OneJemTunes 23 #4

4 of 12 in a monthly diatribe from a 64 year old hippy

OneJemTunes is a monthly foray into my world of music. Published monthly throughout 2023, there’s everything here including downloads, gigs I’ve been to, JemJams listings, birthdays and passings and much more.

And as 2023 is the year I can finally sing the line ‘…when I’m 64…’ and be there, the music world is my proverbial oyster.

OneJemTunes 23 #4 is mostly about March 23 (although there’s a bit of looking forward to April as well).

Read on…

JemJams (one of my FaceBook pages) is about posting a new jam every 6 days. JemJams has its roots in something called ‘This is my jam.com’; a website/blogsite to which contributors worldwide added a track of their choosing once every 6 days. No words – no dialogue – no comments. Just the music. ‘This is my jam’ went offline in September 2015. But – as it was such a good idea and something which means a lot to me, JemJams has carried on the task (albeit from just one person) ever since. Here are JemJams 413 to 417

1. 413: Kenny Wayne Shepherd – Kings Highway (posted on 3rd March)
2. 414: Leftfield – This is what we do (posted on 9th March)
3. 415: The Commoners – Too Much (posted on 15th March)
4. 416: Laura Cox – One Big Mess (posted on 21st March)
5. 417: Dangereens – Thieves (posted on 28th March)

March downloads and other additions:

• Indigo Girls – Shit Kickin (2020) – Track download
• The Cold Stares – Voices (2023) [Standout track – Nothing but the blues]
• Connor Selby (2023) [Standout track – Emily]
• Hillbilly Vegas – The Great Southern Hustle (2023) [Standout track – Shake it like a hillbilly]
• The Heavy – Stone Cold Killer EP (2023)
• Neverland Branch Davidians (2023) [Standout track – Fatback]
• Van Morrison – Moving on Skiffle (2023) [Standout track – Steamline Train]
• The Answer – Sundowners (2023) [Standout track – Blood Brother]
• The Inspector Cluzo – Horizon (2023) [Standout track – Rockophobia]

’23 Tunes’ is the thematic I’ve given to the periodic playlists I’m putting together this year. Here’s the track-by-track lowdown for No.2…

1. The Cold Stares – Nothing but the blues
2. Doomsday Outlaws – In too deep
3. Those Damn Crows – Fill the void
4. Black Star Riders – Crazy Horses
5. Dangereens – Thieves
6. Doomsday Outlaw – Bring you pain
7. The Cold Stares – Come for me
8. Jeff Beck – You know what I mean
9. Those Damn Crows – I am
10. The Heavy – Feel the love
11. Doomsday Outlaws – It never gets old
12. Black Star Riders – Hustle
13. Indigo Girls – Shit kickin
14. The Answer – Living on the line
15. The Cold Stares – It’s heavy
16. The Heavy – Stone cold killer
17. The Inspector Cluzo – Rockophobia
18. The Answer – Blood Brother
19. Van Morrison – Streamline Train
20. Hillbilly Vegas – Shake it like a hillbilly
21. The Heavy – Hurricane coming
22. Connor Selby – Emily
23. Neverland Branch Davidians – Fatback

Comings and goings – a regular feature throughout the year. On the one hand sadly recording those we’ve lost, but on the other – looking forward to birthdays of those we still have.

Those we lost in March included Gary Rossington – guitarist and last surviving founder member of the original Lynyrd Skynyrd. December 4, 1951 to March 5, 2023.

Birthdays in April 2023: Robin Scott (singer/songwriter with M – notable writer of ‘Pop Musik’ – 1st and 76), Emmylou Harris (2nd and 76), David Robinson (Cars drummer – 2nd and 74), Tony Orlando (‘Tie a yellow ribbon round the old oak tree’ – 3rd and 78), Judy Tzuke (3rd and 66), Sebastian Bach (Skid Row – 3rd and 54), Dave Hill (Slade guitarist – 4th and 76), Allan Clarke (The Hollies – 5th and 80), Gordon Giltrap (6th and 74), Roger Chapman (8th and 80), Steve Howe (Yes – 8th and 75), Brian Setzer (Stray Cats – 10th and 63), Joss Stone (11th and 35), Herbie Hancock (12th and 82), Al Green (13th and 76), Ritchie Blackmore (14th and 77), Dave Edmunds (Love Sculpture guitarist – 15th and 77), Jimmy Osmond (16th and 59), Alan Price (The Animals – 19th and 80), Iggy Pop (21st and 75), Peter Frampton (22nd and 72), Barbara Streisand (24th and 80), Ace Frehley (Kiss – 27th and 71), and Wayne Kramer (MC5 – 30th and 74)

Gigs in March 2023: The long-awaited Beth Hart at Brighton Dome. Having seen footage of her playing various solo gigs in 2018 and 2019, when (in early 2021) a UK tour was announced for 2023, we got in early. Front row seats, left-centre stage!

Admirably supported by Connor Selby, the 21st March Brighton gig was the last of the 2022/23 UK tour. And it was subliminal!

Connor Selby opened with a wonderful acoustic set concluded with ‘Emily’ from his recently released eponymous album. And then Mrs Hart and band (Jon Nichols – guitar, Tom Lily – bass and Bill Ransom – percussion) blitzed into the Dome an hour later for a two and half hour set and 20 minute encore!

Comprising a wonderful mix of covers and her own material and ranging between the loud and lovely full electric to the spine-tingly wonderful acoustic to the hauntingly beautiful a cappella, this close to three hour set was the closest thing to music heaven I’ve had the good fortune to be part of in many a long year.

And, when a band like this, with the full throttle vocal prowess Beth throws into everything she sings, rips into a near-perfect cover of a song you first heard and fell in love with over half a century ago, you know you’re onto a good thing! Led Zeppelin’s ‘When the levee breaks’ (from Led Zeppelin IV – 1971) was the song. And yes – there were tears!

It’s really hard to choose, but perhaps the crowning glory of the show was the semi-acoustic 9-minute long version of ‘Sugar Shack’ when Bill Ransom’s mini-drum kit proved you really don’t need the full works if you have his skills. Hauntingly good stuff.

And a fitting conclusion to OneJemTunes 23 #4. Episode 5 is due out around 1st May.

The Platters – Song for the lonely “The ’59” #031

“The ’59” 2018 #031: 180131

The Platters – Song for the Lonely (1962)

The Platters formed in Los Angeles in 1952 and were initially managed by Federal Records A&R man, Ralph Bass. The original group consisted of Alex Hodge, Cornell Gunter, David Lynch, Joe Jefferson, Gaynel Hodge and Herb Reed, who joined the group after he was discharged from the Army in December 1952. Reed also created the group’s name.

In June 1953, Gunter left to join the Flaires and was replaced by lead vocalist Tony Williams. The band then released two singles with Federal Records, under the management of Bass, but found little success. Bass then asked his friend music entrepreneur and songwriter Buck Ram to coach the group in hope of getting a hit record. Ram made some changes to the lineup, most notably the addition of female vocalist Zola Taylor; later, at Reed’s urging, Hodge was replaced by Paul Robi. Under Ram’s guidance, the Platters recorded eight songs for Federal in the R&B/gospel style, scoring a few minor regional hits on the West Coast, and backed Williams’ sister, Linda Hayes. One song recorded during their Federal tenure, “Only You (And You Alone)”, originally written by Ram for the Ink Spots, was deemed unreleasable by the label, though copies of this early version do exist.

Despite their lack of chart success, the Platters were a profitable touring group, successful enough that the Penguins, coming off their No.8 single “Earth Angel”, asked Ram to manage them as well. With the Penguins in hand, Ram was able to parlay Mercury Records’ interest into a 2-for-1 deal. To sign the Penguins, Ram insisted, Mercury also had to take the Platters. The Penguins would never have a hit for the label, but The Platters were altogether more successful.

“It’s Magic”, from their 1962 album ‘Song for the Lonely” was written by Jule Styne, with lyrics by Sammy Cahn. The song was introduced by Doris Day in her film debut, ‘Romance on the High Seas’ (known in the UK as ‘It’s Magic’ after the song), and was published in 1947.

Joe Cocker – With a little help from my friends (Leaping Ahead #68)

Leaping Ahead Project 2016 #68: 160308

[A song by someone lost in 2014]

This wonderful cover of the Beatles’ “With a Little Help from My Friends” reached number one in the UK in 1968 and it propelled Cocker to international fame after his performance of it at Woodstock in 1969. Thirty-three years later, he repeated it at the Party at the Palace concert for the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II.

In 1993 Cocker was nominated for the Brit Award for Best British Male, in 2007 was awarded a bronze Sheffield Legends plaque in his hometown and in 2008 he received an OBE at Buckingham Palace for services to music. He was ranked number 97 on Rolling Stone’s 100 greatest singers list.

Upon hearing about Cocker’s death in 2014, Paul McCartney said this about Cocker’s version of the Beatles 1967 song:

He was a lovely northern lad who I loved a lot and, like many people, I loved his singing. I was especially pleased when he decided to cover “With a Little Help from My Friends” and I remember him and (producer) Denny Cordell coming round to the studio in Saville Row and playing me what they’d recorded and it was just mind-blowing, totally turned the song into a soul anthem and I was forever grateful to him for doing that.

Joe Cocker OBE (20 May 1944 – 22 December 2014). Rest in Peace.

Camille

Jem Tunes A-Z 2015 #23

In 2005 Camille Dalmais released her second studio album ‘Le Fil’. The album is unique as it includes a string or thread (the ‘le fil’) represented as a background drone which runs continuously throughout the album and from around eight minutes after the end of the final track.

Born in Paris in 1978, Camille is famous for her exploration of the voice and the musicality it can provide when used creatively. She uses instrumentation, but sparingly and usually as a supplement to and not a replacement of the voice.

‘Money Note’ from the 2008 album ‘Music Hole’ is a prime example. Apart from the piano, everything you hear here is voice. Although I didn’t take the video here in London’s Koko, we were there – just to the left of the cameraperson…