The Kirkus Review described the book thusly: 

"Can the 60's cure the 90's? That's what Texas stereo repairman Ray Shackleford struggles to prove in this strenuous fantasy of rock- and-roll hits that never were. Shortly after his unloving father drowns in Cozumel, Ray starts to imagine he's hearing impossible songtracks that he's able to record directly from his head. He takes his tape of the Beatles' never- recorded hit ``The Long and Winding Road'' to L.A. producer Graham Hudson, who's already remastered three volumes of Glimpses from rock's legendary past, and Graham persuades him to go after bigger game. So Ray travels back in time, changing history enough so that Jim Morrison can record Celebration of the Lizard and Brian Wilson can persist in his breakthrough album Smile. There's money to be made here, of course, but what Ray and Graham really want is to save the world by recalling the aging rock audience to its ardent roots. (Maybe a little too ardent, as when Ray wonders, ``Was it that way for everybody, music and sex and politics and love all inextricably part of each other, or is it just me?'') Trying to come to terms with his hated father's death, Ray takes time out to retrace his steps in Cozumel, attempting to re-create his own experience of the 60's more directly in 1989, but his romance with a diving instructor seems to open wide the rift in his ten-year marriage without giving him a satisfactory alternative, and he ends up repeating his father's experience instead of accepting it. So it's back to the past for one last try--with a Jimi Hendrix album that Ray hopes can keep the 60's from ending. As you'd expect from versatile fantasist Shiner (Slam, 1990, etc.), Ray's attempts to keep the faith by resurrecting Jimi and laying his own father to rest are powerfully affecting. Much more than yuppie reunions like The Big Chill, this captures a generation's sweet, desperate yearning for the 60's--though it ends up as authentically woolly as the period." 

When I first read this book 5 years ago (& I've read it again several times since then), I was impressed by Shiner's ability to capture a certain sensibility that existed in the pre-corporate rock & roll era.  Heh, heh... back then it seemed like it was all about the music & nothing but the music.  Yeah, I know rock (or pop) music was big business back then but it was also a simpler time.  (note that I did not say "a more innocent time", eh?)  As they used to say in the (old) Marvel comics... 'nuff said.

Follow The Words...

Lewis Shiner

Glimpses

Find The Words:

Glimpses

GUEST POST by Kyle Bylin of indie label 50 Entertainment

In Malcolm Gladwell’s book, The Tipping Point, he describes the levels at which the momentum of  change becomes unstoppable.  Expanding on the notion that once an idea hits it's threshold there's a point when it proceeds to spread from its niche market origins and spills over into the masses.  Gladwell states, "Ideas and products and messages and behaviors spread like viruses do."

The success story of Staind can be traced back to a chain of events which lead to a moment called The Tipping Point of The Ballad.  Beyond their early fans, they were still a relatively unknown band upon the release of their second album Dysfunction in April of 1999.  The highest chart ranking it received was #74.  It wasn't until October 31 on the Family Values Tour, seven months later, that the path of the band changed forever.

Ten minutes before going on stage, Lewis decided to play the song “Outside.”  What happened that night in Biloxi, Mississippi Lewis later recalls as, “An accidental phenomenon.” Up until this performance the lyrics were often changed, but there... 

in front of thousands, he finished them while he sang.  This live acoustic version was picked up by radio stations across the country and the music video saw frequent airings on MTV2, becoming an instant hit through both mediums.  The compilation released in May 2000 featured “Outside” as a bonus track and went on to become gold-certified.

The buzz generated by the live acoustic version built the perfect bridge between Dysfunction and their follow up Break The Cycle by successfully introducing new fans to the band a few months before the album was released.  When Break The Cycle hit shelves on May 22, 2001 and it sold 716,000 copies it's first week.  By week fifteen, the album had sold nearly 2.9 million copies and went onto spill into the masses by selling more then 7 million copies in the US alone.

Gladwell goes onto describe that there are three rules which govern these types of epidemics.  In The Law of The Few he notes that the attainment of a tipping point requires the intervention of a number of influential people which he classifies as Connectors, Mavens, and Salesmen.  Fred Durst of Limp Bizkit, a Connector, had a special gift for bringing the world together.  After discovering Staind, he signed them to Flip which gave them a platform to launch their career.  Napster (The Net), Television (MTV2), and Radio DJ's played the role of Mavens, the people we rely upon to connect us with new information.  The Salesmen, the staff of Flip's parent company Elekra, were the charismatic people with powerful negotiation skills who put Staind in front of the world.

In The Stickiness Factor, he examines the specific content of the message that makes it memorable and have impact.  Expanded upon by Dan and Chip Heath in their 2007 release Made To Stick, the brothers explored the principle of SUCCESs (Simple, Unexpected, Concrete, Credible, Emotional, and Stories.)  “Outside” was Simple because it was at the core of the idea of what Staind was about.  Unexpected due to the heaviness of their previous single “Mudshovel.”  Credible on Fred Durst's endorsement.  Most of all, the Story of Staind, four guys being discovered at a bar gig and getting signed, hits at the very heart of the romanticized notion of how “making it” in the music industry is defined.

Last, but not least, in The Power of Context Gladwell says, "Epidemics are sensitive to the conditions and circumstances of the times and places in which they occur."  With Napster at the height of it's popularity, mass-radio play still thriving, the rise of alternative/nu-metal movement, and major label budgets still intact, it becomes quite clear that the environment which Staind arrived in was more then receptive and quite likely to adopt the idea of behind “Outside” and a band of their nature.

As Aaron Lewis begins to strum his guitar, the crowd in the background roars, and his voice projects, “And you, can bring me to my knees,” you can feel the impact of years gone by and the burdens they bear.  In the space of just under six minutes, Lewis engages you with every word.  In reflection of this story, what other occurrences can you think of when a ballad caused a tipping point for an artist?

They’re Here!

Here’s one of ‘em, but you gotta go see Carrie for the rest:

And here’s the press release, which offers much more insightful commentary than I can give you right now. But there’s a Q&A between the two women over on our good friend Carrie’s NPR blog, Monitor Mix (take the above link).

November 20, 2008; Washington, D.C. – Carrie Brownstein, blogger for NPR Music’s “Monitor Mix” and former guitarist of the critically-acclaimed rock band Sleater-Kinney, is releasing four songs recorded with fellow musician Mary Timony today on NPR Music. Recorded as part of Brownstein and Timony’s side project The Spells in 2000, the previously unreleased songs are now available to hear exclusively at NPR Music, where two tracks are also available the next two weeks for free download: www.npr.org/blogs/monitormix/

As The Spells, Brownstein and Timony recorded eight songs – four that made it to an EP in 2000, and four previously unreleased that are now available on NPR Music: “Bat Vs. Bird,” “Viola,” “Champion Vampire” and “Antarctica.”

Brownstein blogs on “Monitor Mix” that while she and Timony had bigger plans for The Spells, both became busy with bands and tours. “We did, however, manage to start the process,” Brownstein writes “In the summer of 2000, we recorded four songs in a couple of hours, the same amount of time in which we’d written them a few months earlier. If nothing else, making these songs available now is The Spells’ way of finally acknowledging that we aren’t going to get around to finishing the album. “

“Monitor Mix” is one of two NPR Music blogs, and is where Brownstein introduces her favorite music and comments on developments in the industry. Her writing on music has also appeared in The New York Times, pitchforkmedia.com and various book anthologies on music and culture. She is also one-half of ThunderAnt, a comedy duo with Fred Armisen. Brownstein is currently working on her first book of non-fiction.

NPR Music, marking its one year anniversary, features content from NPR and 12 NPR Member public radio stations, as well as original-to-NPR Music features such as live performances, studio sessions, exclusive first listens to forthcoming albums, interviews, reviews and blogs. The site’s continuously expanding sections are dedicated to rock/pop/folk, classical, jazz/blues, world and urban music. NPR Music culls from NPR’s and the stations’ extensive music archives to present thousands of features; more than 240 new features are added to the site every month.

This ain’t your daddies NPR!

Ok, that’s the cheesiest thing I’ve ever typed.

From New York’s RUCMA:

RUCMA Series 2008 @ the Yippie Cafe

Monday, December 1, 7:30 pm
Brad Farberman’s Music for Ears
Jam Session at 9 pm
David Rothenberg (clarinets)
Darius Jones (alto sax)
Dave Sewelson (bari sax)
Brad Farberman (guitar)
Andrew Drury (drums)

Wednesday, December 3, 8:00 pm
Cristian Amigo & Kingdom of Jones
Cristian Amigo (electric guitars)
Izzi Ramkissoon (bass & laptop)
Gonzalo Martinez (drums)
Rami El Asser (percussion)

Place: Yippie Cafe, 9 Bleecker Street
between Bowery and Elizabeth

Cost: General ($10), Students & Seniors ($7), Jam Session ($5)

Full Info: www.rucma.org , www.yippiemuseum.org
tel: 212.254.5420
Brad Farberman’s Music for Ears
Brad Farberman is a tireless performer and organizer on the innovative music scene in New York. Formative experiences like seeing Sunny Murray play, meeting Evan Parker in London and hanging out at Tonic have lead Farberman to a life in music from which, of course, there is no escape. Following some time in Massachusetts under the tutelage of Nick McBride, Glenn Siegel and the flautist Margo Edwards, Farberman relocated to New York City in 2007. As a guitarist, he has performed with Daniel Carter, Sabir Mateen, Steve Dalachinsky, Jason Kao Hwang’s Spontaneous River and William Parker’s Introscopic Orchestra. He is a founding member of Knucklebean, helped book the 2008 RUCMA series, and curates the monthly This Is Our Music series. He holds a B.A. in Journalism from the University of Massachusetts, and is in pursuit of his M.A. in Jazz History and Research from Rutgers University in Newark, NJ.

Cristian Amigo & Kingdom of Jones
Guitarist-composer Cristian Amigo straddles the contemporary-classical, improv and rock worlds; no wonder he calls his Kingdom of Jones a “new music jam-band.” During any given performance, Messiaen grapples with Led Zeppelin while Perez Prado teaches Stravinsky to mambo.

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The day has finally arrived. Twilight, the first film based on the tween vampire book series by Stephenie Meyer, gets its release this weekend. But is it worth the hype surrounding undead dreamboat Robert Pattinson? Click below for the complete review from the Rolling Stone film critic.

• Peter Travers Video Review: Twilight

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• Charts: Twilight Soundtrack Has the Teeth to Top Charts

• Paramore’s Twilight Song Comes Out of Its Coffin

• Twilight Author Stephenie Meyer On Musical Muses, New Movie

“Girls of Spring,” a willowy tune by Aan, is a similar work, with its own unexpected sci-fi connection. Though I wouldn’t have known it without talking to Bud Wilson, the man behind Aan’s delicate strings and layered, octave-jumping vocals. Below we chat about the sci-fi origins of the easygoing pop track, its meaning and fitting it is for Portland’s annual city-wide winter basement retreat. Cute girls also factor in. Judging by all that, I’d say this too sounds like the recipe for an excellent film. Hey Matt McCormick, wanna helm the project? I hear you just wrapped the other feature you were working on…

Q&A with Aan’s Bud Wilson:

What is the song about?
“Girls of Spring” is about being afraid of getting lonely. It’s knowing that as the weather turns here in Portland, people disappear, stow away in their homes and basements until light returns for more than a few hours a day and we can ride around without fenders again. But also it’s a celebration of the faction of us who are not afraid of the dismal gray rain, and find ways to stick it out with fervor and maintain satisfactory relationships through the coming season. Mainly it’s about cute girls.

How long did it take to write? Why did you write it?
The song was an afterthought. I’d just finished recording a different song that took a few days to get out. I had no intentions of spending another few hours pushing record. The riff came up quickly and there was no choice but to track it. I’d recently re-read one of my favorite stories by Madeline L’Engle, A Wind In the Door. In the book, there is a terrible happening called “Echthroi;” a blackness streaking across the universe turning something into nothing. I had a visual of this “Echthroi” erasing good folks with the coming wind. It’s some sci-fi stuff, but mix love and science fiction and that’s hot shit. It all was recorded in about an hour and a half.

What’s your favorite season?
My favorite season is the fall.

Why?
Picking apples off neighborhood trees. Dressing up to keep warm. Watching things die, knowing they’ll return soon enough when I’ve forgotten about them. It’s about dismissing those things that were bringing a person down and getting skeletal, keeping what’s essential.

What will you be doing in relation to your music during winter?
This winter I’m moving houses here in Portland. I’ll be looking for a drummer. I’ll be recording constantly, I hope. I’d like to find a positive place and make something a bit more uplifting, something wholesome. I’ll certainly be playing shows at Valentines and some of the smaller venues around. I just bought a monstrous bass amp so i’ll be driving the neighbors crazy with low end rumbles. Music is always and everything, the rest of my life wraps itself around it.

“Girls of Spring” will be officially released on a self-released E.P. in spring 2009 available digitally on itunes and in physical form at shows.

Links:
AanSpace
Watch Dude, Where’s My Car? on Hulu (free).

Photo care of Myspace

Cover Lay Down generally publishes twice a week, on Sundays and Wednesdays; much more, and real life starts to lose out. But occasionally, when the moments warrants it, we like to sneak in a short post here and there. Today, when technogeek, sci-fi author, and new parent Cory Doctorow noted the recent rerelease of 1972 hippie-kid classic show/CD/book Free To Be…You And Me over at BoingBoing, something rang a bell; since I’m solo parenting this afternoon while the wife heads out to the big city, it seemed especially fitting to hop on the promotional bandwagon for their 35th anniversary set.

I’d say more, but the pull-quote from Cory is perfect:

It’s amazing. The new art is fabulous. And I’ve got the CD on now, and the music is just as great as I remembered. There’s Rosie Greer singing, “It’s All Right to Cry,” Michael Jackson singing “I Don’t Have to Change at All” (!), Alan Alda singing “William Wants a Doll,” Harry Belafonte singing, “Parents are People,’ the Smothers Brothers singing “Helping.” There’s Carol Channing reciting the cleaning poem, and Mel Brooks doing the convulsively funny “Boy Meets Girl” sketch. It is just brilliant.

And wonderful. If you were to distill the messages that every kid needs to hear to grow up to be a confident, loving individual who does what’s right even when society sneers, if you were to turn them into great songs, funny poems, without a hint of preachiness or condescension, it would be this book and CD. Every kid needs this book — and the organization that publishes it is every bit as great as the book itself.

Like Cory, I grew up on this lovely collection of skits, stories, and songs performed by a vertiable who’s who of pop culture icons from the pro-family seventies; like him, I fully believe that every family should have a copy in-house. To commemorate the rerelease, here’s a one-shot cover of one of my favorite songs from the album, originally performed by football player, bodyguard, actor, and all-around sensitive guy Greer, and given voice here by Darius Rucker of Hootie and the Blowfish fame; it’s not really folk, but the sparse setting is certainly light enough for our purposes.

• Darius Rucker: It’s All Right To Cry (orig. Rosie Greer)
  (from For The Kids)

PS: In other and totally unrelated covernews: the new Guilt By Association compilation is already making the rounds of blogs, both cover and indie-focused. Like the first set, which included the wonderfully warbly Oasis cover from freakfolkie Devendra Banhart which we posted way back in our Subgenre Coverfolk feature on Freak Folk (download links will not work, but the writing remains eternally live), the covers run the indie gamut from beat-heavy grunge to lo-fi bedroom covers; here, none are truly folk, but most are interesting, and a few are delicate enough to appeal to those coverlovers of folk sensibility. Stream the whole thing here courtesy of Engine Room Recordings, and then head to iTunes for download from there.