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Post by bleatoid on Jun 3, 2019 11:03:23 GMT
Is that you regularly get to realise how little you know, how little you've heard and how little you can do. I just listened to bellyshere's excellent Plucky D rendition of "Nothin'" by Townes Van Zandt. I'd never heard of Townes Van Zandt. How can that possibly be? I thought I was reasonably well clued up in the American side of the folk / blues world. So much to listen to, so much to learn, so little time. When it comes to playing, I'm still in remedial class with guitar, well behind that on banjo, mandolin and harmonica and I haven't even got the cello and tuba that I want to learn. But before you get any time to improve you take a quick glance on here and suddenly you have a mountain of back catalogues that you need to start tucking in to, of artists that have somehow passed you by for the last few decades. Or some immense assortment of bizarre tunings await your attention in the unlikely event you ever get past elementary major open chords in the first position in standard tuning. Perhaps we need a separate forum area ("The Creche") for those of us who know nothing and can do nothing - where the timid can languish in elementary stuff with like minded simple souls. I'm off to spend the day in the Ikea ball room. Peter
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Post by scorpiodog on Jun 3, 2019 11:09:33 GMT
One of my favourite films is Heartworn Highways about the outlaw country players in the 70's. It features Townes Van Zandt quite heavily. I recommend it. Here's a good bit:
If you're anything like me your journey into discovering TVZ will be full of wonders.
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Post by Vinny on Jun 3, 2019 11:18:50 GMT
Count me in for the crèche. Just when you think you can play something, you see someone who can play it properly. Saw Steve Earle in Dublin a while ago and he was saying how Townes van Zandt was a major influence. Vinny
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Post by bellyshere on Jun 3, 2019 11:39:07 GMT
Even though i spend most of my time listening to music and playing it stuff passes me by as well. Townes was just wonderful and there is a back catalogue of amazing music for you to check out. The heart worn highways film is ace as well but really hard to find to buy.
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Post by scorpiodog on Jun 3, 2019 12:06:48 GMT
Count me in for the crèche. Just when you think you can play something, you see someone who can play it properly. Saw Steve Earle in Dublin a while ago and he was saying how Townes van Zandt was a major influence. Vinny Steve Earle even named his son Townes. He also recorded a brilliant album of TVZ songs, also called "Townes". There's a thread running through this. I wonder what he called his dog.
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Post by Onechordtrick on Jun 3, 2019 13:24:21 GMT
Put me down for the crèche as well.
Talking of new discoveries - I’d heard of Pentangle but never listened to them until yesterday.
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Post by bellyshere on Jun 3, 2019 13:32:09 GMT
One of the good things about Youtube is watching a song you do know and then clicking on the other video links next to them which you might not know. I have found loads of new music that way.
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Post by dangad on Jun 3, 2019 13:53:48 GMT
Love a bit of Townes Van Zandt but been a good long while since I gave any a spin so this acts as a nice reminder. I played Delta Momma Blues a lot when I was younger.
This was one of my favourites...
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Post by bleatoid on Jun 3, 2019 21:12:04 GMT
Hmmm - right - well I've had a look through Amazon's offerings and they're a mixed bag - a few remixes, a few albums only available on vinyl, a few post mortems, some out-takes / unreleased stuff, retrospectives, a few very rather pricey ones, a cheap best of.....
Grateful if you TVZ afficionados could shout out a couple of classic must-have, definitive albums.....(in general, I'm not a great fan of "best of" collections)
Thanks!
Postscript - and at the risk of starting a thread branch line...... while I was thinking about asking the question above I thought to myself - "is that reasonable? if someone said to me they'd never heard a Bob Dylan song and wanted 4 CD's that would paint a picture of his work" what would I do - well first I'd tell them that they had definitely heard a BD track - they just didn't realise it was one of his and then suggest that they'd make a good start with Freewheelin' / Blonde-on-Blonde / Street Legal / Infidels / Time out of Mind. Which is five albums - before I even went back and added the other four absolutely definitely must haves.....
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Post by bellyshere on Jun 3, 2019 21:23:07 GMT
Our mother the mountain and delta momma blues are my fav studio albums. However, i think Townes was at his best live. Just him and a guitar. Live at the old quarter and rear view mirror are wonderful live albums. The recent sky blue album is great as well as it’s just him and a guitar recorded in some journalists house.
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Post by bellyshere on Jun 3, 2019 22:47:47 GMT
Jackson C Frank is another one who i mention to folk and they say who?
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Post by martinrowe on Jun 3, 2019 23:25:02 GMT
It's a tough world bleatoid I'm going back to Townes. Here's two covers, both by Canadians. To live is to fly - with the great line 'days, up and down they come, like rain on a conga drum' by the Cowboy Junkies and 'Waitin around to Die' by The Be Good Tanyas What a title - Waitin around to Die I remember reading that if he'd started writing a song then he wouldn't stop until he'd finished it.
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Welshruss
C.O.G.
Posts: 477
My main instrument is: Turnstone, Wandering Boy & Santa Cruz
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Post by Welshruss on Jun 4, 2019 5:00:08 GMT
However, i think Townes was at his best live. Just him and a guitar. Live at the old quarter and rear view mirror are wonderful live albums. The recent sky blue album is great as well as it’s just him and a guitar recorded in some journalists house. I agree Townes is best with just his guitar and Live at The Old Quarter is exceptional. Sky Blue a release this year of him live is also great. I learnt Waiting Round To Die from Tom Feldman's Play Country Blues website.
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Post by bleatoid on Jun 4, 2019 8:11:37 GMT
Jackson C Frank is another one who i mention to folk and they say who? You’re a cruel man, Mr. bellyshere....
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Post by bellyshere on Jun 4, 2019 8:19:34 GMT
Jackson C Frank is another one who i mention to folk and they say who? You’re a cruel man, Mr. bellyshere.... Jackson only has a small back catalogue though. You’ve got some wonderful music to listen to.
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