Republican
Vs. Democrat, Male Vs. Female, War Vs. Peace, Light Vs. Dark, Good
Vs. Evil, Man Vs. Machine, Love Vs. Hate, Dog Vs. Cat, Sun Vs. Moon,
Brain Vs. Brawn, Oscar Vs. Grammy, Angel Vs. Demon, Laurel Vs. Hardy,
Beer Vs. Wine---
No!
Wait! Stop!
It's
not the first or the fifteenth of the month, so this CAN'T
be a new installment of 'BATTLE OF THE BANDS'.
It
was my friend Robin (“The Girl Wonder”) who said to me, “It
is my fervent hope that you will continue to blog beyond BOTB.”
This
blog bit is my way of sayin', “OK. Your wish is my command... just
like in that dream.”
As
you all know, my friend FAE and I conspired to use Willie Nelson
(against Sarah Vaughan) in our last 'BOTB' blog bits. And then the
other day I was involved in a discussion about music concerts with my
friend Arlee Bird. In that blogversation I said that the three best
concerts I'd ever been to were the three times I saw Waylon Jennings
on stage. One of the things that made his shows so special were the
funny stories he would tell between songs about the times he was
hanging out with Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson.
Well,
thinking about Waylon and Willie naturally made me think of Todd
Snider.
“Who?”
You
don't know 'bout Todd Snider?
I
didn't know about him either until my friend LC turned me onto him
some years ago. (Yeah, I have A LOT of friends because I'm so
friendly. If you want friends, be friendly; if you want good times,
keep a positive attitude; if you want a relationship with God, pray
to Him; if you want a lot of money... rob liquor stores.)
Todd
Snider is the guy who, in 1994, released 'SONGS
FOR
THE
DAILY
PLANET',
which is quite possibly the greatest debut album by anyone anywhere
anytime.
.
.
To
be honest, I do not at all like the direction Todd Snider and his
career took. But those first several albums were absolutely
outstanding and proved that Snider was the best songwriter since Bob
Dylan and Tom Waits. And he was funny like Waylon, both on record and
in concert.
Below
is a track from Snider's first live album. Most of the running time
is Snider telling the story of how he came to write the song 'BALLAD
OF THE DEVIL'S BACKBONE TAVERN', and it's really funny (a la Waylon
Jennings in concert). Be forewarned though that Snider drops the
“F-bomb” a few times. If that doesn't bother you, then you'll
find this story-song very entertaining:
'The
Story Of The
'Ballad
Of The Devil's Backbone Tavern'
~
Todd Snider
If
you're looking for a wine that pairs well with Todd Snider's music, I
recommend this one:
.
.
Until
the next 'BATTLE OF THE BANDS' installment on October 1st, this is
STMcC sayin', “Yak later...”
~
Stephen T. McCarthy
YE
OLDE COMMENT POLICY: All comments, pro and con, are welcome. However,
ad hominem attacks and disrespectful epithets will not be tolerated
(read: "posted"). After all, this isn’t
Amazon.com,
so
I don’t have to put up with that kind of bovine excrement.
First, that was one powerful dream if it inspired you to do things that I want. Oops. That didn't come out right. You always do what I want in my dreams. It's just in real life that I don't have that sort of success... hmm. Maybe I should skip to my commentary about the song.
ReplyDeleteSo, that song was awesome. Never heard of Todd Snider or any of his stuffs. But he is wonderful. I love people who can tell a good yarn, and he does! I laughed out loud more than once.
GIRL WONDER ~
DeleteOne of the several things I really like about you is your ability to hang on to yer sense o' humor.
I have received your E and will reply... when I'm sober.
But I want you to KNOW that I posted this blog bit BEFORE I saw yer E sayin' everything was 'ite. (In other words, I went with my instinct that "It'z all good" and made the joke.)
http://www.morethings.com/fan/cheech_and_chong/nice_dreams/cheech_and_chong_photo_gallery01.htm
Alright, you have now gone West of Las Vegas.
(Photos of Pacific Palisades Park in Santa Monica. I passed out there one night.)
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American McUnderpants'
POSTSCRIPT:
DeleteRobin, in case you aren't familiar with it, below is a link to the "Willie and Waylon and the boys" song he refers to in 'Ballad Of The Devil's Backbone Tavern' song.
“WILLIE AND WAYLON AND THE BOYS”
The ONLY thing Waylon Jennings repeated in all 3 concerts that I attended was the fact that he actually hated the song 'Lukenbach, Texas" and was playing it ONLY because he knew we'd be upset if he didn't.
Funny thing is, I really dig the song. (Waylon... what an idiot!)
~ D-FensDogg
Todd who?
ReplyDeleteI saw him live again a few months ago and his storytelling is still top notch.
DOCTOR DISCDUDE ~
DeleteI certainly don't doubt that.
Yet another big 'Thank You' for turning me onto him all those years back. I still play his debut album quite a bit, as well as that compilation disc you put together for me of favorite songs from some of the slightly later releases.
I still think the guy was simply a brilliant lyricist. I would HAVE to own 'Songs For The Daily Planet' if for no other reason than the song 'Somebody's Coming'. But that album is packed with shining gems, right from the very first track and all the way through. A very, very gifted songwriter whom I sincerely put at #3 after the legends Dylan and Waits. And Todd ain't far behind 'em at all.
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground;
Thanks for the redirect. You know me and my dashboard. I don't even think to look here until the 1st or the 15th.
ReplyDeleteHey, Todd Snider; is this the same guy who did that song about sliding down Hwy 50 into Carson City. (Something you sent to me a year or so ago).
Anyway…I listened to the video and he is funny. I started thinking isn’t this the same guy who did a song about D.B. Copper, sooooooo, I went to YouTube and sure enough. Besides he talks about Jerry Jeff Walker; Sheesh! I hadn’t heard anybody mention Jerry Jeff in a coon’s age.
All of this started me thinking about some of these storyteller songwriters like Dylan and Watts. Seems to me these guys are ‘observers’. You know they were probably the nerdy kids in Jr. High, last ones picked for any team, not really popular with the girls other than as a ‘best friend’, stuff like that. Anyway…they spent a lot of time on the bench just watchin’ everybody else. In the end don’t ya thing that’s where some of the best stories come from.
Now if they had ‘just’ been writers, like every third person on the planet, they may never have gotten any recognition, but the ability to play a musical instrument and put those thoughts/words/stories to music, turned into WOW! Then add a little dab of ‘liking to hear nothing better than the sound of their own voice’ no matter how lyrical it might/might not be and we enjoy genius.
Now about that Green Chili Wine...is that for real. I clicked on the link, but they didn't say nothin' about it. Believe it or not, it sounds like something right up my alley.
Just me thinkin’ or maybe its overthinkin'.
FAE ~
DeleteYeah, the song you're thinking of is 'FORTY-FIVE MILES' and it was about his rental car sliding in the snow while driving down the mountain from Lake Tahoe to Reno.
Hokey-Smoke! How did you know about his D.B. Cooper song? That wasn't a hit or anything, and I don't recall ever mentioning it to ya.
As for their youthful personalities, I think it kind of varies. Tom Waits was probably closest to the sort of person you describe - an outsider, loner, keeps to himself with his eyes open.
I know that Bob Dylan was actually considered something of a freak in high school. He was totally into Little Richard and James Dean so he was considered an oddball. He once entered a high school talent contest and was banging away on the piano like a wild man (a la Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis) and the principal had the curtain closed on his act because he didn't think that music was "appropriate". But I think Dylan was odd enough that he attracted the attention of some girls who were curious about that cat.
And I know Todd Snider was on his high school football team before he gave up sports for dope-smoking. Ha!
So, I think it takes all kinds, really.
As for the wine... yes, it's for real. Click the link again, then move your cursor to the heading "OUR WINES" then scroll down to category "UNIQUE WINES" and click on it.
That is the ONLY white wine I have ever found that I genuinely like (the rest just taste like vinegar to me). The 'HATCH GREEN CHILE WINE' is really not hot at all, but there is a distinct flavor of Hatch green chiles in the aftertaste, which I like a lot.
If you ever try it, let me know what you thought of it, eh?
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
I really enjoyed the storytelling in that. I'll admit, at first I thought "ten minutes long? This better be good..." Well, it was! I wish more modern singer/songwriters were like that. The wife and I went to a concert about a year ago where the guy didn't say a single word until the third song. In which he said, "Hey guys, nice to be here in Denver!" And... that was about it. He played just fine, but man, most impersonal concert ever.
ReplyDeleteAlso, did I hear mention of a green chile wine, and a white wine at that? White wine is the only kind the wife will drink, and if it has a bit of heat in it... well, we've got to see if we can find this thing. I have a feeling she'd love it.
~6B
Postscript: Got your E, loud and clear. Been really busy with the wedding stuffs, but now that that's over, expect a reply soon. And keep me posted on TRT schedule.
6-B ~
DeleteYeah, I knew you were busy working on the wedding stuffs, so I wasn't expecting a quick reply to that last E.
Todd Snider has a great sense of humor, and I love the comedy in this story-song.
When you have the time, try YouTube or Spotify and listen to Snider's 'My Generation (Part 2)' and 'Talkin' Seattle Grunge Rock Blues'. Both are really funny and come from his first album.
The only place I've ever seen the Hatch Green Chile Wine on a shelf is at my local Sprouts Farmers Market. I see by their website that they also have at least one store in the Denver area, but it seems perhaps they don't sell alcohol there. (My store carries wine and a pretty decent selection of craft beers.)
You may have to inquire with the wine company directly about where you can find it in your area. I think that info is available on their website.
FAE indicated that she expected to have her copy of the movie by Tuesday or Wednesday at the latest. I'll let ya know soon as she let's me know, Bro.
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'