. And Fred is still writing some memorable songs.

See my full review in Terrell's Tune-up a couple of weeks ago.


* The Second Stop Is Jupiter by Sun Ra. Herman Poole "Sonny" Blount, better known in this solar system as Sun Ra (1914-1993), not only played cosmic jazz but also dabbled in doo-wop and R & B in the 1950s and a little funky soul in the '60s and '70s. And danged if Ra didn't make that sound cosmic too!

Norton Records recently released three CDs of his material. Interplanetary Melodies and The Second Stop Is Jupiter feature recordings from the mid-1950s, while Rocket Ship Rock spans the late '50s through early '70s. I picked up the two of the three a couple of months ago, but just got my hands on Jupiter lately. I reviewed the whole shebang a few weeks ago in my Tuneup column. Read it HERE.

Plus

* "New Mexico" by Johnny Cash. A few weeks back Leslie Lithicum of The Albuquerque Journal had a fun column about songs about New Mexico. I was ashamed to realized that I had never heard this one. Luckily, eMusic had it on a Sun Records collection. It's a classic chunka chunka Cash tune about a young cowboy who is recruited for a job here, has a miserable time and gets ripped off.

No, this is one the Tourism Department never will use in ads: "Go back to your friends and loved ones, tell others not to go/To the God-forsaken country they call New Mexico."

* The tracks from The Sheik Said Shake by Hipbone Slim & The Knee-Tremblers that I didn't get last month. It's just good British psychobilly blues from the Dark Dimension.

My favorite in this batch is "Buried Next to You," a slow-grooving meditation on eternal love. I don't know whether this is an original or otherwise, but I can easily imagine Charlie Feathers singing this one. And there's "One-Legged Rock," which takes up where Terry Allen's "Peggy Leg" left off.

Now I've got to get my hands on the new one by Hipbone -- The Kneeanderthal Sound of…

Monday, March 08, 2010

New Delaney Davidson: Self Decapitation

Delaney Davidson

Delaney Davidson, the New Zealan singer and multi-instrument ace who played in Santa Fe last year opening for Rev. Beat-Man (and playing in the Rev's band) has just released a solo album called Self Decapitation on Voodoo Rhythm Records.

In addition to his musical talent, he's a fine photographer. He took this picture in Santa Fe:
BEAT-MAN & ME
Check out the video below.

R.I.P. Mark Linkous


Mark Linkous, aka Sparklehorse, is dead. He committed suicide in Knoxville, Tenn. Shot himself in an alley near a friend's house. Here's the New York Times account.

In honor of his music, here's his yet-to-be-released collaboration with Danger Mouse and David Lynch, Dark Night of the Soul. (It's been up at NPR for nearly 9 months.)

Here's a grim little note. Linkous is the second musician on this album who has committed suicide. Vic Chestnut, who killed himself in December, sings the song "Grim Augury."




Tracks:
01 Revenge (w/ The Flaming Lips)
02 Just War (w/ Gruff Rhys)
03 Jaykub (w/ Jason Lytle)
04 Little Girl (w/ Julian Casablancas)
05 Angel’s Harp (w/ Frank Black)
06 Pain (w/ Iggy Pop)
07 Star Eyes (I Can’t Catch It) (w/ David Lynch)
08 Everytime I’m With You (w/ Jason Lytle)
09 Insane Lullaby (w/ James Mercer of The Shins)
10 Daddy’s Gone (w/ Nina Persson)
11 The Man Who Played God (w/ Suzanne Vega)
12 Grim Augury (w/ Vic Chestnutt)
13 Dark Night Of The Soul (w/ David Lynch)

Sunday, March 07, 2010

TERRELL'S SOUND WORLD PLAYLIST

Sunday, March 7, 2010
KSFR, Santa Fe, N.M.
Webcasting!
10 p.m. to midnight Sundays Mountain Time
Host: Steve Terrell

101.1 FM
email me during the show! terrell@ksfr.org

OPENING THEME: Let it Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
Celluloid Heroes by The Kinks
New Age by The Velvet Underground
My Beloved Movie Star by Stan Ridgway
Tiffany Anastasia Lowe by June Carter Cash
Martin Scorsese by King Missile
Shout Bama Lama by The Detroit Cobras
Beyond the Sound of Time by The Bomboras
Psycho Daiseys by The Hentchmen

Spin Cycle by The Laundronauts
Make You Sorry by The Routes
Crazy Pills by Quan & The Chinese Takeouts
Seersucker Suit by J.J. & The Real Jerks
The Mollasses by The Scrams
Melt My Mind by The Tex Reys
Medusa by The Hydes
The Orange Shadows by The Molting Vultures
(We're the) Knights of Fuzz by Marshmallow Overcoat
Sour and Vicious Man by The Strawmen

Hush, Hush/12 O'Clock Midnight/Dizzy Miss Lizzy by The Plimsouls
Bad Boy by The Backbeat Band
Slow Down by The Beatles
You Bug Me Badly by Larry Williams
Wiggling Fool by Jack Hammer
Honey I Need by The Pretty Things
Daddy You Lied to Me by The Del Moroccos
Hell of a Woman by Impala

Shivers Down My Spine by King Khan & The Shrines
Down on the Riverbed by Los Lobos
Death in the Morning by Rev. Anderson Johnson
Jungle Music by Simon Stokes
My Yoke is Heavy/It's a Wonderful Life by Sparklehorse
CLOSING THEME: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis

Friday, March 05, 2010

THE SANTA FE OPRY PLAYLIST

Friday, March 5, 2010
KSFR, Santa Fe, NM
Webcasting!
10 p.m. to midnight Fridays Mountain Time
Host: Steve Terrell


101.1 FM
email me during the show! terrell@ksfr.org

OPENING THEME: Buckaroo by Buck Owens & The Buckaroos
Harm's Way by The Waco Brothers
Guacamole by The Texas Tornados
Buzz, Buzz, Buzz by The Blasters
Miss Froggy by Warren Smith
Drunk by Noon by Sally Timms
Juke Joint Jumpin' by Wayne Hancock & Hank Williams III
Shake, Rattle & Roll by Doc Watson
I Fall to Pieces by Patsy Cline
My Own Kind of Hat by Merle Haggard
Flowers on the Wall by The Statler Brothers
In-a Gadda da Vida by Mojo Nixon

Entella Hotel by Peter Case
Monday Morning Blues by Peter Case & Dave Alvin
Raymond Martinez by Kell Robertson
Can't Pay the Bill by Rev. Peyton's Big Damn Band
Palenque by Felix y Los Gatos
New Mexico by Johnny Cash
A Human Coyote Stole My Girl by Rex Allen

Sands of Mexico by Ry Cooder with The Chieftains
Long Lost Tapes by Black 47
Wild Irish Rose by George Jones
Danny Boy by Shane MacGowan
Going Up the Country by Mike Cullison
Country Girl by Dale Hawkins
Smoke, Smoke, Smoke That Cigarette by Johnny Bond & His Red River Valley Boys

That Nightmare is Me by Mose McCormack
Satin Sheets by Jeannie Pruett
Cherokee Fiddle by Michael Martin Murphey
I Just Dropped in to Say Goodbye by Carl Smith
16th Avenue by Lacy J. Dalton
Waltzing's For Dreamers by Carrie Rodriguez
I Believe in You by Don Williams
CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets

Steve Terrell is proud to report to the monthly Freeform American Roots Radio list

TERRELL'S TUNEUP: PLIMSOULS MAKE UP FOR LOST TIME

A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
March 5, 2010


The Plimsouls are one of those rock ’n’ roll bands that never quite achieved mega-success at the commercial level. But nearly 30 years after they broke up, their adherents claim that they were one of the most vital groups of all time.

Those who believe that — and I’m one who has slowly been drifting to that conclusion — have some fresh new evidence for that argument, a newly released concert album titled Live! Beg, Borrow & Steal. Recorded Halloween night in 1981 at the Whiskey a Go Go in Los Angeles, it captures the band at the height of their considerable powers.

So who were these guys?

The Plimsouls were a quartet led by singer Peter Case, who had previously played with a punk-rock unit called The Nerves. (And before that, he was a street busker in San Francisco, where, Case told me several years ago, none other than Dan Hicks used to harass and harangue him as he tried to sing for tips on the streets of North Beach.) Case has since gone on to establish himself as a respected singer/songwriter and contemporary folk singer.

In the fertile L.A. punk/New Wave scene of the late ’70s and early ’80s, The Plimsouls became major contenders. With Eddie Muñoz on guitar, Dave Pahoa on bass, and drummer Louie Ramirez, the Plims created a sound with the chaotic energy of punk rock but featuring hook-heavy melodies with nods to mid-’60s folk-rock and soul (their first EP, 1980’s Zero Hour, had a cover of Otis Reddings’ “I Can’t Turn You Loose”). Rodney Bingenheimer championed their signature tune “A Million Miles Away” on his KROQ radio show (the song was later included in the cinematic classic Valley Girl). And somehow it got tagged with the label “power pop” — which might put off some potential listeners wary of anything pop.

After their maiden album on the independent Planet Records, the Plimsouls got snatched up by Geffen Records. Their one-and-only major-label outing, Everywhere at Once, contained some of their classic songs. But I found it way overproduced in a glitzy, ’80s kind of way.

The band broke up soon after the release of Everywhere at Once. Case was becoming more and more interested in his folk and blues roots and less and less enthralled at the prospect of leading a rock band.

Every decade or so, The Plimsouls reunite. They recorded an album of new songs in the mid-1990s — the criminally neglected Kool Trash. Though I never got to see them in the ’80s, I’ve been fortunate to see them in 1996 and 2006 at the South by Southwest Festival. The latter show was held in perhaps the most jam-packed bar I’ve ever been in. Both shows are among the most high-charged and energetic I’ve ever seen.

For my money, the best Plimsouls albums are the live ones — this new record, and 1988’s excellent One Night in America. While listening to their albums is not the same as seeing them live, you still can hear the sweat.

If you’re a Plimfan, chances are your favorite song by the group is on Live! Beg, Borrow & Steal. “Million Miles” is here, of course, as well as perhaps the finest version of “Zero Hour” I’ve ever heard and a not-too-shabby “Lost Time.” The set starts out with “Hush Hush” and moves straight to “Shaky City,” which sounds like some unknown old Yardbirds tune mutated with some unexpected chord changes.
PLIMSOULS 3-16-06
One of the standouts is “I Want You Back.” No, it’s not the Jackson 5 hit. It’s a Case original and perhaps as closes to rockabilly as the Plimsouls ever sounded.

In addition to their original tunes, the Plimsouls honor their forefathers with several hopped-up covers of early rock ’n’ roll classics. Bo Diddley’s “Who Do You Love” sneaks in on a medley. The group pays tribute to the early L.A. Chicano rockers Thee Midnighters with a frenzied take on “Jump, Jive, and Harmonize.” There’s Larry Williams’ “Dizzy Miss Lizzy,” which was most famously done by the Beatles (this one also appeared on One Night in America).

And there’s a real treat. The Plimsouls are joined by The Fleshtones, who apparently were the opening act that night, on spirited covers of Gary “U.S.” Bonds’ “New Orleans” and Little Richards’ “Hey Hey Hey.” There’s an uncredited sax player who seems to come out of nowhere on “New Orleans.” Is it the late Gordon Spaeth, who frequently played with The Fleshtones? I hope this live album will spark enough interest to bring about a new Plimsouls reunion. This music is timeless and welcome in any decade.

Check out The Plimsouls at Alive Records. And there are songs and videos at their MySpace page, even though nobody’s updated the site in two or three years.

TERRELL'S SOUND WORLD PLAYLIST

  Sunday, March 24, 2024 KSFR, Santa Fe, NM, 101.1 FM  Webcasting! 10 p.m. to midnight Sundays Mountain Time Host: Steve Terrell E...