Post a controversial music opinion

Harmonia, "Deluxe".

Faust also.

... and Gong.

not sure that gong ever visited a city (or even a small town)

Incredible String Band - twice. A whole lot of bands tried and invariably failed to get it together in the country.

Led Zeppelin, at both Bron-Yr-Aur and Headley Grange.

for band newbies: 'music from big pink' is still remarkable, tapped into an arcane spirit that no other album has managed to channel. the self-titled is excellent roots music, less alien, more traditional country-style, still beautiful. i prefer it, on most days, but it's not as singular an effort as 'big pink.' beyond there, there are some excellent songs, but nothing as astonishing as the first two albums.

this has been my entry into the "post a conventional opinion" thread

The cousin to this would be leaving your home country to work it out elsewhere, possibly for fiscal/tax reasons (Exile On Main St. those ELO albums Lynne wrote & recorded in Germany, Bowie & Iggy in Berlin etc).

Still failing to see how something like "Whispering Pines", for instance, is roots music.

It's 'roots' as in it's Folk-based, like if AP Carter had heard Dylan.

It doesn't sound anything like folk music though plus have you seen the chords to that song?

I do think the Band's country influence is way overstated, I think for example the R&B influences are much stronger

OTM

"King Harvest" is funky as hell.

otm

"whispering pines" is a down-home ballad, not too far off from "when you awake" a couple tracks earlier or "all la glory" on stage fright. just because it's a complicated progression doesn't mean it's not rooted in that traditional balladry.

"jawbone" also has a complicated progression, and "the unfaithful servant"

I do think the Band's country influence is way overstated, I think for example the R&B influences are much stronger

the album starts off with "across the great divide" and "rag mama rag," that's a mighty first impression

Premier agrees

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q42ghNsHw6k

though in fairness to the country thing they did dress like civil war era farmers which probably had soemething to do with it

well yeah the whole thing about the band was the mix of all these american traditions into a slurry that can't be neatly categorized. there's lead belly-esque folk, traditional new orleans music, delta blues, contemporary rock and r&b, etc. there is absolutely some country in there, and that element is more present on the brown album than any of their other releases

oh yeah i don't mean to suggest the country influences don't exists (they covered Long Black Veil even) but i just think people ignore the other stuff you mentioned sometimes

Yes that's a fair description. I just think when people say the Band, oh yeah roots rock it's a bit misleading as to what they actually sound like.

(xp)

he said something like "reverse two letters and you'll learn what Aerosmith is really about"

― linoleum gallagher (Neanderthal), Thursday, August 10, 2023 4:37 PM (four minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

lmao, classic tyler

― Blues Guitar Solo Heatmap (Free Download) (upper mississippi sh@kedown)

so this is the first post after the cut and i'm going "wait, earosmith? i don't get it..."

I mean, like, how about two women and an ocelot in a yurt?

― Bonobo Vox (Ye Mad Puffin)

never been to michfest i see

me either :(

Still failing to see how something like "Whispering Pines", for instance, is roots music.

― Monthly Python (Tom D.)

"whispering pines" is a great song, i haven't really heard, like, anything by the band. i heard "leave me alone" by the canadian squires, which i like a lot. "whispering pines" doesn't sound much like that song either.

Hendrix got into the spirit by covering "Tears of Rage."

― Montgomery Burns' Jazz (Tarfumes The Escape Goat)

i mean hendrix just loved dylan a lot, i feel like hearing dylan made him feel less self-conscious about his voice - which is awesome, because hendrix's voice is great!

even country people went back to the country after hearing the band, ccr, dylan, byrds, etc. those dusty outlaw records from the 70s. those singer/songwriter types like mickey and guy and the texas dudes. even early 60s teen pop stars who decided to use their full names on albums covers. everyone was weary of the bright lights.

(ftr, ccr are my band...)

lol at Earosmith

Redence Ceerwater Crevival

^^^ sometimes I wonder if the haters are confusing The Band with someone else??

― brimstead

well yeah the whole thing about the band was the mix of all these american traditions into a slurry that can't be neatly categorized. there's lead belly-esque folk, traditional new orleans music, delta blues, contemporary rock and r&b, etc. there is absolutely some country in there, and that element is more present on the brown album than any of their other releases

― ludicrously capacious bag (voodoo chili)

wait, fans call one of their albums "the brown album"? i think i've cracked it, clearly haters are confusing The Band with Ween

(i like old dr. john records a lot too. those are the funky genre gumbos for me. great songs and space and darkness and drum beats. i enjoy louisiana blues from the late 60s and early 70s a ton. more than most kinds of blues. i like that swampy mix of influences and strains. french people on top of fats domino on top of chicago blues on top of new orleans jazz, etc. i listen to professor longhair records.)

it can sometimes be confusing to refer to an album called 'the band' by the band called 'the band'

xp

gris-gris is so great

well, heck, since i'm here, i'll continue with my ban-worthiness. i don't even care that The Band backed up Dylan. i like Dylan and the songs and i LOVE the production of those records but i don't love The Band. i feel like they cemented that shaggy ramshackle thing that is not always my fave thing and probably a big reason why i don't listen to a lot of live Dylan from the latter years. i would have preferred the Small Faces backing Dylan up in the 60s. or Creedence! and from then on he would have been known for his tight and fiery death choogle power rock live gigs. i don't even like Al Kooper that much really. i like the soundtrack to The Landlord. i like BS&T post-Kooper. i don't think he was a great producer. i'm not a huge Mike Bloomfield fan. i can listen to bootleg live versions of "East-West" all day. that's a given. but other than stuff on those first 3 Paul Butterfield albums..eh. but i could say the same about John Mayall and Alexis Korner or whoever. i adore Bob Johnston. best touring Dylan band would have just been Area Code 615 or Barefoot Jerry! in an alternate universe we could have heard that glory.

(and yes i do like the records those barefoot guys play on. JWH and NS and BOB. though i don't listen to them much. i am not a blonde on blonde fanatic. could have used some trimming.)

skot have you heard the 66 UK tour dylan recordings (albert hall/"real" albert hall) - Levon chickened out on the tour so they got Mickey Jones (who you know and love as playing a biker in every 80s and 90s movie)....anyway he's more of a basher than Levon and I think it kinda works better for the riled up, amphetamine thing they were doing on that tour.

it can sometimes be confusing to refer to an album called 'the band' by the band called 'the band'

xp

― ludicrously capacious bag (voodoo chili)

i'd sympathize if they'd gone on to put out a green album, a red album, a white album, a teal album, and a black album, all of which suck

(i'd probably rather listen to the three albums by the band Blonde On Blonde than Bob's BOB. was listening to the first Mecki Mark Men album the othe night - i got a sweet u.s. pressing - and MY GOD what if that had been the future instead of dusty fauxbillies? sheesh. that thing destroys time and space. it will never ever make you think of the Carter Family.)

"skot have you heard the 66 UK tour dylan recordings"

i love that bootleg set. the official set. with the acoustic and electric. yeah, no, i will not deny the excitement of that performance solo and band-wise. but have you seen footage of creedence at the royal albert hall?

my brother in choogle, my dad was the biggest creedence fan and chronicle is probably literally why i'm here chatting w/everyone today, they were the greatest! (but yeah that's great, woodstock too - even though fogerty acts like it's bad for some reason)

i'd sympathize if they'd gone on to put out a green album, a red album, a white album, a teal album, and a black album, all of which suck

― Kate (rushomancy)

haha and the most recently bumped thread besides this one is ivy saying the white album is her favorite by them #onethread

oh my god this...the only problem is it's only 9 minutes not 20

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Azt-0StLZOk

i can't remember if i ever started a VU -vs- CCR death choogle showdown thread. both bands had a lot of similarities. darkness. bo diddley. endless jams. questionable bowl cuts. oh i could write a book.

better roots rock bands than The Band: ZZ Top, The Stoneman Family, Thin Lizzy, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Cowboy, Homer & Jethro, Little Feat, any episode of Hee Haw, Disney's Country Bear Jamboree.

― scott seward

Ok now hearing THE BAND for the first time and they're good but I'll agree with scott. There's plenty of Little Feat songs which are better than what I've heard so far.

both The Band and Little Feat do this thing where it's like a blues song except they throw in a ton of additional chord changes to the point where it starts to get weird and confusing in a good way

little feat are yacht rock and so are the band

it's a big and ever expanding yacht

is Sloop John B yacht rock?

look out, mama, there's a white yacht comin' up the river