Lou Reed, RIP.

Truly one of the all-time greats has left the building today. Lou Reed was an amazing musician. His work with the Velvets gave the world a roadmap on how to create gritty, cool rock and roll. Sometimes noisey, sometimes quiet… always beautiful to hear. I never thought he would make it to the age of 71. I’m sure he didn’t either.

I first met him when I was 9 or 10 years old on the set of One Trick Pony. My dad was the camera operator. Lou was on set playing a douchebag label engineer. Even then I knew who he was because his music was always being played in my home. Nobody could ever find the guy on set when it was time for his scenes because he was always shooting up in the bathrooms! There’s another story of him stealing all the prop-mans liquor and when he was confronted by the crew, Lou told them he knows karate (I think Sylvia taught him a move or two) and would kick their asses. They got their liquor back.

I met him again in 1989 at Brooklyn Academy of Music. They say never meet your heroes and it’s true of my experience with Lou, but hey- how friendly do you think someone is going to be when they are separating from their spouse and you basically walk in on them arguing for a handshake?

Bottom line- he was a gifted guitarist, and wrote some fantastic songs. You will hard pressed to find a better three chord rock tune than Sweet Jane. Love ya Lou. Stay cool.

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Adam MCA Yauch

We lost Levon Helm two weeks ago, and today we got news of Adam Yauch’s passing.

His music was the soundtrack to my life since 1984, and I’m saddened by his death, especially since I would see him walking around my Greenwich Village neighborhood on and off for years.

MCA: He was a trip, he had a funky beat, and we all got to bug out to it.

Peace.

The Buddha Rats

Dec. 8th

What a day.

It started at 3:40 am. I just couldn’t sleep. There was the same ol’ crap on the teevee, and nothing new on the www.  I stared at the ceiling for awhile, checked in on The Kid, and I finally, finally got back to sleep.

When I woke up I put on the news. It was all about Lennon. Of course… it was The Anniversary, and 30 years is a long time. A lifetime. I was a little kid when he was killed, but it hit home hard. It made me think about where I had been in my short life, and where I was going. And it still makes me sad in a way, even though I never knew the guy, and what I do know about him now that I’m a man and a parent, I don’t really care for.

But what an Artist! The best around. Him and Paul.

I didn’t listen to any music today, and I didn’t talk much either. I did think, quite morbidly,  about the fact that if Lennon had lived he would have become (after a long string of terrible 80’s albums)  as spent as Paul creatively. He definitely would have divorced her, and would be living well and happy in England making guest appearances on Jools Holland, or an Oasis album. Then there would be The Reunion, whether or not George was alive, because even Zep toured without JPJ.

But in the end, I get pissed off. We were all robbed because he was the one motherf**ker who could put it all out on parade, all out on the line no matter how mis-guided or mis-informed. He meant everything he said, and played. He lived it like he talked it, and there’s no one out there willing to do that these days.

It’s a pity.

I hate Mike Love.

I hate Mike Love.  I just can’t stand him. I tried to listen to “Pet Sounds” this weekend, and upon hearing his crappy voice, I had to turn off the album. There is no plug in on Good God’s Earth that can make his shit voice sound good. Le_Pétomane’s farts were more musical.

Mike just plain ol’ ruined the Beach Boys, and his vocal “contribution” to “God Only Knows” is proof enough that he ruined the song and the band. Why is that? Because that nasal pricks’  voice sounds like a Kazoo. At least in the mono version his voice is buried so deep in the mix that it doesn’t offend. Why didn’t Brian erase his tracks and leave him off the album?

EDIT: I’ve been told that Love didn’t sing on “God Only Knows”, but I still think he ruined the song if only because he was sending Brian bad vibes for not sticking to the “formula”. 🙂

What’s more: Nothing, and I do mean NOTHING, can take away from the fact that the no-talent son of a bitch nasal prick rode on The Beatles’ coat-tails right into the Maharishi compound with his suitcase packed with cigarettes, batteries and film which he proceeded to sell to everyone as they ran out of their own supply. Nice hippie spirit Mike. Go f**k yourself, and don’t forget to choke on your mantra.

It feels good to say this again, so I will: FUCK YOU MIKE LOVE. You’re the biggest no-talent piece of shit ever to hit The Big Time. You give all bald musicians a bad name, so why don’t you take off that hat, and let it shine, you has-been dickhead?

I’ll leave you all with a picture of the biggest Rock and Roll douchebag of the 20th Century. This picture makes any photo taken of  Mick Jagger in the 1980’s look masculine:

Elliott Smith

Elliott was a fantastic musician, cut from that great old-school Folk/Rock & Roll cloth and a time when people actually learned how to write their own songs and play their instruments well.

He was a solid guitarist with a great finger-picking style, and he was also adept at piano, bass guitar, and drums. Smith had a distinctive “thin” vocal style and used multiple tracks to create layered vocals with interesting sonic textures and lush harmonies.

It is widely accepted that Elliott was depressed, and overly fond of alcohol and drugs, but I didn’t embrace his music because of that. I just got off on the fact that he was talented. Pure and simple.

In the end, Elliott’s demons caught up with him, and he died at the young age of 34.

I rarely play or record cover tunes, but I had a lot of fun with Elliott’s tune “A Passing Feeling”. I hope you enjoy it, and please feel free to download it.

A Passing Feeling

The Buddha Rats® is the property of Andrew Gold. Reg. USPTO.