Whirlwinds and Hurricanes ( #BOTB Results )

 

    California is still here despite all the hype giving us expectations of doom.  Maybe still being here is the biggest doomsday scenario.

       On the day of my most recent Battle of the Bands posting, I embarked upon four days of a whirlwind trip that covered over 1000 miles and three states.  It was somewhat unexpected for me, but I took on the role of chief driver and tour planner.  It was hot, but that's Las Vegas in the summer.  I hadn't been to Vegas in several years--November 2015 it had been.  

       With the coming of COVID went the departure of the famous Vegas buffets.  I suspected this was the case but my party still had expectations of dining at the buffet at the Mandalay Bay, where we had eaten often in the past. The buffet was gone so we settled for some bad over-priced Mexican food.

      That was basically the story of the trip.  Restaurants there are way high-priced and often not that great of quality.  But that seems to be the case everywhere these days.  Since we hadn't made any reservations like I normally would have (that's another story that I won't go into here), I got a room at Harrah's for the same low price I had paid last time I was there.  Oh, except for the $45 resort fee and $18 parking.  Vegas nickels and dimes the visitor every chance it gets and that's not even mentioning the gambling.  At least my wife came out ahead $135 on the slot machines.  She's usually pretty lucky like that.

     The next morning we were anxious to get back home to Los Angeles (which seems strange, but it's home and not Las Vegas).  This was a long desert journey with a side trip to Hoover Dam.  We didn't take any tours but we walked across the dam in the 112 degree heat.  Then it was homeward.  I filled up before I left Arizona and paid $2 less per gallon than I would the next day in Los Angeles.  

     Friday as I was looking up an address where I was going to drop off my wife's cousin who had come to visit us from Ecuador, hence our road trip of the previous days, I received an alarm message about an impending hurricane.  What?  California doesn't get hurricanes, or at least I thought, but there it was all over the news.  This past weekend the hurricane came and went.  It was what we used to call back East a "rain storm".  I guess there were some problematic areas with flooding and such, but where I live it just rained and that was good news for my lawn. 

       Oh, then there was the earthquake in the middle of the hurricane.  You might have heard about it. It was a 5 or so on the Richter scale with no real significant damage. We are always expecting earthquakes out here in Southern California, but never hurricanes.  Guess we're trying to keep up with Florida.

      And now....

Battle of the Bands Results

       This Battle had a small turnout with a very decisive outcome.  And really, this one did not turn out like I anticipated.  I figured The Band probably had more of a fan base and Crazy Horse would be too nasally or country or whatever.  For me, Crazy Horse being a particular longtime favorite my vote goes to their song, but listening to this Band cut after many years gave me a new appreciation for it.

Final Vote Tally

The Band             1 vote

Crazy Horse         9 votes

Next Battle on Friday September 1

        I'll be continuing with my series of "Songs from Lee's Basement" and hopefully will have some pictures I took back in those days.

Songs from Lee's Basement ( #BOTB )

 

      When I contemplate past days, my thoughts frequently go to my parents' basement--or as my friends might have called "Lee's Basement".  It was the end of the sixties and a dawning of a new decade.  The seventies started my foray into adult life.  What times we had!

       With some inspiration from Stephen T McCarthy's Silver Dollar Saloon Song Challenge, I decided to do something similar but using songs frequently heard when the basement at my parents' house was a party place to be in Maryville Tennessee.  That basement was a comfortable and safe place for my friends to gather in my young adult days.  I lived at home during my college years until I moved out at the end of 1974.  My parents allowed me pretty free reign of their basement at that time.  We were generally well behaved and didn't stir up much of a ruckus. My stereo was usually spinning sound and I was the house DJ.

       Record collecting had been my passion since 1964 when I was in 8th grade.  The collection grew slowly in those days, but after high school and I began working then some of my money would go into regular vinyl purchases.  When I started hosting parties my record collection had grown to a modest size, but was nevertheless pretty eclectic.  I tried to pursue records that not everyone else might already have and still be appealing to many ears.  There was always plenty to choose from.

        When thinking back on those days and nights listening to music in that basement, my memories take me to The Beatles, Cream, Iron Butterfly, and so many other groups that emerged in the late sixties with sounds that were often radical and musically exciting.  A typical evening in Lee's Basement might include some classical and jazz as well as mainstays such as Jethro Tull, Neil Young, or Jefferson Starship.  We all loved music and maybe my picks for the turntable weren't everyone else's first choices, I was the master of the music of my domain and rarely did I hear any complaints about my music choices.

        So now, with a trip down memory lane, we embark on another..,      

Battle of the Bands

        Battle of the Bands is the blogging event started by Far Away Series and now hosted by StMcC Presents Battle of the Bands.   This event happens each month on the 15th and on some there is also a Battle on the 1st of the month.  My blog is one of those with a second Battle excepting over these summer months.   The premise is simple:  Listen to the songs presented below and then in the comments vote for your favorite and tell us why you liked it.  Then visit the links listed near the bottom of this post for more Battle action.

Songs from Lee's Basement

       In this Battle I will offer up two bands that got frequent play in the early seventies on my basement turntable.  Both artists are some early examples of the Americana rock genre, but the greater commonality that they share is that they were both back-up bands for some notable artists who are known for being singer songwriters and later both bands recorded and toured as their own bands.

      Here they are---take a listen and decide which recording you enjoy the most...

          

The Band   "When I Paint My Masterpiece"  (1971)

        Before going out on their own, this band--The Band--was the back-up group for Bob Dylan.  They recorded a few Dylan songs as well as many written by their members, primarily Robbie Robertson, who recently passed away at age 80.  In this Battle we have The Band performing their rendition of Bob Dylan's "When I Paint My Masterpiece"...

Crazy Horse   "Dance, Dance, Dance"   (1971)

        In 1968 L.A. group the Rockets released an interesting album that never really made much of a splash on the music scene and they reorganized into Neil Young's back-up band Crazy Horse.  Over the ensuing decades they went through a number of incarnations as Young's backing group as well as a band recording and touring on their own.   In their debut album, 1971's self-titled release Crazy Horse, they included the Neil Young song "Dance, Dance, Dance".  The band's line-up at this time also included Nils Lofgren before he moved on to his own solo work and eventually as part of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band.   How does the Crazy Horse song stack up against The Band's song?  You decide...

Time to Vote!

           You might remember these songs--or not.  Either way you might or might not like them.  Hopefully you have an opinion of some kind.  You don't have to know about music to have an opinion since it all comes down to your own personal taste.

        Please vote on your favorite by letting us know your choice in the comment section and tell us why you prefer the version you chose. Then after you've finished here, please visit the other blogs listed below who may or may not be participating this time around. And if you've put up your own BOTB contest let us know that as well so we can vote on yours. I don't know if anyone else will be doing a Battle this time around, but you can still check out these sites.


Here are some other places where you might find BOTB posts:

 StMcC Presents Battle of the Bands

  'MIKE'S RAMBLINGS'

'Curious as a Cathy'

Sound of One Hand Typing

Jingle, Jangle, Jungle 

Landmark Sounds (Diedre Knight)

BATTLE OF THE BANDS BY DEBBIE D

Stine Writing

Next Battle on Friday September 1st

   

           There should be some results of the current Battle coming in a week or so, but the next Battle will come as long as life continues as expected.   I'm going to continue with the Songs from Lee's Basement theme.  I got some doozies ahead.  And songs that mean a lot to me.   See ya!

Is Anybody Listening? (#BOTB Results)

We often want to talk, but have a tougher time with listening. 

Debate Square, site of second debate between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas in 1858. Freeport, Illinois, USA. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 
     Congratulations and thank you for maintaining a sensibly civil discussion in your comments for my previous few posts.  Hopefully this will continue as I progress in my series.  Name-calling as well as persistently repetitious derogatories are not very productive when trying to bring opposing minds together in some degree of agreement.  I do plan to address all the negatives about Donald Trump and his supporters over a span of several posts.

         As a blogger I am in dangerous territory in certain respects.  So far I have lost about fourteen followers which is sad, but that's up to those who "unfollow" to do this and I'm sorry to see them make that decision.  On the other hand, I've been experiencing a lot of blogger ennui over the past many months and have felt that I was heading to some kind of change in what I've been doing.   Right now I'm in wait-and-see land.

         The other day I picked up my phone to listen to a gentleman with an intelligent, considerate, and pleasant voice explain who he was and why he was calling.  He asked me some simple yes or no questions and I responded.  I listened until I had a question about what he was saying and tried to break in on his spiel.  He just kept talking.  It dawned on me that the voice was just a recording.  I began saying random things while the voice continued talking.  Suddenly the voice stopped and the line disconnected.   I guess I must have spoken some kind of trigger word that caused the caller program to shut down.

         In relation to talking about important topics that are causing division, I often get the sense that plenty of people want to talk until it's time to listen to the other side.  Then when the counter-argument is being presented, the opposing side of the argument digs in as they think about what they going to say next.   Coming to agreement is not easy when each side is so firmly rooted.

          As we listen to one another when we are in a state of debate, we come to our conclusions on not so much what is said as what is heard and the way this hearing processes that information.  What one hears becomes filtered through one's own perception.

        In any serious discussion each side wants to sway the other side.  Predatory listeners are ready to pounce on what people they don't agree with say without considering exactly what they mean or what their point of view actually is.  When both sides take on a debate in this matter then a discussion can easily escalate into a shouting match with accusations superseding any rational understanding of the issues on either side.  I think that's a lot of what is going on now on line as well as in the media.  Thankfully I haven't engaged in any face-to-face confrontations about the election, but I'm sure at least a few of you have.

          I'd just like for people to watch what they say and how they say it.  Everyday I'm still hearing the tired recitation of the litany of Hillary's  'basket of deplorables.'  Racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamophobic, you name it. 

          Please, already--can we stop labeling with words ending in  -ist or     -phobic.  It's a weary old ruse--calling someone with what sounds like a clinical or scientific term in order to derogatorily insinuate that the disagreeing side is like a mad dog foaming at the mouth or some member of a loony cult or something.  Maybe that's actually what's in your mind when you are thinking of someone in those terms, but maybe it would be better to understand that you are often referring to someone who might merely disagree with you.   We may be on different sides of opinion, but we are also sharing the same world and would be far better off getting along and working together.

           I'll be breaking this all down in the next few posts.  On Friday I'll start with the term "racist."  But let's have a happy Thanksgiving first. Maybe the healing can begin this week.

Battle of the Bands Results 

        
       When I first set out with this Battle I had planned on pairing my other favorite version of "I Don't Want to Talk About It"--the version by Rita Coolidge--with the original by Crazy Horse.  Then I found the magnificent version by the Indigo Girls and was so caught up by it that I just had to use it and was totally prepared to give my vote for that one.   But after listening throughout the week I went back to my old favorite, Crazy Horse.  I still don't think any artist captures the feeling of the song like Danny Whitten's sad vocals.    My vote on this pairing goes to Crazy Horse.  In the end I had a fairly even Battle...
Final Vote Tally

Crazy Horse          13

Indigo Girls           15

Next Battle Thursday December 1st!

        Since I plan to continue with my President Trump Acclimation Series, an elucidation of the election results from my perspective, my song pick for my next Battle will be on the lighter side.  With Christmas coming I want to keep a happy balance to my posts so my next two Battles won't necessarily be Christmas songs, but they will be in keeping with the spirit of the season.   I hope you'll stay with me for my series and most importantly come back to vote on the upcoming Battles.

        Have a great Thanksgiving and then be here on Friday when we figure out why Donald Trump and his supporters are racists and what this really means. 

        Do you believe that many of our disagreement problems come about from filtering what we hear and not seeing things from the other side of the argument?    Do you think there is too much labeling going on?    Of all pejorative labels that might be used to describe a person, which one would you like least to be called?

Related articles

• CNN Tries To Hide What Commentator Did While Watching Mob Attack White Man
• Donald Trump planning 'victory tour' of states he won in election
• San Francisco teacher defends using lesson which calls Donald Trump 'racist,' 'sexist'
• Democratic Trump supporters were hiding in plain sight

I Don't Want to Talk About It (#BOTB)

          My previous post, What Would You Like to Talk About?, has started off with some good conversation and I appreciate the contributions made so far.   You can still visit and leave your thoughts.  In the post I explained my intention of offering a series of posts telling why I think Donald Trump won the election, why I voted for him, and my thoughts on the negative issues surrounding the candidate.

          Initially, my concern in presenting this series was that no one would want to talk about it.  In our society we have many sticky topics that people are hesitant to discuss for fear of arguing and getting angry.   I would ask why.  Are we so uncivil when it comes to disagreement that we can't make an effort to understand both sides and maybe come to some acceptance and even agreement?  I actually think opposing sides of any issue are really in not as much disagreement as they think.

         We often engage with inflammatory language and accusations against the opposition.  The use of neutral language as much as possible as well as seeing the positive parts of an opposing argument can sometimes lead to constructive solutions and greater understanding of issues at hand.   If a discussion regarding disagreements ends with some kind pleasantries and a handshake then we are so much better off.    No one has to be mean to the other side nor should we distort what has been said when discussing the conversation later on.

          Truth, justice, and the American way is not only the domain of superheroes, but should be a credo for all of us.  And for those who don't come from this country you can substitute whatever way you prefer.  The United States of America is a pretty darn good place to live in my opinion and we're really not bad folks overall.  Even when we elect a President who seems unsavory to many.  What seems to be not always is what it is.   Appearances can be deceptive especially when funneled through the eyes of the media.  You can't always believe everything that's delivered by the media--or Google for that matter.



Battle of the Bands

       Battle of the Bands is the blogging event started by Far Away Series and now hosted by StMcC Presents Battle of the Bands.   This event happens twice each month on the 1st and 15th.   The premise is simple:  Listen to the songs presented below and then in the comments vote for your favorite and tell us why you liked it.  Then visit the links listed near the bottom of this post for more Battle action.


"I Don't Want To Talk About It"

         The most well known version of this song is the version by Rod Stewart first released in 1977.  Please don't vote on his version, but if you don't remember it then you can listen to it here.  There are a number of very fine recordings of this song.   For the Battle I've started with the original version by Crazy Horse.



Crazy Horse "I Don't Want To Talk About It"  (1971)

          This is the first version of the song with which I was familiar.  As a Neil Young fan, I also bought the albums by Crazy Horse, Young's early back-up band.  The group's debut album included the Danny Whitten penned "I Don't Want to Talk About It."





Indigo Girls  "I Don't Want To Talk About It"  (1993)
Alternate version Here

         Over twenty years following the Crazy Horse debut of this song, a version by the Indigo Girls appeared on the soundtrack of the film Philadelphia.  See what you think of this version.




Time To Vote!

        Which of these two song versions do you prefer?   If you don't like either then try to play along and tell us which version you think is the least innocuous to you. 

        Please vote on your favorite by letting us know your choice in the comment section and tell us why you prefer the version you chose. Then after you've finished here, please visit the other blogs listed below who may or may not be participating this time around. And if you've put up your own BOTB contest let us know that as well so we can vote on yours.

Here are some other places where you might find BOTB posts:

 StMcC Presents Battle of the Bands

 ‘YOUR DAILY DOSE’ 

  'MIKE'S RAMBLINGS'

'Curious as a Cathy'

Sound of One Hand Typing

The Doglady's Den 

Angel's Bark  

Cherdo on the Flipside  

Jingle, Jangle, Jungle 

Janie Junebug Righting & Editing.
  
J. A. Scott  



Winner Announced Monday November 21st

       I may slip in another of my political analysis posts on Friday, but I'll definitely continue with the discussion on my announcement post.  I figure I've only lost nine followers since the election so I guess I'm not doing too badly.  On the other hand, I haven't unfollowed any blogs--for whatever that's worth.

         Are you hesitant to discuss topics of disagreement with others?   Can you keep a cool head when having a conversation concerning a volatile topic?    What topics do you find provokes the most ire within disagreeing parties?  

Related articles

• 24 obscure but completely crucial life lessons I am teaching my son
• Songs about Looking Back (#BOTB)
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• Donald Trump Got Elected President and This Is How It Happened (Multimedia)

Super 8 Debut Albums

           Be sure to check out all of the other lists by going to DiscConnected where you will find the Linky list.

            I thought that it would be difficult to come up with eight debut albums, but the difficult part as usual was in narrowing it down to only eight.  I didn't.   So what I did was come up with four upon which there would be probably be wide agreement on.   After that I have eight debut albums that are special to me.   You'll probably notice that most of these are from the late 1960s and early 70s--that's just the way it is.

Some No-Brainers:

     Steely Dan    Can't Buy a Thrill (1972)     This album first hit my radar when I saw Steely Dan performing "Reelin' in the Years" on The Midnight Special television show in 1972.  They blew me away.  And when I heard the album I was even more impressed.  Since that album, Steely Dan has been consistent in the quality of their releases.  But if this had been their only release, they would have still made musical history on the merits of this one alone.

King Crimson    In the Court of the Crimson King  (1969)     One of the early progressive rock albums remains one of the best of the prog rock genre.  It's an amazing album and the group has a reputation for cutting edge music.

    Blood, Sweat, and Tears  The Child Is the Father to the Man (1968)    Chicago II is probably my

 favorite of the horn band albums, but BS&T I think surpasses Chicago's debut effort.   Blood, Sweat, and Tears' debut is phenomenal jazz-rock fusion.

 

    The Band     Music from Big Pink (1968)     In my opinion one of the top ten best rock albums of all time.  I am not the only one with this opinion.







Some of My Favorite Debuts:


      Good Rats   The Good Rats (1969)     I recall that I was in the University of Tennessee at Knoxville Undergraduate Library perusing a classical music magazine in 1970 and I found a review of this album.   I thought it odd that they would be reviewing a rock album in a magazine like that so I figured the album must be good.  I found a copy in the University Bookstore and bought it.   It was good and I enjoyed it.    Years later I was looking through cassettes in the cut-out bin of a record store and found several tapes by the Good Rats.  I had not realized that the band had continued recording after that debut album.    The first album is not my favorite, but it is an excellent album.  On hearing the later albums the Good Rats became one of my favorite groups.  The Rats still play primarily in the New Jersey area and maintain a solid base of hardcore fans.




        Crazy Horse     Crazy Horse  (1971)     Primarily known as a back-up band for Neil Young, Crazy Horse has been around with various line-ups for many years.  The original band members released a very fine album in 1968 when they were called The Rockets.   This Crazy Horse album is the first released under this group name (without being Young's back-up band) and I'm going to call it a debut, though in a way it's not.  It's a superb album that adds Nils Lofgren and  Jack Nitzsche to the line-up and includes support from Neil Young and Ry Cooder.     Danny Whitten's "I Don't Want to Talk About It" is included on this album and has since been covered by many artists including Rod Stewart and Rita Coolidge.



         Grin (Nils Lofgren)   Grin (1971)   Grin was a band headed up by the very talented singer, songwriter, and musician Nils Logren.  He has been a singer and guitarist in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band for about 25 years in addition to his solo work.   His debut with Grin displayed his diverse skills as a songwriter.   This is an outstanding album.

Seals and Crofts     Seals and Crofts   (1969)     This duo had a string of huge hits throughout the 1970s.  Though they had been veterans of hit bands since 1958, they didn't make a real name for themselves until they embarked as a duo.   Their many commercial hits were wonderful examples of some of the finest in pop music, but this debut album to me is their real masterpiece.  Heavenly harmonies and mystical songs make this album an absolute joy to listen to.




       Spirit    Spirit (1968)   This is hands down one of the best, most tasteful, most well-rounded, finest musicianship bands in the history of rock.  I'll put them up against Steely Dan any day.   Their debut is a musical masterpiece and I just don't think there is any reasonable argument otherwise.  Spirit ranks as one of my favorite bands.

     The Police     Outlandos d'Amour (1978).   Before Sting and the Police became absolutely huge they were an edgy band that rode in on the New Wave rock music movement.   The album includes the controversial hit "Roxanne".   The entire album is simple reggae influenced rock and it's all good.

        Judybats    Native Son (1990)    This alternative rock band comes from Knoxville, Tennessee.   I have four of their albums and they are all excellent.  This debut is a truly outstanding effort that includes the Roky Erikson song "She Lives" which was also included on the tribute album Where the Pyramid Meets the Eye.

          Rich Mountain Tower    Rich Mountain Tower  (1971)  One of the earliest records released in quadraphonic stereo sound, this has the feel of the harmony bands like Crosby, Stills, and Nash.   The band came out of Knoxville, Tennessee and has a sweet country soft rock sound.   Of the three albums this group made, this is the only one I've heard.  The album is a real gem..




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