Update: Slobberbone Reunion?

Following their 2 reunion shows in February, I just learned that Slobberbone has a 3-night run booked in Wisconsin in August. I've never been this excited about concerts that are 1,000 mile from my house that I have no chance of attending. Are these shows part of a longer tour hopefully? This adds fuel to the Slobberbone new album rumors previously reported on this here website (http://tallboycan.blogspot.com/2009/01/rumor-slobberone-new-album.html). Pretty cool...

http://www.pollstar.com/resultsArtist.aspx?ID=14143&SortBy=Date&SearchBy=slobberbone

If anyone has info regarding future Slobberbone plans let me know.

Video: The Band - "Slippin and a Slidin'"

This is a great performance of the rollicking"Slippin and a-Slidin" by The Band from the Festival Express movie (recorded 1970). Read more below.

The film Festival Express was released in theaters in 2003. Compiled from footage found in the Canadian archives that had been lost for 30+ years, the movie chronicles a trans-Canadian rock festival that occurred in the summer of 1970 which travelled from location to location by a private train (very cool!). The bands (The Grateful Dead, The Band, Janis Joplin, Buddy Guy and some other strange acts (Sha Na Na?)) apparently partied and jammed hard on the the train - and that part of the film is cool (especially when they show the train make a stop at a railside liquor store and then proceed to buy the place out - the ultimate beer run). Overall, the tour was kind of a disaster with riots and the promoter losing big money at each show, but the movie is definitely cool. The music isn't really as great as I'd expected, but The Band's segments are the highlights hands-down. I like The Last Waltz but I like the footage in this film more - it's much more real and not as contrived and pristine as The Last Waltz.

note: Man, Janis Joplin was ugly.

Pretty fuckin kick-ass train, huh?

this chick's boobs were not in the movie. Dammit!

The Band in there heyday in their upstate New York stompin grounds, which is actually not all that far from Tallboy headquarters

Philly's Dr. Dog in 2008, obviously trying way too hard to be like The Band in 1970

Check 'em out: The Most Beautiful Losers

The Band: The Most Beautiful Losers

sounds like: Americana hard rock; strong Slobberbone influence

Hometown: Canton, Ohio

I don't know about you, but I find that I gravitate toward young, borderline unknown bands. I'm not sure why exactly, but I'd much rather see a struggling band just starting out play in a dirty rock club in front of 35 people than see some hot buzz-band play to a crowd of 2,000. It just seems more real to me - the essence of rock and roll is thick in the air of those small clubs. Anyway, while I've never seen the Most Beautiful Losers play, they're that kind of band. And they fall directly in the Tallboy cross-hairs: from some scrappy midwest town; they sing about getting too drunk, having horrible luck with the ladies, and general down-and-outness; they don't take themselves too seriously, but they take rocking quite seriously. I think you have to put their first 2 records into the "demo" category, as the sound quality and production can be cringe-worthy at times. But there are some good songs there and I dig their overall sound.

If these guys get a couple cross-country tours under their belt (for some experience) and with a decent recording studio situation, I think they could really turn some heads (ears? Is turn some ears even a phrase? It should be. Hey, I just came up with it. I'm gonna copyright it like Pat Riley did with "Three-peat").

Oh, and you just gotta love their little tagline: "A drinking band with a rock and roll problem"

http://www.themostbeautifullosers.com/

www.myspace.com/mostbeautifullosers

Here are 6 tracks for your streaming pleasure. "Asshole" is a sure-fire crowd pleaser. The last 2 are slower songs to show that side of the band as well.

The Most Beautiful Losers

Under the Covers: La Grange by Phish 1989

Before allegedly being offered $1 million to shave off their ridiculous beards

You gotta admit, Old ZZ Top - you know, before "Legs" and that stupid car and shit - was some pretty kick-ass rock and roll. The Texas boogie-woogie rock sound they had at the time was flat out cool-as-hell. If that shit doesn't make you wanna pound a cold tallboy can, then nothing will. I searched youtube long and hard for some video of the band from that era and surprisingly came up with nothing.



So instead of that (and in honor of last weekend's reunion in Hampton) I bring you Phish playing ZZ Top's "La Grange". This is from a killer show at Townshend State Park in Vermont in 1989 - Phish was young, tight and feeling their oats. This song rocks!

Important note: If you think you hate Phish and are unable/unwilling to listen to this with an open mind, skip it. Don't listen. Go away and come back later. What you definitely should not do is: listen to this song closemindedly with "I fucking hate fucking Phish" forever burned in your mind, then email me or comment about (1) how much Phish sucks (2) how much I suck or (3) how much both Phish and I suck. Save it.

Phish - Townshend State Park, VT

link to download:

http://www.sendspace.com/file/4wt3g2

stream it here:

Phish "La Grange" 8.26.89

Listen Here: "Amphetamine" by Steve Wynn and the Miracle 3

The Band: Steve Wynn and the Miracle 3

The Song: "Amphetamine"

The Deal: fantastic down-and-dirty guitar leads over a great driving bass line. This song is one of the inspirations for this blog.

Longer description:

I stumbled onto this song while casually listening to a coworker's Pandora station and it kicks ass. I'm sorry, I mean it kicks ass! This song hits the ground running with a prominent driving bassline and very cool feedbacky guitar shit for the first minute or so. Then it's lyrics > more guitar > cool dual-guitar thing > guitar solo > vocals > the "I'm gonna live, until the day I die" refrain (complete with the great "Na na na na na na na yeah!" backing vocals.) The super slow fade-out serves this song well, as it gives you the sense that the band may in fact continue to kick ass indefinitely. Everything about this song rocks.

note: minimal research has lead me to conclude that a track this kick-ass in nature seems to be a one-off anomoly for Wynn.


Listen to Amphetamine" on Wynn's myspace page:

www.myspace.com/stevewynnthemiracle3

http://www.stevewynn.net/

Yeah, this may be kinda fucked up as I normally abide by copyright laws and stuff, but here's a link to the download::

http://www.sendspace.com/file/uovil8