Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Rap Attack Reunion: Shockmaster And Nasty Nes Kick It Old School 15 Years Later -- On The Radio And Onstage

Look mean in your pictures.

That was always one of the unwritten rules about old school hip hop.
And although it's perhaps true, that me and Nasty Nes probably look a lot less convincingly "hard" these days -- some fifteen years after the fact -- this past weekend we proved to the hip hop nation here in Seattle that the chemistry was, and is still there.

You see, back in the eighties and well into the nineties, Nasty Nes and myself (as the "Shockmaster" Glen Boyd), kicked down a few doors and blazed a few trails as the "originators, not the imitators" of Seattle rap radio on "Seattle's Only All Rap Show in FM Stereo," KCMU Rap Attack.

This weekend, Nasty Nes and I reunited on the radio for the first time in 15 years, in our old timeslot on 90.3 FM. The station is now KEXP, and our old timeslot these days is held down by the ever capable DJ B-Mello on his own hip hop show, Street Sounds. But for one hour this past Sunday, Nes and I "took over" those airwaves (with the kind permission of B-Mello of course -- a guy who grew up listening to us).
And for that one hour at least, time stood still as the world faded away to a place where the match was just being lit to the impending explosion of hip hop music. Sir Mix A Lot, Public Enemy, NWA, and The Beastie Boys ruled the record charts.
And in Seattle at least, Nasty Nes and Shockmaster Glen Boyd ruled hip hop radio.
This past Sunday, the world once again became that place even if for an hour. The chemistry between Nes and I was almost as though we'd never stopped doing it.

You can listen to a quick run-through of that hour (or what we in the radio trade call an "air-check") by going to this link.
It was the culmination of a weekend when Nes and I also emceed our first live event in what also has to have been at least 15 years (possibly even 20). Back in the eighties, Nes and I emceed numerous Seattle hip hop shows including shows by Run DMC, the Beastie boys, LL Cool J, and NWA.

Anyway, the event this past weekend was the Seattle Asian Hip Hop Summit, which featured an incredible array of up and coming hip hop talent, who also all happened to be of Asian descent.

Although I will admit to a bit of nervousness at first. Playing before a group of twenty something's -- many who weren't even born during my heyday as the Shockmaster, you had to wonder just how they would accept the ridiculous looking 50 year old white guy wearing the dated looking Adidas jacket.
As it turns out, my fears were unfounded. Once again, the natural chemistry between myself and Nes seemed to reappear out of nowhere.

And at the risk of sounding like grandpa, "the kids loved us."

We even signed autographs that night. And for just one night, it felt like 1987 again. If I wanted to run off and "git bizzy" with one of the numerous twenty something hotties running around on this night, I think I could have even pulled it off, without the aid of those damn little blue pills.
"The need to 'G', without having to reach for the "V".

Imagine that!

Earlier in the night, Nasty Nes was also surprised when he was finally awarded status in the Zulu Nation, the organization started back in the early eighties by DJ Afrika Bambaataa. Nes was finally given his Zulu beads by longtime local hip hop veteran Silver Shadow D (in another of this weekend's many surprises as the trip down hip hop memory lane continued).
So this was a great weekend for the old "Shockmaster."

And you know what the best part is?

I finally have some new pictures of me and my old Rap Attack "potna" Nes that aren't 15 years old.

Peace Out Y'all.

-Shockmaster GB

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Bruce Springsteen To Take His Magic Act On The Road


As has been widely speculated and rumored since the announcement of an impending new Bruce Springsteen album with the E Street Band nearly two weeks ago, today it was confirmed that Springsteen will embark on a concert tour with the E Street Band this fall.

The first U.S. leg of the tour will kick off on October 2 in Hartford, CT (the same day that said album, titled "Magic" will be released by Sony), and wrap up on Nov. 18 in Boston.

From there, Bruce and The E Street Band head over to Europe for a string of dates there, before coming back to America for what is presumed will be another run of dates here early next year.

Although further dates in America are only a matter of speculation at this time, and nothing is officially set, one has to assume that they will happen. Recent Springsteen concert tours -- both with and without the E Street Band -- have followed a pattern where the shows are in played in short six to eight week long "legs," followed by a short break. Since reuniting with the E Street band in 1999 for a reunion tour, the "Boss" has in fact been something of a fixture on the road with each of his subsequent tours. The run of concert dates for the albums "The Rising," "Devils & Dust," and last years "Seeger Sessions" lasted up to a full year when all was said and done.

Another factor to be considered here is the fact that the current schedule misses such major cities as Denver, Seattle, Portland, Dallas, Phoenix, and Atlanta. With the omission of these major markets, the prospect of more dates next year seems highly likely.

Also to be factored in is Springsteen's apparent excitement about playing the songs from the forthcoming "Magic" live.

In an exclusive interview published today by the highly regarded "Boss Magazine," Backstreets, Springsteen noted that "It's just built for it," when he spoke of the new songs.

In the same interview, Springsteen also seemed to put to rest any rumors that this would be a farewell tour for the E Street Band: "Oh, I'll never do that, man -- you're only gonna know that when you don't see me no more," Springsteen was quoted as saying in the Backstreets interview.

In other Springsteen news today, the lead-off track from the Magic album, a driving rocker called "Radio Nowhere," being described by some fans as his most rocking song since the "Born In The USA" days, has been made available as a free download for one week. You can get that download by going here.

Here are the dates and venues announced thus far for the U.S. leg of the "Magic" tour:

All times are local times for each city.

Oct 2
Hartford Civic Center
Hartford, CT
Sept 8 Onsale

Oct 5
Wachovia Center
Philadelphia, PA
Sept 8 Onsale

Oct. 9
Continental Airlines Arena
East Rutherford, NJ
Sept 10 Onsale

Oct 10
Continental Airlines Arena
East Rutherford, NJ
Sept 10 Onsale

Oct 14
Civic Centre
Ottawa, ON
Sept 17 Onsale

Oct 15
Air Canada Centre
Toronto, ON
Sept 17 Onsale

Oct 17
Madison Square Garden
New York, NY
Sept 10 Onsale

Oct 18
Madison Square Garden
New York, NY
Sept 10 Onsale

Oct 21
United Center
Chicago, IL
Sept 8 Onsale

Oct 26
Oracle Arena
Oakland, CA
Sept 15 Onsale

Oct 28
Venue TBA
Los Angeles, CA
Onsale TBA

Nov 2
Xcel Energy Center
St. Paul, MN
Sept 22.10 a.m. Onsale

Nov 4
Quicken Loans Arena
Cleveland, OH
Sept 15 Onsale

Nov 5
Palace of Auburn Hills
Auburn Hills, MI
Sept 21 Onsale

Nov 11
Verizon Center
Washington DC
Sept 21 Onsale

Nov 14
Mellon Arena
Pittsburgh, PA
Sept 14 Onsale

Nov 15
Times Union Center
Albany, NY
Sept 8 Onsale

Nov 18
TD Banknorth Garden
Boston, MA
Sept 22 Onsale



Friday, August 24, 2007

The Rockologist Re-Embraces His "Young Rascals"

(No, Not "Those" Young Rascals"...The Band, Stupid, The Band)

Next week, Collectors Choice Music will be reissuing the original Atlantic Records catalog of the Rascals (originally the Young Rascals). This is something of a boon for record collectors and other music purists, as the seven albums comprising the so-called "Atlantic Years" — which are agreed by most to represent the pioneering sixties blue-eyed soul band's peak — have never before been reissued in versions which include the original, superior mono mixes, in addition to the usual stereo remix jobs.

These original seven albums not only saw the band evolve from what was essentially a white, sixties R&B cover band (albeit a great one), to a band who wrote some pretty great songs of their own ("Groovin'," "A Beautiful Morning," "How Can I Be Sure," "People Got To Be Free," etc.).

On later albums, the band (who by this time had dropped the "Young" from their name and shortened it to the hipper, more "serious" sounding moniker of the Rascals), did what most bands did back in the sixties. They grew beards, dabbled in eastern mysticism, and started putting out records that featured things like sitars and various "psychedelic" studio effects.

In doing so, the newly serious Rascals managed to alienate much of their original, mostly teenybopper audience, while failing to attract the hipsters of the day who couldn't get past the "bubblegum" image of top forty hits like "Good Lovin.'"

Lenny Kaye, who would later produce the classic garage rock anthology series Nuggets, and play guitar in the Patti Smith Group, probably summed it up best when he said in a Rolling Stone review of the Rascals final Atlantic album, See, that he wished the group would ditch the lofty concepts and concentrate again on those hit singles.But before their ill-advised descent into bad psychedelia, the Rascals were a near unequaled hit machine, cranking out one great record after another.

They were also arguably the very first truly great blue-eyed soul group of the golden rock era of the sixties. Oh sure, there was the Righteous Brothers before them. But despite the great voices of Bobby Hatfield and Bill Medley, those guys really only had two bonafide classics — and at least one of them, "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling," had as much to do with Phil Spector's sweeping production as it did with the Righteous Brothers themselves.

The Rascals on the other hand were a self-contained band, and a damned great one at that. On early hits like "Good Lovin'," the Young Rascals summoned the garage rock vibe as well as anybody around at the time. But when they did the R&B cover thing on songs like "Land of 1,000 Dances," they could sound as "authentic" as the house band on any number of classic R&B records of the day by people like Aretha or Sam & Dave. It's no wonder they found a home at the "house that soul built," Ahmet Ertegun's Atlantic Records.

I was a thirteen year old military brat living in Hawaii at the time the Rascals were enjoying their biggest popularity. The Rascals were big everywhere at the time, but in Hawaii they were absolutely HUGE.

I could never really understand it at the time, but the local top 40 station in Honolulu, K-POI, played the living crap out of the Rascals. When they headlined a concert at what was then Honolulu's 15,000 seat H.I.C. Arena, it was an instant sellout and local media sensation, complete with front page headlines, local TV coverage on the nightly news, and screaming teenage girls camped outside the arena a la' Beatlemania.
I don't know. Maybe it was because they had this really nice song called "Blue Hawaii" on their album Once Upon A Dream. After all, this was a state where the Ventures theme song for the TV hit "Hawaii 5-0" stayed at #1 on the local charts for something like a full year.

Getting back to those original albums though, there are three of them that really stand out in my mind. The first is Groovin', not only because it featured the great title track, but also because this was where the songwriting team of Eddie Brigati and Felix Cavaliere really began to come into their own. The album holds up surprisingly well today, and in addition to that classic title track (with its trademark lazy harmonica riff), it features a number of other great tracks. From the Brigati/Cavaliere team there's of course "A Girl Like You," and "How Can I Be Sure" (and was there ever a sweeter, more earnest sounding ballad than that one?). Some of the great Arif Mardin's earliest arrangements are also featured on this record. A lesser known track attributed to that team that is still instantly recognizable once you hear it (courtesy of Pat Benatar) is the rocking "You Better Run."

Once Upon A Dream doesn't hold up nearly so well — and in fact sounds the most dated of their entire catalog when heard today. Still, the record is notable for its more experimental feel --some of which works quite well, while in other places not so much — and its expanded instrumentation. Here the Rascals brought in key session guys like King Curtis on sax — which was probably a good move in as much as it allowed the band to maintain at least some of its soulful pedigree.

On the other hand, much of the album is watered down by the use of an orchestra. On tracks like the aforementioned "Blue Hawaii," this works well by further sweetening what was already a pretty sweet sounding song. Likewise, the album's opener "Easy Rollin'" expands on the lazy harmonica idea of "Groovin'" to create the sort of dream-like feel where one conjures images of just lazing in an open field or whatever, and you know, groovin' to the beautiful day.

In other places however, the strings tend to overwhelm the songs. "Rainy Day," for example, would have held up much better if they just had left the song alone, rather than overwhelm it in violins and such (although the thunderclap effects of the drums sound pretty cool).Still, the band does manage to get down to business on a couple of the tracks here, most notably on the soulful tandem of "Please Love Me" and "Its Wonderful" — the latter of which features some killer harmonies and a great little hook. "Singin' The Blues Too Long," is another standout, with its wonderfully pre-dated sound of something like Tower Of Power (courtesy of King Curtis) meets B.B. King. But just when they start to reel you back in with that great track, they lose you again with the silly, sitar-laden psychedelia of "Saliva."

Once Upon A Dream is a mixed bag for sure. I don't recall that the album ever did yield a hit single ("Easy Rollin'" would've come the closest to that). Still, the album is not without its share of gems.
1969's Freedom Suite was initially promoted as something of the Rascals big artistic statement. A double album released at about the same time that people like the Beatles were releasing, well double albums, this was supposed to be the band's masterpiece. Which back in the sixties often didn't necessarily mean a bunch of great songs, but rather one long conceptually driven record.

The thing is, that despite a loose theme focusing on the charged political climate of the time (the murders of Robert Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King were still fresh memories), this really feels more like two seperate records. On the first half, damned if the Rascals aren't right back in the pocket, working a tight R&B groove on tracks like "Any Dance'll Do." On "Look Around," there's a pointed message for sure, but here the various effects of Vietnam gunfire and the like, don't get in the way of what remains another great song.

More great songs follow, including the minor hits "Baby I'm Blue" and "A Ray Of Hope." On the latter, the hippy-drippy lyrics are ever evident. But even this doesn't stop Felix Cavaliere from singing with the sweetest sounding falsetto this side of Smokey Robinson, and the Rascals sounding for all the world like their own little version of the Miracles. This is just a great song.

Wisely sticking to the R&B based stuff they once did best, "Love Was So Easy To Give" channels early Motown, the same way their earlier songs did early Stax. The Rascals sound almost like a male version of the Supremes here.

And then there's "People Got To Be Free." Here, the Rascals not only hit one out of the park, scoring one of their biggest hits ever — they also finally managed to nail one where the lyrics really did echo the times. It still gets played all the time on all those sixties documentary shows that crop up from time to time on television.

The second half of Freedom Suite on the other hand is just plain weird. The centerpiece is two side long songs, that really would have to be called something more like loose jams. Of these, "Boom" is little more than a thirteen plus minute drum solo showcasing the marginally underrated Dino Danelli. "Cute" is a fifteen minute jam that despite giving guitarist (and occasional songwriter) Gene Cornish a rare chance to stretch his own chops, never quite achieves its intended liftoff.

In retrospect, Freedom Suite would have made a much better single disc at the time. Still, the great songs on the first half include some of the best of the Rascals career as the band, perhaps unintentionally, reconnect with their inner Bar-Kays quite successfully here.

For my money, The Rascals don't quite get the due they should these days. But there is no doubt they were one of the best, if not the best, white practitioners of R&B of their generation. Maybe even the best ever, period.

Collectors Choice Music will release the Rascals seven original releases for Atlantic — which represent the cream of the band's catalog — next Tuesday August 28, complete with both stereo and mono mixes on the first four albums (The Young Rascals, Collections, Groovin, and Once Upon A Dream).

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

We've Got You Covered On Springsteen's Magic
(As In The Album Cover That Is)


As we first reported last week, Bruce Springsteen's first new album with the E Street Band since 2002's The Rising will be released on October 2.

And now, here is a sneak peak at the artwork for the CD.

Stay tuned here for information on the upcoming tour with the E Street Band said to be getting underway in October.

Is this going to be the last hurrah for one of rock's greatest live bands?

Could be...

So far the only thing we have heard that appears to be definite as far as West Coast is an Oakland date on oct. 28. Can we get a Seattle or Portland?

Stay Tuned...

(Psst...wanna hear the first single,"Radio Nowhere?"
Wilco (And Especially Nels Cline) Light Up The Night At Marymoor
Concert Review: Wilco At Marymoor Park, Seattle, WA 08/21/07
I guess I should confess right upfront to being something of a Johnny-Come-Lately to the Wilco party. My introduction to Jeff Tweedy and company came at the behest of a friend who — knowing that my musical center lies somewhere inbetween the songwriting of people like Springsteen and Neil Young, and the more experimental fare of bands like Radiohead — urged me to check out the band live, and then make up my own mind.
Needless to say, I was pretty much instantly hooked.
What I discovered was that Wilco is one of those bands who are able to veer effortlessly between an alt-country sort of vibe and the more "out-there" sort of sonic explorations of albums like A Ghost Is Born and the epic Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. So given the overall quieter vibe of their recent Sky Blue Sky release, it was probably a fair expectation to think that this show, under the moonlit skies and overall gorgeous surroundings of Seattle's Marymoor Park, would be a nice, mellow affair.
And it started out that way. The magnificent setting, combined with the gorgeous harmonies coming from the stage made for a most tranquil and mellow setting on the grass underneath the moonlight. The fact that the venue allowed you to take your beers to your seat on the grass (a most welcome new development at this venue) didn't hurt the mood either.

But then, somebody decided to turn guitarist Nels Cline loose. And turn him way, way up as well. Beginning with the 4th song in the set, "Handshake Drugs," Cline was literally on fire for this show. Although Jeff Tweedy didn't talk all that much, he too clearly seemed to be enjoying the moments he allowed the new guitarist to shine.

The newer songs played from Sky Blue Sky, like "Walken" and "Side With The Seeds" sounded just fine in a live setting. But it was on the more sonically driven material from A Ghost Is Born and Yankee Hotel Foxtrot — songs where Cline's guitarwork threatened to set these woods on fire at times — that it became apparent that this guitarist may just be the final missing piece that Wilco has needed all along to make this band one hundred percent complete. Cline fits these guys like a glove.

As if Cline didn't provide enough additional guitar power, for the encores Wilco brought out Northwest jazz guitarist Bill Frisell, for surprise versions of "Hesitating Beauty" and "California Stars" from Wilco's collaborative album with Billy Bragg, Mermaid Avenue. A second encore would find the two hour show closing with the sonic masterpiece "Spiders."

All in all, this was a magnificent show — easily the best of the three Wilco concerts that I've seen — in a wonderfully picturesque setting. But on this night, it was definitely all about guitarist Nels Cline.

Setlist:
Sunken Treasure
You Are My Face
I Am Trying To Break Your Heart
Handshake Drugs
Pot Kettle Black
War on War
Side With The Seeds
A Shot in the Arm
Impossible Germany
Sky Blue Sky
Too Far Apart
Via Chicago
Jesus, etc.
Hate It Here
Walken
I'm The Man Who Loves You

1st Encore:
What Light
Airline to Heaven
Hesitating Beauty (with Bill Frisell on electric guitar)
California Stars (with Bill Frisell on electric guitar)
Hummingbird

2nd Encore:
Misunderstood
Spiders (Kidsmoke)

Saturday, August 18, 2007

Nasty Nes And The Shockmaster To Reunite...And They Said It Couldn't Be Done

It's true.

Despite all of my best efforts to deconstruct the myth of the mighty Shockmaster Glen Boyd over the past couple of decades, I'm pulling the kangol and the fat gold chains outta the closet to reunite with my former "potna" Nasty Nes next weekend.

The occasion is Seattle's Asian Hip Hop summit on Saturday August 25 at Seattle's Ethnic Cultural Theatre. Nes and I will be co-MCing the event which will feature an unprecedented array of Asian hip hop talent. For eight bucks, you simply can't go wrong here.

You'll find all the details on the spiffy poster I've reposted here.

In addition to being able to check out this fine assortment of some of hip hop's finest, you will also be able to witness Nes and myself recreate some crucial Seattle hip hop history. You see, back in the day we hosted "Seattle's Only All Rap Show In FM Stereo," Rap Attack for the mighty KCMU, and basically made both Hip-hop, and Seattle music history doing so.


KCMU of course has long since gone on to become one of the nation's leading progressive music stations under it's new call letters KEXP.

Speaking of which, Nes and I will also reprise the old Rap Attack radio show the very next night on 90.3 KEXP as we join DJ B Mello on his show in our old time slot.

This should be a lot of fun, and perhaps a somewhat bittersweet trip down memory lane on a strictly personal level.
But am I looking forward to it?

Hell, mutha fukkin yeah I am.

Hope to see a lot of you there.

Peace out.
A Surprising New Find From The Man In Black

Music Review: Johnny Cash - The Great Lost Performance

It's been said that the career of the late, legendary Johnny Cash was bookended by two distinct periods — the beginning and the end.
The beginning, meaning his early recordings first for Sun Records and then for Columbia. This is where Cash first established his legend with such albums at Live At Folsom Prison and the string of great songs like "I Walk The Line," "Hey Porter," "Ring Of Fire," and "A Boy Named Sue."

Then there was the end, and the great series of American Recordings he made with producer Rick Rubin. These were the career closing records made from the mid-'90s right up until his death a few years ago. On these albums, Rubin most often stripped Cash down to the barest essentials of just a guitar and that unmistakable voice of his, for a series of starkly recorded albums that drew more confessional as he approached his final appointment with his God.

On some of these songs, such as his cover version of Nine Inch Nails "Hurt," the way that Cash confronts his mortality is so profound it literally brings tears to your eyes. It is a remarkable series of records.

In between these two very distinct periods however, was what many fans simply refer to as "that other stuff," as Cash seemed to become creatively adrift. During those "other years" in the middle of his career, Cash made everything from gospel records to ill-conceived record label driven efforts to "modernize his sound" (something Rubin did much more effectively by simply stripping it bare). This newly unearthed and mixed concert — where Cash is captured live in 1990 during a concert in Asbury Park, N.J.. — was recorded toward the end of that period, just a few years before his partnership with Rubin would revitalize his career and insure his legacy ended on a high note.

The one-hour concert kicks off with a spirited version of "Ring Of Fire" that finds Cash sounding strong in both voice and spirit. The band clicks along behind him like a well-oiled machine, and the sound mix here is absolutely pristine. On the very next song, Cash is joined by the sweet sounding voices of the Carter family for some downhome gospel on "Life's Railway to Heaven." The gospel continues with the only known recording of "Wonderful Time Up There," which Cash introduces with several of this show's wonderful stories — this one about "chopping wood with his daddy."

By the time Cash introduces "Folsom Prison Blues," — with his signature "Hello, I'm Johnny Cash" — it's clear that everyone onstage is loose and having a great time, and that this indeed is going to be a very special evening with the then living legend. Continuing the upbeat mood and humorous stories, Cash dedicates Kris Kristofferson's "Sunday Morning Coming Down" to the singer, "who just had a birthday — he's 81" (wouldn't that make Kristofferson something like 100 years old today?).
Things turn more serious with "What Is Man," a song that Cash had just written at the time, which reflects on mortality and man's relationship with God (a theme which would repeat itself numerous times in Cash's final recordings with Rubin). Cash trades both verses and harmonies here with Lucy Clark. Not to sound cliched here, but on this gospel tune Ms. Clark sings like an angel herself.
Things get rocking again with "Come Along Ride This Train." Cash then tells the story of when a levee broke, as he segues effortlessly from the chugging of that particular train, to the flood waters of "Five Feet High and Rising." From there, it's pretty much a non-stop ride with the band slowing down only long enough for Cash to relate yet another great story. The band shows the kind of chops here that could only come from years of playing countless one-night stands.

The only thing that seperates one song from another is a drum roll, and another story.

In one of the funniest stories, for "Ragged Old Flag," Cash talks about how he appreciates the freedoms we enjoy, saying, "I appreciate the right you have to burn your flag, as long as you appreciate my right to bear arms, so I can shoot you if you try to burn mine." Although rightwing nuts might today latch onto such a statement as evidence of blind support, the story is told with such humor that you can't help but wonder if Cash himself didn't see the joke there.

As the concert draws to a close, Cash is joined by his singing and life partner June Carter for spirited versions of "Jackson," and "Wreck of Old '97". Hearing June belt out her lines here, it isn't hard to see just what Johnny Cash saw in her. She sounds like she was one tough broad here (forgive me ladies, but I just can't think of a better way to describe it). June also cracks wise here at poor old "John's" expense.

For the homestretch, the hits keep on a comin' like the chugging of a freight train, from "Hey Porter," to "Ghost Riders In The Sky," right on through to the closing "I Walk The Line".

So somewhat surprisingly considering the period during this concert was recorded, The Great Lost Performance proves to be exactly that. Johnny, June, and the rest of the band are captured here on what was clearly a magical night.

I still wouldn't recommend too many of the studio records recorded around this time. For someone seeking the best introduction to Johhny Cash, I'd just start with Sony's The Essential Johnny Cash, and the Unearthed box set of the American series with Rubin.

But The Great Lost Performance makes a great addition to any collection of Cash's live recordings.

Thursday, August 16, 2007

Springsteen And The E Street Band To Reignite The "Magic" On Oct. 2

It's official.

After months of rumor and speculation the word came down earlier today in the form of an official press release.





Bruce Springsteen will release his first new album with the E Street Band since 2002's The Rising on October 2. The album is called "Magic."

And with the expected tour with said E Street Band to follow, it is also official that I simply cannot be held responsible for my "obsessive" behaviour, which I expect to extend well into next year.

Details on the tour are still sketchy at present, and manager Jon Landau is staying tight lipped about it.

But the aforementioned rumor and speculation has the tour --widely expected to be Sprinsgteen's final bow with the E Street Band -- begining sometime in October, with buildings already said to be on hold in such cities as New York, Los Angeles, Boston, Detroit, Oakland, and of course East Rutherford, New Jersey.

This "first leg" would last about a month before heading over to Europe. A second leg would commence in America early in 2008 (hopefully including some Northwest shows) if Bruce follows the routing of recent tours. Stadium shows will then most likely keep the show on the road through this summer.

But back to the album.

Magic is said to be both "E Street Band heavy" and very "sonically guitar driven" according to Landau in a Rolling Stone Magazine Article published today.

The song titles also sound intriguing. The presumed first single, "Radio Nowhere," is described by Landau as a song that “has a real anthemic quality to it. If it doesn’t get you out of your seat, I don’t know what will.” Another track, called "Girls In Their Summer Clothes" is said to have a “little bit of a Pet Sounds-type feeling mixed in with the sound of the E Street Band.”

Holy Crap! When can I get my hands on this thing?

Of what is described as the lone political track, called "Devils Arcade" Landau says: “He gets some images across that are very powerful and will certainly give you a feeling of where he’s coming from, but on balance [politics] is not the primary intention of this record.”

Magic was recorded over a two month period in Atlanta, Georgia earlier this year. Brendan O' Brien, who produced both The Rising and Devils & Dust for Springsteen, once again also produced Magic. In addition to the Rolling Stone article above, Lisa McKay has an excellent report on the album's release over at Blogcritcs Magazine.

Here is the track listing for Bruce Springsteen And The E Street Band's "Magic," due out October 2:

Track Listing:

1. “Radio Nowhere”
2. “You’ll Be Comin’ Down”
3. “Livin’ in the Future”
4. “Your Own Worst Enemy”
5. “Gypsy Biker”
6. “Girls in Their Summer Clothes”
7. “I’ll Work for Your Love”
8. “Magic”
9. “Last to Die”
10. “Long Walk Home”
11. “Devil’s Arcade”

Sunday, August 12, 2007

Concert Review: Patti Smith At The Showbox, Seattle WA, 8/11/07
The first time I saw Patti Smith in concert was an absolute revelation. Reading from an over-sized bible at a makeshift lectern at that 1979 concert, Patti literally screamed the lyrics about "how I don't fuck with the past, but I fuck plenty with the future," from her song "Rock And Roll Nigger" from her manufactured pulpit on that stage. And I sat there absolutely transfixed by it all.

I've seen Patti Smith live several times since, but nothing has ever matched the power I felt on that particular night. I can't exactly put my finger on it, but there was something absolutely transcendent about her performance on that night. Like I said, I can't exactly figure out what it was about her. But it definitely had something to do with the words. They were quite intellectual to begin with, yet at the same time stripped to their most basic, guttural essentials. They were also quite profane, at least in the traditional Christian sense. Yet, they were also absolutely and undeniably spiritual.

As God is my witness, I could have married Patti Smith that night.

Tonight, hanging out at the bar across the street from the Showbox, where Patti Smith played here in Seattle, I actually had a chance encounter with her walking down the street on 1st Avenue as I stepped outside for a smoke. She was dressed in an oversized black coat, and loosely fitting blue jeans tucked into the brown cowboy boots she also wore. It was the exact same thing she wore onstage at the Showbox later that night. Like I said, it was a chance encounter. And I didn't really know what to say other than a simple "hi Patti." A few minutes later of course, I happened to remember how much I would have loved to hear "Birdland" played live — but the moment was gone. And no, Patti Smith did not play "Birdland" in Seattle on this night.

But, outside of that, tonight's Patti Smith concert in Seattle was another of those transcendent experiences on more notes than I can really count here. For one thing, she did start out early with the great songs from her brilliant Horses album, nailing a great version of the song "Redondo Beach" right out of the gate.

From there, Patti Smith went straight into the cover versions from her current album Twelve. But even here, she mixed things up a bit. Covering Jimi Hendrix's great "Are You Experienced?", Patti Smith introed the song with a surprisingly great solo on soprano saxophone, and eventually worked in elements of great Hendrix sings like "Voodoo Child" and "Third Stone from The Sun." The band's sense of rock history here — especially her longtime guitarist Lenny Kaye — was simply impeccable.



Speaking of Kaye, when Patti left the stage he led the band through a cover of the Seeds' garage rock classic, "Pushin Too Hard," after dedicating the song to Northwest instrumental legends The Ventures. I'm not exactly sure what the connection was there, but there is no question that it worked perfectly.

When Patti retook the stage, she introduced "We Three," from her commercial breakthrough album Easter, as a song she wrote in 1974 about seeing the great guitarist Tom Verlaine and his band Televison at the New York punk rock club CBGBs. From there, it was on to dramatic reworkings of Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit" (prefaced by Smith's tale of a visit to Seattle's Union Gospel Mission — a shelter for the homeless), and her brilliant bluegrass tinged version of Kurt Cobain's "Smells Like Teen Spirit."



As the concert drew towards a close, Patti Smith brought out R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck (who currently resides in Seattle) for several songs. These included everything from the anthemic "People Have The Power" to R.E.M.'s own "Everybody Hurts".

This was a great, great concert.

Setlist:
Kimberly
Redondo Beach
Are You Experienced?
Within You, Without You
Beneath The Southern Cross
We Three
Summer Cannibals
Pushin Too Hard
White Rabbit
Ghost Dance
Because The Night
Peaceable Kingdom
Gloria
Smells Like Teen Spirit

Encore:
People Have The Power
Everybody Hurts
Soul Kitchen
Rock And Roll Nigger

Saturday, August 11, 2007

50,000 Hits Baby!
Just thought that we would mention that this site hit that milestone on Friday August 10 at approximately 5:oo PM, Pacific Coast Time