11/11 - Minneapolis MN

That's a First Avenue show if I've ever heard of one. Hmmmm, and it looks like I'll be available. Hmmmmm.

I like Franz Ferdinand and a friend of mine went to see them on the strength of my liking them and had a really good time.

There was a good interview with Patti Smith on Morning Edition.

Scroll down and you can listen here.

This might interest Chicagoistas:

The Shaggs Symposium: Saturday, April 17, in Chicago

[link]

Saturday, April 17th at 6:00pm
The Old Town School of Folk Music and The Lookingglass Theatre Company Present The Shaggs Symposium
Admission: Free

Dot, Betty and Helen Wiggin are three musically talentless sisters who, in order to fulfill their late grandmother's prophesy, were forced by their domineering father to drop out of high school and form an ill-fated pop rock band. Their debut album, Philosophy of the World, was completely ignored upon its release in 1969, but was later rediscovered by Frank Zappa, who proclaimed them "better than the Beatles." Rolling Stone magazine gave them the title "Comeback Band of the Year" in 1980, and the trio is now celebrated as a cult classic of pure naïve badness. Join us for a discussion on The Shaggs, and the new Lookingglass Theatre musical production, "Philosophy Of The World", based on their lives and music. Panelists will include Lookinglass Theatre's Joy Gregory and David Catlin, The Chicago Tribune's Rick Reger, and freelance music journalist Bill Meyer.

Wow -- that looks like fun!

They added two more dates to Chicago (the Pixies, that is). I have tickets for Monday, Nov 15. Whoot!

I haven't seen a Pixies date for SF, dammit.

Have you guys seen the little picture of Robert Plant at the R&R Hall of Fame thing in the most recent issue of Rolling Stone?

It's horrifying. Rockers shouldn't look that old. Keith Richards excepted, if only to be a walking anti-drug PSA. But maybe Plant was a big druggie, too. I have to admit to not being up on my Zep knowledge.

But maybe Plant was a big druggie, too.

Not compared to Page or Bonzo.

So I bought Gene Clark's No Other (1974) and I liked it so I bought his first solo album after the Byrds (Gene Clark w/ the Gosdin Brothers, 1966).

In our book, writer Alec Palao (Zombies box set guy) argues that Gene's first album is better, but I'm kind of liking No Other better. It's gorgeous, and every once in a while Big Rock Star 70s Style. But mostly it's Cosmic Cowboy stuff that msbelle would like a lot.

In fact I'm going to make a Cosmic Cowboy mix with Gene, Burritos, Flatlanders and Townes, I think.

The first solo album, though is very cool in its own right - not least because it's a fantastic guitar album. Bearing in mind that it came out in 1966, I hear multiple examples of riffs that were pilfered for years to come, snatches of "Jumpin' Jack Flash" ('68), "Last Train to Clarksville" ('66), "Ballroom Blitz" ('74?ish). Of course Gene's got Clarence White playing guitar on this. (Glen Campbell too.)

Also prompted by somebody's review in the book I bought a BeBop Deluxe record, a collection of their A and B sides. I like their earliest stuff best, when they still had a big glam/Bowie influence (laced with Steve Howe-like noddling). Hard to resist a title like "Jet Silver and the Dolls of Venus." (b/w "Third Floor Heaven" a hot little glam rocker). Later on they get too proggy, but the earliest stuff had bits of Sparks and power pop and Roxy too. Unfortunately that period didn't last very long.