VAN HALEN CONQUERS LOS ANGELES

After attending the Van Halen show at the Pepsi Center and seeing once again what made the band great, I was once again hooked and needed a second fix. We ain’t talkin' 'bout love, this is bordering on obsession. Wanting to dance the night away after somebody got me Doctor Roth who prescribed a shot, or two. It led to buying a ticket and an airplane reservation. Destination Los Angeles.

After waiting impatiently for two weeks, Saturday arrived and it was time to go. I got on board the 1:30 PM Southwest flight and was in LA shortly after 3 their time. Checked into the hotel and then off to dinner. I arrived at the Staples Center by 6:30 and smoked a cigar outside in a throng of people in what appears to be one of LA’s hubs of entertainment. The place was swarming with police, their presence being felt blocks away. The outdoor PA system was playing VH1.

It was time to go in and claim my seat. As I stood in line I began feel the secret stash of tequila dripping into my shoe. After I made it through the metal detector and security, a trip to the bathroom revealed that more than half the drink was gone, replenished with very expensive double shots bought at the bar. By the time I got to my seat another sizable portion of the tequila I brought in soaked my pants pocket. I reeked of alcohol, even before I took my first drink. However, my intake that evening was carefully measure to avoid crossing the line which could only spell trouble.

I was seated on the floor, row 8 in the center of the stage, right between where Dave and Eddie stand. I couldn’t have asked for anything better! Kool and the Gang did a great job warming up the crowd with their catchy dance music. I still find myself running one or two of their tunes through my head. They started the party with their 11 member band on stage. After a quick set change, the Staples Center filled to capacity and the Van Halen took the stage to thunderous cheering, playing to their home town crowd. Everyone was on their feet for the remainder of the evening. From that point on I never stopped dancing in front of that folding chair behind me. I was in another world.

There was no need to watch the giant video screen behind the stage this evening, because I could see everything happening clearly on stage: Dave’s giant, stupid grin, Eddie concentrating on his guitar, Alex thrashing the drums, and Wolfgang throwing big smiles at his dad. There’s no mistaking that all is well between Dave and Eddie. Spending the extra money was well worth it.

Two hours goes by much too quickly and before I knew it, the closing sounds of Jump were in the confetti filled air. A final bow and the band is gone. Lights on and the crowd thins out. I want to linger but the Staples Center staff herd everyone out. I return to planet Earth when I step out into the cool night air in what is now a largely vacant Staple Center/Nokia Theater entertainment complex. I head to my usual late night spot at the Pantry Cafe down the street, where a waiting line stretches down the sidewalk. I’m single so I immediately get a seat at the counter. It felt good to drink liquids again followed by an early morning breakfast omelet. Back at the hotel I smoke a cigar on the fire escape but exhaustion sets in and I’m in bed sometime after 1 AM.

Up by 7:30 for a quick shower. I pack while watching the beginning of Private Ryan on TV. The streets are largely empty this Sunday morning as I look for a cup of coffee. I take Metro Rail back to the airport where I catch my 12:30 flight, finding myself back home by 4 PM. It’s all a dream now.

If indeed this was Van Halen's last Los Angeles concert, the foursome did not disappoint. The goup played 24 songs beginning with "Unchained" and finishing two hours later with "Jump," and every selection was a winner.

On "Everybody Wants Some," Roth was at his lascivious best. On "Panama," Alex Van Halen was hitting the drums so hard that you could feel the beats against your skin. On "Runnin' With the Devil," bassist Wolfgang Van Halen was standing on the stage riser for the intro riff, pounding the strings for all he was worth.

And on the extended guitar solo "Eruption," Eddie Van Halen -- Wolfgang's father -- was his usual amazing self, once again proving he is, unquestionably, among the very best in world. His fingers were like a blur, and the sounds were beautiful.

The crowd ate it up.

Everyone was singing along to "Ain't Talkin' Bout Love" and "The Cradle Will Rock," and even the selections from new CD "A Different Kind of Truth" went over well, particularly "Tattoo."

Van Halen came, they saw, they conquered. In turn, we paid money, swilled beer and pumped our fists. A perfect night of rock 'n' roll from one of America's all-time most popular bands.

Read it all here:
http://www.dailynews.com/ci_20832818/concert-review-van-halen-show-at-staples-could?IADID=Search-www.dailynews.com-www.dailynews.com

Here's a clip of the up coming, soon to be available bootleg recording.  WOW!

Download it here, flac:
https://rapidshare.com/files/1942239579/VHSTAPLES20120609FLAC.rar

Download it here, mp3:
https://rapidshare.com/files/2782980106/VHSTAPLES20120609MP3.rar

THE MUSIC'S PILING UP!

Life has been very busy and finding the time to post is in very short supply.  I've been both listening to and capturing some good bootleg recordings that I hope to one day share - FREE! - no exclusive clubs to join, no maintaining required upload/download ratios, no passwords to remember.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I picked up a nice piece of original art from a gallery in Albuquerque, New Mexico, as shown above.  I should give them a call, they may have the other favorite dead musician paintings done by now.  Another thing to remember to do along with everything else.
These last two weekends I've been listening to some both new and really fine music.

The Stooges
Popped

Written by "mofoking":

Can someone please remind me exactly how many decades “Stooge-lore” has been limited to verbal accounts and a few poor quality bootlegs recorded during the bands’ final year? It seems there has been more fancy commemorative packages of newly discovered Stooges recordings in the last twelve months than the past forty years.

The latest of these limited edition mail order goodies is a treasure-trove of high quality reproductions of artifacts from the personal collection of a first generation Stooges fanatic named Natalie Schlossman. During 1970, Natalie was one of very few wise enough to take in a number of Stooges gigs, snap some Polaroid’s, make some live recordings, and even author a six issue fanzine dedicated to the Stooges titled “Popped”, of which this set is named after. Her memorabilia plus a Stooges t-shirt – available in any size of your choice – and a reproduction of a flyer from a 1969 Stooges gig is included in this 11x17 polypropylene box (I should mention the CD, titled A Thousand Lights, is now available separately in limited quantities). This wonderful set is brought to you by the great Easy Action. So thank you Natalie and thank you Easy Action for putting together such an unbelievably cool package.

Buy it here:
http://www.easyaction.co.uk/index.php/component/hikashop/product/27-the-stooges-a-thousand-lights-cd?Itemid=111

Sex Pistols
Student Karen, Stockholm, Sweden July 28, 1977

These black and white photos were taken in the Old Town (Gamla Stan) part of STOCKHOLM on Friday, July 29 1977 before leaving for Linköping. John is wearing a leather jacket with a denim west and a denim cap. Some say as a bit of a disguise because of the problem with RAGGARE in Sweden. RAGGARE were, and still are, Sweden's answer to England's Teddy Boys and the USA's rednecks. Think the TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE FAMILY dressed up like ELVIS PRESLEY and riding around in an all chrome CADILLAC looking for a young punkette on her own to beat up. Most PUNKS in Sweden were around 15 and the RAGGARE were at least 10 years older.

After the gig at STUDENT KÅREN on the 28th a gang of Raggare cornered some young girls who came out from the show. The girls had safety pins through their cheeks and the Raggare ripped them right through their faces. The band was upstairs drinking beer when they heard about it. Sid wanted to go down and fight the bastards and someone else suggested that they should get the limousine and ram them down. In the end the gig organiser just called the cops.

The guy Sid is intimidating is the owner of Stockholm's only Punk boutique at the time, SUICIDE. He followed the band around and tried to get them to wear his gear. The band spent the afternoon of the 28th in the shop signing autographs and trying on clothes. The shop had ordered a new leather jacket specially for Sid which Sid immediately hated and declared "Poxy, vile, corny and twee". John found a pair of leopard-skin-topped shoes in the shop (''They're really horrible, I must have them, I could start another absurd trend''). With the shop owner and his girlfriend were their neighbour's two really young kids. Sid spent a lot of time with them during the day and when they had lo leave he gave one of them his favourite t-shirt.

Read it all here:
http://www.acc.umu.se/~samhain/summerofhate/stockholm2.html#stockholm2

Download it here:
http://www.filefactory.com/file/cbe5b1c/n/SexPis.1977-07-28.Stockholm.FLAC.by.T.U.B.E.rar

Or here:
https://rapidshare.com/#!download|540|270701919|Student_Karen__Stockholm__Sweden_28.07.77.rar|54526

Echo and the Bunnymen
Amsterdam November 29, 1980

A nice, generally clear set they performed in Amsterdam.  Always a pleasure listening to young Ian's voice.

Download it here:
http://www.filefactory.com/file/b3751a8/n/EcBun.1980-11-29.Amsterdam.FLAC.by.T.U.B.E.part1
http://www.filefactory.com/file/b37519e/n/EcBun.1980-11-29.Amsterdam.FLAC.by.T.U.B.E.part2

Suede
Live On Jools Holland, June 4, 1993

This is what Wikiedia says about the band for 1993:

In the year leading up to the release of their debut album, Suede were the most written-about band in Britain.  The self titled Suede entered the British charts at number one, registering the biggest initial sales of a debut since Frankie Goes to Hollywood's Welcome to the Pleasuredome a decade before.  It sold over 100,000 copies in its first week of release, going gold on its second day. The album's release was met with high critical praise and hype.  At the time it was hailed as "the most eagerly awaited debut since Never Mind The Bollocks by the Sex Pistols."  Some notable press at the time was the front cover of the April 1993 issue of Select, which is seen by many as the start of Britpop.  The album went on to win the 1993 Mercury Prize.  The band donated the entire £25,000 in prize money to Cancer Research.  Their debut was the only album released in the U.S. under the name "Suede", where it remains their highest selling release.

Following the success of the album, the band toured extensively on the continent, receiving a major covering of MTV. In July, they gave a benefit concert for Red Hot Organization at "The Grand" in London where they invited Siouxsie Sioux to perform with Butler a version of Lou Reed's "Carolyne Says".  Suede then prepared themselves for their imminent American tour in the summer of 1993. During the tours of 1993, tensions began to develop between Butler and the rest of the group.  On the first American tour tensions peaked in Los Angeles, when Butler disappeared during a soundcheck. The gig went ahead, but for the rest of the tour the two parties barely spoke.  The tensions grew worse on the second American tour mainly for the fact that Butler's father had died, which forced Suede to cancel the tour prematurely.  Butler disliked the band's indulgence on the tour during his bereavement, in which he became more alienated from the band so much that he even travelled separately.  Their American success was limited as they had already begun to be upstaged by their opening act, The Cranberries, who received the support from MTV that Suede lacked.  At times Butler left the stage while Suede was performing and convinced a member of The Cranberries to fill in for him.

Download it here:
http://www.mediafire.com/?tj5zzdqujnn

Elastica
Live at Reading Festival, UK, August 27, 1999

Elastica were an English alternative rock band that formed in 1992 by ex-Suede band members Justine Frischmann and Justin Welch, playing punk rock, post punk and new wave-influenced music.  They were best known for their 1995 album Elastica, which produced singles that charted in the US and the UK.   Justine Frischmann was originally Suede's Brett Anderson's boyfriend only to leave and hook up with Brett's/Suade's nemasis during the Britpop era, Damon Albarn of Blur. After an up and down time together, the band broke up in 2001.

A very good recording, I like the overall style, but I wish Justin's voice stood out a bit more.

Download it here:
http://dc531.4shared.com/download/-OmhPJJL/Elastica_-_Live__Reading_Festi.rar?tsid=20120602-071024-2631cf96

Nirvana
The Palace - Hollywood, CA, October 25, 1991

Nirvana.  Not much more I have to say. The Rock for Choice Benefit during which Krist ranted about politics throughout the show. The first thing you hear is Kurt saying to the audience "Keep your f***ing laws off my sister's body!"... and of course the crowd goes nuts. Krist allows two people from the audience speak their mind, one of which just screams into the mic "Nirvana F***ing RIPS!!", which I'm sure isn't what he had in mind.

Download it here:
https://rapidshare.com/#!download|464|2423997823|Nirvana_1991__Oct_25_-_The_Palace_-_Hollywood__CA.rar|155246

FUGAZI

Live Riverside Newcastle UK May 2, 1999

I was wanting something a bit more hard edged this Friday night, starting off with Fugazi.  I suspect this recording is edited down from their original set, Ian MacKaye starting off the show saying they were going to play a three hour set.  This is not a three hour recording.  Plus Ian is not chatting it up with the audience between songs as he usually does.  Great recording, good show.

Download it here:
http://www.mediafire.com/?rhnjyd1yoyz

Van Halen
London Invasion, June 23, 1980

I picked this one because the following day I was scheduled to fly to Los Angels to see them perform live, on a real stage at the Staples Center.  All arrangements were made, all I needed to do was step on the plane and get the ball rolling.  I was wanting some classic Van Halen from their day in the sun almost exactly 32 years ago.  Where has the time gone.  But, god bless them, they're still doing it.

Download it here:
http://www.filefactory.com/file/21iewuuf3yfr/n/VaHal800623LonInv-flc.rar