Posts tagged ‘Alabama Shakes’
We Like American Music: Podcast #118
What is American Music to you? I think one of the greatest things about American Music is that it can mean something different to everyone. This weeks podcast is a little taste of what it means to me. I sat down and really pondered where the music came from. From it’s Folk, Blues and Jazz roots to its country beginnings, R&B and Soul, through to Rock n Roll and back again. American music has a long, diverse, and storied history; rich in tradition but also heavy on exploration and improvisation. It’s also important to mention that there are many more that I would have loved to add to this list; and even as I write this now several more have popped in my head (Doc Watson, Velvet Underground, Link Wray, The Temptations, and Stevie Wonder just to name a few). So, nevertheless I invite you to listen to my interpretation; soak it in, but also I encourage you to make your own playlist and think of what american music means to you. As always, enjoy, and listen loud.
These are the truly american tracks that were played:
Robert Johnson – Cross Road Blues ++ Chuck Berry – Roll Over Beethoven ++ Otis Redding – I Can’t Turn You Loose – Sam Cooke – Another Saturday Night ++ Leon Bridges – Coming Home ++ Aretha Franklin – I Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You) ++ Billie Holiday and her Orchestra – Summertime ++ Preservation Hall Jazz Band & The Del McCoury Band – I’ll Fly Away ++ Lead Belly – Midnight Special ++ The Allman Brothers Band – Revival ++ Bruce Springsteen – 4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy) ++ Dawes – From a Window Seat ++ The Band – The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down (live) ++ Woody Guthrie – Going Down The Road Feeling Bad ++ Bob Dylan – You’re No Good ++ The Byrds – You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere ++ Joe Pug – Hymn #101 ++ Johnny Cash – Folsom Prison Blues ++ Buddy Holly – Not Fade Away ++ Grateful Dead – Ripple ++ Alabama Shakes – Gimme All Your Love ++ Father John Misty – Bored In the USA ++ The Gourds – All The Labor
We’ve Got All The Time In The World: Podcast 117
Man. All the time in the world. We’re all just rolling along, doing our own thing, trying to find happiness and meaning. I’ve found it in a couple of these songs. You know, If you look at it the right way, you do have all the time. You control it. Lets raise a glass to greatness and go become it.
Here are the spoonful of songs that were played in this weeks podcast :
Bahamas – All The Time ++ Courtney Barnett – Avant Gardener ++ Pretenders – The Wait ++ The Clash – The Right Profile ++ Alabama Shakes – The Greatest ++ The Velvet Underground & Nico – I’m Waiting for the Man ++ Silver Jews – People ++ Dawes – I Can’t Think About It Now ++ Father John Misty – I’m Writing a Novel ++ Bob Dylan – Bob Dylan’s 115th Dream ++ George Harrison – Apple Scruffs ++ Johnny Cash – Cocaine Blues ++ Sturgill Simpson – Turtles All The Way Down ++ Howlin’ Wolf – Spoonful ++ St. Paul & The Broken Bones – That Glow ++ The Gourds – Gangsta Lean
Tomorrow Land: Podcast #106
These were the funky fresh tracks on this weeks’ podcast:
The John Scofield Band – Tomorrow Land ++ Tommy James & The Shondells – Crimson and Clover ++ Dr. Dog – Phenomenon ++ Chris Kasper – Never Saw You Blues ++ Bob Dylan – Tell Me, Momma ++ Alabama Shakes – Always Alright ++ Ramsay Midwood – Monster Truck ++ Jimi Hendrix – Killing Floor (live) ++ Derek Trucks Band feat. Susan Tedeschi ++ Pharrell Williams – Happy ++ The Rolling Stones – Happy ++ Talking Heads – Happy Day ++ Herb Alpert & Hugh Masekela – Happy Hanna ++ Barry Louis Polisar – All I Want Is You ++ Mason Porter – Let Me In ++ The Gourds – Let Him In
Download Shady Groove Podcast #106
Happy Thanksgiving from the Shady Groove: Podcast #99
Here are the tracks on this weeks Thanksgivingkkah podcast:
William DeVaughn – Be Thankful for What You Got ++ Bob Marley – Thank You Lord ++ Sly & The Family Stone – Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Again) ++ My Morning Jacket – Thank You Too! ++ Cab Calloway – Everybody Eats When They Come To My House ++ The Kinks – Maximum Consumption ++ The J.B.’s – Pass The Peas ++ Arlo Guthrie – Alice’s Restaurant Massacree ++ The Avett Brothers – Nothing Short of Thankful ++ Those Darlins – The Whole Damn Thing ++ Bob Dylan – Country Pie ++ The Beatles – I’m So Tired ++ Alabama Shakes – Goin’ To The Party ++ The Gourds – When Wine Was Cheap
2012 Year in Review (Part 3): Best Albums
This is always the toughest list to come up with.
My 5 favorite albums of 2012.
1. Alabama Shakes – Boys and Girls
You’ve really gotta love this band. Their music is rooted in 60’s blues and soul, but you could easily call them an indie rock band. They’ve build a substantial following through their rocking live shows and this debut thrust them on the scene. But its not just the fact that they are rooted in the past that makes this band and this album awesome. Its the fact that it feels like the Shakes are poised to grow into a legendary band. Boys and Girls can be played front to back without skipping a beat. There are no awkward songs to skip through. This is the best album of 2012.
2. Michael Kiwanuka – Home Again
His stripped-down acoustic folk style evokes images of Otis Redding. His soulful voice is timeless. You can’t help but get swept up in his thoughtful lyrics. Pop on this album and you’ll find yourself transported to another place. He has been compared to Curtis Mayfield and Bill Withers. I love that at its core, the sound is retro, though the music stays novel. Home again has placed itself high on the list of my favorite new albums.
3. Dr. John – Locked Down
The good doctor is back with a vengeance. Black Keys guitar player, Dan Auerbach produced this album and the results were astounding. Their collective aim was to create a modern recording that drew on the organic, spontaneous, spooky, swampy, nite-tripper voodoo elements that we heard in Dr. John’s earliest albums. It’s not a recreation of Gris Gris. It grooves with the feeling of swamp rock, but its got many new ideas and sounds. The band is tight and at times you can definitely feel the Black Keys style. Although it is not in any way a Black Keys album. Even in this age, it can be labeled as one of Mac Rebbenack’s finest.
4. Dr. Dog – Be The Void
As soon as the opener, Lonesome, begins one can tell they are in for a treat. Dr. Dog hits a home run with this album. They seem to be having a great time as they wind through raw but poppy harmonies and stripped down warm lyrics. I think they have wandered slightly away from their intricately crafted pop of earlier albums. But it seems to work as the sound is more loose and uninhibited. I love that the band keeps on growing, changing, and exploring new territories.
5. Jack White – Blunderbuss
Jack White is a powerhouse in todays music industry. Having showed us his producing chops with Loretta Lynn’s comeback album, Van Lear Rose, and with his other side projects also creating a significant buzz, Jack does what he wants and it almost always comes out good. It seems funny that this is his first solo album. He places an indelible stamp on every project he has been in from the Raconteurs to the Dead Weather, so much so that you would think those are his albums. But this one is his and only his. With contradictions and squelching guitars, electric piano, beautiful melodies, and even quieter polished sounds, Blunderbuss gets better as it gets played more.
Honorable Mentions:
Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros – Here
Bruce Springsteen – Wrecking Ball
Neil Young and Crazy Horse – Americana
The Lumineers – The Lumineers
Justin Townes Earl – Nothing’s Gonna Change the Way You Feel About Me Now
Gary Clark Jr – Blak and Blu