Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Thomas Ravenel Playlist

Posted by T. Ballard Lesemann on Wed, Jun 20, 2007 at 7:16 PM

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A quick 16-song rock 'n' roll playlist for the S.C. State Treasurer:

“Nobody’s Fault But Mine” — Led Zeppelin

“Pusherman” — Curtis Mayfield

“Totally Wired” — The Fall

“With a Little Help from My Friends” — The Beatles

“Cocaine Blues” — Johnny Cash

“Share” — Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers

“Casey Jones” — The Grateful Dead

“Drug Train” — The Cramps

“Cocaine” — J.J. Cale/Eric Clapton

“Bales of Cocaine” — Reverend Horton Heat

“Big Shot” — Billy Joel

“Dr. Feelgood” — Mötley Crüe

“Learning to Fly” — Tom Petty

“Smuggler’s Blues” — Glenn Frey

“White Line Fever” — Motörhead

“Speed Freak” — Motörhead

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Pints of Stout on Daniel Island

Posted by T. Ballard Lesemann on Tue, Jun 19, 2007 at 11:28 AM

We’re diving back into “Swig” mode at the City Paper with a series of reviews covering the bar and tavern scene — especially some of the newly-opened spots around town. This week, look for a piece on McCaffrey’s Irish Pub & Restaurant in the Cuisine section.

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Located at 245 Seven Farms Rd. (377-8400) just past the firehouse on Daniel Island, McCaffrey’s opened just a few weeks ago as part of the Guinness Irish Pub family, a business concept launched in Dublin in the 1990s by the famous Irish brewery. Guinness developed the “Irish pub concept” to help entrepreneurs open Irish pubs abroad. The mission statement cites “four key elements which make an Irish pub so special” — pub design and ambiance; friendly efficient bar staff; appealing Irish food and drink; Irish music and entertainment.

They're booking acoustic folk and bluegrass acts on weekends and will soon expand the schedule to include "open mic" nights. Stay tuned.

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Can they pull off a proper "fish and chips?" Well, their fried cod is crispy and delicious, but the "chips" are still bit rubbery. Can they pour a perfect pint of Guinness Stout? They come pretty damn close with a slow pour pour and a one-finger head of foam. Cheers.

Friday, June 15, 2007

Party at the Point: rained out

Posted by T. Ballard Lesemann on Fri, Jun 15, 2007 at 3:34 PM

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This evening's edition of "Party at the Point" (Fri. June 15) has been canceled due to rainy weather. The shagadelic East Coast Party Band were to perform at 6 p.m. The series picks back up next week with live music from Simplified, a Charlotte-based rock/party band ready play two sets at the Charleston Harbor Resort (20 Patriots Point Blvd.) starting at 6 p.m. Fri. June 22. Unless the thunderstorms get us again…

Thursday, June 14, 2007

“Living on the lighted stage approaches the unreal"

Posted by T. Ballard Lesemann on Thu, Jun 14, 2007 at 4:24 PM

Touring behind the new studio album, Snakes & Arrows, Canadian rock veterans Rush performed at the HiFi Buys Amphitheatre in Atlanta last night. An old band friend from Athens called me from the show during the band’s rendition of “Circumstances” (off the album Hemispheres). I caught about 45 seconds before the call ended — it was all fuzzy and distorted, but the Geddy Lee voice cut right through.

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I will gladly admit it: I’ve been a dedicated Rush fan for over 20 years. My dad bought me my first snare drum the same year Canadian prog-rock trio Rush released their finest album, 1981’s Moving Pictures. I was still fiddling around with paradiddles and flams, trying to figure out the best way to grip the drumsticks when the album’s three major hits — “Tom Sawyer,” nostalgic and tuneful “Red Barchetta” and elegant “Limelight” — were landing on the rock radio airwaves.

Rush sounded heavy and serious. Lee’s crackly, high-pitched voice worked in extreme registers and was frightening and earnest. Alex Lifeson’s guitar and Lee’s bass grinded simultaneously. It sounded like a machine, devoid of superfluity. Most important to my impressionable ears, Neil Peart’s fiery drumming was a study in precision, dynamics and control. I dove head first into the Rush catalogue and, by age 13, had

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acquired everything from the Sabbath ’n’ Zep-sounding 1974 self-titled debut (with original drummer John Rutsey) and the over-the-top sci-fi fantasy album Fly By Night to the deadly-serious concept album 2112 (based on the writings of Ayn Rand … and other weird stuff, from the looks of the Chinese silk robes they were wearing on the back cover, see pic at left), and the musically adventurous A Farewell To Kings and Hemispheres.

Of course, Rush’s triple-album pinnacle — Permanent Waves, Moving Pictures, and Signals — coincided with the whole post-punk/new wave movement that was happening in the U.K. and the States. The trio never quite fit into any of it, despite main lyricist Neil Peart’s “futuristic” tales (new technology, Cold War apocalypse, a society subdivided, etc.), additional keyboards and synth sounds, and a curious new element of reggae-tinged pop. Even Lee’s new skinny ties and Lifeson’s new surfer haircut (circa ‘82 or so) looked awkwardly unfashionable. No matter. The songs, hooks and solos were all there, intact and as effective as ever.

Through the late ’80s and ’90s, their material fluctuated in quality and sagged with excessive sound affects and low energy, but by 2000 or so, they stripped things down and went all rock trio again. I caught them in Atlanta and Charlotte recently and thoroughly enjoyed both shows. Damn, I wish I was there last night.

chord? pedal?

Posted by T. Ballard Lesemann on Thu, Jun 14, 2007 at 12:21 AM

What happened to the feisty Chord & Pedal web site? Have they taken a spring vacation — or have they been unplugged somehow?

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