Category: Aeolian Cadences

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Sagittarius/Ballroom/Millennium

The various 60’s projects of Curt Boettcher are an addiction I come back to every couple of years.  There’s a 30 minute Andrew Hickey episode on “My World Fell Down” that tells the full, ultimately sad story.  Here’s what I know: “My World Fell Down” was originally a flop single by the Ivy League, a British band.  Across the pond in LA, Gary Usher* thought it could be a hit, but he could find no takers.  So he got some studio musicians (a pre-fame Glen Campbell on verse lead vocals and Bruce Johnston on chorus lead vocals) to record it.  He pitched it to an A&R guy at Columbia who signed the “band.”  

But there was no band, which Usher didn’t mention.  Friend Curt Boettcher had a band called The Ballroom, mostly a studio project. Boettcher had made a name for himself by writing amazing vocal arrangements for the Association, among others. It’s his work you hear on their hits.  He was a Brian Wilson type (BW admired him and was likely influenced by him)  who spent many studio hours on a single song, which was unusual back then for anyone not named the Beatles or Brian Wilson. Anyway, Usher brought in Boettcher and the Ballroom to complete an excellent album which was released under the name Sagittarius.  Boettcher ended up dominating the project.  “My World Fell Down” and “Hotel Indiscreet” were released as singles.  The first did ok on the west coast but flopped nationally.  The other just flopped.  Both single versions had Musique Concrete sections that were edgy for the time.  

Boettcher’s next project was The Millennium.  They made one album, Begin, which is brilliant, a sunshine pop masterpiece with far less filler than the Sagittarius album.  At the time it was the most expensive album ever made due to CB’s obsessiveness. It flopped, so Columbia dropped them.  Perhaps it could have gone somewhere had they not been so studio obsessed, or maybe sunshine pop needed the novelty of a family group like the Cowsills to sell it.  I also wonder if the burgeoning acid rock scene up north in the Bay area rendered them passe.  I’m not sure about the timing, but tastes changed very rapidly back then, and vocal pop was getting to be old hat.

And maybe it still is.  Back when we were doing Music League, I posted a couple of the songs above, and they tanked.  But but give them a shot.  Some of it sounds twee, but the musical ideas are outstanding. I think all of the released music is available for streaming.  Word is, there’s strong work that’s never become available. Even the released music used to be very hard to find. “My World Fell Down” appeared on Nuggets, and Various CD releases of the Sagittarius and Millennium albums trickled out over the years, but a small box of all the Millennium sessions didn’t come out until 2021.  We’re in extreme cult territory here…

”Another Time” would have been perfect for The Carpenters.

*producer of the Byrds and Beach Boys, and best of all, the horror hot rod/surf album Dracula’s Deuce by the Ghouls, featuring such classics as “The Little Old Lady From Transylvania” and “Be True To Your Ghoul.”

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Another Beatles Book?

You’d think the Beatles and Dylan had been examined from every possible angle, but nope.  Here’s a chronological look at their careers in parallel, with plenty of commentary on their influence on each other, friendship, rivalry, etc. I’m about three fourths in, and I’ve enjoyed it.  Good mixture of things I know, things I’d known and forgotten, and things I’d never known.  It’s always interesting and moves along.  A few of the analogies seem a bit forced, but of course no two people will agree on everything.

As I’m biased towards music over lyrics, I might have preferred a book on the Beatles and Brian Wilson, but no doubt they had fewer interactions.

One minor peeve.  Like just about every other Beatles book, the quote about “Aeolian cadences” and Mahler’s Song of the Earth rears its ugly head like it’s evidence of the Beatles’ artistic viability.  I don’t get why these journalists who are obviously good at research never bother to examine that quote.  “Aeolian cadence “ has about as much meaning as “C major time signature” or “F minor drumstick.”  Or “the explosion left a 15 mph deep crater. “ It makes no sense.  And the song in question, “Not a Second Time,” absolutely does not end with the same chords or chord pattern as Song of the Earth.  There’s no room for debate on the matter, it’s factually wrong.

I can’t believe that quote is still getting recycled.  Just put it in the trash.

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RIP Superlungs

Terry Reid famously turned down both Zep and Deep Purple.

Good story from Musicradar (the number 1 website for musicians, y’all):

“Keith asked me to support the Stones in the States, but then shortly afterward Jimmy wanted me to join his new band. I was torn. In the end, I put the ball in Jimmy’s court. I said: ‘You’d better speak to Keith and tell him I’m not going.’

“But Jimmy bottled it. He said: ‘I’m not having him shoot me in the fucking leg.’

I only have the River, but it’s a good one.

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And It’s Ken Dodd’s Dad’s Dog’s Death On The Telly

Don’t know a lot about these guys but I like this tune. Popped up on Spotify one day while I was cutting the grass!

I was in Manchester in the rain
Stood grinnin’ at my phone, lookin’ fuckin’ insane
Cunts pushed by me, they were gettin’ the train
I thought “What would it take for that to derail?”
Lately, been a little not loose
Korn in the oven, Limp Bizkit in my brew
‘Cause reality blurs and I’m skippin’ on the true
Push away people I’m supposed to be close to
Havin’ peacetime key lime pecan pie
After heavin’ down a sausage and half a jar of brine
We’ve got the orders, we’re in the livin’ quarters
With a load of hotdogs and a heap of fuckin’ burgers
Where’s my resolve? I think you got it
Then you waddled out the room with it in your back pocket
Turn it up, mum, I’ve got prawns in my belly
And it’s Ken Dodd’s dad’s dog’s death on the telly

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Mixed Emotions

On the one hand, Sir Paul is still out there doing it on his terms, at almost 83 years old!

On the other … yeesh …

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Wynton on Beethoven

YouTube’s algorithm has presented me with another opportunity to highbrow troll this blargh.  Here’s Wynton Marsalis on his transition from reverse snobbery to Beethoven fan.  If you want to explore the nine symphonies, there are many great recordings and as many boring ones.  To make it simple, check out George Szell’s cycle with the Cleveland Orchestra.  No weak links, and should be available for streaming everywhere.  It’s been in print since the 60’s, and for good reason. 

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Clever

Marshall Crenshaw kind of fell off my radar during the past decade or two, then I ran across some cheap and decent copies of his first two lps in a store last week.  I’d forgotten how strong those albums are.  I’ve always liked how this song bridges the double verses with a false start of the chorus.  A clever tactic.  I’m sure other songs have done it, but for some reason I’m drawing a blank trying to think of one.