The Godfather of Soul, The King of Pop and The Prince of OMG!

1980's James Brown? ok
1980's Michael Jackson? pretty awesome
1980's Prince? amazing

All three together? there are no words

Hasil Adkins :: Out To Hunch :: 1986

Hasil Adkins was a Rockabilly musicians in the latter 50's/early 60's (this 1986 cd is a compilation of singles and other stuff as he never released an official album in his early days). There were a lot of Rockabilly musicians back then. The problem is that most of them sound the same and are completely interchangeable. About the only thing that could set one apart is that elusive "something" that i've referred to in past posts. You know what that "something" is. The thing you can't put your finger on that makes a person magnetic and turns them into a star. So the question is does Mr. Adkins have what it takes to stand out from the pack.

Well, let's just start with an examination of the external. The photos on the front and inside of the CD booklet show us a tough looking young man with popped collars and towering pompadour. There are a lot of photos of him by cool-looking cars or holding records or a hollow-bodied electric guitar. Alright, everything seems in line so far; let's check out the song titles.

"We Got a Date," "You Don't Love Me," "High School Confidential," "Gee But I Love You." Ok, that sounds about right. Then there's "Chicken Walk" and "No More Hot Dogs" which seem a little weird but those kids were kinda crazy in the 50's. But then there's "Hot Dog Baby" so maybe he just has a thing about hot dogs. And the final track is called "I Need Your Head." I'm assuming this isn't like the Misfits singing "I want your skulls." Maybe i have a dirty mind but this could be the most risque song on the Rockabilly circuit. I guess we'll just have to see; let's check out the songs themselves.

For the most part, it sounds like Rockabilly. There's that chugging country rhythm and all that energy. It's kind of sparse sounding and the recording quality is a little rough but that's ok i guess. Also this guy sounds like he might be a little crazy but that just adds the fun of it, right? Whatever this is, it's not exactly Gene Vincent but i guess there can only be one of them. Let's just move onto some lyrics and see how they stack up.

The first song, "She Said" is all about hookin' up with a girl. Ok, sounds about right. Wait, did he just say she looked like "a dying can of commodity meat?" You lost me a little there, Hasil. Alright, let's move on to the second song, "No More Hot Dogs." After some kind of maniacal laughter, the lyrics come in, "I'm gonna put your head on my wall/ just like i said baby, you can't talk no more/ you can't eat no more/ eat no more ho-o-ot dogs." What the hell is going on here?!! Holy crap! This is like the Misfits! That oh-so-innocent sounding "We Got a Date" is also about chopping off some girl's head! And as far as "I Need Your Head," i may not even listen to that one. Who knows, maybe it's just about snuggling or something... nope, i just listened to it, it's definitely about decapitation.

So here's the quick bio on Hasil Adkins. Born in Boone County, West Virginia, he fell in love with the radio and the likes of Hank Williams. He noticed on one of his records that the only name listed was Hank's so he just assumed he was the only one playing. With that information, Adkins taught himself to play guitar with his hands and the drums with his feet. He got hold of a reel-to-reel recorder and started making records. He self-released his records and reportedly always mailed one to the sitting President of the United States. (He received a thank-you letter from the office of Richard Nixon).

In the mid-80's a couple of fine folks discovered his rare 45 of "She Said" and went on a search for the song's writer. They formed Norton Records and released this compilation of early singles. They eventually got him into a proper studio to record some new material, including an album called "Poultry in Motion" on which his single favorite meat was the subject of every song.

Out To Hunch will fall into what has become known as "Outsider Music." It seems odd that it's become a genre but it makes sense. This is music that is just too strange to fit into any kind of conventional mold. The catch is that the makers of the music don't really know that it's strange. Adkins was making these records with the belief that they were capable of being just as successful as those of Jerry Lee Lewis or Elvis Presley. And in all their strangeness and, frankly, scariness, it's that purity that's makes them special. Hasil Adkins, didn't have an education, he didn't have guitar lessons, he didn't have a proper studio or even a band to back him up. But he, without a doubt had that "something" that so many others lacked.

Adkins toured through the latter 80's/early 90's and played the occasional show in the new millennium. He passed away in the spring of 2005. Possibly from intentionally being run over by an ATV.

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Not surprisingly, i couldn't find old footage of The Haze but i wanted you to hear it so here it is.

Radio Shows: December 2 & 9

For the December 2nd show, i did the first hour (hour and a half actually; i snuck in early) and this semester's trainee, Michael, took the second hour so their split up here.

December 2 (w/DJ Susan)
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December 2 (w/Michael)
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December 9th
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Radio Shows: Oct. 28 & November 4

October 28th
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November 4th
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Radio Shows: November 11 & 18

November 11

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November 18
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Sit like a lady, Lionel.

Have you ever noticed how unladylike Lionel Richie is?

Frank Zappa :: Hot Rats :: 1969

Being a genius doesn't necessarily make you a weirdo and being a weirdo certainly doesn't make you a genius but sometimes the two just seem to go hand in hand. I know "Genius" is a pretty big word and should be used sparingly. I also don't have a clue what the actual definition of genius is. There's probably an IQ number that determines that in the math & science fields but when it comes to art, the word means something different to everyone. As for my own definition, it refers to someone who has created something only they could have created. It means they operate on some other plane than the rest of us; that their minds have different gears that keep them from creating the same art everyone else creates. It is a term that i do in fact use sparingly and it is a term i do not hesitate to apply to Frank Zappa...as well as "Weirdo."

This is a man that undoubtedly operates on a different creative level than the rest of the world and i think that's why a lot of folks, myself included, find it hard at first to appreciate what he does. The other main obstacle is that his ideas and songs aren't always consistent from one album to the next. Just because you love or hate one Zappa album, that doesn't mean you'll feel the same about the next one. This was my original problem. I had heard some songs that i just thought were silly (we'll talk about that word in a moment) and wrote him off. It wasn't until i was told to check out a live album, Roxy and Elsewhere, that my opinion changed. [I must take this moment to thank my friend Mike's friend Stacy for steering me in the right direction. So Mike, pass that on.]

So let's address the silliness of Frank Zappa for just a moment. He definitely has a strange sense of humor. He writes songs about yellow snow, fingerbangin' and talking dogs. But that is just surface stuff. There's two things you'll find if you dig a little deeper. First of all, you'll notice that the grooves underneath are usually very intricate with a lot of unique sounds for rock music. The other thing is that the lyrics are really more of a mirror held up to the world of entertainment. Let's face it, even if you appreciate Fellini, watching a guy get hit in the nuts is still going to entertain you. We can pretend we're high art but we're not.

Now with that said, silliness has pretty much nothing to do with Hot Rats because while the yellow snow songs are what Zappa is mostly known for, he's far too complicated to put in a box. While he has his "pop" albums, he also has his instrumental albums where he fuses rock, jazz and his own special weirdness. This is one of those. What you have here is a mix of tightly arranged material and studio jams (we'll talk about that word in a moment).

Opener "Peaches en Regalia" is a perfect example of what Zappa does like nobody else. This is where "Frank Zappa: Composer" shines through. He creates his own version of the Wall of Sound by sending bass, guitar, mandolin and whatever else he can find down the same melodic path. He has every instrument playing its role to create a very busy yet very concise piece of... well, it's not exactly Rock but i wouldn't call it Jazz. It sounds kind of gypsy-carnivalish but that doesn't really work either. It is right at 3 and 1/2 minutes so maybe it's a pop song. Whatever it is, it's just about perfect.

"Willie the Pimp" features Captain Beefheart in a guest spot on vocals (the only non-instrumental track on the album). His growl tells a story over a great riff which gives way to some soloing opportunities on the last half of the song. The fuzzy guitar shares the spotlight here with the violin work of "Sugarcane" Harris on what builds into a fantastic jam.

"Son of Mr. Green Genes," "Little Umbrellas" and "It Must Be a Camel" all fall into the "arranged" category varying from 3 minute to 9 minute pieces. The latter ventures into the Jazz department and somehow emulates the sound of a skipping CD nearly 15 years before they were invented. And then there is what is my personal highlight of this amazing album, the 17-minute jam "The Gumbo Variations."

Ok, let's address the "jam" issue first. We all know about "Jam Bands" and we've all met a lot of douchebags who listen almost exclusively to them. Depending on the particular brand of jam-band-douchebag, they may also really enjoy either Radiohead, Outkast or Bluegrass music. Now Jam Bands are not inherently crappy. [In full disclosure, i saw Phish live in 1993 and currently own 4 albums by both Phish and Grateful Dead] These bands are usually undeniably talented and sometimes they write good songs. The problem is that when they get to the "jam" part of a song, all thoughts of songcraft go out the window. I really do love the Dead albums i have but the couple of times i've tried to listen to any of their Dick's Picks (licensed bootlegs) albums, i can't get through a single song before i'm bored and/or annoyed. When most bands "jam," it's just an opportunity for the individual musicians to show off what they can do and it often doesn't fit with the overall song. Think about Jazz for a moment. Many Jazz songs are nothing but "jams" but the solos are done with an awareness of the other musicians and how each part fits together and that's where Zappa is as much a Jazz musician as he is a Rock musician. In other words, while Widespread Panic is all about musical masturbation, Zappa is more about musical group sex.

And boy does it get sweaty in "The Gumbo Variations." If you're a fan of classic rock from the late 60's and early 70's, you'll be able to find plenty of examples of songs that come to a point, after all the verses and choruses are said and done, of sheer Rocking Out (of the "cock-out" variety). This song is like that without all that build up. It skips the foreplay that many consider mandatory and gets right to the good stuff. Drums and bass, keep the rhythm while the guitar lays down a stanky groove. From there, Zappa's main collaborator on this album, Ian Underwood, blasts out a saxaphone solo that seems absolutely wild but controlled for the first 7 minutes. Then it's Sugarcane's time. He turns the next 5 minutes into a screeching, soaring Violin attack. The Zappa gets his solo chance for a few minutes, not hogging the spotlight at all but proving why he's a guitar god to the people that know his secret. Then for good measure, you get a drum and then bass solo and then the really orgy begins until that all climax and collapse in a heap.

Too much with the sexual comparison? Maybe, but good music and good sex aren't necessarily that far apart. Or maybe i'm just a weirdo.
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I can't any videos of ANY of the Hot Rats songs but i found a few other cool videos so here you go.

A piece called Approximate, being played, sung & danced. This is a great example of how his brain works a little differently than the rest of us.


Zappa as a young 20-something on the Steve Allen Show, playing a bike.


And finally, Youtube's famous manualist playing "Peaches en Regalia" with fart noises. I think FZ would be proud.

Radio Shows: October 16 & 21

October 16, 2010

DJ Susan is joined by his wife DJ Gary for a special Saturday show.
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October 21, 2010
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Radio Shows: Sept 30 & Oct 14

Here are the next two shows for download. I forgot to record the October 7th show which is a shame because it included my exclusive interview with John Bonham.

September 30, 2010
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October 14, 2010
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Yardbirds :: Having a Rave Up :: 1965

The Yardbirds were part of that whole British Invasion thing back in the 1960's. They had a few songs that were big hits in both the UK and the US. You'd probably know some of these songs if you'd heard them but you most likely had no idea who recorded them. For some reason, they never reached the Rolling Stones/Animals/Kinks level in the consciousness of popular music. However, for those in the know (which in this case i am not claiming to be), Yardbirds may have been the best group of blues-lovin' Brits to ever plug in.

I was not very familiar with these chaps until just a couple of years ago. Like most casual music fans, my knowledge was limited to knowing just enough to be able to answer a common trivia question about their guitarists. Despite not being a household name themselves, they managed to produce three household names from their ranks: Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck & Jimmy Page. When you really think about that, it's kind of mind-blowing. Those three names would be included on anybody's "Top 20 Greatest Guitarists" list (well maybe not mine) and they all got their start in the same band.

Clapton was the first of these three, joining the in late 1963 and exiting in early 1965. After having a breakthrough hit and a gold record with "For Your Love," Clapton left out of protest because (get this) he was a "blues purist." So after ol' Slowhand headed out to join John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, he recommended Page. Page was making some good cash as a session guy so he suggested Beck. Yardbirds said ok. Beck did his thing from '65 to '66 then Page came in, originally on bass, a few months before Beck was fired. He stayed until the end of the group in '68 before forming a new Yardbirds lineup, later changing their name to Led Zeppelin.

Birthing three guitar gods made Yardbirds legendary but y'know what didn't? Their singer. Keith Relf was a good singer...and rice is good food. It's not that he was a bad singer by any means but he was just missing that extra something. Ray Davies had a snide punch to his vocals, Eric Burdon could sing the blues better than any other white boy, and Mick Jagger...is Mick Jagger. Whether it's fair or not, the vocalist is the key factor in a band becoming a hit. While musicians might pick out individual instruments, it's the vocals that stick in the common listener's heads. Without a singer who really stood out, the Yardbirds had their hits, still get played on the oldies station and 99 percent of the people you meet in a year have no idea who they are.

However, what they lacked in a stand-out vocalist was more than covered by their six-strings. There's a reason these guys are legends (though someone will have to explain one of those reasons to me). The Stones had swagger, The Animals had the blues and The Kinks had the hooks but none of them really pushed the boundaries. In The Yardbirds, you find two of the most inventive guitar players of all time (and Eric Clapton). These songs hold up in casual listens so if you're just singing along, you may occasionally miss the guitars but when you really pay attention, you notice some amazing stuff here. Even more importantly, you have to put these recordings into context. This album was released in 1965. That's the same year The Beatles released Help! and Rubber Soul. And just like those two albums, the sounds on this one laid the groundwork for things to come. This is the beginning of psychedelia, distortion and feedback in songs. This was when bands broke out of the sock-hops to make some noise. That perfect combination of familiarity and forward thinking is what makes the Yardbirds important.

Well, that and Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page.
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The Youtube video i wanted to post won't allow me to embed so please follow the link and watch this amazing version of "I'm a Man" complete with raucous maracas, the Shindig dancers and an actual guitar god.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrABhokOxTQ