Whatcha listening to?

[_grieve_]

 


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ergbM_kMiB4&list=PLn_YxLw2gT5RXHbJrE6ciKh6qJHWCbyQh

many people find this plain weird, but I love it ....

[_grieve_]

it's a once in a lifetime opportunity to hear Spooky Tooth, a massive British Bues- /Hardrock band
collaborating with a french avantgarde/electronic/musique concrete artist ....

in 1969 this was possible.

 

[|iR|Focalor]

A little belated...

RIP David Johansen AKA Buster Poindexter. (Jan 9, 1950 - Feb 28, 2025)

He was singer for the early 70's glam punk band the New York Dolls. I'm sort of into punk, but New York Dolls were never my thing.

Clip of him on the Conan OBrien show back in the 90's talking about funny stories of times from when he was with the New York Dolls.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwMpn7EmXTY&ab_channel=ConanO%27Brien

He also had a big hit in the late 80's, one that practically EVERYONE knows either from just being alive at the time... or probably from hearing it for one of the 9000 different occasions that it was used as an advertising jingle for all sorts of products.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhZba-P7R18&ab_channel=BusterPoindexterVEVO

Yeah, I wasn't a fan of his Buster Poindexter stuff either. 

But I did like him as a character actor, especially as the filthy obnoxious cartoony cab driver Ghost of Christmas Past in the Bill Murray Christmas movie Scrooged, one of my favorite Christmas movies. It's a classic!



Even though I was never really any kind of fan of his music, I still think he's one of the most interesting people to ever be in the music business. He's the kind of guy I would've loved to have chatted with about music and movies and such.

He passed February 28th 2025 from cancer of some kind, brain cancer I think. He was 75. 

[|iR|Focalor]

Started branching out into jazz late last year.

Chet Baker. Was RIDICULOUSLY talented, but spent probably the larger portion of his life as a heroin junkie. His life was about as sad as some of his songs sound. He died when he either fell out of a 2nd story apartment window or jumped, no one is really sure.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4PKzz81m5c&ab_channel=Sweetydu972M


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gsz3mrnIBd0

[|iR|Focalor]

The more you browse youtube, the more you realize all the things you'll NEVER be able to do on a guitar... because I didn't start intensive training when I was barely old enough to scribble my own name like this lady obviously did.

Ana Vidocic, classical guitarist.

Absolutely FLAWLESS technique and she seems to play all of these pieces completely from memory. Just WOW.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e26zZ83Oh6Y&ab_channel=OmniFoundation

I honestly don't lament my lack of ability to play classical guitar. At this point, I don't TRY too hard to improve, and I play just for my own enjoyment of it. I'm not interested in impressing anyone with my skills. It's fun for me and that's enough. Also, as much I love listening to and especially watching someone this talented play classical guitar, it's just not really a style of music I've ever been too interested in playing much past it's practical application towards rock music, as in when I spent a little time studying Randy Rhoads tabs as a teen. Also... the last time I even picked up a classical guitar, I was astounded by how entirely flat and wide the fretboard was compared to a typical radiused fretboard on an electric.

[|iR|Focalor]

Good quality rock bands are too few and far between these days in my opinion.

Superheaven.

Happened across these guys on youtube earlier this year. Overall sound is good, not too flashy, has a style that is consistent from song to song even though it's not a particularly uniquely special kind of sound. Somewhat reminiscent of alternative rock bands from the 90's, which I guess is fine and great since there really IS NO ROCK SCENE these days to compare it to... at least not a GOOD rock scene that I care to listen to (rap and pop has taken over everything) The vocals sound good, but could be even better and more well defined with some work, but as I said, still good as is.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=siDhacKVxdE


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=voVL8Ey-CiI

[rikwad]

https://youtu.be/IB6jbWoGtlA?si=3obHJK4L0Ujce0oI

Not bad...

[|iR|Focalor]

Pretty sure this song about Chris Cuomo.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPFIkty4Zvk&ab_channel=FrankZappaVEVO

[|iR|Focalor]

RIP Brent Hinds.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OA70S4b-ofM

[Om3ga]

What's up B1tches. Whats g00d ?

[|iR|Focalor]

I was sort of a reluctant fan of country. When I was growing up, I was all about ROCK. "COUNTRY SUCKS!" That was the crap your grandparents listened to. But as I became a teenager, more and more people started listening to country. Then around 12 or 13, I got into playing guitar and it opened my mind to all sorts of different stuff - blues, smooth jazz, etc, and I even started giving country a chance. I started getting into classic country too especially, stuff like Hank Williams, Glen Campbell, Merle Haggard, Johnny Paycheck. I discovered that maybe the music wasn't always the best produced or most technically flawless and talented, but the songwriting was so good. They could employ a masterfully crafted economy of words in a few short verses to paint a vivid picture in the listeners head. Almost magical how they could make you see places you've never been and feel a certain way.

Anyway, Merle Haggard was always one of those guys. He passed away back in 2016. His youngest son, Ben, followed much of the family and got into music. He sounds a lot like his dad, but a lot more agile with his voice, and actually... he sounds better than his old man in my opinion. Maybe not a better guitar player though, I dunno. Merle was as brilliant of a telecaster player as he was a songwriter.

Anyway, came across this watching a musical tribute Merle's family did a few years ago. His son Ben did a fantastic little version of one of my favorite Merle songs, It's All in the Movies.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqjE4Nx4IIQ

Speaking of guitars, Merle had THE NUMBER 1 best looking signature Fender telecaster in my opinion. Velvety looking quilted maple top. I usually don't like the 2-color black to wood stain color sunburst finishes (I prefer the 3 color sunburst that transitions from black to brown with more subtlety), but with that super deep looking quilted figuring to the maple top, it looks perfect. Neck is actually a glued-on set neck whereas other telecasters are almost always bolt on neck. White body binding, nice walnut stained stripe down the center line of the body, gold hardware, pearl button tuners. This guitar is a work of art and looks like a million bucks. And almost costs about that, they go for $10,000 these days.

[|iR|Focalor]

Ana Vidocic, classical guitarist.

Absolutely FLAWLESS technique and she seems to play all of these pieces completely from memory. Just WOW.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e26zZ83Oh6Y&ab_channel=OmniFoundation

Ana Vidovic is immensely good. But I dunno, I think Thu Le might have her beat just slightly. El Choclo is a RIDICULOUSLY hard piece to play, and out of any 10 people who actually CAN play it, maybe only 1 of those 10 will play it flawlessly to where it sounds fluid and natural like Thu Le does.

How is she so good? Like Ana Vidovic, she started learning as a child (4 years old). That'll do it. Start doing anything that young and training hard at it every day of your life and by the time you're 25, you'll be a world-class master at whatever it is.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkdrX2UnzDQ