One hundred twelve years (and two days) ago in the tiny town of Maynardville, Tennessee, the Great Speckled Bird delivered a baby boy named Roy Acuff, who would grow up to become virtually synonymous with The Grand Ol' Opry ... and Hell, synonymous with country music itself for many years.
Of Acuff, Hank Williams was quoted saying, "He's the biggest singer this music ever knew. You booked him and you didn't worry about crowds. For drawing power in the South, it was Roy Acuff, then God."
I bet even God didn't mind playing second fiddle to Roy Acuff.
Here is a video tribute to Roy, who, with his band, The Smokey Mountain Boys, helped make a great music even greater.
Let's start with one of his best known songs, "The Wabash Cannonball."
"Mine heritage is unto me as a speckled bird, the birds round about are against her; come ye, assemble all the beasts of the field, come to devour." (Jeremiah 12:9)
I'm more familiar with Little Jimmy Dickens' version of this next one. But Roy's version is nice too.
Here's a team-up with Red Foley on another Acuff classic.
Roy frequently turned his stage over to band members, who sometimes called themselves "Roy Acuff's Jug Band."
Finally, here's a weird musical connection: In the early days of the Acuff Jug Band, a young black kid played the jugs and spoons with the group. That might have been a goofy gig, but the kid, a Nashville native named Bobby Hebb, grew up to be a serious singer who had a huge hit in 1966 with a wonderful song called "Sunny." In the '70s Hebb cut a rocking soul version of Acuff's "Night Train to Memphis."
Hat tip to T. Tex Edwards for alerting me to Roy Acuff's birthday via a Google Plus post.
Yesterday I saw an item on the Dangerous Minds blog about a "feud" between The Ramones and Sha Na Na. That in itself would make a good Wacky Wednesday. But they had it first.
While reading the post I couldn't help but notice an air of condensation on the part of writer Christopher Bickel toward Bowzer and the boys.
And the first thing to cross my mind was I know a band who would disagree ...
That of course is The Dead Milkman, whose song "In Praise of Sha Na Na" has been a favorite of mine since I first heard it 25 years ago.
Sha Na Na were the kings of Woodstock
You know, it's true deep in your heart
Greasy guys in gold lame
If only Hendrix had been so smart
And remember ...
You can move to Montana
And listen to Santana
But you still won't be
As cool as Sha Na Na
So take that, Dangerous Minds!
Of course this got me thinking about what an under-appreciated band The Dead Milkmen is.
The Dead Milkmen can wear my fez ...
These Philadelphia group got together in the early '80s, playing a light-hearted, if often fierce brand of punk rock. They rose, they thrived for awhile, and they even played the old TAC Club in Santa Fe sometime in the mid '80s. (Another storied local show I missed!) They broke up in 1995 but reformed, with three of the four original members, back in 2007 or '08.
Here's a song that actually got played a lot on MTV in the late '80s. (I still think it's cool rhyming "punk rock girl" with "Minnie Pearl," but it took me a couple of years to learn to overlook the fact that "California Dreamin' " is not a Beach Boys song.)
The early '90s grungequake remains one of my favorite periods of rock 'n' roll. Sure there was a ton of crap, and yes "Alternative Rock Radio" quickly became as pathetic as Top 40 pop or Hot New Country.
But still, it was a time of many great bands and exciting albums. And that was the period that inspired me to want to do my own radio shows.
To be honest, I wasn't all that impressed with the list by Julie Anne Exter. Too many useless bands like Bush and Stone Temple Pilots and too many obvious choices like "Jeremy" and "Smells Like Teen Spirit."
You know me I usually shoot for more obscure and more obnoxious sounds.
But Exter's piece got me thinking ... So here, in no particular order, are the top 10 songs I would choose for this theoretical '90s Alt Rock cover band. I'd definitely pay the cover charge to see any band that did decent versions of the following;
1 "Man in the Box" by Alice in Chains. This is the only song that Exter and I have in common. It's the first Alice in Chains song I ever heard and for my money, the best thing they ever did.
2 "Jack Pepsi" by TAD. As stated above,the original cover of 8-Way Santa got TAD sued. And this song, the best track from that fine album (and, in fact, the greatest of TAD's career) got the group a nice cease and desist from Pepsi Cola because they decided to use a version of the soft drink's logo when they released the song as a single.
3 "Jesus Christ Pose" by Soundgarden. I know"Black Hole Sun" was their big hit. But that dreary dirge sounded better by Steve & Eydie.This was Soundgarden at their fiercest.
4 "Jesus Built My Hotrod" by Ministry (with Gibby Haynes) Another song for the Lord ...
5 "Andres" by L7. This was Suzi Gardner's greatest moment with this band. I always wanted to know what exactly the "problem" was with long-haired Andres.
6 "Papa Won't Leave You, Henry" by Nick Cave. This is like a grim update of Bob Dylan's "A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall." But it makes Dylan's tune seem like a quaint little political morality play by comparison. There is no "Ban the Bomb" message here. It's a young man cast into a world of "lynch mobs, death squads, babies being born without brains ..." The bittersweet refrain of "Papa won't leave you, Henry" seems like nothing more than a broken promise remembered in bitter nostalgia. But the damned kid keeps going on down that road.
7 "The Wagon" by Dinosaur Jr. When this band was rocking, they sounded like an explosion that never stopped.
8 "My Name is Mud" by Primus. Les Claypool's bass-centric band created rock 'n' roll's answer to Deliverance.
9 "Buckskin Stallion Blues" by Mudhoney & Jimmie Dale Gilmore. A couple of years before anyone was talking about "alternative country," Mudhoney teamed up with Texas singer Jimmie Dale Gilmore for a split EP with Mudhoney doing a Gilmore song, Gilmore doing a Mudhoney song and the two acts teaming up on this old Townes Van Zandt tune. Made me proud to be an American.
10 "Serve the Servants" by Nirvana 'Teenage angst has paid off well. Now I'm bored and old ..." When I first heard these lyrics, the first line of the first song from In Utero -- Nirvana's much anticipated follow to Nevermind -- I though Kurt Cobain had weathered whatever psychic typhoons he'd had to endure with grace and humor .
Sunday, September 13, 2015 KSFR, Santa Fe, N.M. 10 p.m. to midnight Sundays Mountain Time Host: Steve Terrell Webcasting! 101.1 FM email me during the show! terrell(at)ksfr.org Here's the playlist
OPENING THEME: Let It Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
We Live Dangerous The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band
Heavy Honey by Left Lane Cruiser
Heebie Jeebies by The Gun Club
Flesh Eating Cocaine Blues by Daddy Long Legs
Rattle Snakin' Daddy Dave & Phil Alvin
Mississippi Drinkin' by John The Conqueror
I'm Cryin' by The Animals
I'm Insane by T-Model Ford
Don't Save it Too Long by Julia Lee & Her Boyfriends
Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White by The Standells
Chillidos de la Noche by Los Eskeletos
A Question of Temperature by Balloon Farm
Lesson of Crime by YVY
Johnny Gillette by Simon Stokes
Strychnine by The Fall
Livin' in Chaos by The Sonics
Used to Be Cool by Sons of Hercules
I Couldn't Spell !!*@! by Roy Loney & The Young Fresh Fellows
I'll Be Alright by Terrence Trent D'Arby
Psychologically Overcast by Fishbone
2 Nigs United 4 West Compton by Prince
Three Hairs and You're Mine by King Khan & The Shrines
Incarceration Casserole by Barrence Whitfield & The Savages
Man With Soul by Alex Maiorano & The Black Tales
Everybody Wanna Get Rich Rite Away by Dr. John
Meth of a Rockette's Kick by Mercury Rev
Me and Max by Harry "The Hipster" Gibson
Widow's Grove by Tom Waits
CLOSING THEME: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis
UPDATED: I corrected the date of the Sons of Royalty show! A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican September 11, 2015
Bobby Tench, Papa George, Pete Rees of Sons of Royalty
A ragtag band of British bikers on holiday are tearing through the West — from San Francisco to Santa Fe — while trying to live some crazy rock ’n’ roll dream. The tour features The Sons of Royalty, a grizzled group of rockers whose members have backed an amazing array of famous acts.
How can we stop this hog-riding menace?
Don’t stop ’em. Join ’em.
For one thing, even though they’re bound to raise some hell, they’re also raising money for charity. The Sons of Royalty will be hitting Skylight in Santa Fe next Saturday, (Sept. 19), for a night of blues-rock and good times.
The British bikers (and participants who choose to travel by car) who are taking part in the tour have agreed to pledge at least 1,000 pounds to the ChildLine Rocks program, which is a free, confidential helpline for children and teenagers in the United Kingdom, part of Great Britain’s National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. In Santa Fe, proceeds from ticket sales will go to La Luz de Santa Fe Family Shelter.
According to the Sons’ website:
“This year is the fifth Great British Invasion and sees the event head to the west of America for more Harley-based japes involving incredible rides and, quite possibly, the firing of guns (legally, of course). You’ll fly into San Francisco in mid-September and from there it’s an 11-day exploration on two wheels, taking in Yosemite, Death Valley, the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, Route 66, the Sandia Mountains, and New Mexico (Breaking Bad country).”
The trip has been dubbed “Standing on the Corner: In the Footsteps of Bobby Troup.” If you don’t get the reference, he’s the guy who wrote the song “(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66.”
Last year, the invasion was a trip through the South, including stops at Sun Studios in Memphis and actor Morgan Freeman’s Ground Zero Blues Club in Clarksdale, Mississippi. Freeman himself appeared at that event, and the Sons of Royalty website implies that he might show up this year, telling potential travelers to bring extra cash for “all the drinks you’ll want to buy Morgan Freeman.”
I dunno.
You might not be familiar with the names of the individual Sons of Royalty, who have also played together under the name the Barnes Blues Band. But they have backed several big-time stars.
Mama Royalty's baby boys
Guitarist and singer Bobby Tench, for example, has been a member of the Jeff Beck Group and he has recorded with the late Texas blues great Freddie King, Van Morrison (he played lead guitar on the Wavelength album), Eric Burdon, Humble Pie, reggae singer Junior Marvin (best known for his Clash-covered song “Police and Thieves”), and too many others to count. But having just recently seen the documentary Beware of Mr. Baker, I’m most impressed with the fact that Tench played, under the name Bobby Gass, on a 1972 Ginger Baker album (Stratavarious) with Nigerian wizard Fela Ransome-Kuti.
Keyboardist Tim Hinkley has earned a reputation as an ace studio musician, appearing on the Rolling Stones’ Some Girls album, the Who’s Quadrophenia film soundtrack, and records by R & B great Esther Phillips, Thin Lizzy, Humble Pie, Bad Company, and Alvin Lee. Hinkley also once backed Tom Waits on a British television special.
The other Sons aren’t slouches either.
The second guitarist/singer in the group, Papa George, has built a cult following as a blues artist. He started playing as a teenager at a Knightsbridge restaurant called the Borshtch ’n’ Tears. (Now that’s the blues!) And here is a local connection: In 2004 the guitarist played on the soundtrack of a movie called World Without Waves, which won the Best Southwest Film award at the Santa Fe Film Festival that year.
Sons bassist Pete Rees was a member of British bluesman (and former Thin Lizzy guitarist) Gary Moore’s band for 13 years, while drummer Darby Todd has backed the likes of Robert Plant, Ronnie Wood, and founding Animal Alan Price on stage.
The Sons of Royalty will be hitting Skylight (139 W. San Francisco St.) 7 pm Sept. 19, Tickets are $20.
Early this year, guitarist Josh Peyton and his band (wife Breezy Peyton on washboard and vocals and Ben Bussell on drums) unleashed their latest album, So Delicious, on the reconstituted Yazoo label. (The original Yazoo, which started in the 1960s, specialized in compiling old blues, hillbilly, and early jazz 78s.)
That seems appropriate for the Peyton crew. While the musicians are from Indiana, their heart is in the Mississippi Delta, and their sound harks back to those earthy sounds that came out of that region 80 years ago.
Rev. Peyton in Santa Fe a few years ago
So Delicious continues the basic sound the Big Damn Band is known for, kicking off with the chunka-chunka rhythm of “Let’s Jump a Train,” which has a guitar hook similar to that of Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Green River.” There is some (so) delicious slide guitar on “Raise a Little Hell,” while “Pot Roast and Kisses” continues Peyton’s tradition of linking romance and food. (See “Mama’s Fried Potatoes” from their 2008 album Whole Fam Damnily.)
Strangely, the most mellow song on the new album is called “Scream at the Night.” It’s downright pretty.
So Delicious is a fine album, and I’m hoping that at the Albuquerque show, the Reverend reaches back and does what I still consider the group’s greatest song: “Your Cousin’s on Cops,” which, yes, is about realizing the bad boy being busted on the TV show is a relative.
xxxx
As for The Imperial Rooster, word is the Rev. Peyton gig will be their last one for some time. They've been playing only occasionally for the last year or so.
Another thing: I just found out last night -- way after I filed the print version of this column -- that none other than Slackeye Slim will be sitting in with the Rooster -- on music saw! Video time!
Here is The Sons of Royalty's Tench and Papa George in action a couple of years ago.
Here's some Pot Roast and Kisses by Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Bad
And here's our beloved Rooster playing at last year's Muddy Roots Festival
This month marks the 122nd anniversary of the birth of Blind Lemon Jefferson (Sept. 24) and the 70th anniversary of the death of Blind Willie Johnson (Sept. 18).
Sounds like a good time to celebrate the music of blind American country bluesmen.
There have been blind musicians basically every since there has been music. But in the American South in the early part of the last century there arose a tradition in which visually-impaired blues singers proudly proclaimed their disability and added "blind" to their names.
Or at least their record companies did.
I'm not sure whether being known as "Blind" Blake or "Blind"
Willie McTell actually helped record sales in those days. But these singers and the others below created some mighty fine tunes and American music would have been much poorer without them.
Let's start with Mr. Jefferson (1893 to 1929), a Texan who, yes, was really named "Lemon." He sang gospel as well as the blues. He began recording in 1925. This one comes from 1926
Blind Blake, aka Arthur Blake (1896-1934), came from Florida or virginia, depending who you believe. He recorded about 80 tracks for Paramount in the 20s and early 30s. Here he's singing a song that's been covered by lots of blues, jazz, jugband and country singers.
Blind Willie Johnson (1897-1945) also came from Texas. Most of his songs were religious but his slide guitar was pure blues.
The other Blind Willie probably is better known, Bob Dylan said it best: "I know no one can sing the blues / Like Blind Willie McTell." McTell (1898 to 1959) hailed from Georgia. He was known for picking a 12-string guitar. Here's a snappy little murder ballad that's best known for its versions by Johnny Cash.
Blind Boy Fuller (1907-1941) was a North Carolina bluesman whose real name was Fulton Allen. He wasn't born blind, but began to lose his eyesight as a teenager. He became known for his "hokum" numbers -- i.e. dirty songs. And he was good at it. Here is one of my favorites.
My token Caucasian here, Blind Alfred Reed, (188--1956), was an influential hillbilly singer from West Virginia. This next song has been covered by Ry Cooder and The Del Lords among others. It's a true anthem of the Great Depression.
Besides blind singers, in the realm of gospel music there also have been blind vocal groups. The most famous is The Five Blind Boys of Alabama. Leader Clarence Fountain still has an active group by that name. But my favorite is Archie Brownlee & The Original Five Blind Boys of Mississippi. Brownlee was born in 1925 and died in 1960. He was discovered by Alan Lomax singing with other students at Mississippi Blind School for Negroes, which was part of Piney Woods School near Jackson, Miss. Lomax recorded them in 1937. Heres a Blind Boys classic.
If you live in Chicago and you love rock 'n' roll, chances are you're well acquainted with a cable access show called Chic-a-Go-Go. The show bills itself as "Chicago's Dance Show for Kids of All Ages."
Drawing from legendary dance programs like Soul Train and American Bandstand, as well as Chicago's own 1960s shows Kiddie-A-Go-Go and Red Hot and Blues, CHIC-A-GO-GO combines classic TV entertainment with an original, quirky style. And unlike its dance show ancestors, CHIC-A-GO-GO takes advantage of its non-commercial home on the Chicago Access Network to create a diverse TV world that does not have to focus on a single demographic. People of all ages, colors, and backgrounds, linked by their love of music, dance together in harmony on the CHIC-A-GO-GO set. The dancers, who range in age from newborns to youthful seniors, move to the latest Hip Hop music, as well as classic R&B, Rock & Roll, Punk, Funk, and all points in between.
Nobunny does it for the children
The show was the brainchild of Roctober magazine's Jake Austen after writing an article on Kiddie-A-Go-Go.
I'm not sure whether Chic-a-Go-Go is still a going concern, Neither its website nor Roctober's has been updated in more than a year.
But YouTube gives al things a measure of immortality, so on this Wacky Wednesday enjoy some of my favorite clips from Chic-a-Go-Go.
First, there's the ever delightful Nobunny who urges the kids to "Bang a gong to the Son of Sam ..." The kids here seem a little apprehensive -- except the little girl wants to squeeze his snoot.
Hunx & His Punx have played on the show many times
Neil Hamburger does his best to depress the kiddies with one of his sad country songs.
There also are interview segments with an obnoxious puppet named Lil' Ratso. Here, in this 2008 clip, Ratso meets The Cramps.
Here's an interview by Lil' Ratso with Pere Ubu's David Thompson. Thomas warns the children to stay away from musicians, and don't become a musician: "Self expression should be left to the professionals. We're the only ones who can deal with the disappointment."
Then, watch the kids dance to a song by Pere Ubu. Later there's an appearance by a band called Zolar X that sounds pretty cool
Shortly before I left my house to go do Terrell's Sound World at KSFR last night, I stumbled upon a two-part article by Steven L. Jones on the ever-bitchen Murder Ballad Monday blog: "How Charles Manson Murdered the '60s."
I've been a fan of that blog since earlier this year when I was writing about a bloody old murder ballad for a Throwback Thursday.
Murder Ballad Monday is part of The Sing Out website. Sing Out is a decades-old folk music publication, and indeed, most of the murder ballads covered there are traditional folk tunes. But not all of them.
Part one of the Manson story I found last night started out talking about an old Sonic Youth tune, "Death Valley '69" from their Bad Moon Rising album. (I got this vision of a frantic Pete Seeger having a Newport flashback and trying to unplug Sonic Youth with an ax.)
And hey, I just noticed that the first comment on Part One was none other than Rennie Sparks of The Handsome Family! (She's a fellow New Mexican too.)
Anywho, Jones' Manson pieces inspired me to slap together a set for my radio show last night, using some of the songs he talked about plus some other tunes. I just posted that set on Mixcloud.
UPDATED! You can hear the Charlie Manson set on the music player at the bottom of this post
Sunday, September 6, 2015 KSFR, Santa Fe, N.M. 10 p.m. to midnight Sundays Mountain Time Host: Steve Terrell Webcasting! 101.1 FM
email me during the show! terrell(at)ksfr.org Here's the playlist OPENING THEME: Let It Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
Let's Jump a Train by The Rev. Peyton's Big Damn Band
Lonesome Town by Eddy "The Chief" Clearwater with Los Straitjackets
Treat Her Right by Los Straitjackets with Mark Lindsay
Mister Kicks by Dave & Phil Alvin
Down and Out by Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
The Chase by Paul Preston
Adjunct Street by Barrence Whitfield & The Savages
Let's Get Wild by Rudy Grayzell
Bless You by The Devil Dogs
El Preso by Al Hurricane
Saved by The Woggles
Spin That Girl by Lovestruck
Too Much of You by Thee Fine Lines
Lemonade Man by The Electric Mess
Rickshaw Rattletrap by Churchwood
Corner of Fuck and You by The Grannies
Hawkeye the Gnu by The Bonzo Dog Band
Mother Loves Her Children by Leo Welch
Charlie Manson Murdered the 60s
Death Valley 69 by Sonic Youth with Lydia Lunch
Revolution Blues by Neil Young
Never Learn Not to Love by The Beach Boys
Cease to Exist by Charles Manson
Charles Manson Blues by The Flaming Lips
Helter Skelter by The Beatles
Rock 'n' Roll Murder by The Leaving Trains
White Light/White Heat by Lou Reed
Boom Boom/Strange Brew by Buddy Guy
Red Head Walking by Beat Happening
Psychedelic Baby by Rodd & The Librettos
Wish That I Was Dead by The Dwarves
I Want You by David Lynch
When I Wake by Holly Golightly CLOSING THEME: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis
Friday, Sept. 4, 2015 KSFR, Santa Fe, NM Webcasting! 10 p.m. to midnight Fridays Mountain Time Host: Steve Terrell 101.1 FM Email me during the show! terrel(at)ksfr.org
Here's my playlist :
OPENING THEME: Buckaroo by Buck Owens
Ring of Fire by Johnny Cash
Fiesta by ThaMuseMeant
The One That Got Away by Legendary Shack Shakers
Granny Panties by Broomdust Caravan
Marijuana the Devil's Flower by Holly Golightly & The Brokeoffs
Marijuana the Devil Flower by Johnny Price
LSD by T. Tex Edwards & Out on Parole
A Fool Such as I by Marti Brom
Honky Tonk Man by Johnny Horton
The Night That Porter Wagner Came to Town by Tabby Crabbe
