The Blue Diamonds "Ramona" 1959-1971(rec) 1998(comp)***

I found this CD at the bargains section of my local record store, and bought it along with a few others virtually given away for the price of €1. Obviously these wasn't stuff I actively wanted, but I bought them to close some gaps in my collection. This CD in particular, is my first indo-rock album. I did already have other albums by Dutch-Indonesian bands, such as Massada and The Bintangs, but "indo-rock" is not just about the ethnicity of the bands but about a local music genre that functioned as a predecessor to Dutch rock, more or less as skiffle did in UK. It always amazed me, why rock'n'roll should be imported to The Netherlands via its Asian minority, when the Dutch people were culturally, ethnically, and geographically much closer to America. There are explanations, which I'll get to later. Anyway, I got to thinking of how these Indonesians got here at the first place, and how and why a small nation like the Dutch became masters of an empire including Indonesia. Pretty soon I fell into a rabbit hole, navigating from one online encyclopedia to the next. The story is very very dimly related to the record at hand, so feel free to skip the red letters if you just want to know more about The Blue Diamonds. So, the formation of the Dutch East Indies colony has its roots in the late 16th century and the fight between the Dutch and Portuguese over control of the spice trade. In Greek we have a saying about that, it goes "two donkeys fought over someone else's barn". Anyway, an Amsterdam-based capitalist venture called the East India Company (VOC) acquired by the Dutch state the spice monopoly for the region, as well as the right to wage war, dispense justice, found colonies, and annex foreign territories - by the sole virtue of being white and better armed. They started, of course, with the so-called Spice Islands (aka Moluccas). Back then, Europeans named places after the products they could snatch from them; for example in Africa there was a Gold Coast (now Ghana), an Ivory Coast (still called by that name), and a Slave Coast (comprised by parts of modern-day Benin, Nigeria, and Togo). The Dutch had, of course, their own Gold Coast colony in Ghana, and their Slave Coast colony in Benin - both initially run by the Dutch West India Company (GWC) formed shortly after the VOC and operating in a similar manner. Back to the spice islands, it turned out that the locals didn't have much interest in the heavy Dutch garments and other goods the Dutch had to trade, and much preferred to deal with the English and Portuguese. Solution: massacre them all and occupy their lands. As much as 95% of the inhabitants of nutmeg-producing Banda Islands were killed by the soldiers of governor-general Jan Pieterszoon Coen, while the rest of them were enslaved. The population of the islands was then replenished with slaves from Java and other places with VOC presence. VOC rule was supplanted in 1800 by the Batavian Republic, and later its successor the Kingdom of The Netherlands, which kept adding to their overseas territories using much the same methods that the VOC did, until it encompassed all of what is today known as Indonesia. This was lost to the Japanese during World War II, after which the Dutch returned only to face an insurrection by the local populace. There was fierce fighting - in my city there is a modest monument commemorating the locals who died for "freedom" in the war of 1945-1949 meaning of course not the freedom fighters but the occupation troops; how ironic is that? In the end the Dutch withdrew and the country gained its independence in 1949. At which time, almost all the Dutch left the country along with most of the Indos, a.k.a. people of mixed ethnicity or Indonesians who may have held positions in the colonial army or administration, and possessed the Dutch citizenship. The brothers Ruud and Riem de Wolff were among them. Like many Indonesians, they had a rich and varied musical education, which included influences from other Pacific islands such as Hawaii, music from American army stations radio (short wave stations from Australia and the Philippines), as well as the local Kroncong music, a distant descendant of the proto-fados which were brought there by Portuguese sailors centuries ago. Nowadays, despite racial differences, Indo people are the most assimilated minority in The Netherlands. But in those early years, they tended to form their own communities. At the time, Dutch radio was dominated by local folk and pop styles as well as German and French music. Some youths discovered American music (probably brought by American GIs stationed in nearby Germany?) but they were listeners rather than players. Being far more cosmopolitan and musically inclined than the locals, it was up to Indo rockers like the Tielman Brothers from Breda and the Wolff brothers from Driebergen to form the first "rock" bands - I'm using quotation marks, as "indo rock" wasn't rock per se. It was far more influenced by American 50's pop and country; in the case of the Wolff brothers duo (under the moniker of The Blue Diamonds) that meant specifically The Everly Brothers. Their debut 7' (Decca Records, 1959) was a cover of The Everly's "('Til) I Kissed You". It's included here along with other Everly tunes like "Let It Be Me" and "Cathy's Clown". Their second single was a cover of Neil Sedaka's "Oh Carol", while the closest this CD comes to rock'n'roll is Buddy Holly cover "That'll Be The Day". Their most famous song was "Ramona" originally written for a film with Dolores del Río, and a big hit for "singing cowboy" Gene Autry in 1928. The Blue Diamonds' version is sped up, with nice harmonies. It became the first record to sell 250.000 copies in The Netherlands, not to mention a million in Germany, as well as the first Dutch single to enter the Top 100 in the USA. This is followed by a couple of songs made famous by Bing Crosby ("Have I Told You Lately That I Love You" and the cha cha-style "In a Little Spanish Town", another tune from the 20's ("Rio Nights"), and a bouncy swing number ("Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop"). Next to that, they cover contemporary hits from around the globe ("Lady Sunshine Und Mister Moon" Germany, "Sukiyaki" Japan, Roy Orbison's "Dream Baby"). "Little Ship" is a little-known song written by the songwriting team of Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman, known primarily for the hits they wrote for Elvis. Basically the brothers were very versatile with the material they chose, investing every song with their trademark harmonies. Their regular live group didn't usually record with them - at the insistence of record companies, all instruments were handled by "professional" musicians who played in various orchestras of the time. This may account for the rich sound and production values of the singles, but also for a marked lack of excitement compared to real rock-'n'-roll groups. The above mentioned songs were all released between 1959 and 1963. In 1964, The Beatles and Rolling Stones arrived to Holland ushering the Nederbeat era, spearheaded by a bunch of bands from The Hague (The Motions, Golden Earrings, Q65 etc) playing in a much harder style than The Blue Diamonds. Yet these persevered: two songs here denote 1971 as their release year, although the sound doesn't show any progression compared to the earlier tracks. These are slightly sped-up versions of Nat King Cole's "Mona Lisa" and the old spiritual "Down By The Riverside" albeit with completely different lyrics. Purely on musical terms, there's not much to recommend here: it's pleasant-sounding (if you like oldies) and fairly well-played, but it consists of covers, mostly similar of inferior to the original versions. There is, nevertheless, a historical and sentimental value to these recordings; especially for millions of Dutch who lived through this period.

*** for ('Til) I Kissed You, Cathy's Clown, Ramona, In A Little Spanish Town, Rio Nights, Dream Baby, Lady Sunshine Und Mister Moon, Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop, That'll Be The Day, Mona Lisa, Down By The Riverside

** for Oh Carol, Let It Be Me, Have I Told You Lately That I Love You, Little Ship, Sukiyaki

 

The Brian Jonestown Massacre "The Future Is Your Past" 2023****

I recently saw The Brian Jonestown massacre at 013 Pop podium, in Tilburg. Coincidentally, this was only three months after seeing their old frenemies (as presented in the famous Dig! documentary), Dandy Warhols. Since the two concerts weren't so far apart, the similarities and differences between  the two bands became more pronounced: musically, both bands seem to derive inspiration from the psychedelic 60s. The DW include more funk and electronic elements while The BJM have a more classicist approach. Both bands veer into experimental psychedelia, but not too far. Both have catchy songs, but only one found success, and the reason is probably their stage presence: The DW have a very energetic live act, while BJM singer/bandleader Anton Newcomb just stood on the side of the stage, facing the band rather than the audience, barely bothering to interact with anyone. Who was front and center, at the position of the frontman? the maracas player - no kidding, the band has a full-time maracas player! (OK, he occasionally also plays the tambourine). Not to mention 3 guitarists, including Anton himself. At some point, the keyboard player also took up a guitar, which brought us to a total of 46 strings: three 12-string guitars, a 6-string, and a bass playing onstage. A new record among concerts I have witnessed; the previous one belonged to Joanna Newsom and her band: Joanna Newsom plays the harp, which is a 34-string instrument, yet she comes second in this weird contest. In the end, Anton had a few angry words with his guitarist, and left without playing an encore. "Classic Anton" was the remark of the girl standing next to me. Now I know why he he needs so many guitarists in the touring band - they must quit on him all the time! 

Anyway, from the abundance of goodies at the merchandise stand (everything except vinyl, which they had run out of) I chose two CDs at random: this (because it was their latest) and an older one, because it contained the biggest amount of songs. It sounds about how I expected it to: as always, quality songwriting with nods to 60's garage and psychedelia, especially The Velvet Underground but also The Yardbirds, Stones, Doors, and early Pink Floyd. Also many similarities to the indie/shoegaze scene, but probably weren't influenced by them as they are contemporaries - The BJM have been around for 35 years now! The Future Is Your Past is their 20th LP; it was written along with its predecessor during the COVID-19 lockdown. Supposedly this ended a period of writers' block for him. Writers' block? the guy had released one album per year in the six years that preceded the pandemic! Anyway, during the pandemic Newcomb locked himself in the studio and came out with two virtually finished albums. Fire Doesn’t Grow on Trees was released first, and got slightly superior reviews, but the songs on The Future Is Your Past are no leftovers. Indeed it is a consistently good and varied collection, which makes me think that there's probably much more where it came from, left behind on the cutting room floor. Opener "Do Rainbows Have Ends" is a catchy melodic song with jangly guitars sporting a somewhat drawling vocal. This is followed by "Nothing Can Stop the Sound" another mid-tempo song with swirling Doors-y organ. I love the consistent and emphatic repetition of the title, which also makes for a great slogan. My girlfriend said it reminded her of Joy Division, which I wouldn't have thought of myself, but yes; the keyboards and vocal are similar - of course Joy Division were also massively influenced by The Velvet Underground and The Doors. "The Light Is About to Change" is a boogie with a heavy groove, while "Fudge"s dreamy intro gives way to hazy shoegaze psychedelia. These are followed by a bunch of slower, more experimental, tunes: "Cross Eyed Gods" (atmospheric, almost gothic) and "As the Carousel Swings" (strongly reminiscent of VU, of the John Cale period). "The Mother of All Fuckers" is a bit more drony/noisy, while "All the Feels" sounds like a Syd Barrett tune. The album picks up speed with a short and fast garage rocker ("Your Mind Is My Cafe"), and closes with "Stuck to Yous", a plaintive ballad slowly gathering steam to bring the album to a turbulent finale. I haven't listened to BJM's full discography, but this may be one of their best, and certainly most accessible, albums. The band included two songs from it in their setlist in the Tilburg concert, so these are the ones I chose as sample videos for this post. Enjoy!

**** for Do Rainbows Have Ends, Nothing Can Stop the Sound, Fudge, As the Carousel Swings, Your Mind Is My Cafe, Stuck to Yous

*** for The Light Is About to Change, Cross Eyed Gods, The Mother of All Fuckers, All the Feels

Fandango "Fandango-Joe Lynn Turner" 1978-1980 (rec) 1981(comp)***

I saw this LP at an Amsterdam record store a few weeks ago; I think it was the first time I came across an album by Fandango. I knew them by name as being Joe Lynn Turner's first band, before Rainbow, but was never curious enough to actively seek them out and listen to their music. Then I got this record in my hands, and knew I had to have it. Why? Maybe I have a strange sense of humor but I couldn't stop laughing when I realized that Fandango's guitarist (and co-writer of most of their songs) was... Rick Blakemore! Get it? Turner started his professional career next to Rick Blakemore and got famous singing for Ritchie Blackmore! What are the odds? Apparently Blakemore also convinced Lynn Turner to change his name - his real name was Joe Linquito. So if someone asks you who was Rainbow's Italian-American singer, don't immediately say Ronnie James Dio (born Ronald Padavona). There were two of them! Sandwiched between the two Italians, Englishman Graham Bonnet didn't last long; supposedly his voice was not a good fit for a hard rock band, but I think the main reason was that his hair was too short (more about hair later). Serendipitously, Blackmore went looking for a new singer just when Fandango called it quits; not only they had had four albums without a hit, they were also in desperate financial state when their tour van, along with all their equipment, was stolen from them. This specific compilation was released in 1981, alongside the first Rainbow LP with Turner, Difficult To Cure. It shamelessly capitalizes on the Rainbow connection, featuring the singer (in three poses!) on the front cover, and giving him equal billing with the band as "Fandango-Joe Lynn Turner lead singer Rainbow". The compilers start with 3 songs from the band's fourth and last LP, Cadillac (1980). Not surprising, as these are most similar to the commercial pop-metal hybrid of late-era Rainbow. "Blame It On The Night" is a radio friendly opener with some disco touches production-wise. "Rock 'N Roll You" and "Hypnotized" feature nice guitar riffs and prominent keyboards reminiscent of... well, Rainbow, while "Stranger" is a more laid back piece, again with some disco elements. 1979's One Night Stand is even less hard rock and more Foreigner-style AOR. The guitar is still prominent but the emphasis is on the harmonies and synths; songs here include ballad "I Would Never Leave", synth-heavy rockers "Thief In The Night" and "Little Cherie", and the more Southern rock oriented "One Night Stand" - despite the fact that they originally came from New Jersey, Fandango are sometimes mentioned as a Southern rock band. I don't hear it a lot, but probably that was less because of the music, and more because they often played in support of Southern rockers like The Allman Brothers and Marshall Tucker Band. From 1978's Last Kiss we get the smooth eponymous track and "Feel The Pain" - the latter is almost spoiled by an extremely long synth intro but gradually morphs into a pleasant rocker a la Reo Speedwagon. For some reason, the compilation completely omits the band's 1977 eponymous debut. - according to allmusic.com, that one sounded as if it was inspired by Boston and The Eagles in equal measure. Oh, and the bit about the hair: I was amazed to learn that Joe Lynn Turner, one of the stars of the so-called "hair metal" scene of the 80's, had actually lost his hair from alopecia at the age of 3, and had been wearing wigs all his life - until he finally came clean in 2022. Can you imagine spending all your life trying to keep a secret like that, fearing it could ruin your career? Not that anyone would notice in 1980; look at the back cover, don't they all look like they're wearing wigs? Anyway, about Fandango: I find their sound quite pleasant to listen to; it's obviously geared towards commercial radio: slick harmonies, melodic keyboards and skillful guitar solos, all polished to perfection. It's a wonder that they didn't have a hit when their songs sound so similar to the chart toppers of the day. Maybe what stops me from giving them a 4th star is a sense that they'd been trying too hard for a hit, mimicking all the successful FM radio bands instead of developing a style of their own. If nevertheless you feel nostalgic for the AOR sounds of the mid-70s/early 80's, if you can't get enough of Boston, Toto, Starship, Foreigner etc., then Fandango will be right up your alley.

*** for Blame It On The Night, Rock 'N Roll You, Hypnotized, Thief In The Night, Feel The Pain, Last Kiss, One Night Stand

** for I Would Never Leave, Little Cherie, Stranger

Iggy Pop "Every Loser" 2023****

I wrote in a recent post about The Stones' latest LP that Andrew Watt seems to be the current go-to person for 80-year old rockers trying to regain their mojo. That was not exactly true: Iggy and Ozzy were "only" 75 when they teamed up with Watt. In any case, all these albums were very well received, so it seems like Watt is on his way to be the new Rick Rubin - remember when everyone from Adele to Johnny Cash to Metallica to Mick Jagger used to turn to Rubin in order to revive their career? Nevertheless, whoever the producer is, it all boils down to the songs. In the case of The Stones, I had the nagging sense that those lacked inspiration, that they could have been written in "Rolling Stones style" by an imitator. But if there's one person who is completely inimitable, that would be Iggy Pop. Who else could have started a record by singing "I’ve got a dick and two balls/that’s more than you all"? Maybe Turbonegro, but then they wouldn't be able to pull off the rest of Iggy's feats here. "Frenzy", the foul-mouthed opener of the album, is the first of a number of hard-rocking punk anthems here. Others include the Stooges pastiche "Modern Day Ripoff" and storming satirical "Neo-Punk" featuring Travis Barker of the quintessential neo-pop-punk band Blink182. Iggy's convincing return to the aggressive style of his youth despite his 75 years is impressive, and it's what most reviewers focused on. Not taking into account the Stooges reunions, it's been 20 years since he'd played so loudly, and those albums (Beat' Em Up and Skull Ring) aren't fondly remembered by anyone. What makes a difference here is that, instead of a second rate metal band, he's backed by an all star cast including Watt himself as well as members of The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Guns 'N' Roses, Pearl Jam, Jane's Addiction, Foo Fighters etc. Thankfully though, it's not all pedal-to-the-floor metal; instead we get something in the style of every period of Iggy's career, including his collaborations with David Bowie and his 1990 return to form Brick By Brick, which many think -and I'm inclined to agree- is the album most resembling Every Loser. Hard rocker "All the Way Down" for example reminds me of "Home", especially in the chorus. A more 80's new wave vibe permeates tracks like "Comments" and "Strung Out Johnny" which are nevertheless better in every way than anything Iggy produced in the 80's  - with the obvious exception of "The Passenger". The latter is easily the highlight of the album, a vivid portrait of addiction sung in Iggy's classic baritone featuring melodic synth lines and an upbeat chorus. "Morning Show" is melancholic and poetic, reminiscent of "Livin' On The Edge Of Night" (again from Brick By Brick). "New Atlantis" is an atmospheric love song to his adopted home town of Miami, while there are also two jazzy spoken word interludes ("The News for Andy" and "My Animus"). Closer "The Regency" also starts off like an a moody ballad but quickly gathers steam turning into an angry new wave rocker reminiscent of his Bowie years. Lyrically, despite the occasional silliness and profanity, Every Loser is full of wit and astute observations informed by experience - the unique experience of being Iggy Pop: taking every drug known to man, ignoring propriety, always giving in to your primal urges instead of following conventions, and being rewarded for all of that with the admiration of your peers and a devoted fan base. "Every loser needs a bit of joy" he sings; he may not be a loser but he sure sounds like he's having a whole lot of joy rocking out, refusing to grow old, and just being true to himself. That's the secret of his success; unlike The Stones who delivered a meticulously crafted record that was years in the making, all Iggy needs is a sympathetic band and some nice production touches, and there he is, at 75, with one of the best albums of his career.

***** for Strung Out Johnny

**** for Frenzy, New Atlantis, Modern Day Ripoff, Morning Show, All the Way Down, Comments

*** for The News for Andy, Neo Punk, My Animus, The Regency