Common Imagery in the Lyrical Poetry of John Perry Barlow

 

 

 

 

 

 

Biblical Imagery

  • “His inheritance was mine…My father favored Esau, Who was eager to obey…Esau holds a blessing; Brother Esau bears a curse. I would say that the blame is mine But I suspect it’s something worse.” – My Brother Esau
  • “The Lord made a lady out of Adam’s rib. Next thing you know you got wimmen’s lib.” – Finance Blues
  • “Jehovah’s favorite choir” – The Music Never Stopped
  • “I AM” – Let It Grow
  • “The sea will part before me…Fire wheel burning in the air” – Estimated Prophet

Epistemic Uncertainty Imagery

  • “And I don’t know why I came…I didn’t know a stage-line ran from Hell” – Mexicali Blues
  • “I ain’t preaching, cause I don’t know” – Walk In Sunshine
  • “But I’d like to know what for” – Bombs Away
  • “You don’t know how easy it is.You don’t know how easy it is to love you.” – Easy To Love You
  • “They just don’t even know” – Shade of Gray
  • “If a reckoning comes, maybe we will know what to do then” – We Can Run But We Can’t Hide
  • “Cause I wouldn’t know where to begin” – Hell In A Bucket
  • “Maybe they’ll know what to do” – I Need A Miracle
  • “Someday I know you’ll satisfy me” – Lazy Lighting
  • “If it’s love then how would I know” – Feel Like A Stranger
  • “Never could read no road map And I don’t know what the weather might do….Well I never know, Sure don’t know, Never know, Never know,Sure don’t know.” – Saint of Circumstance

Being A Stranger, Being Strange, and Strangeness Imagery

  • Feel Like A Stranger
  • “A man and a woman come together as strangers.” – Blow Away
  • “Little stranger, don’t try to hide now.” – Easy To Love You
  • “So strange, you’ll do me all that you do” – Picasso Moon
  • “I guess that stranger hadn’t heard the news” – Mexicali Blues
  • “We’ll meet strangers and be, together again and again” – Me Without You
  • “Too well I know that crowd of strangers.” – Shade of Gray
  • “She was a stranger when I woke and saw her face.” – This Time Forever
  • “Even though I been a stranger, full of irony and spite ” – A Little Light

 Angel Imagery

  • “As well to count the angels dancing on a pin” – Let It Grow
  • “As certain as angels Of perpetual flight, When we met, we saw the light.” – This Time Forever
  • “You must be the angel I thought I’d never find” – Saint of Circumstance
  • “Like an angel, standing in a shaft of light” – Estimated Prophet
  • “Fallen Angels of earth have forgotten the sky” – Fly Away

Sky/Fire/Lightning/Thunder Imagery

  • “Fallen Angels of earth have forgotten the sky….Fly away, yeah, ride the sky away” – Fly Away
  • “But up here in the sky” – Shade of Gray
  • “Lord, they’re setting us on fire” – The Music Never Stopped
  • “Higher and higher, goin’ straight for the light. Feel the fire, or you’ll feel the fright” – Fly Away
  • “Yes Lord, they really light my fire”
  • “Like the crack before the thunder, like I really ought to hide” – Picasso Moon
  • “There’s a hole in the sky where the light pours in” – We Can Run But We Can’t Hide
  • “And I’ll call down thunder and speak the same.As my words fill the sky with flame.” – Estimated Prophet
  • “Real as thunder” – Easy To Love You
  • “Spinning fire, the lightning calls…Picasso Moon, fall into the sky” – Picasso Moon
  • “Like the sound of distant thunder ” – A Little Light
  • “Picture a bright blue ball, just spinning, spinnin free, Dizzy with eternity. Paint it with a skin of sky, Brush in some clouds and sea, Call it home for you and me” – Throwing Stones
  • “As my words fill the sky with flame” – Estimated Prophet
  • “Lazy lightning.Sleepy fire in your eyes.” – Lazy Lighting
  • “And listen to the thunder shout” – Let It Grow
  • “Water bright as the sky from which it came” – Let It Grow

Sight/Blindness Imagery

  • “So I give you my eyes…Please help them to learn as well as to see…Of looking at you looking at me.” – Black-Throated Wind
  • “But if we open our eyes, we can open our wings…Hey, and sail out of sight” – Fly Away
  • “Maybe a face you’ve never seen” – Lost Sailor
  • “So good to see you” – Easy To Love You
  • “And I know at a glance you could show me all the sights I’d ever care to see.” – Wrong Way Feelin’
  • “I’ve changed the eyes I gaze in” – Bombs Away
  • “You can close your eyes, the world is gonna let you” – I Will Take You Home
  • “Inside you’re burnin’. I can see clear through” – Feel Like A Stranger
  • “Picasso Moon, blinding ball” – Picasso Moon
  • “Like a blind man shootin’ pool” – Heaven Help The Fool
  • “We’re afraid of our dreams, we’re afraid or too blind….But blindness holds better than chains” – Fly Away
  • “We were anything but blind” – This Time Forever

Money Imagery

  • “They got ‘em packaged up for love and money…I see your face printed on my money,” – Picasso Moon
  • Finance Blues
  • “Need that cash to feed that jones” – Throwing Stones

Stones

  • “And the politicians throwin’ stones….History’s page will thus be carved in stone….We can leave this place an empty stone” – Throwing Stones
  • “Plunging like stones from a slingshot on Mars” – Black-Throated Wind
  • “Mighty day, yeah the stone rolls away” – Fly Away
  • “Time sits like a stone” – Shade of Gray
  • “You’re as mighty as the flower that will grow the stones away. ” – A Little Light

Roads/Highway/Street Imagery

  • “Long is the road” – I Will Take You Home
  • “There’s a band out on the highway.They’re high-steppin’ into town.” – The Music Never Stopped
  • “Rainbow’s end down that highway,Where ocean breezes blow….Afternoon, the streets turn grey” – Estimated Prophet
  • “Never could read no road map” – Saint of Circumstance
  • “But I’m here by the road, Bound to the load….The highway, the moon, the clouds, and the stars.” – Black-Throated Wind
  • “Just watchin’ flies and children on the street….I went down to those dusty streets” – Mexicali Blues
  • “But out in the streets Well it’s night time on Broadway.” – Shade of Gray
  • “This could be just another highway, coiled up in the night. ” – A Little Light
  • “It strolls the sidewalks and it rolls the streets, Staking turf, dividing up meat” – Throwing Stones

Moon

  • “Ooh, where’s the moon?” – Lost Sailor
  • “And comes the moonrise, when the dew falls” – Easy To Love you
  • “The highway, the moon, the clouds, and the stars” – Black-Throated Wind
  • “Blue moon” – Falling
  • Picasso Moon
  • “Sun went down in honey. Moon came up in wine.” – The Music Never Stopped

Wind Imagery

  • “Today I went walking in the amber wind” – We Can Run But We Can’t Hide
  • Black-Throated Wind
  • “And there’s a ghost wind blowin’” – Lost Sailor
  • “While I was chasin’ dreams? Driven by the wind, Like the dust that blows around…When that wind blows, And the darkness starts to fall” – Saint of Circumstance
  • “Or it could have been the wind.” – The Music Never Stopped

Blood Imagery

  • “You must mean water when you beg for blood” – Blow Away
  • “The silent war that bloodied both our hands” – My Brother Esau
  • “blood was on my mind” – Mexicali Blues

Town/City Imagery

  • “She said her name was Billy Jean and she was fresh in town…Then a man rode into town some thought he was the law” – Mexicali Blues
  • “When she’s in town, I’ll never be alone.” – Gloria Monday
  • “There’s a band out on the highway.They’re high-steppin’ into town.” – The Music Never Stopped
  • “She comes from a town where they call her the woodcutter’s daughter” – Let It Grow
  • “I want a mighty city and I think I want it here…Salt Lake City,  that town of righteousness and fame” – Salt Lake City

While this is more thorough than the feature I did on Robert Hunter’s imagery, the following still applies: Please note that this is in no way exhaustive, I’m sure many more examples could be found to back up these common images–this is just a small sampling.

Common Imagery in the Lyrical Poetry of Robert Hunter

 

 

 

 

Imagery: Birds

  • “Leaving Texas Fourth day of July Sun so hot, clouds so low The eagles filled the sky” – in Jack Straw
  • “With the scream of an eagle on the fly” – Black Muddy River
  • “wondering where the nuthatch winters Wings a mile long just carried the bird away” – in Eyes of the World
  • Bird Song
  • “Bird are winging” – Box of Rain

Imagery: Card Games and The Ups an Downs of Gambling

  • “All that I am asking for is ten gold dollars I could pay you back with one good hand You can look around about the wide world over You’ll never find another honest man.” – in Loser
  • “Since it cost a lot to win and even more to lose You and me bound to spend some time wondering what to chose…I been gambling hereabouts for ten good solid years If I told you all that went down it would burn off both your ears” – in Deal
  • “Sitting plush with a royal flush Aces back to back” – Ramble on Rose
  • “Watch each card you play and play it slow” – Deal
  • “Come on, boys and wager if you have got the bind If you got a dollar, boys lay it on the line” – Candyman
  • “When all the cards are down there’s nothing left to see” – in Stella Blue

Imagery: Working Men and Working The Land

  • “Gone are the days when the ox fall down he’d take up the yoke and plow the fields around” – in Brown-Eyed Woman
  • “Been chippin’ up rocks for the great highway Live five years if I take my time” – Easy Wind
  • “Gotta go down to the Cumberland Mine That’s where I mainly spend my time Make good money five dollars a day Made any more I might move away” – Cumberland Blues

Imagery: Roads and Rivers

  • You can’t overlook the lack, Jack of any other highway to ride” – New Speedway Boogie
  • Lazy River Road
  • So Many Roads
  • Shakedown Street
  • “In a bed, in a bed by the waterside I will lay my head Listen to the river sing sweet songs to rock my soul” – Brokedown Palace
  • “Sleepin’ by the river just like he usually done….Riding down the river in an  old canoe” – Alligator
  • “Chicago, New York, Detroit, it’s all on the same street” – Truckin’
  • “Black muddy river roll on forever” – Black Muddy River
  • “Till the morning comes like  a highway sign” – Till The Morning Comes
  • Shakedown Street

Imagery: Rain and Sun

  • “Sun goin’ up and then the sun it goin’ down” – Black Peter
  • “Maybe the sun is shining…or rain is falling from a heavy sky….Walk into splintered sunlight….Just a box of rain” – Box of Rain
  • “All I know the sun don’t shine, the rain refuse to fall” – So many Roads
  • “Ill show you snow and rain” – Bird Song
  • “Ran into a rainstorm…It was all night pouring, pouring rain But not a drop on me” – Bertha
  • “Sun so hot, clouds so low” – Jack Straw
  • Mission in the Rain

Imagery: Poverty

  • “Lott poor  man make a five-dollar bill Keep him happy all the time Some other fellow making nothing at all And you can hear him cryin’” – Cumberland Blues
  • “Got no dime but I got time to hear this story” – Wharf Rat
  • “Take a look at poor peter” – Black Peter
  • “Rich man step on my poor head” – Tennessee Jed

Imagery: Flowers

  • Scarlet Begonias
  • “Wildflower seed in the sand and wind” – Franklin’s Tower
  • “Sugar magnolia blossom’s blooming…Sweet blossom come on under the willow” – Sugar Magnolia
  • “Blooming like a red rose” – Sunshine Daydream

Imagery: Transportation (Trains and Ships)

  • “Now he’s gone Lord, he’s gone Like a steam locomotive rolling down the track” – in He’s Gone
  • “Drivin’ that train” – Casey Jones
  • Ship of Fools
  • “Gotta get to Tulsa First train we can ride” – Jack Straw
  • “It like a diesel train…And when that train rolls in” – They Love Each Other

Please note that this is in no way exhaustive, I’m sure many more examples could be found to back up these common images–this is just a small sampling.

Top 25 Live Cover Songs By David Gans

Here are, in my mind, the 25 best covers that David Gans has done.

25. Norwegian Wood by The Beatles
24. Sugaree by The Grateful Dead
23. For What It’s Worth by Buffalo Springfield
22. Mr. Tamborine Man by Bob Dylan
21. Here Comes The Sun by The Beatles
20. Goin’ Down The Road Feeling Bad by The Grateful Dead
19. Travelling Man by Ricky Nelson
18. Me And Bobbie McGee by Roger Miller
17. New Speedway Boogie by The Grateful Dead
16. Wharf Rat by The Grateful Dead
15. A Hard Day’s Night by The Beatles
14. Friend of the Devil by The Grateful Dead
13. Promised Land by The Grateful Dead
12. Box of Rain by The Grateful Dead
11. Ripple by The Grateful Dead
10. Midnight Moonlight by Peter Rowan
9. Cold Rain and Snow by The Grateful Dead
8. Dear Mr. Fantasy by Traffic
7. Lay Down Sally by Eric Clapton
6. You Ain’t Going Nowhere by Bob Dylan
5. Wild Horses by The Rolling Stones
4. Can’t You See by Marshall Tucker band
3. The Bird Song by The Grateful Dead
2. Mama Tried by Johnny Cash
1. Candy Man by The Grateful Dead

“Our House” vs “Triad”: Longing for Monogamy in the 1960′s?

The 1960′s were, as we all know, a time of great socio-cultural upheaval.  Of course, part of this upheaval was a changing sexual ethic often referred to as “free love”. And yet, it must be said by any honest observer (even if they don’t hold to the Christian sexual ethic) that the rejection of monogamy delivered far less satisfaction than it purported to.

In fact, I believe  that from my Christian standpoint, the “free love” impulse delivered a lot of ugliness. And rather than affirming love and beauty, it led to the denigration of it. More love doesn’t make better love, even if we were to understand love as mere physical passion (which I don’t).

In the counterculture there was simultaneously an impulse toward wild, swinging free-love and a strong (although perhaps sometimes suppressed) impulse against it.  A perfect example of this tension can be found in the songs of CSNY (Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young).

One song, David Crosby’s “Triad”, is very dreamy. It was written in 1967 but did not appear on a CSNY album until 1971 (apparently the Byrds thought it was too freaky and wouldn’t put it on their album).   It’s tone is pained and prolonged, a sort of agony, although soft and mellow too.  It bespeaks a dreary enjoyment. Love is plural (“Both love you “, “I love you too”) and an abstract, non-definable notion. Things are non-concrete and flighty, no setting or concrete location.  No grounding.  The love is floating, questioning, selfish, and unsatisfied (it begs for something it doesn’t have–each verse is an entreaty).  While the wording is catchy and the music is fascinating,  there is something scary about the tone of the song. The only external things mentioned are negative (a repressive school,  a cold ghost).  There is a lot of epistemic uncertainty, even in the main thrust of the song (“I don’t really see, why can’t we go on..”) and shame (“You are afraid, embarrased too”, “Your mother’s ghost stands at you shoulder”, “colder”). And all of the blame seems to be heaped on that person that is afraid.  It conveys images and thoughts, but the reality is too flighty to visualize.

Another song is certainly dreamy, but  in a different sense. Graham Nash’s “Our House” carries a sober but happy tone, speaking glowingly of a house with two people, where everything is orderly.  And the love is giving and exclusive (“only for you”, “only for me”), but yet acknowledges and embraces external things (like the sun, the yard, and the cats). Love can be concretely defined and has concrete manifestations or evidence (like flowers and love songs). Each verse bespeaks a certain confidence and satisfaction. There is structure and a home, a life, and a pattern. Above all, the situation is very concrete and grounded in reality, it has a tether to the earth and a context by which we can visualize it.

Clearly, both Crosby and Nash both subscribed to the ethic of “free love” when they wrote these songs, but these songs show greatly divergent assessments of it and perhaps in Nash there was a strong desire to have the stability and love that couldn’t be found in “free love”.

As much as one may seek “liberation” from Biblical norms, rejecting faithful, loving monogamy leaves one essentially bankrupt.  “Free love” sooner or later, leaves one empty and without satisfaction.  The intense struggle of those who’ve rejected the ethic of monogamy is even evident in the music of the 1960′s and 1970′s. It didn’t take a few decades for the fruits to come. They came right away, and I believe you can find a representation of the emptiness of “free love” in Graham Nash’s “Our House” (and it is an especially vivid portrait when one compares it to David Crosby’s “Triad”).

In the Biblical scheme, marital love is concrete and grounded, and definable. And it is exclusive. When the gospel pattern of love is inculcated in us and the Biblical pattern of marriage is embodied, we should expect to see the sort of home that Nash sang rather than the “something or other” that Crosby sang about. The husband and wife are comfortable in their home, comfortable with each other, comfortable with their cats (hehe), everything is in place, they are clearly enjoying each other, there isn’t fear, and the overwhelming tone of their relationship is not longing (though there certainly  is longing!) but rather satisfaction.

I don’t think Graham Nash had the resources to establish the sort of home that he sang about. But, quite frankly, we don’t either. Only by the grace of God is it possible.

Some Of My Favorite Lines From The Zion’s Harp

I enjoy the hymn book that my former church/denomination (Apostolic Christian Church–Nazarene or ACCN) uses. It’s called “The Zion’s Harp”.  It’s a collection of hymns, mainly of German lutheran origins. Most of the songs are amazingly deep and richly majestic.

The only complaints against it that I would register is that (a) there is some overtones of baptismal regeneration in it–probably due to the lutheran origins of many of the songs, (b) some of the songs are too enamored with the pietism that had infiltrated the Lutheran church, and  (c) there is an unfortunate lack of attribution for the lyrics and melodies.

In appreciation of the hymn book, I will share some of my favorite lines (I admit–I’m picking them quite selectively). Some of these lines are sort of surprising–one wouldn’t expect to find them in a mainstream ACCN hymn book, given the theological convictions of the mainstream ACCN.  I think that when I read or sing the Zion’s Harp, I see some elements of a richer doctrine of God and doctrine of grace than I would hear in a typical ACCN sermon.  An interesting area of study would be to compare these verses with the renderings found in the sister denomination–the ACCA. I’ve found the varation to be rather interesting at some points.  Nick Steffen’s blog has a link posted to the ACCA version of the lyrics in case anyone is interesting in checking that out.

Many thanks to Judah Weinhart for posting the lyrics on a  blog of his called Harfe and Heft, that was a great idea and very useful in assembling this post. I was very happy to find that he’s posting the lyrics to the ACCN version of the hymn book.

From #61 — Gracious Lord, to Thee We Hold Us

We have not ourselves elected;
But Thou has us, O Lord, selected,
By grace, decreed eternally.
Lo, our strength is so unstable
That none to do Thy work are able,
Unless Thou strengthen mightily.
So break the stubborn will
That, humbled, we may still
Thy kingdom gain.

From #29 — Jesus, Our Great Mediator

When Thou here in flesh didst sojourn,
And our sins upon Thee lay,
Thou didst turn unto Thy Father,
For the sinners Thou didst pray;
Both with weeping and with sighing,
For the sinners’ pardon crying;
Oh in what humility
Then arose Thy fervent plea!

Now Thy eloquent petitions
Are supported by Thy might,
As Thou in Thy heav’nly glory
Sittest at Thy Father’s right;
Now though Satan may accuse us,
Pardon Thou wilt not refuse us,
For Thy blood for us was spilt
And this blood removed our guilt.

Jesus, our great Mediator,
Whom the heav’nly host obeys,
For the faithfulness Thou showest,
We give honor, thanks and praise;
Grant Thy Spirit, Lord and Savior,
When we ask the Father’s favor;
Lead us steadfast with Thy hand
Till we reach the Fatherland.


From #12, Lord Jesus Thou Art King

Let not a single knee
On earth remain unbended;
Though humbled he may be,
Let no one be offended;
No lips be loath to own
That Jesus is our Lord,
Our Savior-King alone,
True to His Father’s Word.

….The kingdom and the might,
The glory, power, shall be
Our God’s in His own right,
And Christ’s eternally.

His glorious rule of right
Shall ever be unbroken;
The scepter of His might
In peace shall give its token.
Ye peoples, shout for joy,
His praise let all proclaim,
Let earth its power employ
To glorify His Name.

From#38, Blessed Zion Be Contended:

If with anguish thou are shaken,
If men bind and torture thee,
Thou wilt never be forsaken
- Think upon eternity!
Stand in faith and do not fear,
For thy Lord is ever near.
Zion, let His hand direct thee;
He will strengthen and protect thee!

From #16 — How Good to Be a Lamb of Christ the Savior

How good to be a lamb of Christ the Savior,
To stand in grace with Him the faithful Lord!
O earth there is no better, higher favor
Than this: to follow Jesus and His Word.
Far more than all the world can give
Each lamb shall at the hand of Christ the Lord receive.

Each lamb on verdant pastures there is grazing
And finding springs of waters sweet and pure;
No heart can grasp the mercy so amazing
Each lamb doth at the Shepherd’s hand secure.
Eternal life is here revealed
To those who unto Christ the Lord in faith are sealed.

Each lamb is kept by Jesus Christ securely,
Though envious wrath may move the power of hell;
No wolf shall pluck it from His bosom surely;
Almighty is the Lord, and guardeth well;
He daily watcheth o’er it here,
And in the vale of death it shall not fall nor fear.

From #86 — Though Trouble Assail

No strength of our own,
Nor virtue we claim;
Our trust is alone
Upon the Lord’s name.
In this, our strong tower,
For safety we hide;
Therein lies our power:
“The Lord will provide.”

From #35 O Deliv’rer From All Bondage

Let not those whom Thou hast purchased
Be the servants here of men;
For, indeed, Thy great atonement
Cleanseth us from every sin.
Pure, and free of every blemish,
And made more and more like Thee,
Grace for grace from Thee receiving,
Truly blesséd will we be!

From #85 – O Father, Now We Seek Thee

If Satan in his power
Should try to lead astray,
O tread him in that hour
Beneath our feet, we pray.
From evil, Lord, deliver;
With power us sustain,
That we may, like the Savior,
Be victors on the plain!

For Thine, Lord, is the kingdom,
The pow’r and majesty,
The glory and dominion
Through all eternity!
Destroy the realm of Satan
And darkness’ evil reign!
And to restore creation,
Return, Lord, soon again.

From #8 — My Praise to His Throne Now Mount


The strongest foe may not prevail,
For filled with faith no heart shall fail,
That faith well-founded in Christ’s blood,
His sacrifice our highest good. Hallelujah!

For us did He the victory win
O’er world and Satan, death and sin,
And as we serve and love Him well
Our King within each heart doth dwell. Hallelujah!
From #94 — When Our Ship of Faith is Drifting

He is Lord! When He commendeth,
Storms abate; high seas grow still;
Naught His mighty pow’r withstandeth;
All things need must do His will.
He gives rest when woes afflict us,
And doth evermore protect us
That we sink not in dismay,
For His cov’nant stands for aye.

Therefore, rest ye in Him solely,
Lest your light of hope grow dim;
He is near, though hidden wholly,
Set your confidence on Him!
Firmly on this rock relying,
Comfort you and cease your sighing;
Faith at rest in Jesus’ blood
Heedeth neither storm nor flood.

Though the ship of faith would falter
In the storms we must endure,
Nothing e’er its course shall alter,
For its anchor is secure
In the ground our God hath given,
Jesus’ blood, and it shall even,
By our faith upon His grace,
Hold within the Holy Place.

We by faith are bound securely
With that mighty cord of love,
That from earth extendeth surely
To the Fatherland above.
This true love so freely given
Ever draws us on to heaven,
On to glory, home, and rest,
To that City of the Blest.

When Thou here in flesh didst sojourn,
And our sins upon Thee lay,
Thou didst turn unto Thy Father,
For the sinners Thou didst pray;
Both with weeping and with sighing,
For the sinners’ pardon crying;
Ohm in what humility
Then arose Thy fervent plea!

7. Now Thy eloquent petitions
Are supported by Thy might,
As Thou in Thy heav’nly glory
Sittest at Thy Father’s right;
Now though Satan may accuse us,
Pardon Thou wilt not refuse us,
For Thy blood for us was spilt
And this blood removed our guilt.

8. Jesus, our great Mediator,
Whom the heav’nly host obeys,
For the faithfulness Thou showest,
We give honor, thanks and praise;
Grant Thy Spirit, Lord and Savior,
When we ask the Father’s favor;
Lead us steadfast with Thy hand
Till we reach the Fatherland.

Jorma’s Conversion to Judaism

I know the news of religious conversions of musicians are a dime a dozen, but I figured I’d add this one to the mix.

Former Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna guitarist, Jorma Kaukonen has apparently converted to Judaism (though he was raised Jewish). Jorma has linked to this story on his twitter account, so I’m assuming this is legit and not tabloid-ish.

The article says that “Jorma Kaukonen, the guitarist of legendary American rock band Jefferson Airplane, is another name” to be added to the list of distinguished religious Jews.  Jorma is quoted as saying “According to the Book of Deuteronomy, ‘The Lord did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples. But it was because the Lord loved you and kept the oath he swore to your ancestors that he brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the land of slavery, from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt.’….God used the Jewish people in a unique way to give humanity the Bible – through special people like Moses, David, Solomon, Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel”

Jorma was born December 23, 1940 in Washington, DC. He was born to a Finnish American father who was a State Department official and a Russian Jewish mother.  He moved to California in the early 1960′s and that’s where he hooked up with Jefferson Airplane. Besides his work with Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna, he released over a dozen solo albums. He now lives in southeastern Ohio and runs Fur Peace Ranch guitar camp.

Here are a couple videos: first one older (with Jack Cassady on the left and Jorma on the right) and second one more recent (at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony.

He Was A Friend Of Mine

There’s an old folk song called “He Was A Friend Of Mine”, the earliest version being from “Shorty George”. Many musicians have performed this song, perhaps most notably Bob Dylan starting in 1962.

It lamented the death of a friend. Part of it went:

He was a friend of mine

He was a friend of mine

Every time I think about him now Lord I just can’t keep from cryin’

Cause he was a friend of mine

In 1963, Roger McGuinn of the Byrds rewrote this song to make it an eulogy for President Kennedy:

He was a friend of mine, he was a friend of mine
His killing had no purpose, no reason or rhyme
He was a friend of mine

He was in Dallas town, he was in Dallas town
From a sixth floor window a gunner shot him down
He was in Dallas town

He never knew my name, he never knew my name
Though I never met him I knew him just the same
Oh he was a friend of mine

Leader of a nation for such a precious time
He was a friend of mine

This song actually caused a little bit of tension among the members of The Byrds. Before singing the song at a festival in 1967, David Crosby stated he did not accept the usual explanation of the shooting (which is to some degree affirmed in the song). The other members were upset at him for littering the performance with this conspiracy theory, at least partly because it resulted in less television coverage. This, along with other events at the festival, is probably at least partially an explanation for the split between Crosby and the rest of the group. Or at least part of the progression that led to that.

Anyways, just an interesting random history flashback.

Byrds Harmony

The Byrds

The Byrds

If there ever was a perfunctory blog post, this may be it.

I’m planning to post a Book Log soon, and thus far I haven’t posted anything in August. So, to make it two posts in a month, I’m making this post.  I promise to try to post more in September.

For one reason or another, I can’t get this song out of my head. So to be all original and everything, I figured I’d post a YouTube video which basically just contains the audio.  It is a rendition of Oil In My Lamp by The Byrds (originally appearing on their eighth album, Ballad of Easy Rider, October 1969–with Roger McGuinn, Clarence White, Gene Parsons and John York).  The arrangement is by Parsons & White. Take that John and Paul and George and Ringo!

Mel Brown Passes Away

This past Sunday, Mel Brown, a bluesman from the Mississippi Delta, died. 
Mel’s first gig was with Sonny Boy Williamson, and he played with many greats such as B.B. King, T-Bone Walker, Stevie Ray Vaughn, and John Lee Hooker.

One point of interest was that Mel Brown actually lived in Kitchener, Ontario (my birth place) since 1989. Of Kitchener, he once said: “‘I love this place. I just love this place”.

Here’s a video of Mel Brown playing Crosstown:

Just For Me And You

For all the couples out there on this here Valentine’s Day, I present to you “Just For Me And You” by Poco in 1972. I think you’ll like it if you like country rock :)

Richie Furray, who is the lead singer and also wrote this song, came from Buffalo Springfield (Neil Young’s first major band) and later became a Calvary Chapel pastor in Colorado. And another band member, Timothy Schmit, went on to join The Eagles.