Thursday, February 28, 2019

Album Review: Royal Trux - White Stuff

Hey all, got a new review up @glidemag which you can read Right C'here!!!
It is of the Royal Trux reunion album White Stuff.

This is a damn good record and as a fan of The Dead Weather, this is right up RtBE's alley. In fact, Allison Mosshart must be a huge fan of Jennifer Herrema, hopefully with less drugs.

Support the artists, read the review, buy the album, peep some video below:


Wednesday, February 27, 2019

The Masters: The Beatles - Best Solo Records

RtBE loves listening to new music and prides itself on keeping tabs on up and coming artists but in 2019 we are also going to have a monthly spotlight on legendary artists who we really love. We are calling this series The Masters. It will focus on the best albums, live records, transcendent shows and other odd ways we appreciate the artists and their contribution to music, culture and our formation.
For February The Masters focuses on The Beatles.

That the Beatles were greater than the sum of their parts is a testament to how good they really were because their parts are pretty amazing on their own. 

Today we look at the Beatles solo efforts and rank the top five of the bunch. And, yes, solo albums include Wings and The Plastic Ono Band. Don't split hairs or get caught up in semantics, reader. This is just a blog. A humble, damn blog.
There isn't anything that hasn't been written or said about the Beatles, so you'll find nothing new here. Get ready for the lukewarm takes!

We thought narrowing down the list to five albums was going to be relatively easy but when John Lennon's Double Fantasy and Paul McCartney's Band on the Run didn't make the cut, we realized that their collective catalog runs deep - or we got it wrong.

Tuesday, February 26, 2019

Professor Longhair's Live on the Queen Mary Re-Release

On March 24th, 1975 Paul and Linda McCartney hosted an album release party for their band Wings newest release Venus and Mars on board the famous Queen Mary which was docked outside of Long Bach, CA. The main event of that party was a bubbling set by New Orleans legend Professor Longhair which was recorded and released.

Now Live on the Queen Mary is being re-released and remastered on 180 Vinyl, CD and digital for a new generation of fans to appreciate the greatness of Fess who influenced every New Orleans piano player who has ever heard him.

It is appropriate that this announcement came during the month we are celebrating The Beatles in our Masters series and this whole show stems from a post Beatles release. There will be much more about those post Beatle releases tomorrow on the site, so stay tuned...   

As for Live on the Queen Mary, owning this vinyl is a must for RtBE and to convince you below is a sampling of tunes off the record.

Album Review: Mathew Logan Vasquez - Light'n Up

Hey all, got a new review up @glidemag which you can read Right C'here!!!
It is of Matthew Logan Vasquez most recent release Light'n Up.

RtBE has reviewed MLV's solo work before, we caught him playing the Ronnie Hawkins role during the Last Waltz live celebration, listened to Glorietta which he was the driving force behind and we loved his early work with Delta Spirit.

This album is just OK to these ears. Nothing fantastic, nothing that memorable. His last album made out 2017 list of worthy records but doubtful this one will follow suit.

That said, support the artist, buy the record and peep some video below:


Monday, February 25, 2019

Dylan Cover #364 George Harrison "Mama, You Been On My Mind"

In this ongoing Monday Series we will be exploring various artists versions of Bob Dylan song's. Today's tune is a cover by George Harrison of "Mama, You Been On My Mind"
Thoughts on Original:
An early hidden gem of Bob's writing "Mama, You Been On My Mind" finds him getting poetic, melodic and rhythmic with his words. From the opening 'Sun Cut Flat' phrase Dylan is in top gear, talking to the woman he is thinking about with clarity, fleeting desire and a smirk. Often performing the tune with Joan Baez in those early days the tune took on an add dimension as a duet. A great song that should get even more love then it does.

Cover:


Thoughts on Cover Artist:
George Harrison is the Beatle who was closest with Dylan, as he orchestrated the amazing Traveling Wilburys and wrote/recorded with Bob on a few other occasions. Bob even covered "Something" live in tribute to Harrison.There was a deep connection, friendship and respect between the two and it is palpable.

Thoughts on Cover:
An excellent cover of this tune as Harrison's vocals are spot on. The insertion of the electric guitar is key and the backing duet vocals (from I am not sure who) even recalls the Dylan/Baez version. This is a great cover from a class act and as an added bonus today is the day George Harrison was born.

To celebrate, here is the rehearsal video of Dylan and Harrison prepping for The Concert for Bangladesh. 

Friday, February 22, 2019

Full Show Friday: The Beatles Empire Pool 1965

We search the murky back waters of youtube to find full concerts and post them to the site weekly, come back every seven days to help us celebrate Full Show Friday's. These shows are of varying quality and may not be here for long so enjoy them while you can...As always, please support the artist every which way, but especially by seeing them live (if they are still playing)...This week...The Beatles!
For February The Masters focuses on The Beatles.

Our focus this month in our ongoing Masters series are The Beatles and since they stopped touring midway through their career there isn't a lot of video footage to choose from.  Here they are from 1965 back on their home turf of England (if not Liverpool exactly). It is a short but spicy set from the lads.

Enjoy:



02:39 I Feel Fine 05:17 She's a Woman 08:26 Baby's in Black 11:04 Ticket To Ride 14:47 Long Tall Sally 17:34 Presentation

Thursday, February 21, 2019

Album Review: Tedeschi Trucks Band - Signs

Tedeschi Trucks Band
Signs
***and 1/2 out of *****

The 12 piece Tedeschi Trucks Band have established themselves as one of the top touring acts, delivering vibrant, soulful, roots rock and roll. The group retreated to the band leading husband and wife's home studio Swamp Raga to record their fifth studio record, Signs, live, directly to analog tape. The result is a controlled mix of soul, blues and more restrained songs then some of the bands past efforts; at this point the band is confident in doing exactly what they do.

The album solidifies lyrically around themes of moving forward from loss while putting aside differences and coming together for love and the greater good. Tedeschi's vocals have always been strong and the recording style enhance her warmth, as do the pitch perfect backing vocals. The group has their funky good time rock locked down at this point in their career. Tracks like the opener "Sign, High Times", the grooving "Walk Through This Life" and the climatic "Shame" all already fit gloriously into their live set and these versions work strongly on record. 

The studio allows the outfit to settle down as well, "Strength What Remains" is acoustic based with a Kofi Burbridge flute solo and "The Ending" wraps up the record with just Trucks and Tedeschi duet on a memory tune about past performers with palpable intimacy. The best of the slowed down numbers is the violin draped "When Will I Begin" which increases instrumentation but is based around some of Tedeschi's most emphatic vocals on the record. 

The outfit gets everyone involved on the easy rocking Americana of "Still Your Mind" but all of the players seem a bit more invested in the swaggering southern rocking numbers like "Hard Case" and "They Don't Shine" both of which cook with southern fried fat.

While the group has yet to craft that knock out song which would elevate them even higher, they continue to do what they do with grace and ease. The statement song which coalesces Signs overall theme is "All The World" with gospel vibes straining through the organ, strings and gorgeous vocals. The Tedeschi Trucks Band are professionals who make the music they love for others to enjoy both on record and onstage.

(Edit: This review was written before hearing of Kofi Burbridge's untimely passing. Jambase has compiled musicians reactions and RtBE echoes those.)
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RtBE are fans of this outfit. Support the artists, buy the album and peep some video below:




Wednesday, February 20, 2019

Dates Announced for "The Bizarre World Of Frank Zappa" Hologram Tour

Somehow this feels pretty spot on. The Bizarre World of Frank Zappa will be touring the Northeast and Europe with a mix of live artists and a hologram Frank Zappa playing along.

Glide has the full details where Ahmet Zappa discusses his fathers love of holograms and 3-D technology. This might seem like a money grab (and that is part of it) but Zappa was at the forefront of a lot of mediums (check out the clay at the end of "Stinkfoot" below) and this doesn't seem as blatant.

The touring unit boasts guitarists Ray White and Mike Keneally, bassist Scott Thunes, multi-instrumentalist Robert Martin, percussionist Ed Mann, and drummer and ZAPPA archivist Joe “Vaultmeister” Travers

Live dates are below and to get us psyched for the hologram images how about some live video of Franks and company. Tickets go on sale Friday.




The Bizarre World Of Frank Zappa 2019 Tour Dates:
04/19 – Port Chester, NY @ Capitol Theater
04/20 – Rochester, NY @ Kodak Center Theater
04/22 – Red Bank, NJ @ Count Basie
04/24 – Long Island, NY @ Paramount Theatre
04/26 – Boston, MA @ Shubert
04/28 – Albany, NY @ The Palace Theatre
05/01 – Wilkes Barre, PA @ Kirby Center
05/02 – Collingswood, NJ @ Scottish Rite Auditorium
05/03 – Baltimore, MD @ The Modell Lyric
05/09 – Edinburgh, UK @ Playhouse
05/11 – Gateshead, UK @ Sage
05/12 – Manchester, UK @ Bridgewater Hall
05/13 – Birmingham, UK @ Symphony Hall
05/14 – London, UK @ The Palladium
05/16 – Ostend, BE @ Kurssal
05/17 – Amsterdam, NL @ Rai Theater
07/11-14 – Cataluna, ES @ Doctor Music Festival

Album Review: Yola - Walk Through Fire

Hey all, got a new review up @glidemag which you can read Right C'here!!!

It is of Yola's debut full length titled Walk Through Fire.


I was lucky to catch Yola a few weeks ago for her NYC debut at Rockwood. The show was solid, but nothing crazy, and while this album isn't perfect, it is damn good and a great testament to her talents.

The production by Dan Auerbach fits her expertly and while I thought the Shannon Shaw plus Auerbach combo would be a home run, this record is much better.

Support the artist, read the review, buy the album and peep some video below:

Tuesday, February 19, 2019

Craig Finn Tour Announced & Live Video

One of RtBE's Favorites Craig Finn will be touring this spring, here is his Instagram announcement:

View this post on Instagram

I’m very excited to announce the first full band shows I’ll be playing around the new record I Need A New War. We are going to a bunch of cool places, and I’ll be backed by a new and expanded version of The Uptown Controllers. I’m really excited to play the new material live and share this music with you. We have some very cool support we'll be announcing soon. I expect these to be really exciting and special shows. Fan pre-sale begins Wednesday, February 20 at 10am local time, EXCEPT New York. ***There is NO pre-sale for either New York show. All tickets for the shows at Joe's Pub in New York go on-sale TODAY, Tuesday, February 19 at 5pm Eastern. *** General on-sale begins Friday, February 22 at 10am local time. Additional dates will be announced. For complete details, link in bio. Special bonus: Last month I played a show at the Murmrr Theater presenting the songs from the new album live for the first time. We filmed it, and it turned out super cool. I’m psyched to share “Blankets” with you. Link in bio. I Need A New War is out April 26, 2019. You can pre-order now, and there’s a bunch of cool stuff that’s available beyond the record: posters, shirts, badges, a book of lyrics featuring all of the songs from the last two albums and the upcoming record (with a forward from Rob Sheffield!), and much more. I’m so excited for everyone to hear this record and I’m looking forward to all that comes next. Stay Positive. Be Honest. cf
A post shared by Craig Finn (@steadycraig) on


Tickets for the NYC shows will be going on sale in about 15 minutes, so feel free to to jump on those. The tour will be showcasing his upcoming release of I Need A New War which you can pre-order.

Finn and company debuted all of the songs live last month in Brooklyn and filmed the show. You can see the intro and the first song/single from the record, "Blankets" below:

Album Review: Greensky Bluegrass - All For Money

Greensky Bluegrass
All For Money
**** out of *****

The Kalamazoo, MI based outfit Greensky Bluegrass has been delivering their own mix of acoustic bluegrass and experimental rock and roll for a while now. Their seventh full length titled All For The Money is aimed at our current times while still mainlining the bands unique vein of music.

The players, Anders Beck [dobro], Michael Arlen Bont [banjo], Dave Bruzza [guitar], Mike Devol [upright bass], and Paul Hoffman [Mandolin] are live stage veterans who have developed a strong following with their touring and extended high energy sets but on All For Money they have confidently brought their style into the studio and modern day.

Opener "Do It Alone" perfectly questions our vapid 2019 society with electronic effects to the groups sound while the ominous distorted strings of "It's Not Mine Anymore" delivers both Eastern meditation and metal-ish vibes as the song swirls out; both tracks show the range of the band which leads to a successful album via strong song writing, imagination/experimentation and yes, picking.

"Murder of Crows" excellently falls more back towards the traditional bluegrass vein with mandolins and banjos leading the charge, but lyrical it deals poetically with distance, addiction and loss. The upbeat twangy workout "Courage for the Road" is also acoustically driven and works as a solo laden extended ride with dobro highlights, perfect for the live stage, but succeeding on disk as well.

The songs are all solid with the great bass groove of "What You Need" supporting singing about wealth love and material relationships while "Collateral Damage" continues that lyrical journey with the pains, yearning and heartbreak intact. "Like Reflections" is an easy folk influenced numbers with backing vocals sounding straight out the Counting Crows  and "Wish I Didn't Know" also feels like bluegrass inspired tune from that group, only better.

Produced by Dominic Davis the band and Davis worked hard to meld the onstage success in the studio and they were successful. At times the singing and lyrics can feel buried, behind the strings, but each player is bright and alive. 

The country twang gets umped up for "Cathedral Eyes" and the dynamite closing title track is an extended technical tour de force combined with a spacey experimental break before a climatic finish in Pink Floyd fashion, lyrically questioning their own motives, which will certainly connect with their fans on the live stage. Greensky Bluegrass continue to forge their own path and All For Money is an robust journey to join them on. 
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Support the artists, buy the album, and peep some video below:

Monday, February 18, 2019

Dylan Cover #363 The Beatles "Rainy Day Woman No 12 & 35"

In this ongoing Monday Series we will be exploring various artists versions of Bob Dylan song's. Today's artists, The Beatles performing a live cover of "Rainy Day Women #12 & 35" 

Thoughts on Original:
From the first time we tackled a cover of this tune:
The first song on the iconic Blonde on Blonde "Rainy Day Women #12 & 35" is an anthem for a generation...to do what with, is up for debate. Stoned in the head or stoned by the masses up to you to decide. Whatever your thoughts on the lyrics and meaning it can't be argued that Bob is having fun which doesn't always come across on his studio releases. The "salvation Army" style horns and marching is a hoot...once in a long while but not made for everyday consumption. Truth be told, the song is normally skipped when I am listening to the album, I like opening Blonde on Blonde better with "Pledging My Time".

Cover:


Thoughts on Cover Artist:
RtBE is featuring The Beatles all month in our Masters series and needless to say The Beatles are the bee's knees.

Thoughts on Cover:
A fun jaunt in the studio, not the full song obviously, but this tune always works best in haphazard marching drunk fashion, so this studio outtake is a great snippet of Beatles life. Whimsical and silly, the way this tune should be. Also since it was short, here is a quick video of the Beatles talking about Bob:

Friday, February 15, 2019

Full Show Friday: Ariana Grande Live at Amazon Prime Day 2018

We search the murky back waters of youtube to find full concerts and post them to the site weekly, come back every seven days to help us celebrate Full Show Friday's. These shows are of varying quality and may not be here for long so enjoy them while you can...As always, please support the artist every which way, but especially by seeing them live (if they are still playing)...This week...Ariana Grande!

Each January RtBE does a Jazz showcase and judging by clicks, people aren't that into it, so for February we go pop during our Full Show Friday series to blatantly attract clicks. Fret not though, The Masters series is also focusing on The Beatles this month and will mix in some classic shows.

We here at RtBE could not identify one song from Ms. Grande, but we will gladly have people click here to check her set from Amazon Prime Day 2018 out. With Amazon pulling out of it's deal with NYC yesterday, this seems like a good day to showcase this particular set.

Enjoy:

Thursday, February 14, 2019

Live Review: Thundercat @ The Blue Note NYC 2/13/19

Hey all, got a new review up @glidemag which you can read Right C'here!!!

It is of Thundercat's early show from last night at the Blue Note in NYC.


have reviewed Thundercat before, Drunk was quirky and cool but not very repeatable; truthfully I have not played it much since reviewing. Needless to say I was not prepared for how great a live show Stephen Bruner pulls off. He along with keyboardist Dennis Hamm and drummer Justin Brown were electric on the small stage.

Any fan of adventurous tunes need to check out this trio, you can try to get into some of the remaining shows at this Blue Note run, you will not be disappointed. I really hope they craft a live album from this stand as I would love to hear these tunes again.

Support the artist, read the review and peep some other live video of the trio below:

Frank Migliorelli & The Dirt Nappers New Single, "Only Here" Attacks NRA

With a new album set to be released on March 15th titled  The Things You Left Behind, Frank Migliorelli has released an important new single today titled "Only Here".

This is more then just a simple tune, which is obvious when you listen. It was inspired by the Parkland shooting massacre and is being released on the anniversary of those shootings.

In Frank's own words: "It is pretty sad that we have to have songs like this". More in depth, Frank has stated:
“I remember, Feb 15, 2018, - The day after the Parkland shootings- when I was standing on the subway platform, an intense feeling of sadness hit me. I really don't know what to say except I was just overwhelmed with grief and the disbelief and anger. Grief at the loss of life. Disbelief that we barely flinch every time a mass shooting happens. Anger that we let our gun policies get dictated by a bunch of thugs hiding behind some ancient constitutional amendment so they can protect their gun industry. Three days later, after a few 18 hour days in the studio, this song came out. This is war, and hopefully people will listen to this as rallying anthem.”
The song will be available to the general public for download and streaming at the following locations:

Bandcamp- https://dirtnappers.bandcamp.com/
iTunes- https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/frank-migliorelli-and-the-dirt-nappers/1050060618
Spotify- https://open.spotify.com/artist/1fdpE2yGXbHarYA6zEVf1Bsi=DDlCWydiRieXLfknZBb6XQ

All proceeds from this song will be donated to Every Town for Gun Safety and the Sandy Hook Promise. This version features Tony Tino on bass, Sherryl Marshall on vocals, Daniel Weiss on organ, Thad DeBrock on guitar, and Tommy Diehl on drums. The track was mastered by Scott Anthony at Storybook Sound.

We were lucky enough to have interviewed Frank for his last release and will be reviewing his new album soon.

Be sure to catch him live and below is a solo acoustic version of "Only Here" with an intro which briefly describes his process with the new tune.


Wednesday, February 13, 2019

Jason Isbell & Father John Misty Co-Headlining June Tour

In the Father John Misty song "Mr. Tillman" he sings the line "Jason Isbell's here as well/And he seemed a little worried about you". Now Jason Isbell himself can keep close tabs on Mr. Tillman as the two will be co-headlining a cross country tour this June.

Both are RtBE Personal Favorites as we love Isbell's albums and shows while rating Misty's most recent album, God's Favorite Customer our favorite from last year, but have not yet seen him live.

That will change this June in Brooklyn as the pair play hour long sets each for the Celebrate Brooklyn show. Tickets can be obtained now through the artists pre-sale with the code: FJMISBELL
The full on-sale happens this Friday if the pre-sale sell out. It is going to be a fun night of tunes out in Brooklyn in June, or wherever you happen to catch this tour as Isbell and Misty are two of the best songwriters going today. Below are some live videos to prep for the show:




June 6 – San Diego – Cal Coast Open Air Theatre $ + 
June 7 – Santa Barbara, CA – Santa Barbara Bowl $ + 
June 8 – Berkeley, CA – The Greek Theatre At UC Berkeley $ + 
June 9 – Bend, OR – Les Schwab Amphitheater $ + 
June 11 – Redmond, WA – Marymoor Park $ + 
June 14 – Minneapolis, MN – The Armory $ + 
June 15 – Chicago, IL – Huntington Bank Pavilion $ + 
June 16 – Milwaukee, WI – BMO Harris Pavilion $ + 
June 17 – Detroit, MI – Fox Theatre $ + 
June 19 – Brooklyn, NY – BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival $ + 
June 20 – Canandaigua, NY – CMAC $ + 
June 21– Columbia, MD – Merriweather Post Pavilion $ + 
June 22 – Philadelphia, PA – Metropolitan Opera House $ + 
June 24 – Richmond, VA – Altria Theater $ + 
June 25 – Cary, NC – Koka Booth Amphitheater $ *
June 27 – Irving, TX – Pavilion At Toyota Music Factory $ + 
June 28 – Houston, TX – White Oak Lawn $ + 
June 29 – Tulsa, OK – BOK Center $ + 
$ – Father John Misty
* – Jade Bird
+ – Erin Rae
^Unless otherwise specified.

Album Review: Endless Floods - Circle The Gold

Endless Floods
Circle The Gold
**and1/2 out of *****

The doom metal band Endless Floods newest effort is a move towards more melodic travelings from 2017's more drone laden II. The French trio still lumber and take their time getting anywhere, Circle of Gold is two tracks running over forty minutes, but now the group inserts flashes of hope among the sonic rubble.

The band (Stéphane Miollan - Bass & Vocals Simon Bédy - Guitar Benjamin Sablon - Drums) crawl ahead, opening up with the huge drum hits of the title track before vocal wails are buried under the trudging sound. The effort devolves into sparse feedback and the odd cymbal drum hit about six minutes in before slowly and blissfully climbing up the muddy banks to evolve into a dense buzz laden beast standing on two legs around the eleven minute mark. The track brings back distorted screams from Miollan, but vocals act more as sonic tapestry, deciphering the words is impossible but the title track climbs high to close, finishing on a positive note.

The follow up "Seeds" continues the assault with layers of feedback drums and low end to break upon the eardrum like waves as the trio sail towards brighter skies. The same pattern is back as the song empties into sparseness around the six minute mark again, with just a drum and various notes of a guitar keeping the song afloat before things turn around. The difference this time is the guitars hold course while the drums of Sablon take the lead moving in different directions to right the ship. Their are both ominous sojourns and noise interludes over the twenty minute adventure but the style remains the same.     

Endless Floods are moving towards a more inclusive sound with their doom laden, slow numbers and there is a sense of coming out of the darkness on these two tracks. That said, it is not the easiest to digest if you are not a fan of this style of metal. Those who enjoy the plodding, loud, mammoth simple structures will find the rumblings soothing Circle The Gold's sheer force of sound.
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Support the band, buy the album (the album will be released Friday 2/15) while FVTV Recordings has posted the full album for you to preview now:

Tuesday, February 12, 2019

Live Review: Yola @ Rockwood Music Hall 2/6/19

Hey all, got a new review up @glidemag which you can read Right C'here!!!


It is of Yola's NYC debut last Wednesday Night at Rockwood Music Hall in Manhattan.

We covered almost everything there is to say in the piece, but this felt much more like an industry showcase as opposed to a show. Not that it is a bad thing, but perhaps it was the early set time or the groups of people who knew each other, or short set had a different feel then most shows.

Yola is a dynamic singer though who will certainly be making a name for herself very shortly.

Monday, February 11, 2019

Dinosaur Jr. (Somehow) Top Japanese Charts in 2019

In one of the most bizarre music stories in the last few years, one of RtBE's Personal Favorites Dinosaur Jr. has somehow beat out the likes of Arianna Grande to top the Japanese charts last week.  Yes, you are awake, yes, this is 2019.

Thanks to our friend Noah for send us this amazing story. Kotaku dives into the mystery but it is official, "Over Your Shoulder", a song which was never released as a single, never had a video made, and was part of an album released in 1994, is number one in Japan, based on youtube views. 



The track from 1994's Without A Sound is a fine, typical Dino Jr tune, if a bit dull compared to the bands other outings, but then again Without A Sound isn't our favorite album of theirs. A few years ago we ran down our rankings of the trio's records for a Glide and it was towards the bottom.

We also did a feature where we selected one song from each of the bands records to showcase. "Over Your Shoulder" didn't make that one either as we chose "I Don't Think So" from Without A Sound.


Pretty crazy story (got to love the Japanese keeping it weird) but this along with Tidal's fudging makes the charts seem a little suspect. However, if this gets Dinosaur Jr. a headlining tour of Japan ala Spinal Tap when "Sex Farm" hit it big, that would be a hell of story.


Dylan Cover #362 George Harrison "Absolutely Sweet Marie" Live

In this ongoing Monday Series we will be exploring various artists versions of Bob Dylan song's. Today's artists, George Harrison doing a live cover of "Absolutely Sweet Marie" 
Thoughts on Original:
The first time we tackled a cover of this tune (one of the most popular in this series):
Color me shocked that we are 36 covers into this series and just now we are getting to someone covering "Absolutely Sweet Marie". The original was one of the most complete songs Dylan has written even if you are never quite sure what he is addressing.  He likes the song but surprisingly never played it live until 1988, I find that kinda odd. He dove into this songs' lyrics specifically during a 1991 interview published in Paul Zollo's book Songwriters on Songwriting, Dylan gives an idea of how he sees the song in his explanation of a line about a "yellow railroad":

That's about as complete as you can be. Every single letter in that line. It's all true. On a literal and on an escapist level.... Getting back to the yellow railroad, that could be from looking someplace. Being a performer, you travel the world. You're not just looking out of the same window everyday. You're not just walking down the same old street. So you must make yourself observe whatever. But most of the time it hits you. You don't have to observe. It hits you. Like, "yellow railroad" could have been a blinding day when the sun was so bright on a railroad someplace and it stayed on my mind.... These aren't contrived images. These are images which are just in there and have got to come out.

Tight taught and still somehow allusive, pretty cool and totally Dylan at his finest and a real Blonde on Blonde jam.
The closest I ever got to the sound I hear in my mind was on individual bands in the Blonde on Blonde album. It's that thin, that wild mercury sound. It's metallic and bright gold, with whatever that conjures up.
Cover:


Thoughts on Cover Artist:
George Harrison is the Beatle who was closest with Dylan, as he orchestrated the amazing Traveling Wilburys and wrote/recorded with Bob on a few other occasions. Bob even covered "Something" live in tribute to Harrison.There was a deep connection, friendship and respect between the two and it is palpable.

Thoughts on Cover:
Coming from the mammoth 1992 concert at MSG which celebrated Dylan's 30th Anniversary of his first Columbia release Harrison nails it on this one with GE Smith and the band cooking behind him. This was a highlight on a night full of them and a fantastic addition to our monthly Masters series.

Friday, February 8, 2019

Full Show Friday: The Beatles In Australia 1964

We search the murky back waters of youtube to find full concerts and post them to the site weekly, come back every seven days to help us celebrate Full Show Friday's. These shows are of varying quality and may not be here for long so enjoy them while you can...As always, please support the artist every which way, but especially by seeing them live (if they are still playing)...This week...The Beatles!

Our focus this month in our ongoing Masters series are The Beatles and since they stopped touring midway through their career there, isn't a lot of video footage to choose from. Here they are from 1964 as the mop haired quartet play Australia to the crowd of screaming fans.

Info regarding the recording and presentation on youtube is below from the creator of this video. Enjoy:


For those curious, this film Includes footage of most of the concert, with four audio-only bonus tracks at the end. This was not to chronicle the event like a documentary, but an attempt to provide a more impressionistic experience, and highlight enjoyment of the music footage by: -- Removing the intra-song dialogue -- Trying to raise low bass (but it was really too muddy there) -- Bringing up high treble for ease to hear vocals/guitars -- Zooming in slightly to help fill out the frame -- Using analog multi-band compressors to balance the sound. Notes: 1. Including the intra-song dialogue didn't make as much sense since a.) the song order had to be re-arranged anyway .b.) it's already available in other links. c.) IMO it highlights the intense emotional atmosphere -- the attempted goal on this video. 2. A very slight plate reverb was used on the John songs were his vocal was distorting and too forward in the mix. 3. It's a shame that on some of the Paul songs his mic is somewhat low. And John's rhythm guitar sounds great, but mixed a little loud. (It's nice to hear because it's usually more buried, but on this there was no way to easily correct it. I tried to bring up the frequencies a tad where Paul's voice was punching through, but there was a lot of overlap that made it hard.) 4. at 4:54 it appears as though the drummer is gone but that's just a drum kit from the previous band. Ringo is on a platform. 5. On a few songs the audio/video sync is slightly a few frames off -- because the original source was off. Most viewers don't notice or care; but if you watch the 2016 Ron Howard feature you'll see it's off there too. Apparently it was married together about 20 yrs ago from the video and soundboard recording. I just got really tired with working on this and didn't notice. And also I never expected this video to be so popular since other versions have been around. Here's one that's closer to the original source footage: Part I https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPZ-A9WJzTE Part II https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nSiT0HdZ7Tg Unfortunately YouTube doesn't allow for re-posting w/o losing views/comments. Hopefully someday. The back-half of the video is great though. ;) Note: If I post a second update, it'll be on my Beatles channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpSIYxcyFDTe7U7UiKx_l3A [Video+audio] 00:07 -- You Can't Do That 02:42 -- All My Loving 04:48 -- She Loves You 07:11 -- Can't Buy Me Love 09:19 -- Twist and Shout 12:01 -- Long Tall Sally [Mostly just audio] 14:41 -- Til There Was You 16:53 -- Roll Over Beethoven 19:13 -- This Boy 21:29 -- I Saw Her Standing There (If you want to scroll right to the brief video snippets of the last four songs, just run your mouse over the red line thumbnails to find them.) Since the goal was to group together the filmed parts, this is not the actual order of the concert (likely 6/17/64). See this for more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beatles%27_1964_world_tour