Life-Changing Bands (or Songs)

I've always had a thing for surf music, probably semi-related to my love for ska. I converted my wife by dragging her to see Dick Dale in a tiny club in Oakland not long before he died. It's been a pretty dry spell around here for my kind of live music so I've been wearing black and hanging around jazz clubs but when surf music calls, I need to answer. Two from Santa Cruz who are worth a trip:

The Mermen (who aren't all men, but never mind that)

The Expendables

Nauga,
outside, bruddah!
For a while I was into a surf rock band called the Space Cossacks. They're pretty cool.
 
The Grateful Dead, hands down. Musically extremely accomplished and diverse. Wrote music for Robert Hunter's spacy poems that made them make sense, could play anything from hallucinogenic rock to country to blue grass. In fact, about the only genre of music they didn't perform (although I'm sure they could have) is classical. Concerts way better than their records, which themselves weren't bad.

My appreciation of the Grateful Dead crystallized when I attended a two-day concert set opened by The Who. The second day The Who performed the exact same songs in the exact same order with the exact same antics and jokes. The Dead repeated one song, and their sets were twice as long as The Who's.
 
In observance of Memorial Day:


Roger Waters' father, Lt. Eric Fletcher Waters, was killed in action at Anzio, 18 February, 1944. Although (Roger) Waters was only 5 months old, his father's death had a profound influence on him that can be heard on every Pink Floyd album. After listening to the album The Final Cut, every previous 'Floyd album was new to me.

As for The Gunner, his song was life changing for all of us.

In the corner of some foreign field
The gunner sleeps tonight
What's done is done
We cannot just write off his final scene
Take heed of the dream
 
A few of his songs kinda resonate with me, this one popped into my head today. Kind of a balance to the happy LA surf songs, and I just found out today that go figure, one of the beach boys was actually one of the background singers on this recording. I may not be a fan of cheery tunes.

 
It's late at night at villa Nauga. The phone rings. It's the late '70's, I want their music back.
All three of these songs trigger particular college memories for me...and yet I still like them :cool:

Ultravox, before they went...whatever. If you start to question my taste skip ahead to about 2:30.

Gang of Four, who still have rhythm

Dave Edmunds and what might not be a life-affirming statement

Nauga,
and the sound of sweat
 
Villa Nauga, dark, strung with party lights, serving up cold mai tais, and cranking those tunes seems like a great place to hang.
 
It's late at night at villa Nauga. The phone rings. It's the late '70's, I want their music back.
All three of these songs trigger particular college memories for me...and yet I still like them :cool:


Dave Edmunds and what might not be a life-affirming statement

Nauga,
and the sound of sweat

The Dave Edmunds selection has to have an interesting story behind it.
 
I wouldn't describe The Dollyrots as being life changing, but they are a lot of fun to listen to.


On the other hand, Mary Fahl's performance of and Mark Doyle's arrangement of this George Harrison song absolutely blows me away.

 
I wouldn't describe The Dollyrots as being life changing, but they are a lot of fun to listen to.
"Because I'm Awesome" was a moderate influence on someone close to me.

"Feed Me Pet Me" is probably my favorite.


Nauga,
at 160 bpm
 
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