Siggy's Blurbs: Siggy's Edge of Country …

This is an elegy to Paul Kantner, who died yesterday. He co-founded Jefferson Airplane. His most memorable song he wrote for them was “Crown Of Creation”. I still remember seeing Jefferson Airplane in 1970 at the Shore. And when they did that song I moved and sat down in the aisle to hear it. I strongly identified with some of the words of that song: ‘you are the crown of creation, and you got no place to go’. The song gave me hope for change at a time my life felt helpless and out of control. Paul Kantner was a visionary. The last studio album Jefferson Starship, the group he founded, came out with was an album almost no one heard near the end of his career. It was full of protest and folk and other peoples’ material. It was unlike anything he ever put out. It was titled “Jefferson Tree Of Liberty”. He was a visionary to the very end.

Tags: "Crown of Creation", "Jefferson Tree Of Liberty", 1970 concert, an elegy to Paul Kantner, folk music, hope for change, Jefferson Airplane, Jefferson Starship, music, protest songs, record album, visionary
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I learned Phil Everly died recently.  I immediately played the anthology I had of The Everly Brothers–a best of–“Looking Back.”  It is twenty cuts and is the best collection I ever heard of them.  In the eighties they reformed and came out with at least two albums.  I can comment on the first, which was superb and had Albert Lee playing on it and was produced by Dave Edwards.  “On The Wings Of A Nightingale” was expressly written for them by Paul McCartney in two part harmony.  The album which came out was in no way dated.  “Asleep” which closes the album is absolutely stunning.  The whole album is fresh and worth hearing.  I have no idea whether it is available on CD.  By all means if it is, get it.  You can’t go wrong.  When you hear them sing, it is hard to separate their voices.  They blended so perfectly.

Tags: "Looking Back", "On The Wings Of A Nightingale", 1980's, Albert Lee, asleep, CD, Dave Edwards, Everly Brothers Tribute, music, Paul McCartney, Phil Everly, record album, The Everly Brothers, the harmonies of The Everly Brothers", two part harmony
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It is always about the music.  Whenever I loved a group I went deep in their albums.  I never collected just to collect.  Although sometimes the first album of a group or artist I bought was excellent and subsequent albums never matched up.  I do read music reviews.  My collection is out of control since I married my second wife.  She “discovered” E Bay and went a little crazy for awhile.  Now there is music in my house I am not familiar with or have no interest in.  Like when she bought the complete set of Emerson, Lake and Palmer.  I had stopped listening to them after their second album.  I am glad she is no longer doing that. I now do have some music I never thought I would ever see again.  In my first marriage I had to make room to include some music which meant I had to get rid of some of the “deadwood” in my collection.  In my new house I have more room so I can collect more music.  There is always an interesting piece of music I have not heard before.

Tags: collecting music, Emerson Lake and Palmer, music, music reviews, my wife, record album
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There is a point your musical collection becomes unwieldy.  There is so much music one can listen to.  One thing that has not changed is the power of one.  That is all you can listen to at one time.  One CD.  One album.

And the more unlistened albums you have the harder it is to listen to new pieces of music.  If it doe not get your attention right away, it vanishes in your collection.  Not every album captures your attention right away.  Many don’t.

There is too much music I am not familiar with.  My wife discovered E Bay and went a little crazy with purchases of music.  And got music I never would have advised her to buy had she run it by me.

I have several hundred CDs, maybe two thousand LPs and hundreds of cassettes.  I have trouble enough storing them much less playing them.  My musical collection has become unwieldy.

Tags: cassette, CD, LP, music, music collection, my wife, new music, record album, storing music
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I absolutely loved Peter, Paul & Mary. I use the past tense only because Mary Travers died last year not because I still don’t love hearing them: I do.

They had a rare blend of voices and had impeccable taste as far as the material they chose to record. Usually they recorded other people’s material but they always made the material their own.

They were all excellent songwriters, too. My first concert was Peter, Paul & Mary at Carnegie Hall in 1965. It was magical, they were great!  It was the first concert I ever went to:  I was a sophomore in high school.

Their first album “Peter, Paul & Mary” (1962) is still very high on my all time list of records to play.

They sang with passion and worked at it. Their singing very seldom was mannered. They left behind many memorable albums and most of them are still in print. I never get tired of hearing them.

And if you have not discovered them it is still not too late to explore their discography. You will be in for a treat.

Tags: "Peter Paul & Mary 1962", Carnegie Hall 1965, discography, excellent songwriters, Mary Travers, music, my first concert, Peter Paul & Mary, record album, singing
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All I wanted to do was watch the birds and listen to music with the volume pumped up but not unbearably so.  My wife would be gone several hours.  I had just come back from shopping.

I had a dinner planned–a new recipe-macaroni and broccoli but I would not have to start it for several hours.  I was tickled pink to see a house sparrow briefly.  I had not seen one in awhile.

The snow birds (slate-covered juncos) were feeding on the ground around our large white pine tree in flocks.  I glanced out the back window:  the bare patches were getting bigger.  It was in the forties.

It felt great to be alive.  I just wanted to be, sit back, stand it does not matter.  It was my time.  I was listening to a fine anthology I put together by the Hollies.  It was much played over the years which is a good sign I did my job of mixing the tunes well.

Another anthology by Steeleye Span (an old British folk-rock band) was next.  I do not play that tape too often but I still like it.  And an old (all my music is old) Thin Lizzy album “Jailbreak” was next.

I had no concerns and will rest a little better when my wife get back from her appointments.  Meanwhile I will occasionally glance out my large living room window and see what birds come along.  Maybe even smoke a stogy while life passes me by.

Tags: "Jailbreak", bird feeding, bird-watching, birds, British folk-rock band, felt great to be alive, house sparrow, life, listen to music, music, music anthology, my time, my wife, record album, slate covered juncos, smoke a stogy, snow birds, Steeleye Span, the Hollies, Thin Lizzy, white pine tree
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The love we share of music is only by serendipity.  My wife and I both intensely love music.  We grew up listening to the same artists and groups.  She is also a musician, which I am not.  The only area she knows better than me is R&B, which I never went out of my way to listen to.

She is the recipient of my DJing every day.  And to me there is no greater joy than to share a beautiful piece of music, especially something she never heard.  Both of our tastes in music are eclectic:  we listen to a broad range of music.

I was responsible for her falling in love again with Peter, Paul & Mary.  She listened to the ninety minutes I put together of them on cassette repeatedly.

I have put together dozens of anthologies on cassette culled from my extensive music collection.  I must do a good job.  The cuts usually blend pretty well and she can’t tell always tell when they have come from different albums.

I have always gone deeply in particular groups and individual performers I have loved.  I sometimes surprise her with the material I have recorded of performers she knew well.

I turned her on to British folk rock–a world she had no idea of–Fairport Convention and Steeleye Span.  And performers from England like Sandy Denny, Richard Thompson and John Tams for starters.

She was the third woman I turned on to Richard Thompson.  The second one divorced me.  The first one was a friend.  And we have gone to several of his concerts.  She has fallen in love with his songwriting and guitar playing.  We never get tired of him.

To be able to share my deep love of music with my wife is a gift.  And I never forget that.  It is a real treat.  When I am home, the stereo usually is on although I have to admit when I go out, silence reigns.  I never take that love we share for granted.  It is a real gift.

Tags: a real gift, beautiful music, British folk rock, cassette, CD, concert, divorce, DJ, don't take for granted, eclectic, England, Fairport Convention, gift, guitar playing, John Tams, joy, love of music, LP, music collection, music groups, musical anthology, musical artists, musician, my home, my wife, Peter Paul & Mary, R&B, record album, rhythm and blues, Richard Thompson, Sandy Denny, serendipity, silence, songwriting, Steeleye Span, stereo
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September 6, 2009 Mary Travers (of Peter, Paul & Mary fame) died.  I just wanted to give a short tribute to the folk and pop group.

They possessed a rare combination of voices.  Mary had the big voice.  I had a friend tell me she used to sing away from the microphone.  Even today, fifty-eight years after the release of their first album, I still can listen to their music and it does not seem dated.

Just about all their recorded material is available on CD.  I still have their original LP’s.  And still play them.  Although the best ones were transferred to cassette a long time ago.

Their anti-war anthems still ring true and more than ever.  “The Great Mandella” was one of the greatest anti-war songs I ever heard stating the dilemma of war and protest.

Many songs were Dylan songs.  Of course everyone has heard Dylan’s “Blowing In The Wind” arguably his best song but that was just one of his they sang.  And there were others.  They do the best version I ever heard of his “Too Much Of Nothing.”

They had immaculate taste in their choice of material and were perfectionists yet sang with fire and passion.

Their best songs still have an element of timelessness.  More relevant than ever in an era where currently the US and other countries are embroiled in wars all over the world.

Their voices harmonized beautifully and almost never came across mannered.  And they took turns singing lead.  All of them wrote songs but most of the time they chose to interpret other peoples material, often making it their own.  You can never mistake their harmonies.  They did it so well.

Tags: "Blowing In The Wind", "The Great Mandella", "Too Much Of Nothing", anti-war anthem, best songs, Bob Dylan, cassette, CD, folk music, LP, Mary Travers, Mary Travers death, Peter Paul and Mary, pop music, record album, sing harmony, sing lead, singing, timeless, war, war and protest, write songs
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