negativland

So I dig Craig Baldwin's films a lot. The first one I saw (on DVD) a few years back was Spectres of the Spectrum. The next one was Sonic Outlaws, which takes as its main topic or point of departure a lawsuit that arose between the San Francisco based band Negativland and U2 (or perhaps more accurately U2's record label Island Records). I'll spare you the details here but I will give a shout out to Negativland. Check out that site. Basically the band and the film explore the issue of copyright, fair use and artwork creation from the point of view of originality. The word "explores" might be too generous, so let's say that there is an exploration down a certain avenue (mainly an anti-copyright one). Legitimate issues are raised, some breezed over...it's a worthwhile conversation.

move it on over

The guitar solo on this classic Hank Williams tune from 1947 is a favorite of mine, and since it's so short (just one chorus of 12 bars) I offer the whole thing here...click on the image and it'll get bigger:

Keep in mind that the eighth notes aren't even, they're swung.

If I had to pick a favorite part -- besides just the whole solo -- I'd have to say the way the A7 gets articulated is hip, and it's hard to ignore as being utterly cool the triplet figures. Also the double-stop section near the end is evocative of the steel guitar. (Oh, yeah, that steel guitar part is cool and worth learning, too!)

Also, if you don't have the recording you can listen to it here on youtube. The solo in question starts at around 0:58.

banjo jim's

A friend of mine turned me on to this place:



Fantastic place. Great vibe. And very, very rare to get to hear this kind of music -- live 7 days a week -- in NYC. Do check it out if you're around...

The skinny:
700 E. 9th Street (at Ave C)
New York, NY

gennett records

Some great Jazz and other musicians recorded here back in the 20s. Check out the site...


...and if you can try to get a hold of the three disc set of recordings...they're really good!

old time music

Old Time Music is that style of music which eventually gave birth to both Bluegrass and Country. It's basically the music which came with the European settlers, especially those from Ireland, England and Scotland. If you're interested in hearing any of it and don't have access to live performances you can try the Smithsonian collection entitled Classic Old-Time Music.


The collection of music is extremely diverse. There are instrumental tunes like Bonaparte's Retreat, Concord Rag and Wednesday Waltz. There are funny tunes like Bill Morgan and His Gal; very sad songs like Cyclone of Rye Clover; the ubiquitous songs detailing a man killing a prostitute as in Little Sadie and Pretty Polly; and of course religious tunes like Streets of Glory.

And just in case you think that all of these tunes represent old-time family values here's a verse from one of my faves from the album, "Policeman" by the Spare Change Boys:

I got drunk and I fell on the floor this morning
I got drunk and I fell on the floor this morning
I got drunk and I fell on the floor
That's good pouring whiskey and I want some more this morning

All in all the music is highly infectious, full of life (in all its multi-dimensionality) and a good time, and I can't recommend it highly enough.