When I first heard Grand Champeen, my first impression is they sounded like Soul Asylum used to sound. Their sound had the urgency and intensity of early Soul Asylum albums and shows and their recorded input thus far has revealed they can also write some great rock songs. They sound like a continuation of Soul Asylum, circa, And The Horse They Rode On, as if they never recorded Grave Dancers Union. Don't get me wrong, Soul Asylum is still one of favourite bands from the 80's, but unfortunately with huge mainstream success comes mediocre songs that seem to have taken the edge off the band. I saw Soul Asylum live around the time when the success of Grave Dancers broke (1993) and they were just starting to get some commercial radio play and then saw them again in the 2002 in Fargo (for $15), well after they were chewed up and spit out by the mainstream. One thing I can say about the band is that you have to see them live, to fully appreciate them. Back in the late 80's they were heralded as one of the hardest working bands live and it still rang true when I saw them. I love all their albums pre-Grave Dancers and I have piles of concert recordings from all periods of their career that I still covet. In the 80's, they were probably most comparable to the Replacements for their live shows filled with cool covers and their spontaneous drunken performances.
In 2006, Grand Champeen took on the challenge to perform the Soul Asylum songbook in front of a Minneapolis crowd (SA's hometown) for a Benefit for the Karl Mueller foundation. The results were amazing, they sounded so much like Soul Asylum if you weren't a hardcore fan (or a collector of their live shows), you might think it's actually them! For the hometown crowd, they were treated to a setlist restricted only to their earlier material up to, And the Horse They Rode On and as a bonus to close the show they played the awesome, James At 16 medley, song by song, a SA live classic. This unique show is a must listen for Soul Asylum fans that miss the old songs and also it's a pleasure to hear a talented band like Grand Champeen having the time of their lives paying tribute to a band that has influenced and inspired their own music!
Enjoy!!
GRAND CHAMPEEN
April 14th, 2006
7th Street Entry
Minneapolis, MN
01. All the Kings
02. Tied to the Tracks
03. Closer to the Stars
04. Easy Street
05. Crashing Down
06. Marionette
07. Can't Go Back
08. Sometime to Return
09. Chains
10. Broken Glass
11. Sun Don't Shine
12. Stranger
13. Long Way Home
14. Spinnin'
15. Never Really Been
16. Standing in the Doorway
17. Nowhere to Go
18. Made to be Broken
19. Freaks
20. Be On Your Way
21. Cartoon*
22. Heavy Rotation
23. medley 1
24. medley 2
Guitar/Vocals: Channing Lewis
Guitar/Vocals: Michael Crow
Bass: Alex Livingston
Drums: Ned Stewart
GRAND CHAMPEEN- 4-14-06 Mpls, MN. rar
Grand Champeen are such a great band. There are plenty of fantastic YouTube videos of them out there, but the ones from their home tuft at The Hole In The Wall are probably the best. Their album showcase their songs nicely, but don't always capture how awesome they are live.
ReplyDeleteBTW - Thanks for your site and for keeping the links alive, I know I've visited your site before, but I recently lost a bunch of music and it's nice that most of this is still available.