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Friday Influences Thread... 06-27-14


Lee Knight

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It's dead in here.

 

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The 100 Best Jazz Tunes of the 1950's

 

I was wandering around Fry's, a gigantic electronics superstore. It's HUGE if you don't know them. I move over to the CD area... and there are no CDs. Hey, Wake up old guy. CDs are history! OK but... each aisle of the old CD department is replaced with games, from DVDs of the summer blockbusters to the porno nutbuster variety. Always an odd sight to see adult titles displayed out in the open. Anyway... I digress. So, at the end of the huge DVD aisles are the last vestiges of my CD past. Box sets. Way too expensive. But... wait...

 

The 100 Best Jazz Tunes of the 1950's

 

8 CD Collection - $11.98

 

It's gotta be crap. Right? Nope. Miles, Coltrane, Desmond, Mingus, Blakey, Jamal, Evans... and Gil Evans! On and on. All great, iconic recordings. The choices are inspired, the mastering is top notch, even the packaging and booklet are wonderful.

 

This has been a kick ass way for me to experience a wide sampling of one of my favorite era/genre combinations; Jazz in the 50's. If you're inclined, try Amazon. It'll say $19.99 but if you select another distributer just below you'll find plenty of suppliers at 11 bucks.

 

I pulled into work to Sonny Clark and I'll leave this afternoon to Art Pepper. I mean... really? THAT'S MY INSPIRATION THIS WEEK!

 

I never knew anything about Ahmad Jamal. But I am so glad I do now thanks to this collection. Listen to his touch on the piano. He sounds like a vibraphone player. Like drops of light rain. Just... wow. Three guys, no drums. Guitarist Ray Crawford, a bassist, and Jamal at the keys. At 2:45 listen to how the guitarist take on the percussion role as Jamal takes off into an awesome piano solo... GREAT STUFF!!! Oh... and the collection's mastering sounds WAY better than below... open, clear, warm.

 

It may be odd, but listening to this stuff gets my songwriting to go places that have nothing to do with jazz, but are inspired and new for me. Once again, now THAT'S an influence!

 

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

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I love it ^^^. If we're talkin' antecedents... Marc Bolan/T. Rex - 20th Century Boy!

 

 

Does the link take you to a playlist? That's the second song in the playlist (and yeah, a direct antecedent for the Oasis song before it in the PL).

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Well, call me a doof. "You're a doof". Thank you. But I think he's way too quickly put down or ignored. That first one, the structure alone is way worthy of studying and emulating in one way or another. Yes, he can be a little cutesy. But he's also sincere. Sincerity makes any personality type worthy of appreciation. And... He's really good at his craft.

Guilty pleasure or Friday influence? Maybe both? It's been covered by Dusty Springfield, Tom Jones, Morrisey, Yvonne Elliman, Burton Cummings, and more. I really like this song. [video=youtube;LW2fUrK-j1M]
And this one maybe even more so. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IeySdPvyJk
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That first one, the structure alone is way worthy of studying and emulating in one way or another. Yes, he can be a little cutesy. But he's also sincere. Sincerity makes any personality type worthy of appreciation. And... He's really good at his craft.

 

Yes, and as OGP said, there was nobody quite like him.

 

He's not everybody's cup of tea. But he's really good to listen to once in a while. And the rising melody line on that refrain in "Nothing Rhymed" is really delicious.

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All I ever knew of Gilbert O'Sullivan was Alone Again (Naturally) but I was always amazed at the long, long melodic line he carried off in such easy, unhurried style, only to cap it off with the shortest of hooks. That's style if there ever was.

 

His vocal phrasing and melodic lines are so like soft horn lines - can't you just hear a horn playing those lines?

 

nat whilk ii

 

 

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It's good to know ^^^

I did a similar thing a couple of years back, but I lifted the melodic mood rather than the exact melody. There were too many notes to sing.

A spin-off melody also emerged which became the pre-chorus.

Unfortunately I never completed the lyric. JSB can be so profound that the lyric felt lame alongside his musical genius.

But it was a good exercise.

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We know that Brian Wilson was heavily influenced by Phil Spector, but this song he wrote for Glen Campbell shows a clear Burt Bacharach influence. (Or am I crazy?)

 

 

 

I really like his singing on that. He's apparently mimicking the Brian demo because he really has quite a few of Wilson's vocal mannerisms in his take on it. As far as Bacharach influence? Absolutely, though I still hear Spector as well. Picture that song sung by The Ronnettes to the beat of Be My Baby. But there are surely some Burt-isms in there. And the sophistication of the arrangement for sure.

 

As a side note, does it seem like ol' Glen was chomping at the bit there a little? Perhaps speed was a vice he employed? I recognize that meth jaw wiggle. I live at the beach and get to see the quick deterioration of individuals on a daily basis. Back then it seems speed was frequently prescribed for fatigue. Not fair to speculate but I'd say Glen had some issues there.

 

Anyway, great tune, great performance.

 

On the tune, personal preference, I wish there was more of a payoff hook. The melody kills and then it all sort of evaporates at verse end.

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I wish there was more of a payoff hook. The melody kills and then it all sort of evaporates at verse end.[/color]

 

I agree. That, and the strange title, are probably why it never became a hit.

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