Music
March 12, 2023 — Scott Johnson
The instrumental virtuoso David Lindley died March 3 at the age of 78. He played just about every stringed instrument I know of as well as a few I don’t. His New York Times obituary by Alex Williams seems just right to me. He subordinated his talent to enhance the music of the great artists with whom he worked, Jackson Browne foremost among them. I don’t know Lindley’s work sufficiently
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March 5, 2023 — Scott Johnson
And now for something completely different, I would like to introduce readers to Benjamin Bagby. Mr. Bagby is a medievalist, musician, composer, and performer. Among other things, he has memorized and performed the epic poem Beowulf. At the bottom of this post is a video of Bagby performing Beowulf at the 92nd Street Y in August 2020. Bagby’s performance begins at about 1:50 of the video. I read Beowulf in
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February 26, 2023 — Scott Johnson
Former Beatle George Harrison would have turned 80 yesterday. He was the Beatles’ lead guitarist. In the shadow of John and Paul, he slowly emerged as a songwriter. He had great taste and a gift for three-part harmony. I would like to note the anniversary of his birth with a few of the highlights of his recording career from the Beatles’ songbook and after. Forgive me for omitting your own
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February 23, 2023 — Scott Johnson
Trip Shakespeare was a local Minnesota band that landed a record contract with A&M Records. Twin/Tone Records has posted a brief history of the band here. Brothers Matt and Dan Wilson were both Harvard guys and members of the band, which also included bassist John Munson and drummer Elaine Harris. They recorded the wittily titled Are You Shakespearienced? (Twin/Tone, 1989) and the classic Lulu (A&M) before dissolving into Semisonic. Dan
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February 14, 2023 — Scott Johnson
Written by William Hart and Thom Bell, produced by Thom Bell and Stan Watson, “La-La (Means I Love You)” is a classic of Philadelphia soul, vintage 1968, and a memorable hit for the Delfonics. What a beautiful pop song. Hart sang the shimmering falsetto lead on the hit single. Do they make them like this anymore? Laura Nyro responded deeply to the song. As she did with so many of
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February 12, 2023 — Scott Johnson
The death of composer Burt Bacharach this past week gives us a fitting occasion on which to celebrate his work — work mostly with lyricist Hal David. Bacharach and David formed a professional partnership made in Cosmic American Music heaven. As Lloyd Billingsley counsels us in his brief American Greatness tribute to Bacharach: “Take a good look and listen, people. You won’t see a composer like this ever again.” For
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February 9, 2023 — Scott Johnson
Burt Bacharach was of course the incredibly inventive composer in the legendary songwriting partnership with lyricist Hal David. Bacharach died yesterday at the age of 94. Stephen Holden’s New York Times obituary provides an excellent short course in the fruits of their partnership. I would like to quote Auden’s great elegy on Yeats: “What instruments we have agree / The day of his death was a dark cold day.” The
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February 5, 2023 — Scott Johnson
My intention this morning was to post a video of “Up, Up and Away” and leave it at that, but I can’t help myself. I love the song. When it entered the charts in 1967, I thought it stamped the arrival of a notable new songwriting voice. The songwriting voice was that of Jimmy Webb. When he celebrated his 75th birthday in 2021, I compiled the videos and comments below.
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January 29, 2023 — Scott Johnson
When Don Everly died in August 2020 I put together a set of videos with previous reflections on the music of the Everly Brothers. This is the season of their birthdays — Don was born on February 1, 1937, Phil on January 19, 1939. I thought I would use the occasion to revise it slightly and replay it one more time in the hope that it might capture the interest
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January 22, 2023 — Scott Johnson
I had intended to post a second part of my tribute to Jeff Beck before death intervened again. This morning I want to note the death of David Crosby last week at the age of 81 and post a few videos that represent early highlights of his work and provide pleasure in themselves. As in the case of Jeff Beck, my selections here derive almost entirely from the early years
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January 15, 2023 — Scott Johnson
I have been a fan of the incredible British guitarist Jeff Beck since his work with the Yardbirds. I noted his death at the age of 78 last week. I want to add to the record with a few more glimpses of his work over the years. He had such a long career that I’d like to divide this into at least two parts and return to him next week.
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January 12, 2023 — Scott Johnson
Guitarist Jeff Beck died on Tuesday at the age of 78. I learned of his death via Jim Farber’s New York Times obituary, which does a good job of covering Beck’s long career in music. The documentary Still On the Run — The Jeff Beck Story (2018) is also out there for viewing and (as I recall) explores his interest in building cars as well as making music. He appeared
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January 8, 2023 — Scott Johnson
Today is the anniversary of the birth of Elvis Presley in 1935. I wrote this post and compiled the videos below last year to note the occasion, but today is the day. I don’t want to let it go without another look back in this slightly revised form. The Beatles turned me on to the music. It took me a long time to hear the music of Elvis Presley with
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January 1, 2023 — Scott Johnson
I had wanted to see vocalist extraordinaire Tracy Nelson sing since I was a college freshman, and I came close. Having bought tickets to see her perform with her group Mother Earth in Boston, I waited patiently in the theater for her to take the stage. Some time after the appointed hour, Tracy came out to announce that the band’s instruments hadn’t made it from San Francisco. I was incredibly
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December 25, 2022 — Scott Johnson
This is my slightly revised and expanded edition of secular pop songs that seize on Christmas in one way or another for their own artistic purposes. Here they are in chronological order of release along with notes that might help place them. Noel Paul Stookey (Paul of Peter, Paul & Mary) adapted and arranged “A’Soalin” with Elena Mezzetti and Tracy Batteast including Christmas references – using “God Rest Ye Merry,
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December 18, 2022 — Scott Johnson
Jorma Kaukonen was the lead guitarist of the Jefferson Airplane. Together with bassist Jack Casady — they have been friends and musical partners since they were teenagers — he formed Hot Tuna as a side venture to pursue other interests, originally in acoustic blues with Will Scarlett on harmonica. Jorma has had a long, varied, and interesting career in music deep in the American grain. He tells his story in
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December 4, 2022 — Scott Johnson
I saw three shows over the past week. Last weekend I saw the Belfast Cowboys, a 20-year-old Minneapolis group I had not heard of before. This week I saw the Todd Rundgren/Daryl Hall show at the State Theater. They played to a packed house. Both Rundgren and Hall appear to have tapped into the fountain of youth. I thought to myself, I’ll have what he’s having (what they’re having). The
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