Old Man Riva

Pretty much self taught. Had a few initial lessons from a local player and then it was up to me. Managed to blag my way into a really good covers band (the brother of Jonny the Notes of this parish was the guitarist) where the players were all slightly older than me and hugely better musicians (really top players) and held on for dear life. Practiced every morning before work and every night when I got home - I had to, just to keep in touching distance with the rest of them. It was the best learning experience I could have wished for. Played along to the radio, whatever the song/genre as well as records - challenged myself to learn a song a day (properly), which I did for years. Picked up all sorts of different styles this way, which meant it was never boring. The one thing I do regret is not learning how to read music - daft, really, as I played cello at junior school so had a basic grasp of it when I was a young kid. That would have certainly helped in later years.

Blimey, that's something else. Takes a lot to make members of an orchestra smile..

[quote name='RhysP' timestamp='1439128869' post='2840229']I would also class Magazine as a prog band. [/quote] Never would have thought of Magazine as a prog band (not sure I do now!), what makes you think of them as prog? I've seen early Simple Minds included in prog rock conversations but never Magazine. Edited to say, I've just revisited The Light Pours Out Of Me and I'm shifting my stance!

[quote name='Baxter' timestamp='1439147931' post='2840423'] Really pleased to see that people remember The Prisoners!! Tremendous act and extremely influential if you're playing in the garage/mod/60s vibe circuit. I recently got an LP from their latest incarnation Graham Day and the Forefathers [/quote] Graham Day was on Eddie Piller's Modcast a while back talking about the band.. Probably still available to download from iTunes?

[quote name='EssentialTension' timestamp='1438905829' post='2838657'] Both of those songs are part of the Englishness of The Beatles. They are essential to the perfection of Revolver. [/quote] Agreed.. For me it's [i]the[/i] Beatles album.

[quote name='Delberthot' timestamp='1438962876' post='2839043'] I'll need to give it a listen but at the moment my favourite is Fragile by Yes. It's been my favourite album for the past 10 years at least[/quote] I can't get my head (or ears) around Close To The Edge, it does absolutely nothing for me... Fragile, on the other hand, I love.. [quote name='Sonic_Groove' timestamp='1438967809' post='2839094'] To play safe I would go for Close To The Edge. But I do love Tarkus & Brain Salad Surgery All this was embarrassing in the late 70's when I was a post-punk!!![/quote] Always good to remember that a lot of punks were rock/prog fans before punk came along. Most punk bands too - Mick Jones was a rock fan; The Pistols used to do Faces covers in rehearsals etc (Matlock ended up IN the Faces). I subscribe to the Danny Baker theory that it wasn't prog that sparked punk; more bands like Queen, Sad Cafe, ELO etc.. When did anyone (other than if you were a fan and heard the records) hear Yes, ELP, King Crimson, Camel? Queen et al were all available on the radio and available to all. Danny Baker is a wise man..

[quote name='toneknob' timestamp='1438847672' post='2837857'] Another favourite of mine. Would you consider this to be a "solo"? (same goes for The Fish by Chris Squire). [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RunHx-LTgo[/media] [/quote] I think this is much tastier from the same player... 2:16 to 2:38 [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzeDE-pXfjY"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzeDE-pXfjY[/url] If there's a four string solo to be done then I much prefer something like this from Willie Weeks than any shredding/slapping/tapping/gonzoid/80-notes-a-second type of affair... from Donny Hathaway's live album... 8:06 to 12:16 - fun, fat, funky and pours like aural treacle out of the speakers [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUNz3A1cVus"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUNz3A1cVus[/url]

In terms of a Beatles album I don't think anything comes near to Revolver.. Pretty much flawless, IMHO.

[quote name='RhysP' timestamp='1438879549' post='2838386'] He'd probably fix the hole by shoving a Mars Bar in it.... [/quote] You're just preaching to the Faithfull there..

[quote name='Raslee' timestamp='1438373490' post='2834133'] Traditional = Aguilar [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1exrD10v4mg"]http://www.youtube....h?v=1exrD10v4mg[/url] [/quote] Really like that guy's playing.. the Curtis Mayfield 'Pusherman' thing he does is so good/tasty.

This is probably my current fave.. a fabulous take on a Macca track. [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHzDvHMZKh0"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHzDvHMZKh0[/url]

[quote name='tauzero' timestamp='1438088213' post='2831517'] I'm unclear about the subject of the question. Rock and roll as in Teds with a supertanker of hair gel on doing strange dances in blue suede shoes, or rock and roll as in rock, the all-encompassing popular (and loud) beat combo music?[/quote] That was the problem with the programme... they weren't clear to what they were referring to when talking about rock 'n' roll - was it the original sound, the spirit, the look, the attitude etc. I think Eric Burdon would see anything that didn't sound like Chuck Berry or Little Richard as not being rock 'n' roll.. whereas the programme featured Foo Fighters, Noel Gallagher and the Young Fathers as "rock 'n' roll".

Thought it was an interesting idea that just didn't deliver. If you're looking to take apart and analyse something like rock 'n' roll (and I'm not suggesting you should) then I think you'd have to look beyond Lauren Laverne to get the best out of the programme - for me Paul Morley would be the logical choice. It felt like it didn't know what it was trying to achieve (be serious or frivolous) and as a consequence ended up offering little to nothing by way of answering the programme's question. For me, rock 'n' roll is about rebellion, danger, spirit, looking the part, the ability to excite/tease/anger, make people afraid/think/inspire etc - if you listen to people who heard, say, Elvis for the first time that's the way they tend to describe the experience. When punk arrived that's how a lot of people felt - out with the old and in with the new. It's about giving the younger generation a voice musically, and with that in mind the only band I saw resembling the true spirit of rock 'n' roll (as I see it anyway) were Young Fathers. The music didn't do anything for me, mind, but then given my age it's not supposed to..

[quote name='pjb13.bass' timestamp='1437174852' post='2824325'] I couldn't agree more. Crazy Horses is a great song. I'm pretty sure Alex Harvey used to a version of it live, but then he used to do a version of Goodnight Irene as well; a true rock n' roll eccentric.[/quote] Yeah, I'm standing by Crazy Horses as a bona fide rock song. The fact that Alex Harvey covered makes it more so! (didn't realise he'd covered it) [quote name='Roland Rock' timestamp='1437769967' post='2829005'] This Chemical Brothers mix of a Spiritualized song. It's pretty long and doesn't kick in properly until about 3:30 but I remember hearing it for the first time and stopped what I was doing to just listen:[/quote] Hadn't heard that before. I think the original is pretty much untouchable - bass line is such a simple/tasteful/clever one. And the lyrics are so good... and when the gospel chorus kicks in at the end, well.. If you like that kind of sound you'd probably enjoy some of Death in Vegas' stuff..

Ah, okay, the link was to a recent (this month) D'angelo festival gig in Poland. Pino not there (presumably away with The Who) so his 23 year old son Rocco was on bass - pretty damn good too. Remember liking the Ghostpoet track when it was on Later; didn't realise that the girl singer was Pino's daughter - again, pretty damn good. Talented family..

Inspired by the 80s thread been listening to this this morning... [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKmW0nj9xls"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKmW0nj9xls[/url] This afternoon it'll be this on shuffle... [url="http://www.amazon.co.uk/What-Funky-Soul-Grooves-1967-1977/dp/B000GIWS4W"]http://www.amazon.co.uk/What-Funky-Soul-Grooves-1967-1977/dp/B000GIWS4W[/url]

[quote name='BILL POSTERS' timestamp='1437169138' post='2824267'] Crazy Horses was never, never ever cool to like. Lieutenant Pidgeon was a geat novelty song. Dont knock novelty songs, they have a place in the rich tapestry, and tbh the charts could do with a few now. [/quote] I'm going to stand my ground with Crazy Horses. Along with Run Run Run by Jo Jo Gunne is was as heavy as anything in the charts that year - and yes, I suppose you could argue that it was rendered null and void by Little Jimmy Osmond's effort that year, but, yeah, I'm standing by Crazy Horses!!

[quote name='pjb13.bass' timestamp='1437167761' post='2824246'] w TOTP, The Old Grey Whistle Test & Radio 1, (particularly late at night and at weekends ) comstituted my musical education. That said I should mention Nicky Horn on Capital Radio. [/quote] I was never allowed to stay up and watch the OGWT - that was another thing entirely! Looking back Radio 1 was a crazy mix of Johnnie Walker and Emperor Rosko vs.Jimmy Young and his "JY Prog" (with recipes!?!) and Tony Blackburn. I can remember the charts being on a Tuesday lunchtime (with the number one being announced at 1pm) and kids being late back to school from going home for dinner as they'd stayed to listen to the charts!

[quote name='BILL POSTERS' timestamp='1437166776' post='2824222'] You forgot Mott the Hoople doing all the Young Dudes, The move doin California Man, not to mention Lindisfarne. Twas a great summer when everything in music seemed to change, and also when I started playing Bass. [/quote] I was moving around the years earlier but 1972 was indeed a great year for TOTP - T Rex and Metal Guru, Slade and Gudbuy T'Jane, Argent and Hold Your Head Up (Russ Ballard cool as anything), Mott the Hoople and All The Young Dudes and even the Osmonds confused us with Crazy Horses (the Osmond song it was okay to like). Hawkwind and Silver Machine was the first time I can recall film of a band being shown rather than they being in the studio - I think the Jackson 5 did something similar with one of their early 70s songs, though can't recall which. On a personal note, as a Coventry City fan, seeing Lieutenant Pigeon on TOTP with one of the band wearing a (green and black stripes) City away top was a great moment... but what an awful song!

[quote name='pjb13.bass' timestamp='1437159218' post='2824163'] I can remember it as if it were yesterday although I was only 12 years old....6th June 1972, TOTP, David Bowie doing Starman. My whole world changed until...24th August 1972, TOTP, Roxy Music doing Virginia Plain. That just took it to a whole new level. [/quote] Similar here. For most kids of a certain age back then TOTP was the only access we had to actually seeing what the bands looked like - Radio 1 was where we heard them, TOTP was where we saw them. Bowie doing Starman, Roxy Music doing Virginia Plain, Thin Lizzy doing Whiskey in the Jar, The Faces doing Maggie May, Alice Cooper doing School's Out, Slade doing Coz I Luv You... all great moments.

[url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQSZR3NSqm8"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQSZR3NSqm8[/url] The whole Aladdin Sane album, really. Gatefold sleeve, really thick vinyl (as was mostly the case back then) and the lyrics on the inner sleeve (with the exception of the Stones' 'Let's Spend the Night Together'). I got the album in 1973 for my eleventh birthday and became obsessed with it, and all played on a mono record player. It was from another world completely (still is). The music had everything - big guitars, manic piano, do-wop vocals, ballads the lot. But the lyrics were absolutely insane for a young kid back then, none more so than Time.. If I could only ever have one album for the rest of days it would be Aladdin Sane.

I think the main thing about 80s music for me is the high proportion of things that haven't aged well at all compared to other eras - possibly down to the advent/(over)usage of digital technology at the time (Yamaha DX7, Simmons drums, Fairlight etc) Can remember being really impressed by this track (and the back story) back in the day when it appeared on The Tube (excellent programme) but hearing it now I wonder what on earth my ears were up to.. [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgYSqqsrBA0"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgYSqqsrBA0[/url]

But if you're depping for your dad, and you dad's Pino Palladino.. [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_14kCyK-o8"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_14kCyK-o8[/url]

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1436893190' post='2821821'] Only one of the two male members of the band appeared in the live line up, so the sound was heavily augmented by backing tapes. The vocals were either inaudible or shouty and tuneless. The (session) guitarist spent most of the gig gurning inappropriately. It was possibly one of the worst gigs by a major band that I have ever been to. IIRC a review of the London gig in the NME singled out the guitarist for (justifiable) ridicule due to his on-stage performance. The following week he had a letter published complaining about his review. The week after one of Propaganda wrote in supporting the NME's description of his antics... [/quote] Ace. Was it Kevin Armstrong? He was the go-to guitarist for that type of act around that time - he played with Bowie at Live Aid and Iggy Pop around the time of Blah Blah Blah. If you're looking for duff gigs of that era then I'll see your Propaganda and raise you Furniture (of Brilliant Mind 'fame')... "We're Furniture, what's your excuse?" was the singer's opening line to the crowd at Leicester Poly. Delivered with the appropriate level of contempt towards the audience, obviously. They absolutely bombed..

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1436827462' post='2821289'] I saw Propaganda on that tour too. They were rubbish - a pale imitation of their wonderful debut album. Not even DF on bass could rescue the ill-conceived turgid mess of that performance. [/quote] I remember quite enjoying it, though I'm not sure Claudia Brucken was best suited to the live arena. The mighty Derek Forbes played a Vigier, as I recall... or was it a Wal?. Was really impressed by him playing the riff to Murder of Love with his thumb..