2018, FEBRUARY 1: BATTLE OF THE BANDS (Or, DANNY GATTON VS. DANNY GATTON)

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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, Kramer Vs. Kramer, Spy Vs. Spy, Fischer Vs. Spassky, Stephen T. McCarthy Vs. Sobriety, Rock Vs. Paper Vs. Scissors, Islam Vs. Everything, Singer Vs. Singer, Band Vs. Band...
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'BATTLE OF THE BANDS' ('BOTB')
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Yes, it's time once again for 'Battle Of The Bands' ('BOTB').
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Alright, let's get on it. Let's get ON this thing!...
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EUGENE  MARTONE  VS.  JACK  BUTLER

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Circa 1994, Larry, a friend and co-worker of mine -- who also happened to be a guitarist in a local Blues band -- gave me a cassette tape he'd recorded for me. It was titled LITTLE GUITAR DITTIES: "Lelly's Favorites". "Lelly" was a pet name we had given to him at work. [Remember this -- you'll need it later!]
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The tape was a compilation of guitar-dominated recordings. Most of the players and some of the songs I was familiar with. But there was one name there that I had never heard before: Danny Gatton. Larry / Lelly had included 3 Gatton recordings, including the 1993 version of HARLEM NOCTURNE.
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Fun Fact: I actually used Gatton's '93 recording of Harlem Nocturne in a BOTB installment 4 years ago on this very day. But many of you were not involved in BOTB back then, so this will be new to ya.
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I eventually purchased a couple of Danny Gatton compact discs including the career retrospective 'Hot Rod Guitar',...
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I read the biography 'Unfinished Business: The Life & Times Of Danny Gatton',...
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...and I became convinced that Gatton was the greatest guitarist I had (or still have) ever heard. And apparently I'm in good company with that opinion:
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[link> Steve Vai (voted the "10th Greatest Guitarist" by Guitar World magazine) said: "When someone uses the phrase 'the best guitar player in the world', I usually go into an exhaustive discourse on how music is art and you can't judge art and there are many different ways that people play the guitar and it's impossible to be considered the best because then you would have to master all styles and that it's all right to have favorites, etc., etc., etc., blah-blah-blah. But I feel okay in saying that Danny Gatton comes closer than anyone else to being the best guitar player that ever lived."
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GOODNIKS  VS.  NO-GOODNIKS

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Peoples, I need your help! I have a BOTB contest planned for later on, and one of the two songs I want to use in it is Danny Gatton playing 'Harlem Nocturne'. Problem: Gatton recorded two different versions of it, and I can't decide which one to use. And that's where you come in. I need YOU, with your votes, to decide which of these two recordings I will use in my future Battle against a different "Nocturne".
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GODZILLA  VS.  KING  KONG

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It was in 1975 that Gatton recorded 'Harlem Nocturne' for the first time. It appeared on the album 'American Music' and featured a very moody atmosphere enhanced by an electric organ and growling saxophone solo. This music delves deep into the night -- you can almost hear the neon buzzing and see the "o" in Hotel flashing:
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HARLEM NOCTURNE (1975) -- Danny Gatton
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bSi6pPeZ5E

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RIDDLER  VS.  BATMAN

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Gatton's 1993 recording of the song eschews the organ and saxophone in favor of a guitar-centric approach. And hokey-smoke! What guitar playing!! It's not just the astounding dexterity, but the harmonic counterpoints and various tones he gets. All that electrified cryin' 'n' shimmering! And all the while, he makes it sound so damned effortless. No matter how many times I listen to this, I leave just as amazed as the first time I heard it:
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HARLEM NOCTURNE (1993) -- Danny Gatton
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qasZ6Sga8F8


CANADIAN VOTERS: If that video would not play for you, please try (link> HERE.
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Question: Will the 1975 Gatton lose to the 1993 Gatton?
MAGIC 8-BALL sez:  "It is decidedly so."
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Alright now, “you know the gig”... I welcome you (whether I know "you" or not) to vote for your favorite of these songs in the comment section below. And feel free to tell us WHY you chose one song over the other. 

After voting here, I suggest - actually I insist - you pop over to the blogs of the other 'BATTLE OF THE BANDS' participants to see which songs they have chosen and vote there also.  
Vote your vice... Vice your voice...

Voice Your Vote...

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@ ‘TOSSING IT OUT’ by clicking HERE.
@ 'MIKE'S RAMBLINGS' by clicking HERE.
@ 'CURIOUS AS A CATHY' by clicking HERE.
@ 'THE SOUND OF ONE HAND TYPING' by clicking HERE
@ 'JINGLE JANGLE JUNGLE' by clicking HERE.
@ 'ANGELS BARK' by clicking HERE.
@ 'CHERDO ON THE FLIPSIDE' by clicking HERE.
@ 'RIGHTING & EDITING' by clicking HERE.
@ 'THE DOGLADY'S DEN' by clicking HERE.

As I've done in the past, I will continue to return to my 'BOTB' blog bits on the 7th and 21st of each month to post my own votes and announce the winners in the comment sections.
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~ Stephen T. McCarthy
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BOTB RESULTS: 2018, FEB. 1 (Or, DANNY GATTON VERSUS DANNY GATTON)

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STMcC’s Vote On '2018, February 1st: Battle Of The Bands (Or, Danny Gatton '75 Versus Danny Gatton '93) And The Final Tally:
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It was a lower'n usual turnout, so I DOUBLE THANK each of you who took the time to listen, evaluate, and vote. Y'all are good peoples!! (But then again, I have no idea what you do at home alone in the dark with other peoples. And, NO, don't tell me. I don't wanna know!)
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Well, this BOTB was Danny Gatton and his 1975 band going up against Danny Gatton and his 1993 band -- both of them doing 'Harlem Nocturne'. There was phenomenal playing in both recordings. The first one featured extended electric organ and tenor saxophone solos, while the second focused primarily on Gatton's guitar which was doing somersaults, backflips, handstands, Kung Fu, and opening up cans of beer and tennis balls during the slower portions. All in all, probably the most impressive electric guitar fretboard work I've ever heard.
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The reason I assembled this particular Battle is because I want to use one of Gatton's recordings of 'Harlem Nocturne' in a future contest against another "Nocturne" by another artist, but I honestly couldn't decide which of Gatton's recordings to use. So, I decided to leave that up to y'all. The voting was very close. 
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If someone asked me to name the greatest guitar workout I've heard, I'd probably have to say "Danny Gatton's 1993 Harlem Nocturne". However, my all-time favorite musical instrument is the electric organ, and my second favorite is the tenor saxophone. The electric guitar comes in third. And for those reasons only, my own vote actually landed on Gatton's '75 recording, despite the mind-blowingness of the '93 rendition.
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Danny Gatton 'Harlem Nocturne' 1975 = 6 votes
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Danny Gatton 'Harlem Nocturne' 1993 = 9 votes
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And the Magic 8-Ball got it right again! The Ball is on a roll. Har!-Har!
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So... you will all be hearing Danny Gatton's 1993 recording of 'Harlem Nocturne' again in a future Battle Of The Bands contest. But my next BOTB installment, on February 15th, will be another in my "Battle For Los Angeles" series. However, this next time it will actually be about a very specific area in L.A. known as "Dogtown" (which also happens to be the area in which I grew up). So please be sure to contribute your $0.02 in my next Battle. Don't disrespect my hometown by ignoring it!
[;^)}
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For those who'd like to hear a little more Danny "The Humbler" Gatton wizardry on the guitar, until next time, I'll leave you with this straightforward rip-roaring Rocker:
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FUNHOUSE -- Danny Gatton
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=278k2u46IM8

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~ Stephen T. McCarthy
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2018, JULY 15: BATTLE OF THE BANDS (Or, DANNY GATTON VS. BRIAN SETZER)

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Harlem Vs. Hollywood, 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, TV Vs. Radio, Pitcher Vs. Batter, Paper Vs. Plastic, Reality Vs. Fantasy, Yeshua Vs. Beelzebub, Conservative Vs. Liberal, You Vs. Me, House Vs. Senate, Offense Vs. Defense, Kramer Vs. Kramer, Spy Vs. Spy, Fischer Vs. Spassky, W.C. Fields Vs. Sobriety, Harold Gimpy, Jr. Vs. Sheldon J. Pismire, Rock Vs. Paper Vs. Scissors, Islam Vs. Everything, Singer Vs. Singer, Band Vs. Band...
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BATTLE OF THE BANDS (BOTB)
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Five and a half months ago (February 1st), right HERE, I wrote this:
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Peoples, I need your help! I have a BOTB contest planned for later on, and one of the two songs I want to use in it is Danny Gatton playing 'Harlem Nocturne'. Problem: Gatton recorded two different versions of it, and I can't decide which one to use. And that's where you come in. I need YOU, with your votes, to decide which of these two recordings I will use in my future Battle against a different "Nocturne".
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It was decided in that Battle that Danny Gatton's 1993 recording of 'Harlem Nocturne' would move on to Battle again -- having beaten his 1975 recording of the song 9 votes to 6.
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And today is the day that preliminary Battle in February was constructed for! What we have today is Gatton's 'Harlem Nocturne' '93, going up against The Brian Setzer Orchestra's 'Hollywood Nocturne'.
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Brian Setzer, I'm sure most of you know, was the guitarist and lead vocalist of the Rockabilly trio The Stray Cats, who scored Top Ten hits with 'Rock This Town' and 'Stray Cat Strut' in 1982 and '83. In 1998, Setzer reemerged with the album 'The Dirty Boogie' (one of my all-time favorite album covers!) and fronting a Big Band playing a kind of Benny Goodman / Louis Prima-cum-Rockabilly style.
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The twelfth track on that album was a hauntingly eerie romance tune titled 'Hollywood Nocturne'. 
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What else ya need to know? This is the Battle Of The Nocturnes -- Harlem versus Hollywood. 
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Alright, let's get on it. Let's get ON this thing!...
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HARLEM NOCTURNE -- Danny Gatton (1993)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_jmeU505GI
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What's your preference, THAT or THIS?...
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HOLLYWOOD NOCTURNE -- Brian Setzer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5Eun--5U-M
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The Battle Within The Battle

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VERSUS

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Question: "Will Brian Setzer lose to Danny Gatton?"

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The Magic 8-Ball (5-2) sez:  "My Reply Is No"

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The Amazing Sixwell (5-2) sez:  "Signs Point To Yes"

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Alright now, “you know the gig”... I welcome you (whether I know "you" or not) to vote for your favorite of these songs in the comment section below. And feel free to tell us WHY you chose one song over the other.

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After voting here, I suggest - actually I insist - you pop over to the blogs of the other 'BATTLE OF THE BANDS' participants to see which songs they have chosen and vote there also. (If their ‘BOTB’ blog bits aren’t posted yet, pour yourself two shots of ‘Grand Marnier’ over ice – do it twice – and then return to their blogs to vice your voice ...vote your vice ...voice your vote.)
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Voice Your Vote...
@ ‘TOSSING IT OUT’ by clicking HERE.
@ 'MIKE'S RAMBLINGS' by clicking HERE.
@ 'CURIOUS AS A CATHY' by clicking HERE.
@ 'THE SOUND OF ONE HAND TYPING' by clicking HERE
@ 'JINGLE JANGLE JUNGLE' by clicking HERE.
@ 'ANGELS BARK' by clicking HERE.
@ 'THE DOGLADY'S DEN' by clicking HERE.
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As I've done in the past, I will continue to return to my 'BOTB' blog bits on the 7th and 21st of each month to post my own votes and announce the winners in the comment sections.
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~ Stephen T. McCarthy
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BOTB RESULTS: 2018, JULY 15 (Or, DANNY GATTON VERSUS BRIAN SETZER)

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STMcC’s Vote On '2018, July 15th: Battle Of The Bands (BOTB) And The Final Tally:
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The latest installment of BOTB, featuring Danny Gatton's 1993 recording of 'Harlem Nocturne' against 'Hollywood Nocturne' by the Brian Setzer Orchestra took place [link> HERE. Yes, it was the "Battle Of The 'H' Nocturnes".
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I knew going in that Setzer's Film Noir-ish, Bossa Nova-like, Megaphone-inflected song was the underdog. There was no real doubt in my mind that Gatton would come away with the trophy. BUT(!)... I did expect a somewhat more competitive outcome than what we got. I had Gatton figured as, perhaps, a 3-vote victor. Rather, Gatton pretty much did a number on Setzer like he did on his guitar. Gatton's votes went "UP TO 11":
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Danny Gatton = 11 votes
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Brian Setzer = 5 votes
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I dig BOTH of the 'Nocturnes' I used in this contest, and so I really didn't enjoy having to vote against either of them. However, in my personal "Book Of The All-Time Greatest Guitarists", Danny Gatton is at First & Second Place. I'm not sure who I'd have in Third Place -- possibly Paco de Lucia or Django Reinhardt. (Heck, maybe even Danny Caron because of that deep Spiritual element in his playing which can't be taught.) 
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But at any rate, there isn't anything I can say about Gatton's God-given talent that hasn't already been said by someone somewhere. His masterful dexterity, his incredible sense of timing, the variety of tones he gets, and his unique improvisational side streets that magically merge themselves back into the main thematic boulevard leave me amazed no matter how many times I hear the same recording. Yeah, Gatton got my vote.
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As for The Battle Within The Battle: According to my count (which is always a 50-50 proposition), after a very rough 0-2 start, The Amazing Sixwell has reeled off an impressive six straight accurate predictions, making him 6-2 and giving him a one-point lead over The Magic 8-Ball (5-3).
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My sincere thanks to each and every one of you who contributed your $0.02 and made my comment section a fun place to be, as usual. (Don't tell anyone, but I think the comment section exchanges are my very favorite part of BOTB.)
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Hey, Y'ALL, I'll be back here again on August 1st with a whole new episode of Battle Of The Bands, and I hope you'll be here, too, so I won't feel foolish and lonely. 
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~ Stephen T. McCarthy
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POSTSCRIPT: If you know any music lovers whom you think might enjoy participating in BOTB, invite them to do so. We could use a couple new BOTBers, as our ranks have thinned out a bit in recent times.
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