It's been 25 years since Vladimir's Universe first emerged on the Ypsilanti, Michigan music scene. This locally renowned garage band played regularly at the Cross Street Station from 1987-1990. In November 2012 a 25th anniversary album appeared called "This Machine Eats Bacon". Check out this page for the stories behind the songs, influences, inspiration, Vlad-story, and favorites.
I don't make New Year's resolutions. They make things worse.
For instance, you resolve on January 1 that you will lose 10 lbs. Then you only make it to 9 and feel like a failure. Therefore you give up altogether and put the weight back on.
So what do I do instead? I make a context for the year. That means I find something to be my north star. If I keep my context in mind I can reorient my life when I get off track. That means that when I lose my way I make a course correction rather than beat myself up as a failure.
You can use a quote, a passage from the holy book of your choice, or even just a word. For instance you could use the word "JOY". If something doesn't bring you joy, get rid of it. If someone tries to steal your joy, keep them at a distance or shun them altogether--or better yet, share your joy with them. Write it in big letters on your mirror, your dash board, your desk at work. Repeat it often.
At the end of the year recount all the joyful things from the year. Think about how much joy you found.
It's Christmas Eve and I'm headed to Midnight Mass. In our hustling to get ready for Christmas Day it is easy to forget that we should welcome the stranger, visit the prisoner, shelter the homeless, and feed the poor. The last month was a blur of shopping, decorating, and parties for many. This melancholy song by the Everly Brothers should help us remember those who are lonely and forgotten in the cold tonight.
Oh, God forgive the man that drives right by the other man Take pity on the stranger in the cold Cause Christmas eve can kill you When you're tryin' to hitch a ride to anywhere
Today is the Sunday before Nativity, so I give you the "Kontakion of the Forefeast", which is sung in Eastern Christian Churches today. In 2001 I was tonsured a Reader in the Antiochian Orthodox Church, so today is a special celebration for me.
This version by Glockenbass is a bit weirder than what you'll hear in your local Byzantine Church.
Here's a normal version sung by Fr. Apostolos Hill:
Sufjan Stevens makes a Christmas album every year. Some songs are traditional carols and some are original. This one is about the Christmas Unicorn who embodies everything that Christmas was, is, and could be.
But I’ve seen others in the uniform Of a unicorn just like me We are legions wide and we chose no sides We are masters of mystique
During my childhood the music of the Carpenters echoed regularly from my Dad's stereo, especially at Christmas time. When I came across this dub reggae version of "Sleigh Ride" I nearly wet myself.
From one of my favorite Christmas albums comes this haunting version of the creepiest Christmas carol ever: "Down in Yon Forest". It dates back to the Renaissance, and Bruce Cockburn does a good job of keeping that minstrel mood.
"Under that bed there runs a flood... The one half runs water, the other runs blood."
Have you ever had a Christmas that really sucked? I doubt it was as bad as "Christmas in a Chinese Restaurant" by the Diamond Rugs, sung here by band member John McCauley. This is a response to yesterday's post--sometimes you have a right to be cynical at Christmas.
For many people the month leading up to Christmas. You get stuck attending parties with people you don't like and giving meaningless obligatory presents to relative strangers. A far cry from the time of expectation that Advent should be and the joyous festival that follows December 25th for 40 days.
No wonder some people hate this time of year. For today's song I chose "It's Cliched to be Cynical at Christmas" by Half Man Half Biscuit.
See how we yawn At your bile and your scorn It’s a beautiful day Peace on Earth has been played Make a noise with your toys And ignore the killjoys ‘Cos it’s cliched To be cynical At Christmas
Starting today, December 17th through the 12th, it is a tradition to sing the "O Antiphons". On the Vespers before Christmas they are all sung together. This is where the chant "Veni, Veni Emmanuel" comes from, but you probably know it as "O Come, O Come Emmanuel" from the 19th century translation by John Mason Neale.
U2 decided to borrow the melody for their song "White as Snow", which is my song for Day two of my Christmas Novena. The character singing the song is a dying soldier serving in Afghanistan and apparently the length of the song is the time it takes him to die.
It's not just the melody that makes this a song for Advent, but also the hope of finding "the lamb as white as snow". Traditionally there are four Advents: the coming of Christ in the flesh, the second coming of Christ at the end of the world, the coming of Christ into a person's heart, and the coming of Christ at the hour of death.
Well, it's nine days until Christmas and I haven't posted on this blog in a while. So, I got an idea to post a Christmas video every day for the next nine days. Oh, but they won't be normal Christmas songs. This is how we prepare for the Feast of the Nativity in Vladimir's Universe.
The song for Day One is "Put a Straw Under Baby" by Brian Eno. Anyone who knows the tradition of preparing a place for Jesus by putting a straw in the manger for every good deed can understand why I consider this a Christmas song. I put it on the MP3 player I got my son for his first Christmas.
I put together an album of ambient music called "A Certain Lake", recording under the name Mister Corduroy. In addition to some new tracks I included some spoken word recorded over the years. It all starts out with a song called "Slow Down".
On 1 September 1987, Brian Wilson (not the beach boy) and several other Vietnam veterans were starting a hunger strike on the tracks leading out of the Concord Naval Weapons Station. They were there to block arms shipments headed for the Contras in Nicaragua. More than 40 protestors to stop, but the spotters and engineers aboard the munitions train ignored the screams. The train running at 17 mph (three times the legal speed) would not stop. Two of the veterans jumped away at the last second, but Wilson was run over by the 200,000 pound locomotive. He lost both his legs and ended up with with multiple broken bones and a plate in his head.
Along with "I'm a Contra" this was another attempt at writing a "topical song". When I read the story I decided to approach it from the perspective of the train conductor. He was probably "following orders", maybe he even believed in the cause of arming the "freedom fighters".
The original appeared on my tape "The Squirrel babies Waved Goodbye", but the version found on "This Machine Eats Bacon" was recorded live at WQBR-Ypsilanti on Rob McLean's Collide-a-scope programme. Jimmigator Nichols played drums and does a nice solo in the middle of the song. DJ Kurt B. Smith can be heard on train whistle.
I'm the conductor of a weapons train and
I don't stop for nobody! I don't stop for nobody!
I don't stop for nobody! I don't stop for you!
Taking these bombs to Central America
I don't stop for nobody! I don't stop for nobody!
I don't stop for nobody! I don't stop for you!
I see you there with your picket signs and
don't stop for nobody! I don't stop for nobody!
I don't stop for nobody! I don't stop for you!
I'll speed up as I come near 'cuz
I don't stop for nobody! I don't stop for nobody!
I don't stop for nobody! I don't stop for you!
Ran you down but the others got away.
I don't stop for nobody! I don't stop for nobody!
I don't stop for nobody! I don't stop for you!
Drag your body for 25 yards 'cuz
I don't stop for nobody! I don't stop for nobody!
I don't stop for nobody! I don't stop for you!
Mangled your foot and crushed your legs.
I don't stop for nobody! I don't stop for nobody!
I don't stop for nobody! I don't stop for you!
Today is the feast of St. Vladimir of Kiev, so I guess it's my Namesday. But how did I get the name Vladimir? When did I start using it?
Some thought that it was my actual name and were surprised years later to find out otherwise. Others speculated that it came from Dracula, or "Vlad the Impaler". Another theory was Samuel Beckett's play "Waiting for Godot".
When I was about ten years-old I read a book about Andrew van der Bijl (aka "Brother Andrew") who smuggled Bibles into Commuist countries during the height of the Cold War. This began my interest in Russia and the Balkans. I imagined myself becoming a Bible smuggler with the code name "Vladimir".
How ironic that Vladimir's Universe was known for anti-Christian songs that glorified Communism.
Many years later, while attending an Eastern Orthodox church I learned about St. Vladimir of Kiev. Originally a pagan, this Grand Prince of Kiev converted to Christianity in 988. He might have become Muslim but didn't like their ban on alcohol and pork. The baptism of Russia soon followed with Russian Christianity aligning itself with the Eastern Orthodox Church in Constantinople.
The next song on the new release "This Machine Eats Bacon" was fun to perform. The lyrics are meant to be childish nonsense and the chorus is simple, but so catchy that everybody sang along. I almost didn't include it on the collection, but it was such a part of my live performances and usually would be heard when I'd play the weekly open stage night at Cross Street Station.
The original version appeared on my tape "Children with Pets". This version is from a live performance at radio station WQBR-Ypsilanti on Rob McLean's Collide-a-Scope programme. Jimmigator Nichols played drums. My remix features some trippy delay effects and backward messages.
I looked up and saw a little bird
the little bird told me a special word
the word was "love"
it was written on his head
then someone shot him
now he's dead
Yeah, Yeah, it's my trip
I don't care cuz I'm too hip
I saw you and you saw me
you saw me up in a tree
in my hand I held a rose
but I fell down and hurt my nose
Yeah, Yeah, it's my trip
I don't care cuz I'm too hip
There is something in my eye
love and peace will never die
hatred is a compliment
fear is just an accident
Yeah, Yeah, it's my trip
I don't care cuz I'm too hip
While working at a record store I came across Phil Ochs. His songs inspired me to write some "topical" songs. This was one of the first that really caught on with the audience. 1987-88 was the height of the Iran-Contra scandal with Col. Ollie North testifying to Congress and the whole document shredding thing. Today I guess I would write a song called "Operation Fast & Furious".
Rather than just make a left-wing diatribe with a beat, I took on the persona of a Contra, hanging out in a bar, bragging to a girl about all the stuff he does as a "freedom fighter". Thus the catchy chorus "I'm a Contra, I'm a Contra, baby!" The verses are based on actual news events.
The version found on the 25th anniversary album "This Machine Eats Bacon" is a remix of the version found on my tape "Children with Pets". It was recorded live at Cross Street Station in Ypsilanti, MI with me on a 4 string tenor guitar backed by Jimigator Nichols on drums. I remember a military vet playing darts once commented: "I don't agree with him, but that's a darn good song!"
One of my earliest songs with music composed on a Commodore 64 computer. This album version starts off with the original track then transitions into a much later version featuring the expanded Vladimir's Universe. Various versions appeared on the tapes "Purity of Essence", "Spitting Flesh Across the Room", "Love X=0", and "Toast & Color".
In the movie "Dr. Strangelove" General Jack D. Ripper explained his reasons for sending bombers to Russia: "God willing, we will prevail in peace and freedom from fear and in true health through the purity and essence of our natural fluids. God bless you all."
For this remix I had the idea to use samples from the movie, then remembered Ronald Reagan's joke about outlawing Russia. It occurred during a sound check on NPR in August 1984 that never aired, but was recorded and later leaked. The Soviet army actually went on alert when they found out (not sure if they took the most beautiful women in Russia to an underground bunker or not).
i am here
listening
though i don't want to
my life is happy
my mind is twirling
i can't control
my actions
i joined the left-wing faction
i want to be a nice boy
but want to have fun
all the world is riding
on a skateboard
the collapse of sanity in this world
i was a nice little boy until
you corrupted me
i was a nice little boy until
you set me free
purity of essence
purity of essence
purity of essence
I wrote an Ohio Trilogy: Kill Me in Cleveland, Youngstown, and Red Toledo. Living in Michigan we usually travelled south through Ohio whenever we went on a roadtrip. I guess I associate Ohio with the beginning of an adventure. I lived in Toledo from 1995 to 2005 and rather enjoyed it--the city did not disappoint me.
When I was in high school people would make fun of me for my peculiar style. I would either growl or say "Kill Me in Cleveland". The song is based on those teenage years. The duck in the song was a small plastic duck and the fish named "Alfred" was a dead little fish I found on a Lake Erie beach that had dried in the sun. I kept them in a black case that I carried all my stuff in.
The first recording of this song was on my third tape "My Damn World" made in high school around 1985-86. A "club mix" dance version was on the tape "Watching My Dreams from a Lawnchair" while a studio version appeared on "Freinds, Poets, and 100 Dead Enemies".
This was another favorite to perform, and a crowd favorite. The audience would scream along: "Aaaaaaagh! Kill me in Cleveland!"
The recording found on "This Machine Eats Bacon" is from the T.V. Silvia sessions. Tom V. Silvia was a local musician who built a recording studio in a garage. He offered to produce some songs and captured the raw sound of Vladimir's Universe well. Tom also gave me many tidbits of sage advice about writing, singing and performing.
He dressed like a beatnik when he was a kid.
He carried a duck and a fish named Alfred.
He walked through the school with a big black box
and when they laughed he sang this song:
Aaaaagh! Kill me in Cleveland!
Ohio is the promised land.
He always wanted to be a dictator.
He wrote a bunch of songs and some propoganda.
He was ridiculed for thinking too much.
and when they laughed he sang this song:
Aaaaagh! Kill me in Cleveland!
Ohio is the promised land.
Ear-worms are songs that get in your head and take up real estate. My song "Eating Bacon" is such a song. It's fun to play as well. Whenever I pick up my guitar it's the first song I start playing. Back in the Cross Street Station days it was obligatory for me to perform my signature tune. So, of course it starts off the new album and is alluded to in the title (with a hat tip to Woody Guthrie).
The song is based on real events. I took a girl out on a date and the next day I called her to see if she wanted to go get some breakfast and she said she had to mow the lawn. It was that simple and innocent.
Now you can find bacon blogs, bacon novelties, bacon perfume--it's everywhere. I am proud to have been ahead of the bacon surge.
The earliest version appeared on my tape "Toast & Color" and was recorded live at Cross Street Station. A ballad version featuring The Rubbles showed up on the tape "Watching My Dreams from a Lawnchair". An unreleased recording of a funk version occurred in 1991 at a bar in Oakland, CA featuring a stage full of musicians.
The version appearing on "This Machine Eats Bacon" was never found on any of the official tape releases. It was recorded during an in-studio performance at WQBR-Ypsilanti on the Rob McLean Collide-a-scope programme. It captured the manic live sound of Vladimir's Universe in our prime. I did a little tweaking to enhance the sound.
I'm eating bacon! I'm eating bacon!
There's a girl on a tractor mower
and she's just so adorable.
But what's she doing out of bed so early?
She's cutting the lawn
I'm eating bacon! I'm eating bacon!
A girl like that shouldn't have to mow the lawn.
A girl like that should be laying on a pile of pillows
Today is the day. The long awaited musical bum featuring 12 classic songs by Vladimir's Universe from 1986-1990. It's available from Noisetrade as a FREE download, but if you leave a "tip" that would be appreciated.
I studied Roethke while working on my (economically worthless) English degree at the University of Toledo. The son of German immigrants, he grew up in Saginaw, MI and graduated from the University of Michigan then moved on to Harvard. His childhood home in Saginaw, Mi is now a museum where special events and poetry readings are held. While teaching at Michigan State in Lansing they figured out he was bipolar, which probably explains why he didn't stay teaching at one college for very long. He died of a heart attack in a friends swimming pool in 1963--the pool was filled in and made into a Zen rock garden.
As a teacher, Roethke insisted that his students memorize poetry so they would have something to hold on to during tough times. One poem that I have memorized, and yes, it comes to mind during tough times, is "In a Dark Time":
In a dark time, the eye begins to see,
I meet my shadow in the deepening shade;
I hear my echo in the echoing wood—
A lord of nature weeping to a tree.
I live between the heron and the wren,
Beasts of the hill and serpents of the den.
What’s madness but nobility of soul
At odds with circumstance? The day’s on fire!
I know the purity of pure despair,
My shadow pinned against a sweating wall.
That place among the rocks—is it a cave,
Or winding path? The edge is what I have.
A steady storm of correspondences!
A night flowing with birds, a ragged moon,
And in broad day the midnight come again!
A man goes far to find out what he is—
Death of the self in a long, tearless night,
All natural shapes blazing unnatural light.
Dark, dark my light, and darker my desire.
My soul, like some heat-maddened summer fly,
Keeps buzzing at the sill. Which I is I?
A fallen man, I climb out of my fear.
The mind enters itself, and God the mind,
And one is One, free in the tearing wind.
Here's a short film featuring Theodore Roethke, also titled "In a Dark Time".
Back in 1988 I painted houses for a notorious Ypsilanti "property owner" who rented to students. One time I was painting an apartment where someone was living and they let me use their boombox while I worked. Their musical taste did not gel with mine, but I saw a Rolling Stones CD and figured I'd give it a spin. After all, "Satisfaction" was a cool song. After a few hours of listening to the CD over and over I came to appreciate the Stones.
What I really dig are weird covers of songs by the Rolling Stones. Here are a few of my favorites:
I don't remember where I heard Polyphonic Size performing "Mother's Little Helper", but somehow I ended up with the 12" from a used record store. I love the stripped down techno music and French accent.
Another favorite cover is a live recording of Tuxedomoon doing "19th Nervous Breakdown" in German.
And finally, there's the French version of "Paint it Black" by Marie Laforet. You may have heard it in the movie "Talladega Nights".
Started in 1982 at the Crazy Loquat Club in a Balkan town called Szegerely, the 3 Mustaphas 3 went "Forward in all directions" after being transported to Britain in refrigerators. My favorite albums were "Bam! Mustaphas Play Stereo" (1985) and "Shopping" (1987).
The Mustaphas brought a rock & roll attitude to world music before the explosion of the genre. There weren't many artists doing anything like this back in the late eighties.
The title is Arabic for "My Darling, My Sweetheart".
"Can we take it to the fridge? Let me take it to the fridge!"
On the first day of school, or a new job, my Dad would always say "First impressions are lasting impressions." I guess that goes for first dates too. This brilliant song is about a first date gone wrong. The original version has the fight breaking out at 1am, but was changed to 10 pm, I guess because one might ask what a "good girl" was doing out that late. My dad gave me his original 45 when I was a kid, and it made an impression.
The single was the B-Side of "Take a Message to Mary" and made it to #22 on the American charts. It was written by prolific husband and wife duo Boudleaux and Felice Bryant, who brought us other Everly hits like "Bye Bye Love" and "All I Have to Do is Dream" as well as "Raining in My Heart" (Buddy Holly) and 3000 other songs. Boudleaux passed away in 1987 and Felice passed away in 2003 in Gatlinburg, TN, where she and her husband owned and operated the Rocky Top Village Inn.
I took my little Jenny to a party last night
At ten o`clock (one o'clock) it ended in a heckuva fight
When someone hit my Jenny she went out like a light
Poor Jenny
And then some joker went and called the cops on the phone
So everybody scattered out for places unknown
I couldn`t carry Jenny so I left her alone
Poor Jenny
Well Jenny had her picture in the paper this mornin`
She made it with a bang
Accordin` to the story in the paper this mornin`
Jenny is the leader of a teenage gang
Jenny has a brother and he`s hot on my trail
Her daddy wants to ride me out of town on a rail
I hope I`ll be around when Jenny gets out of jail
Poor Jenny
I went downtown to see her, she was locked in a cell
She wasn`t very glad to see me, that I could tell
In fact, to tell the truth, she wasn`t lookin` too well
Poor Jenny
Her eye was black, her face was red, her hair was a fright
She looked as though she`d been a`cryin` half of the night
I told her I was sorry, she said `Get out of sight`
Poor Jenny
It seems a shame that Jenny had to go get apprehended, a heckuva fate
This party was the first one she ever had attended
Most fans of Vladimir's Universe know only the guitar & drums incarnation from the Cross Street Station, or perhaps the short-lived four piece band. One earlier version featured me singing along to 3 channel 8-bit electronic compositions using my Commodore 64. The earliest version of "Purity of Essence" was recorded this way. The biggest influence on my approach to music at that phase would be the Residents.
They were known for their iconic eyeball heads and carefully guarded anonymity. The earliest Residents recordings grew out of N. Senada's "Theory of Obscurity" which believes that an artist can only produce pure art when the expectations and influences of the outside world are not taken into consideration. As for the lyrics, they used N. Senada's "Theory of Phonetic Organization" in which the musician puts the sounds first, building the music up from them rather than developing the music, then working down to the sounds that make it up.
The first song I can remember hearing by the Residents was "Constantinople" from the 1978 album "Duck Stab". I was probably around 10 at the time and it left a major impression. I would hear more tunes by them over the years, usually on the CBC's Brave New Waves radio programme.
My favorite album would have to be the "Commercial Album", which featured 40 one minute songs. Guest artists included Chris Cutler, Fred Frith, Snakefinger, Lene Lovich, and even Andy Partridge of XTC.
I'm sure I sent a demo or two to Ralph Records, the label they started. Some of my other favorite artists associated with Ralph include the Art Bears, Snakefinger, Eugene Chadbourne, and Fred Frith. When I moved to San Francisco in 1991 one of the first places I went to was their building at 18 Sycamore St. in the Mission District but was disappointed to find it locked with no one home.
If Chrissy Hynde was born in Algeria, I'm sure this is what the Pretenders would sound like. Souad plays acoustic guitar and often sings country music in Arabic. This is a good driving song
"Yawlidi" means "My Boy" and the song is from a mother singing to her son.
You must get up early, my boy
And go run off to school, my boy
To become learned and educated, my boy
And be better than all the other kids, my boy
And as you get older, my boy
May your mind remain strong, my boy
And may you understand the world, my boy
Until you have a strong personality, my boy
You must get up, get up, early my boy
May you be proud, my boy
And choose whom you talk to and who you don't, my boy
And anyone that upsets you, stay away from him, my boy
And anyone that upsets you, stay away from him, my boy
May you be able to wreak havoc, my boy
And when things get serious, battle
You must get up, get up, early my boy
Anyone who knows their Vlad-tunes (TM) will be familiar with the Ohio Trilogy: "Red Toledo", "Kill Me in Cleveland" and "I Don't Know which way it is to Youngstown" (bonus points to anyone who can name other Ohio references, and maybe even a "part 4" of the trilogy).
The Cuyahoga River in Cleveland caught fire in June of 1969, just four months before I was born. They used to say that the river oozed rather than flowed. The event raised awareness of environmental issues and helped get the Clean Water Act passed. I did do a song about pollution called "Fishy Fishy" featuring my brother Art who was around 4 at the time.
Randy Newman "Burn On" was about the incident, but my favorite on the topic is a 1992 song by Adam Again called "River On Fire". It uses the event as a metaphor for a relationship. I love how the haunting cello adds to the melancholy of the song.
What would you say if you knew what I was thinking?
Maybe you do, but you know not to dig too deep
What if I knew what you needed for sure?
I've seen in your eyes you need more, much more
And I could be happy, and you could be miserable
I'll grab a metaphor out of the air
The Cuyahoga River on fire
What can you say? The impossible happens
What can you settle for?
What can you live without?
I remember the night I first darkened your door
And I swore that I loved you
My heart was pure
You could be happy, and I could be miserable
My open window, a dream in the dark
My fingers, your face
A spark, a trace
I know a lot about the history of Cleveland, Ohio
Disasters that have happened there
Like the Cuyahoga River on fire
My family traveled so much when I was a kid. Usually down to the Smoky Mountains in Tennessee around Easter time. My dad would always have a box of tapes for the road. Some were made especially for the trip, usually full of upbeat songs to keep him awake. Many were hits of the fifties, but he did go through a disco phase in the late seventies (who didn't?). Sometimes he would just listen to what was on the radio to get local traffic info.
There are certain songs that make me think "ROADTRIP!" Some even take me back to a specific place, or the even car we were in. There is a groove, or a drive, that a good roadtrip song must have. Something about it pushes you forward, it echoes the anticipation in your soul, and sometimes you forget how fast you're going.
This 1980 single from Christopher Cross reached #2 on the Billboard charts and I consider it the road song that all others aspire to be. This video was from SCTV and pokes fun at how Michael McDonald was all over the radio that year as a lead and background singer.
Some other classic examples that come to mind include "Get Back" by the Beatles, "Don't Bring Me Down" by ELO, and "Green Onions" by Booker T and the MG's.
I still like to make a special mix CD for vacations or special occasions. That way when I hear the song months later it triggers a memory of that time. This song by Jens Lekman of Sweden was on a mix CD that we listened to the day after our wedding. When my wife heard it months later she said, "This reminds me of when we got married." I laughed because the song is about a guy chopping his finger off while cutting avocados.
When I travelled down to Tennessee a few years back I had a car with a USB port in the radio so I put together an eight hour playlist on my thumb drive. Some were classics that took me back to previous trips, but many were new songs that had that feel. One that will always remind me of that trip is "Keep the Car Running" by Arcade Fire:
As summer comes, if you have the luxury of taking a vacation, put together a special roadtrip mix and create a soundtrack for your memories.
In high school I hung out with a guy named Gerald. When we met he was classified as a "burnout" while I was a "squid". Basically that meant that he liked rock & roll and I was new wave. Somehow we became friends on the bus and soon we were going to poetry readings and recording together as the "Liberated Corpses". Neither of us could play any instruments, but we made a few recordings of our rantings and improvisations.
I introduced him to the Dead Kennedys while he got me to listen to the Doors and Creedence. Thanks to Gerald I listened to music I might otherwise have avoided. What a shame if I never knew anything by the Doors other than "Light My Fire".
Señor Coconut is actually Uwe Schmidt, the man of a thousand aliases. You may also know him for his electronic music as Atom Heart, or Atom™ and the invention of "acitón" (acid-reggaeton). I love his Latin flavored versions of Kraftwerk, Yellow Magic Orchestra, and rock classics. Here he is taking on the Doors:
So many songs by Phil Ochs inspired the social commentary and political songs of Vladimir's Universe. Out of them all, this one is the one I wish I had written. The case of Kitty Genovese, who was stabbed to death outside her home while dozens of her neighbors reportedly ignored her cries for help inspired the song. It was the closest thing he ever had to a hit, getting a good bit of airplay and reaching #119 on Billboard's national "Hot Prospect" chart. Censors promptly took the song off the air.
Phil captures the apathy found in America in 1967--and who could imagine that it would become even worse forty years later. We're busy on our mobile phones, or texting, or plugged into our iPods shut off from the world around us. Being in public is an inconvenience--it's noisy, it smells, and one might be forced to interact with other people. Better to stay at home, shop online, and order a pizza.
Try unplugging for one day. Take a "Social Media Sabbath" with no cell phone, texting, email, Facebook, or TV. Go outside where there is nature and people. Talk to strangers. Visit someone in the hospital or a nursing home. Do volunteer work. Interact with the world around you.
Look outside the window, there's a woman being grabbed
They've dragged her to the bushes and now she's being stabbed
Maybe we should call the cops and try to stop the pain
But Monopoly is so much fun, I'd hate to blow the game
And I'm sure it wouldn't interest anybody
Outside of a small circle of friends.
Riding down the highway, yes, my back is getting stiff
Thirteen cars are piled up, they're hanging on a cliff.
Maybe we should pull them back with our towing chain
But we gotta move and we might get sued and it looks like it's gonna rain
And I'm sure it wouldn't interest anybody
Outside of a small circle of friends.
Sweating in the ghetto with the colored and the poor
The rats have joined the babies who are sleeping on the floor
Now wouldn't it be a riot if they really blew their tops?
But they got too much already and besides we got the cops
And I'm sure it wouldn't interest anybody
Outside of a small circle of friends.
Oh there's a dirty paper using sex to make a sale
The Supreme Court was so upset, they sent him off to jail.
Maybe we should help the fiend and take away his fine.
But we're busy reading Playboy and the Sunday New York Times
And I'm sure it wouldn't interest anybody
Outside of a small circle of friends
Smoking marihuana is more fun than drinking beer,
But a friend of ours was captured and they gave him thirty years
Maybe we should raise our voices, ask somebody why
But demonstrations are a drag, besides we're much too high
And I'm sure it wouldn't interest anybody
Outside of a small circle of friends
Oh look outside the window, there's a woman being grabbed
They've dragged her to the bushes and now she's being stabbed
Maybe we should call the cops and try to stop the pain
But Monopoly is so much fun, I'd hate to blow the game
And I'm sure it wouldn't interest anybody
Outside of a small circle of friends
Phil Ochs and Bob Dylan had a friendly rivalry going in the sixties. When Phil criticized one of his songs, Dylan threw him out of his limo and said, "You're not a folksinger. You're a journalist". Rather than accept the label of protest singer, Ochs considered himself a "topical singer". When he sang about civil rights, the draft, or Vietnam it was more than just a political diatribe with a beat, he made it personal and laced the song with wit and sarcasm.
When I first heard Phil's music a light went on in my head. I shifted gears from abstract surrealist beat poetry to topical lyrics. If I had never heard "Draft Dodger Rag" or "Cops of the World", then fans of Vladimir's Universe would not have "Your Kid Got AIDS" or "I'm a Contra".
He was also willing to criticize the hypocrisy he saw among those who claim to be progressive, but are just as selfish and narrow-minded as their opponents.
At Eastern Michigan University we had a student group that we referred to as the "Pseudo-Socialists for Suburban Conveniences". When their candidate ran for student council president Vladimir's Universe was asked to play at their rally mainly due to my political songs. Meanwhile one of my best friends was running against him as the "Apathy Party" candidate and I co-wrote his campaign song "Open Your Eyes and go to Sleep" which got airplay on local radio. Rather than choose sides, or be uncommitted, I supported both candidates. The PSSC won, but without RMC and the "Apathy Party" there would not have been any opposition.
The FBI had over 500 pages about Phil Ochs, due to his association with many "subversives". After the Vietnam war ended and the hippies traded their VW vans for station wagons I think Phil ran out of words. He became a lost soul without an anchor and hung himself on April 9, 1976. Yet, even after his death the FBI still considered him "potentially dangerous".
In 2010 the documentary "Phil Ochs: There But for Fortune" came out. Also worth seeing, if you can find it, is the older "Chords of Fame" from 1984 which re-enacts moments from his life in a dramatic way rather than just showing pictures and clips.
To celebrate the Passion of Jesus Christ for Good Friday, I present the "Jewel of Lebanon", singer Fayrouz, praying the Lamentations at the tomb of Christ in Arabic.
In a tomb they laid Thee, O my Christ and my Life. The angelic hosts were overcome with awe and glorified Thy condescending love.
In 1984 I was "new wave", but a big Jesus Freak at the same time. There were a few bands like the 77s who were making quality music for kids like me. I bought their album "All Fall Down" and just about everything on the Exit Records label: Vector, Charlie Peacock, and Steve Scott among them. They did a cover of "Jesus" by the Velvet underground during these sessions that didn't make it on the album, but did appear on re-releases and box sets.
I will credit this song for my love of the word "lemonade", which appears in several Vlad-tunes (TM). The video is a bit cheesy, and I'm sure lead singer Mike Roe was reluctant to do the Robert Smith big hair thing since he never appeared on stage like that. But hey, it was the 80s and they were trying to get on MTV.
Welcome to the truth custom made
Come in and have some lemonade
Reality will readjust while we evade
The issues that are pressing us
And getting so depressing but
Undressing and unstressing
Makes them go away
We're tired of solid ground
We're wired up for sound
From any fool who'll keep us
Cool with all his lies
Cool with all his lies
Ba-ba-ba-ba
Ba-ba-ba-ba
We believe, we believe
Cuz we felt it burning in our hearts
Ba-ba-ba-ba
Ba-ba-ba-ba
And it's true, yes it's true
If it gets us all thru the night
For the rest of our lives
If there's a master race, we're one
And if by chance they drop the bomb
The heat will never find us
Cuz we've learned to run
No absolutes to spoil our time
So we won't have to change our minds
Just hope that we won't die
While we're still in our prime
Spoken: “Wie Schafe zur Schlachtbank geführt”
(Like sheep led to the slaughter)
21st century Britain gave us Coldplay. Cuba gave us the Latin Jazz sounds of Buena Vista Social Club. Mix them together and you have Rhythms del Mundo and a mambo version of a great pop song.
Though this is "our song", my wife and I decided to use Nat King Cole's "Darling, Je Vous Aime Beaucoup" for our wedding dance. Whenever we hear the opening piano we remember falling in love.
All of these albums feature fun versions of pop songs that sound great afro-cuban style.
There are so many Leonard Cohen songs that I love. I've performed "Last Year's Man" and recorded my own arrangement of his poem "Flowers for Hitler". This song, however, is brilliantly written and super catchy. The title on my copy of the LP said "Don't Go Home with Your Heart On", which I liked better. You can hear Bob Dylan and Allen Ginsberg singing back-up vocals.
It appeared on his 1977 album "Death of a Ladies' Man", produced by Phil Spector. During these sessions, Cohen recalls, "One day he had a bottle of wine in one hand and a 35mm pistol in the other. He put his arm around my shoulder, pressed the muzzle into my neck and said, 'Leonard, I love you.' At which point I said: 'I hope you really do, Phil.’" The album was hated by fans, derided by critics, and Cohen himself called it a catastrophe. Fewer songs from this album have been covered than any others.
I was born in a beauty salon
My father was a dresser of hair
My mother was a girl you could call on
When you called she was always there
Ah but don't go home with your hard-on
It will only drive you insane
You can't shake it (or break it) with your Motown
You can't melt it down in the rain
I've looked behind all of the faces
That smile you down to your knees
And the lips that say, Come on, taste us
And when you try to they make you say Please
Ah but don't go home with your hard-on ...
Here come's your bride with her veil on
Approach her, you wretch, if you dare
Approach her, you ape with your tail on
Once you have her she'll always be there
Ah but don't go home with your hard-on ...
So I work in that same beauty salon
I'm chained to the old masquerade
The lipstick, the shadow, the silicone
I follow my father's trade
Ah but don't go home with your hard-on
It will only drive you insane
You can't shake it (or break it) with your Motown
You can't melt it down in the rain
Did you know that "Bossa Nova" is Portugese for "New Wave"? You can't help but dance to this music unless your soul is completely dead.
The song was originally by Jorge Ben Jor, but it was this version that became a hit. American vocalist Lani Hall didn't speak Portugese, but she learned the song phonetically.
As for my take on the Black Eyed Peas version? I don't think it has the energy of the original and is musically thin, but it was nice to hear the song on the radio again.
"He's gonna get us and turn us into vampires! And we'll all be dead and yet still alive! Like Leonard Cohen!" ~Neil from the Young Ones (Episode 2:3 "Nasty")
When he received a Juno Award for "Best Male Vocalist" in 1992, Cohen quipped "Only in Canada could somebody with a voice like mine win 'Vocalist of the Year'." His influence is far reaching and his legend gets bigger as he gets older. Brave New Waves on CBC radio profiled him one night back in 1986 or so and played cover versions of his songs. I was hooked.
Back in the 80s his most popular song would have been "Suzanne" (due to the Judy Collins version being a big hit in the 60s), but thanks to Jennifer Warnes' "Famous Blue Raincoat" album and his own "I'm Your Man", Cohen entered a new phase of recognition. 25 years later, I suppose "Hallelujah" would be his best known song thanks mostly due to the Rufus Wainwright version in the movie Shrek.
Cohen associates with the underdog, the outcast, the alien, and the misunderstood. Love, sex, mortality and religion mingle throughout his poetry and songs. From the beginning of time singers and writers have touched on these themes which may be why his newest album is called "Old Ideas". I'm reminded of Shakespeare who would often talk about God and sex at the same time. I never considered Cohen's songs as depressing, even he considers himself a happy person. I like that he often changes the lyrics to his songs when he performs them, like they are living organisms rather than static.
In 1988 I had the pleasure of seeing Cohen perform at the State Theater in Ann Arbor during his "I'm Your Man" tour. Now it costs over $100 to see him perform. If you haven't been fortunate enough to see him live, check out "Live In London" from 2009.
What often seems like contradiction might actually be paradox. This is certainly true of Leonard Cohen who dwells in a twilight time that hints at the darkness but still contains light.
The Balkan Rhythm Band did this Serbian classic on an album I had back in the 80s. It's been covered many times and is a bit of a standard for Balkan bands. It's about the death of the singer's buddy named Ramo.
A guy named Apostol makes these mash-up videos with western pop stars "performing" Balkan hits. The footage is from U2 performing at the anointing of Barack Obama as Messiah of the World.
A nice thing about living in the Detroit area is our access to Canadian Television and Radio. Since I started listening to classical music in high school, the daytime format on CBC Radio opened me up to many composers. I also loved watching channel 9 CBC-TV and channel 32 TV-Ontario. But the best media gift from Great White North arrived every midnight on CBC Stereo.
On weeknights in the 80s I would listen to "Brave New Waves" hosted by Brent Bambury. The show exposed me to alternative and independent music that I was unlikely to hear anywhere else. Brent would profile artists nightly and play some obscure music from around the world. I would set up my reel to reel to record the shows (that way I could get all four hours on one tape) then would mix the stuff I liked down to cassettes.
When the weekend came along CBC aired Nightlines hosted by Ralph Benmergui and later by David Wisdom. Nightlines also played alternative music, but the more accessible kind.
Another notable show that was required listening was Frantic Times featuring the comedy troupe known as the Frantics. They created the greatest of all Canadian superheroes Mr. Canoehead (brother of Ted) and were known for the cathcphrase "a boot to the head". My friends and I would listen every week then have inside jokes that would leave the rest of the school scratching their heads.
I still love listening to what they now call CBC Radio 2. Shows like Shift, Drive, Tonic, The Signal, Deep Roots, and Canada Live ensure that there is usually something good to listen to. It reminds me of what college radio once was. Thank you Canada for proving that sometimes state funded media can be cool, not just a tool.
Previously I mentioned my love of world music and how my mom's favorite album in the 1970s contributed to it. Here is one of the songs from that album by Lamb, a Messianic Jewish Jesus Music band. I can't believe I found this live video of the song.
The album version was much better with drums and harpsichord and a nice psychedelic vibe to it.
I think the first time I heard this was when Ron Wells sing it. I can't remember if it was him solo at Cross Street Station or with The Rubbles in Oakland, CA--but I can hear his voice singing it. Ron did many songs by his Australian countryman which have become favorites of mine. This one was from Kelly's 1989 album "So Much Water So Close to Home".
Sometimes I like a song because it resonates with life events. Such is the case with "Careless". In 1992 I realized that I was selfish and had hurt many people in my short life. Vladimir had become someone I didn't really like. For the previous six years my mom kept praying that I would be safe and disease free by the time I finished running around. Fortunately, God listened.
A key to good songwriting is to have killer opening lines, and this song certainly has it. I also like that it's a circle song, with a progression of chords that cycle in the same order--the melody changes for the chorus but the chords stay the same. That's the way I like to compose songs.
How many cabs in New York City,
how many angels on a pin?
How many notes in a saxophone,
how many tears in a bottle of gin?
How many times did you call my name,
knock at the door but you couldn't get in?
I know I've been careless
I've been wrapped up in a shell
nothing could get through to me
Acted like I didn't know I had friends or family
I saw worry in their eyes,
it didn't look like fear to me
I know I've been careless (I took bad care of this)
Like a mixture in a bottle,
like a frozen-over lake
Like a longtime painted smile
I got so hard I had to crack
You were there, you held the line,
you're the one that brought me back
I know I've been careless (I lost my tenderness)
I've been careless (I took bad care of this)
How many cabs in New York City,
how many angels on a pin?
How many notes in a saxophone,
how many tears in a bottle of gin?
How many times did you call my name,
knock at the door but you couldn't get in?
How many stars in the milky way,
how many way can you lose a friend?
When Jimigator and I first started performing together our goal was to get as much sound as possible out of just drums and guitar. The way an instrument is used can affect this. I'm not talking about volume, it's more subtle than that. The audience would often hear a bass line when there was no bass player.
Buddy Holly tried to do the same thing with just guitar, bass, and drums. There was no mistaking his sound. He insisted on producing his own records, which was unheard of in the late fifties, used multi-tracking, and pioneered stereo.
Here is one of the few videos of Buddy Holly performing. Notice how no one is dancing at this "Dance Party" and I like how she calls them "Rock & Roll Specialists"--I think there's an online course for that now.
In a career that lasted a year and a half he gave so much to the future of popular music. The style, sound and image of Vladimir's Universe owes much to Buddy Holly.
My love for world music began at an early age. I remember my dad listening to Astrud Gilberto and Perez Prado while mom's favorite record in the 70s featured Jewish style "Jesus Music" by a Messianic group called Lamb. As I got older I discovered world artists on my own. Balkan, African, and Arabic music found it's way into my collection.
Most people know Hugh Masekela for his 1968 hit "Grazin' in the Grass". This 1971 tune, subtitled "Weary Day is Over", is fun for rocking out. Makes me wish Vladimir's Universe had a horn section!
I like having a title and/or album cover when I start a project. It gives me something to orient the project around. This is the cover I decided on for the upcoming release.
I wanted it to look like something that would be photocopied onto a cassette tape insert, thus the simple black & white design. I wish I still had my Silvertone guitar.
Song lyrics can be poetry with deep meaning, but I don't think this is required. It can be the way the sounds work together--a sequence of words rather than a sentence. Lyrics can be a component of the song just like the rhythm or the instrumentation. Phrases can also be allusions to things that have meaning to the artists, an inside joke with friends, or a pop culture reference. Like an expressionist painting, the audience must figure it out for themselves--everyone finds a different meaning.
Any of Eno's songs could be used as an example of this, but this one from "Another Green World" (1975) is one I wish I wrote. I like to play it on the guitar and sing it to my kids.
I'll find a place somewhere in the corner
I'm gonna waste the rest of my days
Just watching patiently from the window
Just waiting, seasons change, some day, oh oh,
My dreams will pull you through that garden gate
I want to be the wandering sailor
We're silhouettes by the light of the moon
I sit playing solitaire by the window
Just waiting, seasons change, ah hah, you'll see
Some day these dreams will pull you through my door
And I'll come running to tie your shoe
I'll come running to tie your shoe
I'll come running to tie your shoe
I'll come running to tie your shoe
Oh, oh oh-oh-oho-oho-oho-oho-oho-o-o-o
Oh, oh oh-oh-oho-oho-oho-oho-oho-o-o-o
I'll come running to tie your shoe I'll come running to tie your shoe I'll come running to tie your shoe I'll come running to tie your shoe
