A reader who knows me outside of this blog has asked to see more non-professional subject matter thrown into the mix. I do after all show books and music as a category, as well as sports and general interest, and when a reader makes a request, I take this seriously. According to the Google Analytics and Feedburner pages I review almost daily, a reader is a meaningful statistic in my case.
Of course, almost everything I post is in a sense “sports and general interest”, and I am tempted to check off that category each time. It’s true enough, however, that “books, music, and other recommendations” has been in relative neglect. This is grossly contrary to my nature: books, music, and other recommendations comprise the better part of my conscious state… especially other recommendations, for which I have enormous capacity.
And so, in recognition of my friend, a reader, and because holiday season will soon be upon us – which is for giving and receiving – I will make some gift (or receipt) recommendations (depending on your preference), and write about such matters more often in weeks to come. This, therefore, is the first of a series – which may be long- or short-lived, depending on the ensuing traffic spike or thud – but I hope for at least one other and will not let much time lapse until then, because folks need to get their shopping done before iTunes and Amazon run out.
I’m not quite sure how I will sequence these articles, or why, but let’s begin with a list of gift (or receipt) recommendations for those who are most in need of rock’n'roll. You may wish to plug the featured items into your iTunes genius mix, Pandora station, Last.fm, or whatever is your custom, and see what else pops out. Here goes:
- Muddy Waters, I Can’t Be Satisfied. An arbitrary selection from the old Chess releases, which had such a unique sound and which made the record label as much a part of the band as any old bassist. That this happens to be Muddy, and that the song happens to be a rock’n'roll classic from a time when rock’n'roll had technically not yet arrived, is a fortunate coincidence.
- Bob Dylan, In My Time of Dying. From the debut album, recorded in one sitting with a cheap guitar and no band, this track may be the first hard rock song ever. Should be played loud, it isn’t a folk number despite appearances. Proceed afterwards through the entire Dylan library, over and over again, which will take a while but will be well worth the time allotment.
- Lou Reed, Satellite of Love. Lou’s simplicity is deceptive, and his romance is always just cranky enough to ring true. Lou’s economy of style – the melody, the lyrics, the voice – is usually a cover-up. He’s had his peaks and valleys, Lou, and his failures are endearing. I saw him on the street a few years back, crossing as the lights were about to change. He looked like someone’s grandmother.
- Iggy Pop, Fall In Love With Me. The closing number on the album which also contains such highlights as The Passenger and Lust for Life, this is the song that captures the Igster at his most sublime, and no nonsense: “When you’re tumbling down, you just look better.”
- Patti Smith, Midnight Rider. Patti’s recently released rendition of the Allman Brothers classic makes it an ageless tale that could be a western or an ancient hero’s journey. From the queen of CBGB’s, the godmother of punk, the story also has another meaning, thirty years later.
- Tom Waits, Shore Leave. More poetry recital than song, but more musical than a broken bottle, this heart-wrencher is from Tom’s first among the now classic Frank’s Wild Years trilogy. The sound defies definition, but is something like the Swordfishtrombones album cover, which captures the essence more or less.
- Neil Young, Wonderin’. A tribute to a simpler and – lacking a better way to say – more “analog” time, this is Neil Young at his most humorous, most lyrical, and most charismatic. Recorded in 1984, this is a nostalgic track about a more humorous, more lyrical, and more charismatic time.
Now, some of you will have noticed that some items on the list are not, strictly speaking, rock’n'roll recordings. This is a technicality, don’t let it throw you. It is a flawed premise, possibly encouraged by the industry, that rock’n'roll is a form of music. In fact, this is not so. In the next installment of this series, I might provide a list of select rock’n'roll authors, some of whom date back to the ancients.
