Donald 'Duck' Dunn 1941 -2011

What a sad day for music.

Donald was an unsung hero- his beautiful, minimal, melodic Basslines pushed forward hundreds of classic Stax tunes and he's played with so many great musicians you'd be hard pressed to list them all. 

As a budding Bassist, I'd listen to those great lines he wrote and try to copy them - the patterns were simple, but getting them to groove and flow the way Duck did was pretty near impossible. As a Bass teacher a few years later, I'd always get my students to listen to his lines- no wasted notes, no 'party tricks', just rock solid, meaty and melodic playing. I'm still using him as the template for many of the things I do and I'm not alone. 

One of the greats.

"Time is Tight" by Booker T and The MGs featuring Duck and Al Jackson (Drums)

fIREHOSE: Live - Austin Alternatives, May 1988

Punk Rock. It’s got a lot to answer for. I’m all in favour of the empowering spirit of Punk and the whole ‘stick-it-to-the-man-we-don’t-need-yer-stinkin’-record-contract’-ness of the movement, but my Gawd, loads of it was utter dreck. For every one Clash/Pistols/Buzzcocks there were a million bands who had nothing to say and made a bloody row whilst saying it. But a few genuinely trailblazing and innovative bands emerged – most of them (I’m whispering this) from the U.S of Stateside. The UK specialised in three chord ramalama cartoon Mohican (Mohawk to my US readers…) Punk Rawk, but the US had a slightly more cerebral thing going on. That’s a massive generalisation, but it rings true, IM(H)O…

Where is this leading Rushbo, you little procrastinator?

To fIREHOSE. The little band that could. Their precursors The Minutemen were a bit too ‘out there’ for me, but when they regrouped following the sad and monumentally premature passing of D Boon (a true original) the music became more focussed and to use a Minutemen-ism - ‘mersh’. That’s not to say they started to sound like England Dan and John Ford Coley, but the band, now helmed by the lovely ed fROMOHIO, channelled their agit Punk/Jazz/Classic Rock vision into one cohesive er…thing. And it’s bloody ace. ‘Ragin’, Full On’ is one of the all time great debut albums and their live shows were aggressive, energetic, frenetic and surprising. I saw them at a short lived venue in Walsall UK – ‘Junction 10’ and they blew the doors off. Any band that has the nerve to cover ‘A Quick One’ by The Who is OK in my booklet. I did try and see them a little earlier – in a converted scout hut in Derby, but it was inexplicably cancelled. I did get to wave at Mike Watt tho, which made the dreary train journey worthwhile.

('Brave Captain' from 'Ragin', Full On')

To the show….it’s from May 1988 and features the band touring on the back of their second album ‘If’n’. This recording is a Pre-FM recording and sound quality and performance are superb. The star for me is always gonna be Mike Watt who is one of the greatest Bass players currently working the low end anywhere in the world. I saw him play with his current 3 piece band ‘The Missingmen’ recently and my jaw hardly ever left the floor. Whattaguy. And what a work ethic.

 

So yeah, this may not be the typical BPFE fare, but you really need to check this out. I’m delighted that the band have reformed recently and would love to see them again. Yeah, I know I’m a hypocrite, but some bands are just too good to stay split forever. fIREHOSE are one of those bands.

 

(Thanks to notsaved for the initial up)

fIREHOSE: Live - Austin Alternatives, May 1988

Paul Buchanan: Birmingham Symphony Hall May 22 2006 and 'Mid Air' taster

It's a good time to be a Blue Nile fan...

Next month sees the release of 'Mid Air' - the debut solo album by Blue Nile supremo Paul Buchanan. Long time readers of BPFE will know that I am a card carrying, 100%, gold plated, fully paid up, lifetime membership, tattoo toting* Blue Nile saddo, so this is BIG NEWS to me. It seems that Mr B has finally learned that to promote a record, you have to go and do things (interviews, TV, blahblahblah) and the profile of this forthcoming release has been higher than any other Blue Nile related thing I have ever come across. Albums have previously escaped by moonlight rather than been released. Tours aren't 'announced' -they're 'rumoured'. Maybe this is the release that elevates his 'cult' ststus to something more....lucrative, I guess.

What's it sound like then? Early signs are good. The album consists entirely of covers of songs originally recorded by Cradle Of Filth...no, not really. 'My True Country' was issued as a free download from his new website and on a recent UK TV show - 'Later with Jools Holland', he performed the title track. Both tracks are Piano led and both tracks are gorgeous. The album comes out on May 21st and I advise you get one ordered sharpish. Fingers, toes, legs and arms are crossed for some live dates later in the year.

Mention of live dates leads me on to this...

For your listening pleasure, here's some Paul Buchanan live stuff, exclusive to Big Plans... This is a recording from the 'Paul Buchanan' tour of 2006 from Birmingham UK. It goes without saying that it's a fantastic performance and this is a reasonable recording too. Sadly the taper has 'edited' the recording, cutting out audience chat etc which means that although the music is intact, the recording doesn't 'flow' like a regular show. Beggars can't be choosers and all that. If you're a BN/PB fan, you've gotta have it.

"Happiness" from Birmingham Symphony Hall May 22 2006

So, I think we're up to date...if anything else shows up, I'll let you know.

Paul Buchanan: Birmingham Symphony Hall May 22 2006

PB Soundcloud with some recent interviews/'later' audio etc


"My True Country" from "Mid Air"

Paul Buchanan Website




* Not really. I'm too scared to have a tattoo.

Bert Weedon 1920 -2012

If you play Guitar in a Pop or Rock band, it was Bert Weedon who taught you. Maybe not directly, but all the Guitarists you loved (Clapton, Townsend, May etc etc) bought that 'Play In A Day' book, read about how the Guitar works, learned E, A and D and then changed the world. 

Up until 'Play In A Day', music tuition books had been as dry as dust, but Bert made the learning relevant to the new generation of Guitarists - inspired by Skiffle and eager to form Beat Combos across the land. Romanced by the allure of the Electric Guitar, thousands of people bought the book and enriched their lives with music.

He was a self-effacing guy, never smug and genuinely amazed and righly proud that he had inspired people to learn an instrument. It's only a little bit of a hyperbole that he probably influenced as many people as musicians like Mark Knopfler, Steve Hillage, Sting and the countless others who picked up that book.

Without him, the landscape of music would be very different.

Mudskipper: "Eggshells"

Sometimes you find beauty in unexpected places...

It was July '98 (I think) that I ventured to The Flapper and Firkin in downtown Birmingham to see my current faves The Mutton Birds plug the 'Envy of Angels' album. I purchased my customary Diet Cola beverage (60% water, 35% nobrand cola drink, 5% sweat) and settled in to watch the support band. As we all know, this can be a bit of a lottery and often we can be treated to:

A terrible local band showing off in front of masses of their mates who vanish the moment they have finished

Some terrible labelmates of the main band who should have 'Tax Loss' stencilled over all their gear

A terrible solo acoustic guitar toting Nick Drake wannabe who really should have stayed in the back bedroom

A well meaning but mis-matched and terrible band booked by the promoter who are completely inappropriate for the main band, venue, audience or indeed, each other

A terrible band who are mates with the terrible sound man who should have all their equipment seized by the government

...cynical? Me?

But tonight was different. Shambling onstage were a band from Wolverhampton, just a few miles down the road. Not the most auspicious of introductions as Wolverhampton hasn't got the greatest history of producing Kick-ass Rock and Roll. Slade are from the outskirts of Wolvo and Scott Matthews (awesome contemporary singer songwriter) was born just downwind, but it's not a rich heritage. So, these four plain looking blokes picked up their guitars and were quietly incredible. None of the songs got past mid tempo. There were no howls of anguish from a dark place. No face melting uber-shreding solos were performed. Just fantastic music. A sort of delicious hybrid of Neil Young and The Blue Nile. In fact they did a beautiful version of Uncle Neil's 'Helpless' that night. And then they shuffled off again. Don McGlashan was moved to say during the MBs set 'I don't know about you, but I thought Mudskipper were bloody beautiful'. And he was right. They were.

('Another World' from 'Eggshells')

But like so many Midlands bands, their low key approach was to be their downfall. They issued a stunning, self released CD and then got a deal with Pomona who released another CD featuring tracks they'd already issued on their 'first' CD. They were that kind of band. They were massive in Willenhall, but sadly, nowhere else. After a fairly intensive trawl of the Interweb, I came up with nothing, apart from one lovely quote where they were described by a local paper as 'Wolverhampton's quietest band'. What an accolade!

So low key were the band, that I didn’t even know they made an album until about three months ago when an offhand comment by a member of my band resulted in a halted rehearsal and a frantic scramble for the CD. No viral marketing for these boys, then.

Posted here for your delectation is the 'self produced' CD with a couple of tracks from the rerecorded ‘second’ album which didn’t appear on the first. The Pomona (8 track) version is still easily available second hand on Fleabay or Amazon. Expect to pay no more than three quid. Both are called ‘Eggshells’, rather confusingly.

I know you've never heard of these guys, but check out the sample above. It's a stunning album and well worth a download. If you like it, let me know. I've found out that the Guitarist is still active as a promoter on the local music scene, so I'm sure he'd love to hear any comments, however belated.

Seriously...this is a quiet masterpiece of an album.

Mudskipper: 'Eggshells'

Levon Helm 1940 -2012

Without a doubt one of the coolest dudes in Rock and Roll.

Have a safe journey Levon

Record Store Day 2012

Yay for Record Store Day!

This Saturday, I'll be sneaking out of the house and spending far too much money on records. And when my gorgeous and sensible wife challenges me on my return, I’ll say, 'But Darling, it's a philanthropic gesture!' She won't believe me of course and I'll be made to do stuff like gardening and child care as a penance. Bah!

Yeah, Record Store Day- it's either:

a. A great way to draw attention to a rapidly diminishing but culturally important branch of retail or

b. An undignified squabblefest where unscrupulous dealers buy up loads of product which they resell on Fleabay for serious bucks

I really want it to be a. It's probably about 30% b tho...

Here are a couple of fantastic things which came from last years RSD. The Blitzen Trapper tune came from a limited 7" which I snagged at Polar Bear in Birmingham. It came with a handy download code, so (as the 7" is now no longer in print) here it is. I think Blitzen Trapper are ace and well worth checking out - lots of Americana type influences, but with a healthy dash of Fleet Foxes thrown in to sweeten the deal. Smart. The second tune is one that I was alerted to by the lovely Sal over at Burning Wood. I've been a bit of a fan of Jill Sobule since her 'Things Here Are Different' CD (produced by Mr T Rundgren, no less) but this came as a real surprise. It’s from a great album – “A Day at the Pass”, where she tackles a bunch of covers and some original material, ably assisted by John Doe of X. Quite an unlikely partnership, but it really works. This tune - 'Never My Love', is absolutely beautiful.

Blitzen Trapper: "Maybe Baby"


Jill Sobule and John Doe: "Never My Love"

Right then...my mission is to snag a Ryan Adams 7", an MC5 7" a Brendan Benson 7" and the Cleaners From Venus triple...wish me luck!