Named after Alan Freed, the original Rock and Roll DJ and dedicated mostly to music & radio. See also my Classic Film & TV blog @ http://thesilverscreenchronicles.blogspot.ca/ For My CIUT 89.5fm in Toronto radio playlists; http://moondogsplaylists.blogspot.com/
Saturday 24 December 2011
Prof Kitzel's Time Machine Profiles; George W Johnson
~ George W. Johnson (circa 1846~1914) was one of the first major recording stars and certainly the first black recording star as well as being one of the most successful singers of the Victorian era. ..
~ Early life ~ Born a slave between 1846 and 1850 in Virginia, Johnson was raised by a white family who taught him to read and write. His musical training is unknown although he does not seem to have played any actual instruments, he sang minstrel songs as well as being a virtuoso whistler. After the civil war he made his way to New York and New Jersey where he earned a living as a busker in various minstrel and medicine shows becoming a fairly well known figure. ..
~ Recordings ~ When Johnson began recording is unknown but it is rumored that Thomas Edison himself chose Johnson to be one of the first singers to demonstrate his new tin-foil based recording device in 1879 because his clear, staccato baritone could reproduce well on the crude technology. If so these recordings have not survived but when the improved wax gramophones came along a decade later Johnson became much in demand. He recorded "The Whistling Coon" in 1890 for The Metropolitan Phonograph company and then quickly did the same for The New Jersey Phonograph Company, The North American and Edison. The song became the first real hit of the recording era selling for various companies (which would grow to include most of Edison's competitors such as Berliner, Victor, Columbia, Starr and Zonophone) as was common at the time. Due to the crude technology of the day (there were no masters) records were recorded straight to disk five at a time which meant that Johnson would have to sing the same song over again for hours and days in order to make multiple copies. However since he got payed by the song this meant he was able to make a decent living for over a decade singing the same few songs. ..
GEORGE W JOHNSON ~ "THE LAUGHING SONG";
~ Repertoire
~ The number of songs Johnson actually knew is unknown but he only recorded about a half dozen titles. Besides his first hit he later had even bigger hits with "The Laughing Song" and the " The Laughing Coon". Laughing in rhythm was a fad of the era and "The Laughing Song" (originally written by the white song writer Sam Devere as part of a minstrel show) is believed to have been the first million selling record, being recorded for numerous companies between 1894 and 1910. These records were also popular in Europe and Latin America since there was little language barrier to overcome and there are stories of copies of the "Laughing Song" turning up in (then) remote Africa, China, the Arctic and the South Pacific were they were used by missionaries to break the ice with the locals. In the 1922 documentary film "Nanook of the North" film maker Robert Flaherty is shown playing a copy of the record to charm his Eskimo hosts. For a time Johnson was probably the most heard person in the world along with the opera tenor Enrico Caruso. Johnson also recorded a few other titles including "The Whistling Girl","Listen to the Mockingbird" and "Carving the Duck", copies of which have survived along with at least two others which have not, "The Laughing Darkey" and "Uncle Ned's Dream". Johnson also recorded at least two comedy singles as part of Len Spencer's Minstrel Troupe. Spencer (who was actually white) was a popular leader of his own minstrel troupe as well as booking agent who became a manager for Johnson. Besides his recordings Johnson also continued to appear in vaudeville and minstrel shows in New York City and Atlantic City, New Jersey. ..
GEORGE W JOHNSON ~ "THE WHISTLING COON";
~ Decline and death ~ By the twentieth century recording technology had improved allowing for master copies to be recorded as well as allowing a greater variety of singers and musicians to record more clearly and these factors along with more sophisticated tastes effectively ended Johnson's recording career. His popularity also suffered from a mysterious scandal involving his being charged the death of his wife in 1899, Spencer and other performing friends rallied around and raised money for his bail and defense and the charges were quickly dropped . Johnson continued to record until 1910 but then went into retirement and the loyal Len Spencer gave him a job as doorman for the Lyceum Theater in New York. Johnson died forgotten in his apartment of unknown natural causes in 1914. ..
~ Surviving recordings ~ Copies of some of Johnson's recordings an both cylinders and disks have survived in various conditions and sound quality, some have turned up on a compilation entitled "Lost Sounds" on Archephone Records, others can be found on archival websites.
Members;
George W. Johnson ~ Vocals, Laughing and Whistling w/ various pianists incl/ Edward Issler ..
GEORGE W JOHNSON ~ "THE LAUGHING COON";
Labels:
George W. Johnson,
Robert Flaherty,
Thomas Edison
Monday 19 December 2011
The Stoopidist Band Mashup Ever
The 1996 book "Rolling Stone's Alt-Rockarama" book of lists and trivia contained a list entitled "100+ Alt-Rock Super groups we hope never happen". This was a list of band name mashups used to creat new stupid band names for ill advised supergroup pairings. Notable examples incuded;
Agnostic Front Line Assembly
Average White Band of Susans
Echo and the Bunnymen Without Hats
Greatful Dead Kennedys
The Husker Doobie Brothers
Iggy Pop Will Eat Itself
Kool and the Gang of Four
Marvin Gaye Bikers on Acid
Peter Murphy's Law
The Scoolly dB's
The Simply Red Hot Chilli Peppers
Soul 2 Soul Asylum
Steely Danzig
Swing Out Sisters of Mercy
Zodiac Mindwarp and the Love and Rockets
You get the idea.
Since I love stupid pointless trivia even more than I love stupid pointless band names here are a few of my own suggestions for this stupid pointless list;
The Aero-Smiths
Alien Sex Pistols
Altered Images In Vogue
The Amboy Dukes of the Stratosphere
Anti Black Flag
The Anti-Human League
Atomic 7 Seconds
Balaam and the Comsat Angels
Amy Bauhaus
Aprilwine and Iron
The Beaumarks Inside
The Body Count 5
The Big Bad Livers
The Black Flag of Convieniance
Black Lips Arkansas
Black Sabbath Flag
The Black Sabbath Keys
The Blue Cheer Demons
The Blue Demon Oyster Cult
The Blue Oyster Magoos
Blue Demon Rodeo
Blue Oyster Rodeo
David Bow Wow Wowie
Boy George Micheal
The Bullet Boys Brigade
The Chalk Circle Jerks
The Chocolate Watchband of Susans
Christian Death Angel
Christian Death of Samantha
The Chromosome Cranks
Courtney Love and Rockets
The Cowboy Mouth Junkies
The Cowboy Murder Junkies
The Crowded Housemartins
Curiosity Killed The Stray Cats
The Cutting Crewcuts
Dead Cats Can Fly
Dead Guy Smiley
The Dead Kennedys Can Dance
The Dead Milkmen Can Dance
The Death of Samantha Ronson
Deja Voodoo Glow Skulls
Deja Voodoo Machine
The Del Lords of the New Church
Destroy All Monster Magnets
Dexy's Midnight Run DMC
Dinosaur Jr. Gone Wild
The Dream Syndicate of Sound
D.R.Eyehategod
The Dropkick Peter Murphys
Emerson, Lake and Robert Palmer
Fifth Durutti Column
The Flamin' Groovie Sideburns
The Flat Duo Jetboys
The Fleshtonie Braxtons
The Florida Razorbacks
Gang of 4 Skins
Gaye Bikers on Scratch Acid
Generation X-Ray Specs
Generation XTC
Gentle Giant Sand
Girlschooly D
The Go-Go Go Betweens
The Grapes of Wrathchild
Great Big Black Sea
Haircutting Crew
Hayseed Dixie Chicks
Richard Hellacopter & The Voidoids
Richard Helmet & The Voidoids
Holy Fuck Rounders
Iron Maiden Wine
Lambchop of God
Latex Generation X
LL Cool J Macias
The Lords of Scratch Acid
L7 Mary Three
The MC5 Star
Machine hHead
Magnetic Fields of The Nephelim
The Meatloaf Puppets
The Men Without Hats They Couldn't Hang
Meshugga-Knight
The Mighty Clouds of Joy Division
Mojo Nixon and Skid Row
Modern English Beat
Monster Voodoo Glow Skulls
Motley 2 Live Crue
The Mudhoneycombs
The Murder City Rollers
My Cordelia's Dad is Dead
Nashville Pussy Galore
The New York Toy Dolls
Nine Inch Nails Below Zero
999 Below Zero
999 Inch Nails
999 Pound Hammer
Nine Pound Hammer Below Zero
Pee Wee King Cob Steelie
The Knoxville Girlschool
The Luna-Chixdiggit
Nurse With Sucking Chest Wound
Operation Poison Ivy
Orchestral Maneuvers in The Dark Carnival
Hank Pennywise
Four Platinum Non Blondes
Poison Ivy Idea
Pretty Pink Boy Floyd
Prince and The Deep Purple Revolution
Public Images in Vogue
Puddle of Mudhoney
The Pukka Orchestra Manouvers in the Dark
Raised By Guitar Wolves
The Randypeter Murphys
The Raybeat Farmers
The Real Kids on the Block
Redd Kris Kross
Reel Big Fishbone
Renaldo and the Meatloaf
The Romeo Voidoids
Roomfull of Blue Cheer
Roomfull of Blue Demons
Roomfull of Blue Oyster Cult
Roomfull of Blue Rodeo
Roxx Gang Children
The Roxy Music Machine
Run DOA
The Samhain Roberts Band
Screamin' Lord Baltimore
Screamin' Lord Buckley
Secret Police Affair
Septic Death Angel
Seven Mary Three O'Clock
Sex Gang Children of Bodom
The Shadows of Gladys Knight
Sham 69 Eyes
The Sick Boys Next Door
The Silver Apples in Stereo
The Soft Boys Brigade
The Soft Boys Machine
Sonic Youth Brigade
Southern Culture Club on the Skids
Stray Cats Can Fly
The Subhuman League
Super Furry Animal Collective
System of a Down By Law
The Talking Motorheads
Teenage Head Fanclub
Teenage Headpins
The Thin White Amboy Dukes
The Thin White Dukes of the Stratosphere
They Might be Gentle Giants
They Might Be Giant Sand
The Ten Foot Polecats
The Tragically Hipsway
The Trashmen They Couldn't Hang
The Trashmen Without Hats
Tuuli Live Crew
Twisted Sisters of Mercy
The 2 Live Krewmen
The 2 Live Crewcuts
The 2 Live Cutting Crew
Type O Negative Approach
Type O Negative Trend
Undertones on Tail
Vanilla Ice T
The Velvet Underground Revolver
The Viletony Toni Tones
The Wanda Jackson Five
The White Flag of Convieniance
White Zombie Stripes
The Young Fresh Lions
It took me about a half hour to come up with those, OK make that an hour, or more. So I have no doubt you can come up with more. No fair using the names of bands that are so obscure nobody can tell if you're just making shit up.
Agnostic Front Line Assembly
Average White Band of Susans
Echo and the Bunnymen Without Hats
Greatful Dead Kennedys
The Husker Doobie Brothers
Iggy Pop Will Eat Itself
Kool and the Gang of Four
Marvin Gaye Bikers on Acid
Peter Murphy's Law
The Scoolly dB's
The Simply Red Hot Chilli Peppers
Soul 2 Soul Asylum
Steely Danzig
Swing Out Sisters of Mercy
Zodiac Mindwarp and the Love and Rockets
You get the idea.
Since I love stupid pointless trivia even more than I love stupid pointless band names here are a few of my own suggestions for this stupid pointless list;
The Aero-Smiths
Alien Sex Pistols
Altered Images In Vogue
The Amboy Dukes of the Stratosphere
Anti Black Flag
The Anti-Human League
Atomic 7 Seconds
Balaam and the Comsat Angels
Amy Bauhaus
Aprilwine and Iron
The Beaumarks Inside
The Body Count 5
The Big Bad Livers
The Black Flag of Convieniance
Black Lips Arkansas
Black Sabbath Flag
The Black Sabbath Keys
The Blue Cheer Demons
The Blue Demon Oyster Cult
The Blue Oyster Magoos
Blue Demon Rodeo
Blue Oyster Rodeo
David Bow Wow Wowie
Boy George Micheal
The Bullet Boys Brigade
The Chalk Circle Jerks
The Chocolate Watchband of Susans
Christian Death Angel
Christian Death of Samantha
The Chromosome Cranks
Courtney Love and Rockets
The Cowboy Mouth Junkies
The Cowboy Murder Junkies
The Crowded Housemartins
Curiosity Killed The Stray Cats
The Cutting Crewcuts
Dead Cats Can Fly
Dead Guy Smiley
The Dead Kennedys Can Dance
The Dead Milkmen Can Dance
The Death of Samantha Ronson
Deja Voodoo Glow Skulls
Deja Voodoo Machine
The Del Lords of the New Church
Destroy All Monster Magnets
Dexy's Midnight Run DMC
Dinosaur Jr. Gone Wild
The Dream Syndicate of Sound
D.R.Eyehategod
The Dropkick Peter Murphys
Emerson, Lake and Robert Palmer
Fifth Durutti Column
The Flamin' Groovie Sideburns
The Flat Duo Jetboys
The Fleshtonie Braxtons
The Florida Razorbacks
Gang of 4 Skins
Gaye Bikers on Scratch Acid
Generation X-Ray Specs
Generation XTC
Gentle Giant Sand
Girlschooly D
The Go-Go Go Betweens
The Grapes of Wrathchild
Great Big Black Sea
Haircutting Crew
Hayseed Dixie Chicks
Richard Hellacopter & The Voidoids
Richard Helmet & The Voidoids
Holy Fuck Rounders
Iron Maiden Wine
Lambchop of God
Latex Generation X
LL Cool J Macias
The Lords of Scratch Acid
L7 Mary Three
The MC5 Star
Machine hHead
Magnetic Fields of The Nephelim
The Meatloaf Puppets
The Men Without Hats They Couldn't Hang
Meshugga-Knight
The Mighty Clouds of Joy Division
Mojo Nixon and Skid Row
Modern English Beat
Monster Voodoo Glow Skulls
Motley 2 Live Crue
The Mudhoneycombs
The Murder City Rollers
My Cordelia's Dad is Dead
Nashville Pussy Galore
The New York Toy Dolls
Nine Inch Nails Below Zero
999 Below Zero
999 Inch Nails
999 Pound Hammer
Nine Pound Hammer Below Zero
Pee Wee King Cob Steelie
The Knoxville Girlschool
The Luna-Chixdiggit
Nurse With Sucking Chest Wound
Operation Poison Ivy
Orchestral Maneuvers in The Dark Carnival
Hank Pennywise
Four Platinum Non Blondes
Poison Ivy Idea
Pretty Pink Boy Floyd
Prince and The Deep Purple Revolution
Public Images in Vogue
Puddle of Mudhoney
The Pukka Orchestra Manouvers in the Dark
Raised By Guitar Wolves
The Randypeter Murphys
The Raybeat Farmers
The Real Kids on the Block
Redd Kris Kross
Reel Big Fishbone
Renaldo and the Meatloaf
The Romeo Voidoids
Roomfull of Blue Cheer
Roomfull of Blue Demons
Roomfull of Blue Oyster Cult
Roomfull of Blue Rodeo
Roxx Gang Children
The Roxy Music Machine
Run DOA
The Samhain Roberts Band
Screamin' Lord Baltimore
Screamin' Lord Buckley
Secret Police Affair
Septic Death Angel
Seven Mary Three O'Clock
Sex Gang Children of Bodom
The Shadows of Gladys Knight
Sham 69 Eyes
The Sick Boys Next Door
The Silver Apples in Stereo
The Soft Boys Brigade
The Soft Boys Machine
Sonic Youth Brigade
Southern Culture Club on the Skids
Stray Cats Can Fly
The Subhuman League
Super Furry Animal Collective
System of a Down By Law
The Talking Motorheads
Teenage Head Fanclub
Teenage Headpins
The Thin White Amboy Dukes
The Thin White Dukes of the Stratosphere
They Might be Gentle Giants
They Might Be Giant Sand
The Ten Foot Polecats
The Tragically Hipsway
The Trashmen They Couldn't Hang
The Trashmen Without Hats
Tuuli Live Crew
Twisted Sisters of Mercy
The 2 Live Krewmen
The 2 Live Crewcuts
The 2 Live Cutting Crew
Type O Negative Approach
Type O Negative Trend
Undertones on Tail
Vanilla Ice T
The Velvet Underground Revolver
The Viletony Toni Tones
The Wanda Jackson Five
The White Flag of Convieniance
White Zombie Stripes
The Young Fresh Lions
It took me about a half hour to come up with those, OK make that an hour, or more. So I have no doubt you can come up with more. No fair using the names of bands that are so obscure nobody can tell if you're just making shit up.
Thursday 1 December 2011
John Cage makes Iron Butterfly look like DRI
You think rock operas are absurdly long? How about free jazz solos? Emerson, Lake and Palmer? John Coltrane? Tangerine Dream? Amateurs all of 'em. Ladies and gentlemen I give you the reigning heavy weight champion (drum roll please); John Cage!
Whatever clever artsy idea you think you had, John Cage has already done it. Probably better too.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
JOHN CAGE & TAKEHISA KOSUGI:
World’s longest concert will last 639 years
By Maura Judkis (Washington Post)
You’d be praying for intermission if you attended even just a fraction of the world’s longest concert. Now in its 10th year, “Organ²/ASLSP(As SLow aS Possible),” by avant-garde composer John Cage, is just getting started.
Composer, John Cage rehearses his 12-hour composition "Empty Words" in Hartford, Conn., in 1981. (Anonymous - ASSOCIATED PRESS)
The concert began in 2001 at the former St. Burchard church in Halberstadt, Germany, and is scheduled to conclude in 2640, for a duration of 639 years. Though Cage did not specify a duration for his piece, the length was chosen because the start date for the performance is 639 years after Nicolaus Faber built the first church organ. Other performances of the piece have lasted between 29 and 70 minutes.
The Halberstadt performance, by an automated organ, progresses so slowly that visitors have to wait months for a chord change (for one note change, in 2008, more than 1,000 visitors came to listen). They occur on the fifth of the month, but the next one isn’t scheduled until July 2012. The organ emits a low meditative hum at all times. You can hear it on the ASLSP Web site.
The performance is so slow that the organ it is being played on was not even complete before the music began. Pipes were added to the organ, which keeps the music steady thanks to a machine called a blower that provides a constant stream of air, in 2008.
Supporters can sponsor a note for a year with a donation of 1000 € or more. Those who donate can choose any year through 2640, and will receive a metal plaque with their name and year in the church.
Fans of Cage, such as board chairman of the town’s John Cage Organ Foundation, Rainer Neugebauer, say that the performance is a rebuke of hectic modern life.
“Everything does not need to happen so fast. If something needs a bit longer then it can give us an inner calm that is rare in normal life.”
Update, Nov. 28: There is competition for the world’s longest concert. On Twitter, Mark Polishook alerts Arts Post to Longplayer, a 1,000-year-long musical score that is being played by computers.
JOHN CAGE PERFORMS "WATER WALK" ON "I'VE GOT A SECRET" 1950's;
JOHN CAGE NOISE SPECIAL 1966;
JOHN CAGES' "4:33" PERFORMED BY WILLIAM MARX;
Whatever clever artsy idea you think you had, John Cage has already done it. Probably better too.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
JOHN CAGE & TAKEHISA KOSUGI:
World’s longest concert will last 639 years
By Maura Judkis (Washington Post)
You’d be praying for intermission if you attended even just a fraction of the world’s longest concert. Now in its 10th year, “Organ²/ASLSP(As SLow aS Possible),” by avant-garde composer John Cage, is just getting started.
Composer, John Cage rehearses his 12-hour composition "Empty Words" in Hartford, Conn., in 1981. (Anonymous - ASSOCIATED PRESS)
The concert began in 2001 at the former St. Burchard church in Halberstadt, Germany, and is scheduled to conclude in 2640, for a duration of 639 years. Though Cage did not specify a duration for his piece, the length was chosen because the start date for the performance is 639 years after Nicolaus Faber built the first church organ. Other performances of the piece have lasted between 29 and 70 minutes.
The Halberstadt performance, by an automated organ, progresses so slowly that visitors have to wait months for a chord change (for one note change, in 2008, more than 1,000 visitors came to listen). They occur on the fifth of the month, but the next one isn’t scheduled until July 2012. The organ emits a low meditative hum at all times. You can hear it on the ASLSP Web site.
The performance is so slow that the organ it is being played on was not even complete before the music began. Pipes were added to the organ, which keeps the music steady thanks to a machine called a blower that provides a constant stream of air, in 2008.
Supporters can sponsor a note for a year with a donation of 1000 € or more. Those who donate can choose any year through 2640, and will receive a metal plaque with their name and year in the church.
Fans of Cage, such as board chairman of the town’s John Cage Organ Foundation, Rainer Neugebauer, say that the performance is a rebuke of hectic modern life.
“Everything does not need to happen so fast. If something needs a bit longer then it can give us an inner calm that is rare in normal life.”
Update, Nov. 28: There is competition for the world’s longest concert. On Twitter, Mark Polishook alerts Arts Post to Longplayer, a 1,000-year-long musical score that is being played by computers.
JOHN CAGE PERFORMS "WATER WALK" ON "I'VE GOT A SECRET" 1950's;
JOHN CAGE NOISE SPECIAL 1966;
JOHN CAGES' "4:33" PERFORMED BY WILLIAM MARX;
Labels:
John Cage,
William Marx
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