Late one night after a recording session in which he accompanied his girlfriend Judy Collins, post-Buffalo Springfield/pre-CSN Stephen Stills gave the engineer a couple of hundred dollars, and said, “Just roll tape”. The resulting recordings, acoustic demos of 13 new Stills songs, lay forgotten for 40 years.
Continue reading...Rock
064: Janis Joplin & Tom Jones, ‘Raise Your Hand’
My memories of Janis–the interview, the kiss, and the TV performance where she brought plastic Tom to meltdown.
Continue reading...061: The Doobie Brothers, ‘What a Fool Believes’
A hopelessly happy jaunt into the 1970s– the sappy grin on the face of lead guitarist, the come-on smile of the backup chick singer gives Michael McDonald, the ‘Oh, I really am cool and hot and couldn’t be enjoying myself more’ look he returns; the illogical, off-the-beat smash of the cymbal on ‘Anybody else would sure-LY know’, the loopy little calliope adornment – every element perfectly enmeshing to form a tapestry of fun-k. And a painfully familiar, seldom-told story. And a crazily cool Italian a cappella version you’ve never heard. Whooo!
Continue reading...038: Van Morrison, ‘Astral Weeks’
Spiritual blue-eyed Celtic soul acid acoustic jazz-rock, gorgeous and sumptuous and moving and transcendent. Desert Island music.
Continue reading...049: Chrysalis (J. Spider Barbour), ‘Summer in Your Savage Eyes’
The greatest band no one’s ever heard of.
Continue reading...052: The Lovin’ Spoonful, ‘Girl, Beautiful Girl’
In which Jeff bemoans maybe turning down a job with a very famous Hollywood director.
Continue reading...043: The Left Banke, ‘Pretty Ballerina’
A precious, delicate flower from 1966.
Baroque & roll.