Bag of Reds

Well it's 90 damn degrees here in the swamps of Jersey. October 8. WTF? Anyway I'm coming off an amazing weekend of Fenway Friday (Manny Moonshot), Boss Magic in Philly (more on that later, but a quick shout out to the great h9/le/nbc crew, and the preacher's daughter who helped me navigate the subway...sort of :), and finally, the Giants blood-pressure-raising win in the Meadowlands Sunday (is there any other kind?) and thanks to Brendan and Tony D for the great tailgate.

I won't need to go out for months after that, but definitely a three for three weekend! And hey Yankee fans, make no mistake, I'm rootin' for 'em now; it just wouldn't be right for the the Sox to cruise through the AL without facing off against the Empire. (And who the hell wants to face the Tribe pitching staff?)

Today I'm resisting the temptation to write that inevitable Bruce post, just because catching up on an archive.org blog feed, I noticed an amazing sounding vintage Feat show. One of my favorite old Feat boots was named "Bag Of Reds", Halloween 75, Orpheum, Boston. It's now been "liberated", as they say. Enjoy, and Brendan, watch this space for The Goblin Girl by month's end!

Bag Of Reds mp3Long Distance Love mp3

Whole Show - totally worth the download & burn; definitive show of the era. Just do it!

Where are you hiding, Ben Arnold?

Steve mentioned last night that the Ryan page has been on the blog too long, and was wondering if I'd given up on this thing. No way, just too damn busy lately. Also, I had really wanted to catch Ben Arnold down in Asbury this past week before posting about him, but reality foiled that plan. Such is life...

I've been wanting to write about this guy for awhile now, but since I have not yet caught him live, felt I should really get the full picture first. I first heard him back 3-4 years ago on XPN, but they only played one or two songs. But I filed the name, and I'm really glad I did. The more I listen, the more I like -- strong gravelly voice, singer/songwriter with rock & roll edge and heart, quieter songs engage rather than induce sleep, lots of variety in instrumentation and arrangement, a talented pro who deserves some success. Philly guy, with a record release party at Johnny Brenda's on October 18th that I'm gonna try to hit.

Anyway, once upon a time he had an actual website with a bunch of great mp3s, but the whole site now seems to have vanished, and a single page with a flash player put in its place. But if you want to take music with you, that's a real problem, so I'm putting these mp3s up on my machine. Pop 'em on yer iPod...money back guarantee on this one! :)

(please ignore web errors you may see about expired security certificates)

suckin_honey.mp3
O_Holy_Ghost.mp3
Nevermind_My_Blues.mp3
Everywhere_You.mp3
Eggs.mp3
Sky_Was_Falling.mp3
Zig_Zag.mp3
Bad_Time.mp3
Timeless.mp3
Worlds_Away.mp3

A few more can be found on his myspace page.

remember when ryan wanted to be paul?

Don't know what I'm talking about? A few years before the oh-so-talented but oh-so-troubled Ryan Adams lost himself in a Deadhead haze, he had left alt-country behind and wanted to rock like, well, Westerberg/mats. And he did a pretty damned good job of it.

I was at this show -- in fact I ate a couple of extra tickets, which IIRC were $25. It was everything a rock show should be. Smoky, dark, started late, Orange amps cranked up to 10, a first set that did not let up one bit.

He had it. And he's now pretty much lost it. Really sad IMHO. But damn what a great recording of a great night, when Ryan was really everything we all wanted him to become.

first set mp3s 1 2 3 4
encore: brown sugar

whole show

(Wait a sec -- Didn't he play candy doll that night? Maybe I'm thinking of a different show at the E Factory after all. I really should get my facts straight :-)

I Love You Rosalie

There are so many artists who never capture their true magic in the studio, but deliver mesmerizing live performances. For me, Alejandro Escovedo is one of those artists, up there with Richard Thompon, Bruce and many others I hope to write about one day soon...

Anyway I was thinking about solidifying my hotel and travel plans for SXSW 2008, having made last-minute arrangements in 06 and 07, and winding up staying way the hell out of town, and was reminded of this gorgeous acoustic song which Alejandro just killed with at the Continental Club Sunday night back in March. Easily my favorite of the evening.



Couldn't find a recording from that night but here's a good-sounding one from this summer:

Rosalie mp3
Whole show