Pencilstorm Remembers Tom Petty - by Colin Gawel

Monday October 2nd was a shitty day. As the body count was racking up from pyscho-guy shooting up Vegas for no apparent reason, word broke that Tom Petty had passed away unexpectedly. I had been out running some errands when I heard the news so I cancelled whatever I had been planning on doing and ended up sipping a beer with Dan Cochran at his Four String Taproom. We just sorta sat there listening to Tom Petty. 

Anyway, since I play the Four String Taproom every Thursday, I figured it made sense to a do a set of Tom Petty songs. Soon word got out and people started lining up to join me. Nobody was asked, it was an all-volunteer force. It all happened very organically and very quickly. Ricki C. stage-managed the whole thing. There were no advertisements and there was no cover charge. You won't find any footage online as we respectfully asked folks to keep the phones away and stay in the moment. It was one of the best nights I ever had playing music. It was one long Tom Patty sing-along. The only thing missing was a campfire. Below is the set-list and players to the best of my memory. 

Colin Gawel - The Wild One Forever / WildFlowers (solo) w/ Jim Johnson on drums and Rick Kinsinger on guitar: Change of Heart / Listen to Her Heart / Rebels / Straight into Darkness / The Waiting 

Dave Masica - Walls (Colin on Drums, Rick on Guitar) / Shadow of a Doubt (Jim - drums) / Angel Dream / Southern Accents 

Brian Clash - Century City

John Estep - You Wreck Me / Sea of Heartbreak (Herb Schupp on drums) / Kings Highway

Patrick Buzzard - Yer So Bad / Learning to Fly / Into the Great Wide Open 

Dan Orr Project - Breakdown / Don't Do Me Like That / American Girl

John Estep & Everybody - I Won't Back Down / Mary Jane's Last Dance

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Also a couple of my favorite Tom Petty tributes: the first by Tom's contemporary, the great Dan Baird. (I snagged from his Facebook page. reproduced without his permission as they say.....) 

Dan Baird 

For me, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers were a rock and roll band that came onto the scene when the pigeon hole genres were taking over. Punk rock, new wave, heavy, hard, prog, glam, etc. There were a bunch of em. Not that they were at all bad. Some great bands came out of those rebranding and fashion trends. I was going along with the times and trying to find music I related to inside those brands, but something was missing for me. 

And here comes this rock and roll band that doesn't apologize for being just that. 2 guitars, B3, piano, bass and drums. Sing along choruses, tight punchy songs, great simple arrangements played by a gang of mo-fos on each instrument and a shaman/believer for a front man and songwriter disguised as an everyman. 

They'd picked up rock and roll and placed it onto a trajectory that seemed like the simplicity of what they were reintroducing had never stopped. It had. Was very close to complete dismissal. Their whole "We just don't need anything new, other than more great songs" was a bold move in the face of the change. Obviously it struck a chord with me. 

Yes they dabbled in new sounds after a few years, but it somehow sounded organic inside the song. Acoustic ballads got more common, but it felt right because of the conviction and honesty of both band and singer (didn't hurt that those ballads contained some of Tom's finest lyric either). 

The live shows could have been a greatest hits for 2 hours. They weren't. Great covers, older obscure numbers, new songs. To me, his North Star might have gotten hidden behind the clouds now and then, but when they cleared, look out, shit was back on. 

Thank you for showing the way to work inside a traditional medium and not sacrifice integrity, heart and soul. 

A rock and roller of the highest order to the end.

And click here to read a story by Annie Zaleski .

Or here for a story by Petty Biographer Warren Zanes .

And this story about Tom's acting career was fun . 

I was lucky enough to catch Tom and The Heartbreakers on the last tour. I was sort of leaving it up to fate when at the last minute I got an invite. As I was watching the show I thought to myself I should have brought my son Owen to this show. He has seen Springsteen, The Who, The Stones, AC/DC, Cheap Trick, KISS, Aerosmith, Foo Fighters and Green Day. For some reason I didn't feel it necessary to bring him to Tom Petty and it was a parenting fail. It is/was easy to take Tom Petty for granted. Tom Petty never demanded attention. He didn't need to. He was focused on earning your respect. Well done.  RIP Tom Petty

Colin Gawel plays in Watershed and fronts The League Bowlers. He founded Pencilstorm and wrote this at Colin's Coffee in between serving customers. 

Pink Turns to Blue. Grant Hart: 1961 - 2017 - by Jeremy Porter

Pink Turns To Blue
Grant Hart: 1961 – 2017

The first few times I heard Hüsker Dü I was a little underwhelmed. Their new album was "Zen Arcade" and it seemed really noisy to me. Not a lot of hooks. The guitar sounded funny. I liked the way the guitars sounded on "Tooth and Nail" by Dokken better. A couple months later, at the tail end of a long night of teenage debauchery, I was hanging with my best friend John Burke, who has turned me on to more music than anyone I've ever known. He asked me if I wanted to hear the new Hüsker Dü record, "New Day Rising," while I waited for my dad to pick me up. He put the record on and stepped out of the room to explain to his concerned grandmother why there was a strange, unfamiliar long-haired kid in the house at that hour. The next few minutes changed the way I heard music forever. I immediately connected with the confluence of melody and energy, structure and noise, and somewhere beneath the din – the lyrics. The cover looked like a photo from a family vacation. These guys looked like my friends, my neighbors, the guy who worked at the hardware store, and they sang about "getting drunk out on the beach or playing in a band." This wasn't Dokken. This was the new soundtrack to my life.     

Shortly thereafter, I revisited "Zen Arcade" with a vengeance, grasping not only to the hooks that I was now able to discern, but also to the absolute hardcore between them. I got it. It has become one of my desert island records.  It seemed like the blink of an eye before we had "Flip Your Wig" (released just 8 months after "New Day Rising"), and the holy trinity was complete. 

"Flip Your Wig" was Grant Hart's finest moment.  Every Everything, Green Eyes, Flexible Flyer, and Keep Hanging On are snapshots of beauty. I get a pit in my gut just thinking about them today. Even though his role and output often seemed just short of equal to those of bandmate Bob Mould, everyone knows that his part was every bit as important to what made that band so great. For every Chartered Trips there was a Pink Has Turned To Blue. For every Makes No Sense At All there was a Sorry Somehow. He brought a pop-rock, 60s feel to their records that was a welcome contrast to Bob's more power-pop-punk (before there was such a thing). He was the fun, smiling, goofy hippy to Bob's brooding artist persona. Together, and with bassist Greg Norton, they were a well-balanced juggernaut.  

After the split, things never really seemed great for Grant on the surface, especially against the inevitable comparisons to Bob Mould, who became one of the more respected alternative-rock guitarists and songwriters in the 90s and to this day. His band Nova Mob was supposed to play Detroit, but Grant got "sick" and openers The Magnolias played to an empty theater instead. He came through solo a couple times, and it was both incredible and heartbreaking to hear him sing and play those great songs but also see the visual evidence of his inner-battles. Still, he always had a smile and wit. 

I remember walking up to the Elbow Room in Ypsilanti to see him play. He was on the sidewalk talking to some fans about "the feud" with Bob and he pointed to me and my William Mitchell School of Law tee shirt. "Hey!" he stopped mid-sentence "Where did you get that shirt? That's in Saint Paul!" 

"My sister just graduated from there." I answered proudly, a little taken aback that he was talking to me, not even making the connection between the shirt and the guy who wrote If I Told You at first.   

"Aah. Always a good thing to have a lawyer in the family." He chuckled before resuming his take on the corporate-rock creation and perpetuation of the faux-Mould-Hart war.  

A couple years later, In March of 2010, I was beside myself to land an opening slot for him in Toledo. This was a big deal for me – recently going solo myself after being in bands for over 20 years, supporting one of my heroes. I said I'd do it for free and promote the living shit out of it, and I was a few days into that when I got an email from the promoter declaring "Grant Hart is a fuck!" after he reportedly demanded double the guarantee he had already contractually agreed to play the show a week earlier.  It never happened. 

The last few years of Grant's life saw some overdue redemption and respect. There was a Documentary DVD and accompanying soundtrack called "Every Everything: The Music, Life & Times of Grant Hart" in 2013 that was an excellent and fitting tribute, and increased homage by the likes of Dave Grohl ("No Hüsker Dü, No Foo Fighters") were increasing too. His last album, "The Argument," received a plethora of praise that he hadn't experienced since the Hüsker days. He and Bob were talking again, and although a reunion (thankfully) never seemed likely, there were new projects around the old catalog in the works. It was exciting and optimistic, and really nice to finally see some harmony in that camp. 

Then on July 1st of this year there was a tribute show in Minneapolis where many faces from his past came out to honor and celebrate him and his songs. By all accounts it was a special night, but it took only hours for word to get out that he wasn't doing well.  

This morning hit hard right out of the gate. I remember when Johnny Cash died it seemed so expected that I was unphased, then a week later I read his obituary in Rolling Stone and it hit me like a pile of cinder blocks. When Joey Ramone died, I almost cried that night. When Joe Strummer died I was a little numb for a couple weeks, but every day since it has been harder and harder to stomach that loss. I can barely even listen to The Clash anymore. But Grant and Hüsker Dü have been with me literally almost every day since that late night in John Burke's room, listening to The Girl Who Lives on Heaven Hill, wondering "What the hell is this that I am hearing?". 

I'll admit to being a little stunned at the outpouring of sentiments on social media this morning. I guess I know a lot of people his music touched. More than I ever imagined. The stories and effect of his songs on people's lives are great to read, and I think as time passes, his legacy will grow beyond what he ever expected. Tonight I'll pull out my moldy, water-damaged copy of "Flip Your Wig" and turn it up.    

5 Stellar Grant Hart Moments:

1 - Every Everything / Green Eyes ("Flip Your Wig") – the definition of post-punk, pop-punk, whatever you want to call it. A band and a songwriter at their peak. 2 great songs on a record full of great songs. 
2 - Don’t Want To Know If You Are Lonely ("Candy Apple Grey") – Maybe the most "rock" Husker Du ever got. We were so into this when it came out. Great video too. Grant got the 2 singles off that album, deservedly so.    
3 - 2541 (single) – Grant beat Bob to the first solo-career release punch with this. The song is about the house he lived in, and also the address of the Hüsker Dü office on Nicollet across from Garage D'or records in Minneapolis. My first visit to the twin cities was in 1990, with my future wife, to visit friends and see Soul Asylum play. We were in Garage D'or and Grant walked in. 20 year old me was pretty excited to say the least. I bought a (second) copy of the 2541 single for him to sign, not losing sight for one second of the irony that we were across the street from the name-sake, and we chatted about his upcoming tour and the lack of a Detroit stop. The next morning Tommy Stinson ate breakfast at the Uptown Café in the booth next to us. I was in fan-boy heaven that weekend.         
4 - Pink Turns To Blue ("Zen Arcade") – C#m > A.  Falsetto chorus. Another gem of a pop song with a really sad but beautiful back-story. Grant's songs on "Zen Arcade" give the album so much depth and visualization, a great contrast to Bob's more ambiguous narrative. 
5 - Admiral of The Sea ("The Last Days of Pompeii" – Nova Mob) – A great song and video by Grant's post-Husker band Nova Mob. Not necessarily where I'd send a newbie, but an important early chapter in his diverse post-Hüsker Dü catalog.  

Jeremy Porter lives near Detroit and fronts the rock and roll band Jeremy Porter And The Tucos.     
www.thetucos.com
www.facebook.com/jeremyportermusic  
@jeremyportermi
www.rockandrollrestrooms.com

I took the liberty of adding a couple videos. - Colin G.

Former Hüsker Dü drummer Grant Hart performs live on KEXP. Recorded 6/17/11. Tracklist: California Zephyr So Far From Heaven You're The Reflection of the Moon Barbara Host: Kevin Cole Sound: Kevin Suggs Cameras: Jim Beckmann, Shelly Corbett Editing: Justin Wilmore www.granthart.com www.kexp.org

LIVE FROM THE CAMDEN PALACE LONDON, UK 14.05.1985. 1. "New Day Rising" 2. "It's Not Funny Anymore" 3. "Everything Falls Apart" 4. "Girl Who Lives on Heaven Hill" 5. "I Apologize" 6. "If I Told You" 7. "Folklore" 8. "Terms of Psychic Warfare" 9. "Powerline" 10. "Books About UFOs" 11.

 

 

   
 

Jerry Lewis Was Bigger Than Elvis by Wal Ozello

Jerry Lewis, comedian and filmmaker, died on Sunday morning, August 20 at age 91. Pencilstorm writer Wal Ozello shares his memories of Jerry.

I met Jerry Lewis in 1995.  At the time, I was a video editor for A&E Biography and my company was doing a show on Dean Martin.  The company was a small one and everyone did double duty.  So when I wasn’t in the edit room, I went on the interviews as a camera assit.  My director, Brice Shipley, had scored what was soon to be one of the biggest interviews of all our lives: 20 minutes with Jerry Lewis.  Over the years, we interviewed dozens of big names.  Bill Cosby, Steve Allen, Tony Bennett to name a few.  But all of them paled in comparison to Jerry.

Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis were a big part of my youth.  Growing up in Cleveland, the only thing on TV on Saturday afternoons was Super Host showing films from the 50s and 60s which included The Caddy, At War with the Army, My Friend Irma Goes West, and Pardners - all Martin and Lewis films.  Jerry’s solo films is where he really shined: The Bellboy, Cinderfella, The Geisha Boy, The Family Jewels and the infamous, The Nutty Professor. These movies were comedic gold. If you've never seen the original The Nutty Professor, you're missing out.

Before there was Robin Williams, Eddie Murphy and Jim Carrey, there was Jerry Lewis.  All are bland cardboard characters compared to the comedic genius of Jerry.  Either with Dean or without him, Jerry knew how to entertain like none other.

And how big was Martin and Lewis?  They were bigger than Springsteen, Simon and Garfunkel, Abbott and Costello, and even Lennon and McCartney.  Jerry’s credited in more than 50 films on imdb, many of which he wrote, produced and directed. He and Dean hosted several episodes of the Colgate Comedy Hour which was on NBC opposite The Ed Sullivan Show on CBS.  Martin & Lewis beat Ed Sullivan in the ratings forty times in a row… by double digits. Let me put that in perspective.  The Ed Sullivan Show was as big as Game of Thrones is on Sunday night.  When Martin & Lewis were on the Colgate Comedy Hour, people watched them instead.

They’d also do live shows, selling out week-long shows at the 4,000 seat Paramount Theatre and packing the streets with 75,000 people trying to get a glimpse of them from their hotel window. (See footage below.)

Jerry was also a Broadway performer.  He appeared in the revival of Damn Yankees which was how we ended up interviewing him. I was one of four people allowed in the room and we were told to keep it to 20 minutes.  Jerry ended up giving us 45.  After the interview was over, Jerry chatted up my director and me.  I think he was impressed that two guys in their early twenties new so much about his career and were in awe.  Jerry was 69 at the time and still giving it his all performing. During our conversation, Jerry casually called me a “fucking dago.” While to most Italians this is an insult, Jerry meant it as a compliment, as if I was suddenly “in” with him.  That moment is probably one of the top ten highlights of my career.

Jerry Lewis was the biggest entertainer that ever lived.  Imagine an amalgamation of Robin Williams, John Landis, Judd Apatow, Nathan Lane, Bruce Springsteen and Elvis Presley.  He was bigger than all of them combined. I consider myself fortunate to have met him and even more fortunate to be entertained by him.  Rest in peace, funny guy and thanks for the laughs.

Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis at the New York Paramount 4 July 1951. Absolute bedlam on 44th Street! Come on up for coffee!
Jerry Lewis sings "We've Got a World That Swings" from the film, The Nutty Professor, (1963) directed by Jerry Lewis, featuring Les Brown and His Band of Renown. The song was composed by Lil Mattis and Louis Y Brown.

Clip from Martin & Lewis Colgate Comedy Hour.

The Password scene from the movie "Which Way To The Front" with Jerry Lewis

Wal Ozello is the lead singer of the Columbus hairband Armada. He's the author of the science fiction time travel books: Assignment 1989, Revolution 1990 and Sacrifice 2086 and a frequent customer at Colin's Coffee. As a local filmmaker, Wal has directed Dad Can't Help You Now by Colin Gawel and the short film, Alone.

Pencilstorm and Friends Remember Chuck Berry

editor's note:  Upon hearing the news of Chuck Berry's passing, Ricki C. & myself quickly agreed that nobody needed our two cents on the subject. Who were we to comment on the man who invented rock n roll?  After taking some time to let it all sink in, and a road trip to see Dan Baird, we decided our best course was to compile a page of people we admired to pay tribute.  Hail Hail Rock n Roll. Hail Hail Chuck Berry. - Colin G. 

 

For a quick reminder on why Chuck Berry was so important check out Annie Zaleski's bio she wrote for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame here. 

Read "Without Chuck Berry There Would Be No Rock n Roll" by Rob Harvilla

Listen to Remembering Chuck Berry on the outstanding Sound Opinions podcast.

 

Terry Anderson is one of my rock n roll heroes and one of just a handful of songwriters I mention in the same breath as Chuck Berry. I asked him for his Chuck memories and he was nice enough to shoot me this as he was finishing up work on his latest album, Jimmy's Arcade due out May 10th. - Colin G

Terry Anderson: So our hero has left the building. 90 years is a good run, though. I'll take it! Sign me up! I'm just so blessed to have seen him perform three different times.

The first time was at MUSIC CITY here in Raleigh NC when The Pedestrians, along with my buddy Dave Adams on keys, got the backup gig. He loved Dave but man! oh man! he hated Tony the bass player who was, shall we say..."new to the instrument"! Chuck finally yelled at him "if you can't play that thang put it down!" I seem to remember getting backstage at that show, but you know, that was long time ago...back in my drankin' days (hee hee!).

The second time I saw him play was years later. Me and my buddy Roger were at Topsail Beach with our girls (mine was my soon to be wife) when we were looking in the paper for somewhere to go eat and wouldn't you know it! there's an ad for a CHUCK BERRY gig about to start in just 2 hours. The only problem was it was 2 hours away!  So Roger and I left the girls to fend for themselves on the food thing and we hightailed the shit outta there headed for Myrtle Beach! Driving 70mph the whole way, screaming at stoplights and generally being the kinda assholes you never want behind you we got to the Carolina Opry House JUST as Chuck was hitting the stage! We had just enough time to catch our breath before he came out and started into Roll Over Beethoven.

The piano player sure was exuberant! Song after song he would take off on a solo just when Chuck was about to! Chuck would cut an eye but the guy was good, I mean REAL good! Eventually Chuck would get his solo in and continue on. But you could tell after about 5 or so songs like this our hero was getting pretty pissed off. About mid-way through the show Chuck had it out with the guy on stage. It was during a song so we didn't know what the hell was going on. But things started to change after that little talk they had. Chuck was ok with the guy stepping on his solos. He'd let the dude take one then he'd take his. Things went smoothly from then on and it wasn't until the end of the show did we ever figger out what they had discussed up there. On the last song Chuck made up an entire new number, 3 verses, solo...everything! 

And on the last line of the song Chuck sez, "I didn't know the piano player was stone cold blind! Goodnight everybody!"

He came back out and did ROCK AND ROLL MUSIC, then he was gone.

It was so great and hilarious!

Saw him one more time a few years ago in downtown Raleigh. There were storms due to a hurricane in the area and it was an outside gig. The promoter was having trouble talking Chuck into going on. Finally he upped the pay 10k and got him a plate of ribs. I don't know which one influenced him the most but he came out during a break in the storm action and did about 40 minutes of partial Chuck Berry songs. The backup band sucked, but hey! at least Chuck sucked too! It didn't make a bit of difference though, we were standing right in front of him performing for US! There he was...Chuck FUCKING Berry!

 

Anybody who has seen Willie Phoenix knows he is in anybody's class when it comes to playing guitar-driven rock n roll. I snagged this from his Facebook page. - Colin G. 

Willie Phoenix :IT'S SUNDAY MORNING....AND THERE IS YET ANOTHER CLOUD OVER PEPPER LAND...SEEMS SO MANY STARS THAT HAVE BRIGHTENED OUR ROCK N' ROLL SKIES ...OUR ROCK N' ROLL EXISTENCE...HAVE MADE THEIR FINAL EXIT. ...NOW WITH THAT BEING SAID ...LET ME SAY...NO OTHER ROCK ARTIST HAS INFLUENCED SO MANY MEGA STAR ROCK N' ROLL ARTISTS LIKE CHUCK  BERRY...MEGA STARS INCLUDE....BOB DYLAN...BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN...BEATLES...BEACH BOYS,,,WHICH OF COURSE CHUCK SUED BEATLES AND BEACH BOYS...MANY OF YOU THINK COME TOGETHER WAS AN ORIGINAL...LENNON SLOWED DOWN CHUCKS...YOU CAN'T CATCH ME...HE EVEN LIFTED CHUCKS LYRIC...HERE COMES OLD FLAT TOP.. . AND JOHN HAD TO THANK SIR PAUL FOR THE ROLLING SOUL BASS LINE IN THAT SONG ALONG WITH MR. LENNONS BIG CHORUS PUSH....OR THAT TUNE WOULD HAVE BEEN MR. BERRYS ALL THE WAY. BOB DYLANS HIGHWAY 61'S RAMBLINGS..VERY MUCH IS CHUCKS ....TOO MUCH MONKEY BUSINESS....THE ROLLING STONES...ALWAYS HONORED THEIR BLACK ROCK N' ROLL FATHERS....GOT THEIR NAME FROM A MUDDY WATERS SONG....BUT CUT THEIR TEETH ON MANY MANY CHUCK BERRY SONGS...AND THE STONES ALWAYS PAID BACK...BEFORE CHUCK BERRY....YES THEIR WERE OTHER GREAT GUITAR PLAYERS...IN ALL THE GENRES ...ESPECIALLY COOL ROCK A BILLY AND BLUES CATS...BUT MOST OF THOSE GUYS FOLLOWED THE BASS RIFFS TO FATTEN GUITAR RHYTHMS...NOT CHUCK...HE ADDED THAT CHUGA CHUGA THING...THAT ALL GUITAR PLAYERS SHOULD LEARN TO DO IF YOU WANTED TO PLAY TRUE ROCK N' ROLL GUITAR...AND NOT JUST ROCK GUITAR...AND FOR ALL MY METAL BUDS OUT THERE...YOU MIGHT SAY CHUCK NEVER INFLUENCED ME...WELL EVEN JIMI HENDRIX DID A 1000 MPH VERSION OF JOHNNY B. GOODE...LED ZEPPLIN ....RIFFIN' CHUCK UP ON...BEEN A LONG TIME SINCE I ROCKED N' ROLL...AS ROBERT PLANT WOULD SING.... ANYWAY HISTORIANS RUSHED TO GIVE ELVIS THE CROWN...FOR MANY REASONS...AND BOY GROWING UP I LOVED ME SOME ELVIS....ELVIS MADE THE GIRLS SCREAM...BUT CHUCK NOT ONLY MADE THE GIRLS SCREAM...BUT THE BOYS CHEERED HIM ON TOO...ROCK N' ROLL ...THE TRUE POWER OF THE ELECTRIC ROCK N' ROLL GUITAR WAS FIRST BROUGHT TO LIGHT BY CHUCK BERRY...AND THEN OF COURSE WAS THE GENIUS OF HIS PERFECT SONG WRITING...I THINK HIS SONG WRITING GAVE A PICTURE PERFECT STORY OF ROCKIN' TEEN SUBURBIA FOR ITS TIME. HAIL! HAIL! THE TRUE KING OF ROCK N' ROLL!
p3ace

 

And not to be outdone, long time Willie Phoenix and League Bowlers drummer Jim Johnson had some thoughts too.

Jim Johnson: No one had a bigger influence on every band I've ever loved, than Chuck Berry. The man defined the word Rock & Roll. There would be no Beatles or Stones, without Chuck Berry. There would be no Willie Phoenix or League Bowlers without Chuck Berry. His influence will live on, in a world that will be just a little sadder,without his presence. Rest in peace Chuck. 
You changed my life, and countless others, who loved the words you sang, and the notes you played. 

No Chuck Berry tribute would be complete with out reading what Keith Richards had to say about his passing and influence. 

And Hail Hail Rock and Roll Director Taylor Hackford. Read it here.

And in closing, check out the playlist from Jon Brian Peterson's always swingin'  Shakin' it Radio program which airs/streams on WCBE every Saturday night at 8pm. www.wcbe.org 

"ALL OF CHUCK'S CHILDREN" 3-25-17 CB Special now online for FREE DOWNLOAD. Playlist below and download by clicking:

SHAKIN’ IT: CHUCK BERRY SPECIAL 03-25-17/HOUR ONE
CHUCK BERRY- “Memphis” (Live, 1972)
JOHNNY RIVERS- “Memphis”
CHUCK BERRY- “Sweet Little 16”
BEACH BOYS- “Surfin’ USA” (Live, 1972)
LONNIE MACK- “Memphis” (Instrumental)
CHUCK BERRY- “Wee Wee Hours”
CHUCK BERRY- “Downward Train”
CHUCK BERRY- “Havana Moon”
PULP FICTION clip- “Vincent Vega”
CHUCK BERRY- “You Never Can Tell” 
CHUCK BERRY – “Tulane”
PAUL McCARTNEY- “Brown Eyed Handsome Man”
JOHNNIE ALLAN- “Promised Land”
CHOCOLATE WATCHBAND- “Come On”
MC5 – “Back In the USA”
ROLLING STONES- “You Can’t Catch Me”
ROLLING STONES- “Carol”

ROLLING STONES- “Around & Round”
MITCH RYDER- “Let It Rock”
ERIC BURDEN & ANIMALS- “Little Queenie” (Live)
BACK TO THE FUTURE clip- “Johnny B. Goode (instrumental)

SHAKIN’ IT: CHUCK BERRY SPECIAL 03-25-17/HOUR TWO
JOHN LENNON & CHUCK BERRY- “Johnny B. Goode” (Live on Mike Douglas Show)
BEATLES- “Roll Over Beethoven” (George Harrison sings!)
BEATLES- “Rock & Roll Music” (John Lennon sings)
ROD STEWART- “Sweet Little Rock N’ Roller”
BOB SEGER- “Rock N’ Roll Never Forgets” 
TERRY DAVIDSON & THE GEARS- “I Will Not Let You Go”
THE KINKS- “Too Much Monkey Business”
ROCKPILE- “Oh What A Thrill” (featuring Dave Edmonds)
THE TROGGS- “No Particular Place To Go”
SELDOM SCENE- “Nadine”
JUDGE DREAD- “My Ding-A-Ling”
PETER TOSH- “Johnny B. Goode”
CHUCK BERRY- “30 Days”
JANE PAULEY INTERVIEW- (with CB, 1973)
CHUCK BERRY- “School Days” (Live, 1972)
CHUCK BERRY- “Almost Grown”
CHUCK BERRY- “Run Rudolph Run”
CHUCK BERRY- “I’m A Rocker”
CHUCK BERRY- “Woodpecker” (Instrumental, under outro)

Colin Gawel : The rock n roll tree has grown many branches, but the one that came straight from the trunk, the direct path from the roots was planted by Chuck Berry. I've watched the scene below hundreds of times and it always fills me with joy. I could go on and on about the songwriting, the poetry, and his problems but..... just look at him.....or better yet, try to take your eyes off him. RIP Chuck.

Chuck Berry - Guitar, vocals Eric Clapton - Guitar Keith Richards - Guitar Steve Jordan - Drums Johnnie Johnson - Piano Chuck Leavell - Organ Joey Spampinato - Bass

Two Rock 'n Roll icons of the 20th century meet and perform together at the Mike Douglas Show in February 1972, New York City. Full segment: Memphis, Tennessee - Interview - Johnny B. Goode NOTICE: Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for fair use for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research.

Ace In The Hole Music Is Closing Next Week: You Should Stop In - by Ricki C.

Ace In The Hole Music Exchange (1153 Kenny Centre, inside the Kenny Centre shopping plaza, right by the corner of Kenny & Henderson Rds. / 614-457-5666) is closing its doors for good on Saturday, March 18th, 2017.  You should go there before it does. 

Owner/proprietor Mike "Pepe" Depew has kept Ace In The Hole going since 1995 - virtually single-handedly for the past seven years - but the crushing economic realities of keeping an indie record store afloat in our current downloadable music culture has made continuing the venture impossible.  (see store hours and closing-week discount schedule below)

I worked at Ace In The Hole for nine years in the first decade of this 21st century, 2001-2010.  I lived a pretty clichéd rocker existence that decade: I played action-packed acoustic solo rock & roll gigs; I served as road manager for Hamell On Trial, a punk-blast of MC 5-derived acoustic energy; halfway through the decade I signed on as merch guy & guitar tech for Watershed (and later for Colin’s spinoff bands, The League Bowlers and The Lonely Bones); and in between all that touring my day job was at Ace In The Hole Music.

I can’t tell you how cool that day job was.  Essentially I was getting paid to hang out and listen to music for eight hours a day, while talking ABOUT MUSIC to various strangers, friends & acquaintances who dropped into the store, both of which I WOULD HAVE DONE FOR FREE!!!  Other than a very short stint at Camelot Music right before Ace In The Hole, I had spent 25 years of my life working on receiving docks and in warehouses, unloading trucks and humping freight about for 40 bone-crunching/soul-destroying hours a week; BELIEVE ME, working in an indie record store work was better.

Plus I can’t tell you the number of good friends I made at that store: a local cancer physician, who – due to his rather retiring nature – I’m guessing would rather remain nameless here, who has subsequently become my sister’s oncologist as she battles cancer, and whose friendship has made that entire process SO MUCH EASIER; local rocker (and current Nashville émigré) Erica Blinn, whom I met when she was in her early teens when her dad – Ace In The Hole regular Jerry Blinn, bassist of the fine, fine, superfine West Side rocker elite Black Leather Touch – brought her into Ace, where she later became an employee; and, crucially, Joe Peppercorn – leader & master songwriter of first Mrs. Children, later The Whiles, still later the mastermind & driving force of the annual Beatles Marathon, perhaps Columbus’ finest yearly musical throwdown.

I met Joe one chilly Monday morning after I had co-hosted Invisible Hits Hour – Curt Schieber’s long-running Sunday night CD 101/102.5 record review show – the night before.  Joe came into the store – all but twisting a cloth cap in his hands like a character out of some Dickens novel – and said, “Are you the guy who was on Invisible Hits Hour last night?”  (I continually plugged my employment at Ace In The Hole on the show: why waste an hour of free advertising?)  “Did you like the show?” I asked back at him.  “Yeah, it was great.” he replied.  “Then yeah, that was me,” I said, brightening.  “What were you going to say if I didn’t like the show?” Joe asked, meeting my eyes for the first time in the entire shyness-slanted conversation.  “I was gonna say it was the white-haired guy who owns the store,” I said, “the last thing I need is little assholes coming in here and berating me because I badmouthed their favorite 311 record, and I can’t walk away from ‘em, because I’m at work.”

It was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

There’s so much more about my nine years at Ace I’d like to get into: Watershed playing a great gig in the parking lot of the store on a gorgeous Sunday afternoon back in 2002, when The More It Hurts, The More It Works was brand new, YEARS before they ever became my employers (maybe Colin will write about that separately this week); the fact that Jim Johnson – ace drummer of various Willie Phoenix bands through the years & decades – was our record distributor throughout my employment and remains in that position to this day (plus he got me my job at the store, that’s a cool story in itself); but all that has to wait for a later blog, ‘cuz here’s what you have got to know RIGHT NOW!!!!!!! 
   
Ace In The Hole is open this week and next week Tuesday through Friday 11 am-7 pm; Saturday 11am-5 pm; and Sunday March 12th from noon to 2 pm or so, whenever the traffic and the conversation run out.  Final business day is Saturday March 18th, 2017.  All used CD’s in the store are 50% off; vinyl records $6 and under are 50% off (and, you’d best believe me, there’s still a BUNCH of great, cheap vinyl left in the store, I got that Brotherhood album – offshoot band of Paul Revere & the Raiders – for 50 cents last week, among others); vinyl $7-$30 is 20% off, and vinyl over $30 (and there’s some gems in that price range still there, too) is 30% off.  You really should go in and drop some cash, you could do much worse stuff with your time and your disposable music money until the 18th. – Ricki C. / March 6th, 2017. `

National Record Store Day, April 18th, 2009: Colin plays music, future Pencilstorm movie critic Rob Braithwaite reads the paper, local singer/songwriter John Vincent watches and waits for his turn to play.....