Please remember to respect copyright law; if you like a song from the mix, there’s a very good chance you will also like the album – so do me and the artist a favour and buy the CD.

April 10 Music Mix Notes

[01] Solitary Breathing – Voice of the Seven Woods [The Journey]
Voice of the Seven Woods is a project by Bolton based musician, Rick Tomlinson who with Chris Walmsley on drums and Pete Hedley on bass make a nice little sound. I bought this EP about a year ago from a dump bin in Virgin for QAR 10 (about 2 quid) and simply love the way it floats outta of the speakers and caresses one’s ears. Haven’t been able to buy anymore of these guys but they are high on my shopping list in the summer. Plus it’s a fab way to start April’s Music Mix – welcome aboard my friends.

[02] The Marshall Tucker Band – Take the Highway [Way Out West Live From San Francisco 1973]
These guys have been playing together in some shape or form since the early 70′s and although they have never reached the commercial heights of some of their more well-known Southern Rock counterparts, they have recorded and performed a true Southern sound for nearly 40 years – always to a high quality.

Probably their best known album is Carolina Dreams that went platinum in 1977 – but I had forgotten about these guys until I heard Take the Highway in Kevin Costner’s 2008 movie Swing Vote which prompted me to buy their live album (Way Out West) as well as Carolina Dreams and both are recommended.

[03] Bryce Janey – Funky Guitar Blues [Blues In My Soul]
This guy began his career at thirteen in a blues trio called The Janeys. With his mother on drums and his father Billy Lee on guitar. They played regionally and nationally from Chicago to Los Angeles. Between 1991 and 1993 where they performed with Buddy Guy, Blues Traveler, Koko Taylor, and Elvin Bishop to name just a few. Some pedigree huh!

I’ve recently been listening to more and more of this type of music (must be the influence of URD and Spacey) as I can’t seem to find that many rock bands that are making good albums these days. Aynsley Lister, Joe Bonamassa, Derek Trucks et al seem to be doing the business, and while I don’t think I’m going to love all blues guitars, this rockier stuff is just perfect.

[04] Lindsey Buckingham – Wait for You [Gift of Screws]
A very good album (Gift of Screws) by a very talented guy with John McVie on bass and Mick Fleetwood on drums – who could ask for more. I loved Fleetwood Mac (from Rumours on) and this must be his best solo work since those heady days demonstrating all that was good about the Mac.

[05] Kula Shaker – Shower Your Love [Peasants, Pigs & Astronauts]
I was looking through my CD collection the other day when out popped Peasants, Pigs & Astronauts and I just had to play it. Very soon I was back in 1999 and remembering that these guys were more than Britpop rejects they were psychedelic rockers, groovy indie popsters and even prog rocks when the mood took them – shame that Crispian Mills was such an arsehole.

[06] Neil Murray – Burrembeep Hill [Witness]
Neil Murray is an Australian musician, writer and founding member of the Warumpi Band that formed in the early 1980s. They were the first major Aboriginal rock band releasing three albums and toured widely, including the Blackfella/Whitefella Tour with Midnight Oil in 1986. Murray is known for his political opinions and environmental concerns and this song showcases these concerns – very simple – but very true – something that this guy does very well.

[07] Black Smoke | [08] Falling Down a Mountain | [09] Keep You Beautiful – Tindersticks [Falling Down a Mountain]
Three marvelous songs that highlight all that is good about them and their latest album. As I mention in my Album of the Month post, these guys just don’t make a bad album and this one is up there with their best.

 
[10] Jonatha Brooke – You’d Ought To be Satisfied Now [The Works]
First heard about this lady on Pat Methany’s website and decided to take a chance even though I didn’t know too much about Woody Gutherie – glad I did. The album is first class and already a favorite with LZ.
Good website with notes on each song – this is for You’d Ought To be Satisfied Now:

“This one turned in to one swampy romp. Steve and Joe heard it in a kind of low muddy two, even though the chart was written with my more frantic 6/8 guitar part as the base. I love the push and pull that created. Then Greg Leisz came in and stuck it all together with that sexy lap steel. I also got such a kick out of singing that line “so tonight I’m a bum on a frisco bound train” ? something I thought I’d never do in my lifetime!! I changed the last verse to “a thousand cold dollars you spent every day” to keep up with inflation. (Woody’s original lyric had “a hundred cold dollars.”)

You jacked me up and you run me down
You nagged at me and you bawled me out
You made me leave town and I’m frisco bound
You’d ought to be satisfied now.
You took my silver, you took my gold,
You made me believe every lie that you told
You left me a standing out there in the cold
You’d ought to be satisfied now.
I’m down in this gutter I’m hungry, I’m cold,
You’re drinking and gambling and wasting our dough
You’ll never pay back that money you owe (yes, you owe)
You’d ought to be satisfied now.
You went around with whoever you pleased
I stood in the rain in my B. V. D.’s
There was times when I thought I would freeze
You’d ought to be satisfied now.
You got a new lover richer than me
You got a car and a boat on the sea
You spend all her money just to go on a spree
You’d ought to be satisfied now.
I’m down in this gutter I’m hungry, I’m cold,
You’re drinking and gambling and wasting our dough
You’ll never pay back that money you owe (yes, you owe)
You’d ought to be satisfied now.
I once had a fortune, you took that away,
A thousand cold dollars you spent every day
Tonight I’m a bum on a frisco bound train
You’d ought to be satisfied now

[11] Gorillaz – On Melancholy Hill [Plastic Beach]
Murdoc explained: “The melancholy hill – it’s that feeling, that place, that you get in your soul sometimes, like someone’s let your tyres down.” I know that feeling, bet we all do and I bet we’ll all be humming this little ditty in the shower (well maybe not everyone) sometime soon.

 
[12] Field Music – Give It Lose It Take It [Tones of Town]
Field Music are a great band with this album nearly making it as my Album of the Month. I first heard of these guys, who originally hail from Sunderland, when I bought their Tones of Town album in 2007 – every time I play it I hear 10CC, Supertramp, and XTC which can’t be a bad thing. Looking forward to their new album Measure. Lyrics are nice and sharp too.

Give it away
Nothing’s worth keeping that you can’t say

Lose it, strip yourself down
Its giving away can always be found

All that you have is all that you need to be

Take it, knock yourself out
You need what you want and what you need is now

Too many times to live again
You can’t speak so what did you mean(?)

All that you have is all that you need to be

First out, last in, time is passing, future changing, action waiting, colder, warmer, days are longer, tasting, waiting, complicating

Can comforts place be ours to keep
From hours to days, from days to weeks

 
Guest spot 3-in-a-row: Writers Theme
Words and track selection by Sin Again

To be honest, I’m a bit nervous here following in the footsteps of the great Mr. SP as guest blogger but I’ll give it my best. That’s why I tried to have a theme running through it, a writers theme (Editors, Magazine, A Writers Reference) – get it?!

[13] Editors – Papillion [In This Light And On This Evening]
My fav song of 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 end of story.

 
 
 
 
[14] Magazine – Philadelphia [The Correct Use of Soap]
My brother’s friends were all Magazine nuts but as Mr. LD had already picked Da moon song I had to go for my 2nd fav song.

 
 
 
[15] Halifax – A Writer’s Reference [A Writer's Reference]
I could tell you that I luv this band etc. etc. but really I did a search for bands or songs with writer in the title and as I’m not a big Beatles fan (Paperback Writer) I purchased this song to complete my writers theme 3-in-a-row. It’s a good song though.

 

[16] Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers – Refugee [Damn the Torpedoes]
Great song from their third album Damn the Torpedoes which finally made them in the States. Just love Benmont Tench’s organ (his real name) and again there’s such a catchy chorus – perfect American rock.

 
[17] Willy Mason – Gotta Keep Walking [If The Ocean Gets Rough]
For some reason I thought this guy was dead! Don’t ask me why just did. Anyway I’m glad he’s not cos this song and album are just great and in a genre that is overflowing you have to be a bit special, have that something extra to get you noticed – this guy has it all in spades, it’s called quality. His last album Where the Humans Eat has 21 out of 24 five star reviews on Amazon.co.uk – that’s pretty impressive and another one to add to my summer shopping list.

On the road, no way home,
Guess I gotta keep rollin’ on til the lights come on.

I’ll sing a song, it won’t take long,
Shut my eyes and I’m back where I belong
In trouble’s arms
Singing mama’s songs when the lights come on.

She said, ‘we’ve gotta keep walking, keep walking.’
She said, ‘we’ve gotta keep walking on.’

I had a dream late last night,
Someone stole my boots in broad daylight.
I put up no fight.
They were out of sight, I still felt alright.

So I walked on, barefoot, strong,
All the other troops marched towards the bomb,
But I wandered off.
They said, ‘man, what’s wrong?’
I said, ‘the light turned on.’

She said, ‘we’ve gotta keep walking, keep walking.’
She said, ‘we’ve gotta keep walking on.’

We lost the highway
With smoke in our eyes.
With these hands and this place,
We will spread our own design.
Spread our own design.

She said, ‘we’ve gotta keep walking, keep walking.’
She said, ‘we’ve gotta keep walking on.’

She said, ‘we’ve gotta keep walking, keep walking.’
She said, ‘we’ve gotta keep walking on.’

She said, ‘we’ve gotta keep walking, keep walking.’
She said, ‘we’ve gotta keep walking on.”

[18] Turin Brakes – Sea Change [Outbursts]
The Optimist was such a grand affair, such a solid debut album that’s it’s always going to be hard to maintain this kind of musical brilliance. If I was honest, I would say that subsequent albums did not live up to the brilliance of the first album and I haven’t bought any of their CDs since JackInABox. But their latest maybe their greatest – it’s certainly as good as their debut, if not better as they have matured their sound but kept to the same style that won over so many hearts and minds in 2001.

[19] The Doors – Spanish Caravan [Waiting For The Sun]
I’m not a big fan – but I walked into my son’s bedroom the other day and he was playing along to this on his bass – just a great song – no other reason straight from bedroom to music mix in less than 4 minutes.
 
 
 
[20] Shearwater – The Hunter’s Star [Rook]
Shearwaters are medium-sized long-winged seabirds. They are also an indie rock band formed in Austin, Texas in 1999 by Okkervil River members Jonathan Meiburg and Will Sheff who apparently have a love of birds. I feel I can hear the inspiration of Talk Talk’s later records, particularly in Meiburg’s voice as he unleashes his wonderful falsetto voice while somehow managing to restrain himself. It’s also in the piano intro and the wonderful climax which drifts towards atmospheric with a capital A.

[21] New Order – Blue Monday [Substance 1987]
Who needs words? Listen: enjoy.
 
 
 
 
 

The April 2010 Mix has now expired but the latest mixes are now ready – go read all about them!

Please support the artists – if you like a track, buy the album!

…and I hope you’ve enjoyed another Music Mix. Until the next time.

Laughing Dog

The Road to You (live 1992)

Beyond The Missouri Sky with Charlie Haden (1996)

I was told once by a so called music-expert that Pat Methany made music for lifts – mmm.

OK there are two ways to listen to this guy – either you put it on to relax to and just chill out with friends and vino and you have this as soothing background music or you put on a pair of good quality headphones and listen, really listen to the music. Its the second approach that provides the most pleasure – try it and let me know what you think.

I do know that if I was in a lift and this guy was playing I’d be going up and down all day.

Hope you enjoy the samples