Independent Research Entry – Brian Eno

Interesting to think of the world without Brian Eno. What a wonderful and brilliant mind. Crazy how in 1975 he was plowed into by a Taxi cab moving 40mph. It seemed to put him at rest long enough for him to capture the ambience sound coming from one speaker due to the music being too low.

After being exposed to conceptual painting from art school in 1965 and not able to play traditional instruments Eno began to build sound sculptures and spent days on creating collages of sonically sound. Brian would speed up and down the sound and was amazed by the possibilities he could create. Most believe he is pop’s most influential artist! Eno has stamped his techniques and sound on a number of projects and artist alike. Some artist include The Velvet Underground, Maxwell Demon, Merchant Taylor’s Simultaneous Cabinet etc… Eno changed the way music was produced, mixed, approached, performed and you name it. I like how Brian collaborated with art and made it come to life. I find it very interesting that Mr. Eno calls himself a non-musician. Yet he was sitting in his Drake Hotel suite playing a lineup of glasses filled with liquids of varying degrees. (According to www.enoweb.co.uk )

As a professional in the industry I think Brian Eno’s role, as producer was incredibly needed. It takes a special person to jump out of the box to make a change and create something… That’s right, I said, “CREATE.” So many try to imitate something that’s already being done. Here we have someone that said, “Ok, I may not be able to play an instrument but it doesn’t mean that I can’t get involved and CREATE music.” I wonder, “what if everybody sat down for one minute a day and thought about something they could do or CREATE that would change the world forever.” – Our world might be in better shape!

Peer Review – William Rivera

 I think it is great that you choose Dr. Dre for your final blog in MHII. I had no idea that the Dr. had produced that many successful artist. I feel that music, if produced the right way can touch the hearts of millions. In my personal opinion most artist come to the table with an idea but don’t know how to achieve the impact without a producer around. Just like Lennon always did with producer George Martin. Dr. Dre played a very important role in many lives and will continue to touch people world over through his image and understanding on an ever-demanding industry. Thanks for the wonderful read!

Your Pal, Joshua

Double Trouble Reunion, May 25th 2012

Double Trouble Reunion

May 25^th at 3^rd & Lindsley, Nashville TN.

It is May 25^th, 2012. A packed house ready to receive what most would consider a powerhouse of the best electric blues Nashville TN has ever heard. Walking in from the front of the club you would give your ticket to the guy at the door and pass through the open bar onto the main seating area lined with tables. All of the lights are dim looking up at the balcony and wrapping my head around amazed at the atmosphere. Here it is going on to 7:00 P.M. the musicians take the stage and the crowd cheers.

“For the lineup tonight we have the Original Double Trouble featuring Chris 'Whipper' Layton, Tommy Shannon, Reese Wynans, Jack Pearson, Mike Farris, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Dave Perkins, Tom Britt, Bart Walker, Rob McNally, Tom Bukovac, Gary Nicholson, James Pennebaker and a few guest.”

The crowd cheers some more!

I noticed several electric guitar sounds played through amps with pedals and ‘mic’ed for perfection. Off to the left of the stage you had Double Trouble’s keyboard/organist player Reese Wynans. In the middle there was Chris ‘Whipper’ on this nice candy apple red drum set with a sparkle no one could miss, bearing the clubs name in black literature on the front of the kick drum. To the right of the drums opposite side of Reese is the bassist Tommy Shannon on his Fender electric. These guys played throughout the show for two 70-minute sets.

The sound was amazing! Several floor monitors and speakers hanging from trusses and chained from the ceiling. There was never any raw sounds or annoying static. I was very pleased with the overall show. I enjoyed that every member improvised the whole show with very little practice… One could tell that the blues was apart of them and the audience as well! I could feel the universal circle of energy between the artist and me. Being in front of the stage versus the recorded versions gave the best experience one could ever understand.

Double Trouble started out as the band Triple Threat Revue created by Stevie Ray Vaughan in 1978 with an all-star cast consisting of Lou Ann Barton (Vocals), Fredde Walden (Drums), Jackie Newhouse (Bass), and Johnny Reno (Saxophone). The name Double Trouble came from a song done by Otis Rush. In 1985 the final group consisted of Chris Layton (Drums), Tommy Shannon (bass), and Reese Wynans (Keyboards).

I had the luxury of meeting the band and was able to ask them a few questions. I wanted to know what their reaction was to the success of technology and how they feel it has changed for better or worse. To sum it up they all felt the same about the question. 

Before the digital age life was expensive and it took forever to send mail and communicate. (The manager/coordinator had $900.00 a month payments on phone bills and faxes) It cost money to send press releases and information. Now with the ever-growing Internet/technology the group was able to send emails much faster and locate potential clients etc… Even though this reduced the high-end monthly payment, the band itself had more responsibilities. With this they talk about 1000’s of emails, non-stop questions and the “I know you, how are things going” questions. The stress can put a strain on not just the band but all other musicians/artist alike. (If you don’t say something at all, or if you say the wrong thing, people can get confused, upset and angry) With the rise of Facebook, Twitter and all other mainstream social networks life on the road can get crazy… (All they want to do is entertain)

“Its tuff out there for a bluesman!” – Reese Wynans

“It’s not like it used to be. You gotta bite the bullet, it’s something that just evolved… It evolved.” – Tommy Shannon

“It sounds great on the stage!” – Reese Wynans

Josh Knight on Stevie Ray Vaughan

This is my podcast on Artist Stevie Ray Vaughan... I hope you like it. Thanks for watching.

http://youtu.be/QYifcxSn2f0

Peer Comment

Matt Murray,

Kraftwerk was such a wonderful phenomenon. I really liked the earlier albums Kraftwerk 1 and 2. I too feel the same way about this group. Without Kraftwerk electronic music might not ever be the same. It takes a rare breed of individuals to step out into the open and take a leap into a new direction. As you talk about the album Autobahn, we both notice a huge difference and change from the groups first two albums mentioned above. Adding new members to the group outside of Ralph and Florian contributed in a big way. I really appreciate the read and I look forward to future blogs.

Regards, Joshua

Electronic Music Innovations Entry

Electronic music has come a long way from the early innovations of technology including magnetic tape and synthesizers. Early pioneers like Kraftwerk, whom pushed the boundaries of early electronics, set the stage for other musicians alike. David Bowie and engineer Brian Eno showed so much interest, these two went left for Germany to pursue the sound. David Bowie being one of the artist using further experimentation from the Kraftwerk compositions (Electronic Music) has made mainstream success in dance music. Not just for him but even future artist like Marvin Gaye with his song SEXUAL HEALING. I think it is wonderful what groups like Kraftwerk was able to accomplish.

I really like German producer and musician Conny Plank. He crafted some wonderful masterpieces. Conny worked with several acts like Liliental and Os Mundi, Kraftwerk, Guru Guru, Cluster etc… Starting his carreer in the 1960’s as sound engineer with his first album Kluster. Lets not forget the most important albums produced in the 1970’s like Kraftwerk, Kraftwerk 2, Ralf and Florian, Autobahn etc… By this time Mr. Plank had a nice palette of imagery and taste for the electronic sound. Conny became big on mainstream rock artist in Germany and crafted a new era of production for electronic in the music industry.

As a professional I like how the electronic era came out into the public. With this I am talking about the success of David Bowie and Brian Eno and the albums Berlin Trilogy, Low, Heroes and Lodger. All of these albums where highly influenced by Conny Plank. In the long run electronic music became a step up with not only dance but also became pop. Thank you very much for your time. I hope you enjoyed reading my blog. Feel free to leave a comment below and let me know what you think.

Regards,

Joshua

Kraftwerk - Electronic Music Entry

Kraftwerk, a group from Germany came along at a time where music in my opinion needed a change. Conny Plank who was the engineer for a few albums had such an amazing way to express the group and their talented abilities as musicians and composers. I think it is wonderful how the band created hand-made instruments using limited technology, perfect for that one-of-a-kind sound. Kraftwerk had a way to put imagery to the music with powerful concepts and ideas. The group would create an album based on one concept. Like in the 1970’s album Autobahn, the idea of highway traffic and street cars. Just like in the album Radio Activity with the album sleeve looking like an actual radio. Kraftwerk would put pictures in the studio on the console to help with creating ideas during the mixing stage.

This group consisted of two main members, Ralf and Florian, two innovators and creators of the robot image and founder of Kraftwerk. With the release of Autobahn in 1974 the band was far away from the earlier albums created and set the stage for a new era in dance electronic music. For that reason the group has become a huge success and spawned influences like David Bowie, John Foxx, Gary Numan, RUN-DMC and many on into the future I’m sure. Kraftwerks image of mysterious robot movements gave us all new heights and ideas of creativity.

As a professional in the industry of music and engineering I think it is amazing what Kraftwerk was able to do. This group made such a huge impact on many generations and many to come. What I like most about this group is that they were able to create music to a picture or image without getting lost in the process. It is very easy to get sidetracked in this industry. Sticking to the theme is what did it for me. Thanks for reading.

Regards, Joshua

Josh Knight on The BEATLEs (Podcast)

http://youtu.be/q_KQnxTdj58

Peer Comment

Alonzo,

I really like your detailed information about Marvin Gaye. It is very sad that Marvin was gunned down by his father in 1984. All of the wonderful music we will miss out on. It is also sad that he didn’t get the recognition from Gordy that he deserved either. In Gordy’s mind it was him that made Gaye who he was. Anna whom you spoke about taking Marvin’s side on the release of the album seemed to really like Gaye even though they both had there differences at times. I wonder how Marvin felt when she just stormed back to Gordy during their relationship when times got tuff. As always, I appreciate the read. Good job friend!

Your pal, Joshua Knight

Velvet Underground & Nico Entry

The image behind the Velvet Underground & Nico is obviously Andy Warhol and his fabulous artistry. I like how Andy mixed music, film and art. I get this eccentric vibe when I’m watching the music behind the art. This makes for a new bread of artistic flow. I understand that this can also be very inspirational to many, not just as musicians but as artist. It’s nice to know that we can take things to different levels. Out of the ordinary, to me this is art. Art takes time and has to be crafted. I recall as an art student in school, my teacher told me that you cant mess up in art. “In some way I believe this is true.” It’s time to push past the boundary. Some believe without Warhol the band would have not made it as far. 

So the Velvet Underground consists of Lou Reed who is the main songwriter, singer and guitarist. Lou also likes photography. John Cale, collaborated deeply with Reed on the writing and musical aspects alike for the first two albums, The Velvet Underground & Nico and White Light/White Heat. John left the group after that for disagreements with Lou.

The bands main support besides it’s fans from the 60’s would be no other then Andy Warhol himself. Of course there were others. However, Andy wanted to put art with pop music. He thought that by combining the three elements discussed earlier we could change the way people think. In 1966 Warhol puts together this ‘action-underground-look-at-your-self-film project’ hosted at the psychiatry society’s 43^rd annual dinner at Delmonico’s Hotel. He referred to the group as apart of the multimedia road-show, Exploding Plastic Inevitable. Let’s not forget the contract Andy got for the group as their manager with MGM’s Verve Records. Tom Wilson was the producer of The Velvet Underground & Nico and White Light/White Heat.

As a professional I feel that the compositions are a little distorted but important to the world of music… It is nice to show that music has come a long way and that we can push the boundaries as we want!

What’s Going On

Marvin Gaye was such an exceptional person when it came to music. He had a heart and felt what others were feeling. Looking on the outside in, he seemed comical and interesting. However, being on the inside seemed as demanding as ever. He was married to Anna, Berry Gordy’s sister in which was the owner of Hitsville U.S.A. ‘The Snake-Pit’. With thoughts and images from the letters his brother Frankie sent from his 3-year tour of duty in Vietnam, and the memories of his fathers abusiveness had set the stage very clear for the song WHATS GOING ON. Of course, lets not forget the 1967 “race riot” that enriched the sky with the burning smell of houses and local businesses.

Gaye had to overcome so much pressure to get the song WHATS GOING ON released into mainstream media. With the war and politics and crazy riots everywhere Mr. Gordy was sure it would ruin him and his image. Berry recalls a time when Marvin was so excited about the song. Gordy told a T.V. interviewer,

“He called and said, ‘Lookit, I’ve got to release this album. I’ve got these songs, it’s great. ‘When he told me they were protest songs, I said, ‘Marvin, why do you want to ruin your career? Why do you want to put out a song about the Vietnam war, police brutality and all of these things? You’ve got all these great love songs. You’re the hottest artist, the sex symbol of the ‘60’s and ‘70s…’”

Finally Gaye made him an ultimatum, until Berry and his Quality Control cabal came to release WHATS GOING ON, Marvin would do nothing more for the company. Marvin Gaye was the first of the soul era to produce a record aiming to make a difference within the community and take a political strike at cultural. His vocals were blended and stacked or overdubbed in a high and low part for the recording. (He did a couple of lead mono takes accidentally dubbed together) founded by accident, this later became a hallmark of his vocal style.

As an industry professional, I see a person that would stop at nothing to see his dreams, wants and desired come to pass. Some good and some bad, but in the end most obstacles were overcome. Haunted by drug addiction like most other artist of that time, in which influenced his playing style and tangible writing techniques. He seemed to have much to say, R.I.P. Marvin. 

A Passage about Producer Phil Spector & John Lennon:

I was reading this wonderful book called SONIC ALCHEMY and would like to share something from the passage... I had no idea about this at all... Defiantly something you don't hear about.

This is after being forced to Re-locate to Record Plant West from getting kicked out of A&M studios during one of producer Phil Spector and John Lennon's studio rages...

- The endless sessions came to a final grinding halt after Spector punched Lennon's longtime friend Mal Evans in the nose. Before Evans could retaliate, Spector brandished his pistol in front of Lennon and shot a hole in the studio ceiling. Totally freaking out, the ex-Beatle yelled,

"Phil, if you're gonna kill me, kill me. But don't f***k with me ears. I need 'em."

(This was the end of their partnership)***

For any of you that don't know who Phil Spector is, he truly was an early pioneer along with George Martin in the 60's... (But, boy was he crazy at times)

Did anyone know that he is still locked up for the shooting death of a female visitor that occurred at his Alhambra, California mansion in February 2003?

"Spector has since been released from custody and has not been charged with any wrongdoing in the ongoing investigation."

How crazy!!!!

References
Howard, D. N. (2004). THE PIONEERS: PHIL SPECTOR AND GEORGE MARTIN. Sonic alchemy: visionary music producers and their maverick recordings (p. 41). Milwaukee, WI: Hal Leonard Corp..

The Beatles’ Revolver

Leading up to the album Revolver, life for the Beatles was limited in my opinion. The band feels that there is not much different between the album Rubber Soul and Revolver. They feel it could be part one and two. The group was limited in the since because they had to stay in hotels and couldn’t leave their rooms. ‘Beetlemania’ happened and it was just crazy and insane. If the group wanted to go out they simply couldn’t. Life for them was ruff.

For the album the group experienced with an assortment of instruments. My favorite of the many the group has chosen would be the Sitar. The band found new sounds with every instrument they used. I guess it could be compared to how guitar players find new sounds with the assortment of pedals.  When talking about the compositions it seems that LSD played a big role for the album Revolver. Not just musically or lyrically but to also include the interest in Harmonics. When writing John Lennon got ideas for the song TOMORROW NEVER KNOW from the Tibetan Book of the Dead. So you can see that influence can come from a wide arrange of different aspects outside of the musical background.

While in the recording studio, George Martin and Geoff Emerick variously claimed credit for the innovative use of backward guitars and vocals on the Revolver album. Rewinding in the studio. The group would carry around this handheld tape machine. The Mark 5, considered to them as a notebook to jot down ideas to come back to later. Some obvious tricks used in the studio would be the wonderful Leslie speakers, backwards tape speeds and manipulation. However, there was also the behind the scenes stuff like the compressed drums and reverb on the vocals. Lets not forget putting another speaker cabinet in front of the bass amp to record. To take it a bit further. They used expensive microphones 2 foot away from the bass drum and slowed down to get a deeper more lower end sound. I like to think that they had the experimentation moving the right direction. What do you think?

I really enjoyed listening to the album Revolver. Not only do I own a copy but I also own the RPM.  I can honestly say that there is not one song on the album I do not like. In my opinion, it has given producers and writers a new way to think as we still unfold and embark on new ideas.

Thanks, Joshua

The Beach Boys, Pet Sounds album

Prior to The Beach Boys, Pet Sounds album, it seemed a little chaotic looking on the inside. The father I don’t think made it easy to be around, and he was always in the picture even after he was dropped from management in 1964. Brian I believe had it worse. I recall reading about him being in a plane covering his head with a pillow yelling and crying after 5 minutes of leaving the airport. However, looking in from the outside every thing seemed great! The band still had there second number one hits in the spring of 1965, WHEN I GROW UP (TO BE A MAN) and HELP ME, RHONDA. The image still seemed promising and there songs where still popping the charts. I understand that Capital was signing the Beatles, which contributed much worries for the group.

Brian Wilson as discussed above had it worse then the others. In the mid month of 1965 he left the road and only wanted to make records. Brian said, “The only way we could achieve it was if they did their job and I did mine.” He was under too much pressure. Brian did everything and he was getting tired of it. Brian said, “I felt I had no choice. I was run down mentally and emotionally because I was running around, jumping on jets, one-night stands, also producing, writing, arranging, singing, planning, teaching.” He had a lot of influences to include Phil specter, the Four Freshmen and even Bill Haley & The Comets. This of course is also where he gets some of his sounds when recording. He was even a huge fan of Author/Writer Arthur Koestler.

While recording his album Pet Sounds Brian enjoyed collaborating with Tony Asher and Mike Love. It is amazing how this album came to pass. This album started out nicely but had a strange gap between the start and finish. I like how they pushed through the boundaries and kept moving toward a positive direction despite Brians addiction with drugs and alcohol. It is nice how years later Tony and Brian where able to pick up where they left off. In mid-April of 1966 the album was submitted to Capital Records. Brain declared, “I was very proud of that album.”

As a music professional, I think the group added a very distinctive sound and paved the road/future for upcoming artist alike. I had listened to Pet Sounds before listening to the documentaries and reading bios. I previously listened to the whole album again from the originals to the newer version. I have to say that the sound is amazing. I can’t believe that it could sound so different after following the story… It is astonishing what Brain was able to do back then compared to today’s technologies. – What a wonderful ear for music.

Thanks, Joshua

Welcome Entry

Ok so… I am a singer/songwriter in Mesquite TX, 10-15 miles outside of downtown Dallas. I am finishing up my first solo album featuring two of the most talented musicians Matt Chappel from Austin Alsups band and Tommy Shannon from the historical group of Double Trouble.

HINT: I said, “solo”… Let me explain…

I have played as a guitarist in many successful groups. I started to notice that people started taking advantage over me. In short, I got tired of performing shows and not getting paid correctly or being lied too! (The last group took royalties that was owed to me along with my copyrights) – This is why I decided to break away and become a solo act… This is also why I decided to join Full Sail University…

Joining the school has in part been the best move I ever made. Not only do I know how to take care of my music, I can also successfully budget what I do with it… (Thank you FSU)

For more information on me or what I’m up to please check me out at:

www.facebook.com/joshknightband

Thanks, JJK

So welcome to my first blog! I'm looking forward to another beautiful day.