Friday, Oct. 20, 2017 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
Til the Well Runs Dry by Lara Hope & The Ark-Tones
Big Time Annie's Square by Merle Haggard
How Cold Hearted Can You Get by Hank Thompson
Mama's Fried Potatoes by Rev. Peyton's Big Damn Band
Okie's in the Pokie by Jimmy Patton
5 Minutes to Live by Joecephus & The George Jones Massacre
I Swear to God by Tyler Childers
Vandalism Spree by Hellbound Glory
Gamblin' Barroom Blues by Steve Forbert
Cadillacin' by Paul Burch
Back Side of Dallas by Jeannie C. Riley
Shandy by Kris Kristofferson
The Taker by Ryan Bingham
Good Luck by Margo Price
Bellville County Line by Beth Lee & The Breakups
Sing a Worried Song by Legendary Shack Shakers
Such is the World We Live In by Chris Hillman
DYGKD by The Ghost Wolves
Bonaparte's Retreat by Pee Wee King Bonaparte's Retreat by John Hartford
Flowers on the Wall by The Statler Brothers
You Broke My Heart by Steve Earle
Prayer by Ray Wylie Hubbard
You've Been a Good Old Wagon by David Bromberg
Aunt Peg's New Old Man by Robbie Fulks
Blues for Pilgrum by The Imperial Rooster
In the Boxcar by Joe West
You're Not My Same Sweet Baby by Chuck Prophet
Old Devil Time by Pete Seeger
Papa by Cynthia Becker
Nothing in This World for Me by Howard Armstrong
Happy Hour by Ted Hawkins CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets
Like the Santa Fe Opry Facebook page Subscribe to The Big Enchilada Podcast! CLICK HERE Steve Terrell is proud to report to the monthly Freeform American Roots Radio list
It was on this day in 1812 that Napoleon Bonaparte, decided to retreat from
Russia. In June of that year, he'd invaded with an army of 500,000
soldiers. But things didn't go well.
Fastforward to 1937: Songcatcher Supreme Alan Lomax, traveling through Kentucky,
recorded a fiddler named William Hamilton Stepp playing an old tune called
"Bonaparte's Retreat." It sounded like this:
But before the tune made it into country music, it first had an impact on
classical music. Aaron Copland used the melody for the main theme of his song
"Hoe-Down" from his 1942 ballet Rodeo. Thus William Hamilton Stepp became
rich and didn't have to work another day in his life.
Just kidding. Copland didn't give Stepp one bit of credit or a penny for the
song.
Nice guy ...
In 1950, country star Pee Wee King added words to the melody. Nothing about
burning Russian cities or starving soldiers. It was about a girl he met in a
town way down in Dixie ....
Later in 1950, pop singer Kay Starr did a snazzy, jazzy version
But my favorite version has always been by that by Glen Campbell, who turned it
into a big country hit in the mis '70s. Here's a clip from a few years later on
a TV show with Barbara Mandrell. She plays a mean steel guitar, but Campbell
plays a meaner bagpipe.
I have to mention here that The Chieftains in 1976 released an album called
Chieftains 6: Bonaparte's Retreat, the centerpiece of which is a 14-minute song called, you guessed it,
"Bonaparte's Retreat," which actually is a medley of various tunes, seemingly
unrelated to the song I've spotlighted here.
Note from 2025: This wasn't on YouTube when I first posted it. but it
is now. Enjoy!
So why didn't
Napoleon XIV
do a version of "Bonaparte's Retreat"?
Lee & Marina: I can't remember if I cried when I read about his widowed bride ...
Seventy eight years ago today, in the city of New Orleans a baby boy named Lee Harvey Oswald was born. He would grow up to change America.
As a young Marine he defected to the Soviet Union. But just a few years later he returned to the U.S. with his Russian bride.
Then, on Nov. 22, 1963, from a window of the Texas School Book Depository, he shot and killed President John F. Kennedy.
Unless you believe Oswald when he says he was just a Patsy.
Whatever the real story is, Oswald inspired some wild songs -- good, bad, ugly and beyond -- through the years.
Here are some of them. Let's start with that wigged out Texas combo, The Butthole Surfers, who to this day insist that "The Shah Sleeps in Lee Harvey's Grave."
The Skatalites recorded this instrumental named for the assassin in Jamaica in the mid '60s -- while JFK's murder was still fresh on everyone's minds.
And I would quell your endless doubt to be the lover you call with my back against the world and my ear against your wall.
I just stumbled across this little piece of outsider art, posted only a couple of days ago. I wonder if the FBI has already visited Mr. Tommy Daniels.
But this Homer Henderson classic, "Lee Harvey," which also has been recorded by The Asylum Street Spankers, T. Tex Edwards, The Rockin' Guys, Laura Cantrell, Lucy Falcon and others, is the greatest Oswald song of all.
If you're into this sort of thing, check out my Tune-up column from a few years ago in which I reviewed Norton Records' Songs from The Grassy Knoll and the Conspiracy a Go-Go compilation from Turn Me On Dead Man Records.
Sunday, Oct. 15, 2017 KSFR, Santa Fe, NM Webcasting! 10 p.m. to midnight Sundays Mountain Time Host: Steve Terrell 101.1 FM
Email me during the show! terrel(at)ksfr.org
Here's my playlist :
OPENING THEME: Let It Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
Ring the Alarm by Quintron
Golden Key by The Vagoos
Don't Go Messin' by The Molting Vultures
Get Off the Road by The Man Eaters
Society of Plants by The Blind Shake
Stranger in Me Me by The Howlin' Max Messer Show
Hit the Road Jack by The Cat
Boys by The Beatles
Why is This Commercial by Negativland
Ghost of a Texas Ladies' Man by Concrete Blonde
The Black Cat by The Tombstones
Satanas es su Nombre by Los Eskeletos
Don't Shake Me Lucifer by Roky Erikson & The Aliens
Season of the Witch by Donovan
Sunshine Superman by Husker Du
Hurdy Gurdy Man by Butthole Surfers
Burn She Devil Burn by The Cramps
I'm in Love by Satan's Little Helpers
Home is Where the Hate Is by Mary's Kids
Burying the Bodies by Pussycat & The Dirty Johnsons
Caught in the Devil's Game by The Darts
This Situation by Lucy & The Rats
Pink Stillettos by The Stillettos
Start Together by Sleater-Kinney
Never Say Never by Romeo Void
Love is All Around by Joan Jett
Lusty Little Lucy by Nick Curran & The Lowlifes
James Leg by Mark "Porkchop" Holder
Oh Sinner Man by Black Diamond Heavies
Natchez Trace by Jon Langford's Four Lost Souls
You Went Away by Phil Hayes & The Trees
Red Eye Blues by Pere Ubu
The Curtain Falls by Bobby Darin CLOSING THEME: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis
Micah Chappell, drummer for the Santa Fe band Chango, died this morning. He'd been suffering a terminal disease.
Friends and family already had been planning a benefit show for him and his wife Chris Trusnovic-Chappell, who in addition to the emotional stress, has been under financial strain because of Micah's illness.
The above poster was created by Sam Haozous last night, obviously before Micah died. Now the show is a benefit for Chris and life celebration for Micah. It's Wednesday, Oct. 18 at The Underground (the basement of Evangelo's), 200 W. San Francisco St., in downtown Santa Fe. The show starts at 9 p.m.
Playing there will be The Imperial Rooster from Espanola and The Dildonts (who I haven't heard, though I love their name.) Also there will be a silent auction offering the works of Santa Fe artists.
In addition to Wednesday's event, there is a Go Fund Me campaign to help Chris.
Friday, Oct. 13, 2017 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
Weakness by Margo Price
Blood, Sweat and Murder by Scott H. Biram
Papa Was a Steel-Headed Man by Robbie Fulks
Honky Tonk Flame by Tyler Childers
Bonapart's Retreat by Glenn Campbell
Black Cat by Tommy Collins
Single Boy by Legendary Shack Shakers
Will I Ever Feel Fine by Tommy Miles & The Milestones
They'll Know Who I Am by Silkie with JJ
Demons in Your Head by The Imperial Rooster
Demon in My Head by Joe Buck Yourself
Maple Court Tragedy by Ed Sanders
Party Dolls and Wine by Eddie Spaghetti
Cheap Motels by Southern Culture on the Skids
Bad Elevator by Beth Lee & The Breakups
Please Don't Tell Me How the Story Ends by Buddy Miller
Killer Diller Blues by The Alabama Shakes
Spider, Snaker and Little Son by Ray Wylie Hubbard
If Mama Coulda Seen Me by Steve Earle
Lucifer and The Fallen Angels by Ray Wylie Hubbard
Are You Sure Hank Done it This Way by Steve Earle
'Merica (The Good Ole USA) by Hellbound Glory
The Poor Girl's Story by Eilen Jewell
My Man's a Jolly Railroad Man by Moonshine Kate
Moonshine Kate by Fiddlin' John Carson
Old Man Trump by Ryan Harvey
The Nail by Sarah Shook & The Disarmers
Tallacatcha by Alvin Youngblood Hart
No More Crying the Blues by The Cactus Blossoms
Old Churchyard by The Wailin' Jennys
There Will Be Nights When I'm Lonely by Possessed by Paul James
Walk Through This World With Me by George Jones
My Own Peculiar Way by Willie Nelson CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets
Like the Santa Fe Opry Facebook page Subscribe to The Big Enchilada Podcast! CLICK HERE Enjoy the latest hillbilly episode HERE Steve Terrell is proud to report to the monthly Freeform American Roots Radio list
A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican Oct. 13, 2017
The arrival of a new album by Ray Wylie Hubbard is more than just getting the latest from one of your favorite songwriters. It’s like getting a message in a bottle from some shipwrecked sea dog from centuries ago, who somehow beat Poseidon in a poker game to gain immortality. Or it’s akin to stumbling across the taped confessions of an old train robber who went mad hiding out in the desert — but still has a lot of insightful stories to tell. Or maybe it’s like finding some old scroll with the original version of the Book of Revelations — before God edited all the jokes out.
Hubbard’s latest, Tell the Devil I’m Gettin’ There As Fast As I Can, is another fine revelation from the crusty old Texan, who has been on a pretty impressive roll since shortly after the turn of the century. Turning seventy hasn’t softened Hubbard’s edges. In fact, he only seems to get tougher and ornerier with age. Tell the Devil takes its place with other recent Hubbard gems like GROWL, Snake Farm, and Grifter’s Hymnal.
Like the Bible, the album starts out with the creation story — a song called “God Looked Around,” in which Hubbard, in his knowing drawl and slow-moving guitar, tells the story of the origin of the universe, Adam and Eve, and that pesky snake. My favorite part is when Adam wakes up to find a beauty with “ravishing curly raven hair” and tells God, “Whoa, Lord! You done answered my prayers.”
But the next song, “Dead Thumb King” goes right to the hoodoo, as the narrator, lest you doubt, explains he’s armed with “some dirt from Lightnin’ Hopkins’ grave,” “bones from an old black crow” and a “rattlesnake tail inside my guitar.”
With “Spider, Snaker and Little Sun,” Hubbard pays tribute to a trio of musical inspirations — “Spider” John Koerner, Dave “Snaker” Ray, and Tony “Little Sun” Glover — from the darker edges of the 1960s folk revival. “It wasn’t no clean-cut folk group,” Hubbard explains. “They looked like sinister, low-key criminals.”
Ray Wylie & son Lucas playing during SXSW 2012
at The White Horse in Austin
The rocking “Old Wolf” is about an old blues singer in some dull club where “there ain’t a lot of action around the tip jar.” Hubbard introduces the shady clientele and people who work there, including the waitress (“Her name is Maggie, but they call her ‘Black Betty/Bam a lam, bam a lam!’ ” Hubbard sings, properly feeding the spirit of Leadbelly).
And in the title song, backed by the vocals of Lucinda Williams and mainstream country star Eric Church, he tells the story of some anonymous picker who plays a sunburst Gibson in an unnamed alt-country band (they opened for Son Volt in Los Angeles!) who’s in love with a woman “who can out-cuss any man.” (Speaking of cursing women, in “Dead Thumb King,” Hubbard growls, “I sleep with a woman who cusses in French”).
But the most moving, and most disturbing, love song here is the tragic “House of the White Rose Bouquet,” a minor-key acoustic tune with a foreboding mandolin in which the narrator lives in “a house of ill repute and sin” with “a young woman of desire” who “enjoyed the company of rakish men.” I won’t reveal what happens in this story, but it doesn’t end well.
The Prince of Darkness is the star of a five-minute picaresque tale called “Lucifer and the Fallen Angels.” He’s a hitchhiker who holds up Nervous Charlie’s Fireworks and All-Night Liquor Store, and may have killed a clerk in the process. But he also offers Hubbard some good advice about trying to get a publishing deal in Nashville. “Why go to Nashville when you ain’t never going to be mainstream?” the Devil advises.
I have the feeling that Lucifer’s not the first person to tell Hubbard that. But I don’t think he really cares, at least not anymore. And neither do his fans — as long as we can still hear that snake rattling from inside his guitar. Ray Wylie Hubbard’s website is www.raywylie.com. And check his Twitter feed at www.twitter.com/raywylie.
Also recommended:
* So You Wannabe an Outlaw by Steve Earle & The Dukes. Let’s cut to the chase: This is the best Steve Earle album in well over a decade. Through most of the 1990s and into the first part of this century, Earle consistently delivered some of the finest country music, alt-country, country-rock, or whatever you want to call it.
But at some point his albums started becoming less and less interesting. It’s tempting to say — as others have — that it was when his records started getting more and more political, but that’s actually kind of lazy. Some of his political songs from the early aughts — “Rich Man’s War,” “John Walker’s Blues” (a sympathetic look at John Walker Lindh, the “American Taliban”), and my personal favorite, the cheeky “F the CC” — are excellent protest songs. But somewhere during his Jerusalem/The Revolution Starts Now period, the magic seemed to start wearing off.
But So You Wannabe an Outlaw is hot stuff. It’s definitely his most country album. Country fiddles and steel guitar dominate several cuts and there are vocal contributions from Willie Nelson on the title song, and, even better, from Johnny Bush (he wrote “Whiskey River,” kids) on “Walkin’ in LA,” which may be the honky-tonkiest song you’ve ever heard by Earle.
Other highlights include the jumping “The Firebreak Line,” an ode to hotshot forest firefighters; “If Mama Coulda Seen Me,” which, with its nasty guitar hook and prominent fiddle, can be considered as Earle’s “Mama Tried”; and “This Is How It Ends,” a break-up song that has country star Miranda Lambert providing heartbreaking harmonies.
By all means, check out the deluxe version of this album, which includes four covers of Willie and Waylon Jennings songs from the 1970s outlaw era. These aren’t groundbreaking by any means, but Earle’s joyful delivery makes for a fine tribute.
Steve Earle will appear in a benefit concert for the Jesuit Refugee Service/USA with Joan Baez, Patty Griffin, and other special guests at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 13, at the KiMo Theatre, 423 Central Ave. SW in Albuquerque. Check for ticket availability at www.kimotickets.com. Let's have some videos!
It's a live version of "Spider, Snake and Little Sun"
This is the official video for "House of the White Rose Bouquet"
Here's "The Firebreak Line"
And what do you know, I found Steve Earle and Ray doing "Pancho and Lefty" together
Here's a hillbilly singer from the 1920s who deserves more recognition. She was born Rosa Lee Carson but she was known professionally as "Moonshine Kate.
Born in Atlanta 108 years ago yesterday, (Happy birthday, Kate!) she was the daughter of one of the biggest hillbilly stars of his time, Fiddlin' John Carson.
Carson made her recording debut in June 1925 at the age of fifteen, when she accompanied her father on guitar on four songs for OKeh Records. At the session she also recorded two solo sides, "The Lone Child," a Tin Pan Alley song about a ragged, wandering orphan boy, and "Little Mary Phagan," a sentimental ballad, composed in 1915 by her father, in response to the Leo Frank case. For the next nine years Carson accompanied her father and the Virginia Reelers on tour and on recording sessions in Atlanta, New York, New Orleans, Louisiana, and Camden, New Jersey. In addition to the recordings she made with her father, she also recorded a handful of solos and duets on which she sang lead, including "The Drinker's Child," "Texas Blues," "The Last Old Dollar Is Gone," and "The Poor Girl Story." In 1928 Polk Brockman, OKeh's Atlanta records distributor and talent scout, gave Carson the nickname Moonshine Kate to enhance her hillbilly image, and she embraced it proudly for the rest of her life.
Moonshine Kate died in 1992, mostly forgotten except for by record collectors and fans of proto-country music.
Here are some of her songs. Let's start with "The Poor Girl's Story."
Here's a duet with her dad, which sports the best title in the bunch: "Ain't No Bugs on Me."
This one's my favorite: "My Man's a Jolly Railroad Man."
Here's the murder ballad about "Little Mary Phagan." It pins the murder on Leo Frank, who many now believe was framed for the crime because he was a Jew in the South.
True confession: I only got turned on to Moonshine Kate recently. The delightful Eilen Jewell (she's a former Santa Fe resident, ya'll!) covered Kate's "The Poor Girl's Story" on her latest album Down Hearted Blues. And here it is:
And hey, there's not one but two Moonshine Kate songs on the latest exciting Big Enchilada podcast -- "Railroad Man" by Kate, "Poor Girl" by Eilen. Check that out HERE
On Oct. 11, 1905 Fred Trump, the son of German immigrants, was born in The Bronx in New York City.
Happy birthday, Fred!
He's best known today for being the father of the current President of these United States, Donald J. Trump. (The elder Trump died in 1999, so he never got to see his son in the White House.)
But in 1950, when Donald was just a tiny orange tot, Daddy Fred crossed paths with a major figure in American music.
Woody Guthrie, in December 1950, signed a lease at the Beach Haven apartment complex, built by Fred Trump's company near Coney Island.
And soon, the Dust Bowl Balladeer began hating his landlord mainly because of the "bigotry that pervaded his new, lily-white neighborhood, which he’d taken to calling `Bitch Havens.' ”
That's the observation of Will Kaufman, a professor of American literature and culture at the University of Central Lancashire in Britain. Kaufman discovered some previously unpublished Guthrie lyrics and poetry while doing research at the Woody Guthrie Center’s archives in Oklahoma.
"Guthrie’s two-year tenancy in one of Fred Trump’s buildings and his relationship with the real estate mogul of New York’s outer boroughs produced some of Guthrie’s most bitter writings ..." Kaufman wrote inThe Conversationin January 2016. "These writings have never before been published; they should be, for they clearly pit America’s national balladeer against the racist foundations of the Trump real estate empire."
Woody G
Those writings include:
I suppose Old Man Trump knows Just how much Racial Hate he stirred up In the bloodpot of human hearts When he drawed That color line Here at his Eighteen hundred family project
And, Kaufman wrote, Guthrie reworked his song “I Ain’t Got No Home” into a "blistering broadside against his landlord":
Beach Haven ain’t my home! I just can’t pay this rent! My money’s down the drain! And my soul is badly bent! Beach Haven looks like heaven Where no black ones come to roam! No, no, no! Old Man Trump! Old Beach Haven ain’t my home!
There is no known recording of Woody singing this song. But shortly after Kaufman published his findings, singer Ryan Harvey, along with Ani DeFranco and Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello put it to music under the title "Old Man Trump." using the melody of “I Ain’t Got No Home.”
Sunday, Oct. 8, 2017 KSFR, Santa Fe, NM Webcasting! 10 p.m. to midnight Sundays Mountain Time Host: Steve Terrell 101.1 FM
Email me during the show! terrel(at)ksfr.org
Here's my playlist :
OPENING THEME: Let It Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
Monkey Bizness by Pere Ubu
Johnny & Bo by The Dustaphonics
The Straight Life by Mudhoney
Tanzen Gehn by The Dirtbombs
The Fox by Sleater-Kinney
Not a Sausage by The Mobbs
Blow My Mind by Hollywood Sinners
The Right Girl by The Fleshtones
One More Time by Stinky Lou & The Goon Mat
Springtime for Argentina by Billy Joe Winghead
Power Child by The Night Beats
Nothing New to Trash Like You by The Brian Jonestown Massacre
Web by Thee Oh Sees
Ghosts by Travel in Space
I Saw Ghosts by Pierre Omer's Swing Revue
Contort Yourself by James Chance
Boob Scotch by Bob Log III
Lay Down by Left Lane Cruiser
Dirty Traveler by Lonesome Shack
Don't Mess With My Mind by The Stomachmouths
Here Come the Mushroom People by The Molting Vultures
Gypsy Woman by The Snails
Terrible Man by Escobar
London Blues by Suicide Generation
Little Girl by John & Jackie
Hootie Sapperticker by Barbara & The Boys
Take Me Me Away by Willis Earl Beal
Midnight Blues by Detroit Cobras
Drunk on Destruction by Mark Lanegan
Snake Behind Glass by Jon Langford's Four Lost Souls
Overtime by Benjamin Booker
Invitation to the Blues by Tom Waits
Hyper Real by Negativland CLOSING THEME: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis
Sunday, Oct. 8, 2017 KSFR, Santa Fe, NM Webcasting! 8 am to 10 am Sundays Mountain Time Substitute Host: Steve Terrell 101.1 FM
Email me during the show! terrel(at)ksfr.org Here's the playlist :
Tone the Bells Easy by The Gospel Songbirds featuring Andrew Cheairs
All Wrap Up in One by Otis Wright
Trying to Do Thy Will by The Shaw Singers
Consider Me by Annette May
Nobody Knows by Robert Brown & The Sons of The South
He's the Same Today by The Kelly Brothers
Ain't That a Shame by The Sensational Saints of Ohio
Cloud Hanging Low (Part 2) by The Missionaires
Angels by Professor Johnson & His Gospel Singers
Viet Nam by The Dymanic Hughes Gospel Singers
I Want to Go Home by The Drexall Singers
Children Are You Ready by The Violinairres
Walls of Jericho by The Gospel Challengers
Where the Sun Never Goes Down by Willie Mae Williams
Soldiers of the Cross by Rev. Lonnie Farris
The Titantic by Bessie Jones, Hobart Smith and the Georgia Sea Singers
God is Ruler from Above by The Beckenridge Singers
Creep Along Moses by Mavis Staples If you liked the music I played during the first hour of this show, you'd probably enjoy this classic Big Enchilada podcast episodeSteve Terrell's Gospel Favorites
The Old Lady and The Devil by Bill & Belle Reed
Movement by Phillip Roebuck
I'm 900 Miles from Home by Fiddlin' John Carson
The Indian Tom Tom by Big Chief Henry's Indian String Band
Mole in the Ground by Bascom Lamar Lunsford
Casey Bill by Earle McDonald's Original Louisville Jug Band
Hollywood Rag by Cannon's Jug Stompers
My Man's a Jolly Railroad Man by Moonshine Kate
Last Kind Words by Geeshie Wiley
Louis Collins by Mississippi John Hurt
Skin and Bones by Jean Ritchie
Insane Crazy Blues by Memphis String Band John Henry by Earl Johnson & His Dixie Entertainers
Henry Lee by Dick Justice
Blues in a Bottle by Prince Albert Hunt's Texas Ramblers
I Wanna Hot Dog for My Roll by Butterbeans & Susie God's Gold Ring by The Grizzly Souvenirs
Friday, Oct. 6, 2017 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
Bloody Mary Morning by The Supersuckers
Corn Money by Defibulators
All American Girl by Angry Johnny & The Killbillies
Garden of Delights by Legendary Shack Shakers
Wish I Was in Love by Southern Culture on the Skids
Diamond Joe by East River String Band
Two Hands by Wanda Jackson
Black Rose by Waylon Jennings
Flyin' Saucers Rock 'n' Roll by Billy Lee Riley
High Low and Lonesome by Dinosaur Truckers
Ring of Fire by Raw Death
The Losing Kind by Joecephus & The George Jonestown Massacre
Hee Haw Hell by Dash Rip Rock
Git Back in the Truck by Hickoids
Anything But Goodbye by Tommy Miles & The Milestones
Bass Player is a Junkie by Joe West
One Road More by Butch Hancock & Jimmie Dale Gilmore
TRIBUTE TO THE AMERICAN WAITRESS
Tip That Waitress by Loudon Wainwright III
The Beautiful Waitress by Terry Allen
She's a Waitress (and I'm in Love) by 5 Chinese Brothers
Waitress Song by Freakwater
Mr. Sellack by The Roches
Waitret Please Waitret by Kinky Friedman with Little Jewford
Highway Cafe by Jesse Dayton
I Won't Back Down by Johnny Cash
Wildflowers by Chris Hillman
End of the Line by The Traveling Wilburys
Old, Fat and Stinky by The Imperial Rooster
Midnight Train by David Rawlings
Dead Thumb King by Ray Wylie Hubbard CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets
Like the Santa Fe Opry Facebook page Subscribe to The Big Enchilada Podcast! CLICK HERE Steve Terrell is proud to report to the monthly Freeform American Roots Radio list
Born in Pocahontas, Arkansas exactly 84 years ago (Oct. 5, 1933), Riley was the son of a sharecropper who learned to play guitar from Afican-American farm hands.
Riley, who died in 2009, never got as big as Elvis or Carl Perkins or Jerry Lee Lewis (who played piano on his biggest hit), or other Sun Records stars.
But Billy Lee Riley made rockabilly go intergalactic.
It was a crazy novelty song he recorded for Sun Records in 1957 called "Flying Saucer Rock 'n' Roll" -- a tune that forever cemented the cosmic links between UFOs, 1950s rock 'n' roll, tacky sci-fi movies and Cold War paranoia.
You must realize that Commies and aliens were out to destroy America -- and some truly believed that a bunch of wild-eyed hillbillies playing savage, unholy music were leading the way.
Here's proof:
But it in the years before "Flying Saucers," in the early 1950s, Riley gigged around Arkansas in various bands, including one called The Dixie Ramblers, which included Cowboy Jack Clement. Clement and fellow Rambler Slim Wallace recorded a couple of sides by Riley in 1956, which impressed Sam Phillips, who released a single for Sun Records.
Another classic Riley song for Sun was "Pearly Lee."
"Pearly Lee was the flip side of "Red Hot," a song originally recorded by Billy "The Kid" Emerson for Sun Records. (Confession: The first version I heard was the mid-60s cover by Sam the Sham & The Pharaohs.)
Bob Dylan, who befriended Riley decades later, thought "Red Hot" was was Billy Lee's masterpiece. Here's what Dylan said about the song just a couple of years ago at the 2015 Grammy Awards:
"So Billy became what is known in the industry -- a condescending term, by the way -- as a one-hit wonder. But sometimes, just sometimes, once in a while, a one-hit wonder can make a more powerful impact than a recording star who's got 20 or 30 hits behind him. And Billy's hit song was called "Red Hot," and it was red hot. It could blast you out of your skull and make you feel happy about it. Change your life. "
And later, Riley would even make a music video for the sexy, sleazy Scopitone company. (I've featured Scopitone a couple of times HERE and HERE
In American song, the waitress is a friend and frequently a fantasy lover of truckdrivers, starry-eyed poets, lonesome drifters and other lost souls on the Lost Highway.
She's appeared in the work of some of my favorite songwriters. Below are just a few examples
Loudon Wainwright III has some advice that any waitress would appreciate in a song "for Patty and all the girls ..." Tip that waitress!"
The Roches sing "Mr. Sellack" from the point of view of a waitress having to grovel to get her job back.
Here's a classic by Santa Fe's own Terry Allen, "The Beautiful Waitress."
Sometimes waitresses fantasize about their customers, at least in the fantasies of Dan Hicks. Here's "Sweetheart (Waitress at a Donut Shop)," sung by Maryann Price.
Kinky Friedman wrote at least a couple of songs about waitresses. Here's "Waitret Please Waitret."
But Kinky's greatest waitress song is "Highway Cafe" sung here by Tom Waits on a Kinky tribute album.
Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017 KSFR, Santa Fe, NM Webcasting! 10 p.m. to midnight Sundays Mountain Time Host: Steve Terrell 101.1 FM
Email me during the show! terrel(at)ksfr.org
Here's my playlist :
OPENING THEME: Let It Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
Dispatch from Mar-a-Largo by L7
Treat Her Right by Los Straitjackets starring Mark Lindsey
Crime of Love by Jack Oblivian
Sheela Na Gig by PJ Harvey
Valley of the Wolves by The Ghost Wolves
Makin' Love by The Sloths
Headin' For the Texas Border by Flamin' Groovies
Sorrow Avenue by The Howlin' Max Messer Show
Just Dropped in to See What Condition My Condition Was in by Mojo Nixon
Warm Hands (Freedom Returned) by Ty Segall
Mountains of the Moon by The Grateful Dead
Night Expo by Thee Oh Sees
I'll Take It by James Leg
Captain of the Creeps by Oh! Gunquit
Billy by Boss Hog
You'll Bring Me Flowers by The Darts
Hey Little Girl by The Dead Boys
I'm the Unforgiver by The Masonics
Monkey With Your Tail by The Cramps
Let it All Out by The Movements
Corner Remix by The Grannies
I Am Trying to Break Your Heart by J.C. Brooks & The Uptown Sound
Welfare Bread by King Khan & The Shrines
If I Ever Get Home Before Dark by Gogol Bordello
Happiness by Lisa Germano
I Thought He Was Dead by Jon Langford's Four Lost Souls
Loser by Family in Mourning (with Lydia Lunch)
My Man is a Mean Man by Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings CLOSING THEME: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis
This month's show, "Cow Tippin' "will knock you off your feet. Especially if you're of the bovine persuasion. Sit back and enjoy another fine hillbilly episode of The Big Enchilada!
Friday, Sept. 29, 2017 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
Diggy Liggy Lo by Doug Kershaw
She Gave Up on Herself by Miss Leslie
Who Shot Sam by George Jones
I Had My Hopes Up High by Joe Ely
I'm a Little Mixed Up by Eilen Jewell
5 Minutes to Live by Joecephus & The George Jonestown Massacre
(Sing a) Worried Song by Legendary Shack Shakers
Twelve Gates by Joe West
I Like to Sleep Late in the Morning by David Bromberg
All of the Monkeys Ain't in the Zoo by Tommy Collins
If You Ain't Livin' You Ain't Lovin' by Faron Young
Carolyn by Merle Haggard
You Better Not Do That by Tommy Collins
No One Likes Me by The Imperial Rooster
White Trash by Bottle Rockets
Precious Memories by The Blasters
May The Bird of Paradise Fly Up Your Nose by Little Dickens
I'm Just a Honky by The Ex-Husbands
White Man's World by Jason Isbell
Tell the Devil I'm Gettin' There as Fast as I Can by Ray Wylie Hubbard with Lucinda Williams and Eric Church
Walk Right Back by Chris Hillman
Take a Message to Mary by The Everly Brothers
Stoplight Kisses by The Cactus Blossoms
Lay You Down by Nikki Lane
Ol' Dude with an Attitude by Tommy Miles
You Remind Me / 13 Roses by Beth Lee & The Breakups
All Apologies by Iron Horse
Way Down in My Soul by Zephaniah Ohora
What's the Score by Don Williams
Streets of Baltimore by Del McCoury Band
Guess I Got It Wrong by Robbie Fulks CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets
Like the Santa Fe Opry Facebook page Subscribe to The Big Enchilada Podcast! CLICK HERE Steve Terrell is proud to report to the monthly Freeform American Roots Radio list
A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican Sept. 29, 2017
Ty's most recent album cover
When I was a boy, back before rock ’n’ roll became “art” and recording sessions took on extravagant budgets that dwarfed the gross national product of some emerging nations, you could count on bands like The Beatles or The Rolling Stones or The Beach Boys to release a couple of albums a year, sometimes more. But by the 1970s, it became standard practice for bands to take two years or more to make an album. Thus, in recent years I’ve come to sincerely respect musicians like Ty Segall and John Dwyer of Thee Oh Sees, both of whom seem maniacally driven to make their work available to people who want it — even if their marketing strategy (I’m using that term sarcastically) defies conventional music-biz wisdom.
Take Segall, who is coming to Santa Fe next week. This California kid has released more than a dozen new-material studio albums over the past decade, plus a couple of singles compilations, a handful of live albums, a nine-song EP of T. Rex covers, and various side projects. That’s downright brain-boggling, considering the boy just turned thirty a few months ago. If nothing else, you have to admire his work ethic.
Segall’s ever-growing body of work includes two self-titled albums: one from 2008 on Castle Face Records (which includes his immortal “Pretty Baby, You’re So Ugly”) and one released this year on Drag City.
The Segall album of which the new one most reminds me is Slaughterhouse, a 2012 pounder released under the name Ty Segall Band. And this comparison is a mighty compliment. Slaughterhouse, which packed more guitar fire and fury (where have I heard this phrase lately?) than anything Segall’s done since, is hands-down my favorite Ty album.
The cover of the 2008 self-titled Ty Segall album
This year’s Ty Segall comes pretty close. It’s produced by none other than Steve Albini, the Chicago-based studio guru best known for his aggressive, stripped-down sonic attack. (Think Pixies, Jesus Lizard, Nirvana’s In Utero.) Come to think about it, this record sounds more like a Steve Albini album than most of his productions I’ve heard in the past couple of decades.
The opening track, “Break a Guitar,” is a harbinger, with guitars screaming for mercy. “Thank You Mr. K” is Segall at his most rocked-out. “Freedom” starts a little soft, but it doesn’t take long for the guitars to roar. Segall’s voice in recent recordings has drifted toward Marc Bolan territory, but on the “The Only One,” it reminds me a bit of John Lennon on the verge of a primal scream, fronting Nirvana.
But not everything here is raw and rowdy. Segall is nothing if not versatile. “Orange Color Queen” starts out with folky guitars before settling into a ’70s British soft-rock groove. “Talkin’ ” features a slow, lilting, almost country melody that sounds closer to The Grateful Dead than anyone ever dreamed Segall would get. And speaking of The Dead, the 10-minute-plus “Warm Hands (Freedom Returned)” is a sprawling, constantly-changing excursion that dips into zones of punk, psychedelia, and metal. But somewhere near the halfway point, the songs seem to melt away, leaving just a quiet, noodling interplay of instruments and feedback. In the haze you can imagine the sweet-faced ghost of Jerry Garcia leading you back to the cosmic path to Terrapin Station.
The thing I love most about this album is that Ty Segall continues to amaze and surprise me. So check him out, and know if you don’t like this one, a new album likely will be here sooner than you’d think.
Ty Segall performs at Meow Wolf (1352 Rufina Circle). Doors open 8 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 6. Tickets are $22, $25 at the door. Opening will be Flat Worms. Sorry, kiddies, only those twenty-one or older will be admitted. (What kind of message does that send to the children? I think it’s “Kids, stay home!”) For more information, visit www.meowwolf.com or call 505-395-6369. Also recommended:
* Orc by Thee Oh Sees. This group deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as Ty Segall when you’re talking about prolific musicians. It was only about a year ago I was marveling at their album A Weird Exits, which came right on the heels of a live album. And after Exits they released what’s basically a six-song EP, called An Odd Entrances, which included an eight-minute song called “Nervous Tech (Nah John)” which is credited to Miles Davis, based on the great jazzman’s “Go Ahead John.”
On Orc, head Oh See Dwyer seems to lean a little heavier on electronica than normal, though the basic thrust of the music is still centered on his crazy guitar. That sure is the case with the frantic first song, “The Static God,” which kicks off with rapid-fire drums and Dwyer’s guitar, which sounds as if it’s about to explode. The next track slows down only slightly, with the guitar playfully bouncing off the whizzing, fizzing keyboards (also played by Dwyer) that sound like a Martian trying to play “96 Tears.”
Some songs, like “Animated Violence” and “Drowned Beast,” are mostly heavy and sludgy, while others are lighter and almost breezy, such as “Keys to the Castle” — at least parts of it. All numbers, “Castle” included, are subject to sudden changes in tempo, tone, atmosphere, and direction. And, of course, all are subject to Dwyer’s signature yelps, followed by him trying to murder his guitar.
The most interesting tune here is “Jettisoned,” which features verses with a Motown-like melody, with Dwyer singing in his finest whispered falsetto. The verses are soft, though these are momentary lulls. You can hear Dwyer’s restrained guitar itching to attack — as it does with wild gusto in the instrumental parts.
Some videos for ya
This is the official video for "Break a Guitar."
And here's Thee Oh Sees performing "Animated Violence" live
He was a soldier, a preacher and a honky tonk singer. He was an Okie who helped shape what became known as The Bakersfield Sound, recording a bunch of singles in the 1950s with a lead guitarist named Buck Owens. He wrote hits for Merle Haggard, Faron Young and Mel Tillis. Haggard wrote a song about him.
He was born Leonard Raymond Sipes, born Sept. 28, 1930 in Bethany, Okla. just outside of Oklahoma City. But he would become better known under his stage name, Tommy Collins. He would have been 87 today, but he died in 2000 before he reached 70.
I first became familiar with Collins in the mid '60s from his guest appearances on my favorite syndicated country music show, The Buck Owens Ranch. His songs were funny and a little suggestive. I thought he sounded like another Okie hero of mine, Roger Miller.
But he also had a serious side to his songwriting. Later, he'd write the dark tale of adultery called "Carolyn," which Haggard would turn into a hit.
Let's celebrate Leonard's birthday with some songs he did with Buck and The Buckaroos on the Owens show. Buck plays lead guitar on this one.
Here is Collins' version of "Carolyn." (I still like Haggard's version best.)
Once again some self-proclaimed Bible expert gave an exact date -- Saturday, September 23, 2017 -- when the world would go KABLOOEY as foretold by the ancients.
And now, this funky dude, "researcher" David Meade, says he made a slight miscalculation. The end will come in October. Meade now says.
That reminds me of a friend of mine who staunchly believed that Y2K would lead to a meltdown of civilization. When I chided him about this on Jan. 2, 2000, he said, "Well now I hear it's going to happen in a couple of months ..."
The history of religions, cults and weird beliefs in America (and I assume elsewhere) is full of Doomsdays that turned out to be duds. There are too many numskulls who believe this crap -- though there probably are too many of us who love making fun of it.
And a lot of musicians in recent decades have created a lot of songs dealing with the end of the world.
Here are some of my favorites.
Let's start with The Jefferson Airplane's greatest stab at apocalypse rock, "The House at Pooneil Corners." It was the final cut on their 1968 Crown of Creation album. The one with the mushroom cloud.
Everything someday will be gone except silence Earth will be quiet again Seas from clouds will wash off the ashes of violence Left as the memory of men There will be no survivor my friend Suddenly everyone will look surprised Stars spinning wheels in the skies Sun is scrambled in their eyes While the moon circles like a vulture
This one by R.E.M. is overplayed, but I still love it. In contrast to the stern sincerity of The Jefferson Airplane, Michael Stipe dripped with irony as he rattled off the lyrics:
Six o'clock, T.V. hour, don't get caught in foreign tower Slash and burn, return, listen to yourself churn Lock him in uniform, book burning, bloodletting Every motive escalate, automotive incinerate Light a candle, light a motive, step down, step down Watch your heel crush, crush, uh oh
Tom Waits caught a midnighjt boxcar to Pooneil Corner on "Earth Died Screaming," the first song of his 1992 masterpiece, Bone Machine. There was thunder There was lightning Then the stars went out And the moon fell from the sky It rained mackerel It rained trout And the great day of wrath has come And here's mud in your big red eye The poker's in the fire And the locusts take the sky And the earth died screaming While I lay dreaming of you
Here's a lesser-known song by a lesser-known artist, Phoebe Legere. "Armageddon a Go-Go" appeared on her 2002 album Last Tango in Bubbleland.
The anchor man has seven eyes Seven horns and seven ties He says "The end is near In fact, it's here." The sky rolls up and disappears ...
But more than 50 years later, my favorite is still the classic by the late Skeeter Davis. Technically, "End of the World" is not literally about the destruction of the planet Earth. There are no stars spinning wheels in the sky or raining mackerel or seven-eyed anchor men. But Skeeter's sweet voice and sad eyes tell a story of personal apocalypse that still makes me shudder sometimes.
Here's a live TV performance of Skeeter Davis singing her greatest hit.
Sunday, Sept. 24 , 2017 KSFR, Santa Fe, NM Webcasting! 10 p.m. to midnight Sundays Mountain Time Host: Steve Terrell 101.1 FM
Email me during the show! terrel(at)ksfr.org
Here's my playlist :
OPENING THEME: Let It Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
Mess Around by Ray Charles
When You Stop Loving Me by Thee Headcoatees
Hangin' on a String by Question Mark & The Mysterians
Human Lawn Dart by James Leg Oh Sinnerman by Black Diamond Heavies
Mon Nom by The Yawpers
Eleggua by Dr. John
God is a Bullet by Concrete Blonde
Hey Pendejo by Chuck E. Weiss
Break a Guitar by Ty Segall
Some Kind of Kick by The Things Heavy Load by Phil Hayes & The Trees
Come Ride With Me by The Black Lips
Drowned Beast by Thee Oh Sees
Go Wild by Travel in Space
AROUND THE WORLD IN A DAZE Globalquerque was this weekend. But the annual Fiesta Fela is coming up!
La Muerte En Quillagüa by Pascuala Ilabaca y Fauna
Makiyage by Bideew Bou Bes
Centinela by Bostick & Fussible
Aseni by Orlando Julius
Vodka is Poison by Golem
Antory Peca by Cankisou
Zombie by Fela Kuti
Walking on Burning Coal by Gogol Bordello
Love Letters by Dex Romweber Duo with Cat Power
Change for the World by Charles Bradley
Mean Old World by Sam Cooke CLOSING THEME: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis
Friday, Sept. 22, 2017 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
War Whoop (Chief Paduke's Revenge) by Legendary Shack Shakers
Keep on Truckin' by Hot Tuna
Second One to Know by Chris Stapleton
I Need Me (a Whole Lot More Than I Need You) by Miss Leslie
Cathead Biscuits and Gravy by Nancy Apple with Rob McNurlin
The Sound of Laughter by Jocephus & The George Jonestown Massacre
Callin' My Name by Lara Hope
Rag Mama Rag by the Band
At the Darktown Strutters Ball by Hoosier Hot Shots
Hungover Again by The Imperial Rooster
Deeper in Your Love by Dan Whitaker & The Shinebenders
Six Pack of Beer by Hank III
Blue Moon of Kentucky by Reverend Beat-Man
Alien Baby by DM Bob & The Deficits
Waiting at the Turnpike by Dad Horse Experience
Arizona Rose by The Waco Brothers
Drunk by Noon by Sally Timms
New Old John Robertson by Chris Hillman
Traveling Man by Dolly Parton
Between Jennings and Jones by Jamey Johnson
Sunset Highway by Steve Earle
I'm a Little Mixed Up by Eilen Jewell
Fun All Night by The Banditos
Keep Your Mouth Shut by Beth Lee & The Breakups
Dysfunction by Joe West
St. Pete Jail by Panama Red
Vote for Me, My Name is Buddy Max by Buddy Max
House of the White Rose Bouquet by Ray Wylie Hubbard
Cumberland Gap by David Rawlings
Get Thee Gone by Geraldine Fibbers
Whispering Pines by Johnny Horton
Divers Are Out Tonight by Porter Wagoner
Given to Me by Southern Culture on the Skids
A Kiss at the End of the Rainbow by Mitch & Mickey CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets
Like the Santa Fe Opry Facebook page Subscribe to The Big Enchilada Podcast! CLICK HERE Steve Terrell is proud to report to the monthly Freeform American Roots Radio list
