The name of Loudon Wainwright’s last album was Older Than My Old Man Now and I bet that title fits many of us Baby Boomers! Yes our fathers worked hard and died young. My Dad was 60 years old when he died of a heart attack in 1984, his younger brother Arthur was only 55! His father was 53 when he died from his third heart attack in 1953!
So it’s always pretty neat when I listen to an album, like I did with Standing in the Shadows from the blues band King King, are blown away, and then go to their website and read that they were the winners of the Best Band & Best Album at the British Blues 2012 Awards!! They are also Winners of ‘Best Band’ & ‘Best Album’ – Blues Matters Writers Poll in 2011!! Hailing from Glasgow King King is fronted by guitarist Alan Nimmo, formerly of the award-winning Nimmo Brothers. As I listened to the album, I heard tracks that went from all out blues ballads to funky blues… from the band’s Facebook page..
So I first became aware of blues guitarist Dave Specter a few years ago, when I listened to his album Live in Chicago. It’s been on the iPod and when songs come up on random shuffle, I’m always thinking about how much I like his work! Anyway, his guitar can be heard on a couple of albums that I’ve been listening to lately, one is a new one from harmonica player Al Miller ..In Between Time and the other Knockin’ Around These Blues with John Primer and Bob Corritore, both good albums. Well, somewhere in the last week or so, I came across another Chicago Bluesman Steve Freund and his latest release Come On In this House and I’ve been listening to it since then. When I was looking for Freund’s album on MOG, I also saw that Specter and Freund had released an album together back in 2004, titled Is What it Is. So I gave that a listen , too. What do they say, that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. In this case it’s two guitars are better than one, as friends Steve Freund and his former pupil Dave Specter, join together for a really fabulous album (IMHO). From the Delmark press release for the album:
Once upon a time I knew a young man who was semi-literate. He read books by Alexander Solzhenisten, John Fowles, Norman Mailer and James Baldwin among others. He loved the Marx Brothers and read about George S Kauffman, Alexander Woolcott and the rest of the members of the Algonquin Wits, including Dorothy Parker. But through the years as that young man aged, he found escape from the drudgery of work not in great literature, but in mysteries and thrillers, not that they aren’t good reads, but hey, saving the world from serial killers and nuclear annihilation isn’t the same as questioning the meaning of life!
So this morning was hectic, my wife needed a $300.00 gift card for a life-long friend who is retiring this years after 35 years of teaching! She told me to check with our bank but that she would call me later. When it got to be after 10 o’clock and she hadn’t called yet, I called she asked, “Why I hadn’t gone yet and that I needed to be back to pick her up at school at 10:45 fearing that I didn’t have enough time to look around I went on-line and typed in Visa gift card location and up popped Bank of America, hum, what better place to get a Visa gift card than Bank of America. So I hopped in the car and frantically drove to BOA, only to be told that they don’t do gift cards!! Well then who does I asked…. “You can try Shop-Rite” But I said “I want one $300.00 card do any banks do that??” She said that “TD Bank may do it”
So on this date 1937 in Littlefield, Texas an Americana music legend was born. Waylon Arnold Jennings.(June 15, 1937–February 13, 2002) Waylon along with Willie Nelson is responsible for the kind of music that I love. Waylon had recorded music for many years, when in the mid 1970s he said no to Nashville’s sound. You know the one with too many strings and a pop inflect. Waylon wanted it too sound his way…. so he became an “Outlaw” and along with Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson and Johnny Cash created a ragged, maverick image and a music that was independent from Nashville. The movement went on to become a significant force in music during ’70s, and laid the foundation for Americana music, a genre that adheres to its hardcore honky-tonk roots!
So for the last several weeks possibly a month I have been without my glucosamine and chondroitin pills and my knees have felt the effects, particularly when I go up and down the stairs. I think this is one of the reasons that I haven’t run as much over this time, maybe not consciously but on some level it’s made me feel less like running! Last Saturday I finally bought new pills and boy, what a difference after a few days my knees felt great going up and down the stairs and yesterday I actually felt like running! I still suck but a least my knees feel good today!! While I didn’t feel bad throughout the run I did though have to keep slowing down to keep my heart rate down! I finished a 3.8 mile run just a little faster than last time with an average pace just under 10:30 per mile! Just building miles!!
Ok this is the third time, I have tried to write this post today!!
Today is the 36th birthday of blues guitar great Kenny Wayne Sheppard. I first heard Kenny Wayne’s name way back, well maybe not way back, but back in 1995, when as an 18 year-old he released his first album Ledbetter Heights. Like many in the blues and rock worlds, I was blown away by the album and Sheppard’s playing!! When his second album Trouble Is… came out, I went out and quickly picked it up! I didn’t like that album as much as the first one, particularly the vocals…. Here’s what Allmusic says about the album….
So the other day, I wrote that Andrew told me that, along with The Winery Dogs, I should listen to Sound of Contact, and not to read about the band until after I listen. So I did as instructed and about mid-way through the album, the band started to remind me of Genesis. After listening , and enjoying the album I went to read about the band and I found out the reason that they sounded a like Genesis was their drummer…. his name is Simon Collins, yup he’s Phil’s son!!
Collins has released three solo albums but he always wanted to form a band. Through the years, as he was recording and performing his own music, he was also keeping contact with a group of musicians with whom he had a strong connection and chemistry. So finally this year, the band became a reality when “Sound of Contact” was formed. In addition to Simon, the band includes co-producer/co-writer/keyboardist Dave Kerzner (Sonic Reality, Kevin Gilbert) and co-writer/guitarist/bassist Matt Dorsey. Also helping out are some great co-writers and musicians including guitarist/bassist Kelly Nordstrom and guest vocalist Hannah Stobart (Rocket Moth, Wishing Tree).
