When Giants Collide

What happens when a really great band, (Dream Theater), performs a really great album, (Dark Side of the Moon), live?

Well I would say "Magic!", but rather than believe me why don't you check it out for yourself?

Here are a few YouTube links:

Dark Side Of The Moon-Dream Theater -LIVE  -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUoUim7WGwo

Dream theater - Dark side of the moon Full concert (Audio only)  -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_LWpfmPSZ4

Dream Theater - Dark Side Of The Moon (Disco Completo)  -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvBBZSX6ZT0

Timer - Reverberi

I once owned many, many LPs.  As they were a pain to cart around, and CDs are, (IMHO at least!), a superior technology, I sold them all off about 20 years ago.

One LP I wish I had not departed with was Timer, by the wonderful Gian Piero Reverberi.  I know it's unnecessary, but further proof that life is unfair, and that the "masses", (whoever they may be), have pedestrian tastes, is borne out in the fact that this fantastic album has never, to my knowledge, been rereleased in any other updated format.  Phooey!!  So unless you want to track down an old copy of the LP, you're out of luck getting your hands on it.

But don't give up all hope, as YouTube once again may come to our rescue!  As I write this, (25/June/2016), most of the tracks for this album may be found on YouTube, and using an MP3 converter site such as youtube-mp3.org, you may manually download the tracks from this album, and then burn a CD if so inclined.

Here are the tracks for the album, with YouTube links:

Improvviso Fantasia Op. 66  -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnfQgrCIq_o

Cat Casanova  -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3t0XDKev92U

Timer  -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBO6LKmE-7E

Soana  -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18W5Z_RosYY

Roller  -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qz7CbV5RSu0

Penny  -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PcxzCMovKk&spfreload=5

O Sole Mio  -  missing in action!  Phooey!

Adagio Cantabile  -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGGL7RkQXpA

Album  -  missing in action ..... Phooey!!


So there it is, MOST of Reverberi's really great Timer album.

Sesame Street - Number Guy

Sesame Street has had some great little musical shorts over the years.  One amusing series was the "Number Guy".

Number Guy - 1  ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCpLMlRAUEE )

Number Guy - 4  ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uOR0p7L3Ew )

Number Guy - 9  ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLA3-gpnWJo )

Number Guy - 10  ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBauqARk8lY )


You can even watch "Number Guy - 1" reversed, if that's your sort of thing:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqSbf5jcJZ0

Jimi Hendrix's Angel

I love the song "Angel" by Jimi Hendrix, but have had a damn hard time finding an original copy on YouTube that I can download.  Yeah, there are some very good covers, but I'd like to find the original and grab an MP3.


If you know of where I can find one, please let me know in a comment.

Here are some good versions on vimeo:

https://vimeo.com/26304068  -  original

https://vimeo.com/133381553  -  if you like Hendrix, you'll like this mellow version


Here's some of what YouTube's got:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4F3Pg32aWPo  -  an odd, (I think), version

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4ZzwG_Ztyk  -  Fiona Apple cover, which I like

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=042n1nLWvZc - nice instrumental cover


While we're on the topic of Hendrix covers, I'd be remiss not to mention this video from Jess "CHECK OUT THE BOOBS!" Greenberg.  Yeah it's "Little Wing", not "Angel", but she does a good job, and she does have nice boobs:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vasOOy1B17I .

Return of the Chicken Wire Gang!

A long, long time ago I wrote a post about the Chicken Wire Gang, a bunch of talented guys who played some tunes in Chapel Hill, NC.   Well ladies and gentlemen, I am very please to announce that they have apparently regrouped, at least according to their Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/Chicken-Wire-Gang-610122289087311/ .


For a sample of their music, check out these videos on YouTube:

"Buddha, Buddha, Buddha" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOlSF8MThr4

"Grand Mamoo", live!  -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvcL_t4WexQ

"Pine Tree Shade"  -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zeSnwLEjXqA


Some guy even made a tribute video to them!  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10lRdkSm714


Long live the Chicken Wire Gang!!

Giant Hogweed!

A friend recently sent me this link: http://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2015/08/04/hogweed-can-blind-humans-found-calhoun-county/31094763/ .  Yes, it appears that the notorious Giant Hogweed is making a stand here in the USA.

All of which, of course, reminds me of the great song "The Return of the Giant Hogweed", from my favorite Genesis album, Nursery Cryme.

If you're unfamiliar with the album, here's a list of the songs, with a few YouTube links:

1. The Musical Box - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7X_3yOUKSOc
2. For Absent Friends
3. The Return of the Giant Hogweed - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTuJQL8GBqY
4. Seven Stones
5. Harold the Barrel - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qT7k7keej0k
6. Harlequin
7. The Fountain of Salmacis - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=In2fRySroH8

IMHO "The Musical Box" and "The Return of the Giant Hogweed" are fantastic, being some of the best stuff Genesis did.  "The Fountain of Salmacis" is pretty darn good too, and "Harold the Barrel" is amusing.  But .... I always thought the overall acoustics of the album were poor.  It almost sounds as if this was recorded in the 1950's, not 1971!


A couple more links:

"Giant Hogweed" live - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f59EKHdeyKc

"Giant Hogweed" remastered, (GREAT visuals!)  - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASo7dklOTP0

Why Are LPs, ("Records"), Back?

A few weeks ago I was reading a post on a blog I admire, ( http://www.budgetsaresexy.com/ ), and I saw that he LOVES LPs, of all things.  I thought this was just a quirky entry for a long forgotten product, but then today, while we were in Barnes & Noble, I saw a stack of new records, (with classic rock artists, like Hendrix, the Doors, and Led Zeppelin), for sale.  And they weren't cheap either - about $24.00 each!

Who these days would buy an LP, I wonder?  My wife doesn't even know what they are!  I'm old enough to remember when CDs first came out, and how thrilled we were to have a recording medium that was lighter, smaller, and much, much more resistant to scratches and other damage.  Good riddance to LPs forever!

Or so I thought.  Now, apparently, they're a designer item? 

Good grief folks!  LPs have so, so many disadvantages compared to CDs and MP3 files that I couldn't get rid of my old ones fast enough. 

Why would anyone chose to own music recorded on a vinyl record, unless there is no other alternative?