Ain't It Amazin' Gracie. Cannot believe that the Twinkies took 2/3 from the Jays. Today our old buddy Phil Hughes threw 7 innings, gave up no bombs to that team, and did not crumble in the face of a possible rally. If that little puke had pitched at 500 last year the Yankees may have been in the playoffs.
You may recall Buck Owens more from his show (hosted with his partner) Roy Clark...that show, Hee Haw....it was on every weekend in the 60s, to mid 70s. Personally, I found that show a bit hard to watch, it was downright corny at times, playing to much on Hicks.....! Both- Buck Owens and Merle Haggard, were 2 Bakersfield Country and Western Musicians, who were from Bakersfield, and recorded their Music, in Bakersfield. The sound being a bit different from "The Nashville Sound", as it incorporated more pedal steel, fiddle, a few other instruments, but basically had a bit of a different upbeat sound, and went on to be called "The Bakersfield Western Sound". ..typically, although there were exceptions, with both Nashville, and Bakersfield sounds. Similar and dis-similar...
Hee Haw for the most part was stereotypical BS but they did get some top flight talent aboard. Roy Clark sang well but his forte was as a fretted Instrument player. Buck was a fine player, singer and wrote some great country tunes. Most active from 1959 to 1974. After his wingman Don Rich was killed Buck exited the business until the mid-nineties. Love to hear Rich do harmonies with Bucks lead vocals, the man was right there with James Burton on the Tele. Buck was right there with Haggard and Jones as my favorite country acts.
Ah music to my ears...James Burton....! Other than Rich, I don't think it gets any better than James Burton....! I got to see Burton numerous times, with Gram Parsons -Emmylou Harris, and the Fallen Angels Band. Later after GP's death, with The Hot Band and Emmylou. GP was recorded by Haggard's Engineer Hugh Davies. Haggard was supposed to Produce the LP - GP, but Merle was going thru a bitter divorce, and couldn't be sobered up from his Hotel Room, where he holed up for months. Thus, his Eng'r. joined the project, and Gram along with Rik Grech of Blind Faith infamy, produced the new Country Rock moniker LP, which GP would refute the genre moniker given to his style of CR music. That being said: when we moved to Shreveport for 3 years in the mid 60s, my Dad took me every single weekend evening, to the Luzianna Hayride shows. Every weekend, the best of Hall of Fame Classic C&W acts played. Got to see about everyone who was anyone, you name it....! George Jones - (the king of classic Honky Tonk, had no equal with his brand of HT music, and IMO, Honky Tonk today is all but dead, other than some frauds, who play POP muzak, not HT)... Jones, by far my favorite, right along with Merle....! The Hayride, now refurbished, was the first ever stage Elvis played on....Due to that feat alone, its now a Landmark. Outside the entrance are two Bronz Statues. 1 of Elvis, and one of James Burton.....! Not only was Burton a early Ricky Nelson lead guitarist on the Ozzie and Harriet show, and Ricky's LP's, he played with Elvis for quit awhile, until Elvis passed. (The same band Elvis would use, in his Las Vegas, black leathers made for TV special). Gram hired Elvis entire band, to tour with and record 2 1/2 LP's, before GP's own death. (Glen D. Hardin, Burton, Al Perkins, and a host of others). One of the musics best shows I've seen, was the 50 year Anniversary Special, of the Fender-Stratocaster ..... some of the greatest men to ever pick up a Tele or Strat, were on that stage; in the end all of the 25+ musicians played on stage all at once, with many a solo, by/of those greats. Including but not limited to: David Gilmour, Eric Clapton, James Burton, Albert not Alvin Lee (Burton's replacement with the GP band, and boyo could Lee play as hot fingered as Burton too)...Jeff Beck, you name it, if they were Iconic Legends, they were on that PBS Fender TV Special.... *only thing I love more than sports is Music... ** I met Emmylou Harris, in 1977 in Person, and chatted with her for 2 hours, over coffee, then Black Russian's, after she appeared at the Licorice Pizza Record store on Hollywood Blvd. and Vine...Emmy, drew the winning ticket at the record store, to promote her "Luxury Liner" LP new release. (A GP penned tune). I tell ya', I love my Wife, but, Emmylou is an Angel walking this Earth, and we're honored to have her still singing with her Angelic Voice. Got plenty of 8X10's of her that day, which still hang on my wall. Damn where did I go wrong....???
Burton had a pretty slick trick by replacing the upper E, B, G, & D strings on his guitar with banjo strings. I did very much like Emmy Lou Harris's version of "If I Could Only Win Your Love" right on par with the Louvin Brothers. My favorite Country Singer always has been and will be Hank Williams, loved that mans music, liked his demos and "B" Sides better than the hits. He was the reason I wanted to play guitar and eventually learned to do so.
I did not know that about Burton using banjo strings, incredible, and that explains his sound which I always wondered what configurations he had on his strat/tele's to get his unique sound(s). Thanks for that... Emmylou: Love her version of Buck's "Together Again", another Louvin Brothers tune: "When I Stop Dreaming"; as well as her version of Felice and Boudleaux Bryant's "Sleepless Nights". I as well, respect and love Hank Williams as much as anyone who ever played music. Hank IMO, was a pioneer, epitome of a Giant, who influenced more musicians, and provided an entire new generation to "Classic C&W". One of the 1st "Greek Tragedies", to see an artists in his prime, pass way to soon in their young lives. Hank was spoken of often even years after his passing, in Bossier City, ([Hank's hometown once he became The Icon Giant to reguarly play the Louisiana Hayride]; a town we often played Little League in, during those Shreveport Hay Ride era's.) I never quit understood why a Bronze Statue of Williams was not placed in front of the very building Hank made more popular, than Elvis, tho' Elvis seems to get the accolades. Tell me if you will Michael, what Guitars both acoustic and/or electric have you collected over the years? In the mid 70s, I took a tour through the small Mossman (acoustic) guitar building, the old man and his 2 sons, built IMO, the best (Rosewood backing) guitars. A sweeter & deeper sound than an old Martin...tho' I love Martin's too. After the old man retired, his sons continued on his tradition and legacy, but-the Mossman building burned down. That's one acoustic guitar, I just rarely if ever see a copy of anymore....!
For You Michael: links to Mossman guitars: (the Stradavari of our time). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stuart_Mossman http://www.vintageguitar.com/1922/mossman-guitars/
Like many others I started out on a Fender F-36 acoustic. Had a Gibson J-45 amplified flat top for a while. Tried a Strat but did not like the unwrapped 3rd. I have also had one each of Ibanez and Washburn Guitars. I now have Ovations a black Celebrity and a Cherry Balladeer 1861. Both have Super Shallow Bodies and are and can be played amplified or straight akin to a dreadnaught. I use a rhythm style akin to the singing brakeman Jimmie Rogers, love the big rhythm chords majors, minors and sevenths. I sing in the five common keys with an occasional foray into F or Bb. sometimes use a capo. I'm getting ready to purchase a Fishman Loudbox Mini to replace my current Ibanez Amp. I would also add that I did not pick up a guitar until deep into age 41. While on active duty the Army requested that I play only Instruments that began with M.
...I was also gonna mention Ibanez...a buddy of mine had one that sounded so sweet and would ring forever. He also had a vintage Martin that would have been worth about 20K except his GF knocked it off the stand one night and cracked the neck...he sent it back to Martin and they repaired it with some sort of epoxy resin...but still, the damage was done as far as value and collectability. ...my Brother still has his 1958? Les Paul Gold Top...I recall him having a set of Dimarzio pickups installed and though it gave him the sound he wanted at the time, he failed to keep the original pickups which killed the value of the guitar...still looks and sounds great though. He also still has an old beat up Gibson SG...he only bought it because we were both FZ fanatics back then and Zappa played one.
For the money, one can't go wrong with Ibanez, albeit Acoustic or Electric guitars. A 58 Les Paul, that things got to be a sweet versatile sounding piece of art, and sound. I too always loved Gibson SG's due to FZ..! Frank could make his SG do things no one else could....(a genius in our midst, who could play with the best to ever pick up a guitar.) I always liked the old Epiphone sound too, ES-335? Basically the Chet Atkins sound, which Gibson would later build a unit just for Chet. I'm not sure if I ever told ya' Ron, Frank Zappa and Don Van Vliet graduated from Antelope Valley High School, here in Lancaster, my own Alma Mater. Tho' both graduated a decade plus prior. When I was 17 working as a cook at a Steak House, A Rolls Royce Corniche pulled up when the place was empty, on a Sun. afternoon. Frank, Don and Frank's wife, stepped out and came in for Lunch. Frank ordered, (how could I ever forget this one), a blood rare steak. Frank ordered, then walked up to the Kitchen Window, and said, in his deeeep voice, (long long hair, and Crimson Blood Shot eyes); "Only Ten Seconds on each side please".....as quick, I handed him his steak/plate....I couldn't forget that moment if I went thru shock therapy. A year later, I started cooking at Denny's on graveyard, where I noticed Don Van Vliet, (Captain Beefheart himself), sitting alone at the bar, on a frequent basis. Don was extremely reserved, private, esoteric, and didn't allow anyone to sit by him at the bar, or even attempt to have a discussion with him. Don would be immersed in his drawings, not wanting to be bothered. He always carried, a big Artist Sketch Pad, and no pencils, only a 'magic marker', which he drew some great shit with. Extremely surreal a person as they come. Yet, Don had a very special private side of him, I was honored to get befriended by. To make long stories like this short, Don let me know in advance, when Frank was driving up to shoot his Album Cover for Bongo Fury, (as the Cap'n and Frank re-united for a short time). That Cover was shot at the Foster's Freeze in Lancaster, while my buddies and I looked on in awe...! As well as anything FZ recorded or performed; Beefheart's 'Trout Mask Replica', my buddies and I thought, was "pure genius" as did many music critics. FZ and The Mother's began playing at a small soul club, in Sun Village just east of Lancaster, just a mile or so from where R.E.M. shot their video "Man on The Moon". If you want a good idea of this shit-hole desert, that video is as close to revealing how desolate the Mojave is. "Here's a Truck Stop instead of Saint Peter's, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah....!" (sorry for the rambling/musing, I can't help myself on this subject)...!
...had no idea FZ and Capt Beefheart went to school together but I stil listen to Bongo Fury every once in awhile. My fav FZ albums are; One Size Fits All Apostrophe Overnite Sensation Zoot Allures My Brother and I used to imitate Zappa and people used to think we were nuts (and we were) because most of them had no idea what the lyrics we were quoting was all about, and no idea who Zappa was. "Is it true your Sister gets off with a Yoo-hoo bottle and likes to be spewed upon with creamed corn?"
...being a great guitarist and a musical genius, FZ attracted a lot of the other best musicians in the industry...George Duke, Ruth Underwood, Jean Luc Ponty, Terry Bozzio, et al...as well as a very young Steve Vai. Always thought this interview was funny; [video=youtube;Xx1RguHA4XE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xx1RguHA4XE[/video]
Never was a huge Bing Crosby fan but one thing the man had was the foresight to see the potential of magnetic tape. Crosby invested in Ampex and started loading up the studios. While many musicians were shitting yellow Les Paul was working with a man named Ted McCarthy to put Gibson electrics on the map. A friend and business associate of mine in Orlando once remarked to me that it was hard to be simple and good. Les Paul simply reversed the record & playback heads on one of Crosbys Ampex machine and came up with overdub and sound on sound. That man was miles ahead of anyone sound wise. Ditto Leo Fender coming up with a way to mass produce an electric guitar like the Telecaster and come up with a quality piece of equipment. So what did one want humbuckers or moving coils, choose your weapon.
Hee Haw was a poor copy of a successful Sixties Comedy Show called Laugh In hosted by Rowan & Martin. Roy Clark was the American Bluegrass Banjo Champion of 1948. The man excelled on all fretted instruments, not a bad singer either. Pretty much has kept a low profile through out his career.
