Not Welcome Here

I have one of those cases for CDs. It has only my punk rock music in it. There was a time where I moved around often, and decided that I couldn't stand carting around all of these hard plastic CD cases, one for each CD. So, I put many CDs into CD wallet cases and threw out the individual plastic cases. This particular CD case has only punk music in it, everything from Anti-flag to X-Ray Spex.

This post though is all about Bad Religion. I love this band, and I don't think they get enough credit for a pretty excellent career. Greg Graffin (the singer), Brett Gurewitz (Mr. Brett), and Jay Bentley (the bass player) started the band in 1979 in high school. Mr Brett started Epitaph as a DIY record label and grew it into one of the most successful indie labels of all time. One of the albums I wish I had, but don't, is Suffer, and since I don't own it, it won't appear here.

Bad Religion

How Could Hell be any Worse?

1982, Epitaph

Greg Graffin - vocals
Brett Gurewitz - guitar
Jay Bentley - bass
Pete Finestone - drums
Jay Ziskrout - drums

This is Bad Religion's debut album, recorded and distributed by their own record company, Epitaph, one of the most successful DIY labels ever. This album has the sound and feel of earlier American Hardcore groups like Black Flag and Bad Brains, however, Greg Graffin's pedantic vocal and the subject material are unique. Over time, the sound becomes more refined, but the Bad Religion sound has its beginnings here. This is the last recording with original drummer Jay Ziskrout, and has a guest appearance by Greg Hetson from the Circle Jerks. He would join the band full time in 1985. Fuck Armeggedon... this is Hell and We're all Gonna Die are the most famous tracks. Sublime covered We're all Gonna Die on their 1992 album 40oz to Freedom.  

Bad Religion

Recipe for Hate

1993, Epitaph

produced by Bad Religion

Greg Graffin - vocals
Brett Gurewitz - guitar
Greg Hetson - guitar
Jay Bentley - bass
Bobby Schayer - drums

singles-

• American Jesus
• Struck a Nerve

A lot of people credit Green Day and The Offspring with bringing punk to the mainstream, where it has clowned around ever since in cookie-cutter mediocrity, like most pop music. I disagree, however. This album came out a year before, scored radio hits and MTV play. Really the credit should go to Nirvana, but no one likes to call them a punk band.  Not only is this my favorite Bad Religion album, it ranked number 14 on Billboard's Heatseeker and features Eddie Vedder as a guest vocalist for a verse on Watch it Die, and a back-up for Greg Graffin on American Jesus. It would take Bad Religion until 2002 (Process of Belief) to make an album this good.  Every track is good, nothing to skip over, except the last "hidden track" Stealth, which is just weird-ass gobbly-gook and noise anyway. Some would argue that Bad Religion doesn't really count for culture revival, since they were making music since 1981 and never really left the scene. But this is a departure from early '80s American Hardcore, and British Punk. Plus it went mainstream for the first time.

Bad Religion

Process of Belief

2002, Epitaph

produced by Mr. Brett and Greg Graffin

Greg Graffin - vocals
Brett Gurewitz -guitar
Greg Hetson - guitar
Brian Baker - guitar
Jay Bentley - bass
Brooks Wackerman - drums

singles-

• Sorrow/ Who We Are
• Broken
• The Defense
• SuperSonic

This is the first Bad Religion album I bought, shortly after seeing the video for Sorrow and shortly before I saw them at the Avalon in Boston with Less Than Jake and Hot Water Music. This is the first album with Brett Gurewitz since 1994, and the first album ever with new drummer Brooks Wackerman from Suicidal Tendencies and the Vandals. It also marks the band's return to their own label Epitaph after spending 8 years on Epic and Atlantic. It's fast paced, loud, melodic... a call back to earlier '90s stuff.  My favorite track is Evangeline. This album marks the second coming of a band that had been around since the early '80s and had drifted into irrelevance, and it does a great job of reinvigorating and reinventing a classic group.  

Bad Religion.  

Empire Strikes First

2004, Epitaph

produced by Mr. Brett and Greg Graffin

singles- 

• Los Angeles is Burning/ Empire Strikes First

Aside from the We're all Gonna Die Sublime cover, and sometimes 21st Century Digital Boy, Bad Religion was never heard on radio. However, with this album, I started hearing their stuff all over the place.  Lakers games played Los Angeles is Burning, Empire Strikes First was played on ESPN during commercial spots for the Yankees. They blew up for a moment in 2004. This album is a great follow up to Process of Belief. If this was the beginning of their career, these two albums would make the band instant legends.

Bad Religion

New Maps of Hell

2007, Epitaph

produced by Joe Barresi

singles-

• Honest Goodbye
• New Dark Ages

This album at first glance appears like a sappy nostalgic trip to the past. The name and the artwork are both throwbacks to How Could Hell be any Worse in celebration of the 25th anniversary. This third release since the 2002 reboot continued mainstream popularity by contributing to downloadable content for the video game RockBand and debuted at number 35 on Billboard's 200. In my opinion the last two albums were better.    

Bad Religion  

The Dissent of Man

2010, Epitaph

produced by Joe Barresi

singles-

• The Devil in Stitches
• Cyanide
• Wrong Way Kids

This album is great, and more than makes up for New Maps of Hell. I love Wrong Way Kids, and the video has fan involvement, relying on fan submissions featured in the video, much like Dirty Little Secret by All American Rejects. Bad Religion's music relies on themes of religion, and politics unlike any other punk band. Greg Graffin's lyrics are intelligent, and thought provoking, and although his writing style is better suited to folk music, it makes Bad Religion's sound unique and easy to identify. I hope this band continues to produce solid punk rock albums in the future.  

Roy's Bluz

Roy Buchanan

Livestock

1975, Polydor

produced by Jay Reich Jr

Roy Buchanan - guitars, vocals

Billy Price - vocals

John Harrison - bass

Byrd Foster - drums

Malcom Lukens - keyboards

Roy Buchanan is the best and most tragic guitar player no one ever heard of.  A master of the telecaster, his sound is unique and astounding.  This album is live, as its name suggests, and is a must listen for anyone curious about this particular guitarist.  Buchanan battled with alcoholism, and ended up hanging himself in jail after an arrest for public intoxication.  Details are pretty sketchy.  He was 48.  His guitar playing has been called a clinic; gritty, beautiful tonality.  This is certainly someone that deserves to be better known.  Oh, and he named his guitar Nancy.  If you enjoy the blues as much as I do, this is a must listen.  

Got a Revolution!

Jefferson Airplane

Volunteers

1969, RCA

produced by Al Schmitt

Grace Slick - vocals, piano, organ

Paul Kantner - guitar, vocals

Marty Balin - vocals

Jorma Kaukonen - guitars, vocals

Jack Cassady - bass

Spencer Dryden - drums

singles:

• Volunteers

I like this band.  Mostly known for their second album, Surrealistic Pillow, this album proves to be a strong studio record, complete with catchy melodies, and thinly veiled lyrics.  The album overtly expresses the late '60s, early '70s protest spirit, including utopian sentiments of anarchy, and ecology.  This would also be the last album before the band begins to implode, beginning with Marty Balin and Spencer Dryden departing in 1971.  Jeff Tamarkin muses in the liner notes of Bless Its Pointed Little Head that the perceptible tension in the band at the time was harnessed on stage allowing for incredible sounds and stage presence. This album is an example.  Honestly, no one should have been surprised.  A band with three lead singers all with huge egos couldn't possibly coexist. 

Nicky Hopkins guest appears, performing with the band famously at Woodstock.  Jerry Garcia guest appears on pedal steel guitar, an instrument that he would give up as he thought it messed with his guitar playing.

American (history) Lies

I'll just leave this here.  It's from Cracked.com, which is a blog that loves to publish articles in the form of listed items...  usually the 5 or 10 or whatever number of some nerdy theme.  Sometimes they publish interesting things, like this article about the Monkey Sphere.

The specific article I want to talk a little bit about today though, is titled the 6 Ridiculous Lies You Believe about the Founding of America.  The title is a little misleading, as the 6 items are actually more about the 6 lies we (Americans) believe about American Indians, the discovery of America, and Pilgrims, not so much about the founding of the United States of America.  Either way, this article can be placed in the history category and highlights some of the same sorts of things Howard Zinn, and James Loewen have been talking about for years.

This of course is more of the same in a recurring theme around here, the misinterpretation of facts used to prop up the status quo, oppression, etc.  When I hear people (politicians, talking heads, media,  angry protesters, etc) talking about old school American values, founding fathers, and what this country should stand for, I think back to things like this article.  If people are unaware of the real truths behind the history of the "new world" what else have we been lead to believe about the rest of our collective history?  Also, Vikings!  Who doesn't like Vikings?

Even the Old School has an Old School

Lately, I've been listening to folk music more than normal.  By folk music, I don't necessarily mean stuff like Leonard Cohen, Lou Reed, Michelle Shocked, or even newer contemporary stuff like Flogging Molly, and Mumford and Sons, although I have been listening to those too.  I mean folk music by the earliest definition.

I mean traditional folk ballads, stuff that predates my grandparents.  I like it when contemporary artists cover tunes like these, from both British and American folk culture.  Bruce Springsteen did it on his Seeger Sessions album.  Flogging Molly and the Dropkick Murphys cover at least one or more traditional songs on each of their albums.  Even Greg Graffin from Bad Religion recorded an album filled with folk covers.

I enjoy these bits of music past.  I like Fairport Convention, Steel-eye Span, the Dubliners, etc.  This post will be the first of many that will highlight a famous traditional folk ballad.  Since today is Mother's Day, I decided to begin with this song:

Mrs. McGrath

Oh, Missis McGrath, the sergeant said,

Would you like to make a soldier out of your son, Ted?

With a scarlet coat, and a three-cocked hat,

Now Missis McGrath, wouldn't you like that?

Wid yer too-ri-aa, fol de diddle aa
Too-ri-oo-ri-oo-ri-aa.

Oh Mrs. McGrath lived by the seashore

For the space of seven long years or more;

Till she saw a big ship sail into the bay,

Here's my son, Ted, wisha, clear the way!

Wid yer too-ri-aa, fol de diddle aa

Too-ri-oo-ri-oo-ri-aa.

Oh, Captain, dear, where have ye been

Have you been in the Mediterranean?

Will ye tell me the news of my son, Ted?

Is the poor boy livin', or is he dead?

Wid yer too-ri-aa, fol de diddle aa

Too-ri-oo-ri-oo-ri-aa

Ah, well up comes Ted without any legs

An in their place he had two wooden pegs,

She kissed him a dozen times or two,

Saying, Holy Moses, 'tisn't you.

Wid yer too-ri-aa, fol de diddle aa

Too-ri-oo-ri-oo-ri-aa

Oh then were ye drunk, or were ye blind

That ye left your two fine legs behind?

Or was it walkin' upon the sea

Wore your two fine legs from the knees away?

Wid yer too-ri-aa, fol de diddle aa

Too-ri-oo-ri-oo-ri-aa

Oh, I wasn't drunk and I wasn't blind

But I left my two fine legs behind.

For a cannon ball, on the fifth of May,

Took my two fine legs from the knees away.

Wid yer too-ri-aa, fol de diddle aa

Too-ri-oo-ri-oo-ri-aa

Oh, Teddy, me boy, the old widow cried,

Yer two fine legs were yer mammy's pride,

Them stumps of a tree wouldn't do at all,

Why didn't ye run from the big cannon ball?

Wid yer too-ri-aa, fol de diddle aa

Too-ri-oo-ri-oo-ri-aa

All foreign wars I do proclaim

Between Don John and the King of Spain

And by herrins I'll make them rue the time

That they swept the legs from a child of mine.

Wid yer too-ri-aa, fol de diddle aa

Too-ri-oo-ri-oo-ri-aa

This particular song is about, basically, an Irish son who joins the King's Navy (British King), during the Napoleonic Wars in the early 19th century.  The song focuses on the mother of the sailor and how foreign wars affect the homeland.  The power of the song lays in its ability to paint together the emotion of reunion, and celebration of life, with the despair and horror, and trauma of armed conflict, and how difficult that can be to share even with loved ones.  These themes can be seen in later contemporary work by Dylan (John Brown), and Steve Goodman (Ballad of Penny Evans) and I'm sure in others.  

This particular song, although it predates the 20th century, became a political statement and protest anthem during the Easter Rising in Ireland in 1916 at the height of World War One.  Folk music would continue to be used for protest culminating during Vietnam conflict and beyond.