What are you listening to right now?

[Jack of All Parades]

"One is that years of listening lend themselves to a certain 'heard it all' experience; without claiming to be some musical expert (far from it), popular music in general no longer seems like this fantastic chest of wonders opening up - rather it all sounds like variations on themes I've heard before. So I still enjoy it, but that electrifying element of newness is rarely accessible to me anymore. I remember Elvis saying somewhere that he 'processes' music much more quickly than he did when he was younger; same idea. A new album that might have taken me months to full absorb when I was 19 now takes far less than that."

I spent some time last night contemplating this statement by PD earlier in this thread- it rings true for me more than I care to admit. Not in a jaded sense but very much in the sense of originality and that age old argument in the arts concerning the 'anxiety of influence' and dealing with predecessors. That feeling that all new is just a variation on the past is hard to ignore. Dylan, for one, professes this frequently as he rumages in the trunk of American traditional music for his motifs.

I think I know what Elvis is getting at in that quote. Years of 'actively' listening have conditioned my brain to transcribe and absord a piece of music far quicker than I could as a youth. Not necessarily because I have become imbued of stronger musical understanding over the years but more likely because I have been 'conditioned' to compartmentalize what I am hearing at a quicker rate. This is something I have to resist as I listen to a new performer. I get greater enjoyment when I am able to not lose those first listens within the background of what has preceded that new song. PD's notion of trying to maintain his musical enjoyment in the 'here and now' is something I strive to maintain. Difficult to achieve but, when done, it makes my listening explorations all the more enjoyable.

[Otis Westinghouse]

When did you last hear a song that got so into your head that if you didn't hear it for a few hours you got withdrawal? I can't actually recall, but in the last year or two. Not like when I was a teen and it was monthly, but it's still good that this can happen. Or better still over a whole album, when you want to hear one song and then you have to hear the next 5. And when you've finished you'd be very happy to start again. Very few albums have that overall effect. I can only summon up two in the last 3-4 years for me, Lambchop's OH (Ohio) and The National's High Violet (new one coming soon, can't wait!). I would call them both masterpieces, with nothing approaching a weak track on the latter and maybe one or two weaker towards the end of the former. I wouldn't want to be without these. That's what I crave. Even if the essential language of the music is not going to blind me with newness, it's the originality of the voice and the fact that they've fashioned something you utterly want to hear that remains amazing. I love the fact that you don't need to intellectualise it, like good food or drinks, it delights the brain and the senses and justifies its existence that way. You might be able to process and compartmentalise it, but in a way what does it matter?

[Jack of All Parades]

Otis- I can clearly state that experience has happened for me with the latest Dylan. From the opening notes of "Duquesne Whistle" I was hooked and I have been lost in the majority of the record since 9/11/12. I have been consumed by this record as it is a vibrant winter blast from an aged lion. I put it on and hit replay consistently, only editing out the ending song "Roll on John" which is insipid. I, too, have the same feeling about the National's "High Violet". It and Arcade Fire's "The Suburbs" rarely go a day without a listen by me. I knew when I recommended "High Violet" to you that your initial tepid reaction to them would not last- glad to hear they have impacted your listening habits so strongly.

[Poor Deportee]

Otis- I can clearly state that experience has happened for me with the latest Dylan. From the opening notes of "Duquesne Whistle" I was hooked and I have been lost in the majority of the record since 9/11/12. I have been consumed by this record as it is a vibrant winter blast from an aged lion. I put it on and hit replay consistently, only editing out the ending song "Roll on John" which is insipid. I, too, have the same feeling about the National's "High Violet". It and Arcade Fire's "The Suburbs" rarely go a day without a listen by me. I knew when I recommended "High Violet" to you that your initial tepid reaction to them would not last- glad to hear they have impacted your listening habits so strongly.

My experience with Tempest is slightly more critical than Jack's, in that I tend to skip both 'Roll On John' and 'Narrow Way.' The former is simply a terrible song; the latter is a solid blues number, but offers no real revelations and stretches on too long, thus getting in the way of the treasures that lie beyond. 'Duquesne Whistle,' I don't skip, but do find that it yields diminishing returns with repeated listening. Other than that, the record just seems endlessly rich. I've moved away from it lately, not out of a sense of having drained it dry, but simply because I think it's boring of me to fixate on one album indefinitely. 'Scarlet Town' and 'Tin Angel' in particular I find impossible to exhaust.

[Jack of All Parades]

"Narrow Way" offers the sublime enjoyment of listening to the lascivious yearnings of possibly a 71 year old satyr-after all his 'bell still rings'! I am not far behind in years.

[Poor Deportee]

"Narrow Way" offers the sublime enjoyment of listening to the lascivious yearnings of possibly a 71 year old satyr-after all his 'bell still rings'! I am not far behind in years.

Ha ha, good point, Jack. In this vein, the couplet that always slays me is

You've got the same eyes your mother does
If only I knew who your father was!

His bell still rings indeed.

[Natsome]

Brutal YOuth.

[Otis Westinghouse]

It and Arcade Fire's "The Suburbs" rarely go a day without a listen by me.

That's amazing. Despite the impact the national one has had on me, I can easily go many weeks without playing any of it. Even if you're only selectively talking about one track at a time, that's remarkable persistence. I just don't know where you find the time to read and listen so much. Am very envious. I just spend too much time vegetating in front of the telly.

[migdd]

Graham Parker and the Rumour have united for the first time in 31 years. Three Chords Good is the name of the album if you haven't heard. GP and the band perform and act in Judd Apatow's new film, This Is Forty, due out in December.

What a heartwarming album. The band plays as if they were never separated and are as tight as they were back in the day. I'm just beginning to absorb the album but am thrilled more by every successive spin.

The entire album is streaming here:

http://ultimateclassicrock.com/graham-p ... um-stream/

[Otis Westinghouse]

Thanks. Will check it out.

New Order 'True Faith'. Some classics never lose their magic.

[Jack of All Parades]

"The Stylings of Silver"- Horace Silver with a quintet featuring Art Farmer on trumpet and Hank Mobley on tenor since I am stuck working in our Pawling office today. I decided to load up on some jazz cds and help the time pass. I am enjoying the minor blues with two 12 measure phrases of "Soulville" and the down and dirty funkiness of "Home Cookin'"-it has an infectious melody. Silver always seems to swing effortlessly for my ear.

[Jack of All Parades]

To help pass another day stuck in the Pawling office for my company have been entertaining myself with "Dizzy Gillespie-Birks Works The Verve Big Band Sessions". 2 extended cds of his famous Dizzy's State Department band which went around the world in the mid 1950's playing on behalf of the United States.-- The album is filled with great charts and tunes and some very strong studio musicians just cutting loose- Joe Gordon, Al Grey, Ernie Henry, Wynton Kelly, Lee Morgan, Phil Woods, Frank Rehack, Benny Golson, Billy Mitchell and Dizzy. Great way to spend a day.

[Jack of All Parades]

Passing one last day in the Pawling office for my employer and making the time pass with a generous listen to this CD- Kenny Burrell & John Coltrane. A gem from 1958 with the able Tommy Flanagan on piano, Paul Chambers on bass and Jimmy Cobb on drums. I do not think I have ever heard a more beautifully sounding Guitar/Tenor combo than these two. They compliment each other so well with a very fluid melodicism between the two. The exquisite ballad "Why Was I Born" by Kern and Hammerstein is a thing of beauty at a mere 3:17 in time. The play between the two takes my breath away each time I hear the song. Have a listen-

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q= ... ZLrAgO4-Cg

[Kevin Davis]

Mr. Of All Parades, what do you know about a jazz guitarist named Jim Hall? I've discovered a few recordings this year that have happened to feature him as a sideman--specifically, Sonny Rollins's "The Bridge" and some stuff off a Bill Evans comp--and I find his playing consistently alluring.

[Jack of All Parades]

Kevin, cannot claim to be any expert on him. I have always enjoyed his playing. He has a strong and clean form combined with generous improvisational skills. It would seem a lot of players like to work with him. That included my father in law and Zoot Sims:

here is a video from 1964 of Zoot and Jim along with Jim Raney

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q= ... PNIv-Iglmw

That is a good sounding 'little' record- "Two Jims and a Zoot" if you can locate it- interesting combination of two guitarists and a tenor player.

He seems to work very well with a variety of tenor players, Joe Lovano and Sonny Stitt for instance, including Mr. Rollins most notably. Have you heard his work on the latest Road Trip cd from 2011 by Sonny Rollins? He can still hold his own.

I caught him in the mid 80s on a bill with my father in law at the Village Vanguard. I remember a fun night of music between the two and some genuine laughs afterwards over drinks. I know he is held in high esteem within the jazz community for his skills as both a composer and arranger. One need only look at the list of great tenors he has worked with to see people like to play with him. You should have some real fun going through his back catalog- quite a few cds are out there. And he is still playing. Enjoy the musical trip.

[Who Shot Sam?]

Would highly recommend Jim Hall's Concierto, which was issued on CTI in the 1970s. It includes a great version of "Concierto de Aranjuez," which Miles had also done on Sketches of Spain.

[Kevin Davis]

Thanks guys--I'll probably pick up a CD or two after Christmas.

[Otis Westinghouse]

Another Kevin, this time Rowland:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBE8b5eEmK0

[Jack of All Parades]

Been spending the entire day playing in the treasures of Dwight Yoakam's 4 disc The Warner/reprise years box. I have forgotten the run of success he had starting in the mid 80's and running through the 90s. Hit after hit. His revival of the Bakersfield sound is invigorating. And the man can sing-the ache he can achieve in his throat as he hovers over a given note is primal. I also like what he does with covers like Warren Zevon's "Carmelita" or the Clash's "Train in Vain" or Elvis's "Suspicious Minds". His evocations of a honky tonk life and of the corruption to be found when one strays westward of the homeland of Kentucky can be moving and they manage to avoid pure sentimentality and schmaltz. I wish he would have done a whole album of duets with Kelly Willis. It has been fun in the 'cube' today. If only I were 6'3" and a 'bean pole' and could pull off the look of a 'Nudie' jacket.

Here is a taste of the treats one can hear on this collection:

http://www.google.com/url?url=http://ww ... EbNeNbEfNQ

or this duet with Kelly Willis-

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q= ... xtz8C87dVg

[Otis Westinghouse]

If, like me, you love both LCD Soundsystem and Miles Davis, this is for you:



The incredible thing is no software is involved - just clicking in YouTube, as you can see from its unfolding.

[Jack of All Parades]

Strangely, that works. Who would have thought such a juxtaposition would? Irony is that Miles is actually playing, and reacting spontaneously, to a movie screen on his part. Have you ever seen this one? He is the epitome of cool here and even manages to make smoking a cigarette look the epitome of hip-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1hT2u1jwcs

[Who Shot Sam?]

Got tired of flipping through radio channels on my way home last week, popped a CD in the car stereo and came up trumps with Miles Davis' soundtrack for "Elevator to the Gallows," the early Louis Malle film noir gem. Hadn't listened to that in ages!

[Jack of All Parades]

Got tired of flipping through radio channels on my way home last week, popped a CD in the car stereo and came up trumps with Miles Davis' soundtrack for "Elevator to the Gallows," the early Louis Malle film noir gem. Hadn't listened to that in ages!

How true- when you watch that film and hear his playing coming out of the soundtrack it immediately hits you what a vital part his playing provided for that movie- it is not a bad thriller either.

Jazz has been consuming more of my listening time these years- today I have been enjoying the Blue Note reissue from 2007 of Volume 3 by Lee Morgan from early 1957- just barely 18 and the second trumpet in Dizzy Gillespie's band this date with material written and arranged by Benny Golson, another Gillespie alum, is mature and assured. I am most taken by Morgan's lyrical playing on the opening track "Hassan's Dream". It has a melodicism which I would not associate with an 18 year old player. My infatuation with Lee Morgan continues. When you couple it with his take on "I Remember Clifford" it is heaven indeed.

Here is "Hassan's Dream"

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q= ... NR1SoqF5Xw

here is "I Remember Clifford"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5dy2HbzeCc

[Jack of All Parades]

More Lee Morgan today- cannot seem to get enough of his intelligent and thoughtful playing and compositions these days. Today the album "Leeway" which is a fun pun. Often these Blue Note dates juxtapose players against one anther with a hope that the mix will come out fine- this date from early 1960 is special- the interaction between all the players is as if they have been a seasoned unit for many years- Morgan on trumpet, Jackie McLean on Alto, Bobby Timmons on piano, Paul Chambers on bass and Art Blakey on drums. Morgan leads and quite effectively. In a way they had been together for years in incarnations of Blakey's Jazz Messengers. There is a deep soulfulness in the playing on this record with each player demonstrating a forceful command of their instrument. It may very well be my favorite Morgan cd. I really am challenged when listening to the two compositions by Calvin Massey - "These are soulful days" and "Nakatini Suite". They are exceptional pieces of contemporary jazz and are played here masterfully. A real revelation is the control Blakey keeps of the others with his interspersed 'martial' rolls- it is a joy to hear him play drums.

Have a listen to "These are soulful days"-

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q= ... 2958,d.eWU

[Jack of All Parades]

Today and for many days going back over the last two months the new one from John Hiatt- "Mystic Pinball". He has been on a roll of late and this one is the strongest for me of his last three albums. His working band has morphed into a solid group of players behind him and their sound evoques what he achieved in the mid 80's with his run of records on A&M including "Bring the Family" and "Slow Turning". This album works on so many levels- strong craftsmanship, infectious singing, sly humor, and a sense of a life being lived to its fullest as particularly voiced in the song "Give it Up" with its exhuberant pedal steel accompianment. The opening track - "We're All Right" - makes a great anthem for how I feel these days and I suspect Mr. Hiatt, as well. There is a ballad on this record- "Wicked Old Grin"- that is a superb voicing of love for another and for the desire to care and provide comfort for another. Mr. Hiatt is at his best on this record- easy and assured with songs that speak to everyday life and love's vagaries in a simple and telling manner. He is the kind of performer who manages to add a few songs each year to my permanent collection of tunes in my head; his career has a nice steadiness to it and I willingly look forward to future examples of his finely honed and sly song craft.