#11

On rare occasion I will look to see just how “mainstream” is doing – album sales, itunes top downloaded songs, billboard charts and so forth. Of the top ten most downloaded songs on itunes (as of today), I recognized five of the artist names. I went ahead and sampled each song in the top ten and wasn’t too surprised how similar most of them sounded. I was able to make out a few of the lyrics, such as; “Don’t stop, make it pop, DJ blow my speakers up, Tick tock, tonight Imma’ fight till we see the sunlight, tick tock on the clock but the party don’t stop” I also noticed this particular song happened to be titled, TiK ToK, neither word can be found in the dictionary. Another lyric repeated “In My Head” seven times during the thirty-second sample, I considered taking the time to search out the full lyric and give it a good honest read but I reluctantly chose not to. Is this kind of music making us dumber? Here is an interesting piece of information I stumbled upon this week.

CalTech grad student named Virgil Griffith has conducted an interesting (albeit somewhat unscientific) study relating music preferences with SAT scores. While SAT scores are criticized for not accurately determining intelligence, the results show that the “smartest” students’ favorite musician is Beethoven, with an average SAT score of 1371, and at the other end of the spectrum is Lil’ Wayne, with an average score of 889. Other bands at the top of the scale are Counting Crows, Radiohead, and Sufjan Stevens

I thought that was an interesting piece of information. It probably means absolutely nothing, however, it did get me thinking. Thinking about the kind of music I listen to, the kind of movies I watch, the kind of literature I read - I believe there is no question those three influences play and have played a vital role in my intelligence or lack of.

I recall one argument I had with an individual a few years ago about movies. This person said, “What is wrong with just wanting to be entertained and not having to think all the time, just good mindless entertainment.” There is nothing wrong with wanting that, right? I guess I just have a hard time understanding why someone would choose “not thinking,” verse “thinking”. All I know for sure is that it wasn’t always this way, there was a time when the majority preferred thought evoking film, music, and literature. The proof is in the pudding; look back at the Academy Award nominated films of the 70’s – The Last Picture Show, Ordinary People, Raging Bull, Dog Day Afternoon, The Conversation, Clock Work Orange, Patton, The French Connection, Five Easy Pieces, the list goes on and on. Music parallels that of film; money is the governing body that now controls our “mainstream” media. I often wonder though, with the great works of art still being created on a daily basis, why then, are the theatres and radio stations loaded with simplistic, predictable, and even elementary pieces of work? I don’t have the answer to any of these questions. Although, I do believe most people would prefer the more thought out works of art; those in which the driving force behind it’s production is not money, greed, or the ambition of fame. Those works that are simply created because they have to be, the artist responsible has a thirst for expression and the only answer to quenching this thirst is by telling their stories. The truth is this; most people do not know were to look, they just don’t realize what is out there, I have to believe that to be true.

The next artist on the list is far from elementary. He is a downright poet and if you’re looking for good mindless entertainment, steer very clear of Joe Pug.

Joe Pug - Nation of Heat EP

The Nation of Heat is a seven song EP. The album consists of Joe Pug only, his guitar and occasional harmonica. With each passing lyric from each of the seven tracks something is given; his words ascend out from the speakers and stick to you. You begin listening, giving more and more attention with each passing verb or adjective.

“Yea I’ve come to know the wish list of my father

I’ve come to know the shipwrecks where he wished

I’ve come to wish aloud among the over dressed crowd

Come to witness now the sinking of the ship

Throwing pennies from the sea top next to it”

Nation of Heat stands for something different than most albums, it’s not something you stick in for sheer entertainment, it’s not background music to a cocktail party, it is though a work of art, a very fine work of art. It deserves true listening, it deserves to be thought out and pondered over. When it comes to song writing I sort of like the old saying, “If you haven’t got something nice to nice, don’t say anything at all” perhaps we could change that to, “If you haven’t got something smart to say, don’t say anything at all.” In the seventh and final track, a shouting out of sorts as to how he feels about the state of things, Joe walks a fine line of expression verse obnoxious political opinion, he succeeds greatly, with lyrics like; “Blocking borders with smiles are immigrant sons, we measure loneliness in miles and misery in tons. There’s a straw-hatted man going away from the shore, he said it’s a shame they don’t let you have slaves here anymore. I’m the ugliest man that you’ll ever meet, I come from the Nation of Heat.”

Nation of Heat is the genesis of Joe Pug’s music. He has followed it up with a nice (free) five song EP of “B” sides that didn’t make the Nation of Heat cut. His full-length album was released earlier this month, titled, Messenger, ten songs, full-band, background vocals and is masterful. I was fortunate enough to catch Joe Pug live in concert not less than a week ago, he is one of those artists for me that I almost fear seeing live, simply because the idea of him not being great is too sad of thought. He wasn’t great, he was absolutely perfect – Joe Pug will be a household name among my generation of music lovers, he will be our Dylan, I know it may be sacrilege to say such a thing and make no mistake, I’m not saying he’s Dylan, I’m just saying in the years to come…he will be this generations Dylan.

WATCH JOE SING "NATION OF HEAT" LIVE

BE SURE AND CHECK HIM OUT AT HIS WEBSITE - LEARN ALL KINDS OF GREAT THINGS ABOUT THIS GUY. HE STARTED OUT BY GIVING HIS MUSIC AWAY...AT HIS EXPENSE.

http://www.joepugmusic.com/

#12

When I was twelve years old our family planned a camping trip to Northern Idaho. My Father was working in the area at the time and the idea was for us kids (five of us) and our Mother to meet him there. Once we arrived to his location, we’d quickly hook up to the fifth-wheel trailer that my Dad called home while he worked out of town and then head to the beautiful mountains of Northern Idaho for a three-day weekend. The plan was well thought out, we had packed accordingly and were prepared for quality time in the outdoors.

Before I go much further, it’s best if I give a quick illustration of my Father. He undoubtedly walked up hill both ways to school, not just in snow but snow and mud, it was so cold spit would freeze before it hit the ground and he was so damn tough that he did this in t-shirt and jeans because he wasn’t fortunate enough to own a coat. He once told my brother and I that one day while waiting for the bus (he was ten years old mind you) he shot and killed eleven birds…with a slingshot. He tells another story in which he was dropped off in the high plains of Wyoming to keep watch and feed cattle for a two week period during late spring. An original old homestead one-room log cabin (no electricity or plumbing) to serve as lodging. He was given a rifle with plenty of ammunition and a loaf of bread, did I mention it was five months before his twelfth Birthday. When told this story for the first time, I myself being in my early teens asked the obvious questions. What did you eat? Were you scared? Two weeks…Really? He replied in a way only my Father could, “Hell yes, two weeks if it was a day and damn right I was scared, I was eleven. I crafted a homemade fishing pole from what I could find laying around the cabin, caught and ate fish from the river and shot a deer on my second day.” When I was really little and would ask him just how tough he was, he would always reply, “I could beat the hell outta’ Mr. T.” I must have believed Mr. T was the strongest man in the world at that time. I tell you those stories in order to give you a small dose of what my old man is like. He’s tough and with that came a bit of a temper; his fuse short, his patience had run out years earlier and for some reason wasn’t replenished. Isn’t that the damndest thing you ever heard, keep it in mind though, it seems you can run completely out of patience – who knew it.

I’m going to be short from this point forward. His truck (A fairly brand new Ford) blew its transmission between where he was working and our camping location. An event of this nature has the ability to drive my Father to a place only few human beings have ever gone. More Back Story: A lawn mower failed to start one afternoon; this led to my Dad throwing the lawn mower onto the roof of our house. In the mowers defense it actually only landed on the roof and then tumbled back to the ground – My Dad loaded the mower into the back of his truck, drove to town and heaved the lawn mower into the showroom of the store he had purchased it from only weeks before. This is just one of many stories. You must be wondering what all of this has to do with music, hang with me, I will tell. We abandoned his truck and camper, loaded his work truck with the camping gear and pressed forward. When we arrived to the location my Father had picked out the week before we discovered all of the camping sites were filled. We had traveled to the end of the dirt road, parked the truck and car and the seven of us were together looking out over the endless terrain of mountains and trees. My Father, the volcano, was angry, utterly disgusted in the breakdown of his truck and now bothered by the fact there were no empty campsites. And then to top it off, at this very moment, two siblings (I’m not sure which of us it was) began fighting with one another. That quickly calmed down but I had noticed the look on my Dad’s face, a look that one knows the very best thing to do at that moment is walk away. He was going to vent his frustration…I just knew it. However, like magic from above, a moment of silence had overcome the entire family and no more perfect time could there be – I’ve said before how large of a role music plays in our family. I remembered a line from a wonderful Beach Boys song, Sloop John B and with great vigor I sang aloud, “This is the worst trip - I’ve ever been on.” That was all it took, the twelve-year-old son breaking the silence with a great and memorable lyric. The laughter shifted the mood and what was heading toward being an awful trip ended up being one of my most memorable and wonderful family memories – we had a great family vacation.

#12 Whiskeytown - Pneumonia (2001)

Whiskeytown released three albums between 1996 and 2001 before their official breakup in the year 2000 in order for frontman Ryan Adams to pursue his solo career. The band went through many changes in that short time but the Pneumonia release was made up of Ryan Adams, Caitlin Cary, Phil Wandscher, Eric Gilmore, and Mike Daly. Each of these have gone on to have continued success in music but clearly none more than singer songwriter Ryan Adams. In my humble opinion Pneumonia is the finest Alternative Country album released to date. Like so many other albums on this list and perhaps more so than any other, this album is absolutely timeless. It could have played well in the 60's and it will continue to play well forty years from now. The majority of the tracks were co-written by Adams and Daly. The record was produced by the mastermind of Ethan Johns, who went on to produce 3 of Adams' future records. Ethan also produced records by; Tift Merritt, Rufus Wainwright, Ray LaMontagne, Kings Of Leon, and The Jayhawks to name just a few. Like Dylan, Ryan Adams as a vocalist seems to sound a little different on each album but his voice on Pneumonia is perfect. Put that together with the beautiful background vocals of Caitlin Cary and you've discovered the formula for a peerless alt-country album. This is one album that can stop me in my tracks, no matter what I am doing when a song from Pneumonia begins playing, I drop it and I listen. Many of you will know of Ryan Adams and the brilliance that is his music but sometimes Whiskeytown and Pneumonia slip through the cracks, don't let it. It really is that good.

Listen to Jacksonville Skyline from lala or check out the live version on youtube.

Jacksonville Skyline - Whiskey...

#13

By Digler, 1 February 2010

What do a conversation with a professor near retirement over lunch, a late night walk through the Lower East Side section of New York City with a person I didn’t know then and have not talked to since and a conversation in a parking lot with two teenagers I know all have in common? Music, of course (this is a blog about music after all). It has almost become cliché at this point to talk about the ability of music to unite people, to create connections and a shared understanding that might not normally exist (or at least be found). Music can create those bonds in a way that continues to amaze me.

In each of those scenarios, a connection was created, some out of thin air, some as a strengthening of a previous bond. This alone does not make them worth repeating. I could list dozens of other examples and I’m sure you could too. But in the spirit of this blog, the connections started out as a discussion of the ‘classics’ and turned into a give-and-take about great current music that is out there, if only we have a little time, a little curiosity and an open mind.

The conversation with the professor, who has since become a good friend, started out as a discussion about social media which evolved into the obsession of music fans. I learned she is a big Bruce Springsteen fan. And I mean big. Sufficiently intrigued, I asked about other music and was surprised to learn she also loved to discover new music and really liked Pete Yorn and Jesse Malin. We have continued the conversation from time to time since then, sharing concert dates and album releases.

A couple of years ago, I was at a conference in New York City for a week. Mike had already moved and I really didn’t know anyone in the city. At night I would wander around and go to movies, interesting shops and just soak up the energy and excitement that is New York City. One afternoon, I overheard a fellow conference attendee mention Neil Young in passing. As an avid Neil Young fan, I went over and introduced myself. Turns out, he wasn’t very familiar with Neil’s work. He asked me a couple of questions which turned into a conversation that continued for several hours as we wandered around the Lower East Side, discussing and debating the merits of various types of music – from classic rock to alt-country to heavy metal – in a city that seems to have music at its very soul. We didn’t have much else in common but I’ll always remember those couple of hours of serious music discussion and reflection. In fact that conversation was also partly responsible for me finding my way to a free Ron Sexsmith concert in Battery Park a couple of days later, which was fantastic and another great memory.

As a person involved with youth programs, I have gotten to know several teenagers in the area where I live. We talk sports, we talk movies, and we talk music. I have been especially surprised, and encouraged, by their taste in music. Sure, they like some radio-friendly pop fare that I don’t care much for but they also have an appreciation for really good music that spans generations and genres. It was during one of these conversations that the next album on the list was playing. Like me, what got them first was that voice, followed quickly by the sound and, after further listening, the songwriting.

The band is Roman Candle and the album is Oh Tall Tree in the Ear.

#13 Roman Candle - Oh Tall Tree in the Ear

Modern rock, alt-country, indie rock, roots rock - I don’t know what you’d call it. I just call it great music. This is music that sticks with you and the kind of album that seems like it will be in conversations about great music years from now (when I am the one near retirement and my grandkids are learning about music). It is a truly wonderful album from start to finish.

Probably the most radio friendly of the songs on this album is ironically the one that takes a dig at music on the radio – “Why Modern Radio is OK”

Now he didn’t know it but while he was in jail
I had my heart broke by a woman to wondrous to tell
And we’d fallen in love to half the songs that jukebox played

So when he flattened his dollar on the side of the machine
and I saw ‘comes a time’ come on the karaoke screen
I realized there were a few things I had forgot to say:

Don’t play Neil Young
Don’t play Van Morrison
Just let some high school emo band start versing and chorusing
Because there’s no way it will break my heart as far as I can see
And that’s why modern radio is A OK with me.

I love that! Of course, I think the musicians in Roman Candle, which include Skip Methany and his wife Timshel and his brother Logan would agree that while the songs on modern radio aren’t deep enough to break our heart, there is plenty of music out there that follows in the footsteps of Neil Young and Van Morrison if we know where to look. I’d like to think the albums we’ve shared with you on this blog are a good starting point. Oh Tall Tree in the Ear may not be the kind of music to break your heart but it’s the kind of music you’d turn to after it was broken, when you’re angry, searching for answers, unsure of yourself and your life but also knowing it might hurt now but that is part of living so you may as well enjoy the ride. I’ll close with another set of great lyrics, this time from the song, Big Light

Sometimes I get a little lost

And the good life is so hard to see

Sometimes all I can see is the cost

When the prize is standing right in front of me.

And it ain’t easy to get along

When you’ve got things going wrong

And there is no luck to be found besides

Spend my natural prime, thinking money and time,

Wondering where they go, and they go.

That’s when I need you to put me in line.

Come tell me something, any words are fine.

Fill up these four walls with old melodies.

Let me know if the big light is shining on me.

Roman Candle has one of the really great band websites I've ever seen. They heavily involve their fans and create a wonderful fan community. Make sure you check it out, it's a great place to check out photos, stream their music, videos and so forth.

http://www.romancandlemusic.com/

Here is a pretty cool live version of "Modern Radio..."