The Odds- RealTime 1996

The Odds are a Canadian band that I somehow overlooked back in the 90's. I always liked the band, I saw their music videos on TV and heard their "hits" on the radio, but never dug deeper and bought any of their full length albums until a couple of weeks ago. The Odds are a band I should have listened to more, they have a great power pop sound with plenty of guitar, a sound that is kind of edgy, but poppy and melodic enough to get mainstream radio play in Canada. The band went on a hiatus from 1999 to 2007, when Craig Northey left the band to pursue other projects. One of Northey's projects was a collaboration with the Gin Blossom's, Jesse Valenzuela to co-write and perform the theme song, Not A Lot Goin On for the hugely popular CTV show, Corner Gas. Ironically enough, this song might be the most recognizable Odds-related song in their career. More recently, the Odds could be seen (or at least heard) at Vancouver Canuck playoff games as their "house band" performing high above the ice in a private box. Unfortunately, for Canucks and Odds fans their appearance has been limited due to the Canucks lame early exit from the playoffs the last two years.

I dug through my tapes to find this rare little gem that was recorded from my big blaster tape deck onto cassette from a live CBC broadcast in 1996. This was a live in-studio performance in the CBC studios for a program called, RealTime that was heard on Saturday nights on the national network up here in Canada. The Odds performed songs from their latest album, Nest that featured the song, Someone Who's Cool, their biggest hit and arguably the best song they ever wrote. At this time the band was at the height of their career and have yet to match that success. This live session is a good listen, the band is playing their instruments through mini battery-powered amps so the sound is raw and they were obviously have a fun time in the studio. I honestly haven't listened to this tape since I recorded it, but I'm glad I can share it now. On the flip-side of the tape is a Sloan show from 1996 that might have been aired on the same night and I probably recorded the Odds session since I was recording anyways. The sound is okay, but be forewarned there is some static on the first two tracks (I seem to have a lot of radio reception problems on my stereo).
Enjoy!

THE ODDS
CBC "RealTime"
CBC Studio
Vancouver, BC
December 7, 1996

FM Master (cassette)

01. Someone Who's Cool
02. interview
03. Heard You Wrong
04. Nothing Beautiful
05. talk
06. Say You Mean It Wondergirl
07. interview


THE ODDS- 1996-12-07, CBC RealTime, Vancouver, BC, FLAC .rar

Big Star- Rehearsals 1993

Though they only released three studio albums in the early 70's, the interest in Big Star has continued even 40 years later. The band's influence is evident in many bands today and though the band never reached huge mainstream success, they have (arguably) been widely regarded as one of the greatest rock bands of all time. Big Star: Nothing Can Hurt You is a full length documentary film that will coming to theatres across the country this summer. The film features never seen before footage of the band as well as in depth interviews. It's unfortunate that 3 of the 4 members of the band had passed away (Chris Bell 1978, Alex Chilton 2010, Andy Hummel 2010) before the completion of the film. I'll definitely have an interest trying to catch a screening of the film, as I admittedly am not an expert about the band's history and legacy.


I first became aware of Big Star from listening to Replacements bootlegs with the band covering songs like, September Gurls and I'm In Love With A Girl. Hey, if my favourite band, the Replacements love Big Star, I better see what the fuss was. From that I bought a CD compiling both #1 Record and Radio City and also their third album, Sister Lovers/Third, definitely one of my wisest music decisions ever. I never had a chance to see Big Star live (I was too young during their original inception and the reunited version of the band never toured close enough) and the closest that I've come to Big Star-related live shows was the Posies and Golden Smog with Jody Stephens on drums, both shows (in different years) at the 400 bar in Minneapolis in the 2000's.

To get you in the right spirit, I'm posting the "reunited" version of Big Star (Alex Chilton, Jody Stephens, Jon Auer, Ken Stringfellow) rehearsing a run through of their set before the first reunion show that was immortalized on the live recording, Columbia: Live At Missouri University. Recordings like this are cool because they offer a fly-on-the wall listen to the band working through the songs, with some discussion about details of the songs. A solid sounding set, though the vocals are low in parts, this should interest any fans of the band and it's yet another rare document of a great band we don't know enough about and apparently can't get enough of.

BIG STAR
"set run through"
unknown location
Seattle, WA
April 13, 1993

01 In the Street
02 Don't Lie To Me
03 I Am the Cosmos
04 Oh My Soul
05 Ballad of El Goodo
06 Back of a Car
07 Way Out West
08 Daisy Glaze
09 Thirteen
10 Baby Strange
11 For You
12 Feel
13 September Gurls
14 Thank You Friends
15 Slut
16 When My Baby's Beside Me

BIG STAR- 1993-04-13, Seattle, WA FLAC. rar

The Grapes Of Wrath Are Back!

I can't remember the exact date, but I'm pretty sure it was in 1989 (I actually can't find the ticket stub), as they toured in support of their album, Now And Again when I last saw The Grapes Of Wrath at Le Rendezvous. The Rendezvous wasn't a great place to see a band, it had this cavernous, warehouse feel to it, like a social hall or large bar that never had great sound, but it hosted some good shows. The size of the venue was larger than a bar (The Albert, Spectrum), but smaller than a theatre or concert hall, a middle-size venue that featured mid-range popular bands or bigger-name alternative bands. I saw some good stuff there, Mojo Nixon, Guadalcanal Diary, Scruffy The Cat (opening for 54-40, who I didn't care for), Wilco and the last band I ever saw there, The Weakerthans.

When I went to the Grapes Of Wrath I arrived in time to catch the opener, since I'm always interested to see who the headliner brought along on tour. To be honest in those days (in my pre-taping days), I didn't make a huge effort to arrive early as I didn't care how close I sat/stood to the front. Once I started to tape concerts it was crucial to stake out the venue before the show or during the opener to find that sweet spot that combined a balanced mix, close enough to the front to see the band clearly and enough volume to partially drown out the chitter chatter around me (usually the music doesn't drown out the chatter). Anyways, the opener for this Grapes Of Wrath show was emerging singer/songwriter, (and soon to be superstar) Sarah McLaughlan who didn't impress me in the slightest and continues to not impress me not even a little bit. McLaughlan went on to surpass the Grapes in popularity, record sales and probably disposable cash flow. McLaughlan has continued to milk her success through the strength of a couple of huge selling records, Lilith Fair and has become somewhat of a musical icon here in the Great White North...kudos for her...

The Grapes Of Wrath released another album after that tour, These Days in 1991, then broke up when Kevin Kane left the band to go solo. In 1999, Kane and Tom Hooper (vocalist/bass) reunited to play some shows and release an album, Field Trip under the Grapes Of Wrath name (without original drummer, Chris Hooper). They sporadically played together during the 2000's, but a reunion that included Chris Hooper didn't happen until July 2010, the first time the trio played together since 1992. The love continued on to include recording new tracks for a compilation album and a brand new album of all new material, High Road released in March 2013. Hopefully this new record will lead to more live dates this summer and maybe, just maybe they'll head back to Winnipeg, but not at the Le Rendezvous, which is long gone and replaced by condos.

Enjoy!

Heres's a CBC music stream of a concert with the reunited Grapes Of Wrath from the Mod Club in Toronto on October 30, 2012 with guests.

As a bonus, I dug up a recording I taped off the radio in 2001 (?) from the Kevin Kane/Tom Hooper reunited Grapes. Excellent sound with some songs from Field Trip along with some classic tracks. It's almost worth the listen alone for the Replacements cover!

GRAPES OF WRATH
Railway Club
Vancouver, BC
March 4, 2000
CBC "Just Concerts" Broadcast

FM> Audio CD> FreeRip> FLAC> rar
FM Master

01. Intro
02. You May Be Right
03. Do You Want To Tell Me
04. Hitchhiker
05. Black Eye
06. Peace Of Mind
07. All The Things I Wasn't
08. I Am Here
09. Unsatisfied (Replacements)

(thanks to LeonD for the proper date!)

GRAPES OF WRATH- 2001 Railway Club, Vancouver, BC FLAC. rar

Note: the previous link expired (sorry!) This is a new link that should work! (Oct. 1, 2022)

Links Are Back!

Just randomly tested some posts and it appears that the links work again! I Haven't received a explanation yet as to why they were unavailable, but for now I'm relieved and just happy things appear back to normal. Of course, this could be short-lived, so enjoy (and download!) it while you can. I've looked and found a couple (free) alternative file-sharing hosts that I may trial as a safe guard and because my Adrive is close to capacity. I need Adrive for all the archive file on the blog, but bear with me while I experiment and try out some other hosts. For smaller files 200 mbs and under, I'll try Zippyshare and for larger files, I'm trying out Netkups. I need your input and opinion before I commit financially, so if you have any problems downloading, please let me know. If the links blackout again, I'll take requests and try to get you an alternative link.

Enjoy!

Can't Download? Don't Worry....Yet.

If you're having problems downloading any of the files, I'll explain why. Yesterday, I received a notice from Adrive, my file-sharing storage, that my sharing privileges have been revoked. They received a takedown notice as required under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act ("DMCA") that a certain file (4) that I'm sharing constitutes copyright infringement. I searched through my uploaded files and judging by the now unshared files, I suspect the "offending files" are two Golden Smog and two Wilco live recordings.
Golden Smog- First Avenue 1992
Golden Smog- In Chicago 2006
Wilco- Live On Letterman
 Wilco- July 4th, 1996

I sent a response to Adrive asking who requested the take down notice because I don't believe these files violate the terms of copyright infringement. These are live recordings that are not commercially available or officially released by any record label or the band. Wilco has stated on their website their policy of allowing live taping and the sharing of their live concert recordings. Jeff Tweedy is also in Golden Smog along with members of the Jayhawks and Soul Asylum who have never voiced concerns with the sharing of their live shows. I have my suspicions about this complaint, one show is a soundboard, two shows were broadcast on WXRT...did the radio station complain? The Wilco Letterman show was a webcast, is NBC the complainant? Until I find out what the offending files actually are and who complained there isn't much I can do on my end. Right now all the links on the blog are unavailable and unsharable and there is a chance I will be unable to share these files through my Adrive account. I've begun searching for other file hosting options and in my upcoming posts I'll be experimenting with some other file sharing hosts. I've already uploaded some files to Zippyshare and I may try Netkups as a recommendation from another music blog. Anyone have any other recommendation or good/bad experiences with other hosts?

Please be patient, if I resolve the problem with Adrive the links will be back up soon, if not I'll begin the task of re-upping past links on a different host. The good news is that Blogger hasn't taken any action and the blog is still active. Check for updates here or on the TDIT Facebook page.
Thanks!

Grant Hart- Live @ Valentines 2001

A couple of nights ago (an hour before the deadline), I pledged money to help fund another Kickstarter project. The film, Every Everything, The Music, Life & Times of Grant Hart has already been filmed and edited and is in the last stages of sound mixing before it's film festival premiere this summer. It looks like a very interesting film about an interesting (and troubled) life led by the former Husker Du drummer. I first heard about this project soon after director, Gorman Bechard released a previous project, Color Me Obsessed (film about the The Replacements) through Kickstarter (that I also donated to) and since Husker Du was my number 2 fav Minneapolis band of the 80's I was curious about this project. I've always been more of a "Grant" guy and preferred Hart's song's to Bob Mould's during their time with Husker Du. I have seen Grant perform solo (in the 2000's) and with his band Nova Mob (in the 90's) and though he's not the best performer, he is passionate about his music and after watching the mini-trailer about the film, I had to be involved or at least have a copy of the film before it becomes commercially available. It's now too late to pledge to the project, but keep your eyes open for it this summer at a film festival near you or on dvd sometime in the near future.

I'm presenting a fantastic solo show that Grant did in 2001 in Albany, NY. The setlist is killer with a nice mixture of Husker Du, Nova Mob and solo songs. I acquired this show through a trade over ten years ago and I also have a recording of the show I went to when he was in town in the mid-2000's. I posted the Valentines concert because the sound is excellent and superior to my recording. The show I went to he had lots of issues with the sound and it was disgraceful that only a handful of fans attended the show at the West End Cultural Centre...but, this one's a keeper!
Enjoy!

GRANT HART
Valentine’s,
Albany, NY,
March 22, 2001

01 - flexible flyer (cut)
02 - green eyes
03 - sorry somehow
04 - you don't have to tell me
05 - evergreen memorial drive
06 -little miss information
07 - pink turns to blue
08 - admiral of the sea
09 - back from somewhere
10 - she floated away
11 - terms of psychic warfare
12 - don't want to know if you're lonely
13 - books about ufo's
14 - girl who lives on heaven hill
15 - it's not funny anymore
16 - never talking to you again
17 -standing by the sea
18 - turn on the news
19 - letter from ann marie
20 - where you gonna land..
21 - over my head
22 -you're the victim
23 - last days of pompei
24 -run run run to the center pompidou
25 - charity, chastity, prudence and hope
26 - she's a woman and now he is a man
27- outro

GRANT HART- 2001-03-22, Valentines, Albany, NY FLAC. rar

Soul Asylum- Grave Dancers Union Demos

This year makes the 20th anniversary of my first ever live concert recording that I actually recorded. It was November of 1993, Soul Asylum at the Pantages Playhouse Theatre in Winnipeg. My seats were in the middle about midway on the floor. I used my dad's micro cassette recorder with a crappy built-in mic that I placed in my crest pocket in a jean jacket (mic peaking out the top). I can remember the anxious, yet excited rush it gave me knowing I would have a souvenir of the concert and that I could play this for my friends that couldn't attend. This show was just as Soul Asylum was riding the crest of mainstream sucess for music fans that now regarded Nirvana and Kurt Cobain as God! The Grave Dancers Union tour elevated Soul Asylum's status from playing clubs and bars to concert halls and hockey arenas which brought them near celebrity status and uncomfortable fame. As half-expected my recording was flawed by shrieks of screaming girls who must have heard about Soul Asylum on MTV with their radio friendly hit, Runaway Train. This recording is probably the worst sounding show in my collection, but it only fueled my obsession to acquire better equipment and capture clearer sounds. After transferring the show from micro-cassette to a regular Maxell cassette, I knew there must be a better way. I used the micro cassette recorder for only one more concert then received a good quality Sony tape recorder (gift from my wife) that I used throughout the rest of the 90's. I have since used a mini disc recorder and more recently a digital recorder that (thank god!!) eliminates the ol' tape/disc flip during the show. I rarely go to a concert without a recorder, but I have to admit I can't let loose and enjoy the show the way some people do because I'm more concerned about the affecting the recording. That's the sacrifice a taper must endure to capture this piece of history and it's their duty to get the best sound quality possible.

In the past few years, I have posted some of the shows I've been to. If I can find time, I'll look back at the last 20 years and post some select shows that might be of interest. As I mentioned many of these recordings are on cassette and mini disc that I will need to transfer to digital. In an effort of self-preservation this should be done regardless as many of these cassettes haven't been played in years and I'm not sure how durable the tapes are. Stay tuned, I've got some good stuff that has never been traded or circulated and if you're from Winnipeg, maybe you went to some of these shows. Except for my recordings, I have rarely come across any recordings of concerts I've attended, hmm...strange?

I'm posting another set of Soul Asylum demos from their big commercial breakthrough album, Grave Dancers Union. Not their best album, but the one that got them an appearance on SNL a couple of times and for Pirner, Winona Ryder. Hey, I'm off to the Twin Cities this week to watch a pair of hockey games and buy a lot of records (and CDs). I have my regular stores I like to visit, but if anyone has any recommendations or suggestions, I would appreciate it. Thanks!
Enjoy!

SOUL ASYLUM
Grave Dancers Union Demos

1. Get On Out
2. Runaway Train
3. Growing Into You
4. Easy To Avoid
5. 99%
6. Black Gold
7. Some Obsession
8. Straight Up
9. Thick And Thin
10. New World 2

SOUL ASYLUM- Grave Dancers Union Demos FLAC. rar

Soul Asylum- Hang Time Demos

About a month ago, I downloaded a recording of a Soul Asylum show that took place near the end of 2012 at the First Avenue in Minneapolis. I looked at the lineup and as expected there was Dave Pirner and drummer Michael Bland, but what I didn't expect was the absence of guitarist, Dan Murphy and bass player, Tommy Stinson, as they have been replaced by Justin Sharbono and Winston Roye. Apparently, this lineup change took place in October with a statement from Dan on the band's (forum) website. Tommy had been filling in for Karl Mueller, so his departure isn't a surprise, but Dan Murphy is a co-founding member of Soul Asylum and he helped shape the sound and direction of the band with Pirner. Personally, I have been a solid fan of the band since I first heard Made To Be Broken and I stood by the band (though much less enthusiastically) when they broke into the mainstream and back again. They really haven't released anything that compares with MTBB, And The Horse They Rode In On and Hang Time on their latest albums and i can see why Murphy has lost some of his fire and passion. I saw them live when they toured Grave Dancers Union and around 2001 (?) (when they weren't touring any new album). They have always been known as a great live band and my only regret I didn't see them in the late 80's when their live shows were amazing (at least on the recordings I have). For me, Soul Asylum won't be the same without Murphy and it'll be more like Dave Pirner and his band, playing the songs of Soul Asylum. Imagine Paul Westerberg touring under the Mats name without Stinson or the Stones without Richards or the Feelies without Million or Husker Du without Hart...etc. Hopefully, Dan Murphy's departure from Soul Asylum won't mean he's quitting music completely because I'm still holding out hope for another Golden Smog album and more live shows.

Hang Time was Soul Asylum's major label debut released in 1988. Dan Murphy contributed the song, Cartoon to the record and it remains my favourite Murphy penned tunes. The demos don't differ too much from the versions released, but it's always interesting to hear the rawer, less produced versions of a major label record. The sessions also include 4 songs that would be released on the delightful, Clam Dip & Other Delights EP.
Enjoy!

SOUL ASYLUM
Hang Time Demos 

1. Sometime To Return
2. Ode
3. Secret No More
4. Twiddly Dee
5. Standing In The Doorway
6. Endless Farewell
7. Down On Up To Me
8. P9
9. Artificial Heart
10. My Saving Grace
11. Forever In A Day
12. Just Plain Evil
13. Jack Of All Trades

SOUL ASYLUM- Hang Time Demos FLAC. rar

Camper Van Beethoven KCRW 1989

Here's part two of the CVB KCRW live in-studio broadcasts. Similarly to the 1987 session, the band plays songs live along with interview segments. This time Morgan Fichter replaces Jonathan Segel on violin and she adds a female voice to the band's sound with additional harmony vocals. A very nice listen, the sound is stellar, they play some rarities and the band is in good spirits. A nice companion (they fit together perfectly on disc) to the 1987 show for another trip through the 80's.
Enjoy!

Camper Van Beethoven
September 14, 1989
Snap, KCRW
Santa Monica, CA

FM radio broadcast

01. Opening Theme
02. Sweethearts
03. That Was Before I Met You
04. Introductions
05. When I Win the Lottery
06. Staying at Home with the Girls in the Morning
07. O Death
08. All Her Favorite Fruit
09. Loser
10. One of the These Days
11. Lincoln Shrine
12. Closing Comments, outro

CAMPER VAN BEETHOVEN- 1989-09-14 KCRW FLAC. rar

Camper Van Beethoven- KCRW 1987

Sometimes second chances can be a good thing and in the case of Camper Van Beethoven, the second time around has led to a longer than originally expected career. When Camper Van Beethoven broke up in the Spring of 1990, they had recorded five full length albums and were together for seven years. The band reformed in 1999 (and played they're first live shows again in 2002) and have been together ever since. They have now been together longer the second time than the first time they were together. Last month, CVB released the followup to New Roman Times, La Costa Perdida, their third album since their reformation and their eighth full length total.

I was heavily into CVB in the mid/late 80's and bought all their vinyl and owned a cool  band t-shirt that has since been thrown out (?)  because I wore it until is was riddled with holes. I have yet to see the band live and I guess the closest I came was when they were scheduled to play the WFF in July 1990, but they broke up in April. They have since played the fest in the mid-2000's, but for whatever insane reason, I didn't attend that year. With a new album to tour behind I'm hoping they'll come slightly close to home and this time "I promise" I might even take a (day's) drive to see them live...crossing my fingers!

The live in-studio radio broadcast I'm posting is a show I received in a trade many years ago. I was preparing to transfer my cassette copy to my hd when I decided to check archive.org to see if they had this show. If you've never checked out archive.org, I highly recommend it! They have literally thousands of shows by known and unknown artists that are cool with allowing fans to post their shows and most of these musicians are also taper friendly who allow their fans to record their shows. CVB presently has 289 shows to listen to and download and for fans of Cracker there are over 380 shows. Anyways, I found this show at the archive, and to save time I decided not to transfer my tape, but to post that version. A short set of "traditional" Camper Van Beethoven songs performed acoustically, a nice contrast to the studio album versions. I really like this recording! Stay tuned, the next post will be their session on KCRW from 1989.
Enjoy!

Camper Van Beethoven
August 10, 1987
KCRW Snap Session
Santa Monica, CA
FM Broadcast

1. Ambiguity Song
2. Six More Miles To The Graveyard
3. Medley: Payed Vacation: Greece - Processional
4. Sad Lover's Waltz
5. One Of These Days
6. Crossing Over
7. Take The Skinheads Bowling 

Performing artists: David Lowery, Jonathan Segel, Victor Krummenacher, Chris Molla
- Acoustic performance



CAMPER VAN BEETHOVEN- 1987-08-10 KCRW FLAC. rar
   

Blake Babies- Live On WERS 1989

Another hotbed for talented bands in the 80's was in and around the Boston area. If you've frequented this blog you'll know I have a keen interest in many bands from this region. I should also clarify I don't live in this area, nor do I even live in this country. It's just that there is a lot of bands for whatever reason I enjoy and still follow from the state of Massachusetts. Some favourite bands that I have (or haven't yet) featured on TDIT from include: Pixies, Lemonheads, Dinosaur Jr, Buffalo Tom, Belly, Big Dipper, Scruffy The Cat, Mission Of Burma, The Breeders, Volcano Suns and Juliana Hatfield. Juliana's first band was the Blake Babies who formed in 1986 and gathered a modest following during the late 80's and early 90's and like many of the previously mentioned bands didn't receive much in the way of mainstream radio play, but instead relied primarily on college radio stations to spread the music. And speaking of comebacks, pretty much all the bands I listed have reunited or reformed in recent years and the interest in their earlier works has introduced their music to wider audiences that may have missed them the first time or have only heard them now for the first time.

After disbanding in 1991, the Blake Babies reunited in late 1999 (New Years Eve?) and they toured the U.S. in 2001. I still regret not travelling to Minneapolis in June of 01' to see the Babies (for the last time ever?), but I hope to see Juliana Hatfield again sometime in the future. The show I've posted is the earliest Blake Babies (or Juliana Hatfield) I have and it's a gem of a recording! The band was just hitting their stride with the release of  Earwig and they were still a couple years from their breakthrough album, Sunburn. I received this in a trade over 10 years ago and I've been hoarding it ever since, but I want to share it because it's one of my personal favourites. I don't recall seeing this available anywhere else online, but I'm sure there must be others that have heard or own this recording. This is an in-studio live radio session followed by an interview with the band. The sound quality is excellent and it's another in a series of recordings from Metrowave on WERS at Emerson College that I have previously posted. This is a must listen for any Blake Babies/Juliana Hatfield fans!.
Enjoy!

BLAKE BABIES
WERS "Metrowave"
Emerson College
Boston, MA
May 9, 1989
FM Broadcast

01. Outta My Head
02. Lament
03. Look Away
04. Your Way Or The Highway
05. Dead & Gone
06. From Here To Burma
07. Grateful
08. Alright
09. You Don't Give Up
10. Don't Suck My Breath
11. Tom & Bob
12. interview

(note: the date in the info file incorrectly lists the date as May 5, oops sorry)

BLAKE BABIES- 1989-05-09, WERS, Boston, MA FLAC. rar

Guadalcanal Diary- Live At The Catalyst 1988

 

 I always thought the 80's got a bad rap when people joke about music from that decade. Personally, some of my favourite music and bands formed and produced their best work during the 80's, but unfortunately the mainstream perception of the decade is of Madonna, U2, Bon Jovi, Live Aid, Boy George, George Michael, Michael Jackson's glove, baggy pants, bad hairstyles, leg warmers...you get the picture! In my last post, I celebrated band reunions and a good many of the groups I mentioned originated from the 80's. This past week, three of the members of the Replacements collaborated on a project that has been put up for auction. This is their first musical collaboration (Songs For Slim) since their breakup in 1991 (I know, but their heyday was in the 80's) with much anticipation of a possible reunion show or something further in the future with Stinson and Westerberg (don't hold your breath).

The 80's also saw the rise of some regional music scenes getting much deserved attention with some great bands coming from those cities. In Minneapolis, the Replacements and Husker Du spawned many bands that captured the attention of the alt-music scene at the time. Soul Asylum, the Suburbs, the Jayhawks, Gear Daddies, Trip Shakespere, Run Westy Run, Babes in Toyland are just some of the Twin Cities bands I remember in my university days. Around this same time, Athens, Georgia garnished much interest with the rise of a band called R.E.M. and many like-sounding jangly-guitar bands that caused a stir from music journalists and music fans flocking to see what the big deal was in Athens. There was a few decent bands that rode on the coattails of R.E.M., but the only one that I gave serious attention to was a band from nearby Marietta, Georgia, Guadalcanal Diary. They formed in 1981 and disbanded in 1989, but reformed and reunited a few times in 1997 (see below for download!) and in 2011 to celebrate their 30th anniversary. Guadalcanal Diary had a similar sound to R.E.M. and many mistakenly billed them as part of the Athens scene, but their sound and songs were distinctly unique and definitely not a R.E.M. soundalike. Murray Attaway described their music, "It was great fun to be able to take a line from a revered blues song, a drum pattern from Africa, and a guitar or bass riff from The Stooges, and squeeze it all into some loud, tongue-in-cheek mush". and since I suck at describing a band's sound (according to Wikipedia), "This under appreciated Georgia quartet distinguished itself from any number of smart, tuneful American guitar combos by combining accessible songcraft with provocatively twisted lyrics. Singer/guitarist Murray Attaway's songs reflect a bizarre variety of far-flung interests, from a preoccupation with the supernatural to a fascination with American cultural imperialism; the band delivers them all with rootsy irony".

I had the pleasure of seeing Guadalcanal Diary live here in my hometown in 1989 touring their final album, Flip-Flop and it was a an amazing, memorable show. I would love to see them again and I guess with their frequent reunions, there's always the possibility I'll have a chance. Today's post is a recording I pulled from Dime many years back. I have a few of their live shows (including their pair of 1989 "farewell" shows), but this one has the best sound and the setlist (circa, 2x4) is great. The original poster found this tape with other master tapes from The Catalyst stored in a box in the basement. The sound is sweet because it's a matrix mix of the soundboard feed and various microphones in the room.
Enjoy!

Bonus: Guadalcanal Diary- Live From Your Birthday (1997 reunion)

GUADALCANAL DIARY
The Catalyst
Santa Cruz, CA
February 3, 1988

Soundboard with microphones- live matrix mix from cassette master

01. Trail Of Tears
02. Michael Rockefeller
03. Things Fall Apart
04. Ghost On The Road
05. Newborn
06. Say Please
07. Please Stop Me
08. Gilbert Takes The Wheel
09. Get Over It
10. Little Birds
11. Litany (Life Goes On)
12. Under The Yoke
13. Let The Big Wheel Roll
14. T.R.O.U.B.L.E.
15. unidentified intro
16. Country Club Gun
17. Lips Of Steel
18. Watsui Rodeo
19  Encore break
20. Immigrant Song
21. Cattle Prod
22. Encore break
23. Dead Eyes
24. Kumbayah
25. Murray talking
26. Staying Alive
27. Kumbayah
28. End- outro

GUADALCANAL DIARY- 1988-02-03, The Catalyst, Santa Cruz, CA FLAC. rar

Mark Olson and Friends (Jayhawks)- New Years Eve 2004

Happy New Year!
Last year, I meant to post my favourite albums of 2011, but unfortunately it didn't happen. I won't even attempt to pretend I have the time or the energy to recall all the new music I heard this past year. As usual, I listened to a lot of music, but not necessary "new music" as I was in a "reflective" mood re-listening and rediscovering a lot of bands from my youthful days (80's and 90's). In the last few years there seems to be a large amount of reissues and special edition anniversary collections being released to reignite interest (and sales?) of "classic" or overlooked albums.

Another continued trend is the reformation of original or classic lineups of bands that had either been broken up or have been inactive for a prolonged period of time. A recent example would be Dinosaur Jr, Guided By Voices, Graham Parker (and the Rumour), and the Jayhawks who have reformed classic lineups to record and tour. Off the top of my head, other favourite groups of mine that have reformed and stayed to together (maybe only temporarily or maybe for longer than originally) include: The Pixies, The Feelies, Descendents, Dead Milkmen, The Posies, Del Lords, Camper Van Beethoven, Pavement, Fastbacks, Ben Folds Five, Rolling Stones (?), Mission of Burma...just to name a few. (Any other bands you were excited when they reunited?)

Some interesting reunions I'm looking forward to in 2013 include Ben Deily, co-founder and ex-Lemonhead reuniting with Evan Dando, along with Juliana Hatfield and Ryan Adams (!) for a new Lemonheads album. Deily hasn't recorded or performed with the band since 1989, hopefully a tour will follow. It would be nice to hear more pre-It's A Shame About Ray songs performed live.

A semi-reunion of the Replacements (at least on vinyl) will see Paul Westerberg and Tommy Stinson release a 4-song, 10" EP, Songs for Slim limited to 250 copies with proceeds going to benefit the ex-Replacements guitarist, Slim Dunlop who suffered a stroke last February. Founding member/drummer, Chris Mars is not performing on the tracks, but does the cover artwork. Mars recorded his own benefit song for Slim that can be purchased at Chris's website.

Speaking of Minneapolis, reunions and New Year's (eve), I have a cool show from 2004, Mark Olson's first show with members of the Jayhawks since he left the band in 1995. This impromptu set was recorded at the small intimate 400 Bar in Minneapolis and was advertised as Mark Olson and Friends, opening with Mark's solo material followed by Jayhawks songs as he was joined by Gary Louris, Marc Perlman and Tim O'Reagan. This concert with Olson back in the fold was proceeded by a joint tour and album with Louris, then a full Jayhawks reunion with the Tomorrow The Green Grass-era "classic" line-up in 2008, in Spain. This was followed by a extended tour and an album of new material. The sound on this recording is good and clear and the performances as expected were a little rusty, but the enthusiasm of the crowd and the band are evident. Mark Olson's solo material doesn't excite me, but the Jayhawks songs with this lineup and the familiar Mark/Gary vocal harmonies are worth a listen. Sounds like a fun time!
Enjoy!

Mark Olson and Friends
400 Bar
Minneapolis, MN
December 31, 2004
Audience DAT recording
source: SP-CMC-8 premium stereo cardioids > SP-SPSB-1 > Sony PCM-M1 (@44.1) >
7 pin to coax > Audiophile2496 > SoundForge > CDWav > FLAC Frontend > FLAC

Disc One (first set)
01. Poor GW
02. Say You'll Be Mine
03. Walking Through Nevada
04. Blue*
05. Will I Be Married*
06. George Bush Industriale
07. King Of Kings*
08. Image Of Me*  [Harlan Howard]
09. I Still Miss Someone*  [Johnny Cash]
10. Waiting For the Sun*
11. Walk With Them
12. Portrait Of a Sick America > Crowded In the Wings > Linda Lee

Disc Two (second set)
01. December's Child
02. One Eyed Black Dog Moses
03. Pray For Me
04. Sing Me Back Home  [Merle Haggard]
05. Over My Shoulder*
06. Clouds*
07. If You Really Want Me To, I'll Go*  [Delbert McClinton; recorded by the Sir Douglas
       Quintet on their classic album, "Mendocino"]
08. Two Angels*
09. End Of the Highway, Rumsfeld
10. Ain't No End*
11. Martin's Song*
12. Reason To Believe*  [Tim Hardin]
13. Six Pack On the Dashboard*
14. My Own Jo Ellen*
15. Take Me With You (When You Go)*
16. Still We Have a Friend In You*
17. -encore break-
18. I Must Be Somebody Else You've Known*   [Merle Haggard; recorded by the
       International Submarine Band on their classic album, "Safe At Home"]
19. Get the Load Out*
20. Crowded In the Wings*

Mark Olson - vocals, electric guitar, bass, dulcimer, keyboards
Gary Louris - vocals, electric guitar
Marc Perlman -  bass on *
Tim O'Reagan - drums, vocals
(Karen Grotberg was listed on the bill, but wasn't there...)

MARK OLSON AND FRIENDS- 2004-12-31 400 Bar, Mpls, MN FLAC disc 1. rar 
MARK OLSON AND FRIENDS- 2004-12-31 400 Bar, Mpls, MN FLAC disc 2. rar

Green On Red- Spin Radio Concert 1985

Continuing on my stroll through the 80's, here's a rare radio promotional issue of Spin Radio's live concert series featuring, Green On Red. If you can your mitts on the original double vinyl, it's worth a pretty penny. Nice sounding radio broadcast quality with a live concert recording from the I-Beam in San Francisco along with interview segments with Dan Stuart from Green On Red. This is the band circa, Gas Food Lodging/No Free Lunch (my favourite G on R era!) when Chuck Prophet joined the band. Complete with commercials, this is pretty cool, get this!
Enjoy!

GREEN ON RED
"Spin Radio Concert Series"
I-Beam
San Francisco, CA
1985
FM broadcast

01. show intro/
02. /show intro
03. Hair Of The Dog
04. Down To The Bone> interview
05. Apartment 6> interview
06. commercial
07. interview
08. The Drifter> Sympathy For The Devil
09. interview
10. Funny How Time Slips Away
11. commercial
12. interview
13. Thats What Dreams Were Made For
14. This I Know
15. Fading Away
16. commercial
17. interview
18. Snake Bit
19. interview> Easy Way Out
20. interview> Brave Generation
21. commercial
22. interview> No Free Lunch
23. interview
24. show outro

GREEN ON RED- 1985 Spin Magazine Concert Series FLAC. rar

The Del-Lords- Tower Theatre 1986

Been extremely busy during this holiday season, not really having time to reflect on any holidays, at least not yet and will be glad when this time of year is less stressful. Once Christmas comes and goes, I'm taking some time off from work between Christmas and New Years and I assure you the posts on this blog will be much more frequent.

Speaking of stressful, the people of the U.S. East coast are still rebuilding and trying to piece back their lives after Hurricane Sandy wrecked it's havoc a few months back. A benefit concert was held on 12-12-12 at Madison Square Gardens in New York City, appearing were some of the biggest British names in "classic rock", The Stones, The Who, Eric Clapton, Roger Waters and Sir Paul McCartney. Local representation included Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi, Alicia Keys and Billy Joel. I could have put together a further list of cool (not so old and "classic") bands from the New York/Jersey region that would rival the old rockers that I would have paid $$ to see, bands like Yo La Tengo, The Feelies, Fountains Of Wayne, They Might Be Giants, The Figgs, Candy Hearts, Sonic Youth (?) and maybe even an old-timer like, Lou Reed (p.s. all these artists have been featured at TDIT!).

One of my favourite NYC bands in the 80's were The Del-Lords that was founded by Scott Kempner formerly of the "near" legendary, Dictators. The Del-Lords released four studio albums and are set to release their first full length record in 22 years. Back in February 2010, they played their first live gigs in 20 years and the new record will complete the comeback. If you missed them the first time I have a great sounding FM broadcast from 1986 after the release of their second album, Johnny Comes Marching Home. Brings back a lot of great memories!
Enjoy!

DEL-LORDS
Tower Theater
Philadelphia PA
May 3, 1986
FM

01. Heaven
02. True Love
03. St. Jake
04. Burning in the Flame of love
05. Soldier's Home
06. Love Lies Dying
07. Dream Come True
08. Johnny 99
09  How Can a Poor Man Stand Such Times & Live
10. I Play the Drums

DEL LORDS- 1986-05-03, Tower Theatre, Philadelphia, PA FLAC. rar

True Believers- 2002 Reunion Show

photo by Jason Perry

After posting the Beat Farmers show last week, I had a request for some True Believers, a band Alejandro Escovedo formed in 1982, in Austin, Texas. Escovedo was previously in the Nuns and played in Rank and File before inviting his brother, Javier to form the True Believers. The band released their self-titled album in 1986 and recorded a follow-up in 1987 that was pulled by their label two weeks before it was to ship. The unreleased record along with the first album was included in a retrospective of the band in 1994, called Hard Road. This is a fine collection of a band that deserved a much better fate. If their label had released the second album in 1987, who knows, we might have been able to enjoy the True Believers more often than their occasional reunion shows, regardless, their influence is undeniable.

I'm sure how many times the True Believers have reunited, but I do know they did a perform a mini-4 song set during Alejandro Escovedo's concert at SXSW in 2010 and the show I'm posting today. The 2002 reunion is a full length set with many cool covers (Velvet Underground 3 times!) and highlights from their two albums. The performance is inspired and the quality of this soundboard recording is excellent! This is a must listen for any fans of this band and Alejandro Escovedo and if your curious of this near-legendary band, buy Hard Road, then have a listen to this show...amazing!
Enjoy!

TRUE BELIEVERS
Continential Club
Austin, TX
April 3, 2002
Reunion gig!

sbd>dat>cdr>eac>flac>rar

DISC 1
01. She's Got
02. Rebel Kind
03. All Mixed Up Again
04. Please Don't Fade Away
05. Home
06. Just Like Tom Thumb Blues (Dylan)
07. Wild Eyed And Wound Up
08. Foggy Notion (V.U.)
09. Train Round The Bend (V.U.)
10. I Wanna Be Your Dog (Stooges)
11. Lucky Moon
12. One Moment To Another
13. 20th Century Boy (T.Rex)

DISC 2
01. Who Calls My Name
02. Nobody's Home
03. I Get Excited
04. So Blue About You
05. Rain Won't Help You When It's Over
06. Hard Road
07. Tell Her
08. Sweet Jane (V.U.)

Alejandro Escovedo- guitar
Javier Escovedo- guitar
Jon Dee Graham- pedal steel
Denny Degorio- bass
Hector Munoz- drums



TRUE BELIEVERS- 2002-04-03 FLAC. rar (disc 1)
TRUE BELIEVERS- 2002-04-03 FLAC. rar (disc 2)

Johnny Thunders- Sticks And Stones: The Lost Album

I've probably had more requests for Johnny Thunders (and the Heartbreakers) than anyone else and it prompted me to flip through boxes to find more and in doing so found this nice recording that I don't remember listening to much. It features some previously unheard studio recordings Thunders made around 1990, a year before his untimely death. The songs are interesting and worth a listen if only to hear that Johnny was interested in possibly putting out a future album around this time. The songs are heartfelt and show a depth that he hadn't shown in a while and it's a treat to hear what could have been. This collection was released as, Sticks and Stones with bonus material which includes an undated concert with some ex-Dolls, as well as four acoustic songs recorded in 1982. Unfortunately, the version I'm posting doesn't include the four songs from 82 and I'm not quite sure why. I downloaded this file from Dime years ago, so either the poster didn't include them because they were officially released (are they the same versions as on Hurt Me?) or this was compiled before this bootleg was released or their source just didn't include those tracks. Either way this is well worth a listen and it's release is one of the better posthumous Johnny Thunders collections. And yes, I did find more Johnny Thunders and the Heartbreakers shows in the boxes...stay tuned!
Enjoy!

JOHNNY THUNDERS
Sticks & Stones: The Lost Album (2009)

Tracks 1-8 Studio Demos
01. Help The Homeless
02. Disappointed
03. Children Are People
04. Night Lives
05. Glory, Glory
06. Familiarity Breeds Contempt
07. Some Hearts
08. Tell The Truth

Tracks 9-19 "The Night Of The Living Dead"
Live concert at Max's Kansas City (with David Johansen, Sylvain Sylvain and Peter Perrett)
09. Ask Me No Questions/Wizard
10. Pipline
11. (I'm Not) Your Stepping Stone
12. Great Big Kiss
13. The 10 Commandments Of Love
14. These Boots Are Made For Walking
15. Like A Rolling Stone
16. Endless Party
17. Pills
18. Hootchie Coochie Man
19. Personality Crisis

JOHNNY THUNDERS- Sticks And Stones. rar

Beat Farmers- China Club 1986

Hey, it's Saturday night and if you need something to spice up your party, here's a great rockin' concert from 1986. This show was from around the time I first heard the Beat Farmers, first hearing the first album, Tales Of The New West and then buying, Van Go. What caught my attention was a couple of really good covers, There She Goes Again (Velvet Underground) and Powerfinger (Neil Young) from the first two albums. Both records received heavy rotation on my turntable at the time and their catchy country-rock sound led me to listen to other similar-named and sounding bands, Beat Rodeo, Blue Rodeo and later the Blue Shadows. They also turned me onto bands such as the Long Ryders, The Blasters, Jason and the Scorchers and E-I-E-I-O. Yes, the mid-eighties was a good time for country-esque college rock and even today listen to these bands quite often.

I never saw the Beat Farmers live, but from I've read and heard they were an amazing live band. The next best thing is this live recording which was a radio broadcast so it boasts outstanding sound as the band plows through this set of circa, Van Go and pre-Pursuit of Happiness songs. Loud and plowed and...an excellent soundtrack for Saturday night!
Enjoy!

BEAT FARMERS
China Club, NYC, NY
September 30, 1986
WNEW-FM Broadcast

01. Death Train
02. There She Goes Again
03. This Broken Heart Of Mine
04. Ridin
05. Deceiver
06. The Future Today
07. Lonesome Bunny Call
08. Happy Boy
09. Big Ugly Wheels
10. Bigger Stones
11. Powderfinger
12. Selfish Heart
13. Texas
14. Beat Generation
15. Be Here By Me
16. Reason To Believe
17. God Is Here Tonight
18. Riverside
19. California Kid
Encore:
20. Revenuer Man



BEAT FARMERS- 1986-09-30 China Club, NYC FLAC. rar

Rock For Democracy 2004

photo by Mockstar

 I didn't quite time this properly, the U.S. election was last week and this concert actually took place back in 2004 when George W. Bush was running for re-election against John Kerry. Leading up to that election a series of Rock for Democracy benefit concerts were held to gather up supporters to get rid of Bush. One such show took place in Minneapolis with a who's who of Twin Cities bands lending their support for this worthy cause.

Bands that night were: The Flops, Iffy, Honeydogs, Jessy Greene, David Poe, Kraig Johnson & The Program, Dana Thompson, Sideways, Ike Reilly Assassination, Martin Devaney, The Jayhawks, Golden Smog and Dave Pirner and Dan Murphy from Soul Asylum. A review of the show can be found here and a song by song analysis of the Jayhawks and Golden Smog sets can be found here.

I'm not sure if the other bands were recorded, but fortunately someone did capture the Dave and Dan, Jayhawks and Golden Smog sets and posted it on Dime after the concert in 04. The sets are short, but sweet and one of the highlights has to be when a guy interrupted the Jayhawks during the start of their first song to loudly encourage voters to vote out Bush (click the second link above to read more) because his brother's being sent to Iraq. The Golden Smog set sounds fun with a bunch of covers and a couple of false starts. Even Dave Pirner joined the band for some songs. I didn't hear about as many similar concerts this election compared to 2004 and 2008, except for the usual Bruce Springsteen tour to boost Obama's profile. Unfortunately, the American people had to put up with Republican related concerts with the likes of Kid Rock, Meatloaf and pretty much every country singer/band in the States...yikes!
Yay, 4 more years!
Enjoy!

ROCK FOR DEMOCRACY
First Avenue, Minneapolis, MN
July 18, 2004
AUD recording

Dave Pirner and Dan Murphy of Soul Asylum
01. Intro
02. Black Gold
03. Crazy Mixed Up World
04. Lately
05. Outro

The Jayhawks (Gary Louris/Marc Perlman/Tim O'Reagan/Karen Grotberg)
06. Intro
07. One Man's Problem (aborted due to audience member climbing onstage)
08. One Man's Problem
09. Pray For Me
10. He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother (Tim-lead vocal)
11. Tailspin
12. Outro

Golden Smog (Gary Louris/Marc Perlman/Dan Murphy/Kraig Johnson/Peter Anderson)
13. intro
14. Starman (Gary- lead vocal)
15. That's When I Reach For My Revolver (Dan-lead vocal)
16. Powderfinger (Kraig-lead vocal)
17. Do Anything You Wanna Do (Dan-lead vocal)
18. The Dream Is Never Over (false starts) (Gary and Dave-lead vocals)
19. The Dream Is Never Over (Gary and Dave Pirner-lead vocals)
20. I'm Eighteen (false starts) (Dave- lead vocal)
21. I'm Eighteen (Dave- lead vocal)
22. Shooting Star (Dave-lead vocal)
23. Outro

ROCK FOR DEMOCRACY 2004-07-18 First Avenue, Mpls, MN FLAC. rar

Mary Lou Lord- CBC 1998

On this blog I try to post music that is hard to find, out of print or live recordings that I have recorded or in most cases shows I've downloaded or received in a trade. I have on occasion received copyright infringement take down warnings which I have abided by and respected and I have been careful not to post anything that could jeopardize this blog's existence. In the past year, many excellent blogs (many with large readership) have fallen by the waste side either from being banned and locked out of their online storage that links to the music or taken down by Blogger or whatever platform they use. Often they are reported by a band, a record label or music copyright owner. In the past year, I have removed links to albums from the Volcano Suns, the Crust Brothers and Best Kissers In the World (because it was finally being officially released, buy it here!) As I have stated in the past, please contact me if you would like a link removed or if I haven't given credit where credit is due, thanks!

I was recently informed by reader DW that the Mary Lou Lord EP that I posted a while back is still in print and suggested it wasn't appropriate to offer a download for it. This is the type of feedback I seek and in this case I assumed the CD wasn't still available and after a quick Internet search for the EP/CD I still couldn't find physical CD's for sale (please correct me if I'm wrong), but it is available as a digital download on iTunes and Amazon. In the future when I post an album I will double check that it isn't available for sale (except for eBay etc...), especially if the artist will be deprived of a sale. I do have some vinyl LP's I would like to post in the near future, so from now on I will be more careful with what I post. With this in mind, I will remove the links for the MLL EP and possibly the unreleased Neil Young album, Chrome Dreams (which has caused grief for some ex-blogs in the past) in the next 24 hours.

Here's a radio broadcast from the good ol' CBC on a show that aired on Saturday nights called, Radiosonic that featured live concerts and "in-studio" sessions and sometimes an interview. I sourced a lot of good recordings from this program that I captured on my tape deck or gretto-blaster-type cassette player/recorder. I am in the process of transferring other concerts from tape to digital. This might have been my first exposure to MLL and she instantly appealed to me not only because I loved the songs, but because she's such a sweet and unpretentious performer. I have to warn you I didn't get great reception on my radio and there is some static. My fault, as I was trying to fine tune to the station better, otherwise it's a great mini-set of fine tunes.
Enjoy!

MARY LOU LORD
CBC Studio
Toronto, ON
May 20, 1998
FM Master
FM> cassette> wav> FLAC> rar

01. Intro
02. She Had You
03. Book
04. That Kind Of Girl
05. His N.D. World
06. I Figured You Out

MARY LOU LORD- 1998-05-20, CBC, Toronto FLAC. rar