Sick of It All

Sick. Sick. Sick. Been under the weather for the past few days. I'll get back to blogging tomorrow with some belated Grammy & early Obama stuff. 'Til then, NYHC heroes Sick of It All rip thru "Stepdown."

-AF

Gimme A Break

I'm recovering from spending my birthday with AC/DC at MSG last night. It was the loudest, biggest, stupidest rock show. NYT's Jon Caramanica sorta gets it:

It was all, of course, glorious, in the way most uncomplicated pleasures are.

But then he goes all Major Buzzkill on us unnecessarily complicating his review with criticism and thoughtful analysis. (Natch, this is the Times). You don't go to an AC/DC show to split atoms or cure cancer! Be cool, Johnny.

As I used to tell the odd crank calling my radio shows, you're listening waaay too hard.

-AF

RIP: Miriam Makeba

Miriam Makeba - "Pata Pata"

The singer may be gone but her song lives on.

The NYT:

Miriam Makeba, a South African singer whose voice stirred hopes of freedom among millions in her own country though her music was formally banned by the apartheid authorities she struggled against, died overnight after performing at a concert in Italy on Sunday. She was 76.

Makeba's voice was as singular as she was brave.

-AF

*Update: Makeba tributes from around the world.

The New World

X's "The New World" has been running thru my head since I woke up. Perhaps more prescient now than it was upon it's release 25 years ago, it's lyrics are killer:

“Honest to goodness
the bars weren’t open this morning.
They must have been voting for a new president or something.
Do you have a quarter?"
I said yes because I did
“Honest to goodness
the tears have been falling
all over the country’s face.”
It was better before, before they voted for what-his-name.
It was better before, before they voted for what-his-name.
This is suppose to be the new world.

-AF

The Originator

You may find it hard to believe but I've easily seen well over one thousand concerts. They've been in venues ranging from arenas to the smallest imaginable venues. Still I kick myself for not having seen Muddy Waters and Bob Marley when I was a kid. I was in my mid-teens and headed in a different musical direction the last time Muddy performed in my hometown. As for Marley, I had no way of knowing his last time through would in fact be the last. It was a lesson well-learned.

As a result, I've gone out of my way to see those musical heroes that I, for whatever reason, have not yet seen. This was further reinforced by the Sept. 11 attacks and the not entirely coincidental, simultaneous deterioration of my heath. (A traumatic brain injury + PTSD will make a very sick fella sicker -- those fuckers flew right by our apartment). Shortly thereafter, we started "The List."

Since then we've caught such musical giants as Dick Dale, Joe Jackson, Eddie Palmieri (w/La Perfecta II!) and took Mrs. Forester to see two she had never before seen: Radiohead and The Who.

Now I've dug Bo as long as I can remember. His (literally) signature "Bo Diddley beat" is a cornerstone rock & roll groove. It has provided a foundation for the likes of Buddy Holly ("Not Fade Away"), The Rolling Stones (a more Bo than Buddy "Not Fade Way" plus "Mona" and ), The Pretenders ("Cuban Slide"), The Smiths ("How Soon Is Now?"), Bruce Springsteen (She's The One), The Who "Magic Bus", Patti Smith, U2 ("Desire"), Jimi Hendrix, The Del Fuegos ("Out for a Ride"), George Thorogood (covered "Who Do You Love"), The White Stripes ("Screwdriver"), Dave Edmunds/Nick Lowe/Rockpile, The New York Dolls, The Clash (Mr. Diddley opened for their first American tour in '79), Tom Petty, Aerosmith, Van Morrison/Them, The Jesus and Mary Chain (wrote "Bo Diddley Is Jesus" & covered "Who Do You Love"), Iggy Pop/Stooges (Iggy's RS appreciation here), The Flamin' Groovies, Eric Clapton, The Undertones/That Petrol Emotion, Chris Isaak (covers "Diddley Daddy" & "Bring It To Jerome"), Creedence Clearwater Revival, Stray Cats, The Yardbirds (covered "I'm A Man"), Treat Her Right/Morphine, The criminally underrated Pretty Things (covered "Mama, Keep Your Big Mouth Shut" & "Pretty Thing", natch), The Strangeloves ("I Want Candy") and even George Michael ("Faith"). That's just off the top of my head. Rolling Stone ranked Bo Diddley at #20 on their list of rock & roll's The Immortals.

Because my seizures were not yet under control, I'm a little fuzzy as to whether got out of the hospital in late 2001/early 2002. I do know the very first gig we went to was my one and only Bo Diddley experience. Bo played all the hits. He was funny, bawdy and brilliant. It was a great night. This show helped me feel normal for the first time in a long while. Music is powerful medicine indeed.

Whatever it is that makes you happy, be it music or fine art or professional sports, save your pennies and make the time to see the very best in person. It's good for the soul. The memories are forever. You may not have the chance later.

Bo Diddley died today at the age of 79.

-AF

PS Check out one of the better relatively recent Bo Diddley pieces by Neil Strauss here.

Stop!

A special request for Hillary.
-AF
+Uncle Anacher's Trivia Vault: Five years ago while in Houston, TX, I bought Erasure's Andy Bell a tuna fish sandwich.

++Update 6/06: I just secured my Yaz(oo) tix for Saturday, July 19. Woo-hoo!

Thorn In My Side

When I misappropriated the phrase "intellectual quicksand," I could not help but think of these "post-hardcore" buds o' mine.

Leave Them All Behind

Like New Order's "Temptation" (the scoop here), I've obsessed over "LTAB" for 15+ years. This epic version is from a 1992 Brixton Ride show. I wanna say that I saw 'em around the same time. While I can remember almost every one of the countless acts I've seen, my early NYC years do have quite a few blurry patches.

I popped up to Boston to give my mom a hand. She's kept me busy. Later today I'll be putting a face to everything that is wrong about how the "Support Our Troops"-car-magnet-
sporting-lapel-flag-pin-wearing-Bush Administration treats our military.

-AF

Traveling Music

There's no better traveling music than The Singing Ranger, Nova Scotia's own Hank Snow.

No posting till Sunday. I'm headed to a wedding this weekend. It's a good 350+ mile drive.

-AF

RIP

Neil Aspinall, the 'fifth Beatle', dies aged 66.

While there were almost as many "fifth Beatles" as there are #2 al-Qaeda leaders, Aspinall had a better claim on this moniker than all others.

-AF

More background on Aspinall here.

Incidental Introspection*

Woke up depressed** -- More so than usual. Because a great song will never let you down, it's on days like this I turn to music. As music is poetry, a great poem will never let you down either.

Today Scott Horton has posted Pablo Neruda's La Canción desesperada. It fits my mood exactly.

-AF

*Title changed: 11/14/08
**Loud Love, track 8.