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Welcome back, my friends, to the "Battle" that never ends.
We're so glad you could attend. Come inside! Come inside!
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This is 'BATTLE OF THE BANDS' ('BOTB') where you listen to different recordings and vote for the one you like best. A new Battle gets posted on the 1st of each month and on the 7th, I place my own vote, tally 'em all up and announce the winner.
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Friend? Foe? Stranger? No matter, ALL are welcome. So pull up a chair, pour yourself 24 oz. of DOG BITE High Gravity Lager (or the poison of your choice) and turn it up to Eleven!
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[NOTE: Links to the first year of 'BOTB' (#1 - #24) can be found at the very bottom of this page.]

Friday, May 8, 2020

BOTB RESULTS: 2020, MAY 1 (Or, VAN MORRISON VERSUS BOB SEGER)

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STMcC’s Vote On '2020, May 1st: Battle Of The Bands' (BOTB) - Or, Van-The-Man Versus Bob Seger - And The Final Tally:
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Sorry! I'm a wee bit o' late with this post. Shoot-'N'-Begorra! Well, coronavirus happens! (I'm gonna start blaming coronavirus for everything that's wrong in my life.) 
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The Battle took place [link> HERE, and I thank each and every one of you for participating! I couldn't-a dun it widout ya!
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The outcome of this one *REALLY* surprised me! (I sez that a lot, don't I?) I was worried that Van Morrison - playing his own original song - would clobber Bob Seger playing a cover of Van's tune. HA! Oh, Stephen, you foolish, foolish man!!
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I mentioned to my Brother prior to posting this Battle that Van Morrison has a weird history of losing BOTB contests. I've used him in BOTB at least 3 or 4 times and, for as popular as he's always been, I don't think he's EVER won!
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And I not only thought he would finally win one with this match-up, but I sincerely worried that he might actually shut-out the competition. WRONG!
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Some FUN FACTS:
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* Although I generally prefer male vocalists to female vocalists, my all-time favorite vocalist is Karen Carpenter.
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* Although Karen Carpenter is my all-time favorite vocalist, my favorite vocal performance that I've ever heard is [link> THIS  - in which the singer nearly disappears, becoming just an instrument for The Holy Spirit to express Itself through. (You can even see "The Light Of The World" in her eyes!)
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* Although I do like Van Morrison's studio version of 'I've Been Working', I think his version from the live album 'It's Too Late To Stop Now' is not only better, but I believe it is, musically, the funkiest and single greatest live performance I have ever heard by anyone at any time!
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* Patrick Humphries: "As far as Van live on disc is concerned, his first live set, 'It's Too Late To Stop Now' is unquestionably one of the best-ever live rock 'n' roll recordings. ... Van was cooking when he came to record these 18 songs. ... Every note you hear was recorded live - there was not one overdub."
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* Looking back on the album, guitarist John Platania told 'Mojo': "I would say that tour represented the height of his confidence as a performer."
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* Bassist David Hayes: "When I speak to Van about that album he still talks about it as having marked the peak of his career. He really feels that he was on to something very special."
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* D-FensDogG: "Although I usually prefer studio renditions of songs to their live counterparts, I think that in every case, except one, Van Morrison's live versions of the songs on his 1974 album 'It's Too Late To Stop Now' are superior to their studio renditions. No one - not Ray Charles, not James Brown, not Stevie Wonder - NO ONE ever recorded a funkier song than Van Morrison's live 'I've Been Working' from the 'It's Too Late To Stop Now' album! I'm Black Irish-American and I'm proud!"
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Here's the thing... it was almost like the musicians were psychic! Clearly, the band was extremely tight and knew the song quite well but simultaneously, and seemingly contradictory, the band was also so uniquely loose that the song sounds super-spontaneous. It's like the sort of oxymoron that every great Jazz musician has aspired to: attempting to achieve "independent improvisational teamwork".
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This live recording of 'I've Been Working' has always blown me away. From the first few notes, my toes are tapping and the song is just pinging on my backbone. The Funk Factor is off-the-charts and the band seems to be communicating by mental telepathy. That funky chicken-scratch guitar work is itchy-to-the-max. The piano is like a machine gun! The bass is bumpin' 'n' grindin' like a whorehouse in an earthquake!! From 1:28 to 2:08, that sex sax is committing a licentious act o' civil disobedience!
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However, my very favorite section of the song is from 2:40 to the end. The interplay between the musicians is the best I have ever heard - EVER!! According to my ears, no band has ever topped that - the way each musician cuts in and drops out. They all take turns cutting in to play a quick riff, and then dropping out for the next guy. In and out, in and out, in and out! It's just UNBELIEVABLE musical rapport! After 60 years of life, I still consider this live version of Van Morrison's 'I've Been Working' to be the best, tightest, and most spontaneous collaborative musicianship I've ever heard.
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And the BEST way to learn to appreciate it is by listening with your eyes closed, so you can get that single-purpose mental focus on each and every instrument, as they all play off of each other.
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So, here ya go - "one more once"... Please listen with your eyes closed (especially from 2:40 to the end) and FORCE your mind to focus intently on each individual instrument as it cuts in and drops out, making room for the next instrument to cut in and drop out, etc. Phunq, mang, how dey do dat?!
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'I'VE BEEN WORKING' (Live) -- Van Morrison
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3hkAWqmICI

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Nevertheless, to my slack-jawed shock, Bob Seger won the Battle:
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Van Morrison = 8 votes
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Bob Seger = 9 votes
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I've got a VERY SPECIAL BOTB INSTALLMENT planned for June 1st, so I really hope to see you all here again for that one. And thanks again for participating in this one!
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~ Stephen T. McCarthy
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Friday, May 1, 2020

BATTLE OF THE BANDS: 2020, MAY 1 (Or, VAN MORRISON VERSUS BOB SEGER)

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The Elite Vs. The Working Class, 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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Shoop-Shooby -
Shooby-Duh-Dooby-Doop-Dooby-Dooby-Doo-Wah -
Buh-Doo-Wah!
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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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Doggs & Doggettes, I've had plenty to say about this coronavirus / Covid-19 fear-mongering scam. Not here on this blog, but on my *real* (political - S/spiritual) blog [link> HERE.
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Goodniks Vs. No-Goodniks
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My heart breaks for all the people who have been put out of work and for those small business owners who will NEVER recover from this fake, media-driven pandemic. satan has won this round, but he won't win the fight, because God and Christ already won it two thousand years ago!! We're just watching the rerun of the war and thinking that it's all happening NOW
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Godzilla Vs. King Kong
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While the majority of Americans have been forced out of work in order to deliberately crash the American economy, by the Grace of God, I'm still working. In fact, I just got a pay raise and feel like I'm working harder NOW than I was before "they" (the evil wizards behind the curtain) got the ball rolling on the fake pandemic in the USA. 
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Anyway, I wanted this installment of BOTB to reflect the sad, historic time we seem to be living through. And I wanted to tip my cap to the tough working class peoples, with a sincere wish that as many of them as possible will soon be back to earning a living. (I really look forward to seeing my favorite bartenders, Mitch and Carsen, again. "I need a cold Mojito!")
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'I'VE BEEN WORKING' is a song written by Van Morrison and later covered by Bob Seger. I've got two live versions of the song for you to listen to today. Please vote for the rendition you prefer.
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I'll be honest with y'all right up front: I'm a little worried about suffering my first BOTB shutout with this Battle. But I'm willing to take a chance on the working people to save me from that dreaded outcome.
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First up is Van Morrison from his 1974 album 'It's Too Late To Stop Now':
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I'VE BEEN WORKING - Van Morrison
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Riddler Vs. Batmang
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In 1976, Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band released the album 'Live Bullet', in which they put their own Detroit, Michigan, Rock 'N' Roll stamp on the song:
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I'VE BEEN WORKING - Bob Seger
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WBSSN6VpUs

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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 alsoVote your vice...   Vice your voice... 
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Voice Your Vote...
TOSSING IT OUT by clicking HERE
MIKE'S RAMBLINGS by clicking HERE
THE SOUND OF ONE HAND TYPING by clicking HERE
@ JINGLE JANGLE JUNGLE by clicking HERE
@ THE DOGLADY'S DEN by clicking HERE
@ CHERDO ON THE FLIPSIDE by clicking HERE
@ CURIOUS AS A CATHY by clicking HERE
@ AI LOVE MUSIC by clicking HERE
@ STORMS & STARDUST 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 of each month to post my own votes and announce the winner.
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~ Stephen T. McCarthy
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