Doctor Mooney's 115th Dream: September 2010

Lost and Found: Ron Davies, “It Ain’t Easy”

Originally written, recorded and ushered in by little-known Music City Troubadour Ron Davies, later covered by UK rocker pups, Three Dog Night and the celebrated Thin White Duke, David Bowie –Davies’ take on “It Ain’t Easy” is a long neglected, one of a kind classic.

Ron Davies’ debut long player Silent Song Through The Land—recorded in 1970, after Davies was signed by A&M Records at age twenty—is made up of nine blue-ribbon cuts – each one original and full spirited. First single and lead-off track, “It Ain’t Easy” is easily given highest rank amongst the doctors and nursemaids here at the asylum- a cut aided on the 88s by Leon Russell, Davies’ voice quivers with the gentle ache of an evangelist, while the rolling thunder refrain rumbles with rejoice, taking wing: “It ain't easy, it ain't easy / It ain't easy to get to heaven / When youre going down,”

Ron Davies, acoustic guitar/vocals; Leon Russell, piano; Mike Deasy, lead guitar; Chad Stuart, bass; Jim Keltner, Drums; Merry Clayton, Venetta Fields, Clydie King, background voices.

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Enjoy this single cc of Ron Davies

Ron Davies - It Ain't Easy by doctormooney

MP3: Ron Davies – “It Ain’t Easy”

ZIP: Ron Davies – Silent Song Through The Land

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
Soul Survivor: Mavis Staples, “Creep Along, Moses”
Get To Know Bo Diddley’s Amplified Heat Wave, “I Can Tell”
Hacienda’s High Octane Prowl, “Who’s [sic] Heart Are You Breaking”
Sugar Pie Desanto and Etta James’ Subterranean Shakedown, “In The Basement (Part 1 & 2)”
Madcapped Romance: The Fling, “Wanderingfoot”

FROM THE ASYLUM VAULTS: PATIENT FAVES
The Black Keys Slay Peel Session at Old Corn Exchange
Bob Dylan Plugs In; Folkies Howl in Disgust for “Maggie’s Farm” – 45th Anniversary Edition
‘Get Back’: The Beatles As Nature Intended
Locked and Loaded: The Dead Weather, "A Child of a Few Hours is Burning To Death"
Tame Impala’s Deep Space Trip: “Solitude Is Bliss”

A sinister guitar line lurks behind 71-year-old Mavis Staples’ spirited husky contralto, as the soul chanteuse sings in harmony during the thunder-infected refrain: “Creep along Moses Moses creep along / Creep Along Moses I Thank God,”

For her latest release, Gospel’s leading light, Mavis Staples has teamed up with Wilco frontman, Jeff Tweedy for her 13th solo album and Anti- records sophomore release, You Are Not Alone. Recorded at Wilco’s studio The Loft, You Are Not Alone is an evenhanded glorious collection of traditional numbers and covers: Pops Staples, Randy Newman, Allen Toussaint, John Fogerty, Reverend Gary Davis and Little Milton. Plus, a pair of tracks penned by the album’s producer Jeff Tweedy, “You Are Not Alone” and “Only The Lord Knows.”

“Creep Along, Moses” is the go to cut for many of the doctors and nursemaids here at the asylum. A rolling, triumphant take on a Traditional that Mavis learned from her father, the Patriarch of the Staples Singers, Pops. The vocals are heavenly and the short grumpy guitar bursts shine.

Mavis Staples, vocals; Rick Holmstrom, guitar, vocals; Jeff Turmes, bass, vocals; Stephen Hodges, drums; Kelly Hogan, Nora O’Connor, Donny Gerrard, background vocals.

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Enjoy this single cc of Her Majesty, Mavis Staples

Mavis Staples - Creep Along Moses by doctormooney
MP3: Mavis Staples – “Creep Along, Moses”

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
Get To Know Bo Diddley’s Amplified Heat Wave, “I Can Tell”
Hacienda’s High Octane Prowl, “Who’s [sic] Heart Are You Breaking”
Sugar Pie Desanto and Etta James’ Subterranean Shakedown, “In The Basement (Part 1 & 2)”
Madcapped Romance: The Fling, “Wanderingfoot”
Torched Teardrops: Elmore James and His Broom Dusters, “The Sky is Crying”

FROM THE ASYLUM VAULTS: PATIENT FAVES
The Black Keys Slay Peel Session at Old Corn Exchange
Bob Dylan Plugs In; Folkies Howl in Disgust for “Maggie’s Farm” – 45th Anniversary Edition
‘Get Back’: The Beatles As Nature Intended
Locked and Loaded: The Dead Weather, "A Child of a Few Hours is Burning To Death"
Tame Impala’s Deep Space Trip: “Solitude Is Bliss”

A minor hit for the rock ‘n roll swashbucklers Johnny & the Pirates, resuscitated by UK punk trailblazers Dr. Feelgood. But neither could match the signature two-bit, freight train beat of Bo Diddley – Rock’s mad scientist and founding father’s take on “I Can Tell.”

Recorded on June 27, 1962, the “You Can’t Judge A Book By Its Cover” B-Side is musical hypnosis at its finest: Diddley dispatches rumbling vocals, coupled with veiled heartache and the backing deploys trancelike riptide-ridden rhythms. Focus on the inextinguishable blend of hypnotizing tremolo and bottom that seeks like a frayed-wired sidewinder. A true force of nature.

(Bo Diddley, vocals, guitar; Jerome Green, maracas; Jesse James Johnson, bass; Billy Downing; drums).

“I Can Tell”
Written by: Ellas McDaniel and Samuel Bernard Smith

I can tell because it's plain to see
I can tell the way you look at me
The way you know, you hold my hand
Yes, pretty baby I can understand
I can tell, I can tell
I know you don't love me no more

No more, no more
No more, a-no more
I can tell, I can tell
I know you don't love me no more

I asked your mama and your papa, too
What more can a poor man do?
Now, you been runnin' with a heart-breaker child, around
Yes, a new boy's why you put me down
I can tell, I can tell
I know you don't love me no more

(Instrumental)

Well, you won't answer your telephone
When I knock on your door
They say that you ain't home
Your sister let me in
And tell me I can wait
When you come home

You show up real late

Now, I can tell
Oh, I can tell
I know you don't love me no more

No more
I said, no more
No more
No more

Baby, I can give you romance
Only if you give me another chance
I'll cook your food and wash your clothes
I promise I'll keep your warm when it get cold

I can tell
I can tell
I know you don't love me no more

No more

FADES-

No more

A-no more.

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Enjoy this single cc of Diddley

Bo Diddley-I Can Tell by doctormooney
MP3: Bo Diddley – “I Can Tell”

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
Hacienda’s High Octane Prowl, “Who’s [sic] Heart Are You Breaking”
Sugar Pie Desanto and Etta James’ Subterranean Shakedown, “In The Basement (Part 1 & 2)”
Madcapped Romance: The Fling, “Wanderingfoot”
Torched Teardrops: Elmore James and His Broom Dusters, “The Sky is Crying”
Midnight Creeping with Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, “U.S. 41”

FROM THE ASYLUM VAULTS: PATIENT FAVES
The Black Keys Slay Peel Session at Old Corn Exchange
Bob Dylan Plugs In; Folkies Howl in Disgust for “Maggie’s Farm” – 45th Anniversary Edition
‘Get Back’: The Beatles As Nature Intended
Locked and Loaded: The Dead Weather, "A Child of a Few Hours is Burning To Death"
Tame Impala’s Deep Space Trip: “Solitude Is Bliss”

With the help of the Akron hoodoo man, Dan Auerbach, the boys from the Alamo City have done it again. Hacienda has managed to serve up a seductive stockpile of South Texas Soul on their Sophomore full-length, Big Red and Barbacoa.

After gigging with Dr. Dog, Alberta Cross, Heartless Bastards, Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears; opening for Dan Auerbach on his Keep It Hid tour and serving as his backing band, Fast Five; the band salvaged two separate weekends to record the Alive Records, Big Red and Barbacoa at Auerbach’s Akron Analog Studio in Ohio.

Of the twelve cuts, the song we keep coming back to is the barnstorming racket and Herculean strut of lead-off track, “Who’s [sic] Heart Are You Breaking.” The quartet is backed by a surging firestorm - an unshakable, shiver-inducing, goose bump-ridden riff, suitable only for after hours consumption, while Rene Villanueva carves through and unfolds a bellyful of soul-squeezed and echo-laden lines, “How did this noon day get so dark / Whose heart are you breaking now.” This is electrifying rock ‘n roll rubbed raw. Not many neo-retro outfits can pull off a quick-draw high noon showdown with the ghosts of Rock’s past and triumph. Hacienda does that, and pulls it off with the swagger of a Molotov cocktail.

Hacienda’s Big Red and Barbacoa is out now on Alive Records

Hacienda are:
Dante Schwebel (guitar/vocals)
Abraham Villanueva (piano/organ/vocals)
Jamie Villanueva (drums/vocals)
Rene Villanueva (bass/vocals)

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Enjoy this single cc of Hacienda

Hacienda - Who's Heart Are You Breaking by doctormooney
MP3: Hacienda – “Who’s Heart Are You Breaking”

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
Sugar Pie Desanto and Etta James’ Subterranean Shakedown, “In The Basement (Part 1 & 2)”
Madcapped Romance: The Fling, “Wanderingfoot”
Torched Teardrops: Elmore James and His Broom Dusters, “The Sky is Crying”
Midnight Creeping with Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, “U.S. 41”
Slim Harpo’s Southern-Fried March, “Folsom Prison Blues”

FROM THE ASYLUM VAULTS: PATIENT FAVES
The Black Keys Slay Peel Session at Old Corn Exchange
Bob Dylan Plugs In; Folkies Howl in Disgust for “Maggie’s Farm” – 45th Anniversary Edition
‘Get Back’: The Beatles As Nature Intended
Locked and Loaded: The Dead Weather, "A Child of a Few Hours is Burning To Death"
Tame Impala’s Deep Space Trip: “Solitude Is Bliss”

Patients, today we have a ferocious pair of long lost knockout tracks from the double- dealing Chess-mates, pint-sized diva Sugar Pie Desanto and Her Majesty of the Blues, Etta James. Two muscular ditties that have shades of nasty, back-alley grit, Chicago blues fire and pistol-whipped funk.

Of the three tag-team duets that cousins Sugar Pie and Etta cut together for Chess, the impromptu “In The Basement (Part 1 & 2)” seven-inch is the preferred single of the doctors and nursemaids here at the asylum. Released in 1966, side one Part One is a ripping supercharged soul feast of all-night stomp – a sweat soaked surging bullet of razor sharp grooves. Sugar Pie and Etta go line for line, toe-to-toe: “Ohh, now tell me where can you party, child, all night long? / In the basement, down in the basement, yeah,” Part Two doesn’t quite pack the punch of the flip-side, but possesses the same get down spirit as Part One.

“In The Basement (Part 1)”
Written by: Sugar Pie Desanto and Etta James

Ohh, now tell me where can you party, child, all night long?
In the basement, down in the basement, yeah.
Oh where can you go when your money gets low?
In the basement, whoa down in the basement
And if a storm is taking place, you can jam and still be safe
In the basement, down in the basement, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah

Where can you dance to any music you choose?
In the basement, whoa down in the basement
Oh, you got the comforts of home, a nightclub too.
In the basement, whoa down in the basement.
There’s no cover charge or fee and the food and drinks are free,
In the basement, down in the basement

Come on child, you can do it, you can do it, yeah

In the basement, that’s where it’s at (4x)
In the basement, in the basement, in the basement
that’s where its at

(You tell ‘em)
Where they don’t, where they don’t check you age at the door,
In the basement, whoa down in the basement
Barracuda and [?] ‘til your feet get sore
In the basement, whoa down in the basement
Do any dance you want to do, there’s no one under you
In the basement, I know it, you tell ‘em oh-h-h-h I wanna go

In the basement, that’s where it’s at (4x)

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Enjoy this single cc of Sugar Pie and Etta

Sugar Pie Desanto and Etta James - In The Basement (Part 1) by doctormooney
MP3: Sugar Pie Desanto & Etta James – “In The Basement (Part 1)”

Sugar Pie Desanto and Etta James - In The Basement (Part 2) by doctormooney
MP3: Sugar Pie Desanto & Etta James – “In The Basement (Part 2)”

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
Madcapped Romance: The Fling, “Wanderingfoot”
Torched Teardrops: Elmore James and His Broom Dusters, “The Sky is Crying”
Midnight Creeping with Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, “U.S. 41”
Slim Harpo’s Southern-Fried March, “Folsom Prison Blues”
Locomotive Boogie: Justin Townes Earle, “Harlem River Blues”

FROM THE ASYLUM VAULTS: PATIENT FAVES
The Black Keys Slay Peel Session at Old Corn Exchange
Bob Dylan Plugs In; Folkies Howl in Disgust for “Maggie’s Farm” – 45th Anniversary Edition
‘Get Back’: The Beatles As Nature Intended
Locked and Loaded: The Dead Weather, "A Child of a Few Hours is Burning To Death"
Tame Impala’s Deep Space Trip: “Solitude Is Bliss”

Long Beach, California is swiftly becoming a musical mecca – a rampant breeding ground for tomorrow’s indie-darlings: Dawes, Avi Buffalo, Delta Spirit, The Growlers, Deep See Diver. Now patients, we know it’s no small honor to be considered one of the best up-and-coming bands coming out of the LBC, but we think we have a legitimate candidate after listening to The Fling’s stellar maiden voyage, When The Madhouses Appear.

Produced by The Fling and recorded by Matt Wignall, When The Madhouses Appear is simply a fine debut album - a showcase in musical honesty that manages to recall the sound of the old guard, but coax the panoramic soundscapes into being their own. The doctors and nursemaids are diggin’ the cuts, “Strangers,” “Elinor,” “Out Of My Head,” “Dry The Rain” and “Cold Comfort,” but our rock ‘n roll stethoscopes are hooked on the 70s-tinged, AM-dial psychic sting of lead single, “Wanderingfoot.” A track that features refreshing melodies that ring bright, soaring lap steel and lyrics of lovesick retreat: “Find a place to hide / away from you,”

The Fling are:
Dustin Lovelis – guitar, vocals
Graham Lovelis – bass, vocals
Justin Ivey – drums
Justin Roeland – guitar, keys, vocals

When The Madhouses Appear is available on iTunes, Amazon and through their Band Camp

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Enjoy this single cc of The Fling

The Fling - Wanderingfoot by doctormooney

MP3: The Fling – “Wandering Foot”

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
Torched Teardrops: Elmore James and His Broom Dusters, “The Sky is Crying”
Midnight Creeping with Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, “U.S. 41”
Slim Harpo’s Southern-Fried March, “Folsom Prison Blues”
Locomotive Boogie: Justin Townes Earle, “Harlem River Blues”
Chuck Berry’s Motorvatin’ Pursuit of “Nadine”

FROM THE ASYLUM VAULTS: PATIENT FAVES
The Black Keys Slay Peel Session at Old Corn Exchange
Bob Dylan Plugs In; Folkies Howl in Disgust for “Maggie’s Farm” – 45th Anniversary Edition
‘Get Back’: The Beatles As Nature Intended
Locked and Loaded: The Dead Weather, "A Child of a Few Hours is Burning To Death"
Tame Impala’s Deep Space Trip: “Solitude Is Bliss”

Covered by the leading lights of the blues world, Freddie King, Sonny Boy Williamson, Albert King and Stevie Ray Vaughan, “The Sky is Crying,” is a smoldering side. Originally cut by Elmore James—perhaps his top track— it was recorded in the Windy City and released in 1960 on Bobby Richards’ New York City-based Fire label, Fire 1016.

Written spur-of-the-moment, in a Chicago rainstorm and recorded that night, this hot-blooded track—credited to Elmo James—delivers on multiple fronts: rib-sticking wails, lacerating steel-string slide assaults and searing jolts of soul stirring backing.

Recorded: 1959, Chicago
Producer: Bobby Robinson
Elmore James: vocal/guitar; Odie Payne: drums; John A. Williamson (aka: Homesick James): bass; Johnny Jones: piano; J. T. Brown: saxophone
Released: 1960 "The Sky is Crying" b/w "Held My Baby Last Night" (Fire 1016)

“The Sky is Crying”
Written by: Elmore James

The sky is cryin, look at the tears roll down the street.
The sky is cryin, look at the tears roll down the street.
I'm wadin in tears lookin for my baby,
And I wonder, where can she be?

I saw my baby one mornin, and she was walkin on down the street.
I saw my baby one mornin, and she was walkin on down the street.
Made me feel so good,
Until my poor heart would skip a beat.

I got a bad feelin, my baby, my baby don't love me no more.
I got a bad feelin, my baby don't love me no more.
Now, the sky's been cryin,
The tears rollin down my nose.

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Enjoy this single cc of Elmore James

Elmore James and His Broom Dusters - The Sky Is Crying by doctormooney

MP3: Elmore James and His Broom Dusters – “The Sky is Crying”

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
Midnight Creeping with Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, “U.S. 41”
Slim Harpo’s Southern-Fried March, “Folsom Prison Blues”
Locomotive Boogie: Justin Townes Earle, “Harlem River Blues”
Chuck Berry’s Motorvatin’ Pursuit of “Nadine”
Delta Spirit’s Kerosene Blaze, “Bushwick Blues”

FROM THE ASYLUM VAULTS: PATIENT FAVES
The Black Keys Slay Peel Session at Old Corn Exchange
Bob Dylan Plugs In; Folkies Howl in Disgust for “Maggie’s Farm” – 45th Anniversary Edition
‘Get Back’: The Beatles As Nature Intended
Locked and Loaded: The Dead Weather, "A Child of a Few Hours is Burning To Death"
Tame Impala’s Deep Space Trip: “Solitude Is Bliss”

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers 12th studio album and first collection of tracks with The Heartbreakers since 2002’s The Last DJ, is a departure from the Tom Petty that you thought you were acquainted with. Mojo is The Heartbreakers’ heavy-handed salute to the blues – an album that is steeped in the hotfooted Southern blues romps that were recorded live in-studio with no overdubs. Keyboard guru Benmont Tench: “When we sit around and we don’t have anything to learn or rehearse and we’re just messing around, this is the kind of music we play.” Petty cements their firm affinity for the blues with, “This is where the band lives when it’s playing for itself.”

This blue-chip long player is filled to the gills with a handful of superb cuts: “Jefferson Jericho Blues,” “Running Man's Bible,” “I Should Have Known It,” “Takin' My Time,” “Good Enough,” - the cut our rock ‘n roll stethoscopes are strung out over is their stand out, high-speed expressway take on the country blues, “U.S. 41.” Petty and the gang deliver a rugged workout that would sound right at home at an after-hours juke joint on Chicago’s Maxwell Street, 1964. Petty’s swamp water warble pairs perfectly with Campbell’s piercing dagger-like slide lines, Blair's bedrock-steady bass runs and Thurston’s bullish harp swoops of shrapnel.

Mojo is out now on Reprise Records

Tom Petty – guitar, vox
Mike Campbell - guitar
Benmont Tench - keys
Ron Blair - bass
Scott Thurston – mouth harp and guitar
Steve Ferrone – drums

“U.S. 41”
Written by: Tom Petty

My daddy came a marchin’
Over the hill at dawn
Had to make that wage man
That’s how we got along
My daddy’s life was workin’
Workin’ all day long
Put food on the table
And the children sang a song
Yes, the children sang a song

My grandad’s name was pulpwood
Wore a coat of green
Took a wife in ‘31
Drove the big machine
My daddy load the lumber
Put it on the truck
Used to see him walkin’ home on U.S. 41
That’s right, U.S. 41

All my life’s been workin’
Out the door and gone
Got to make that overtime
Keep us movin’ on
Need a drink of water
To get out of the sun
Burnin’ up to make that wage on U.S. 41
That’s right, U.S. 41

The boss man owns the business
Keeps it goin’ strong
Be blowin’ like a hurricane and
Work like nothin’s wrong
We got to keep on movin’
‘til the bell gone ring
Fill her up with kerosene
And let that lady sing
Whoa now, let that lady sing

His given name was Lucky
His wife’s name Annie Brown
Run outside the law
And they chased him right on down
Lucky faced the lawman
The captain drew his gun
They put him with a sling blade
That’s right, U.S. 41
On U.S. 41

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Enjoy this single cc of TP & THB

Tom Petty - U.S. 41 by doctormooney

MP3: Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers – “U.S. 41”

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
Slim Harpo’s Southern-Fried March, “Folsom Prison Blues”
Locomotive Boogie: Justin Townes Earle, “Harlem River Blues”
Chuck Berry’s Motorvatin’ Pursuit of “Nadine”
Delta Spirit’s Kerosene Blaze, “Bushwick Blues”
Cookin’ with Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band: “Sure 'Nuff 'n Yes I Do" – One Fine Cut

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