World Wide Woozle episode #552 - LOCKDOWN!

It had to happen. Canberra went into a seven day lockdown at 1700hrs on Thursday August 12. Given that we're totally surrounded by New South Wales it was only a matter of time. Other than the rush on toilet paper and plenty of idiots trying to escape interstate to the south coast it seems pretty chilled here. And to those who tried to escape into NSW to the coast...enjoy your fourteen day lockdown.

The Specials - Ghost Town - https://youtu.be/RZ2oXzrnti4

Lockdown for me has meant that I can't avoid working from home any longer! For all of 2020, as an essential worker, I was in the office. Now, however, I can do my work from home for a bit. I think that will take a bit of getting used to. 

Loverboy - Working For The Weekend - https://youtu.be/dsgBpsNPQ50

This morning (Saturday) has been rather groovy really. I slept in until 0730hrs (yes, that's a sleep in), read the news whilst I had breakfast, discovered a new band and bought their EP, did a yoga session and unpacked the dishwasher. Not a bad life really!

Let's get to some music.

For metal fans, Utopia Records in Sydney is a bit of a Mecca. Their Facebook page is a really good source of information (and quite often a good laugh). This morning they posted about a band from Melbourne called Galaxy who have a new album coming. The description sounded interesting so after a quick search I found their last release and had a listen. Yep, it's cool. A healthy, rocking mixture of King Diamond, old school metal, Ghost, some psychedelic moments and maybe Judas Priest. I ordered the EP via Bandcamp and have had a listen online a few times now. I really like it and I can't wait to hear the new album soon.

Galaxy - Dreaming Out - https://youtu.be/jHr-FU6QVIo

Scottish synth-pop band Chvrches have a new single out featuring Robert Smith from The Cure. The song is upbeat and melancholy at the same time and has a groove that really sticks in my head. Chvrches aren't a band I've listened to in the past but on the strength of this I imagine I'll be expanding my playlist again.

Chvrches with Robert Smith - How Not To Drown - https://youtu.be/7U_LhzgwJ4U

I played Chet Atkins recently so here's another player who lists him as his major influence. Tommy Emmanuel is an Australian guitar virtuoso. He can play across many styles but truly shines when you see him make one guitar sound so effortlessly amazing all by itself. Oz rock fans could always do a little digging and find him playing with Dragon back in the day!

Tommy Emmanuel - Guitar Boogie (live) - https://youtu.be/bv3dDH2QCnU

I mentioned Elvis last week. Plenty of people have written songs about, or referencing The King and I'd like to play a couple here. Firstly we have The Badloves. They're an Australian band who were big in the 90s although I notice they've played some shows relatively recently. Their album Get On Board is a really good laidback bluesy style record and this song comes from it. Not bad for a debut single!

The Badloves - Memphis - https://youtu.be/TsUT6asJETA

If you have time, read the backstory about Marc Cohn's big hit, Walking In Memphis. It's all about him, suffering from writer's block and how the events in the song helped him with that.

Marc Cohn - Walking In Memphis - https://youtu.be/PgRafRp-P-o

And of course, it would be hard to go past the next tune. One of the reasons I bought a resonator guitar a few years ago was the first line of this song (as well as the cover of Dire Straits' Brothers In Arms). Paul Simon's album, Graceland, is a very regular appearance on my playlist.

Paul Simon - Graceland (live 1991) - https://youtu.be/_y-EG9b-mu8

Quite often I look at my collection of CDs, LPs and cassettes (as well as stuff I've flagged on Spotify) for something I haven't listened to in a long time or for something that I've simply forgotten about. Last week that was the band from Iowa called Slipknot. They're famous, have plenty of albums and fans but I never managed to get into them. I noticed a copy of their fourth long player, from 2008,  All Hope Is Gone. I cued it up to listen to in the car and, for many reasons, it hit the spot. Maybe it's the masks and imagery that put me off which is funny because it totally works with KISS and Ghost. Anyway, the album has gone around a few times and it's encouraged me to dive deeper into their discography as well as remembering to listen with my ears rather than my eyes.

Slipknot - Dead Memories - https://youtu.be/9gsAz6S_zSw

Something I've done lately is to take artists who I decided I really don't like and give them a second chance. Everyone experiences change in their musical tastes over the course of their life and that interests me. I like to think that I'm pretty open minded when it comes to music but there are a few bands that I've really struggled with. Powderfinger have always been one of those bands. Early on in their career they rocked fairly hard....for example:

Powderfinger- Tail (1994) - https://youtu.be/RF3racPCYDY

But their music seemed to get more and more middle of the road as their career went on. That's just my opinion and your mileage may vary of course. I've tried a few tracks recently and there are some gems in there, I just feel that there's a little energy lacking for the most part. Singer Bernard Fanning put out a solo album a few years ago called Tea and Sympathy. I remember, after one listen, vowing to never listen to it again. Recently I was reintroduced to it and listened, critically, with fresh ears. OK, so it's not so bad. He writes great lyrics and conveys a mood well. Is it my favourite album, definitely not, but it's not the slow, boring trainwreck that I thought it was when it first came out.

Bernard Fanning - Watch Over Me (live) - https://youtu.be/P8jAaSqWPvs

Finally, Bryan Adams. I've always been a fan of his straight ahead, melodic, good time rock and roll. He's a guy that writes a great hook and knows how to entertain a crowd. Along with Van Halen, I think that Bryan's music is perfect on a road trip or simply when you need a pick me up. Particularly in a live setting it's the sound of a Stratocaster that dominates and that's my guitar of choice. Bryan and his longtime sidekick, Keith Scott, make their guitars growl and sing but always with that distinctive Strat sound.

Bryan Adams - Kids Wanna Rock (live) - https://youtu.be/oYi2lqG2u9I

Bryan Adams and Mel C - When You're Gone (live and acoustic) - https://youtu.be/n7zYkoycc1I

Yup, that wasn't a Strat in the second clip but it's a great version of a cracking tune.

Rebecca and Megan Lovell are sisters who have a band called Larkin Poe. They play acoustic, electric and slide guitar and their cover versions and bluesy original material is a lot of fun. There is a metric ton of material available on their YouTube channel so for those stuck in lockdown, click away and disappear down that rabbit hole for a while. You won't regret it.

Larkin Poe - Mississippi - https://youtu.be/ZXQQEK81BAk

Larkin Poe - Mama, I'm Coming Home (Ozzy Osbourne cover) - https://youtu.be/_inb9O-ckNs

In the last couple of days I've made the most of my 60 minutes exercise outside allotment by doing a ride that includes some hill climbing at the National Arboretum. Today I'll mix it up with more yoga and a walk in the sun. Variety is good even though I still have to convince myself of that from time to time! 

Keep the faith Australia,

The Woozle

"Nobody knows I'm Elvis
Nobody knows this is me
After all of my tries...I've got
The perfect disguise..." Nobody Knows I'm Elvis, Waylon Jennings, 1994.