My wife Dana Points, Editor in Chief of Parents Magazine, got a nice slot on CBS’ Early Show this morning, talking about how to photograph kids:
Princeton Record Exchange
April 6, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Over the weekend I headed to the Princeton Record Exchange with Brendan and Chris. I really tried to suppress my “oh, everyone KNOWS Amoeba Music is the greatest record store in the world” urges. Being from California, I have a very special place in my heart for Amoeba. In fact, instead of going out for dinner or a movie or a drink, I would have guys meet me at Amoeba for a “date” so I could judge their music taste/whether or not I ever wanted to see them again….anyway, childishness aside…I did score some great vinyl at PRE. Most notably, I picked up the recent Teenage Fanclub reissue Bandwagonesque.
I’m super-stoked about that one. So, here’s some TF for you. ENJOY!
Go To Tuesday
April 5, 2011 By Leave a Comment
The Shore Fire staff will be out in full force this Thursday supporting long-time SFM staffer Nick Loss-Eaton’s band Leland Sundries, who “is dedicated to storytelling in a way that recalls Woody Guthrie and his Folkways brethren” (NY Times), at their show at Pianos upstairs stage.
And in addition to these great shows below its worthy of noting that The Iridium will be hosting a “Midnight Jam for Japan” on both Friday, April 8 and Saturday, April 9. All proceeds from the door for the midnight shows will go to disaster relief efforts in Japan. Kudos to The Iridium for helping out!
Finn is guaranteed to deliver a wildly energetic show at Bell House on Saturday --- previewing songs from his forthcoming Yep Roc Records release, FOMO, due June 21.
Thursday, April 7
Leland Sundries (Staffer Nick Loss Eaton’s band)- Pianos upstairs
Friday, April 8
Junko Onishi Trio Feat. James Carter, Dwayne Burno, and Gregory Hutchinson- The Iridium
Saturday, April 9
Liam Finn- Bell House
Junko Onishi Trio Feat. James Carter, Dwayne Burno, and Gregory Hutchinson- The Iridium
My Beloved Revolutionary Children
April 5, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Our last minute spring break vacation took shape just a month ago: the traditional Family Road Trip (however, no station wagon). For us, the destination was the Historic Triangle in Virginia, a staple of the east coast childhood experience — Colonial Williamsburg, the Yorktown battlefield, and Jamestown. The boys soaked it all up. I was pretty impressed by the setup down there…The Historic Triangle is truth in advertising, basically the whole James River peninsula is a 17th/18th century theme park, very tastefully done with minimal honky tonk, billboards, trashiness. I loved all of the George Washington history, walking in the great man’s shoes, sitting in his church pew. That guy really got around.
At Colonial Williamsburg, we handed out some rough 18th century justice to the boys.
At Yorktown, Eli dressed as a Continental soldier of the line…..
while Leo dressed up a little dandy.
Back at Jamestown, the cradle of southern European settlement (if you don’t count Florida, that is), Eli had fun at the Indian village
Is Tommy Saxondale the Coolest Dude in the History of Rock & Roll?
April 4, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Not long ago in this space, I asked the rhetorical question whether sideman extraordinaire Larry Wallis is the coolest dude in the history of rock & roll. I’m thinking of turning this question into a semi-regular feature, and today I offer you another candidate – Tommy Saxondale. The only thing that could possibly stand in the way of Tommy claiming the throne is the fact that he doesn’t actually, you know, exist in reality.
Tommy was the basis for the short-lived BBC series (ca. 2006-7) ‘Saxondale’ with the title character played by Steve Coogan. Like Coogan’s other genius imbecile Alan Partidge, ‘Saxondale’ never quite caught on in the States, and that is a shame.
Here’s the premise: Tommy Saxondale is a former roadie who toured with bands like Deep Purple and Genesis (but never Led Zeppelin) in their 1970s heyday. Now 50-ish, he lives in the suburbs with his girlfriend Magz (who runs a Spencers-like gift shop at the mall), works for a pest-control company, and takes pleasure in displaying his intellectual superiority at mandated weekly anger-management meetings. Tommy favors vinyl, reads Mojo magazine and drives a ‘74 Mustang. He’ll still do a little coke when the opportunity presents itself, but he also wears a pair of comfy slippers at home because his feet swell up in the evenings.
In other words, he’s something of a platonic ideal for the gracefully aging rock & roller.
There’s a surprising paucity of ‘Saxondale’ clips on Youtube, but you can watch both seasons on Netflix. Here’s a little taste of the ‘ole Saxondale charm in the mean time.
Guitars, Guitars, Guitars
April 4, 2011 By Leave a Comment
I love the guitar. Specifically, I love the electric guitar. It has to have some crunch to it, it should be biting, and it has to be loud. If it’s not loud, why even bother. Might as well play an acoustic guitar.
My love for playing loud guitar explains my bad hearing. If you call Shore Fire and I answer the phone, chances are, I will ask for your name. At least twice. Sorry about that… Anyway, these are some of my favorite guitar records. In alphabet order by artist.
The Byrds “Eight Miles High”
The Byrds were a great singles band in the mid-60’s. And this one features the classic 12 string Rickenbacker sound (probably through a top boost Vox AC-30 I would imagine) that every jingle jangle pop guy has tried to recreate for the past 40 odd years. The lead guitar track is such a monster.
Green Day “Longview”
I’m really not a Green Day fan but I love how the guitar sounds on their records. I saw a VH1 Behind The Music where they said one of the reasons they signed to Reprise was that the A&R rep knew guitar tone. That makes sense when listening to this single.
Guided By Voices – anything on Isolation Drills
The guitars on this record sound amazing. Punchy, loud, driving. I love the early GBV records, but Pollard’s songs really came alive with this cleaner, punchier production.
Jesus & Mary Chain – anything on Psycho Candy
Buzzsaw, squealing distortion and feedback. This record could not have had a better title.
My Bloody Valentine – anything on Loveless
You can’t talk about guitar and not talk about this band and this album. I love the “Strawberry Wine” era stuff, but this… Kevin Shields figured out how to make a guitar sound like whales &*@ing. Holy crap. Stacks of Marshalls. Tape saturation. Loud beyond belief.
Radiohead – anything on Okay Computer
The fact that Johnny Greenwood laid down these kind of performances to tape is why every record they released after, while all really great in scope, imagination, and creativity, will always leave guitar lovers wanting.
The Smiths “How Soon Is Now”
The twin assault of the tremelo rhythm track, and the wailing swell track is genius. Johnny Marr is a genius. How the &*ck did he do that?
Sonic Youth “Teenage Riot”
A former co-worker once said they were over-rated. He wasn’t a guitar player which explains how he could say something so completely wrong.
The Who “Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere”
I’m pretty sure this was when Townshend used a Rickenbacker through a Marshall. To awesome effect. I like the fact that he used the guitar as a weapon, to assault the audience. His guitar would never gently weep. Thankfully.
Rediscovering The Great Tom Waits, Again
April 1, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Though he’s long been one of my favorite songwriters, performers, philosophers, actors, interviewees, and yes, singers, Tom Waits has been all over my brain recently. It started when he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by one of my other all-time favorite folks, Neil Young, earlier this month.
2011 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction and performance:
Naturally, watching him take the stage to speak and perform kicked off yet another listening frenzy, from his folky singer-songwriter days of “Ol’ 55″ and “I Hope I Don’t Fall In Love With You” in the early 70s all the way through 2006’s massive masterpiece ‘Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers and Bastards.’ This rediscovery (one of many over the years) in turn inspired me to re-watch Robert Altman’s ‘Short Cuts,’ in which Waits plays a twisted variation of himself, as he does in all of his films, ranging from ‘Bram Stoker’s Dracula’ and ‘Mystery Men’ to ‘Coffee and Cigarettes’ and ‘The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.’
At the risk of sounding too snobbish, it’s always bugged me a bit that me that views of Tom Waits have traditionally fallen into one of two camps – that he’s either one of the absolute all-time greats or simply “that funny-looking guy with the godawful voice” who elicits a giggle and the “skip” button.
For those in the latter camp, I’ve included below a few of the best and most diverse examples of what makes Waits such a talent – or as Young called him, “a magician.” These live performances showcase his unique knack for seamlessly transforming from lounge singer to carnival barker to deranged preacher, often within a single verse or gesture.
“Tom Traubert’s Blues” (From 1976’s ‘Small Change’):
“Cemetery Polka” (From 1985’s ‘Rain Dogs’):
“Chocolate Jesus” (From 1999’s ‘Mule Variations’):
