582 The Remix According to Sonic Boom

Now we are getting closer to the end of this series... well sort of.  I saved the best for last, as my original post in 2024 had listed three artists I wanted to get to, but their discography was too intimidating.  Well, time passed and I had just enough time on my hands to dive into them.  Having completed the challenges I set upon myself, I had some good momentum and extended this series by another half dozen or so, and found a great way to wrap it up in early October, just wait!

First up is former Spaceman, Sonic Boom aka Pete Kember.  While his former bandmate Jason Pierce went in a more psychedelic drug-fueled anthem-rock direction, Sonic Boom kept his Velvet Underground meets Beach Boys aesthetic going strong with Spectrum.  He also went quite another direction with his Experimental Audio Research project.  For me it was his production and remix work where he really shines the most.

00:00  Julie's Haircut & Sonic Boom - Gemini Pt 1

05:31  Panda Bear & Sonic Boom - Go On (instrumental)

10:11  e4444e - The Oarsman

14:27  Yo La Tengo - Let's Save Tony Orlando's House

18:22  Pye Corner Audio - Saturation Point

23:12  Dean & Britta - Silver Factory Redux

28:43  Moon Duo - Scars

34:38  Fuxa (feat Sonic Boom) - Girl (Suicide)

38:07  Vacant Lots - Let Me Out

42:43  Sinner DC & Sonic Boom - All Show & No Go

50:06  IQU and Friends - Can't You Even Remember That?

55:42  Peter Gordon - Around (Love Is) (Open The Aspect Wider mix)

64:19  A Place To Bury Strangers - Love Reaches Out (edit)

69:19  No Joy & Sonic Boom - Obsession (Radio edit)

Download mix1

00:00  Panda Bear & Sonic Boom - Everyday

03:43  Childhood - Solemn Skies

07:15  MGMT - Brian Eno

10:43  Black Market Karma - The Sour Truth

14:39  Insect Guide - David Hero

18:19  Shallow - Eighty-Four Glyde (Shine mix)

21:44  Norton - Galaxies New Atlantis

28:27  Tod Lippy - Good Start

31:38  Cheval Sombre - Red Moon

35:45  Dean & Britta - Wait for Me

39:27  The Insect Guide - Frozen

42:13  Yo La Tengo - You Can Have It All

46:35  Sonic Jesus - Locomotive

52:00  Yeti Lane - Sparkling Sunbeam

56:53  The Red Crayola - Hurricane Fighter Plane (Alternate Stereo - Sonic Boom Stereo Remaster)

60:37  Sunray feat Sonic Boom - Ocean (Velvet Underground)

Download mix2

00:00  DAIISTAR - Velvet Reality

05:04  MGMT - James

08:50  Dark Horses - Radio

16:20  Shallow feat Sonic Boom - I Love You

22:20  Three Quarter Skies - On Fire

31:28  The Garment District - Nature-Nurture

37:56  Heimat - Ita

41:46  S.C.U.M. - Amber Hands

45:40  Wooden Shjips - Wiking Stew (aka Red Krayola-ing)

52:40  Tim 'Love' Lee - The World May Shudder At My Joy

57:36  Silver Apples - The Gift

62:47  Magnetophone - Benny's Trip

Download mix3

Spotify (30/42)

487 Counting 0 to 30

Nothing original here, this has to be a common theme for playlists.  This is my take.  Had originally planned just a one to ten, then remembered this great Godflesh cover, and this Nick Cave song came on rotation so I felt I needed to continue it.   I almost stopped at 21 as it was hard searching for this title as 99% of the search results were for Twenty One Pilots, ugh!  At least I remembered King Crimson, which kept this one moving along.   Honestly, after thirty I really struggled to find anything I cared enough about to include. 

I really like how much this mix jumps around, I find it fun and entertaining.

00:00  Godflesh - Zero The Hero (Black Sabbath)

06:01  Bigod20 - One

11:05  Khruangbin - Two Fish and an Elephant

14:33  Snowpony - 3 Can Keep a Secret (if 2 are dead)

18:09  Bright Eyes - Four Winds

22:15  Melvins - Trackfive (Throbbing Gristle)

29:16  Black Flag - Six Pack

31:33  Sunny Day Real Estate - Seven

36:16  Husker Du - Eight Miles High (The Byrds)

39:57  The Sisters of Mercy - Nine While Nine

43:52  808 State and UB40 - One in Ten  

46:27  Primus - Eleven

50:44  Venetian Snares - Twelve

52:59  Johnny Cash - Thirteen (Danzig)

55:22  The Twilight Sad - Fourteen Autumns and Fifteen Winters

59:03  Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Fifteen Feet of Pure White Snow

64:30  Tennessee Ernie Ford - Sixteen Tons

67:01  Prince and The Revolution - 17 Days

70:48  Alice Cooper - I'm Eighteen

73:34  The Rolling Stones - 19th Nervous Breakdown

77:22  To Kill A Petty Bourgeoisie - I Box Twenty

81:25  King Crimson - 21st Century Schizoid Man

88:38  Roy Orbison - Twenty-Two Days

91:40  Psychic TV - Hymn 23

92:13  Cult of Luna - 24 Hours (Joy Division)

96:38  Chicago - 25 or 6 to 4

101:25  DeVotchKa - Twenty-Six Temptations

105:28  Title Fight - 27

107:50  Why? - Twenty-Eight

108:33  The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion - Twenty-Nine (Albini)

110:45  Sarah Watson - Thirty

Download

Spotify

475 Early Bands

I don't recall if I was inspired by the Vinyl on Demand box set of John Balance's early works before COIL, or talking to my kids about the Green River/Mother Love Bone/Temple of the Dog/Mudhoney/Pearl Jam evolution.  Maybe it is my talking point about how Soul Asylum were much better when they used to be a punk band.  Nevertheless, I wanted to dust off some tracks of the early bands that helped launch musical careers of artists that are more well known for their later projects.  Some of these are very well known, like Warsaw, Gen X and Throbbing Gristle.  Others are a bit more obscure and were fun to track down.  Some tracks are low quality, like The Castiles, and I intentionally went with the demo version for Napalm Death.  The track from Earth is a fan made mix, as the original version I have of this is only a minute long, so someone cleverly mixed it onto of itself to make the track a little longer.

This is a good reminder for life.  Pay attention to where you came from, so you know where you are going.

Crap, once I finished this mix, I realized I neglected Inside Out, the first band of Zach De La Rocha from Rage Against the Machine, and also Blind Illusion featuring a young Les Claypool.  Oops!

00:00  101ers - Letsagetabitarockin' (The Clash)

02:02  Loud Fast Rules - Black and Blue (demo) (Soul Asylum)

05:25  LayneMeyer - Alarm (Gaslight Anthem)

08:24  Lockjaw - The Young Ones (The Cure)

10:12  Proud Crass Fools - Happy (Soul Asylum)

13:52  Vatican commandos - Why Must I Follow (Moby)

15:39  Deep Wound - In My Room (Dinosaur Jr)

16:41  Napalm Death - Abbatoir (Godflesh, Scorn/Mick Harris)

20:19  Warsaw - At a later date (Joy Division)

23:30  The Boys Next Door - The Nightwatchman (Nick cave)

25:30  Strontium 90 - Visions of the Night (The Police)

28:21  Earth - When I came down (Black Sabbath)

30:23  Tippi Tikarrass - Ottar (Sugarcubes/Bjork)

32:57  Easy Cure - Need Myself (The Cure)

35:10  Green River - This Town (Mother Love Bone/Pearl Jam/Mudhoney)

38:27  Skywave - Over and over (A Place To Bury Strangers/Ceremony)

43:01  Fool's Dance - Sa'Ha (The Cure)

46:58  Fridge - EH4-800 Phase Shifter (Four Tet)

49:14  Crisis UK - No Town Hall (Death In June/Sol Invictus)

51:43  Mag/Spys - Lifeblood (The Cure)

53:13  Gen X - Dancing With Myself (Billy Idol)

56:55  Mudcrutch - Don't It Get Weird (Tom Petty)

60:54  The Castiles - That's What You Get (Bruce Springsteen)

64:00  Dream6 - Rain (Concrete Blonde)

67:10  Psi Com - 14th Floor (Jane's Addiction)

70:55  Images in Vogue - Call It Love (Skinny Puppy)

74:39  Throbbing Gristle - United (Chris & Cosey/Psychic TV/COIL)

78:37  The Future - Cairo (Clock DVA/The Human League)

81:42  E.G. Oblique Graph - Merge (Muslimgauze)

86:25  Stabmental - Thin Veil of Blood (COIL)

89:14  Murderwerks - Blue Funk (Scars for E) (COIL)

93:55  A Primary Industry - Body Blow (Ultramarine)

98:02  Cultural Amnesia (feat Jhonn Balance) - Yellow Song (COIL)

100:11  :Zoviet*France: - Amadan (Dead Voice On Air/Rapoon)

Download

Spotify (19/34) And some of these got replaced for other tracks.  I didn't expect much of this mix to be available there.

Other artists I had considered but didn't follow through on:

Violent children --> Youth of Today/Shelter/Better than 1000

The Lower Third --> Bowie

The Rockin Vickers --> Hawkwind --> Motörhead

Magic Mushroom Band --> Astralasia

Slam Bamboo  --> Nine Inch Nails (this one is just funny)

Throwing Muses --> Belly, Kristin Hersh

484 Hard Rock Early Metal - overlooked in the 70s

Back in action, thanks for your patience as I focused on self-care the last few weeks.  I'd been playing with this track list for about a year.  Then we had a massive snowstorm which kept my kids home from school for 2 1/2 days.  They were going stir crazy, which made my day job difficult as I work from home.  One of my kids' friend's dad sent a recommendation to check out Somewhere Stranger's album "Delta Minor."   That kicked me into high gear to share the below Spotify playlist which was well received.  All us dads need some good classic rock to pass the time during busy work days.

Also, I cancelled my Mixcloud membership.  I'm open to suggestions if there is another free site to host these files for streaming.  Otherwise, its download for the mixed version, or Spotify for the mostly complete track lists (I continue my frustration with that service as I find so many songs and artists are unavailable there). 

00:00  The Groundhogs - Split Pt2

05:12  Epitaph - Autumn 71

09:34  Necromandus - Nightjar (alt take)

14:28  Lucifer's Friend - Ride in the Sky

17:18  Leaf Hound - Freelance Fiend

20:26  Blues Creation - Demon & Eleven Children

29:24  18 Karat Gold - See Me In Your Dreams

33:22  Mournin - Blind

37:36  UFO - Doctor Doctor

41:33  Sir Lord Baltimore - Master Heartache

45:43  Sudden Death - The Zoo

51:25  Brainticket - Black Sand

55:24  Flower Travellin Band - Satori Part 5

63:09  Nektar - Desolation Valley

72:03  Blue Cheer - Summertime Blues

75:47  Xhol Caravan - Love Potion 25

88:57  Galaxy - Supermarket

93:21  Gomorrah - Lola

97:44  Iron Claw - Claustrophobia

102:48  Flower Travellin Band - Twenty First Century Schizoid

116:11  Eloy - The Light From Deep Darkness

130:46  Leaf Hound - Growers of Mushroom

132:57  Thirsty Moon - Big City

141:11  Blues Creation - Atomic Bombs Away

146:27  Sir Lord Baltimore - Lady of Fire

149:13  Necromandus - Still Born Beauty

153:13  Wolfgang Dauners Et Cetera - Mellodrama 2a

Download

Spotify (24/27)

366 Mark's Mix 1

A mix of my own devices.  I likely make this for a friend, and then made a copy for myself.  Pretty certain this was late 90s as I was pretty excited to get the Wire tribute album "Whore."  Typical for the era, I made one side alternative and some industrial, and that slowly gets more punky until you get to side B which is mostly punk.

00:00  Snowpony - Easy Way Down

03:59  aMiniature - Peddler's Talk

07:00  Lush - Undertow

11:53  Band of Susans - The Pursuit of Happiness

17:05  Sonic Youth - 100%

19:31  Skinny Puppy - Far Too Frail

23:06  Skinny Puppy - Brap

24:15  The Germs - Lexicon Devil

25:53  The Nation of Ulysses - Spectra Sonic Sound

28:11  Smashing Pumpkins - Slunk

30:55  Mazzy Star - Blue Flower

34:21  Tori Amos - Precious Things

38:46  Pale Saints - Under Your Nose

41:34  Snowpony - 3 Can Keep A Secret (If 2 Are Dead)

45:05  Catherine Wheel - Kill Rhythm

48:55  Catherine Wheel - I Confess

52:38  Sonic Youth - Stereo Sanctity

56:20  Black Sabbath - Paranoid

59:04  Helmet - Repetition

61:57  Tool - Cold and Ugly

66:00  Napalm Death - Nazi Punks Fuck Off (Dead Kennedys)

67:18  Sepultura - Drug Me (Dead Kennedys)

69:01  Mata Ratos - Expulsos Do Bar

71:19  Fudge Tunnel - Lowdown (Wire)

74:45  Petty Tyrant - Our Swimmer (Wire)

78:22  Jane's Addiction - L.A. Medley (The Doors, X, The Germs)

81:59  Joy Division - The Kill

85:04  State of Alert - Girl Problems

85:49  The Teen Idles - Deadhead

87:07  Red C - Pressure's On

88:35  Youth Brigade - No Song

90:50  Youth Brigade - No Song II

90:53  I-Spy - More Than A Joke

91:41  The Clash - London Calling

94:58  Peter Tosh - Legalize It

99:25  English Beat - Twist & Crawl

Download

Spotify

photo credit: mix tape

358 Bruce Covers

The other side of the coin.  Bruce covers a lot of songs, most of them when performing live.  He selects some great tunes and does them justice.  Balancing respect for the original, while still putting his unique Boss spin on them.  

00:00  London Calling (The Clash)

03:54  Rave On (Buddy Holly)

06:18  Rebel Rebel (Bowie)

09:20  You Really Got Me (Kinks)

11:57  I Fought The Law (The Crickets)

14:28  Coma Girl (Joe Strummer)

18:19  The 59 Sound (Gaslight Anthem feat Bruce)

22:49  What's so funny bout Peace Love and Understanding (Nick Lowe)

26:29  My Sweet Lord (George Harrison)

29:34  Dream Baby Dream (Suicide)

36:18  The Time They Are A-Changing (Dylan)

39:48  We Gotta Get Out of This Place (The Animals)

41:32  Ring of Fire (Johnny Cash)

45:00  The Weight (The Band)

50:23  Long Black Veil (Lefty Frizzell)

55:55  Purple Rain (Prince)

Download

photo credit: time

357 Bruce Covered

I'm a big fan of Bruce Springsteen.  Not really a guilty pleasure, I'm outright loving his music.  He really is the Boss, no doubt about it. This is a mix of some wonderfully done covers spanning his career.  I used "I'm On Fire" and "Thunder Road" twice, only because both versions are excellent.  Great songs and great respect to the songwriter on display here.  Khayem had a great post with plenty of covers of "I'm On Fire" at their site recently - must be something in the air having us working on Bruce Springsteen posts at nearly the same time.

00:00  David Bowie - Its Hard To Be A Saint In The City

03:40  Kurt Vile - Downbound Train

08:10  Electrelane - I'm On Fire

10:22  Lucy Dacus - Dancing in the Dark

13:34  Rage Against The Machine - The Ghost of Tom Joad

19:09  The Waterboys - Independence Day

24:37  Tortoise and Bonnie Prince Billy - Thunder Road

30:43  Vampire Weekend - I'm Going Down

33:41  Jessie Kennedy - Devils and Dust

36:58  Mendoza Line - Tougher Than The Rest

40:19  Marissa Nadler feat Faces on Film & Red Heroine - The River

46:44  Soccer Mommy - I'm On Fire

49:40  Anna Calvi - Fire

52:51  Badly Drawn Boy - Thunder Road

58:16  Aoife O'Donovan - Nebraska

61:57  Johnny Cash - Further On Up the Road

65:18  Townes Van Zandt - Racing in the Streets

68:01  The Joy Formidable - Badlands

71:27  Patti Smith Group - Because the Night

74:40  Greg Kihn - For You

78:33  Darlene Love - Night Closing In

82:39  Elvis Costello - Brilliant Disguise

86:35  Camera Obscura - Tougher Than the Rest

Download

Spotify

photo credit: discogs

307 Oldies Rockin

Growing up listening to oldies left a permanent mark on my musical tastes.  Whether nostalgia, or past lives, or whatever it is, I just love this stuff.  Has that warm feeling of home in most of the songs, like an old friend coming back to visit.

00:00  Bobby Parker - Watch Your Step

02:40  Bobby Fuller - I Fought The Law

04:49  The Who - My Generation

08:04  Them - Baby Please Don't Go

10:43  The Animals - Memphis Tennessee

13:42  Buddy Holly & The Crickets - Oh, Boy!

15:47  Ritchie Valens - La Bamba

17:48  The Rolling Stones - Poison Ivy (version 2)

19:50  Bill Haley - Shake, Rattle and Roll

22:18  Bobby Fuller - Do You Wanna Dance

24:37  Ritchie Valens - Come on, Let's Go

26:33  Them - Here Comes The Night

29:13  The Velvet Underground - Who Loves The Sun

31:52  Roy Orbison - Running Scared

33:58  The Kinks - A Well Respected Man

36:34  Creedence Clearwater Revival - Lookin Out My Back Door

39:00  Buddy Holly & The Crickets - Not Fade Away

41:13  Roy Orbison - In Dreams

43:58  Sam The Sham & The Pharaohs - Lil Red Riding Hood

46:36  The Seeds - Can't Seem To Make You Mine

49:35  Credence Clearwater Revival - Lodi

52:30  The Kinks - This Time Tomorrow

55:51  Neil Young - Ohio

58:39  The Rolling Stones - Mother's Little Helper

61:18  The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Castles Made of Sand

63:58  Donovan - Hurdy Gurdy Man

67:05  Cat Stevens - Wild World

70:18  Elton John - Rocket Man

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photo credit: an old rocking chair

282 - Covers mix 1

I love a good cover song.  Some are a note for note recreation, some are an interpretation, some switch genres, others are so far removed its a challenge tying it back to the original, and others are just done for irony.  There are also many flops, and I've sorted through so many in my collection to pull together this first outing of all cover songs.  I have enough for at least another dozen mixes of great cover songs, I just need to set aside the time and focus on them.

00:00  The Fugees - No Woman, No Cry (Bob Marley)

04:08  DeVotchKa - The Last Beat Of My Heart (Siouxsie & The Banshees)

09:42  Japancakes - Soon (My Bloody Valentine)

14:55  Lana Del Rey - Doin Time (Sublime)

18:10  Devics - Catch (The Cure)

20:55  Hermann & Kleine - Dagger (Slowdive)

25:16  Asobi Seksu - Suzanne (Hope Sandoval)

28:43  Faye Wong - Nostalgia (Rilkean Heart) (Cocteau Twins)

31:58  Of Montreal - Harvest Moon (Neil Young)

34:14  Julie Fowlis - Blackbird (The Beatles)

36:47  Codeine - Atmosphere (Joy Division)

41:29  Seu Jorge - Rebel Rebel (David Bowie)

44:09  Pale Saints - Blue Flower (Slapp Happy)

48:25  The Foreign Resort & Drowner - Stand Back (Fleetwood Mac)

52:53  Elvis Costello & The Attractions - Peace, Love and Understanding (Nick Lowe)

56:21  The Ramones - Do You Wanna Dance (Bobby Freeman)

58:13  The Living End - 10:15 Saturday Night (The Cure)

62:58  Dum Dum Girls - There Is A Light That Never Goes Out (The Smiths)

67:07  Irene & The Disappointments - Iceblink Luck (Cocteau Twins)

70:19  Bunnygrunt - Holiday Road (Lindsay Buckingham)

72:12  Bat For Lashes - A Forest (The Cure)

75:24  Daughter - Poke (Frightened Rabbit)

80:15  Fujiya & Miyagi - Your Silent Face (New Order)

86:40  Godzuki - Contact (Brigitte Bardot)

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photo credit: https://diymusician.cdbaby.com/musician-tips/7-reasons-for-cover-songs/

271 - My Morning Jacket

Saw them in August 2002 at the Bluebird theater.

The first CDs I picked up were the split with Songs: Ohia, and the "Chocolate and Ice" EP.  Then grabbed "Tennessee Fire" on vinyl and by the time "It Still Moves" was released, I was turned off and lost all interest.  I've not given any subsequent album a chance, aside from the Jim James tribute to George Harrison.  Last year one of their newest songs was on the radio and I had a very hard time believing it was the same band I used to love.  This mix is focused on those early formative years up to and including At Dawn.

00:00  At Dawn (At Dawn)

03:47  Lowdown (At Dawn)

07:34  Just One Thing (Chapter 2: Learning: Early Recordings)

09:59  Weeks Go By Like Days (Darla 100)

14:08  X Mas Curtain (Does Xmas Fiasco Style)

18:56  O is the one that is real (split Songs:Ohia)

22:21  Sooner (Sweatbees)

25:52  Picture of You (Tennessee Fire)

29:03  Tyrone (Chapter 2: Learning: Early Recordings)

34:09  Evelyn Is Not Real (Tennessee Fire)

37:01  By My Car (Tennessee Fire)

41:00  They Ran (Tennessee Fire)

43:44  Dream A Little Dream Of Me (Chapter 2: Learning: Early Recordings)

48:08  I Will Be There When You Die (Tennessee Fire)

52:28  The Way That He Sings (At Dawn)

57:46  Hopefully (At Dawn)

63:34  Bermuda Highway (live) (Chapter 2: Learning: Early Recordings)

67:04  When Will They Come? (Chapter 1: The Sandworm Cometh: Early Recordings)

69:14  War Begun (live) (At Dawn/Tennessee Fire Demos)

Download

photo credit: MMJ live 2002?

268 - Rock

It is what it is, another classic rock mix for driving and singing along to.

00:00  Billy Idol - White Wedding

03:24  The Who - Pinball Wizard

06:20  Golden Earring - Radar Love

12:40  The Rolling Stones - Paint It Black

15:56  The Velvet Underground - What Goes On (Closet mix)

20:19  The Pretenders - Back on the Chain Gang

24:02  Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Mary Jane's Last Dance

28:22  Creedence Clearwater Revival - Fortunate Son

30:36  Guess Who - American Woman

35:36  Bruce Springsteen - Badlands #2 (with different lyrics)

39:12  Pat Benatar - Heartbreaker

42:37  Led Zeppelin - When The Levee Breaks

49:41  Pink Floyd - Another Brick In The Wall (pt 2)

Download

photo credit:  old fashioned

226 - SN Classic Rock volume 3

More classic rock brought on while watching Supernatural.  This IS the only time you'll see Aerosmith in one of my mixes, because I just don't care for them at all.  I had a debate with someone online once who said Steven Tyler was THE greatest rock vocalist ever, and my stance was that he embodies everything I dislike in a rock singer.  I enjoyed revisiting the videos for some of these.  The video from Yes has always stuck with me since I was a kid, it was strange then and strange now but is pretty cool.  The long pause for the birds flight, the industrial garage that looks like Einsturzende Neubauten recording an album.  Plus that iconic drum break.  Good stuff.  

00:00  The Doobie Brothers - China Grove

03:14  Deep Purple - Highway Star

09:20  Blue Oyster Cult - (Don't Fear) The Reaper

14:12  Journey - Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)

19:34  Loverboy - Turn Me Loose

25:07  Bad Company - Bad Company

29:41  Bob Seger - Against the Wind

34:55  Dire Straits - Sultans of Swing

40:37  Boston - Peace of Mind

45:23  Night Ranger - Sister Christian

50:16  Aerosmith - Sweet Emotion

54:31  The Zombies - Time of the Season

57:57  Queen - Another One Bites The Dust

61:26  Joan Jett and the Blackhearts - I Love Rock N' Roll

64:10  Cochrane Tom & Red Rider - Lunatic Fringe

68:19  Yes - Owner Of A Lonely Heart

72:36  Asia - Heat Of The Moment

76:17  Van Halen - Panama

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photo credit: beer bongs and camping late 90s Mt Blodget

Happy Easter

220 - Mellow Sock Rongs

Dramatic shift from the previous mixes, but sometimes you need the comfort of some soft, classic rock where you can sing along to every song even if you haven't heard them in 20 years or more

00:00  The Allman Brothers Band - Ain't Wasting Time No More

03:27  The Marshall Tucker Band - Can't You See (edit)

07:57  George Harrison - My Sweet Lord

12:25  Gordon Lightfoot - Sundown

15:50  Looking Glass - Brandy (You're A Fine Girl)

18:51  Blind Faith - Can't Find My Way Home

22:01  The Band - The Weight

26:30  The Allman Brothers Band - Midnight Rider

29:19  Buffalo Springfield - For What Its Worth

31:49  Dobie Gray - Drift Away

35:33  Steely Dan - Do It Again

39:36  Gerry Rafferty - Right Down The Line

43:49  Jefferson Starship - Count On Me

46:52  Bob Seger - Turn The Page

51:42  Steve Miller Band - The Joker

56:01  The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Third Stone From The Sun

62:43  The Kinks - Strangers

65:57  Cat Stevens - Father and Son

69:29  Elvin Bishop - Fooled Around and Fell In Love

73:56  Journey - Open Arms

77:06  The Moody Blues - Nights in White Satin

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photo credit: another great classic rock meme

Episode 192 - Guitarists

I grew up as a guitarist as I had little to no sports aptitude.  This set of songs represents what lit the fire in me and what I strived to imitate and learn from as I developed.  My journey began under the tutelage of a flamenco guitarist in Texas, then moving to my main instructor in Colorado Springs who exposed me to wonderful music.  By the time I was in middle school the alure of an electric guitar was too much, so I started learning 12 bar blues, and basic rock elements.  I had a great ear, and could learn darn near any song after a couple listens (obviously not the Steve Vai style technical wizardry).  

I'll do my best for a track by track breakdown on the significance here.  The first track is my favorite from Francisco Tarrega, and the first song my classical instructor played that left my mouth agape, I still use this as my go to piece to keep my skills up to par.  The Antonio Lauro Venezuelan waltz is one of the last pieces for repertoire I worked on with my main teacher before transitioning to full time college student and music teacher.  This Al Di Meola track is phenomenal and features the talents of Paco De Lucia. The Marc Gentry track is from an alternative compilation titled Guitarrorists which featured guitar only sounds from a who's who list of early 90s alt rockers (the whole CD is great).  

This Eric Johnson track is one my friend's Dad would play often; my friend was a big fan of Slayer and Metallica, but his Dad was a Dead Head and for whatever reason this track pleased all of us - likely from each of us trying to master that opening solo.  Stevie Ray Vaughan, because yes every budding blues student should learn his style and this is a great example of what he does best.  Jimi, come on, what guitarist won't cite him as an influence?  I remember clearly the first time I saw the video for this track and thought he was the most flamboyant but technically superior guitarist ever.  I learned that Steve Vai was a student under Joe Satriani, so I dove into his discography and got the tablature book for Surfing with The Alien.  I attended a rock guitar camp when I was about 12 or 13, and the final day was a surprise and our rock bands had to perform a song we wrote, and Blues Saraceno was the judge.  It was so cool meeting him and getting his autograph.  Of course I had to include this Zeppelin track, as it is just so fun to play.  

Alex Skolnik was a big influence on me, from his columns in Guitar Player magazine to seeing them live with D.R.I.   My rock guitar teacher had me practice the riffs to this Black Sabbath track for weeks on end, it helped limber up the fingers and get some dexterity going.  My parents bought me a best of CD from Eric Clapton, and of course this track stood out.  Now back to my rock teacher, he insisted that I give Rush a chance after I voiced my aversion to them based on just what was played on the radio.  He said this track was all instrumental, and it has some great hooks and passages that I still enjoy;  probably one of the few Rush songs I still tolerate.  More Stevie, why yes!  The Wind Cries Mary is one of the first Jimi songs I learned, it was in some guitar magazine with tabs and I picked it up pretty quickly.  The Rain Song is one I brought to my rock teacher as something I wanted to learn, and we worked through it over a month while I was still developing my ear for translation.  

The Chet Atkins song here is one my classical teacher suggested I learn.  Its just complex enough, and has some massive stretches for the left hand on a nylon string guitar neck.  I remember how sore my hand was for weeks while trying to master this one.  Then a massive genre shift to Praxis, which was my first audio exposure to Buckethead, having known him from his eccentricities and his theory column in Guitar Player magazine.  Ending with the plunderphonic rock mashup that is Scatterbrain.  I mostly wanted to learn all the riffs from the other songs which were included here.

Ones I omitted because I couldn't find the CDs, Yngwie Malmsteen (Rising Force) and Marty Friedman (Dragon's Kiss), and classical pieces by Fernando Sor.

There ya go, my guitarist musical journey through my teenage years.  These days, I mostly play classical, and my electric has gathered dust for the last several years.  My kids want me to break it out, so I may do that one of these days.

00:00  David Russell - Capricho Arabe (Tarrega)

05:16  Adam Holzman - Valses Venezolanos #3 Vals Criollo (Lauro)

06:47  Al Di Meola - Mediterranean Sundance

11:50  Marc Gentry - Mariposa

14:31  Eric Johnson - Cliffs of Dover

18:38  Stevie Ray Vaughan - Wham!

21:00  The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Little Wing

23:18  Steve Vai - The Audience is Listening

27:50  Joe Satriani - Circles

31:10  Blues Saraceno - A Lighter Shade of Plaid

35:14  Led Zeppelin - Over The Hills and Far Away

39:59  Testament - Practice What You Preach

44:50  Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath

50:55  Eric Clapton - Cocaine

54:17  Rush - La Villa Strangiato

63:39  Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble - Chitlins Con Carne

67:31  The Jimi Hendrix Experience - The Wind Cries Mary

70:51  Led Zeppelin - The Rain Song

79:02  Chet Atkins - Sails (edit)

81:56  Praxis - Blast/War Machine Dub

85:34  Scatterbrain - Down With The Ship (Slight Return)

photo credit: my band performing at the Underground in 1994

Episode 134 - Classic Rocks mix 2

Another of my road-trip worthy mixes of great driving music.

00:00 Van Halen - Ain't Talkin Bout Love

03:36 Deep Purple - Hush

07:51 Rick Derringer - Rock & Roll Hoochie Koo

11:29 Foreigner - Cold As Ice

14:38 Journey - Wheel In The Sky

18:25 The Jimi Hendrex Experience - Hey Joe

21:41 Bob Seger - Night Moves

26:57 Heart - Crazy on  You

31:35 Led Zeppelin - Over the Hills And Far Away

35:35 Bachman-Turner Overdrive - Takin Care of Business

40:13 Alice Cooper - No More Mr Nice Guy

43:17 Thin Lizzy - The Boys are Back In Town

47:34 Led Zeppelin - Trampled Underfoot

53:02 Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers - American Girl

56:23 Heart - Barracuda

60:43 Pat Benatar - Heartbreaker

64:06 Jett and The Blackhearts - I Hate Myself For Loving You

68:06 Alice Cooper - School's Out

photo credit: the truth in meme format

Episode 111 - Oldies

From around 2019, when the Guardians of the Galaxy soundtrack was all the rage.  Filled in the gaps with some "Songs we taught..." series, then rounded it out with a few originals from those wonderful DJ Shadow/Cut Chemist 7" only DJ mixes. 

00:00 Irma Thomas - Break-A-Way

02:26 Brice Coefield - Cha-Cha Twist

04:57 Gino Washington - Out Of This World

07:08 Ritchie Valens - Ooh, My Head

08:49 Chuck Berry - You Never Can Tell

11:25 Bo Diddley - Bo Diddley

13:48 Jay & The Americans - Come A Little Bit Closer

16:28 The Delfonics - Didn't i Blow Your Mind

19:41 Lenny Miles - Don't Believe Him Donna

21:59 Them - Here Comes the Night

24:38 The Chi-Lights - Oh Girl

27:58 Bob & Gene - Gotta Find a Way

30:44 Lou Courtney - Hey Joyce

33:20 Odetta - Hit or Miss

36:48 James Brown - Its a Man's Man's Man's World

39:27 Dolly Parton - Jolene

41:59 Looking Glass - Brandy (You're A Fine Girl)

44:59 Little Richard - Long Tall Sally

47:02 Sam Cooke - Bring it On Home To Me

49:38 The Travelling Wilburys - Runaway

51:59 Jefferson Airplane - White Rabbit

photo credit: found image Google search