Welcome. Let's get started, no mucking around OK. Sit still and don't fidget. DJ Dongles – leave your training wheels alone.
AC/DC are confirmed to be touring Australia (and probably everywhere else) in 2013. That's fantastic. If you've ever wondered what a "big" stadium gig is all about then it doesn't come much better than AccaDacca. Last time they toured I hesitated on the mouse button and tickets were sold out. Hopefully I'll be 'Quick Draw McGraw' this time.
I saw AC/DC first in Sydney at the end of 1991. For me it was almost a religious experience. And then they played a huge outdoor show here in Canberra in in February, 2001. That was a lot of fun. There are also rumours of another album to coincide with the tour. That'll be their 17th studio album – not a bad effort!
AC/DC – Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap (live 2009) - http://youtu.be/jBFC8xWHH9g
On the bus this morning I listened to a few tracks from Miles Davis' "Sketches of Spain". It's a great album and pretty accessible if, like me, you are not a jazz aficionado. I had a think about jazz at the time (I was making notes for this episode) and I remembered this next artist. Django Reinhardt is recognised as a guitar maestro. He was a Belgian guitarist who played amazingly despite having deformed fingers as the result of an accident. Check this out....along with violin legend Stefan Grappelli...
Quintette du Hot Club de France - J'attendrai Swing - http://youtu.be/1PxzE6szmTI
Searching for further inspiration I had a rummage through one of my boxes of cassette tapes. There are still quite a few that I don't have on CD or MP3 yet. You can expect a bit of variety now...
First up is Kyuss. I think it's fair to say that their music is classified as 'stoner rock'. I first heard them on a giveaway sampler cassette that came with the now defunct music mag "Hot Metal". To paraphrase Billy Bragg, "ideas came to them in much the same way as LPs came to Pink Floyd..."
Kyuss – Green Machine - http://youtu.be/R-MSfd2S7lo
What a treat. I have greatest hits volumes one and two cassettes from this next band. That's about 32 tracks with the same riff, in mostly the same key. But it works. They really shouldn't have prostituted themselves with their supermarket TV ads. A few years ago DJ Doc and I tried to play one of their songs for a gig – although they seem deceptively simple, getting the groove and the feel right proved pretty hard. In the end we played a tricky Hendrix track instead.
Status Quo – Whatever You Want - http://youtu.be/TI1KF65beSc
I'm pretty sure this next cassette belongs to DJ Al-E-Sunshine. Back in the day I wouldn't have listened to it. But I'm a lot more open minded that I was in the 80's and early 90's. Sure I listened to hard rock, folk, metal and bagpipes back then but pop music wasn't my bag. This was a big radio hit and deservedly so. Great horns. Really, it's rock song dressed up for the kids – check out the backbeat.
Feargal Sharkey – You Little Thief - http://youtu.be/YS4ALgm6Rsc
More stuff from the cassette archive in weeks to come. I've only just begun to search through it!
My man H alerted me to the fact that Icehouse were playing in Canberra. So, it looks like we'll be joining him for a night of nostalgia and probably the best Bowie rip-off ever!
Icehouse – Crazy - http://youtu.be/xzMaptbNMRw – I really love the hollow guitar sound in the intro – check it out.
The early 90's saw a lot of what I like to refer to as Maths Metal Bands. Their world seemed to be ruled by a metronome and sometimes with weird time signatures. All the 6/8 beat really means is that no-one can dance to it unless they lack rhythm! But, some of these bands, regardless of the surgical precision of their music made a significant impact. They were the alternative to the noisy, organic mush of bands like Soundgarden and Nirvana. Helmet would have to be one of the best. Here's a prime example but with a pretty straight beat.
Helmet – Unsung - http://youtu.be/jBfygUiS50g
DJ HeyJo discovered some truly hard-core Pink Floyd fans at her work this week. It's a hard circle to break into. You have to be able to sit through songs full of weird atonal noise, electronic blips and some cowbell. That type of Pink Floyd fan is nearly as anti-social as the serial Monty Python quoter – those guys really annoy me. We all know it's only a flesh wound. But Floyd, despite the arguments about Barrett, Gilmour and Waters are an awesome band. Try this on for size.
Pink Floyd – One Of These Days (live at Pompeii) - http://youtu.be/YgvAwBDbuIo
Pompeii!! Cool place for a gig.
OK now, we'll bring the week to an end with a band that are almost as universally uncool as Nickelback. And I don't care. I love the guitar sound, I love the lyrics and I love the fact that a singer who can't sing has made a career of it. I chose this particular song after finishing watching the first season of the BBC's 'Life on Mars'. Don't bother with the US remake, please. I know this song came out after the particular time period of the TV show but it still has the right feel for me. Did you know there's also a Spanish remake of 'Life on Mars' – I think I'll try and track down an episode, hopefully with subtitles. Que?!
Dire Straits – Industrial Disease - http://youtu.be/7rWuc5kar3Y
That's enough. Send me your cover version suggestions – not long until that mega-episode goes to air. Thanks to all those who have sent ideas already. I've got heaps to wade through and I am heartened that Johnny Cash gets tons and tons of votes.
I know, it's only rock 'n' roll but I like it.
DJ Rob
No comments:
Post a Comment