Only the best teach their kids about Tom Waits
Teaching my son about Tom Waits. I’m either the best parent ever, or the worst. Hang on, St. Christopher . . . .
Only the best teach their kids about Tom Waits
Tom Waits is an artistic genius and one of the greatest songwriters the world has ever seen. My biggest concert regret is not seeing him perform in Asheville in 2006. I had very young children at home and just couldn’t pull it off. As an aside, I’ve been playing Tom Waits’s music for my son and daughter their entire lives.
My absolute favorite albums of his are swordfishtrombones, Frank’s Wild Years, Bone Machine, Rain Dogs, and, the album that holds the most special place in my soul, The Heart Of Saturday Night.
And with her knees up on the glove compartment
She took out her barrettes,
and her hair spilled out like root beer
And she popped her gum
and arched her back
'Hell, Marysville ain't nothing but a wide spot in the road
Some nights my heart pounds like thunder
Don't know why it don't explode
Cause everyone in this stinking town's
got one foot in the grave
And I'd rather take my chances out in Burma-Shave'
Last edited by OldPhiKap; 05-28-2020 at 07:06 AM.
Falling James in the Tahoe mud
Stick around to tell us all a tale
Well, he fell in love with a Gun Street girl
And now he's dancing in the Birmingham jail
Dancing in the Birmingham jail
He took a hundred dollars off a slaughterhouse Joe
Brought a brand new Michigan twenty-gauge
He got all liquored up on that road house corn
Blew a hole in the hood of a yellow Corvette
A hole in the hood of a yellow Corvette
Kudos on the ear plugs. I've listened to live rock music less and less through the years. Nevertheless, I now have to wear hearing aids to help me understand conversations and watch TV, etc. If people are constantly having to repeat things to you, folks, you need hearing aids. I was very fortunate that my company insurance paid 100% (unbelieveable!) of the cost for perhaps the best hearing aids out today.
Love the Cat's Cradle! At the Back Room alone, I've heard Amanda Shires and Elephant Revival, two of my faves. It broke my heart when Elephant Revival quit playing together. ER didn't need to play at crazy volumes to entertain people.
Man, if your Mom made you wear that color when you were a baby, and you're still wearing it, it's time to grow up!
Loved the Cat’s Cradle! So many great memories. They turned 50 this year.
https://www.ncarts.org/comehearnc/36...after-50-years
Haven’t been on DBR for several years. But I knew there’d be an excellent Off-Topic thread on COVID, so I’ve been reading that thread for awhile. And going to Off-Topic page, then glancing down the page, led me here.
Love these lists and commentaries. Really, it’s a good feeling seeing so many DBR folks who listen to the same stuff as do I. Let me recommend highly a radio station that I’m confident Asheville area folks especially will be aware of. I think it’s close to unique in its Americana-eclecticism. It’s WNCW, a little station located in “beautiful downtown Spindale,” southeast of Asheville on the campus of the curiously but appropriately named Isothermal Community College. Here’s a link: https://www.wncw.org/
One can stream it by clicking “Listen live.” If you don’t know the station, with its amazing variety, I suggest you click on Programming, then Playlists. I think you’ll be impressed. Grateful Dead and its universe (Widespread Panic, Phish, etc.) on Weds nights. Jazz on Sat morns. Frank [Zappa] on Friday, late Fri night.
And — special alert — I’m pretty sure many posters on this thread would enjoy tonight’s (Friday) 6-9 pm program, the “Cosmic American Music Show,” named after Gram Parson’s phrase. Many Friday nights — actually most M-F, 9 am-6 pm, too, — you’ll hear Jason Isbell, Tom Waits, Tedeschi-Trucks, Lucinda Williams, Tyler Childers, Honeycutters/Platt, Son Volt, Hiss Golden Messenger, M. Ward, Avett Bros, dozens of others listed in this thread. Admittedly interspersed with some “classic country,” some of which I like just fine. Last set every Fri night is “drinkin’ an’ honkytonk songs.” Last song every Fri night is Uncle Tupelo instrumental, “Sandusky.”
I’m a hermit, live in a smallish cabin literally in the middle of a forest on top of a western NC mountain. Naturally, being a hermit (or close enough) is an advantage in this difficult time. Music is a godsend for millions. And for the musical tastes of most of the posters on this thread, WNCW is your friend.
My own list could run into the hundreds. I’ll spare you, and keep it to maybe 25.
I start with a singer-songwriter, Maya de Vitry, former lead singer of The Stray Birds (saw them twice last few years at Grey Eagle in Asheville.) Two wonderful recent albums. Latest is “How to Break a Fall.” Just wonderful.
Dylan (never ages, for me)
Son Volt
Neko Case
Cowboy Junkies
Lake Street Dive
Western Centuries
Sarah Jarosz
Tom Waits
Levon Helm/Band
Corb Lund
Hayes Carll
Tyler Childers
Sturgill Simpson
Patsy Cline
Brandi Carlile
Nikki Lane
Kacey Musgraves
Bela Fleck
Jerry Douglass
Sam Bush
John Cowan
Lucinda Williams
Courtney Barnett
Robert Earl Keen
James McMurtry
And a couple more western NC guys, brilliant singer-songwriter lyricists — Chuck Brodsky, Aaron Burdett
I could list dozens and dozens more.
Thanks for your lists, this thread, DBR ... and WNCW.
Last edited by gumbomoop; 05-29-2020 at 04:54 PM.
With all of the interest in Americana, or alt country, or new country whatever it's being called these days, I was surprised it took until gumbomoop's last post to mention Sturgill Simpson. He's great. With all the interest in the Isbell/Stires/Brandi Carlisle/Highwomen area, I am surprised to not see any mention of Kacey Musgraves. If you are already into all of that, let me add Waxahatchee's new album "Saint Cloud".
I think the new Fiona Apple record, "Fetch the Bolt Cutters", is pretty great.
A lot of people music taste freeze's the minute they leave college, or sometime in their 20s. It's too bad because every year is truly a great year for music. I am almost 50 and I can't think of a stage of my life when there was not awesome new music coming out, not only from established bands but new voices, too.
So many of the bands mentioned in this thread are great. I love Wilco, Vampire Weekend, Avett Bros, Phish, FJMisty, Spoon, Ween, anything with Jack White, etc. Here are a few others that I didn't see mentioned who have pretty deep catalogs and are still putting out good stuff now:
The Mountain Goats - one of those groups that is really a project surrounding a singular talent, in this case, John Darnielle who, I believe, lives in Durham. I'd call this one man one guitar folks music with an edge, great lyrics
The Hold Steady - Craig Finn's band. Kind of a nerdy hipster Bruce Springsteen.
TV on the Radio - best categorized as punk indie rock with soul but these dudes are just geniuses, I think.
Titus Andronicus - from the bowels of Jersey, punk rockers, now almost 40, still raging about America with a historical tinge.
There's also the whole world of Hip Hop/R&B/Soul of which there were many mentions in this thread but I would add Frank Ocean, Kendrick Lamar and Solange as 3 giants.
Pretty cool all-day virtual music festival going on right now. A lot of really good bands/artists, definitely not classic rock. They are taking donations, and already have raised almost $100k just a couple hours in! I was tempted to make a top level thread, but wasn't sure it was warranted.
Big Something is an excellent North Carolina based band coming up sometime in the next hour or so, and there's a bunch of other great stuff in the lineup (a lot of funk, jazz, and bluegrass), John Cleary is on now.
I also highly recommend:
Nth Power (really good funk band doing a Nirvana set should yield solid results)
The New Mastersounds
Dumpstaphunk
Dopapod
Lettuce
John Medeski
But really there are too many to list (Greensky Bluegrass and Infamous Stringdusters are also strong). Just thought this might be something fun that would interest some of the folks on this board, and for a good cause!
Donate (and see the full lineup/schedule) here:
https://www.quarantinecomesalive.com/
Watch here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIiduv_SxEs
lineup.jpg
(I'm cross-posting this in the Movies/TV thread just so more people see it)
Great Stuff from Chuck Mead and his Grassy Knoll Boys - The Official Song of Quarantine. I Ain't Been Nowhere
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DIQvaBOuvAs
And for those who have never seen or heard Todd Snider, he does a live broadcast on Facebook every Sunday at noon EDT. Just follow him, if you don’t like you can delete.
Warning, language and subject matter may not be for young ears.
I love the dude though. A taste:
(for Kedsy and Neals384 amongst others)