http://www.jambase.com/Articles/9391/LONE-WOLF-HANGIN%27-WITH-STEVE-BERLIN/0
― call all destroyer, Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:01 (thirteen years ago) link
Retroactively, he had to give songwriting credit to all the African guys he stole from that were working on it and everyone seemed to forget.
uh he gave them songwriting credit on the original album!
― livin in my own private Biden hole (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:04 (thirteen years ago) link
So we go back in the second day wondering why we're there. It was ridiculous. I think David starts playing "The Myth of the Fingerprints," or whatever he ended up calling it. That was one of our songs. That year, that was a song we started working on By Light of the Moon. So that was like an existing Lobos sketch of an idea that we had already started doing. I don't think there were any recordings of it, but we had messed around with it. We knew we were gonna do it. It was gonna turn into a song. Paul goes, "Hey, what's that?" We start playing what we have of it, and it is exactly what you hear on the record. So we're like, "Oh, ok. We'll share this song."
This may be true but I blame the band's naivete.
― livin in my own private Biden hole (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:05 (thirteen years ago) link
lol i dont really care if paul simon is an awful human being but the way lobos bro tells that story it makes no sense at all
― ice cr?m, Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:06 (thirteen years ago) link
I think David starts playing "The Myth of the Fingerprints," or whatever he ended up calling it. That was one of our songs.
aggrieved studio musicians are the art of pretend forgetfulness
― ice cr?m, Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:07 (thirteen years ago) link
I just find it difficult to believe that a band whose reputation was already as high as Los Lobos would walk into a Lenny Waronker-arranged studio collaboration with Paul fucking Simon and not understand the consequences.
― livin in my own private Biden hole (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:07 (thirteen years ago) link
if it's any consolation, Lobos bro, "The Myth of Fingerprints" is one of the album's weaker songs.
― livin in my own private Biden hole (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:08 (thirteen years ago) link
this is my fav part:
We go into the studio, and he had quite literally nothing. I mean, he had no ideas, no concepts, and said, "Well, let's just jam." We said, "We don't really do that." When we jam, we'll switch instruments. Dave will play drums, I'll play something. We don't really jam. Especially in that era. Louie will be the first to tell you this – he was made to play drums. They forced him to play drums. He's not really a drummer by trade. He's never practiced a moment in his life. Not once in his life did he sit down at the drums because of his love for drumming. The other three guys made him play drums in the early days, so he sort of became drummer by default. He hates playing the instrument, I think.
wahhhh they FORCED him to play drums!
― call all destroyer, Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:08 (thirteen years ago) link
― livin in my own private Biden hole (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Sunday, August 7, 2011 10:08 AM (11 seconds ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink
ehh it's obviously tossed off but the chorus lyrics slay me
― call all destroyer, Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:09 (thirteen years ago) link
I mean there's no doubt about itIt was the myth of pretend forgetfulness
― livin in my own private Biden hole (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:10 (thirteen years ago) link
we jammed, which was a horrible idea that produced a classic album, he stole our songs that sound nothing like los lobos but a lot like paul simon, gave credit to everyone else he worked with, made a dude play drums, we couldve sued him but still havent
― ice cr?m, Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:10 (thirteen years ago) link
I like the way he keeps saying "favor to the family"
― swaguirre, the wrath of basedgod (bernard snowy), Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:12 (thirteen years ago) link
also the little detail about paul simon mispronouncing 'zydeco' (even tho he gets it right... ON THE ALBUM)
― swaguirre, the wrath of basedgod (bernard snowy), Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:15 (thirteen years ago) link
cause lobos told him is why
― ice cr?m, Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:16 (thirteen years ago) link
lowblows
― estela, Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:19 (thirteen years ago) link
Fusion.The intermingling of two musics.I say it's the music of the futureAnd, hey, I oughta know.Have you heard my latest album?It's a masterpiece of fusion,Just a masterpiece of fusionIf I do say so myself.A true collaboration of the heaviest musicians on the planet.
That's Sakimoto playing the bamboo flute. He's a monster.And Big Joseph Nabuma on mbira.Check it out.And over on cabasa...who is that on cabasa?Oh yeah, that's the guy who drove me in from the airport.I forget his name, but he's a monster, too.We're all just monsters of--
Fusion.We're intermingling our musicsIn a welter of ethnic confusion.(Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe.Anh anh.Zimbabwe, zimbabwe.Anh anh.Savuca! Loodloodloodloodloodloodloodloo!)
This pretty tune was written by Hans Leo HasslerIn 1599.I wrote some words and changed about three notes.Now ASCAP says it's mine.I love constructing albumsFrom objects that I find,
From all kinds of folk riffsThat are just sort of out there.Nobody owns them. They're in public domain.And the foreign musicians Who play those folk riffs,Well, they're just grist for my fevered brain.
Mama, don't take my copyright.Gimme that folk riff copyright.Mama, don't take my copyright from me.There've been slurs and innuendoes.There've been nasty little comments.I don't bother to respond to them.They roll right off my back.I'm well aware that there's an element You could call "exploitation"In the way that I appropriate the cultures of these peoplesFor my own commercial purposes.
But everyone who works for me getsCredit.And royaltiesAnd GrammysAnd a chance to ride to stardom on my coattails, lay lay lay.But, hey, let's just remember who's the genius here,Who is the Master of--
Fusion?Fusion.It's a matter of "Finders Keepers."Cause there ain't no copyrights in Fusion.Fusion.We're all just ripping off each otherIn a jungle of ethical con-Fusion.And having a hell of a lot of fun.I'm having a hell of a lot ofBallpark.I'm thinking this song is in the Ballpark... (fade)
― Iago Galdston, Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:41 (thirteen years ago) link
That was ripped off from an idea I had but never wrote down.
I could never figure out what Los Lobos was doing on that album, anyway.
― Josh in Chicago, Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:44 (thirteen years ago) link
ILM is feeling like ILM circa 2004, lately.
― _Rudipherous_, Sunday, 7 August 2011 14:52 (thirteen years ago) link
frankly i just dont get people who dont like graceland.
― max, Sunday, 7 August 2011 15:13 (thirteen years ago) link
xpost cool I love c.2004 ILM
― swaguirre, the wrath of basedgod (bernard snowy), Sunday, 7 August 2011 15:15 (thirteen years ago) link
maybe start a new board, "ILM Classic"
Re: Los Lobos: Tite Curet Alonso, a greater songwriter than Simon, with a much better reputation as a person, also complained about collaborating with Simon on the Capeman. I tend to give him the benefit of the doubt.
― _Rudipherous_, Sunday, 7 August 2011 15:24 (thirteen years ago) link
― swaguirre, the wrath of basedgod (bernard snowy), Sunday, August 7, 2011 11:15 AM (10 minutes ago) Bookmark
can i play Alex in NYC if the original article isn't available?
― Autism Alamac (some dude), Sunday, 7 August 2011 15:27 (thirteen years ago) link
x-post
Acutally, he didn't really say anything devastating about Simon, just said that Simon wasn't really looking for a collaborator when he enlisted Curet Alonso's help in doing research for the Capeman. I don't know if he ever said that Simon had suggested otherwise to begin with.
― _Rudipherous_, Sunday, 7 August 2011 15:32 (thirteen years ago) link
that thing he did with eno is the only simon album i have that i don't love (there's something about how the vocals are mixed so high)
what kills it for me is the production on his albums, hearts and bones and rhythm of the saints especially are so sick. the sound of the guitar on hearts and bones (he's also a really interesting and underrated guitar player i think). one thing i like about him is that his best work is his more mature work. like he got better. so many musicians blow their wad, but he obviously spent a lot of his time w/ art garfunkel kindof just focussed on songwriting (stuff like cecelia is more the exception and where you get an inkling of where he might be going with all of this) but his songwriting style is just so *crafted.* his lyrics have a short story quality about them, they're more about observed detail than strong images, although his descriptions are really original ("the Mississippi delta was shining like a national guitar"). i mean i could go on, he works well with collaborators, the south african musicians on graceland, the singer on spirit voices (and the way that works as the spirit voice of the song is so ghostly and beautiful) which is funny in light of people saying that he is really anxious about his reputation, i think his best work is just so comfortably masterful. he lets other people shine. i love the way he uses choirs and backup singers, the "oooohs" on hearts and bones just sound incredible. like he has this way of just lightly touching and orchestrating everything around him. he always seems quietly in control.
― ℗⎣▲✘ (ico), Sunday, 7 August 2011 15:46 (thirteen years ago) link
plax otm
― horseshoe, Sunday, 7 August 2011 15:48 (thirteen years ago) link
also simon is a better lyricist than stupid ol leonard cohen
lol this is up on some Budweiser-is-better-than-Chateau-Latour stuff
― pathos of the unwarranted encore (underrated aerosmith bootlegs I have owned), Sunday, 7 August 2011 15:59 (thirteen years ago) link
(he's also a really interesting and underrated guitar player i think)
this however is otm. dude can really play. as a lyricist he's maybe the fifteenth best of his generation
― pathos of the unwarranted encore (underrated aerosmith bootlegs I have owned), Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:00 (thirteen years ago) link
as a lyricist he's maybe the fifteenth best of his generation
I love how that initially parses as a diss until you think, hey, 15th of a generation ain't bad!
― Josh in Chicago, Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:08 (thirteen years ago) link
that first song he did on snl was dope iirc
― J0rdan S., Sunday, August 7, 2011 12:59 AM (9 hours ago) Bookmark
this!
Otherwise all I have to say is S&G is essential, I can't do without it.
― leave me alone, i was only zinging (rip van wanko), Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:08 (thirteen years ago) link
I like Simon's lyrics, because he's such a big proponent of elliptical phrases that just fit or sound right even if they don't make a lot of sense, and he's man/rich enough to admit it, too.
― Josh in Chicago, Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:09 (thirteen years ago) link
yeah this is true! he's really good! but he's really not very daring - "Richard Corey" is a great poem by an underrated poet, but it's sort of telling that Robinson's sort of you-can-parse-this-cleanly style is where he goes when Cohen & Dylan are reading say Baudelaire and Rimbaud
― pathos of the unwarranted encore (underrated aerosmith bootlegs I have owned), Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:18 (thirteen years ago) link
i strongly dislike paul simon
― surm, Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:23 (thirteen years ago) link
a song like gumboots where he doesn't mention new york and its all african musicians but i hear it and i'm on prince street in autumn, i don't think his parsability accounts for how evocative he can be.
― ℗⎣▲✘ (ico), Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:23 (thirteen years ago) link
always felt like he vacillated btw adult contempo island rock and over-poignant emotionality. neither work for me.
― surm, Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:28 (thirteen years ago) link
whaaaaaat
"island rock"
you are crazy
― max, Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:38 (thirteen years ago) link
― pathos of the unwarranted encore (underrated aerosmith bootlegs I have owned), Sunday, August 7, 2011 12:18 PM (20 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink
youre a snob
the mama pajama rolled out of bed and logged onto ILX to post
― Neanderthal, Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:39 (thirteen years ago) link
http://freesamplefreak.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/commercials-grey-poupon.jpg
― pathos of the unwarranted encore (underrated aerosmith bootlegs I have owned), Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:43 (thirteen years ago) link
do u have any french poets that i could smear on my leonard cohen sandwich
― max, Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:45 (thirteen years ago) link
it's true i have been really into clarity in song lyrics lately. i like leonard cohen, too, though; it wouldn't really occur to me to pit him against simon.
― horseshoe, Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:46 (thirteen years ago) link
i don't get cohen until he puts on a corny deep voice and starts singing things like STICK ANOTHER TURTLE ON THE FIRE / GUYS LIKE ME ARE MAD FOR TURTLE MEAT. that's obv better than paul simon but that aside they're about on par for me.
― my Sonicare toothbrush (difficult listening hour), Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:46 (thirteen years ago) link
"no one listens to me, I might as well be a Leonard Cohen record..."
― Neanderthal, Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:46 (thirteen years ago) link
i like leonard cohen too i was just being mean
― max, Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:46 (thirteen years ago) link
i value your services itt max
― horseshoe, Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:47 (thirteen years ago) link
also surm y u braek hart
paul simon is the best and people who dont like him can go str8 to hell
― max, Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:48 (thirteen years ago) link
exactly
― horseshoe, Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:48 (thirteen years ago) link
been listening to hearts and bones, the album, a lot lately. the smartest people in the world are gathered in los angeles / to analyze our love affair and finally unscramble us.
the new album is really good, too.
― horseshoe, Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:52 (thirteen years ago) link
max srsly tho I get that you love Paul Simon, kick ass, but it's not snobby to say that he's formally a lot more limited than Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Leonard Cohen, Randy Newman, Phil Ochs, Townes van Zandt, Neil Young, and others - those people all really stretch out a lot. Not always successfully! but Paul Simon is musically kind of...ignorant?
Simon doesn't really dislike the idea of musical theater, only what the musical theater has become. So as much as he may shake his head in dismay at the success of "Cats," he happily listens to the likes of George and Ira Gershwin, Jerome Kern, Oscar Hammerstein and Cole Porter.
"It's not rock and roll, but I liked it," he says, then laughs. "I didn't mean to parody the Stones, but that's exactly what it is. I liked it.
"But it ended up in a weird cul de sac -- probably because it was never energized by rock and roll," he says. As Simon sees it, the trouble with modern musical theater is that "it's all descended either from the musical theater from its heyday in the '40s and '50s, or it's the English variant that Andrew Lloyd Webber popularized. Those are the two mainstreams of what a Broadway musical is today."
Trouble is, there's nothing terribly special about the music these plays employ. "There are all of these different stories out there, but the music kind of all sounds the same," Simon says.
You're sort of doomed to complacency when you think that what the stage that gives us Sondheim needs is...you!!!
― pathos of the unwarranted encore (underrated aerosmith bootlegs I have owned), Sunday, 7 August 2011 16:52 (thirteen years ago) link