So, what have you been listening to lately?

[Dave W]

JLL on Hee Haw, 1969, backed by Buck Owens' Buckaroos and Kenny Lovelace on fiddle.

[4stringer77]

Can't deny what the man put out was some of purest expression of American music period. Otis also talks a good piece about him.



Kenny Vaughn had some things to say about the Killer not long ago.

[uwe]

Who'd have thought he'd ever even reach that age? What a trailblazer he was.

Very good und comprehensive obituary here ...

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/oct/28/jerry-lee-lewis-rock-n-roll-star-dead

Had a knack for surrounding himself with young talent ...

https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-jerry-lee-lewis-with-the-outlaws-from-l-ritchie-blackmore-ken-lundgren-32563983.html



You cant's say "rest in peace" with Jerry Lee, but rather:

HAMMER THOSE KEYS IN ALL ETERNITY !!!

[uwe]

Jerry Lee listening to a time capsule of himself on his 85th birthday and enjoying it.



Question: Do all American hardware stores feature pianos for customer entertainment? Is this perhaps a Wild West saloon tradition?





We see AND hear: The art of piano shredding is alive and well!

[uwe]

For all you Lynne lovers (some surprises featured):



Want more?

[westen44]

I would like to check out some of those albums Jeff Lynne produced that I didn't even know about. 

[slinkp]

The new Taylor Swift. It's good. Don't hate me.

Before that, I have been gradually working through the Slipknot catalog. Also good.   What is happening to me???

[uwe]

You're fine. No one hates you. I've got it as well (Taylor, not Slipknot):

It's musically ok+, lyrically better, but

- her songwriting (the music, not the lyrics) is kind of samey, the chorus harmonies and melodies are often interchangeable,

- as a singer, she's no Lady Gaga or Pink, her voice never transcends "nice"; in her favor: she's not the umpteenth white girl that tries to sound black, but she's not Karen Carpenter, Emmylou Harris or Alison Krauss either,

- those electronic-loungy drums & synth beats as a basis of nearly every song (Sweet Nothing does mercifully without them) get tiresome after a while.

But she's a phenomenon. Yet in a way she is musically more conservative/less daring than Madonna ever was. Yes, she's left the New Country that made her famous bravely behind, but now seems to be in cruise mode. If it weren't for the lyrics, you'd be forgiven to sometimes think that "Midnights" is an Enya album with all those layered vocals billowing everywhere.

But perhaps you can't really expect an angsty album entitled "Midnights" to be varied or treading new ground. Let's wait for the next one. Picking up a guitar again to write songs might help too.

[uwe]

Going through a Blood, Sweat & Tears binge today ...

They'll always be identified with David Clayton-Thomas' beefy vocals, but the two Jerrys (Fisher & LaCroix) with their two-pronged lead vocal attack were no slouches either. Their version of And When I Die at 37:37 with an extended horn and harp duel is ace. As is LaCroix' monster rendition of the Al Kooper penned I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know at 21:52 ...



This is divine - from an almost forgotten album (More Than Ever) after DCT had returned ...

[Pilgrim]

I saw BS&T live in my college days - David Clayton-Thomas is always the dominant image of them in my mind.

[uwe]

The Canadian bear!

[westen44]

ZZ Top, WTF?

[Pilgrim]

Makes no sense to me.  For their music, anything more than 4 strings is superfluous, contributing nothing but excess weight and expense.  No one can finger most of the strings either.

[doombass]

C'mon guys, that can't be anything but a joke.

[westen44]

I'd say a joke or just a gimmick.  Elwood Francis is a guitar tech.  Maybe that's an idea he has had for a while and just decided to try it out.  I doubt he is planning on doing it all the time.  It is kind of funny the first time you see it, though.