C.A.T.: Chuck Berry Is On Top

Chuck Berry – Chuck Berry Is On Top (1959)

The other day I was watching a video of Chuck Berry performing at the Blueberry Hill Restaurant and Bar in St. Louis in 2014. The legendary rocker looked nice in his satin shirt and captain’s hat, but man, it didn’t sound nice. Chuck more or less wandered around the stage, mumbling his lyrics and occasionally reaching down to strum the wrong note on his Gibson hollow-body. Then I looked up his age. Chuck Berry was born in 1926! This means he was still performing live at 88-years-old! Pardon my French, but that is motherf#@king rock ’n roll!

I don’t care if Chuck Berry today sounds like shit. The fact that he’s up there, living the dream, even as a deteriorating skeleton-sailor-man is the personification of rock. Hats off to you Mr. Berry. Now on to this week’s “Classic Album Tuesday” where I will be discussing one of Berry’s finest works.

The 1950s was an odd era for the “album.” Apart from jazz or classical musicians, most albums were nothing more than compilations of singles. The “album” didn’t take off as an art form until the 1960s, so most 1950s rock albums were a couple of the hits and then a bunch of covers or leftover junk. What’s special about Chuck Berry is he was a hit making machine. Seven of the twelve tracks on Chuck Berry is On Top were on the Billboard Hot 100 and there’s not a cover to be found.

Not only was Chuck a hitmaker, he had a presence. Few people were playing the guitar like Berry back then, with Bo Diddley being one of the few exceptions. So guess who also plays on this album? Yep, Bo Diddley. This stuff was raw, or at least as raw as you could get back in 1959. I think a great deal of credit goes to Chess records for making this happen.

If you’re not familiar with Chess Records, Chess was a record company founded by Polish immigrant brothers Leonard and Phil Chess, that over time became what Brownsville Station frontman and later music critic Cub Koda described as “America’s greatest blues label.” They even made a movie about it with Adrien Brody as Leonard Chess. I believe Mos Def plays Chuck Berry. I should watch it, but only if Mos Def duck walks. It ain’t a Chuck Berry movie if there’s no duck walking.

And these songs, what can I say? “Johnny B. Goode”, “Carol”, “Maybellene”, “Roll Over Beethoven.” It’s like the 1992 NBA “Dream Team” of songs. These are the songs that Berry built on a foundation of earth, wood and rock and roll. When I was taking guitar lessons as a teenager, the opening riff to “Johnny B. Goode” was one of the first things I learned. It’s amazing how much power Berry’s songs carry today and will continue to carry on.

Thanks, Chuck.

Favorite Tracks: “Carol”, “Johnny B. Goode”, “Roll Over Beethoven”

Stream Police Ep. 23: Monkeybone

Looks like Michael and John have come down with a severe case of “Brendanmania” in this week’s review of the 2001 Fantasy/Action/Adventure masterpiece Monkeybone. Listen to a couple of bonafide Fraserphiles express their admiration for Brendan Fraser’s most personal project. It’s time to get boned.

Freaky Fridays: The Stuff

The Stuff (1985)

If you’ve ever stumbled across this blog in a drunken stupor, you know I love horror movies. So much so that every year my fellow bloggers and I review 31 horror movies in October. Naturally, some films slip through the cracks, this is one of them. The VHS box to The Stuff is an image firmly burned into my memory. Tell me, how could you walk past this film at the video store (image posted above) without at least a second glance? “Why is marshmallow fluff pouring out of this man’s eye sockets?” Well past John, let me show you the way.

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Freaky Fridays

Disclaimer: This post has nothing to with either the 1976 or 2003 version of the film Freaky Friday, my deepest apologies.

Earlier this week I alluded to a new weekly segment at Mildly Pleased and the time has come. We’ve had many segments over our eight years in existence; Classic Album Tuesdays, Top Ten Thursday’s, The People’s Albums, Obsessong, Retrospecticus and The Vault. Let’s not forget my favorite yearly tradition, Shocktober, where we spend 31 days reviewing 31 horror movies.

Recently, I was contemplating whether I could extend my love for Shocktober to all year round. An opportunity to discuss not only horror movies, but all kinds of cult cinema. An opportunity to delve into hard sci-fi, 80s action movies, Exploitation, Blaxploitation, Christploitation, and maybe a few Beastmaster films.

Think of this as a love letter to the VHS era. Many of the movies I will review will be ones I vividly remember sitting on shelves in colorful cardboard boxes. In fact, the name “Freaky Fridays” refers to what my Dad use to say when it was time to rent a video on a Friday night. It’s not because every Friday we switched bodies… Or did we?

My goal is to carry this new segment all the way to Shocktober. Whether I will continue it come November 2016 is unknown at this time. Hey, remember how we’re going to have a new president in November? *shudder. Let’s not get too freaky yet. Stay tuned.

Rokk Talk Ep. 03: So You Want to Be a Rock ‘n’ Roll Star

We all have a song in our hearts. The question is: do we all have a song worth hearing? Some of the celebs on this list seem to think so. This week, Colin and John talk about ill-fated heroes of Tinseltown who have attempted a transition from the silver screen to the bargain bin at the last Sam Goody in existence. From Shatner to Willis we have it locked down. It’s a party all the time at Rokk Talk!

P.S. R.I.P Alan Vega – frontman of Suicide – who is mentioned in this podcast. We miss ya already brother!

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T3 100: A Farewell to Lists

The original idea for Top Ten Thursdays was a simple solution to two problems: one, writing T3 posts on the blog was a contentious, time-consuming affair and two, Da Podcasket was a meandering, directionless mess. So doing a podcast where we made lists seemed to be the perfect solution – it would be easier to jot down nominees and talk about them as a group than to try to do the whole thing solo written, and our podcast would have an actual hook to get people interested. But as our professional lives became more busy and we invented other types of shows that better complimented our strengths, Top Ten Thursdays became something of a black sheep – or perhaps even an albatross keeping us from podcasting.

So we decided it was time to retire the old girl. But we couldn’t do that without a proper send-off, which is what you have here as episode 100 (give or take a few). Join us as we reminisce over some of our favorite moments while trying to track the history of the show over its four and a half year run. You know we did this one right: little to no research, one long take, plenty of jokes we’ll regret later. It’s the end of T3, Judgement Day is finally here! The machines will rise!

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C.A.T.: Somethin’ Else

Cannonball Adderley – Somethin’ Else (1958)

Four years ago, Colin and I did a series of Classic Album Tuesday reviews spanning 1957 to 1984. There wasn’t any particular theme or reasoning behind it, but it kept posts steady and let me explore a wide range of artists I otherwise wouldn’t have heard. Such artists included; Bobby Bland, The Beau Brummels, The Feelies and Briano Eno. I would like to try this again. Any other Mildly Pleasers are welcome to join me but don’t feel obligated. The truth of the matter is I could use the motivation to listen to more classic music. This being said I present you with my two cents regarding one of my favorite Jazz albums of all time.

I’m probably the last person who should write about Jazz. Do I even need to capitalize “Jazz?” I’ve probably heard less than ten Jazz albums in my life, and probably have no more than five I can say I love. Lucky for Cannonball Adderley, this album is one of them.

Somethin’ Else released in 1958 is a classic for more reasons than I can snap my fingers at. Here, the legendary alto saxophonist is not only accompanied by some of the most accomplished jazz artists of the time, he’s accompanied by Miles “Freaking” Davis. This is notable not only because Miles Davis is the most famous Jazz musician you’ve ever heard of, but because it is one of the few times Davis was a sideman. Adderley takes the spotlight with his busy yet bluesy playing style, well complemented by Davis’ more understated work. I have no idea what I’m talking about.

Though I can’t say much regarding the playing style, I can tell you how Somethin’ Else makes me feel. It makes me feel like a 1940s noir detective, smoking a cigarette and peering out at the rain-soaked streets from my office. You better believe I have an inner monologue going too. The leadoff track, “Autumn Leaves” best accompanies this fantasy (or delusion). At nearly ten minutes it’s a moody piece with a creeping piano and bittersweet horns.

I like to listen to Somethin’ Else when I write. I don’t usually listen to music when I write as I find it distracting but jazz feels just mellow and atmospheric enough for it to work for me. Especially if I have a hot cup of joe, looking out at the rain with an inner monologue in my head.

P.S. I plan on revealing a NEW weekly blog feature this Friday. Stay tuned!

Favorite Tracks: “Autumn Leaves,” “Dancing in the Dark,” “Love for Sale”