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Archive for the ‘Tiny Desk Concert’ Category

Rick Riordan (adapted by Robert Venditti)–Percy Jackson and Olympians: The Sea of Monsters (The Graphic Novel) (2013)

Posted in Atila Futaki, Dmitri Shostakovich, Earl Wild, End of the World, Fantasy, Federico Mompou, George Gershwin, Graphic Novel, Jenny Lin, Myths, Rick Riordan, Robert Venditti, Supernatural, Threats, Tiny Desk Concert, Violence, War, Zeus on November 27, 2015| Leave a Comment »

percy2SOUNDTRACK: JENNY LIN-Tiny Desk Concert #160 (September 6, 2011).

linJenny Lin is an amazing pianist.  So it’s slightly disconcerting that she is playing these beautiful pieces on a Korg keyboard.

The write up says

It’s rare to see a world-renowned pianist willing to make such a sacrifice, but that’s how strongly Lin feels about getting the music out there, knowing that (with even more downsizing) folks could watch her perform this Tiny Desk Concert on their iPhones.

And while I wouldn’t think that a great pianist would have a problem playing an electronic piano, I had to wonder if the keyboard weight impacted her at all.  It sure doesn’t seem like it.

She plays five pieces altogether.  And they are all modern pieces.  I don’t know a lot about Shostakovic, but the blurb says that  Shostakovich, inspired by Bach wrote his own set of Preludes and Fugues in all 24 keys in 1950.  I would have guessed they were Bach, but you can hear differences in his more modern style (and not just because of the keyboard).  The notes are fast and furious (and beautiful).

I don’t know Federico Mompou at all, but the blurb says  “Barcelona-born Federico Mompou was a contemporary of Shostakovich’s, but that’s where the comparisons end. In the 1960s, he completed four volumes of piano music he called Musica Callada, or “Silent Music.” Mompou’s sound, [features]  austere beauty and emphasis on the spaces between notes.”  And you can really hear the way the notes ring out (I’ll bet even more so on a grand piano).

The final song is an arrangement of Gershwin’s “Fascinatin’ Rhythm” which has been “souped up by the late American virtuoso pianist Earl Wild. His arrangement turns the Gershwin song into a kind of stride-jazz extravaganza.”

Watch Lin’s hands fly around the keyboard.  It is hard to comprehend.  I don’t know which hand I am more impressed by.

It’s amazing to be able to watch a master so closely.

The setlist:

  • Dmitri Shostakovich: Prelude and Fugue No. 2 in A minor, Op. 87
  • Dmitri Shostakovich: Prelude and Fugue No. 7 in A major, Op. 87
  • Federico Mompou: Musica Callada — Nos. 1, 15
  • Gershwin (arr. Earl Wild): “Fascinatin’ Rhythm”

[READ: November 22, 2015] The Sea of Monsters

Clark really liked the first graphic novel and asked me to get the rest.  So I did.  And then I had to see how the story continued, too.

Book two of the graphic novel series (also with art by Attila Futaki) begins with Percy at home.  He is told he shouldn’t return to Camp Half -Blood, but his mom won’t say why.  At “regular” school, he is still picked on, but he now has help from a huge boy known as Tyson.  The bullies make fun of Tyson too, calling him a retard, but Percy sticks up for him. [The one problem with the graphic novels is they have to edit down so much, there’s no real introduction to Percy’s school or to Tyson].

On the next page, though, we learn that the bullies are actually demons and that Tyson is able to fight them off because he is …a cyclops.  (It must be very hard to create a cyclops–visually, they are just so wrong–where do you put that eye?  Do the normal eye sockets still exist? I always find them disconcerting to look at). (more…)

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Rick Riordan (adapted by Robert Venditti)–Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (The Graphic Novel) (2010)

Posted in Atila Futaki, End of the World, Fantasy, Graphic Novel, Local Natives, Myths, Rick Riordan, Robert Venditti, Supernatural, Threats, Tiny Desk Concert, Violence, War, Zeus on November 26, 2015| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: LOpercy1CAL NATIVES-Tiny Desk Concert #113 (February 21, 2011).

localI’ve decided to cherry pick some Tiny Desk shows for the end of the year–order be damned.

Local Natives are from L.A.  They play (in this Tiny Desk Concert anyway), a folkie alt rock which really emphasizes the band’s gorgeous harmonies.

For this set there are two acoustic guitars, an acoustic bass, a drummer and some cool extra percussion.  It also makes me laugh to see them all packed so tightly in that little space.

The first song “Wide Eyes” has lovely harmony vocals by the guitarist and the percussionist.  But when the backing vocals kick in, the sound really soars.

“Cards & Quarters” has a lovely guitar intro and fantastic three part harmonies.  I love the way the songs builds and builds to the end–it’s very dramatic.

For the final song, “Airplanes,” the percussionist switches to guitar (and sings lead vocals) and one of the guitarists plays the mandolin.  This song is very personal, with lots of details about the singer’s grandfather.  Again, the harmonies are gorgeous.

I’ve heard a lot about Local Natives and now I need to check them out more closely.

[READ: May 23, 2015] The Lightning Thief

I have seen the Percy Jackson movie and now I’ve read the comic book, but I have yet to read the actual novel (or series).  I figure I will some day.  But for now I’ve had this cool graphic novel to flesh out the movie.

It’s interesting how the movie and graphic novel (with art by Attila Futaki) emphasize different things.  It felt to me like the movie spent more time on introducing the characters once they got to “camp,” while the graphic novel seemed to gloss that.  But there were some other adventures that the group went on which were different between the book and movie (which may have just been for expenses).

Okay, so the brief summary of the book is that Percy Jackson is a boy in school.  He has trouble reading and his teacher gives him a hard time.  As we open, the class is learning about ancient Greek myths and the teacher is emphasizing how important they will be for Percy.  On the next page, one of Percy’s teachers turns into a demon and attacks him.   But no one else is aware of it.  Except maybe his best friend, Grover.

When school ends, Percy heads home to his mother’s house.  His mother is living with a totally awful guy (there was more about this in the movie) and explains that Percy’s father left before he was born.  But just as they settle in, Grover shows up and tells them they have to go.  Now. (more…)

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George O’Connor–Olympians 1-6 [Zeus, Athena, Hera, Hades, Poseidon, Aphrodite] (2010-2014)

Posted in Adventure, Aphrodite, Athena, C., Children's Books, Cyclops, Death, End of the World, Fears, Feminism, First Second :01, George O'Connor, Graphic Novel, Hades, Hera, Heracles, Homer, Minotaur, Myths, PJ Harvey, Poseidon, Religion, Series, Supernatural, Threats, Tiny Desk Concert, Torres, Violence, Zeus on November 25, 2015| Leave a Comment »

olymmp SOUNDTRACK: TORRES-Tiny Desk Concert #461 (August 10, 2015).

torresI’ve really enjoyed a lot about Torres’ music this year.  Mackenzie Scott has an interesting delivery which reminds me of certain aspects of PJ Harvey, and her songs are angry but measured.

Her songs seem to have a lot of low-end in them (without being bass heavy exactly–in fact in this Tiny Desk, there is no bassist).  And her singing voice is often rather low (and sometimes growly).  There’s a moment in the first song “New Skin” in which the music drops out and then Mackenzie Scott starts playing her guitar anew and it’s a sound unlike any in the song before (even though she has been playing all along).

Guitarist Cameron Kapoor adds cool sounds to what I think is her best song, “A Proper Polish Welcome.”  Erin Manning provides wonderful harmony vocals along with keyboards on this song which is as powerful as it is understated.  The song gives me chills.

“The Harshest Light” is a slow song that has glimpses of light as she sings slightly higher notes in the chorus.  And when her voice breaks near the end, you can hear the intensity in her singing.

It’s a great three song set that only leaves you wanting more.

I had resisted getting this album, but realizing just how good these songs are might tip the tables to a purchase.

[READ: Summer 2015] Olympians 1-6

While I imagined that I might read all of the First Second books this year, I paused about mid way through (more for me next year).  But one of the last things I read from First Second was this series of outstanding mythologies about the Greek Olympians.  It also turned out that a few years back I got these books for C., not realizing they were under the First Second imprint.  I was intrigued by them then, but I’m really glad that I read them now.

George O’Connor is a massive geek and Greek scholar.  He has done lots of research for these books, including going to Greece and visiting sites and antiquities as well as comparing all manner of ancient stories to compile the most interesting pieces. He explains that since these stories were orally passed down, they were modified over the years.  He doesn’t change the myths, he merely picks the story lines that are most interesting to him.  And then he adds a lot of humorous modern touches (and dialogue) which keep it from being at all stuffy.

O Connor’s drawing style is also inspired by superhero comics, so his stories are presented in a way that seems much more like a super hero than a classical hero, which is also kind of fun.

Each book ends with an author’s note which is hugely informative and gives plenty of context.  It also has a bibliography, but more importantly, it has a list of notes about certain panels.  Do not skip these notes!  In addition to providing a lot of insight into the myths of the characters themselves, there are a lot of funny comments like “Greeks raced in the nude (point and laugh)” which really bring new depths to the stories. (more…)

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Jeff Kinney–Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Old School [#10] (2015)

Posted in Avengers: Age of Ultron, Children's Books, Fears, Funny (ha ha), Humiliation, Jeff Kinney, Khaira Arby, Nostalgia, Parenting, Poo, Short Books, Technology, Tiny Desk Concert, Toilets, Yuck! on November 15, 2015| Leave a Comment »

 schoololsSOUNDTRACK: KHAIRA ARBY-Tiny Desk Concert #94 (November 29, 2010).

khairaA year ago I would have said I know nothing about music from Mali, but the shows at NPR have given me a greater appreciation of it.  And, while I wouldn’t say I’d have been able to pick this out as music from Mali, I definitely recognized the style of the what I’m going to call fiddly guitar that seems to be prominent in Mali music.

You can really hear how good guitarist Drahmane Toure is with the way he keeps up the constant soloing and fiddly bits.  It brings a cool distinctive sound to the otherwise steady rhythm from the bass and percussion (which looks like a beautifully carved salad bowl covered in duct tape).

The rest of the band includes an acoustic guitar, a bass backing singers and some other instrument that i can’t figure out.

Of course, this show is meant to celebrate singer Khaira Arby, the queen of desert rock.  And she is fine.  I don’t really have much to say about her.  She sings perfectly for this music, and sounds almost more like a prayerful singer than a professional one.

[READ: December 27, 2013] Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Old School

Clark said that this book was the best Wimpy Kid yet (a claim he has made before, so this must be really great).  My story about this book is that I knew the cover was black and I know basically what the back cover looks like, so when we saw Age of Ultron this summer, imagine my surprise to see that the boy was reading this book (which didn’t come out until last week).  Movies are magic.

Anyhow, this book begins in September with some hilarious snark about “the good old days.”  I love Greg’s reaction, “I think they’re just jealous because MY generation has all this fancy technology and stuff they didn’t have growing up.”  And now Greg’s mom’s big kick is to get everyone to unplug.  To unplug and reconnect with the community. (more…)

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Jeff Kinney–Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul [#9] (2014)

Posted in Babies, Children's Books, Davíð Þór Jónsson, Family Frolic, Family Fun, Fears, Funny (ha ha), Jeff Brown, Jeff Kinney, Olof Arnalds, Parenting, Pets, Pigs, Short Books, Summer, Tiny Desk Concert, Vacation, Video Games, Walt Disney World, Yuck! on November 14, 2015| Leave a Comment »

longSOUNDTRACK: OLOF ARNALDS-Tiny Desk Concert #93 (November 22, 2010).

olof Olof Arnalds is from Iceland and she sings in Icelandic.  She sings a kind of experimental folk, although in this Tiny Desk it is just her and a partner, Davíð Þór Jónsson, playing acoustic guitars.

And playing acoustic guitars keeps these songs pretty grounded.    Arnalds is a classically trained violinist, but she sticks to guitar on two of the tracks.

“Innundir Skinni” is a beautiful melody and our first exposure to Arnald’s voice, which is certainly unconventional.  Her voice is quite high and really rather lovely, just more Icelandic than Western.  Although even though she sings in Icelandic, anyone can sing along to the “la la la” part.

On “Surrender” she plays a churango made from an armadillo shell.  It brings a beautiful delicateness to this song.  I love the staccato chorus

“Crazy Car” sung in English as a duet, in which their accents and non-English delivery (especially Davíð’s) is most notable. The end, when she sings a different vocal melody is lovely.

Her voice might be off-putting to some, but I always like to hear someone with a bit of character.

[READ: November 10, 2015] Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul

This has been my favorite Wimpy Kid book so far.   I tend to like the ones that focus on a single long event and the whole family more than lots of little episodes at school.  So this book, which follows the Heffley family on a summer road trip was perfect for me.

I also love the way Kinney taps into real things but modifies them just enough to make them somehow even funnier.  Like the way he creates the magazine Family Frolic (but uses the font of Family Fun magazine) and describes it perfectly–showing idealized family moments which no family can ever hope to recreate.   There’s also the hilarious way that trying to surprise kids with a trip can backfire (Manny is so excited to visit their aunt, that they have to delay their real trip to Disney World).

I also enjoyed the use of Flat Stanley (from the book by Jeff Brown) and the hilarious way he changed Captain Underpants to Underpants Bandits (by Mik Davies, rather than Dv Pilkey) which allowed him to make his own underwear jokes. (more…)

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Neil Swaab–The Secrets to Ruling School (Without Even Trying) (2015)

Posted in Advice, Football, Funny (ha ha), Humiliation, Neil Swaab, Poo, Set at School, Short Books, The Red River, Threats, Tiny Desk Concert, Violence, Yuck! on November 13, 2015| Leave a Comment »

rulingSOUNDTRACK: THE RED RIVER-Tiny Desk Concert #97 (December 13, 2010).

redriverThe Red River are a ten piece band (whom I have never heard of).  They have two keyboardists, a drummer, a violist, a french horn player and guitars and vocals.  But in this Tiny Desk, the band decided to remove all of their instruments, save for the guitar, and to sing four of their songs more or less a capella (such is the coolness of the Tiny Desk).

The first song “Milk n’ Honey” is completely a capella and they kind of make each other laugh at a few moments (where maybe their instruments might have covered up some unsightly notes).

“Morning Routine” begins with just guitar and duet vocals.  Again, they seem to be trying to make each other laugh when after the line “the kitten cries,” the lead singer makes some kitten noises.  The chorus of backing vocals sounds wonderful here.

For “St. Bernard’s Lily” the nine players all do body percussion to provide the beat while Bill Roberts plays guitar and sings.  The band does some great backing vocals (especially in the do do do do do doooos).  The final song “Dirty Dave” is dedicated to him.  Roberts says they miss him very much then quickly points out that he’s not dead, he just couldn’t make it on that tour.  The song has a pretty melody and when the band sings the chorus together its really beautiful.
Lyrically the songs are about the mundane, which is what makes them rather interesting. I can’t quite imagine what their full band sounds like given this stripped down version.

[READ: November 12, 2015] The Secrets to Ruling the School

I saw this book when I was in Chapters Bookstore in Toronto.  I was happy to see it again in my library, so I checked it out.

The premise of the book is familiar–getting by in Middle School–although this book takes it a few steps further.  Not just getting by in Middle School, but actually ruling it.

And the structure is cool.  You are the person who will soon rule Middle School.  And you will be tutored by Max Corrigan.  Max meets you on your first day.  He’s a clean cut kid with a binder full of information.  He is the school’s Welcoming Committee.  But as soon as you open his Official New Student packet, you see that Page 2 describes the school as The Worst Place in the Entire World.  And that Max will help you survive bullies, tests, hall passes, psycho teachers and even ditching class.

And his plan is simple–makes friends with every clique in school as quickly as possible. (more…)

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Simon Grennan–Dispossession: a novel of few words (2015)

Posted in Anthony Trollope, Carlos Salzedo, Cheryl Riley, Domenico Scarlatti, Graphic Novel, Jan Baetens, Marriage (Happy), Marriage Trouble, Ortwin de Graef, Simon Grennan, Tiny Desk Concert, Yolanda Kondonassis on November 12, 2015| Leave a Comment »

dispossesSOUNDTRACK: YOLANDA KONDONASSIS-Tiny Desk Concert #96 (December 8, 2010).

yolandaI have mentioned a much more recent Tiny Desk concert from Yolanda Kondonassis in which she duetted with Jason Vieaux (from 2015).  This show is just Kondonassis and her harp.

And it is absolutely gorgeous.

Kondonassis plays three distinct styles of music to show the variety of music a harp can make.  It is amazing to watch her play as well.  She closes her eyes and simply knows where everything is, absorbed in the music.

Her first piece is by Domenico Scarlatti: “Sonata in A Major, K. 208,” which is considered a rather “traditional” harp piece (I love hearing her do the “fast notes” a the end of each section.

She introduces the second piece by saying that she wanted to compose a piece and through meeting a Chinese composer wound up arranging this traditional Chinese piece called “Small River Flowing.”  And it is amazing to hear the Chinese melodies immediately from the high notes.  But perhaps my favorite part of this song is that she hits the low bass notes to make them ring out almost like a gong.  I have never seen anyone do this before with a harp.

She says the final piece is by Carlos Salzedo: “Chanson dans la nuit” which crosses over into almost world music.  And in a short time, it really shows off all of the different sounds and colors that the harp is capable of.  She’s absolutely right.  While the song begins with some very traditional sounding harp music, she seems to also play some harmonics (who even knew you could do that on a harp) as well as some sounds of just her nails running across the strings–bringing a fascinating texture–as well as some very fast, loud chords and indeed, actual percussive sounds as she taps on the body of her (truly beautiful looking) harp.  The song is not as pretty as the others since there is so much going on, but it’s a wonderful song and it’s great to watch her play it.

I never knew I wanted a CD of harp music before, and now I do.

[READ: November 12, 2015] Dispossession

This graphic novel has a fascinating origin.  It is based on the novel John Caldigate by Anthony Trollope.  And in fact, it follows that story pretty faithfully.  However, it eschews massive amounts of the book (the original is quite long) and also adds a subplot of Wiradjuri peoples (which includes dialogue in Wiradjuri translated into English by Cheryl Riley).  There’s also a Postface (which is very helpful for explaining the origin of the story and how Grennan modified the original) by Jan Baetens and Ortwin de Graef.

The subtitle, A Novel of Few Words, proves to be accurate.  For the most part, each page has six panels, and the only words are sparse dialogue.  Grennan really has the story move quickly through these images, which tend to jump ahead pretty quickly.

We first meet John Caldigate.  Caldigate is a wealthy man, soon to be heir to his father’s fortune.  But he is unsatisfied in England.  And he decides to sell off his inheritance and to set off for New South Wales with his friend Ned.  There they will seek their fortune in the gold mines.

There is a woman he has left behind, Hester, the daughter of a local family.  She is certainly desirable, but it’s unclear how Caldigate feels about her because he wishes to find his fortune elsewhere.

Then the men set sail for Australia, two bachelors on a lengthy sea voyage.  Aboard the ship is Mrs Smith, a divorced actress who is also heading to Australia.  Mrs Smith is considered somewhat disreputable aboard the ship–and several people warn him against her.  But he cannot be denied. (more…)

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Claire Cock-Starkey–How to Skin a Lion: A Treasury of Outmoded Advice (2015)

Posted in Africa, Anachronisms, Birds, Claire Cock-Starkey, Disease, Elephants, Essays, Etiquette, Funny (ha ha), Funny (strange), Greed, Guns, History, How to, Lions, Los Lobos, Nature, Tiny Desk Concert, Yuck! on November 8, 2015| Leave a Comment »

skin SOUNDTRACK: LOS LOBOS-Tiny Desk Concert #90 (November 10, 2010).

loslobosI don’t really know all that much about Los Lobos.  I frankly got sick of them because of “La Bamba” (which came out 20 years ago!) and I don’t think I’d ever heard much else by them.  So I wound up enjoying this Tiny Desk much more than I anticipated.

The one big problem with this tiny desk is that the drummer is playing one of those plastic mail bins and it sounds awful.  Especially on the first song.  I think anything would have had a better drum sound than that.

I really enjoyed the first song “Burn It Down.”  It has a propulsive minor key structure and an excellent bass line.  I would never have guessed it was Los Lobos, but that may be because it’s not the singer I most associate with them (he sings on the next two songs).

“Yo Canto” is a cumbia, sung by a different guy (in Spanish) who also plays lead guitar.  The mail bin sounds better on this song because of the placement (and use of) a cowbell.  The singer sounds amazing.  I rather like the riff that underlines the song.

Those two songs are from their then latest album.  And the band sounds really good all these years on.

The final song is “Don’t Worry Baby.”  It has the same singer as the middle song (this time in English) although it is a pretty standard blues song that I found just okay.  It also features a bunch of saxophone.  I didn’t realize that it was from their major label debut in 1984! and is something of a classic.

So three songs, all of them enjoyable, from a band I didn’t really think I’d enjoy.  The funniest part is just before the show stops and someone asks, “Okay, where’s the beer?”

[READ: October 1, 2015] How to Skin a Lion

This book sounded awesome–I love outdated things that we can laugh about now (because I’m a superior git, of course).

But this book proved to be not all that funny.  The outmoded advice wasn’t treated comically exactly (well, some was), rather it was looked at rather seriously–some as good advice that still stands, some as crazy advice that is way outmoded and a few things that are, yes, just comical.

Cock-Starkey (insert joke here) says that this is a collection of materials from the vast archives of the British Library.  It culls from medieval manuscripts, Victorian manuals and self-help guides from the early 20th century.  She explains that the book aims to reveal the secrets of lost arts, remind us of how modern conveniences have changed our lives, recall the complexities of etiquette, highlight changing attitudes and beliefs and furnish us with still useful tips and guidance.

Although she also points out that readers should be advised that some pieces of advice contained herein have stood the test of time better than others. (more…)

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Lizzie Skurnick–That Should Be a Word (2015)

Posted in Black Dub, Chris Whitley, Daniel Lanois, Funny (ha ha), Language, Lizzie Skurnick, Rich Hall, Sniglets, The New York Times, Tiny Desk Concert, Trixie Whitley, Word usage on November 7, 2015| Leave a Comment »

lizzie SOUNDTRACK: BLACK DUB-Tiny Desk Concert #89 (November 8, 2010).

black dubBlack Dub is the collaboration between Daniel Lanois and Trixie Whitley (daughter of Chris Whitley).

I think I might have been more excited about this if I hadn’t seen Daniel Lanois’ other performance on Tiny Desk, where he came across as kinda jerky.  I also had not heard of Whitley (who was 23 at the time).

Whitley has a huge voice (especially given how tiny she is).  It’s big and brash and bluesy in a Janis Joplin sorta way.  And she’s really passionate about what she’s singing–look at her face, for crying out loud).  But it’s actually too bluesy for my liking.  And it almost seems over the top given Lanois’ simple acoustic guitar strumming.

They play four songs, “Surely” which pushes five minutes; “Silverado” which has a nice duet between Whitley and Lanois to start (and then I feel like she adds too much during her section); “I Believe in You.”  For the final song, Whitley straps on an electric guitar and plays a rocking riff (I enjoyed the accidental feedback that Lanois created).  Her voice works a little better with the extra volume of the guitar.  Although the song builds and buildups and never really goes anywhere.

I just never got into this Concert.

[READ: July 1, 2015] That Should Be a Word

I heard a big hyped review of this book, so I was really excited when Sarah brought it home.  But I wound up being a little disappointed by it.

I imagine that since these items come from her newspaper column, it might be more fun to read a few at a time rather than all at once.  Because while I enjoyed the premise, I got tired of the punny schtick after a few sections.  And that’s a shame.

The one major gripe I have is that nowhere in the book does it ever acknowledge the pioneering work of Rich Hall and Sniglets, the guy who really spawned the idea of creating words for every day things.  Skurnick does things differently of course, but I feel like at least a nod to the man would have been nice (especially since she is–admirably–so into the whole retro thing).

The premise behind this book (and the column is that Skurnick (and readers, I gather) create words for things that don’t exist.  But the real premise is that the newly created words are sort of punny based on two other words (which Sniglets didn’t do). (more…)

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Charles M. Schulz–The Complete Peanuts: 1961-1962: The Definitive Collection of Charles M. Schulz’s comic strip masterpiece: Dailies & Sundays (2006)

Posted in A Charlie Brown Christmas, Angst, Baseball, Brinsley Schwarz, Charles Schulz, Comic Strips, Diana Krall, Elvis Costello, Fantagraphics, Football, Funny (ha ha), Halloween, It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown, Nick Lowe, Peanuts, Rachel Carson, Rick Astley, Tiny Desk Concert, Vince Guaraldi, Willie McCovey on November 6, 2015| Leave a Comment »

1961SOUNDTRACK: NICK LOWE-Tiny Desk Concert #87 (November 1, 2010).

lowe Nick Lowe is legendary.  And yet I don’t really know that much about him.  I knew he did “Cruel to be Kind” which is very dated sounding but still great.  I didn’t know that he wrote my favorite Elvis Costello song “(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding?” (which he first recorded with his band Brinsley Schwarz).  He also produced a bunch of Costello’s albums.

This Tiny Desk is a mellow affair, with Lowe gently playing acoustic guitar and his low, smooth vocals singing interesting lyrics: “His heart’s a prune / when it once was a plum / If you know him / that’s the kind of man that I’ve become” (from “Man That I’ve Become”).

“Rome Wasn’t Built in a Day” is done in the same vein.  Cathy, mellow pop, with an almost countryish feel.

“All Men Are Liars” is a pretty typical song about lying men, until you get this fascinating lyric: “Do you remember Rick Astley?  He had a big fat it.  It was ghastly.  He said I’m never gonna give you up or let you down.  Well, I’m here to tell you that rick’s a clown.”

“House for Sale” was a then new song.  And it’s just as sharp and strign as the rest.

At the time of this recording, Lowe was 61 and he sounds great.  His voice has changed, but it hasn’t lost anything.

[READ: October 29, 2015] The Complete Peanuts 1961-1962

By this book, Peanuts had been in print for nearly 12 years.  And the core group has remained Charlie Brown, Lucy, Linus, Snoopy, Schroeder, and now Sally.  And to a smaller extent Shermie, Patty and Pig-Pen are still around.   But in 1961 he added a new character: Frieda, the girl with naturally curly hair.

One thing I hadn’t noticed so much in previous books is that he has been getting some very funny “jokey” punchlines.  Most of the Peanuts punchlines have been funny/thoughtful/amusing.  But I felt like this book had a few that were really funny.  Like Lucy saying in response to beauty being only skin deep “I have a very thick beauty.”  Or this funny groaner: Linus: “Do they always bring the cows in from the pasture at night?” Lucy: “Of course you blockhead, if they leave them out over night they get pasteurized.” I especially like that it isn’t even the final panel.  And in 1962, Charlie asks this question when he turns on the TV and sees reruns: “What would happen if comic strips had nothing but re-runs all summer?”

And of course, there’s a lot of baseball strips.  Including this one with a great set up and punchline.  Charlie is talking about the game and how “For one brief moment victory was within our grasp.”  To which Linus says, “And then the game started.” (more…)

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