Tim Basham: Before the Music Dies

I’ve been reading “Rock of Ages, The Rolling Stone History of Rock & Roll,” specifically Ed Ward’s section on the composers who influenced American ears toward what would become the foundation of popular music, including rock. One such composer he mentions is the half-Jewish, half-Creole musician Louis Moreau Gottschalk who died in 1869. From the Britannica Encyclopedia:

“(Gottschalk was) the first American pianist to achieve international recognition and the first American composer to utilize Latin American and Creole folk themes and rhythms”

Ward explains that Gottschalk’s “use of minor chords slightly approximated the black musicians’ microtonal pitches.” The music’s a long way from “Johnny B. Goode” but many credit Gottschalk with creating the beginnings of Ragtime. On allthatjazz.com C. Michael Bailey wrote:

“The family tree of jazz piano I have always promoted has Gottschalk begetting (Scott) Joplin, Joplin begetting (Jelly Roll) Morton. Morton begetting J.P. Johnson, Fats Waller and all of the stride masters, who gave way to Art Tatum.”

More “begatting” spread to the likes of Louis Armstrong, Ray Charles, Elvis Presley and beyond.

Gottschalk’s journal is now a book. Read about it in the New York Sun story from 2006.

basham :: Jun.13.2007 :: Uncategorized :: No Comments »

Last night at Antone’s they were commemorating (celebrating may not be an appropriate word) the one year anniversary of Clifford Antone’s death. Hubert Sumlin was playing, along with Pinetop Perkins. I had first met Hubert back in November in NYC where we celebrated the great blues guitarist’s 75th birthday. So I caught up with him yesterday and had him share some of his terrific stories about playing with Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters, James Cotton and others. I have to say that Hubert is one of the kindest and most humble human beings you will ever meet. It’s no wonder Clifford loved the man. And he still plays with incredible emotion. His manager, Toni, was also on hand and when I asked her why there was such a magic in Hubert’s performance whenever he played at the club she just smiled and pointed at Clifford’s big picture on the wall next to the bandstand. Thank God for people like Toni and Hubert and Pinetop (who’s in his 90’s) as they help keep traditional blues alive and kicking. For more information on Hubert and where he’s playing next check out his website.

basham :: May.25.2007 :: Uncategorized :: No Comments »

My favorite music magazine Paste is celebrating its fifth anniversary. According to last year’s bookstore data Paste is either the first or second best-selling music magazine in stores like Barnes & Noble and Borders Books, not a small accomplishment for a self-started publication. If you’re a fan of Before the Music Dies you will like Paste. And I was a fan before I (official disclaimer notice) ever wrote for them which I still do on occasion. Their radio show Paste Culture Club is also very cool with archived broadcast interviews of music and film artists.

Popmatters recently reviewed Paste Magazine.

basham :: May.22.2007 :: Uncategorized :: No Comments »

Jeff Tweedy and Wilco, that little ol’ band from Chicago, is hitting the road to promote their new album “Sky Blue Sky”. Greg Kot and Jim DeRogatis sat with the guys for the “Sound Opinions” radio show that included a live performance from the band. Tweedy’s journey is a fascinating story and is well documented in Kot’s book Wilco: Learning How To Die. They have arguably become one of the most influential bands of the past decade.

basham :: May.21.2007 :: Uncategorized :: No Comments »

Power follows power. The people have spoken and Amazon is listening. Consumers are still downloading songs without the software that prohibits copying (digital rights management or DRM). So, the biggest seller of online CD’s, Amazon, announced last week that they will sell songs without the copy protection. This means the songs can be copied onto any computer, cell phone or music player like the iPod. EMI is the only major record label to forego copy protection right now. The other labels are still debating the idea as they try to figure out how to stop the downward trend of profits. The NY Times has the whole story.

basham :: May.21.2007 :: Uncategorized :: No Comments »

It’s interesting to note that the first black recording artist to have success on a national scale is someone that most of us have never heard of. It was back around 1890 when ex-slave George Johnson used to sing on street corners for pennies and nickels. But when a man offered to pay him to sing into a box Johnson became, perhaps, the first national recording star. Back then, recordings were done one at a time, with the sound being imprinted onto wax cylinders. Since you could only hear the “record” by standing close to the phonograph, street vendors would charge passers-by for the privilege of hearing some of the earliest recordings of the human voice. And soon a racially offensive tune called “The Laughing Song” was the most requested recording in the country. (And advertised through an equally offensive poster.) Johnson’s story is told in a book published last year called Lost Sounds: Blacks and the Birth of the Recording Industry, 1890-1919 by Tim Brooks. Check out the story on NPR and listen to the actual recordings of Johnson.

basham :: May.16.2007 :: Uncategorized :: No Comments »

What, no American idol? How about an Icelandic idol?
This year’s ACL Festival has the potential to be the best in the festival’s history–if based solely on the music. (We reserve full judgment till we see the weather forecast for September 14-16, since the heat has been brutal over the past couple of years.)

I won’t list all 130+ artists, but here are some highlights:
Bob Dylan, Wilco, Arcade Fire, The White Stripes, Björk, Lucinda Williams, The Killers, Arctic Monkeys, Joss Stone, The Decemberists, Spoon, Paolo Nutini, Ziggy Marley, Ben Kweller, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Yo La Tengo, Amy Winehouse, My Morning Jacket, Regina Spektor, Peter Bjorn and John, Billy Joe Shaver, Jon Dee Graham.

basham :: May.14.2007 :: Uncategorized :: No Comments »

For a journalist, attending music festivals is kind of like driving through Texas. I can easily find myself among the state’s top attractions–a Cowboys game at Texas Stadium or a stroll along the riverwalk in San Antonio. But I also like to drive the backroads where I can find some great little BBQ place with the ribs falling off the bone and into my mouth as I wash it down with a Big Red and finish it off with homemade peach pie for dessert. The lesser traveled path can be well worth the trip. Like catching an early performance from one of the lesser-known musicians at last September’s Austin City Limits Music Festival. I knew I could see Tom Petty or John Mayer. But the real fun is checking out the new blood, like 19-year-old Paolo Nutini who blew away a small, but appreciative midday audience. Later, while interviewing him backstage for a Paste Magazine podcast, I got a real kick out this kid whose first visit to America was six months earlier, also in Austin, when he performed at SXSW. Sporting the three-star tatoo he got after a little too much celebrating on that trip, I was able to get a look at what’s behind this voice that’s been compared to some of the greatest, like Al Green and Joe Cocker.
Another six months have passed since ACL Fest and Paolo is back, supporting this week’s American release of his double-platinum U.K. album These Streets. One thing’s for sure. The audiences are guaranteed to be bigger thanks to national TV appearances on shows like “Today” and “Late Night with Conan O’Brien”. It’s a good album. I think his “great” album is still in front of him, but in songs like “Last Request” he demonstrates a maturity of talent way beyond his years. And even potentially weaker tunes like “Alloway Grove” are suddenly made beautiful by a voice who Paolo himself says is influenced by everyone from John Martin to Sam Cooke to Marvin Gaye. “The record is about home,” he says, which is Paisley, Scotland where his parents still own a local fish and chips shop. “I’m still finding out what kind of person I actually am.” The entire interview can be heard online at Paste Culture Club. And samples of Nutini’s album can be heard at his MySpace site.

basham :: Jan.28.2007 :: Uncategorized :: No Comments »

Around a decade ago I came out of performance retirement and played keyboards for the talented Ron Flynt, whose band 20/20 had received some national attention back during the New Wave/Power Pop days of the late 70s and early 80s with hits like “Yellow Pill” and “Nuclear Boy”, even appearing on Dick Clark’s American Bandstand. When I met Ron he was working on a solo project. We had some minimal success, and a lot of fun, performing as Ron Flynt & the Bluehearts but soon went our separate ways while occasionally bumping into each other in town. On one of those recent “bumps” I learned that Ron had fallen from a height, seriously shattering numerous bones in his arm while remodeling his recording facility Jumping Dog Studio–not a small thing for one of the most talented bass players in the business. As it way too commonly happens for working musicians, Ron had no medical insurance. Tonight, Wed. Jan 24th, the famous Continental Club in Austin, Texas, will be throwing a benefit for Ron and his family. Some of Austin’s finest musicians will be playing, like Scrappy Jud Newcomb, Jon Dee Graham, Malford Milligan, Stephen Bruton, Monte Warden and a bunch more. For details check out the website www.ourmanflynt.com.

Great music for a great cause. Hope you can make it.

– Tim Basham

basham :: Jan.24.2007 :: Uncategorized :: No Comments »

When radio is at its best, it entertains while educating. The secret lies in listening to the right DJ. Is he (or she) just playing what the industry feeds them from a national, pre-programmed list? Or does he take the time to listen to as much as possible, enlisting years of experience and a well-trained ear to bring us a broad sampling of new music? Unfortunately, the former is the norm. But thanks to satellite radio and internet podcasts we have options outside of traditional radio. One of my favorites is “Sound Opinions” which is celebrating its first anniversary on Chicago Public Radio after seven successful years on Chicago’s WXRT. Hosted by Jim DeRogatis, music critic for the Chicago Sun-Times and Greg Kot, music critic for the Chicago Tribune, the show has consistently provided listeners with a wide band of music criticism on everything from hip hop to metal to pop and beyond. I don’t always agree with their opinions, but that’s okay because they often don’t agree with one another.

Take for example their reviews on Tom Waits’ recent 3-disc album Orphans. Every CD the pair reviews falls into a category of either Buy It, Burn It, or Trash It. Kot: “It’s one of the best things (Waits) has done in the past twenty years…Buy it.” DeRogatis: “I hate Tom Waits. He’s become this caricature of himself…Trash it.” (For the record, I still haven’t heard the entire CD, but what I have heard I liked very much.) And give these two middle-aged white guys credit for taking a serious listen to Clipse’s gangsta rap CD Hell Hath No Fury for which they both gave their highest marks with a “Buy It” rating. All the shows are archived enabling you to play them on your computer, or to just download them and catch ‘em on your MP3 player later. In addition to reviews, the hour-long show runs regular segments like “Desert Island Jukebox”, and my favorite, “Rock Doctors” where Greg and Jim take an average, musically ill patient and prescribe new music.

There are also in-studio live performances and interviews. Recent shows included Buddy Guy, The Police’ Andy Summers, Moby, Wilco’s Glenn Kotche, Gov’t Mule, The Bellrays and Radiohead. My only concern is they’ll start charging some sort of subscription. So catch it while you can–for free!

– Tim Basham

basham :: Jan.13.2007 :: Uncategorized :: 1 Comment »