The Lovin’ Spoonful were a meteoric band that left the scene almost as quickly as they arrived. Within 14 months, from October 1965 to January 1967, their first seven singles reached the Top Ten. (Only the Beatles and the Rolling Stones outperformed them in 1966 according to Billboard magazine.)
“Fishin’ Blues” appeared on their debut album, one of the first albums I ever bought. I hope you enjoy it.
“Shadygrove” is an old Appalachian song that has become a standard among bluegrass players. “Matty Groves” is from an 18th century English ballad that Richard Thompson set to the tune of “Shady Grove” for Fairport Convention’s Leif and Leige album. The two songs are otherwise not connected. Both songs have been recorded by many, many players.
I first heard this Albert Collins’ song from Tai Benoit, suggested to me by my friend Kathy Jenner. Both his and Albert Collins’ versions are superb performances with smoking guitar solos and full band contributions. (Far beyond my abilities). Anyway, it’s a fun song, so I hope you like it.
This is one of my favorite John Lennon song from his solo career. Hope you enjoy it.
Neil Young’s Harvest was an album filled with gentle acoustic numbers, some spirited rockers, and two songs backed by The London Symphony Orchestra. Young’s piano playing and the backing of the orchestral strings give “A Man Needs a Maid” its haunting and plaintive tone. For me it works stripped down to just an acoustic guitar. Enjoy.
A guitar virtuoso and a wonderful story-teller in song, Richard Thompson humorously describes this as “an Elvis song…an Irish Elvis song.” I find it moving and sad. I hope you like it.
Last week I played at a little club in New Hope, Pa. The club had opened in 1972 and it still had a really cool vibe from that era. On the walls they had posters of all the acts that had played there: Jonathan Edwards and Steve Forbert. Mary Chapin Carpenter and Norah Jones. John Gorka and Rhett Miller. Penn and Teller and Commander Cody. But the picture that caught my eye was of Dan Hicks. Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks were one of my favorite bands of that era. Incredible musicianship, intricate harmonies, and clever wordplay, their music was unlike anything else that was heard at the time. I used to call it “good-timey music.” And I hadn’t listened for a while. So when I got home from that gig, I spent the following week listening to the two Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks albums that I owned and watching them whatever YouTube videos that existed. So I thought that for this Sunday I would do a Hot Licks song. I don’t have all the instruments or the female harmonies, but I plowed on. I hope you like it.
Most of my Sunday Morning Tunes are covers of other people’s songs. This week, however, I’m putting up an original song. Hope you like it.
This Saturday, March 23, J. P. Bohannon will be opening for the indie-rock band, Black Cat Habitat. His set will consist entirely of original songs. Music starts at 3:00 pm. Come out enjoy the music and the scenic town of New Hope.
I used to play in an Irish folk band and this song was always one of my favorites. And apparently a lot of people feel the same way, for the number of extraordinary artists–from all genres–have recorded/performed it. Anyway, I’ve been doing these Sunday morning videos for just a month shy of four years in a row (without ever missing a Sunday) and this is the first year that St. Patrick’s Day has landed on a Sunday so I figured I do an Irish song. Hope you enjoy it.
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