Bowie's My Death

A friend referred to this blog as my flog, with the letter f  representing the word former. A pun well taken, because it has been a while since I regularly updated CasparSongs. Still, it was exactly at the moment when I was working on a new blog. That was when Bowie died. 

The Friday before was the day Bowie had presented his new album: Black Star. I have to say that I can be bit resilient to new work by arrived artists, whose earlier work I loved, because I fear it might spoil it all for me. But, this time I was really intrigued by the dark, electronic soundscapes and Bowie's haunted voice. And as any new release from pop culture phenomenons is accompanied by showing their older work as well, I had a look at the documentary Five Years. That was going to be the subject of the new blog, and that was when Bowie died.

It seems like I struggle to write blogs about the death of artists. Earlier I had this problem when JJ Cale died, and even on Lou Reed, an artist that I admire so much, and one can write bookshelves full of, I couldn't find the right words to say something sensible. That was until Bowie died.

What are sensible things to say when an old rocker dies? You can tell that they lived their lives to the max, at certain moments tthey themselves must have believed that they were immortal. From both Bowie and Reed you can expect that they had said musically, and culturally, what they wanted to. It must have surprised both of them that they even made it until around seventy, after they survived the 27 years itch, a threshold age for many rock stars. With such a life, and such a career, I like to believe one can die in peace. At least, I hope that that was how Bowie died.

So, Caspar, any sensible things to add to the avalanche of reactions we have heard over the past few weeks? Maybe just my personal memories of Bowie and his Music. I first discovered him with his Let's Dance and China Girl in the early eighties, when I was about ten. Later through a cassette tape with the albums Hunky Dory on the A side, and Ziggy Stardust on B, which are still my favourites. And just to sign off with a very personal note. I remember watching the Ziggy Stardust show on the BBC one night. It must have been the only time that I could consider falling for a man; sensual, completely intriguing, brilliant with his three piece band, and with his audience on an emotional string. I simply love the rocking fury in 'Width of a Circle', or the melodramatic version of Jacques Brel's 'My Death', when Bowie ends with the line 'Behind the door there is...' and, well, there is nothing, really, just a cool, British 'thank you'. After something like 25 studio albums, and decades of being a frontrunner in the musical and wider cultural circles, it ends, it really does come to a full stop. And what remains of the man, and really any man, is nothing, just his legacy and a big, big 'thank you'. At least, those were my thoughts, when Bowie died.

Eko ranger VI: greatest miss during holiday

While spending about three weeks in glorious Brazil, I think I discovered what musicians probably miss most when on holiday. It must be not having your instrument around whenever you feel like playing. The few occasions I did have a six-string under my thumb this holiday some small magic happened.

I have written before about my favourite instrument (see the blog on hardware: Toys for boys.) My Eko Ranger VI is from the late Sixties, and not in the kind of conditions that you want to carry it around when you are on holidays. I mean, Eko's Ranger model sure was build to last, to be carried around by hippies or any other musical nomads, but mine has reached that age that it loves to be played on, and not to travel too much. So I never take it with me when I am away, but always have these moments that I think I should have. Wether it is the people I am with asking for a tune, or it could be myself who wants to get the mind focussed, I grasp in thin air and get a little frustrated for not being able to play a song or two.
Luckily, and often to my pleasant surprise, you enter a household and there it is: in the corner of the room, a guitar! It is the one you don't have to ask for if you can play a little; that's what it is there for in the first place!! (Actually to complete this picture; it does happen that you find a guitar that is there just for the looks. People who have guitars on their walls just to look at, I do not consider music lovers, just non-melodic no-knows and show-offs.) The first time this happened these last few weeks was at a friends' house. I hadn't seen her in like three years, and had really no intention to play, just to socialize. But when she, and her husband, were in other areas of the house, I couldn't help myself. I took the guitar, assessed that it probably hadn't been tuned in, like, ages, but strung a few chords anyway. Just a quick song, an own composition with no lyrics (yet). It was so funny to get the reaction from my friends in the other rooms. They recognized the vibration not coming from boxes, but from an actual instrument, and were thrilled for having live music filling ambiance.

me and Peco, the Gibson is just for show.

The second time I played was visiting other friends. The man of the house plays and sings in a band called Midnight Express, mostly covers from what I could tell. The crowd was a little larger, the children a little louder, but still I played a few songs with rusty fingers and dito vocal cords. Then the host played a nice version of Hotel California, and handed the guitar back over to me. I didn't know what to play next, but I saw a capo laying around, and remembered I was using it back home to cover the song Tree by the River by Iron and Wine. I hadn't yet mastered the lyrics, but I knew it was fun to play anyway. When I strummed the first chords, I saw a few heads starting to hum along, looking at each other with a look like: could this be that song? And it was, I travelled 12.000 km to find out that Iron and Wine, not the most exportable artist to a country like Brazil, had actually landed on the personal playlists of these lady friends. Well, you might think: so what, it is a great song, and since when do Brazilians dislike good music? Still, for me it was that moment of recognition, and the realization that music really transcends boundaries. Now that I think of it, I remember playing a Johnny Cash song 15 years ago at what might be considered an awkard place for a country song: a desolate hermit's cabin somewhere along the Brazilian shore. After I finished 'Delia' the skinny guy smiled, shook his dreadlocks and raised his thumb; we were mates from that moment onwards...

Golden Age of Singer-Songwriting

Thanks to the endless fountain of music Spotify, and its features to look for like-minded music, I found myself piling up a playlist of great singer-songwriters. Funny enough, many of them made their best work around 1973. To name a few: Gene Clark, Jackson Browne, James Taylor, and Graham Nash. Part of the particular timing of their greatest work could have something to do with the technical developments in studios in those years making the sound a whole lot warmer, more personal and at the same time more possibilities for orchestrating songs with more layers of horns, and strings. Another thing that strikes me when you read a little about the circumstances of these performers, is the period of their lives and carreers. Many of them were members of some kind of super group, and they took the most out of the swinging sixties as possible. As the next decade began, they found themselves on the wastelands of broken relationships, torn up bands, and a hell of a serious drug problem. What better way of dealing with those circumstances then making your own album, writing therapeutic songs, and taking all the time necessary to get the best out of those studios?

Of course, super singing-songwriters were not limited to those few years in the seventies. Before that you had Fred Neil, and Tim Hardin, just to name a few of my own favorites. Their recordings were much simpler then the latter ones, but their drug consumption (and related personal problems) were notorious as well. I could mention many others over the decades, but I think we can conclude that most of those guys were not half as popular as the big bands, or performing artists of their times. Most singer-songwriters had only a limited group of fans, probably those that took their time to have a closer look at the lyrics, and found some personal attraction to them. Funny enough, it seems that nowadays singer-songwriters are just as popular as any act, playing the big stages of pop festivals by themselves; just a guy and a guitar. In The Netherlands there is even a popular TV show looking for the best singer-songwriter of the country. What could be the reason for this?
Let's just for a minute stipulate who I am referring to. I saw this guy that calls himself Passenger play the big stage at Pinkpop, Ed Sheeran is a popular guy, Damian Rice, and I think Ben Howard is a good example of a true modern, and very popular, singer-songwriter of our day and age. They manage to touch the hearts of many fans by playing, what seem to be, simple songs with a simple message. In that way they may be not as craftly as their ancestors, who knew how to bring forward big emotions in unforgettable melodies. And maybe that is just what has changed: making the lyrics just a touch simpler, easier to sing along to by bigger crowds, taking the singer-songwriters from the off-stage, to the main stage. And that is quite an accomplishment.

Apart from the talent the just mentioned modern singer-songwriters, there is of course a technical feature that makes it much easier to become one. All it takes is a microphone and a laptop, plus the free software download, and anyone can make their own tune. You don't even have to have a record label: put it on youtube and see what happens. This way the singer-songwriting business gets more democratic: you don't have to have been a member of a super group, or have gone through a drug addiction to be able to put your music forward. From one side, that could mean that any will get their fair chance. But from the other; where'd someone get his or her inspiration from? And isn't that just what is missing from the popular guys nowadays? Shouldn't we be looking at their lyrics, their song ideas, the originality of it all? That is more or less what this blog is about. Pretentious, maybe, but I believe good music is more then a catchy phrase on a number of simple chords. A good singer-songwriter has a heart and soul story, and crafts a great melody to tell it you.

CasparLive: Admiral Freebee

Belgian rocker plays a great gig at the Paradiso. But why at the small venue, again?

It must have been about eight years ago when I was invited to see this artist Admiral Freebee play the Paradiso, in the small venue. We were blown away by his mix of rock, singer-songwriter, and his stage personality. I remember pretty well, also because a friend of mine had made copies of the first albums, and managed to copy the songs in reversed order. After all these years, and many shows in between, the Admiral took on the Paradiso again last week, but why in the small venue, again?

After we saw the Admiral for the first time, I got something of a fan-like for the guy. I mean, shortly after, he played the Melkweg, also in Amsterdam, and after that in Utrecht, each time trying to invite as many people I could to introduce them to the man and his music. I must admit those two shows weren't Admirals best gigs, and I strongly suspect him being drunk both times. He played sloppily, playing his songs either too fast, or slow, his timing in singing was a bit off as well. 
Still, in 2006, Admiral Freebee released his third album called 'Wild Dreams of New Beginnings', and he made a great gig in the big hall of Paradiso, at which he curiously played with a pair magnum sized ear phones. The Admiral virus inspired, aparently, because me and my mate Niels decided to go all the way to Brussels to see him play again. Well, it was a good reason to visit the notorious Ancienne Belgique concert hall, anyway. 
The next time I witnessed an Admiral show, was when he made a tour of theatres. I took my misses to visit Gent, Belgium, and had a good time. Funny to see the Admiral by himself doing a mix of some sort of stand-up comedy, and his fantastic strong song book on just an acoustic guitar. At the end of that particular tour he came to Amsterdam again, and we saw him at the Bitterzoet. I realized that the stand up part was a bit more scripted than what it had looked like in Gent, but funny enough.

Frankly, I was ready for the man to pick up electric again. So, I was very happy to hear about this new album, called the Great Scam, and the accompanying tour that would bring him to the Paradiso again. But, to our great surprise, he was scheduled to play the small hall again! It almost looked like he had made the whole circle in eight years, but hadn't gotten anywhere in the meantime! I think this is really curious. I mean, he played all the shows in the Netherlands, even got to play the Lowlands festival. This could have something to do with the fact that his music is not so much for the average listener (certainly not as much as Blof, who played the big hall that night), his performance not necessarily crowd-pleasing. Even though I wish him all the succes he wants to have, we can also be content: the smaller venue at Paradiso is as good as you can get to see a show real close-by. I even got to meet the Admiral for the first time afterwards, which wrapped up a great evening. 

CasparLive: Daryll-Ann, in: Paradiso, Amsterdam

Re-united indierockers convincingly take over Paradiso (*****)

It must have been around 2003. The band I was in at the time played in the Aluna rehearsal studios in the east of Amsterdam. Among the bands using the studio were good ones, for example Alamo Race Track, and Bluesbrother Castro, but there was one premier league band around: Daryll-Ann. They were about to release their new album, and we were just happy to be around genius. I remember vividly when we heard Don't Stop, the CD, at the bar of Aluna, and found it hard to believe that Dutch were able to make such a record. It sounded like the Byrds, or Crosby, Stills & Nash, but still with its own uniqueness, differently.

Anyway, everybody was looking forward to Daryll-Anns upcoming show in Paradiso. It promised so much; it was going to be their breakthrough from an hero status in the independent niche-corner, to mainstream stardom. But, somehow, someway, it didn't happen. The show was good, but no magic happened. It seemed the chemistry between the most prominent characters, both singers, songwriters and guitarists, Anne Soldaat en Jelle Paulusma, wasn't happening that night. Soon after, it was clear what was behind it all: the band announced their split up because of personal reasons, and ever since then, Daryll-Ann seem to be a mentioned only as that star band that could have made it, but never did.
Luckily, both Anne as Jelle went on on their respective solo endeavours, producing beautyful albums, and Anne also as producer and senior band member for others from the Excelsior Recordings label. In an earlier CasparBlog, Caspar oh-so proudly tells about the meeting he had with Jelle Paulusma in the summer of 2013. Jelle told him about the planned new solo-album, and the friendship between him and Anne Soldaat sort of reinstated. Soon after that: the announcement that Daryll-Ann was going to re-unite, and publish a deluxe CD-set of all the Daryll-Ann albums.

So, last night, 10 years after the last show, Paradiso was completely packed again, for what was going to be a triumphal night. The band played better then ever, good spirited chemistry on the stage, completely showcasing all that the band was ever good at. The two guitars blending in together, three voices in perfect harmony, and what struck Caspar most: what an incredible songbook these guys have made together! All songs, from start to finish, appeared characters by themselves; ballads, west coast rock (Paulusma!), and jumpy pop songs (Soldaat!), together made up over two hours of prime live material. Well, including Ready to Go, one song of Paulusma's solo albums. Almost as if to remind us that he still owes us his new upcoming album...

Daryll-Ann back together again, is there any better news for the indieloving music scene of the Netherlands? Maybe, the promotion to mainstream stardom is less likely now that a decade has passed and, form what we know, no new material will be released. But hey, do we need more then this? A sold out Paradiso going crazy? No, thanks, Paradiso, voted #1 music club of the Netherlands, will do just fine, thank you!!! 

No questions asked: a handful, the full five stars!

Blogsong: Jesus Etc. (Wilco)

CasparSongs dissects Wilco song "Jesus Etc" to see how it fits into professor Pat Pattinson's theories on songwriting. 

Are there rules to what constitutes a good song, or a bad one for that matter? Can we pinpoint some things about rhyming, rhythm, or instrumentation, that we can come up with a theory? A set of rules that, if you abide them, you will come up with a good one? In a way, the course I have been doing these last couple of weeks was about that. The teacher, Mr. Pat Pattinson, took us step by step through elements of songwriting. He showed us the way to start from zero, all the way up to building the bridge of the song. The way I understood it, is that you take an idea you'd like to tell your audience about. You put down your main ideas and words about that subject, and make lists of rhyme words to them. You choose a simple melody, and define the key you will use. You balance the lines and melodies using the scale of the key, all the way up to the bridge, where a nice, odd tone, let's say a seventh, or nineth, will help you building tension towards the end.

Now, last Friday, we were just strumming away on this great song by Wilco, called Jesus Etc. I thought about it a little, and came up with the conclusion that this is an exemplary song if you lay it down next to Pat's lessons. Maybe we should pick a few of these ideas and see how they work, and if this is what make Jesus Etc. such a brilliant piece of work.

Jeff Tweedy

Maybe we should first look at Pat's first move, and establish the central idea that Jeff Tweedy (singer-songwriter at Wilco) had in mind when he started. There has been quite some debate on the meaning of the title, the words, the song, and the picture on the cover of the CD. Officially released in 2002, some people pointed out to the terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers, with the CD, more specifically Jesus Etc., being an answer to that atrocious act. And although there is some peculiar tie between the two, it couldn't have been the answer. Funny though how the original release date was set for September 11th 2001, the day of the attacks. But, the release wasn't postponed because of the terrorist attack for that matter. Wilco's record company Reprise, as part of Warner Music, simply refused to release the album on the grounds of a debatable lack of commercial potency. Wilco decided to leave Reprise and managed to buy the rights to the recording. Not a lot later, Wilco must have been one of the first bands to publish their material for free via the internet.
Now, back to the song. As we have established that it wasn't meant to be an answer to 9/11 topics, and with Pattinson's theory in mind, we're looking for the central thing that got Tweedy started. When I take my own reference as to how to start a song, it might come as a chord and melody thing. You might find it in a jam session, riding your bike, or half asleep at night, but you found this melody and you try not to forget. And this is what I hear in this song. Tweedy had this simple idea with chords and looked around him for words to sing. Now an idea comes to mind. In april 2002 Dutch TV station VPRO made a portrait of Jeff Tweedy, filmed in his home town Chigaco, his house, his studio. I remember vividly how he was going to play a song from his newly released album, but was distracted by his children calling out for him from the house. This scene makes it easier to envisage where his frst line 'Jesus, don't cry' comes from. He took it from his personal circumstances, and you can just see him saying these words to his children. Or, his wife? The next line is 'you can rely on me, honey.' I think we can establish the thought that the central idea, the first words, come from his day to day life.

So, now that we have a loose idea on what the song revolves around, let's think of rhyming. When you use 'cry', there are quite a few words that go along with that, and Tweedy uses them scrupulously. He uses 'rely', 'combine', 'right', and that is just the first verse. Let's note that not just the end rhyme is important, it is the \ai\ sound. Other rhyme words from the first verse are 'around', and 'about', and, what I really like, the  alliteration 'setting sun', combined with 'each one'.
In the chorus, we can also see that Tweedy uses some nice rhyming. Again, alliterations like: 'shake' and 'singing sad, sad songs'. He makes 'cheeks', rhyme with 'melodies', and to bind the lines together, the first line ends with 'chords', and in the second uses the word 'orbit', which I think is not very in your face, but tights the chorus together with the \ɔː\ sound.

Finally, I'd like to take a look at the bridge. If we play close attention to what Pat Pattinson has to say about it, the bridge is something like an alternative tune, within the tone of the song itself. Now Caspar, as an autodidact, is not an expert on the tonality of songs. But if you play the song in Dm, I do believe that all chords used are in the Dm scale. So, almost as if Tweedy listened to Pattinson, or the other way around, if we realize that the bridge starts with the 6th note of the Dm scale, that is, a A#. And Pattinson is right: it gives the bridge a beautyful openness, as if the sun breaks through dark clouds for a moment.

Again, if the text comes from Tweedy's personal circumstances at the moment, I think that all falls into place. From the one hand Tweedy is a bit annoyed about his kids, and family. I mean, the word Jesus from the title says something. But also a phrase like 'voices escape singing sad, sad songs' doesn't portray a happy fellow. At the same time, from what I believe, he understands the beauty of your own kids when it seems like he says to his wife: 'you're right about the stars, each one is a setting sun.' So, after all, Wilco's song Jesus Etc. is indeed exemplary of Pat Pattinson's theory, and it does work: it is one the strongest songs of this century's first decade!! 

PS. In this blog Caspar took the liberty to explain someone else's lyrics. He could be wrong about that. I mean, especially about this song, it is not the first attempt, or quarrel, and also, by definition, some of these explanations are wrong. I hope you don't mind, though, personally I would like it a lot if someone took one of my own songs and shed his, or her, light on it. For me, that would enrich the song, even though it might be about other stuff then I envisaged. Anyone?

psps. oh yeah, here is the song itself:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVC1k9x2Ryw

CasparBlog on 2013

Hey hey, my my, another year's gone by! Shall we have a quick look on what has happened on the music side of affairs and ask Caspar what were his personal favs in 2013?

Live.
Obviously, Caspars first-ever live show of Neil Young is right up there. As he wrote in his blog in June (Casparlive: Neil Young and Crazy Horse), it wasn't the best show ever, but what a joy to see your old hero still rocking. To realize that his songs are still vivid, his guitar solos still long and loud, and his band of brothers Crazy Horse still the compact rocking motor they always were.

Old, but new (to me).
I can't help to think sometimes that you essentially know it all. Back when I was still a teenager, I remember discovering Lou Reed, when my brother bought New York, the album. I also remember hearing Nick Drake for the first time (when a friend-in-the-band played it to me), but it had been a while since I discovered something new, but old, that blew me of my socks. Somehow, in 2013, I came across the band Television, with their album Marquee Moon (1977). Great double-guitar work, great songs, punky attitude, and , a psycho drive to the vocals. Old, but new to me!

New, in the 2013 sense of the word. I guess that must have been Brendan Benson. I knew the name before, but only in 2013 did I discover his own music, both on CD, as live. What makes me very happy, is that Benson was good, but not at his best when Caspar saw him live (casparcritique Brendan Benson live), but he took a good revenge organizing a gig with special guests like his musical buddy Jack White, Jacob Dylan, and Ken Stringfellow, amongst others. Plus, he recorded a great new album called You Were Right. Great that I finally got to get to know you, BB, you're my personal new-comer of the year!

Best debut 2013.
As far as you know Caspar, you know that it usually takes some time before he decides it's a thumbs up, or not. So, for him to actually pick something brand new, is quite difficult. Well, to be honest, he made a very swift pick choosing Jonathan Wilson, but after he discovered that Wilson's 2013 album Fanfare wasn't his debut, it took some time to find something else. But, as Caspar's good friend Niels'd say: pick one or die, the best debut for Caspar was by a Dutch guy called Jacco Gardner. A young lad using gear from the sixties, sounding like early Pink Floyd, but with his own quality song material.

Dead in 2013.
Unfortunately, but unavoidably so, the world will have to do without a number of great musicians. Lou Reed, Ray Manzarek, George Duke, just to name a few. On a personal note, Caspar said that the death of JJ Cale, fantastic songwriter and guitarist, was his biggest loss of the year. You might consider that Lou Reed, with his revolutionary work, his legacy with so many historic albums, is the bigger star. But that is exactly why Caspar chose Cale; JJ felt more like a friend, easily approachable, sweet, laidback guitar tunes, and, don't forget, some classical tunes to his name!

Finally, a personal highlight of the year is when I met up with Jelle Paulusma, singer-wongwriter from Amsterdam, to be interviewed in Het Parool. We talked about his former band Daryl-Ann, and how his relation was to Anne Soldaat, the 'other' singer-songwriter from Daryl-Ann, nowadays. His answer was that they were on 'speaking terms'. Only about two months later they announced their plans for reuniting the band in 2014! (Jelle: too bad your new CD is postponed because of this ;-))