The Music Court

                  Okay, I know I said that we were taking a break from posting until monday but I just could not stop myself from posting. Think about something American. Baseball is the Great American Pastime. Yes, and the National Anthem is also pretty American. Now combine these two things… in an instrument. Enter Glenn Donnellan of the National Symphony Orchestra and watch him play The Star Spangled Banner on a Louisville Slugger Violin. Yeah I know this is incredible and it rocks hard also. Here is the link: http://www.fark.com/cgi/vidplayer.pl?IDLink=4488819, and it looks something like this:

I know it has been a while since we gave you some links to click on and enjoy, but, this was only because we love our readers so much that we wanted the links to be extra special. Did that sound convincible? But, it would seem like that today because these links that we have for your viewing pleasure today are indeed special. When you combine the soulful Ray Charles and the guitar-crazy Tommy Emmanuel in one post good stuff must be emitted.  

Ray Charles being awesome

 Did you know that Ray Charles appeared on the Johnny Cash Show? Did you know that there was a Johnny Cash Show? Well both of these things did indeed happen and the combination of country and soul legends is unmatchable. Taped on his 40^th birthday on September 23^rd 1970, Ray Charles makes Johnny Cash and the rest of the musical proud by playing an incredibly soulful version of “Ring of Fire” that was then released on his country album Love Country Style. Wow. A must check out video

 Check it Out: http://www.fark.com/cgi/vidplayer.pl?IDLink=4464899

Tommy Emmanuel also being awesome

 One must stare at awe at the super human that is Tommy Emmanuel. You want to see acoustic guitar done right. Check this video out where Mr. Emmanuel will show you how one goes about shredding on an acoustic guitar. If I tried this I would break a string and one or two fingers. This is just remarkable.

Check it out:  http://www.fark.com/cgi/vidplayer.pl?IDLink=4466834

See You in July

             An early birthday present was bestowed upon me this morning in my search for Paul McCartney tickets. As many of you may already know Paul is coming to Citi Field (The Mets new ballpark) to perform the first concert at the stadium. He will be celebrating the new structure and honoring the 44th anniversary of The Beatles historic Shea Stadium (Mets old ballpark) show. Tickets went on sale today at 10:00 a.m. I was on my computer ready to go at 9:55. Here is the story.

          100 dollars a ticket was the target price. My brother, my father, and I were the three tickets. Immediately, as the clock struck 10:00 a.m, I was on the site (507tixx.com) and clicking best avaliable for the July 17th date. Paul is coming the 17th and the 18th (my birthday, this is why it is an early birthday gift). The best avaliable tickets took me towards 175 dollar tickets and because for anybody (unless there was a Pink Floyd reunion with Richard Wright rising from the grave) this price is absurd I dropped the tickets and looked for the target 100 dollar price. Epic fail. They all sold out and slipped through my fingers like sand. My oppurtunity to see Paul for the first time in the greatest venue was shot down. We decided we would look on stubhub, but, there is a fantastic chance worse tickets will be going for 175 dollars. So, we simply gave up. But, here is when things get interesting.

                 I decided to go on five minutes later just for the heck of it. Then, like a light at the end of a long, musicless tunnel I saw it. July 21’st added to the once two shows. I flew on like a man on a mission and clicked my way to 100 dollar tickets. On the 21’st of July we shall be sitting in section 121, row 13 and I am, like I was for Clapton and Winwood, quite psyched. So, to honor the good luck I thought I would provide you guys with an awesome link of Paul and various other musicians like Elton John, Sting, Phil Collins and Eric Clapton performing “Hey Jude” in support of the people of Montserrat. Enjoy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCwQiIqWpRY

           In the course of music history there are many wierd rumors that spread. While some end up being true most are debunked and forgotten about. But, some withstand the test of time and eventually enough come to believe the myths to be true that the truth remains permanently skewed. Tonight I have for you a perfect example. A rumor about the man everyone came to know as Bob Dylan (many believing it to be his real name). His real name is Robert Zimmerman and he is the subject of today’s link of the day.

       A music myth has circulated regarding the results of the famous Newport Folk Festival in Newport, Rhode Island. The story goes Bob Dylan performed with his electric guitar and his backing band (members of The Hawks recommended by blues singer John Hammond who would later become the well-titled The Band). Since this was a folk festival and he was playing unconventional electric guitar this apparently did not go over so well and the performance was met with cascading boos. Some stories go as far as saying that Pete Seeger, a famous folk singer, and other event organizers attempted to cut the electricity with an axe. This is also portrayed in the movie “I’m Not There.” But like in “I’m Not There,” which is a fictional account of Bob Dylan, the entire story in itself is fabricated. Let me tell you how.

         Well a man by the name of  Bruce Jackson was one of the directors at the Newport Folk Festival that night. According to his great account, which includes a scene by scene text account of a tape from the festival, the boos at the concert were not directed at Dylan at all. They were booing because they wanted him back on the stage for an encore. Pete Yarrow, the emcee of the night and the Peter in Peter Paul and Mary, talks clearly throughout the tape and it is quite evident that the booing was not at Dylan’s set, which was actually met with pleasent applause. Myths are interesting but this one is simply not true. Don’t believe me. Check it out for yourself: http://buffaloreport.com/020826dylan.html

             My favorite band is Pink Floyd. Yes, I do admit that The Beatles are the greatest band of all time but Pink Floyd holds a special place in my heart mainly for their work on “Dark Side of the Moon” and “Wish You Were Here,” two albums that portray the pinnacle of psychedelic music. Yet, the link I bring you today comes from a very different Pink Floyd. A Floyd well before there first release of “The Piper at the Gates of Dawn” in August of 1967. A Floyd that held a completely different sound under a different band leader named Syd Barrett. Of course, less then one year after this video was recorded Barrett performed his last concert with Pink Floyd and because of his unstability due to excess LSD usage and deteriorating mental health he was impossible to deal with on stage for he continually changed chord progressions and melodies to a mash-up of ideas in his head. But, here in February of 1967 we are still in the emerging years of the young Pink Floyd Sound and we should celebrate this awesome rare video from the UFO Club.

         At the end of the performance of the free form, “Interstellar Overdrive,” a particularly ugly Paul McCartney (sorry Paul) with a wierd mustache and long hair is interviewed about this rise in Psychedelic Music.  While his appearance may not be pleasant his view on this new music is sharp. He speaks of the rise of Psychedelia positively, saying that it is just simply a new way of expressing oneself through music and while people may fear it there is really no need to. Well, Paul, after watching this video with suited dancers dancing some warped mix of 50’s moves and swaying,and constant images of protests and ominous headlines I am honestly a little scared. After watching the video I just could not stop thinking to myself, Roger Waters should only know what he, Nick Mason, Richard Wright, and one guitarist with a haunting voice named David Gilmour will do in a few years time.

Check out the Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sr0hdXPH92M

One more link for you guys on this Friday morning. Staying with the theme of Psychedelic let us focus on a band that got lost in the craze and never gained the respect they deserved. In 1967, Tomorrow became one of the first English Psychedelic bands, along with Pink Floyd and The Soft Machine. There single, ” My White Bicycle,” while being an interesting piece of rare psychedelia never gained much success. Probably, the best thing to come  from “Tomorrow” was Steve Howe who after “Tomorrow” became the guitarist for the much more succesful progressive rock group “Yes.”

Check out the song: http://www.fark.com/cgi/vidplayer.pl?IDLink=4442495