Hopkins -- who died at the age of 50 in 1994, tragically -- was hands down the greatest piano player in the history of rock, but I must confess that I was unaware of the above album untill last week; Wikipedia doesn't even include it in his solo discography. I should add that it was produced by Shel Talmy, with whom Hopkins worked on innumerable records by The Who and The Kinks , but I have been unable to discover who wrote the fabulous string arrangement.
Normally, that would be a sort of dancing bear thing, i.e. you'd be impressed that it was being done at all, rather than being done well. But that gal really cooks!!!
Meanwhile, you can learn more about her over HERE. And maybe tomorrow I'll post a clip of her playing three trumpets at the same time.
I've been a sort of fan of those guys for a while, but that song -- which I hadn't ever heard until this morning, on the recommendation of a teenage friend of mine who has amazing good taste -- just destroys me.
I mean -- I'm not used to crying before breakfast.
[h/t Bekka Sakhno]
...please enjoy indie rock legend and friend of PowerPop Jim Basnight and his absolutely fabulous version of "So Much in Love."
That is, of course, a Jagger/Richards song that the Stones never recorded; you probably know it from the early '80s cover by The Inmates, which was a minor radio hit in these parts. In any event, it's a long time favorite at Casa Simels.
The bottom line is that Jokers, Idols & Misfits has similarly splendid renditions of classics by all sorts of worthies including The Beatles, The Who, The Sonics, Stories and David JoHansen, and every one of them is worth hearing; you can -- and obviously should -- download or stream the album over HERE. Believe me, you'll be glad you did.
Have a great weekend, everybody!!!
An absolutely fab song by a friend of PowerPop goes up much later today, and stays up all weekend.
Trust me, it will be worth the wait.
[I originally posted this in 2010. Cut to yesterday -- when I got an e-mail from the estimable Alvin Wallace that pretty much cleared up a question the piece raised. Have I mentioned that some days I really love my phony baloney job? In any case -- enjoy. -- S.S.]
From 1973 and the largely overlooked album Louisiana Rock & Roll, please enjoy Potliquor and "H." Their (I think tremendously haunting) ode to...I'm not exactly sure what.
I mean, given the title I have my suspicions, but I've never quite figured it out, despite repeated, even obsessive, listenings.
Anyway, the absolutely perfect not-a-superfluous-note guitar solo at the finale is by the song's author (and singer), Les Wallace. And it's as close to vintage Mick Taylor with The Rolling Stones as anything I've ever heard, I'll tell you that for free.
Amazing production on that, as well; I particularly like the way it's all but impossible to discern where the guitar ends and the clavinet begins. Seriously -- I can't think of another American hard rock band of the same vintage whose records sound as good as that.
Potliquor (I've been a fan since back in the day, thanks to being on a lot of record company mailing lists in college) were an interesting bunch, actually, and definitely worth reappraisal. Their three albums (released between 1969-73) were wildy uneven, but the good stuff was out of this world and there were times they got really close to the sort of mutant blues/metal soundscapes normally associated with Brits like The Move.
I've tried to track these guys down over the years. Don't know where the aforementioned Les Wallace is, but drummer Jerry Amoroso is on Facebook and has threatened to get in touch with me (hi, Jerry!). Auxiliary bassist and friend of the band Leon Medica (that's him on "H") believes they're all alive and well, and has been in touch with keyboardist (turned Christian singer/songwriter) George Ratzlaff from time to time.
In any case, you can legally download all three original Potliquor LPs over at Amazon HERE.
And if Les Wallace is out there -- dude, give me a holler. I really want to know what the song is about.
POSTSCRIPT: So as I suggested upstairs, the following appeared in my e-mail yesterday, and -- in the immortal words of Cristina Applegate on Married With Children -- you could have knocked me over with the weather.
Hi, sorry its been ten years since you inquired of my older brother, Les. Ran across your post while checking out Van Broussard's obit. Les is alive, doing well at a remote cabin in SW Missouri NE of Springfield. Doesn't get out much these days because of the Covid, and doesn't live in a phone service area. Was still playing in local area around Branson and traveled to annual farm fest in Iowa for two weeks until earlier this year. Has done some great work over the last 40+ yrs, but has never recorded any except what family and friends have been fortunate enough to capture. Shame the greed of the music mafia has negated the work of so many great musicians. Some OD'd, some committed suicide, some spaced out to never return, but most, like Les, quit making people rich but never quit playing. Thanks for asking. -- Alvin Wallace
To which I can only respond a) wow and b) thank you, Alvin.
Case in point: Last week, when I had the opportunity to phone chat with one of my long time musical heroes, original Byrds bassist Chris Hillman, whose wonderful autobiography Time Between: My Life as a Byrd, Burrito Brother, and Beyond...
...dropped (as the kids say) today.
For starters, this is one of the best rock memoirs ever; as I told Chris, it reminded me of Bruce Springsteen's Born to Run, in the sense that a) Hillman turns out to be a really good writer, and b) that even before he gets around to the music stuff, the chapters on his childhood (in Hillman's case, in Rancho Santa Fe California) are absolutely engrossing and evocative. Note to Byrds fans: Chris gives the true fact lowdown on the real life character who inspired Hillman's great song "Old John Robertson"...
...originally recorded by the Byrds in 1967. Which in itself is worth the price of admission.
I should add that Chris turned out to be as charming and gracious as anybody I've ever interviewed, and that he shared a couple of wonderful stories with me, including a pretty hilarious bit about how he and his wife are dealing with our current trying times; suffice it to say it involves his fellow Byrd Roger McGuinn (and wife), daily Zoom trivial pursuit contests, and cocktails.
In any case, Time Between is an absolutely smashing read; you can -- and obviously should -- order the book (either via Kindle or an actual physical copy) over at Amazon HERE.
Running behind schedule, but that post I promised yesterday will definitely go up later today. Thank you.
Seriously -- I have barely been able to get out of bed for the last couple of days because of that shit. Trust me -- it's the worst.
Going to get this checked by a doctor on Monday, assuming I'm steady on my feet enough to leave the house. In any case, Tuesday's post, which is already written, is going to be a beaut that I have been looking forward to for over a week.
