Tag Archives: 70’s

THE BEATLES – THEY CHANGED THE MUSIC WORLD FOREVER

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My first memory of the Beatles was of the song “Yellow Submarine”. Myself and several cousins used to run around singing this song at the top of our lungs, subsequently annoying various moms, dads, aunts, uncles, grandmas, and most anyone else within earshot.

I have continued to love the music of the Beatles throughout the years. It was only as an adult that I learned to appreciate them as artists. I have read many books and articles over the years regarding them and their music. These are my feelings on how they changed the world of music forever.

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The Beatles were always trying to push the envelope of music. They understood how imagery was critical to the success of a band. They had to constantly evolve their image to stay ahead of the imitators than soon came to follow.  I feel that this imitation, and the subsequent changes, set the groundwork for the over the top imagery of bands that we have seen throughout the years and even today: David Bowie, T-Rex, Slade, The Sweet, Alice Cooper, Kiss, Slipknot, Gwar, etc, etc. I feel we owe the Beatles thanks for the image of these and countless other bands. I, for one, appreciate a great show to go along with my music.

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As for the music, I feel the same thing occurred but with some interesting twists. When the success of the Beatles was fully realized, the recording industry (even those who had previously turned down the Beatles) clamored to find their own “version” of the Beatles. Catchy, poppy songs were everywhere trying to catch that “Beatles sound”. I feel that this forced the Beatles to evolve their music to stand apart from the masses. This led to studio wizardry that is used today. Tape looping, back masking, multi-tracking, it goes on and on. Also the attempt to out do each other by John and Paul led to to some iconic songs. George in his attempt to be taken serious as a musician wrote some of the greatest music to ever be recorded. Ringo, well he was the drummer……

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Sadly, it became to much to hold it all together and rather than forcing the issue and giving sub-par music and performances, they walked away from it all. Love them or not, the Beatles, in my opinion changed the face of music and will continue to do so forever. Do yourself a favor and take a listen to the Beatles  music and see if you can hear some of your favorite bands in their music.

Here’s a nod to those I annoyed with this song:

Thank you John, Paul, George, and Ringo, thank you from my heart and ears.

the Hellion

LOOKING FORWARD TO 2013

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As we wind down 2012, (which was a great year) we also start looking forward to 2013. We had some new doors open for us this year, we got to cover the 2012 Rockstar Energy Drink Uproar tour, we got to cover the great Skeletonwitch show, we reconfigured Music U-Night into Rock U-Night, and I started this Blog. Bleach Bangs Radio interviewed some great bands, and we saw the CD releases of local NM bands Beard, and Rusty Tramp. I also am going to be attending the dedication of the West Mesa Performing Arts Center to Randy Castillo this December. I also made a lot of new friends and met and heard a lot of new bands. I love you all.

2013 promises to start off on an equally great note. We have been fortunate enough to have obtained media access tot he 2013 NAMM show in Anaheim California in January. We plan on interviewing various instrument/gear companies and bring it to you first hand.  We plan on continuing to bring you new bands, new interviews, new CD reviews, and new show reviews. If there is anything you want to see let us know. We are fan driven and here for you, the music lovers.

 

yours in Rock

the Hellion!

 

BLOODY HAMMERS- CD REVIEW

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SoulSeller Records/Sacrificial Records

1. Witch Of Endor
2. Fear No Evil
3. The Last Legion Of Sorrow
4. Say Goodbye To The Sun
5. The Witching Hour
6. Black Magic
7. Trisect
8. Beyond The Door
9. Souls On Fire
10. Don’t Breathe A Word

     To be honest, I don’t know who told me about Bloody Hammers, but I’m glad they did. I anxiously awaited the release of this CD after hearing a sampling online. Bloody Hammers consists of: Vocals, Bass: Anders Manga, Organ: Devallia, Guitar: Zoltan, and Drums: Curse. Mysterious names, mysterious members, good luck finding photographs. They cite the following bands as influences: Roky Erickson, Alice Cooper, Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, Pentagram, Black Sabbath, Bauhaus, Concrete Blonde, The Beatles, Arthur Brown, The Cramps, The Misfits, Ramones, Venom, Rush, Joy Division, Dio, Captain Beyond, T.Rex, Sisters of Mercy, Dust, Trouble, Danzig, Hawkwind, Hammer Horror, Something Weird Video … everything! How could they not be good with those influences? Let’s get into the record: Stand out tracks for me are “Witch Of Endor”, “Black Magic”, “Say Goodbye To The Sun”, and “Don’t Breathe A Word”.

     Dark, brooding, and damn good, this records is hypnotic. While the band has an original sound, there are some comforting familiar riffs here. I find this CD strangely hypnotic and it draws me into it. Well put together and engineered, the dark theme of this work is captured beautifully. Another one  of the things that I love about this CD is the fact that no one tries to  over play each other. The instruments compliment each other, not drown each other out or try to take the spotlight from each other. I have listened to this CD several times through and the flow is awesome. There is truly no filler on this CD, you can put it on and let it go from start to finish. A winner all around! Here’s the video for “Fear No Evil”:

     Make sure you check out their facebook page and give them a like: http://www.facebook.com/BloodyHammers or their official website: http://www.bloodyhammers.com/

     Please check out his AWESOME band

the Hellion

CLASSIC TRACK OF THE WEEK 10/10/12 – NAZARETH “THIS FLIGHT TONIGHT”

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I have always loved the groove of this track. Do yourself a favor and check it out!

 

the Hellion

GERRY RAFFERTY – A VOICE REMEMBERED

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“Clowns to the left of me, Jokers to the right. Here I am, stuck in the middle with you.” Who doesn’t know those lyrics? A lot of people do not know that Gerry Rafferty was the singer  of Stealers Wheel though. I was eight years old when that fantastic song came out. I used to run around singing at the top of my lungs until I was told to shut up (at which point I sang it under my breath). Gerry Rafferty’s voice struck a nerve in me. When I next heard from Gerry Rafferty I was fourteen, “Baker Street” blew me away. The song painted a vivid picture in my mind, it was if I could see the lyrics played out in a move in my mind. The composition, and groove of the song was, still is, and will be amazing. I loved and learned to appreciate the saxophone from that song. With other songs such as “Right Down The Line” , “Get It Right Next Time”, Gerry continued to fill my ears with joy. Unfortunately personal issues caused him to fade from the scene but not from my mind. Eventually we lost Gerry in 2011. I continue to share his music with others and show them the genius of his music. Thank you Gerry Rafferty for sharing your beautiful art with us.

 

“And when you wake up it’s a new morning
The sun is shining, it’s a new morning
But you’re going, you’re going home” – Baker Street

R.I.P Gerry

STEALERS WHEEL  – “STUCK  IN THE MIDDLE WITH YOU”:

GERRY RAFFERTY – “BAKER STREET” :

 

the Hellion

FICTITIOUS BANDS THAT WERE PRETTY COOL

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There have been some pretty cool bands that were made up for movies. Let’s take a look at some of the bands that would have been cool if they were real.

 

STEEL DRAGON

 

The movie “Rock Star” from 2001 gave us one of the coolest bands that never was.

Mark Wahlberg as Chris “Izzy” Cole (Lead vocals)
Dominic West as Kirk Cuddy (Rhythm Guitar)
Jason Bonham as A.C. (Drums)
Zakk Wylde as Ghode (Lead Guitar)
Jeff Pilson as Jörgen (Bass)

This was the film lineup on screen. The actual music from “Steel Dragon” was pretty cool. with songs such as “Livin’ the Life”, “Blood Pollution”, “Stand Up”, “Wasted Generation” written by greats such as; Steve Plunkett, Peter Beckett, Twiggy Ramirez, Sammy Hagar, and Desmond Child, A.Allen, J. Allen to covers of “We All Die Young” (Miljenko Matijevic, Kenny Kanowski) by Steelheart and “Long Live Rock ‘n’ Roll” (Ronnie James Dio, Richie Blackmore) by Rainbow. This is definitely one of my favorite bands that never was. Here’s “Blood Pollution”:

 

STILLWATER

 

“Almost Famous” from 2000 gave us the band Stillwater. This was a 70’s band that I wish would have been.

Peter Frampton
Mike McCready
Jon Bayless
Ben Smith
Gordon Kennedy
Marti Frederiksen – vocals

Were the magic behind the band. Nancy Wilson wrote the song “Fever Dog ” which we can see right here:

 

THE WONDERS

 

” That Thing You Do! ” from 1996 is a movie I can’t pass up. From the mind of Tom Hanks this is the tale of a band in the 60’s and their rise to fame and their meteoric fall from it. The movie features original music by Tom Hanks, Adam Schlesinger, Rick Elias, Scott Rogness, Mike Piccirillo, Gary Goetzman and Howard Shore. Here’s the title track:

 

Three pretty cool bands that could have been.

 

the Hellion

 

 

HEADPHONE TRIPS PART 1 – PUT ON YOUR BEST PAIR AND EXPERIENCE AUDIO HEAVEN

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There is nothing like a well-engineered song through a pair of great headphones. Over the years there have been many songs that just blow you away when listened through headphones, in a dark room, lying on the floor. Let’s look at two this week.

BILLY THORPE – “CHILDREN OF THE SUN” (1979)

When this song hit in ’79 it amazed me. The composition combined with the engineering blew my mind. If you put this on, clear your ind and listen, you can imagine the spaceships flying throughout your head and whirling around you. Sadly, Billy passed away in 2007 but he will never be forgotten with his timeless music to fill our ears. Check out “Children of the Sun”:

THE MOODY BLUES – “NIGHTS IN WHITE SATIN/LATE LAMENT” (1967)

For being recorded in 1967 there’s a lot going on in this song. Make sure you check out the full release not the radio edit. If you tune out the world and just listen you can hear many layered instruments and vocalizations  that are not readily apparent through regular speakers. This was one of many songs my mother (may she Rest In Peace) brought to my attention. LISTEN to it:

I will be updating this topic regularly ENJOY! (and get some good headphones)

the Hellion

BOSTON – “ROCK AND ROLL BAND”

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The first two Boston records have remained favorites of mine since they were released. I know there were other releases and other lineups, but the first two original Boston records are my focus of this writing.

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1. “More Than a Feeling” Tom Scholz 4:44
2. “Peace of Mind” Tom Scholz 5:02
3. “Foreplay/Long Time” Tom Scholz 7:47
4. “Rock and Roll Band” Tom Scholz 2:59
5. “Smokin'” Tom Scholz, Brad Delp 4:22
6. “Hitch a Ride” Tom Scholz 4:12
7. “Something About You” Tom Scholz 3:48
8. “Let Me Take You Home Tonight” Brad Delp 4:44

I remember the first time I heard “More Than A Feeling” in 1976, I was completely blown away.  “I looked out this morning and the sun was gone, Turned on some music to start my day, I lost myself in a familiar song, I closed my eyes and I slipped away” those lyrics spoke to me directly. It was if those lyrics were written especially for me.  I saved up enough money to go and buy the record and fell in love with Boston. Every song on it was amazing and full of wonder to me. I used to listen to it over and over through my headphones and just get completely lost in the vocals, the guitar work and the complexity of the songs. I couldn’t believe music such as this was possible.

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1. “Don’t Look Back” Tom Scholz 5:57
2. “The Journey (instrumental)” Scholz 1:46
3. “It’s Easy” Scholz 4:26
4. “A Man I’ll Never Be” Scholz 6:37
5. “Feelin’ Satisfied” Scholz 4:11
6. “Party” Scholz, Brad Delp 4:07
7. “Used to Bad News” Delp 2:56
8. “Don’t Be Afraid” Scholz 3:48

I was sure that they could NEVER top that record, but in 1978 I was proven wrong. “Don’t Look Back” was equally amazing to me. “Don’t look back, A new day is breakin’, It’s been too long since I felt this way I don’t mind where I get taken, The road is callin’, Today is the day” again, those lyrics touched me. Again, I saved up and bought this record and escaped into the music of Boston.

These two records gave me a place to retreat to in my troubled youth. The music made everything go away at least for a little while. I know Boston continued on with changing members, legal troubles, and on, and on, but they will always remain in my mind the band that made those two records. I could talk about all the technical stuff that these records entailed but that is not the point of this. I just wanted to share some records that impacted me on a spiritual level.

Sadly in 2007 the voice that I so loved left us. He took his own life leaving a note that said: “Mr. Brad Delp. “J’ai une ame solitaire”. I am a lonely soul.” When I read about this it brought me to tears as Brad’s voice had befriended my lonely soul. I will always carry his voice in me. Rest In Peace Brad I hope you have found solace.

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Here are a couple of my most cherished Boston songs:

“Rock And Roll Band”

“Feelin’ Satisfied”

Listen to the lyrics in “Feelin’ Satisfied” and you’ll understand me.

the Hellion