Time slips away… this blog has been a little abandoned again of late though this time it was down to actually taking as much of summer off and away as possible and taking a little drive down to, and around, the South of France to soak up some sun and explore.
However, as term starts and the rain is slowly filling up the pond in my front garden that had been pretty much emptied by the summer’s draught, it feels like a good moment to take stock and shake off some dust with a quick punt out of those songs that I’ve been enjoying of late.
Bruce Springsteen – Hey Blue Eyes
As I pull together some pieces for another Bruce series I find myself listening to this more and more. American Beauty was an EP put out for RSD back in 2014 and this track – an off-cut from previous sessions with Brendan O’Brien is one of those nagging, seemingly-simple songs which highlights just how effective Bruce can be with something that he decides isn’t an ‘A’ tune and ends up being released, essentially, as a b-side (think ‘Shut Out The Light’ and goodness knows how many others).
Foo Fighters – Band on the Run
On the subject of RSD releases… The Foo Fighters put out Medium Rare – a thirteen song strong collection of covers – for Record Store Day back in 2011 and I’d been after a copy for a while. The Foos were always a delight when cutting loose on a cover, combining their increasingly tight chops with their tongue-in-cheek approach makes for a cracking listen. So I was pretty chuffed to find a mint copy in a record shop in Avignon which promptly left with me. Along with the likes of ‘Darling Nikki’ and ‘Baker Street’, this is a pretty strong example and seems fitting to slip on here after this weekend’s Taylor Hawkins tribute concert.
Adé – Tout Savoir
Driving around for two weeks listening to the same radio station means you’re gonna hear a few songs played a lot especially if they’re big. Along with Sting’s ‘Rushing Water’ and a few others, Adé’s ‘Tout Savoir’ has been firmly lodged in my ears but it’s one that I continue to enjoy, it’s pretty upbeat with a decent melody and offers more than your usual pop radio fodder.
Larkin Poe – Hard Time Killing Floor Blues
Every now and then the boy will request ‘Planet Rock’ on the car radio. Sometimes I’m not in the mood as there’s only so much leather waistcoat music I can take but his recent request caught something called something called ‘The Blues Power’ show and made for a pretty decent drive and this one ended up lodged in my head. I don’t know much about Larkin Poe other than it being fronted by two sisters but I’m enjoying this one plenty of late.
Christone ‘Kingfish’ Ingram – Long Distance Woman
Keeping that blues crunch vibe going, I caught this guy’s name being mentioned in high esteem in various print / online music chats and was pretty impressed when I checked out his stuff – this dude can play and he’s only in his early twenties (though he could probably benefit from a salad or two). This is form his second album 662 which I’ve been joyously powering through lately. He does a great take on ‘Hey Joe’ too that’s all over YouTube.
Ryan Adams – Rollercoaster
While the music press and industry are still keeping Ryan Adams on the naughty step, he’s remained busy with some sell-out shows and a tour on the way as well as continually releasing albums and a prolific rate with three albums, two of which are doubles, in 2022 alone, that continue to mix his stark acoustic works with that golden late-80s vibe which he’d started to perfect with Prisoner. ‘Rollercoaster’ is taken from the middle of this year’s three albums, Romeo and Juliet.
Pixies – Vault of Heaven
Hey! The Pixies have got a new album coming out soon that’ll mean they’ve released as many albums since reforming as their original run. While you can’t expect another Bossanova or Doolittle, they’re sounding increasingly comfortable and stretching out with increasingly strong and consistent albums. If this song, about the time Frank Black joined Mark Knopfler’s band I think, and previous ‘There’s a Moon Out’ is anything to go by, Doggerel is gonna be another belter.
Mumbling About... 
Some great stuff here, Tony, and nice seeing a new post from you! To start with, I like you included Larkin Poe. These two ladies are just incredible!
I also dig that Springsteen tune, which reminds me I still need to take a closer look at that EP. Are you planning to catch the Boss live in July next year during one of his Hyde Park shows?
I still know relatively little about Foo Fighters. I think it’s cool that in addition to their own material, they’re frequently doing covers. Believe it or not, I really liked their 2021 album “Hail Satin,” which features an entire side (in vinyl talk) of Bee Gees covers. I also think they did a good job with “Band On the Run.”
Christone ‘Kingfish’ Ingram is one of the reasons why I’m confident the blues is here to stay. Sure, it’s unlikely to ever again enjoy its ’80s mainstream popularity when Stevie Ray Vaughan was still around. But every time I see talented young artists like Kingfish or Jontavious Willis it makes me happy!
I could go on but feel this comment is already pretty long! 🙂
Past nine o’clock on a cold late winter evening and I’m sitting waiting to play a third set of tennis and hoping my back doesn’t seize up in the chilly night air. So please forgive me if I drifted off after the phrase “drive through the south of France”. I did feel warmer just by looking, and I thank you for that.
Glad I could inject a little warmth into your day. I’m already missing it
I saw Larkin Poe live a few years back and they really woke up the crowd. Great stuff.
I’ll be that was a great show, really digging what I’m hearing from them
The Springsteen is nice enough but he’s not really breaking any new ground these days. I like how the Foos take “Band on the Run” and turn it into a hard rock song. Wonder how AC/DC would sound? (Also, I was under the impression Brian Johnson couldn’t sing these days.) Ade isn’t bad but boy, singing in another language is tricky for me. Just another clueless American. Christian has written a fair bit about Larkin Poe. Damn good band. As to Kingfish, we’ve both written about him. Nice to see a new crop of blues guys, especially Black ones. A while back, younger Black kids wanted nothing to do with blues due to its slavery connotations. Now you’ve got this guy plus Gary Clark and Eric Gales who I saw and wrote about lately. The blues is alive. Ryan Adams has never done much for me. Don’t know why. Pixes sound good if, again, nothing new.
If I recall BJ had been to told to stop on account of his hearing – something about racing cars rather than Angus’ amps. So they got that chap from Guns N Roses for the Rock or Bust (which I guess meant he was the latter). But I guess he got the right specialist treatment as he was back a bit later.