Category Archives: Uncategorized

11

Jun. ’13

A Gathering of The Tribes (catweazle)

One of my favorite things is checking out new open mics. The lure of the different location, the performers I’ve never heard before, and testing the waters of whether or not they’ll dig what I’m coming up with. About a week ago I heard about a new one (new to me anyway) Catweazle at A Gathering of The Tribes….if that’s not an intriguing, enticing title then I don’t know what is! It’s got everything, strange animals, mythic, ancient, ritualistic good vibes and mystery. And yet when I got down to East 3rd Street between Avenues C and D I saw an apartment building. I had apparently become so accustomed to playing in bar, club, even restaurant situations that this apartment building had me a little freaked out. I called my friend, the excellent songstress Kelli King, to ask whether if she knew if this was the spot….she wasn’t there so I left a bewildered message. Then a guy with a bag full of take-out Chinese food and another guy with a guitar came up to the stoop and were both heading to A Gathering of The Tribes. Steve Cannon, the owner of the apartment, greeted us at the door. He is a thin, older gentleman, and blind due to glaucoma. Creaky wooden stairs led up to the second floor. The guitarist had been to this open mic before so I kind of tagged along to suss out the situation. The first guy was bringing food to Steve. There was nothing on the floors, the place smelled of stale smoke (which hearkened me back to my dearly departed smoking days) nothing on the walls of the room with the black couch where Steve was seated before a low coffee table. There was a piano, a sculpture of some sort and paintings on the walls of the room near the front of the building and warped floors and shelves upon shelves of books in the back room with a little metal balcony and outer stairs which led down to the courtyard where we would be performing. The radio was on pretty loud….I think it was WBAI or NPR, some intellectual-sounding station. I felt that this was a very special person in a special place. A former professor, poet, playwright, had opened his house (which he’s been in since the 70’s) to virtual strangers (artists but strangers nonetheless). Generosity of spirit is a rare thing. Steve is a not one to suffer fools and bullshit. When I told him of my sisters’, Alessandra Lynch, books of poetry (Sails The Wind Left Behind and It Was A Terrible Cloud at Twilight) he asked that I write down the title of the most recent work and he’d get it and write a response (he has folks who read to him) ….jokingly he said he’d probably say, keep trying. So I gathered that the space, Steve’s place is called A Gathering of Tribes and the open mic is called Catweazle. Catweazle was started by Lauraly Grossman but the eternally busy songwriter Joe Yoga (http://www.mrjoeyoga.com/) was hosting the one I attended. We hauled metal folding chairs down to the courtyard through the thick ivy clinging to the building, found the appropriate plugs and extension chords for the outdoor lights, set up a cooler of cheapo beer on ice, set out the sign up sheet and got to it. I met Joe at Sidewalk Cafe a while back and there were many familiar faces from various open mics on the roster in addition to the folks I count as regulars in my crowd, Jim Petrie, Walter Ego, Mel Foop, and Debbie Kuhn. We had a great time. I heard some exceptional performers who I hope to hear again, even a couple of comedians. Steve stayed up in the house while we played. It’s a special place, you oughta check it out! Have a great week! Here’s what’s up next there:

http://www.tribes.org/web/about/
285 East 3rd Street Between Avenues C and D 2nd floor.
Friday June 14th, 2013 8:00, $5 cover, cheap beer available for donations or BYOB.
Myles Manley
http://www.mylesmanley.bandcamp.com

Molly Ruth
http://www.mollyruth.com

Ray Brown
http://www.raybrown.bandcamp.com

VIKING
http://www.peoplecallmeviking.bandcamp.com

PS: Buy my sisters books, they are amazing!!! Sails The Wind Left Behind and It Was A Terrible Cloud at Twilight (both on Amazon)
The great listens this week: The Ex and Brass Unbound (Enormous Door) and Oblivians (Desperation) reviews on Dusted, http://www.dustedmagazine.com/reviews/

12:34pm
Ray Brown
Catweazle is my favorite place in the world. Never doubt that magic will happen there…it always does.

12:47pm
Philip Lynch
truly. heh
Saturday

1:19pm

Ray Brown
Hey Philip, just so you know, Catweazle was started by Cal Folger Day and Chris Faroe in 2010 (or 9?) and ran until summer of 2012, when it started losing steam. Jim Flynn revived it in 2013, and has now handed it to Lauraly.
Cal and Chris both attended Oxford, and played at the original, and still running, Catweazle there, which is where they got the inspiration to start one here.
There was a London Catweazle for a while, but I think it has died.
I resisted going to Catweazle when I was first invited because I had a very bucolic image in my head, but when I finally went I found a totally debauched bacchanal, and fell in love (literally). It used to go on until 2 or 3 in the morning, and the clouds of weed smoke were so thick you could barely see through the crowds. After the performances, it would turn into a dance party/jam, but eventually the neighbors complained, and the cops were called…
BONUS (an excellent Ray Brown track, thanks Ray!) http://raybrown.bandcamp.com/track/goodbye-catweazle-2

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03

Jun. ’13

Princeton Record Exchange!!!

So, I was invited along on a trip this past Memorial Day weekend to the incomparable Princeton Record Exchange, 20 South Tulane Street, Princeton, NJ 08542, http://www.prex.com. what can I say? HOLY CRAP!!! This place offers a mind-boggling amount of material of all genres, rarities, classics, out of print, brand new and flat-out-unheard-of. Those in the know (everybody but me apparently) will not be surprised by my reaction because I do not doubt that any music obsessive whom has set foot in that joint for the first time (after the first hour) recognized the enormity of the collection and more importantly the WORLD OF MUSIC (echo, echo, echo). wow. Now I must explain that it’s not as though this is a huge space…it’s not. But there is a huge collection crammed into a medium-sized space. My friend/producer, James, thankfully drew a rough map of the layout of the joint despite his wife and his sisters’ jests over a pre-spree lunch. The minute I saw the layout of the place I began sorting through the ever-present list in my head of new releases, old releases, genres I’m interested in and have been accruing over the course of however long it has been since I last went to a record store….CD shop? Media outlet? Hell I still call ’em record stores…that’s what I’m there for, regardless the format (CD’s are cheapest) I still call ’em record stores. New releases are easiest, if they don’t have what you’re looking for some other place will but the Princeton Record Exchange has everything…it’s just a matter of the hunt.
Once I enter the place with a triumphant cry of “records” in my best metal falsetto my focus narrows onto the immediate list but the peepers are quickly enticed by various sundry goods which have been lying dormant in my consciousness. James played Virgil, occasionally dropping wisdom on me like, “they have baskets”. Turns out I needed a basket. The 2 hours we spent there felt like 5 minutes. You have to narrow your focus for what you want to hear and yet open your mind enough to allow for other possibilities to drift in. Prior to the trip James received an email from the store alerting him of three very large jazz collections coming into the store from I think North Carolina? Philadelphia? Jersey? I forget where they came from but those jazz shelves were bursting with goodness, not to mention the stacks BENEATH the shelves!!! A cornucopia of great jazz listens. I love Duke Ellington and I cannot recommend highly enough his live concert at The Whitney! Loose performances of such beautiful compositions, Duke was a class act but quick with a joke too! James/Virgil may have directed me to that one. It helps to have someone super-knowledgeable about music in general and many specific genres as well to guide you through the stacks and shelves! Be not tempted by CDs you’re pretty sure will only get a cursory curious listen, go for the gold! Play the long game! What music will you turn to again and again? It doesn’t always work out this way….as with any journey nothing ventured, nothing gained. I did not properly prepare for this trip i.e. go through my collection and find the CDs I no longer need, listen to and or want (next time) to trade in. But that’s an excellent aspect of the store, the exchange. James got over 80 dollars for the CDs he brought in….takes some of the sting out of the bill on the way out.
Suffice it to say it was an intense, excellent visit. I highly recommend The Princeton Record Exchange. Princeton is a lovely berg and The Bent Spoon has some of the best innovative ice cream flavors ever! I had 3 scoops (hey they’re small!) strawberry/marscapone, banana/butter pecan, and chocoltae/habanero!!!! yummmm
Now when you get home with your loot and you’re deciding which album to spin first you must employ the same tactic that you used in the store. In other words, employ your instinct and intuition. It was a full, fun day, had dinner, now home and winding down….feels like jazz to me….not the Cannonball Adderly/John Coltrane that might have too much pepper….Duke Ellington at The Whitney did the trick!
Til the next time dear readers, enjoy your listens!!!

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28

May. ’13

Rewind, My First Attempt at Blogging. Rodriguez 2009

So here’s my very first attempt at blogging. This is my review of the first time I saw Rodriguez live. It’s weird I think my writing style has changed since then…I hope it has. Imagine my embarrassment when I find out years later he has glaucoma (face-palm)

Was it an act? Was it age? Is he blind? I watched Rodriguez perform at the Bowery Ballroom on Friday May 15th, 2009. Within this past year the excellent label, Light In The Attic, has re-released a number of excellent albums from Serge Gainsbourg to The Monks to two Rodriguez albums, Cold Fact and Coming from Reality, 1970 and 1971 respectively.
The opening band, The War on Drugs, was from Philly. The singer played a fuzzed out 12string acoustic occasionally switching to 6string or a keyboard, various pedals, bass and drums. Fuzzed out driving stuff but not distinguished. If I could understand what dude was singing, it might’ve been better. Does every performer hide behind something (effects, unintelligible singing, age) in order to maintain a mystique?
Rodriguez’s’ two albums have sated (for now) my thirst for authentic lyrics and melodies. He creates tapestries of street life, reactions to dire circumstances with humanity. Where Lou Reed found the bitter edge and embodied it Rodriguez employs the poetry of Dylan. He’s a romantic despite the inherent downtroddenness (that a word?) of his subjects. He’s finding moonlight in the gutter or whatever Wilde said; he’s looking at the stars.
So he’s led out by the hand by the young (the whole band’s young) bassplayer without his signature hat and glasses. What is it? Is he blind? Drunk? On drugs? Older? What happened to the guy who wrote these songs I’ve been hooked on? The gesture of being led implies a weakness or a loss of former ability or power (but I’m middle-aged so that may be informing my reaction). Rodriguez got to the mic, put the soft slightly crumpled almost-top-hat on and the big shades. He seemed to dig donning the…artifice? Protection? It was done with a soft smile recognizing it’s all a show. He was an elegant sort of shambles with an easy bop, maybe chalk it up to nerves. A phrase he said a couple of times was “Thanks for steppin out”. The young band didn’t get the groove. Their time was off (but not on all tunes) they were too fast on a couple. Rodriguez whispered to the bass player who then relayed the message that “Rodriguez would like to introduce the band before we get started” and so it went. Bass, lead guitar, three horns (alto sax, trombone, I couldn’t really see the third player but I think a French horn(?)) drums and a young woman on keys/synth/tambourine and Rodriguez plays an electric nylon string guitar. He addressed the audience a couple of times with a rambling sort of ease, once to offer advice as to how to get along with your mate, 2 words, yes dear. He said he was from Detroit and almost word for word He responded to camera flashes by asking to have the house lights come up, then leaned back and gestured a big square lens to take a picture of us all and he swore he wouldn’t forget. There were howls/catcalls when he removed his outer coat. There was an exchange with the audience when offered a drink and asked what he’d have he said red wine. So a red wine was produced in the classic Bowery fashion, a plastic cup. Rodriguez downed that red wine all at once. The second cup of wine was sipped. This songwriter has nothing to prove (to me anyway), he’s written these great songs. Was it an act? Isn’t it all? I’m real glad this old songwriter, new to me, has taken up the challenge of touring and given me a chance to experience his live show. -philip
Setlist:
1.Only Good For Conversation
2.Crucify your Mind
3.Inner City Blues
4.To whom it May Concern
5.I wonder
6.Can’t Get Away
7.Sugarman
8.This is not a song it’s an outburst, or establishment blues
9.Rich folks hoax
10.I think of you
11.I’m glad we didn’t find the time (2nd time Rodriguez played it live)
12.Jane S. Piddy
13.Forget It
14.I’m gonna live til I die (solo)
15. At last (solo)

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20

May. ’13

Women Rock!!!

I’m not sure how the subconscious works but I’m pretty sure it’s up to something up there in my cranium. Recently, well let’s be honest, always, women have been under the gun. The horrible and terrifying rapes in India, in the US Military and the kidnapped tortured women in Ohio are enough to make me want to forget having anything to do with anyone ever again. Rape is a violent crime but on top of that it seems to me such a betrayal, an act usually associated with love, pleasure, procreation, something positive is completely destroyed. There are power dynamics in our society which dictate who we are and how we should behave as such. The stereotypical portrayal of men as sexually aggressive beasts and women as alluring sirens persists. A lot of these signifiers are in marketing, on television shows, in magazines and stray far afield from understanding the opposite sex let alone ourselves. In fact, if anything, the advertisements we are constantly bombarded with are meant to be the ‘norm’ so that they can keep selling whatever it is they’re pedaling. I had a conversation once with my friend (great actor) Johnny Kitt about his experience being black, African American and we agreed that being born black in America meant you were immediately thrust into a political situation more so than whites. I remember seeing an example of this on some t.v. show….the woman, an author, I forget her name, used the example of what nude pantyhose looks like and I don’t know whether things have changed since I saw that show but ‘nude’ pantyhose were for white skin. I think women are also born into a political situation, lower pay, warped assessments of their looks, strength, ability, and intellectual prowess. I’m reminded of the John Lennon/Yoko Ono song, “Woman Is the Nigger of The World”. I’m uncomfortable with the n-word still (call me old-fashioned) despite it’s use as means to reclaim it’s power. There has always been rape as there has always been war. That doesn’t mean we should accept what we know to be wrong as natural.
Sometimes I’ll direct my listening towards a particular sound or genre either based on a recommendation or a mood or a curiosity…that was not the case these past couple of weeks. I think my subconscious has done something with these news stories and I’ve been listening to women who rock, maybe as a coping mechanism? Not specifically Riot Grrrl bands (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riot_Grrrl) but rocking tunes. Real horror is hard to process, music helps.

The Breeders (Last Splash (re-released last week)), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9hAS2uHG_I http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KflW4EsVL7o
PJ Harvey (Rid of Me) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAV1CGlfNC4
Sleater Kinney (The Woods) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgBRjqDE-24
Wild Flag (s/t Wild Flag) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=psI461_rl9U
The Pretenders (s/t Pretenders) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6-0ypKuwv8
Ida Maria (Fortress ’round My Heart) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aokl2lnUlQ
Shannon Wright (Over The Sun) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hfCYG0Jkq1Y
Veruca Salt (American Thighs) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jC9AUR-iTo0

Be good to each other. Have good listens! Til next time. -p

P.S. I post these things every Monday!

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13

May. ’13

Rocky and The Pressers!! (Interview with Eric Sullivan)

I first met Eric Sullivan of Rocky and The Pressers while he was hosting the Tuesday night open mic at An Beal Bocht, 445 West 238th (at Greystone Ave.), a year or so ago. On May 4, 2013 I went to his bands highly attended record release party at The Mercury Lounge.
Rocky and The Pressers are: Eric Sullivan (vocals/guitar), Mario Rincon (vocals/guitar), Seth Nicholson (vocals/drums), Rocky Russo (bass), Danny McDonald (vocals/guitar/saxophone), Dylan Hume (vocals/keyboards/trombone), and Adrian Colon (percussion)

Hey Eric, thanks for doing this man. I really dig the album and the performances I’ve seen so I want to help get the word out. Here are some questions:

1.Where are you from?
I grew up in Fleetwood, New York til age 10, then attended elementary school in Riverdale at Fieldston. We lived in Hastings when I reached high school. Year after high school lived in Park Slope…then back to Riverdale. So…I’m from the Bronx mostly.

2. How did you come upon this type of music? And would you simply call it reggae?
As a teenager I was listening to a lot of Sublime and their influences…back to the source. Most people don’t know how big a reggae head Brad Nowell (lead singer) was…his listening went pretty deep, obscure references permeate his lyrics, but he was also quite obviously a huge Bob Marley fan. I became a student of Marley primarily and then discovered so much more reggae…and I’m still digging. And yes, I really would call it reggae…it’s reggae.

3. What was your first instrument? (after the paintbrush heh)
Got a guitar at age 3 but didn’t learn to play until 12. At school they started us on recorder and then I learned saxophone.

4. Where did you meet your bandmates? How do you ever get everyone (6 players) together to practice?? hahahahaha
Went to The Fieldston School HS with Rocky and Danny who were both in my younger brothers grade and friends of his. Two of them always had bands in high school as I did…later on we were between projects and we all started jamming at An Beal Bocht…Mario is from the neighborhood and I used to play little league sports with him…he got invited to one of our very first rehearsals…Seth knew Rocky from mutual friends at SUNY Purchase…Dylan as well. Danny Flinn and I started the thing as sort of a duo. After a year and half we parted ways. Now we have Adrian on percussion, he used to hit the MaGoos open mic (5602 Broadway)….really talented dude. None of us work nine-to-fives so we live broke and with our parents…but we have time to rehearse.

5. Would you discuss the “Dance at The Playhouse” image and title? (I think we spoke about it a week ago or so)
It’s a poster that hangs in Mario’s family home in Maine…it was made in 1954 by a man named Tudge Whittimore as an invitation for a square dance that was held in the community “playhouse” which is the building we did our core tracking in. We thought it was alluring and it said a lot of things. Intriguing. Plus it was a welcome solution to the problem of settling on some kind of logo or branding…and an album title and cover art.

6.Who are you listening to lately (if anybody)?
Haven’t been listening very aggressively. Needed to clear my head to be able to mix. I’ve been going back to a lot of reggae on the daily…just keep finding old artists I never knew, it’s endless. Also checking out some early calypso from the 1940s…Gordon Lightfoot and Scott Walker every day.

7. Do you go to record stores to buy CDs or LPs or download or stream music?
I stream from YouTube or groove shark mostly. I don’t carry an iPod or smartphone so I have no need to download…I buy CDs occasionally.

8. Do you have a favorite reggae artist? Dub? (I think we spoke of King Tubby once) Ska?
Reggae has to be Bob Marley…he’s the biggest because he’s the best. I don’t listen to dub all that much, I’m more after the song. Not too much ska really.

9.Great Arrangements on “Dance at The Playhouse” is there a particular producer or record you took your cues from?
Thanks. Nobody in particular. I am a very big Michael Jackson fan…Quincy jones’ work is heroic. The production and arrangement of Scott walker’s 4 solo records has also made a powerful Impact on my style.

10.What do you hope this record does? Are you hoping to attract major label attention? Expand your audience? Get more gigs?
I just want it to be heard…all over the world. And I’d like it to take us all over the world….and to the venues that I’ve always wanted to play.

11. Some of these tunes have an old school, almost doo-wop feel (I guess I’m thinking of the tune ‘Hurricane’) was that an influence?
I’ve definitely been exposed to lots of doo wop …my uncle is an encyclopedia of doo wop and has turned me on to how vast a genre it is. It’s actually something I plan to study before going on to write the next record. That and more of the early calypso and other island forms.

12. So I’ve seen you guys twice at The Mercury Lounge, great sets. I was impressed with how balanced the sound was. Do you check each other? Do you go by the rule nothing louder than the drums?
We just try to keep the guitars low…bass high…vocals clear with enough verb to cover mistakes.

13. You have the bulk of the writing, singing, producing duty, does everyone pitch in for their particular parts or do you have parts in mind for them?
I direct the music pretty thoroughly…guys get annoyed some times but I always try to explain my reasoning in terms of why it’s best for the song. I have parts that I can’t do without especially drum beats…they’re so important to get right. Guitar parts are more open ended a lot of the time. I’m kind of a hard ass…to be honest.

14. Do you have a favorite author?
Good question. I can’t pretend to be extremely widely read…but the best writing I have read was by James Joyce…and also Umberto Eco…smarty pants stuff.

15. What was the name of the punk band you were in? Your played drums, right?
Eye banker…yes I played drums…we put out 5 songs and played 3 DIY shows.

16. The harmonies are really smooth and natural on this album, do you all go to a particular voice teacher?
We have worked a couple times with my old vocal coach, Ilana Davidson. She is a Riverdalian and is involved at the An Beal Bocht scene sometimes…such a great vocalist and instructor. She helped us with some vowel replacement methods…helped us with dynamics on the song “home”. In particular…we haven’t had the money to do more work with her for several months now.

17. I dig the sequencing, was it easy to have these songs sit well next to each other?
Thanks for noticing…they were tough decisions that were made only at the last minute. There are very clear reasons for the sequencing but I am forgetting them.

18. Where did you record? Did you record any of the parts simultaneously? Where did you do overdubs?
We tracked drums bass and two guitars simultaneously in the playhouse in Maine…we did primary overruns there and all the rest including vocals in the year that followed…mostly at our rehearsal space, Rocky’s basement.

19. How long did the album take to make and are you happy with it?
It took 18 months…waaaay too long. We are happy with it and proud.

20 So you’re played in Maine on Friday and An Beal Bocht on Saturday, do you have other NYC dates lined up and where/when can we purchase “Dance at The Playhouse”?
We’ll be at Joes Pub on June 7th! And will be at Mr. MaGoo’s in July and August…having a good ol’ time.

Dance at The Playhouse will be available on iTunes within the month! (I heartily recommend this album it’s a great summer listen with interesting arrangements and beautiful melodies) plus The Villalobos Brothers lent their talents on this one! http://villalobosbrothers.com/

In the meantime give a listen!! https://soundcloud.com/rocky-and-the-pressers/sets/dance-at-the-playhouse

Thanks, as always, dear reader for tuning in! Dig it! Enjoy this weather!! -p

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06

May. ’13

Ban on busking May 2013

On May 8th NYC will start enforcing rules that will effectively ban buskers from Washington Square park and most areas of the other parks.
Merriam-Webster,busk·er noun \ˈbəs-kər\

Definition of BUSKER

chiefly British
: a person who entertains in a public place for donations
— busk intransitive verb
Origin of BUSKER

busk, probably from Italian buscare to procure, gain, from Spanish buscar to look for
First Known Use: 1857

Of all of the things to take the character out of this amazing city this one I take personally. We’ve seen music venues shut down usually due to increasing rents, we’ve seen the increase of big box type stores further squeezing out any Ma and Pa opportunities and a general influx of blah and bland-o, brand-land money. DON’T KILL THE FLAVOR! (join my cry to the heavens). My earliest memory of NYC street performance was of steel drum players in the subway in the 80’s reflected soon after in the soundtrack for the excellent film, ‘The Brother From Another Planet’. I don’t see how a performer performing with an open case that happens to have money in it counts as solicitation….it’s up to the listeners discretion to pitch in a coupla bucks or not, isn’t it? There was a Federal lawsuit filed by Robert Lederman of ARTIST (Artists’ Response To Illegal State Tactics) in this regard. Here are a couple of neat links, an interview from 2008, http://gothamist.com/2008/11/24/robert_lederman_artist_activist.php and an article from 2011 http://thevillager.com/2011/12/15/dont-ban-the-buskers/. We live in this amazing time of information trading hands at an incredible rate and yet we are still the last ones to know what we have wrought…like the giant plastic garbage patch, twice the size of Texas in the Pacific somewhere between Hawaii and San Fransisco. We’ve know plastic is “bad” for a while but, it seems, if we’re not confronted constantly or at least inconvenienced by things then they may as well not exist. Artists like Robert Lederman are often prescient, as he was during the Giuliani administration. Artists are a cultural resource…so how can the city push them around under the “quality of life” umbrella? It feels as though we are often regretfully looking back despite having had the facts and the opportunity when the moment most called for action. We can engage in something destructive like a preemptive war why can’t we protect, preserve, cultivate, defend, rejoice in the positive things which enrich our lives, like the arts, before they are sanctioned, sold, restricted and sullied? I guess this is just the way of people…never knew what you had until it was gone.

I FORGOT THE MOST IMPORTANT THING!!!! Here’s a petition I signed against the ban, https://www.change.org/petitions/mayor-bloomberg-and-parks-commissioner-white-repeal-the-park-restrictions-on-performers-musicians-and-artists

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29

Apr. ’13

Elder Statesmen

This has been an excellent month of music for me, performance-wise (thanks Bowery Electric (Christina LaRocca), No Malice Palace (Kipp Elbaum)) and show-wise. I saw three different performances, Hugh Masakela, Wynton Marsalis and his band performing Duke Ellington, and Iggy Pop and the Stooges. What, if anything, do these different types of music and performances have in common? A lot.

Hugh Masakela is a 74 year old trumpeter from South Africa. He was playing with an arrangement of electric guitar, bass, percussion, drums, and piano. The show was at the historic Tarrytown Music Hall. A real theatre space, the sound was great. He is an excellent showman, he genuinely wanted to communicate with the entire audience whether through a story he told of his upbringing or through his dancing or singing or playing. The things he did with his voice were as effective as sounds found in nature, his trills and high pitched wails were very moving. He roused the audience calling upon our basic humanity, to look to ourselves, the nature of modern life, what were we ever hiding from? It’s hard to articulate how he did this… he was not preachy, he was telling his story. He had a great time up there and wanted us to do the same. We did.

Wynton Marsalis guided us through various Duke Ellington tunes with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra sometimes with personal accompanying stories, sometimes with the facts of the recordings. I love Ellington but had never heard these songs performed live. It was wild. Very loud at times, like a rock show…..but with brass. The arrangement was piano, drums, clarinets, saxophones, trumpets, guitar, banjo, and slide trombones. Wynton was humble, always deferring to the material and its composer. He let the flow of solos and tempo of the whole evening unfold organically.

Iggy and The Stooges played a free show at Le Poisson Rouge yesterday at 5PM, NPR streamed the show live. Electric anticipation in the room before they hit the stage. Guitar, bass, drums, saxophone and 64 year old Iggy. He shimmied shirtless and shaked like a man possessed. He had some go-to gestures and dance moves, this was theatre of his own devising fine-tuned throughout 40 years or so. He played to every corner of the room. At times he’d make a face or stick his tongue out despite the heavy material, a reminder that we’re in it for kicks. During one talking moment he likened our times to the Vietnam era. He handed his microphone off a couple of times to audience members encouraging them to partake of the performance, say whatever! Yell your name! And he was always supportive. He had as many as could fit up onstage with him for the last song. Whether folks are staid or depressed or too cool nowadays to shake it I don’t know but in the face of this mans antics everybody moved.

Two of the the most important common things I came away with from these shows is that setting the historical context for what you’re sharing is crucial to the telling of your story also if the performer commits totally to what he or she is doing and enjoys it, we will too. All three of these performances were transcendent for me in that they were rich, expressive, accepting, questioning, challenging and ultimately cathartic. On top of it all, totally professional which some may scoff at as just a technicality but we couldn’t get to the meat unless it had some bones supporting it.

Go see live music, support your scene and have a great week humans!! -p

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23

Apr. ’13

Record Store Day Recap

“Excuse me but what are you all in line for?” is a common question in NYC. The responses are varied, “audition”, “sample sale”, “job fair”…but this Saturday was the exultant cry of “Record Store Day!” (pause) “Oh.” (pause) “What’s that?” According to Wikipedia:
Record Store Day was officially founded in 2007[1] by Eric Levin, Michael Kurtz, Carrie Colliton, Amy Dorfman, Don Van Cleave and Brian Poehner and is now celebrated globally[1] with hundreds of recording and other artists participating in the day by making special appearances, performances, meet and greets with their fans, the holding of art exhibits, and the issuing of special vinyl and CD releases along with other promotional products to mark the occasion.
I don’t know who any of those folks are but I can vouch for the goodies, having attended the last 4 or 5 years. Here’s a list of this years releases if you’re curious: http://www.recordstoreday.com/SpecialReleases
This list of aforementioned goodies is posted on the internet usually about a week or so prior to the actual day, building your base’s anticipation is, I’m sure we all recognize, a standard marketing ploy. Personally, I have a musical-lazer in my head which seemingly errantly chooses it’s targets until I sit down to reap the rewards of THE LISTEN and realize I have a direction, subconscious or whatever. There are some artists I’ll follow almost no matter what because I’m a fan. There are particular record labels which tend to produce the music I like too. There are distinct differences between collectors, consumers, aficionados, and hoarders. I consider myself a melange of these types as far as consumerism is concerned when it comes to what matters to me (music, art, food)…otherwise I’m pretty spartan. Okay so from this years list I was interested in the Elliott Smith 7″ (7inch has more space than a 45) with alternate versions of 4 songs from one of his great albums “Either/Or”, Black Keys/Stooges- No Fun 7″ split(split meaning one band has one side the other has the other) because in spite of all the Varvatos sell-out accusations I’m still an Iggy/Stooges fan, Husker Du’s -Amusement 2×7″ beautiful gatefold packaging, Big Star-Nothing Can Hurt Me 2×12″ I’m a fan, Built to Spill- Live, re-release, because that’s their one album I don’t have, Pink Floyd – See Emily Play 7″ excellent song. I recognize these bands and details may not mean much to all of you, but stick with me here, these are the details of the ‘collector’ mind.
So the day began with a plan. First I was going to hit Generation Records (210 Thompson St.) I saw part of a Cymbals Eat Guitars set there in 2010 then head East to Other Music (15 East 4th St.) then on to Kim’s (124 First Ave.) and then finish the day at J&R (23 Park Row across from City Hall Park). The reason for going to many stores is because nobody knows which store will get which special releases, adds to the fun, mystique and well, let’s face it, the industry folks want you to go to as many record stores as possible, spending money willy nilly like you’re a tycoon. Now in previous years there’s always been a plethora of free CD’s, compilations put out by record labels trying to get the populous interested in their artists, independent artists themselves etc. but for some reason this year (and maybe because I got a late start) not so much. So at Generation there was a 20 minute line but I scored the Elliott Smith 7″, a free Subpop compilation and the Built To Spill Live CD plus they were spinning cool punk discs. At Other Music there was a 40 minute line but I was sure there’d be great stuff once I got in there plus they kept the number of people in the store at one time low and comfortable. Picked up Kurt Viles new album, CD, at a slight discount, 2 Guided By Voices 7″s, Bombino CD (Nigerian guitarist produced by Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys), Joe Bussard (a connoisseur collector/player himself) on 10″ (plays at 78rpm), Shihtaro Sakamoto 7″, Adventures From Afropea-Telling Stories to The Sea 12″ (African Portuguese). I asked on of the helpful staff about the Black Keys/Stooges, no dice. Then about the Husker Du, no dice. Online while checking out record dude brought me the Husker, niiiice. Cruised over to Kim’s and nothing tickled my fancy. Asked about compilations from labels and he said not so much this year. Headed down to J&R not only to cap the day off but my mother, an avid opera buff inquired about a Domenico Modugno (Italian pop, he wrote Volare) album, an unusual request!! Some collector/hunters love those. Got there, no dice. I did find a Chet Atkins 7″ and a Songs for Slim 7″ because Chris Mars of The Replacements did the cover art….
WHAT IS INTERESTING ABOUT ANY OF THIS MINUTIAE? What drives us to pursue anything? Is it Love? Obsession? Intrigue? Diversion? Passion? Yeah it is. The punchline….I currently don’t own a record player. Have a great week all, thanks for reading!! -p
p.s. Trading/sharing records is a great way to keep the clutter down and (if you’re responsible and return ’em) the social skills up!!

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15

Apr. ’13

Rob McMahon responds to Patti Smith (Art and Location)

Facebook is a funny, fickle creature. Some like the easy social platform, some see it as an infringement on ones privacy or a place of rampant frivolous oversharing…I haven’t made up my mind yet. All I know is that it serves as a bulletin board when I have a gig or a political, artistic, astronomical tidbit I think others might enjoy. The inherent problem being that damnable ‘Like’ button (a button one can press which registers as a thumbs up, for my readers who don’t use facebook)…it’s a really lazy way to concur without having to elaborate as to how or why you might “Like” the same thing as the person posting and also when you’ve posted something you think the world should embrace whole-heartedly and you only get 1 or 2 “Like”s it’s a letdown. The “Like” button is like a highschool trap, who is popular? Whose post is most clever or hilarious and are we all more secure about ourselves because a whole slew of us agree on the same thing? Now, I’m no better, I enjoy “Liking” posts and having my posts “Liked” but I do wonder about these cavalier connections. That said, I posted or rather re-posted something Patti Smith had said about NYC and a friend, fellow open micer, musician, Rob McMahon had a strong, insightful, reaction which I’d like to share. It went down like this:

Patti Smith’s advice to young artists: Don’t Go To New York

A couple of years ago, rocker, Patti Smith was asked if it was possible for young artists to go to NYC and find the path to stardom that she did.

Smith responded, “New York has closed itself off to the young and the struggling. But there are other cities. Detroit. Poughkeepsie. New York City has been taken away from you. So my advice is: Find a new city.

Rob McMahon: Fuck this! I moved to Portland in 2001 and stayed for 4 years cause I thought NY was over. Then I lived in Brooklyn for 4 years under the pretense that that’s where shit was happening. Right here, right now I’m indicting both of those places, Patti Smith, and myself on 4 counts of aggravated bullshit!!! Artists should make art where ever the fuck they are, and stop buying into the hype that it’ll be easier to make art somewhere else. Making art asks a lot of us who make it. To really do it demands a strong commitment to a process of repeated ripping your own heart out and holding it up in front of a bunch of strangers who may or may not give a shit about your latest parlor trick. Not everyone has the stomach for that, but that’s not the place’s fault. Do what you do where you are, or shut the fuck up. Make art. No excuses.

Rob McMahon: I know I’m preaching to the choir here Lynch. Not sure who this angry tirade is directed at but certainly not you. And with that the prosecution rests.
Saturday at 10:52pm · Like

Philip Lynch: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH excellent Rob !! Couldn’t agree more man. I do dig and respect Patti though and NYC is super expensive I think that may be all….hm mayhaps I’ll “blog” about this heh
Yesterday at 7:50am · Like · 1

Rob McMahon: Word. I was just reading some of your blog yesterday. Yeah I’m not down on Patti and NY is expensive but last time I checked Frank Sinatra hadn’t recorded any songs about Poughkeepsie!! But seriously, I think this line of thinking is a trap. And it underestimates the effect of changing location on art making. I went out to Portland to write a novel. While I was there I wrote very little, did lots of ensemble theater, stacked a bunch of rocks, and came up with a bunch of conceptual art pieces. I wasn’t even able to work in the same medium. And when I left I dropped all that and started writing songs. It’s naive to think that you can just pick up your whole life, move it somewhere else, and finish the chorus of the song you started 3,000 miles from here. Or it was for me in the past. But maybe i just hadn’t found my medium. Now i think I have…Alright, Fuck it!! I’m goin’ to Nashville!!!

As Stan Lee (Marvel Comics) says: ’nuff said!
Thanks for tuning in this week, thanks Rob for your candor and participation. Here’s his excellent tune, The Mariner (Shores of the Heart) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A29JmAeU2Bo

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08

Apr. ’13

What’s In a Name?

Spring has sprung people! Hence the Shakespearean title of today’s post. heh. Welcome.

I went through a phase in my younger days, back in the answering machine days, of saying this is Philip just Philip. Perhaps it was some sub-conscious tear away from Pee and Em (father and mother). Maybe I dug that ‘just’ works as ‘only’ and ‘fair’? I don’t know what motivated that little weird quirk but it did feel somehow defiant and defining. Naming things is very important as we form our language, our identity partly based on how we reflect upon the things which surround us…like an echo or a mirror. Where do we stand in relation to everything else? I was fascinated with self-portraits in highschool…do I see myself accurately? Do I look to me the way others see me? Am I imposing how I feel about myself upon how I look? In at least one of the early self portraits my eyes are huge in another I’m wrapped up unto myself and I entitled it “Morbid Self Attention” hahahahaha. Anyway, in recent years I’ve had a bit of a struggle naming songs. Maybe titles are less important to me now than the subject, the meat, the melody of the tune. In the role of song-namer I feel like a puppeteer, a third party describing the interaction between the two characters interacting. How does one do it? (please feel free to respond to this post, chime in!) I went through a stretch there with the subject and then the word ‘song’ attached…widowsong, clownsong and popsong. Popsong was kind of an exception though as the subject of the tune was not pop but it was a pop song heh. I have a song which still has a vacillating title at shows and open mics….it’s either ‘Vagabonds on The Lam’ or ‘Beesting Baby’. The first was the imagined overall circumstance in the song and the latter was a character in it. Often it seems that artists just use what’s in the chorus of their song as the title ….which makes for easy recognition. I certainly don’t want to drive folks off with obscure titles but I do want the titles to be a part of the song. Some of my lyrics (the better ones) are a mystery to me, where they came from and how they work well within the construct of the overall tune…a lot of my stuff simply rhymes. I have a new instrumental called 4AM because that’s how the music feels to me so I like it. It’s problematic though because everybody has a different sense of how 4AM feels. A title is what draws the eye like hm I wonder what that’s all about? So I’ve got to get better at this heh. Well spring has me all distracted today so I’ll leave you with this well-named tune and good bit of advice (Jimmy Durante too!!) from The Grass Roots!! Have a great week all, thanks for reading!! -p

p.s. I’m playing Wednesday April 10th, 8PM at No Malice Palace, 197 East 3rd Street

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