Straight ahead rock guitarist singer-songwriter who has a mountain in Birmingham, AL, named after him. No, no scrap that last one about the mountain. Turns out that was named after a geologist named Ruffner in the 1880s.
Mason Ruffner sounds a little like Tom Petty and his guitar playing a little like Petty’s Heartbraker bandmate Mike Campbell. Add a pinch of New Orleans and Boston bluesman George Thorogood and you’ve got Ruffner.
Ruffner is a more than accomplished musician and is in my estimation underrated. “Gypsy” is the guitar -driven hit here. “Baby I don’t Care No More,’ is a rollicking piano guitar piece that sounds like it’s coming straight out of a New Orleans bar. Wikipedia points out that he played with Bob Dylan and Dylan mentioned him in Dylan’s memoirs
“Ruffner played in Bourbon Street clubs like the Old Absinthe Bar. He was a regional star, had a high pompadour, a gold tooth smile with a tiny guitar inlaid,” Dylan wrote in Chronicles: Volume One.
ALBUMS: Hot Rocks (1971); Between the Buttons, (1967) Get Your Ya Ya’s Out (1971); Metamorphosis (1975); Dancing with Edward (1974; Sticky Fingers, (1971); Exile on Main Street (1972); Undercover (1987); Tattoo You (1978); Love You Live (1977 ); Black and Blue (1976)
MVC Grade: Hot Rocks (5.0/$$$$$); Between the Buttons (4.0/$$$$); Get Your Ya Ya’s Out (4.5/$$$$); Metamorphosis (3.5/$$$); Dancing with Edward (3.0/$$$) Sticky Fingers (5.0/$$$$$, Exile on Main Street (5.0/$$$$$); Undercover (2.5/$$$); Tattoo You (4.0/$$$$) Black and Blue(4.5/$$$$) Love You Live (3.5/$$$).
What’s that sound all across America of people zipping up their pants, their coats, their purses. Listen: zzzzzzzzzziiiiiiiiiiiiippppppppppppppp!
Oddly makes me feel secure knowing everything is zipped up.
Zip? And what better to zip with: A zipper.
I once bought a $120 pair of jeans marked down drastically because the thingymajigy used to pull up and mesh the zipper teeth, was missing. So I had to use my fingernails or bring a pair of pliers into the bathroom.
CAUTION: Use caution when you make sure you are clamping down on the zipper. A wrong placement and a tight squeeze can cause pain. Just be careful.
So a zipper is one of those words that when you say it out loud it sounds like the name of the thing that goes with the name. Come on you know what I’m talking about …. a word that makes a sound instead of a thought, I mean, not really that so much as it’s a pioneering use of the English language like Zonk! (or is that Zonk?)
What’s a Zonk and what does this have to about zippers? You mean Zonk is the sound a zipper makes? No Keith says, Zonk is like a Three Stooges smack to the head. Usually a smack that rattles you into dumboundedness.
I told Keith Richards that I already told him this was a Rolling Stones review for MyVinylcountdown.com. We need to be on good behavior.
OK, here we go:
Sometimes when the zipper method of merging works, the cars, as if driven by cooperative experts take turns merging, you first, me next, you next. (That’s called the zipper merge on American freeways.)
Well this is what the Rolling Stones did with Rock and Roll. They pulled all these disparate tangs into a big zip. If you don’t believe it, they actually show it on possibly their best album: Sticky Fingers. The original cover has an actual working zipper on the cover.
It’s a safe bet to name the Rolling Stones the best ever in rock evolution and revolution, pulling in the blues, some country, folk and poetic lyricism (Dylan influence).
The Stones did that as well with more of an emphasis on the blues. But that doesn’t mean they became the best blues players of all time.. The Stones became the best rock and roll band of all time because they could play, having internalized that strong mix of rural and urban blues, hooky chorus driven pop and early rock and roll, and let it rip. Or zip.
The Beatles pound-for- pound had better songs, better singing and playing, but the Stones were road ragged warriors. Paul and John had the words and questions. Mick and Keith had the exclamation points.
First you see the Stones and you look at these little punky kids (1960s) and the lead singer with the huge mouth, bodies flailing around and you wondered: Are they putting us on?
But the more your listen, the more you realize Jagger’s voice is perfect to carry this thing off, loud, ripped Chuck Berry and Bo DIddley chords, Watts and Wyman and Richards thrashing about.
And Jagger was singing (and writing along with Richards), songs like Satisfaction, Street Fighting Man, Gimme Shelter, Mother’s Little Helper,
Sorry but the Herman’s Hermit’s were not taking on revolution, the hypocrisy behind the pharmaceutical drug complex, or the advertisers brainwashing techniques.
Here some zippers:
Well this is what the Rolling Stones did with Rock and Roll. They pulled all these disparate things together.
If you don’t believe it, they actually show it on possibly their best album: Sticky Fingers. The Andy-Warhol designed cover has an actual working zipper on the cover. Merge.
I touched on this in an earlier column last week but I wanted to give it a little more attention.
I’ve had Lewy body dementia now for about five years and previously have had that happen to me. But that was once in a blue moon. I’ve had it a few times in my life — orthostatic hypotension — but it happens, you’re dizzy and it goes away. But in some LBD cases it can be a thing to warrant extra attention. These falls are dangerous.
I’m going to do more research, and talk to my doctor about it. But until then I’ve developed some strategy to save myself from flopping on my face. Before I get up from a long sitting or from bed in the morning I start breathing deliberately and deeply. I’m not hyperventilating. I am just aware of taking my breaths.
Sit there poised to get up but don’t — just breathe for another few minutes. Stand up using your arms on you knees or railing. I stop and keep my hands on knees continuing the deliberate breathing.
Here’s the thing. If this is going to happen to you it might happen as long as 10 minutes after the standing up. My faints were all several minutes after I thought any potential episode had been averted.
So the key part of this is time. Keep breathing and now standing lift one leg up (holding onto something) and then another like you are slow marching in place. I also put my hands on my head to open up my rib cage. Don’t get in a hurry. Stay there as long as you feel any cobwebs in your brain. Remember to drink plenty of liquids. I drink water, vegetable drink and sports drinks, usually sipping on one or the other all day long. (Coffee, too, but shhhhh, I don’t belive that’s going to help you on this one. Coffee is helpful to me with Parkinsonian symptoms like body unease, tremor and clearing my mind.
Another key to this thing is bringing more attention to it. Additional news on top of this information includes OH — the dizzy knockout symptom — might also shorten the lifespan of a Lewy body sufferer. After dealing with LBD all week, it was the last thing I wanted to hear. Maybe it is that the OH is killing people with falls at a rate to affect the numbers. More investigation needed and I’m on it.
So, if you see a guy ambling down the street one day, wearing a helmet — that’s me.
ALBUMS: High Infidelity (1980). A Decade of Rock and Roll 1970 – 1980
MVC Rating: Infidelity 3.5;/ $$’ Decade of Rock and Roll. 4.0/$$$
Kevin Cronin (with the hair ) and me (Mike Oliver) a photo and discussion after the show about Lewy body dementia at a Lewy conference in Las Vegas.
OK, i’ll start something: Journey or REO Speedwagon?
Which one was the better band?. They both suck right, ?
Well, no. How can you even ask the question? Journey had better songs. Journey was the perfect rock date band: Journey was more famous and was worldwide. Man, what’ are you even talking about?
I hear you .
My family moved to Indiana, trading red clay dirt clods for cornfields and a famous car race My new Indiana friends were very much into REO Speedwagon and if you think REO ws a cheesy Top 40 band listen to some of their earlier albums, they rocked so hard the front row had their eyebrows burned off.
Of course that is obviously not true but I’m sure there were ringing ears.
Now flash forward a couple of decades plus. I was regional editor or projects editor for the Oakland Tribune., My co-workers of a slightly younger age who grew up in the SF Bay Area Journey was the thing. Not even a guilty pleasure but an awesome hard rock band that made REO look like hayseeds. (They’re behind the corn).
Let’s look at the tale of the tape, quite appropriate when you consider how many cassettes these guys sold .
Super hard rock in Speedwagon’s earlier days. s
Journey, over a 40-years career, has been one of the greatest classic rock bands of all time. The band has released 23 albums and 43 singles since 1975 and has reached worldwide album sales totaling more than 75 million. .
I didn’t think their resume was THAT good. And I like them. Just so we give ’em a fair shake, I’ll find REO’s numbers. Those are oustanding numbers for Journey probably putting them in the top echelon for 70s and 80s bands..
OK, here we go with the REO number. (Both of these nuggets of info, supplied by Wikipedia and Google aggregation abilities.
Over the course of its career, the band has sold more than 40 million records and has charted 13 Top 40 hits, including the number ones “Keep On Loving You” and “Can’t Fight This Feeling?.
Not bad. But this was exactly the music I was transitioning out of at about 18. Played them again for this piece and yes both Journey and REO Speedwagon rock!
It would be easy to dismiss this average white band as a great bar band and go with that. But they are actually a good bump above that description. They are an American band in the Grand Funk mode or blue-eyed rock and soul of Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels.
Rare Earth was from Detroit, and like Mitch Ryder’s great band, absorbed the Motor City’s soul music tradition.
Detroit Wheels had some funk and soul in their approach. Rare Earth was one of the first successful- all- white bands to be signed by Motown Records. (Others had been signed but never had a hit or achieved much success.) Some audiences called the band too white sounding and others called the band too black sounding, but a lot more liked the sound. One of their biggest hits was a cover of a Temptations song, ‘Get Ready’ which was a real jam — like 30 minutes of jam in concert. They were loud, both vocally and musically.
I saw them at an outdoor free concert in West Lafayette, Indiana, in around 1974 or 1975. Or, maybe that was the J. Geils Band (?). I don’t know. I do know I became familiar with Rare Earth’s songs around this time as they bombarded the radio airways.
‘Born to Wander,’ ‘Hey Big Brother,’ ‘(I Know) I’m Losing You’ and my favorite: ‘I just Want to Celebrate.’
The multimillionaire record mogul was worried enough about the group to sue them for using Quincy as the name of their band. I’m getting this from a compilation of sources, blogs and bios, incuding IMDb’s profile, of one of the ex-band members, Gerald Emerick.
Quincy Jones who has set the record for Grammy nominations with 80 (he won 28) went after a New Wave band with no hits and just a little promise. Because they called themselves Quincy?
I picked up the band’s self-entitled album in a bargain bin I believe while I was in Auburn. 1980. The music is pretty good New Wave, power pop with some synth highlights. The songs bounce a la Boomtown Rats or Elvis Costello or the Cars.
Maybe it’s a collectible because it’s the first and only album (that I know of) under the name Quincy. The band was no match for Mr. Jones and settled out of court.
For their second album, their name was Lulu Temple.
After not much success, the band that had once been a frequent performer at CGBG’s, disbanded and went their separate ways.
All I can say is Quincy Jones. Wow. Lulu Temple. Wow. Wasn’t there a popular TV show about this time called ‘Quincy?’
I haven’t seen that Jack Klugman vehicle in a long time. Maybe it’s called something else now? I can I picture Jack Klugman smoking a big cigar yelling: “Quit calling me Lulu.”
Don’t worry, I’m still going to finish. I just believe I need to step it up.
My Vinyl Countdown, or myvinylcountdown.com, is still rolling, but needs some maintenance as I’ve piled on about 500 posts in less than three years.
Read About Me for a detailed explanation but in general, I’m counting down the 678 vinyl records I have collected over the years. Of my 500-plus posts, a little more than 400 are record reviews. I have about 230 of those reviews to go which will be another 18 months at the pace I’m going now. So, I need to accelerate.
Obviously this is not all about music; I’ve written quite a few post, essays, even poetry about the disease, some are here. Check the ‘categories ‘ and ‘archives’ buttons for more.
An associated fund-raising group called MikeMadness has staged a basketball tournament for three straight years resulting in about $40,000 combined toward awareness and research. Our fourth annual even was scheduled for July 25, 2020. We are watching the issues surrounding the coronavirus closely to see if and how we may have to make new arrangements. Stay tuned in to this blog, or AL.com, or MikeMadness.
My impetus to accelerate is not that I’ll be dying any minute from this incurable degenerative brain disease. But I will be dying any year. I’d like to accomplish this task with some cushion, big cushion.
In the mad swirl of advocating for Lewy body dementia, I’ve met Suzanne WIlliams Wright, Robin WIliams’ widow, And I was interviewed for podcast by Kerri Kasem the daughter of Casey Kasem, who also like WIlliams died of Lewy body dementia.
Alphabetically I just finished the ‘P’s’ and into the ‘Q’s’ with Queen. I’ve bought and received a good deal of albums during this time, but I’ve also sold about 40 or 50. One of my tune-ups is to correct my countdown numbers which appear in bold on the title headline of each bog post. Those countdown numbers are supposed to tell you and me where I am with these. I have found that in several places I’ve skipped adding the number. For example, I have on Van Morrison listed only one album when in reality I have about five. The error came in listing only one album for the countdown. So this is exciting in that it might move me up (down?) in the countdown. In other words, I’m farther along than I thought.
If I was really ambitious and forward thinking and savvy I would have all of these in a spreadsheet and keep track by updating every time I gain one or lose one.
Now readers, friends and family have worried that the end of the countdown somehow means the end of me. Not what I’m planning. I started this to raise money for Lewy body dementia research and awareness. When I get to 678 I am anticipating I’ll have overage which could be dealt with by simply adding an addendum to this blog, which has also been a regular feature at AL.com.
I’ll leave you now with reviews from the blog archives:
JANIS JOPLIN
Album: Greatest Hits (1973); Pearl (1969)
MVC Rating: Greatist: 4.0/$$$; Pearl 4.5/$$$$
NOTE: I added Pearl rather recently, not being able to resist its thrift store price and good conditionl. Half the tracks overlap with Greatest Hits. Pearl is a great classic album. I’m pretty sure I have pretty much all the Joplin I need as I also have a CD with something like 20 song.
—
Talk about pain — as we have been with the country songs of George Jones and Tammy Wynette — Janis Joplin was one hurting puppy.
Her voice was like no other when that inner turmoil came out.
That’s why the video in my last post of Janis and Tom Jones is something of a revelation. Tom Jones (coming to Birmingham soon) is a made for-Vegas, pop singer with a ladies’ following, some nifty dance moves copped from Elvis, and a strong strong voice in his own right. On this duet, Tom and Janis seem to be having much fun as they see who can out belt each other while shimmying around the dance floor to a small but raucous crowd of musicians and dancers.
CLICK ON TITLE FOR FULL REVIEW
ROY CLARK
ALBUM: Guitar Spectacular! (1965)
MVC Rating: 4.0/$$
This one slipped between the cracks earlier, having now passed my “C” section. But upon hearing of his death today it feels appropriate to put it up.
He was 85.
AL GREEN
]ALBUMS: Greatest Hits (Reissue: 1982 of 1975 release); Truth In Time (1978); Soul Survivor (1987)
MVC Rating: Greatest 5/$$$$; Truth 4.0/$$$; Soul Survivor/$$$
One of my favorite artists — all time.
I have three albums that capture the essence and soul of a man with essence and soul. He was the best at covering other’s work and elevating. But he wrote his own as well.
His earlier stuff collected on the hits album is classic R&B, soul. Some of the best made.
The Al Green-penned ‘Let’s Stay Together,’ ‘Let’s Get Married,’ ‘Call Me,’ and ‘I’m Still in Love With You’ all smolder with love and hotter love. Green’s falsetto is the best. That’s not up for debate with me. It is the best. His song, “Tired of Being Alone” is a timeless classic.
But it’s his cover of the Bee Gee’s ‘How Can You Mend a Broken Heart’ that takes the prize for top, not to be too hyperbolic, perhaps Top 3, covers of all time. That is an emotional workout listening to Green sing that.
The only song not on the Greatest Hits that should have been is ‘Take Me to the River,’ a Green song covered quite successfully later by the Talking Heads.
Green in 1974, after some traumatic life events and hospitalizations, became a pastor. He leads a big church in Memphis near Elvis’ Graceland. Over the years he has wavered between recording pure gospel music and a hybrid of popular, with God infused throughout.
Some of his ’80s’ work is as powerful as anything he’s ever done. I got religion about three times listening to Soul Survivor and his sung version of the 23rd Psalm with a full gospel choir. In my copy of ‘Soul Survivor’ I was happy to find a 5X7 photo and a bio sheet.
Long before Dave Chappelle’s hilarious I-Am-Rick-James- Dammit, Rick James was a crossover hit at my fully integrated high school in Athens, Ga. It was 55 percent white and 45 percent black in my day “Go 78.’
The back parking lot where students hung out for one more cigarette before running to class, vibrated on most mornings.
Blacks and whites jamming to Super Freak. Power boosted stereos buzzing windows and even some dancing along the way. Other crossover songs included ‘Play that Funky Music White Boy’ by Wild Cherry, and Brick House by the Commodores.
The white kids’ favorites Lynyrd Skynyrd, Marshall Tucker Band, the Outlaws and Wet Willie were Southern Rock and did not cross over as well. Foreigner, Bad Company, Heart and Journey were sort of MOR hard rock that appealed to a mostly white audience.
Pink Floyd, Yes, Led Zeppelin and to a lesser extent King Crimson were on a different plane. One of my black friends was a huge Emerson Lake and Palmer fan.
Parliament Funkadelic and George Clinton were like the heavy metal/Frank Zappa sub-genre of funk/space music. Does that make sense? No.
I got tired of the Southern rock thing and found Elvis Costello my senior year in high school, he had just come out with ‘My Aim is True.’ Had it on cassette for car playing. I pivoted again and it ultimately led me down a very expansive, if not winding, path of music appreciation.
So while there was crossover there was a lot of segregation of the music.
Super Freak was kind of dirty for the radio but it was infectious and a huge dance hit. Rick James, who took off like a lightning bolt got into some big trouble and spent time in prison. He died in 2004.
This group he helped create and produce, Process and the Do-Rags, was a throwback group to the black doo-wop and male vocal groups, like Clyde McPhatter and the Drifters or the Temptations.
They didn’t do well and disbanded after two albums. But they were rediscovered not long ago and there were some albums re-released from Japan.
They were probably ahead of their time as a retro male vocal soul and funk group. Can definitely see the Rick James influence with ‘Stomp and Shout’ and ‘The Bells.’ RIck was writer or co-writer on most songs.
This album has two fun bubblegum singles: I’ll Meet you Halfway and Doesn’t Somebody Want to be Wanted. Besides these two hits for the TV teeny bop band of the 1970s, the album contains innocuous filler, many from the professional songwriting team of Wes Ferrell and Gerry Goffin.
I went into this album hoping there’d be a surprise hidden gem but nah. It’s all pretty mediocre stuff. But I like the hits.
If you don’t already know it, David Cassidy and Shirley Jones are the only ones who had record time along with their camera time on the insipid TV show The Partridge Family. But I watched it — heck I was 11 years old and kind of liked the notion of screaming girls chasing me, um, David around.
The Cowsills, the Rhode Island family band who actually did play their own instruments, were the inspiration for the TV show. If memory serves me the TV producers wanted the family but not Mrs. Cowsill — the mom. Not because she wasn’t a good musician, but because Shirley Jones, who starred in Oklahoma, wanted this chance of being a Rock and Roll mother as she rolled into her middle age.
