At this point, I won’t even pretend I have any longtime readers, but about four years ago I would post occasionally about my love of the piano as used on pop music. There’s just something about that sound that really grabs my ear. The instrument has an incredible range of harmonics. It has strings, but [...]
Consider the lilies of the field…
I like what I like. Longtime readers know that. No rhyme or reason. So, somebody e-mails me about Pensacola, FL band The Cripple Lilies. I listen to one of their songs online; I like what I hear. I listen to the new studio album La Bête. It’s very good, but it’s a lot of country-tinged [...]
Barrelhouse Music
Last summer, I did a little mini series of songs with piano in them. As I said at the time, the piano may seem delicate for rock, but it is a percussion instrument and it also has great range of expression. Here’s one cut from the brand new LCD Soundsystem album Sound of Silver and [...]
Poundin’ the 88
Two more examples of piano rock… The piano goes back to the early 18th century; the electric guitar only goes back to the Thirties. The piano was there from the early days of rock, as it made the transition from jump blues. The piano can be rollicking and happy; it can be orchestral and bombastic; [...]
A well-tempered clavier
I love the sound of piano in pop music. Always have. In rock music, there’s a tension that’s set up. Bass, guitar and drums are very rock. They bash, they shred, they destroy. The piano notes are very delicate, although it is a percussion instrument and you can smash the hell out of a piano. [...]
Piano hooks, pop bait
Joy of Cooking is one of those groups I’ve heard about for years without knowing a single note of their music (like Nitty Gritty Dirt Band or Hawkwind). A couple months ago, I got a copy of their 1970 self-titled debut album. I liked it very much and it was certainly not what I expected. [...]
“And die behind the wheel…”
Steely Dan? Is that what I’m reduced to? Christ, what’s next — posting James Taylor songs? Discussing the relative merits of New Edition and New Kids on the Block? (Although there’s a fascinating discussion to be had on how Maurice Starr is the black Colonel Tom Parker.) I blame it on girish. He discussed The [...]