Ronny Jordan, Acid Jazz Guitar Great tells his musical story in his own voice

Jan 2013 in depth interview with Ronny Jordan, one year before his death in Jan of 2014

Duane Allman @ 70

This month marks Duane Allman’s 70th birthday. If you are a fan be sure to check out Photo tab on Talking2musicians with lots of b/w photos brought to life with color  There’s also my epic Duane Allman profile piece on the web most popular jazz website, AllAboutJazz.

What would you do in 1962?

If you’ve read or listened to my interviews, then you know I’ve asked several musicians questions about what they would like to see if they could go back in time.  Day dreaming about time travel seems to be a fairly universal pastime among music lover.

I decided to take it a step further than day dreaming and wrote a bit of fiction for music lovers.  It’s the story of  Nathan Ballew  who has a brush with death and finds himself back in 1962 with his memory from 2013 fully intact.

The only drawback, he’s in the body of an 11-year-old.  So what would you do in this situation?

You can download my eBook Anagrams on Amazon, or read some sample chapers there for free. Here’s the link

Rest in Peace U. Srinivas

A true maestro of the mandolin.

His talent was like a dazzling light, his countenance was as luminous as the moon, and his dedication to music was as constant as the ocean’s tides. Last year I had the privilege of seeing him in concert in Germany and meeting him afterwards. He radiated joy and kindness and his youthful appearance belied his age.

 

On September 9th I was scheduled to interview him for AllAboutJazz.com, but received word the day before that he had been rushed to the hospital and was fighting for his life. His latest work “Bombay Makossa” with the all-star group he formed with Etienne Mbappe and Ranjit Barot (from the legendary John McLaughlin group) was released September 16, 2014. Listening to it you might imagine he had grown up in Africa, and it gives listeners an inkling of the breadth of this musical virtuoso’s incredible gift. My sincere condolence to his family in this difficult time.

What’s Happening at Abbey Road right now?

Play some Beatles music and enjoy this live feed from Abbey Road.

Check Out Who is NOT in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame!

After you flip through the above YouTube playlist of who didn’t make it, have a look at who has been inducted

LIVE from DARYL’S HOUSE

(Darius Rucker, Eliot Lewis, Daryl Hall)

Most fans of Live from Daryl’s House (LFDH) will recognize Eliot Lewis as the keyboard player from the house band on LFDH.  In fact, he is a multi-instrumentalist and quite a guitarist.  He and Daryl are the only musicians to have appeared on every episode of the wildly popular Web- / TV-series LFDH.

I just did an interview(link) with Eliot which is now up on the Web’s most popular jazz website.  He has a fascinating musical story, and some interesting insights into LFDH.  As a kid, the father of his best friend was a rock music publicist.  He got Eliot and his freind backstage access to some of the biggest names in early 70s music.  In his early working years he did session work with the highly successful producer Dan Hartman (originally from the Edgar Winter Group) and later toured the world with the Average White Band for over a decade before joining the Hall & Oates Band.

Here is a clip of Eliot playing guitar on a episode of LFDH with Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top.  This is a fun and wide ranging interview, check it out.

Johnny Winter

Heard the news today that Johnny Winter has died at age 70.  You’ll notice on my post of 25 essential albums from 1960 to 1974 I listed Johnny Winter’s Progressive Blues Experiment.  Talk about being blown away.  I’ll never forget hearing that for the first time.

Check Out These Musicians Before They Were Famous

1. Bee Gees       2. Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin      3. Joni Mitchell as college student      4. Young David Bowie (not available in some countries)     5. Beatles 1962      6. Stevie Ray Vaughan 1980      7. Eric Clapton 1964       8. John Mayer 1999      9. Bob Dylan first network show      10. Leon Russell 1965      11. Jeff Beck 1965      12. Paul Shaffer      13. Elvis 1955 with Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash, Buddy Holly      14. Aretha Franklin 1964      15. Whitney Houston     16. Barbara Dennerlein 1984 as a teenager      17. Derek Trucks @ 15      18. Beach Boys 1962  (not available in some countries)    19. Young Neil Young      20. Young Warren Haynes      21. Young Johnny Winter      22. Todd Rundgren in High School (next clip with Nazz, Todd on guitar)     23. Glen Campbell      24. Jim Seals & Dash Crofts before Seals & Crofts (on sax and drums)     25. Susan Tedeschi 1996      26. Steely Dan 1973      27. Etta James      28. Frank Zappa 1963!

 

 

Duane Allman Solos brought to life by Billionaire Music Lover

Forgive the headline hook, but that’s my own personal fantasy.  Before going to sleep last night, I listened to a recording of the Allman Brothers Band from January 23, 1971.  They were opening for Delaney and Bonnie at the Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, NY.

If you’re a serious Allman Brothers fan, you recall the laid back crowd reactions on the Fillmore recordings. Without even hearing any music, this crowd reaction will give you an indication of just how smoking hot Duane Allman and the band were that night in 1971.

Hammond USA Announces it’s Hall of Fame

A special celebration and concert for the living members of the freshman class will be held during the NAMM show in Anaheim, California on January 24, 2014.

Visit http://www.hammondorganco.com next month for more details and a special webpage devoted to the Hall of Fame.

Derek Trucks & John Mayer play for BB King

BB King was only a couple of weeks away from his 87th birthday when he played the Hollywood Bowl on Sept. 5, 2012.  For the finale he was joined on stage by Susan Tedeschi, Derek Trucks, and John Mayer.

Even now BB King tours nearly 300 nights a year, clearly the love he gives and receives keeps him going.  I was lucky enough to catch BB King in a small lounge in Reno, Nevada in 1973 and it remains a vivid memory.

Here’s a tip, rent or buy his DVD about his life, it has interviews with Clapton, Santana, Derek Trucks, Dr. John and many, many more.  It is a wonderful film about an amazing person.

Jon Batiste & Michael Lee Firkins Interviews

Jon Batiste

He and his band, named “Stay Human,” do just that, and they just released a breakout album entitled “Social Music.” When you watch video clips of him on the streets, or listen to his album, it’s music without borders or labels, but with integrity. I caught up with Jon in San Francisco in the middle of a very hectic tour

Michael Lee Firkins

He first gained attention as the “next big thing” in instrumental rock with his impressive guitar skills.  On his just released album “YEP” on the Magna Carta label, he puts his singer/songwriter skills on display, backed up by the legendary Chuck Leavell (Rolling Stones, John Mayer, Allman Brothers), and Matt Abts and Andy Hess of Govt. Mule.

Listen to, or download these interviews here

The Beatles Final Tour & Paul McCartney’s First — Being there

It is difficult to impart to young people today what a phenomenon the Beatles were in the 1960s.  Imagine, when the Beatles appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show, 73 million people were watching, and in 1964 the US population was only 192 million!

American Debut

Sullivan’s failure to scoop the TV industry with[Elvis] Presley made him determined to get the next big sensation first. In 1964, he achieved that with the first live American appearance of The Beatles, on February 9, 1964, the most-watched program in TV history to that point and still one of the most-watched programs of all time. (Wikipedia)

At 8 o’clock on February 9th 1964, America tuned in to CBS and The Ed Sullivan Show. But this night was different. 73 million people gathered in front their TV sets to see The Beatles’ first live performance on U.S. soil. The television rating was a record-setting 45.3, meaning that 45.3% of households with televisions were watching. That figure reflected a total of 23,240,000 American homes. The show garnered a 60 share, meaning 60% of the television’s turned on were tuned in to Ed Sullivan and The Beatles. Source

Their appearance on Ed Sullivan took place exactly 80 days after the funeral of John F. Kennedy, which was another event whose impact on the American public is impossible to convey to anyone who didn’t live through it.  You will often hear it said that we were in a collective state of mourning, and the Beatles appearance on Ed Sullivan was something that allowed the nation to come together with a sense of relief. Having lived through it, I agree.

Beginning of a universal youth culture

In many ways the Beatles were the beginning of a universal youth culture, and they were at the center of the spirit of the 60s.

Up until this point, the world was much less interconnected.  Prior to the Beatles, with the exception of a fluke, or one-hit-wonder, it would have been unthinkable to have a British artist at the top of the US pop charts.  Our pop stars tended to have slick hair, and suddenly here were these guys from the North of England with (what was then considered) unbelievably long hair.  Consider this quote from Elvis Presley while visiting the White House in 1970:

“The Beatles laid the groundwork for many of the problems we are having with young people by their filthy unkempt appearances and suggestive music while entertaining in this country during the early and middle 1960s.”

—Elvis Presley, recorded during a 1970 visit to Richard Nixon at the White House

Breaking Bad’s Final Music

For young fans of Breaking Bad who might be wondering where the final song of Breaking Bad came from, it is Baby Blue, by Badfinger.  A perfect choice.

Signed by the Beatles’Apple label in 1968 as The Iveys, they adopted the name Badfinger in 1969. Badfinger had four consecutive worldwide hits from 1970 to 1971: “Come and Get It” (written and produced by Paul McCartney), “No Matter What”, “Day After Day”, and “Baby Blue”.  Wikipedia

And if that weren’t enough, Todd Rundgren was the producer on Baby Blue:

Ride, Glide, Slide — HD POV — Unfreakin’ Believable!

The Ringers’ 3rd & 4th Gigs

BB King’s in NYC

Huge thanks to Scott of sgibson818 for the fantastic video & sound.

Howard Theater in DC

Huge thanks to GuitarHermitTV for the fantastic video & sound.  What a treat for those of us who couldn’t be there.

Keith Carlock, Wayne Krantz, Michael Landau, Jimmy Herring & Etienne Mbappe Are The Ringers

Listen to my extended interview with The Ringers, the first interview of the band. Jimmy Herring is of course known from Widespread Panic, Aquarium Rescue Unit, the Allman Brothers Band, Keith Carlock and Wayne Krantz from Steely Dan and their work with Tal Wilkenfeld, and Michael Landau from his work with people like Michael Jackson, Miles Davis, Pink Floyd, James Taylor, Joni Mitchell a.m.m.

They are just about to start their first tour, listen in here

UPDATE  Feb, 20th, 2013

I noticed a bunch of traffic to talking2musicians.com coming from http://www.burnthday.com/p/live-stream.html   Wasn’t familiar with the site so I checked it out and found myself watching and listening to The Ringers first concert via Ustream.  They now have audio files (MP3 & FLAC) posted for download. Or you can stream online here.

Hard to imagine these guys only had a couple of days to rehearse.  Essentially this should be considered a jam session, but what I heard gave every indication that this could indeed be something grand.  Keith Carlock was spectacular, as was Etienne Mbappe.  If they were doing straight ahead blues, or standards something like this would be a snap, but that’s not who these guys are.  It’s scary to think how good this could get if, given their busy schedules, they have a chance to play together often.

If you’re on the East Coast you don’t want to miss this — amazing.

Roots Radio on Demand

Looking for some great roots & blues music? Paul Harvey, a veteran radio personality based in the Netherlands, has a great radio-on-demand program. Paul has promoted, interviewed, and brought many great musicians to Amsterdam over the years. For example, he was the first person to interview Derek Trucks on European radio, and organized his first three concerts in Europe. His show not only presents some fantastic music, but Paul also gives you the story behind the music. Do yourself a favor and check this out.

West Coast “Cool Jazz” – Whites Guys Can Jump

THIS POST WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON APRIL 6, 2008.

 

IN MEMORY OF THE GREAT DAVE BRUBECK

There is no denying it, without Africans jazz, blues, and rock & roll would not exist. Given the history of racism in America it’s easy to understand why some black musicians resented whites playing jazz.

Although Louis Armstrong was the first jazz musician to make the cover of Time, the choice of Dave Brubeck as the next jazz musician to receive this honor certainly bruised some feelings.