Little Feat - S&D, C/D

Still, classic. Search the first three albums and destroy anything without Lowell George.

The thing is, I really like the way Lowell George played slide, I like his sound. That live album "Waiting for Columbus" has its moments, and I sure admire the *way* they play on "The Last Record Album." I just remembered the other one I like on that one, "All That You Dream." Really nice. And I dig Bill Payne's piano style too, but it seemed to harden into mannerism real quick. This thread has inspired me to dig out "Sailin' Shoes," and I'd forgotten how good it really is, and I sorta like that first album too, Andy.

Little Feat Fuckin' Rocked Tonight!!!!

On the other hand, all Lowell George-era records are not created equal. Time Loves A Hero craps out as far as I'm concerned.

The thing that makes me really appreciate LF, besides the pure chops aspect and George's songwriting and slide-guitar wit, is the weird fiction-making that they were engaged it. They shared it with The Band, and Credence Clearwater Revival, and The Grateful Dead (version 1970), and, to some extent, Dr. John (when he was The Nightripper): There was this imagination and invention of an American musical tradition to which they were the natural successors, but which never actually existed. In LF's case, something like a Disney version of New Orleans, in which Robert Johnson come down from the Delta sat in with Professor Longhair. It was a cousin to Shangri-La or Macondo, a magical source of all stories.

Contemporary Americana by and large doesn't do that (although Uncle Tupelo to some extent did). I miss the ambition, and I miss the fun it created.

Totally. It sounds silly, but I want to drink wine, do speed, smoke weed, and cruise around the high plains of Colorado when I'm listening to Little Feat.

http://www.archive.org/details/lf1974-09-19.flac16

It was recorded for a radio station in Hempstead, NY, in Sept. 1974, and these MP3s were mastered from the only surviving pre-FM tape of the performance, which was salvaged from the radio station archives in 1978. This had been previously released as bootleg vinyl under the title "Electrif Lycanthrope".

There's lots of other live Little Feat on that site too, which I haven't listened to. I burned this one onto a CD-R and listened to it in the car this morning. It put a smile on my face.

The thing that makes me really appreciate LF, besides the pure chops aspect and George's songwriting and slide-guitar wit, is the weird fiction-making that they were engaged it. They shared it with The Band, and Credence Clearwater Revival, and The Grateful Dead (version 1970), and, to some extent, Dr. John (when he was The Nightripper): There was this imagination and invention of an American musical tradition to which they were the natural successors, but which never actually existed. In LF's case, something like a Disney version of New Orleans, in which Robert Johnson come down from the Delta sat in with Professor Longhair. It was a cousin to Shangri-La or Macondo, a magical source of all stories.

That's so right.
Listening to Feats Don't Fail me Now and wondering why Richie Hayward doesn't get the props he deserves. LF were the house band at a hotel where all American music worth the name came to stay - only the Band beat them on this one.

I just downloaded the live concert from up thread, and ohh-boy, is it good... They sound like the Band, if they'd been from New Orleans instead of Canada via Arkansas. Calling this dad rock is misleading. Maybe I could buy it if your dad liked going on month long speed, weed, and wine benders. Funky, weird and filthy.

aww, this is probably one of the first threads I ever started. Sailin' Shoes is so awesome. I wonder if a Little Feat albums poll would generate much in the way of votes/conversation (and if so, if I should include Waiting For Columbus or limit it to studio LPs).

Yeah, that live set totally rules, been enjoying it ever since I found it here.

"Waiting for Columbus best live album ever."

YES!

i can't stress enough how great they all are live to this day. they fuckin' rule. if they are playing some club or county fair near you, GO!

if you've never seen the tv clip from 1975 then damn you are in for a treat... Rock & Roll Doctor

and there is this one from the same show
Fat Man in the Bathtub. Sizzling.

"Waiting for Columbus best live album ever."

YES!

dunno 'bout that. B.B. King- Live @ the Regal tops my live list; but the expanded Waiting for Columbus really improves on an already terrific live set. i agree w/ X'gau that Lowell George wrote more good songs than great songs, but on this set the band is on fire

this is dad rock in the most literal sense ... my dad was a big fan and put me on to them

dug this back out to play "Easy to Slip," and while it's perfect, it actually frightens me more and more every time i listen back, in a solipsistic way. as in yes, it is so easy to fall into nothing at all.

I love "Easy To Slip." That and "Dixie Chicken" were both on the playlist at my wedding.

Fucking great band. I saw them in '90, long after their glory years of course, and they were incredible.

They've done an awesome job reinventing themselves over the last two decades.

Search: Inara George's version of "Trouble" on the Feats' new album Join the Band.

I really like Last Record Album. But i kinda knew them feore i ever heared The Band. I don't know if it worked the other way around.

For me, they kill the Band. The Band is not really my thing at all.

I heart Sailin' Shoes so much.

Don't know why I never posted on this thread - read it a few times over the years. Like everyone else said, Vornado's post about early 70s Americana myth-making OTM. Little Feat, to me, are the dank and dirty roots of it; leavethecapital's "Funky, weird and filthy" captures it wuite well.

What exactly was going on in the late 60s/early 70s with coutryfried-rock? The aforementioned Feat/Band/Dead, Tumbleweed Connection, the Stones, Parsons, Ronstadt, etc. Where did it all come from, exactly? Why then?

don't know if there is a thesis on this thread, but it's all right here:

Can we talk about early-mid70s West Coast post-psych/pop/rock/folk-rock/country-rock?

holy shit, how come nobody ever told me that Robert Palmer's first 4 albums are full of Little Feat covers and backing from members of LF? the "Sailing Shoes / Hey Julia / Sneakin' Sally Through the Alley" medley is incredible, I feel like I just stumbled on a box of records I never knew existed by one of my favorite bands.

random fascinating tidbit from Gradney that did not make it into my piece: “I remember management trying to break us up. They wanted to put Lowell in a superstar band with Jackson Browne and [Lovin’ Spoonful frontman] John Sebastian.”

Terrible idea

well, i certainly wouldn't want it at the expense of any peak Little Feat records, but i'd love if there was a whole album of Jackson Brown and Lowell George playing together.

There's probably loads of great stories from that era. about trying to make the the next CSN(Y).

nice to see ya posting, some dude, yes please link here!

^^^

Thanks for the memory aid, some dude---not to derail, I posted Browne live w CSN on his own thread.

oh cool, will check that out

Just because he needs all the vocal help he can get---some kind of group was not a bad idea, although Sebastian might have already been burnt out by then.

“A doctor of the heart and a doctor of the mind…”

Feats Don't Fail Me Now will be officially 50 years old on Friday and my interview with Bill and Kenny is up:

https://www.thebaltimorebanner.com/culture/music/little-feat-maryland-recording-songs-4NNB5P2WAJHKPJRNCWOOWXYHRI/

Nice read

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHuNqqOHl0g

Damn

YouTube recommended this to me: A (mostly female) School of Rock group doing "Let It Roll"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgOX_Z6ryVA

The do right by it, but the lead singer could wail a little less.

https://open.spotify.com/track/1L5TjsKRv0OVhqKpIaFlwo

Live skinnin’

“Don’t you know / I’m playing loco?”

I can’t figure out what it is that makes Rock and Roll Doctor so irresistible. It doesn’t have a chorus. The lyrics are about … the power of rock I guess? It doesn’t even really have a hook to speak of. I guess I just like the sound of shufflin’ feet?

It has a whole lot of chords

A doctor of the heart and a doctor of the mind

Sometimes I get the impression he’s talking about a drug dealer friend

Plus it’s in E

Sounds suspicious. Imagine what the world would have been like if Lowell George hadn't discovered a connection between drugs and rock n roll.

Ptob s lot less fun

LG would have been 80 today

From FB:

I was 30 years old when Lowell passed away at age 34 in 1979, and he remains just as I remember him. Today, he would have been 80. The celebration of his life has ebbed and flowed with the years, as his genius is forgotten and rediscovered by subsequent generations of music lovers, but those close to him will always have him in their hearts, and fans will always be reminded of who he was when they hear one of his songs.

For those unfamiliar with Lowell, I can tell you he was a consummate musician, singer, and songwriter, whose talents were immeasurable to those he affected throughout his life, and beyond that short span he was with us. He was complicated. Most artists are. Being an artist requires living a life full of contradictions, while being able to divine how to convey those battles of the soul to those interested enough to hear the tale. Lowell George did it through his personality—he could convince almost anyone that he could see inside you, that he knew your pain, your happiness. He could be a great listener. He could drive you crazy, too. The ultimate window to view him through those layers of complication, though, is his music and lyrics. Listen to “Roll Um Easy” and “Trouble.” Listen to “Fat Man in the Bathtub” and “Mercenary Territory.” Finally, give “Long Distance Love” and “Willin’” a listen. Songs with depth and endless horizons.

Lowell knew love and heartache. His sense of humor was something to behold. It could be sophomoric, mischievous, self-effacing, and easy going. He could sing like a bird, and played slide guitar beautifully, powerfully. His phrasing in both was impeccable. There was a price, however, that came with that innate genius.

He was vulnerable in the long run. That is not a crime. That was where his intimacy lived. His songs convey that vulnerability. That’s what made him human, made him attractive to others.
I invite you to celebrate Lowell’s 80th with some of this in mind. We are lucky to have him at our disposal anytime we want or need him. Send some good thoughts his way with a Happy Birthday wish. I certainly will.

Bill Payne

34. Damn

LG seemed like one of those old souls, like he was 55 when he was 31

listened to an advance of the new LF album Strike Up The Band the other day, some nice tunes on there.

the subject of "Rock and Roll Doctor" is Allen Toussaint! there's a great story about how Lowell created the song's weird structure and rhythmic shifts by splicing together tape from different demos, and then handed that to Bill and asked him to teach it to the band.

I’ve been Feat-ing it up for a few weeks now after politely enjoying the debut for more than twenty years. And I have some observationz.

I can’t figure out what it is that makes Rock and Roll Doctor so irresistible. It doesn’t have a chorus. The lyrics are about … the power of rock I guess? It doesn’t even really have a hook to speak of. I guess I just like the sound of shufflin’ feet?

Spanish Moon is another one. Here again the groove (what the fuck is that filtered delay on the beat?) is just this colossus. Here again, there’s no chorus. Like at all. Meanwhile Lowell seems to be singing about the druggiest, haziest bordello in history. I’m willing to bet 99% of their songs are about dope actually.

Sailin’ Shoes I knew from Van Dyke Parks and the Palmer medley. While I love the slinky version they laid down here, if I was Mo Ostin I’d have fired Ted Templeton on the spot for turning what should’ve been a surefire hit into the sly stumbling miniature it is here. By the time we get to Waiting for Columbus, the tune has been completely subsumed into an arrangement resembling the slowest 12-bar blues in history.

Teenage Nervous Breakdown deserves way more props than it gets. This is some punk shit.

Ultrasonic ftw

"Teenage Nervous Breakdown" kicks ass. I love how on Hoy-Hoy they sequenced the slower early version of the song before a faster live recording, it's almost like they reverse-engineered something like the Ike & Tina version of "Proud Mary."

“Did my time in your rodeos…”

Yes, some dude! I was completely confused when I first heard it. But it’s awesome.

Roll Um Easy is another kind of fascinating miniature. I’ve known the horribly overwrought version Glen Campbell did on the Reunion album with Jimmy Webb (titled “Roll Me Easy” for some reason). This has a bit of the debut’s solitariness in it, all acoustic picking and yearning slide, with an exquisite George vocal and lyric.

I find it often hard to separate what George is singing about with how he sings them – neither seems on its surface to be particularly extraordinary but together he has this ability to turn a simple or even cliche or stock turn of phrase into something resonant. And it feels like (perhaps from Zappa) he has just enough oddball literacy that he knows how to drop a line like how eloquent profanity rolls right off his tongue.