The Blasters: C or D?

The story on Facebook from LA writer Chris Morris behind Gene Taylor's death is terrible. He was living in Austin & had been without water or power for 5 days. A family member says it may have been a heart attack brought on by hypothermia

Oh man, that's fucking horrible

Sure is. I know a bunch of older people, writers and musicians, who have been going through a lot out there (and these are just the ones who have been in touch---hope the others' silence has only been due to power cuts...)

One good thing, though: 2020 was a year of Dave----as I said on my Nashville Scene ballot:

Dave Alvin in 2020:

From an Old Guitar: Rare and Unreleased Recordings (7-3-20, Yep Roc)"

This 13 song collection features studio performances that I've recorded over the years for my own albums or for tribute albums but mainly they're just things I did for the pure kicks of playing music I love with musicians I love and admire.

The songs range from some originals to interpretations of compositions by dear friends like Peter David Case, Chris Smither and the late Bill Morrissey to tunes written by heroes like Willie Dixon, Bob Dylan, Lil Hardin Armstrong, Earl Hooker and Marty Robbins. The music ranges from acoustic blues and ballads to electric barroom blues, folk/rock and even a little country/rock.

There are contributions from dearly departed comrades like Chris Gaffney, Amy Farris and Bobby Lloyd Hicks as well as from old Blasters pals like Gene Taylor along with various members of The Guilty Men/Women/Ones plus help from brilliant accompanists like Greg Leisz, Cindy Cashdollar, Bob Glaub, Don Heffington, Danny Ott, Skip Edwards, Rick Shea, Chris G Miller, Wyman Reese, Dale Spalding and David J. Carpenter.

That suave Dylan-as-baritone thing seems to put too much weight on the first two tracks, "Link of Chain"(good words come through when the voice doesn't pull the links too much), and the arrangement of "Highway 61" seems wasted, but usually, when he's singing more like on early solo LPs, voice serves the songs well enough--faves are the ones where "Had a fight with the mother of my kids, I can get along with anybody what if I did, gonna go back where me and my friends used to hang around, see what's shakin' while the leaves turn brown, I'm on my way downtown." Even got maybe old buddies appearing for harmonies, steel guitar, whole thing makes me think these guys are Dead/New Riders fans--not 'heads, they gotta work, but it's not that far from downwardly mobile, wised-up but still a California love song, so yeah there's sunshine, "Inside" and out.

Also some ace instrumentals, "(Variations on Earl Hooker's Guitar Rhumba," "Perdido Street Blues, " and "Krazy and Ignatz." Even when the Dylany voice comes back, on "Peace," to an extent "Man Walks Among Us," the music has no prob, ditto on the fast shuffle finale, "Beautiful City Across The River."

So, a few I could live without, but overall seems as strong as any of his regular releases.

https://davealvin.bandcamp.com/album/from-an-old-guitar-rare-and-unreleased-recordings

Another recently posted set, an EP, Live In Austin, is Dave Alvin and Phil Alvin captured live in Austin, Texas March 14, 2014 in an intimate performance of songs written by Big Bill Broonzy, accompanied by Lisa Pankratz on drums and Brad Fordham on bass. More off-the-cuff than their Broozy-centric studio full-length, described upthread: this is non-deep but crisp---fave is inspired, though: "How You Want It Done," making me think of Mississippi hill country blues in relation to Appalachia, also a bit like the version of Jimmie Rodgers' "Never No More Blues" on a Blasters comp I hope I've still got.

https://davealvin.bandcamp.com/album/live-from-austin-dave-alvin-phil-alvini

In 2012 Yep Roc Records celebrated its 15th Anniversary with a festival called YR15. Over the course of 4 raucous days and nights 26 Artists performed for Yep Roc fans from around the world at the legendary Cats Cradle and other venues around Chapel Hill and Carrboro.

Dave Alvin performed on Thursday October 11th both solo, with Christy McWilson, John Teer from Chatham County Line and 2 electric favorites with Los Straitjackets

Yeah. Starts with solo "Harlan County Line," suave cigar voice x Dylany phrasing seeming a bit complacent, also the gotta-woman-still-waitin' (he still gets back over the line every now and then). Christy McWilson starts with "Johnny Ace Is Dead" but mainly it's Dave savoring more colorful characters, with a longass chorus then the ever-durable "Dry River," one of his classics, really, then John Teer's fiddle stirs "Whose Been Here" way up, Dave too excited to go back to too-cool now, Christy whooping it up, "Fourth of July" maintains the level---then Teer's gone, Los Straightjackets are here, for "some California folk music," as Dave Alvin proclaims, though would be even better if he went electric at this point, but still there's a real nice quiet agile acoustic (and "five-string" at that, he says) solo on "Marie Marie" (Teer would be great on this oh well). And that's all, folks. Short but semi-sweet, not up to the ones w Phil or Jimmy Dale, still worth a listen:

https://davealvin.bandcamp.com/

And then there's The Third Mind s/t---somebody said there are bonus tracks?! Will check---for now, these are the ones I heard; my take follows:

1.

Journey in Satchidananda 05:57

2.

The Dolphins 05:15

3.

Claudia Cardinale  02:53 video

4.

Morning Dew 09:18

5.

East West 16:28

6.

Reverberation 03:5

Dave Alvin (Flesheaters/Blasters/X/Knitters) Victor Krummenacher (Cracker, Camper Van Beethoven), Michael Jerome (Toadies, Better Than Ezra) and David Immerglück (Counting Crows, Camper Van Beethoven), with Jesse Sykes (of Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter): Cosmic and Kozmik blues, "psychedelic folk rock," like it says on bandcamp (Dave's big ol' Fred Neilian voice, a tad world-weary, gets lifted a bit by Sykes on Neil's "The Dolphins," and she's cool down in the choruses of 13th Floor Elevators' "Reverberation, and she gets to do all the singin' on Tim Rose's "Morning Dew," which could get to be too much of a death slog way back when the Dead etc. used to haul it out on stage, but she keeps everybody awake and igniting at just the right times here. Unperson points out these Dick Dale Middle Eastern chunnelings of Alice Coltrane's "Journey," and Dale might be a gateway for all of this---also well-absorbed Link Wray, Sonny Sharrock, John Cippolina, Bloomfield & Bishop on "East-West," with crystalline outcroppings, moonlight drives, nice.

https://thethirdmind.bandcamp.com/

As a small memorial to the recent passing of my lifelong friend, mentor and fellow Blaster, Gene Taylor, I wanted to share two songs by The Gene Taylor Blues Band. This band was really The Blasters (minus my brother Phil) and we'd occasionally get together to play some shows up and down California just to play the blues we loved as well as showcase Gene's monumental keyboard talent. Sometimes friends like Rick Estrin, Steve Freund or even my brother, would sit in with us. One night we were honored when my best friend, the late Chris Gaffney, joined us and sang his heart out on the Earl King/Johnny Guitar Watson classic, Those Lonely, Lonely Nights. The flipside of this record is Gene singing and pumping the piano on Jimmy Liggins heartfelt ode to inebriation, Drunk. I hope you'll join me in celebrating Gene's prodigious skills as a pianist, vocalist and bluesman par excellence. I miss my comrades Gene and Chris every day but the music keeps them alive and, in it's way, the music keeps all of us alive. - Dave Alvin 3/4/21

More like these please!
https://davealvin.bandcamp.com/album/those-lonely-lonely-nights

https://f4.bcbits.com/img/a1532969570_10.jpg

"There are two types of folk music: quiet folk music and loud folk music. I play both." - Dave Alvin

Awesome.

Sweet Relief has set up a fundraise for Phil Alvin, who's been burdened with medical costs and needs to get into physical rehab:

https://www.sweetrelief.org/philalvinfund.html

Phil Alvin is best known as the singer of the legendary American Music band, The Blasters. He is also a musician, musicologist, mathematician, and a gift to music lovers everywhere.

Right now Phil is in the hospital and he needs our help. He has had several medical emergencies and hospital stays over the last six years or so. It’s been a very trying time. The goal is to get him well enough to leave the hospital, get into physical rehab and back home.
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Obviously, The Blasters can’t play any shows and these medical procedures are very costly. So let’s rally around his side and get him the care he deserves. Let’s send him this message: We love you Phil Alvin - and we want to help.

https://www.premierguitar.com/artists/guitarists/dave-alvin-guitar-is-a-magical-thing

Dave Alvin profile

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/v63F5q8gxRuCcBFK/?

Dave says Phil’s physical recovery is slow but he is progressing. Says Phil is still mentally sharp