Open thread 8/26/21
I never really thought about the Everly Brothers’ guitar playing. Fil certainly has:
The New Neo
A blog about political change, among other things
I never really thought about the Everly Brothers’ guitar playing. Fil certainly has:
Neo,
I was thinking exact same thing the other day watching some of the videos from their later concerts- I had never once thought about them playing their instruments, and it surprised me, too.
The Everly Brother’s father, Ike was a noted guitarist and an influence on Merle Travis.
Things seem to be spiraling wildly out of control at the Kabul Airpot. A suicide bomber, car bomb, and gunfire attack (presumably by ISIS), US casualties. Sky News is reporting 13 dead, including children.
Nonapod– According to the AP, the source of that casualty figure is the Russian Foreign Ministry: https://www.foxcarolina.com/news/russia-2-suicide-attacks-outside-kabul-airport-13-dead/article_6b693678-348c-59a3-b73c-c39f982cc0e5.html
I couldn’t help noticing the caption below a photo at the link: “In this image provided by the Department of Defense, paratroopers assigned to the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, conduct security as they continue to help facilitate evacuations. . . .” The “All American” was my dad’s division in WWII (so nicknamed because its WWI version had soldiers from each of the then 48 states). I am glad my dad didn’t live to see the use to which his old division is being put by the worst possible excuse for a CiC.
These troops in the 82nd Airborne shipped out of Fayetteville, NC, this past week. I’m sure people in eastern NC are glued to news sources, fearing what they might hear.
Kate– My dad’s memories of Fort Bragg/Fayetteville included being called a “damn Yankee” by some of the Southern guys in the division because he was from a Northern state. It was mostly good-humored kidding, though. My dad’s best buddy was an Italian-American from the Scranton area who would joke that he couldn’t be a damn Yankee because his grandpappy was stomping grapes back in Italy when “you guys were shooting at each other.” Then he would start singing in Italian, and everyone would laugh. It was a different world then.
PA Cat, when we first moved to western NC over forty years ago, people asked politely if we were from “up north.” I replied, sweetly, that we had moved northeast to get there. End of discussion, although of course they could hear in our voices that we weren’t from “around there.”
Kate– Small world– I have two first cousins on my mother’s side of the family presently living in western NC. As for Fort Bragg– have you heard any updates about proposals to change its name because Braxton Bragg was a Confederate general during “the late unpleasantness”?
Finally found a good page on Charlie Watts’ drumming. Stewart Copeland, drummer for the Police, got the ineffable and touched on the technique:
______________________________________
You can analyse Charlie Watts, but that still won’t get you to his feel and his distinct personality. It’s an X-factor, it’s a charisma, it’s an undefinable gift of God.
I can tell you about the technique, though. Drummers will argue about this long into the night: either how did John Bonham get that mountain of sound, or how did Ringo Starr and Charlie Watts get that feel? Technically, what it is, is that he leads with his right foot on the kick drum, which pushes the band forward. Meanwhile his left hand on the snare, the backbeat, is a little relaxed, a little lazy – and that combination of propulsion and relaxation is the technical definition of what he’s doing. But you can try it yourself, all you want, and it ain’t going to sound like Charlie.
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2021/aug/26/stewart-copeland-max-weinberg-on-charlie-watts-rolling-stones
______________________________________
That helps. I could tell the Stones weren’t exactly on the beat, but I couldn’t tell where. Ahead, behind? Apparently both.
There’s talk about the Fort Bragg name, but I suppose the change will come from Washington, if it does. I don’t think anyone thinks of the Confederacy with the name any more. Places in NC named “xxx Plantation” are being renamed, because “xxx” was the name of the family which owned the property and the slaves.
In the spirit of open threads, I’d like to add an RIP comment.
Two days ago, on August 24th, 2021, Charlie Watts died. Watts was the drummer for the Rolling Stones. People of all ages listen to rock’n’roll, but it’s the quintessential music for adolescents. During the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, The Rolling Stones released some of the best rock’n’roll records ever made. Those records coincided with my adolescence, and with some of my favorite friendships, so I can’t help but feel some nostalgia for it all. Charlie Watts was the heart of the band, and his passing at eighty, is one that marks the end of an era.
P.S. I wrote this before opening the comments section. Good to see that Huxley has also added a note about Charlie Watts.
Charlie Watts was the heart of the band, and his passing at eighty, is one that marks the end of an era.
Cornflour:
Exactly! I was surprised how hard his death hit me.
Anyway, I wrote a few more comments about him and his drumming yesterday:
https://www.thenewneo.com/2021/08/25/open-thread-8-25-21/
Personally coming off the back end of the covid train. Seems I have weathered the storm relatively unscathed. Sick for a week , though I am a week and half in now and ready to get back to work. Convinced more than ever this virus is not natural . I have now met it personally, and it seems to be such a strange thing. Made my legs hurt. So weak. I was jokingly asking myself if this is polio? My mother is on oxygen, but doing better. I told her we survived. One of my cousin’s ex husband did not. Died last night. A good man. Another older distant kinfolk died a few days ago with the disease. Got a 17 year old nephew who has had asthma that appears to have it. Doctor put him on invercetin immediately.
jon baker, glad you’re better. Is that ivermectin your nephew is taking? Good to hear it’s being prescribed. If we see it used more often the hospitalizations and deaths should go down dramatically.
Kate,
my bad spelling. Yes, Ivermectin.
Jon baker:
Glad you’re okay!
huxley,
Fascinating bit on Charlie Watt’s technique.
Japan is now recommending ivermectin for all COVID patients. I hope the US will follow.
Fascinating bit on Charlie Watt’s technique.
TommyJay:
Indeed! Copeland goes on to explain Watts’ jazz influence, a huge aspect of his playing. After the Stones slowed down, Watts formed his own jazz band, the Charlie Watts Quintet, to satisfy that aspect of his musicianship.
___________________________________________
…one thing you can see of the jazz influence on [Watts] is that he went for groove, and derived power from relaxation. Most rock drummers are trying to kill something; they’re chopping wood. Jazz drummers instead tend to be very loose to get that jazz feel, and he had that quality. The jazz factor in Charlie wasn’t in the use of the ride cymbal going ting-ting-ti-ting, it was his overall body relaxation. It’s also why he hardly broke a sweat while driving the band to light up a stadium.
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2021/aug/26/stewart-copeland-max-weinberg-on-charlie-watts-rolling-stones
___________________________________________
For a glimpse of Watts’ relaxation, check this video showing a Charlie-centric view of a Stones concert. It’s shot by Scorcese no less. “Shine a Light”, one of the best live rock films ever.
https://thevinylfactory.com/news/watch-charlie-watts-performing-jumpin-jack-flash-live-filmed-by-scorsese/
The camera is fastened on Watts from a few different angles. The rest of the Stones are small, clever puppets, waggling ass, in front of the drums. There’s Charlie, wiry, taut, focused yet relaxed. Never bashing. A surgeon at his drum kit. A stoic expression on his face.
You get the sense Watts is the still center of that little universe on the stage. He gives Mick and Keef the freedom to be their most out-there selves as long as Charlie is holding it together.
I came here to talk about this great Facebook Data is Beautiful 9 min video on Best Selling Musical Artists 1969-2019, with fantastic moving data.
No Everly Brothers AND no Stones – a bit of a surprise on no Rolling Stones, tho it didn’t start until 1969. Some Door (my favs!) plus lots of Pink Floyd (my #2):
https://www.facebook.com/DataIsBeautifull/videos/2989289917777595
A surprising, to me, lots of early 70s BeeGees, before the ’77 Saturday Night Fever Disco stuff.
Not so much early surprise in “names”, but in how popular some were and so many were not.
I’m wondering when Neo will look at non-sibling Simon & Garfunkel and Lennon, McCartney, and Harrison harmonies.
(I’m sick about Afghanistan)
Great notes on Charlie Watts, RIP. The last of the Doors is the jazz influenced drummer John Densmore, who fought against Ray Manzarek trying to sell Doors music for ad revenue. Also relaxed and driving.
Fil is great about the groove of Phil & Don Everly, and how perfect their singing articulation was, sounding like one voice.
Their guitar playing was very good, but overlooked, since their voices were so super.
Tom Grey:
Great to see you again! I haven’t noticed you in a while, though that might be my bad.
Sorry, I’ve no Facebook account, so I can’t cue up your FB link.
Meanwhile in Covid plague-ravaged Zhengzhou, the great 2021 iPhone 13 Production Ramp-up Mindless Oriental Slave Robot Roundup continues. Horrifying scenes of terrified Chinamen being driven with electric cattle prods to their assembly stations.
https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3146465/iphone-13-launch-nears-apple-supplier-foxconn-rushes-hire-200000-more
I think what I meant to say is that Foxconn is paying record signing bonuses due to a labor shortage. Almost First World Problems, you might think 🙂 And this after a flood destroyed their Zhengzhou Factory last month or something… I mean the BBC said it was Real Bad, so must be true.
Don’t believe everything they tell you, Good People. Not me, not Gordon Chang, sure as hell not your genius politicians and rotten media of *whatever* ilk.
Zaphod:
So you’re saying you don’t like the Rolling Stones? Or the Everly Brothers? 🙂
@huxley:
How many divisions does Mick Jagger possess?
Everly Brothers? Are you some kind of White Supremacist or something? Welcome Brother!
🙂
BTW… Have you heard of a newish Managerialist BugXirson Cult called ‘Circling’? Seems to be an offshoot of stuff you have mentioned encountering in 60s-80s? Yarvin posted about it (he’s not a fan) the other day. Just curious.
Zaphod:
Mick Jagger owns one of the Enigma machines.
That oughta come in handy. 🙂
Haven’t heard of Circling. I’m on it. Must keep up-to-date on cults.
Short piece about Charlie Watts by Tal Bachman:
https://www.steynonline.com/11641/tal-bachman-charlie-watts-always-played-the-right