Reelin' & Rockin' @ the Gateway: "The Kids Are Alright" by Ricki C.

The Reelin’ & Rockin’ selection for this month at the Gateway Film Center – The Who’s “The Kids Are Alright” – is, quite simply, in my humble opinion, the greatest rock & roll documentary ever made that doesn’t include any audience members being killed by Hell’s Angels.  (Obviously, that leaves “Gimme Shelter” as the single greatest rock doc ever.) * 

 “The Kids Are Alright” was directed by 22 year-old Who fanatic Jeff Stein, who sported no previous movie experience whatsoever, let alone qualifications that would allow him to direct a major motion picture.  But that was kinda the story of late 70’s movie-making: “Jaws” and “Star Wars” had come out of nowhere to become HUGELY POPULAR pictures and Hollywood studios realized there was a new youth demographic ripe for the picking.  Then the Ken Russell-directed debacle that was The Who’s “Tommy” scored big in 1975, hence talented rookie Jeff Stein was handed the keys to the car & the editing room and “The Kids Are Alright” is the result.  (By the way, I have never seen the movie “Tommy.”  I will never see the movie “Tommy.”  I wish the movie “Tommy” had never existed.  On my rock & roll planet the mega-success of that movie is what forever stalled/stunted/killed Pete Townshend’s creativity in the 1970’s and ever after.  But that’s a whole ‘nother blog for a whole ‘nother time.)

Okay, I’m gonna try to pitch this movie for every existing generation of rock & roll fan: 

1) If you came of age in the 1960’s or 70’s this movie is a glorification of the greatest live rock & roll band of all time.  And yeah, I’m very well-aware of the existence of The Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin in those decades, and yeah I’m saying The Who were a better LIVE band than either one of them. 

2) If you came of age in the 1980’s or 1990’s this film is a glimpse into the time before MTV existed, when power & passion reigned, when you didn’t have to be pretty & you didn’t have to be polite and a guy with a nose like Pete Townshend’s could still reign as a major media figure.   

3) If you came of age in the 21st century this movie is a Masters Course on JUST HOW FAST rock & roll progressed in those long-lost hazy days between 1965 and 1969, when The Who moved from 2-minute songs like “I Can’t Explain” to the rock opera “Tommy” in just four short years.  Bands nowadays go four years between CD RELEASES, let alone leapfrogging genres, styles & movements the way Roger Daltrey, Pete Townshend, John Entwistle and Keith Moon did.

I’ve watched the DVD of “The Kids Are Alright” dozens, if not hundreds of times in the comfort & confines of my own home.  I haven’t seen it on the big screen at a movie theater since sometime in the 1980’s.  I can’t wait. – Ricki C. / May 15th, 2014

“THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT” WILL PLAY AT THE GATEWAY FILM CENTER ON CAMPUS
THIS WEDNESDAY, MAY 21ST, AT 8 PM.  HAPPY HOUR BEGINS AT 7 PM.
COME TO HAPPY HOUR AND LET RICKI C. BORE YOU TO TEARS WITH LEGENDARY STORIES OF
HOW GREAT THE WHO WERE WHEN HE SAW THEM LIVE IN 1969 AND 1972, AND HOW MUCH
HE NOW WISHES PETE TOWNSHEND HAD DIED BEFORE HE GOT OLD.
A GOOD TIME WILL BE HAD BY ALL.

*For a rundown of a Ricki’s other Best Of lists, please see The Best Of Everything and The Best Of Everything, part two in his own blog Growing Old With Rock & Roll.)

Ricki C.'s Rock & Roll Videos You Oughta See, part the second: The Pop! / "Down On The Boulevard"

(Ricki C.'s Rock & Roll Videos You Oughta See will be a continuing feature in pencilstorm, at least until Ricki gets bored or the readership finds a way to make him stop.  Videos will be mainly little-seen or off-the-beaten-rock-&-roll-path. Click here for part one.

They're not exactly my answer/reply to Wal Ozello's Top Ten Rock Vocalists, but they all ARE rock & roll songs.  None of them are show tunes.

Ricki will provide an intro to the videos of not-more-than-500 words, because we all know it’s impossible for Ricki to try to tell a simple story without going off into 10 different tangents and then forgetting altogether what he’s talking about.)

The Pop! were a mid-to-late 1970’s L.A. band led by Roger Prescott & David Swanson.  “Down On The Boulevard” was featured on their self-released indie album released in 1977, and that record is as great a slab of 12-inch vinyl as you’re gonna find coming out of the punk & New Wave days of late 1970’s Los Angeles.  They later signed to Arista in the post “My Sharona” FIND-US-THE-NEXT-KNACK-NOW! signing frenzy in the great power-pop boomlet of 1979 & 1980.  Arista inexplicably tried to turn a fundamentally great power-pop band into Talking Heads or The Cars, and the resulting album – GO! – was cold, sterile & overproduced.  The Pop! were never the same again.  This song, however, is great.

Reasons They Never Made It In America – Too long-haired & pop for the punks (plus knew how to tune and actually play their guitars); too punk & not Kiss enough for the great unwashed rock & roll masses.     

Optional Extra-Credit Additional Viewing – Enter "The Pop!" plus “Shakeaway” on YouTube.

Ray Davies is the Best Songwriter Exhibit H

This is part H of of a semi regular segment systematically proving that Ray Davies is the greatest songwriter this planet has ever produced. Today's song, "Have A Cuppa Tea" is our first from The Kinks record Muswell Hillbillies but sure not to be the the last. Video and lyrics below. Click here to read previous Ray Davies exhibit.    Enjoy! - Colin G.

Have a Cuppa Tea  (Ray Davies)

The Kinks - Have a Cuppa Tea from Muswell Hillbillies album Formed in 1971. Ray Davies: Rhythm guitar and Vocals Dave Davies: Lead guitar and background vocals John Dalton: Bass Mick Avory: Drums John Gosling: Keyboards Lyrics: Granny's always ravin' and rantin' And she's always puffin' and pantin', And she's always screaming and shouting, And she's always brewing up tea.

Granny's always ravin' and rantin'
And she's always puffin' and pantin'
And she's always screamin' and shoutin'
And she's always brewin' up tea

Grandpappy's never late for his dinner
'Cos he loves his leg of beef
And he washes it down with a brandy
And a fresh made cup of tea

Have a cuppa tea, have a cuppa tea
Have a cuppa tea, have a cuppa tea
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Rosie Lea
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Rosie Lea

If you feel a bit under the weather
If you feel a little bit peeved
Take granny's stand by potion
For any old cough or wheeze
It's a cure for hepatitis, it's a cure for chronic insomnia
It's a cure for tonsillitis, and for water on the knee

Have a cuppa tea, have a cuppa tea
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Rosie Lea
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Rosie Lea

Tea in the morning, tea in the evening, tea at supper time
You get tea when it's rainin', tea when it's snowin'
Tea when the weather's fine
You get tea as a mid day stimulant
You get tea with your afternoon tea
For any old ailment or disease
For Christ sake have a cuppa tea

Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Rosie Lea
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Rosie Lea

Whatever the situation, whatever the race or creed
Tea knows no segregation, no class nor pedigree
It knows no motivations, no sect or organization
It knows no one religion, nor political belief

Have a cuppa tea, have a cuppa tea
Have a cuppa tea, for Christ sake have a cuppa tea

Top Ten Vocalists: Part Three - Number One

You've been reading, watching, listening, and debating.

You've seen the first nine of my Top Ten list - agreed and fervently disagreed.

Now you want to know who my number one is.

Here's the crazy thing - it's a tie.

I can't decide. See... I was raised in the 80s during the days of power chords, big hair, and leather spandex. But my brothers were ten years older than me and they taught me rock 'n roll starting with the music they listed to in the 70s.

So I'm stuck living in both worlds - the 70s and the 80s, which is why it's a tie.

My first #1 is Freddie Mercury

If you've been following along this isn't going to be a surprise to you. I'm into the power vocalists from the 70s, the guys with range and talent.  I've been saying you have to have more than passion or attitude to be on my list. Here's the thing... Freddie's got the complete package: attitude, performance, presence, and a voice like no other. The guy has a massive range and total control of this voice. The way he used vibrato then add a little growl is his trademark. Listen to these isolated vocal tracks from the recording of Somebody To Love. Here's the truly miraculous thing: there wasn't autotune in those days.  It was all pitch perfect.

Only Freddie Mercury could write and sing a song that blends opera and rock n roll, and then have the masses fall in love with it. Think about this for a moment. Practically the same audience that would blast out any other rocking 70s tune would still turn this song up on the radio.

Finally, check out this song - "Who Wants To Live Forever?" On the record, Brian May the guitarist sings the first verse then you can instantly tell when Freddie takes over. Listen to the passion that he slowly builds throughout the song to an explosion at the end.

But here's the thing: Freddie's awesome but he's not perfect.  In fact, I was hard pressed to find any rock vocalist that fit my high standards to be number one. That's why I have a tie.

My other #1: Axl Rose

Yeah. You read that correctly. Axl f'n Rose. The guy has that distinctive angry rock voice but he's got talent, too. He's got this weird range that's both tenor and baritone at the same time. When I first listened to Appetite For Destruction I actually thought there was two lead singers. But why should that keep him off my list? If anything that's a plus in rock 'n roll.

A couple video tracks here. First is one of my favorites - Paradise City. Axl's sandpaper voice scrapes out the high notes on the chorus while his rythmic melodies rock out the verses. I swear that the Axl's on beat during the first verse and Adler's off rhythm. I'm also pretty sure that Axl's singing both leads and back-up vocals on the opening chorus.

Here's Axl's baritone voice at it's best. Again, the rhythmic melodies really kick ass here. This is live in '88 at the Ritz. Slash isn't at his best in the clip, nor is the rest of the band. My guess is they are all flying high on heroin.

Here's Axl's softer side that really lets his melodies shine. It sounds nothing like the guy who sings Paradise City and Welcome To The Jungle. This is Patience off of Lies, Lies, Lies.

So here's the problem with Axl and why he wasn't a clear #1 for me. Everything after Lies, Lies, Lies was an abomination. Use Your Illusion I & II was such an overproduced bag of shit it was pathetic. Way to ruin the rawness that made Guns N Roses what it was.

So that's my top ten.

Wal Ozello is the author of Assignment 1989: The Time Travel Wars and was the lead singer of the Columbus hairband Armada. He's a resident of Upper Arlington, Ohio and a frequent customer at Colin's Coffee.

Learn more about Wal Ozello and other Pencilstorm contributors by clicking here

Two Simple Steps For a Semi-Successful Browns Draft by Colin Gawel.

I think reasonable people would agree that my ten year old son Owen could have drafted for the Cleveland Browns the past five years and been as "successful" as their highly paid front office executives.  Hell, let's be frank, he probably would have done better reading names off Peter King's website. See, that is the dirty little secret about the NFL draft: for all the non-stop coverage and cheat sheets, it really isn't hard to maneuver through unless you're a local sportscaster or an ex-player who has suffered multiply concussions. This isn't rocket science. Sure you may miss here and there, but overall, the smart teams do well, the others not so much. Always.

Before I lay down my elementary two-step strategy for a successful Browns draft, I would like to present a list of every quarterback taken in the first round since 2000, picked 4th or lower. The Browns are picking 4th this year so this should give us a good idea of what quality of player to expect between the 4th pick and 32nd pick overall in the first round. In chronological order starting in 2013 working back to 2000.

EJ Manual

Ryan Tannehill

Brandon Weeden

Jake Locker

Christian Ponder

Blain Gabbert

Tim Tebow

Mark Sanchez

Josh Freeman

-- Ok, Browns fans, it is going to start to get better, but only a little. 

Joe Flacco

Brady Quinn

Matt Leinart

Jay Cutler

Aaron Rodgers

Jason Campbell

Phillip Rivers

Ben Rothlisberger

J.P. Losman

Byron Leftwich

Kyle Boller

Rex Grossman

Patrick Ramsey

Chad Pennington

Twenty-three QB's were taken in the first round picked 4th or lower since 2000. As you can see, most of them were terrible. Two became superstars (Rodgers and Rothlisberger), while three others have had good careers (Flacco, Cutler, Rivers).

Or put another way, if the Browns use a first round pick on a QB in the 2014 NFL Draft, that player has a 8.6% chance of becoming a superstar, a 17.0% chance off being pretty good and a  78% chance that he will become yet another embarrassment for an embarrassing franchise. If those numbers don't scare you, than have at it, tough guy. Go get Manziel or Blake Bortles with the 4th or 26th pick, but don't say I didn't warn you. The numbers don't lie. And keep in mind, none of these 2014 QB prospects are considered in the same class as Rodgers or Big Ben, they just happen to be coming out in a year with thin talent at that position.

"But the Browns need a franchise quarterback to win the Super Bowl. They need to hit a home run on this one."

Before I put my fingers down my throat, let me explain why this line of thinking makes me sick.

1) As a Browns fan, the last thing I am worried about is winning the Super Bowl. How about we keep a head coach for longer than 12 months or keep our owner out of jail for less than 24. If and when we sniff .500 for two consecutive seasons, we can start jawing about winning the Super Bowl. Until then, draft the best talent available and shut up about the QB. It makes us all sound dumb and Bill Belichick LOL. 

2) Sure, hitting a home run is nice, but there is another baseball cliche that may be more appropriate for this draft: "You can't get it all back with one swing."

So here we go. Two simple steps to a successful Browns draft.

1) Four players are considered "can't miss" superstars by the super-majority of experts. The Browns are drafting 4th, so take whomever is left of Clowney, Robinson, Mack, Watkins.

Simple math.

 I realize it may not be exciting to take Mack with the 4th pick as our defense is already semi-respectable, but if Sammy W. is gone, that is the right move. But after watching sports science I suppose we can take Mike Evans if we are hellbent on a WR. As the previous list of QB's makes painfully clear, UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD THE BROWNS TAKE A QB WITH THE #4 PICK IN THE DRAFT. Got that?? NO QB at #4. And really, not at #26 either. 

2) After step one is complete the Browns should take the best available OL, WR, or CB according to who they (and experts) like most. If they take Watkins or Evans at #4 they only have to fill the other two needs and then…..

They can spend the rest of the draft trying to hit a "home run" looking for a franchise QB to lead them to the promised land.

So to summarize: The Browns first three picks should fill in no particular order, WR, OL, CB and then just go crazy looking for shitty QBs they will cut in two years. 

There you go. Easy stuff.

Colin Gawel started Pencilstorm and writes from Colin's Coffee. Learn more about him and other contributors by clicking here.

Dear J.J. Abrams: Please Don't Ruin Star Wars

By Wal Ozello

I know we usually write about rock n roll here on pencilstorm and other life moments.  But it's May the Fourth and that's means it's Star Wars Day (May the Fourth/Force be with you - get it?).

So please, allow me to geek out for a moment with an open letter to J.J. Abrams, the director and writer for the new Star Wars movie.

Dear J.J. Abrams:

I'm sure by now you've started filming the next Star Wars movie: Episode VII, titled who knows what. It may sound crazy, but I hope you're not sleeping at night.

I hope that at 2 a.m. in the morning you wake up, tossing and turning, and then never fall back to sleep. I hope your mind is filled with excitement and anxiety that you just can't shake.

Let's face it, this is the most exciting thing you'll ever do in your life. Sure, you've done Lost, Alias, the Star Trek reboot, and a bunch of other things that the average filmmaker would love to have at the top of their resume.

But this is STAR WARS.  The biggest film story ever.  It's magic. Pure magic. And you're at the helm.  I assure you, and billions of fans would agree with me, you're doing the most important thing in your life ever. 

It's the equivalent of taking the first step on the moon, coining the word Rock N Roll or even inventing the light bulb. This is huge. While you're in the midst of it, I hope you take a moment to look around and see Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, and Han Solo instead of Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford. At that moment it's okay to say to yourself, "HOLY SHIT I CAN'T BELIEVE I'M DOING THIS."

Then also realize that you can't mess this up.  The pressure is just as huge as the moment is. Could you imagine what would have happened if Neil Armstrong tripped coming out of the Lunar Module?  You could do that. All you need to do is take a look at the prequels to understand the potential failure here.

Listen... think about it this way.  Someone just handed you Frank Lloyd Wright's Falling Waters and asked you to build an addition. Or pulled you into a music studio and asked you to write  new additional few songs for Pink Floyd's The Wall.

If you mess this up you'll never be able to show your face in public again.  You'll be the Jar Jar Binks of Hollywood.  We can forgive George Lucas for the prequels because, hey, he made Star Wars to begin with but we'll never forgive you if you mess this up.

See right now, all of us movie lovers are drowning in superheros and wizards.  From Marvel and DC to Potter and Gandalf, we are stuck watching guys in spandex fly around in New York City or wizards leading short people around to battle dragons, find horcruxes and destroy a ring. We need this Star War movie to be great. We need manna from heaven. We need you to be our Moses, part the red sea, and lead us from the world of comics and fantasy novels.

Please make this the best thing ever.  Give us a new hope.  A hope that movies don't need to be overproduced to be fun. That they don't need to be over thought and intertwined with a million other movie and television plots. We want to enjoy going to the movies again!

So when you're on set, and the pressure is piling on, let go and go with your gut instinct. Be like Luke during the trench run on the Death Star. Forget all the training and technical instruction you've learned with filmmaking. Forget all the rules and certainly don't listen to the Disney generals who are calling the shots, yelling at you for turning off your targeting computer.  Instead, go with your gut. Go with what feels right.  That's message behind the first Star Wars movie - when you go with your raw inner instincts and believe in yourself,  everything will work out well in the end.

We're all wishing you the best J.J. and can't wait to see what you do.

Wal Ozello is the author of the science fiction thriller, Assignment 1989: The Time Travel Wars and lifelong Star Wars fan. He's a resident of Upper Arlington, Ohio and a frequent customer at Colin's Coffee.

Learn more about Wal Ozello and other Pencilstorm contributors by clicking here