No Fading, Buddy – Pt. 3

“Not Fade Away” is an interesting three chord tune which has been recorded a lot. Buddy Holly is the brains/voice/guitar/pen behind the original version which came out in 1957. The song was later recorded and released by The Rolling Stones (twice) , Sheryl Crow, and….Canadian three piece band Rush?

Yes, THAT Rush — the prog rock band with bassist/keyboardist Geddy Lee on vocals. It seems a little odd to hear this version now, but give the band credit for going with a Buddy Holly tune for this early recording in their now well-known catalog. This was pre-Neil Peart Rush for die-hard fans with John Rutsey on drums.

Deadheads will associate the same song with The Grateful Dead. However, you might have to wait 3 minutes or longer to hear the actual vocals. I guess that’s status quo for a jam band.

I have some appreciation for The Grateful Dead — especially the guitar playing of Jerry Garcia — but I worked in radio for a time. I don’t think a 3 minute intro is exactly what’s considered to be “radio-friendly”, especially since the original was less than two and a half minutes long. They do get bonus points for the sugar skull artwork from me at least.

I wonder how many other versions of this tune are blog-worthy?

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

No Fading, Buddy – Pt. 2

In case you missed the award-winning blog entry of Part One, I’m sharing some opinion and insight into the Bo Diddley-esque Buddy Holly tune “Not Fade Away.” Personally, I think the original Holly version might be considered a masterpiece in and of itself, but plenty of well-known musicians have also paid homage and put their own unique spin on this song. One of the best known cover versions is by The Rolling Stones. It featured some blues harmonica by founding Stones member Brian Jones (and Mick Jagger on maracas).

I think the first time I was really made aware of the Stones’ bluesified version of “Not Fade Away” was by a guitarist friend of mine. At the time, he pointed out the call-and-response guitar solo which moves quickly. It’s basically the song’s chords of E, A, & D, but played in different positions. Nevertheless, it works. It was also on the innocently titled Rolling Stones album “England’s Newest Hitmakers.”

Many years later, the Stones released a version much like the original Buddy Holly one on 1995’s “Stripped” album. It was a few years after what I would consider the heyday of the whole unplugged phenomenon on MTV, but they didn’t record or play on MTV anyway.

Here’s something to think about…In the 1960s version, you had Brian Jones doing the blues harmonica thing on “Not Fade Away”, but Mick Jagger was the one blowing harp on the 1995 version. I guess Mick picked up a thing or two in those 30 or so years. Regardless of the version, Buddy Holly’s three chord tune still works.

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

No Fading, Buddy – Pt. 1

There are cover songs and then there are COVER SONGS. Do you know what I mean? Some songs seem to just keep going perpetually, which I find fascinating. Case in point is “Not Fade Away” which is associated with Buddy Holly, but has also been recorded well over 100 times. While the songwriting credits go to Buddy Holly (real name Charles Hardin Holly) and Norman Petty, the rhythm of the song is most closely associated with Bo Diddley. Believe it or not, this song was actually a “B-side”, with “Oh Boy” as the “A-side.”

In addition to the number of times the song has been covered, what I find interesting is this — the musical arrangement is fairly simple, but so damn catchy. It’s a three chord thing (E, A, & D) with some backing vocals, infectious percussion, and a non-shredder guitar solo.

I’m going to share several different versions of “Not Fade Away”, but the one by Missouri native Sheryl Crow just came my way recently (and inspired this blog/series).

For whatever reason, I missed this one in 2007. I like this version. It’s true to the original, but simultaneously has Crow’s unique vocal stamp on it. Apparently, Crow’s version also went to benefit breast cancer research. I guess I don’t find myself in a Revlon rich environment too often. There is some harmonica on it, which I will revisit in other chapters.

Personally, I think the first time I heard “Not Fade Away” was when I purchased “Buddy Holly -23 All-Time Greatest Hits”, a double length cassette. That’s a fairly random number, but I definitely got my money’s worth out of it. I also let a linebacker on the college football team dub a copy of it during my freshman year. His comment upon seeing my cassette collection was, “You have Buddy Holly…that is sweet!”

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

America Still Rocks

If you live in America, you’ve probably noticed those loud explosions during the past week or so. Yep, it’s time to recognize the United States of America’s birthday by blowing up as many things as you can get away with or at least lighting off some firecrackers. (Drinking alcohol is not mandatory, but it is highly encouraged.) If fireworks aren’t your thing, hopefully you’ll find the time to enjoy some celebratory music. Versions of patriotic songs seem to come and go with the times. Recording artists like Ray Charles, Whitney Houston, and Kate Smith are a few of the first names which pop into my mind. However, Night Ranger will always hold a special place in my heart for their song “(You Can Still) Rock in America” from 1983’s “Midnight Madness” album.

Night Ranger was one of my first “favorite bands” when I was in junior high and high school. While the video may be a tad dated (and maybe ridiculous in parts), the song is guitar driven, high energy rock and roll. (There’s a nod to the flag raising on Iwo Jima around the 1:35 mark of the video.) In my opinion, we can always use more of that American invention of rock and roll.

One of my other favorite patriotic songs is “Rock, Flag, & Eagle” from the show “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.”

I could muse ‘Murican for a lot longer. However, I feel obligated to mention the youngest competitor in this weekend’s Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest history is from the Kansas City metropolitan area. Thus, proves my theory that you can still rock (and eat) in America.

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

P.S. “I’m gonna rise up, I’m gonna kick a little ass, gonna kick some ass in the USA, gonna climb a mountain, gonna sew a flag, gonna fly on an eagle, I’m gonna kick some butt, I’m gonna drive a big truck, I’m gonna rule this world, gonna kick some ass, gonna rise up, kick a little ass – ROCK, FLAG AND EAGLE!”

Foggy Toasted Town

British Humor — I can’t say I love or hate all of it, but there is one show I highly recommend. “Toast of London” stars Matt Berry as actor Steven Toast. Toast is a portly, middle-aged dude with a skunk stripe in his hair and a moustache. He’s normally dressed in all black…perhaps that’s to mourn is acting career woes. Many, if not all, of the episodes start with Toast supplementing his income while he does voiceover work. At the studio he has to deal with two hipsters. The main one goes by the moniker of “Clem Fandango”. As you might imagine, the show is set in London, England. The Byrds’ tune “Eight Miles High” was inspired by the band’s flight into said town.

The only show I can remotely compare to “Toast” might be “Seinfeld” in terms of its sheer zaniness. It’s off the wall. A few plot lines involve Toast trying to join the Freemasons, his manager Jane falling back into her L.S.D. addiction, and a homeopath performing an exorcism on one of Toast’s house guests. Toast is always auditioning for various roles and is always encountering his nemesis Ray “Bloody” Purchase. Toast’s affair with Mrs. Purchase probably doesn’t help either.

The show was created by Matt Berry and Arthur Matthews. It was directed by Matt Cumming. Currently, you can view “Toast of London” free of charge on The Roku Channel. By the way, Matt Berry also composed the show’s theme song and has released several of his own albums.

Here are some alternate titles for this blog post:

A Post about Toast
London Toast is Falling Down
Toast is the Most (from coast to coast)
Down by the Whipping Toast
Toasted, Not Stirred

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

Scorchin’ Summer Songs

It’s officially sum-sum-summertime and where I live it’s HOT! I feel like I hit the summer doldrums early this year — the warm weather has zapped some of my motivation. That said, I have some recommended listening to bring up my mood and yours. I would have sworn I already shared this one, but the first song which pops to mind is The Who’s take on “Heat Wave.”

I dig John Entwistle’s bass playing on this one and his backing vocals with Pete Townshend. The original version was by released by Martha & the Vandellas in 1963 and was written by the Motown songwriting team of Holland-Dozier-Holland. You have about 80 or more other versions to choose from including Phil Collins, Linda Ronstadt, Joan Osborne, The Jam, and The Nighthawks to name a few.

In my opinion, one of the best musical lyrics written about summertime presumably came from songwriter extraordinaire John Sebastian. The line is, “Hot town, summer in the city Back of my neck gettin’ dirty and gritty” from “Summer in the City” by The Lovin’ Spoonful.

Sebastian shares the songwriting credits with his brother Mark Sebastian and bandmember Mark Boone. Apparently Boone and John Sebastian both contributed to keyboards on the recording along with Artie Schroeck. I like the traffic jam sound effects in the tune as well. Here’s hoping your staying cool.

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

Bandido Bear

During a recent round of channel surfing, I came across Billy Bob Thornton and Greg Kinnear acting in the 2005 version of “The Bad News Bears.” It got me thinking about the original one from 1976. I think I might have seen that in the theater with my cousins, but that was a lonnnggg time ago. I didn’t remember too much about it. There was Walter Matthau as the heavy drinking baseball coach Buttermaker and Tatum O’Neal as ace pitcher/tomboy Amanda. However, I had completely forgotten about the cigarette-smoking, motorcycle-riding, anti-hero athlete named Kelly Leak (played by Jackie Earle Haley). He really channeled his inner James Dean for this role.

I always loved the guitar on that Eagles song. The progression also reminds me a bit of Eddie Cochran’s “Twenty Flight Rock” (another bad ass rebel in his own right.) One thing that jumped out at me about the original “Bad News Bears” was the appearance of so many then-popular chain restaurants like Pizza Hut, Denny’s, and Kentucky Fried Chicken. They’re still around, but not like they used to be. There’s also plenty of arcades, which I vividly remember from that time period.

What else? How about the loads of inappropriate humor in the film, which I found to be hilarious. Things were certainly different then. If you ever had the pleasure of playing team sports as a kid, you can probably remember the standout athletes who were very mature for their age, too. I can remember one who played for St. Sabina — they were like the Catholic Youth Council’s Oakland Raiders where I grew up.

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

A Slicker Shade of Blue

Dear Color of Blue, How do I love thee…let me count the ways. You have so many shades and cool things associated with you…like blues music and St. Louis Blues Hockey. Recently, I came across a brilliant shade of blue featured by Slick Guitars. (Named after studio musician and guitarist Earl Slick. More in a moment.) Another cool thing is I found this guitar demo of the SL56 model by Blues Guitar Badass R.J. Ronquillo.

Such vivid color! Slick Guitars also has a Telecaster style guitar in a blue finish as well.

I wasn’t familiar with Earl Slick until the past few years when I cam across his guitar line. However, he has played with some big names as both a studio and touring musician. Names like David Bowie and John Lennon. He also partnered with Slim Jim Phantom and Lee Rocker when the Stray Cats disbanded. They even played on American Bandstand!

The video clip is an interesting time capsule of sorts. Very 80s in its own way. Plus, I think it’s the first time I’ve seen Lee Rocker playing an electric bass and not his usual standup. By the way, I haven’t played a Slick Guitar, but it sure looks like fun. They’re priced very affordably.

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

Jimi Hussar Experience?

An image of Jimi Hendrix popped into my mind today. It wasn’t really a certain song or a piece of concert footage. It was actually one of his iconic fashion “looks.” I started thinking about the dark colored military jacket you might have seen him wear. Apparently, this is associated with light cavalry units called “hussars“, which originated in Hungary. Give Jimi some credit, this is a pretty unique look. It’s almost as unique as the title cut from “Are You Experienced.”

You gotta love the fuzzy, psychedelic guitar on this track.! Hendrix devotee Eric Johnson also recorded this one and broke out his own hussar jacket for his performance.

While you can really out-Jimi, Jimi Hendrix, you can tell Johnson did his homework on this one. Getting back to the jacket, I guess a “dolman is either a military shirt, or a jacket decorated with braiding. ” The braiding is called “passementerie.” Thank God for Wikipedia!

You can actually purchase a Jimi Hendrix Funko Pop! figurine adorned with the aforementioned jacket — that is, unless you want to buy your own for trips to the grocery store.

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

Hold It, Mac

I had a Fleetwood Mac song pop into my head recently. This one is really more of a Christine McVie led song and not Stevie Nicks. The song I’m talking about is called “Hold Me” from 1982’s album “Mirage.” It’s a pretty generic song title, but it has a really catchy pop chorus on it and some good lyrics. This song came my way via MTV and featured an abstract, desert setting video. Mick Fleetwood was digging up drumsticks in the sand, etc. It was directed by Steve Baron.

McVie cowrote the song with songwriter Robbie Patton. The final version featured McVie sharing lead vocals with bandmate Lindsey Buckingham, but an earlier version without Buckingham’s lead vocals is an interesting listen. The chorus lyrics are slightly different, too.

I feel like this version has a more R & B vibe and you can hear the piano much more clearly. There’s also a distinct Stevie Nicks’ “yeah yeah” around the 1:50 mark. The chorus is a lot catchier on the final version. Thanks to YouTube, you can also check out the version with isolated vocals.

My favorite line in the song is “You hold the percentage, but I’m the fool payin’ the dues” which has a nice bit of vocal phrasing at the end. If I’m not mistaken, “Hold Me” even climbed higher in the charts than the Stevie Nicks penned tune “Gypsy.” By the way, you can also find a version of the cowboy song “Cool Water” from bassist John McVie around the same time period.

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!