Pile it up! Pile it high on the platter!

I like it that the Stones are delving through the archives, and releasing some of the cool stuff they find. Things like the expanded Exile On Main Street, or Ladies and Gentlemen, The Rolling Stones (1972 concert film) are actually worth the release. They have a vitality that’s their own.

The latest Rolling Stones release, a concert filmed in Texas in 1978,  is also worth buying. It shows a newly clean (of heroin, not so much of coke, booze, and demon weed) Keith Richards, and a not yet burned out Ron Wood, playing most of their best selling album, Some Girls. I always keep two Stones albums on my playlists, Exile and Some Girls. Two entirely different vibes, coke and pepsi… or rather coke and smack. Some Girls in New York in the Studio 54 era, 1970′s.  You can read a nice review of this release by clicking the image above.

The Stones were still incredible in 1978, as you will see here. Beast of Burden is one of my favorite songs ever, ever, ever. That riff is insanely soulful, like Otis Redding, and the energy is high because it’s the 70′s and cocaine wasn’t thought to be addictive so… the show bounces along a bit like the Ramones. That’s a good thing. This is rock and roll, and Mick’s voice is brilliant (there are rumors of of some tasteful use of autotune, but… that’s what it’s fucking for), Keef is back in charge after a few years on the nod, and Ronnie can still demonstrate why he got the cushiest job in rock. Enjoy the coolest thing ever.

PS – For bonus points you can watch a live version of Shattered from this show, and it’s hot! Watch about 30 seconds in, Mick runs back to the drum riser, almost stepping on Ronnie’s joint, which Ronnie then offers to Mick, who declines with a swift shake of the head. Love it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bj8lRssjN48

The Crowes Are A Truly Great Band

The ZoCrowes Were tight

The Army Of Guitars Was Achieved

I’m sorry I never got to see Jimmy Page and The Black Crowes (who played together recently) when they toured in 2000.  I wasn’t really enamored with their album. I don’t like Chris Robinson’s voice singing Zep (I love him singing his own stuff). He sounds flat to me.
In any case, this song is all about the guitars, and they sound great, and work well together. Lush, dense, and distinct, the three guitar treatment of Ten Years Gone, while not superior the Led Zeppelin 7/24/79 Copenhagen version (posted here), it’s a tight, solid performance. Enjoy it. It’s the coolest thing ever.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdVEdTSODyw

ZoCrowes Reunion 2011

Final Crowes Show In UK

Jimmy Page got offstage about two hours ago, from playing with the Black Crowes on their farewell to England Tour. This video appeared on YouTube about 20 minutes ago (from post time). I act fast. Jimmy Page was supposed to launch his website today. That hasn’t happened yet, but he’s getting a shitload of traffic from thousands of fans refreshing ten time a minute. Clever, Mr. Page, but a bit dickish. The teen girls on Tumblr are apoplectic.

Continuing the trend of actually playing the guitar (rather than just posing with one) Jimmy Page joined the Black Crowes at the Shepherds Bush Empire, for a rousing rendition of Shake Your Moneymaker. Jimmy’s looking good, rocking the leather jacket and white hair. He’s cool as fuck. In fact he’s the Coolest Thing Ever. Enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QQ4HSPejX4

Imagine the debauchery

Jimmy Page And Ron Wood Sound Great Together

Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin) is old friends with Ron Wood (Rolling Stones), to the point of sharing Ronnie’s spouse for a time. Yes, it was the ’70′s. It was 2/13/75 in Uniondale, NY. Led Zeppelin (I believe they were some sort of sporting team. Lawn darts, I believe it was… or polo) was playing one of their rock and roll concerts, and their chum Ronnie Wood (who was playing NYC with the Faces) jumped onstage for a rollicking version of Communication Breakdown.

The sound quality is very good, but this audience recording lacks bass, and it’s a shame because Jonesy’s bass lines would have funked this up a ton if they were more prominent.  I’m sure a soundboard tape of this gig exists, since the next night is available in pristine stereo sbd (hear for yourself), and more and more ’75 board tapes are dribbling out.

Until the board tape of this gig is liberated we’ll have to make do with this. Enjoy the unique experience of hearing Led Zeppelin with two guitarists. Some of it is awesome. All of it is the Coolest Thing Ever.

Great Pic Of The Man (and his Gibson Black Beauty) Taken By The Esteemed Dave Lewis of Tight But Loose.

Jimmy Page Plays Live After 4 Years Absence

I have found two videos of Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin) playing Sunshine Superman, with Donovan last week. I wrote about this the night it happened, but now I have more video.

The first video is the complete song, shot from the front, with mono audio that’s ok. The second video is from the side, and is of insanely good quality, full stereo, HD even… but missing most of Jimmy’s solo. If you like Donovan > Jimmy Page, the second video is for you. Enjoy.

If, however, you like Led Zeppelin, Jimmy Page, and World Peace > Donovan, then the first video is all you, buddy. Jimmy’s awesome, and plays a nice, 60′s solo that echoes the one he played 45 years ago. (Jimmy Page was the guitarist on Sunshine Superman)

I fucking love that guitar! Thank Christ Jimmy’s playing it (for once) instead of just posing with it. This show was shot in HD, and is said to be due an official release, hopefully in time for the holiday season. Yay. Enjoy! It’s the Coolest Thing Ever.

DONOVAN “Sunshine Superman” Royal Albert Hall… by deathtoyoutube

This is the whole song, with Jimmy’s solo.

This is missing some of the solo, and a couple seconds here and there, but the quality is sensational.

We knew it was going to happen, but it was still amazing when it did. On May 12th, in London, David Gilmour performed Comfortably Numb as part of Roger Waters performance of The Wall. The video below shows the moment.

Pink Floyd obviously is releasing this show, as it was shot in HD, and at least the reunion bit was released officially on YouTube, and Facebook, within a day or two. You can see the official video here. They’re not allowing embeds, so you have to watch it on YouTube.

Nick Mason was there too, but he only came out at the end of the show, with a tambourine. Comfortably Numb is better. You can read about the goings on behind the scenes here.

You may remember last summer’s Gilmour/Rogers charity gig, but this is uber lots better. The old guys still have it. Say what you will about Roger Waters, but The Wall is one of the best albums ever. This reunion is, without a doubt, the Coolest Thing Ever.



Jeff Beck Can Play Anything, Anytime.

Guitar god Jeff Beck is touring with Imelda Mey’s Irish rockabilly band, performing tributes to his youthful influences. Among the numbers he plays is this incredibly faithful rendition of Les Paul and Mary Ford’s How High The Moon. You can hear the original here.  The video below is a live performance from Les Paul’s club, Iridium, in NYC.

Here’s the thing about Jeff Beck. He can play any style, in any voice, at any time. He’s, by far, the best of the three canonical rock gods (the other two being Eric Clapton, and Jimmy Page).  I’m not saying that I like him better than Jimmy Page, but I’m saying that Beck’s playing over the last half century (yikes) combined with the varied styles he’s played (blues, rock, fusion, jazz, rockabilly) as well as his ten million guest slots on other people’s songs (from Jon Bon Jovi to Tina Turner)… makes him the most accomplished of the three. Jimmy’s been retired for at least a decade, Clapton is still being Clapton (which is cool, but it’s a smaller circle of light, even if it burns brighter).

So watch a master’s tribute to another master. It’s the coolest thing ever.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAUAAn46ji0

John McLaughlin Opening For Jeff Beck.

I have shared a lot of great shows, over the last year or so. Some are crowd pleasers, like Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, and the Stones. Some are a little more esoteric, like Camper Van Beethoven, Lou Reed, or Gary Moore.  This show is the latter. Mahavishnu Orchestra was an insanely brilliant fusion band led by guitarist John McLaughlin (not the grump on PBS). There vibe is pretty yoga-y, lots of garlands, and flowing robes, but no blame. I did that gig as well, 20 years ago.

This show is from May 3, 1975, in Boston. The Mahavishnu Orchestra opened for Jeff Beck.  I know, I bet it was awesome, too. No, I don’t have the Jeff Beck set, but it’s out there. Find it, youth. If you don’t use Bit Torrent, then … you should.

This show was recorded by a  recent legend, Dan Lapinsky. He lived in the NE UNited States, and he made excellent audience recordings of well over 100 shows. He recently (over the last couple of years) started transferring them to HQ lossless digital. It’s important to emphasize that these 100+ shows are all uncirculated. Holy Shit. Talk about the Coolest Thing Ever.

Here is the standard blurb that is attached to Dan Lapinsky torrents:

Dan Lampinski recorded over 100 concerts in the Providence/Boston area, mostly between 1974 and 1978. His earliest recordings were made with an internal microphone deck, and though they are somewhat lo-fi compared to his later work, some very great moments in rock history were captured for posterity. In late 1974 he bought a Sony TC-152SD tape recorder, a Sony ECM-99 stereo microphone, and began using Maxell cassettes. He was also fortunate enough to have a friend who provided excellent taping seats for many shows, resulting in high quality recordings. In 1977, he switched over to a Nakamichi 550 tape recorder, two Nakamichi CM-300 microphones, and continued using Maxell cassettes.

Since Dan never traded copies of his recordings, they are all essentially uncirculated. Some copies were made for friends, but these releases are the first time most of these recordings have ever seen the light of day, and are direct from his master cassettes. No EQ’ing has been done to any of the transfers. Feel free to EQ, matrix, patch, etc and re-post if you like, just give Dan credit for the original recording.

Dan was very meticulous about taking good care of his tapes and is very pleased that these recordings will now circulate among the trading community. Please honour his kindness and generosity by sharing these recordings freely.

The transfers are available as 16bit/44.1KHz flac files suitable for CD burning, and also as 24bit/96KHz flac files for those who prefer the higher resolution.

Always remember – the more generous you are with your music, the more it comes back to you.

Here is a LAME VBR .mp3 version of one of Dan’s recording of the Mahavishnu Orchestra. Enjoy the music.

http://www.mediafire.com/?m52p7xjoc8f5nty

Lou and His Wife, Laurie Anderson

Lou Reed is one of those artists of whom I don’t really consider myself a fan, until I realize that I have 15 of their albums. Ok, I like Lou Reed. I love the Velvet Underground, and I love probably 50 of Lou Reed’s songs. He got out of Andy Warhol’s shadow, yet still remained close. He played guitar sometimes. He “pretended”  to shoot up on stage. He wrote songs about sex, homosexuality, drugs,  S & M, transgender and transsexuals, abuse, politics, death, suicide, darkness, and light. Here is a post I did about one of his sweeter, apocalyptic songs.

I’ve shared a concert recording of his, from his New York tour.

Lou is one of the most under appreciated musicians of his generation.  Iggy Pop is, in 2011, higher profile than Lou, and Lou puts out interesting, and challenging, music still, at the age of 69.  For every album that’s known, even to casual fans like me, there are a half dozen that pass right under the radar. He made some amazing music. He was avante garde right in your face. He released a double album of feedback on RCA’s classical label.

Whatever. He’s richer than me, and people still know his name, so I won’t be weeping for poor old Lou anytime soon.

Here’s a video of Lou Reed performing Candy Says, with Antony Hegarty, of Antony and the Johnsons.  The song is beautiful. Happy Birthday, Lou.

Antony Hegarty and Lou Reed – Candy Says from Logic Will Break Your Heart on Vimeo.

That's right. A sweater vest.

This is a very special Led Zeppelin show, Youdopia. This is one of the only (maybe the only) live performance of Four Sticks, and Gallows Pole. I’m talking Led Zeppelin, not the later versions played by Jimmy Page & Robert Plant, during their Page/Plant tours.

You don’t much better than Zeppelin in 1971. Robert Plant’s voice is still incredibly powerful, and Jimmy Page hasn’t gotten into the Jeffrey yet. The sound quality is very good. It’s an audience tape from 1971, so keep that in mind. I found this very listenable. It’s straight off the master recording, as evidenced by the low noise, and open sound. It’s a very enjoyable show from the era when rock gods wore sweater vests onstage, because the music was the spectacle.

One thing, I’m not sharing mp3′s of this. Every Zeppelin show I’ve shared has been yanked by the Man, even though they’re perfectly legal, and not commercially available (I’m not pirating official albums. These are fine to share for free), so I’m linking to the site from where I got my copy of this show. The shows are RAR files, that unzip to FLAC. Fear not. RAR is just a compression program you (probably) already have, and FLAC is a lossless file type. Google will teach you the rest. It’s safe and easy, and the sound quality will be better, because you’ll end up with full WAV files, with zero data lost. Ta da. You just put on your big boy pants. Enjoy the free download.

Get the show here (special thanks to the excellent http://rambleonzep.com/ for the show):