Author: Hallgeir Olsen

November 25: The Last Waltz was recorded in 1976 (full 4h20m concert)

Posted on by Hallgeir Olsen

Last-Waltz

This film should be played loud!

This is a message on a title card at the beginning of the film. The greatest concert movie ever made. This post concerns the movie, the audio releases have to wait for it’s own post.

Wikipedia:

The Last Waltz was a concert by the rock group The Band, held on American Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1976, at Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco. The Last Waltz was advertised as the end of The Band’s illustrious touring career, and the concert saw The Band joined by more than a dozen special guests, including Paul Butterfield, Eric Clapton, Neil Diamond, Bob Dylan, Emmylou Harris, Ronnie Hawkins, Dr. John, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, Ringo Starr, Muddy Waters, Ronnie Wood, Bobby Charles and Neil Young.

The event was filmed by director Martin Scorsese and made into a documentary of the same name, released in 1978. The film features concert performances, scenes shot on a studio soundstage and interviews by Scorsese with members of The Band. A triple-LP soundtrack recording, produced by Rob Fraboni, was issued in 1978. The film was released on DVD in 2002 as was a four-CD box set of the concert and related studio recordings.

Trailer:

I have several versions of the film, and I’ve seen many versions of it. I’ve seen it at the cinema, I’ve played it to death on video casette, I have two DVD releases , a blu-ray release and I’ve seen/heard quite a bit of bootlegs of the show.

This is a film that I’m really passionate about, and I have often wondered if there’s footage, filmed sequences, that is not in the official version. Whatever condition such film would be in was irrelevant, I wanted to see as much as possible of the legendary concert.

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November 24: The late great Donald Duck Dunn was born in 1941

Posted on by Hallgeir Olsen

Donald “Duck” Dunn (November 24, 1941 – May 13, 2012) was an American bass guitarist, session musician, record producer, and songwriter. Dunn was notable for his 1960s recordings with Booker T. & the M.G.’s and as a session bassist for Stax Records, which specialized in blues and gospel-infused southern soul which became known as Memphis Soul

A 2 minute history of Donald “Duck” Dunn:

“We were recording almost a hit a day for a while there. But I never knew how popular that music was until I came to England with Otis Redding in 1967.”
– Donald Dunn (about the Stax period)

As the bassist for Booker T. & the MG’s, Donald “Duck” Dunn became, like James Jamerson at Motown, the man who provided a groove for an entire generation to dance to. In Dunn’s case it was the legendary Memphis record label Stax/Volt, where he laid down basslines for soul stars such as Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, and Albert King, helping to create one of the largest bodies of soul and R&B music that exists.
~Steve Kurutz (allmusic.com)

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November 23: Classic TV – George Harrison on The Dick Cavett Show 1971

Posted on by Hallgeir Olsen


This is a classic interview with Dick Cavett. Recorded 40 years ago (November 23, 1971), the conversation starts with light small-talk, then tackles some bigger issues. Did Yoko break up the band? Did the other Beatles hold him back musically? Is there any relationship between drugs and the Indian music that so fascinated Harrison? It was a question better left to Ravi Shankar to answer, and that he did:

 

The performance with Gary Wright:

– Hallgeir

November 21: Dr. John was born in 1940 – Happy Birthday!

Posted on by Hallgeir Olsen

New

You wanna do some livin’ before you die. Do it down in New Orleans…
~Dr. John

When the voice and the vision on the inside is more profound, and more clear and loud than all opinions on the outside, you’ve begun to master your life.
~Dr. John

Dr. John full set at Newport Jazz Festival 2006:

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November 19: Bruce Springsteen live at Kemper Arena, Kansas City in 1984 (full concert audio)

Posted on by Hallgeir Olsen

The fall leg of 1984 featured a more intense Bruce than the summer 1984 shows. The darker songs, such as “Johnny Bye Bye” and “State Trooper,” were played more and more. …. This show features a gorgeous “Racing in the Street,” as well as an extended “Nebraska set.
–> The Boots

Many fans seems to agree on this being the best concert from the “Born In The U.S.A.” tour. Not my fav Springsteen tour, but this show is great!

Audience tape, probably the best of the tour. “Reason To Believe” has a intro with Bruce on the harmonica and Roy on the keyboards. “Johnny Bye-Bye” is introduced by Bruce as “Bye-Bye Johnny”, and includes a few lines of “Mystery Train” towards the end…  “Racing In The Street” includes the now usual intro and also a spoken part at the end. “Kansas City” is included in the “Detroit Medley”. Recent reports on this show indicate that the original tape (or a 1st generation copy of it) was used for a radio broadcast in it’s entirety and that this broadcast was the source for the generally circulating tapes including the Crystal Cat release “Kansas City Night” . Now the show is available directly from Rick B’s master recording. Edited directly from the unedited master, a lot less edited, cut and processed than the Crystal Cat release. ‘Thunder Road’ fades out on the Crystal Cat release, but it is complete on this one. (“Roses In The Kansas Rain”, Ev2).
-> Brucebase

bruce springsteen roses in the kansas rain back

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Classic documentary: Heartworn Highways – the best music documentary ever made!

Posted on by Hallgeir Olsen

heartworn-highways1

The best music documentary ever made: Heartworn Highways

For it is just that, the best documentary about music I have ever seen! It looks like a home movie, you feel like you get insight into a world long gone and you feel like looking into a world just for the invited.

It is up on YouTube , so catch it before it gets taken down (or better, buy yourself a copy so you can see it as often as you want).

Heartworn Highways is made by James Szalapski whose vision captured some of the founders of the Outlaw Country  and Singer/Songwriter movement in Texas and Tennessee in the last weeks of 1975 and the first weeks of 1976. The film was not released theatrically until 1981.

Highlights for me: The visit to Townes Van Zandt’s caravan and the Christmas party at Guy and Susanna Clark (especially Steve Earle singing Mercenary Song).

Heartworn Highways (full movie):

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