The Legendary Roots Crew at NPR's Tiny Desk (2017)
The video’s Youtube page says:
“Armed with the incredible vocalist Bilal, The Roots performed the signature track from Detroit, a film about the race riots in 1967. "It Ain't Fair" glares unflinchingly, takes a knee and raises a fist against the societal construct that has systematically denied equality of experience to those "presumed inferior," to quote one of Bilal's verses. And it achieves all this while covering its heart with its right hand. This reflective hymn tenderly yanks your heart strings and offers a window into the ethos of those who would like to stand for the flag but cannot in good principle, lest these same evils continue to exist.”
Setlist:
"It Ain't Fair"
Musicians:
Curtis L. Jones Jr (Trombone)
Arnetta Johnson (Trumpet)
Hiruy E. Tirfe (Sax)
Richard L. Tate II (Sax)
Joseph Streater (Trumpet)
Norman J. Bradshaw (Trombone)
Damon Bryson (Sousaphone)
Ahmir (Questlove) Thompson (Drums)
Tarik (Black Thought) Trotter (Emcee)
Bilal Oliver (Vocals)
Important People:
Creative Director: Bob Boilen
Producers: Abby O'Neill, Morgan Noelle Smith
Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin
Videographers: Morgan Noelle Smith, Maia Stern, Kara Frame, Alyse Young
Photo: Claire Harbage/NPR
Jamie Barnes' 'Ex Voto"
It’s been a while since we’ve heard from Louisville’s Jamie Barnes. And since musicians are people, it is only natural for us to wonder what’s he’s been up to in the years since his last release. Well, since musicians are people, we don’t necessarily get to know what Barnes has been doing for the last few years and we honor that privacy. But since he is a poet and songwriter, we do get to peek in on Barnes as he opens a window into his soul on his latest release “Ex Voto.” And the good news is that, even though we may not have heard from him in a while, Barnes’ clever and intimate songwriting sensibilities have only sharpened.
Barnes plays quiet folk-ish music that is pregnant with imagery and warm details. But this is quiet music to be played loud. Barnes has always been known for his lush instrumentation, even though he often records at home. There are new layers, intricacies, and flourishes discovered with each listen and only discovered when we allow ourselves to be in the moment and fully present with this music. Which I think is part of its message.
Barnes gives away few personal details, but as the title suggests, there is a sense of someone struggling to find gratitude and devotion in the wake of something serious; in the wake of life, love, and loss. Sometimes relationships feel like planets trying to find their orbit or two songbirds on opposite branches.
Weaving imagery that oscillates between the here and now; being grounded in nature along with with scenes from the stars (“Perseid and Leonid fall,” “Mercury's in retrograde,” “Binary star,” etc.) Barnes holds a liminal space for the listener. It exists in the moment between inhale and exhale. Maybe it’s a Fall record caught in the moment between expected freeze, remembered warm breezes and the reality of nature’s passing everywhere around us. Does it bring us comfort to know that we’re not alone in our cycle of death and rebirth? Or does it reinforce our hurt, leaving us hopelessly caught in a never-ending cycle? That’s for the listener to decide. But throughout, Barnes evokes that sense of pain, loss, and longing. The opening words set the stage:
Turn the Earth upside down
Shake the dead things from their holes
While the memories drape
Like white chemtrails in our souls
Barnes explores the tension between endings and beginnings, trying to make sense of them both. In “Low To The Bird” (previously released as a single), Barnes laments, leaving us to wonder if his broken relationship is with a lover, himself, or maybe even his God (or maybe all three?):
Now I'm too many words lost down the drain
Gather me like rivers, gather me like rain
I don't mean to accuse, I don't mean to complain
I'm too low to the bird for my prayer to be heard anyway
Maybe we should expect nothing less from a man whose Twitter bio reads “Per aspera ad astra” (“through hardships to the stars") but this interplay between the imminent and the transcendent; that in-between space where life occurs provides the perfect canvas for Barnes’ clever and often insightful words. But the music is just as vital as the words. They weave in and out of one another; melodies softly soar and swirl, uplifting the soul even while the words might keep us grounded. Exploring that “in-between” space, “Ex Voto” is a record that doesn’t shy away from the hurt of life, but it is also not a record which leaves us in the mire.
Though Barnes acknowledges and explores despair and hurt and the dark realities of life, love, and loss, there is never a sense of despair or defeat. In fact, it is quite the opposite. Consider these lines from album opener “Pennyrile”
“And its shadow found me
There beneath it all
And with lifted hands to high we gasped and wondered at the writing on the sky
What a thing it even is to be alive”
Despite it all, “what a thing it even is to be alive!” Even though “crooks and carnivores are closing,” “Ex Voto” finds Barnes “holding fast, holding fast” (“Hollow Dusk”). The mountains may be crashing in to the sea, but Barnes is struggling to be still and make sense of it all; all without giving up the still small light of hope in the darkness. It’s that quiet sense of hope that seems to not only keep Barnes afloat but able to still try and make sense of it all. In “Christ of the Ozarks,” he sings:
“Christ of the Ozarks, hold out your kind arms to me
I lost my landmarks,
I lost my family
Bring down your home
Hold me in mystery
Hold me till the end and then always”
Sometimes we just wish we could make sense of things. There are days when we need to be held and assured and that’s part of what it means to be human. “Hold me till the end and then always.” Even now in the in-between. The night may be dark, but Barnes will not let us give up searching for the meaning behind it all:
“I wish there was a liturgy for the hour soon forgotten
I wish there was a prayer for the when and they why
I wish there was a litany for the names evanescent
A benediction for the long goodbye”
I don’t know if “Ex Voto” is Barnes’ “long goodbye” to something or someone, but it’s an album that deserves our full attention. It is a timely record for a culture caught in societal grief. Hopefully it will help us make sense of suffering while not giving in to despair. We may be broken, but only “just enough” that it’s like blood-letting; for our good. We may each have a vision of what we need to be purged of, but Barnes reminds us that even if the “great cloud of witnesses dissolves overhead,” we are not alone. Wherever you find that “Silent Partner,” Barnes reminds us that there are other hands reaching out in the dark. There are other people caught in the in-between just like we are.
Barnes may not chart a clear path back to daylight and out of the suffering, but he will “hold the space” for us as we “sundown” and in that, he has reminded us of the beauty of life, and love, even when there’s loss. Winter might be coming but, we can still “harmonize our sorrows and sighs and brace for the winter gloom.”
“Hear them now, crooks and carnivores are closing
Bar the door and guard my ruby heart 'til morning
Catalog what's left and wake the weary dawn
Holding fast, holding fast.”
Roy Ayers: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert
Roy Ayers’ stopped by the NPR Tiny Desk in March 2018 with keyboardist Mark Adams, bassist Trevor Allen and drummer Christopher De Carmine.
Setlist:
"Searching"
"Black Family"
"Everybody Loves The Sunshine"
Musicians:
Roy Ayers, Mark Adams (keyboards)
Trevor Allen (bass)
Christopher De Carmine (drums)
Important People:
Producers: Abby O'Neill, Morgan Noelle Smith;
Creative Director: Bob Boilen;
Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin;
Videographers: Morgan Noelle Smith, Kara Frame, Bronson Arcuri, Dani Lyman;
Production Assistant: Joshua Bote;
Photo: Jenna Sterner/NPR.
Black Sabbath at California Jam (1974)
MC’d by Don Imus, this reminds us all of a time when concert lineups were interesting. The 1974 California Jam lineup was:
Rare Earth
Earth, Wind & Fire
Eagles
Seals and Crofts Black Oak Arkansas
Black Sabbath
Deep Purple
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Today we’ve featured Black Sabbath’s set which includes the following list (Of course there are various setlists for this show, but here’s the one I’ve typically gone with):
Tomorrow's Dream
Sweet Leaf
Killing Yourself to Live
War Pigs
Snowblind
Sabbra Cadabra (with Jams)
Sometimes I'm Happy
Supernaut
Iron Man (with "Sabbra Cadabra" reprise)
Orchid
Paranoid
Embryo
Children of the Grave
David Crosby and Graham Nash, 1970 BBC Concert
David Crosby and Graham Nash live at BBC Studios in 1970.
Setlist:
Simple Man. (Graham Nash song)
Marrakesh Express
Guinnevere
Song With No Words (Trees With No Leaves)
Teach Your Children
Right Between the Eyes
The Lee Shore
Traction in the Rain
Prince's Funky Instrumentals (1977)
I can’t believe I haven’t posted this sooner, but I saw someone mention it the other day on Twitter and it was like I was hit with a lightning-bolt need for some unreleased (as far as I know) Prince instrumental tracks from 1977.
Prince was about 19 years old here and plays organ on these tracks. He is accompanied by Prince, Andre Cymone on bass, and Bobby Z on drums. These recordings are dated about a year before Prince’s first “official” album, For You. They are generally known as the “Loring Park Sessions ‘77” but there is a version floating around called “Husney’s: A Work In Progress,” and frankly, I enjoy the artwork for that one, so that’s what I’ve included in the download. Feel free to replace it or create your own or both.
Download mp3 files and the “Husney’s: A Work In Progress” artwork here.
Anyways, enjoy this early, funky Prince:
Erykah Badu Live at VH1 Soul Stage
Erykah Badu live for VH1’s Soul Stage, 2008.
Setlist:
The Healer
On & On
...& On
Me
Annie (Don't Wear No Panties)
Other Side of the Game
Honey
Soldier
Didn't Cha Know
Believe in Yourself
Rainermentals :: A Holiday At The Sea Playlist
Here’s a playlist of some Rainer Ptacek instrumentals. I remember making this mix when we lived in KY, so it must have been around 2003 or 2004 and I’ve listened to it a ton since then.
18 tracks taken from 4 different albums (follow the key after each song title).
Enjoy.
Tracklisting:
Here Comes Lilly? (#)
Cheeseball (&)
Instrumental #13 ($)
Di Lantin
Ode to N2O (&)
Instrumental #5 ($)
Opening Aunt Dora’s Box in 6/8 (&)
Instrumental #10 (chore ending) ($)
Improv in E (%)
Instrumental #9 (wait a minute) ($)
Within You Without You (&)
Horse Hair (#)
Instrumental #3 ($)
Curiouser and Curiouser (&)
Instrumental #4 (slight humming) ($)
Shifting Blues ($)
Instrumental #6 ($)
Arabing ($)
# = Alpaca Lips (2000)
& = Nocturnes (1995)
$ = The Farm (2002)
% = Live At The Performance Center (2000)
Digable Planets Live At KEXP
Digable Planets live for KEXP (November 4, 2016).
Setlist:
The May 4th Movement
Black Ego
Pacifics
What Cool Breezes Do
Jettin'
Important People:
Host: Cheryl Waters & Kevin Cole
Audio Recording & Mixing: Kevin Suggs & Matt Ogaz
Cameras: Jim Beckmann, Alaia D'Alessandro, Luke Knecht & Justin Wilmore
Director: Scott Holpainen
Editor: Jim Beckmann
Erykah Badu at NPR's Tiny Desk
Erykah Badu performs for NPR’s Tiny Desk. 08/15/18.
Felix Contreras says:
“Some folks around the NPR Music office said they felt an almost spiritual connection to Erykah Badu during her visit to the Tiny Desk. And that was before she and her band even played a single note. It came from the waft of earthly scents that followed in her wake, to the flowing dreads and clothes that hung on her like robes.
After her self-introduction, which included a rundown of her spiritual and creative aliases, Badu rolled into one of her earliest musical calling cards, "Rimshot." It's an ode to the sound the percussionist makes when a drumstick is struck against the metal edge of the snare drum. On this performance, as on her 1997 album Baduizm, it becomes a device to play with time — stretching it, stopping it, suspending it. Propelled by jazz chords on the piano and the steady pulse of the acoustic bass, the playful performance unfolded in the tradition of the best bebop.
But the panoramic song "Green Eyes" is the centerpiece of Badu's Tiny Desk performance. It's wide-ranging in scope and musical arrangement and brilliantly executed by the jazz and hip-hop musicians in her backing band. The story of heartbreak is striking enough, but her interpretation showcases her formidable vocal skills. By the time it was over, we were all just as emotionally and spiritually spent as she was from the experience.
Erykah Badu is an artist for the ages. To old-school jazz fans like myself, names like Nina Simone, Betty Carter and Shirley Horn come to mind as much as Billie Holiday because of Badu's singular approach to a lyric. They all cut their own creative path and left behind a legacy that you can identify with just one note. Erykah Badu is on that same path, and one day her name will be mentioned along with the other Elders who share her spirit of musical adventure.”
Setlist:
"Rimshot"
"Green Eyes"
Players:
Erykah Badu (lead vocals)
RC Williams (Keys)
Braylon Lacy (bass)
Cleon Edwards (Drums)
Frank Moka (Percussion)
Kenneth Whalum (Sax)
Keyon Harrold (Trumpet)
Dwayne Kerr (Flute)
Credits:
Producers: Abby O'Neill, Morgan Noelle Smith
Creative Director: Bob Boilen
Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin
Videographers: Morgan Noelle Smith, Maia Stern, Kara Frame, Khun Minn Ohn, CJ Riculan
Production Assistants: Catherine Zhang, Téa Mottolese
Photo: Morgan Noelle Smith/NPR.
Explosions In The Sky Live at KEXP 2016
Today we set aside 30 minutes for Explosions in the Sky live for KEXP in 2016.
Come on, you know you want to.
Setlist:
Wilderness
Infinite Orbit
The Ecstatics
Colors In Space
Disintegration Anxiety
Important Details:
http://KEXP.ORG presents Explosions In The Sky performing live in the KEXP studio. Recorded September 3, 2016.
Important People:
Host: Troy Nelson
Audio Engineer: Jackson Long & Kevin Suggs
Audio Mixers: Jeff Byrd & Jay Demko
Cameras: Jim Beckmann, Alaia D'Alessandro & Scott Holpainen
Editor: Justin Wilmore
Café Tacvba Sessions at West 54th (1997)
Café Tacvba performs for Sessions at West 54th (1997).
Remembering Black Eyed Sceva
I’ve never been a huge fan of a lot of what been called “Christian Music.” I don’t listen to Christian radio stations. I don’t follow Contemporary Christian Music. In fact, I have often wondered: “Why "Christian" Music Is Often So Bad.”
But there have always been exceptions. For example, I highly recommend you spend some time with my playlist Joyful Sounds: An Introduction to Sacred Steel. And, during college, there were a handful of bands who openly identified as “Christian Artists” (whatever that means) and incorporated their faith into their music without diluting either. Bands like Five O’Clock People, Plankeye, Poor Old Lu, Soulfood 76 and others. But, my favorite band of that time is by far Black Eyed Sceva (later known as Model Engine).
I still remember the first time I heard the group’s first album Way Before The Flood. I was in college and also serving as a volunteer Jr. High youth group leader. I had just found out that a longtime girlfriend had cheated on me and I remember sitting in the back of a car as we drove a couple of hours North for a Jr. High weekend winter retreat when my friend put that cassette.
I also remember buying Model Engine’s The Lean Year’s Tradition the same time I bought Bob Dylan’s Time Out of Mind at the old Zia Records location at 7th Avenue and Indian School. I was lucky enough to see the band several times in both incarnations and am happy to report that they were a terrific live band on top of everything else.
Your Google-Fu skills are probably better than mine but here are the three videos I could find on Youtube. The two were part of a promotional video that I’m pretty sure I had and included both the tour video and the live “Mudhouse” video. The other one is (to my knowledge,) the band’s only official music video and it is for one of their best-known tracks: “Justified.”
Enjoy!
And please let me know if you have other videos not included here (or audio recordings!).
Taj Mahal Sessions at West 54th
Taj Mahal live for Sessions at West 54th, Season One, 1997.
Setlist:
"She Caught the Katy,"
"Corrina, Corrina"
"Mr. Pitiful."
Albita performs
"Corazon rumbero,"
"El son del tahurete,"
"Valca el brillo de tus ojos"
"El chico Chevere."
But one of the Youtube comments says: 'Queen Bee'.
75 Dollar Bill and Natural Information Society, Together At Last (2019)!
I actually don’t know if 75 Dollar Bill and Natural Information have played together before or not, it just seemed like a fun headline.
Back in July, Jesse Jarnow posted a link to this live set from the Roulette Concert Archive at Soundcloud and I just now had a chance to put it on and listen, and, OH MAN!!!!!
Aside from being two of my favorite bands (see posts tagged 75 Dollar Bill here or Natural Information posts here), the sound on this recording is phenomenal.
Sit back and let it unwind.
The Roulette Concert Archive says:
“75 Dollar Bill return to Roulette to celebrate the release of their new double album I Was Real (Thin Wrist Recordings / Black Editions). With guests Joshua Abrams & Natural Information Society.
Having emerged as a vibrant musical force with their previous effort WOOD/METAL/PLASTIC/PATTERN/RHYTHM/ROCK (Thin Wrist 2016), 75 Dollar Bill have spent the last few years bringing their music to new people and places, delivering what NYC locals have had the chance to hear for years, and experimenting with the ever-deepening set of musical ideas for which they are known. The fruits of this work can be heard on their expansive new double LP I Was Real. Recorded over a four year period, in four different studios, with a range of ensemble configurations featuring the band’s closest friends and collaborators, I Was Real is the band’s most ambitious album yet. The music that unfolds on the album’s four sides doubles down on the group’s penchant for sprawling, unusual grooves and blown out microtonal guitars, while at the same time introducing textures and tonalities that point in completely new directions. For this event, the group will present a set of new and reimagined material from the album, with a special soon-to-be-announced group of guest musicians. 75 Dollar Bill is pleased to be joined this evening by Joshua Abrams & Natural Information Society, whose own double LP, Mandatory Reality, was released by Eremite Records in April.”
Support 75 Dollar Bill at Bandcamp.
Purchase 75 Dollar Bill’s music at Amazon.
Listen to "Beni Said" by 75 Dollar Bill rom the album 2016 album Wood / Metal / Plastic / Pattern / Rhythm / Rock on Episode 07 of the Global Elite Music Radio Podcast Supershow.
Browse all Holiday at the Sea 75 Dollar Bill posts
Visit the official website.
Support Joshua Abrams and Natural Information Society at Bandcamp.
Purchase Joshua Abrams and Natural Information Society’s music at Amazon.
Listen to “Maroon Dune” by Joshua Abrams & Natural Information Society (From the 2017 album Simultonality) on Episode 43 of The Global Elite Music Radio Podcast Supershow.
Browse all Holiday at the Sea Natural Information Society posts
Ani DiFranco: Sessions at West 54th
Another gem from the Sessions at West 54th vaults. Listings say that Tricky was also on this episode but I can’t find video of that. This was Season one with Host Chris Douridas and aired 12/13/97.
Sorry, no setlist. Maybe you know it?
Enjoy.