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Greatest Rock Vocalists #3, Elvis Presley, Heart Break Hotel, Hound Dog
Elvis was simply great, like a human tornado of cool, and one of the most original Americans in history. Was he musically original? Not exactly, but his instinct for sexing up rock and roll was brilliant. His originality was mainly found in his person, the archetype of the post World War II teenager; rebellious, greasy…
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Greatest Rock Vocalists #4, Queen, Bohemian Rhapsody
Never mind the image of the Muppets and Gonzo up there, that’s just some funny picture I found, this post is dedicated to the golden pipes of the late great Freddie Mercury, the fourth greatest vocalist in rock and roll history. Possessing the voice of a fallen angel, rocking vociferously as he descends to the…
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Greatest Rock Vocalists #5, Janis Joplin, Piece of My Heart, To Love Somebody
Did you know “Piece of my Heart” was originally recorded by Aretha Franklin’s older sister Erma? I didn’t even know Erma existed and had a music career. Thanks Wikipedia. Well, we all know Janis Joplin and Big Brother and the Holding Company’s classic version. The video I have below is the most hard rocking and…
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Spencer Davis Group, Gimmie Some Lovin', I'm a Man (Live)
Emerging like the God of blue-eyed soul in the first video below, 16 year Steve Winwood delivers one of the best rock vocal performances of all time in the seminal hit, “Gimmie Some Lovin.’” In 1965, rock and roll’s first ever teenage prodigy churned out a series of hits with the Spencer Davis Group before…
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Paul Simon, Kodachrome, Coneheads Highlights!
I was sitting around in Portland, Maine yesterday with nothing better to do, when on came the “Coneheads” movie. I haven’t seen in quite sometime, but its one of those movies where you just have to sit through the whole thing. I was amazed at the parade of 90s comedy superstars appearing in one scene…
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Dire Straits, Money For Nothing
Brothers in Arms was one of my favorite albums growing up. I remember when my dad bought a CD Stereo system in 1989 (a huge awesome piece of audio tech in those days), he bought a boatload of CDs, and this Dire Straits classic was one of them. It was also right around the time…
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The Rolling Stones, Gimmie Shelter, First Performance Ever!
Like the title says, this video represents the first time the Rolling Stones played, “Gimmie Shelter” in public. They played the song on “Pop Go the Sixties,” a variety show no doubt, (the 60s were rife with them,) and they pull it off as good as they ever would. Made for the brilliant Let it…
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George Gross, Senior Break, Nanny Cam
My friend George Gross is a brilliant filmmaker, but as he continues to rise to new levels of fame, he’ll have to compete with the world’s other famous George Gross, the one who made trashy (yet awesome) crime/sex posters like the one above. It’s actually not bad company, as I think the only other famous…
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John Lennon, India, India
Sorry for the disturbing lack of updates, but I was busy packing up my Brooklyn apartment and heading north for Maine. I’ve got three weeks in beautiful Portland before I head across the world to South Korea and Australia. I’m happy to be out of the city and hear crickets out my window, as four…
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Beulah, Gene Autry, Emma Blowgun's Last Stand, Ballad of the Lonely Agronaut
Beulah was formed in a mail room in San Fransisco when Miles Kurosky and Bill Swan decided they both liked the same music, well mostly. This is the kind of story yours truly can get behind due to own desire to hatch great ideas when I worked in a mail room. Robert Schneider of the…
