by Robert Wilkinson
Our Sunday late show features music that’s so far out it’s in! Today and tonight we’re going into the blue with some seriously late night music! Some of this is NSFW.
First, Sterling Morrison (August 29, 1942 – August 30, 1995), guitarist and occasional bass player for the original Velvet Underground. They were, of course, the darkest alternative music being made at the time, written around drugs, sex, orgies, and the Warhol phantasmagoria that was the NYC art and S/M scene in the mid-60s.
The Velvet Underground were one of most amazing and decadent groups ever to achieve cult status. The Velvets were part of the NYC Exploding Plastic Inevitable multimedia artistic scene created by Andy Warhol involving several facets of art expressed in ways never done before.
The Velvets did songs that were hard and gritty, sometimes using fragments from William Burroughs’ novels and elements of Dada. They sang about heroin, speed, dealers, addiction, gay and transgendered life, male and female hookers and the murky side of love, including some stunningly beautiful (if dark) love songs. Lou’s songs inspired ten thousand other writers to go where no writer had gone before.
I saw them at the Vulcan Gas Company in the Autumn of 1969, right around the time Sterling was deciding to get his Masters at UT. It was one of the weirdest vibes I’ve ever felt at a concert. Not bad, but definitely somewhat degenerate and extraordinarily electrifying! The closest thing I could find of that tour is the link to the Boston Tea Party show in 1969. The set list begins with “Heroin” and ends with “Sister Ray.” Wow, but NSFW or polite company!
Back to Sterling, from wiki:
… Morrison primarily played guitar on the band's first two albums, although when Cale, the band's usual bassist, played viola or keyboards in the studio or on stage, Morrison often filled in on bass. Some songs (including "Heroin" and "Sister Ray") had Reed and Morrison on their usual guitars while Cale played viola and Vox Continental organ respectively, with no bass guitar.There were at least three songs where Cale played both piano and bass while Reed and Morrison played guitars and these were "I'm Waiting for the Man", "Femme Fatale" and "White Light/White Heat" and two songs where Cale played both viola and bass with Reed and Morrison on guitars: "Here She Comes Now" and "The Black Angel's Death Song", the former of which saw Cale doubling on piano. Although Morrison was a proficient bassist (as exemplified by his performances on "Sunday Morning", "Venus in Furs", "All Tomorrow's Parties" and "Lady Godiva's Operation")…
Morrison got co-writing credits on "European Son", "Here She Comes Now", "The Gift", "Sister Ray", "Chelsea Girls", "Hey Mr. Rain", "Ride into the Sun", "Foggy Notion", "Ferryboat Bill", "I'm Gonna Move Right In", "Coney Island Steeplechase" and "Guess I'm Falling in Love" and he also co-wrote the title track with Reed to Nico's debut solo album… Morrison died of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma on August 30, 1995, one day after his 53rd birthday…
And now, the early Velvet Underground! Just remember, some of the lyrics you’re about to hear are X rated, and will take you through a sordid slice of life.
We’ll begin with their pioneering first studio album! Here’s 11 tracks which blew a lot of minds! The Velvet Underground with Nico
Song List: “Sunday Morning,” “I’m Waiting for the Man,” “Femme Fatale,” “Venus in Furs,” “Run Run Run,” “All Tomorrow’s Parties,” “Heroin,” “There She Goes Again,” “I’ll be Your Mirror,” “The Black Angel’s Death Song,” and “European Son.”
Here’s the original band in a live 1 minute video clip from their days at The Factory, doing the very bizarre “Venus In Furs”
From the same bizarre era, here’s a treat! A full hour video of The Velvet Underground and Nico: A Symphony of Sound (1966)
Here is the original audio from the 1969 live album accompanied with footage from The Velvet Underground's factory rehearsal: “White Light White Heat”
From January 1969, the entire 90 minute show, including everything from opening with “Heroin” to closing with 26 minutes of the extremely surrealistic “Sister Ray.” Definitely not for the faint-hearted! The Velvet Underground Live At the Boston Tea Party.
Our closer is at the Matrix in November 1969 on the same tour that I saw them in Austin, a 37 minute audio performance of the definitely NSFW “Sister Ray” (Trigger warning: this song can and will blow your mind, and has been known to be offensive to those who don’t want to take a walk through some very bizarre imagery….)
For our encore, the entire 2 hour 16 concert from that November 1969 show at the Matrix! The Velvet Underground Live at the Matrix – 1969 (Last year I had the whole thing on one clip; this autoloads 42 more from several live shows.)
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Our late late set comes courtesy of one of the greatest jazz musicians ever to blow a note, the legendary Charlie Parker (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), also known to history and millions as “Bird.” From wiki,
… Parker was a highly influential jazz soloist and a leading figure in the development of bebop, a form of jazz characterized by fast tempos, virtuosic technique and advanced harmonies. Parker was a blazingly fast virtuoso, and he introduced revolutionary harmonic ideas including rapid passing chords, new variants of altered chords, and chord substitutions. His tone ranged from clean and penetrating to sweet and somber. Parker acquired the nickname "Yardbird" early in his career on the road with Jay McShann.... Parker was an icon for the hipster subculture and later the Beat Generation, personifying the jazz musician as an uncompromising artist and intellectual rather than just an entertainer...
Tonight I don’t have time to do a full tribute, but here are a few that’s make you hip to the score!
We begin with a rare live television performance with Diz from 1952 serving up “Hot House”
This is a strange "lip synched" performance by Bird with Buddy Rich in 1950. The music was done in a studio and then synched to the video, but it's still classic footage nonetheless! For your enjoyment, the blazing bebop of "Celebrity."
Going back a few, here’s an awesome audio recording of Bird and Diz offering up 7+ minutes of “A Night in Tunisia” (Parker’s sax intro blazes!)
Here’s their legendary set Live at Philharmonic Auditorium in Los Angeles in 1946! Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie Live At Philharmonic Auditorium - 1946
Last year I had 41 minutes of smooooth jazz from 1947 in the album Charlie Parker Alternate Masters - Vol. 1 but this year it’s gone.
From December 1948 in NYC, a 21 minute set with Miles which begins and ends with two of my faves! “Groovin’ High,” “Big Foot,” “Ornithology,” and “Slow Boat to China”
He played Carnegie Hall in 1949 with Buddy Rich, Roy Eldridge, Tommy Turk, Lester Young and other greats. Last year I had the first 48 minutes on one clip but this year it’s gone. I found the whole gig in the following clips.
Charlie Parker – Jazz At The Philharmonic – “The Opener” (13 min.)
Charlie Parker – Jazz At The Philharmonic – “Lester Leaps In” (12m 29s)
Charlie Parker – Jazz At The Philharmonic – “Embraceable You” (10m 44s)
Charlie Parker – Jazz At The Philharmonic – “The Closer”(10m 53s)
Charlie Parker – Jazz At The Philharmonic – “Ow”(10m 53s)
Charlie Parker – Jazz At The Philharmonic – “Perdido”(8m 34s)
This is one of the greatest jazz jam sessions of all time, with Bird and his friends, including Barney Kessel, Benny Carter, Oscar Peterson, and more! For your enjoyment, the full hour and one album from 1952, Charlie Parker Jam Session
We have Bird and Miles on the turntable with this 45 minute classic Bird and Miles
Here’s his beautiful studio version of “Summertime”
I found this great 26 minute clip of 7 tunes. The first six are from 1953, the last from 1949 and the players are awesome, including Charlie Mingus, Bud Powell, Chet Baker, and other greats! "Parker's Mood," "I May Be Wrong," "'S' Wonderful," "Donna Lee (Back Home Again In Indiana)," "Cheryl," "Lullabye of Birdland (Love Me or Leave Me)," "Barbados."
From 1961, the album The Happy Bird
We’ll close the set with 31 tracks of Bird’s best! Charlie Parker’s Greatest Hits
Even though I gave this to you earlier, it’s a great encore! One mo’ time, Bird and Miles live in late ‘48 in a great performance of “Groovin’ High”
For the second encore, all 89 recordings on Dial Records from 1946-1947! Charlie Parker on Dial - The Complete Sessions
Copyright © 2023 Robert Wilkinson
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