Tag Archives: Lynyrd Skynyrd

My iPod Has Issues – NFL Draft Edition

28 Apr

I am watching the NFL Draft, and it is getting boring.

That is why I cranked up the iPod to see what is happening there. Here is what happened.

“Amarillo by Morning” by George Strait

“Spybreak” by Propellerheads

“Mama Feel Good” by Lyn Collins

“Sweet Baby James” by James Taylor

“Little Red Corvette” by Prince

“Big Iron” by Marty Robbins

“Four Walls of Raiford” by Lynyrd Skynyrd

“Fortunate Son” by Creedence Clearwater Revival

“Black Betty” by Ram Jam

“If Anyone Falls” by Stevie Nicks

“Lady Blue” by Leon Russell

“Arranca” by Manzanita

“Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On” by Jerry Lee Lewis

“Heaven and Hell” by Waylon Jennings

“Do You Know What I Mean” by Lee Michaels

“Tube Snake Boogie” by ZZ Top

“Take Me Home” by Phil Collins

“Behind Closed Doors” by Charlie Rich

“Tennessee Whiskey” by Chris Stapleton

“Try Not To Breathe” by R.E.M.

 

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Listening to the Record Machine

13 Jan

A while back, I received a cool present from my wife. She gave a turntable that belonged to her dad to me. It was awesome, and I went out to buy some records. However, there was a problem. The turntable did not come with speakers, and it is difficult to listen to records without speakers.

This Christmas, my wife doubled up on her great gift-giving abilities by getting the speakers.img_2221

We have been listening to records ever since. Some people have told us that sitting around listening to records is a sign of old age. However, we know that is not true. Sitting around listening to records now is the same as when people sat around listening to records in years past. It is cool.

In the weeks after getting the speakers, the record collection has grown to include the following.

Lynyrd Skynyrd – (pronounced ‘leh-nerd ‘skin-nerd)

The Eagles – Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975

The Eagles – Hotel California

Robbie Robertson – Robbie Robertson

The Jimi Hendrix Experience – Axis: Bold as Love

Bob Dylan – Nashville Skyline

Pink Floyd – The Dark Side of the Moon

Jimmy Page and the Black Crowes – Live at the Greek

Elton John – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road

Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Jessi Colter and Tompall Glaser – Wanted! The Outlaws

Heart – Dreamboat Annie

Carole King – Tapestry

Ramin Djawadi – Game of Thrones

Here is the deal. If you want to find me, then you can find me listening to the record machine.

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Live and In Person

31 Jan

Listening to music is one of my favorite pastimes. Cranking of the radio and letting the sound fill the air is a great pleasure. It is truly pleasurable when that music is of the Rock variety. However, listening to live music is more enjoyable. I have been lucky enough to attend many concerts, and there is nothing like being in a room filled with people and hearing a performer sing a great song.image-6

The other day, I was at the magazine rack when I spotted something called 101 Greatest American Rock Songs. With a title like that, how could I not buy it? The magazine offers an interesting list with stories about each one. As I read through it, a question entered my mind.

How many of these songs have I heard in a live setting? In Nashville, we hear a bunch of songs being covered by bar bands. My real question was trickier. How many of these songs have I heard performed by their actual performers in a live setting?

Here is the answer.

98. “When Doves Cry” by Prince

97. “Legs” by ZZ Top

95. “All Shook Up” by Elvis Presley

94. “Lay, Lady, Lay” by Bob Dylan

92. “Paradise By the Dashboard Light” by Meatloaf

84. “Jackie Brown” by John Mellencamp

82. “Black Magic Woman” by Santana

72. “Blowin’ in the Wind” by Bob Dylan

64. “School’s Out” by Alice Cooper

62. “Rock and Roll All Nite” by Kiss

60. “Tangled Up in Blue” by Bob Dylan

51. “Sweet Child O’ Mine” by Guns N’ Roses

48. “Bye Bye Love” by The Everly Brothers

46. “Dream On” by Aerosmith

36. “Heartbreaker” by Pat Benatar

32. “All Along the Watchtower” by Bob Dylan

31. “One of These Nights” by The Eagles

29. “Ohio” by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young

27. “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door” by Bob Dylan

24. “Free Bird” by Lynyrd Skynyrd

23. “Enter Sandman” by Metallica

22. “Atlantic City” by Bruce Springsteen

18. “Walk This Way” by Aerosmith

10. “In the Ghetto” by Elvis Presley

9. “Hotel California” by The Eagles

5. “Sweet Home Alabama” by Lynyrd Skynyrd

3. “Born to Run” by Bruce Springsteen

2. “Like a Rolling Stone” by Bob Dylan

I have been lucky enough to hear 28 out of 101 in a live setting, and, by looking at the list, I am afraid that I will not be able to add many more.

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My iPod Has Issues – Better Than Going Postless

17 Aug

There is an idea rattling around inside my head, but I am way too busy to write it. I just finished my Annual Activity Report, which my colleagues and I thought we had avoided, and I am due to work in the Rotary concession stand in a few hours. Our county is home to the largest fair in Tennessee, and my contribution is spending one night selling hamburgers. If this rain holds up, then there may not be much to do.Fair

On top of that, there is a Planning Commission meeting in the morning and a meeting with my Dean in the afternoon. Oh yeah, I also have to prepare for the start of the semester. That includes a short presentation about Simon Wiesenthal for a small group of faculty.

Obviously, there is not much time to write an in-depth post about my grand idea. Instead, I am going go back into the mind of my iPod. Lately, we have done that a lot, and I hope we do not turn its mind into mush. An iPod lobotomy would be a terrible result. The music could get all jumbled up.

It is a scary proposition, but we have to plow ahead. Going postless would be the only alternative.

“Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way” by Waylon Jennings

“I’ve Got the World on a String” by Frank Sinatra

“Into the Mystic” by Van Morrison

“Soul Poppin'” by Johnny Jones and the King Casuals

“Drive Driven” by Yello

“Oh What a Night” by The Dells

“Classical Gas” by Mason Williams

“Little Red Rooster” by Big Mama Thornton

“Street Fighting Man” by The Rolling Stones

“One More Time” by Daft Punk

“Ole Slewfoot” by BR-549

“He’s a Rebel” by The Crystals

“Back Door Man” by The Doors

“You’re Gonna Break My Heart Again” by Whitesnake

“The Last Pale Light in the West” by Ben Nichols

“Take Me Out” by Franz Ferdinand

“I Got a Bad Mind” by Big Joe Williams

“Get Up Stand Up” by Bob Marley

“Was I Right or Wrong” by Lynyrd Skynyrd

“The Twist” by Chubby Checker

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Songs of the Week

30 Jun

I was driving down the road when an old song came over my Sirius XM that I have not heard in a while. “Blue Monday” by Fats Domino is one of my favorites. That is probably because my dad is a fan of the piano player, which is a big deal because my dad is not a huge music person.

As the song played, my mind wandered to other songs about Monday. Then, it wandered to songs about other days of the week. Before realizing it, I conceived of a blog post about my favorite song for each day of the week.Week

This is not an original idea, but that keep me from this endeavor.

Sunday – This song came to mind in a nanosecond. “Sunday Morning Coming Down” was written by Kris Kristofferson and best sung by Johnny Cash. When I hear it, I visualize wannabe country music star walking the streets of Nashville.

Monday – Fats Domino’s Monday song inspired this post, but “Stormy Monday Blues” is my favorite song for this day. It has been recorded by a ton of people, but Bobby “Blue” Bland did it best.

Tuesday – “Tuesday’s Gone” is not about the day. It is about a woman being left behind. Lynyrd Skynyrd had more famous tunes, but, for me, this one ranks at the top. It was also on their first album.

Wednesday – Honestly, I cannot remember hearing a song about Wednesday. Upon searching, I found several but did not know any of them. I am not going to force it. I do not have a favorite Wednesday song. If you know of any let me know.

Thursday – Well, this post is falling apart. I cannot think of a Thursday song, either. However, I went searching and found “Thursday” by Jim Croce. Since Jim Croce does not have any bad songs, this one is my new favorite.

Friday – I am going deep for this one. Ward L. Chandler created the theme for Friday Foster, the movie starring Pam Grier. If you have never seen a Pam Grier movie, then I suggest you get on with it. She is awesome.

Saturday – There are a ton of Saturday songs, and I like a bunch of them. However, I am going to take it into the deep tracks with “Saturday Night in Oak Grove, Louisiana” by Tony Joe White. He never duplicated his “Polk Salad Annie” success, but this one is good because it perfectly describes a big night in a small southern town.

There you have it. A week of songs. What would your week look like?

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My iPod Has Issues – Brain Drain

25 Jun

There are a lot of things going through my mind that I could write about. My opinion on the Confederate flag. Some issues in local politics. The events of everyday life. Heck, I could even give out the Yard Dog Award. However, I am not going to write about any of those things.

I am tired. My brain is tired.Brain

At the moment, the energy does not exist to create a post of any depth. As has been done before, I will take this opportunity to take the easy way out and let my iPod do all of the work.

It is now time to put it on shuffle and listen to what comes out.

“I Sang Dixie” by Dwight Yoakam

“Flash Light” by Parliament

“Broken Arrow” by Robbie Robertson

“She Shot A Hole In My Soul” by Clifford Curry

“Arranca” by Manzanita

“Sweet and Slow” by Carol Sloane

“He Went To Paris” by Jimmy Buffett

“Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In)” by Kenny Rogers and The First Edition

“Tiger Man” by Elvis Presley

“Texas” by Chris Rea

“Country Boy (You Got Your Feet In L.A.)” by Glen Campbell

“Dear Mr. Fantasy” by Traffic

“Safe From Harm” by Massive Attack

“Civil War” by Guns N’ Roses

“Comin’ Home” by Lynyrd Skynyrd

“Sweet Baby James” by James Taylor

“Hurt” by Johnny Cash

“I’ve Been Loving You Too Long” by Otis Redding

“Lotta Love” by Nicolette Larson

“Sweet Tennessee” by Judah and the Lion

Man, that wore my iPod out. I think we both need a good night’s sleep.

 

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Music on the Inside

20 Jun

The other night, we saw The Rolling Stones at LP Field, the home of the Tennessee Titans. Those of you who read this blog on a regular basis know that I am a music lover and am a big fan of concerts. However, I learned something about myself at this one. I do not like stadium shows. Seeing an iconic band like The Rolling Stones is great, but football stadiums are not conducive to a good show.

First, the weather has an impact. It was miserably hot and affected my ability to enjoy to music. However, other kinds of weather can mess it up. Rain. Thunder. Lightning. Anyway, the heat was unbearable.

Second, there are no good seats. Unless you are in front of the stage or have some sort of VIP pass, there is no good place to watch a concert in a football stadium. You are always far from the stage. That means you can hear a live concert, but you cannot necessarily see a live concert.

All of this means that I am a fan of indoor concerts. Good seats are actually good seats. Even bad seats are close enough to see something. People can feel like they are part of an event rather than being on the outskirts of one.

On top of that, indoor concerts are climate controlled. I saw Jimmy Buffett in an arena while it was storming outside. It rained enough to flood Nashville over the next several days.

Bringing up Jimmy Buffett makes me think of something else. His concerts are known as outdoor parties under the sun. I have seen him outside. I have seen him inside. The indoor shows were better.

The same goes for The Rolling Stones. I saw them in an arena and in a stadium. The arena show was better. They may not have performed better, but it was a better experience.

A few months ago, we saw Kenny Chesney in concert. It was an awesome show and a lot better than the time we saw him in a stadium.

Bottom line, football stadiums are not designed for concerts and the best ones are in smaller indoor buildings. However, I do not want to disparage the band. The Rolling Stones are great, and it is hard to believe they can perform at that level at their ages. They are a Hall of Fame band, and I want to end this post on a positive note. Since they are in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, I thought it would be interesting to see how many members I have seen in concert.Rock Hall

I guess it can be done by their year of induction.

1986

The Everly Brothers

Elvis Presley

1987

Bo Diddley

B.B. King

1988

Bob Dylan

Diana Ross

1989

The Rolling Stones

1990

Simon and Garfunkel

The Who

1992

Johnny Cash (I did not actually see him perform, but I met him in a bookstore.)

1993

John Fogerty

1994

Elton John

Rod Stewart

1995

Al Green

Robert Plant

1996

Pink Floyd

1997

Crosby, Stills and Nash

Parliament-Funkadelic

1998

Eagles

Fleetwood Mac

Santana

1999

Del Shannon

Bruce Springsteen

2000

Eric Clapton

Earth, Wind and Fire

James Taylor

2001

Aerosmith

Steely Dan

2002

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

2003

AC/DC

2004

Prince

Bob Seger

Steve Winwood

ZZ Top

2005

Buddy Guy

U2

2006

Ozzy Osbourne

Lynyrd Skynyrd

2008

Leonard Cohen

John Mellencamp

2009

Metallica

2011

Alice Cooper

Neil Diamond

2012

Axl Rose

2014

John Oates

Kiss

They are all Hall of Famers, and I can guarantee they all put on better shows indoors.

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My iPod Has Issues – Back Porch Blogging

13 Jun

I am sitting on the back porch with the laptop in my lap. Is that not where it is supposed to be? The sun is shining, and the birds are chirping. I can hear a lawnmower somewhere in the distance. They say that storms will be overhead later in the day. That is typical for a June afternoon in Tennessee.

Unused firewood is taking up one corner of the deck. It is beside some chairs that are fading in the sun. I can see the strand of a spiderweb attached to one of them as the sunlight glistens off of it. I suppose that I should knock it down, but the spider has spent a lot of time working on it.

It is a relaxing time, and nothing much is going through my mind. There are no clever ideas for a post. There are no psychoses that need to be addressed. It is simply a normal porch-sitting experience.image-38

With nothing to write about, I could end the post, but it does not seem right to stop at 177 words. At least, that is how many words WordPress said I had typed when I typed 177. Instead of stopping, I will turn on the iPod and see what it going on. After that, I will go back to staring at the trees. There is a dead one out there that needs to be dealt with.

“Tetragon” by Woody Shaw

“Save My Soul” by Blues Saraceno

“Fly Away” by John Denver

“Let The Good Times Roll” by Ray Charles

“You Got That Right” by Lynyrd Skynyrd

“The Day Begins” by The Moody Blues

“Loving Her Was Easier” by Kris Kristofferson

“You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin'” by The Righteous Brothers

“Come Fly With Me” by Frank Sinatra

“Tulsa Time” by Don Williams

“Thunderstruck” by AC/DC

“Sweet Georgia Brown” by The California Ramblers

“Lucifer” by The Alan Parson Project

“Slip Away” by Clarence Carter

“Rollin'” by Big and Rich

“She Loves You” by The Beatles

“Amie” by Pure Prairie League

“I Wanna Be Sedated” by The Ramones

“The Beat” by Lou Johnson

“Drops of Jupiter” by Train

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My iPod Has Issues – Spring Break Has Come and Gone

16 Mar

Spring Break is over. School starts back, and I have to get my mind right to talk about history. That means getting into my office and spending some quiet time looking over notes. Of course, I have to arrive extra early to ask a couple of my cohorts about their Spring Break trip to Haiti.Spring Break

Getting my mind right also means listening to some tunes. With that in mind, I am going to turn on the iPod and see what kind of “Get My Mind Ready” music it can conjure up.

I think I will cheat and pick the first one.

“School’s Out” by Alice Cooper

“Mr. Tambourine Man” by The Byrds

“Up On The Roof” by The Drifters

“Good Golly Miss Molly” by Little Richard

“99 Problems” by Jay-Z

“Blue Skies” by The Allman Brothers Band

“You’re Nobody ‘Til Somebody Loves You” by Dean Martin

“Angel Eyes” by Scott Hamilton

“Immune” by Godsmack

“Spirit In The Sky” by Norman Greenbaum

“Sonny Got Caught In The Moonlight” by Robbie Robertson

“The Beat” by Lou Johnson

“Gimme Back My Bullets” by Lynyrd Skynyrd

“A Country Boy Can Survive” by Hank Williams, Jr.

“Sympathy For The Devil” by The Rolling Stones

“Rocky Mountain High” by John Denver

“Bring It On Home To Me” by Sam Cooke

“Big Iron” by Marty Robbins

“Buck’s Boogie” by Matt “Guitar” Murphy

“The Pilgrim: Chapter 33” by Kris Kristofferson

Tomorrow, I will get up bright and early and teach class to a bunch of students who have gotten up just as early. I should enter the room to Elvis’s intro music. I bet that would get their attention.

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My iPod Has Issues – This Week in Music City

22 Sep

Man, this is a busy week of music listening. Tonight, my wife, stepdaughter and I are going to see Lorde at the Grand Ole Opry House. Tomorrow night, my wife and I are going to see Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. The tickets were a birthday gift to her from a friend. Friday night, we are going with a bunch of people to the Schermerhorn Symphony Center for an All Star tribute to Jimi Hendrix, which involves some awesome guitarists. Buddy Guy, Johnny Lang, Kenny Wayne Shepherd and a bunch of others will put their spin on some classic tunes.

I mention these concerts to highlight the fact that Nashville is truly Music City, and it is not all cowboy hats and pickup trucks. If you are a music lover, then you can find what you like somewhere in this town.Nashville

I also mention these concerts because, with the addition of that thing called work, I may have a difficult time putting together in-depth posts. Since music is the theme of this one, I figured it would be a good time to take it easy and see what is going on in the iPod.

“Just the Two of Us” by Bill Withers

“Comin’ Home” by Lynyrd Skynyrd

“Sabotage” by Beastie Boys

“Ballad of Davy Crockett” by Fess Parker

“Highway 61 Revisited” by Bob Dylan

“Texas Funeral” by Jon Wayne

“Blacklight Fantasy” by Freaky Chakra

“White Rabbit” by Jefferson Airplane

“Blood on the Saddle” by Tex Ritter

“Chico and the Man” by Jose Feliciano

“Make It Easy on Yourself” by Dionne Warwick

“He Stopped Loving Her Today” by George Jones

“Touchdown Tennessee” by Kenny Chesney

“Angie” by The Rolling Stones

“2:10 Deadwood Train” by Crabgrass

“What’s Love Got to Do With It” by Tina Turner

“Won’t Get Fooled Again” by The Who

“The Legend of Judge Roy Bean” by Nevada Slim

“Little Darlin'” by The Gladiolas

“Friday Foster” by Roy L. Chandler

Now, I am ready to listen to some music.

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