Lee's Instrumentals

Most of us will know Lee Hazlewood as a great songwriter and artist who had released some superb albums throughout his career and his collaboration with Nancy Sinatra. Less will know that in his former times after his military duty in Korea he worked as a DJ and collaborated with Duane Eddy. He produced and co-written a lot of songs in the rockabilly and twang era. From time to time there are some re-releases of his output and I got a second hand record from a few years ago. Rockabilly and mariachi-sound is't the music I can hear every day but these songs still work after 60 years.

Later this day I will see how Stuttgart will play and if they are able to win after a period of five games and only got two draw. Anyway, I won't moaning because some of you get this feeling almost every week.

Duane Eddy - Shazam
The Livley Ones - (Dance With) The Guitar Man
Lee Hazlewood's Woodchucks - Muchacho

Perfume

It was in the late 80's/early 90's when I was infected by the new sound from Manchester. Before I seldom took the road to electronic music. Probably some kind of Cabaret Voltaire or something like that. So well I was able, I have pursued British independent charts and one day I saw that a new song was climbing the charts. It was Perfume by Paris Angels and at the days before internet and less abilities to get an English music magazine you had to go to your local record store and try to catch the record. It was impossible to get the single so I had to wait until the album was out. I listened  several times to Sundew but Perfume was on heavy rotation at this days. This band from greater Manchester was one of those that opened my ears for something new and fantastic. Inspired by acid house and many other Manchester bands they never got the recognition they should have.

Paris Angels - Perfume
Paris Angels - Perfume (Loved Up)

Revolutionary Spirit

A few days ago Cherry Red released a retrospective of Liverpool's new bands spanning from the mid 70's to the mid 80's. This five CD-Box is filled with gems from these days. Long forgotten bands and songs were featured as well as classics by bands that made success. I didn't got this box but looking at the tracks I found some songs from the pre-punk era that I didn't had on my radar for many years. Indeed - Liverpool has much more than the Fab Four.

Nightmares In Wax - Black Leather
Spitfire Boys - British Refugee

Songs From The Past

Yesterday I finished my working day and on the way home friends asked me to join them for a drink and playing pool. Because I had no other plan and I wanted to see them again after a couple of weeks I agreed and went to our local pub. Knowing that I couldn't play on their level I joined our little competition. Finally me and my partner had a very good day and we beat the champions for the very first time. Along the way we watched the games on Bundesliga on Tuesday evening and had a wonderful evening together. In the background there were a lot of songs we listened to during our competition. This are some I remember. Of course all of you will know them but these are songs that are monuments in musical history and you can feature them at every time. That they were classic and warm friends of mine doesn't matter.

Neil Young - Eldorado

Zorba The Greek

A few days ago I watched Zorba the Greek once again after a long time. It is a classic movie that made it's honour by the discrepancy between British industrial capitalism and the easy going way of life. I still like how Anthony Quinn plays Zorba. He showed how to manage life even if it turns you down. Nothing else matters - life goes on and you often need more than to dance. Iggy Pop told us years later that it means just Lust For Life. Many people think that this dance is traditional Greek style but it was developed just for this film. Anyway, it shows me that whatever will happen, life goes on and take it the way it happens to you. And the soundtrack by Mikis Theodorakis is still something very special and fits well these days.

And a version by The Gypsy Kings:

Fog Rolls In

A few days ago my radar crossed the music of Doombird a band from Sacramento. They released their album Past Lives almost one year ago. This is the leading song of it it and it is very retro with it's leading bass, 80's picked guitar, organs and vocals. I didn't expected that any band could play this sound today. Torn between 80' influenced guitar pop and great songwriting. Their sound is sometimes dream catchy but also with a great psychedelic touch. If this songs would be released 30 years ago they might be classics now.

Bella Ciao

Since Bella Ciao appeared on Spanish television series Money Heist this old Italian folk song which was adapted by Italian partisans in world war II was played all over this summer. Probably less listeners will know the background of this song and the reason why it's got a hymn for fighting people. The reason why I post this song is that Marc Ribot released his latest album recently. Some of you might know him from his work with Lounge Lizards almost 30 years ago. He collected songs of resistance and adds his quiet guitar phrases over the song. On Bella Ciao Tom Waits joins Ribot who played also guitar on his famous album Rain Dogs after years of absence. His voice is broken and it sounds like an actor in his very last years doing the great job he did his life. There was no critical acclaim for this song and justified as another unnecessary version of this song. I really like this song because of the reluctant guitar of Marc Ribot in combination with Tom Waits' singular voice. Maybe the world needs more protest songs today.

Identity And Hope

Two new tracks by London based electronica and techno producer Max Cooper who released his latest album One Hundred Billion Sparks a few days ago. Probably one of the less artists that received his Ph.D. in his younger days he decided almost 8 years ago to focus entirely on music production and his kind of music. He made a lot of remixes during the last years and he is named when many talk about ambient techno. He cited Jon Hopkins and Sigur Ros as one of his influences. Identity reminds me with it's throbbing beats to the recent works of Daniel Avery.




Hope is with it's endless, steady beat and the electronic sound effect more cosmic that other songs from this genre I listened to this year.

Chicago Rolling Stones Blues

I am not much into blues but it was a sound I grew up with and I saw several heroes playing live but couldn't stand for more than an hour. So I was more than sceptical when I heard that there was a record out now when a lot of Chicago blues musicians made cover versions from songs by the Rolling Stones. Most of the songs I knew from the originals and even better cover versions and they all sound familiar to me. But I never expected that they can work in a way traditional Chicago blues musicians can play. Of course not the next big thing but listen to this songs in the way they were construed it makes fun to listen to.

Dancing And Blood

We all have seen band come and go, joining and disbanding. There are less bands that are alive with the same personal. Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker keep Low alive for more than 20 years. They were named as pioneers of slowcore and bands like Sun Kil Moon, Galaxie 500 or Red House Painters that were stamped for this genre. Now they are back with their latests album Double Negative. And Low is still a band that takes excursions into new sounds or other genres. Crumbling loops and beats ignite a musical storm with Parker's voice and in another song they create a sacrale sound that could be played on the way to Hades. This record doesn't grab you from the first listen but it grows the more I listen to it.

Dead Flowers

A few days ago I watched once again to The Big Lebowski, one of my favourite films ever. The story is so fanciful and madcap but always a pleasure to watch. Also the soundtrack is difficult to many others. A very unique mixture of classic film music by Henry Mancini and classic country/rock songs. There is one song on this movie I love much. It is Town Van Zandt's version of Rolling Stones' Dead Flowers. I am not the greatest fan of the Stones but I agree to a lot of songs when they turned into country and they collaborated with Gram Parson. When their original version was great than I would like to name Towne's version epic because he sings this song with much more empathy than Mr. Jagger could do.

Townes Van Zant - Dead Flowers

Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood

A few days ago I have had a look at a TV film which is based on a true story. Beginning of this millennium a man was sent on account of different certificates by the psychiatrists who had never seen him partly in a closed institution and had released only after several years on account of a law change again. A horrible story that made me ashamed to our justice. During the movie always a piano version of Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood appeared and I couldn't get the song out of my mind. So here are some versions of this great song for your pleasure.

Nina Simone - Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
The Animals - Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
Joe Cocker - Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
Brian Auger and Julie Tippet - Don't Let Me Be Missunderstood
Santa Esmeralda - Don't Let Me Be Missunderstood
Elvis Costello - Don't Let Me Be Missunderstood

Suspira

In 1977 Italian director Dario Argento released his classic horror movie Suspiria. I read about this film a long time ago and I have to admit that I never saw this film yet. As far as I know it is a trilogy about witches and it was a highlight for movie aficionados. The reason why I name this film is why Italian director Luca Guadignino made a remake these days. While Goblin, an Italian progressive rock band made the soundtrack for the original now Guandigninio hired Thom Yorke for the soundtrack. The original is stamped by an progressive organ sound and Yorke reduced it to a melodic piano ballad with a lot of flutes. Both soundtracks have something very own and it is worth to take a little journey into this special sound.

Hunter

Probably the greatest, cleverest and most erotic album was released by Anna Calvi a few weeks ago. Calvi's first album was a word-heavy statement in indie music. I missed her second album where she made some experiments in eclectic sounds she is now back and better than before. Hunter is still more concentrated and has got in the good sense more roughly than his predecessor's work. She stands for a dark archaic sound in the tradition of The Bad Seeds with hooks, rhythms and intelligent lyrics. And after all she likes to destroy her songs by heavy guitars. All in all one of those records that will be on the shortlist for 2018.