Bruce Springsteen - "Drive All Night" (live)

This song has so much meaning to me...I have a lot of history with it...It would take pages and pages to tell you. Maybe someday. Until now...

This band is my life...assorted full performance videos of Sigur Ros

They really do mean the world to me. Maybe I'll write about why that is at a later date, if I decide this is a proper forum for it. Until then:

U2...June 13, 1983: I WAS THERE!!!

One month before I saw them
    
The celebration of MTV's 30th birthday is in full swing, with highlights galore airing on the VH1 Classic channel. It's a continuous loop of programming that is a painful reminder of just how great the network used to be compared to what it is now. But I suppose all good things must come to an end. When the money train looked like it was gonna run on inane reality shows and other non-musical crap it could only be expected that the MTV CEOs, hungry for the bottom line, would follow it into the dark tunnel it has remained in for so many years.

But I didn't come here to whine and moan about the downfall of MTV.

I just happened to catch the "MTV30" segment that featured U2's performance at LiveAid and it got me to thinking about the only time I ever got to see them in concert. It was very early in their career...June 10, 1983, when "War" was the album they were promoting. It was so early, in fact, that they were still playing songs from their debut, "Boy" (and even one from their first single, "11 O'Clock Tick Tock", which was never released in America). Bono was still wearing leather jeans and had his hair all done up in true new wave style. He was still hoisting that huge white flag into the audience during "Surrender". All in all it was a great time to see them, in a venue that was very small compared to the other venues they played (not even mentioning the arena tours). The Lloyd Noble Center, on the OU campus, hosted a lot of big concerts back then and it was where the June 10th U2 show happened. It was the building where all the OU Sooners home basketball games were played. For this show, however, they had set it up with what was called "theater seating", which basically meant that only half of the seats were going to be used. I always thought it was a very bad reflection on the collective musical taste of Oklahomans that U2 didn't even sell out the place. But I figured it wasn't their fault that the band had received almost zero promotion, on the radio or anywhere else.

That said, there WAS a bit of radio promotion, if not much. Had there not been I would never have obtained tickets to the show. The KATT (100.5 FM) were giving them away in contests and stuff. You'd think that a "free" ticket, won from a radio station, would be for a crappy seat, but these weren't half bad.

I didn't win one, though. I knew someone who DID. The details of how I obtained one have been erased from my memory, other than the fact that someone gave one to me. Why? Maybe the person couldn't make it...maybe they had no interest in attending but entered the contest on a lark. None of that mattered to me. I'm sure I was appropriately grateful but apparently not enough to have remembered reasons for the good gesture.

I remember wearing this corny bootleg U2 shirt...corny because it wasn't official merchandise but was very obviously designed to appear as it it were...that I thought was just about the coolest thing in the world. And I brought a "ghetto blaster" (as we called them back then) with me to play U2 tapes while standing in line at the door. I was there by myself (alas, my benefactor only had one winning ticket) and I thought I was the MAN! The people seemed to enjoy the music and were friendly so I didn't mind being alone at all.

My first stroke of luck at the concert was all due to my brother's generosity. He had come with a friend who had...get this...FRONT ROW TICKETS! And the guy had probably never even heard a U2 song in his life. His uncle was a vendor for the ticket companies and he would get free front row tickets for any band he cared to see. I knew him pretty well, too, and the genesis of my tinnitus can likely be traced to the front row spots he got me for Blue Oyster Cult and Rainbow. I couldn't tell you how "into" the band my brother was, but I'm sure he'd seen them on MTV and no doubt he recognized their talent and potential.

So, I've got tickets about halfway up into the stands and my brother has front row seats (actually I think they were 2nd row seats, but in a floor situation like that there is really no difference). I don't know whose idea it was or who suggested it, but we decided I should get through security and down to the floor. So we both bought t-shirts and I let him take mine with him. Then, a few minutes later, he met me where the sections were divided and I said, "Hey! Did you get me that shirt I asked for?" To which he replied, "Yeah, got it right here," and handed it to me...with the front row ticket stub neatly tucked within. I waited a few more minutes, then went to the security guy, showed him my ticket stub and waa-lah! I found myself directly in front of the stage! Genius!

The support group on this particular concert was The Alarm. They were an unremarkable band who went on to score a couple of minor hits (the best being "Rain in the Summertime"). They came out onto the stage sporting nothing but acoustic guitars and a drum kit. I figured it was their gimmick, but they weren't doing themselves any favors if it was, as the sound quality was pretty dismal. They started their set and everyone got up out of the folding metal chairs to rush the stage, but the security people weren't having any of that. They made us sit back down. The singer from The Alarm wasn't having any of that, though. He chastised security and exhorted everyone to, in these exact words, "GET UP AND DANCE!" Though their music wasn't exactly the kind you could dance to, we were more than happy to get back up.

When U2 hit the stage I was ecstatic. I was a HUGE fan. I worked in a record store at the time and you'd hear "Boy" on the stereo at least once every day during my shift. They'd played at an extremely small venue in Norman when they first toured and I kicked myself every time I think about how I wasn't able to go to that one. So I don't need to tell you how excited I was when the band came out and the first notes were played.

At the front of the stage there was this extension, I don't know exactly what they're called, but it gave Bono a chance to come out a little farther into the audience (or at least into the first few rows). It was right next to this whatchamacallit that I stood for the duration of the show, one of the absolute best views in the house.

This is kind of weird, maybe, but I had this really cool crucifix on a chain that my mother had bought me and while everyone else was raising their fist to the music (as pumped up audience's are wont to do), I held up this crucifix. There's no way, no way whatsoever, that Bono didn't see it. I don't know exactly WHY I did it...only that I'd heard that Bono was a Christian and I was, too. Later on I would wonder what Bono thought of that, on several different levels. I mean, first, the obvious: What is this guy waving that crucifix in front of my face? A reasonable question that, as I said, I couldn't have answered myself. But also, this was a time when tensions were running pretty high between the Catholics and the Protestants in Ireland. I'm not too sure but I would guess that Bono Vox is NOT Catholic, so what could he have been thinking? It's all SO strange, the things I'm possessed to do. But I laugh when I imagine some fantastical in-depth interview where Bono says, "Something I'll never forget, Jann...that guy in Oklahoma with his crucifix!" Because, hey! Even with a full life such as his, that's something you may well remember for it's enigmatic quality alone!

There was a girl standing next to me...a quite attractive young girl, if I may say...and during one of the songs Bono took her by the hand and brought her onstage, where he did a little dance with her. Which was cool, but not so much as when he took the hat from "front row ticket" guy, set it on the ground, and did some kind of war dance around the thing. It was a camouflage hunting hat, and if I know "front row ticket" guy (and I do), the rest of his gear was camouflage as well. He thought this was cool as hell and left that place a U2 fan. It was one of the funniest things I've ever seen.

The highlight of the night was when Bono reached his hand out from the stage extension and I grabbed hold of it. He gave it a squeeze and that was that. Rock concert story of a lifetime: I shook Bono's hand! Okay, well maybe there are much better rock stories out there, but this was about as close as I'll probably ever get to one that I'll tell my grandchildren.

Perhaps obviously I don't remember anything after that...just like I don't remember any of the performance highlights...I mean, jeez, this is 28 years ago! All I need to remember is that this was one great show...the first REALLY great show I'd ever seen, and along with Sigur Ros & Bruce Springsteen it ranks as one of the top 3 concerts I've ever been to.

in which I say goodbye to R.E.M. making use of several biographical sentiments

This is an article I wrote about the break-up of R.E.M., who played a huge role in my life during the early '80s. I'm re-posting it here because it contains quite a bit of biographical content. The video is from what is probably my favorite song of theirs.




In 1985 I found myself locked behind the walls of the Naval Hospital’s 4th floor psych ward in Orlando, FL. I wound up spending almost 6 months there, waiting for a bipolar disorder diagnosis. A tragic situation on many levels. One of the worst experiences of my life, made all the worse for the wonderful things happening on the outside that I should have been a part of. Mainly the birth of my first child, a daughter who I was not able to see until over a month after her arrival. Many were the times when I felt like giving up, but knowing I’d soon be with her kept me going.

There was something else that kept me going, though it certainly was not of the same magnitude as seeing my daughter. It might not make sense to a lot of people, but that thing was a record album. Namely Fables of the Reconstruction by R.E.M., a band that I had decided, a couple of years before, was the best American rock band of all time. Music being my passion, I’m not sure that I could describe just how much this group affected me, from the first bars of Chronic Town, their debut EP, to the last chords of “Little America” from their second full-length offering, Reckoning.

I was in a band myself at the time. Ask the other guys how infatuated with R.E.M. I was…They’ll probably tell you that I wanted to turn it into an R.E.M. tribute band, and who knows but maybe there is some truth in that. I would gladly have worked up their entire catalog up to that point if I thought they would let me. Luckily my excitement was contagious and they both wound up being R.E.M. fans eventually.

I wanted to do everything the way they did. Their “ethos” seemed so right to me. Uncompromising originality, doing it their way, never letting the new record sound too much like the last one, working their fan base from the ground up, going out in teams of two to promote themselves…they seemed honest and genuine. I admired everything about them musically, from Peter Buck’s jangling guitar to Mike Mills’ chordal bass playing to Bill Berry’s rock solid drumming…and okay, I will confess, it was Michael Stipe’s voice, style and slurring that really sold me on them. Even so, it was the package deal that kept me interested.

Do you want to know how obsessed I was with R.E.M. in 1984? I owned a SWEET MusicMan Stingray bass guitar…one of the best basses made at the time. I loved it. Then, one evening as I watched the band’s appearance on some forgotten MTV “Rock Legends” program I saw Mike Mills’ Rickenbacker and decided, then and there, that I had to have one, too. If that was part of what made up the R.E.M. sound, well I needed that. To make a long story short, I traded in my MusicMan and a hundred bucks for a piece of crap stereo Rickenbacker that sounded awful and was difficult to play.

One of the big disappointments of my life up to that point (inexperienced youth that I was) was missing the band touring for the Reckoning album when they played at a renovated church in Norman, Oklahoma called The Bowery (the legendary Bowery, as far as I was concerned). I’d heard they were going to perform there but when I called to get details I was told they’d already been there…the night before! So I asked if they knew where the band was scheduled to play next. It was at some bowling alley in Dallas on that evening. The next show was in St. Louis, Missouri and I seriously thought about doing whatever I had to do to get there. I think it was Southern Methodist University (I could be wrong). They informed me that students had first dibs on the tickets and I knew right then that it was hopeless. I did eventually see them, during the Life’s Rich Pagaent tour. It wasn’t Fables-centric, but they did most of my favorite songs (“Sitting Still” & “Shaking Through” are the ones I remember the best). Mike Mills even said something about how the first time they’d played in Oklahoma was at “some church”. I think they played Oklahoma one more time after that, for the Green album. I missed that one, but it was okay by me. I wasn't real happy with the direction their music was going at the time they signed with Warner Bros.. I was just happy I’d been able to see them before then.

So, what does all this have to do with getting through a 6 month stint in observation? Just this: I’d heard that the band’s 3rd album was going to be released in mid-to-late ’85 and I could not wait! Oh, but I had to. Because it came out about two months after I took up residence on the 4th floor psych ward! Such bad timing! One day I’m listening to the stereo in the lounge when, I couldn't believe it myself, “Can’t Get There From Here” comes on. It sounds almost nothing like R.E.M.. I wanted to hear it again and a few more times to get a handle on the direction they were heading. I thought it was pretty good on first hearing, but I couldn't be sure just how much I might like it without a couple more decent listens. To make matters worse I got a copy of Rolling Stone and wouldn't you know it? The feature review was of Fables of the Reconstruction. It was a very positive review. I remember seeing all the song titles, wondering what the songs themselves might sound like. I proselytized R.E.M. to any and all of the psych techs who cared to listen and no doubt more than one realized that getting to hear that record was one of the things that kept my chin up. Re-united with wife and daughter was most important, obviously, but getting my own copy of Fables was a powerful incentive to hang on as well.

I know I haven’t gone into detail about what I went through there. Or how or why or whatever, none of it really needs to be related other than to point out that those days, weeks, months WERE difficult for me. I don’t think I can over-emphasize how these things, big and small, pulled me through, or to describe exactly what it was they actually did pull me through. Suffice to say that I will be thankful for them until the day I die.

It should come as no surprise that one of the first things I did when I was discharged was go straight to Sound Warehouse to buy a copy of Fables of the Reconstruction…or Reconstruction of the Fables depending on which side of the jacket you were looking at. The wheels were set in motion. The grooves in the record would be worn out only weeks later.The music, in the grand R.E.M. tradition, shared little in common with what came before. Just enough to remind you of who you were listening to and why you loved them. Yes, I had my favorites. “Life and How to Live It”, “Feeling Gravity’s Pull”…and there were a couple I wasn't all that crazy about, “Old Man Kinsey”, “Maps and Legends”. But as a whole I couldn't think of too many albums that were so consistently excellent.

Maybe my reverence for Fables of the Reconstruction is tinged with sentimental attachment. So it is. Still I have no problem coming out and saying that it is one of the few truly great records of the 80s. Unlike the music of so many dime-a-dozen MTV-friendly music video pimping bands of that decade, R.E.M.’s mid 80s output will be remembered for a long time to come.

I confess, I’m not much of an R.E.M. fan these days. I don’t like having to say that, but it’s true. They have released excellent music since I fell off the bandwagon, but it’s not for me. No doubt that is the curse of any band who doggedly insists on not repeating themselves. At some point you’re going to lose the people who aren’t willing to follow your muse. Maybe the word “willing” is not what I mean to say. I’m “willing” to go with them, but it’s useless because the music doesn't appeal to me anymore. The last song I truly loved by R.E.M. was “New Test Leper” from the last album they recorded with Bill Berry on the drums, New Adventures in Hi-Fi. Even that was after generally losing interest, as I mentioned earlier, after they signed with major label, Warner Brothers. They got more popular, with the success of “Losing My Religion” and later “Everybody Hurts”, an anthem so universal it was bound to resonate with everyone. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame not too long afterward. They had made it, they’d done it their way, and whether or not the old school fans wanted to admit it or not, they’d come out on the other side with dignity and integrity intact, doing what THEY wanted to do, still releasing music that draws in new fans, at least two for every one lost, it seems. So the oversight is mine, for sure.

As of yesterday, September 21, 2011, that’s all history. R.E.M. has broken up and it’s almost surreal to me. Even though I may never have gotten back into them again I still have a very difficult time believing that it’s over. It’s just a band. Yet so much more to me. Why? I don’t know myself. Their music was very much a soundtrack to some good times in my life. They were down to earth and never let rock stardom turn them into assholes. I’ll never forget writing to their fan club and getting a personal note from Mike Mills, who informed me that he had family here in Oklahoma. Of course this was in the early stages of their career, so they had more time to be so available to their fans. But I have always got the impression that R.E.M. have always treated their fans not only with respect but as fellow travelers on their journey.

Me? I will always consider them to be one of my favorite groups in the history of modern music. Come to think of it, maybe it was a good thing that I didn't follow them after Bill Berry’s departure. There are three entire R.E.M. albums that I have never heard…I’m sure I’ll come around to where they left me someday. I’ll have what I might as well consider “new music” from the band. New to me. That will make it somewhat easier to deal with the fact that the three remaining members will no longer be creating more as a unit. Though that be the case, the reality is that R.E.M.’s body of work will stand up to repeated listening for years to come. Long after the idea of “alternative music” has died, the name “R.E.M.” will be remembered and their legacy will be, among other things, the proof that music can transcend labels. That it can rise above categorizations.

Mr. Berry…Mr. Buck…Mr. Mills…Mr. Stipe…God bless you. Thank you. Thank you so much and may you each be successful in whatever endeavors you choose to pursue at this point in your lives. You've touched a lot of people. Your music genuinely moved us. Your originality has amazed us. Your integrity has inspired us. You have not let us down, in the past or with this decision to call it a day. We trust you well enough to give you the benefit of the doubt and if you say the time has come, then it’s for certain the time has come. But you will be missed…and it is with no small degree of sadness that I have to say…

Goodbye

September 22, 2011

Genesis live in 1973. Whoa!

Setlist:
1. "Watcher of the Skies"
2. "Dancing with the Moonlit Knight"
3. "I Know What I Like"
4. "The Musical Box"
5. "Supper's Ready"

Sigur Ros perform "Kveikur" on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon

Better late than never.

sigur rós - kveikur (live on jimmy fallon) from sigur rós on Vimeo.

Two "official" videos from the upcoming Sigur Ros album, "Kveikur"

Okay, the excitement over the imminent release of the new Sigur Ros album is high. I finally got around to pre-ordering my copy this morning. I'm frankly surprised I haven't posted the two "official" music videos on this blog yet. Then again there's all sorts of cool Sigur Ros stuff floating around the Internet right now and I didn't want this particular blog to turn into a shrine to the band (hmmm...perhaps I should start one of those...good idea). Oh, well. Here they are.

Sigur Ros on the Tonight Show 5/23/13

Sigur Ros at Verizon Theatre 4/8/13: a few videos shot by strangers

Sigur Ros finally made it back to the tri-state area, so there was no way I was going to miss it. No, I haven't been blogging much lately...I don't think I've ever been so apathetic about it. I'm not sure why, other than I never think I have anything worth saying. I really should get back to it soon. In the meantime here are a fewvideos that other people took from the Sigur Ros concert last night at the Verizon Theatre in Grand Prairie, Texas. I may well want to write about it at a later date.

Bryan's scholarship audition

"Songs for Swinging Larvae" - Renaldo & the Loaf

Eric Whitacre's Virtual Choirs

Watch these. An incredible idea realized. Try to hold back the goosebumps the first time you hear the Virtual Choir during Whitacre's TED Talk. I'm late jumping on this bandwagon but oh well. Something completely original always gets me excited.

Sigur Ros: "Ekki Mukk" (a video by me)

"Ekki Mukk" is my favorite song from Sigur Ros' "Valtari" album. I put together this little film as an accompaniment. It's amateurism shows at times but there a few parts that I'm actually quite proud of.

Sigur Ros: "Ekki Múkk "...Mystery Film Interpretation by Nick Abrahams

Future Islands live at Amoeba 2011

Hey! Future Islands! My new favorite band! Okay, well, my new SECOND favorite band, but still...

film..."Powerline" by Husker Du

This is a music video I made for the Husker Du song "Powerline". I was inspired by the mid-period videos by R.E.M. ("Life and How to Live It", "Time After Time", et al). I used footage from the film "Holy Ghost People" and an armed services training film about Vietnam.

Future Islands - Give Us the Wind

"Valtari" track by track

Resurrection Band: "City Streets", "Alienated", "The Chair"

Easter weekend is usually a good time for me. I reflect upon the reasons I'm a Christian and come away with a new sense of conviction. This weekend wasn't like that and I really don't know why. There's been so much "atheist talk" with my son this year that I guess it's wearing me thin to the point where I almost lose the hope that keeps me going. In the long run I won't lose it because Jesus won't let that happen, but nevertheless I fear that my bipolar disorder has swung way down to a troubling low. I take anti-depressants and have done so for at least a year. They did me a lot of good and the effects were recognizable. I'm afraid I've built up a tolerance level to them. I'm doing some of the same things and thinking some of the same thoughts and feeling the same way I did before I began taking them. So either it's a huge emotional drop that will correct itself in the same manner that a manic phase does not last forever, or I need to look into getting a new anti-depressant prescribed. If you only knew how much I loathe that possibility.

I didn't come here to talk psychiatry or mental health. I just wanted to share an awesome video I just found of the Resurrection Band in performance circa 1981. It took me back to the good old days after I'd first become a Christian. Christian rock music helped me survive the conservative, ultra-literal church mindset in Oklahoma. Resurrection Band was probably the first evangelical rock band I ever heard. They kicked ass so hard it wasn't even funny! Not too many, if any, could keep up with them. They were truly anointed, and this bugged the Bible Belters to no end. Unlike a lot of CCM rockers they didin't ape any particular "secular" band. They didn't have to. I don't care what you believe in, or don't believe in, if you like good rock music you would do yourself a favor tracking down "Colours" and "Mommy Don't Love Daddy Anymore".

The video is an excerpt from a show in Puerto Rico. It starts out with "City Streets", moves on with "Alienated" and closes out with an incredible song about people with disabilities, "The Chair". I'll warn you that the last song is cut off about 15 seconds before it ends, and this is extremely frustrating because "The Chair" is by far the most powerful song of the three. Like I said when I posted it on YouTube, singer Glenn Kaiser could have been a huge rock star had he chosen to play anything but Christian music. If you don't think so by the end of this video then I suppose you and I have radically different opinions about the requirements for such fame and success. It doesn't matter, though, because it's probable that Kaiser would not have been a fraction the performer had it not been for the inspiration from and conviction of his faith in Jesus Christ.

Xuxa: "Tindolele"

One of the great things about raising a son in the 90s...

WATCHING XUXA!!!