Graham Parker C/D

The Sparks part of the show was like when Andy Kaufman made a few minor adjustments to his wardrobe and all of a sudden turned into Elvis.

There was another story he told about fighting hard not to have a Phil Collins gated drum sound on his 80s recordings. Nonetheless when he sent around the MP3 of one of the songs to prepare for this tour the guys who hadn't played on it said "That was recorded during the 80s, wasn't it?" Today I read somewhere that he had fought with Ahmet Ertegun over this issue who proceeded to drop him from Atlantic Records! Hadn't even known he was on that label.

Besides the stuff off of the new album and off SoS, they began with "Fool's Gold," a little while later did "Nothin's Gonna Pull Us Apart," thereby dispatching with the first two albums. Somewhere along the line he also played the, um, title track off of Mona Lisa's Sister, "Get Started. Start A Fire" and a song off of Deepcut to Nowhere called, "I'll Never Play Jacksonsville Again." I thought at first he was talking about a "deep cut," but, as some of you must already know, it refers to the town in England that he is from. The first encore was mostly more from SoS. For the second encore, he walked out to the edge of the stage and looked dismissively at an audience member who had shouted a request , sneering "New York Shuffle?" and flapping his hand in a you've-got-to-be-kidding-me way, but that is what the band immediately started to play. The last song was "I Want You Back." Mark "Lovebug Starski" Coleman already mentioned "Stupefaction" off The Up Escalator, he can fill in the gaps or correct my errors.

Think I forgot "Watch The Moon Come Down."

Graham Parker sounds more like Elvis Costello than Elvis Costello. FTW.

It's fatal and it don't get better

Also: googler, please. This the Squeezing Out Sparks thread, not the Jumping The Shark thread.

Original videos for Local Girls and Protection.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-9A2O6CwW4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3ETAZSFWWs

I really like Live Alone in America, probably the first solo-electric-guitar album I'd ever heard when I was 18.

Don't know why the https, which seemed to mess up the embed. Try again
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3ETAZSFWWs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4C2SkcC3TXc

RockPalast version of Stick To Me From 1978
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAW6-_SsCOI

One more for now: New York Shuffle, 1978
http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=ipgtPCrd1O0&feature=endscreen

Take off the endscreen and see if the embed works:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=ipgtPCrd1O0

Nope.

Am I the only fule who didn't know "Hold Back The Night" was a cover?

A little jealous of the crowd that got to see this show, now with more Rumour-era material: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/graham-parker-draws-sold-crowd-402050

Seeing him tonight, psyched.

My friend in Chicago was dying to go but I think he has to go to the office Xmas party instead.

Didn't even know he was in town. Good for Bloodshot Records to be benefitting from the Apatow goodwill.

Ha, pretty sure it's not on Bloodshot. For sure there is a third-party publicist.

On a label called Primary Wave.

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51tcIGEcikL._SL500_AA300_.jpg

Oops, thought I read somewhere that it was. Well, if it helps them sell the records of his they did put out...

I just saw an article in Chicago Tribune where he discusses that

Sun-Times, I think:

Parker is to record labels what Lindsay Lohan is to handcuffs. He has recorded for (in chronological order): Mercury (he skewered them in the rave-up anthem “Mercury Poisoning”), Arista, Elektra, RCA, Capitol, Dakota Arts (the Christmas EP), Rhino, Razor & Tie and most recently Chicago’s Bloodshot).

“It’s ridiculous to sign Graham Parker to save your record label,” Parker said with a laugh. “Paradoxically, I do quite well for Bloodshot. For this record I moved to Primary Wave, who has been getting investment deal money. For this album I need to pay for a publicist. I told Bloodshot I had this album and if I got a lot of money thrown at me I’d do it with Primary Wave. I got substantially more than most indie labels. Bloodshoot totally understood. They said they would advertise the record on their website and put up tour dates.”

That's why I thought it was on Bloodshot--they promoted it and linked to it on their Facebook page.

Yes, that was it.

there's probably an essay to write reclaiming Parker's post-SOS "lost" period: all those Up Escalators, Steady Nerves, and real macaws.

There are some good songs on those records for sure. "Stupefaction" off of The Up Escalator is in the current set list. Thinking about listening to some of his long list of "official bootlegs" as a way into the later material.

Right now listening to one called 80s Reverb Rules OK recorded live in Denmark with Brinsley and Andrew B between Steady Nerves and Mona Lisa's Sister. Read what the man himself says about it here: http://chairmanparker.blogspot.com/2011/03/80s-reverb-rules-ok-graham-parker-and.html

More concise description here: http://grahamparker.net/80sReverb.html

Guess that Chicago show is underway now. Randomly listening to these self-released live albums on Spotify is really working. Material that might have been ill-served by anonymous production gets a much better showing plus it is interspersed with some old favorites and trademark comedy banter.

'Twas a good show!

Happy Birthday Martin Belmont!

Interviews with the birthday boy:
http://www.rocktownhall.com/blogs/the-rock-town-hall-interview-martin-belmont
http://jeffcramer.blogspot.com/2011/04/very-candid-conversation-with-martin.html?m=1

It was impossible to read that without stopping to watch or listen to 30 things I didn't know about or hadn't thought about in eons.

So you listened to some Carlene Carter too?

By which I mean to say I did exactly the same

Mor US East Coast touring with the Rumour in April

Saw that. Debating whether to go again

Yeah, it was great, but don't know how different it will be, given all the songs he must play. But the fact that he is Rumour-izing non Rumour stuff is intriguing.

DC area show sold out so quick last time, I hadn't gotten a ticket. Got tickets right when they went on sale this time. Had seen him with the Rumour back on the Squeezing Out Sparks tour, and once years later with his own band.

Finally saw him with the Rumour again (since 1979). Good show -- I didn't know the new album stuff, but enjoyed the selections from the first few albums.

"Don't Ask Me Questions" was very passionately delivered. I could have done without "Lady Doctor"-- kinda generic musically and lyrically.

http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/graham-parker-and-the-rumour/2013/rams-head-on-stage-annapolis-md-33d8d485.html

1.White Honey
2.Fool's Gold
3.Howlin' Wind
4.Coathangers
5.I'll Never Play Jacksonville Again
6.Long Emotional Ride
7.Lady Doctor
8.Get Started, Start A Fire
9.Black Honey
10.Snake Oil Capital of the World
11.Soul on Ice
12.A Lie Gets Halfway 'round the World
13.Watch the Moon Come Down Play Video
14.Discovering Japan
15.Don't Get Excited
16.Protection
17.Stupefaction
18.Local Girls
Encore:
19.Last Bookstore in Town
20.Don't Ask Me Questions
Encore 2:
21.Soul Shoes

Cool. When was this, Steve? Last night? I guess that website would tell me.

Actually a little while back-- April 6th, but I suddenly realized I never mentioned it here. He just played even closer to me more recently (but that might have been when I was in New Orleans).

Has anybody seen Graham Parker's current duo tour with guitarist Brinsley Schwarz (of his own band and The Rumour)? They're in DC tonight.

http://www.grahamparker.net/Tour.html

East and Midwest US plus Canada

Iow, he is still alive..

I wasn't able to make it to their local gig. Wonder if they did any interesting pub rock covers together?

Don't think I'll ever get this guy.

You kinda do

Ha, was thinking that too