Retro Chicken

After a week of posting stuff about King Crimson and other music out on the fringes, I decided it was either something classic like Led Zeppelin or hardcore disco. I went for Zeppelin.

I don’t know if people appreciate the depth that Led Zeppelin had as a band. Aside from the classic rockers and blues jams (like this version of “Since I’ve Been Loving You”), Zeppelin did experimental acoustic music, were innovative geniuses in the studio, and played around with odd time signatures, harmonies, technology and ethnic sounds. A testament to their brilliance is the stark difference between the mastery they demonstrated in the studio and how loose and improvisatory they were live.

Keeping in sync with my current obsession with everything King Crimson, I found this memory posted by Adrian Belew on his blog about one of his last meetings with Frank Zappa. Adrian Belew, who joined King Crimson in the early eighties, was in Zappa’s band in the seventies.

Adrian Belew is also featured in this short documentary about Zappa’s music (probably filmed in the late seventies). In the interview, Zappa is caustic, angry, irreverent, pretentious, petulant, and wonderfully Zappa – just what you would expect.

Aside from his work with King Crimson, Robert Fripp also has a solo career that has spawned some interesting collaborations with an eclectic host of characters, including pop legend David Bowie. Bowie’s ultra-hip single “Fashion,” with accompanying oh-so-eighties video, features wild Fripp interjections (the slick guitar lines are not Fripp, the wild noise and dissonance are).

Like I said in an earlier post, King Crimson has been around since the sixties and has been through a billion changes in the lineup. The incarnation in this video (for the classic and awesome “21st Century Schizoid Man”) features Greg Lake on vocals and bass. Greg Lake went on to super-stardom in the seventies as the “L” in ELP (Emerson, Lake and Palmer) and then as a part of Asia in the eighties (remember them – “Heat of the Moment” – with the dude from Yes on guitar). The vocals are run through a fuzz box, hence the cool sound.

Also dig the hippies.

There is nothing cooler then King Crimson. Always the special project of founding member and guitar legend Robert Fripp, King Crimson bridged the gap between the insane, supreme musicianship, and pop (how they ever found a mainstream audience is just proof that masses of cool people do exists – you just have to know where to find them).

King Crimson went through a number of different incarnations over the years – the one I was introduced to was the 80’s version featuring Fripp, experimental guitar wizard Adrian Belew, Tony Levin (on Stick and bass), and Bill Bruford (drums).

Check them out – Adrian Belew did a lot of work with the Talking Heads, and the influence on his vocals is obvious. But that is where the comparison ends (aside from his pink suit), the odd sounds, complex time signatures and dissonance are classic Crimson.

My buddy Moish is always bugging me about how I need to seriously check out the Boss. I say, “Dude, I am from Jersey, the Boss is in my bones.” But I don’t think he gets it, he wants me cranking Roselita in my car or screaming “Born to Run” or “Nebraska” or any other suitable Bruce classic whenever the spirit moves me.

As shameful as diehard Bruce devotees may find it, I actually think one of Bruce Springsteen’s best performances is his cover of the Edwin Starr classic “War.” I found this clip of Springsteen from the late-80’s – I think he is still with the E Street Band (the drummer sure looks like Max Weinberg) and they pump out this version of “War” with unbridled vigor.

Am I the only person who thinks KC and the Sunshine band rocks? Listen to the grooves in this video – the bass lines are killer and the horn section is so tight. Also dig the great guitar sound. True, the backing vocals are lost in the mix and don’t have the same bang they have in the studio recording – but so what – the band grooves, and this is in spite of what they are wearing (what were people thinking in the 70’s?).

KC and the Sunshine band came out when I was in elementary school and for years I confused KC with magician Doug Henning – go figure.

I don’t understand why these guys never got as huge as the classic bands from yesteryear. When they first hit (in the early 90’s) they were from the first wave of bands coming after the long dearth of 80’s-goof-ball synth-pop. First came the hair-bands (Poison, Motley Crew, Ratt, etc) and then the rockers (Guns N’ Roses), followed by Seattle and everything loud and masculine. The Black Crowes were a breath of fresh air – drawing on blues based music ala the Stones, Zeppelin, and the rest – they had great songs and could play well too.

Songs like “Remedy” still get airplay on the classic rock stations – I guess I am not the only Black Crowes’ fan left.

When I was in college, James Blood Ulmer would come to Boston a few times a year with a trio featuring James Blood on guitar (and intermittent vocals), Jamaaladeen Tacuma on bass and Grant Calvin Weston on drums. They were incredible, alternating songs between free-form-jams and semi-folksy-“funk” tunes (to this day Grant Calvin Weston is the greatest drummer I have ever seen live).

Unfortunately, I couldn’t find anything with James Blood and this group online, but while searching for “James Blood” I stumbled upon this video featuring him with Ornette Coleman from the mid-1970’s. Ornette (on alto) is known is the pioneer of free jazz and James Blood made his name playing guitar with Prime Time, Ornette’s electric “funk” band.

The video is from 1974 even though it looks about 30 years older.

Screamin’ Jay Hawkins is easily one of the greatest vocalists I have ever seen. His range is incredible, his stage presense is unbelievable, and his outlandish outlandishness is life changing. I was fortunate to get to see him at a club in New York in the early 90’s. The crowd was small enough that after the show I was able to get on stage to hang out with him and shmooze about geeky guitar stuff with his guitarist (I was so jealous and wanted his gig like nobody’s business – but it wasn’t meant to be). Screamin’ Jay’s greatest hits album (Voodoo Jive) is well worth the listen and has everything Screamin’ Jay – from the classic “I Put A Spell On You” to the transformative “Constipation Blues.”

I found this video – I don’t know what TV show it is from – but it is very 80’s and features 80’s fixtures from the NY studio session scene like David Sanborn (sax) and the dude who was the first guitar player in the David Letterman band.