Well, I can hardly pass up an opportunity to extend “New Bands Week” just one more day…
The song I bring you tonight is “Bell Bottom Blues” by Derek and the Dominoes, the 1970’s band fronted by Eric Clapton and better known for “Layla.” Supposedly, Clapton purposely named this band to avoid the media and fan attention that he was getting at the time, such as when a fan scrawled on a billboard “Clapton is God.” I also read in an interview that Clapton suggested the purpose of the band name was to give himself an excuse to write about Pattie Boyd (former wife of George Harrison) under the guise of Derek singing about “Layla.” I’m not sure how well the ruse worked at the time, but with songs like these, it must have been hard to keep things under wraps.
Without further ado, I give you my version of “Bell Bottom Blues,” a song that I’ve loved since I heard it years ago and that received the heaviest attention from me during high school when I was drawn to the emotion of the song. I hope you like it as well!
Don’t forget to check out Jeff’s new album Greenlight. I downloaded my copy yesterday and have already listened to it twice. (“And,” to quote Maxwell Smart, “lovin’ it!”)
As promised, I’m back after my second Jack Johnson acoustic cover song (posted on Saturday) to bring you my first installment for “New Bands Week.” Since I wanted to make sure that I’m pulling my weight around here (and considering that Jim is swiftly adding to a list of at least ten new artists he plans to cover!), I decided to bring not only one but two new bands in one day to the best cover song music blog in the universe!
Okay, so maybe I’m talking up my contribution here, since the song I chose — “Walt Whitman’s Niece” — was recorded as a collaboration between the two artists, songwriter Billy Bragg and alternative rock band Wilco. But, still… in the spirit of “New Bands Week,” two new bands!
There’s a really interesting story to go along with this cover song. This is the first track on Billy Bragg and Wilco’s Mermaid Avenue album, a collection of songs based on the lyrics of Woody Guthrie. Guthrie essentially ended up writing countless songs over his years as a songwriter, many of which he never put to music. He literally had boxes of them. I read that Guthrie actually offered them to a young Bob Dylan when Dylan went to visit him in the hospital. He even made the long trip out to Guthrie’s house, but there was only a babysitter at home and she did not want to let a stranger in. (Little did she know he would soon be anything BUT a stranger!) Then, decades later, Billy Bragg and Wilco got their hands on the lyrics, chose their favorites, and wrote music for the words. The result is an amazing album that I first learned about through my Journalism II teacher, who was also a big Dylan fan.
They came out with a sequel a few years later, simply called Mermaid Avenue Volume II, but it really wasn’t as strong as the first time around. This is simply one of those moments in rock music, in my opinion, that came down to initial inspiration. That first album is such a strong, enjoyable, and interesting collection of music. In fact, I initially wanted to record “Ingrid Bergman” (which I did and stored away for later), but then remembered about “Walt Whitman’s Niece.” I figured it would be a much stronger choice, as it is the first track on the album, upbeat, and of course, highlighted by a crazy harmonica solo that I could never duplicate. All in all, a really fun song to sing. As Jim and I figured out, it was a lot of fun to improv lyrics to the tune!
As a final note, Jim and I saw the latest Woody Allen movie, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, tonight. Although I’m always a big fan of seeing him in the movies, this was a really interesting film even if he didn’t play an acting role. I wasn’t sure how I felt about the voiceovers initially, but I really got into the characters and especially the situation. I think this is one of those movies that will cause viewers to think about their own ideas about love, trust, and what their lives will be like in several decades. How do you find happiness? I don’t want to give anything away, so I’ll stop here.
This may be all for today’s post, but don’t forget to rush back tomorrow for another all-new band and another all-new cover song by Jeff Copperthite. If you haven’t already, you should scroll down the home page and check out Jim and Jeff’s first picks of the New Bands Week.
This tune I wrote two February’s ago while sitting on a bench in West Haven, CT (Savin Rock). My favorite restaurant Jimmies is there, and I went between classes alone to just look at the water and see the sun shine out on it. I wondered why just seeing the sea could make me think and feel so strongly of one person in particular, especially since I never went there with them (or anywhere, for that matter)… Yet love has a way of touching the entire outside world, and every subject is another shell that was never left unturned.
I remember the cool air, but occasional warm breeze- and girls from a high school track team jogging by as I stared at a blank spot on the bench in which I sat… which I found remarkable, because every square inch besides this one void was covered in “Tom love Erica” and “Joe-hearts-Sandy”, etc… And i was so excited that if I wanted to, I could join the immortal bench carvers, haha… and lo and behold?..
a tropical song was born… and it inspired me to buy my ocean blue Dean Key Largo acoustic/electric because it feels like Im holding that water in my hands… hope you enjoy this interesting, complex song as much as my mother does when she hears me practice it!
Just a note… my favorite lines – “But who will save me?..When Im all alone, and my heart could choke…I got a tunnel of love, but my swan-boat’s broke….Maybe it just needs a song, a new piece of oak- to get me to you…And I dont know if it’s the cold or the fact I miss you so- that is makin’ my lips turn blue… But there’s still strength enough for I adore you”… =)
Welcome to another video blog in the Laptop Sessions music video series! Today, I bring you a cover song that was written in the 1950s and was covered on two separate occasions by two of my favorite artists — Johnny Cash and the Band. Cash recorded it most famously on his Folsom Prison concert and the Band included it on their 1968 album Music from Big Pink. Both are great albums, and this is a fun song. I hope you like it…
