The King’s Debut
This day in music History:
On November 10, 1955, Elvis Presley attended the fourth Country Music Disc Jockey Convention in Nashville, Tennessee. Back at his hotel, Mae Boren Axton played him a demo of a new song she had written with Tommy Durden called “Heartbreak Hotel”.
The song was inspired by the suicide of a man, who left the note, “I walk a lonely street”. Axton, a high school teacher of Jacksonville, Florida, who read the news in The Miami Herald, wrote the song in thirty minutes in 1955.
Presley would go on to record the song the following year and would be his first single for RCA records. This single, released on January 27, 1956 would become the first #1 pop single for Elvis and was the best selling single of 1956. It would skyrocket his career and was his introduction into American music popularity.
It has been ranked number forty-five on Rolling Stone’s list of “The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time”, and in 2005, Uncut Magazine ranked the first performance of “Heartbreak Hotel” in 1956 by Presley as the second greatest and most important cultural event of the rock and roll era.
Countless people have covered the song in concert. Willie Nelson and Leon Russell had a number one cover version in 1979 on the country charts. The song was Russell’s only number one hit on the charts. Former president Bill Clinton even performed the song with his saxophone during his appearance on The Arsenio Hall Show on June 3, 1992.
A groundbreaking song to say the least. Check it out. Rock it out.
Tasty Shinyribs
The first time I saw Shinyribs on the bill opening for The Gourds I had no idea who it was. Dem good ol’ Gourds had rarely had an opening band and because I was solely going to see them, catching Shinyribs beforehand was not a priority. When I arrived shortly before The Gourds went on, I asked someone “who was this Shinyribs band that had opened? Were they good?” He informed me that Shinyribs was simply Kevin Russel’s solo stagename. Wow. OK. Now that makes perfect sense. I do love the name and as The Gourds and Shinyribs embark on another east coast mini-tour to NYC and Philadelphia, I will not be missing the opener. So for those of you who still are looking for a bit of info on Shinyribs, here is the bio, most likely written by Mr. Ribs himself.
“The mysterious quantity lurking in the afterglow of yesterweek. A gamey diamond of a find for any fan of the utmost mystical wooden teapot of song known as American Song Bag. A modern day renegade born of the white rice and rain in the lonley, humid southeast of Texas. Raised by Karankawan Wizards. Awarded the congressional medal of the obtuse in 1967 by then President Lyndon Johnson. Inventor of Frequency Shifter used in the growing of medicinal eggs. Educated at Glory Abounds Academy For Isothermal Static. Professor of Economic Threat Access. Steaming with uncertain attributes only seen in the general population during the scotch-Irish domination of Western Carolina and Eastern Tennessee. Dangling participle of roots music.”
Thought that was lyrically amazing. So if you have the chance, check out the Gourds and Shinyribs, sunday 9/19 at Sullivan Hall in NYC, and monday 9/20 at the North Star Bar in Philadelphia. You will not be dissapointed.
Part I: Finding the Groove at 49th Annual Philly Folk Fest
Good evening folks! Big things have been happening in Shady Groove Land. For the last 4 weeks I have been frequenting the many festivals, carnivals, and county fairs that the summer has to offer and it has definitely had me feeling like a carney of sorts. So as this past weekend wrapped up my past month of carney living, I found myself at one of the nations oldest Folk Festivals, The Philadelphia Folk Fest. In fact the Philly Folk Fest is now the longest continual running music festival in North America. Beginning in 1962 as a celebration of the folk arts, fans have been heading up to Old Pool Farm in Schwenksville, PA to camp, play, listen, relax, live and learn the best folk music around. DJ Gene Shay was there when it began in 1962 and he was there this year; 49 years consistently serving as master of ceremonies.
This being my first time as a Philly Folk Fest attendee, I was fascinated by the good-natured, non-commercial, environmentally friendly, and overall laid-back feel of the festival. My first impression was of utter surprise at the amount of people that were camping when I arrived on Thursday night. The campsite was PACKED and the festival didn’t even start until Friday. Tent city was in full effect and many of the campers had been there since Monday! Pre-fest, which is what I had arrived for, was an event solely for the festivals campers. And there to kick-off the 49th annual festival was local hero, Hoots and Hellmouth, who headlined the camp stage that night. The Pre-fest volunteers and campers are notoriously the most rowdy and riotous fans and this night was no different; we were ready to go! Hoots did not disappoint, biting and feeding off the energy of the crowd with a rollickin’, barn-stompin’ great set filled with such amazing energy that is quite honestly, absent from many live bands these days. That really set the mood for the whole weekend. As much as I thought that Hoots’ energy level that kicked off the festival could not be reached again, I was proved wrong several more times throughout the weekend.
For me it was the not simply the bands and artists on the festival program that made the festival so special. I was honestly taken aback by the incessant energy and musical prowess demonstrated by the people in tent city. I would say just about 70% of the people camping had an instrument of some sort. If one had an instrument, they played it. Many brought guitars, mandolins, hand-made dulcimers and drums, tambourines, clarinets, recorders, alto and soprano saxophones, congas, bongos and just about any instrument you can think of. Our campsite was actually directly across from the campsite of Philadelphia Jug Band who came complete with kazoos, washboards, and of course, glass “jugs”. The legendary Jug Band is a group of 60 and 70 year olds who have been attending, camping, and of course playing at the Fest for 40+ years. This band of iconic, folk elders and countless other passerby’s played every night of the festival from midnight to around 3am and drew a crowd each time. It was truly amazing to me the kind of camaraderie and wise musical prowess that was displayed by the group; the kind that only 40 years of playing together will produce. If I had gone to the festival and strictly saw the Jug Band I would’ve been happy. But there is more. So much more…..
Aside from the Jug Band and its followers, one could walk down the roads and trails of the campground and find another jam session happening a few yards away. It seemed that if one had ever owned or played an instrument of any kind they were apt to be jamming at some point during the 3-day festival. Everyone played, everyone sang, everyone drummed, everyone learned, everyone listened. We were all musicians this weekend. It was a spectacular display of good-natured fun and love of music. As I walked around I was many times left speechless by the wonderful happenings that were taking place. Late-night dance parties and jam sessions that lasted till the sun came up were an every night occurrence. Many of the festivals bands on the program were also seen and heard in the campground on numerous occasions. Some bands actually camped with the rest of us. Most of the campsites also had great names such as “Fish Pro Crow”, “Kom Say Hai”, and “Who Hill” to name a few. I honestly cannot say enough about the overall mood and experience of camping. Oh, beautiful tent city, how you quench my thirst. I am left completely satiated.
to be continued……….
One of the Most Underrated Artists of Rock History
Leon Russell is the unsung hero of the 50’s 60’s and 70’s. The ultimate session man, he has played on, produced, wrote, or somehow had a hand in many of the most important albums in rock and roll history. From the time he lied about his age at 14 to land a gig in Tulsa, playing behind Ronnie Hawkins and the Hawks, to touring in support of Jerry Lee Lewis, to the production and session playing on many groundbreaking albums by Bob Dylan, Frank Sinatra, Ike and Tina, The Rolling Stones, The Byrds, The Ventures, Wayne Newton, Sam Cooke, Johnny Mathis and many records with Herb Albert, he has been most influential. He can also be heard in the background playing piano on many songs of the Beach Boys “Pet Sounds” album, as well as playing on many of Phil Spector’s monumental records. His friendship with Eric Clapton and George Harrison let to them both playing on his debut solo album. Russell was also a major figure on the legendary “Concert for Bangladesh”.
The dude was everywhere. According to acclaimed producer, Jack Nitzsche, Leon was always there “for the solos and the fancy stuff.” He has since extensively toured with Willie Nelson and produced early Tom Petty records. But I think what makes this man so cool is his refusal to ever be pinned down to a single genre of music. While others played it safe for the sake of their careers, Leon became known as the perennial rock “ChameLeon”, as fans would call it. They loved it, and critics were confused by it. He has dabbled in country, rock, bluegrass, gospel, circus, jazz, etc…the man is a musical genius.
My first introduction to Leon was off of a vinyl copy of his 1971 album, “Carney”. On first listen, Russell immediately evokes notions of the eccentric swamp rock of Dr. John. Without a doubt, I was hooked.
Leon is the rock and roll legend that you either love or never have heard of. Probably one of the most underrated names in rock history…..
Going camping this weekend and I can’t stop listening to this one (link at the top of page)….
A Visit to Cleveland
So I was just passing through Cleveland and I definitely felt the need to stop at the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame to check it out. First of all, the building is incredible. What a cool location….in cleveland. The building is right on Lake Erie; parts of it actually hang over the water. The same pier also houses a science center, right next door, and the cleveland brows stadium. In Cleveland though? Cleveland isnt the most happening town. Its population has actually been on a steady decline over the past 1/2 century, moving from over 900,000 in the early 1940’s to a little more than 400,000 today. Regardless, the building was immaculate.
Why Cleveland? Several other locations were considered; Memphis and NYC being a couple of them. The real reason the Rock Hall landed in Cleveland was most likely the root of all evil today…Money. But, they did also have Alan Freed, the DJ who claimed to coin the phrase, “rock n roll”. In actuality he was not the first to use the phrase; though he did bring it to a larger audience. Plus he organized what is considered the first rock n roll concert, “The Moondog Coronation Ball”, in which they sold 20,000 tickets for the 10,000 capacity Cleveland Arena. Five acts were scheduled that night and they only got through two due to the extra 10,000 concert-goers crashed down the gates and they shut the show down.
Anyway, the Rock Hall definitely satisfied the soul. Unfortunately there is always controversy. Too many bands let in, not exclusive enough, only rock critics involved in the voting. As far as Im concerned, there will always be people that disagree with who does or does not get into the hall. Here’s a few that are eligible that I felt had been left out nonetheless:
John Coletrane
Herbie Hancock
Dr. John
Benny Goodman
Link Wray
Stevie Ray Vaughn
Willie Nelson
Slim Harpo
Ella Fitzgerald
Albert King
Toots and the Maytals
Dick Dale
Merle haggard
Donovan
The Troggs
John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers
Cat Stevens
Clarence Carter
Jethro Tull
Lee “Scratch” Perry
Kool and the Gang
James Gang
Joe Cocker
King Crimson
The Faces
Derek and the Dominos
Peter Tosh
Devo
Those are a few. If you want to dispute your fav’s and voice your opinion, visit: https://futurerocklegends.com/index.php
Rock on.