Tag Archive for 'music'
I hope you will recognize the image (it’s taken from a pirates’ movie). It is rather tricky to illustrate such a song.
07
Jun
Lee Rogers
I saw him singing the blues in a pub in Belfast and it was an astonishing experience! This guy should have been on a stage in front of thousands of people, not in front of me! A deep broken manly voice, a genuine charisma and particular guitar skills. What could you ask more? Oh, I know… A few beers and three incredibly talented musicians playing in harmony around him!
16
Apr
The Yardbirds
Though this 1960s very British band is not so famous it indirectly gave birth to a musical revolution. Indeed, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page all started playing in the Yardbirds at the youth of their musical careers. The Yarbirds was one of those successful bands that met a regular audience but did not manage to go beyond Europe. It seems surprising because they had an incredible potential. Just listen to Stroll on or Train kept a rollin’ to realize the energy they could spread.
I think that the Yardbirds was quite a “teaching band”. Through it those three amazing guitarists learnt the last elements they needed to reach their best. They faced the musical rigor, the hardships, the audience fluctuant mood, the tensions… And they efficiently dealt with that. Little by little they started to get well known by the professionals and earned enough musical credit to fly with their own wings.
Most of all, through the Yardbirds they defined their musical directions. They turned their backs to the successful pop music and aimed towards the music that appealed to them and that would be the core of their future fantastic creations: The Blues.
Eric Clapton played with Cream and met a worldwide success. Jeff Beck started an irregular solo career, but made some astonishingly beautiful albums. And obviously Jimmy Page gave birth to the amazing Led Zeppelin.
Hail to the Yardbirds!
11
Apr
The Freebeez
I discovered them during a small gig in a French shop, where they played to promote their new album “bumble beat”. Though they had a very basic settling (tiny stage, few amplifiers…) their sound’s harmony and balance was amazing. It is even more stricking as they were 8 musicians on the stage (and three were missing)! Still, the beat was heavy, the bass groovy and the sax, trumpet and others took well-balanced chorus and listened to each other as if they were jazz musicians. But the Freebeez play funk and an astonishing funk! That kind of old-school sound inspired by James Brown and Sly.
What I loved about their performance is that these middle-aged French musicians looked as if they had gone all through the hardships of trying to live from their passion. Yet they had this genuine joy, this respect for the funk’s fathers and an originality (surprising notes, old-fashioned clothes, French touch). I was really blown away! And actually, I only attended to their last song!
08
Mar
Great New Sounds
This is a quick post about my favourite French bands of the moment.
Some kind of a hip-hop, funk, jazz and soul. Kind of hard to define actually. The groove is awesome, the lyrics are beautiful/funny and the mix is perfect.
A soft voice tinted with sugar and velvet, a smooth jazz guitar, a good beat and a lot of creativity. What could you ask more?
Everyone says he is the French Ben Harper or John Butler. Well I do not think so. He does not have their technicity or their commitment. But he has the same guts, the passion, the poetry and the amazing simplicity. Yes, the genuine simplicity, a pure sound and an unmodified voice. The ability to play great basic riffs or easy chords but to put all his musicality and his feelings into it. His bassist and drummer are also worth a carefull earing.
Enjoy!
07
Mar
More Heavy Coke!
05
Mar
Damn give me some Coke !
Two amazing discoveries from Nova’s podcast “Out of the blue”.
First one: Coke Escovedo and his album “I wouldn’t change a thing”. (For sure he doesn’t look back in anger)
One of those lost musical blessings that DJs often loot. This is not so far from Sly and the Family Stones’ sound (especially Coke’s voice).
Second one: The heavy
And I can tell you that this sound weighs a lot. I do not know what you think about this little abstract but it completely turned me on. The singer has one of the highest and softest voice I know. The groove is smooth and the chorus dances in my head.
Hope you’ll like it!
Hey joe! Guess what happened last night? I was on the crosstown traffic near the fire and quess what? I saw an angel walking with a midnight lamp near the highway chile. You know where it is right? Close to the watchtower, made of sand and the huge star spangled banner representing a machine gun. Well anyway, it was quite a shock! You know like being stabbed by a dolly dagger or like if 6 was 9… See what I mean? Some kind of a sweet, gentle surprise.
She was hot you know, a real foxy lady, with the gypsy blood, the voodoo child look and all you know. So I said: hey baby you and we gotta live together. I sware you I did man! Shit I was bold as love. She was playing it shy like: oh can you see me?! So I said: sure babe! I know it sounds crazy! But who knows what the power of love can do?!
She was under my charm man! She said we could find a way. I just had to wait until tomorrow at the red house. Once there, I had to feel the little wing listen to the earth blues and if I was really into it, the wind would cry mary and she would regain her freedom.
Weel as you guess I woke right afterwards, but man! I still have purple hazes all in my brain! I mean, that was so beautiful. If only the magic could have lasted a bit longer. Just a bit longer… Who knows all the wonders I could have discovered?
02
Feb
Still not satisfied?
Last winter I was lost, rambling around midnight, I was missing you... Angie... I could not get satisfaction. I knew we could not always get what we wanted, yet I still felt shattered. I know I was a fool too cry for a honky tonk woman like you but I did not want to hide my love. I know, it was only rock and roll. I was a free street fighting man, you started me up, I jumped on you in a flash. I made love to you like a wild horse and you even called me your little monkey man…
Now that seems a 100 years ago. I barely remember the brown sugar taste of your lips or the stars in your eyes. Babe, you were my shelter, the salt of my earth. See babe, when you left me I had such sad days I tried everything to forget you. I knew that god could nothing else than make a saint of me… So I went to the devil and he showed me sympathy. He painted me in black and made me hear that music for broken heart which goes like doo doo doo doo doo… Eventually I got a heart of stone. And now each and every day of the year is a wondeful rainbow.
