Thursday, July 19, 2018

Music & Walking

Ok, so I get on band kicks. Where I'll just listen to only one band, perhaps even just one album for like a month, usually not more. It's not always new music, but much older material.

While house sitting my bro's I watched several documentary's, The Rolling Stones 'Cross Fire Hurricane' 'It's So Easy & Other Lies which is Duff McKagan doc/auto bio and not really a documentary, but it kinda is, the Live Aid concert from 1985.
Now during that concert, every single musician and band does an outstanding job, except Led Zeppelin, in fact, they sucked so bad that THEY requested their footage not be archived or ever shown/made available again, but it got out...
But that day, Queen stole the show, Elton John even told them so. Bob Geldof said they did unequivocally.
By the time I was really intaking what was coing out of the radio, Queen were not too much of a blip on my radar. Being the early  '80's, to around '84 Pop and a bit of Rock ruled my world. Duran Duran, Nik Kershaw and ton's of the 'One Hit Wonders' of that period. I do remember heating 'Under Pressure' on the radio and since this was all AM radio as Fredericton at that time only really had CHSR to turn to and there they were not allowed to play hits, so what's now called 'Classic Rock' was played alot of course all the emerging new genres in Punk, Metal, alternative and World music.

I do remember all of us watching Live Aid in our living room and I do remember watching the Freddie Mercury Tribute concert in 1992.

I've never had the chance to see them, as it wasn't until 1994 that I moved to Vancouver and the gates opened to huge arena acts that wouldn't have come within a 1000km of Fredericton, I mean Moncton and early in my life Fredericton had them, but you'd not get like The Rolling Stones or the Who, or KISS (Although there's Fredericton stories of both KISS and Van Halen walking through the Fredericton Mall)

In Dreamkick we did play 'Tie Your Mother Down' as well as We Will Rock You' - as I mentioned last night.

So, seeing the Live Aid show put them in my head, as I've always loved 'One Vision, Radio Gaga and Hammer to Fall'... Sure Bohemian Rhapsody and Under Pressure and many others but the latter are my favorites.
These guys played Prague and made no money, expected it, because it was under communism... But just do it, as Mercury said, to conquer it and they did. Like 100,000 people. Brilliant.
So when I get into an album, I digest it and really some of my faves don't all come from the same album. But I'll consume the songs. I'll listen to it on repeat to get the vocals and lyrics then I'll listen for the guitar, bass and drums, each in their own time. I can still remember just about every Iron Maiden lick, lyric and bass line AND drums. I listened the shit outa those albums. Faith No More the same way, actually I can't start that because I'd have a list several pages long of all the albums I've played the shit out of.

The song 'Flash Gordon' by Queen I think is an epic-ally insane piece of writing. It has everything that an Action movie has. Hard hitting action, romance, a bit of humor and it's probably the least sung song by Mercury as it's got no real verses per se it's like the whole song is a chorus.
And to think Roger Taylor sings all those insane high falsetto notes. Mind blowing. Funny enough that the song 'Flash Gordon' is more entertaining than the movie.


So this morning I'm out for a puff, standing in the 'alley' way that goes to my backyard and I spot something on the ground coming up from behind me.... I'm used to the chipmunks doing it, the odd cat has done it and even one day a freakin' groundhog came jogging past. But this morning, it was ... The damn Tree Rat! This creature has balls, make or female.... It didn't even run by me, it just came along, looking at me the whole way and went into the backyard and made for a tree, it probably hadn't planned on me being around. The nerve!

Music: And when you listen to it, listen to it a few times and to really listen to it, put on some headphones, listen to all the writing, the vocals, harmonies... Exceptional
"Flash"
Queen
(from "Flash Gordon" soundtrack)

Flash a-ah
Savior of the Universe
Flash a-ah
He'll save every one of us

(Seemingly there is no reason for these extraordinary intergalactical upsets)
(Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha)
(What's happening Flash?)
(Only Doctor Hans Zarkhov, formerly at NASA, has provided any explanation)

Flash a-ah
He's a miracle

(This morning's unprecedented solar eclipse is no cause for alarm)

Flash a-ah
King of the impossible

He's for every one of us
Stand for every one of us
He save with a mighty hand
Every man, every woman
Every child, with a mighty
Flash

(General Kala, Flash Gordon approaching.)
(What do you mean Flash Gordon approaching? Open fire! All weapons! Dispatch war rocket Ajax to bring back his body)

Flash a-ah
(Gordon's alive!)

Flash a-ah
He'll save every one of us

Just a man
With a man's courage
You know he's
Nothing but a man
And he can never fail
No one but the pure at heart
May find the Golden Grail
...Oh..Oh........Oh..Oh....

(Flash, Flash, I love you, but we only have fourteen hours to save the Earth!)
Flash
Written by Brian May, Freddie Mercury, Howard Blake, John Deacon, Lorenzo Semple Jr., Richard Wagner & Roger Taylor
UMG, Believe Music (on behalf of Audio Fingerprint); UBEM, SOLAR Music Rights Management, EMI Music Publishing, PEDL, Warner Chappell, CMRRA, and 9 Music Rights Societies

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