I had to triple check that I hadn’t already blogged about The Avalanches, can’t believe it has taken me this long.  Not enough people have heard this album, a lost gem of DJ mastery mixing hundreds and hundreds of samples.  The Avalanches, based out of Melbourne, Australia, first released this album in 2000.  Not much has been heard of them in the way of formal albums since 2001 when they were actively touring and supporting that album, opening for acts like the Beastie Boys, Beck, Stereolab, and Public Enemy.   Looks like they have been making remixing and maybe hosting DJ sets in Australia according to their site, and possibly clearing samples for a new album!!

Since I Left You is a magnificent menagerie of sounds, loops, samples, and beats – everything I love about DJ/sampled music. It’s a tricky art using so many samples without overdoing it or allowing the sound to become too cloudy, or worse, clash.  The Avalances pull it off with perfection, and were way, way ahead of their time.  It’s tough to pick sample songs to share with you because this is one of those albums that just flows seamlessly from track to track, so you kind of have to pick up in the middle of an unfinished thought just hearing random tracks, but I’ve tried to include a few of my favorites.

There’s a bunch of cool stuff to do on their website, check out some of their mixes, and maybe some of the previews for their new album? Not really sure where all the content comes from on there, but it’s definitely worth digging through.  You can stream a song called Brains Teazer that sounds like something you might hear at a pool bar at an all inclusive Caribbean resort.  Maybe they are heading in a new direction.

There are rumors that a followup album is to be released sometime this year, based on snippits from the news section of the website.  It’s a damn shame this record didn’t reach the mass public, and that there hasn’t been anything more from them for so long, but maybe that will soon all be a thing of the past.  If you are a fan of J Dilla or DJ Shadow I can promise you this is a record you will be playing at parties, on never ending red eye flights, and everywhere in between for a long time to come.

The Avalanches – Etoh

The Avalanches – Two Hearts In 3/4 Time

Download Since I Left You here

The Avalanches on the web

Today is George Ivan (Van) Morrison’s Birthday.  It’s also my mother’s birthday (Hi Mom!…of course she’d never find this blog…thankfully…I don’t even tell her about it…Happy 73rd Margaret).  Van Morrison is a more manageable 65 today, but then again my mom doesn’t have to go on tour whenever she needs to make a buck.   When you sift through  All Time Critic’s Favorite books you find Van The Man material.  1968′s Astral Weeks is a long time favorite.   1970′s Moondance is another.  1974′s Live LP It’s Too Late To Stop Now is sometimes mentioned amongst the greatest live records ever made.  My personal favorite is 1972′s Saint Dominic’s Preview, but I’m not really mad for Van.  I saw his Avalon Sunset Tour at Boston’s Orpheum Theatre in 1989 and almost fell asleep.  Sorry Van.  Intentionally there were no hits, but even if there had been; I really only went because of this girl I was dating at the time.  I wasn’t expecting a rockin’ show and I didn’t get one.  Van Morrison is larger than life itself, but I swear, if you skim 25 songs off the top you could be happy with his work.

I don’t want to say that I don’t like Van Morrison.  That is obviously not true or I would not be posting about him.  The thing is, I worked at a bouncer, all 160 lbs of me at the time…if only that were true today, at The Bull & Finch Pub (Cheers) in 1984 and 1985.  We had this DJ that played Van Morrison until I thought I was going to lose my lunch.  It wouldn’t have been so bad if he mixed in “Wavelength” or “Blue Money” once in a while, but no….it was straight “Brown-Eyed Girl” and “Moondance” until I didn’t care if I ever heard those songs ever again.   The girls love Van The Man.   Like Cetera (!).  I get that.  Really I do, but the guy has been a crooner for decades now.   Pop music, if that is what you want to call his once fresh sounding Irish Folk Rock, is a thing of Morrison’s past if you ask me.  Any artist is going to be pulverized back to the stone age if their catalogue is reduced to five songs, but in Morrison’s case the rest was sit down and pay attention ballads.  Usually last of my list on things to listen to at home.  That doesn’t make me right or wrong, it just makes me a respectful Van Morrison fan from a distance.   I own everything up until Avalon Sunset (1989), but I took a pass on the rest.  I don’t even listen to Astral Weeks that much to be honest.  I love Tupelo Honey (1971) and Saint Dominic’s Preview.  Even Moondance is still very listenable if you skip the title track (repetition, not quality is the reason for that remark).  There are several very good Van Morrison songs amongst those first ten or so records, but nobody ever hears them anymore.   He’s only got five songs don’t you know (insert sarcasm here)?  Most people would call themselves Van Morrison fans I would venture.

Van Morrison’s career began in earnest fronting the seminal Irish band Them in the 60′s.  Patti Smith’s cover of “Gloria” (as in G-L-O-R-I-A)” in 1975 reminded everyone, in case anyone forgot, just how great Them were.   You may remember “Here Comes The Night,” which is actually a Bert Berns tune (Berns also wrote “Hang On Sloopy, Piece of My Heart, Cry Baby, 25 Miles and Twist and Shout” just to name a few of his masterpieces) first recorded by Lulu and The Luvvers, as well.  David Bowie did a nice rendition on his 1973 covers LP “Pinups” as well.   If you are wondering, Bert Berns was a seven year veteran of the famous Brill Building; a songwriter’s haven noted for other superstar writers like Carole King and Neil Sedaka.  But 1965 was a long, long time ago.  Morrison began writing solo material in 1967 and released a little known single called “Brown-Eyed Girl” on his first solo LP Blowin’ Your Mind.  Them eventually broke up in the early 70′s and Morrison was free to continue down the solo path without friction.   He was definitely living the poor man’s starving artist’s existence for many years, but by the mid 70′s he was on his way to legend status.   Boston, in particular, latched onto the Irish born Morrison because he chose to live here for a spell in the late 60′s.   I’ve heard second hand tales of him palling around with Peter Wolf of the J. Geils Band, so if that’s true it’s no wonder he has a strong foothold here in Boston.  Classic Rock will not let go of his early 70′s songs in this market, but I suspect it’s true of other markets across the country as well.  Nobody doesn’t know the name Van Morrison.

I have to run and see Iggy Pop tonight…talk about the other end of the spectrum, but I wanted to jot down a few thoughts about Van The Man and leave you with a couple of my favorite Van tunes.  Happy birthday Van.  I may not be your exact market, but don’t take it personally.  You are still a legend.  Live on in good health.

Van Morrison – Saint Dominic’s Preview.mp3

Van Morrison – Tupelo Honey.mp3

Van Morrison – And It Stoned Me.mp3

Buy or Download Still On Top: The Greatest Hits from Amazon here.

The Giant Panther is finally getting married, this October, which *ahem* may somewhat account for the lack of writing on the good ol’ blog as of late.  Many of our readers don’t even realize there are two people writing for the Giant Panther.  Ryan/Giant Panther(me), and John Jay (the better half of Giant Panther).  I’ve already tasked him with this as well, but now it’s time for you, our readers to weigh in!

I’m currently suffering from a severe case of information overload, or analysis paralysis.  I’m a DJ, music lover, and music blogger and I’m struggling to pick songs for the upbeat dancing portion of our wedding.  There will be no YMCA, We Are Family, Macarena, Lady Gaga, or anything else most of my guests will probably want to hear.  We are an indie family to be and that’s how we want to celebrate our wedding.

So we want to hear from you, please drop a comment with your favorite songs that always get you out on to the dance floor at weddings! We’re not going to stick with any particular era or genre, think 80s underground, new wave, 70s funk, old school hip hop, 90s, and more recent indie music that gets your feet tapping.

After (if) the comments come in and we’ve had a chance to work on a playlists I’ll be sure to post again with our playlists in hopes that it helps some other music fans out there tie the knot in style.  Thanks in advance and thanks for reading our blog!

I included a few gems I have been able to already nail down for the big day.

-Ryan and Mrs. Giant Panther

King Floyd – Groove Me

The Greyboy Allstars – How Glad I Am

James Brown – She’s the One

Mary J Blige – Real Love Remix (with Biggie)

I visited Austin, TX twice if memory serves.  The first time was in 1998.  I was attending some education conference aimed at schools and teachers and was pedaling filtering software at the time.   I remember attending with one or two other folks from my company, but when it came time to take in some Blues after hours I had no takers.  Incredible.  Here we have one of the top five Blues cities in the country at our disposal and folks were worried about getting up on short rest and standing at a trade show the next day.  Geesh.  I don’t know about you folks, but if I’m in Chicago, anywhere in the Mississippi Delta, Austin, Nashville, St Louis or New York City I’m going to find me some Blues.  No excuses.   Not the folks I was traveling with that day, that’s for sure.  I know I’ve told this story in one of my posts in the past, but I wandered in and out of Blues bars on 6th Street for a couple of hours before I stumbled on an artist named Matt Powell.  He was pushing a record called The Money & The Green Grass.  The place was half empty, but I decided to come in because I like what I heard from the street.   The experience was everything I thought it would be.  I bought Matt’s CD between sets and for maybe $5 I saw two great sets.  Authentic Blues from Texas.  I can’t imagine what it must have been like to have stumbled upon a young Stevie Ray Vaughan (SRV) in much the same manner.   That’s Austin.

The second time I was in Austin had to be around 2004.  Don’t quote me because I can’t quite remember.   I do know that after dinner with clients I made a beeline for Antone’s and had about six people with me.  The place was empty, it had to be a Monday night or some such thing, but I was standing on hallowed ground.    I led a procession of commemorative servings of brown water and had a ball.  I couldn’t have been there for more than an hour (mob rules), but I loved it.   Dark, dirty, huge, live music, whiskey and history.   I knew that Stevie Ray Vaughan had once played there so I knew I was going to go there.  No questions asked.  Again, it was everything I was looking for as I anticipated the experience.  Sassy bartenders, grungy looking ZZ Top types milling about, Texas decor, a warehouse feel to the place and Blues.  Beautiful.

I was reading my favorite Rock magazine, Classic Rock (August 2010), when I stumbled on an article about the twenty year anniversary of the death of Stevie Ray Vaughan.  I have purposely sidestepped my affinity for the Blues on The Giant Panther for a number of reasons.  Lord knows I write about a lot of older music here, but if I start in on the Blues too I’ll be really peeling back the years.   Plus there are some great Blues Blogs doing a fantastic job of keeping the genre alive these days.  I couldn’t possibly do the Blues any justice, not that I’m doing anything any justice actually, but I don’t want to create any more confusion than I already have here.  Hopefully folks know that we do cover Indie Rock (that’s where Ryan comes in) and I mostly write about whatever strikes my fancy as my Sony iPod like device rocks me daily.  Reading Classic Rock Magazine and delving into the story of the death of SRV, I was moved to make comment today.  It’s incredible that twenty years have passed since August 27, 1990.

For those of you who don’t know the story, Stevie Ray Vaughan was participating in a Blues extravaganza at Wisconsin’s Alpine Valley Ski Resort.  He was performing with other Blues legends like Eric Clapton, Robert Cray, Buddy Guy and his brother Jimmie Ray Vaughan.  According to Classic Rock Magazine roughly 25,000 folks were on hand for the final song SRV ever played; Robert Johnson’s “Sweet Home Chicago.”  It was an All-Star Jam.  I don’t know much about Wisconsin and the terrain there, but four Bell 260B helicopters were scheduled to transport the artists from the ski resort to Chicago’s Meigs Field.  I would imagine it was considered faster than driving to the closest airport, but I’d just be speculating.   I have, unfortunately, never been to Wisconsin.  Or Montana.  Or Minnesota.  It’s just sad actually.  Anyway, the helicopters were scheduled to take off one after the other at two minute intervals.  The artists and their entourages were to be scooped up and transported to Chicago.  I’m not clear on whether anyone cared about who rode with whom, but the first, second and fourth helicopters arrived in Chicago safely even as fog surrounded the ski resort helipad.  SRV was riding with members of Eric Clapton’s entourage when his number came up.   His helicopter failed to clear something through the fog and never made the successful voyage to Chicago.   I’ve never ridden in a helicopter, but even on TV I never liked my odds of surviving a malfunction in one of those things.  After hearing this story I’m definitely excited to give in a whirl (sorry) aren’t you?

The death of Stevie Ray Vaughan was a major blow to the Lone Star State.  They had lost Buddy Holly many years before, but this one really hurt.  SRV had just turned his life around after battling demon alcohol.  He was clean and playing like his life depended on it.  The Blues community was beside itself.   There was no other way to describe it.  Buddy Guy, John Hammond & Albert King, among others, were all old school and mentors to a young Stevie Ray Vaughan, but Blues was on the wane, in my personal opinion, at least commercially, until Robert Cray’s 1987 LP Classic Strong Persuader put in right back in the mainstream where it belongs.   Eric Clapton had been carrying the torch for decades by this time, but sometimes even his message got a little muddied by trying new sounds over the 70′s & 80′s.   Eric Clapton was also, after all, tied to English Blues legend John Mayall so even though he was still making music he was considered more old school than new school.  Robert Cray was a more polished version of the Blues, but he remains an extremely important cog in the new Blues wheel.   SRV was old school, but new school at the same time.   He and Cray converted a whole new legion of fans to the Blues.   People wanted to compare Stevie Ray Vaughan to James Marshall Hendrix, but while he covered Voodoo Chile, his sound was his own.  Powerful doesn’t begin to describe his magic.

Personally I saw Stevie Ray Vaughan peform twice although it seems like more.  I can only prove, by way of ticket stubs, that I attended his Monday November 24th, 1986 show at Boston’s Orpheum Theatre.   I even sat in a balcony seat, which I’m not wont to do very often, for a whopping $16.95.  I recall hearing much of the Soul To Soul (1985) LP that time around.   The next time I saw SRV was Wednesday July 1, 1987 at The Great Woods Center For The Performing Arts (Take that Comcast!) in Mansfield, MA.   I had a seat in the 22nd row center for $18.50 and had no idea that would be it for me and SRV at the time.   What a magnificent event.   And of course I took it for granted.  I’d be seeing Stevie again very soon no doubt.  Wrong.   Man I hate it when great artists are taken from us early.   The poor guy didn’t even make it to 36 years of age.  Withdrawal doesn’t really convey the disappointment.   The good news is that SRV was around long enough to make six studio albums, five live albums and ten compilations.  I don’t know where you can go wrong in there, but Texas Flood (1983) and Couldn’t Stand The Weather (1984) are considered Blues classics.  I’m also a big fan of 1999′s posthumous release In Session (with Albert King) and The Blues at Sunrise compilation released in 2000.  Also, don’t overlook his 1991 release The Sky is Crying with its wicked cover of the Hendrix classic “Little Wing.”

There is not much else to say that hasn’t already been said about Stevie Ray Vaughan, but I thought it important to recognize the 20th anniversary of his passing today.   I think all fans of the Blues should take a minute or two to listen to at least one SRV song to commemorate the occasion.  R.I.P. big guy.  We miss you dearly.

Jimmie Vaughan & Friends – Six Strings Down.mp3

Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble – Cold Shot.mp3

Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble – Tightrope.mp3

Buy or Download The Essential Stevie Ray Vaughan from Amazon here.

Today is Declan Patrick MacManus’ birthday.   Elvis Costello was born on August 25, 1954 in London, England.   Let me just say this right here and now; if Elvis had packed it in after his first three albums I could have lived with it.  I know that line of thinking is sacrilege amongst the faithful, but I liked Elvis Costello & The Attractions.  Shoot me.  I’m wise enough to recognize Elvis Costello has had a long and legendary career; I’m doing this post for instance, but I could be very happy with the first three records and a double CD greatest hits package (a real one with the exact best tracks and not one moment of forethought given to what was played on the radio).  Clearly Costello has talent.  I’m not much for his ballads, which seem to be 92% of everything he ever released, but I can certainly recognize the beauty of something like “Alison (My Aim is True).”

The thing is, Costello was an angry young man once upon a time even though he once wrote a song telling us he wasn’t.  That’s the Elvis Costello I loved.   Part Elvis Presley, part Day Costello (his father’s stage name), Elvis had an usual voice and was part of the New Wave of artists in the late 70′s that coincided with the rise of Punk Rock.  Beginning in 1977 with this first single for Stiff Records (and arguably still one of his best songs in my opinion) “Less Than Zero,” Elvis Costello and his band, later on to become known as The Attractions, ripped off three classic records called My Aim is True, This Year’s Model (1978) and Armed Forces (1979).  No self respecting college kid at that time (Hey!  That was me!) would be without them.  Chicks loved ‘em, dudes loved ‘em and they were standard party fare by 1980.  Radio loved ‘em too.  My Aim is True spawned several fantastically radio friendly singles.  You may recall “Miracle Man, (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes, Less Than Zero, Waiting For The End of The World (another absolute personal favorite of mine), Alison,” and, for The U.S. crowd, the greatest single of them all; “Watching The Detectives.”  It was unusual for a record to chart six songs from one release back then.  That trend would soon change, but by all measures Elvis Costello’s first record, credited to just Elvis Costello alone, was a smashing success.  The fact that you still hear his music on Classic Rock radio really says a lot about the quality of his early stuff.  You may recall in December 1977 Costello famously aborted the scheduled Saturday Night Live performance of “Less Than Zero” and blasted into Radio, Radio.  It was stunt that got him a ton of notoriety, but also got him banned from SNL until 1989.  That was ballsy.   It ranks up there with The Doors’ Jim Morrison singing the lyric “higher” from “Light My Fire” when the folks at Ed Sullivan forbade him to in September of 1967.  Compare that to Mick Jagger and The Rolling Stones acquiescing to the censors in January of 1967 by singing “Let’s Spend Some Time Together” instead of “Let’s Spend The Night Together.”  How provincial we were huh?  Seems silly today no?

A year later Elvis hit us with This Year’s Model.  Another great record.   This album wasn’t quite as radio friendly as My Aim is True, but the single everyone remembers is “Pump It Up.”  “I loved (I Don’t Want To Go To) Chelsea, This Year’s Girl, Radio, Radio and The Beat,” but as a consumer Elvis mania was all the rage.  Some didn’t think this one measured up to the first record, and they’d have discussion merit, but Elvis was so hip he got a pass on the dreaded Sophomore Slump.  In reality there is no such thing in this case, but it reminded me a bit of when The Cars’ sophomore record Candy-O was released around the same time.  Everybody wanted another The Cars and when they didn’t get it, it took a bit of time to absorb how great Candy-O really was.   If you ever thought Elvis Costello was going to be a flash in the Pan, 1979′s Armed Forces put that to a crushing rest.   “(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love & Understanding” turned out to be the biggest single on this record, but “Green Shirt, Accidents Will Happen and “Oliver’s Army” were terrific songs.   After Armed Forces something started to change.  For one thing the tight 10-12 song rockin’ Elvis album was beginning to be a thing of the past.   Radio began to shy away from his music a bit.  Not because it wasn’t any good, but because there really weren’t too many hits on any given record.  He would continue recording with The Attractions right up until 1986′s Blood & Chocolate, but the thrill was gone if you enjoyed his short angry fast paced ditties.

1980′s Get Happy!! gave us “I Can’t Stand Up For Falling Down,” but that wasn’t even really his song (that would be Sam & Dave of “Hold On, I’m Comin’ fame).  The songs were short enough as a rule, but there wasn’t much there for radio to sink its teeth into.   In fairness, Get Happy!! wasn’t a complete departure from form for Elvis Costello, but it did signal a slight move away from intentionally radio friendly material.   It was around this time that The Attractions began to splinter according to what I’ve read.   1981′s Trust brought us “Watch Your Step, Clubland and From a Whisper To a Scream.”  “Watch You Step” was a great song, but things were changing fast.  Later that same year, not five months later Almost Blue was released.  Costello’s love of Country music was starting to impose its will.   There were no radio friendly singles on Almost Blue.   1982′s Imperial Bedroom gave us “Beyond Belief, Almost Blue (Don’t you hate it when a record is named for a song that doesn’t get released until a later record?  Think Houses of The Holy…) and Man Out of Time.”  Piano, not guitar, started to dominate the Costello sound.   We were now getting 20 plus songs and maybe two singles per record about now.   Not a good combination.

There were plenty of good songs from here on out; just not enough of them.  I know artists like to grow and change and once you’ve made enough money you can do what you like, but I was disappointed.  I keep buying his records up until 1989′s Spike, but after that I gave up listening for the next Armed Forces.  If you are an Elvis Costello fan you will recognize several of these tracks; from 1983′s Punch The Clock “Everyday I Write The Book and Shipbuilding,” from 1984′s Goodbye Cruel World “The Only Flame in Town,” from 1986′s Blood & Chocolate “Tokyo Storm Warning,” and from 1989′s Spike “Veronica.”   Great singles, but there was a ton of material released surrounding these songs and I’ll admit it; he lost me.  I know, because I read the music trade rags, that some of these albums, plus several of the ones I didn’t even mention, are favorites of the critics, but the critics aren’t always right.   In fact, if it was my job to be a critic I don’t know how successful I would be.  I like to take my time and enjoy a new release.  I couldn’t listen to a record a couple of times, pass myself off as having absorbed it and then try to speak to the public with any authority.   I know Elvis Costello married Jazz pianist Diana Krall in 2003 and that his tastes are all over the map, but I haven’t been following his career post 1990.  I’m sure there are great songs in there somewhere, but I feel like I have to work much too hard to locate them.  I’m open to being set straight, but it’s hard for me to get past my opening premise; that the first three Elvis Costello records are his best.  Right or wrong the Giant Panther would like to extend good health wishes and birthday greetings to Mr Elvis Costello.

Elvis Costello – Waiting For The End of The World.mp3

Elvis Costello – This Year’s Girl.mp3

Elvis Costello – Green Shirt.mp3

Buy or Download The Best of Elvis Costello: The First Ten Years from Amazon here.

Monday August 23, 2010 would have been Keith John Moon’s 64th birthday.   Now it’s just another reminder that excess will eventually catch up to you sooner or later.  Musicians that seem to disappear prematurely have a way of bothering music fans more than most early deaths.   You have their albums and hopefully there are many before their time comes, but it always leaves you wanting more.  Getting cut down in the prime of your life, let alone your musical career, is just sad.   And frustrating.   As a life long Who fan I still miss Keith Moon.   No matter how many times I hear ”Bargain” I always think of the drumming.   Man could this guy play.  I’ve seen what’s left of The Who dozens of times, but I never saw Keith Moon play.   I was only eighteen when September 7, 1978 rolled around and Moon passed away.   Most people think he partied himself to death, but his death was an accident really.   He was trying to battle his alcohol demons by ingesting prescription sedatives.  Unfortunately, as usual, Keith Moon overdid it.   It’s hard to argue that taking 32 tablets of Clomethiazole in one sitting is the smart thing to do, but there were other factors involved with that decision it seems.  It had to be more than just alcohol didn’t it?  They say 26 of those pills were never even digested.  Not good.

 In 1970 Keith Moon was involved in an accident that haunted him for the rest of his days.   In early January Moon was attempting to protect his Bentley, which was being damaged by some “fans” outside an English bar called The Red Lion Pub in Hertfordshire.  Moon had been drinking, surprise, and inadvertently was involved in running over his friend and bodyguard, Neil Boland, as result of trying to flee.   There are still questions as to whether Moon was actually driving, but that didn’t stop him from feeling guilty and having awful nightmares.   They say he was always a damn the torpedoes type party guy, but some say this put him into overdrive.  I don’t know how I’d handle it if I was responsible, in any way, shape or form, for the death of another human being so it’s hard to criticize his methods of self medicating.   I won’t even try.  I wouldn’t call his behavior a death wish, but there are folks who believed he thought he didn’t deserve to live after what happened to Neil Boland.   It’s a theory anyway.

By all accounts Keith Moon was a fun loving guy with a big heart.   He may have had a personality disorder because he had periodic displays of violence from time to time.   He loved to smash things like toilets and TVs (it’s probably what made him such a great drummer) and allegedly once drove a Cadillac into a swimming pool, but that might be more lore than fact.   He famously ingested animal tranquilizers and mixed them with brandy before a 1973 performance at The Cow Palace in San Francisco during the Quadrophenia Tour.   He made it about forty minutes until he literally was relieved mid show by a fan named Scot Halpin.   He had passed out.   A kid from Iowa had to finish the show with Pete, John and Roger.  Unfortunately Halpin is no longer with us having passed on in 2009, but what a story no?  Another in a myriad of stories that add to the Moon legend is his remark to Jimmy Page that led to the eventual naming of his new band Led Zeppelin.   He was referring to something going over like a lead balloon, but used the term “lead Zeppelin” instead.  Page adroitly spelled lead “Led” so that it would always be pronounced correctly, but latched onto to that phraseology big time.   Good job Keith!

I don’t think we’ll ever know everything we’d like to know about Keith Moon.  Separating fact from fiction is always a chore with Rock Stars.   They are generally more responsible than they would like the public to believe, but with Moon it’s hard to tell if that was true.   All I know is I loved the way he attacked the drum kit.  He had this great way of spacing his cascading drum rolls with split second tension building pauses.  I have no idea what I’m talking about to be truthful, but if I had to pick a drummer to be my favorite I’d be leaning towards Keith Moon.  He just does it for me.  The Who can still produce great shows without The Ox and Moonie, but it just isn’t the same.   I’m going to rummage around my Who collection now and see what I can drum up (sorry) for reasonable examples of what I’m on about here.   I’m very sorry Keith isn’t around today to celebrate his birthday, but we at The Giant Panther (well maybe just me) are thinking about him.

The Who – I’ve Had Enough.mp3

The Who – Put The Money Down.mp3

The Who – My Wife.mp3

Buy or Download The Who: The Ultimate Collection from Amazon here.

I don’t know about you, but I’m psyched about today’s post.   Rock God Robert Plant was born on August 20, 1948.  Today is his 62nd birthday.  Isaac Hayes was also born today, but he’ll have to wait until next year for his post.  But I’m talkin’ ’bout Shaft!  Too bad.  Robert Plant is one of my all time favorite Rock & Roll personalities.  Yeah Zeppelin is wedged into my front four (Beatles, Stones, Who, Zeppelin) somewhere, but it’s more than that.  I’ve seen Robert Plant perform both solo, with Jimmy Page and with Alison Krauss.  I loved them all to death.  I never did get to see Led Zeppelin proper thanks to the death of Robert Plant’s son Karac in 1977, but I was scheduled to come face to face with them at the venerable Madison Square Garden that year.   Kind of like when a rookie goes to The World Series in his first year I thought Zeppelin would be around for years to come.  I could see them anytime.  I was disappointed, but I wasn’t nearly as broken up about as I probably should have been.

Led Zeppelin is on the cover of this month’s Classic Rock Magazine.  I haven’t even opened the thing yet, but the cover is awesome.   It’s the cover of Physical Graffiti, one of my all time favorite records, as well as the picture of the adjoined apartment buildings at 96-98 St Mark’s Place in New York City.   They say the upper floor had to be cropped out so that the building matched the square format of the record album cover.  Man 1975 was a long time ago.  I know I’ve mentioned this in past posts, but this same stoop is where The Rolling Stones shot the video for “Waiting On a Friend” from 1981′s Tattoo You.   The builder of the building should be proud.   A slice of Rock history.  According to our friends at Wikipedia, the basement of the building currently houses a used clothing store that goes by the name of, you guessed it, Physical Graffiti.  Ah Capitalism.

Led Zeppelin, as you know, was forced to disband upon learning of the death of Mr John Henry Bonham.   Bonham allegedly consumed some 40 shots of Vodka on September 24th 1980 and was officially pronounced dead the next day at the age of 32.  Let that be a lesson to you youngsters out there.   I can’t imagine inhaling 40 shots of anything, let alone vodka.   My personal best without losing lunch is probably six shots of Jack Daniels.  No Rock Star I.   Robert Plant and Jimmy Page along with John Paul Jones decided to go Cold Turkey on the Led Zeppelin thing as a result of Bonham’s passing.  I don’t begrudge their decision really, but man that one hurt at the time.  A Posthumous Odds & Sods (borrowing liberally from the criminally underrated Who throwaway track album) like release called Coda put an end to Led Zeppelin’s catalogue.  In a not so funny sort of way, Bonham’s passing and the subsequent demise of Led Zeppelin ensured that every single song they ever recorded made it onto the air at Rock Stations, Classic and otherwise, over the years.  Nine studio records and some 40 years later we are still straining for more Led Zeppelin.   Naturally Led Zeppelin is in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, but it’s really something how people still love to get the Led out.  I stand 1000% with those people.  I can remember vividly when Led Zeppelin was lock up your daughters, run for your life (to quote Bon Scott) material.   They were the devil’s disciples.  Didn’t you read Hammer of The Gods?  My God what’s wrong with you?  Now?  Elevator fare.  Society is bleeped up sometimes…

Robert Plant could have been just another lead singer who lost his band.  He could have been exposed as a no talent poser.  Wrong.  Wrong.  Wrong.   His first solo album, which in my mind is still his best, was called Pictures at Eleven and came out in 1982.  You’d have thought Led Zeppelin had gotten back together.   I still listen to this record often.   It was a natural progression from the softer tones of In 1979′s In Through The Out Door.   I know there was no Jimmy Page, but I just loved this album.  Not too long after this masterpiece, Plant sprung The Principle of Moments on us in 1983.  This might be the masses favorite post Zeppelin release.  It probably sold the most without checking.  “Big Log” and “In The Mood” were mood (sorry) pieces, but the public, who might have been prepared for this record, sopped it up like bread gets to New England clam chowder.  I was working at WBCN at the time and I heard these two songs about 500 times in the first six months after their respective releases.  What the public didn’t know what that the rest of the record was flat special.   I don’t think he’s made a record quite as good since.  “Messin’ With The Mekon, Stranger Here…Than Over There, Wreckless Love, Horizontal Departure, Thru With The Two Step”…these songs absolutely rock.  “Other Arms,” the other “hit” from the record, did OK, but those other five songs made the record great.

Subsequent Robert Plant studio releases, and have something to write home about, but Shaken ’N’ Stirred, Now & Zen, Manic Nirvana, Fate of Nations, Dreamland, Mighty ReArranger and, eventually, Band of Joy had a lot to live up to after those first two.  I own (or will own in the case of Band of Joy, which can’t get here fast enough for my liking) them all and know them all inside and out.   I like them all, don’t get me wrong, but the first two really stand out for me.  I absolutely loved Page & Plant’s 1994 release No Quarter and play that one fairly often as well.  Raising Sand was fun, but it seemed like an extension of Dreamland to me.   No complaints though.  His solo stuff was getting a little complacent in my opinion and that’s a diehard fan talking.   I though 1998′s Walking Into Clarksdale with Jimmy Page was great as well.   The Honeydrippers were fun, but I don’t miss them.   I  was having breakfast at a diner recently that plays only oldies and heard the original “Sea of Love” (Phil Phillps) and had to chuckle.

I can’t say anything about Led Zeppelin that hasn’t already been said.  I’m just a fan.  But Robert Plant is definitely one of my Rock heroes.  Sounds quaint for a 50 year old man to have a man crush on an aging Rock Star, but so be it.   The first time I heard When The Levee Breaks or Whole Lotta Love I was dumbstruck.  Who are these guys?  This is the band for me.  No questions asked.   Just because everybody else and their brother now loves them too I’m not about to abandon them.   I bawled like a baby seeing Page & Plant perform at Boston Garden in 1995 and then again at The Fleetcenter (Boston Garden with a major face lift) in 1998.  I don’t care who knows it.   Happy Birthday Robert from The Giant Panther.   Thank you so much for everything!

P.S.  Does anyone out there know where I can buy or download The Priory of Brion sessions?  I have some of the Sheffield recordings, but I’d like to buy all of them if I can find some very good quality.   Thanks in advance my friends…

Robert Plant – 29 Palms.mp3

Robert Plant – Pledge Pin.mp3

Robert Plant – Horizontal Departure.mp3

Buy or Download Picture at Eleven from Amazon here.

What are synonyms for prickly?  Cantankerous?  Crotchety?  Ornery?  Cranky?  Testy?  A Case could be made that legendary drummer Ginger Baker is all of these things.   Jack Bruce is no picnic, but Ginger Baker, if you read Eric Clapton’s Biography, Clapton, it seems pretty clear that Baker was the uncompromising force that eventually split up Cream.   Cream, for the uninitiated, was a power trio in the mid to late 60′s that shook up the Rock world.   Rolling Stone Magazine, according to our good friends at Wikipedia, named Baker the third greatest drummer of all time.   That is high praise indeed.  Very high.   Those other two drummers had better be named Moon and Bonham or I’m cancelling my subscription.   Still, what Cream meant to the world of Rock music cannot be understated.   Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker and Jack Bruce co-existed for four years (1966-1969) and four studio records.  It feels like much more to me.   Fresh Cream, Disreali Gears, Wheels of Fire and Goodbye Cream seem larger than life to this blogger.   Four records can get you into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.  I didn’t know that.   I’m not arguing in the least, but that’s really something.   As a baseball fan, Hall of Fame status usually requires some amount of longevity.  A dominate status over a period of say, ten years.   In Rock apparently you just need to dominate period.   Well, amen to Cream and their domination.   Spectacular.

When I was a boy of maybe seven or eight, my neighbor Tim Schneider and I used to hang around his house after school.  His older brother Dickie (I haven’t had contact with these two in over 40 years, but I remember this stuff like it was yesterday) was a fan of The Rolling Stones, The Beatles and Cream.  He would play his records on his parents stereo in the living room at 11.  I mean ear splitting volume.   The first time I heard the Rolling Stones’ classic “Street Fighting Man” I heard it loud.   Thank you Dickie, wherever you are today.   I was sold on the spot.   I’ve been a fan ever since.   The other song Dickie would consistently wail for us was “Sunshine of Your Love” by Cream.  This song still gives me chills today.  I know many of you have heard it so many times you don’t even hear it when it comes on.   That’s how I feel about Robert Palmer’s “Bad Case of Loving You.”  I don’t even hear it when it comes on the radio.  Not that I should be listening to any station that plays it, but the DJs on my local Alternative/Indie Rock station are just kids.  And irritating ones at that.   I’m so down on radio it’s not funny and it was my first true love.  Oh well.

Eric Clapton was a troubadour of sorts bouncing from band to band in the 60′s.  Clearly the guy was beyond talented, but he didn’t seem to have much compromise in his bones either.   I mean The Yardbirds, John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, Cream,  Blind Faith, Delaney & Bonnie, Derek & The Dominos, Solo career…enough already.  I don’t know, maybe that’s what it takes to achieve what he’s achieved.   We all know it was The Blues or bust in his world, but there sure seemed to be more flight than fight when it came to working with difficult musicians.   Cream was something else.   It’s no accident that when they reunited in 2005 for a handful of shows at Madison Square Garden and Royal Albert Hall that tickets were at a premium.   The concert, even though I wasn’t privileged enough to attend, sounds wonderful.  I’m not surprised.

Old Blues numbers drove Cream for the most part.  “Spoonful, Born Under a Bad Sign, Rollin’ and Tumblin’, Cat’s Squirrel, Outside Woman Blues, Sitting On Top of The World, Crossroads and I’m So Glad” were a nice foundation for their catalogue.  Their original tunes though were the ones that folks got into the most.  “Sunshine of Your Love, White Room, Badge, Strange Brew, SWLABR and Tales of Brave Ulysses” are still played on Classic Rock radio to this very day.   There is just something about the way these guys played this music that makes it timeless.  The Blues are timeless, I get that, but most of their songs were played at a measured and slow pace that built to a crescendo of sorts.   Blues Rock at it’s finest.

Today is Ginger Baker’s 71st birthday if my math is correct.  Born August 19, 1939 in South London, Baker fancies himself a Jazz drummer.   He suffers from Arthritis these days, but back in his heyday he used two bass drums as opposed to one bass drum and one kick bass drum.  How that translates to his sound I’ll leave for real musicians to discuss.   He apparently played harder with one hand and softer with another.   Again, I know nothing about drumming.  I know he sounded great, but why?  I can’t help you there.   After Cream and Blind Faith Baker had his own band called Air Force for a time.  He also teamed up with some bands you wouldn’t expect him to in Hawkwind, Atomic Rooster and Public Image Limited.   As you can see in the picture directly above he has a couple of palm prints on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.  I was reading an article about him in Classic Rock Magazine recently and he trashed everyone from Led Zeppelin to The Beatles.   He complained about Rock Music being so loud.  Baker no longer cares for Rock music and he sounds bitter as all get out.  Well, there’s nothing we can do about that here at The Giant Panther, but we can pay tribute to one of Rock’s legends.  Happy Birthday GB.

Cream – Toad.mp3

Cream – Blue Condition.mp3

Cream – White Room (Live).mp3

Buy or Download Strange Brew: The Very Best of Cream from Amazon here.

OK, today is August 16th.  In 1958 Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone was born in Bay City, Michigan.  I wouldn’t exactly call Madonna a “Rock Star,” but nobody can deny that she is a Superstar.   I have to tell you, in 1984 I hated Madonna.   I thought she stood for disposable Pop Music and that she’d be gone inside of five years.  Boy was I wrong.  The biggest stars in the music world at that time were Michael Jackson, Bruce Springsteen, Prince & U2.   Then there was Madonna with her singles “Like a Virgin, Material Girl, Holiday, Borderline, Lucky Star, Into The Groove and Dress You Up.”  I worked at a now defunct nightclub in Boston called The Commons around this time.  It’s now a Bennigan’s or some such thing, but it was the biggest draw in the then new Copley Plaza Mall.  I was working as a bar back in the club and every Thursday, Friday and Saturday night this place drew four wide one hundred person long lines.  Every so often a local band like Fat City might play there, but the majority of the time it was a DJ playing Madonna, Chic, Grandmaster Flash or whatever quasi danceable fare they were serving up back in the day.  We’d get celebrities and scores of wannabes just pouring in to dance and score.   You might hear “White Lines” by Grandmaster Flash or “White Horse” by Laidback for all too obvious reasons.  Throw in a Robert Parish sighting and I don’t have to draw you a map.   The Go-Go 80′s indeed.  There were absolutely no consequences…at least that is what we thought at the time.

I could handle all of that for eleven hours four days a week, but I couldn’t take the mind numbing constant steam of “No Parking On The Dance Floor” or “Le Freak” twice a night four days a week.  “Like a Virgin” might have been the biggest offender.   Look, I had no standing, I could have quit and worked somewhere else, but the scenery and the money were worth the aggravation.  I eventually was terminated for an alleged attitude problem, but one of the underlying reasons was that the GM and I had designs on the same girl.  Problem solved.   I remember not even really wanting the job in the first place.  I interviewed after leaving another quality job (kidding), working at T.G.I. Fridays.  When they didn’t hire me right away I went back in to find out why.  I learned a good lesson about not complaining about your previous employer in any interview, but the fools took me on anyway.   I lasted maybe eight months.   Enough to get used to Madonna I guess.  The Commons eventually folded up its tent maybe a year later.  I think the owner ended up going to jail in a situation not unlike Bernie Madoff, at least in terms of ethical behaviour.   I do recall he brought both of his restaurant staffs to his home and had us all play a real life game of Let’s Make a Deal with his ill gotten cash.  I remember thinking how ironic when he got caught.

Where were we?  Oh yeah…Madge.  Madonna moved to New York City in 1977 to find her way in the world of Modern Dance.   Within six years she had a record deal (Sire Records, owned by Warner Brothers) and released her debut album Madonna in 1983.   She initially played in a band called Breakfast Club before leaving to form a band called Emmy in 1980.   A New York City club DJ named Mark Kamins is generally credited with putting Madonna in touch with Sire Records founder Seymour Stein.   The rest is history.   Madonna’s sound bordered on Disco, which is why I didn’t take much of a shine to it initially, and danceable R&B.   You may recall a one time music television station called MTV was now making and breaking bands around that time.  Madonna, who could dance anyway, began marketing an entire image complete with fishnet stockings, jewelry, bleached hair and all kinds of things with the help of her videos.  To say it took off totally doesn’t even do what happened justice.   Women began dressing like Madonna and her music was everywhere.  “Like a Virgin” spent six weeks at #1 on The Billboard Charts and she parlayed her near instant worldwide fame into a bit of an acting career.  Madonna appeared in Desperately Seeking Susan, a 1985 movie starring Rosanna Arquette, Aidan Quinn and Laurie Metcalf, making her even more of a household name, and introduced the world to her new hit single “Into The Groove” at the time.  She never looked back.

As far as I was concerned I was still no Madonna convert.  I fought her music, even as a Guilty Pleasure, until the late 90′s.   Finally, an old friend whom I’ve known since high school, says he bought a copy of Madonna’s 1998 record Ray of Light and loved it.   Blasphemy I said!   Not me…no way.   The thing is, I trusted him.  I knew we had similar tastes in music so I secretly ordered a copy from the now defunct Columbia House Music Club.  No one will know right?  I could just listen in private and be done with it right?  I could subsequently tell my buddy he was way off base and sell my non existent copy to Nuggets in Kenmore Square and never speak of it again.  Well, it didn’t exactly turn out like that.  I remember not too long after that I was over another friend of mine’s place and his girlfriend put on a copy of Madonna’s 2000 CD Music.   I found myself enjoying the hell out of it.  I told no one of course and went out the next day and got a used copy.  “Music” is one of my favorite Madonna tracks today.

Since the turn of the century I’ve become quite the fan of her enduring ability.  I thought 2005′s Confessions On a Dance Floor and 2008′s Hard Candy were very good.  I remember buying a copy of The Immaculate Collection and telling myself it was for the ladies…you know, back to the Peter Cetera commercial I wrote about a couple of weeks back.  The ladies love Madonna…and I love the ladies…therefore I love Madonna…it’s the only way I could “Justify (My Love)” loving songs like “Vogue, Papa Don’t Preach, Lucky Star” and all the rest.  By comparison, Madonna practically rocks these days.  I love “Hung Up” from Confessions.  Look, I’m never gonna sit around with my buddies listening to Madonna, but I’m officially out of the closet.  I don’t care about the cone bras and the Erotica.  I never even found her particularly attractive, but I will say her talent is undeniable.  Even hard bitten rockers like me can relate from time to time.  I might even go see her some day.   Wouldn’t that be a 180 after all the things I have said about her over the years?  If you are out there Madonna you actually made a convert out of an AC/DC fan.  Sure I loved it when you kissed Britney Spears, but that’s not it.   You have real talent.  It just took me a couple of decades to admit it.  Take that one to the grave as a badge of honor if you so desire.  Happy 52nd to you and keep up the good work.

Madonna – Beautiful Stranger.mp3

Madonna – Music.mp3

Madonna – Hung up.mp3

Buy or Download Madonna’s Greatest Hits (Celebration) from Amazon here.

Today is Aerosmith & The J. Geils Band at Fenway Park Day.  I don’t need to see this show.  I’m going to be disappointed with the set list and I’ve seen Geils twice in the last 15 months or so.  It’s a social event.  The acoustics at Fenway Park are putrid and there are only about 50 good seats unless you count the Executive Suites upstairs.  If I had my druthers that is where I would sit for every show.  Paul McCartney last summer was fantastic from that vantage point.   You can see the entire mob, the big screen TV, the weather, the Prudential Center and you have your own beer stand and bathroom.  The beer will still be $10 a pop, but that’s the cost of doing business in this town.   Luckily the weather is going to be mint, as in not hot.  Wish me luck.

Today is David Van Cortlandt Crosby’s 69th birthday.  1941 was a long, long time ago.  Even before this writer’s time.  How he got this far is flat amazing.  I wouldn’t exactly call him Keith Richards, but I read his book Long Time Gone a number of years ago and it was quite apparent that he wasn’t a health nut.  I had to struggle to find reasonably flattering photographs of young David on the Internet.  In most of them he looks like he’s near death.  That’s probably because he was.   So You Want To Be a Rock & Roll Star you say?   It’s a Long Way To The Top as some famous Australians once said.   Imagine if David Crosby played more taxing music?  Those groupies must have been murder.   I have the feeling, give or take some substance abuse, David Crosby wouldn’t change a thing.  Not sure he was expecting to be a sperm donor, but it’s all good.

Say what you will about Crosby, the man could sing.   I can’t sing a lick.  It’s embarrassing.   Not even as well as Bob Dylan or Ozzy Osbourne.  Nothing.   It’s a crying shame too because I love music so much more than the casual fan it’s frightening.  I was never formally trained, even though we’ve established that I’m an Alto, or more accurately was, in 6th grade.  I have zero range before my voice cracks or my vocal chords begin to shred.  Yes, in all my concert going years, I have attempted to sing out loud knowing nobody could hear me.  I only draw attention to myself once in a blue moon.  When The Who took Quadrophenia back on the road again a decade or so ago the people around me knew I knew the words.   That too, was embarrassing, but for different reasons entirely.  Tears of joy are not manly…

So David Crosby was in this seminal 60′s Folk Rock band called The Byrds beginning in 1964.  He player rhythm guitar after trying to play bass initially.  Has joined in The Byrds by Gene Clark, Michael Clarke, Roger McGuinn and Chris Hillman at the onset.  The band had a number of problems over the years, probably due in part to the monster success they enjoyed as a result of a magnificent cover of Bob Dylan’s ”Mr Tambourine Man.”  Few bands sounded as beautiful as did The Byrds.  I don’t know anything about instruments either (another crime), but their 12 string guitar sound was promptly patented by a gazillion bands after them.   Superstar Tom Petty probably represents The Byrds in all its jingle jangle glory today.   His cover of “I’ll Feel a Whole Lot Better” is almost note for note.  Sometimes I hate that in a cover, but not on this one.  Fantastic song, fantastic cover.   The Byrds are famous for a number of tracks including “Eight Miles High, Turn! Turn! Turn!, Chestnut Mare, Jesus is Just Alright and half a dozen Bob Dylan covers.   Truthfully, I didn’t know much about Bob Dylan, one of my heroes, before I heard The Byrds version of “Mr Tambourine Man.”  I was just too young.  I fixed that over the years…

With The Byrds in acromonious turmoil, David Crosby was asked to leave the band around September 1967.  He then stumbled on Stephen Stills in early 1968 at a party and began to jam with him.  Shortly thereafter Hollies great Graham Nash joined the duo to form one of Rock’s all time famous trios.   There was something magic about the three of them singing together.  If you have seen footage of their appearance at Woodstock it might strike you as amazing that they sounded so great in what was only their second public appearance as a band.  It’s kind of hard to describe the scene for me as I was only nine years old in 1969, but Crosby, Stills & Nash was a fantastic debut record.  Classic Rock owns “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes, Teach Your Children, Marrakesh Express, Long Time Gone, Helplessly Hoping and Wooden Ships” to this very day.  There is a ton of Classic Rock music that I don’t care if I ever hear again, but I will never get tired of “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes, Wooden Ships or Long Time Gone.”  Never. 

A couple of years later the legendary Neil Young recorded with the trio.  Deja Vu was released in March 1970 and if you are inclined to like C,S,N & Y and you don’t own this record go sit in the corner.   Deja Vu is a masterpiece of the highest Folk Rock order.  Nothing less.  “Carry On” still sounds magnificent to this day.  “Almost Cut My Hair” is tremendous.  Joni Mitchell’s reworked “Woodstock” is still a classic.   Luckily 1971 brought Four Way Street, a live double album, to really document this magical time.  Take an hour an listen to this record the next time you get a chance.  It’s magic.  It still sounds fresh today.  Check it out.

OK, I’ve GOT to shut it down now.  C,S,N and sometimes Y had a number of successes after 1971, but between Crosby’s substance abuse (allegedly starting in earnest when his long time girlfriend Christine Hinton was killed in an automobile accident in 1969) and Neil’s solo career the alliances sort of came and went.  David Crosby, Stephen Stills, Graham Nash and Neil Young were all monster talents in their own right though none of them had the success of Neil Young.   He’s one of my all time favorite artists.   August 14, 1941 was the day the world met David Crosby and we at The Giant Panther are happy about it.   A gentle soul and a talented musician and a Rock & Roll Hall of Famer twice over, we hope he lives another 25 years.

Crosby, Stills & Nash – Long Time Gone.mp3

Crosby, Stills & Nash – Wooden Ships.mp3

Crosby, Stills & Nash – I Give You Give Blind.mp3

Buy or Download Crosby, Stills & Nash from Amazon here.