Great Hoylake Album Club Meet last night. Thanks Gerry!
Two very contrasting albums, the twangy authentic blues of R L Burnside and varied panes of creative & sophisticated orchestral sounds by the Guillmots.
More Blogs to follow on what the members thought, and which was the members choice. Ian
Born 1926, Harmontown Mississipi, into a sharecropping family; that's one step up from cotton pickin' slavery. Aged 18 left for Chicago, got married to Alice Mae (with whom he had 9 sons, 4 daughters) and took up his music with his cousin-in-lay Muddy Waters. However the year after his marriage in 1959 saw his father, two brothers & and uncle killed in Chicago violence.
So he returned to Missisippi, and promptly killed a man himself (an intruder for which he was convicted of murder). "I didn't mean to kill nobody, I just meant to shoot the sonofabitch in the head. Him dying was between him and the Lord". He only got 6 months incarceration, a white landowner is reported to have got him sprung from jail, as he was a good tractor driver.
Aged 70 he released "An Ass Pocket of Whiskey", a drink he was no stranger too himself. After a heart attack he was advised to give it up, but he never did, saying he tried going dry but "It affected his playin' "
In his later years he lived on a ranch surrounded by bourbon, friends from "Fat Possum" records (Logo a Fat Possum sniffing at a garbage can http://www.fatpossum.com)and large number of rusting autos.
He's got the life record to make blues records, so when he names a track "It's bad, you know" you better believe he knows it. He don't give a cuss what you think of his music, anyhow.
He died in 2005 but the legend lives on at the Burnside Blues Cafe (Intersection of Highway 78 & Missisippi Highway 7) run by his sons
Fyffe Dangerfield (great name) is the Brummie born (1980) creative force behind the Guillemots. When he left Bromsgrove School it was to train as a music teacher.
MC Lord Magrao (even better name) by contrast was born in Sao Paolo, Brazil and lists his instruments as Guitar, Mandolin, Vocals, Keyboard, Theremin (kind of synthesiser making Doctor Who-like theme sounds played by waving your hands close to a metal rod), Accordion, Melodeon, Melodica, Musical Saw, xylophone, typewriter. Sounds like a creative musician.
Aristazabal Hawkes (the most brilliant name) comes from Britsh Columbia. Aristazabal is a basque name but she's not Basque in origin. She comes from Sointula (Place of Harmony in Finnish) which was a Utopian Finnish community founded on Malcolm island by ex coal miners looking for a better life. Predictably, this social experiment which conjures up in my mind a communal sauna and a vodka co-operative failed financially, but a lot of these idealists stayed on the island, amongst the forests and the wild whale seas. Maybe this environment infuenced Aristazabal who plays the double bass and sings vocals.
The next island up from Malcolm island where Aristazabal comes from is "Aristazabal Island", named in honour of Captain Gabriel de Aristazabal. I bet he was Basque.
There is a fourth band member, Greig Stewart, but with a name so dull I didn't feel inclined to find out more about him, but likely to be a talented musician given the pedigree of the band.
So there they are a band with a number of global influences, lots of talent and plenty of creative energy.
Went to Cath's choice R L Burnside "Come On In". The head noddin' rythms and unvarnished blues guitar with Bourbon breath vocals got a lot of thumbs up from the album club members.
The Guillemots "Through the Windowpane" had a number of strong supporters with its eighties-feel orchestral tracks appealing to many as they washed over you, and some strong angst ridden piano banging giving the album contrast (but not too Fiona as this track got on her nerves). However, the appeal of the tracks was inconsistent and some of the club members simply thought they were too long.
So, despite some touches of genius by the Guillemots, their sophisticated music came a second place to the raw emotion of R L Burnside.
Great Hoylake Album Club Meet last night.
ReplyDeleteThanks Gerry!
Two very contrasting albums, the twangy authentic blues of R L Burnside and varied panes of creative & sophisticated orchestral sounds by the Guillmots.
More Blogs to follow on what the members thought, and which was the members choice. Ian
About R L Burnside.
ReplyDeleteBorn 1926, Harmontown Mississipi, into a sharecropping family; that's one step up from cotton pickin' slavery. Aged 18 left for Chicago, got married to Alice Mae (with whom he had 9 sons, 4 daughters) and took up his music with his cousin-in-lay Muddy Waters. However the year after his marriage in 1959 saw his father, two brothers & and uncle killed in Chicago violence.
So he returned to Missisippi, and promptly killed a man himself (an intruder for which he was convicted of murder). "I didn't mean to kill nobody, I just meant to shoot the sonofabitch in the head. Him dying was between him and the Lord". He only got 6 months incarceration, a white landowner is reported to have got him sprung from jail, as he was a good tractor driver.
Aged 70 he released "An Ass Pocket of Whiskey", a drink he was no stranger too himself. After a heart attack he was advised to give it up, but he never did, saying he tried going dry but "It affected his playin' "
In his later years he lived on a ranch surrounded by bourbon, friends from "Fat Possum" records (Logo a Fat Possum sniffing at a garbage can http://www.fatpossum.com)and large number of rusting autos.
He's got the life record to make blues records, so when he names a track "It's bad, you know" you better believe he knows it. He don't give a cuss what you think of his music, anyhow.
He died in 2005 but the legend lives on at the Burnside Blues Cafe (Intersection of Highway 78 & Missisippi Highway 7) run by his sons
http://www.tumblr.com/tagged/burnside-blues-cafe
Ian
About the Guillemots
ReplyDeleteFyffe Dangerfield (great name) is the Brummie born (1980) creative force behind the Guillemots. When he left Bromsgrove School it was to train as a music teacher.
MC Lord Magrao (even better name) by contrast was born in Sao Paolo, Brazil and lists his instruments as Guitar, Mandolin, Vocals, Keyboard, Theremin (kind of synthesiser making Doctor Who-like theme sounds played by waving your hands close to a metal rod), Accordion, Melodeon, Melodica, Musical Saw, xylophone, typewriter. Sounds like a creative musician.
Aristazabal Hawkes (the most brilliant name) comes from Britsh Columbia. Aristazabal is a basque name but she's not Basque in origin. She comes from Sointula (Place of Harmony in Finnish) which was a Utopian Finnish community founded on Malcolm island by ex coal miners looking for a better life. Predictably, this social experiment which conjures up in my mind a communal sauna and a vodka co-operative failed financially, but a lot of these idealists stayed on the island, amongst the forests and the wild whale seas. Maybe this environment infuenced Aristazabal who plays the double bass and sings vocals.
The next island up from Malcolm island where Aristazabal comes from is "Aristazabal Island", named in honour of Captain Gabriel de Aristazabal. I bet he was Basque.
There is a fourth band member, Greig Stewart, but with a name so dull I didn't feel inclined to find out more about him, but likely to be a talented musician given the pedigree of the band.
So there they are a band with a number of global influences, lots of talent and plenty of creative energy.
The Evenings Vote...
ReplyDeleteWent to Cath's choice R L Burnside "Come On In". The head noddin' rythms and unvarnished blues guitar with Bourbon breath vocals got a lot of thumbs up from the album club members.
The Guillemots "Through the Windowpane" had a number of strong supporters with its eighties-feel orchestral tracks appealing to many as they washed over you, and some strong angst ridden piano banging giving the album contrast (but not too Fiona as this track got on her nerves). However, the appeal of the tracks was inconsistent and some of the club members simply thought they were too long.
So, despite some touches of genius by the Guillemots, their sophisticated music came a second place to the raw emotion of R L Burnside.
**Ian**
Thanks for comments Ian - perceptive and informed as usual.
ReplyDelete