Everybody loves a train wreck...

Wonderin' - Neil Young - 1983
Wonderin' (Live at Fillmore East) - Neil Young - 2006

Sometimes I'm fascinated by the choices that artists make to follow their hearts and to drive their careers into near-ruin. On the schizophrenic saunter through recent music history we call BEATSWATCH, this post seemed only fitting.

In the early 80s, Neil Young decided that he was going to release pretty much whatever kind of album he wanted to. He released the unexpected Trans in 1982, an early electronica album that is remembered much more fondly today than it was at the time of its release. It was followed soon after by 1983's Everybody's Rockin', a markedly less beloved 25-minute Rockabilly concept album. Think of it as Trans' runty and unfashionable little brother. Yes, that's Neil Young on the cover, looking more like a cross between Brother Love and Dan Aykroyd than the crusty folk-rock singer that we've come to know and love (or just know.)

A popular interpretation of Everybody's Rockin' is that it's a satirical slap in the face, a bad joke or a thoughtless genre exercise made at the expense of unexpecting fans. I can't help but believe that Neil Young's desire to make this record went deeper than that. Wonderin' is a track Young wrote prior to 1970 (whether or not in Rockabilly guise) and had obviously been wanting to record for some time. Its appearance on 2006's Live at Fillmore East evidences its unique spot in his memory. Maybe Everybody's Rockin' is an idyllic and surreal fantasy of simpler times, free from the angst and social discord that had accompanied Young and his music through the 60s and 70s.

The song itself is refreshingly simple and sweet in its delivery but also pathetic and ham-fisted in its sentiment. I imagine an abusive boyfriend staring at the ground, kicking dirt around idly with his foot before making a familiar, shy and dispassionate plea to his hopelessly ensnared girlfriend: "I'm a wonderin'... if you'll come home." It also kind of sounds like something Leland Palmer would listen to over and over again in his living room, but that's neither here nor there.

Ben Revisited

A Minha Menina / Que Maravilha / Zazueira - Jorge Ben - 1979

The Os Mutantes version of "A Minha Menina" was one of those songs I used to keep on continuous rotation. It's still one of my favorites, but for a while I put it into semi-retirement, as the excitement of those first listens had worn off... Then I heard Jorge Ben's version, a true discovery that's re-sparked my interest in Ben's work.

Ben composed "Minha Menina" for Os Mutantes in 1968 (and played guitar on the original song) but it wasn't until his 1979 medley album "Creole Girl" that he did his this pared-down acoustic take on it. I love his phrasing and the way he smooths out the melody. Great transitions into his other early classics, "Que Maravilha" and "Zazueira."

This was one of my first vinyl to mp3 conversions from last year. I'll try to start posting more of the stuff I've been digitizing lately.

new year, old content, same great taste

Nfana Ibaga - No Problem - 2Face Idibia - 2004
Keep On Rockin' - 2Face Idibia - 2004
Checkmate (50 Cent Diss) - Jadakiss - 2004

A snippet from an email I sent while in Nigeria a few years ago:

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I don't usually e-mail more than one person at a time, but I did want to let you all know that I just saw 50 Cent perform live here in Abuja. I'm still swooning...

Seriously though, my uncle got wind of some VIP event, which I guess was the media launch for the KOLA music awards, the African version of the Grammy's. Some state governors were there, the US Ambassador was there, guys with machine guns and so on. Shit was low budget though, I've seen high school plays with better production (mic problems, buzzing in the audio, it was actually rather frustrating). But they got shit together and then went LIVE via satellite to 45 African countries (no, that's not all of them). And after a few famous African acts (some of which were lipsyncing, sigh), 50 came on in all his glory. The Ghanaian girl who introduced him claimed that he is the most famous hip hop artist EVER and it was he that made her like hip hop. Go fucking figure.

He did two songs, "I Run New York" and some song he does with Justin Timberlake, according to my brother. But Justin wasn't there. I think they figured that just would have been too much.

And then, as he was walking off stage, they beckoned him back. Two Nigerian rappers, two women, and a small girl holding a rose came out, told them they loved him, and sang a song I imagine is titled "Welcome to Africa", just for him. They finished, and the small girl gave him the rose and said "Welcome to Africa, 50 we love you!" One of the rappers said "50 we are brothers if not for slave trade." And 50, the self-described Teflon Don, Get Rich or Die Tryin' I Got Shot 9 Times 50 Cent, shed a tear.

Not only did I see 50 Cent rap, I saw 50 Cent cry.

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So one of those Nigerian rappers was 2Face. Both of these tracks are fairly "pop", but what I find refreshing about African hip-hop is that most of the artists can carry a tune, even sing a little bit. Likely more West African music to come in this space...