Patty Griffin – Downtown Church

Patty Griffin is one of the best songwriters in the business. Just ask all of the different artists who have recorded her songs. She put down her pen for this album and recorded an album of all religious cover songs. The album was recorded in a church so it has a great sound to it and she brings in some of her talented friends such as Raul Malo from the Mavericks, Emmylou Harris, Jim Lauderdale and Buddy Miller. Another solid effort from Griffin.

Band of Horses – Infinite Arms

This band won me over with their last album “Cease to Begin” so I was eagerly awaiting this album. The album did not disappoint. “Laredo” is easily my favorite song of the summer and the rest of the album picks up right where the last album left off. This album is a little more acoustic leaning than their last album but it works and the country flavored “Older” is a great tune. Check this band out or you can wait a couple more years and jump on the bandwagon like everyone did with Kings of Leon last year.

The Black Keys – Brothers

I don’t know what else I can say about this band to make you understand just how good they are. The continually pump out albums full of three minute rock and blues soaked jams. Dan Auerbach’s raspy voice is the perfect companion to his filthy guitar and Patrick Carney’s workman like drumming. If you are not listening to this band you might be considered a dumb ass by some people and by some people I mean me.

Deer Tick – Black Dirt Sessions

I am not sure how to classify this band. They are sort of alt country but they are also sort of rock. They seem to have some street cred on the indie circuit as well. Lead singer John McCauley has a very distinctive raspy voice but not in the same way as Dan Auerbach’s voice is raspy. It is more suited for country tinged songs. The entire album makes for a good listen but the two highlights are definitely “Twenty Miles” and “Mange” which sounds like a country version of “Sympathy for the Devil”. This is a band that I am going to need to see live.

Gaslight Anthem – American Slang

You know how the “Born to Run” album has a sense of urgency and getting out? You can hear desperation in Springsteen’s voice. You can hear it in the band as well. This album gives me that same kind of feel. Am I comparing this album to Born to Run? No, but I am telling you the way it makes me feel when I listen to it. The album is full of big guitars and drums that are built to be anthems to their fans. I guess if you think a band that sounds like Springsteen and the Clash is appealing then this band might be a band for you. I think this band is making some really good music right now but I have a feeling their best work is ahead of them.

Joe Pug – Messenger

Pug put out a great EP in 2009 so I was ready to see what he could do with a full album. His EP was an acoustic affair while this album he has a band backing him. While a lot of the songs have a very acoustic feel to them Pug’s use of the band adds some layers to the music that you could not get from his last album especially when he incorporates the pedal steel guitar. This guy is a relentless touring musician and you will be hearing more from him in the near future.

The Rolling Stones – Exile on Main Street

I know this is far from a new album but the re-release of this album a couple of months ago was a reason for all Stones fans to celebrate. The album sounds better than ever and the bonus material is worth the price of the album alone. If you call yourself a rock and roll fan and do not own this album you are an impostor.

Truth & Salvage Co. – Truth & Salvage Co.

Their are not many bands making the caliber of music this band is making. Great lyrics, great harmonies, and great musicianship. If you like The Band, The Black Crowes, Buffalo Springfield, Gram Parsons, The Byrds, The Eagles, The Flying Burrito Brothers or Neil Young then you might like this band. Get on the bandwagon now because they are only going to get bigger and better.

Five Til Dawn – Heartbreak & Hand Grenades

This Indianapolis band is one of my favorite bands right now. Their first album was released earlier this year independently and is full of some great songs with big hooks and great lyrics in the style of early Black Crowes, The Faces, or Drivin’ and Cryin’. If you live in Indianapolis check them out live if not get on iTunes or Amazon and buy their album.

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers – Mojo

This album is classic Tom Petty but is also a little different than past albums. The band seems to stretch out a little bit more than you might be used to. They almost abandon their “don’t bore us get to the chorus” mentality but not all of the way. The band sounds as good as ever and the direction they went on this album is refreshing. The star of the album is definitely “I should Have Known”. If you are a Petty fan you want to have this album in your collection.

Ten albums that I have really enjoyed this year. I am always looking for new music and will continue to try and turn you on to the stuff I find. If you find some new music and think I should hear it chances are I already have heard it or it sucks so don’t bother.

Later,

Nick

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First of all the Heartbreakers are one of the all time great backing bands. The band includes original members Ron Blair on bass, Benmont Tench on the keyboards who is one of the best keyboard players of all time, and the “co captain”, as Petty calls him, Mike Campbell on lead guitar. Campbell in my opinion is one of the most underrated players of his generation. He is a fantastic player that gladly lets his boss have the spotlight while displaying incredible skill at what he does. The band is rounded out by former Eric Clapton drummer Steve Ferrone and secret weapon Scott Thurston on about 5 different instruments. When you combine the talent of the Heartbreakers with the massive amount of hits Petty has you are guaranteed of a nasty evening of music.

The band hit the stage and launched into the Byrds inspired “Listen to Her Heart” while Petty soaked up the crowds approval. They then proceeded to follow that up with the hits “You Don’t Know How it Feels”, “I Won’t Back Down” and “Free Fallin’”. At this point the crowd was worked into a frenzy while they played the semi obscure Fleetwood Mac cover “Oh Well”. As Petty snarled the lyrics “Don’t ask me what I think of you, I might not give the answer you want me to” Campbell flexed his muscle for the first time of the evening playing the chords to the song every bit as good as Peter Green ever did with Fleetwood Mac. The highlight of the evning came next when the band launched into “Mary Jane’s Last Dance”. This is obviously a crowd favorite when Petty plays this song in Indiana and the crowd drowned out Petty as he sang the song. After the song was over he commented “sometime I think I live just to play that song here” which sent the place into even more of a frenzy.

In the middle of the show Petty played a 5 song mini set of songs from his new album “Mojo” that I thought was great especially the rocker “I Should Have Known It”. I thought the songs were perfectly placed in the middle of the set after giving the fans a healthy dose of hits and right before heading into the final stretch of the show. Petty closed out the regular set with three heavy hitters “Learning to Fly”, “Don’t Come Around Here No More” and “Refugee” where Mike Campbell pulled off one of the most inspired solos I have ever seen and I am not just saying that because he was playing it 20 feet from me.

Petty and the band came back for a three song encore that included “Runnin’ Down a Dream” the Van Morrison cover “Mystic Eyes” and finally “American Girl”.

That was the 4th time I have seen Tom Petty and the 3rd concert I actually remember. As always he was as good as it gets and I plan on paying too much for tickets, fighting unbelievable traffic, and drinking $11.00 beers the next time he rolls through town.

Later,

Nick

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I must admit that technology is great in a lot of ways. I love that I can carry around 11,000 songs in my pocket. I have access to all of those songs on my computer, in my bedroom, in my car, at my desk at work, when I cut the grass, and really just about anywhere I want to listen to my music thanks to my iPod. It is great scouring the internet looking for bands on MySpace, Facebook, YouTube, and the band’s websites as well. Finding music has never been easier. There is now satellite radio in most cars these days. You can target a specific genre you want to listen to and not have to deal with commercials. You are no longer a slave to your local radio stations and you can drive across the country and not worry about losing reception.

Buying music has never been easier. With outlets such as Amazon and iTunes the record store is open 24 hours a day/7 days a week/ 365 days a year. You don’t ever have to worry about them being sold out of a certain album that you are looking for. You can preview the music before you buy it. These websites even suggest music you might like based on the other albums you have purchased or even just clicked on to hear. You can literally sit at your computer in your underwear and buy all the music you want to buy at three in the morning. I can’t tell you how many times I have heard a song on TV and walked over to my computer and bought the song or the entire album. Remember cassette singles and 45′s? Those have gone the way of the Drive In movie theater because for $.99 you can buy a song and be listening to it in seconds.

Remember way back in the 80′s when you would record music off the radio with the tape deck in your boom box? You would have to wait until just the right moment to hit record and turn it off just before the next song ended. What about mix tapes? It used to take hours to make a good mix tape. Now you can just make a play list in a matter of minutes and burn it to a CD.

When it comes to buying concert tickets these days you just jump online and buy them when they go on sale. I have bought tons of tickets sitting at my desk at work. Gone are the days of heading down to your local record store and standing in line for hours waiting for tickets or hoping you get a good # in the ticket lottery.

I could go on and on illustrating just how easy it has become to consume the music you want these days but I think you get the picture and that is really not what this story is about. As much as I have embraced all of these great advances over the past decade we are losing some great things about music and it is really sort of sad if you ask me.

I was talking to a good friend of mine the other night and he was telling me how he just got a new turntable and some albums. This lead to us discussing how times have changed since the days of albums and it got me to thinking about all of the different things that are disappearing from the musical landscape these days.

The first thing that we have lost is sound quality. It is really pretty unbelievable to think sound quality has basically not gotten any better since albums were invented. If you listen to a CD or a digital album the quality is a laugh compared to listening to a record on vinyl. To this day there is nothing better than listening to your favorite record on a turntable. If only you did not have to get up and flip the record over at the end of each side.

We have also lost great album sides. In the digital age albums are not made that way anymore. You don’t hear anybody saying “Hey did you download the Jonas Brothers album and listen to side one?” Albums used to have definite flows to them based on sides. If you do not believe me check out John Mellencamp’s “The Lonesome Jubilee” or The Rolling Stones “Tattoo You”. Without album sides we will also lose great movie quotes like the quote from Fast Times at Ridgemont High where Mike Damone says “Rat. When it comes down to making out, whenever possible, put on side one of Led Zeppelin IV”to Mark Ratner. Great album sides are dead and I will miss them.

Album art and liner notes are not what they used to be. Back in the 70′s bands really put thought into their album covers and that is why most of the great album covers are from that era. You would sit around and check out the album art and read the liner notes while listening to the record. These days with digital music the album cover is no longer a big deal and most albums do not even include liner notes when you buy them digitally. The lack of liner notes is one of things that sucks the worst about music today.

I think waiting in line for concert tickets will also be missed. I have experienced some crazy things in line for concert tickets over the years. In 1989 while waiting in line for Rolling Stones tickets I was schooled for well over an hour by a guy standing next to me about what a great guitar player Prince was. He sighted several examples of how great he was and let me and my buddy know how disgusted he was with the establishment for not seeing what he saw in Prince’s guitar playing. From that moment on I looked at Prince’s guitar playing in a different light. While waiting in line for John Mellencamp tickets and demanding that they have a lottery for tickets and not first come first serve I had the lives of my family and myself threatened by several hundred people. I still got horrible tickets and people were still yelling at me as I drove off. Those incredible experiences will never happen ordering a ticket on line.

While I do enjoy browsing for music on line I miss record stores. I miss walking the aisles and seeing what was in stock. I miss hearing what they were playing when I walked in the record store. More than once I have bought an album because they were playing it at the store that day. I liked seeing the posters on the wall of the record store. I liked hearing what the guy behind the counter liked even if I disagreed. I was once in a record store heard an employee say “in 100 years the only rap music people will remember will be The Beastie Boys”. I don’t know if I agree or disagree with that statement but I do know it made me chuckle as I was walking the aisles of the record store. I miss the independent record store by my house when I was growing up. The guy that owned it had a mullet, a porn mustache, and let his dog hang out in the store. He knew me and my buddies and was always nice to us. He would even tell us about artists he thought we would like. His records weren’t the cheapest but we did not care because we liked hanging out there and we liked it when he would approve of an album we were purchasing. I believe that you get a sense of community when you go to record stores like that. You are hanging out with people that think the same way you do about music even if they do not share your taste in music.

Like I said at the beginning of this story I love the advances that have been made in technology when it comes to music. I am excited to see where things go in the next ten years and beyond but there will always be a part of me that misses some of the things from the past that are either dying or are already dead. There is a generation of kids that will never experience the things I did growing up and that is unfortunate.

Later,

Nick

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Ray Lamontagne & The Pariah Dogs – God Willin’ & The Creek Don’t Rise

As you already know Ray is a favorite of myself and Dave. Earlier this year Ray recorded this album in his home in Massachusetts with his band the Pariah Dogs. The album was produced by Ray and was completed in 2 weeks(by the way that is the time frame most records should be recorded in). You can hear the first song “Beg Steal or Borrow” on his website right now. The song has a great feel with plenty of pedal steel guitar. As always I look forward to the day his album comes out.

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers – Mojo

This is the first album Petty has made with The Heartbreakers in 7 years. I look forward to anything Petty does but the buzz on this album is that it is some of best work in years. The album just came out yesterday and I plan on digging into it immediately. If you would like to get an idea of what the new album is like check out my video of the week from a few weeks ago.

John Mellencamp – On the Rural Route 7609/No Better Than This

Mellencamp has a double dip of music coming out this summer. The box set his fans have been waiting for since the 1990′s finally came out yesterday. The box set includes 4 discs with songs spanning his entire career. It not only has the usual suspects but he includes demo versions of a lot of his hits including “Cherry Bomb”, “Authority Song”, and “Jack & Diane”. It also has some unreleased tracks such as “Jenny at 16″ which contains lyrics that would eventually end up in “Jack & Diane”. This is a must have for all Mellencamp fans. If that was not enough he is releasing a new album on August 17th titled “No Better Than This”. This album is produced by the prolific T Bone Burnett and was recorded last year while John was on tour. He recorded the songs on analogue equipment and recorded the songs in famous spots such as Sun Records in Memphis, and room 414 of the Gunter Hotel in San Antonio where Robert Johnson first recorded. I don’t care what anybody says Mellencamp is still making vital music well into his 50s and has not become a human jukebox like many of his contemporaries. It also looks like Mellencamp will be putting together the band that backed him through the 1980′s to make a new album as well. That is definitely something to be excited about.

The Gaslight Anthem – American Slang

This New Jersey band has had the critics pass the Bruce Springsteen torch to them after their last album “The 59 Sound”. The Gaslight Anthem defitinely wear their influences on their sleeve. They sound like a young Springsteen and this album is full of instantly accessible songs that sound like you could hear them in a club down the street from where you live or in an arena. This is a band you want to pay attention to.

Jamey Johnson – The Guitar Song

Jamey Johnson is everything that is right about country music. He is cut from the same clothe as Hank, Waylon, Willie and George Jones. His 2008 album “That Lonesome Song” was the best country album I have heard in years. Johnson has a new double album coming out in September that I am really looking forward to hearing. He has already released a new single called “Macon” which is great. If it is anything like the rest of the record I think it could be one of the best albums of the year.

Dierks Bentley – Up On The Ridge

I never thought I would be writing about liking a Dierks Bentley album but his new album is actually very good. Which means it is unlike the rest of his albums. This album is bluegrass album. He gets a lot of help from very good artists which is probably what makes it so good. The Punch Brothers featuring Chris Thile of Nickel Creek play on several cuts as does bluegrass legend Del McCoury. Bentley is also joined by Jamey Johnson and Miranda Lambert on a song as well as Kris Kristofferson. I doubt I will ever see say this again about Bentley but this album is a very good country record and is worth looking into.

Well there you go. Just a few albums I am looking forward to hearing in the next few months. Maybe you can find a couple things you like on my list. If you can’t then you are a dumb ass and need to quit getting on this website.

Later,

Nick

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Fast forward 9 months and I decide to head back to Nashville with a buddy of mine. We would be down there 3 days. We had made a some loose plans on what we would be doing but for the most part we were going to wing it and see what happened. We started the trip out by going to see Truth & Salvage Co. As you probably know this band is quickly becoming one of my favorite bands and not just because I did an interview with them. We checked the band out at a small club called 3rd & Lindsley on the outskirts of downtown Nashville. The band sounded great and the club was pretty cool. We were off to real nice start.

The next morning we decided to head downtown and check out the scene. It is still surreal to be to be able to go into a bar at noon on a Friday and see a full band playing but that is exactly what you can do in that town. We headed up and down the main drag checking out the different bars and listening to the bands in each bar. In case you have never been to Nashville these bars are literally in the shadow of the world famous Ryman Auditorium. The Ryman Auditorium was the home of the Grand Ole Opry for decades until it moved to its current location in the 1970′s. I had been to the Ryman as a child with my parents. I barely remember it and I am sure at the time I thought it sucked. I then went back last year for The Black Crowes show and was thoroughly impressed by it that night. This time around we decided to take a full guided tour of the place and that turned out to be one of the best decisions I have ever made.

We met our tour guide in the lobby to get the tour started. His name was Buddy and he was every bit of 70 years old with a southern accent so thick he was tough to understand. He let us know he had worked for the Opry since 1964. Buddy took us all over the Ryman. We were backstage, in various dressing rooms, in the balcony and about anywhere else you could go in that place. As he took us through the building he dazzled us with stories about the Opry, The Ryman, and various country legends that he is personal friends with. You could really tell how much he cared about that building and country music in general. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life and feel pretty lucky to have experienced it. If you ever in that town getting a tour of the Ryman is a must and try and get Buddy as your tour guide.

The final day of our trip we decided to check out the Country Music Hall of Fame. That turned out to be the second brilliant decision of the trip. We spent a couple of hours wandering through the building seeing some of the most unbelievable country music artifacts from several generations of country music. We saw things like a handwritten set list from Johnny Cash. Hank Williams’ guitar, Bill Monroe’s mandolin, Porter Wagoner’s rhinestone suit, Elvis Presley’s gold Cadillac, and way more than I could write about here. The building was very impressive and everything in it was top notch, but that was not the best thing about the Hall of Fame.

For a few extra bucks we were able to take a short bus ride over to Music Row and get a guided tour of Studio B. I had never heard of Studio B but as it turns out it is one of the most important recording studios in music history. The list of artists that have recorded there is pretty unbelievable. Neil Young, Porter Wagoner, Dolly Parton, My Morning Jacket, Paul McCartney, Stevie Wonder, Waylon Jennings, The Everly Brothers, Gillian Welch, Willie Nelson, and Roy Orbison to just name a few. We were guided through this studio while we were told story after story about the legendary musicians who recorded there along with getting to listen to some of the legendary songs that were produced in that building. The most moving moment was when they took us into the actual room where the songs were recorded, turned the lights out and played “Are You Lonesome Tonight?” by Elvis Presley as they explained he recorded the song with his band in complete darkness and he did it in one take. Once again if you are ever in Nashville this is something that you must experience.

Later that day we hit an independent record store called Grimeys. This place was in a house and looked like it was the record store in the movie High Fidelity. We went there because a new band called The Ravenna Colt were going to play for free while they handed out free beers. The store was small, cramped, and a thousand degrees but getting to watch a band play in a record store while I drank a free Miller High Life was pretty cool.

The next morning we woke up early and headed home but were already discussing our next trip back to that town. I have had a lot of great things happen to me when it involves music but that weekend in Nashville is right near the top of the list. I look forward to getting back there and doing it again soon.

Nashville Pic 1

Nashville Pic 2

Nashville Pic 3

Nashville Pic 4

Nashville Pic 5

Later,

Nick

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I was at my parent’s house earlier today for my dad’s 61st birthday and it got me thinking about the musical influence he has had on me over the years and the bond that we have through music.

There are a lot of different ways I have developed my love of music over the years. I have written about the influence my college roommate had on me. I have had other friends and acquaintances turn me on to different types of music over the years. I have read about artists in magazines and on the internet. Through dumb luck I have stumbled upon really cool bands over the years in bars, clubs and arenas. There are just a lot of things that have shaped the way I look at music today and I am pretty grateful for all of those things.

Probably my earliest influence was my dad. My dad grew up in Brownstown, Indiana in the mid to late 60′s. Not a lot happens in that part of the state but somehow the British Invasion made it to Brownstown and so did Bob Dylan and Simon and Garfunkel among others. My dad gravitated towards these artists, bought the records and passed the love on to me and my brother. I have had my dad tell me about the first time he ever heard “Like a Rolling Stone” or how he saw the Rolling Stones at the Indiana State Fairgrounds in 1967, 22 years before I would see them in the Hoosier Dome. My dad saw Bob Dylan live in the 70′s (so did my mom but she fell asleep so that does not count). He saw Bob Seger in the 1980′s (I think my mom stayed awake for that one). He also took me to my first 4 concerts, three Mellencamp shows and one Springsteen. He was the one who bought a CD player for the family when they first came out. I still remember him calling the house telling my mom he had bought a CD player and we were to go to Target and buy 2 CD’s for the player. The 2 CD’s that we bought were Creedence Clearwater Revival’s greatest hits and John Mellencamp’s “Uh-Huh”. These are all some great memories from my childhood that have helped musically shape me today.

As I grew older and started going to shows on my own I decided it would be a good idea to take my dad to some of the shows I was attending. Don’t get me wrong not all of the music I like is for my dad but I have a real good idea of what he likes and does not like. Over the years we have seen Steve Earle, Bruce Springsteen, John Prine, Bob Dylan, and will be attending Tom Petty together later this summer. We have had great times at all of them and he is usually good for a few good quotes at these shows. The best quote being when we left a Dwight Yoakam show a few years ago, which he says is the greatest show he has ever seen. As we were leaving he was going on and on about how great the show was. He could not believe what a show Dwight put on. He seemed almost in shock at what had just taken place. As we sat in traffic waiting to get out of the parking lot he rolls down his window and shouts “folks we just saw a legend tonight” to the entire parking lot. It was funny and embarrassing all at the same time but really what it meant was that he had a great time at the show which made the concert even better to me. I will remember that quote a lot longer than I will remember the show.

So we are heading to see Tom Petty in a couple of months. I have seen Petty several times in my life and love him every time I see him. I have a feeling this show might be the most memorable one I have seen and it will have nothing to do with what is happening on stage.

Later,

Nick

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Not only is the album a once in a lifetime album but the stories that have surfaced over the years seem to add to the mystique of this album. A band that is tax exiles in England leave for France to make this album. The band is in absolute turmoil during the making of this album; drugs, women, troubles with the law and every other rock n’ roll cliché happen during the making of the album. There is no way this album should have ever had the results it did. This album should have been doomed from the day the band got to France. Yet somehow the 18 songs that make up this album run together flawlessly and simply make for the most enjoyable hour of music I have ever experienced.

I was turned on to this album in college by my roommate and it changed the way I looked at music for the rest of my life. Since the first time I heard it every other album I have ever listened to has been compared to “Exile”. To this day when a band makes what I consider their best album I refer to it as their “Exile” but make no mistake their “Exile” will never compare to THE “Exile”. I want every person who gives a shit about music to take the time to listen to this album in its entirety. I want them to hear the joy in the song “Tumblin Dice”. I want them to hear Mick Jagger sing about the “dressing rooms filled with parasites” in “Torn and Frayed”. I want them to hear the drums kick in on “Loving Cup”. I want them to hear the sweet sounds of Keith Richards’s filthy Telecaster guitar as he howls the lyrics to “Happy”. I want them to get to the end of the album and start playing it again because they can’t believe just how great the album is. I basically want everyone to experience the joy that I experience every time I play this record.

Next Tuesday I will be starting my day by buying “Exile on Main Street” for the 3rd time in my life. I am going to listen to it from start to finish just like I did in my dorm room 20 years ago and when the album is over I going to tell myself, just like I did in my dorm room 20 years ago, “I cannot believe how fucking good that album is!!”.

Later,

Nick

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]]> http://www.rockminutes.com/rock/2010/05/13/the-greatest-album-of-all-time-exile-on-mainstreet/feed/ 0 http://www.rockminutes.com/rock/2010/05/06/otis-gibbs/ http://www.rockminutes.com/rock/2010/05/06/otis-gibbs/#comments Thu, 06 May 2010 15:26:28 +0000 Nick http://www.rockminutes.com/rock/?p=709 This past Saturday night I went to see a concert, I had not seen a concert in awhile and I was excited. The show was at one of my favorite venues to see live music. It is called the Vogue Theater. It is an old movie theater that now serves as a music venue. The sound is great there. It only holds 900 people and it has one of the best atmospheres of any place I have been to see music.

Not only was I going to one of my favorite music venues I was going to see one of my favorite artists, Otis Gibbs. He was throwing an album release party in celebration of his new album “Joe Hill’s Ashes”.

If you have not heard of Otis Gibbs he is a troubadour in the truest sense of the word. His work is reminiscent of a lot of the great songwriters of this and past generations. I am talking about artists such as Woody Guthrie, Townes Van Zandt, John Mellencamp, Hank Williams, Bob Dylan, and Steve Earle. His music is made out of love and respect and it comes through in all of his lyrics. He sings about the working man, the farmer, and the people who live and work in small towns across this country. These lyrics are all sung from his raspy voice that seems to make what he is singing about seem even more real.

There were probably not even 150 people at the show but it did not take away from the greatness of the show. It was almost like a private party that most people were not smart enough to attend. Otis came out with just his guitar and began singing songs that he has written while traveling not only this country but Europe as well. He was then joined by an excellent backing band for the rest of the evening that really brought his songs old and new to life. In between songs he engaged the crowd with stories of attending peace rallies in Europe as well as being confused as a homeless person in Germany. He even told a story about getting Cowboy Bob high. If you are my age and from Indianapolis hearing that story was like hearing about your mom getting high. He really seemed like there was no other place on earth that he would rather be. When he brought his girlfriend Amy Lashley out to sing harmonies with him late in the set it made the perfect ending to a perfect night.

When I see an artist like Otis Gibbs it is really clear they are doing what they are doing out of love of the music. He may never be rich and overly famous from playing his guitar and telling his stories and I think if you ask him he would be okay with that. I once read that he drove 18 hours from Indiana to Texas just to play a 45 minute set and then got back in his car and returned home. If a guy wants to play for me that bad I am going to make sure I am there to see him every time and hopefully more people will do the same in the future.

Later,

Nick

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]]> http://www.rockminutes.com/rock/2010/05/06/otis-gibbs/feed/ 0 http://www.rockminutes.com/rock/2010/04/30/i-like-part-2/ http://www.rockminutes.com/rock/2010/04/30/i-like-part-2/#comments Fri, 30 Apr 2010 15:18:43 +0000 Nick http://www.rockminutes.com/rock/?p=692 Back by popular demand is my I like list. 50 things music related that I currently like.

I like that I have been to Levon Helm’s house
I like wearing concert shirts
I like that I once did a radio show
I like that I have been to the Ryman Auditorium
I like watching Austin City Limits
I like that my iPod has over 11,000 songs on it
I like the pedal steel guitar
I like Kelly Clarkson
I like satellite radio
I like AC/DC better with Brian Johnson than with Bon Scott
I like Van Halen better with David Lee Roth than with Sammy Hagar
I like Van Halen better with Sammy Hagar than with Gary Cherone
I like checking out music for free at www.lala.com
I like to impose my musical will on people
I like that my dad calls Mick Jagger Mick Jaggers
I like that I own over 600 Black Crowes songs
I like when people try and stump me at music trivia
I like that iTunes keep track of how many times I listen to songs
I like to go to Nashville to check out music
I like that I have been to Toby Myers’(Mellencamp bass player) more than once
I like that Kiss is not in the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame
I like pretty much anything Jack White does
I like Train’s first album and hate pretty much everything they have done since
I like any band that Paul Rodgers sings with
I like taking control of a jukebox so nobody else gets to play any of their songs
I like hearing bands play cover songs
I like that Jimmy Buffett is one year closer to retirement
I like not liking Phish,Coldplay, and Radiohead
I like knowing that there is an album out there right now that will one day blow my mind
I like the Def Leppard song Photograph
I like that I know more about music than Josh Garland
I like that Josh Garland knows the above statement is true
I like that Josh Garland will not admit I know more than him
I like that as Josh Garland is reading this he is getting pissed off
I like Fleetwood Mac songs better when Lindsey Buckingham is singing
I like playing my iPod at my desk at work
I like the movie Almost Famous
I like that Martin Scorsese puts Rolling Stones songs in just about every movie he makes
I like Patty Griffin
I like looking for music on Youtube
I like George Harrison more than the other Beatles
I like 2 man bands but hate 3 man bands
I like making playlists on iTunes
I like to listen to my iPod when I cut grass
I like checking out www.crowesbase.com
I like that I am an expert at acquiring quality seats for concerts
I like that most bands I like play small venues
I like supporting local music
I like Steve Earle and his son Justin Townes Earle
I like being done with this effin list

Later,

Nick

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]]> http://www.rockminutes.com/rock/2010/04/30/i-like-part-2/feed/ 2 http://www.rockminutes.com/rock/2010/04/22/time-to-get-excited/ http://www.rockminutes.com/rock/2010/04/22/time-to-get-excited/#comments Thu, 22 Apr 2010 15:46:34 +0000 Nick http://www.rockminutes.com/rock/?p=678 There are a lot of reasons to be excited about music right now. I am excited about bands like The Hold Steady, The Avett Brothers, Band of Horses, Truth & Salvage Co., Deer Tick, Joe Pug, Otis Gibbs and Ryan Bingham. These are all bands that are relatively new to the scene. They are bands that seem to carry the torch for bands of a past generation. I like what they have done and I am excited to see what they will do next.

I am excited about some older artists as well. The Black Crowes have a double acoustic album coming out. Pearl Jam’s latest album is a good as any they have made in a decade. John Mellencamp has a box set coming out in June that should be incredible. Tom Petty is touring this summer in support of his new album. I think the run Bruce Springsteen has been on over the past 7 or 8 years is phenomenal. Levon Helm has made two really good albums over the past few years. I could go on and on but I think you get the picture. What I am trying to say is this is a really good time for music and I cannot wait to see where things go from here. Unfortunately that is not what this article about.

The whole reason I even started thinking about this subject is because I recently received my Rolling Stone magazine in the mail. I am always excited to get it. The cover this issue is “The State of Rock: 40 Reasons to Get Excited about Music”. I could not wait to see what Rolling Stone was excited about. I immediately sat down and started reading what they were excited about and let me tell you something if all I had to be excited about was the crap that was in that magazine I would quit listening to music immediately. Just in case you do not subscribe to Rolling Stone let me give you a few of the highlights.

The #1 thing that I should be excited about is the Black Eyed Peas. So with all that is right with music I am supposed to be excited about a group that sings classics like “Imma Be”, “My Humps”, “I Gotta Feeling” and “Let’s Get it Started” just to name a few. This is what we are supposed to hang our hats on when it comes to music: a group that produces their music from a computer, a group with some of the worst lyrics known to man, a group that puts more thought into their wardrobe than making honest music. I was shocked to read this but I figured oh well what else are they excited about?

#12 on the list is “T.I. is a Free Man and His Comeback Album is on the Way”. Who gives a shit if he is out of jail? Or that he has an album coming out? T.I. sucks ass and him being out of jail is nothing to be excited about.

#19 “Pop Divas Because Women Rule The Charts”. I am sorry but I am not really that excited that Beyonce, Lady Gaga, Rhianna, Katy Perry, or Shakira rule the charts. There is always a new batch of Pop Divas that rule the charts and they almost always suck and usually don’t have much of a shelf life. They usually cannot keep up with the times and fade away into obscurity. See Janet Jackson, Whitney Houston, Cher, and Mariah Carey for examples.

#21 “The Strokes are Getting Back Together” I was actually pretty happy they were not together. I thought their 1st album was completely overrated and people owned that album because it was the cool thing to do at the time. The Strokes have also bred a new generation of bands that suck even worse than they did/do.

#29 “Dr. Luke’s Awesomely Trashy Pop Sound is Ruling the Airwaves.” Who is Dr. Luke? He is the mastermind behind hits from Ke$ha, Katy Perry, Flo Rida, Miley Cyrus, and Avril Lavigne just to name a few. Why I am excited to about a guy who churns out manufactured sounds like an assembly line worker for artists that will be irrelevant before I finish this article. This guy needs his ass kicked.

#39 “These Missing in Action Albums Might Just Come Out.” What albums you ask? Amy Winehouse, D’Angelo, and Dr. Dre all have new albums coming out. Does anybody really give a shit if any of these albums come out? Dre is the hip hop version of Axl Rose. Amy Winehouse has become a cartoon character that is more famous for being a train wreck than she ever will be for any music she makes and to be honest I thought D’Angelo was dead. I guess it was just his career.

Those are just 6 examples of what Rolling Stone says you should be excited about. I hope you are as disgusted by them as I am. If you are not then I am disgusted with you and hope you quit visiting this website. My advice to you is to just listen to what I have to say about new music and you will be plenty excited about things. If you want to read about why you should like the band Boston Aaron has you covered. If you want to read about metal then you should probably go to another website because Dave has writers block and his next article will coincide with the next Guns N’ Roses album.

Later,

Nick

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