Friday 23 September 2011

Happy Birthday Bruce

happy birthday boss

favourite quote:
"I don't know how I'm supposed to be the Boss if I get stuck carrying the amps...".

favourite song:
spirit in the night (hammersmith 75)

favourite tour:
river

best moment:
the rosie video where the girls all grab him

best look:
tunnel of love tour

best wife:
patti

worst moment:
dancing in the dark video

best moment:
kissing clarence right on the lips in front of 50,000 people on the usa tour

favourite mix up:
rick springfield

favourite interview:
tiff with edward norton

can't sleep?
watch the promise

best cause:
feeding people

best band ever (and i mean this):
e street band

best that rock n' roll has ever been:
hammersmith odeon london 75

craig
september 23, 2011
coffee

Wednesday 21 September 2011

U2 and Me Too

i was on the U2 rattle from the get go
i did follow
and i still do
but not with the same glare glasses that i used to watch them through
they blinded me with silence
but every now and then i'll catch a new tune and jingle along

recently they ran the rock n' roll hall of fame 25th anniversary show on tv
there's a funny part where the guinness boys are on stage with springsteen
and bono's having a deep and profound chat to the crowd about rock n' roll
and springsteen kind of interrupts him as if to say
'shut the fuck up and let's play some music'
i love that
bono could always take the piss
he puts it out there
and believes it
say what you want
but he tries to save the world
and he tries very hard
lots of people talk a good game
i can't think of another revolutionary since lennon that put it on line
day after day
that's rock n' roll to me
when it jumps off the stage - off the album and into the public pockets

there's a scene in rattle and hum
they're playing sliver and gold
and bono says 'c'mon edge, play the blues'
and edge goes into this echo drenched guitar rhythm
that sounds nothing like the way blues are supposed to sound
yet it sounds exactly like the blues
that's never been done before to my knowledge

i've seen U2 live so many times
i cried once
it was the indoor broadcast of the actung baby tour
they did one
i couldn't move
i welled up
i've never done that at a concert before
that song can destroy the toughest of hearts
supposedly axl rose stayed in his room for days listening to that song over and over
i can relate to that kind of fervour

years ago me and a friend snuck into maple leaf gardens for their sound check
we just walked in the backstage
john had brought a brief case
they opened the doors for us
well once U2 arrived they cleared the entire gardens
and it was only the inside cabal of techs and staff
me and john were lying up in the greens on a walkway
watching them greet their crew and sound check
they played waterboys songs to check the PA
and they had some trouble with a click track
but their groove was loose and serious at the same time
i loved them
i wanted to be in a band like that
and i was jealous of bono's coat

U2 grew up in front of us
they are the last of the classic rockers
but even that title doesn't fit
they chase the carrot - but at least it's been grown in ireland
i'd love to get them into a studio and get rid of the electronica and click tracks
i'd tell them to stop writing choruses and just get a message out
without a hit seeking hook (that formula seems to fail of late)


we're performing the joshua tree in oakville
info on the site
i have murray james bosch singing the show
he has the opera and the range to capture bono at his finest
the guitar onslaught will be dialed in by russell gray
and clifton david broadbridge
i took troy feener off the who shows in florida
because i know that he's the best man for the job to play larry mullen jr
no small feat
the joshua tree is one of those left turn albums
it sounds like no other record
and it trespasses into your psyche and hangs around there as it begins
to rewire your brain
it's a perfect album
a beautiful album full of challenges and an earnestness that has long since
been removed by success and money

look at this blog
they make me all wordy
hell i even used some punctuation
usually my blogs are short little snippet lines
easy to read paragraphs with just the juice
but this one has run on sentences
and kind of meanders without a home
just like U2

craig
september 21, 2011
bud and jack

Monday 12 September 2011

5 Albums You Didn't Know You Needed

let me save you some time
if you're like me
you turn on classic rock in the car
maybe the kids talk you into tuning in the hits station every now and them
and you catch yourself humming along to bit of fluff
or you're in traffic and everything sounds annoying so you listen to talk radio
where people talk about how annoyed they are

we all have our skin graph albums
the ones the inhabit us
but sometimes they sound tired
sure
the next day they sound energized
but so much depends on your mood

so i've found 5 albums that you probably don't have
and you should buy these albums and play them
that way you won't be tempted to buy some of the quantized crap
they continually try to shove down our throats

so here's my list of 5 albums you didn't know you needed

1. james gang rides again
crazy ol' joe walsh has crafted a perfect album
released way back in the early 70s
this album sounds like a time when you listened to an entire record
i implore you not to press skip when playing this album
the record is a trip and needs to be taken seriously
you'll thank me next time you drive to california

2. neil young - freedom

maybe you've got an old friend
and he still thinks it's the old days
and dresses like it's the old days
and sometimes he doesn't shower
and he lights funny shaped cigarettes
and talks about left wing politics
and ends up crashing on your couch
this is the perfect album for such an occasion

3. rolling stones - the london years
i have it on vinyl (i have everything on vinyl)
it's a 4 album set
if you ever meet up with me
and want to hang out
you'll need to own this album
i judge people by whether or not they own this album
now you know
you're welcome

4. elton john - captain fantastic
the master at his best
this album is the 70s
tracks need to be listened to with the accompanying booklets
and you need to spread the poster out that comes with it
and disappear into imagery poetry and grooves
it's one of the few albums that sound good
in both daylight
and evening
you've already got all the elton greatest hits packages
maybe you're familiar with honky chateau
this one will complete your eltonness

5. paul mcCartney - ram
his best album
better than band on the run
raw and cool to touch
my buddy rob and i bought farms and raised goats after listening to this album
linda is a big part of the mcCartney post beatles sound
she's amazing on this record
i spent the summer with my kids singing "hands across the water"
we should all email paul and tell him to play more songs from this album live
i tried
but he's still mad about me about the goat thing

so there you have it
i generally don't like lists
but i'm in a numbers mood
and besides
what's better than sharing music with friends?

love to all

craig
september 12, 2011
corona and almonds

Wednesday 7 September 2011

AC/DC

ac/dc got it right
not once
but twice

the bon scott years were like our naughty cousins coming over to visit
there was a strong chance that something was going to get broken
the band sounded like they could fight their way out of a title match
being from australia
they were left alone to define themselves without a care for the rest of the globe

i knew a cat - earl johnson - used to play with moxy
i worked with him for a while selling stereos
i was nineteen
he told me stories about being on the road with them
getting into a fight with bon
stuff like that
i loved it
remember at the time it was
soft rock
new wave
punk was still gasping
and everyone started to get bad hair cuts
but ac/dc gave us a pure shot of rock n' roll
at a very needed time

then bon died
and we heard nothing about them

then all of a sudden back in black comes out
and they've got a new singer
and some guy named mutt is producing them
and holy smokes does this band rock
and then it was everywhere

who does that?
i can't think of anyone
people counter with van halen
but i never bought a single record with sammy hagar
genesis maybe
but phil collins was already in the band so that doesn't count

no
no other superstar band switches up singers
and blazes a new trail
it just doesn't happen

ac/dc is harder to play than you think
their changes are smart
and the guitar tones are cleaner than you think
all the bar bands i see on line do it wrong
both bon and brian sing with a lot of melody

kids like it
and that's always a good sign
sure kids like jay z and all that stuff
but once you accept ac/dc as a part of your rock n' roll heart
you're a lifer

there's something honest in their music
i'm always surprised that more christian groups don't picket them more
there's a ton of hell references
but common sense prevails
the lads shone a spot light on hell
and made it seem
kinda thematic
it's more like a disney ride
than a certainty

i'm a folkie at heart
i like the poets
and the troubadours
most of all i like real things

ac/dc drive the train
and they never go off track

craig
september 8, 2011
stella

Monday 5 September 2011

Guest Blogger: Dr. Wu

                                                              My Musical Epiphany

I had gone 48 years listening to and seeing many musical groups, but there was still a void in my life from not seeing some acts.
That all changed on the night of January 22, 2004.
I'd won tickets from a radio station to see Classic Albums Live Presents: Led Zeppelin II at The Phoenix. With my underage son and his friend in tow, we had no idea what was to occur on the stage that night. It was a defining moment in my love for music. Led Zeppelin WAS on stage that night, in a perfect recreation of the album note for note, cut for cut. It was an eerie, hair rising, out of body experience. Most of the evening was spent with my eyes glued to the stage or looking around the room at the reaction of others. My jaw was sore for days from being wide open in total disbelief. I have had this experience relived over and over many times since that night.
 My list of CAL shows seen is quite long now . My list of the Top 5 CAL shows is long too, as a few times a year I add a few other shows to it. 

Many Alumni also have played in other bands, and my love of music and  support of local musicians has allowed me to see many other fine acts and shows such as The Midnight Ramblers, Mason Dixon, Mamakin, Druckfarben, The Dylan Tree, Fraser Daley Duo , Jeff ‘s Healeys Jazz Wizards and the Jerome Godboo Band.

I had seen The Band (with CSNY and Jesse Colin Young ) live at Varisty Stadium September 2,1974 , and CAL perform The Last Waltz at The Phoenix December 13,2007.

I now anxiously await the epic presentation on the stage of Massey Hall Friday November 25,2011. My mind continues to wonder what surprises, and details Craig will have in store for us, and who from his stable of incredible world class musicians will grace the stage .

I can only imagine how perfect this upcoming night will be……..see you all soon at the Grand Dame of Concert Halls.

Dr.wu