28 January 2013 – Sound and Vision

Today is the Australia Day Public Holiday.  “M” and I went into town for a fancy lunch, and then returned home to shampoo Lady and watch some movies.  Earlier in the morning, some quality time presented itself and I used it productively to fit in some viewing. 

I indulge in three broad types of music viewing excluding made for TV or motion picture biopics such as Ray or Walk The Line.  These are concert performances, the occasional compilations of video clips or TV appearances and documentaries.  The latter category includes early efforts such as Woodstock, Gimme Shelter, Let It Be or Sympathy For The Devil made for cinema release. Today these are increasingly being developed by the acts themselves.  The Rolling Stones appear to be leading the way with the recent releases of Stones In Exile and Crossfire Hurricane but frequently these take the form of “The Making Of” freebies included as a bonus DVD as an inducement to purchase an album.  Personally, I don’t see how such a disc would induce anyone to buy an album, the only exception being anniversary releases of significant albums such as discs included with the 25^th Anniversary Editions of The Clash’s London Calling or Bruce Springsteen’s Born To Run and Darkness On The Edge Of Town. 

(Audio-Visual 2) The Fleshtones - Excuse Us For Living But The Graveyard Is Full

This was released as a bonus disc with the deluxe edition of their Brooklyn Sound Solution album with Lenny Kaye.  The documentary was filmed during 2007 and 2008 and shows the legendary 30 something year old garage band on the road, in concert and in the recording studio.  Elements of this clearly involve the band wanting to set the record straight on a few matters especially that, although the they regard themselves as one of the bands that emerged from the CBGB scene, albeit slightly later than the Ramones, Television, Blondie, etc  and despite having frequently played with these acts, have largely been written out of that scene’s history despite being the only band that has never broken up.   But this is a minor matter.  This one hour documentary is a celebration of a band that plays for the love of the music, whose members are committed to each other and do not envisage breaking up unless one of them dies. There is great footage of the band live, especially in Dictator’s Handsome Dick Manitoba’s NYC bar although unfortunately, no one track is shown in its entirety.   The live footage will have anyone who’s had the pleasure of seeing this great band live fondly recalling the experience.  Talking heads paying tribute include Manitoba, Steve Wynn of the Dream Syndicate and Dave Faulkner of the Hoodoo Gurus.  

Otherwise, the only album played today was whilst writing this post.

(84) The Lemonheads - Its A Shame About Ray

Many things have been said over the years about Evan Dando, not all of which has been complimentary.  But what can never be denied is the quality of this album.  Although barely 30 minutes long, even with the latter day inclusion of their sped up cover of Mrs Robinson, each track has something to recommend it.  The best tracks such as Rudderless, the title track and Alison’s Starting To Happen rank with the very best American “college rock” music of the era.