It's that time again, either delete this email or let yourself be exposed to the ramblings of someone who spends far too much time thinking about what to write here. Either way, it's a big welcome from me to you.
W.A.S.P. - Inside The Electric Circus - https://youtu.be/MrUjbBUaAUA
W.A.S.P. - Inside The Electric Circus - https://youtu.be/MrUjbBUaAUA
I was fortunate enough to pick up a couple of Steeleye Span LPs during the week from my mate Steve. He'd been hanging onto them for so long that he'd misplaced them! I like the band because the vocals are simply amazing and they also blend traditional British folk music with a healthy dose of electric guitar.
Steeleye Span - Black Jack Davy - https://youtu.be/DYwxfb1Rxig
I was reflecting with some friends about how many popular songs have their roots or take lyrics from the Bible. Some are a lot more obvious than others but it seems fairly likely that a LOT of songwriters spent time in Sunday school or church. Even if religion isn't your bag, it's hard to deny the influence. One song that is pretty obvious is Rivers of Babylon by Boney M. The main lyric is from Psalm 137 with the addition of the last bit from Psalm 19. Whilst the song, in one form or another, has obviously been around for a long time, the popular version we know so well originated as a reggae song from a Jamaican group called The Melodians. There are also versions out there by Linda Ronstadt and Steve Earle. The version I want to play for you today is from Don McLean. It's the last song on the American Pie album from 1971 (pre-dating Boney M but not The Melodians). McLean has similar lyrics of course but quite a different melody.
Don McLean - Babylon (live, 1975) - https://youtu.be/YuYlwI8Vc8Q
If you're interested, I wrote a review of the Don McGlashan gig and it's online here. Next weekend is Sisters of Mercy and a bit of a road trip.
H-Block 101 were a punk band from Melbourne who started in the mid 1990s. I was lucky enough to see them play live at the ANU Bar here in Canberra and their album Burning With The Times remains a firm favourite. I saw recently that they have a collection of early EPs and demos and it's pretty cool. You can find it on CD (second hand) or, if you must, it's streaming.
H Block 101 - Aunty Pauline - https://youtu.be/GfiyaZRQZbg
H Block 101 - Workers Wage - https://youtu.be/rkG7zPdfRp4
The Heavy Heavy are a new band out of Brighton in the UK. To be honest, the first time I heard them I thought it was The Doors or The Mamas and The Papas. That should give you a decent idea of what they sound like. The vocal harmonies are very reminiscent of First Aid Kit who I am a big fan of as well. The band have an EP, Life And Life Only, now available and have dropped another single (not on the EP) in the last few days. As I've said to a few people, I think this is real summer driving music and it's very groovy, baby!
The Heavy Heavy - Go Down River (live) - https://youtu.be/CmSBWrIpUSw
If you've seen the movie Eddie & The Cruisers then you'll know the next song. Watch the film if you haven't as it's a classic in my opinion and the soundtrack is great early rock and roll. Corey Taylor (Slipknot, Stone Sour vocalist) has covered it on an album he's put out and I think it's a great effort at staying true to the original but with a nod to his more modern stuff.
Corey Taylor - On The Dark Side - https://youtu.be/aJ1AOCvUVWU
I can write a lot about music, and I enjoy it. But there is more to life of course! My new place (not so new now I guess) is fab and I'm loving living here. I'm excited because Angus and Georgia are coming to stay in the near future (that gave me a kick to get a decent bed organised). Work is pretty good. I'm learning new things and hopefully making myself useful and the paperwork is in train for me to be made permanent and that will be totally amazing if it happens. I haven't had a permanent job for a number of years now and it's not a lot of fun and it messes with my head. Zoe is off to Egypt soon, the lucky thing. I guess that the proximity of other countries is something a bit foreign to many Australians as we live relatively far away from anywhere else. And of course I'm still reading. It's so good to disappear into the pages and become part of whatever is in there. At the moment I'm reading an anthology of 25 short pieces about different places in Scotland. Hopefully I'll get to visit a few of them in just under a year's time. And I'm working on my diet. It's definitely a work in progress and I think my dietitian may be pulling her hair out but we'll get there in the end.
AC/DC - Stand Up - https://youtu.be/l_lEqxF771Y
Lastly, a deluxe reissue that I almost missed. Rain On The Scarecrow (1985) is quite clearly a moment in time where John Cougar Mellencamp reflects on what is going on in his country. It's a great protest album that hides in plain sight. Just take a listen to some of the lyrics and you'll soon realise that this isn't standard country rock for good ol' boys and girls. The reissue has a whole lot of other good stuff in double CD format as well as the super deluxe set with LP, 2CDs, Blu Ray, booklet, poster and probably a partridge in a pear tree. There's a 7" single of Small Town as well. It's to be released on November 4th so I think I'll put this one on my Christmas list.
John Cougar Mellencamp - Rain On The Scarecrow (live 2021) - https://youtu.be/6izLRvp88B8
That's it folks. Another episode in the can.
The Woozle
"I've a basic sense of rhythm and a chronic sense of rhyme..."
Mark Jackson, I'm An Individual, 1985.
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