Okay, I’m going to rave about a fringe movie again, one that will only appeal to one out of every hundred people who read this, but it’s what I do, so don’t try to stop me. The last one, Rockers, is mainly of interest to old school reggae lovers and Jamaicaphiles, and this one will hit a chord mainly with old punks and possibly fans of Diane Lane and Laura Dern. It’s called Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains.
Category Archives: Music
Moded, (moated?), burned and jerked
So, this band I was in during the late 1980s was in a movie. It was a lot of fun. You know, pretending to play for hours while they film you from on top, behind, up your nose and every other which way you can imagine. Yeah, it was a real blast. “A little more energy, fellows!” Okay, okay, let me summon my spare energy after four hours miming the same song. Toward the end I couldn’t even remember how to play the song, I was so punch drunk, so I was just moving my fingers around on the guitar, like an actor! I always hoped that would make it into the movie, but it didn’t.
I’m like a stepping razor, don’t you watch my size, I’m dangerous
I watched the movie Rockers again over the weekend. This is absolutely and unequivocally tied for my favorite movie of all time. Rockers is my Woodstock, baby. Shot in Jamaica in 1976 and 1977, the golden age of reggae music, this film is packed with legendary roots musicians as “actors,” great music, and a wicked revenge story that culminates in a sort of shantytown crissmass mornin’, iya!
Fly me to the moon, then blow that shit up!
When I was six years old I wanted to be in the Beatles. But I didn’t have a guitar, and it seemed awfully difficult to actually be in the Beatles, and, maybe most importantly, I was only six years old. I wanted to be in the Beatles for quite some time, actually. You know, until …
Continue reading “Fly me to the moon, then blow that shit up!”
I don’t pray. Kneeling bags my nylons.
I saw a really interesting documentary called, Danielson: A Family Movie, and it got me thinking about a lot of things.
Mainly about why so many “Christian” performers feel compelled to sing about the blood of Jesus in every song. As if a song that fails to mention Jesus a dozen times is some kind of one-way ticket to HELL. The only other genre of popular music that has such a strong biblical bent is Reggae, but those guys know how to sprinkle the Jah songs among other, more universal, messages. Daniel Smith, or Danielson, is an odd, creative guy. He is also a devout Christian. But because he doesn’t beat the listener over the head with continual references to his lord and savior (or his lord and savior’s blood, or rugged cross), his art is accessible to everyone. At least everyone who enjoys weird stuff.Cats and dogs
Cat Stevens, aka Yusuf Islam, is on NRP tonight singing old and new songs and I am a little shocked by the whole thing. I had no idea he was recording new music. Last I heard he had denounced his own work as trivial and not in keeping with what Mohammed wanted him to do. He asked the record company that sold his music to stop, which they didn’t, of course, being very non-Mohammedian capitalists.
Various tidbits of marginal interest to anyone
Someone asked me yesterday if I was glad that Democrats were in control of the government now. About the only advantage I can see to having Democrats in control is that at least they use a little lube when they screw you.
God is a concept by which we measure our pain
I wanted to write something here about John Lennon yesterday, on the 25th anniversary of his death, but marking the death of those we seek to celebrate seems like an odd practice.
Hey, what’s with the torn up clothes, and didn’t you have a shag haircut last week?
I blather on a lot around here about music and punk and how great and holy it and I was back in the day, and I usually come off sounding like a smelly old man yelling at a bunch of kids to get out of his yard and go play ball somewhere else. That I am a smelly old man doesn’t make it any more valid or palatable, so this time I’d like to pass the mic to someone who is preserving a bit of musical history right here on the world wide internet.
(There’s Gonna Be A) Showdown
Well, I never have been able to say no to a 1970’s rawkstar looking for a ride, so we all climbed into the Trooper and headed toward Hollywood proper. After a few wrong turns and near-fatal collisions we arrived at a two story house on Carlton Way, in the hills just above Sunset Boulevard. “Come in and have a drink,” Mr. Johansen said, “meet our friends.” So I angled the car up against the curb to keep it from sliding down the hill and we followed them in.
Rock the cash bar
oh, this is a good one…the IFPI (International Federation of Phonographic Industries) along with the Motion Picture Association has proposed a “code of conduct” for your internet service provider to abide by. the “code” involves lovely activities such as filtering, spying and handing over your name and address to a giant corporation’s lawyers, all in the name of “social responsibility.”
She’s still here, damn it!
if you have fond memories of Sandra Bernhard on the old 12:30 David Letterman show, you won’t see the same kind of wild, off-the-cuff comedy in her new show (now previewing at the Silent Movie Theatre in hollywood), but more of a monologue (still very, very funny) with music interspersed. she’s been doing these kind of shows for years, and she’s got it down to an extremely entertaining science. this latest is definitely her best.
Last night a dj saved my life! Yeah, maaaaan!
I know a couple of people who “dj,” one of them quite successfully in Hollywood, but I’ve gotta say, man, what the hell is that? playing records. that’s what it is. to elevate a dj to anything more is borderline insanity. it’s like saying the person who hangs the paintings up in a gallery is an artist, or someone who decides which 6 movies HBO will show all year is a filmmaker.
Should have taken mom up on those violin lessons
Tara Burghart writes for Associated Press; A bus driver for the Dave Matthews Band pleaded guilty Wednesday to charges stemming from the dumping of 800 pounds of human waste from his vehicle’s septic tank onto a sightseeing boat on the Chicago River.
10 things I’ve done that you haven’t
I swiped this from Mat Gleason’s Coagula blog. I guess it’s some viral list going around, which normally I would do my best to ignore, but this one is actually interesting. So yeah, here are – 10 Things I’ve done that you haven’t!