TWO SPECIAL SETS ON TONIGHT'S SF OPRY

Tonight on the Santa Fe Opry, I'll do a segment to celebrate the rescue of the Chilean miners.

Also I'll commemorate the late great Solomon Burke.

In Northern New Mexico and parts of Albuqueruqe, you can tune in at KSFR, 101.1 FM on your FM dial. If you're out of state or out of range, don't go out of your mind. Find it on the Internet HERE .

The show starts at 10 pm Mountain Time.

TERRELL'S TUNEUP: FLIGHT OF THE BLACK ANGELS

A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
October 15, 2010

Once again, The Black Angels deliver a psychedelic whump.

With Phosphene Dream, their third full-length album, these cosmic avengers from deep in the heart of Texas offer a more varied sound than on their previous albums. The songs are shorter too. No 16- or 18-minute sonic odysseys like they had on Directions to See a Ghost and Passover.

Frontman Alex Maas sounds more confident than ever — though he still reminds me somewhat of Jim James of My Morning Jacket.

But make no mistake. As I realized the first time I ever heard The Angels — playing at a Roky Erickson Ice Cream Social during SXSW a couple of years ago — these guys play psychedelic music in the finest sense of the word.

Like Roky’s music, this is not the fairy-fey flower-power fluff that passes for psychedelic in some deluded circles. These angel-headed hipsters play intense, throbbing, hypnotic excursions to inner worlds — true to the song that gave them their name, “The Black Angel’s Death Song” by The Velvet Underground.


Something to ponder: if Erickson wanted to make an album with a young Austin band, he should have done it with The Black Angels, not Okkervil River — as he did on his last album, True Love Cast Out All Evil. That would have been a far more powerful team. (The Angels have backed Erickson in concert. Allegedly, there’s a DVD of that in the works, and you can find videos of live songs on YouTube.)

Back to Phosphene Dream — what we have here indeed is trippy. But not all trips are happy affairs. In fact, some are downright scary. And I believe there used to be a term — “bummer” — to describe chemically induced unpleasantness. The Angels have song titles like “River of Blood” and “Bad Vibrations,” which I guarantee will never be used in a Sunkist commercial. “Drink her last tear/Yeah you die for your dear/Bad vibes around her/She’s eating hearts again,” Maas sings in “Bad Vibrations.”

But no, this record is no bummer by any means. In fact, it makes me happy. Are varied than ever. There’s more attention to melody, some of which is actually catchy. And less shoegazing and more toe-tapping.

“Telephone,” which the Angels recently performed on the Late Show With David Letterman, clocks in at less than two minutes. But it’s a minute and 59 seconds worth of sheer fun — a snazzy little garage rocker with British Invasion overtones.

“Sunday Afternoon” even has a little Texas funk in it. I could easily imagine Hundred Year Flood having a go at this one. “Yellow Elevator #2” starts out with a bass line right out of The Zombies’ “Time of the Season,” and a cheesy keyboard right out of the B-52’s “Rock Lobster” somehow evolves into a Beatles vibe. The end reminds me of “I Want You (She’s So Heavy) — and all this unfolds in less than three minutes.

What is it with The Angels’ strange obsession with snipers? On their first album, Passover, they had a song called “The Sniper at Heaven’s Gate.” Phosphene Dream ends with a disturbingly happy-sounding little number called “The Sniper.”

“Phosphene” refers to seeing lights when your eyelids are closed. Close your eyes and listen to this album. See where the lights lead you..

Also recommended:

* Slovenly Records Sampler 2010 by various artists. Don’t say I never gave ya nothin’. HERE is a link to a free 55-song mp3 sampler of punk, garage, and weird noises from Slovenly Records, a Reno, Nevada, company. The only catch is that you have to sign up for its email list.

Slovenly’s not very well known as a label, and many of the acts on this sampler are not known at all. But scattered among the artists here are several impressive names from many countries.

From Great Britain there’s Billy Childish and his latest band, Musicians of the British Empire. There are Wau y Los Arrrghs!!! and Hollywood Sinners from Spain and King Automatic, the French one-man garage band. And from these United States are Black Lips and Reigning Sound.

Some of my favorite songs are tracks by bands I had never heard of. There’s a version of the Spider-Man theme (from the old cartoon show) by a Spanish band called Los Pataconas.

“Dyn-o-mite” by the now-defunct Ape City R&B, a Washington-state band influenced by the Angry Samoans, among others, is raw snot rock with echoes of long-forgotten ’60s garage groups. Electric Crush from San Antonio plays low-fi psychedelic freakout on “Clock Stands Still.”

Most of the voices you hear on the sampler are male. Among the refreshing exceptions is that of a lady known as “Helene 33” of The Okmoniks, a Tucson band (pictured below.).

Perhaps the catchiest tune here is “Your Love," the offering from Reigning Sound, led by Greg Cartwright, formerly of The Oblivians. If you listen close enough you can hear Motown in this one.

Most ridiculous is The Ridiculous Trio, an instrumental group — trombone, tuba, drums — that specializes in instrumental covers of Stooges songs. Here the threesome does “Down on the Street.” It’s lots of fun, but I don’t think Iggy did it this way.

But don’t take my word for it. Hear it yourself. And if you like rpms better than mp3s, most of these are available from Slovenly on vinyl 45s.

BLOG BONUS

Here's The Black Angels on Letterman

Music Video of the Day

It's Stan Ridgway's recent cover of Bob Dylan's "Lenny Bruce."

My review of Ridgway's Neon Mirage, published a few weeks ago, is HERE

R.I.P. Solomon Burke

Solomon Burke, one of the greatest soul singers of all time died yesterday at the age of 70. He had just landed in the Netherlands, where he was scheduled to perform.

Born in Philadelphia, Burke, who also worked as a preacher, began recording in the 1950s. One of the first 45s I ever had as a kid was Burke's soul version of "Down in the Valley," an old cowboy song he turned inside out and made it into a soul testament.

In recent years he'd been making something of a comeback. He did a country album called Nashville in 2006. That featured a heartbreaking version of Tom T. hall's "That's How I Got to Memphis."

But my favorite song of his in recent years was from his 2002 album Don't Give Up on Me -- a cover of Tom Waits' "Diamond in Your Mind."

Rev. Burke left many diamonds for our minds. Below are some performances -- they look fairly recent -- of some of his soul classics.









UPDATE:

What the heck, here's Solomon with The Rolling Stones:

TERRELL'S SOUND WORLD PLAYLIST

Sunday, October 10, 2010
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@ksfr.org

OPENING THEME: Let it Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
Psycho Train by The Sinister Six
Naked Naked Naked by The Raunch Hands
Messin' Around by The Ruiners
It Should Be Me by Billy Childish & Musicians of The British Empire
Don't Slander Me by Roky Erikson & Evil Hook Wildlife ET
Powers by The Vonz
Hellhound by The Barbarellatones
In & Out by The Black Lips
There'll Be Hot Coffee by The Legendary Stardust Cowboy

Worm Tamer by Grinderman
The Walnut Tree by Movie Star Junkies
Hey Girl, Liar Liar by The Living Deadbeats
Dagger Moon by Dead Moon
The Doorway by Pierced Arrows
Monkey House by The BellRays
Red River St. by The Kill Spectors
Mellow Yellow by Big Maybelle

The Sniper by The Black Angels
Purple Merkin Power by Purple Merkins
'New' Old Blue Car by Peter Case
Ain't She Wild by Barrence Whitfield & The Savages
Ten of Hearts by Mark Sultan
Shut Your Mouth When You Sneeze by Screamin' Jay Hawkins
Naked by The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
Summer Time by Hang On The Box
Planet Claire by B52s

I'll Take Care Of You by Gil Scott-Heron
Demons and Goats by Johnny Dowd
Cry Me a River by Bettye LaVette
Too Close/On My Way To Heaven by Mavis Staples
Your English by Country Teasers
Closing Time by King Automatic   
Get it While You Can by Howard Tate
CLOSING THEME: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis

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Join the KULT

My friends Chuck and Liisa were recently in the state. (Chuck was doing events for his new book.) Years ago they turned me on a great Polish rocker Kazik and his band Kult. (Liisa used to live in Poland) It's difficult to find Kazik music in the U.S., but he's easily available on YouTube. Here's a sampling of Kult/Kazik videos.





And Kajik even did an entire album of Tom Waits covers, which I reviewed a few years ago. Here's a video of "Singapur."

THE SANTA FE OPRY PLAYLIST

Friday, October 8, 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
Ghost Riders in the Sky by Last Mile Ramblers
Country Boy by Rosie Flores
Guacamole by Freddy Fender with Augie Meyers
Living Hell by Thunder Road
I Feel Like Singing by Dan Hicks & The Hot Licks
Nothin' Shakin' by Linda Gail Lewis
See Willie Fly By by The Waco Brothers
You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet by Kim Lenz & The Jaguars
Super Boogie Woogie by Jerry Irby with His Texas Ranchers

Stop Look and Listen by Patsy Cline
Jack & Jill Boogie by Wayne Raney
The Happy Camper by Rev. Horton Heat
Hot Dog by Buck Owens
Hot Dog, That Made Him Mad by Wanda Jackson
Thirty Days In The Workhouse by Peter Case
One Woman Man by George Jones with Marty Stuart
Swingin' From Your Crystal Chandeliers by The Austin Lounge Lizards
Hey Bub by Halden Wofford & The Hi Beams
Strangler In The Night by T.Tex Edwards & Out On Parole

The Fugitive by Merle Haggard
I'm a Honky Tonk Girl by Eilen Jewell
Foothill Boogie by Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys
Ain't Got Time For the Blues by Bill Kirchen with Maria Muldaur
Do You Believe (In Reincarnation)? by Cornell Hurd
No Good For Me by Waylon Jennings
Tomorrow's Just A Train Wreck Away by Joe Swank And The Zen Pirates
Reel Cajun (451 N. St. Joseph) by Beausoleil
You Made Me What I Am Today by The Watzloves

Garage Sale by Eric Hisaw
I'm Not Like Everyone Else by Chrissy Flatt
Rest Awhile by Bobby Bare
Heaven is My Home by Doug Jeffords
Don't Knock by The Staple Singers
I Belong to the Band by Mavis Staples
No Drunkard Can Enter There by The Delmore Brothers
CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets

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

TERRELL'S TUNEUP: THE MIGHTY MAVIS

A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
October 8, 2010

Mavis Staples is in her 70s, and her new album, You Are Not Alone, finds her doing what she’s always done best — blurring the edges of soul, gospel, and pop music. And she sounds as strong as ever doing so.

I’m not saying that lightly. This album is truly powerful, recalling some of her most memorable moments with The Staples Singers back in the ’60s, without sounding nostalgic or self-conscious.

Staples’ fellow Chicagoite Jeff Tweedy of the band Wilco produced this album. And he did as well as, if not better than, Ry Cooder on Staples’ previous studio album, We’ll Never Turn Back (an impressive collection of spirituals and civil rights-era tunes).

To his credit, Tweedy obviously wasn’t interested in making a “Mavis Meets Wilco” record — which, I’ll admit, I feared when first I heard about the partnership. He was just determined to make a good Mavis Staples record. (This is the second excellent album in recent years featuring a soul matron with an alt-country producer. The first was Bettye LaVette’s The Scene of The Crime, which was co-produced by the Drive-By-Truckers’ Patterson Hood in 2007.)

Tweedy is obviously in love with that swampy, tremolo-guitar sound that was the trademark of Mavis’ late dad, “Pops” Staples, back in The Staples Singers days. For the best introduction to this sound, don’t look to the group’s popular hits like “Respect Yourself.” Search out its gospel works. A few years ago, I found a copy of a Staples gospel collection called Uncloudy Day from the ’50s that seriously twisted my head off with Pops’ snaky guitar and those gritty vocals.

Most of my favorite songs on You Are Not Alone feature that guitar sound — provided here by a capable picker named Rick Holmstrom — and that gospel spirit.

There are three of Pops’ tunes here. “Don’t Knock” (which was also on Uncloudy Day) kicks off the record. It’s an upbeat number that does a great job of setting the mood. Another Pops song, “On My Way to Heaven” is part of a medley with a tune called “Too Close,” which closes the album. In between is the old man’s coolest contribution to this record, a hoodoo-dripping cruncher called “Downward Road.” Mavis sings lead while a chorus including Chicago songbirds Kelly Hogan and Nora O’Connor back her up.

There are some fine traditional gospel numbers that are among my favorites. Tony Joe White could have done a great version of “Creep Along Moses” — but I doubt if it would have been as great as the version by Staples and crew. “Wonderful Savior” is sung a cappella by Staples and her backup singers. This one has some truly nasty distorted guitar by Holmstrom.

And then there’s “In Christ There Is No East or West.” This is done as a lilting folk-rocker, an unusual arrangement for this album. But it’s an emotional standout — sweet-spirited, straightforward, and inviting, yet sung with Staples’ aura of knowing experience.

Staples sings several secular numbers written by well-known songwriters. There’s an obscure Randy Newman song called “Losing You,” which is slow, somber, and bluesy — it starts out with “I was a fool with my money, I lost every dime.”

Staples does a Creedence Clearwater Revival tune, John Fogerty’s “Wrote a Song for Everyone,” which, like most of The Staple Singers’ pop hits, sounds like it’s a gospel song without mentioning God, Jesus, or church. Staples goes down to New Orleans for Allen Toussaint’s “Last Train.”

And there are a couple of songs by Tweedy — the title cut and a surprisingly funky track called “Only the Lord Knows.” It’s a song about being confused and mistrustful in the modern world. “Only the Lord knows, and he ain’t you,” goes the refrain.

One of my favorite tunes here is a dandy cover of “We’re Gonna Make It,” a Little Milton soul hit from the ’60s. The lyrics are secular, but they have a poignant message about faith in times of economic hardship: “We’re gonna make it, I know we will.”

What I love about Staples is that she is unswervingly positive and inspirational without ever sounding corny or cloying — righteous, but never self-righteous. I’ve never met the woman, but I imagine she could make you feel better by just being around her. At least that’s how I feel when I listen to her music.

Also recommended: 

* Joined at the Hip by Pinetop Perkins & Willie “Big Eyes” Smith. Staples may be over 70, but Perkins could call her “young lady.” He’s 97, (no, that’s not a typo!) and Smith is a mere lad of 74. These two blues codgers — who played in Muddy Waters’ band in the 1970s and later together in The Legendary Blues Band — can still boogie.

This record isn’t earth-shattering, but its good basic Chicago blues. Perkins is still playing piano (he was playing at the Thirsty Ear Festival a few years ago), but Smith is no longer beating the drums (his son Kenny is doing that here); he’s singing and playing harp.

Two of my favorite songs here are by the two different Sonny Boy Williamsons. There is a good version of “Eyesight to the Blind” by Sonny Boy II (Rice Miller). And there is “Cut That Out,” a lesser-known song by the lesser-known Sonny Boy, John Lee Williamson.

But the showstopper here is a gospel standard, “Take My Hand, Precious Lord,” written by Thomas A. Dorsey. This version is far bluesier than most of the renditions I’ve heard. But remember, Dorsey started his career as “Georgia Tom,” a blues pianist who backed Tampa Red on songs including “Tight Like That.”

For reasons best known to Perkins, “Precious Lord” ends with a quick “Jingle Bells” piano riff followed by “Shave and a Haircut.”

55 FREE GARAGE/PUNK/WEIRDNESS TRACKS

Thanks and a tip of the hat to John at Monkey Beat Podcast for alerting his listeners to a 55-MP3 sampler from Slovenly Records, a Reno, Nevada company.

There's cool stuff from Wau y Los Arrrghs!!!, The Black Lips, Billy Childish, The Reigning Sound, King Automatic, The Hollywood Sinners and more.

And did I mention they're free??!! All you have to do is join their mailing list.

So check out Slovenly and check out Monkey Beat. 

TERRELL'S SOUND WORLD PLAYLIST

Sunday, October 3, 2010
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@ksfr.org


OPENING THEME: Let it Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
The Cutester Patrol by The Grandmothers
Topless by Rolls Royce & The Wheels
Sun Is On My Side by Gogol Bordello
Mickey Mouse & The Goodbye Man by Grinderman
Grindin' Man by Pinetop Perkins & Willie "Big Eyes" Smith
Do the Slide by The Montesas
Hulkster in Heaven by Hulk Hogan

Mo Gu by Carsick Cars
Let's Dress Up the Naked Truth by New Bomb Turks
Old Devils by Jon Langford
Before They Make Me Run by Steve Earle & The Supersuckers
Fate Has to Change by Kazik
Quiche Lorraine by B52s
Karma Chameleon by Petty Booka

Global Warming Set
In honor of Chuck McCutcheon's New Book What Are Global Warming & Climate Change:Answers For Young Readers

Hot Pants by James Brown
Damn, It's Hot Part 2 by Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings
Heat Wave by Martha & The Vandellas
A Question of Temperature by The Balloon Farm
Ring of Fire by Ray Charles
Hot and Nasty by Black Oak Arkansas
Burning Love by Elvis Presley
Disco Inferno by The Trammps

Timothy by The Buoys
Charlie Laine Ate My Brain by The Ruiners
Bad Vibrations by The Black Angels
Shake For Me by Howlin' Wolf
Tender Heart by Alejandro Escovedo
Where Do We Go from Here by Death
Baby You Crazy by Nick Curran and the Lowlifes
Satan Get Behind Me by Dead Men's Hollow
CLOSING THEME: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis


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