What Are You Listening To?

[brianvds]

Poking around on YouTube, I stumbled on this:

The liturgical music of the Orthodox churches tends to be (at least by my tastes) absolutely intoxicating, hypnotically beautiful. Particularly compared with the dour, joyless dirges I endured as a kid in local protestant churches. Lucky for me I grew up in a secular family, so such visits were rare (basically only weddings and funerals!), but it made a lasting impression of dusty, thoughtless, joyless music made by dusty, thoughtless, joyless people.

Now had I grown up in an Orthodox church instead, I might have turned into a regular church goer. Alas. Thanks to Martin Luther, I am hell-bound.

 

[Artyczar]

 

[stlukesguild]

I love the Orthodox Russian chants as well. After a long day in the studio I used to turn off the overhead lights and leave a single flood light aimed at one of my paintings and listen to these chants. I used to joke that this would be the perfect way to display my paintings.

I just finished listening to Bill Evans:

The painting looks like a Nicolas de Staël... or an early abstract by Guston.

Bill Evans: Everything Happens to Me

 

[Artyczar]

Thanks St. Luke. I really like what I heard of Bill Evans.

 

[OliveOyl]

I just watched the first part of this....the music of my youth. I’m not one for nostalgia but this comes pretty close to getting me there.

 

[OliveOyl]

Now, PJ Harvey is a musician *I* like.

But it’s funny (or maybe sad, I guess) at how little I listen to music anymore. The hub is still into everything and I know that Bill Evans wafts through the house every now and then.

Briefly, I was in a jazz phase and went to two Newport Jazz festivals. At other times I also saw Jean Luc-Ponty, Larry Coryell, Al Di Meola, Chick Corea, Lenny White, Billy Cobham, George Duke, Miroslav Vitous, Stanley Clarke, and Christian McBride. It’s weird I can remember their names (was that all?) but really, except for Lenny White... I have no memory anymore of the concert “experience.” Nor could I tell you anything about any of them.

 

[stlukesguild]

Thanks St. Luke. I really like what I heard of Bill Evans.

Of course, Everybody digs Bill Evans.

Bill Evans: Minority

 

[brianvds]

I love the Orthodox Russian chants as well. After a long day in the studio I used to turn off the overhead lights and leave a single flood light aimed at one of my paintings and listen to these chants. I used to joke that this would be the perfect way to display my paintings.

I'm sure those monks would agree that their music is best accompanied by scantily clad ladies.

 

[stlukesguild]

I'm sure those monks would agree that their music is best accompanied by scantily clad ladies.

Who wouldn't?

 

[Artyczar]

Now, PJ Harvey is a musician *I* like.

But it’s funny (or maybe sad, I guess) at how little I listen to music anymore. The hub is still into everything and I know that Bill Evans wafts through the house every now and then.

Briefly, I was in a jazz phase and went to two Newport Jazz festivals. At other times I also saw Jean Luc-Ponty, Larry Coryell, Al Di Meola, Chick Corea, Lenny White, Billy Cobham, George Duke, Miroslav Vitous, Stanley Clarke, and Christian McBride. It’s weird I can remember their names (was that all?) but really, except for Lenny White... I have no memory anymore of the concert “experience.” Nor could I tell you anything about any of them.

I like Harvey, and I like jazz. I like so many different kinds of music, it's a little bit crazy. I remember those jazz festivals with all those guys and I knew some of them personally. You brought back some memories. I took a lesson from Cobham before. I don't remember if that was in my book, but it was at one point. I love Joni Mitchell, which your other post reminded me of. That was a pretty good movie. That makes me want to listen to:

 

[OliveOyl]

I had to google to see what that album was, and was kind of shocked at how many records she made. Then I went and looked to see what *I* have...and so it's Court and Spark (CD) and For the Roses (vinyl). I think I'll get the hub to "get me" (clap! clap! snap to it!) Ladies of the Canyon. I don't know where he goes or what he does but I "just request" and voila, I have some music in my hands.

Was there anybody else quite like her? The Laurel Canyon doc is a collection of snippets of homemade movies by those that lived there, as well as great stills taken by Henry Diltz, a "rock and roll photographer," who was a friend to all and part of that crowd. Very insider stuff. In the Joni "segment," they show what happened when she moved to the Canyon. David Crosby said he "loved her" and happily helped her with her first album by pretending to know how to produce a record. Both he or Joni didn't want anybody to, "turn an apple into an orange." Next, when Graham Nash is leaving the Hollies, Cass Elliot picks him up at the airport in her little sports car and takes him back with her to meet everyone else at the Canyon. He was immediately smitten with Joni and their love affair starts.

The best part though, was when Clapton entered this little group. He meets Joni for the first time and she plays some kind of "unusual chord change thing." Whatever it was, it was new to Clapton and here's that moment, captured by Diltz.

Love Clapton's expression here. So...intent.
Maybe as all men should be, sitting at the foot of a great woman.

 

[Artyczar]

Court and Spark is also an amazing album. They all are, but Ladies of the Canyon is maybe more popular. Did you know she painted all her album covers?

I think every man fell in love with her. Women probably did too. She is an amazing person, talented, beautiful, unique, strong, everything.

 

[stlukesguild]

 

[brianvds]

View attachment 775

My brother and his wife had twin boys, years ago. The two suffered from the worst case of colic in history. In stereo.

But, says my brother, he found that there is a simple cure, in the form of brandy and The Doors. What you do is this: put the twins to bed in their bedroom. Close the door. Then go sit in the sitting room, drink the brandy, and put The Doors on the stereo, at top volume. Like magic, the ceaseless crying goes away.

 

[stlukesguild]

 

[stlukesguild]

The expected heat wave arrived this afternoon and no... I left off working further in organizing my new studio. Too damn hot! Anyhow, I'm waiting on the arrival of an ordered utility table to organize my materials. I've spent most of the rest of the day listening to music... and a rather eclectic selection at that. After Creedence Clearwater Revival I moved on to Joni Mitchell's Court & Spark, the truly weird and psychedelic Forever Changes by Love, King Crimson's In the Court of the Crimson King, one of the earliest examples of "progressive rock ala Yes and Pink Floyd, and finally... Miles Davis' Sketches of Spain. I think Brian would enjoy the Miles Davis album. Sketches of Spain includes an arrangement of music made by Miles Davis and Gil Evans that fuses elements of jazz with Spanish classical (including compositions by Joaquín Rodrigo and Manuel de Falla) and Spanish folk music.

Miles Davis: Sketches of Spain

 

[OliveOyl]

A few years we saw King Crimson...two geezers going to watch some other geezers. The hub loves them but for me...? Eh. There was something about Fripp’s guitar that pierced a hole through my brain. During a break, I went to the bathroom and took some tissue paper back to my seat. When the lights went back down, I wadded up the paper and stuck them in my ears.

It wasn’t my elderly eardrums....it was the PIERCE o’noise.

 

[Artyczar]

used to love a couple of King Crimson's records. I'd listen to them over and over, especially because of Bill Bruford's drumming and all those odd signatures that played in. I liked the repetition too. almost meditative, but I don't think I could stand them live either. It's like going to a Grateful Dead concert without being high on something at least. You could easily fall asleep.

 

[stlukesguild]

You'd really want to be "on something" for that Love: Forever Changes album.

 

[stlukesguild]

And there are times when I think Mahler must have been "on something".