Mad Mojo Marmalade
Fleetwood Class
- Joined
- Jun 6, 2011
- Location
- Black Gold Region, PA
What are some of your good, bad and/or indifferent experiences over the years? Please no "I would rather listen to my rekkids" or "I'd rather be sittin' in Casey Kasem's audience listening to the Music Machine do the Eagle Never Hunts the Fly", the Kinks playing Wembley, or you know, the Seeds in concert at Merlins... ha... you get my drift.
Over the years, I've been trying really hard to see as many groups as I can with a 40+ year span. Different tours, festivals, shows. It's nice when there are more than 1 or 2 original members left. You definitely know when a band or person loves what they're doing. This is the main reason I go & because the groups we love are losing members left and right. I never get the feeling that anyone I've seen is only in it for the money. Who would really put themselves through all that, at these ages, when the payback isn't that big? Would people be that desperate? I have never been disappointed, but I attend with the understanding & mindset that these bands & people aren't in their hayday. Maybe it's that my expectations aren't so high & that's ok. It factors in to less of a disappointment. I'm certain I'd rather spend my money on a group or person who's outside of the now. I think it's much easier for the band to play a killer short set, couple of song festival type show than a full 1.5-2 hour 1 or 2 band bill performance. Hats off to those full performances!
My feelings are strong that the music today does not crossover like the music from decades ago & it doesn't have the essence (for lack of a better word) of being rare and pure form. Does that make sense? I'm going to use Dion as an example. I will go to see him anytime he plays because he is going to give you all of himself from the music and stories to the way you actually hear and feel it. And when you hear it, you're going to get a bunch of genres thrown in to that one performance. You can picture him in a subway or on a street corner or sitting in a smokey room or on a front porch giving you doo wop & then the blues. Plus, you know what I'm talking about when I say he can rock it out. He hasn't changed much in appearance or sound.
Eric Burdon is an example of someone I was told negative things about and read bad show feedback about. Given that there are off nights, one doesn't know what to expect really. Well he blew me away. Goosebumps. Not only did I hear every song I wanted to, there wasn't that much difference in his voice after the first song from what I listened to on the ride. He's one that might be worthy of a 2nd shot.
Some of the last shows I saw were Mitch Ryder, the Zombies, 1910 Fruitgum Co., Burton Cummings & most recently a killer psychedelic show by the Vanilla Fudge, 3 original members, nonetheless. I was never that big of a fan, but they converted me now. The last time I went on that big of a psych trip was probably with the Electric Prunes a few years ago or maybe the Flower Travellin Band. Now at the same show was the Yardbirds. And by Yardbirds, I mean McCarty. It wasn't even the 2 bird lineup because Dreja had a series of strokes and has been in the hospital. So I'm closing my eyes, because I find it hard to picture the 3 young, strapping frontmen from the UK, including a really great guitarist, Ben King, the vocalist, who also mastered the harp in 3 years, Andy Mitchell and bass player Dave Smale. It's par for the course that the 2012 Yardbirds lineup have a bit of a revolving door just like years ago, but I couldn't help but think what it would be like to see Relf (risen from the grave, of course), Clapton (who I think is boring as hell live), Beck, Page up there instead. A more natural lineup may have included perhaps someone like Steve Winwood on vocals. He had a great sound that might have fit. Some of the big names are still alive. It's too bad they couldn't get on board for a truer Yardbirds show. I can't complain too much. The new kids on the block really did a great job. They are all excellent musicians and did the Yardbirds proud, but it was still a bit bizarre to watch this updated lineup pull off Heart Full of Soul & the like. They really did pull it off though. Should they call themselves the Yardbirds? I don't know, but I didn't mind listening & watching them try.
Over the years, I've been trying really hard to see as many groups as I can with a 40+ year span. Different tours, festivals, shows. It's nice when there are more than 1 or 2 original members left. You definitely know when a band or person loves what they're doing. This is the main reason I go & because the groups we love are losing members left and right. I never get the feeling that anyone I've seen is only in it for the money. Who would really put themselves through all that, at these ages, when the payback isn't that big? Would people be that desperate? I have never been disappointed, but I attend with the understanding & mindset that these bands & people aren't in their hayday. Maybe it's that my expectations aren't so high & that's ok. It factors in to less of a disappointment. I'm certain I'd rather spend my money on a group or person who's outside of the now. I think it's much easier for the band to play a killer short set, couple of song festival type show than a full 1.5-2 hour 1 or 2 band bill performance. Hats off to those full performances!
My feelings are strong that the music today does not crossover like the music from decades ago & it doesn't have the essence (for lack of a better word) of being rare and pure form. Does that make sense? I'm going to use Dion as an example. I will go to see him anytime he plays because he is going to give you all of himself from the music and stories to the way you actually hear and feel it. And when you hear it, you're going to get a bunch of genres thrown in to that one performance. You can picture him in a subway or on a street corner or sitting in a smokey room or on a front porch giving you doo wop & then the blues. Plus, you know what I'm talking about when I say he can rock it out. He hasn't changed much in appearance or sound.
Eric Burdon is an example of someone I was told negative things about and read bad show feedback about. Given that there are off nights, one doesn't know what to expect really. Well he blew me away. Goosebumps. Not only did I hear every song I wanted to, there wasn't that much difference in his voice after the first song from what I listened to on the ride. He's one that might be worthy of a 2nd shot.
Some of the last shows I saw were Mitch Ryder, the Zombies, 1910 Fruitgum Co., Burton Cummings & most recently a killer psychedelic show by the Vanilla Fudge, 3 original members, nonetheless. I was never that big of a fan, but they converted me now. The last time I went on that big of a psych trip was probably with the Electric Prunes a few years ago or maybe the Flower Travellin Band. Now at the same show was the Yardbirds. And by Yardbirds, I mean McCarty. It wasn't even the 2 bird lineup because Dreja had a series of strokes and has been in the hospital. So I'm closing my eyes, because I find it hard to picture the 3 young, strapping frontmen from the UK, including a really great guitarist, Ben King, the vocalist, who also mastered the harp in 3 years, Andy Mitchell and bass player Dave Smale. It's par for the course that the 2012 Yardbirds lineup have a bit of a revolving door just like years ago, but I couldn't help but think what it would be like to see Relf (risen from the grave, of course), Clapton (who I think is boring as hell live), Beck, Page up there instead. A more natural lineup may have included perhaps someone like Steve Winwood on vocals. He had a great sound that might have fit. Some of the big names are still alive. It's too bad they couldn't get on board for a truer Yardbirds show. I can't complain too much. The new kids on the block really did a great job. They are all excellent musicians and did the Yardbirds proud, but it was still a bit bizarre to watch this updated lineup pull off Heart Full of Soul & the like. They really did pull it off though. Should they call themselves the Yardbirds? I don't know, but I didn't mind listening & watching them try.
