Here at THE VINYL DISTRICTwe're good consumers. All Mp3's are posted to promote and give exposure to the music and are linked for a limited time. Please download to preview, then head promptly to your local vinyl vendor (or - OK, CD store too) and fork over your hard earned cash. You'll appreciate the piece of mind.
Got something you think we should be listening to or reading? thevinyldistrict (at) gmail.com
I hope this week’s Idelic Hour finds you well. Just wanted to let you know I didn’t totally space Mother’s Day. I bought you a cool card that has a drawing of a teddy bear holding a lollipop but did totally jell on getting to the post office. I’m sure the card would have come way late so I thought I’d just give it to you with some fresh flowers when you come up to the canyon for a visit next month. As I was writing you I got to thinking of all the times I’ve forgotten Mother’s Day and your birthday and decided to dedicate this week’s Idelic Hour mix to you and all the Mommas, who got didn’t get a card or a phone call.
It’s not that we don’t love you, dudes just space sometimes.
So, now on to The Steelwells' Top 10 Records of All Time. One of my favorite things about this list is the genres it spans.
Robbie - The Jackson 5 (the Greatest Hits album) and John Scofield (Uberjam)
Jon - The Beastie Boys (Ill Communication) and Miles Davis (Kind of Blue)
Billy - Django Reindharet (Paris 1945 and Brussels 1947) and Ray Lamontagne (Gossip in the Grain)
Andrew - Department of Eagles (In Ear Park) and Rilo Kiley (More Adventurous)
Joey - Jeff Buckley (Live At Sin-é) and The Beatles (Abbey Road)
This definitely explains our jam sessions. In our jam/writing sessions we tend to cover a multitude of musical styles. Inevitably I wind up screaming at the top of my lungs like a demonic version of James Brown; or in a free-style rap contest. No, we can’t rap. But I do enjoy making my lyrics up on the spot or just scatting as nonsensically as possible not unlike Jeff’s cover of The Way Young Lovers Do. Of course his actually sounds good.
My final assessment of all of the top influences of the band actually does leave me a bit more enlightened. I did have an idea of where we all stood but this just puts it all in a bit a clearer light. If there is one thing we all have in common it is the simple idea that music is powerful and can be just as powerful with one person or five or fifteen. What matters is honesty, hard work, and constant introspection.
It has been a pleasure sharing with you our music and our thoughts. If you from Orange County or are passing through town look us up and come out to a show.
I will leave you with some great places to go around here like Burger Records (link to ) that has the best selection of vinyl that I have found in Orange County. Another great place for vintage anything at a fair price and just one of the nicest businesses (owned by a member of the band Middle Class an old Fullerton punk band that changed punk rock) in Fullerton is Out of Vogue.
We also buy as much of our music gear as we can afford at Jim’s Music in Tustin, Ca. No, we do not get special deals for promoting them we just really, really like this music shop. Good people, good gear. I think I might sell that slogan to them if they want it. Finally, my favorite place to eat local and organic food is at Rialto Café in Fullerton, Ca. Eat and make love.
Memphis 2009. I was in town from my then-hometown of Jersey City for the North American Folk Alliance Conference, a three day extravaganza of acoustic music, showcases and meetings and panels and workshops and late night (or early morning, depending on your perspective) hallway and stairwell jams. I was invited to Ardent Studios to play an acoustic set they would record for their “Ardent Presents” series. Having been confined to a hotel for days, it was nice to get outside, out into the bright Memphis sunshine and take a “field trip.”
I was definitely sleep-deprived, at 2am the night before having found a group of the best musicians around in a smoky stairwell, trading Townes and Woody songs. I think being half-awake/half-aware helped me when Jody Stephens pulled up to the hotel to pick me up for the session. When I was just starting out playing guitar, my college boyfriend, who was in a rock band, was obsessed with Alex Chilton and Big Star and the double CD “#1 Record/Radio City” was the soundtrack of my early 20s (and that to-be-doomed relationship).
“I’m In Love With A Girl” was the song that boy sang to me every night from stage. And there was Jody picking me up, just as down-to-earth and welcoming as you’d hope for from a rock star/studio manager. I couldn’t resist texting my ex, who sold his Gibson for a wife, 3 kids and a picket fence.
On arriving, I got a brief tour of the studio, got to meet John Fry and hear him tell of how Ardent began the studio in his family’s garage. I’d just finished a record with Mitch Easter who had started his studio in his mother’s garage. (Makes me start to think about the space in my own parents’ garage…, my father doesn’t need those racks of tools and the old bikes could go…). The entire staff of Ardent were so nice and welcoming and really enthusiastic about inviting a few folkies into their studios to perform. I felt like I’d been invited to a cool party, been slipped in the back door with the ghosts of greatness hovering above.
I walked into this great big studio. A few microphones. A table with candles burning. A stool. Nothing fancy, just vibe. There was a camera and a clock reminding me of the time. I think there were a handful of people just sitting on the carpet of floor of the studio in front of me. Like playing a show in someone’s living room—just me, the microphone, and the cross-legged audience leaning into my songs.
I actually forgot I was being filmed or recorded. It was just pure intimacy. I have to say, standing in that studio and singing for Jody and Rachel and the few others, I was thinking of all that music recorded in that same place, Isaac Hayes, Booker T, Big Star, Cat Power, their voices still hopefully carved somewhere into those wooden walls. It was really a special day for me and makes me want to get back to Ardent soon, to record in that studio, in that funky town filled with history and music and soul and good ribs and a river of mud and music seeping out of its cracked sidewalks.
Enter to win Amy Speace's 'The Killer in Me' by simply leaving a comment, your name, and a contact email address in the comments to this post. We'll choose one winner each Friday for that week's giveaway which ALSO includes the entire Ardent Music catalog. (That's just 2 artists at this point, but who's counting?)
To hear more great Ardent Sessions please visit Ardent Presents.
