Listening but not writing

Music is as much a part of my life as ever, but I have not been writing much here. Too much going on in my personal life. Some of you are following the saga of my son's drug addiction on the new blog I started about it, I thank you for your support. Its in the side bar called "The Needle and the Damage Done".

Others are following the saga of my love life, my unemployment, my back injury and all that other stuff.

Just too much going on at once.

But music still prevails and helps me through each day.

I hope to write more soon.

Do you recognize those eyes???????????????

So, What's Up Chuck?

Did Charlie Watts quit The Stones? Rumors were flying yesterday that he did but the "official word" is that he didn't.

To tell you the truth, as much as I love the Bad Boys of Rock, they haven't been bad or boys in a long time so perhaps Charlie is the smart one and recognizes all good things must come to an end (and it's always better to quit before you are forced to stop, if you know what I mean).

Forgot to mention...

If you like Super 400 (see post below) and want a chance at winning a free CD that has has the single “Flashlight” and the harder track “FFMN” on it, leave me a comment! I will hold a drawing by next Thursday, Sept 10.

New Music Tuesday (on Wednesday)

Heard about this band from Jake over at Rock Ridge Music. This is what caught my eye:

Think Led Zep meets Backdoor Slam meets Soundgarden.

Sounds good to me! I listened to a few tracks and like them, let me know what you think if you take a listen. One of the special things about them is that they record in analog - no digital remastering for this album at all.

Each of their completely unique performances evokes the raw, euphoric essence of Rock and Roll. Their upcoming release, Sweet Fist, truly reflects the light and dark of this new millennium; it unravels the tales of this modern world with an analog tongue rarely heard in the digital age. It represents both homage to their influences and an insightful progression of the dynamic power of Super 400.

Their forthcoming release “Sweet Fist,” was recorded at the legendary Ardent Recording Studios in Memphis, home to Stax Records for many years, and used the same lathe that was used on many Stax recordings. Recorded on 2 inch tape, the album is pro-tools and auto-tune free. The artwork for the album was created by Klaus Voormann, designer of The Beatles’ “Revolver.”

You can hear an audio stream here - "Flashlight (Radio Edit)" http://vista.streamguys.com/jspiewak/400_flashedit.wma

You can hear a harder track, “FFMN,” Here - http://vista.streamguys.com/jspiewak/400_ffmn.wma

19 years ago we lost him:

(thank you, Drew, for reminding me)

My Generation

This is pretty much the entire song:.

People try to put us d-down (Talkin' 'bout my generation) Just because we get around (Talkin' 'bout my generation) Things they do look awful c-c-cold (Talkin' 'bout my generation) I hope I die before I get old (Talkin' 'bout my generation) This is my generation This is my generation, baby Why don't you all f-fade away (Talkin' 'bout my generation) And don't try to dig what we all s-s-say (Talkin' 'bout my generation) I'm not trying to cause a big s-s-sensation (Talkin' 'bout my generation) I'm just talkin' 'bout my g-g-g-generation (Talkin' 'bout my generation)

Just thinking about generations over the years and how different things are now than in the 60's, 70's, 80's.

I think a lot of (not all!) our youth today is really messed up. And who is to blame? Possibly my generation.

Who's Got the Biggest Collection?

How big is your music collection?

Personally, mind is pretty small these days. I have about 100 CDs, 100 vinyls albums, and 4,500 songs on my iPod.

Happy Birthday, Robert Plant!

Robert is one of my all time favorite vocalists...and I will never, ever tire of watching "The Song Remains the Same" or any other video of Zeppelin. Hope he has a great birthday (even though I'm still disappointed in him for not wanting to do a reunion....)

The Beatles - News!

Beatle fans! I remember a few years ago when Mothership came out (re-mastered Zeppelin), I wasn't sure what I'd think of the re-mastered music, but I loved it and can't wait to hear what this sounds like. They've put a lot of work into it (four years worth!):

Apple Corps Ltd. and EMI Music are delighted to announce the release of the entire original Beatles catalogue, which has been digitally re-mastered for the first time, for worldwide CD release on Wednesday, September 9, 2009 (9-9-09), the same date as the release of the widely anticipated “The Beatles: Rock Band” video game. The process took a team of engineers at Abbey Road Studios four years of utilizing state of the art recording technology, alongside vintage studio equipment, to create these amazing re-masters.

Each of the CDs is packaged with replicated original UK album art, including expanded booklets containing original and newly written liner notes and rare photos. For a limited period, each CD will also be embedded with a brief documentary film about the album. On the same date, two new Beatles boxed CD collections will also be released.

Here is the official site for more info: www.thebeatles.com

The "project" I've Been Working On

I've been working really hard to update my blog, Gone But Not Forgotten. Here's  what is new and improved:

The banner, which is awesome, was done by Gary Means:



also:

• I've added about 15 new names (with another 20 still on the list
• I've written a personal thought for every person
• Each name is now hyper-linked to Wikipedia
• There is a link under most people with a song that leads to lyrics, video, photos, bio and other info
• There are youtube videos included with some of the most memorable performances

But the most IMPORTANT part of the site is what YOU add. Your comments, memories, opinions, input are what make it personal and meaningful. I hope you'll stop by and add a thought or two under some of your favorite musicians.

Please, please let me know if I have left someone out. And please link to me on your blog if you don't mind.

I've been in contact with several family members and friends of the some of the musicians and will let you know as they add their comments.

Let's keep the memories of these special people alive....

One final word:

Many of you know that my 18 yr. old son is a heroin addict. One of my missions in life is to shed light on how widespread and life threatening this problem is. Its very prevalent among young males and - musicians. If you glance at the sidebar of GBNF you will see how many lives we've lost....and that's of famous musicians. Its happening daily everywhere to kids like mine, like yours. Something has to be done, but I have no idea what other than getting our government to give more of a shit about illegal drugs entering our country.