Music Corner

Discussion of Joseph Campbell's work with an emphasis on the personal creative impulse as well as the sociological role of the artist in today's global community.

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Roncooper
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Post by Roncooper »

Here is another original and cover.

The original is by the Beatles and the cover is by Alison Krauss and Union Station.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rx_APcTyIUg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sTBJoOZGa8

JamesN.
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Post by JamesN. »

Hey mythical music folk.

I came across some interviews recently of Eric Clapton about J.J. Cale that to me precisely identifies one of the main difficulties about separating the approach to the " making or utilizing " of an art, craft, or talent and the " selling " involved in the making of a living with it. This to me lies not only at the heart of much of the media's fascination with celebrity; but also shines a light on why there is a distinct difference between respect for the craft of something and about commercialization or the manipulation of ( persona ) as a commercial product itself and it's connection to the condition of being well known; or what we might call being an " Image or Brand ".


From an NPR interview with Eric Clapton about J.J. Cale concerning fame:
From the interviews I've heard with J.J. Cale, he didn't really seem to mind that he never became famous in the way you did. Do you think he cared?

I think he found it inconvenient to be pestered by people about what he did for a living. I think he saw his job, or his vocation as a musician, on the same sort of scale as someone who likes to do landscape gardening, or an architect. He just thought it was something you could develop a skill at, be good at, get some satisfaction. I don't think he recognized that all of the other paraphernalia was necessary. And, in truth, if he had been held to account for that, it would have taken up too much time for him to do the work he did.

To me Joseph Campbell illustrates this divide when he points out that any artist must deal with the " cold eye of the dealer " concerning his craft. This is represented as part of the dillema of the difficult reality that will be encountered with when bringing the " boon " of one's gift into the world. However the trick lies in not being seduced or confused by it's allure of identity with the " self "; ( i.e. the costume or mask of the persona ).

Campbell states in ( The Power of Myth ) that: " fame is of no importance " and in ( Reflections on the Art of Living ) " The function of art is to serve the revealing power of Maya "; ( meaning ): " Maya is that power which converts transcendence into the world ", " ( or ); " to make known ".

The difficulty translating this understanding of separation between the object and what the craft is suppose to " serve " I think lies within the emphasis that is projected onto the mask or costume that the artist or craftsman must wear to deliver their message resulting in what we might call a distorted sense of self. This has no connection to the competence of craftsmanship for which this confusion of difference between respect and overinflation of a " person's image " lie.


Here is a unique 42 minute in depth interview that displays some of this insight of Clapton's inner thoughts and creative processes while doing his tribute album to J.J. Cale from the former editor of Guitar Player Magazine Dan Forte.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-XKkIvNAgw

:idea: 8)
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Roncooper
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Post by Roncooper »

I thought I would continue to post and original song and a good cover. Here is an original by Cyndi Lauper and a cover by Roy Orbison.

I enjoyed the way they projected Cyndi's dreams on her body.

Here is Cyndi's. Is that all right?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2y1TZXc5DiY

Here is the one by Roy. I think any guy would drive all night for Jennifer Connelly.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5N9IHqqGcA

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Post by JamesN. »

OK all you " Greatful Dead " fans; you'll definitely want to know about this: 8)

https://www.yahoo.com/music/exclusive-g ... 51006.html
What do I know? - Michael de Montaigne

JamesN.
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Post by JamesN. »

Just saw this link containing photos of the Beatles and Eric Clapton that is not to be missed:

http://blog.sfgate.com/smellthetruth/20 ... tos-in-sf/

8)
What do I know? - Michael de Montaigne

Roncooper
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Post by Roncooper »

My wife purchased Boyd's biography. "You look wonderful tonight."

JamesN.
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Post by JamesN. »

This was nice to see from " Vintage Guitar " magazine honoring J.J. Cale. He was never much for fanfare but this one I think he would have liked since it was a readers choice award and the fact that over 40% of the overall votes for " Album of the Year " were cast for this selection. ( Eric Clapton really deserves a large part of the credit here since he is the one who made this album happen. ) 8)

https://www.facebook.com/41196666601/ph ... =1&theater
What do I know? - Michael de Montaigne

Roncooper
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Post by Roncooper »

In my opinion J.J. Cale was an excellent artist. It is nice to see that his genius has been recognized. It is also nice that a tribute album was made at a high standard.

I think that good cover versions are tributes to the original artists and not just attempts to make a buck. A good artist appreciates the quality of the original and tries to honor it.

I have been posting original songs and good covers and here is another example.

The original is by the Beatles. I swear someone is playing a jug in the background.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rx_APcTyIUg

The cover is by Alison Krauss and Union Station. It is sort of a version from my Appalachian neck of the woods.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sTBJoOZGa8

Two very different versions of a great song.

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Post by CarmelaBear »

8)
Once in a while a door opens, and let's in the future. --- Graham Greene

JamesN.
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Post by JamesN. »

Looking forward to seeing this documentary when it's released; these guys played on countless records and movie sound tracks. ( This recognition for " Wrecking Crew " is long long overdue. 8) )

http://www.btlnews.com/commentary/direc ... king-crew/
What do I know? - Michael de Montaigne

Roncooper
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Post by Roncooper »

I look forward to the movie. There is a good documentary about Muscle Shoals that I have seen. It may be available on Netflix.

Here is a bit of the flavor of the movie.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyM-X01c8a4

JamesN.
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Post by JamesN. »

Ron said:
There is a good documentary about Muscle Shoals that I have seen.
Thanks for bringing this up Ron; yes it is quite good and one of my all time favorites as are some other documentaries I have listed below that you might find of interest. I had a chance to work with one or two of these people that moved to Nashville ( back in the day ); but that is a story probably better left for another time. Although mostly unknown to the general public; these backup musicians and singers from these different groups; ( some who even went on to become record producers themselves ); played a huge role in what might be classified by the old cliché of: " the soundtrack of our lives " in the music of a generation. ( You and I have discussed some of this background before. ) I was talking with someone the other day about when Bob Dylan went electric during the " Newport Folk Festival " an how that was such a pivotal moment in the culture in the development that helped influence the direction much of popular music took with the adding of electric amplified instruments to acoustic music. Although the roots of early " Rock and Roll " and " Rhythm and Blues " were already present in much of what was being played on the radio in those days; IMHO as well as many others I have talked to it was the combination of these influences that began to shape a new creative approach within the production techniques utilized in the studios of the music industry. ( It has also been argued by many that it was the moment " Rock Music " was born; but I'll leave that for others to decide. ) This would be a large landscape to cover with many twists and turns to include; and I'm sure could be subjective from any number of viewpoints. But the " Wrecking Crew " was another one of these legendary ensembles and certainly one of the most prolific during that era. Their film; television; and jingle work; as well as the record albums they did should most definitely should be included within these other notable entries.

http://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultur ... ixties-pop

At any rate my point here is that now some of these unknown people are starting to get the long overdue recognition they absolutely deserve. Many of these folks from these different groups are now fading from public memory and I think it's important to know who they were and what they did.


http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/musc ... /film.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standing_i ... _of_Motown

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/14/movie ... .html?_r=0

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/mo ... story.html

And last here are some more clips taken from your excellent earlier link about studio session work with some of these truly great players that perfectly critiques more of this same kind of environment where many of these hit records were made. ( This really was a great piece of compilation you provided Ron; and exactly what was needed to help illustrate what I was trying to get at. ) And it should also be noted that " session players " were known to move from place to place to where the work was; but many of these studios were really just modest little places that just happened to be where all the ( elements so to speak such as sound, talented people, reputation, and cost ); came together. ( Nashville had it's share of these studios where a lot of these same folks either came in to record for a particular project or moved there to setup shop for awhile during different periods of their respective careers. )

( Memphis ):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-6zd-z1qm8

( Nashville ):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9EcSkkLtF8

( And Los Angeles ):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ZfwG9MLs5U

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9-FfwwXRDg


Engineer Tom Dowd is another among many who are important to remember. ( Clemsy if you are about this one is for you. )

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKPooc-ImiM


I hope you'll forgive the lengthiness of this post for I didn't intend it to get quite this big. It's just that I felt these particular groups needed to be covered even though there was so much interconnection which of course was part of the point. I'll leave off here for this topical area could get much much larger and this is probably enough for now.


Cheers :)
What do I know? - Michael de Montaigne

JamesN.
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Post by JamesN. »

This must have been some kind of " mystically connected synchronistic experience " waiting in the wings to happen concerning our above previous posts. Out of the blue a friend called and invited me to the opening reception of this new exhibit last night at the " Country Music Hall of Fame " and my head is still spinning. The " very first person " I ran into was one of the studio engineers I had worked with in the past who was in the exhibit and one of the main topics he brought up was " all " of these documentary session player links from different cities. I saw quite a few of the folks I had worked with from " back in the day "; and as for myself I was just a sideman who was grateful to have participated in some small way in the musical history from Nashville's past. ( It was a magical walk down memory lane and truly a lifetime moment that I will always treasure. )


http://www.nashvillescene.com/nashville ... id=4981955

http://countrymusichalloffame.org/exhib ... music-city
What do I know? - Michael de Montaigne

Roncooper
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Post by Roncooper »

James,

It looks like a great exhibition. I, for one, will try to get to Nashville to see it.

Here is a song to honor the "cats."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4p7prU ... 7F4FA9E886

JamesN.
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Post by JamesN. »

Hey Ron; my apologies for the late reply. I actually composed two separate posts over the afternoon only to accidently lose them while adding some links. If you go to the exhibit I think you will definitely enjoy it.

This is someone who I worked with off and on over many years who is actually one of " The Nashville Kats ". It's a pretty cut with beautiful slide guitar and has some exceptional background vocals.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyjCqqvf2lM


I also came across some old video concert footage of a tour I did almost 40 years ago I never knew existed. He was one of the artists that came out of that period that I worked with for about 3 years and the performance I think is something you might enjoy. The first link is a song from his solo set and if you like that the second one is the entire band set.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dZBXz1nnj4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LxXFQ5OSEDk


Cheers :)
What do I know? - Michael de Montaigne

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