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04-13-12 Footnotes
Show 333: Alabama Shakes & Nicki Minaj Review
Listen to the MP3 Stream of this show: (link)
Download the Podcast: (Download the MP3)
1 There’s no limit to the inspiration Bob Dylan provides in every medium. The latest example? A Brazilian production company has acquired the rights to adapt Dylan’s 1975 album Blood on the Tracks into an English-language feature film. Whether you subscribe to the theory that the album was inspired by Dylan’s marital woes or Anton Chekhov short stories, as Dylan asserts, the producers plan on capturing the “feeling” of the album. Jim and Greg suggest some albums that might make better cinematic adaptations:
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society
The River
The ArchAndroid
Parklife
Zen Arcade
The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
Funeral
2 Jim Marshall, the father of loud and the inventor of the Marshall amp died last week at age 88. As Jim explains, nothing beats the power of the Marshall. Its sound was coveted by everyone from Jimi Hendrix to Nirvana. Only Spinal Tap’s Nigel Tufnel felt the need to improve it.
3 The Alabama Shakes have only just released one full-length album and its members are only their early 20s, but already they are receiving a staggering amount of praise. Their fans include critics as well as Patterson Hood of the Drive-By Truckers and Jack White. Jim and Greg think they deserve every accolade they get for successfully bringing back and updating that great soul and rock sound of the south in the ‘60s and ‘70s. The quartet includes lead singer Brittany Howard, guitarist Heath Fogg, bassist Zac Cockrell, and drummer Steve Johnson, plus touring keyboard player Ben Tanner. And Brittany and Heath explain to our hosts that they have diverse musical tastes, but are certainly very influenced by the Muscle Shoals sound. Another key to loving the Alabama Shakes? Brittany’s voice, of which she’s too modest. Check out the larger-than-life performance in our studio.
4 She may be hip hop’s answer to Lady Gaga. Nicki Minaj has the hair and costumes, and now chart success to boot. Her new album Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded has gone to #1, taking down fellow diva Madonna. It’s a follow up to 2010’s Pink Friday, which Jim thought had an interesting and unlikely combination of diverse elements including Missy Elliott’s eccentricity and Lil Kim’s provocation. But now she’s added pop to the stew, and things aren’t melding as well. Jim criticizes the sub-American Idol balladry and her awful singing. But most offensive is her harsh language about women. Greg agrees Minaj is a frustrating artist. He’s fascinated by some of her work and her alter-ego Roman Zolanski, but she falls into some terrible clichés. Roman Reloaded gets a double Trash It.
Songs Featured in Show #333
Bob Dylan, “Tangled Up in Blue,” Blood on the Tracks, Columbia, 1975
Jimi Hendrix, “Purple Haze,” BBC Sessions, MCA, 1998
Alabama Shakes, “Hang Loose,” Boys & Girls, Rough Trade, 2012
Alabama Shakes, “Hold On (Live on Sound Opinions),” Boys & Girls, Rough Trade, 2012
Alabama Shakes, “Boys & Girls,” Boys & Girls, Rough Trade, 2012
Alabama Shakes, “I Ain’t the Same,” Boys & Girls, Rough Trade, 2012
Lynyrd Skynyrd, “Sweet Home Alabama,” Second Helping, MCA, 1974
Paul Simon, “Kodachrome,” There Goes Rhymin’ Simon, Columbia, 1973
Alabama Shakes, “I Found You (Live on Sound Opinions),” Boys & Girls, Rough Trade, 2012
Alabama Shakes, “You Ain’t Alone (Live on Sound Opinions),” Boys & Girls, Rough Trade, 2012
Alabama Shakes, “Rise to the Sun,” Boys & Girls, Rough Trade, 2012
Nicki Minaj, “Right By My Side,” Pink Holiday: Roman Reloaded, Young Money, 2012
Nicki Minaj, “Roman Holiday,” Pink Holiday: Roman Reloaded, Young Money, 2012
Black Dice, “Spy Vs. Spy,” Mr. Impossible, Ribbon Music, 2012
Kraftwerk, “The Telephone Call,” Electric Café, Kling Klang, 1986
Aretha Franklin, “Climbing Higher Mountains,” Amazing Grace: The Complete Recordings, Rhino, 1999
Kings of Leon, “Use Somebody,” Only by the Night, RCA, 2008
Girls, “Honey Bunny,” Father, Son, Holy Ghost, True Panther Sounds, 2011
Yuck, “Get Away,” Yuck, Fat Possum, 2011
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