Tag Archives: Jason’s New Music Heroes

Sinéad

I’m writing these words just minutes after hearing the news of the death of the great Sinéad O’Connor.

Peace To Heavenly Sinéad

One of my main rules, when I began to write about New Music was (and is) Don’t Fuck With Dead People. The rationale being, it always comes off as a shameless call to attention about yourself. It’s not about the deceased.

Also, dead people can’t make New Music.

There’s nothing new I can say about Sinéad O’Connor that I haven’t already written, when I lauded her as one of my New Music Heroes.

Her voice was beyond compare. Her heart was too pure to contend with the world. She suffered a lot of pain in her life, and didn’t seem to have the tools to survive.

I can’t say that I’m surprised that she only made it to 56. I’ve been worried about her, in the back of my mind, since I became aware of her when she was only twenty-one.

She remains a hero to me for her fierce bravery that masked a sensitive and troubled soul. May her soul be at rest.

Sinéad O’Connor – Feel So Different

My New Music Holy Grail Has Arrived!

It’s a rare Monday post, as Canada Post, assisted by the Royal Mail, delivered to my possession a Holy relic of the highest order in New Music.

On February 17, 1967 (nearly exactly seven years before I was born), The Beatles released their first new music after an six month gap of nothing from them since the release of Revolver in August ‘66. A lifetime in Pop Star terms, and considering they had made it known that they wouldn’t be performing in public anymore, the whole world was curious to know what was happening to The Beatles. With the opening of mysterious Mellotron, followed by the a flurry of drums, John Lennon sings, “Let me take you down, cause I’m going to, Strawberry Fields. Nothing is real, and nothing to get hung about…”. On that Friday in mid-February , the question was answered: The Beatles are what was happening.

The Beatles – Strawberry Fields Forever

Strawberry Fields Forever/Penny Lane was a double A-sided Single, with neither Paul nor John wanting to give up the honour of being the A-side. That selfishness led to some convoluted sales calculations, leading to it only reaching #2 on the UK charts. They were beaten by the classic schmaltz of Englebert Humperdinck’s Release Me.

Englebert Humperdinck – Release Me

Millions of copies of the 7” single for Strawberry Fields Forever/Penny Lane were manufactured, so it wouldn’t be accurate to call them rare. But to have an original 1967 pressing of this, my favourite piece of Music, in its pristine original form is special to me. For me, it is the pathmarker for people interested in Music that exists outside the popular paradigm. It’s The Beatles saying, ‘Come with us. Don’t worry, it’s going to get weird, but there’s nothing to get hung up about.’ It will always be a talisman for the outsider.

Front Sleeve of Strawberry Fields Forever/Penny Lane UK single
Rear Sleeve of Strawberry Fields Forever/Penny Lane UK single
Strawberry Fields Forever/Penny Lane UK single, A-Side
Strawberry Fields Forever/Penny Lane UK single, AA-side

Oh, and I like Penny Lane too. Good job, Paul. Gold Star.

To hear the single exactly as it sounds (in glorious Mono!), check out below,and meanwhile, continue taking care of yourself. Talk to you tomorrow!

The Beatles – Strawberry Fields Forever/Penny Lane

Jason’s New Music Heroes, Chapter Ten – Danny Michel:

Today’s chapter begins with another story from Ol’ Grampa Jason –

I used to have aspirations of becoming a working musician. When I was younger, I would show up at Open Mic’s and Jam Nights to play guitar and sing. I was a pretty good singer (even took classical training), and a barely-competent rhythm guitarist.

I got good enough at it that I actually played solo shows at bars and clubs. I was even in a band for a while called The Misfits.

Not these Misfits.

The Misfits had a steady run of months with regular weekly gigs around the Collingwood, Ontario area. I’ve always been proud that it was by making Music that I was able to move out of the family home and start my life for myself in Kitchener, some two-hour’s drive away.

When I got to Kitchener, I was excited to be in a big city (Population approx. 200k, compared to Collingwood’s 12k) for the sole reason that it was bound to have an actual Music Scene. I was left to my own devices for the first time, and I couldn’t wait to dive in. Maybe I could continue my music career?

This is Ol’ Grampa Jason showing Thom Yorke how it’s done.

My first day at Conestoga College, where I was to study Radio & Television Broadcasting, there was a student mixer event happening in the courtyard. Near the entrance was an older-looking black man, playing Blues guitar and singing, I later learned that this was Mel Brown, and that he had a modestly successful career in the ‘60’s and ‘70’s before moving to Canada. He had even recorded for Impulse! Records. So, I thought, this is how it’s going to be in the Big City…

Mel Brown – Chicken Fat

It wasn’t too long before I started making the rounds to Open Mic Nights in the bars in the Kitchener/Waterloo area. It was at one of the nights at The Atlas Nightclub in Waterloo when I met another Life Hero of mine. Shannon Lyon wasn’t in my life for very long, but his kindness helped me in my mission to not move back home to my parents with my tail between my legs.

Shannon had recently released his first album with his band The Shannon Lyon Pop Explosion, but also subsidized his income with solo gigs like the one at The Atlas. The first time I went up to perform, Shannon was complimentary and we had a friendly conversation. After a couple of weeks Shannon was due to go out West on tour with the band. He then asked me if I would like to take his spot, hosting his weekly solo spots for three weeks while he was away. He didn’t realize that all of my finances were already getting extremely tight, and this offer was a life preserver. I can’t thank him enough.

The Shannon Lyon Pop Explosion – Mods Rule

Now that I had some income with which to dispose, I was able to also go out to bars for the pleasure of seeing the local talent. It was at The Walper Pub in Downtown Kitchener when I witnessed two of the most talented musical artists I’ve ever laid eyes on.

The first was a vocalist beyond compare. Paul MacLeod was a singer and songwriter, as well as an extraordinary instrumentalist. The first time I saw him, I knew he had something special.

Paul MacLeod – Annalisa

Before I knew it, MacLeod was snatched up by Canadian Folk-Rock Heroes Skydiggers, after Andrew Cash left their band. How great to see talent be rewarded.

Skydiggers – The Truth About Us

Sadly, Paul MacLeod died in 2016 as a victim of suicide, and it’s tragic to think about what could have been.

Paul MacLeod – Giants

In 1997 I scored a full-time job at HMV, after working part-time at CD Plus. The back room of the HMV store in Waterloo (now a Burger King) had white walls that were adorned with autographs from visiting musicians in black Sharpee. One of the bands that scrawled their names was local favourites The Rhinos. I recognized the name of vocalist Danny Michel as the second artist that I saw performing live at The Walper that blew my mind. It’s not his fault that I decided to stop my efforts towards a Music Career, but he inspired the epiphany that led to the decision; No one needs another mediocre musician, especially one like me, who doesn’t have an impetus to work hard for it.

The Rhinos – The Rhino Anthem

When I saw Danny Michel for the first time, I knew he was the real deal. A natural talent with character in his voice for miles. Upon first listen I heard a lot of Tom Waits in his style of vocal presentation, and he was able to back it up with a confidence that intimidated me.

Danny Michel – Melt (live)

At the stores where I worked we sold local musicians’ CDs on a commission basis, meaning that we would pay the artist after it sold. This is when I saw the ineptitude of artists in their attempts to run their business. Not only would most of these CD’s not sell, quite often the artist wouldn’t come back to get paid if it did happen to sell. Usually the unsold CDs would end up in the garbage, after two to three years of collecting dust.

I can only think of a handful of musicians that sold their albums via this method on a regular basis, and took care of their business in a timely and professional manner. Danny Michel was in the store every month, on schedule, to pick up a cheque and restock his discs. At this point he may as well have been a bonafide Rock Star in Kitchener/Waterloo. I never was able to talk to him, because I was starstruck. He breezed in like a Sales Representative (which is the hat he was wearing), and he represented his product with grace. I still have my copy of Fibsville on CD.

Danny Michel – Souvenir

At some point (biographical details are scarce) Danny moved to Ottawa, presumably for school, and while there he formed Starling and released a great Pop Album which is lost to the winds of time.

Starling – Don’t Deflate

Danny returned to the K/W area and continued to record fantastic solo albums and touring constantly. Finally, he received national attention with his third album, 2002’s Tales From The Invisible Man. Michel was nominated for New Artist of the Year at the 2003 Juno Awards, and had a radio hit with Perfect. The album received a great sales boost from the nomination, and the rest of Canada finally got to see what we in Southern Ontario had long known; Danny Michel is a major musical force to be reckoned with.

Danny Michel – Perfect

The following year, Danny released a full album of the songs of David Bowie. Loving The Alien demonstrated Michel’s talent with song arrangement and stylish interpretation. Bowie himself heard Danny’s version of Young Americans, and called it, “…moving and intimate…a good, good cover.”

Danny Michel – Young Americans

Meanwhile, Michel worked hard to become a successful touring artist, and a favourite at summer festivals throughout Canada. He was also a regular musical guest on Stuart Mclean’s Vinyl Café. Danny’s lyrical voice had grown more to reflect societal, environmental and political concerns.

Danny Michel – If God’s On Your Side
(live, Fargo, ND)

In 2011 Danny made the bold choice to pack up and move to Belize. The purpose of the trip was to track down one of his favourite bands, The Garifuna Collective, and convince them to record an album with him. The happy result is the incredible Black Birds Are Dancing Over Me. It’s a beautiful album, filled with joy and brilliant musicianship. It garnered Michel his third Juno nomination and his first Polaris Prize nomination. Larry LeBlanc from Billboard Magazine called it, “One of the finest musical works of our time.” High praise indeed, and well warranted.

Danny Michel – Sad And Beautiful World

While in Belize, Danny established a Fund for a non-profit high school, and has raised over 125,000 USD to date. This is so inspiring, as it shows what a musician is capable of, once they are able to establish a Community of fans, friends and contemporaries.

Upon Michel’s return from Central America, he released another fantastic solo album, Matadora, before embarking on another adventure. At the invitation of Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield, Danny boarded the Soviet-era Icebreaker Kapitan Khlebnikov, and spent eighteen days in the Arctic, traversing the Northwest Passage with other artists and scientists and such. He spent time recording while aboard, and later passed on the recordings to his former Rhinos’ band mate Rob Carli, who had since gone on to become a TV and Film Music composer of some renown. The trip spurred the album Khlebnikov, which included many beautiful songs, including Lifeboat, a tribute to the late, great Paul MacLeod.

Danny Michel – Lifeboat (for Paul)

These last few years have shown that Danny has been able to slow things down, and not have to work so hard from day to day. In other words, he’s made it. He’s spent his time making internet shows in a retro van that I would refer to as a “Shaggin’ Wagon”, and he builds slotcar racetracks and a miniature community called Danlandia Garden Speedway.

Including a replica of this landmark alongside Highway 401 near my house.

When the pandemic hit, Danny’s plans were scuttled like everyone else’s. Shows were cancelled and travel was impossible for awhile. During the layoff, he had the ingenious idea to post full band performance videos of favourite cover versions online, where he performs all the instruments. Please welcome Danny Michel & Super Spreader!

Danny Michel & Super Spreader – Coming Up (Paul McCartney cover)

This past summer, my family and I were able to see Danny Michel in performance at the Hillside Music Festival at Guelph Lake, and for me, it felt like coming home. Danny recorded a single, Don’t Be So Hard On Yourself, during his various festival shows, so if you listen really hard, you might hear me in the background (you can’t).

Danny Michel – Don’t Be So Hard On Yourself

In the twenty-five years that I’ve known the artistry, and have seen the hard work and the courage to follow The Muse, Danny Michel has become a New Music Hero to me for doing it. Not only has he created a remarkably diverse and powerful catalogue, he has earned the respect of his contemporaries and his heroes. He’s worked hard throughout his career to show his compassion for humanity. He has shown me that if you have skill, and you have the necessary energy, and (most importantly) you have integrity, you can have a very happy life as a musician.

I’m told he lives not too far away from us. Maybe I’ll get to meet him someday.

Danny Michel – Police & Thieves (Clash Cover) Danny playing his first ‘bar gig’ at age 16.

Thanks for reading! Check back next Sunday (11/20) for Jason’s New Music Heroes, Chapter Eleven: Ani DiFranco. Don’t be so hard on yourself!

Jason’s New Music Heroes, Chapter Nine – Ben Folds:

Back in the ‘90’s there used to be an Indie Music Magazine called CMJ New Music Monthly. It ran from 1993 until 2009. CMJ stood for College Media Journal, and with every issue, it came with a Compact Disc, featuring 15-20 tracks from the artists featured that month. I never subscribed to this magazine but my old roommate and Life Hero Phil did. That year I lived with Phil (most of 1997), we discovered great New Music via this method (though Phil was far more savvy than I).

CMJ New Music Monthly, March 1997 Vol. 43 Check out that track list!

Phil called my attention to Track Two of the disc by a band I hadn’t heard of, called Ben Folds Five. The Battle Of Who Could Care Less was my introduction to the talent, humour, and tunefulness of this trio. The band’s name alone gives clue as to where their heart lies. The smokin’ hot harmonies and casual obscenity were a one-two knockout to my heart.

Ben Folds Five – The Battle of Who Could Care Less

As usual, not only did Phil know who this band was, he was already in possession of their 1995 Self-Titled Debut Album. I immediately dove in.

Ben Folds Five – s/t

I soon learned that Ben Folds Five was the brain science of the band’s chief songwriter, pianist and leader, Mr. Folds. On bass was Robert Sledge, and rounding out the trio on drums was Darren Jessee, and they hailed from Chapel Hill, North Carolina. What made this band lineup unique in the mid 1990’s was the fact that it was piano-led, and avoided the use of guitars. Post Grunge, they really stood out for that reason alone. The fact that the musicianship is so tight and confident, they’re able to rock like any screaming Metal Band, and cap it off with an impromptu Sonata. The thoughtful and humorous outsider lyrics helped cement their reputation as “Punk Rock For Sissies.”

Ben Folds Five – Underground (Live)

The Five started gaining a reputation for their live show, and they toured ceaselessly through the mid-to-late ‘90’s. They travelled in a van bringing along a baby grand piano and Marshall amp stack with them. That, my friends, is dedication to your craft.

Ben Folds Five – For Those of Y’all Who Wear Fanny Packs
This is the band, jamming during soundcheck, with hilarious effect.

The Battle Of Who Could Care Less was the first single from Ben Folds Five’s second album, Whatever And Ever Amen. It continued their humorous insight into modern culture, with more space being given to musings on failed love and starting over.

Ben Folds Five – Selfless, Cold and Composed (live)

What came next was the surprising success of the album’s fourth single, Brick. Brick is a standout song on the album, and if anyone knows Ben Folds Five, it’s probably because of this song. This ballad about a real-life teen abortion is so unlike any of the rest of the band’s repertoire, but it drove the album to sell over a million copies in the US. It became a millstone around the band’s neck. The early fans thought they had “sold out,” and the people who fell in love with Brick had no time for the other (more accurate) side to the band. The band quickly learned to hate it.

Ben Folds Five – Brick

The success of Brick gave Ben Folds Five the opportunity to tour the world, and soon began to establish a fan base in Japan and Australia, that still exists today for Folds. On the Japanese edition of Whatever And Ever Amen, they added a Japanese lyric version of Song For The Dumped.

Ben Folds Five – Song For The Dumped
(Japanese Version)

After experiencing what the highs of success and fame had to offer, Ben made a decision to take this opportunity to create a project that I knew that he could lean on the record company for the studio time, and not worry too much about success. The result was an album under the name Fear Of Pop, which was released to no acclaim, and quickly disappeared. What’s notable for this project was the track that featured William Shatner. The ElectroPop of In Love, matched with the creepy come-on from Captain Kirk is more than enough to spark anyone’s curiosity. This wouldn’t be the last time that Ben worked with Shatner, producing an album for him in 2004.

Fear Of Pop – In Love

The pressure to follow up the success of Whatever and Ever Amen was wearing on Ben around this time, and he began composing a long-form song cycle, with little to no regard to audience reaction. After some coaxing, Ben Folds Five’s third album was finally cobbled together from what Ben had come up with. The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner arrived with a thud. It was clear that aside from the lead single, Army, this was going to be a difficult listen.

Ben Folds Five – Army

Orchestral arrangements accompany the band on Messner, giving the band a lush sheen to counterpoint the down and dirty lead bass and furious piano. The band’s fans were left confused by its depth and murky subject matter. People looking for Brick Part Two were instead warned that the protagonist suffers from Narcolepsy. He’s not tired. He just sleeps.

Ben Folds Five – Narcolepsy

It was during this album cycle that me and my wife, Jennifer, were able to see Ben Folds Five in concert. They opened up for Beck while he was touring behind his latest album, Midnite Vultures. It may not be his best, but it’s my favourite Beck album.

Beck – Sexx Laws

Ben Folds Five more than outdid themselves in terms of aggressively tight musicality and fantastic showmanship. The manic collective of the band was palpable, as though one too many shows had seeped whatever conscious energy that remained, and they were working with pure adrenaline. A show filmed for Japanese Television around this time is a document of a band at the end of their tether.

End of Song For The Dumped, encore at Tokyo Dome, September 1999

Friction between the band members, and fatigue with being around each other, led to the band breaking up the following year.

It wouldn’t be until years later the Reinhold Messner album got some of the credit that it deserves, as many of the Emo Bands of the ‘00’s would cite it as an influence. In fact, it was because of this that MySpace was able to coax a reunion out of the band in 2008, where they performed the album in its entirety.

Ben Folds Five –
Narcolepsy & Don’t Change Your Plans

After the band broke up in 2000, Ben’s solo career began in earnest, and he began work on Rockin’ The Suburbs. Having gotten married (to this third wife, Frally), and becoming father to twins, Ben’s lyrics take a sentimental turn on his debut solo album. The biggest hit to have longevity from this record is his ballad to his wife, The Luckiest. It’s a new wedding favourite that has been used in many movies.

Ben Folds – The Luckiest

The album is a spotty, but mostly great introduction to the many previously unseen facets to Folds’ personality. Where it’s strengths lie are in the several character studies (Annie Waits, Zac and Sara, Fred Jones Part 2, Losing Lisa, Carrying Cathy), which have been a strength throughout his career. The humour is still there, with the cutting title track (a swipe at Limp Bizkit and their ilk), and Fired.

Ben Folds – Fired

Rockin’ The Suburbs came out on the unfortunate Street Date of Tuesday, September 11, 2001. Terrorist attacks are terrible, in terms of album sales, and didn’t help anybody in anyway, much less Ben Folds and Mariah Carey. No one remembers the real victims.

Mariah Carey – All My Life

That fall, Ben Folds did a show in Toronto in support of the album, with a new trio, and a more approachable stage persona. That show cemented my fandom in Folds. At one point in the show, before doing Army, he divided the audience in half to sing the saxophone and trumpet parts. Before performing Not The Same, he taught the audience the three-part harmony for the backup vocals. The Music Nerd in me lit up with all sorts of dopamine. He’s one of us!

Ben Folds – Not The Same (Solo/Live, June 2002, Northhampton, MA

Unfortunately, Rockin’ The Suburbs wasn’t the success that it should have been, but it continues to be a classic for those in the know. At this point, I had come to the opinion that it was completely unjustifiable that this man was so talented and original and still wasn’t as rich and famous as Bono.

I have no good reason to dislike him, I just do.

Folds, in fact, at that time, was so unsuccessful that he was forced to go on a financially-strapped US tour, where he performed solo and interacted with the audience. It was on this tour that a tradition began, where Ben would improvise a song on the spot at each show. Thus began Rock This Bitch.

Ben Folds – Rock This Bitch (Solo/Live, March 2002, Chicago, IL

The Ben Folds Five fan base in Australia and Japan was still strong enough for Ben to make a return visit. It was on a stop in Tokyo where he would show off his ability to quickly compose and produce Station Idents for “Tokyo’s Number One Music Station.”

Ben Folds – Radio Jingles For Tokyo’s InterFM

Folds’ second solo album, Songs For Silverman, took nearly three years to arrive. Though this album was dedicated to Ben’s wife, Frally, the lyrics contained within spoke of an unhappy home, distrust, and betrayal. The writing on the wall wasn’t hard to read, and Ben’s marriage broke up not long after Silverman was released. The lead-off single for the album was Landed, another surefire hit in another dimension.

Ben Folds – Landed

Songs For Silverman became another Cult classic, in that it sold worse than his first solo record, but is still much-loved. Ben’s insightful and sarcastic humour is in full force, with songs like Jesusland and Bastard. The chorus of the latter track is a bit of a mantra of mine; “Why you gotta act like you know when you don’t know? It’s OK if you don’t know everything.”

Ben Folds – Bastard

Ben’s third solo album Way To Normal was released in 2008, and a curious, very Early-21st Century thing occurred in its lead-up to release. In July of that year, someone posted an early link to a fansite with a pdf of an album cover, and a list of songs for Ben Folds’ new album. When this was brought to his attention, Ben and Band were on tour in Ireland. He immediately booked studio time and spent an evening creating and recording new songs with the titles that had been “leaked.” He then leaked those songs himself. In some cases, the fake versions have become more beloved than the actual album versions.

Ben Folds – Bitch Went Nutz (Fake Version)

Way To Normal is a much more mean-spirited album, in the way the lyrics play out towards the object of his emotional turmoil. While Ben was always hesitant to talk about the autobiographical nature of his songs, in deference to the mother of his children, it is pretty clear that Ben is not in a happy place. His duet with Regina Spektor, You Don’t Know Me, was a minor hit. Watch for Jason Sudeikis on trombone.

Ben Folds w/ Regina Spektor – You Don’t Know Me (live on Late Night With Conan O’Brien 10/02/08)

Ben’s next project would ensure that he wouldn’t be getting questions regarding the lyrical inspiration. For this one, he was approached by author and fan Nick Hornby. The author of Fever Pitch and High Fidelity wondered if Ben would be interested in putting music to some of his words. Turns out that appreciation was mutual, and Folds jumped at the idea. The resulting album, Lonely Avenue was critically acclaimed, and featured some of Ben’s most ambitious songcraft. It spawned another minor hit for Ben, From Above.

Ben Folds/Nick Hornby – From Above

I truly feel that not being bogged down by his own emotions, and giving voice to someone else’s words was a terrific exercise for Ben to flex musical muscles previously unseen.

Ben Folds/Nick Hornby – Saskia Hamilton

Following the project with Nick Hornby, Ben reunited with the pair from BF5 for a new album and tour. The Sound Of The Life Of The Mind was released 2012 to almost zero fanfare, despite having The Fraggles star in their video.

Ben Folds Five – Do It Anyway

The album sold to expectations, and the following World Tour was also a success, but it wasn’t enough to extend the life of the band, and after a Live album Ben Folds Five again went their separate ways.

Ben Folds Five – Draw A Crowd (Live)

Ben then got himself involved in a project that none of his fans saw coming. I’m not sure if you remember watching television in the early 2000’s, but reality shows were all the rage. In particular, Music competitions that promised fame and fortune to the winners were on every Network. There were too many shows like this to mention, but Ben Folds ended up being a mentor and judge on NBC’s The Sing Off. What made this show different was that it was not a contest pitting solo artists against each other, but instead it was acapella choral groups. I’m a sucker for unaccompanied voices. This was, without a doubt, the nerdiest Reality Competition on Television, and I was hooked.

Street Corner Symphony w/Ben Folds – Gone

Ben’s next project was a step towards Classical and Chamber Pop. His fifth solo album So There was a collaboration with New York City’s octet yMusic on eight songs, with the album ending with three concertos for Piano and Orchestra, performed with the Nashville Symphony. It is a bold and unique mix of Pop and Classical elements. Lyrically, Ben has gained perspective; “Seems what’s been good for the Music hasn’t always been so good for the life,” he sings on Phone In A Pool.

Ben Folds w/yMusic – Phone In A Pool

For the last few years Ben has been dividing his time between Nashville and Sydney, Australia, and has remarried again. While in Nashville, he helped save RCA Recording Studio A, which is a legendary studio founded by Chet Atkins, where artists such as Dolly Parton, The Monkees, and Paramore have recorded, and was due for the wrecking ball. Ben bought this Historic Landmark and it continues to operate today.

RCA Recording Studio A, Nashville, TN

Ben has become renowned for his efforts in support of Music Education, and is the first Artistic Advisor to the National Symphony Orchestra at The Kennedy Centre in Washington, DC. He continues to travel and perform around the world, and will often do shows with local orchestras.

Ben Folds & LSU Symphony Orchestra –
Rock This Bitch

He still performs solo shows, and at times will do “Paper Airplane Tours”, where the audience requests songs, via paper airplane, and Ben would make up the setlist on the spot.

Ben Folds – Straight Up (Paula Abdul cover?)

Back in 2020, when the pandemic started, Ben found himself confined in Australia, with all his shows cancelled, and travel restricted. He decided to spend his time doing weekly livestreams, playing requests for viewers.

Ben Folds – Apartment Requests #3

That same year, at the halfway point of the year, Ben released a single that captured the moment beautifully, called 2020.

Ben Folds – 2020

There doesn’t appear to be a new album in sight from Ben Folds, and he recently released his autobiography, A Dream About Lightning Bugs: A Life of Music and Cheap Lessons. I truly hope this doesn’t mean he is hanging up his songwriting gloves (or whatever), because it would be a damn shame.

A Dream About Lightning Bugs –
Audiobook Sample

Whether or not we will be another album by Ben Folds remains to be seen. I hope we’ll hear some new songs, because I’m invested in this man’s voice. The story isn’t over yet.

Ben Folds Five – Best Imitation of Myself
(live, 1997)

Thanks for reading! Check back next Sunday (11/13) for Jason’s New Music Heroes, Chapter Ten – Danny Michel.

Be kind to each other!

Jason’s New Music Heroes, Chapter Eight – Thelonious Monk:

When my life in Music Retail began at the forgotten CD Plus, in Kitchener, Ontario, I soon learned that I needed to get my head out of all the Popular Music that was occurring around me, and engage in something completely different, lest I go crazy. This realization was precipitated by the success (in Canada) of the single, Superman’s Dead, by Our Lady Peace. “Stop!,” my brain screamed, “Anything but this!”

Our Lady Peace – Superman’s Dead

The plan was to engage in a genre of Music that wasn’t being spoon-fed to the masses, that I could pick up at my own pace, and find my own joy. Now that I was working in a Music Store, I could open and listen to any CD that we had in stock. Imagine the freedom to have access to that amount of Music! It was like a really inconvenient Spotify, where you have to reseal the CDs after you’ve finished listening.

I can still remember the smell of melted plastic.
Photo Credit: sealersales.com

My next musical move would ultimately be inspired by the authors that I admired. At the time I was a fairly prodigious reader, and my heart was firmly stationed among the amphetamine-fueled Beat Writers of the 1940’s-60’s. Poets and authors like William S. Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg, and Jack Kerouac especially are still favourites of mine. As such, I would dive into stream of Jazz known as Bebop. This began a deeper appreciation of the many different facets of Jazz at-large that lasts to this day.

Poetry and Jazz, baby!

One of the few CDs that I still own from my year at CD Plus is a Budget-line repackage collection that cost me about $4 with my staff discount. It started my love for Thelonious Monk.

Thelonious Monk – ‘Round Midnight And Other Jazz Classics
From Jazztime!

I had never heard such beautiful dissonance! Remarkable melodies offset by a raging genius tiger on piano. Monk’s sure sense of timing, and use of “off-rhythms” caught my heart immediately. The solos sound like tightrope walks wobbling toward disaster, before transcending to heights I had previously not heard. And there’s the man himself, grunting along as he plays in unconscious acquiescence. There is something special about this man.

Thelonious Monk – Epistrophy

Thelonious Sphere Monk was born October 10, 1917 in North Carolina, and his family moved to Manhattan when he was 5. He started playing piano at the age of six, and was classically trained for a time. He spent his early years accompanying a travelling Pastor on organ, and by his late-teens he was a working Jazz Musician. In 1943 he reported for his Army Induction, and he was labeled a “Psychiatric Reject.” Around this time he became the House Pianist at Minton’s Playhouse, a legendary nightclub that played host to “cutting contests”, where soloists would go up against each other. Future legends, including Charlie Parker, Coleman Hawkins, and Miles Davis were regulars at Minton’s.

Thelonious Monk, Howard McGhee, Roy Eldridge & Teddy Hill at Minton’s Playhouse, September 1947 Photo Credit: nytimes.com

Monk’s reputation grew, and he had his first recording sessions with Blue Note Records in 1947. Things were rolling smoothly for Monk until August, 1951, when New York Police searched a car that he was in with Bud Powell. They found narcotics (gasp!) believed to be Powell’s, and Monk refused to testify against his friend. The Police, as a result, confiscated Monk’s Cabaret Card, which, as a Black Man, he needed to perform in nightclubs in New York City. It wouldn’t be returned to him until 1957. During that time, Monk still recorded, for Prestige and Riverside, where he recorded Brilliant Corners with Sonny Rollins. That album would be his first commercial success. Monk’s melodies are on point.

Thelonious Monk – Brilliant Corners

After Brilliant Corners, Monk’s next quartet featured another saxophone legend: John Coltrane. Not much was recorded of this pairing, save a session for Riverside of what were already becoming Monk Standards.

Thelonious Monk With John Coltrane

Back in 1960, saxophonist Steve Lacy compiled a list of pieces of advice said by Thelonious Monk, and thanks to Music Writer Eric Alper, it has been making the rounds on the internet. It shows the amount of passion that Monk put into his work. Some gems include, “DON’T PLAY EVERYTHING (OR EVERY TIME); LET SOME THINGS GO BY. SOME MUSIC JUST IMAGINED. WHAT YOU DON’T PLAY CAN BE MORE IMPORTANT THAT WHAT YOU DO.”, and “YOU’VE GOT TO DIG IT TO DIG IT, YOU DIG?”

Photo Credit: thatericalper.com

In October of 1958, Monk and his travelling companion Baroness Pannonica “Nica” de Koenigswarter were detained by police in Wilmington, Delaware. Thelonious refused to answer questions or cooperate with police, who then beat him with a blackjack. Although they found narcotics in the car, the Judge in the Superior Court ruled that because of the beating and unlawful detention, the charges were void. I will have more to say about the Baroness in a future chapter of New Music Heroes, because she absolutely fits the bill.

Pannonica de Koenigswarter
with Thelonious Monk
Photo Credit: ricochet.com

At this stage in Monk’s career, he is highly thought of by his peers, and some critics, but his records still sold poorly, and was regarded as too “difficult” for Mainstream audiences. That would change with his contract in 1962 with Columbia Records. As one of the four Major Labels in the Music Industry, they had the best recording equipment, engineers, and producers. Monk would utilize them through his next dozen albums, over the next six years, through various band setups, solo recordings, and live albums. Monk’s success finally caught up with his reputation, and he was featured on the cover of Time Magazine.

Time Magazine cover, February, 1964

His time at Columbia offered Monk the opportunity to travel abroad, and do shows to rapturous audiences across Europe.

Thelonious Monk – Well You Needn’t

There’s a fascinating documentary about Thelonious Monk, called Straight, No Chaser, that I can’t recommend enough. Produced by Clint Eastwood, the film details Monk’s life and career, and in particular his struggles with mental illness.

Thelonious Monk: Straight, No Chaser

Thelonious Monk’s last recording session was in 1971, after which he went into a sort of isolation. The last few years of his life were spent at the home of Pannonica de Koenigswarter, where she and Monk’s wife Nellie took care of him until he passed away from a stroke on February 17, 1982.

Thelonious Monk – Crepuscle With Nellie

Monk is a hero to me for his bold and unique approach to instrumentation, and his skill with rhythm and melody. His ability to be his authentic self in the harsh reality of 20th Century America, with the obstacle of mental illness is a mighty inspiration.

Thelonious Monk Quartet – Blue Monk
Live in Belgium, 1966

Thanks for reading, friends! I’ll be talking to you again this week, a couple of times, before next Sunday’s (11/06) edition of Jason’s New Music Heroes, Chapter Nine – Ben Folds. Be kind!

Jason’s New Music Heroes, Chapter Seven – Sinéad O’Connor:

In my personal definition of the word “Punk,” for someone or thing to be labeled as such, there has to be a core belief in “Something Important” (even if that belief is Nihilism), and a willingness to risk everything in the name of said core belief. In my list of New Music Heroes, the two that lead this category are Nina Simone and Sinéad O’Connor. I’ll be discussing Miss Nina in a future chapter.

Sinéad O’Connor entered my life like many artists in the late-1980’s; MuchMusic. Her Music Video for the lead-off single from her debut album, titled Mandinka, grabbed my attention with its raucous guitar intro, to then see a young woman singing onscreen who looked like no one I had ever seen before. The beautiful face singing to camera was unadorned with hair. Please understand, I had ever seen such a thing. A bald woman? Unthinkable! Yet here she was. And just as soon as I got comfortable with the idea, she belted out the chorus and I fell in love. This girl kicks ass!

Sinéad O’Connor – Mandinka

The album, The Lion And The Cobra, was produced by Sinéad herself, which at the time was a very rare occurrence for a Major Label debut album, especially for a woman. This fact alone shows how strong a personality she is. I can only imagine the arguments she must have had, with executives who had no interest in her artistic vision. Passion bleeds from this album. When, on Troy, she sings, “I’d kill a dragon for you, and die,” you can’t help but believe her.

Sinéad O’Connor – Troy

Behind that brave façade, what could also be seen quite clearly is pain and sadness that is too much to successfully hide. Sinéad spoke to the part of myself that urged feelings of sympathy and protection. The honesty of this Artist took my breath away. Not too mention that she is in possession of one of the finest singing voices I’ve ever heard.

19 Year-Old Sinéad performs Just Like You Said It Would Be on BBC2’s Whistle Test, 1987

Sinéad’s debut was a big enough success that it garnered a Grammy nomination for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance , and had fans and Industry alike eagerly awaiting the release of her follow-up. I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got is still O’Connor’s biggest sales success, with over seven million copies sold. Her cover of Prince’s Nothing Compares 2 U is what Sinéad is best known for, musically.

Prince – Nothing Compares 2 U

Sinéad’s cover of Nothing Compares 2 U was successful enough that it garnered a Musical Guest appearance on Saturday Night Live. It was on this show that a O’Connor committed career suicide by singing Bob Marley’s War, and tearing up a picture of Pope John Paul II in the name of Child Abuse committed by The Catholic Church. Sinéad was years ahead of her time in calling out the Church, and it would be years until she was properly vindicated. I remember her appearance a couple of weeks later at Madison Square Gardens for a celebration of the career of Bob Dylan, when she was met by a chorus of boos and heckling. Defiantly, again she sang the song by the other Bob, before staring down the audience and exiting. It always bothered me that the crowd, gathered to celebrate one of the most outspoken songwriters in history, would treat an artist so shoddily. These, clearly, were not my people. She wasn’t the only one sickened by it.

Sinéad O’Connor – War

O’Connor’s second album is full of emotional tenderness, laced with anger and pain. Marital strife, an abortion, and childhood trauma factor heavily, and Sinéad’s voice has never been stronger.

Sinéad O’Connor – The Last Day Of Our Acquaintance

Such a public and eloquent gnashing of teeth makes me regard Sinéad in very high esteem. She would never again achieve the heights of the sales of her second album, but I think that was well in mind when she went forward. Her follow-up album was a collection of covers from the American songbook and Broadway. The title, Am I Not Your Girl?, comes from the Loretta Lynn song, Success (Has Made A Failure Of Our Home), and is a cheeky retort to all the haters she had earned herself.

Sinéad O’Connor – Success Has Made A Failure Of Our Home

Sinéad’s fourth album was all new material, with a new Spiritual bend that would portend what would follow.

Sinéad O’Connor – Fire On Babylon

Also, it was announced that she would be on the Lollapalooza ‘95 tour. Seeing as I attended the two previous years, and Sonic Youth, Beck, Cypress Hill, and The Jesus Lizard would also be there, there was no doubt that I would attend. But Sinéad was the person I was most looking forward to. Unfortunately for me, She got pregnant, and was forced to drop out of the tour. She was replaced by Elastica, and the show I saw was their first on the tour and they suuuucked. Blame it on sound problems, because they’re not too bad.

Elastica – Stutter

It was sometime after that when O’Connor retired from Music for the first time. Also, she became an ordained Priest in the Latin Tridentine Church. She returned in 2000 with Faith & Courage, which spoke to her two driving forces.

Sinéad O’Connor – No Man’s Woman

She once again announced her retirement, but this time it was from Mainstream Pop/Rock Music. In 2005, she worked with Sly & Robbie on a Reggae album, titled Throw Down Your Arms. This afforded my first opportunity to see Sinéad in concert. I was happy to have the opportunity, but she only performed (with Sly & Robbie) songs from her latest album. Good show, but it left a little to be desired. Still, can’t argue with mad genius.

Sinéad O’Connor w/ Sly & Robbie –
Throw Down Your Arms

Sinéad came back in 2014 to the Pop spectrum with her album, I’m Not Bossy, I’m The Boss. She sounds like she’s in a comfortable space, and her writing chops are still in full effect.

Sinéad O’Connor – I’m Not Bossy, I’m The Biss

As it stands in 2022, O’Connor has both announced her retirement and rescinded said announcement, in advance of a new album which is said to be forthcoming. If I had a say in it, I would recommend that she take care of herself, and if it’s in her to make music again, she do it for herself. She owes us nothing.

Sinéad O’Connor – Trouble Of The World

Sinéad O’Connor taught me empathy for artists, with her plain-spoken honesty and heart-ripping voice. She taught me that pain can be an impetus to great Art. She showed me with her actions that being famous and successful is not as important as speaking your truth. Punk personified.

Thanks for reading. Tune in Next Sunday (10/30) for Jason’s New Music Heroes, Chapter Eight – Thelonious Monk.

Fight the real enemy!

Jason’s New Music Heroes, Chapter Six – Bristol, England:

There have been many cities, throughout the world, that have been host to Music “Scenes”; locations with an abundance of exciting New Music. The success of The Beatles enabled more acts from their home of Liverpool to ride “The Mersey Beat” to successes of their own. “The Seattle Scene” was greatly enabled by Nirvana’s triumph. Compton, CA, led by NWA, was host to a whole slew of rappers and producers. Athens Georgia, Austin Texas, Brooklyn New York, London, Paris, Munich, everybody talk about…Pop Music.

M-Pop Muzik

What was I saying again? Oh, yes. Bristol. Bristol is on an Inlet on the West Coast, just South of Wales. It has a Maritime and Industrial heritage, far away from the media centres in the UK. Much like many of the cities mentioned above, it is also a University Town, with a large artistic community.

In September of 1995, I moved out of my Family Home on the premise that I would be earning a three-year diploma in Radio & TV Broadcasting. I hadn’t a single clue what I wanted to do with my life, but had thought as far as, “I dunno, Disc Jockey?”. What I was certain about, was the fact that I wanted needed to get out of Collingwood, Ontario. They had rejected my campaign to be their Mayor (a Part-Time Job that paid $7,500CAD/year), so it was time for me to pull up stakes and begin my life in earnest.

Don’t judge my (lack of) hair. I was 20 years old, you can see what that town has done to me.

My 3-year stint at Conestoga College in Kitchener, Ontario (which, I determined, was far away enough to not have regular visits home, but still close enough to make a day trip out of), turned into one year of spotty attendance, and ultimately not finishing out the term. I was disillusioned with the technology that the department was using to teach Broadcasting, as much of it was already twenty years out-of-date, even in the mid-90’s.

This machine, a record player, and a microphone, and you got yerself a radio station!

But Grampa Jason, when are you going to talk about Bristol? I’m getting to it, quick nagging.

Anyway, having moved away to Kitchener, my Student Loan funds were merely a happy memory, and it became Priority #1 to find a job. I had plenty of degrading Customer Service jobs in the past, and I was sure to find another. Living in a City for the first time, I had a wider choice of options for what kind of store I could work at. Thankfully a solution was provided to me by my fellow student and new best friend Phil (one of my Life Heroes). We had bonded in class over our respective Music knowledge and taste, and we’re still friends today. I owe him a text. Besides being a working clown (really), Phil worked at a CD Store (the kind of job I knew I wanted), and he offered to recommend me to his Manager at CD Plus, Deb. Thus began my 15+ Year stint in Music Retail. Part-Time Customer Service Jason would eat again!

This is Phil, doing an Australian TV Commercial.
I have cool friends.

It was while working at CD Plus that I discovered Portishead’s debut, Dummy (nearly eighteen months after it was released. Curse you, Collingwood!). It was still on our Bestsellers Wall in the early months of 1996, and I finally heard one of the greatest debuts in Music. Dummy, with its cool, James Bond style of live instrumentation, turntablism, and the dreamy and evocative vocals of Beth Gibbons, is haunting and daring. It instantly won my heart.

Portishead – Dummy

I would do a feature-length story, just about Portishead, but with only three albums and a smattering of singles since 1994, it better serves to tell a larger story.

Not long after I found Portishead, a compilation album of various artists that went on to become a Cult Favourite (for those in the know). Fourth & Broadway Records/PolyGram’s Rebirth Of Cool Phive: Subterranean Abstract Blues helped usher in a new popular trend in Music that I prayed would supplant Grunge as the predominant new Genre. Featuring artists such as Coldcut, Wu-Tang’s Method Man, Bomb The Bass, and Beastie Boys, it also includes tracks from Portishead, Massive Attack, and former member of Massive Attack, Tricky. I soon put it together that all of the latter hailed from Bristol, England. I tucked that little factoid into my brain pocket.

Various Artists – The Rebirth Of Cool Phive: Subterranean Abstract Blues
Massive Attack – Karmacoma (Portishead Experience)

For my second year in Kitchener, I moved in with Phil and his girlfriend in a basement apartment, where I had access to Phil’s music collection, which included his penchant for import singles. There I discovered the Portishead single for Numb, and specifically, the 11-minute B-Side, A Tribute to Monk & Canatella. I thought, “Oh, cool! A tribute to Thelonious Monk! I’m still not sure what a Canatella is though…

Portishead – A Tribute To Monk & Canatella

As I soon discovered, Monk & Canatella was another band from Bristol, that Portishead admired. Also, they had just released their debut album Care In The Community. Enquiring minds had to know, and I quickly sought it out. It remains to this day one of my favourite albums of all time. Trip-Hop at its finest, with brilliant samples and excellent hooks.

Monk & Canatella – Care In The Community

Monk & Canatella’s album was released by Independent Label Cup of Tea Records; a Bristol-based Label that, by the time I became aware of it, had already released two compilation album of various artists. By this time, I had graduated to the Big Leagues of Music Retail, and got myself a Full-Time gig at HMV.

The former home of my HMV location. Sigh.

Cup of Tea Records was home to many artists based in Bristol, including Statik Sound System, Purple Penguin, and Mr. Scruff. Trip Hop was the way of the Future!

Mr. Scruff – Mouse At Organ

Soon enough, the release of Portishead’s self-titled second album came out, as well as Massive Attack’s third album, Mezzanine. Bristol had now been firmly established as the coolest hotbed for exciting New Music, and the City I’ve never been to that is closest to my heart.

Portishead – All Mine

Though it never reached the heights of Seattle, Bristol continues to quietly produce fantastic new artists with a sound all their own. One of my current favourites is Run Logan Run, an exciting duo that incorporates Jazz and electronics.

Run Logan Run – Great Fools

Thanks for reading! Check back next week for Chapter Seven – Sinéad O’Connor.

Jason’s New Music Heroes, Chapter Five – John Lennon:

A note before we begin…

I’m a huge Beatles fan. I wish I could tell you the story regarding how I became so, but I don’t rightly know. I’m of the generation that came just after the band broke up, and the ripples of what they were, and what they created, were still fresh, and in full effect. The cultural phenomenon that was The Beatles was part of the air I breathed as a child.

I could do one feature story, just about the lovable moptops, but it would take up all the space on the internet. Therefore, you will see three more in my Heroes series, featuring John Lennon’s bandmates.

John Lennon is one of my earliest memories. Specifically, the news of the murder of John Lennon is one of my earliest memories. On a day that could only have been Tuesday, December 9, 1980, I was nearly seven years old, and I clearly remember hearing on the radio, before going to school, that this person was dead, and it was a big deal. They would then play Lennon’s music. I couldn’t understand how that was possible, and it scared me. I guess I thought that musicians performed the music as it was broadcast. How could this dead person still be making music?

It just did not compute. On a very fundamental level, it still feels that way.

My young life continued, and I began to assert some sort of identity. By Fifth Grade, I became a Headbanger with my friend Piotr. We rolled with Twisted Sister, Judas Priest, and Canadian Hard Rock Legends Triumph.

Triumph – Follow Your Heart
I used to draw their logo on my binders.

This phase ended soon after I discovered the existence of females, but I really wouldn’t discover The Beatles properly until I learned about Charles Manson.

Charles Manson – Garbage Dump

I must have been about sixteen years old when I heard the story about this crazy guy, back in The Sixties, who was convinced that The Beatles were telling him to go and kill a bunch of people. It’s morbid, I know, but as a Music Fan, it fascinated me. There was a Civil Trial happening in the US around this time, where Judas Priest was said to have convinced someone to kill themself, so I wanted to know more. I read District Attorney Vincent Bugliosi’s account of the story, in Helter Skelter. I learned two things: I needed to hear The White Album, and Charles Manson was a real jerk.

The Beatles – s/t

I purchased The Beatles’ Self-Titled Double Album on cassette and began listening to it in my bedroom. I was not properly prepared to grasp what I was listening to. Every song was so different. I didn’t know the majority of the songs, who sang what, or what any of it meant. It sounded deranged. It was actually exhausting to listen to. (I wish the next part of this story wasn’t true, because it sounds like bad fiction.) Soon after I turned the second tape over to the album’s fourth side, I fell into a light sleep, and was startled awake by a man with a English accent, calmly repeating, “Number Nine…Number Nine…” In a panic, I turned off the tape, and caught my breath. What was that?? It wasn’t until later that I learned that this was the second opportunity for John Lennon to scare me.

After I calmed myself down, I then turned the radio on, to find some soothing sounds. (Still true, though the universe is conspiring against me to hide any relevant evidence) The song that was in the midst of being played was a cover version of Revolution by Canadian Bar-Rock band Junkhouse.

I’ve watched Horror Movies that weren’t as scary.

After years of therapy (just kidding), I wondered how the band who did I Want To Hold Your Hand progress to the deeply layered White Album? Soon after, I discovered a documentary that may have aired on MuchMusic, or it may have been American Public Broadcasting (PBS), called The Compleat Beatles. It answered a lot of questions.

There are only portions of The Compleat Beatles available on the web. Curse you, Macca!

It was this documentary that taught me about these clever four people who captivated the world. None seemed more clever than Lennon. The clip of the band performing for The Queen in a Royal Command Performance, when John asks the rich people to “rattle your jewelry” for the next song, is Punk Rock before it existed.

The Beatles – Twist And Shout

The audacity of John Lennon made him my favourite Beatle immediately. I noted that he, of the four, appeared to be the one that embraced Drug Use most readily and write about it in his lyrics. That intrigued me because I was taught that it was so bad, and that drugs would ruin your life. Soon enough, A Day In The Life, with its, “I’d love to turn you on,” refrain became, for a time, my favourite song. I had yet to do a single illicit drug.

The Beatles – A Day In The Life

One of the things I love about John was his immature approach to recording, and his naive way to describe what he wanted on tape. One of the earlier instances was in 1966 (the greatest year in the Beatles’ career. Fight me.). For his song Rain (the b-side to Paperback Writer) John claims that he loaded the tape into the machine backwards by mistake, and that is how we have the first instance of backwards messages in Pop Music.

The Beatles – Rain

Also in 1966, John (with the help of Ringo and Producer George Martin) invented Electronic Music (while also accurately sounding like a thousand monks chanting on a mountaintop).

The Beatles – Tomorrow Never Knows

1967’s I Am The Walrus is an incredible early example of incorporating samples into music. Towards the end of the song, John tuned into a radio station that was broadcasting Shakespeare. So ahead of their time.

The Beatles – I Am The Walrus

If I was held down and forced to name just one song that I would choose to listen to until the end of time, it would have to be Strawberry Fields Forever. John’s tribute to the place that brought him comfort when he was a child, “and nothing to get hung about,” has to be the one, for its warm embrace of a lyric, and the mad production. And Ringo’s drums. And Paul’s Mellotron. And George’s solo. If you don’t know the story of how this masterpiece was created, check this out.

The Beatles – Strawberry Fields Forever

One last Beatles song is like to spotlight from John is Across The Universe. The lyric of this song is pure poetry, and it helped me write my wedding vows. “Limitless undying love” is perfect. John was never happy with the recorded results of this song, but this take, with just voice and guitar, is my favourite.

The Beatles – Across The Universe (Take 6)

Around the same time that I saw The Compleat Beatles for the first time, a new documentary came out in 1989 called Imagine: John Lennon. It was here that I learned about the anti war efforts that he and Avant-Garde Artist Yoko Ono embarked on together, his separation from Yoko, the house-husband years, and so much great music.

Come on, Phil!

Before Lennon left The Beatles, he wrote a song about trying to stop using heroin, called Cold Turkey and suggested to McCartney that it be their next single. Paul demurred, with the opinion that the subject matter wouldn’t fit with their reputation. John decided to release it anyway, with his Plastic Ono Band, featuring Eric Clapton on guitar. Such audacious subject matter for a Pop artist.

John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band – Cold Turkey

John’s first solo album, titled Plastic Ono Band, finds Lennon in a sensitive condition, and his heart is bravely worn on his sleeve. Though still on again/off again with heroin, he tried a unique form of therapy that was created by Dr. Arthur Janov, where the patient is encouraged to let out their emotions by screaming. Primal Scream Therapy may not have helped John much, but the experience was still worthwhile for the following results.

John Lennon – Mother

Solo success came with John’s second solo album, Imagine. Probably Lennon’s most concise post-Beatles statement, the title track is basically the Communist Manifesto, sung to a beautiful Pop ballad. It was his biggest solo success, and what he is best remembered for beside the moptops.

John Lennon – Imagine

As for me, Gimme Some Truth still speaks strongly to me, and is a fabulous clarion call for honesty.

John Lennon – Gimme Some Truth

A song from John’s “Lost Weekend” period, while estranged from Yoko, of which I’ve always been fond, is John’s admission that he was wrong about the Business Manager that he and Yoko foisted upon The Beatles, Allen Klein. Steel and Glass is a scathing indictment on Klein, with dramatic strings.

John Lennon – Steel And Glass

After John and Yoko’s son, Sean, was born on John’s 35th birthday, October 9, 1975, John decided that he wanted to be there for his son, in the way that he wasn’t for his firstborn, Julian. This begins the tales of John in the kitchen, baking bread and playing patty cake with the baby. I like to think they’re true, despite reports to the contrary. Nevertheless, when John was on vacation in Bermuda, he heard Rock Lobster by The B-52s, and heard the resemblance to what Yoko had been doing for years, and was inspired to return to Music.

The B-52s – Rock Lobster

Double Fantasy, an album in which Lennon shared equal space with Ono, would be John’s last living musical statement. It’s heartbreaking, the amount of hope and certainty John sings with, words like “Close your eyes, have no fear. The monster’s gone, he’s on the run and your Daddy’s here”. It brings a lump to my throat when I think about how the monster was, indeed, not gone, and would soon after, take Daddy.

John Lennon – Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)

John Lennon was taken from us at the age of forty, and it really was a significant loss to the world. Who knows what could have happened? I would think the chances of a Beatles reunion would be a certainty. Maybe he’d become a Republican. Myself, I still like to think about Lennon as that rough and ready kid, singing Chuck Berry songs and having the time of his life.

The Beatles – Too Much Monkey Business

Check back on Sunday (10/16/22), for Jason’s New Music Heroes, Chapter Six – Bristol, England. And, if you are so inclined, come back on Friday (the 14th) for The New Music I’m Listening To This Week! Promise I won’t bite!

Upcoming New Releases – Week Ending Friday, October 14, 2022:

A good and happy Tuesday to all of you. As I return to regularly-scheduled writing, I’m grateful to have this outlet, which has become more than a hobby for me.

This week is shaping up to be one of your bigger weeks in New Music. A few big acts are coming out with hotly-anticipated releases, and, as always, there is plenty of stuff that I think I’ve heard of, some I know and am curious for, and the uncounted unknown.

Leading the charge is Rock-Funk Legends Red Hot Chili Peppers and one of England’s biggest current bands, The 1975.

The 1975 – I Like America & America Likes Me

A few of what I would call “mid-range” artists (who have earned a reputation but have not crossed over to widespread popularity), have titles due for release this week. I’m looking forward to hearing from M.I.A., Tove Lo, and John Zorn, but I’d like to point out Louis Cole’s latest album, Quality Over Opinion, which comes out Friday.

Louis Cole – Dead Inside Shuffle

My BandCamp Wishlist is surprisingly short this week, with only two releases other than The 1975 and Louis Cole. The one I’d like to feature is a Cellist and Composer from Guatemala named Mabe Fratti.

Mabe Fratti – Algo Grandioso

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the Backstreet Boys’ A Very Backstreet Christmas comes out on Friday. If I didn’t know any better I would say it sounds dirty. I do know well enough to say that it’s wrong.

Just a quick programming update to finish for today; Jason’s New Music Heroes, Chapter Five – John Lennon, which was scheduled for this past Sunday, will be ready to place in front of your eyes tomorrow (Wednesday). Chapter Six – Bristol, England will be published on regularly-scheduled Sunday.

Thanks to everyone reading this. Be good to yourself.