Neil Young – Living With War

Dead Link Click Here for the audio stream of Neil Young’s new album,now playing free. Available as a digitial download Tuesday, CD a week later.

Lyrics for the most talked-about song on the record:

“Let’s Impeach the President”:

Let’s impeach the president for lying
And leading our country into war
Abusing all the power that we gave him
And shipping all our money out the door

He’s the man who hired all the criminals
The White House shadows who hide behind closed doors
And bend the facts to fit with their new stories
Of why we have to send our men to war

Let’s impeach the president for spying
On citizens inside their own homes
Breaking every law in the country
By tapping our computers and telephones

What if Al Qaeda blew up the levees
Would New Orleans have been safer that way
Sheltered by our government’s protection
Or was someone just not home that day?

Let’s impeach the president
For hijacking our religion and using it to get elected
Dividing our country into colors
And still leaving black people neglected

Thank god he’s cracking down on steroids
Since he sold his old baseball team
There’s lot of people looking at big trouble
But of course the president is clean

Thank God

Equal Time for the Right

So, perhaps you're sick of Neil Young, the Dixie Chicks, Bruce Springsteen and all those other libruls who don't know when to shut up and assimilate into God's Plan. Well, now there's a musical choice for you.

Though I'm disappointed this collection doesn't include any gems from the immortal Bob Roberts:

Link

Don’t Dixie Chick Me – Local Rhythms

This appeared in the Claremont Eagle Times, April 27, with a slightly different headline.

Performers should keep their politics to themselves – so says Arnold Schwarzenegger, or was it Ronald Reagan? Actually, it might have been Ron Silver describing his response to a Toby Keith/Ted Nugent concert.

Seriously, it’s hard to imagine the musical world without an opinion about world events. Remember that country singer who, right around the start of the Iraq war, torched a controversy by criticizing it? Recently, that same artist released a song and video, which unapologetically revisited those issues.

Really, Merle Haggard should learn his place. Not only that, the song, “Let’s Rebuild America First,” sounds a lot like his current touring mate Bob Dylan’s “Blowing in the Wind.”

The next songwriter in the crosshairs of the “shut up and sing” crowd will likely be Neil Young, whose new record, “Living With War,” begins streaming on his website tomorrow. The album, with songs like “Let’s Impeach the President,” should get a certain element’s blood boiling.

Neil Young isn’t an easy target, though. The author of “Ohio” also made “Let’s Roll,” a tribute to the heroes of United Flight 93, in the wake of 9/11. That’s bound to confuse the zealots over in Amen Corner.

Those jingoistic cries are strangely faint these days, however. Given the number of claims, dismissed as stupid three years ago, that turned out to be true, their absence of bluster isn’t exactly shocking.

If Clear Channel blackballs the Dixie Chicks’ new record (admit it, you thought it was them, not Haggard, who I was talking about earlier), they’ll do it quietly, with little fanfare. The Chicks’ song about their 2003 media gang rape in the wake of lead singer Natalie Maines’ anti-Bush remarks to an English audience is an emerging hit. “Not Ready to Make Nice,” with over 2,000 fan reviews, has a four star rating on iTunes.

It’s hard out there for a Prez – but that’s not my point.

It bothers me that artists on one side of the political spectrum face resentment when they refuse to surrender their First Amendment rights. What’s worse, their detractors see no contradiction in drafting quarterbacks, second-rate actors and trust fund babies as candidates to actually run the country.

Bollocks.

What’s great about rock and roll is also what’s great about America – anyone can step up to the microphone and sing whatever moves them. We’re free to listen or look away.

Here are a few worth listening to:

Thursday: Colin McCaffrey, Canoe Club – With an exceptionally soothing voice and an easy songwriting style, it’s a mystery why McCaffrey hasn’t broken out to a bigger audience. His 2003 release, “Make Your Way Home,” is a roots bluegrass gem. Canoe Club recently announced some menu fine tuning, so if you haven’t been in a while, here’s your excuse.

Friday: Stonewall, Royal Flush – The new home for rock in Springfield has moved from four band Sundays to two band Fridays or Saturdays. My favorite power trio has had a lot of success there. They haven’t made a record yet, so the only want to appreciate their music is live. It’s also the best way, as it turns out. Look for Stonewall in Claremont early June.

Saturday: Punk Rock Show, Canaan Speedway – This is a 3-band show led by Jonee Earthquake Band from Manchester, who remind me of the Buzzcocks or the Damned – full frontal fun. The Rosens and Redlight America, both from the local area, round out the show. It’s a benefit for both the Upper Valley Haven and the Mascoma High Class of 2008.

Sunday: Damone, Webster Underground – I wish this band was playing closer than Hartford, but I have to recommend them anyway. If you miss the chance to see Damone in a gritty club, you’ll be sorry. This is one of the punchiest rock bands to come around in a long time, a Boston-based powerhouse that sounds like Suzi Quattro, AC/DC and the Cars thrown in a blender.

Tuesday: Irish Sessions, Salt Hill – Dave Loney and friends continue this weekly tradition. If you haven’t experienced it, makes plans for an early dinner and pint. The music is always a surprise – there’s no telling who will join Dave to play, or what exactly will result. That’s the best part.

Finally: Fans of comedy should check out Hullabaloo in Claremont tomorrow for some good stand-up. Also Friday, Ingrid’s Ruse plays at the Windham. Reports of the Windham’s imminent demise are premature, according to Fort Apache’s Gary Smith. The Bellows Falls establishment will have shows at least through June, maybe even July, he says. With the likely sale of the Windham Hotel property, however, music lovers should make a point of enjoying a performance there while they can. Sadly, it’s just a matter of time before one of the area’s premiere venues closes for good.

by Michael Witthaus

Tia’s Time – Tia McGraff Opera House Preview

Appeared in Claremont Eagle Times, April 27, with different headline:

The next month is a lively one for the Claremont Opera House, beginning with the “Magic of Lyn” this weekend, and ending with a raucous night from the North Shore Comedy troupe May 20.    There’s also a real buzz of anticipation for Tia McGraff, the Canadian singer/songwriter appearing Saturday, May 6.  

The performer, who cites Linda Ronstadt, Neil Young and Joni Mitchell as her influences, plays with producer/guitarist Tommy Parham.  Jon Michaels, another country-flavored singer, will open the show, and join Tia and Tommy during their set.

Tia McGraff’s sound straddles the line between traditional country, pop and the roots rock of singers like Lucinda Williams and Sheryl Crow.  That’s fitting given her history, the past several years of which have been spent on a sort of musical Acadian trail.

“When I started it was in country music,” she says.  “I entered a contest, and won.  But I didn’t want to be a country singer, so I recorded a rock album.”    That record, “Small Town Life,” won awards in Europe, and received plenty of airplay in Canada … on country outlets.

“That was funny, because it opened doors for me in Nashville,” she says, where she moved to work primarily at songwriting in 1999.   There, her success blossomed.  In 2000, she released the well-received “Jewel’s Café,” which took its’ cues from crossover successes like Shania Twain, Trisha Yearwood and Faith Hill.   The following year, she was featured prominently on “One Less Tear,” a cancer awareness project organized by several Nashville artists, sports and movie celebrities.  Tia wrote two songs for that record, including the title cut.

With 2005’s “Outside the Circle,” McGraff moved towards a more organic musical style, something she plans to embrace wholeheartedly with her next record, due in 2007.    “Love Lies Bleeding,” bursts with moaning fiddles, and the storytelling of “Life Lines” has the stripped-down honesty heard in the best Americana.

Her musical evolution helped build an overseas audience, with the help of “Whispering” Bob Harris, the legendary BBC announcer who hosted the “Old Grey Whistle Test” on British television in the 70’s.  She and Tommy made two trips to the U.K. last year.  “We met Bob on one of those tours,” she says  “He listened to my CD, and in November we taped a BBC show for him.  Emmylou Harris was on the week before.”

In mid-April, they went back to do a brief series of shows, and attended Harris’s 60th birthday, along with rock luminaries like Robert Plant and Thea Gilmore.

From the start, Tia’s taken a very hands-on approach to her career.  She’s made all her music on Bandana Records, the independent company she began with her first release in 1994.  

“ I’ve never been a major label girl anyway,” she says of her DIY style.  When she started Bandana, it was a bit anachronistic.  “Now, it’s the cool and hip thing to do.  People in Nashville call me and ask how did you do this and how have you done it so quickly?”

It’s hard work, though. “I’m at the computer most of the day, writing at night, and then performing, booking gigs, and everything.”

Lately, she’s given thoughts to moving her base back to her native Port Dover, Ontario.  Fellow musician Fred Eaglesmith, known to area fans for his “Roots on the River” weekends, traveled that path himself.  He and McGraff have been friends for several years (though they haven’t collaborated musically).

When they first met and talked about the business, she says, Eaglesmith steered her towards home.  “I asked him what he was doing,” she explains, “and he told me, ‘when I moved back here, and started running my whole camp out of Port Dover, that’s when it all started happening.’  He says you need to get your head out of the Nashville cog.”

“He’s been steered away from the co-writing thing that Nashville likes,” she says.  “He’s focused on writing for himself, and not Music Row.”

With so much great roots music emanating from the North, it begs the question — why is such a wealth of Americana found in the Northern woods of Canada?

Though it’s a bit colder, the same bucolic life that moves writers in the American South speaks to Canadians, says Tia. “The smaller towns, countryside – you grow up writing about your experiences there.  It’s so geographically beautiful that we tend to be inspired by that.  For me it was growing up on Lake Erie.”

Asked what Claremont Opera House patrons should expect from her performance next weekend, she says it’s “very honest, song-oriented.  I like stories and feel-good songs.  I like to share with the audience and have them leave feeling better.”

When she was in England last year, a fan came up to her after a performance.  “I don’t quite know how to say this,” he told her,  “but your music brought my soul peace.”

by Michael Witthaus

The Last Petty Show?

Renowned filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich recently announced plans to film Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers as they tour the country; the kick off date for the "Highway Companion" summer run is June 9 in Charlotte, NC.

"I'm not an expert on Tom Petty, I'm just a fan," the 66-year-old director said. "But what appeals to me is that he's a real American artist – an impressionist – very much of the American grain."

Petty recently stated his intentions/inclinations to leave the road, so this is likely a piece of that plan. I admire him immensely, not just for his music, but for being one of a very small group of well-known musicians to call the industry out for their greed, homogenization, and gradual marginalization of the working class fan.

Granted, tickets for the "Last DJ" tour a few years back hovered at around 50 dollars, and most people can only afford one or two big shows like that a season. But the low end tickets for this tour start at 30 bucks, and the co-headliner shows with Pearl Jam range from 45 to 75 at the high end. Not a bargain, really, but it's certainly not the vulgar moneygrubbing of Madonna and the Stones.

Note to folks in the region – there's a Tweeter Center show in June with Trey Anastascio, but fans may want to wait until August. The Hartford and SPAC dates include the Allman Brothers Band.

Freedom of Speech 2006

As reported Monday (April 24), Crosby Stills Nash & Young will hit the road for a tour of North America which will kick off at Camden, New Jersey’s Tweeter Center at the Waterfront July 6, and wrap September 10 at the Post-Gazette Pavilion at Star Lake in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania.

The Freedom of Speech 2006 tour is the group’s first since 2002 and tickets to the shows will range from $35 to $125 with a limited number of gold-circle tickets available as well.

The shows will include both an extended CSNY set and favorites from the singers’ individual careers. Neil Young is expected to showcase music from his forthcoming album, Living With War.

All four members of the band "believe that in light of the current environment, it's time for them to be out on the road fighting for America, and for people's rights to stand and be counted."

The itinerary for CSNY’s Freedom of Speech 2006 tour follows:

July 6 – Camden, NJ (Tweeter Center at the Waterfront)

July 8 – Ottawa, ON (Scotiabank Place)

July 10 – Toronto, ON (Air Canada Centre)

July 14 – Winnipeg, MB (MTS Centre)

July 15 – Minneapolis, MN (TBA)

July 17 – Morrison, CO (Red Rocks Amphitheatre)

July 20 – Phoenix, AZ (Cricket Pavilion)

July 23 – Fresno, CA (Save Mart Center)

July 25 – Concord, CA (Chronicle Pavilion at Concord)

July 27 – Auburn, WA (White River Amphitheatre)

July 28 – Ridgefield, WA (Amphitheatre at Clark County)

July 30 – Irvine, CA (Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre)

July 31 – Los Angeles, CA (Hollywood Bowl)

August 8 – West Palm Beach, FL (Sound Advice Amphitheatre)

August 10 – Atlanta, GA (Philips Arena)

August 12 – Bristow, VA (Nissan Pavilion)

August 15 – Uncasville, CT (Mohegan Sun Casino)

August 16 – Mansfield, MA (Tweeter Center)

August 19 – Saratoga Springs, NY (Saratoga Performing Arts Center)

August 20 – Holmdel, NJ (PNC Bank Arts Center)

August 22 – Wantagh, NY (Nikon at Jones Beach Theatre)

August 25 – Hershey, PA (Hersheypark Stadium)

August 29 – Columbus, OH (Germain Amphitheater)

August 31 – Auburn Hills, MI (Palace of Auburn Hills)

September 2 – Noblesville, IN (Verizon Wireless Music Center)

September 3 – Tinley Park, IL (First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre)

September 6 – Milwaukee, WI (Marcus Amphitheatre)

September 7 – Maryland Heights, MO (UMB Bank Pavilion)

September 10 – Burgettstown, PA (Post-Gazette Pavilion at Star Lake)

Stonewall Update

Josh Parker called to update me on his band, a three-piece that kicks ass like the power trios of yore (Mountain, Cactus, Three Man Army) that I used to bug the neighbors with in my teenage years.

The band has a show at Royal Flush Friday, with their house band supporting.  The Springfield venue has been a good fit, Josh says, though it looks like they've abandoned the four band Sunday night habit for two band shows on Fridays or Saturdays.

Two weeks from Saturday, Stonewall has a date at Charlestown's Heritage, where the band, Josh says, "has to keep to volume down so we don't piss off anybody."  Canoe Club South?

June 3 they'll present their first Knights Hall show in Claremont, where they teamed countless times with Hexerei and won the 2005 Battle of the Bands.  On the bill with Stonewall are Broken Mindz, Guttermind, X Element, and Snox & the Voodoo Henchmen.  The last band is Rock 93.9 DJ duo Matt Cross and Steve Smith's fun little side project.  DJ Stax spins between sets.

Finally, the mystery of the band's name persists.   They're still Stonewall, under legal duress, and still looking for a new moniker.  I suggested Stonewall VT, a la Beat UK.  Really, though, they ought to face facts – this is the Josh Parker Band.  He is, after all, the only remaining member of the original combo.

Just a suggestion.

iTunes Likely to Retain Uniform Pricing

According to a news story, although negotiations between Apple and the recording industry are at an impasse, the issue of variable pricing is apparently dead:

Negotiations between Apple and the four major music companies – with which iTunes deals all expire in the next two months – have reached a crucial point as several record executives now say they are unlikely to convince Jobs to allow variable pricing, sources said.

No news yet on Apple's demand that the four majors put out albums that don't suck. 

Local Rhythms – April 20, 2006

Feel the Benefit

There’s a video on YouTube.com (a web site I’ve been spending way too much time on lately), a hilariously cheeky spoof of musicians and charity. In it, Boston-based rockers Damone bemoan the plight of “broke rock bands” in the wake of music business decline.

Shot in grainy black and white, it’s a pitch perfect plea for help that only takes “pennies a day… won’t you save the rock?” “Without the financial resources for drumsticks,” the fake ad implores, the band’s drummer “can’t throw out his only pair to screaming fans at the end of each show.”

Send a donation, chokes teary-eyed lead singer Noelle. “Keep our van running, provide us with hot meals, cheap motel rooms and beer money.”

As they say on the Internet, ROFLMAO.

Seriously, though, musicians are usually the first to step up for others in a time of need, be it a natural disaster, or a guitarist without health insurance.

Tomorrow, Richard Shindell and Lucy Kaplansky perform a benefit concert at the Lebanon Opera House for COVER, a nonprofit organization similar to Habitat for Humanity, but they repair existing homes instead of building new ones. They work throughout the Upper Valley. In two weeks, they’re shingling an elderly couple’s roof – right here in Claremont.
One of New Hampshire’s oldest charities has relied on the generosity of the talented for 21 years. The 2006 version of NH Child and Youth Services’ “Concerts for the Cause” brings another great lineup to raise money for society’s most vulnerable citizens. Three shows are scheduled, one each in Concord, Manchester and Lebanon.

Kicking things off at Concord’s Capitol Center May 20 is America, known for songs like “Ventura Highway” and “Sister Golden Hair.” Manchester’s Palace Theatre welcomes Suzanne Vega June 2. Her heartbreaking “Luka,” became an anti-child abuse anthem when it was released in 1987. Finally, Don McLean, of “American Pie” and “Vincent” fame, arrives at the Lebanon Opera House June 3.

The shows, say the organization, “benefit child abuse prevention, intervention and treatment; runaway & homeless youth services; home-based family strengthening and preservation programs; child advocacy; adolescent substance abuse treatment; crisis care for at-risk youth; adoption services; and summer camp for disadvantaged youth.”

It’s a way to do something noble and hear some good music. There are VIP packages available with artist introductions and premium seats if you’re feeling especially generous.

Now, for the weekend’s entertainment:

Thursday: Gandalf Murphy & The Slambovian Circus of Dreams, Flying Goose – The final show of the season is quite likely the wildest. They whip up a mighty froth for a four-person band, and I’m curious as to whether this sedate venue can contain them. Their music is a bit like Rusted Root at the Renaissance Fair, with a dash of Frank Zappa’s wit thrown in for good measure. No one in the band’s named Gandalf, but they’re definitely a circus.

Friday: Hexerei, Electra – Speaking of broke rock bands… Seriously, these guys cashed every chip they had to get their latest CD, “27,” made, and it was worth the effort. Go see them, buy a T-Shirt and help their cause – “pennies a day” and all that, OK? Though I’ll use this space to wonder why Electra brings the TSA in for Friday night rock shows.

Saturday: Gypsy Reel, Salt Hill – Traditional Irish music is this band’s stock and trade, but they whip out a few high energy numbers at the Pub to get the folks dancing. Case in point: their cover of the Corrs’ “Toss the Feathers,” one of the great Celt-rock romps of all time. They also do a sweet “Eleanor Rigby,” so grab a Guinness and step lively.

Sunday: Guster, Keene State – An early heir to the Phish throne, I’m tickled that they’re still a hot ticket for the college crowd. Their music works because of their harmonies, which stood out in the muddy mid-90’s when bands did everything they could to bury the vocals and hide song titles. They haven’t changed much, but the recent chamber pop movement made clean sound cool again – thank goodness.

Monday: Bell Orchestra, Iron Horse – Chamber pop meets avant-garde. A side project for members of the Montreal based indie band the Arcade Fire, this music sounds like Philip Glass learning to dance. It’s tough sledding at times, but you’ve got to give props to them for working outside of the box. Should sound interesting live.

Tuesday: Black Eyed Peas with Pussycat Dolls & Flipsyde, Mullins Center – Two reasons I like this show: it’s a reasonably priced package deal, and the Peas play a brand of hip-hop that doesn’t glorify violent lifestyle choices like, say, 50 Cent. The Pussycat Dolls, ex-strippers turned pop singers, are something else entirely. Parents, beware – they’re coming out with a line of action figures soon.

Love Monkey – Episode 4

 

Watching this last night on VH1, I'm still baffled about why CBS killed the show. What's not confusing is how they did it – originally slated to run against some B-list sitcoms, they moved it to 10 PM, where Law & Order: SVU has a solid following, then proceeded to give it no support. It's the self-fulfilling prophecy again, reality shows are popular because the networks spend less money on talent and more on promotion – and thus, they can't be avoided.

 

Last night's show was mostly satisfying. What love most about "Love Monkey" is the genuine passion for music. The opening scene, Tom Cavnaugh crawling through a used record store in search of the late 60's gem "Merry-Go Round," Emmit Rhodes' first band, was charming enough, but having the narrator make a point of mentioning Rhodes as a hero is a joy – he's one of mine too.

 

OK, the plot was a bit pedestrian (old girlfriend returns with band and ex-boyfriend in tow with guilty sex and rumination inevitable), and I could do without the "Nash Bridges" style multiple storylines. But any show that has Aimee Mann demurring on every question with "it's a mystery," a very pregnant Samantha Bee as a Letterman show booking agent giving Tom the option of having his body or his spirit broken for a professional indiscretion ("I won't do it myself," says Bee, "I have people who do it for me."), and works plenty of mostly good live music into it is all right by me.

 

I do wish the invented bands (Teddy Geiger, Gladwell) were better than mediocre. But it's the only damn show about the music biz, it will disappear completely in four episodes, so I'm gonna enjoy it while it lasts. You should too.