The Dadada

A little pixie came to the Bryan/College Station area last night.  Her name is Laura Meyer.  She's fantastic--go see her.

I was listening to one of the local public radio stations (89.9 KEOS) on my drive home yesterday when I first heard Laura Meyer. The interviewer was a jock named Stevo and he was talking up Meyer's new album, Boys and Eros, a play on poison arrows. I am sucker for live interviews, so I tuned into the show. Hearing what goes into songs, what they mean, and the inspiration behind them is always interesting to me, so I was listening intently.  Laura Meyer did not disappoint and really held my attention.

Meyer's lyrics are often thoughtful, sometimes whimsical, and clearly the product of a bright, young mind. Her voice reminds me a little of Beth Orton. It is a smokey, ethereal voice that makes you want to listen to what she is saying, and that kept me locked into KEOS more than anything else.  Sometime toward the end of the interview/performance, Stevo mentioned that Laura was playing at the Revolution in Bryan, and I knew I was going to be there too.

Laura came on stage at 8:00 that evening and ran through a set of songs from both of her cds.  Boys and Eros is very slickly produced album, while Four Corners is far more raw and in the typical singer-songwriter, a voice-and-guitar approach.  Both cds are pretty good representations of what I saw that night, but seeing someone live brings a whole other dimension to the experience, so I have that upon which to draw when I am listening to the albums.

Her performance was quite charming and she did a couple of covers as well, most notably, an inspiring version of Dolly Parton's Jolene. It was a shame that her performance did not draw more people.  I blame the folks at the Revolution, who should have had her perform at 10 pm instead of 8.  Let's just say that Open Mic night, which followed Ms. Meyer, drew about five times the crowd at 10 pm.  Ah, but I am being too critical and she seem to roll with it.

She closed her set a little after nine, and then made herself available to questions and conversation to those in attendance. She's been traveling across the country for months now, and will continue this into the fall.  Check out her website for dates, sounds and a very nice travel-journal type blog.  Oh, and get out and see her, you will not be disappointed.

Unfortunately, this is the only video clip I could find. Laura performing, U, on a break in Dublin:

My Ipod is a prized possession, but I still enjoy lugging a sleeve of CDs around for listening in my car.  There's something about jazz in spring. Like good jazz music, spring can be very volatile. Spring has time with intense rains and incredibly brilliant days filled with sunshine.  Jazz can be that way to the ear. So with the spring comes jazz for me, and I've been playing some great jazz in the old Durango lately.

One of the albums currently spinning in the old CD player is the Thelonious Monk Quartet's Misterioso. It was recorded live at the Five Spot Cafe and included side men Johnny Griffin (tenor sax), Ahmed Abdul-Malik (bass), and Roy Haynes (drums). It's a fantastic selection of recordings that allows the quartet to shine throughout. 

As cool as Miles Davis thought he was, Monk was cooler.  He conveyed an air of superiority without condescension.  Known for his shades and unique choices in hats, he was really the first "hipster" of jazz. In addition to being cool, he was often considered very unconventional for jazz at its time. However, he is also recognized as the creator of many (what are now considered) jazz standards. Monk was known for his tendency to go off time and to hold and play notes that were percussive as opposed to melodic.  He was a brilliant piano player, and that comes through well on this recording. Johnny Griffin was also great on this album.  Griffin really shines on Blues Five Spot, In Walked Bud, and Evidence. He and Monk play off each other well, and make this album what it is. If you're new to jazz this is one of the four or five albums I would suggest trying.

While I am on it, all new jazz enthusiasts should listen to Miles Davis' Kind of Blue. Miles Davis might not have been as cool as Thelonious, but he made one of the most accessible jazz albums. Another album I would recommend for first timers is Time Out by the David Brubeck Quartet. Add John Coltrane's A Love Supreme, and you've got yourself a nice starter set of jazz albums.

The other album that is wearing out my CD player is New York Cool: Live at the Blue Note with Donald Harrison (tenor sax), Ron Carter (bass), and Billy Cobham (drums). It features many jazz standards, and tears through these numbers at what feels like a whirlwind pace when you're listening to it.

I think what I like about this modern recording and the Misterioso is that you can feel the intimacy of the venue in each case. The audience is part of the experience and gives you a jazz club perspective of the performances. This is fairly straight forward, well played jazz. To be honest, I was pretty shocked when I first heard this album, because I always associate Harrison's work with fusion, funk and smooth jazz. He's an excellent musician and he couldn't be playing with a better set of partners than Carter and Cobham. I'd recommend this album to a budding jazz enthusiast as well.

Ugh... I am caught between abandoning this blog all together and trying to get back to doing a weekly post and review.  I can't promise anything.  I'm overcommitted...

Here's Colin Meloy at Jackpot Records.  If you don't have his new live album, go get it.  It's basically a refined version of the NPR show I posted earlier this year.

Here's a tune named 'Valerie Plame" which is bound to end up on the new Decemberists' album as a bonus track.

Well, I've been out of the area of operation for awhile. I traveled 20 out of 31 days in March, and really had no time for anything but family and work. Things are starting to get back to normal, and I will resume my weekly music roundup page this weekend.  Plus, I think I am due for a couple of new reviews...

If you're one of the few folks that read this blog, stay tuned for more!

I was lucky enough to be living in Pennsylvania when Myron Cope was still patrolling the broadcast booth for the Pittsburgh Steelers.  Myron ran into some health issues in the last few years and hung it up.  In the past year or so, he's been living in a nursing home.  Apparently, his respiratory health was compromised.  Last night, old Myron's lungs finally gave out.  The man who gave Pittsburgh the Terrible Towel and presided over Steelers broadcasts for over 30 years departed this world at the age of 79.  He will be missed.  The only other broadcaster I can compare him to is the legendary Boston Celtics play-by-play announcer, Johnny Most.  Johnny was great, but didn't have near the quirkiness or charm of Myron. Rest in peace, Myron Kopelman.

Here are a couple of videos from a fairly recent interview with Myron.  They fail to capture his total essence, but give you an idea of what kind of character he was:

Yeah, that's right, I called them chicks.  If I was a Californian, I'd call them chicas... Chicks, dudes, men, women, whatever... Who cares.  All I know is I'm digging Laura Veirs, Jenny Owen Youngs and Dawn Landes--all breaths of fresh air.  If this is the legacy of Lillith Fair, then it was a worthy endeavor.

Laura Veirs - brainy, nerdy, muy intelligente and she likes rocks (she was a geology major).  Claims that she got into music late.  Now she's teaching banjo and guitar lessons in the PNW.  While she's made several albums, she caught a lot of attention with Year of the Meteors.  Last year, she released Saltbreakers.  Her voice is timid, understated and unconventional.  It's no wonder that Colin Meloy asked her to record with him the duet, Yankee Bayonet.

Jenny Owen Youngs - brash, bratty, a self-described disease-free singer/songwriter/girl scout who sometimes has a potty mouth. I can't place her voice, but it sounds a little older than it is--like a female Nick Drake who's not as depressed. She's just released Batten the Hatches.  I wish she didn't pal around with Perez Hilton, but we can't all be perfect, can we?

Dawn Landes - a siren with an ear for folk, she's immeadiately appealing. It doesn't hurt that she's a natural beauty with big brown eyes.  She took Peter, Bjorn and John's Young Folks and made it old tyme--I mean real old tyme!  She's playing with a bunch of geriatrics. But she's special... someday more will realize that.  She has a wonderful voice and a great ear for arrangement.

Wilco is dominating the Torrent sites, and we're lucky enough to have a couple of shows from the band's recent residency at the Riviera in Chicago.  I Am Fuel You Are Friends has the entire 2/20/08 show in zipped format, and Captain's Dead has the FM recording from 2/19/08 up with set 1 here and set 2 here.  I've already listened to 2/18 and have also listened to the 2/15 show.  Fantastic stuff, and I am amazed at the quality of the audience recordings.  If I have time, I will post 2/15's show.  By many accounts, the five night stint was incredible, and by the sound of it, the crowd was really energized for these shows.

Really no time to post anything else...  Here's what's spinning in my car and Ipod if you're interested:

Frank Black - Teenager of the Year (an oldie, but goodie)
Wilco - At the Riviera (2/15, 2/19 with others to go)
Radiohead - In Rainbows (it will be awhile before this goes)
The Grateful Dead - (6/10/73 - RFK Stadium)

I am a big fan of the Decemberists and recently received an e-mail informing me that Colin Meloy is going out solo again.  Laura Gibson (another Portland, OR singer-songwriter) will be opening for Meloy in a tour reminiscent of his 2006 tour with Laura Veirs (also from Portland).

You're asking yourself, "How often do we have bi-annual tours with Portland Lauras?"  I know you are...  You can find out more about the tour here.

Oh, I was digging around the hard drive and found a show that I captured from NPR's All Songs Considered, way back when on Colin's last tour.  I also found a few Laura Gibson tracks from her Daytrotter sessions last fall. To save you the trouble, I've uploaded them to Sendspace, and they're ready for download.

You can get cover art and a setlist for the Colin Meloy

show here.

I am using Sendspace for the Meloy and Gibson downloads, which can be a little goofy.  It usually has some kind of weird ad and the link to download is at the bottom. If you get redirected, go back to my blog page and try the link again.  Then immediately click the download link at the bottom of the page.

You can get the entire show in one Zip file here.

Laura Gibson's Daytrotter sessions are here:

1. Hands in Pockets
2. Sweet Deception
3. Come By Storm
4. The Longest Day

Download while you can, because they are not up for long.

Weekly Blog Run Down:

Broadcaster House has a killer Of Montreal show posted to their site. I Am Fuel You Are Friends has some great Eddie Vedder Springsteen covers and collaborations. If you search thoroughly, you can find the complete Jeff Tweedy Letters to Santa Benefit ready for three discs on RBally.  While at RBally, you might want to download the early REM show and the KCRW session with Beck. For those of you who can't get enough of Radiohead's In Rainbows, Amplive has eight remixed songs from the album here.

That's all for now, folks...

I've been incredibly busy, and I've not listened to anything that's bowled me over in awhile.  One thing I have time for are the Moldy Peaches, and more specifically, Kimya Dawson.  To be honest, the Juno Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is responsible for this new found indulgence. Simple, imaginative lyrics integrated with a folkie sensibility equals refreshing.

Here's Kimya performing Viva La Performance:

 There's a bit of Dylan in this gal... Is she our new Jester?  Time will tell... just enjoy.

I am Fuel You Are Friends took the time to record the Counting Crows performance on WXPN this past Friday. It's a damn good short set, and Adam is in fine form here (download Zip file here).

If you liked the Vampire Weekend post from a few weeks ago, Funeral Pudding has them live at Amoeba Records in Hollywood.  My Old Kentucky Blog has Nada Surf and Josh Rouse on Acoustic Cafe, Thank goodness for Audacity.

 For those of you that like Wilco or Son Volt, have a listen to this Uncle Tupelo FM recording from 1990 on Broadcaster House.  Great stuff.  To close, Captain's Dead has a great Grant Lee Buffalo show from 1996 up.  Lots of great live music for the taking if you're into that sort of thing...

In this blog I usually stay away from politics, but the last ten years in U.S. politics have been mired in a lot of bad choices, pandering, and serving special interests. I think most people would agree that the country is stuck in a rut, and the next election will determine how far out of that rut we can get.

At the start of the primary season, the choices for president were looking bleak.  I wasn't really happy with anyone that was running.  Obama stuck out to me early, but I had no idea if he could pull it off.  I mean, that's the whole thing... who can win this?  I really think Hillary Clinton is a polarizing figure, and that Bush's two terms represent a very strong reaction to Bill Clinton's presidency. I think that anyone on the Republican side can win if Hillary earns the nomination.  I just believe that debates between Hillary Clinton and the presumptive Republican candidate, John McCain, will win him overwhelming support and make her nomination worthless. 

Obama sticks out to me as someone who can inspire people.  He's not offensive, he's very positive, and he seems like he could blow some wind in the nation's sails as we're currently in the doledrums of the Bush presidency. I also appreciate that he has been relatively consistent with his message, and is not pandering for votes as McCain and Clinton both seem to be doing. It's time for some new life in U.S. politics.  I say give Obama a chance.

Regarding Obama, two recent things have received some notoriety over the past few weeks.  First, many of the remaining members of the Grateful Dead held a fund raiser at the Warfield Theater in San Francisco.  It's up on the archive, and someone actually made covers for the 3 CD set.  I've uploaded them for those interested.  Obama even makes an appearance to thank the guys for the event.  I think he may even sing along with the band at one point.  Anyway, you can the show by clicking here.  Below are the CD inserts: