A garage band with grand sonic ambitions from Venice, California, The Doors - Ray Manzarek, Jim Morrison, John Densmore, Robby Krieger - is the toast of Greil Marcus's latest book, The Doors: A Lifetime of Listening to Five Mean Years . It's a brisk sweep through the history of the strangely endlessly influential yet condemned by perennial popularity rock group from the revolutionary rumors of "Light My Fire" on El Lay stations in 1967 to the Marat-like finish of the lead singer in New Orleans in 1971. Marcus is certainly a scholar, he's [...]
Legendary duo The Louvin Brothers have influenced everyone from Gram Parsons to Wilco. A recently issued double disc includes their "Satan Is Real" and a second disc...
The Louvin Brothers: When I Stop Dreaming [ Purchase ] Charlie Louvin: "What Are Those Things (With Big Black Wings)?" [ Purchase ] The grand arbiter of what's popular and significant in music (a/k/a Billboard ) would have us believe the Louvin Brothers were a minor act in country music. The Louvins scored just one number one hit and had only 11 other charting singles. (About the same [...]
Two fine tracks by the always amazing Louvins, from a Pet Milk -sponsored Grand Ole Opry broadcast back in '59. "Blue you found me, blue you left me, and blue I will be from now on..." My point exactly. Louvin Brothers - Curly Headed Baby Louvin Brothers - Blue From Now On
You know what they never address on the Survivor season finales? What happens to the digestive systems of the last three contestants after 39 days of near-starvation, when they get that final breakfast delivered to them. Because I know if I lived off of only rice and fruit for over a month, the first time [...]
Seeing as the History of Country series is proving so popular, let us put on a Santa-red Stetson and have a country Christmas. This lot is old-skool: Ernest Tubb riffs (badly) on his 1941 honky tonk classic, Loretta Lynn socks it to it disagreeable Santa, while Brenda Lee aims to lassoo him, yee ha. George Jones goes X-Mas twisting, and Buck Jones provides some serious pathos. And if you had to choose one man to sing Little Drummer Boy, it would have to be Johnny Cash, right? Hey, even horrid old Jingle bloody Bells sounds good here! [...]
Legendary country masterwork gets the reissue and bonus disc treatment. It has been said countless times before that the Beatles' harmonies were influenced by the Everly Brothers, who in turn molded their voices from that of the Louvin Brothers. If that is the probable case, then a good portion of the history of popular music can be traced back to the rural red clay of south Alabama where brothers Ira and Charlie Louvin were born and raised amongst a family of five other siblings and...
On surface, The Louvin Brothers ' recipe of God-bothering country music is the ultimate hard sell for the modern music fan. Don't run off screaming just yet, though. This excellent double CD package contains material from a bygone era (1955 –1962), way before country mutated into outsized-hat sporting ridiculousness that would break out in a rash if it were to be hauled too far beyond the point where the pavement ends. As for religion, anyone familiar with the life and times of, for example, Johnny Cash can tell that the soul-shaking stuff of sin and salvation is just as elemental for music with country roots [...]
It's a short mix this month—I didn't hear a lot that got to me—and it's a bit somber, too, starting with the stunning version of "Cotton Eyed Joe" by Terry Callier. Terry Callier: Cotton Eyed Joe [via The Rising Storm ] Fennesz Sakamoto: 0318 [via Pitchfork ] The Louvin Brothers: Knoxville Girl [via For the Sake of the Song ] Grapefruit: Phase Accidents [...]
The Louvin Brothers are a true mix of yin and yang; they manage to be one of the most un-hip groups of all time, while at the same time influencing a whole roster of bands and artists across a wide spectrum of music with their gospel old timey close harmony country music. Their album covers regularly pop up in the 'worst covers of all time' lists with their literal takes on heaven and hell and God and Satan (Google 'Satan Is Real' for an example). On the flip side there is no cooler name to drop into the [...]
"She warbled and keened at an extreme pitch of emotion unattainable by the young, and the verses of the songs went on and on toward a receding conclusion. They were dark-night songs. Knocked-up girls got stabbed or shot or hit in the head, and then buried in the cold ground or thrown into the black deep river. Pretty Polly. Little Omie Wise. Go down, go down, you Knoxville Girl. Sometimes reproduction did not even factor into the narrative. The man snuffed the girl out because he could not own her, a killing offense if the girl's opinions ran counter to [...]
I have a long list of restaurants in Los Angeles that I need to try. Actually it's a Google Document that expands by several rows each week. And the rate at which I'm able to cross places off my list is embarrassingly low. I mean, how often do I hear about a fantastic dish or [...]
Las colaboraciones masivas y los discos tributo parecen estar de moda en el mundo de la música. Ahora le llegó el turno a The Louvin Brothers , un duo de country formado por dos hermanos americanos. Handpicked Songs 1955-62 es el nombre del album homenaje en el que participan Beck , Zooey Deschannel y M. Ward ( She & Him ) y Devendra Banhart , entre otros. [...]
Beck , Devendra Banhart , and She & Him 's Zooey Deschanel and M Ward , are among the artists who contributed to a forthcoming new compilation album by country music duo, The Louvin Brothers. The compilation album, titled ' Handpicked Songs 1955-62 ', is set for release November 7 and features hand picked songs by the duo covered by artists including Dolly Parton , Kris Kristofferson , and Graham Nash . Also set to be reissued on November 7 will be the duo's 1959 album, ' Satan [...]
On this day in country music history - July 14, 1973 - Phil Everly threw a dang old fit, smashing his guitar after performing the song, "('Till) I Kissed You" and walking off the stage, effecti
In the late 1950s and early '60s country was in a good shape. The likes of Johnny Cash, George Jones, Jim Reeves, Patsy Cline (who like Reeves would die in a plane crash), Don Gibson, Kitty Wells, Marty Robbins, Skeeter Davis, Ray Price, Faron Young, Ernest Tubb, ex-boxer Lefty Frizzell and Wanda Jackson were recording prodigious success, even in rivalry with its progeny, rock & roll.These were the comfort years before the social upheaval of the 1960s put into question old certainties, even in the world of country music. By now, country was no longer confined to the [...]
Everybody's having a good laugh about the prediction that Saturday will be the End of the World . And yes, we've snickered about it right here. But look around - there've been tornadoes, tsunamis, wildfires and floods, maybe that's a sign of the End Times. All of our heroes - Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin, Donald Trump, Newt Gingrich, Arnold Schwarzenegger - are crumbling before our very eyes. Justin Timberlake and Lady Gaga are on "Saturday Night Live" this weekend - another sign? You can't ignore these signs. You definitely cannot laugh [...]
Wimberley Bluegrass Band Read Tiff Reldon's review of the show after checking out these photos by Kate Rentz. The photo gallery begins with Emily Lacy, then Fort King, Olentangy John, Stone Darling, I See Hawks In L.A., Wimberley Bluegrass Band, The Chapin Sisters, The Driftwood Singers, Jenny O, Tom Brosseau + John C Reilly, RT N' The 442s, and a little bit more Stone Darling. [View with PicLens] [...]
Tom Brosseau and John C. Reilly photo by Kate Rentz The New L.A. Folk Festival put together a cozy Louvin Brothers tribute show at HM157 featuring covers of Louvin classics by an array of L.A. folk-inspired bands. Fort King started the night off a little rocky by cutting a song in the middle when singer Ryan Fuller could not hear his guitar, but the crowd would have preferred he just play through to keep the vibe magical and not stall. When you're only playing two songs, it seems like you gotta be a trooper and keep [...]
30 Day Song Challenge: Day 28 - A Song That Makes Me Feel Guilty.
KEXP Blog
Today's Top Tune from KCRW
Star Maker Machine
For The Sake Of The Song
Swan Fungus
Any Major Dude With Half A Heart
PopMatters
The Line Of Best Fit
Pretty Goes with Pretty
The 405
indieHearts
Rockonthestreets.com
City Pages - Gimme Noise
30 Days Out
L.A. RECORD
A Town Full of Losers
I’ll Just Leave This Here #161
How High Can You Hear? Test Your Hearing Now!
Taste And Try Before You Buy
BAND OF HORSES – The Funeral (Sound Remedy Remix)
K-Holes - "Frozen Stiff"
