Art is the music we make from the bewildered cry of being alive. ~Maria Popova
25 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in Video of the Week Tags: beat it, eddie van halen, michael jackson
25 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in General Posts Tags: beatles, brian ray, paul mccartney
(via Guitar Player) by Joe Bosso
When Brian Ray joined Paul McCartney’s band in 2002, he was tasked with learning more than 40 songs — in one week.
“Fortunately, I listened to the Beatles nonstop throughout my life, so I already knew most of them,” he says. “Of course, it’s much different when you’re playing in a band that, oh yeah, is led by Paul McCartney himself. Needless to say, I immersed myself in the material.”
But Ray quickly discovered that there’s a difference between how the Beatles recorded the songs and how they need to be played onstage,
“It’s one thing to listen to these songs and appreciate them as a fan, as we’ve all done,” he says. “But when you start digging into them and analyzing them, you’re just astounded by the creativity and depth. Even stuff that sounds simple isn’t simple at all. I’m constantly amazed at the brilliance in these songs, and that feeling grows stronger all the time.”
Given his rarified position, Ray has some unique insights for guitar (and bass) players looking to incorporate Fab Four material into their repertoire.
“It’s important to have respect for the Beatles’ records,” he says. “On the other hand, you don’t want to sound like karaoke. And if you’re like me and you grew up on these records, they’re part of your DNA. You’ve memorized every upstroke and downstroke…
25 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in Video of the Week Tags: beth, kiss
25 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in Video of the Week Tags: guitar solo
23 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: haisai ojisan, richard thompson, shoukichi kina
Shoukichi Kina: “Haisai Ojisan (Hey Man!)” (1972)
If there’s one song that instantly puts me in a good mood, this is it.
Admittedly it’s pretty far afield from my usual fare and I think that’s the point. If music can be thought of as a drug, sometimes one develops a tolerance for the lower dose and seeks something that delivers a bigger kick.
I get a kick out of “Haisai Ojisan”
Shoukichi Kina and his band Champloose (the band name is derived from a traditional Okinawan stir-fry dish) were part of the Okinawan folk-rock movement of the 1970’s and 80’s. “Haisai Ojisan”, Kina’s first big hit, was a song he’d written in high school.
Kina and Champloose adding bass, guitars and drums to traditional sanshin music was the Okinawan equivalent to Dylan going electric in America, or Fairport Convention electrifying British folk.
Fittingly, Fairport alumnus Richard Thompson covered “Haisai Ojisan” in 1987 on the same French, Frith, Kaiser, Thompson Live Love, Larf & Loaf album that contains a cover of “Surfin’ U.S.A.” and an assortment of other strange musical bedfellows. Thompson and company’s “Haisai Ojisan” is a remarkably reverent take on the original:
The song has also spawned a group folk dance, or more accurately a variety of group folk dances, none of which seem to resemble the others much:
Shoukichi Kina is probably equally well known as a peace activist and politician, and was elected to the House of Councillors in 2004.
English translation:
Hey, man! Hey, man!
If there’s a drop of sake left in last night’s little bottle
Won’t you give me some?
Hey, boy! Hey, boy!
You think I’m satisfied with a little bottle?
Don’t say there’s none left!
Ok, man! If the little bottle’s not enough, give me a big oneHi, man! Hi, man!
I wanna marry, I’m not a kid anymore
Can I marry your daughter?
Hey, boy! Hey boy!
Marry? No kidding!
You’re still too young to talk about such things
Ok, man! I’ll wait till my hair turns whiteHi, man! Hi, man!
What a big bald spot you have!
Hey, boy! Hey, boy!
Bald men are excellent
My forefathers were really excellent
Ok, man! I’m gonna have cosmetic surgery to add bald spotsHi, man! Hi, man!
Your beard is funny, like the whiskers of an attic mouse
Hey, boy! Hey, boy!
Laugh at my beard, but women love bearded men
Ok, man! I don’t wanna be outdone by you,
Starting tomorrow, I’ll grow a beard that looks like the whiskers of a mouseHi, man! Hi, man!
Last night’s hooker was really pretty, you should go there, too
Hey, boy! Hey, boy!
In Chiji, Nakajima and Watanji,* I’m a big shot
Okay, man! Going around here and there, I’m wasting my money
You’re wasting your money
18 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: 17, bekon
Bekon: “17” (2018)
From the to-date only solo album release by producer Bekon, who’s collaborated with Kendrick Lamar, Eminem, Snoop Dogg and others.
The release of Get With the Times was so low-key, Lamar and not Bekon was the one who broke the news of its release on Twitter.
The tender ballad “17” is a thing of understated beauty with a Nilssonesque arrangement.
Every Moment Has A Song 