Many times things seem to work out. Many times they don’t. Fortunately the events transpiring on Wednesday December 7, 2011 at Brennan’s Pub fall on the right side of that line. With Cowspace mainstay Jeff Cleveland out of town for his usual Wednesday gig, I was graciously allowed to host an all acoustic night featuring some of my most talented friends. I really enjoyed the process of pulling people in from disparate parts of my life to convene at a dive bar that’s become a musical sanctuary for me lately. To my surprise, everyone I asked to play said yes, and I was even able to add a special out of town guest at the last minute to top off an already knockout lineup. When it was all said and done, the night was a big success and gave me the bug to host more events to bring people together in the name of playing some songs from the heart. The 5+ hours of music went a little something like this…
My good friend Cooper Walker got the ball rolling with his smoky vocal tone and inventive progressions. This guy is a true talent on electric and acoustic and a great guy to boot. I saw Cooper with a full band earlier this year at the Roxy and it rocked me very, very hard. Seeing him in acoustic setting is equally moving, but in a very different way. You should check him out playing with Cowspace on Wednesdays at Brennan’s or at one of his solo acoustic gigs soon.
Next up was my multi-talented brother David Bowick for a set mixed with originals from his solo project and alter ego, Alder, and covers from the likes of Butch Walker, Lyle Lovett, and whoever sings that “Just Dance” song. David was joined by the amazing Mia Perry on vocals for a rendition of a newer song by the Weepies, played so well they might as well have written it themselves. I also joined Boogie (that’s what I call him) for a few songs – some covers that we like and our original co-write “Hard to Believe.” Unable to resist, we jumped into a handful of acoustic renditions of Ocelot Robot songs (our band) including “Go”, “Brand New Girl”, “Reckless”, and our newest “Lost in L.A.” It’s always fun to re-imagine those songs with just an acoustic guitar because somehow my right hand needs to account for the lack of our turbo-driving drummer (Geoff, who marvelously ran sound for the night). We’re all eager to return to the stage with a full band show on Saturday December 17 at Club Trip in Santa Monica.
By a matter of chance, quirky-pop-punk wonder and dear friend of mine Arison Cain was in town from New York via Denver and I asked him to grace us with a short set of his crafty originals. After dedicating his set to Satan, he rocketed into several barn-burners, some named after Cher movies and most being about ex-girlfriends (including one tale of an ex getting hit by a car). His songs are as special as he is: “Going Full Throttle”, “Fish Called Wanda”, “Optimistically Sober”, “Darling” and “Anthem for Unreasonable.” Check him out online and do whatever you can to see this dude live.
There were more surprises on this night still in store. A friend of friend when I met him, Jordy Altman from Kansas took the stage for a set full of wit, goof, and nimble musicality. Jordy’s brand of comedy included tunes like “Love Handles” and something about a camel born with a jetpack instead of a hump (in which he expresses empathy for the camel since he too was born without a hump - makes sense to me). Jordy rounded out his set with a beautiful instrumental and was joined by the lovely Andi Porter on some comedic version of background vocals for his finale “Teddy Bear Killer” – I’m very glad that Jordy was involved and look forward to seeing him play again soon.
On the heels of his luscious new album Candour, Chris Allen crooned his original tunes perfectly with enough spirit and soul in his voice to melt a tank. Chris was accompanied on electric guitar by the one and only Anthony Mancini, who added a layer of cool mist to the landscape of the songs with his rhythm playing and tugged hard on the coat of the audience’s emotions with his soaring, bluesful lead work. Anthony is a unique talent and compliments the honesty (and candour, actually) in Chris’ work very nicely - as does Andi Porter who contributed silky harmony vocals to several songs in the set. As a writer, Chris hits the pressure points right on mark with songs like “Fly My Hand” that coos “I love the way it takes so long for the smile to leave your face.” But it was the quality of Chris’ voice that made this particular set so stunning and remarkable. He and Anthony played a rendition of “Let’s Get It On” in which Chris channeled equal parts Marvin Gaye, Gavin DeGraw, and Jack Black to the amazement of the crowd. Look for great things from Chris, and definitely check out his album on iTunes now.
With the daunting task of following all of this, and more than enough time to experiment with liquid confidence, I took the stage for a Razorface double set around midnight. I was in awe of the talent that showed up to perform and felt humbled to throw my tattered hat into the ring. Most of all, I was impressed by sense of community that night. I saw friends I haven’t seen in a long time, hung out with new friends I’d never really had a chance to get to know before in that environment, and met brand new people that I hope to know musically and personally for a long time. Many thanks to everyone that contributed to a wonderful evening – and believe me – I plan to make it happen again very soon!
As usual, I’ve written a few words about each new song I played - my thoughts on all the other tunes listed can be found sprinkled through the library of setlist blogs. Here’s the skinny:
Wednesday, December 7, 2011 - Solo Acoustic Set #1
1. “Go Away” - Elvis Costello
2. “City” – Dan Bern (Fleeting Days - 2003)
One of my favorite writers on planet earth, Dan Bern cuts to the core of anyone that’s ever left home in “City”, a delightful tale of change, disappointment, perspective, and Mountain Dew. Buy the song and album on iTunes here.
3. “Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis” - Tom Waits (Blue Valentine - 1978)
This song is the most self-explanitory evidence of Tom Waits’ genius I can think of at the moment. Check out the studio version as well as a great live version with a different vibe - both special in there own way. I have to admit I ran out and bought The Very Best of Little Anthony & the Imperials because of this song, and so should you.
4. “Senseless” – original written November 2011
My recent obsession with Jules Shear led to the creation of this new pop-rocker. Shear’s creative use of vocal phrasing and clever command of the truth can be heard all over Healing Bones and Dreams Don’t Count, the two albums I’m currently googly-eared over. “Senseless” borrows more than a little from vibe of “Listen to What She Says” and adds a pinch of angst from “Convict”, a song from Jules and the Polar Bears 1978 gem Got No Breeding. Jules seems to know everything there is to know about alienation and unrest – to which I pay homage with the lyric, “the only thing more frightening than not fitting in is despising where you know you belong.”
5. “Shredding the Documents” – John Hiatt (Walk On, 1995)
John Hiatt was a huge catalyst for me to begin playing acoustic guitar and singing back when I was 17 years old. Up to that point I’d spent 5 years learning every Metallica, Pantera, and Megadeth riff on electric guitar that I could. But when I spent the summer of 1999 in Pittsburgh living with family and interning at a radio station, I left Albuquerque listening to Hiatt’s 1993 album Perfectly Good Guitar. Once my cousin in Pittsburgh hooked me up with my first acoustic I started to get very into Hiatt’s deep catalog and ended up playing a ton of his songs at a coffee shop back home, mostly from his early albums. Anyway, short story long, he remains a seminal influence on my songwriting. Walk On is his most dynamic record in my opinion and “Shredding the Documents” is perhaps his most irreverent and dark song he’s written – perfect for a Razorface rendition! Dig into the bizarre video for the song below…
6. “Yesterday’s News” – Whiskeytown (Strangers Almanac, 1997)
Another byproduct of my summer spent in Pittsburgh in 1999, Strangers Almanac introduced me to a genre, though I’m not exactly sure what to call it. Alt-Country, Americana, whatever. Regardless, listening to their performance of “Yesterday’s News” below I can’t help but think it’s just old good rock n’ roll. Anyone that’s read this blog before knows how much I love Ryan Adams, but Whiskeytown not only marks the start of his journey, but was also graced by Caitlin Cary on violin and vocals. She added grace and balance that his solo work never quite had (even with Norah Jones). Pick up Strangers Almanac on iTunes and start a journey of your own.
7. “Motel Matches / New Amsterdam” – Elvis Costello (Get Happy!!! – 1980)
Elvis’ fourth album was, by his own description, his attempt at a dance record. He was also very influenced by R&B and Motown on that album, and it shows in “Motel Matches” – a devastating analogy song of worthless love. My version was also my first attempt at a medley (though I’m not sure if 2 songs constitutes a medley or if it takes 3…) as I incorporated a snails attempt at “New Amsterdam” from the same album. To this day I can’t hear Get Happy!!! without being transplanted to the drivers seat of my old 1987 Toyota pickup on the country roads outside of Murfreesboro, Tennessee in the early 2000’s, when I first got this album and played the hell out of it. Below you can hear a newer live version of Elvis doing the first half of “Motel Matches” followed by the original (and pretty out there) promo video for “New Amsterdam”:
8. “Adelaide” - Old 97’s (Drag it Up - 2004)
Even at their more tender moments, the Old 97’s are lots of fun. ”Adelaide” is one of those moments when this band shows their perfect balance of dimension and authenticity. I love the studio recording, which you can listen to below or purchase here. I also ended up with a video of my attempt at it from my good friend Mike Kang which I’ll post soon. Enjoy…
9. “Give Up” - Original
10. “Sad Smile” - Bobby Bare Jr.
11. “1492” - Counting Crows
12. “Indoor Fireworks” - Elvis Costello
13. “Won’t Be Home” - Old 97’s
Set #2
1. “A Kiss Before I Go” - Ryan Adams & the Cardinals
2. “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” - Tom Waits
3. “Healing Bones” - Jules Shear
4. “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” - The Band
5. “Champagne, Illinois” - Old 97’s
Upcoming Razorface Shows:
- Wednesday, December 14, 2011 - Brennan’s Pub, 8pm - w/ Jeff Cleveland
- Wednesday, December 28, 2011 - Brennan’s Pub, 8pm - w/ Jeff Cleveland
- Wednesday, January 4, 2012 - Brennan’s Pub, 8pm
Photos by Mike Kang (“The Fist”) except for the one of Cooper, which I took
