But boy have I got some great stuff for you tonight. There´s a demo from the new Bonnie Prince Billy album, a chilling John Cale live song based on one of Sam Peckinpah´s legendary westerns and some Junior Murvin for all you reggae lovers out there. And these legendary Flatlanders are back by popular demand too. For your further reading pleasure I´ve included some links to other blogs that deserve your immediate attention. Check ´em out. And hey, if you´re interested in Bob Dylan´s special meatballs recipe, go here. Bon appetit!
These nice folks over at Drag City gave us a taster for the new Bonnie Prince Billy album Lie Down In The Light, scheduled for mid-May. Can´t wait. The former Palace Brother is an avid reader too apparently: you can find his rather odd choice of books here. An example: "At night I am reading Teach Yourself: Islam. In between, I am trying to read snippets of a sailing instruction manual, a book about local (Northern California) plant life, and a book about food that pushes the eating of animal products, specifically fats and organs." Is that cool or what?
Bonnie Prince Billy - So Everyone (demo) MP3Read a shocking piece in the paper some days ago about a man in Dallas who spent 27 years in the slammer, but after a DNA test has now been proven innocent. He left court a free man last Tuesday. Apparently this was the 18th time a wrongly convicted man was freed there, the highest rate for any town in the States. "Dallas is a rich man with a death wish in his eye, a steel and concrete soul with a warm hearted love disguise, a rich man who tends to believe in his own lies, Dallas is a rich man with a death wish in his eyes..." James Woodward, this song´s for you.
The Flatlanders - Dallas MP3
Junior Murvin is best known for his song Police And Thieves, succesfully covered by the Clash on their debut. But the whole album of the same name, a classic Lee ´Scratch´ Perry production recorded in his famous Black Ark studio in ´77, is worth every minute of your time. Island records released a remastered version in ´ 03 with a couple of interesting bonus tracks, one of which is Rasta Get Ready, a rastafied take on Curtis Mayfield´s People Get Ready. By the way: for a variety of great reggae songs on the Police And Thieves riddim, head over to the excellent So Well Remembered blog. Many goodies there.
Junior Murvin - Rasta Get Ready MP3
Speaking of other blogs, I just read a nice piece on Sam Peckinpah´s classic movie The Ballad Of Cable Hogue over at Night Time In The Big City. Interesting commentary on that great western featuring Jason Robards and Stella Stevens. Guess I´ll have to see it again some time soon. And my other fave Peckinpah flicks too come to think of it: The Wild Bunch, Ride The High Country, Pat Garrett And Billy The Kid, Bring Me The Head Of Alfredo Garcia... John Cale based an amazing song on The Ballad Of Cable Hogue. This intense solo version was recorded live in Utrecht, The Netherlands on February 8, ´83.
John Cale - Cable Hogue (live ´83) MP3
There´s one more blog I´d like to shamelessly plug here, and that´s Star Maker Machine. I say shamelessly because I´m one of the contributing authors. But the fun thing is: you can contribute too, dear reader. Just follow the instructions and start blogging. There´s a theme to post about every week, but that´s about the only restriction you´ve got. This week´s theme is City Songs, and you could just go for it and write a short piece about a ditty you really dig. Elvis Costello´s nifty waltz New Amsterdam would fit the bill perfectly.
Elvis Costello - New Amsterdam MP3
Let´s sign off tonight with an obscure gospel-blues artist that was brought to my attention recently by a friend of mine. Thanks again bud! Washington Phillips recorded only 18 songs between 1927 and 1929, and then 2 of them were lost in the mists of time. The album The Key To The Kingdom (Yazoo) collects the remaining 16 and it´s a great find. And that´s not a guitar you hear by the way, it´s a zither.
Washington Phillips - What Are They Doing In Heaven Today MP3
2 comments:
Well thank you very much for mention and Cable Hogue. It's really wonderful - starts out quite like the Pat Garrett & Billy Kid soundtrack and then strays into wild John Cale land, an excellent mix. - patriq
Great batch of songs. I was toying with putting "New Amsterdam" up at SMM but I think we've done two Costello songs in about two or three weeks so I chilled on it.
The Flatlanders are terrific - I wasn't familiar with them until hearing this song and the one you put up last week. Great stuff. And I've got four or five Junior Murvin tracks but not this one. I prefer earlier, 60s-era reggae to the Perry and post-Perry stuff, but Murvin is among the cream of that crop for sure.
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