Open Doors

The Doors are one of my all time favorite bands. The dark, acid-tripping, psychedelic nature of the music is mesmerizing. Unfortunately, The Doors only came out with only six studio albums (compared to The Beatles twelve). Since Jim Morrison’s untimely death in 1971, The Doors franchise has gone berserk.

“Light my fire” with a Jim Morrison lighter on a Jim Morrison Candle. Pretend to be Jim Morrison with a Jim Morrison Action Figure. Relive his arrest, with a Jim Morrison mug shot poster. Be the cool kid at school with a Jim Morrison lunch box, Jim Morrison earrings, or heck, go all out by wearing a Jim Morrison Wig. Show your patriotism, with Jim Morrison on an American Flag. Mail a letter with a Morrison Postage Stamp. Show your devotion to Morrison with this depiction of Jim Morrison with a crown of thorns or how about Morrison as a Hindu god? Relive his death with a poster of his grave. Wait a second, maybe he (like Elvis) is not actually dead?!? Watch a documentary about Jim’s ghost. There is even a video of some guy who claims to be Jim Morrison- alive and living as a cowboy!

If you don’t feel completely ill at the thought of some “new” music by Jim Morrison and The Doors, you should check out remixes (links connect to the official Doors website) by Paul Oakenfield, Crystal Method, BT Vs. The Doors, and even Snoop Dogg!

The only really intriguing thing I could find about Jim Morrison on the web is this video which has a young Jim Morrison playing the roll of a student who was rejected from Florida State University. The reason I like it so much is because Jim is so clean cut in it (no leather pants, no mugging for the camera, no sunglasses, short hair!) and because it humanizes him rather than deifies him like in most other instances.

Related Tags: The Doors, Jim Morrison, Snoop Dogg, , Paul Oakenfield, Crystal Method

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Sweet Analog Goodness

I recently came across some sweet galleries of cassette tapes [via]. Both pages are fun and bring back memories of making mix tapes. If you don’t mind going analog, you can get some great deals at thrift stores and assorted mainstream stores that still have a small selection of cassettes.

Cassette Jam is a sensory overload gallery of cassettes in an all-you-can eat fashion. This web-page gets straight to the point, but is not much for the cassette aficionado.

If you prefer your tapes in an orderly fashion so you can enjoy each logo, scratch, ridge, and paste-it-yourself label (along with wine and caviar, of course), you will enjoy TapeDeck.org. It has tape galleries divided by brand, playing time, and tape quality. Be sure to click on the cassettes. They each zoom into a larger image. This zoom feature is high tech!

Enough of that analog stuff. Back to the blogosphere…

Related Tags: cassette, tape deck, analog, mix tape

Howl at the Moon

Peter Rowan has had many touches with greatness as a member of:

*Bill Monroe‘s Bluegrass boys
*David Grisman‘s group Earth Opera (They opened for The Doors numerous times)
*Old & In The Way (with Jerry Garcia, David Grisman, and Vassar Clements)

However, Rowan remains widely unknown. Though, he did pen the fantastic song Midnight Moonlight. I checked out some of Rowan’s other material on his album The Rowans. The album has a nice feel to it but the real gem on it is the version of Midnight Moonlight. Here is a full version of Midnight Moonlight played by the Dark Star Orchestra (who are quite good. even though they are cover band). By The Way, I’d love a copy of Old & In The Way‘s self titled album however, it is out of print and Crazy Expensive. And yes, that’s on CD…

Have another favorite Rowan song? Do share.

Related Tags: Peter Rowan, Bill Monroe, David Grisman, Jerry Garcia, The Doors, Midnight Moonlight, Dark Star Orchestra, DSO, Vassar Clements

Can I get an Amen?

What is 5.2 seconds long, consists of 16 beats, and is sampled in more songs than anything else? It’s the Amen, Break! Well, you might be saying- heck, that’s not a lost melody! I’ve heard it a million times! True, but have you ever heard the complete original version of the song: Amen, Brother played by the funk group The Winstons? It’s the B-side of a 1969 single, hardly a well known piece (besides the 5.2 seconds). Want to learn how this almost lost melody became integral to hip-hop culture? Check out this amazing documentary about the beat, it’s staying power, and history. Have a nice weekend.

Related Tags: Winstons, Amen Brother, Amen Break, funk,

Going Postal

So, I was recently over my friends place and he started playing an acoustic version of the Postal Service song Such Great Heights on his guitar. I was blown away by the sounds of this song done with finger picking. Only after finishing playing did he say “oh, that’s how Iron and Wine plays that song.” This song isn’t exactly a lost melody, but hey, it sounds like it is. This version is timeless, beautiful, and dare I say- may even be better than the original (which I do think is fantastic). Don’t hate it just because it was featured in an M&M commercial. Which version of the song do you prefer?

Related Tags: Postal Service, Such Great Heights, M&M commercial, Iron and Wine, music

Runnin’ all ‘Round my Brain

There are two great songs, both by the name of Cocaine Blues. The better known version is probably the one that Johnny Cash made famous and whose lyrics state:

Early one mornin’ while makin’ the rounds
I took a shot of cocaine and shot my woman down
I went right home and I went to bed
I stuck that lovin’ 44 beneath my head

The other version is a traditional tune that Dave Van Ronk made famous in the 1960s whose lyrics include:

Hey baby, you better come here quick.
This old cocaine is making me sick.
Cocaine all around my brain.
Cocaine’s for horses and it’s not for men
Doctor said it kill you, but he don’t say when.
Cocaine all around my brain.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to find Van Ronk’s definitive version of Cocaine Blues anywhere besides this clip. The only other recordings of Van Ronk I could find were from a 1985 public radio interview. If you skip to 32:45 into the interview, you can hear some live recording of Van Ronk’s legendary finger picking. If you are able to find more Dave Van Ronk material online, let me know!

Dylan used to sing the traditional version of Cocaine Blues as well, though I was not able to find it on any of his official albums. I found a weird neo-psychodelic version of the tune here by some guy who goes by name Entrance. Additionally, here is a nice version of the song sung by Jackson Browne. Enjoy 🙂

Related Tags: cocaine blues, Dave Van Ronk, Johnny Cash, Jackson Browne, Bob Dylan, music

What is the name of that song?

I find myself saying those words a lot when listening to the radio. Sometimes, I write down lyrics from the song in question and later do a search on google. However, there is a better way! Yes.com [via lifehacker] lets you track radio playlists in real time. Quite a cool website. Have a nice weekend!

Related Tags: Music, Lifehacker, yes.com, radio

Lost Crowes on Lost Melodies: CD Giveaway!

This is a first for Lostmelodies.com, I am giving away a copy of The Black Crowes brand new two-disc set, entitled Lost Crowes. Read the rules at the end of this post. Twice The Black Crowes, best known for songs such as Remedy and She Talks to Angels, have recorded albums that were never officially released: Tall in 1993 and Band in 1997. What a bummer, especially with the dearth of good rock albums in rescent years. Though a few songs from these lost albums were rerecorded and released on studio albums, many have emerged only through the band’s live shows. The Crowes recently went into the vault, collecting the best moments from those abandoned sessions for this two-disc set. The compilation will be available August 29. The same day, the band’s 1992 home video, Who Killed That Bird Out On Your Window Sill, will make its DVD debut.

The track listing is as follows
Disc 1: The Band Sessions
1. “Paint An 8”
2. “Grinnin”
3. “If It Ever Stops Raining”
4. “Wyoming & Me”
5. “Predictable”
6. “Never Forget This Song”
7. “Life Vest”
8. “Another Roadside Tragedy”
9. “My Heart’s Killing Me”
10. “Peace Anyway”
Disc 2: The Tall Sessions
1. “A Conspiracy”
2. “Evil Eye”
3. “Cursed Diamond”
4. “London P25”
5. “Dirty Hair Halo”
6. “Hi-Head Blues”
7. “Feathers”
8. “Nonfiction”
9. “Tied Up And Swallowed”
10. “Wiser Time”
12. “Sunday Buttermilk Waltz”
12. “Descending”
13. “Lowdown”
14. “Tornado”
15. “Songs Of The Flesh”
16. “Thunderstorm 6:54”

Contest Rules are simple. Email me at lostmelodies@lostmelodies.com

1. Your favorite lost melody (not yet published on this site), background information on the song/artist and why this should be picked. You don’t need to send contact information, you will be notified by email if you win.
2. Must provide a link to the song (ex. youtube, archive.org, another website, etc). Attachments will not be considered. 3. There is no limit on the number of entries.
3. Winner will receive The Lost Crowes two CD set and will have his or her posting featured on this site. Second place, Third place, etc. may be featured as seen fit.
4. This Contest rules section of the site with be removed when a winner has been found

Related Tags: Black Crowes, Lost Crowes, Lost Melodies, Giveaway, Free, music, CD, Rock

TaB: Tastes Great, Less Filling!

I love that when I listen a song that I enjoy, I can search on the Internet and find guitar tablature so I can learn how to play it on my own. Of course, I could listen to the song over and over again to figure out the exact chords, but if there is an easier way, why not use it? Even though the Tabs are often in the wrong key, have misspelled lyrics, do not include time signatures, are very limited in the dynamics that are written (if any), the recording industry wants to take this away from us. Even if I wanted to find sheet music for most pieces, often it just does not exist. Here is an NPR story about this. If you find ways to fight for the right to keep tablature available, please post in the comments section! Thanks.

P.S. I changed the look of the site. Love it? Hate it? Let me know.

Related Tags: music, guitar, tablature, NPR, lost melodies

 

Gone, but not forgotten

It’s been quite a while since I posted anything onto this site, though people are still finding my site through many different means which makes me quite happy. So, I have been super busy. working until 11pm most nights and have not had the time to make quality posts. Though I will continue to write on this site when I get a chance (right now seems to be a good chance), let me know If you are interested in frequent or periodic writings on this site. I’d definitely be interested in that.

Even if I wanted to foget about the site, I couldn’t because of all the wonderful comments that people like you leave. Two particular comments that struck my fancy are:

Kurt Schroeder‘s June 9th 2006 comment: “Thank you! Thank you! I have been trying to remember the name of this song (Polk Salad Annie) and the artist (Tony Joe White) for over twenty years. I’m getting the CD today.”

Comment’s like that make me want to keep on writing this blog. Thank you, Kurt.
Another one which I find too juicy to not share with you would be by Bill dollar, who writes” Here’s a weird story about Buddy Holly you probably haven’t heard.. go to www.billdollarmusic.blogspot.com and scroll down to Not Fade Away…” The mythology of the story is very enjoyable.

Thank you for being patient. Best thing to do if you want to stay updated on my site is to subscribe to the RSS feed. Anyway,… tomorrow, I will post some new thoughts about music. Cheers!