CAL Q Massey Hall and the Stones

just back from a heavy meeting down at Q107 headquarters
i really like dealing with all of these people
their mandate is to make sure that more people listen to classic rock
yeah!

everyone i met with is a music lover
and they care deeply about what they get involved with
and everyone is getting involved with CAL

we're going to be building a circle
Q is going to be putting a CAL portal on their web site
and i'm going to provide exclusive content
cool stuff
like why exile on main street is an album that everyone should own
and some guitar and drum videos detailing what it takes
to play these songs properly

i've always been hesitant about social media
my knee jerk reaction has always been that nothing beats word of mouth
and while i still believe that
it's up to me to provide my info for folks to word of mouth with

massey hall has gotten behind CAL in a big way
they love the shows
and love the crowds
and mary is thinking forward and plugging us into Q's tentacles

Q107 is the greatest classic rock station in the world
meeting with them has always been comfy
they've been with us from the very start
10 years now
that's a relationship

and the stones
i'm hoping they return my calls
i'm hoping to help sell their new album for them
and rekindle a movement to make every music lover on the planet
own
know
and love
exile on main street

then the stones need to hire me as their music director
i'd be a taskmaster
and demand perfectly executed riffs
and vocal highs

but if that doesn't happen
there's our november 23 massey hall show
exile performed note for note - cut for cut

big things in the months to follow
optimism and hope spring eternal
once again i feel like things are just beginning

craig martin
september 27, 2012
grapes

Bono

just finished surfing the web
lost a couple hours reading about bono
he's living a life
and he's played quite a few cards
both within and without music

there's a lot of articles about his involvement in tech companies
and how they're not performing very well
and how he's losing money
and i'm surprised at how many people revel in that detail
but not me

i want everyone to be successful
and most of all i want bono to be successful
in fact
i think bono should assemble a team
and manage the world's finances

think about it
with him in charge
there would be no hunger
and vaccines would be made readily available
to those most in need

nations would be forced to talk to each other
and you know the after party would do more for peace
than anything the united nations has ever done

i want bono to oversee injustice
you know if there's some evil shit going down somewhere
he's going to be there
and broadcast it to the world
and the world won't stand for it
because people are good and decent

i can't think of anyone better to do this
i just finished watching weeks of politics on tv
we had a couple weeks off
i really enjoy watching tv when i get some down time
but i was itchy and uneasy watching all the sloganeering
and name-calling
and ironless promises

imagine if bono was up there
he's have his sunglasses on
and he'd eloquently tell you
that there's some babies in a faraway part of the world
that need some help
and dammit
you know by the end of the telecast
that there would be a ton of money going straight to helping those babies


he'd consult with people
open up dialogue
if things got heated
he'd take everyone down to the pub for a beer

bono would figure out what was most important
and get people working on fixing whatever was broken

jobs?
he'd invest in the arts and create an new economy out of roadies

you may say i'm a dreamer
but i'm not the only one
rock 'n' roll has lost it's footing
we need a man in beatle boots
to give things a swift kick up the arse
and punt away the dogma and rhetoric of egotistical politicians

bono knows ego
ego is go
people with ego do things
we've come to think associate ego as a negative trait
but i say the world is built on ego
that floats right alongside dreams and ability
throw in some heavy music
and you can save the world

craig
september 10, 2012
red wine and improvised pasta


ps: classic albums live performs the joshua tree in florida this coming weekend

Bruce Springsteen at the Rogers Centre

i'm such a fool
i still believe that rock 'n' roll can save the world
and i'm not sure
but i think
that bruce springsteen does too

the show in toronto was joyous
it was a testament  to the power of performance

i don't think bruce has finished growing up
i think he still wakes up every afternoon
and taps into that tiny part of him that still wants to be elvis presley
and we're all better off for it
because
alongside of his biting commentary on the decline of western civilization
we get a celebration of life
that's not an easy balance to maintain

people think that dylan has a biting social commentary
really?
where?
i'm a huge dylan fan
and i don't hear it
dylan is clever rhymes and cinematic images

but bruce is cnn
and he doesn't just talk the talk
he walks the fuckin' walk
and gets us involved
people were crowding to drop money into the food bank jars as we were leaving
it's always been that way

but enough deep thoughts
let's rock
because i like rock 'n' roll
the show was deep cuts
a true springsteen fan's set list
i'm fairly stoic at concerts
bordering on analytical
but i'm pumping my fist in the air
dancing
singing along
i'm shouting out song requests
we were 10 feet from the stage
i'm 16 again and love rock 'n' roll
this is as close to church as i'm ever going to get

it took a 5 piece horn section to replace clarence
i wanted braxton hicks to get the gig
because brax knows how to blow like the big man
but the nephew did an admirable job
and it was nice to see the blood line represented
the video tribute was touching
you stand beside someone on stage for 30 years
and the world becomes different without them
 (if you search the blog archives you'll find a piece i wrote on clarence)

little steven is spending a lot more time alongside bruce
at front and centre
james brown had the cloak
springsteen has the sponge
after 3 hours - he'd collapse on stage
only to have steven come over and drip the sponge down onto to him
he'd jump up revived and count in another
it was old school greasy rock 'n' roll entertainment

the show was full of humour
i was surprised at how much time we spent laughing
there's no fourth wall to break down
there's no mystery
no forced icon like status
backstage you know he's not slurping caviar
no
he's working out the chord changes to 'murder incorporated'
he stays lean and smart
there's no trappings
everything leads to the stage
and you leave it all there

you're sixty plus years old
playing in front of tens of thousands of people
for three hours and forty five minutes
and there's not an ounce of energy left to give at the end of the night
that's the way to live a life
that's how i define rock 'n' roll

craig
september 5, 2012
coffee