Tuesday Newsday Two-Hundred #5 and BOTB Results

It's a Tuesday, so that means it's an opportunity for an entry in my semi-regular, quasi-periodic, almost-feature blogging topic, the Tuesday Newsday Two-Hundred (TN200).  This is where I create a snippet of blog-exclusive writing of exactly 200 words, based on a recent story in the news.

So I'd like to offer you a new TN200 post, and also provide my own vote and give the results from my last Battle of the Bands post -- I'll do that at the end of this post.

But first, for this initial 2014 edition of TN200, I thought I'd go in a different direction than using a humorous odd-ball story as inspiration like usual. In this piece, my inspiration is more... Inspirational.  I call it "Bridging the Gap" and I hope you enjoy it.  As always, the link to the original news story is at the end.


==========

Bridging the Gap

Jonny felt the swirling winds tousle his hair.  He hadn't come here for the view, but the light reflecting off the water far below him was riveting.

The voice came from behind him again.  "Please don't do this, mate," it said.  A man's voice. Jonny heard anxiety in it.  Jonny had to admit he felt nervous himself.  Funny -- he'd thought it was going to be easy.

Jonny didn't turn around. "What's your name?" he asked.

"Mike," the man said.  Or maybe the man said "Mark?"  "Ike?"  Jonny wasn't sure. Whatever -- 'Mike' worked.

"Why do you care, Mike?" Jonny said.

"I just do," Mike said. "You can get through it."

Jonny snorted. "You don't even know what's wrong."

"It don't matter, mate. You can get better, whatever it is."

Jonny stopped staring at the flickering water and turned to look at Mike.  He was in his early twenties and looked like a typical yuppie, probably on his way to work.  Jonny noticed a small crowd gathering behind Mike.  He could also hear sirens approaching.

"Let's go for a coffee and talk it over," Mike said.

Jonny sighed.  Why the hell not? The moment was past, anyway.

He climbed down.


Original News Story: Trying to Find 'Mike'

==========

Battle of The Bands 1/15/2014 Results

In my last Battle of the Bands (BOTB) post, I offered up "Take Me to the River" by both Talking Heads and Al Green, who originally wrote the song.

This is a favorite song of mine, and I really like both versions.  The Talking Heads can be a bit of an acquired taste -- and there are many of their songs that get not much more than a "meh" response from me.  But the funky infectious bass line of "Take Me to the River" and the groove and catchy chorus are awesome.  I know that a big reason why I like the Talking Heads version is probably because Al Green wrote the song to begin with.  The mix of arty and weird with earthy funk and groove is what I like most about the Talking Heads, and when that earthy foundation isn't there, the band is not nearly as good in my opinion.  The pinnacle of the band was their "Remain in Light" album, when that funk and groove were up-front and hitting you hard, and then when coupled with freak-out guitar master Adrian Belew? Incredible.

So, yes --a lot of why I like "Take Me to the River" is because of the funk and groove that Al Green put there (and I especially love his live version of the song in last week's BOTB post), but coupling it with the arty weirdness of the Talking Heads gives it extra impact, I think.  

But that really doesn't change the result.  Even with my vote, Al wins this one:

-- Al Green 4; Talking Heads 3.

However, as a parting gift, let me leave you with a live version of "The Great Curve" from the Talking Heads album "Remain in Light".  This was recorded live in Rome in 1980 and the sound and video quality are shaky, but check out that funk!! Busta Jones as an extra bass player to compliment Tina Weymouth, and Adrian Belew in full psycho screaming guitar mode.  Amazing!  I defy you to listen and not start bobbin' your head or tappin' your toe. ;)

 

BOTB 1/15/14: "Take Me to the River"

So far, my 2014 blogging is not going as planned -- I've been a little more absent than I'd like, but I do expect that to change soon.  And at least I'm staying on top of the Battle of the Bands (BOTB) event -- we're on to the second BOTB of 2014!  To refresh your memory, the BOTB is a blogging event started by Stephen T. McCarthy and FarAwayEyes back in August of last year.  This event occurs twice every month -- on the 1st and the 15th -- and each of the bloggers taking part offers readers a choice of two (or occasionally more) versions of the same song, performed by different recording artists. And the the readers get to vote for your favorite rendition. 

This is the third BOTB I've taken part in, and I let the first two be partially dictated by the calender:  Christmas music in the one for 12/15/13 and "Auld Lang Syne" for New Year's Day on 1/1/14. This is the first BOTB where the playing field is wide open, so I'm going to do the song that I first thought of as a BOTB contender when I was considering joining this event:  "Take Me to the River."

This song was written in 1974 by Al Green, but I first remember hearing it when I watched Saturday Night Live on February 10, 1979 and saw the band Talking Heads perform the song (you can watch the episode on Hulu if you want).  The song was also their first single to break into the top 40 (reaching #26 on the Billboard charts), and it's a song that many people associate with the band.  But how does it compare to the original by Al Green?  Let's find out in a Battle of the Bands!

Here's the studio version by Talking Heads, from the 1978 album "More Songs About Buildings and Food":

And just to compare live versions, here's a Talking Heads having fun onstage with it, from their 1984 concert film and soundtrack, "Stop Making Sense":

And now, the original by Al Green, from the 1974 album, "Al Green Explores Your Mind":

And finally, a live version by Al Green on Soul Train from 1975, complete with roses:

I think this is one of those songs that's just so good that every version of it is enjoyable -- and it's been performed and recorded a ton of times by many other artists including, Foghat, Annie Lennox, and Tom Jones. 

But between Talking Heads and Al Green -- studio and live combined -- who do you think did it better?

I invite you to listen to each and give them a chance (and remember -- the goal is to compare the music, not the videos, so I encourage you to ignore the images, although I admit it is hard to overlook David Byne's big suit and Al Green's roses).

After listening, please vote in the comments as to which version you think is best, or which speaks to you the deepest. Feel free to also share as much as you would like about how any of the above recordings strike you, even if it's less than positive.

Finally -- be sure to check out the other BOTB bloggers to vote on their battles:

• Far Away Series (FarAwayEyes)
• Ferret-Faced Fascist Friends (Stepehn T. McCarthy)
• Tossing it Out (Arlee Bird)
• Your Daily Dose (Robin)
• DiscConnected (DiscConnected)

Thank you very much for listening and for voting -- come back and visit again the first part of next week to find out how the voting has gone!  I'll make a post then with my own vote and also announce the winner!

Belated Tidings, BOTB Results, IWSG Distractions, and Groove-Floatin'

"I Was Tardy" by Alan Foster -- Saturday Evening Post cover (9/27/1930)

Allow me to wish you a belated "Happy New Year!"

I apologize for the fact that it's belated -- I'd planned on posting the results from my Jan 1st BOTB on Monday, posting the first Tuesday Newsday 200 (TN200) post of 2014 on Tuesday, and then taking part in the January IWSG yesterday, and I ended up being woefully tardy on all of them.  You'd think that after having two weeks off for the holiday and then getting an extra two days snowed in would have given me plenty of free time to get those posts written and ready to go, but...

I don't have a good excuse -- I took some time away from the blogosphere, and like my Holiday, it ended up being unexpectedly extended.  Maybe I can blame the Polar Vortex. 

Well, at least let me try and offer penance:

I was tardy. I was tardy. I was tardy. I was tar--

No, that's no good.  Who wants to read that 500 times???

So perhaps I can try to catch up a little -- belated tidings are better than none, right?  I'll save the TN200 until next week, but here are abbreviated versions of the other two topics:

1/1/2014 Battle of the Bands Results


I have to tell you that the voting on the three versions of Auld Lang Syne surprised me a little.  I thought David Grisman's bluegrass rendition would have received a few more votes. True, the holidays and my own blogging absence probably helped to lower the number of votes, but it still ended up not being much of a contest, and Grisman was left in the dust.

I was familiar with Grisman's version of this tune before posting and discovered the others on YouTube when I was searching for a version to match against Grisman's.  I've been a fan of Grisman's since hearing his Mondo Mando album back in the early 1980's -- the tune "Dawg Funk" from it is a particular favorite of mine.  And being a Deahhead, the collaborations between Grisman and Jerry Garcia are fun to me, too.

I do think all the BOTB versions are very good, and there wasn't a wrong vote -- it's just interesting to see how the votes turned out.  The Viva Girls version is extremely cool.  The mix of the beat and the Chinese instruments is great, and the playing is fabulous.  Plus, as a guitarist, I can't help but admire the playing on the Hero for the World metal version (and I suspect it would have gotten an extra vote if Ninja Captain Alex had been around). Still, I personally would vote for Grisman, although it doesn't change the results at all -- the Viva Girls won this one going away:

Viva Girls 4.5, Grisman 1.5, Hero for the World 1.0

January 2014 Insecure Writers Support Group -- "Distractions"

This (belated and very shortened) edition of the IWSG blog event relates closely to my IWSG post from last month where I shared my concerns over not writing enough:

"How can I stay focused on writing when there are so many distractions?"

I have a job, a house, a family, and many other things I spend time on -- and right now I have to confess that playing my guitar is a big one.  I love writing, although it can be a slow and painful process at times.  I have many story ideas I want to get down, and am growing more and more excited about a new novel that has been taking over my thoughts with demands to be written. But how can I stay focused on just writing on a consistent and regular basis when there are so many other things in my life tugging on my sleeve for attention?

How can I shut out the distractions and turn the stories I want to write into stories I've written?

I'm open to any feedback and pointers as to what works for you.

Floatin' in the Groove

  Finally, as my final act of contrition for my belatedness, let me try to appease you with music.

HERE's one of the pieces I put together over the Christmas holiday. A bit of a spacey jam with several guitars on top of a wikiloops drum and bass track. I call it "Floatin' in the Groove" and it's on the wikiloops shared jam site.

I found the drum and bass groove (drums by user "Gibson" and bass by user "bendeg") and just kind of started jamming against it -- I ended up actually looping the original bass and drums track twice to make it longer. :)

My playing on this piece is kind of all over the map -- the effect I was going for was kind of trippy and spacey with at least a defined bridge, and I think it succeeded at that, but overall I'm not sure if it is what I would consider a very coherent tune.

Still -- it was fun to do and I hope you enjoy it.  Thanks for listening!

BOTB 1/1/14: "Auld Lang Syne"

Happy New Year!!!!!

I hope this is a wonderful year for you -- one filled with joy, love, peace, health, and many fabulous blessings!

I also want to thank you for making my blog a part of your new year.  I greatly appreciate each and every reader I get, and I want you to know how grateful I am that you took the time to visit my little out-of-the-way corner of the blogosphere. Thank youvery much!

Well, since today is the first day of the new year, it is also the first day of the month, and that means it is also time for the regular blogging event, "The Battle of The Bands (BOTB)." The BOTB was started by Stephen T. McCarthy and FarAwayEyes back in August of last year.  This event occurs twice every month -- on the 1st and the 15th -- and each of the bloggers taking part offers readers a choice of two (or occasionally more) versions of the same song, performed by different recording artists. And the the readers get to vote for your favorite rendition. 

Today is January first, so I think an appropriate song to start out my blog's BOTB 2014 edition is Auld Lang Syne.  This is the traditional song played at the stroke of midnight as New Year's Eve transitions into New Year's Day, and I wouldn't be the least surprised to discover that some of the other BOTB bloggers are using this song as well.  But right now I'm not sure, because this post -- like many of the performances seen on the TV New Year's Eve specials -- is being prepared well in advance (You didn't think I was actually busy blogging live at this moment, did you?).

The English lyrics to Auld Lang Syne are based on an old Scottish poem, and I suspect that most people aren't quite sure what they're actually singing when they chime in -- "Old wang signs?  What the heck does THAT mean???"

I could post the various translations of the Scottish poem and take the time to discuss what the lyrics are all about, but I won't.  Instead, we'll just go the instrumental route again, like in my last BOTB post.

So below are three instrumental versions of the tune, each of which feature some very solid musical ability, I think.  One I was familiar with before this post and wanted to use for this battle, and the other ones I found on You Tube as I was looking for potential contenders to do battle.

First up is renowed mandolin player David Grisman with a version from his 1983 album David Grisman's Acoustic Christmas, featuring a bluegrass quintet with banjo player Bela Fleck and others:

Next is a version done with a mix of traditional Chinese instruments and Western rythms.  This is by the group Viva Girls playing from their 2010 album A Viva Girls Christmas.  I don't know if this is 100% "live" (where are the bass and drums playing the rythm part?), and there doesn't seem to have been any updates to their website since 2011, but I find the music fascinating and fun to listen to, and the playing is excellent.  See what you think:

You know, if you do a You Tube search for "Auld Lang Syne guitar," you'll find a ton of videos uploaded by guitarists.  I salute anyone who makes music, and it's not like I think my own playing is so great, but the vast majority of these videos are..  well, not likely to win a BOTB bout against the playing of David Grisman, Bela Fleck, and guitarist Mike Marshall.  But here's one that caught my ear where the playing is actually very good -- a version done by a band called A Hero for the World from their 2013 Winter is Coming CD. The guitarist (and bass player) is David Sivelind, half of the Sweidsh duo that founded the band (which is now based in the Phillipines.  So now you have an answer if anyone ever asks you to name a Swedish-Fillipino metal band.). For some reason, I couldn't get this video embedded into this post the normal way, so I had to futz with the HTML code, but it should still work.  If not -- please use this link HERE to check it out:

So there you are -- three instrumental versions of Auld Lang Syne.  Are you surprised that the much-better known Guy Lombardo, Kenny G and Jimi Hendrix live at the Fillmore versions aren't among my contenders?  Well, if any of the other BOTB bloggers go for this song, I don't want to post the same covers they do, so Guy and Kenny are pretty much off the table. And while I love Jimi and consider the Machine Gun from the Fillmore one of the greatest guitar pieces ever recorded, Jimi's Auld Lang Syne really isn't that stellar.

But I do think that the three versions I've posted for this BOTB bout all feature some unique interpretations of the song and some great musicianship.  I invite you to listen to each and give them a chance (and rmember -- the goal is to compare the music, not the videos, so I encourage you to ignore the images).

After listening, please vote in the comments as to which version you think is best, or which speaks to you the deepest. Feel free to also share as much as you would like about how any of the above recordings strike you, even if it's less than positive.

And finally -- be sure to check out the other BOTB bloggers to vote on their battles:

• Far Away Series (FarAwayEyes)
• Ferret-Faced Fascist Friends (Stepehn T. McCarthy)
• Tossing it Out (Arlee Bird)
• Your Daily Dose (Robin)
• DiscConnected (DiscConnected)

Thank you very much for listening and for voting -- come back and visit again the first part of next week to find out how the voting has gone!  I'll make a post then with my own vote and also announce the winner!