"A Christmas download? But it's still November!" I hear you cry. Yes, this is true and I normally have a rule not to play Christmas music before December (well it's more of a guideline really...) but I realised that there are now only four Fridays to Christmas. By my reckoning, that makes this the first free download Friday in advent. :-)
For the first Christmas download, I offer you John Wesley Harding singing I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus. It's a fairly traditional take on a Christmas classic. In fact it starts with a sample from the Phil Spector version - and it doesn't get more classic than that. He drives it along at a fair lick and, while not exactly wall of sound, it is well produced and it sounds like he had fun recording it.
Normally, I'd link to the artist's site rather than directly to the download. Unfortunately, the navigation of the site is not reflected in the web addressed displayed, so I can't link directly to the page. However, if you go to the Music page, click on the LIVE MP3s & RARE SINGLES ARCHIVE link and then use the triangular arrow at the bottom of the left hand navigation panel, you will find other, non-Christmas links to sample and hopefully enjoy. Remember to let me know if you find any tracks you particularly like.
Disclaimer: Having announced that this is the first free download Friday in advent, I realise I have created the expectation that there will be four free Christmas download between now and Christmas. While that is my intention, at the moment, I only have one other up my sleeve at the moment. I'll do my best, but I may just resort to my old trick of stealing some ideas from Jeff (sometime contributor to this blog, good chap and maintainer of the Free Christmas Music blog - which is outstandingly good).
Summary:
John Wesley Harding singing: I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus.
Friday, 27 November 2009
Wednesday, 25 November 2009
When musical worlds collide #4
This is is nothing short of genius!
Queen + The Muppets - I'd pay money to see more of that.
Queen + The Muppets - I'd pay money to see more of that.
Monday, 23 November 2009
Jamming With Tommy Lee
Would you be interested in downloading raw tracks created by Tommy Lee, use these tracks record your own ideas and then upload your contributions for a chance to have your work appear on his album? He calls it the project the Public Record and it sounds like a really interesting idea.
He is releasing every song from the upcoming album in this way. Every week, he posts the “skeleton” of a new track and allows people record their own parts, using any instrument they choose, to accompany material he has released. If you don't have a suitable piece of software to help you mix the tracks and add your own work (such as Garageband) Tommy even provides a link to RiffWorks T4 for you to download... for free.
I am only sorry that I did not discover this project earlier as six of the eleven tracks have already been released (although they are re-opening these tracks for a few days each, for further contributions - but this time with some direction about what they think they still need).
He claims it is the first time that this has been done with a whole album, on such a massive scale, for a recording that is intended for commercial release and. In addition, some of the contributors will be invited to play live with Tommy in Los Angeles when the album is released.
It's difficult to judge whether it is magnificent or mental but I hope he pulls it off.
He is releasing every song from the upcoming album in this way. Every week, he posts the “skeleton” of a new track and allows people record their own parts, using any instrument they choose, to accompany material he has released. If you don't have a suitable piece of software to help you mix the tracks and add your own work (such as Garageband) Tommy even provides a link to RiffWorks T4 for you to download... for free.
I am only sorry that I did not discover this project earlier as six of the eleven tracks have already been released (although they are re-opening these tracks for a few days each, for further contributions - but this time with some direction about what they think they still need).
He claims it is the first time that this has been done with a whole album, on such a massive scale, for a recording that is intended for commercial release and. In addition, some of the contributors will be invited to play live with Tommy in Los Angeles when the album is released.
It's difficult to judge whether it is magnificent or mental but I hope he pulls it off.
Friday, 20 November 2009
Free Download Friday #36: It's all gone a bit Gothic...
If you have teenage daughters, you cannot have failed to notice that the second film in the Twilight
series was released this week. New Moon will have girls squeaking with delight in cinemas up and down the country. It seemed appropriate therefore to post some suitable music to download.
Flyleaf have been compared to Evanescence and so seem appropriately Gothic. In exchange for your email address, they will send you a link to download I'm So Sick - a dark, brooding and shouty track. Enjoy... certainly I've enjoyed this download significantly more than I enjoyed the film!
If you want to hear more, you could check out their YouTube pages.
Summary
I'm So Sick email sign up page.
series was released this week. New Moon will have girls squeaking with delight in cinemas up and down the country. It seemed appropriate therefore to post some suitable music to download.Flyleaf have been compared to Evanescence and so seem appropriately Gothic. In exchange for your email address, they will send you a link to download I'm So Sick - a dark, brooding and shouty track. Enjoy... certainly I've enjoyed this download significantly more than I enjoyed the film!
If you want to hear more, you could check out their YouTube pages.
Summary
I'm So Sick email sign up page.
Friday, 13 November 2009
Free Download Friday #35: Back to Wolfgang's place!
I visited Wolfang's Vault once before (Free Download Friday #15: ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of The Dead) but since I got a message that he'd cracked open the vault and made even more concerts available for download (currently 763 items!) I thought I'd go back to see what was new.
There are loads of concerts that interest me and most are reasonably priced. For example, you can get 52 minutes of B. B. King from 1971 for only $7.98 or a whopping 1 hour 39 minutes of Stevie Ray Vaughan from 1984 for $9.98. Brilliant!
However, this post is called Free Music Friday, not Reasonably Priced Music Friday and two free downloads caught my eye. In alphabetical order... first up is Carly Simon from October of this year. Her voice is not as powerful or as clear as it once was but the emotional depth is still there and the simple arrangements works really well on the four tracks offered. I especially like the sound of You're So Vain.
Second is a band I mentioned in a previous Free Music Friday (Free Download Friday #20: The Gutter Twins). Wolfgang has made a concert from March of last year, with twenty tracks, available for download. The track that featured in Free Download Friday #20, Idle Hands is, I think, the stand out track from this concert but I also like The Station, Live With Me, Down The Line, and Methamphetamine Blues.
Two very different but equally interesting downloads from Wolfgang and both are free! Which of these tracks stand out for you? Are there any other free downloads in the Vault I should check out?
Summary
Carly Simon Oct 27, 2009 from Daytrotter Studio.
The Gutter Twins Mar 1, 2008 from Bimbo's 365.
There are loads of concerts that interest me and most are reasonably priced. For example, you can get 52 minutes of B. B. King from 1971 for only $7.98 or a whopping 1 hour 39 minutes of Stevie Ray Vaughan from 1984 for $9.98. Brilliant!
However, this post is called Free Music Friday, not Reasonably Priced Music Friday and two free downloads caught my eye. In alphabetical order... first up is Carly Simon from October of this year. Her voice is not as powerful or as clear as it once was but the emotional depth is still there and the simple arrangements works really well on the four tracks offered. I especially like the sound of You're So Vain.
Second is a band I mentioned in a previous Free Music Friday (Free Download Friday #20: The Gutter Twins). Wolfgang has made a concert from March of last year, with twenty tracks, available for download. The track that featured in Free Download Friday #20, Idle Hands is, I think, the stand out track from this concert but I also like The Station, Live With Me, Down The Line, and Methamphetamine Blues.
Two very different but equally interesting downloads from Wolfgang and both are free! Which of these tracks stand out for you? Are there any other free downloads in the Vault I should check out?
Summary
Carly Simon Oct 27, 2009 from Daytrotter Studio.
The Gutter Twins Mar 1, 2008 from Bimbo's 365.
Thursday, 12 November 2009
But is it still Aerosmith?
Aerosmith is diebanding, or Aerosmith are continuing without Mr Tyler, or maybe nobody is leaving anything, or... who knows what's happening!
{Note: This started off as a comment on Layla's Classic Rock blog. If you haven't already been to her blog, it is well worth checking out. However, it was a fairly long comment, so I decided that a bit of editing and a few additions would make it worth posting here too.}
I've been following the reporting of Aerosmith, Tyler and Perry on Classic Rock Magazine's site for a wee while now and I'm not sure what to make of it all.
First news item I noticed was Are Aerosmith Headed For A Permanent Vacation? where it seemed to be about Mr Tyler wanting to do his own thing. At the time I wondered if falling off the stage (and by some accounts off the wagon too) hadn't jumbled his thinking a touch. Then came Aerosmith: Split With Tyler Moves Closer where Perry is quoted as saying "As far as replacing Steve, it’s not just about that, it’s also four guys that play extremely well together, and I’m not going to see that go to waste." To an extent I can see where he's coming from and sometimes a band can pull it off. For instance Deep Purple Gillan era to Deep Purple Coverdale worked (IMHO). However, at what point does a band get broken? Is the band currently touring as Deep Purple really Deep Purple? When does it become something new? For example Black Sabbath without Ozzy... tricky but Black Sabbath with Dio becoming Heaven and Hell - yes, I can see that. However, as Liggy points on Layla's blog, Steve Tyler has been with Aerosmith since they formed in 1970 - that's an awful lot of history with a very distinctive (not to say flamboyant) vocalist and it is difficult to see how anyone could pick up where he has left off. Having said that, Queen + Paul Rodgers seems to have been fairly well received. See what I mean when I say I'm not sure what to make of it?
However, the stories didn't end there because in quick succession Classic Rock Magazine published Aerosmith: Perry Announces Search For New Singer! and Tyler Announces He's Staying With Aerosmith. The last announcement in particular takes me back to my first thought about what damage was done in the stage fall!
So, as I said, I'm not sure what to make of it all. Aerosmith without Tyler would, I think, still be a great band but would it be Aerosmith? Perhaps they just need to do their own thing for a bit. ...Or maybe if we wait another couple of days it will all just go away. :-)
What do you think?
{Note: This started off as a comment on Layla's Classic Rock blog. If you haven't already been to her blog, it is well worth checking out. However, it was a fairly long comment, so I decided that a bit of editing and a few additions would make it worth posting here too.}
I've been following the reporting of Aerosmith, Tyler and Perry on Classic Rock Magazine's site for a wee while now and I'm not sure what to make of it all.
First news item I noticed was Are Aerosmith Headed For A Permanent Vacation? where it seemed to be about Mr Tyler wanting to do his own thing. At the time I wondered if falling off the stage (and by some accounts off the wagon too) hadn't jumbled his thinking a touch. Then came Aerosmith: Split With Tyler Moves Closer where Perry is quoted as saying "As far as replacing Steve, it’s not just about that, it’s also four guys that play extremely well together, and I’m not going to see that go to waste." To an extent I can see where he's coming from and sometimes a band can pull it off. For instance Deep Purple Gillan era to Deep Purple Coverdale worked (IMHO). However, at what point does a band get broken? Is the band currently touring as Deep Purple really Deep Purple? When does it become something new? For example Black Sabbath without Ozzy... tricky but Black Sabbath with Dio becoming Heaven and Hell - yes, I can see that. However, as Liggy points on Layla's blog, Steve Tyler has been with Aerosmith since they formed in 1970 - that's an awful lot of history with a very distinctive (not to say flamboyant) vocalist and it is difficult to see how anyone could pick up where he has left off. Having said that, Queen + Paul Rodgers seems to have been fairly well received. See what I mean when I say I'm not sure what to make of it?
However, the stories didn't end there because in quick succession Classic Rock Magazine published Aerosmith: Perry Announces Search For New Singer! and Tyler Announces He's Staying With Aerosmith. The last announcement in particular takes me back to my first thought about what damage was done in the stage fall!
So, as I said, I'm not sure what to make of it all. Aerosmith without Tyler would, I think, still be a great band but would it be Aerosmith? Perhaps they just need to do their own thing for a bit. ...Or maybe if we wait another couple of days it will all just go away. :-)
What do you think?
Wednesday, 11 November 2009
Them Crooked Vultures
Not a free download Tuesday this time, but a return to Them Crooked Vultures. As I mentioned last time, the band consists of John Paul Jones (Led Zepplin) on bass, Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters) on drums and Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age) on vocals and guitar. If that didn't sell it to you, I directed you to a free download and some YouTube content to reel you in.
However, they've now done more than just release a few bits and pieces to whet our appetites... They are now streaming the whole album a week prior to its release. Will I say that again? The whole album!
I've embedded the stream below, or you can go to their YouTube channel if you prefer.
What do you think? Is the "super" in "supergroup" merited in this case?
However, they've now done more than just release a few bits and pieces to whet our appetites... They are now streaming the whole album a week prior to its release. Will I say that again? The whole album!
I've embedded the stream below, or you can go to their YouTube channel if you prefer.
What do you think? Is the "super" in "supergroup" merited in this case?
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