I finally got to see the Musical "Hair" this past weekend in its Broadway revival.
I've known every word to every song on the soundtrack(8-track!) since well before I was old enough to understand what the lyrics meant. To my young mind, it was all just a rythmic and tuneful laundry list of vaguely forbidden and mysterious apsects of an irrestiabley seductive era-the 60's. Without a production to see in all of these years, I had to make do with the movie, a mediocre effort starring Treat Williams in a vastly plot-changed version. The broadway revival is true to the original, and worth the wait for me. It was extra cool when we were ushered up onto to the stage at the end during "Let The Sunshine In" facing a full house of waving arms and blinding orange light. Pretty light on plot, this show is all about the music, and its songs have been covered by everyone from Liza Minelli to The Lemonheads.

For your listening enjoyment today, I've included a mix of 5 cover versions including "Frank Mills" by both of the aforemnentioned artists.

In addition, here's Sesame Street's version of " Good Morning Starshine" the sappiest of the show's tunes, but perfect when sung by/to a muppet.

Hair Covers

Happy Turkey Day!

The soundtrack for this film is one my favorite Sunday Morning records. The movie itself is a must, with Sam Peckinpah directing James Coburn as Pat Garrett, Kris Kristofferson as Billy The Kid, and Dylan himself as Alias.


Bob Dylan-Turkey Chase

Any Chicagoan with an interest in music owes it to themselves to go check out The Kinsey Report at Rosa's or one of the other blues clubs. The Chicago Blues has never been my thing, but watching Donald Kinsey perform is a revelation for lots of reasons; his charisma, his vocals, and especially his guitar playing- which alternates between butter smooth rhythm and electrifying lead. Besided, the Kinseys play much more soul, funk, even reggae than they do Chicago Blues. The band plays Chicago frequently, and a word of caution that DK's performance can vary wildly from show to show depending on various external and internal factors. This past Saturday's was inspired.

Hailing from Gary, Indiana, young Donald moved to Jamaica in the mid-seventies and became a member of The Wailers, playing on seminal albums for both Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. After their deaths, he returned to Chicago, where he and his brothers Ralph and Ken formed the Kinsey Report to back their father, blues star Big Daddy Kinsey. They've been at it ever since.

The Kinsey Report is best experienced in a live setting as the recorded output just doesn't cut it. So instead of a KP track, I'll go back and post this one from Peter Tosh's Equal Rights Album, on which Donald plays guitar

Stepping Razor

David Berthy Posts

I don’t know how I made it so long without hearing the original
version of the touchstone song “Fever.” Less famous than Peggy Lee’s
1968 version, Little Willie John’s original is, in my opinion, far
superior. I also recently found this obscure Ray Peterson version on
the excellent blog Diddy Wah. Peterson’s version is an excellent B
side here, but John’s original is one no music fan should be without--
a true classic.

Fever

Great band with a terrible name

The debut album from Girls lives up to the hype, with a sound mixing GBV's low fi production, a nasally exuberant vocal reminiscent of Bob Geldoff or a young Tom Petty, T-Rex swagger, and impressive stylistic variance. Smart money says this band shows up on the fork's festival stage this year f'sho.


Girls-Summertime

New Music Monday-El Perro Del Mar +Girls

I stopped by Reckless last week and found these two albums on display side by side. I grabbed both and headed home and soon discovered that both artists were playing shows in town the following night. Sadly, I missed them both, but have been enjoying the records since. Love is Not Pop is a straight up break-up record, and like the tewo albums prior, is much more about creating a mood than song-craft. I happen to revel in that mood of doo wop melancholy, though, so this one's another home run for me. Plus, her sound has evolved and expanded to include some great new elements-some acoustic, some electronic. Though its not the best song on the album, I include for you today, her cover version of Lou Reed's "Heavenly Arms" (The Blue Mask 1980)

Heavenly Arms

David Berthy Posts


Having been reintroduced this last week to the harrowing experience of shuttling back and forth between the west and east sides of Los Angeles, I’ve had plenty of time to listen to music in the car. Santo and Johnny’s music is perfect for such a drive. When I put it on, my borrowed blue Camry becomes a beautiful lounge where banalities take on the qualities of dreams. Brothers Santo and Johnny Farina are best known for their iconic song “Sleep Walk,” but the prolific lounge masters have a considerable output worth checking out. Included here are versions of the Gershwin song “Summertime” and Juan Tizol’s jazz standard “Caravan.” Because “Sleep Walk” is always worth a listen, I threw that in too.

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