DJ Papapete's Magical Musical Time Machine!

Papapete's tribute to Gary Moore...

2011-02-07T00:21:00.000+02:00

It's been a while since I wrote anything new in this my "musical" blog. I had been thinking the last few days of restarting the time machine and was looking for a suitable theme or idea... Unfortunately the sad death of one of the guitar greats, beat me to it...

Gary Moore, once a member of Thin Lizzy, accomplished solo blues artist, and member of many other supergroups, (BBM spring to mind...) has sadly passed away last night.

What can I say about Gary Moore? I got into Rock music a bit late, so i didn't catch the Thin lizzy phase. the first time I ever heard Gary Moore play was on a tape given to me by a friend and the song was Empty Rooms. So this song for me is a prime example of his style and flair in playing...

Then , one of the first CDs I bought was Ballads and Blues. "Still in love with you" was a big hit in Greece. then there was my favourite "Empty rooms" and the amazing "Parissiene Walkways"... I have to confess it was spoiled for me a little as there was a local ad playing constantly on the radio at the time, for a sexy lingerie shop, that used "Parissienne Walkways" as it's theme... It is in this song that you can hear Gary's trademark sustain! I hear he was very proud of it and rightly so!

Then in 1995, I joined a local blues band. At least two of the songs on the setlist were Gary Moore numbers... Oh Pretty Woman and Walking by Myself. Both a bit on the "high" side for my voice but I still gave them a shot... Lovely blues songs...
Let's have a listen to the second one...

A couple of years later our guitarist came back from the UK with the wonderful news that he had actually met Gary Moore and they became friends. (Gary's guitar technician, Peter Bruce was a friend and introduced them I think) So we started getting various Gary news straight from the horse's mouth...!!

One winter I joined another band and we covered "Waiting in the wings" from the BBM album of the same name. (BBM stood for Bruce, Baker and Moore) The first two are of course Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker of Cream Fame. I have to clarify this for my younger readers hehe!!

Here they are playing the blues staple "Spoonful" with Jack on vocals.

In my next band, (I know it seems like I was changing bands like t-shirts but this was over a few years...) we covered no fewer than 3 songs off the "Back to the Blues" album and 1 song from the "Blues for Greeny" album. "Enough of the blues", "How many lies", "Cold Black Night" and "Need your love so bad". The last two songs were both covers of Gary's too. He had the greatest admiration for Fleetwood Mac and Peter Green, hence of course Blues for Greeny...
When I sang "Need your love so bad" I almost fainted. This song carries an enormous emotional charge... such is the blues...!

This was the music of Gary Moore...

And a little funny story to makes us smile in his memory. Some years ago he was supposed to play a gig in Athens. He personally invited my friend Roy to the gig and of course there was to be an after-gig party to which I would hopefully go, too! It was going to be my chance to meet one of my heroes! I got tickets over the internet and made all the travel arrangements. One day before the gig, Roy got a call from Gary saying that it was all off! He had an ear infection, and the doctor said he couldn't fly... So he let me know and I called the ticket people to ask if I could have my money back. They had no idea! They insisted the gig was on. So I said never mind, if he doesn't come, can I have my money back? To which of course they agreed... The next day when I called they said I could have my money back..., but how the heck had I known?...hahaha!!

Here is a version of "Empty rooms" played by a greek guy called Panos Papapetros. Obviously a fan because he has a website dedicated to Gary too...

www.moorepanos.com

RIP Gary Moore. Your music touched so many people and will live on and on!

Papapete.

God bless left hand guitarists!

2010-01-14T21:59:00.002+02:00

The left hand guitarist is a peculiar animal. Before he finds his way, he has to bugger about with the instrument he has fallen in love with, and decide how exactly he wants to go about it... Is he going to just play the damn thing upside down or will he change the strings? (requiring some adaptation of parts...) Alternatively he may buy a ready made lefty guitar, although he won't have as much choice or if he can afford it he'll get one custom made.

Some great left handed guitarists:

Jimi Hendrix (Need we say more?)

Tony Iommi from Black Sabbath

Albert King

Kurt Cobain

Paul Mc Cartney

Dick Dale

Of the above, Dick Dale may have been the weirdest. He played a lefty guitar with strings upside down!

I have a very good friend who is a very good left handed guitarist. We used to play together as well and he put me on to a number of very good bands and musicians I wasn't familiar with. Of these the one I must thnak him the most about was Freddie King. He may not have been a lefty guitarist but he wrote some of the best blues songs and left us way too early!

Here he is on Can't trust your neighbour with your baby... My absolute favorite line is where it says "my baby used to go over for salt, but I found out he was giving her sugar..."

On that note I bid you all good night...

see you soon!

You're in the army now... wohoowohh, you're in the army, now...

2010-01-13T00:13:00.002+02:00

There was this dream I saw repeatedly at the time. In the dream I woke up and walked out of the barracks to the drill/parade grounds. Looking east, I could see the Aegean Sea. In the dream instead of open sea, there was Corfu Town, with the Old Fort resplendent in the hazy morning sun. It was quiet, there was no sound of cars driving along the Mourayia, or ferries announcing their leaving port... The island just sat there, waiting. It seemed so near, but in reality was so far away...

It is August 1987 and I have just arrived at the 26th EMA in Litochoro where I am to be stationed for the next few months. The unit is one of the better ones in the Greek Tank corps. A choice of two different meals on the menu everyday, Litochoro and it's tourist attractions just outside the gates, plenty of soldiers to share the "ÿpiresies" (duties). Add to that a commander who sees himself as one of the boys, and it couldn't get any better...
Unfortunately this was all to change. A recent series of situations involving a gang of drunk and disorderly soldiers stealing a car and crashing into a number of other cars while trying to find their way to the beach, brought the units relaxed atmosphere under serious scrutiny by the general command. A change of commander was deemed necessary. He arrived and wasted no time telling us that he was going to set us straight. A firm believer in the traditonal greek values of 'patris-thriskia-oikogeneia' (country-religion-family) he fully intended to put both of our feet in one shoe... After my first few days there I found that the only guys i had anything in common with, where the aforementioned drunk and disorderly ones... Most of them where from Piraeus, my home town in a way. One of them , Michalis, had studied in England, so we had even more to talk about.

Up until then I had been a bit backward in my musical tastes, owing to the fact most of my musical education had come in assorted unusual ways. My german teacher for a year , was a sort of remnant of the flower power era guy, and let me in on prog rock, rock and soul, Pink Floyd and such heady stuff. My parents record collection ranged from Kyra giorgaina to Ray Conniff and the Carpenters or the sound of music.

Michalis let me in on this group called "the ramones"... This was stunning stuff!
I haven't spoken to him in years, but I dedicate this song to him:

Michalis also let me in on a bunch of other great bands, like the Dream Syndicate:

And the awesome sisters of mercy!

That summer actually saw me going to my first international level concert. A few days before I left for Litochoro from Avlona, where the training camp was, Joe Cocker played in the Alexandras Ave. Stadium. I couldn't miss it! I got there just in time. In a desperate bid to get as close as possible, I tried to climb one of the spiked fences, and ended up almost impaled on it. The spike ripped my jeans and i ended up hanging without being able to lift myself off. One of the bouncers/security guys took pity on me and lifted me off (by my ankles!!!) He also let me stay inside as I was so keen...

So there I was listening to Joe, singing "With a little help from my friends" and thinking that i am listening to the same voice that almost a million people heard sing the same song in Woodstock. A really unforgettable moment. I later found out there were a bunch of Corfiots at the concert, but of course in that age of no mobile phones, how could I know... Still it was a great concert and the start of my love for live music...

A truly great voice and great singer...
Love to all, and good night...

(To be sung strictly with cute french accent...) I'll Kill her...

2010-01-09T00:20:00.003+02:00

A while ago someone gave us a USBsticksworth of songs and they have been playing for a month or so in the car. There is a lot of unknown stuff in there and a few without tags, so we don't even know who the artists are. As usual ,there are some gems in there... one of them is a song sung by a French, girl, with one of those killer-cute french accents... Both me and Alex, my partner, love the song, and as the lyrics are of the story-telling variety, a little story was created in our heads to go with the voice and the words... Unfortunately, my curiosity to find out who she is etc. has resulted in ruining the "romantic" mystery for Alex, for it is now known that the singer is a girl known as Soko and the song is called I'll kill her...
I will let you find out more about her on your own, if you wish. Meanwhile here is the song:

So simple, funny, sad in a way, it made me think about girls who can be cute, beautiful, dangerous, sexy and a disaster... think Betty Blue maybe...

The same magic stick of music contains this little gem too:

This song reminded me of a band I first heard about 4 or 5 years ago, when I was in a band, and our bass player proposed we do one of their songs, a cover of the Carpenters "Top of the World" They are Shonen knife and here they are:

And in a tribute to one of their obvious influences...

Well, that's it for your musical education and entertainment tonight folks...
luv
Papapete

Lyrics!

2009-12-21T14:02:00.002+02:00

I've been having a spot of blogger's block recently, trying to come up with an interesting subject... To top it off, the other day I noticed I had already written about a subject before, albeit on my other (greek) blog...

So, lyrics! I am listening right now to the Beautiful South/Housemartins. They are an excellent example of snappy, English, witty and wonderful lyrics. Let's have a listen:

And the actual lyrics:
She's a perfect 10, but she wears a 12
Baby keep a little 2 for me
She could be sweet 16, bustin' out at the seams
It's still love in the first degree

When he's at my gate, with a big fat 8
You wanna see the smile on my face
And even at my door, with a poor poor 4
There ain't no man can replace

'Cause we love our love,
in different sizes
I love her body, especially the lies
Time takes it's toll, but not on the eyes
Promise me this, take me tonight

If he's extra large well I'm in charge
I can work this thing on top
If he's XXL well what the hell
Every penny don't fit the slot

The anorexic chicks, the model 6
They don't hold no weight with me
Well 8 or 9, well that's just fine
But I like to hold something I can see

'Cause we love our love,
in different sizes
I love her body, especially the lies
Time takes it's toll, but not on the eyes
Promise me this, take me tonight

I've bought a watch, to time your beauty
But I've had to fit a second hand
I've bought a calendar, and every month
Is taken up by lover man

'Cause we love our love,
in different sizes
I love her body, especially the lies
Time takes it's toll, but not on the eyes
Promise me this, take me tonight

'Cause we love our love, in different sizes
I love her body, especially the lies
Time takes it's toll, but not on the eyes
Promise me this, take me tonight

A sweet song about real love, amongst real people. Another favorite of mine is this:

I Love You From The Bottom, Of My Pencil Case
I Love You In The Songs,
I Write And Sing

Love You Because,
You Put Me In My Rightful Place
And I Love The Prs Cheques, That You Bring

Cheap, Never Cheap
I'll Sing You Songs Till You're Asleep
When You've Gone Upstairs I'll Creep
And Write It All Down

Oh Shirley, Oh Deborah, Oh Julie, Oh Jane
I Wrote So Many Songs About You
I Forget Your Name (i Forget Your Name)

Jennifer, Alison, Phillipa, Sue, Deborah, Annabel, Too
I Forget Your Name
Jennifer, Alison, Phillipa, Sue, Deborah, Annabel, Too
I Forget Your Name

I Love Your From The Bottom Of My Pencil Case
I Love The Way You Never Ask Me Why
I Love To Write About Each Wrinkle On Your Face
And I Love You Till My Fountain Pen Runs Dry

Deep So Deep,
The Number One I Hope To Reap
Depends Upon The Tears You Weep,
So Cry, Lovey Cry, Cry, Cry, Cry

Oh Cathy, Oh Alison, Oh Phillipa, Oh Sue
You Made Me So Much Money,
I Wrote This Song For You
Jennifer, Alison, Phillipa, Sue, Deborah, Annabel, Too
I Wrote This Song For You
Jennifer, Alison, Phillipa, Sue, Deborah, Annabel, Too
I Wrote This Song For You

Now I remember as a teenager, one of my best friends, was into "heavier" rock than I was at the time. And this was always a source of bickering between us. So I was always looking for ways to "put down" her favorites like Deep Purple for example. Don't get me wrong, I 've done my share of headbanging too, but this was before... The fact that I was bilingual put me in a position of understanding much better what was being sung. That of course, only when the singer didn't sound like he was singing through a mouthful of sand...
So Deep Purple! Here they are...

And the lyrics:
We all came out to Montreux
On the Lake Geneva shoreline
To make records with a mobile
We didn't have much time
Frank Zappa and the Mothers
Were at the best place around
But some stupid with a flare gun
Burned the place to the ground
Smoke on the water, a fire in the sky
Smoke on the water
They burned down the gambling house
It died with an awful sound
Funky Claude was running in and out
Pulling kids out of ground
When it all was over
We had to find another place
Swiss time was running on
It seemed that we would lose the race
Smoke on the water, a fire in the sky
Smoke on the water
Smoke on the water, a fire in the sky
Smoke on the water

Hmmm... You get the point...

I still get very nostalgic listening to a lot of the hard rock bands of the time, and I love the music.Bands like Uriah Heep, Jethro Tull and co. Great music, and a lot of good songs, but some of the lyrics just seem a tad immature maybe? I don't know... Maybe it is just me getting older and wiser (and crankier!)

And anyway I much prefer listening to them than the awful drivel that often passes for greek popular music... some examples in translation:

He's a cat, he's a cat, the guy in the tie (it rhymes in greek...)

did not hear. What did you say? Excuse me?
I am sorry Mister, who are you?

Do not wander that I speak to you in plural
that is how I learned to talk to strangers.
Do not speak of a love of the past to me
because you are jealous that now I love somebody else

I did not hear. What did you say? Excuse me?
I am sorry Mister, who are you?

What do you want from me
I am a stranger now,
go back to your wife
that awaits you.

I did not hear. What did you say? Excuse me?
I am sorry Mister, who are you?

Do not wander that I speak to you formally
do not pretend to be hurt.
You, who for years did not ask
whether I died or am still alive
now you come to me again, remorseful.

(my thanks to the www.stixoi.info website for saving me the trouble of the translation...)

What Mr Karvelas thinking of when he wrote this?

So that's my subject for today. next installation is probably going to b the start of a long series, where I go into the subject of the concerts i have been to.
See ya soon!!!

The violin in rock music...

2009-12-19T02:01:00.006+02:00

The other day I was reminded of yet another great song that was a major hit in Greece.
It is by a german band called City. The song is called Am fenster (at the window) and has a wicked violin part. Actually a greek band called nomisma (coin) have recently done, what in my opinion, is a rather good cover of it, retaining the feeling even if they changed the lyrics.

Here is the original in a recent version:

The song is by an east german band called City, and refers to the lack of freedom in East germany prior to the Wall coming down. However the wording is very ambiguous so they couldn't be accused of treason or whatever and sent to the Gulag... It was a major hit in Germany both east and west at the time, but also a big hit in Greece! I remember when i was ding my army service in northern Greece (1987-88) there wasn't a single local radio station who didn't play it at least once a day...

Here is the greek cover of it:

The violin gives this song something special ,a sad sound that has "parapono"as they say here...

Another famous song with a great violin part, is this:

Of course it isn't only the violin that makes this song one of the true greats. It is also a real protest song about a big wrong that was committed and cost a man his freedom. And also it is so well written, a masterpiece...

Finally another musician who brought the violin to rock music, or more specifically jazz/rock is the following:

Jean luc Ponty, classically trained, a concert violinist, but he also used to go and play in jazz clubs and eventually had to make a choice... A very gifted artist.

And on that note my friends goodnight, çause I have to get up for work too at sometime...

luv y'all!
DJ Papapete

Today is Sunday...

2009-12-06T09:05:00.002+02:00

When I was growing up, there was this show that aired every Sunday morning, on state TV, called "Simera ine Kyriaki" (Today is Sunday).It was a religious show, invariably with some priest or theologist, rattling on about the Greek Orthodox religion etc.
I never watched it. Unless maybe our Grandma happened to be visiting, and even then, she was more given to dragging us off to the church itself to have Communion...

Like most people of my generation, I never have had much time for the Church. I 'm not even sure what my beliefs are! But I'll generally accept the existence of a higher being (or beings...) as well as some lower ones too!

As regards practising religion, well, understandably, at a younger age, Tantra, with its hidden promise of endless sex seemed quite interesting...

Then one day I saw the "Blues Brothers" film. When it got to the scene where James Brown as crazy preacher sings a gospel song, it was a revelation! This was one church I could relate to! I had seen the light! Such a shame that something like that doesn't exist round my part of the world...
But anyway have a taste.

Now throughout my life i have made a habit of reading biographies of musicians, and other music-history related books. Right now, on this fine December Sunday morning, with the rest of the family still asleep and the breadmaker whirring away in the background, I am enjoying a coffee, and reading about the life of a man I admired, and whose biography has made me admire even more. Johnny Cash. He was a believer. He may have had his ups and downs, but he was one of music's true greats. How I would have loved to have met him...

They sang this together, and prophetically, she was the first one to go. This next song was his tribute to the love of his life, even though it was originally written with another kind of "Hurt"in mind. It just goes to show what an amazing artist he was, making every song he sang his own...

After that, what can i say?

I would just like to close by saying how amazing is it? All these people, most of whose lives were lived so far from us, whose names are so many that I dare not try to list them, but whose music and songs have been the soundtrack to so many of our lives, many of these artists where friends, or they became at some point in their lives. And these people have affected our lives in so many ways, sometimes good and maybe sometimes bad. But even after they have passed away their music lives on. In our hearts. In our minds. In the music we make as well. I thank God for them...

"what have I become?
my sweetest friend
everyone I know
goes away in the end
and you could have it all
my empire of dirt

I will let you down
I will make you hurt

if I could start again
a million miles away
I would keep myself
I would find a way"

Discovery!!!

2009-11-08T21:43:00.003+02:00

Hi everyone!
I know it's been a while but here I am again... I spent some time today setting up a blog for my youngest daughter and in the process discovered this amazing guitarist called Soy Martino. I 'll let the video speak for the man...

and also:

Of course he reminds me of that excellent duo which I also recently discovered and who are true genuses of the guitar, Rodrigo y Gabriela...

Watching them i just got this feeling...that they make love through their guitar playing together... such is the evident passion!!

They are absolutely fantastic. I must somehow see them live...

PS Check out the green fairy blog at greenfairies.blogspot.com ...

The comeback...

2009-10-18T17:25:00.002+02:00

I must apologise for my absence. I will pretend that it really matters and say I am sorry. I'll also pretend there has been no break, offer no excuses and just continuefrom where i left off.

October in Corfu, the green island. Green because it is so wet. As usual today has alternated between crashing thunderstorms to wake us up, bright sunshine to get our hopes up, and rain. Big dark grey clouds with bright white tops constantly expanding. Rainbows! I sat outside a friend's house in silence listening to the rain as it swept along the tall, green trees and reached the house. Breaking the silence with it's own silent sound. shshhsshshshshshshshsh...

Musically this month is like the weather. The household is currently going through a Tim Buckley phase.

Here is the song that brought it all back.

Of course I also have an own personal favorite by Tim and it is "Sweet Surrender" The lyrics are about being ufaithful i think, and his vocals are truly amazing. The music is fantastic also... I would have loved to embed a video of it but could i find one? No, apparently one of the companies pulled it from the net... which is a shame i think. I did find a video of a guy doing a cover of it on the ukulele, but I am not sure about it. Maybe i will embed it next time when I do a piece on covers.

So for now here is my second favorite!

While we searched for "Song to the siren"we were reminded of the Cocteau Twins who covered the song, so here they are in another of their songs.

Finally October shall be remembered for one more musical event. ZZ Top are playing live in athens, and i've got tickets...

So here they are in all their bearded splendor!!!

Stop press!!

2009-07-02T21:45:00.002+03:00

Yes I know it's been a long time, but I have been so busy it's ridiculous...

So just a quick note to say that on the 28th of July, Eric Burdon of the Animals will be playing live at the Old Fortress in Corfu Town!!!

For those who don't know him, here he is, and those who do a little reminder...

He is a little older and greyer now, but he still rocks!

I had the pleasure of seeing him in Preveza a few years ago, where, unfortunately the gig was cut short y some idiot throwing a beer can and hitting Eric smack in the face... I am sure that kind of thing will not happen here.

I look forward to seeing you all there!!

Real live bleedin' fingers and broken guitar strings...

2009-05-17T01:52:00.002+03:00

Is there not something quite intense about listening to favorite songs, in a car, on your own, slightly inebriated and LOUD? Yes, YES!

And coming back from a gig no less...

I smell of drink and cigarettes, (even though I quit smoking), have a veritable buzz going on and it is all thanks to my friends, Matt, Dave and Heineken... I have just been issued an ultimatum, shower or sleep on couch, yet my spirits remain high!

It must be somethin to do with the spirits in my bloodstream...

So I shall lay down a few thoughts while in this exalted state.

Fuck copyright, fuck Eurovision, fuck all who wish to clamp down on FREE music!

I have just spent a very pleasant 2 hours listening to my friends, the Strangeloves. It is such a pleasure to listen and see people who REALLY enjoy what they are doing, who are honest, musicians to the bone, hard working and gigging in the face of adversity (like starting playing to an almost empty house...)

I won't whinge too much, it's time for bed. Just let it be known I had a thoroughly enjoyable night out listening to what I still consider the best live duet in Corfu.

I dedicated to them this song.

Musicals!

2009-04-29T22:23:00.002+03:00

Back when I started this musical-themed blog, in one of the first articles, there was a brief mention of some of my first musical discoveries. I presume that most people's first music is whatever their parents are listening to, which is my daughters are partial to Hotel California, anything by Imiskoubria and Peggy Zina (yuk!). (Imiskoubria are a greek hip-hop band for those who don't know)
I often find that some of this music has been indelibly etched into the brain, never to be erased. That must be because, at such young ages, our brain is much more impressionable.
And that must be why I can remember almost word for word the lyrics from pretty much everything by the Carpenters, Carole King, The sound of Music and The king and I!
Which of course has lead my wife to asking often "Are you SURE you aren't gay?"
I really love all of this music, even the musicals and even though I never considered myself to be a big "musicals" fan.

There is however one musical which I also used to listen to a lot at the time and which I consider gave me my first true Rock roots. This was "Jesus Christ Superstar".

Even know when I hear the staccato rhythm of the opening of "Heaven on their minds" I can't help a little air guitar...

It was only much-much later that I discovered that it was Ian Gillan who sang/played the part of Jesus and Murray Head of Judas. Also unlike Andrew Lloyd Webber's later productions , many musicians in "JCS" were hard rockers.

If anyone is interested in more info look it up on wikipedia there is extensive info.

Anyway I looked through youtube for a good version of one of the songs sung by Mr. Ian Gillan but couldn't find anything... so you must make do with this little gem.

Beyond these first musicals I listened to I avoided the rest like the plague. Especially as a one time rocker I could not be seen listening to "west side Story" , could I?
Last year though I let my guard down and went to see a fantastic production. there was a lot of hype about it and I tell you it was worth it!
Me and oldest daughter left the wonderful open air cinema (best place to see it) almost skipping and singing ABBA songs all the way...

Mamma mia!!!

I tell you, I'm not... really!!

The dark music

2009-04-28T00:07:00.002+03:00

Continuing on the theme of people we meet and the music that joins us together I shall travel back in time to 1989. It's been a year or so since I finished my national service and I have moved in to a little bedsit, my first house on my own. I have two neighbours, a girl and a boy. They are students and we meet occasionally in the corridor. They seem friendly but they are students and I am working. Our timetables are quite different... Summer comes too soon and they go back to their respective homes, a bath town and a flowery island. Autumn brings them back. As the swallows leave and the clouds take over, dark tunes emanate at night from the rooms across the corridor.
I am not accustomed to these sounds. I have grown up to a musical diet consisting mainly of rock, hard rock and rock and soul.

The music from next door I can only initially describe as dark. Oh, I have listened to my share of "dark" music but it is altogether of a very different "tone" of darkness. Black Sabbath, Aphrodite's Child, Iron Butterfly. Far out man! Dark yes but also naive in a way.

The song was supposedly called in the garden of eden but the singer was so stoned he pronounced it in-a-gadda-da-vida. kaloooo!

So what are these sounds from next door that are so new to me? They are Nick Cave, they are the Fall, they are the Cocteau Twins, This Mortal Coil and many many others. on the lighter side they are the Inspiral Carpets and the Stone Roses.
Unaccustomed as my ears were it took me a while but I came to love their music too.

My two mentors were a little younger than me at the time, and living their student years to the full! And they haven't changed much either. we still keep in touch... don't we?

The Strangeloves!

2009-04-26T00:56:00.002+03:00

I was never very much of an Elvis Costello fan. It isn't that I didn't like him, but rather I didn't happen upon any of his stuff. I was too busy listening to other things. One notable exception was his song "Oliver's Army". This I had on a compilation tape given me by my best mate, Spiro. I liked that song, and in hindsight should have sought out more of his stuff. After all it was the 80s!!
Anyway it so happened that I was to hear many more of his songs and come to appreciate them and love them in another way...

A few years ago, I was playing in a band, with some friends. Part of our band (the more musically proficient part...) in cooperation with another musician friend set up another band on the side. We actually used to play together, as a sort of double act. We were the Blueshine Boys. They were the Strangeloves. The band members were Matt (guitar,percussion,lead vocals), David (Bass guitar, backing vocals) Raul (Rhythm guitar, keyboards, backing vocals) and Akis (drums, percussion).

The Strangeloves were, in my opinion, the best local band ever. They played covers,which is how I got to hear a lot of Elvis Costello songs for the first time. Songs like "Watching the detectives", "Pump it up", "Lip Service" or "Radio, radio" I heard first from the Strangeloves and then much later the originals. But in any case I have to say that for me the Strangeloves OWNED those songs... (I've been remembering song titles for the last few minutes and the Strangeloves are beginning to look like a Costello tribute band ,I know...!)

They also played other covers too. "It's different for girls", "Here comes your man", "I got a line on you" and "Summer in the city" are a few I can remember. All played beautifully with gusto and flair. Matt excelled on vocals and rhythm guitar becoming very much the flamboyant frontman on stage. David and Raul joined in on harmonies and I always got this sense that this was what a band should sound like. Every time i listen to any of the above mentioned songs I can hear the Strangeloves in the back of my mind...

I do have some footage of the Strangeloves somewhere but until i edit it you must make do with some covers of the same songs by other people... or the originals!

As with most bands here, it seems, the success story was shortlived. I can't really tell if they burned out or they faded away, but it was good while it lasted. I was their friendly sound engineer there for a while, and it was a privilege...

Looking for a girl with a washing machine..

2009-03-12T08:33:00.002+02:00

I'm looking for a girl
with a washing machine
and a room that's cool and shady
I'm looking for a girl
with a shower and bath
come on, baby, don't look at me like that

I'm looking for a girl
with a washing machine
I ain't saying
I ain't saying I'm dirty
and I ain't saying I'm clean

oooh oooh
I'm looking for a girl
with a washing machine
and a room that's cool and shady

I'm looking for a girl
without plans for the night
I ain't saying I'm lonely
but I could use some company

I'm looking for a girl
with a washing machine
I ain't saying
I ain't saying I'm dirty
and I ain't saying I'm clean

oooh oooh

I bet you've got a washing machine
I bet you ain't got nothing at do
but I'm just a boy who came into town
I won't let you down

oooh oooh

What is it about this song?

I remember asking my friend Dave (a mine of eighties musical information) if he knew it, so we colud play it, as we were in a band together. He had never heard of it. However the band Big sleep and that song in particular were played in most clubs in the mid eighties here where I live and Greece in general.

A few years ago I was looking for it on the net, but could i find any info? No! And now suddenly there it is again...popped up out of the blue. Apparently it has even become a ringtone!

It is 1988 or 1989. The setting is the Rondo Bar in Corfu. It is sort of dark, and full of friendly faces. The place looks great, unlike what it looks like in the daylight.. "Looking for a girl with a washing machine" is playing loud, we are all drunk on youth, love, and healthy doses of alcohol. Friendships are being made that will last months, years, lifetimes. Some of us found the girl, and some of us lost her. Some of us never found her at all. And others just got the washing machine and waited for a girl without one...

It's Wednesday, early in the morning and I'm at work. "Looking for a girl.." has just started again, setting the tone for the day. Great beat, Great stops, Great lyrics, Great guitar work!!!

I wish for my life to go on like that.

Hooray for the music!!!

I love you all!

Music! Super glue of the souls...

2009-03-03T00:14:00.002+02:00

I'd been thinking recently of writing about certain friends of mine who have played important , musical, roles in my life. The idea was to do an article maybe on each one and the music I discovered because of or through our relationship. And then I read this article (in Greek) http://thethreewishes.wordpress.com/2009/02/27 by my friend theorema. I admire her writing so much. She is romantic and poetic but also concise and to the point. Admirable qualities... and in this article she managed to convey so eloquently, so many thoughts and feelings that I have shared. We probably ALL have shared.

Music. We love it. But not everybody does. Some people are more musical than others. Some people hate the music, others love it. And vice versa. Some music can be listened to all the time (or at least most of the time...) Some music needs its own special time. Some can make you laugh and some can make you cry. We sometimes judge people by what they listen to. We sometimes LIKE people for what they listen to. Or dislike them... Some music reminds of special times or special people.

We, the music lovers, cannot understand how someone can NOT like music or NOT be moved by it. But there you are, it happens.

There is a boy I know. I met him through my work. In his soft voice and friendly eyes, I recognised a friendly soul. Somehow, as it often does, music found its way in to our daily conversations. And we discovered lots of music we both liked. And we became friends. We've been to a few concerts together, nad I have often stayed at his house when visiting the big city. He and his woman, mostly wear black. He owns his house although he is no proponent of ownership as an idea. We have spent late summer nights together in front of the speakers, worshiping the music that brings us together. From Chatzidakis to the Fuzztones, and Oscar Brown Jr. to Nashville Pussy. As loud as it gets. A challenge to the neighbours...

It's been some time now since we last went to a concert together. Circumstances beyond our control. But I am sure that one day it will happen again...

The Bellrays are one of my all time favourite bands. Theirs was the first concert we went to together!

Music brought us together.

Been a long time since I rock'n'rolled...

2009-02-17T13:04:00.004+02:00

First things first, my apologies for being so late in posting a new article. Dear Constant readers (took that one from Stephen King...) will you forgive me? Unfortunately more mundane matters such as financial survival have been taking up my time...

I've been listening recently to this band, the Raconteurs. Their singer, (who is Jack White, as I have just found out...) sounds exactly like a young Robert Plant at times, especially on this song of theirs, Blue Veins.

Have a listen and see what you think.

i must say, as a once upon a time aspiring blues singer, that to me seems such a blessing...

Actually if you like for a laugh put in a google search for the words "raconteurs blue veins robert plant" and see what comes up! It seems like I'm not the only one who thinks he sounds like Robert Plant. At some point I even thought it might be sampling...

Radio days: On the paths of the galaxy...

2009-01-29T21:02:00.003+02:00

His voice was a more soft-spoken version of a Greek Christopher Lee. Deep and resonant, if a single malt whiskey could speak surely this would be what it would sound like. The show begun with the intro from "Also sprach Zarathustra" the pompous brass and drums preparing us for our mystical journey. For me, 13-14 years old and already heavily into scifi literature and "dinosaur" rock, this was heaven! I would be sitting at my desk late on Monday nights, often taping the show for posterity, learning about bands I'd never heard before (The Died Pretty for example) listening to amazing stories and excerpts by Edgar Allan Poe or William Blake, mixing UFOs and werewolves, young boys who aspired to become vampires...
At the time I would have been listening to the Alan Parsons Project "Tales of mystery and imagination" or "Pyramid". The show was called "Sta monopatia tou galaxia" and any of you who read greek and wish to find out more about it should go here:

Στα Μονοπάτια του Γαλαξία - Ένα χρονικό ραδιοφώνου - μέρος 1ο

and then here:

Στα Μονοπάτια του Γαλαξία - Ένα χρονικό ραδιοφώνου - μέρος 2ο

It is well worth reading. The greek radio program director who first heard the pilot, said to George, the producer: "you obviously know your radio, but there is no audience for this". George then went to another program where he got his slot, and from where he broadcast for years to come. after a month or so the first fan mail started arriving. The show became very popular. People used to get together to listen to him in company, like a party.

I fell in love with the radio then and there. Many years later, I would get my chance to do something similar... but more about that in the next "Radio Days" article...

For now I leave you with:

and

I believe they are linked as Alan Parsons was a sound engineer and worked with the Floyd at some time.

Goodnight...

Poetic justice...

2009-01-27T22:17:00.002+02:00

I suppose I was asking for trouble, when I mentioned, in my last post, something about the copious amounts of music I have downloaded. The hard disk crashed and I lost all of it.. Or almost all of it anyway! So it's back to the beginning. All I have left is an Aerosmith discography and disc 2 of Woodstock for some reason. Of course I still have my trusty CDs...

So I have been sort of reminiscing about the first music I heard. My first "akousmata" as they say here in Greece were "The Sound of Music" soundtrack, The Carpenters, Carole King, Tom jones and the Ray Conniff Orchestra!

Really once i mentioned him, i couldn't resist sticking that there...

So this was all when I was about 6-7 yrs old. Then one day my cousin brought home a tape, which should have been an epiphany, and was in a way, but still watered down a bit... you see one side was Pink Floyd. The other one was a disco mix including the likes of Lipps Inc "Funky Town" and other such stuff. I liked Pink floyd, and I liked the disco stuff and I listened to it over and over again...

Then when i was about 13 yrs old, I was being given lessons in German by the neighbours son, Tony. Except for German, he treated my youthful ears to the sounds of:

Grand Funk railroad
Black Sabbath
Beck, Bogart and Appice
Jimi Hendrix
Queen
Janis Joplin
The Doors
Motorhead
Deep Purple
and many, many others

among them one of my favorites at the time!!!

This is music that still makes my hair stand on end. It makes me waannna screeeeaaaaaam!!! Yeah....

That's all for tonight folks... it's a cold, wet night and there is a warm body waiting for me somewhere near...

goodnight!!

music for free...

2009-01-12T23:25:00.002+02:00

During my lifetime, music and the formats it comes in has changed many times and drastically. I confess, I remember seeing these massive white 8-track tapes in cars when I was a child. They had faded out apparently by the mid 70s but obviously took a bit longer to fade out in Greece, where I grew up. At the same time of course there was vinyl, in Album (33rpm) and single (45rpm) sizes. From these was formed the beginning of my record collection. There were a number of stores in Corfu, from where I used to buy records, or diskoi, as they were called in Greek. Diskoi is a word which also means tray. This has led to a number of misunderstandings with my children... Then there was also the trusty cassette. The music pirate's, first instrument of crime...
Nick Hornby has written much about the ritual of making a good compilation tape, and, whether it be intended for a friend or a prospective girlfriend, a lot of time and love went into these.I did my share of those too.
In the early 80s we started hearing about the new thing, the CD. This remained for some time out of mine and my friends reach, as we were teenagers and not rich. I didn't actually get a CD player until the early 90s! I still remember my first CD. It was "Little Creatures" by the Talking Heads.

my vinyl collection was soon stashed away, replaced by the much smaller and handier CDs. And then along came MP3. I did my bit and got an iPod, which I soon sold to a friend's son. There was just no way i could make those earphones stay in my ears!!

Being an intensive computer user, the mp3 format soon took over for me, as with many others, and the CDs now form an essential backup facility.

I am also one of those people who doesn't believe that musical "piracy" is such a bad thing. I could never have afforded to buy all the music I have. The funny thing is there is so much of it I will never listen to it all. But I do not believe, that I or other downloaders are cheating anyone out of their money.

As far as I am concerned musicians have been making far too much money as it is. I think they way it should be, is, artists should get paid from their live gigs, and the music sold on Cd should have a minimum charge, more like a promotional item. Maybe they could even give them away at concerts.

I am sure many will not agree with me, but this just my opinion.

Here though for your enjoyment is a band leading the way in music appreciation!

And it is not only musical artists that get paid too much. It is actors and footballers too!

The loneliest number...

2009-01-05T21:11:00.002+02:00

In my experience there are two different ways I can "fall in love" with a song. Just like in real life relationships a song either "grows" on you, or you fall suddenly, madly "in love"...

This second has happened a handful of times over the years, and usually the result has been a long lasting intense "relationship". These are the songs that rock me to my soul, the songs that make me dream of being a singer, so that I can sing them...

Here are as many as I can remember off hand:

Hard to handle - The Black Crowes
Try a little tenderness - The Commitments
Have a little faith - The Bellrays
My boyfriend's back - The Spazzys
The Ship song - Nick Cave
Stairway to heaven - Dolly Parton
I got a Stomach ache - Buddy Guy
Let's work together - The Climax Blues Band
and many more...

To this list another has been added, just a few days ago. I heard it, of course in an advertisement. Thank god for the internet and lyrics searches! I discovered the song is by a band called Three Dog Night. I had never even heard of them... of course I discovered I actually did have a song by them, on the Forrest Gump soundtrack. It is not unusual for someone nowadays to have more music than he can keep track of, but to have never heard of Three Dog Night? Another quick search showed me that they have been around for 4 decades! Now I was really amazed... and they have written hits like "Mama told me not to come"!
I know I am certainly not the worlds most knowledgeable music fan, far from it actually, but i do enjoy a certain fame in my family circle of knowing about some pretty obscure musical facts...
Yet this band eluded me.
Anyway the song I am talking about, or rather RAVING about, is "One". It is the one that says" one is the loneliest number..."

Here they are in all their 1969 glory...

And I still cannot believe i had never heard of them...

The Jazz Rock Club and my first obituary...

2009-01-04T16:53:00.003+02:00

I'll start with the bad news and go from there. I just heard that Jimmy Mavronas passed away a few days ago.He was, according to my calculations, only 57. For those who didn't know him, Jimmy was a local DJ and musical figure. I first met him when he was DJ at the La Scala Club in Corfu town back in 1986. He resurfaced when he opened the Jazz Rock Club next to the Orfeas cinema. The Jazz rock club, quickly became a haven for live music in Corfu, even though it was quite small. For us who live here and were starved for some live music it was definitely THE place. Up until its opening, nothing much happened live music-wise except maybe for some concerts by local pub-rock band "The Busta-Waste Band". But we will get back to them another time.

The Jazz Rock club hosted, among others, Mode Plagal in 2002, Blue Bug in 2005 (I think...) Louisiana Red, Johnny Vavouras, Lakis me ta psila rever, and a host of local jazz and rock bands, including one of my old bands "The Savage Blues Band". A number of jam nights were held also. In this way Jimmy did a lot for the local live music scene. Unfortunately he also got himself in trouble with the law, and ended up doing a stint behind bars, which put an end to the Jazz Rock club era. When he was finally free again, he went back to DJing, both in bars and on radio, most notably last summer playing in the Tallio beach bar, on Chalikounas beach, where the kite surfers hang out.

I tried to find some video to go with this, and found a little something by the Blue Bug. They are a Greek blues band who I became very enthusiastic about after seeing them live at the Jazz Rock club. I even have an autographed cd by them... They re-visited Corfu, years later, again at the Jazz Rock, but this time didn't play so much blues as funk and disco. Nevertheless they remain a VERY good band, with a great vibe and a real feel for the music they play.

Here they are!

Discover...Corfu's Memory lane!

2009-01-03T20:26:00.005+02:00

One of the great things about music, is it can be as much a voyage of discovery as RE-discovery... As I listen to a compilation I recently made for a road trip, I rediscover how much I like the Smashing Pumpkins (on their cover of Thin Lizzy's "Dancing in the moonlight"), even though I wasn't really into them at the time. I re discover how Thin Lizzy can really get me going, listening to "Still in love with you". And savour Gary Moore's excellent fretwork on "Cold day in Hell"...

The full compilation runs something like this:
Walk on the wild Side Lou Reed
Dancing In The Moonlight The Smashing Pumpkins
Still In Love With You (Live) Thin Lizzy
Cold Day In Hell Gary Moore
Bird of paradise Snowy White
Don't fear the reaper the mutton birds
Rock Sugar Rob Grill
Cellophane City Steve Forbert
Walking On Sunshine Katrina & The Waves
Lust For Life(feat.Pretenders) Tom Jones
Everyday Is Like Sunday The Pretenders
Bigmouth Strikes Again The Smiths
All Along The Watchtower The Hamsters
Stone Free The Hamsters
Aquarius, Let The Sunshine In Fifth Dimension
California Dreamin' The Mamas & the Papas

ok a lot of you have by now realised I may be a bit of an old fart... from the kind of stuff I listen to... but hey, there are older farts than me around!

A lot of the songs in the list above, remind me of specific places or times in my life. I'd like to list a few for old times sake, hoping that some of you, especially friends of course, will be reminded of something too. And if you feel you would like to add something do not hesitate to comment!
Walk on the wild side: Petra Club in kontokali (the first one!) 1985
Rock Sugar; coca flash corfu somewhere round the end of the 80s!
Cellophane city: coca flash (The song that signaled closing time! Thank you Andreas for some of the best musical moments, and teaching us all about good music with your djing...)
Walking on Sunshine: Coca Club Pelekas 1987-88 or so!
Bigmouth Strikes Again: Ceasar's palace pelekas 1987-88? (bit hazy there I'm afraid...)Might have been the drugs...

Well it's kinda like closing time here too, now... but could I find Cellophane city on youtube? No....

So here are the Smashing Pumpkins and "Dancing in the Moonlight". They really do the song justice in a lovely, slow, laid back sort of way.

Good night...

Song Covers

2009-01-02T23:38:00.003+02:00

Let's face it, practically every one who ever was in band has done a cover song. Even the Beatles did it!! And nowadays it seems as if everyone is doing it! You'd be forgiven to think that artists are running out of inspiration for new material.

But hey, doing a cover isn't such a bad thing... Because it can be very good!
My opinion is, a musician doing a cover should follow some very simple rules.
First learn the song well, respect it and don't just "busk" it.
Second if you don't intend to play it like it is, then you must either add to it in some sense, or play it in a different way.

In the 10 years or so I played in bands, the question of what covers and how to do them , was indeed one of the most difficult. After all, as they say opinions are like a**holes, everybody has one...

In part due to my involvement in playing them, cover songs are actually a favorite musical interest of mine. And I have an extensive collection. On the subject of respecting a song, I remember I used to think of certain songs as being "untouchable" cover wise. That no band should ever attempt them. I am not so sure about that anymore. One of the songs I would have considered "untouchable" would have been "Stairway to Heaven". The reasons being, who could hope to match that voice, who could hope to match that playing and well we are talking about the song which is arguably the best rock song ever!!!

And then Dolly Parton comes along and gives it the bluegrass treatment. Whenever I hear it my hair stands on end...! Because she has respected it and given it something of her own and then some!

Have a listen:

Wow!
Dolly Rocks!!

Welcome to the Magical Musical Time Machine!

2009-01-02T15:37:00.001+02:00

First of all my apologies to those friends who may have been expecting this blog to be in Greek, but together with my idea for separate music themed blog, I had to heed the call of my other mother tongue...

So here we are!

I intend this to be a blog about music and anything to do with it, reminiscences from my musical past, music news to do with Corfu, my musical friends, myself (if there is ever anything new on that musical front...haha!) and anything else interesting!

Music has always been a big thing in my life. I may have never become as much of a musical geek as say, the character in Nick Hornby's "High Fidelity" but i could have come close...

I suppose it must have all started when I was a kid, in the early seventies. Not a bad time to get into music, although I missed the sixties (was a baby...) was too young to appreciate the seventies and just a few years too young to get into the punk scene (and living in the wrong country...) So what does leave us with? The Eighties! yup, the decade that according to most of my older rocker friends was an absolute disaster music-wise...

But we will come to that in some other post. I can't really be sure what the first music I heard, was, but I suspect it was something along the lines of the Beatles and such. The first music I DO remember is from the Carpenters, Carole King and the soundtrack to the Sound of Music! In fact this last was played so often on our old wooden turntable ,that i can still remember the words and happily sing along to the film, prompting some people to wonder whether I am gay...

My favorite one was obviously this one...

That's all for today...