Laney McScratcherson is a tortoiseshell tabby cat (torbie) that I adopted from Animal House in St. Louis in late 2013. It might be more accurate to say she adopted me, because she made it pretty clear that she had decided I was her person. You don’t argue with a cat when they pick you, you just go with it.
These are just a few of the pictures I’ve taken the last few years of Laney around the house, mostly lounging on the bed. She’s known as the Queen of the King-size here, and rules the house with an iron paw. Continue reading “The many faces of Laney McScratcherson”
James Jamerson is just one of many session players in the 50s and 60s who went virtually unknown during his lifetime. Even now, after being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000, and being featured in a documentary in 2002, he’s still not as well-known as he should be. Especially for a man who influenced Paul McCartney’s bass playing.
Finding the tracks Jamerson played on requires a little digging. RYM provides 77 credits, and Discogs lists 164 records and singles where Jamerson is credited for playing bass. 10 for writing and arrangement. The bulk of those credits are post-Motown. (Intriguingly he is listed on Discogs as going by “Igor” in one instance. I’d like to know the story behind that…)
James Jamerson and a legacy of Motown hits
Jamerson wasn’t credited for most of his Motown work (which was not unusual), so most Motown fans didn’t know his name. But, as part of The Funk Brothers, he likely played on most (if not all) of Motown’s R&B singles. Including more than 100 that reached number one on the R&B charts.
The Miracles, The Supremes, The Marvelettes, Martha and the Vandellas, Marvin Gaye, The Four Tops, The Spinners, The Jackson 5, and many others. All household names, but the backing band that powered all those songs were almost unknown. Apparently on purpose. According to the (now archived) Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee page for Jamerson:
According to Motown keyboardist and bandleader Earl Van Dyke, “We were sworn to secrecy, and one of the secrets was between James and [drummers] Benny Benjamin and Uriel Jones.” Jamerson followed the company west when Berry moved Motown’s headquarters to Los Angeles, but the association between Motown and Jamerson ended in 1973.
In one momentous and soulful trifecta, the instrument found its voice, a fledgling record company discovered its heartbeat, and a generation took a bold step toward finding its groove.
Allan “Dr. Licks” Slutsky, Fifteenth Annual Induction Dinner Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
That might possibly be giving Jamerson a little too much credit. Maybe. Then again, who am I to argue with a Beatle about bass?
But part of it, I think James Jamerson, him and me, I’d share the credit there. I was nicking a lot off him. Funnily enough, I’d always liked bass. My dad, as I say, was a musician and I remember he would give me little sort of lessons, not actual sit-down lessons, but when there was something on the radio, he’d say hear that low? That’s the bass. I remember him actually pointing out what a bass was, and he’d do little lessons in harmony [sings a line and then thirds above].
So when I came to The Beatles I had a little bit of musical knowledge through him, but very amateur. And I started listening to other bass players. Mainly as time went on it was Motown, James Jamerson—who became just my hero, really. I didn’t actually know his name until quite recently. James was very melodic, and that got me more interested.
Imagine being a musical influence on McCartney but never finding out because he didn’t know your name.
The shadows of Motown
Jamerson has gotten some acclaim, posthumously. Allan Slutsky wrote Standing in the Shadows of Motown (1987), digging deep into Jamerson’s work. The documentary film of the same name (from 2002) covered The Funk Brothers as a group through interviews with surviving members of the band.
James Jamerson was born in either 1938 or 1936, depending on the source, in South Carolina. He died, far too young, in 1983 of pneumonia. His son, also named James Jamerson, also went on to play bass as a session musician and as part of the group Chanson. We’ll take a look at James Jamerson Jr. another day.
Next time you hear one of those Motown classics, think about the session players like Jamerson who made them magic.
Concrete Blonde had a lot of standout tracks on Free, but this one is timeless. “Happy Birthday” is a great song any day of the year, but on the 30th anniversary of my 21st birthday, it’s my go-to song of the day.
[youtube https://youtu.be/w6eg7-6_KsY]
How this song didn’t rocket the charts is beyond me. At less than three minutes it’s a perfect little slice of alterna-pop, Johnette’s voice is in great form, the groove is undeniable, and it totally (as the kids say) slaps. All that, and the lyrics resonate perfectly. (Or maybe that’s just me.)
Check out the video on YouTube if you haven’t heard the song before. Or put the entire album on via your favorite streaming service of choice. Free is one of those perfect albums, especially the sequence from “Happy Birthday” to “Carry Me Away” at the end of the album.
Ikebe Shakedown is another Bandcamp discovery. The band specializes in cinematic soul, an instrumental brand of soul/funk that feels like it should be straight out of a 70s cop or heist movie or a Tarantino soundtrack.
The band does burning jams and introspective cuts that feel like instant classics. If you aren’t moved by their tunes, you might want to consult your doctor.
Buckethead’s Underground Chamber is the fourth release in his “Pikes” series, and something like his 33rd studio release overall. Underground Chamber is too good to be dismissed, but nowhere near the top of the pile in the expansive Buckethead discography.
Sliced into 10 tracks for digital download, or a single continuous track for CD, the album is tour of some of Buckethead’s favorite tropes. There are metal-ish bits, some funk, and enough tempo changes to keep you on the edge of your seat.
Let’s go underground with Buckethead
Being Buckethead, though, he can’t resist a few wonky bits that keep the album from mainstream accessibility. Well, that and the fact he wears a creepy mask and a bucket on his head.
Buckethead playing live
Sometimes Buckethead’s plonky bits resolve into beautiful riffs and melodies. There’s no question that Buckethead is a rare talent who can coax just about anything out of a guitar that he wants. The jagged edges serve to add texture to what could otherwise be a bland exhibition of proficiency.
Buckethead’s rough edges
But the Pikes are unrefined and sometimes feel unfinished. It’s like looking through a great artist’s sketchbooks at thumbnails that never quite made the canvas. The ideas are there, the talent is there, but after toying with the subject for a bit the page is turned and we don’t see the masterpiece it might have become if it was fully worked.
Like a sketchbook, I like taking out the Pikes from time to time and get a lot of enjoyment out of them. But they’re not the first thing I reach for when I’m looking for music, much of the time.
What could be
It’d be interesting to see what a producer could work out of Underground Chamber with the current album as a starting point. I’d really love to see what Buckethead’s discography would sound like if he had a producer and/or collaborator who could get him to focus on the best bits and discard some of the noodling.
The trade-off is that Buckethead fans have an almost unfiltered access to his work, fully developed and otherwise. Almost every Buckethead album I’ve listened to has high points that make it worth the time to listen from start to finish.
Needed a bit of adrenaline on top of my caffeine today, pulled this one out of the vaults for a quick boost. “World Destruction” is a single from Time Zone, a collaboration with Afrika Bambaataa, John Lydon, and Bill Laswell.
The track also features frequent Laswell collaborators Aiyb Deng (percussion), Bernie Worrell (synths), and Nicky Skopelitis on guitar. Lydon and Bambaataa share vocals, with Lydon contributing his unique frenetic delivery.
Nothing not to love about this one, it’s got a driving beat and catchy chorus. Lyrics seem just as appropriate today as they did when it was released in 1984. If you’re a Sopranos fan, you might recognize it from the first episode of season four.
The reconstruction is not bad, but IMO doesn’t add enough as a remix to recommend it. The “Mr. Reagan” sample dates the track tremendously.
But the A-side is all goodness. Stick it in and crank it all the way up.
If you’d enjoy some hard rock without screamy vocals (or, any, for that matter) then I have a great recommendation for you. Check out té’s Therefore, the fantasy of density fails, and the world that you see is “forgetting” tomorrow. Or ゆえに、密度の幻想は綻び、蹌踉めく世界は明日を『忘却』す。in the original Japanese.
Google claims that the original translates to Therefore, the illusion of density collapses, and the snarling world “forgets” tomorrow. and honestly I like that one a lot better. For brevity’s sake, I’m going to just call it fantasy of density fails.
Not sure if I picture the band snarling but they’re definitely intense.
Playing at the boundary between continuous and discontinuous
I think I stumbled on té via Bandcamp but possibly through some of the post-rock and instrumental sets I’ve been digging on YouTube. The last Bandcamp Friday, I stocked up on several of their albums, including this one.
For my money, the band manages to be intense without being ponderous. They could hold their own next to Helmet or End of Silence-era Rollins Band, but also deliver some transitions to slower sections that give a bit of a breather to the listener to brace for the next onslaught.
You can give the album a shot on Bandcamp to see if you like it. If you’re into instrumental rock / post-rock (or aren’t sure if you are), I strongly recommend giving this album a spin. I’ve been going down the té rabbit hole and have no regrets.
Want an album to put on in the background while you work? This is a great disc when you need all the language centers of your brain on full but need the lizard brain to chill out.
Want an album to chill out to and just appreciate the sonic textures and waves of music? No Protection also fits the bill. If I’m being honest, I’m more likely to reach for this than the album that was parted out to make it. Kudos to the band for recognizing how good the first track Mad Professor remixed was and asking the prof to go after the full album.
If you haven’t listened to it before, give it a try. If you have, I probably don’t have to tell you to give it another go.
