Autumn Souvenir

I can't say that I know the specifics of his story, but I know it goes something like this: Ted Hawkins was homeless and collecting change by strumming his guitar up and down the Santa Monica pier. One day a record producer, or maybe it was an A&R rep, passed by Hawkins and was mesmerized by his mix of soul, blues and folk. His sound was as much Otis Redding as it was Townes Van Zandt. He subsequently went on to land a recording contract and spit out some of the best records of the 80s and 90s. Despite critical acclaim, he remained under the radar for most of his short career. He died in Los Angeles in 1995 and it was his posthumous release "The Final Tour" (1998) that summed up his genuis. If there's ever an artist that deserves more praise, it's Ted Hawkins. Start with "The Final Tour" and then move on to "Happy Hour" and "Watch Your Step". You won't regret it.

It was a week year, but here's what I've got: 1 Bruce Springsteen: We Shall Overcome - The Seeger Sessions 2 Centro-matic: Fort Recovery 3 Neko Case: Fox Confessor Brings the Flood 4 Cat Power: The Greatest 5 Tim Easton: Ammunition 6 Richard Buckner: Meadow 7 The Pernice Brothers: Live a Little 8 The Drams: Jubilee Dive 9 Vetiver: To Find Me Gone 10 Cold War Kids: Up In Rags

The ten most important musicians in my lifetime (to me): 1 Bruce Springsteen 2 Jeff Tweedy 3 Bob Dylan 4 Richard Buckner 5 Elliott Smith 6 Nick Drake 7 Jay Farrar 8 Neil Young 9 Gary Louris 10 Townes Van Zandt Others: Mick Jagger/Keith Richards, E, Damien Jurado, Joe Pernice, Will Oldham, Beck, Aimee Mann, Josh Rouse, Mark Bolan, Kevin Russell/Jimmy Smith, Ray Davies, Will Johnson, Paul Westerberg, Johnny Cash, Rhett Miller, Tim Easton, Brent Best, M. Ward, Paul McCartney/John Lennon, Michael Stipe.........

It's been a long time since a new record really blew me away. I've probably bought about 40 new releases this year and, until recently, I couldn't think of one that should top my year end list. Centro-matic maybe? Cat Power? Good records, but not great records. I fell in love with The Perince Brothers before they were The Pernice Brothers. It was the summer of 1995 and the Scud Mountain Boys were opening for Wilco and Blue Mountain at Tramps in New York City. Joe Pernice and two others sat around a candlelit table and strummed through some of the prettiest songs I'd ever heard. I really dug "Massachusetts". Then came The Pernice Brothers and the brilliant "Overcome By Happiness". "The World Won't End" followed and was nearly as good. Then came a step back with "Yours, Mine & Ours". Then I lost interest. A few months ago a colleague from the D.C. area was raving about their new one "Live a Little". I hated to admi...

This afternoon I watched "Gimme Shelter" for the first time. What an amazing take on a rock n' roll band in its prime. Granted the Rolling Stones are nothing but a laughable cash cow these days. But back in the 60s and 70s The Rolling Stones changed the face of music forever. Blues. Rock n' Roll. Country. They covered just about genre and they blasted through songs like no other band then or now. This fantasic documentary got me thinking about music today. Well, it got me thinking about how vapid music today is. We don't have The Stones, The Beatles, Bruce Springsteen (in his prime), The Kinks, The Replacements or anyone even close. I mean, when was the last time a band really influenced music, the nation or the people. Who are the best bands going today? Radiohead? C'mon they're the most overrated band in decades. Wilco? They're probably the closest, but they haven't released a moving record in half a decade. That's about it. Radiohead and Wil...