Friday 28 October 2011

Duran Duran - "Hold Back The Rain"...

My friend Sean Drinkwater of Lifestyle and Freezepop interviewed Nick Rhodes the other day.  Very exciting and excellent interview too.  That Arcadia special edition sounds amazing.  "Hold Back The Rain" has always been my favourite Duran Duran song.  Huge, driving, joyous POP.  John Taylor's bassline is, per usual, fantastic and Andy's suspended chords are just pure pop.  I always get tremendously excited when I hear this at a club, one of those songs that wasn't *a hit* but everyone is always thrilled to hear.  Stay Beautiful used to play this, Bedsitland still does.


Thursday 6 October 2011

R.I.P. Bert Jansch

I was greatly saddened to hear of the loss of Bert Jansch yesterday.  Such an amazing talent, such a great body of work.  I fondly recall hearing him for the first time in the early 90s (my friend Jon playing me Pentangle) and being in awe of his guitar playing.  I've been (slowly) reading Dazzling Stranger: Bert Jansch and the British Folk and Blues Revival by Colin Harper all year.  And there's so many of his records I have yet to delve into.  But "When I Get Home" has always been my favourite of his.  Such a lovely song; a sad, beautiful resignation, every note perfect.

The version I like best (from Pentangle's Reflection album or Bert's Dazzling Stranger anthology):





From The River Sessions (Live in Glasgow, November 18th, 1974):




Live at The Empty Bottle, Chicago, 11/17/06.


And the very first Pentangle song I fell in love with, "The Time Has Come":




His playing was always dazzling.