Top 10 of 2004 (intro)
Hey Soul Mates,
it's holiday season and the end of the year, you know what that means... Lists. So, over the next few weeks, I will be posting my Top 10 CDs of 2004. Sadly, the number 2 disc on the list has been hurt by a bad experience with the artist this week and has been dropped out of the Top 10. Still a great album, but sometimes you have to be principled. The number 1 disc is a two-parter, one spurring on the other. There is a major comeback for one entry. I've been waiting to hear the disc for over a year since hearing the group debut songs from the CD in 2003.
So, stay tuned and have a great Saturday.
Oh yeah, in Rush Hour Soul news, stickers are on the way. After a Bat Country sticker showed up in a photo in the New York Times Magazine in November, we had to do a "rush" order.
Love, Power, Peace.
Working Class Hero Is Something To Be
Hey Soul Mates,
hard to believe it's been 24 long years since we lost Johnny Ono aka Sir Winston O'Boogie. My music listening today began with A Hard Day's Night. I nearly cried singing along with Tell Me Why. That song has always been a favorite and one my first band played. It made me realize how much influence JOL had on my musical career. I can remember going to the Heights Public Library as a 7 year old and checking out A Hard Day's Night on vinyl. The worn, red covered American issue featured many hits and some instrumentals but it was Tell Me Why and the title track that made me dance about the living room. That first band I was in adored the Beatles. More that half our set would be their tunes or songs they covered. Any garage performer worth their salt wanted to be a Beatle once.
After that I listened to Lennon Legend. I transported myself to a time when the later singles were new and those days before Johnny was gone. No one could have guessed. I think if he was still around he'd be like Dylan without the shilling for Victoria's Secret. John would be producing an album every 5 years to unanimous acclaim. Dabbling in hip-hop and certainly he would have lead the musical charge during the past year's election. I think he would have loved the Grey Album.
Later, driving around this evening I had Magical Mystery Tour on. Always got chills from I Am The Walrus. Spooky emanations from the stereo. Otherworldly. That is dropping science, my friends.
Birthdays aren't always easy to remember. I suppose I should concentrate more on that, but when it comes to our cultural giants martyred, it's easier to have April 4 or December 8 in mind.
Birthdays are for celebrating. Memorials are for reflection on the spiritual vacuum created by the loss.
I've been to Strawberry Fields in central park and stood outside the Dakota wondering what it was like that crisp winter night, 24 years ago. 24 years. John would have been 64 this year, would we still need him? Would we still feed him? You bet. Most of the musical audience today has no memory of John Lennon as a contemporary figure. He's a mythical being, pushed further into the mist of the past.
It's already been 3 years since young George Harrison passed away. Soon we will be in a Beatle-less world and the planet will be a drearier place for it. So celebrate the best way possible, throw on She Loves You full blast or put on headphones to check out Norwegian Wood. Dec. 8 is just about over, but the music goes on forever. Without Johnny, I wouldn't be doing what I do on stage. Imagine.
Love, Power, Peace
Hey Soul Mates,
the Rush Hour Soul video for "Excommunication" is finally on-line. Visit our website and check it out. There are 3 types of video files to choose from. There are 2 to download: Real Media and Mpeg for Windows. And one to watch as a streaming video for Broadband. The streaming video is the closest in visual fidelity to the actual video, but it requires DSL/Cable or faster connection. Don't try it with dial-up unless you've got lots of time. The downloads should take around 3 minutes for DSL, the stream takes about 4 or 5 to register. But it is worth it!
There is also a hidden link on the info page to some stills on the old Magnavox. I will be posting pictures from our show at the Gig in a little while. I have to take a break from the computer. Maybe even eat!
Love, Power, Peace
A Night In The Life...
Hey Soul Mates,
it's been a busy 24 hours. I've spent most of the day working on the website. The music video is almost ready to post. There was lots of work to be done on the presentation. The video itself was compressed and re-constituted by our good friend, Dr. Rahuna. It looks great and is a different version from the one on the Commondeer site. This is the RHS cut.
Earlier this evening, we went to a new place called Good Microbrewery in Silverlake to see our friends, Ricky Tubb & Tom Richards from the Waking Hours do an acoustic set. It's a nice space and the sound is appropriate. This time last night, I was at Ricky's for a gathering of musicians, friends and folks. Really good people. It's always a bonus to network and meet people that share common interests and goals. In this case, music. At one point we had a bit of a hootenany going on in one of the bedrooms with a small audience. Ricky & Tom, and Taylor Locke (lead guitarist for Rooney) and I were singing lots of Beatles' songs and pulling off four-part harmonies. That's always fun. Just 2 acoustics and 4 voices. Taylor was really busting loose on the guitar parts on And Your Bird Can Sing, Get Back and I Dig A Pony. I have always loved the Beatles and I think that's the first time I've had a chance to throw down with some really good harmonizers. The highlights were Tell Me Why, Please, Please Me, & Nowhere Man. I took the stratospheric high parts with Taylor. At one point, Carrick Gerety from Everybody Else joined in and the sound we created would've made even Brian Wilson weep. I think the handful of people who heard us were thrilled.
Be sure to check out the links in this blog. Those bands are very cool and make really good music. Back to work for me, so you can see our video later today.
Love, Power, Peace.
