sammymaudlin

sammymaudlin

Jun 202013
 

Let’s review the ground rules here. The Mystery Date song is not necessarily something I believe to be good. So feel free to rip it or praise it. Rather the song is something of interest due to the artist, influences, time period… Your job is to decipher as much as you can about the artist without research. Who do you think it is? Or, Who do you think it sounds like? When do you think it was recorded? Etc…

If you know who it is, don’t spoil it for the rest. Anyone who knows it can play the “mockcarr option.” This option is for those of you who just can’t hold your tongue and must let everyone know just how in-the-know you are by calling it. So if you know who it is and want everyone else to know that you know, click to email The Back Office. If correct we will post how brilliant you are in the Comments section.

The real test of strength though is to guess as close as possible without knowing. Ready, steady, go!

[audio:https://www.rocktownhall.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/MysteryDate6-20-13.mp3 |titles=Mystery Date 062013]

Despite the above “not necessarily…good” statement, I actually am somewhat surprised at how good I think this is. I am not a fan, at all, of the original source (“artist”), musically, personally or even physically. However I really, really like this song, for the first time, as performed by our Mystery Date. Should I give the original source more cred? Might there be more hidden treasures there by this “artist”? Or is this just a case of a cover version injecting life into something otherwise lifeless?

I didn’t even know what this song was about until now, which makes it rolling off the lips of the original source seem counter intuitive. Though research suggests it was based on actual events! Wha?!

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Jun 192013
 

Well it’s that time of year when we all bow down at the feet of our illustrious Mr. Moderator, perhaps the greatest rock-talker this world has known, and wish him Happy Birthday and give him a sincere thanks for pioneering the way towards this virtual sanctuary. And I’m only 1/2 joking.

RTH is a community as in a real community. This came to me twice within the recent past.  Mrs. Maudlin and I trekked down to Los Feliz recently to catch an art opening headlining our very own Slim Jade. The missus and I had gone to high school with Slim’s missus so RTH has brought us closer…BUT when I walked into our meeting place I was introduced to RTH’s own trigmogigmo. Trigmo is what we in The Back Office call an “organic” Townsperson. Meaning he found us without anyone pointing the way. He encouraged a friendship with the Jade’s as they live near each other and he comes down to Los Feliz to the show and… sammy meets trigmo. Weird and wonderful. Wouldn’t have happened if we didn’t exist. But we do.  

We listen to rock therefore we are.

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Apr 282013
 

George Jones dies. cliff sovinsanity puts up a great post about it here on RTH. My dad, big George Jones fan, calls me about the death and has read the post. He’s thrilled that Townsman telewacker posts a link to this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6j2YBD–1U. I talk about the White Lightening video in cliff’s post and mention that the Velvet Undergound (not sure he knows who they are/were) did a song called White Light/White Heat that might have been about a different intoxicant. He says it sounds like a song some old bluegrass guy, Ralph Stanley, did.

Born in Stratton, Virginia in 1927, Ralph Stanley

Says it was featured in the recent movie Lawless. So I check it out and…wait…wha??????

Turns out…

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Apr 232013
 

Let’s review the ground rules here. The Mystery Date song is not necessarily something I believe to be good. So feel free to rip it or praise it. Rather the song is something of interest due to the artist(s), influences, time period… Your job is to decipher as much as you can about the artist(s) without research. Who do you think it is? Or, Who do you think it sounds like? When do you think it was recorded? Etc…

If you know who it is, don’t spoil it for the rest. Anyone who knows it can play the “mockcarr option.” This option is for those of you who just can’t hold your tongue and must let everyone know just how in-the-know you are by calling it. So if you know who it is and want everyone else to know that you know, email The Back Office. If correct, The B.O. will let me know and I’ll post how brilliant you are in the Comments section.

As noted this is a Twofer and we are looking for both the composer/artist and the guest-artist/vocal-talent.

The real test of strength though is to guess as close as possible without knowing. Ready, steady, go!

[audio:https://www.rocktownhall.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Mystery-Date-042313.mp3|titles=Mystery Date 042312]
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Feb 082013
 

I’m not sure exactly where I heard this tidbit of George Harrison lore but half-assed Googling indicates that it comes from his autobiography. He said something to the effect that in The Beatles song I Want to Tell You, penned by Harrison, that he wished he had reversed the lyric,

But if I seem to act unkind
It’s only me, it’s not my mind
That is confusing things

to be something more like

But if I seem to act unkind
It isn’t me, it’s just my mind
That is confusing things

I admit that I could be butchering this story but I’m pretty sure that I have the gist of it. It stuck with me because I used to think that about that part of that song before I heard Harrison thought it too. It’s kinda obvious isn’t it? “Me” is so much more than “mind.” Anyhoo… Here is the only version I could find where it is sung by Harrison in this reversed way.

Unfortunately it is a pretty crappy version of the song,  IMHO. It doesn’t help that Eric Clapton, I think, is part of this performance as well. Feel free to Pince Nez me Townsfolk.

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Jan 122013
 

As you may have heard, today is Rock Town Hall‘s birthday.

According to Cafe Astrology

If You Were Born Today, January 12

You have a strong character with a contrary streak, but overall, you are charming and intriguing. While responsible and basically security-minded, you can also be quirky and rebellious. You are very partnership-oriented, always in mind that things are better shared, even the smallest things and simplest of activities. It is not that you are dependent exactly–in fact, you have a decidedly independent streak–it’s more that you truly enjoy good company.

Read more about RTH‘s “year ahead” here.

The sorta odd thing is, that description above is pretty accurate.  Meanwhile…

A half-assed look around for what rocktsters share a birthday with RTH I found:
Melanie Chisholm (Spice Girls)
Raekwon (Wu-Tang Clan)
Chris Bell (Big Star)
Rob Zombie (White Zombie)
Charlie Gillingham (Counting Crows)
Per Gessle (Roxette)
Cynthia Robinson (Sly & The Family Stone)
William Lee Gordon (Oak Ridge Boys)
Zach de la Rocha (Rage Against The Machine)

Non rocksters include:
Kirstie Alley
Howard Stern
Joe Frazier
Jack London
Rush Limbaugh

I’m not thrilled with what I found honestly.  If I was ranking these as the most-to-least accurate, I’d put Chris Bell at the top and Rush Limbaugh at the bottom.  So says I.  What say you?  Or better yet can you find any others that are better or worse than these?

Better better yet, what rocksters or non-rocksters do you share a birthday with?  Which are you most proud of and which are you not?

I was born on February 28.  I have yet to find anyone with that birthday that I can identify with or hate for that matter.  The closest I can get, best|worst are…

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