The Green Manalishi (With the Two Prong Crown) – It was once Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers

October 9, 2023October 7, 2023 ~ tedlindsay0170 ~ 1 Comment

At first everyone thought it was another LSD song, but Peter Green was adamant that it was about how money divides people.

‘The Green Manalishi’ was written by the great guitarist Peter Green, who was the initial driving force behind Fleetwood Mac.

Remember in their formative days they were ‘Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac’?

How good was Peter Green?

In July of 1966, after Eric Clapton decided to leave John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, Decca Records producer Mike Vernon was discussing the band’s lineup with John Mayall.

As the band walked in the studio, I noticed an amplifier which I never saw before, so I said to John Mayall, “Where’s Eric Clapton?” Mayall answered, “He’s not with us anymore, he left us a few weeks ago.” I was in a shock of state [sic] but Mayall said, “Don’t worry, we got someone better.” I said, “Wait a minute, hang on a second, this is ridiculous. You’ve got someone better? Than Eric Clapton?” John said, “He might not be better now, but you wait, in a couple of years he’s going to be the best.” Then he introduced me to Peter Green.”
Mike Vernon

Peter Green’s colleagues referred to him as ‘The Green God’.

It was out of this act that Fleetwood Mac formed along with Jeremy Spencer and Mick Fleetwood. A short time later they were joined by John McVie (who replaced Bob Brunning).

This lineup would last through to 1970. In fact, ‘The Green Manalishi’ was the last song Peter Green recorded with Fleetwood Mac. Soon after it was released in May of 1970, Green left the band. More on that in a bit.

Let’s head back to the song’s creation which will offer a sense of Peter Green’s state of mind.

It’s true that at the time of writing Peter Green was indulging heavily in hallucinogens. It was a drug induced dream that spoke to him. Green maintains that he was visited by a green dog. The dog spoke to him from the afterlife through a series of barks. Green’s interpretation was that the dog represented the divisive forces of money and he was being ordered to write a song.

This dream may have been a subconscious message, but the theme of money, greed and the equal distribution of essential needs, such as food, shelter, education and healthcare was a bit of an obsession for Peter Green throughout his adult life.

It scared me because I knew the dog had been dead a long time. It was a stray and I was looking after it. But I was dead and had to fight to get back into my body, which I eventually did. When I woke up, the room was really black and I found myself writing the song.”
Peter Green

So shook by this experience, Green was unable to record ‘Hellhound on My Trail’ with Fleetwood Mac, nor even sing it when he recorded it as a solo artist.

It seems he felt the ‘Hellhound’ represented the green dog that haunted him in the dream.

The recording process for ‘The Green Manalishi’ was arduous because Green had a definite vision of how the presentation of the song needed to penetrate the soul.

When it was finally done, Green was very pleased.

Lots of drums, bass guitars,… Danny Kirwan and me playing those shrieking guitars together… I thought it would make Number One.”
Peter Green

Here is the poem, inspired by a wicked, drug induced dream. It was all driven home by the rhythm section of Mick Fleetwood and John McVie.

Now when the day goes to sleep and the full moon looks
And the night is so black that the darkness cooks
And you come creeping around, making me do things I don’t want to do

I can’t believe that you need my love so bad
You come sneaking around, trying to drive me mad
Busting in all my dreams, making me see things I don’t want to see

‘Cause you’re the Green Manalishi with the two-pronged crown
All night dragging us up, or you’re bringing us down
Just taking my love, and slip away
Leaving me here, trying to keep from following you”
Peter Green

To get a sense of the sinister origin of this creation, listen to this hard-edged live version, recorded in Sweden in April of 1970. This was shortly before the song was recorded and released.

This isn’t your Mom and Dad’s Fleetwood Mac. This is your cool uncle’s Fleetwood Mac

I share this because if you really get into it, you can feel how disturbing the dream must have been. Can you go so far as saying that it takes you into Peter Green’s mind?

You decide.

About 25 years later Peter Green formed a band called the Peter Green Splinter Group with Nigel Watson and Cozy Powell. During this live performance he introduces ‘The Green Manalishi’ and dispels the notion that it was strictly an LSD song. In this money monologue he shares the vision with the audience who ‘may not have known’ that he was once in Fleetwood Mac…Too funny.

It’s about having too much money… It got confused along the way. People thought I sort of had to give it all away…That’s not true. I feared that I would not be able to heal myself if I got sick.”
Peter Green

In this candid introduction, Peter Green alludes to the mental illness that caused him to leave the band.

In fact, this process occurred over a period of about three months.

Fleetwood Mac had been touring Europe and during a stopover in Munich, Green attended a party at a nearby commune. Fleetwood Mac manager Clifford Davis has spoken to the fact that it was this experience that signified Green’s intention to detach from the group, and the public spotlight. He attended the party with a roadie named Dennis Keane. When the party was over Keane couldn’t talk Green into leaving, so he headed back to Munich to let the band know. This resulted in Keane, Mick Fleetwood and another roadie named Dinky Dawson heading to the commune to talk Green into fulfilling his obligation to the group which included the Scandinavian tour shared above.

For Peter Green’s part, he has positive memories of his short stay at the Munich commune.

I had a good play there, it was great, someone recorded it, they gave me a tape. There were people playing along, a few of us just fooling around and it was… yeah it was great.”
Peter Green

You get the sense that Peter Green was a reluctant rock star and a man of few words. If it was only about the music he may have stuck around.

Sometimes things get complicated.

For the rest of Fleetwood Mac at that time, to a man they are convinced that this experience was the tipping point for Peter Green’s descent.

Now we move ahead to the anniversary that actually serves as the milestone that inspired this post.

On this day in 1978 Judas Priest released their album ‘Hell Bent for Leather’ which included a cover of ‘The Green Manalishi’.

To many, this version became the definitive recording of this song. A contentious point among music purists, but this served a purpose in propelling Peter Green’s status among the guitar greats.

Here is a quote from ‘Popmatters’.

(It) succeeded in such a way that the Priest version is now far more famous than the original. They make it their own, accelerating the pace just enough to achieve a better balance of force and menace, and the groove created by drummer Les Binks cinches it. Priest’s towering version is nevertheless an all-time heavy metal classic.”
Popmatters

The truth is, if you ask one hundred ‘80s metal fans who wrote/originally recorded ‘The Green Manolishi’ they would likely tell you it was Judas Priest.

Here you go.

None of this is being said to diminish the Judas Priest cover, because it is fantastic. Quite frankly, this song represents the bridge that takes music from the Black Sabbath/Deep Purple/Led Zeppelin hard rock era into the heavy metal realm.

Once you cross that bridge, if you look to the right you will go past the house of Judas Priest, and further on up the road you can pay a visit to Iron Maiden. This speaks to the evolution of music.

Part of the mission of Ted Tocks Covers is sharing the chapters that take us to the present day.

Here is Rob Halford offering up ‘The Green Manolishi’ to a few thousand metal maniacs during Live Aid in July of 1985.

Continuing the story of influence, listen to Melvins in 1999. They released ‘The Green Manolishi’ on their album ‘the Maggot’. The Melvins are considered to be one of the earliest examples of the grunge sound. They cut their teeth in the Seattle area and founding member Buzz Osborne is credited with introducing Dave Grohl to Kurt Cobain.

I share this because it effectively captures the spirit of today’s post. From blues, to psychedelic blues, to hard rock, to heavy metal to grunge, we can see how integral Peter Green was in the world of guitar driven music.

Before I conclude, here is a version by Fleetwood Mac where the great Lindsey Buckingham pays tribute to Green.

Walking in the footsteps of ‘The Green Manolishi’. This is from a 1975 show at the Capitol Theatre. Just fantastic. It comes complete with Stevie Nicks performing a shamanistic chant at the end.

Now enjoy Mick Fleetwood and Friends in 2020. Never forgetting where this band originated, Fleetwood billed this evening as ‘Mick Fleetwood and Friends: Celebrate the Music of Peter Green and the Early Years of Fleetwood Mac’. This lineup includes Billy Gibbons on guitar along with Kirk Hammett, and of course Fleetwood on drums. Hammett is actually playing Peter Green’s 1959 Les Paul guitar which he presently owns. The band is rounded out by Zak Starkey on drums, Dave Bronze on bass, Jonny Lang, Rick Vito and Andy Fairweather-Low on rhythm guitars and Ricky Peterson on keyboards. Peterson also served as the musical director.

The purpose of this video is to share how deep the Peter Green influence is in the music world.

To further articulate this point, look no further than Jimmy Page.

The original Fleetwood Mac with Peter Green performed the music of people like Elmore James really well. Peter had such a beautiful touch on things like ‘Stop Messing Around.’ Just fabulous in the vein of B.B. King…”
Jimmy Page

For more on this, check out the connection between ‘Oh Well’ and ‘Black Dog’.

He goes on to say…

I don’t think you’re going to find a better example of British blues than the original Fleetwood Mac, with Jeremy Spencer and Peter Green.”
Jimmy Page

And speaking of B.B. King, here is some more praise.

He has the sweetest tone I ever heard; he was the only one who gave me the cold sweats.”
B.B. King

If you want to watch a great documentary, check out ‘Peter Green: Man of the World’.

Peter Green’s struggles with mental health issues are well documented and eventually he was diagnosed with schizophrenia. Treatments occurred through the mid-70s and he spent time in psychiatric hospitals where he underwent electroconvulsive therapy. Whether this approach had any positive effects is a matter of debate, but by the ‘80s he managed to get his life back on track.

In this quote, he alludes to the fact it may have been the LSD trips that had the most severe effect on his behaviour and mental health.

I’m at present recuperating from treatment for taking drugs. It was drugs that influenced me a lot. I took more than I intended to. I took LSD eight or nine times. The effect of that stuff lasts so long … I wanted to give away all my money … I went kind of holy – no, not holy, religious. I thought I could do it, I thought I was all right on drugs. My failing!”
Peter Green

Getting back to ‘The Green Manolishi, once again I state, that at first everyone thought it was another LSD song, but Peter Green was adamant that it was about how money divides people.

It says here, that the effects of an LSD trip may have inspired the actual writing, but the notion that money brings out the worst in people is quite accurate. If that is the underlying premise of ‘The Green Manolishi’, I for one would suggest Peter Green was of sound mind when he jotted down this three-stanza offering.

Because there is no doubt that he was right.

45 Years of Rumours – A song by song reflection on a timeless album. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #FleetwoodMac

February 4, 2022July 12, 2023 ~ tedlindsay0170 ~ 3 Comments

If a soap opera ever became a best-selling album, it would be ‘Rumours’. Maybe that explains its continued appeal 45 years after its release on this day in 1977.

The album was recorded in the midst of a storm cloud of relationship breakups among its members and a degree of drug use that would have kept a Columbian cartel on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Seriously! According to ‘Rumours’ engineer Ken Caillat the consumption of drugs and alcohol had an Atlantic/Pacific divide.

There were the blues Fleetwood Mac from England – they were the boozers and that was pretty much what they did. And there was the California Fleetwood Mac – they were the pot-smoking hippies with Lindsey and Stevie. Then the cocaine entered the picture. So, it was booze versus pot really, with a little cocaine cocktail.”
Ken Caillat

How important was Fleetwood Mac’s supplier during this time? The band considered thanking him in the liner notes of ‘Rumours’. Their decision not to, was determined by the fact he was ‘snuffed out’ by a rival on the mean streets of L.A. shortly before ‘Rumours’was released.

Back to the music, somehow the creativity that Fleetwood Mac managed to churn out during this period remains not only relevant, but literally timeless.

Here is a song by song mini-breakdown of ‘Rumours’ featuring a range of artists and their covers. Ultimately, the goal is to demonstrate the influence ‘Rumours’ has had on music over the better part of five decades. Every Ted Tocks reader who makes it through to the end will receive a voucher for a free consult with a relationship counsellor. The means to self-medicate will remain your decision.

The album’s opening track is the Lindsey Buckingham penned ‘Second Hand News’ which opens with the line,

I know there’s nothing to say. Someone has taken my place.”
Lindsey Buckingham

Yes, they telegraphed the theme right from the beginning. Here is a cover by Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs from their fantastic cover album ‘Under the Covers: Vol. 2’.

When I decided to write this post, I realized that over 1425 Ted Tocks Covers posts I have only featured one song from ‘Rumours’. Whether this is an oversight or not, is unclear. I seem to have gravitated to much earlier Fleetwood Mac and then to the pivotal self-titled album that represented the arrival of Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham. The one song I have featured is ‘Dreams’ so I have embedded it here. I will add an alternate cover version for your listening enjoyment. Enjoy the engaging Jann Arden and her expressive cover.

Not to take away from any of the other members of Fleetwood Mac, but to me the most valuable player on ‘Rumours’ was Lindsey Buckingham. He wore his heart on his sleeve through his lyrical contribution and his phenomenal guitar work. I don’t thing I will ever get tired of listening to ‘Never Going Back Again’. Here is Matchbox 20 and their cover that appeared on ‘Legacy: A Tribute to Fleetwood Mac’s Rumour’s’ which was released to celebrate the 20^th anniversary of the classic recording.

What’s that you say? Don’t Stop! Perfect! Enjoy ‘Don’t Stop’ from that same album. Elton John’s admiration of Christine McVie goes back to England in the late ‘60s when she was known as Christine Perfect, one of the most sought-after talents on the circuit.

Whenever I hear Dolores O’Riordan sing I just melt. She is so captivating and her voice sends shivers up and down my spine. Here is a live recording of ‘Go Your Own Way’ from Europe 2 in 2007. It leaves me in a trance. She is missed. A shout out to Steve DeMarchi on acoustic guitar.

Back to Christine McVie and one of the most beautiful love songs ever written. Here is ‘Songbird’ which she describes as a song about,

Nobody and everybody in the form of a little prayer”
Christine McVie

Here is a stunning cover by Rita Coolidge. Wow!

Perhaps the most collaborative effort on ‘Rumours’ is ‘The Chain’. All five band members had a role in the lyrics and it was delivered by the vocal power of Stevie Nicks, Christine McVie and Lindsey Buckingham. The power of each player’s musical prowess drives it home. It is a classic rock anthem. The musical treats keep on coming. There is so much talent on display here. Enjoy the Highwomen featuring the magnificent Brandi Carlile, Amanda Shires, Maren Morris and Natalie Hemby. This is from the Howard Stern Show in 2019. In the background you get the subtle accompaniment of Jason Isbell and Brandi Carlile’s bandmates Tim and Phil Hanseroth. Amanda Shires’ violin solo is jaw dropping. What an incredible cover!

Somehow through it all, Fleetwood Mac managed to keep it at least a little bit light. Here is ‘You Make Loving Fun’ which was actually Christine McVie’s dig at her ex-husband John. McVie wrote it for her boyfriend at the time. Ugggh! Here is an unbelievable cover by Rogers Stevens of Blind Melon fame. Part of Ted Tocks Covers is to gather some hidden gems and I would classify this in that category.

From what I can tell from a very hasty and unscientific search it seems that ‘I Don’t Want to Know’ is the least covered song from ‘Rumours’. It is a passionate song that puts Stevie Nicks’ vocals on full display. She is acting out her angst. This cover by Goo Goo Dolls puts an edge on this song and it really works.

I was wrong. ‘Oh Daddy’ is the least covered song on ‘Rumours’. The more I learn about ‘Rumours’ the more I recognize that Christine McVie’s song writing during this period was deeply personal on a slightly different plane. She wrote ‘Oh Daddy’ for either Mick Fleetwood, who was the only father in the band at the time, or for the band’s lighting director who she was dating at the time (See ‘You Make Loving Fun’). No matter what, it is a very touching song and the sentiment still resonates 45 years later as demonstrated by this cover by Natalie Cole on her 1979 album ‘I Love You So’. Superlatives escape me, but this is the type of work Fleetwood Mac has inspired for years.

‘Rumours’ concludes with the Stevie Nicks gem ‘Gold Dust Woman’. I don’t think I could have scripted a better conclusion to this feature if I commissioned it myself. This performance by Gov’t Mule featuring the great Warren Haynes and the majestic vocal accompaniment of Grace Potter is like an encore. I defy you to only watch it once.

This concludes the song-by-song tour of ‘Rumours’. As an album it is widely regarded as one of the best ever. From a business standpoint it was necessitated by popular demand after the success of ‘Fleetwood Mac’. The band’s self-titled album which introduced Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham to the group bore several timeless tracks including,

Landslide

Say You Love Me

Rhiannon

The recording and subsequent tour to promote ‘Fleetwood Mac’ saw the band’s intertwined personal relationships unravel. By the time they got to the studio, the only way to cope was therapy through creativity. With Mick Fleetwood at the helm the band managed to bring their best, at least when the recording light was on. According to Christine McVie,

Everybody was pretty weirded out. Somehow Mick was there, the figurehead: ‘We must carry on … let’s be mature about this, sort it out.’ Somehow we waded through it.”
Christine McVie

As much as Mick Fleetwood is seen as the fifth wheel in this scenario, which he was to a degree, he had problems of his own. His wife Jenny Boyd, sister of Patti Boyd (Harrison, Clapton a.k.a. ‘Layla’) was discovered to be having an affair with a friend. This was the culmination of a three-year period where the couple had married, divorced and remarried for the sake of their children. This in part led to his brief affair with….

…Stevie Nicks

The chain truly kept this band together. We have ‘Rumours’ and the candid tales of the members of Fleetwood Mac to prove it.

And the songbirds keep singing, because they know the score.

Stories We Could Tell – The nameplate on the glass brought back 20 melodies. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #JohnSebastian #TomPettyandtheHeartbreakers #TheEverlyBrothers #JimmyBuffett #TheMamasandthePapas #FleetwoodMac

December 31, 2021January 17, 2023 ~ tedlindsay0170 ~ 2 Comments

From the time I saw Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers in a package with Bob Dylan and the Grateful Dead in the summer of 1986, I was hooked. Tom Petty became a constant musical companion. While in university, I wrote so many essays while listening to his albums that he should receive an Honorary Bachelor of Arts degree from Wilfrid Laurier University. One particular album that resonated with me was the live offering ‘Pack Up the Plantation: Live’. As a listener, this recording served to capture the energy of the band’s early to mid ‘80s tours. It presented a cross section of the first decade of Tom Petty’s career, and true to his style, homage was paid to the artists that inspired both him and his Heartbreakers brethren. Today’s feature is the album’s closing track ‘Stories We Could Tell’. The reflective quality of this song grabbed me from the first time I heard it, and as music so often does, it left me wanting to learn more. So, today’s version of Ted Tocks Covers will briefly tell the story behind not only this song, but it will speak to an ongoing story in my life.

Today is our 30^th Anniversary.

Before Heather and I got married, and long before we had children, we would head down to upstate New York to do some Christmas shopping. Part of our mission was a self-imposed challenge to find the cheapest motel. Why would we spend our hard-earned money on a place to sleep? We are simple folk. All we needed was a bed and a washroom. We found the perfect shelter in the form of Junior’s Truck Stop in Niagara Falls, New York. From about 1988 to 1990, a one-night stay did not exceed $20. Across the parking lot was a greasy spoon diner which served up a quality array of burgers, fries and onion rings. A gregarious waitress who resembled Flo from the TV sitcom ‘Alice’, provided running commentary related to the Arsenio Hall Show which was showing on the TV screen behind the counter. She was infatuated that we came ‘all the way from Canada’. We accepted her adulation with typical Canadian humility, because we didn’t think our one-hour trek was a monumental journey. We had everything we needed, and it was a straight shot to the nearby outlet mall.

Every time I hear these lyrics, I think of Junior’s Truck Stop and the hilarious side stories related to our shopping expeditions. There are many. Way too many to get into during this post but read on for some further background.

Talkin’ to myself again
And wondrin’ if this travelling is good
Is there somethin’ else a-doin’
We’d be doin’ if we could

But oh, the stories we could tell
And if it all blows up and goes to hell
I can still see us sittin’ on a bed in some hotel
Singin’ all the stories we could tell

Remember that guitar in a museum in Tennessee
The nameplate on the glass brought back twenty melodies
And the scratches on the face told of all the times he fell
Singin’ all the stories he could tell

And oh, the stories it could tell
And I’ll bet you it still rings like a bell
And I wish that we could sit back on a bed in some hotel
And listen to the stories it could tell

So if you’re on the road a-trackin’ down your every night
And singin’ for a livin’ neath the brightly colored lights
And if you ever wonder why you ride the carousel
You did it for the stories you could tell

And oh, the stories we could tell
And before we have to say our last farewell
Well, I wish that we could sit back on a bed in some hotel
And listen to the stories we could tell
Yes, I wish that we could sit back on a bed in some hotel
And listen to the stories we could tell.”
John Sebastian

Long before Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers recorded ‘Stories We Could Tell’ at the Hammersmith Odeon in London, England, the song was written by Rock and Roll Hall of Fame singer/songwriter John Sebastian. Most folksingers grew up elsewhere before migrating to the Greenwich Village, New York music scene of the early to mid ‘60s, but John Sebastian was actually born and partially raised there. It was home. His early inspirations included Lead Belly and Woody Guthrie as well as a touch of the blues with Mississippi John Hurt, Sonny Terry and Lightning Hopkins. The blues connections provided the foundation that saw Sebastian become a highly regarded harmonica player. In 1964 John Sebastian and his Canadian friend Zal Yanovsky created a short-lived band known as The Mugwumps with Yanovsky’s compatriot Denny Doherty and Cass Elliot. The two duos that comprised this act would split in order to form the Lovin’ Spoonful and the Mamas and the Papas respectively. By the time their only album was released in 1967 the Mugwumps had disbanded. The song ‘Creeque Alley’ by the ‘Mamas and the Papas is an autobiographical account of this period of their careers.

Here are the lyrics that tell the story.

John and Mitchy were gettin’ kind of itchy
Just to leave the folk music behind
Zal and Denny workin’ for a penny
Tryin’ to get a fish on the line
In a coffee house Sebastian sat
And after every number they’d pass the hat
McGuinn and McGuire just a gettin’ higher
In L.A., you know where that’s at
And no one’s gettin’ fat except Mama Cass

Zally said Denny, you know there aren’t many
Who can sing a song the way that you do, let’s go south
Denny said Zally, golly, don’t you think that I wish
I could play guitar like you
Zal, Denny and Sebastian sat (at the Night Owl)
And after every number they’d pass the hat
McGuinn and McGuire still a gettin’ higher
In L.A., you know where that’s at
And no one’s gettin’ fat except Mama Cass

When Cass was a sophomore, planned to go to Swarthmore
But she changed her mind one day
Standin’ on the turnpike, thumb out to hitchhike
Take me to New York right away
When Denny met Cass he gave her love bumps
Called John and Zal and that was the Mugwumps
McGuinn and McGuire couldn’t get no higher
But that’s what they were aimin’ at
And no one’s gettin’ fat except Mama Cass

Mugwumps, high jumps, low slumps, big bumps
Don’t you work as hard as you play
Make up, break up, everything is shake up
Guess it had to be that way
Sebastian and Zal formed the Spoonful
Michelle, John, and Denny gettin’ very tuneful
McGuinn and McGuire just a catchin’ fire
In L.A., you know where that’s at
And everybody’s gettin’ fat except Mama Cass
Di di di dit dit dit di di di dit, whoa

Broke, busted, disgusted, agents can’t be trusted
And Mitchy wants to go to the sea
Cass can’t make it, she says we’ll have to fake it
We knew she’d come eventually
Greasin’ on American Express cards
It’s low rent, but keeping out the heat’s hard
Duffy’s good vibrations and our imaginations
Can’t go on indefinitely
And California dreamin’ is becomin’ a reality.”
John Phillips and Michelle Phillips

John Sebastian’s time with the Lovin’ Spoonful yielded several hits including ‘Summer in the City’. They were a prime example of the American music scene’s response to the British Invasion. Sadly, their success was relatively brief due to a series of internal issues. From this point Sebastian moved on to a solo career which included his famous impromptu set at Woodstock. The legend behind this performance has grown through the years. Briefly, John Sebastian showed up at Woodstock as a spectator, but he was asked by Woodstock emcee Chip Monck to play a short acoustic set after a thunderstorm rolled through and flooded the makeshift stage. He borrowed a guitar from Tim Hardin and took the stage. While organizers swept the water off the stage Sebastian performed five songs, including the Lovin’ Spoonful’s hit ‘Darling Be Home Soon’ and ‘Younger Generation’ which he famously dedicated to a baby that was born during the festival.

Here is John Sebastian’s stage banter from all those years ago.

I’d like you to hear a tune about… I guess about those discussions I was talkin’ about that I seem to have had in so many small circles of friends around living rooms, around pipes when they weren’t sellin’ no papers on the street and we weren’t walkin’ around this beautiful green place, smokin’ and, uh, not bein’ afraid. This is about… all of us. I love you people.”
John Sebastian

It appears he was caught up in a moment and to our great fortune it was captured on tape to be shared forever. Just one of many stories that can be told.

In the late ‘60s and early part of the ‘70s, John Sebastian wrote several songs and recorded a series of four solo albums between 1970 and 1974. During this time, he was a mainstay as a session player for many renowned artists of the day including a famous harmonica part on the Doors ‘Roadhouse Blues’. Several efforts to create new bands went unfulfilled due to varying circumstances but he was on the periphery of acts such as Crosby Stills and Nash, Little Feat and The Everly Brothers just to name a few.

Sebastian would hit paydirt again, with an unexpected hit buoyed by the popular sitcom ‘Welcome Back Kotter’. Here is ‘Welcome Back’.

It is here that we will get off at today’s feature song ‘Stories We Could Tell’. The song’s initial release was indeed by the storied brother act, the Everly Brothers, in their 1972 release of the same name. The John Sebastian penned song became the closing track on the album which aimed to present The Everly Brothers as a relevant act again. The album was produced by former Doors producer, Paul Rothchild which speaks to Sebastian’s ever flowing connection within the music industry. Unfortunately, ‘Stories We Could Tell’ met with mixed reviews, but the recording does offer a taste of the Everly’s signature style.

John Sebastian released his own version of the song in 1974 and it was subsequently shared as part of a greatest hits package known as ‘The Best of John Sebastian’ in 2017.

On several occasions Jimmy Buffett has been known to record cool cover versions of many great songs, and today’s feature is no exception. This is from his 1974 album ‘A1A’ on Geffen Records.

Before I conclude with my own story here is a fantastic version of ‘Stories We Could Tell’ featuring John Sebastian and his friend Arlen Roth. That’s Maria Muldaur sharing the vocals.

If you want to read an impressive resume of musical contributions and collaborations have a look at Arlen Roth’s bio page.

To come full circle, here is where ‘Stories We Could Tell’ becomes my story. Let me begin by saying as much as I love the many versions that I have shared, it all comes back to the Tom Petty cover for me. It’s as much about Tom Petty’s delivery and Bobby Valentino’s violin work as it is about the sentimentality the song portrays. Hats off to Mike Campbell for his always stellar guitar work and to Stan Lynch for his backing vocals.

On this day, 30 years ago Heather and I began our married life together. A frigid New Year’s Eve in 1991. We wanted to make our wedding an event. Not only would it signify a new beginning, but it would be a party. By the time it was all shut down in the early hours of New Year’s Day 1992, as a result of a dash of public drunkenness and a flash of partial nudity; a shout out to the two Scotts, who began to disrobe to the familiar strains of ‘Stayin’ Alive’ by the Bee Gees, it seemed our goal had been achieved.

Earlier in the evening, shortly after my sister-in-law Darlene declared in the closing line of her poetic toast to Heather,

What are you sitting around for, it’s time to party.”
Darlene – Toast to the Bride

Things were on their way. The dance began with ‘Love’ by John Lennon followed by ‘Songbird’ by Fleetwood Mac.

During our wedding planning process, we met with a DJ who agreed to allow for some input from yours truly as to the setlist for the dance. Admittedly, I went a little crazy. Part of my list of instructions was to emerge from the traditional slow dance portion of the evening with ‘Stories We Could Tell’ from ‘Pack Up the Plantation: Live’. At some point Heather suggested that the DJ may also know a thing or two about music so perhaps I could just let him coordinate the evening’s set list. Up to that point I had not considered this possibility, but of course she was right. I took my chances and miracle of miracles; the DJ did deliver. It was a great night.

Two days later, we found ourselves in Bethel, New York. When we left on our honeymoon, we had no specific destination. We just drove. After crossing the border and spending the night in Buffalo we decided to head toward New York City. As we headed southeast, we realized we were in proximity to the site of Woodstock. Somewhere in our volumes of photos there is a shot of Heather next to the monument that lists the many great band’s who performed during the immortal three-day festival. The view from the hill looks down on where John Sebastian regaled the crowd of 500,000 people.

Most people who get married on New Year’s Eve would head somewhere tropical. Not us. As previously mentioned, we are not extravagant people. Keep it real and spontaneous. Let it be said here that we had a ton of fun. Adventures at every turn. Memories that will last a lifetime.

Thirty years later we are still writing our story. It includes three sons, the first named Sebastian (1993), then Jeremy (1996) and Nathaniel (2000). They exist as chapters unto themselves. Ours is a home often filled with music. Each song represents a piece of who we are, and in some cases, they tell the story of where we were.

Sittin’ on a bed in some hotel
Singin’ all the stories we could tell.”
John Sebastian

Sometimes I long to go back there. Other times I am just happy to recall the memories and know it is just part our ongoing story.

Three decades later they still ring like a bell.

Happy Anniversary Heather!

If you’ve ever wondered why we ride this carousel; we do it for the stories we can tell. Just know that for every part I exist as maddening, I love you ten times more.

ILY!

Free Fallin’ – Some personal reflections on a #TomPetty classic. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #JohnMayer #Coldplay #FleetwoodMac

November 28, 2021November 28, 2021 ~ tedlindsay0170 ~ 3 Comments

Today we are going to take a look at Tom Petty’s ‘Free Fallin’ from a unique perspective.

Join me on my roof as I decorate our house for Christmas.

Like many of you, around our house Christmas is a big deal. By the time Christmas day comes around everyone will be back home again, and we look forward to celebrating together. This year it promises to be even better because ideally, we will be able to get together with our extended family for the first time since 2019. Most of all, Christmas day is also our oldest son, Sebastian’s birthday. Memories abound, and they all tend to flow through my mind as I tinker away at the annual chore of putting up the Christmas lights.

A good start would be in knowing that, I am a bit of a disaster. I try, and I often fail, and I try again. Eventually, I get it right, or I produce a passable facsimile of adequate. We moved into our present family home in Burlington in the summer of 1998. Previous to that we lived in a townhouse, so the opportunity to decorate the whole house for Christmas was novel by the time late November came around. Heather was excited for the opportunity to deck the whole exterior with lights and other festive items. As always, I was along for the ride and initially, only mildly trepidatious. As I recall, and I could be wrong we got everything up and ready in mid to late November, ahead of the cold, snow, and ice. The initial part of the process went quite smoothly. and everything looked quite nice. Shortly thereafter there was a heavy snowfall which turned to ice. As a result, Heather and I had to go out and do a bit of maintenance work on the lights in the yard and along our eavestroughs. While Heather worked with the spotlights in the front yard, I chipped away at the ice buildup above our garage. For some reason, I grew tired of handling this project from the ladder, so I thought I would climb onto the roof and finish breaking the strand free from above. I slithered my way along the garage roof and exposed the last light. As I looked along the glimmering eavestrough and admired my work I prepared to step back onto the ladder, I caught a patch of ice and slid off the roof, twelve feet above the driveway; making only the slightest contact with the ladder that I desperately attempted to hold onto as I fell. A half second later, I landed in a heap, closely followed by the ladder, crashing with a gut-wrenching clang. It all happened very fast, but it also happened in slow motion. I can still play it in slow motion in my mind.

Yep…I was ‘Free Fallin’

Fortunately, Heather was just around the front of the house. She was only slightly out of view, but when she heard my momentary plea for help and the ladder clanging, I can’t imagine what she felt. She came rushing over to make sure I was okay. I can remember being in a bit of a daze, as I took a brief inventory of my faculties. I staggered to my feet and walked around a bit. It seems I was only slightly jarred. When Heather realized I was okay she asked,

“Can I laugh now?”

In many ways we have been laughing ever since. 1998…the year Dad fell off the roof decorating our ‘new’ house for Christmas.

Just one more in a long list of Ted’s faux pas. Legend. Definitely a crowd favourite.

Ever since that night 23 years ago my approach to decorating the house has been haunted by my brush with death. I climb up the leader with great care. Any time I have to go on the roof the memory comes back, and I have to talk myself into even the simplest of tasks. I am here to say immersion therapy really does work.

So last weekend, when I made my way through what really is a pretty straight-forward job, my mind took me back to this night that has now become a chapter in our family lore and smiled to myself as I thought this would be a cool way to bring ‘Free Fallin’ by Tom Petty into a Ted Tocks Covers post.

Because if you are ever free fallin’ please know that when you land, the trick is to tuck and roll.

It works…

I can guarantee that when Tom Petty wrote ‘Free Fallin’ back in ‘87/’88 the farthest thing from his mind was an accident-prone family man in Southern Ontario. The truth is this song came to him about as easy as anything he had ever written before or since. The song was written and recorded in just two days, and it served as the catalyst for what became his debut solo album ‘Full Moon Fever’. From the time of its ultimate release in the fall of 1989, ‘Free Fallin’ became one of Tom Petty’s most recognizable songs. In fact, it is both the highest charting song he ever recorded and the longest charting. It is interesting to note that when the song was recorded by the skeleton staff of Tom Petty on vocals and 12 string acoustic guitar, Mike Campbell on lead 12 string electric guitar, producer Jeff Lynne on backing vocals, bass/rhythm guitar and keyboards and Phil Jones on drums they didn’t immediately recognize the potential. When it came time to determine the singles to promote ‘Full Moon Fever’ they opted for ‘I Won’t Back Down’ and ‘Runnin’ Down a Dream’ to go 1-2, before ‘Free Fallin’ batted third.

As an album ‘Full Moon Fever’ presented Tom Petty as a solo artist to a large degree, but the album is most memorable as a result of the contributions from a feast of friends that included Mike Campbell, Benmont Tench and Howie Epstein from the Heartbreakers, along with Jeff Lynne, Roy Orbison, George Harrison and Jim Keltner from The Travelling Wilburys and even Del Shannon joined the crew to share barnyard noises during the “Hello CD listeners” interlude. Listen…

It didn’t take long for ‘Full Moon Fever’ to be the talk of the music scene. Here is Tom Petty with Axl Rose and Slash at the 1989 Video Music Awards. An intriguing combination and they pull it off.

In January of 2008 Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers played the half time show at Super Bowl XLII in Arizona and in my opinion, it was one of the top five half time shows ever. Enjoy as the crowd sings along with every word. Just one of those special music moments. Here is the whole set.

In terms of true cover versions, it is difficult to top this warm tribute by the versatile John Mayer. This acoustic cover is from a 2007 live performance at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles. This recording became a focal point on his 2008 live album, ‘Where the Light Is’.

In early October of 2017, just days after Tom Petty’s untimely passing, Coldplay played at the Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena. They were joined by James Corden. Listen as they invite everyone in the audience for one giant Tom Petty campfire sing-along. This too, is one of those magical times where music brings everyone together. The mini horn section is pretty cool too.

Speaking of the Rose Bowl, this tribute takes me back to a personal experience Heather and I enjoyed back in late 2007/early 2008. We had the privilege of going to California to see our son Sebastian perform in the Rose Bowl Parade as part of the Burlington Teen Tour Band which is Canada’s oldest and largest youth marching band. Our journey began on Boxing Day, 2007 as we made our way to Buffalo, New York for a brief overnight stay at a hotel near the airport. Our flight left Buffalo early the next morning. We arrived at the airport crazy early because we were warned that security might be tight. The truth was, we may have been the only people there other than airport staff. We waited patiently to board the plane, which was heading to Chicago, before we needed to get a connecting flight to Atlanta. From down in Dixie we would make our way across the continent to the Golden State. Sounds easy right?

Well, we got to Chicago no problem, but there was an issue with the connecting flight at O’Hare. This is where our version of ‘Planes, Trains and Automobiles’ began. We waited for what seemed like forever before the flight from Chicago was ready to board. We knew we were up against it in terms of whether we would be able to get our connecting flight in Atlanta, but we just rolled with it, because in the grand scheme, we had no control. When we did get to Atlanta, we asked some very helpful people for the fastest way to get to the appropriate gate, only to learn we had two minutes to navigate what amounted to the entire expanse of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Our chances of getting our flight were slim to none and slim had left town on the plane we were supposed to be on. The kindly gentleman recognized the futility of the situation and gave us a couple of vouchers for a Burger King in the airport hospitality suite. Before we ate, we made sure we had a shot of catching the next flight from Atlanta to Los Angeles. We were added to a wait list.

“Wait…A wait list?” We thought.

“You mean this is not a given?” We thought.

Heather and I are not exactly veteran travelers. Needless to say we were getting a little nervous.

We made sure we were on the list of potential travelers and then we grabbed a couple of Whoppers, fries, onion rings and cokes to go. We munched away as we gazed at the screen that called up people on stand-by like some sort of lottery. Slowly our numbers moved their way up the list as the clock wound its way toward take off time. I will eliminate the suspense at this point and just say we were among the last two people to board and our only option was we had to sit separately. Not exactly optimal, but it beat the alternative.

By the time we got to LAX, Heather and I were both pretty slap happy. Our travel day was nearing the 20 hour mark as we made our way to the baggage claim. We both began to sing ‘Coming into Los Angeles’ by Arlo Guthrie which in retrospect may not have been the wisest choice of a sing-along. We grabbed our suitcase and followed the signs to where our courtesy shuttle was waiting. For the ride through the Los Angeles streets, we were joined by a handful of other weary travelers who were nowhere near as jovial as me and Heather. I made reference to the landmarks as we drove through San Fernando Valley, that perfectly resembled Tom’s trip in ‘Free Fallin’. It had indeed been a long day, and there was Reseda. I began to sing as I saw the sign. Then we saw Ventura Freeway (101) and of course the boulevard which led to Mulholland. We were living the song. The perfect end to a bizarre day, but we landed softly thanks to Tom Petty. We were literally ‘Learning to Fly’ and coming down was the hardest thing, but sometimes in life you just need to go with the flow and see what happens.

On New Years’ Day we watched the Rose Bowl parade from a set of bleachers that overlooked the street, nestled in the beautiful valley. We watched with extreme Canadian pride as Sebastian and his drumline along with the rest of the remarkable band played ‘Holiday’ by Green Day in a marching band style, as they marched through the Pasadena streets. A new year’s tradition. How lucky we were to be there. A wonderful memory.

Closer to the present, here is Fleetwood Mac with Neil Finn and Mike Campbell playing live in 2018. You can tell Stevie Nicks is singing it for Tom.

This is the true power of ‘Free Fallin’ in the words of Mike Campbell.

It’s been played to death, but people love it to death. I most recently did it on the Fleetwood Mac tour every night to honor Tom, and, of course, I played it at pretty much every concert for 30 years. I love it, but I’m sick of playing it. I wish people would request something else, but I realize it’s a very popular song.
Mike Campbell

Over 32 years later and people still love it to death.

Like any great song, it takes you back to a time and a place, or in some cases the short free fall between a roof and a driveway.

Have a great day, and be careful out there.

Black Magic Woman – The evolution of a classic rock staple #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #PeterGreen #FleetwoodMac #JohnMayallandhisBluesbreakers #OtisRush #Santana #GaborSzabo #ButtonBrownBrass #SnowyWhite #GreggRolie #SteveLukather #AylaTeslerMabe

July 25, 2021July 24, 2021 ~ tedlindsay0170 ~ Leave a comment

He has the sweetest tone I have ever heard; he was the only one who gave me the cold sweats.”
B.B. King

B.B. King was talking about Peter Green when he issued this compliment. Very high praise indeed. This version of Ted Tocks Covers will focus on one of the many songs that guitarists point to when they express their appreciation for Peter Green. Within the post you will get a short glimpse at how he was influenced by the blues, and who he went on to inspire with his carefully crafted style of playing. This will focus mainly on the music, using ‘Black Magic Woman’ as the backdrop.

Peter Green’s emergence on the British music scene began in 1965 when he became part of a band called Peter B.’s Looners. It was in this band that he met a lanky drummer named Mick Fleetwood. At this time musicians were always looking for the next best gig, so Fleetwood and Green moved on to form Shotgun Express with Peter Bardens (Peter B.) and an aspiring singer named Rod Stewart. This group was short-lived because soon after its formation Peter Green was invited to play with a British blues legend, who had a vacancy. Here is producer Mike Vernon’s recollection of his conversation with John Mayall shortly after Peter Green joined John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers.

As the band walked in the studio, I noticed an amplifier which I never saw before, so I said to John Mayall, “Where’s Eric Clapton?” Mayall answered, “He’s not with us anymore, he left us a few weeks ago.” I was in a shock of state [sic] but Mayall said, “Don’t worry, we got someone better.” I said, “Wait a minute, hang on a second, this is ridiculous. You’ve got someone better? Than Eric Clapton?” John said, “He might not be better now, but you wait, in a couple of years he’s going to be the best.” Then he introduced me to Peter Green.
Mike Vernon

After about a year with John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers, Peter Green formed the first incarnation of Fleetwood Mac with Mick Fleetwood, and eventually John McVie. Obviously, Mick Fleetwood and John McVie remain to this day, but it was Peter Green who helped to establish the earliest version of the legendary band we all know today. Peter Green’s songs still remain as an important part of the band’s setlist. Here is a brief example of how the influence unfolded.

When Peter Green was with the Bluesbreakers, he was drawn to the music of Otis Rush. Mayall was a teacher, and every recording session was like a lesson in blues history. Here is ‘All Your Love’ by Otis Rush. Listen closely and you will hear the beginnings of the ‘Black Magic Woman’ sound.

Out of the ‘All Your Love’ cover by John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers, that actually featured Eric Clapton on guitar, Peter Green produced his own creation called ‘I Loved Another Woman’ and brought it to the early Fleetwood Mac sessions. Once again, the sound evolves.

For comparison, here is the studio version of Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Black Magic Woman’ from 1968. Note the very similar sound.

‘Black Magic Woman’ hit the U.K. top 40, but it became more prominent for how it managed to inspire. While Fleetwood Mac was touring the United States west coast Carlos Santana was captured by Peter Green’s style. He was particularly moved by the band’s rendition of ‘Black Magic Woman’, and the band recorded it, and included it on their classic album ‘Abraxas’.

Ever the visionary, Santana opted to blend ‘Black Magic Woman’ with the incredible jazz and Hungarian folk stylings of Gabor Szabo and his own Latin rhythm influence. This came out in the medley that included ‘Gypsy Queen’ bookending ‘Black Magic Woman’. Here is Gabor Szabo and his instrumental ‘Gypsy Queen’ that went on to add so much to the Santana version.

Over 50 years later ‘Black Magic Woman’ exists as a Santana favourite. At the time of its release, it rose to #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and ‘Abraxas’ hit #1 on the album charts. The combination of Carlos Santana’s guitar work, the eclectic Latin rhythms plus Gregg Rolie’s keyboards and melodic voice is captivating.

As you read and gather the names, the list becomes more intriguing as the lineage unfolds. Otis Rush inspired John Mayall, who shared the sound with Eric Clapton, who left it for Peter Green who presented a sound to Carlos Santana, who then merged it with a combination of Latin sound and Hungarian Jazz/folk. Music is so much about artistic vision and every one of these names took the best of what came before and built something so impressive it is still revered today.

Let the covers continue.

So often, I begin a post with one thing in mind, but then I am led on a world of discovery. Here is a band called Button Down Brass featuring Ray Davies. This grabbed my attention because I immediately thought it was a side project of Ray Davies of The Kinks. I couldn’t have been more wrong. This Ray Davies was a highly regarded Welsh trumpeter and band leader who, in addition to his work in the big band and easy listening genre, managed to cross over into the pop scene where he worked with some of the biggest names in the music industry. His projects included The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Tom Jones, Shirley Bassey and Petula Clark (see ‘Downtown’), just to name a few. Here is their unique version of ‘Black Magic Woman’. It speaks to the range of possibilities.

One of Peter Green’s best friends in the music industry was Terence ‘Snowy’ White. White is renowned for his studio and live work with Pink Floyd. He also enjoyed stints with Thin Lizzy and Mick Taylor as well as being an integral part of Roger Waters and the Bleeding Heart Band. He has even recorded with rap superstar Meek Mill. Here is Snowy White and the White Flames doing ‘Black Magic Woman’ in the 2005 release ‘The Way It Is’. This is all ‘Black Magic Woman’. There is no visit from the ‘Gypsy Queen’. The feel is right there though. Quality playing from Snowy White, and the band is top notch.

As I continue to write Ted Tocks Covers and research the origin of great songs and present cover versions, I see names come up frequently, and they are universally regarded. In this case I refer to Steve Lukather. Listen to this version of ‘Black Magic Woman’ that is presented as part of Ringo Starr and His All-Star Band. This is the most recent incarnation of the band which for the purposes of this post features Gregg Rolie on keyboards and ‘Luke’ on lead guitar. Watch the interplay between Rolie and Lukather as the guitarist wails on the soulful sound. This is just a special moment that needs to be shared.

I am going to end this post with a little ‘CanCon’. This is in the form of an impressive guitar talent named Ayla Tesler-Mabe who caught my eye on YouTube because of her clear commitment to her craft and devotion to some of the finest guitar players ever. Once again, it all speaks to influence and that lineage seems to be moving on to new generations. Here, Ayla plays along with the Carlos Santana lead and nails it. It is fun to watch this recording from four years ago. She suggests her focus for the future will be concentrating on her own writing. At the time of this video, she was 16. She is now 20 and in a band called Ludic. Out of curiosity I looked her up and she is featured in the July, 2021 edition of Guitar World Magazine. Here is the article.

https://www.guitarworld.com/features/ludic-ayla-tesler-mabe

And here is her guitar cover of ‘Black Magic Woman’.

Sadly, on July 25, 2020, the music world lost the great Peter Green. For many years the enigmatic guitarist moved in and out of the public eye as he struggled with mental illness and financial challenges. His talent and unique ear were never in doubt. The list of guitarists who cite Peter Green as an influence is both long and impressive. Today’s reflection is only a beginning, using one song as the root source. Explore on your own.

Black Dog – A tribute to the great #JohnBonham. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #LedZeppelin #FleetwoodMac #JohnnyFavouriteSwingOrchestra #Heart #ThoseDarnAccordions #HayseedDixie

September 25, 2019February 11, 2023 ~ tedlindsay0170 ~ 6 Comments

I was less than a month into high school when word came over the newswire that John Bonham; the illustrious drummer for Led Zeppelin died. For a significant number of students at Acton District High School this was a big deal. For a certain element there was definitely a pall that fell over the institution. Led Zeppelin was a benchmark band in the world of rock and roll and to many, John Bonham was at the pinnacle of his profession. I remember being stunned by the news. At home, I took the Entertainment section from the Toronto Star and filed it away for safe keeping. I still have it 39 years later.

The headline from an article written by music critic Peter Goddard read “Can Led Zeppelin survive sudden death of drummer?” As time went on the answer to this question was a resounding no. Sure, Led Zeppelin reunited for brief periods like a three song stint at Live Aid in 1985 with Phil Collins sitting behind the drum kit, or the December 2007 Ahmet Ertegun Tribute Concert. This event featured John Bonham’s son Jason performing as a strong replacement and it serves as the only full length concert featuring this iconic band since the death of ‘Bonzo’. It was a spectacle that left fans wanting more but in reality, the show was over. To paraphrase, the song truly did remain the same, but in the eyes of the remaining members of Led Zeppelin it just wasn’t quite the same without their hard driving drummer. For Robert Plant there was no going back. He was often resolute on this topic.

“No one could ever have taken over John’s job. Never, ever! Impossible. I listen to Zeppelin stuff now and I realize how important John was. When he drummed he was right there with either my voice or whatever Pagey was doing … you couldn’t have found anybody with the same kind of ingredient to make the band really take off like John did. For all the shit that hit the fan those many times … we all sort of rose out of it together going, ‘We don’t care – take this!’ And you don’t start carrying on with people who weren’t a part of that. Impossible.
Robert Plant

For a period of time Jimmy Page was always a little more hopeful but as time has slipped by he simply feels the moment is gone, and any effort to reunite would appear to be done for the wrong reasons.

“You’ve just got to face facts. We’ve gone past the tenth anniversary of the O2, where we managed to do one serious concert. That’s the only thing that we’ve done for such a long time, so I very much doubt we’ll do anything else. I really think the time has gone.”
Jimmy Page

To many, the Led Zeppelin library is a vital part of their listening catalogue. You can include me on that list. Their influence on music over the past 50 years can be heard in countless acts. They are a classic rock staple. Sometimes things just need to be left as they were.

Today’s feature song is ‘Black Dog’. I went up and down their discography looking for the right track and arrived at this one. Keep in mind that I have featured Led Zeppelin on several other occasions.

Dazed and Confused

I Can’t Quit You Baby

Babe, I’m Gonna Leave You

When the Levee Breaks

The Song Remains the Same

As you read this you will note that ‘Black Dog’ is the sixth song from Led Zeppelin IV that I have featured. It is likely the most celebrated album in Ted Tocks 600 song history and it completes side one of that album. The album is that good.

The song has an interesting origin. The recognizable riff was the creation of Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones. Robert Plant wrote the lyrics as an homage to an early Fleetwood Mac song called ‘Oh Well’. The intention was to be a call and response between Plant and the band. The result is an epic musical experience. Here is ‘Oh Well’. Great stuff in its own right and once again you can hear how bands of that era drew inspiration from each other and inevitably their blues forefathers.

The song title which has no immediate connection to the lyrics was actually in recognition of a black dog that frequented the recording studio known as Headley Grange, during the writing, rehearsal and recording stage of the album.

There are so many cover versions of Led Zeppelin songs that there is a website devoted to the list of covers of each song. The list is in alphabetical order by song title and then a corresponding chronological list of cover versions by act. It is a gold mine for my purposes, and I get lost in the incredible array of interpretations I hear. This is where Led Zeppelin’s influence can be easily measured.

Today I will share four in honour of Led Zeppelin IV and the four musical giants that formed Led Zeppelin.

I am going to start with an intriguing cover by Johhny Favourite Swing Orchestra. This is so good it will take the lead off position. Heather and I were out for dinner at our friends Colin and Jen’s last week and they had this on their playlist. The timing could not have been better. I can’t stop listening to it. Colin is a wealth of musical knowledge from the alternative/independent side of things. Every time he puts a collection of his songs on for our listening pleasure, I make a new discovery. Colin and Jen have a great website and blog at www.tincancottage.ca. It is all about their adventures in their 2011 Evergreen 32 MKS Travel Trailer which they affectionately call their ‘Tin Can Cottage”. Check it out or follow them on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram. We have known them for years. They are the kind of people that just by knowing them you feel enriched. Here is the Johnny Favourite Swing Orchestra with their swing version of ‘Black Dog’. What a find.

Back to more conventional covers; Heart has covered many Led Zeppelin songs through the years. Here they are doing a cover of ‘Black Dog’ on the tour that begat their Alive in Seattle album in 2003.

Every time I get an opportunity to share cover versions by Those Darn Accordions I leap at the opportunity. Here is their performance from 2004. Tons of fun and so good. They blend it with what else but ‘Whole Lotta Love’.

And finally, for the second day in a row here is Hayseed Dixie. One thing I have noticed since writing Ted Tocks Covers is the cool acts just keep popping up. The bluegrass rendition of ‘Black Dog’ works so well. Check out the title of the album it appears on. Too funny.

Oh baby!

To close this post, here is a fantastic drum piece by John Bonham where he and Jimmy Page experiment with electronic effects. It was recorded in Montreux, Switzerland in 1976. Hence the name; ‘Bonzo’s Montreux’. This was first released on Led Zeppelin’s 1982 Coda compilation. It gives fans a glimpse of how John Bonham was truly evolving his craft. It makes you wonder what would have been possible had he not passed away so young.

I hope you enjoyed this Led Zeppelin feast. Have a great day!

World Turning – A classic #FleetwoodMac song that goes back to their early days. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #PeterGreen #BobWelch #MickFleetwood #LindseyBuckingham #ChristineMcVie

September 4, 2019February 24, 2022 ~ tedlindsay0170 ~ 2 Comments

Classic Fleetwood Mac. A song that in one form or another has been part of this group’s live performances for over fifty years. Today’s post is mostly about the music, but I will briefly explain the song’s interesting evolution.

To begin, I should note that I learned about ‘World Turning’ in Mick Fleetwood’s autobiography called ‘Play On: Now Then, and Fleetwood Mac: The Autobiography’. This was a terrific book that chronicles Mick Fleetwood’s life and the ever-evolving story of Fleetwood Mac’s history.

‘World Turning’ began as a contribution from the great Peter Green in 1968. Fleetwood Mac’s first album contained a song called ‘The World Keeps on Turning’. At this point, the band consisted of Mick Fleetwood, John McVie and Peter Green in addition to Jeremy Spencer. Here is that song from the album that started it all. I have opted for a live rendition because it captures the Fleetwood Mac spirit that runs through to this day.

Six years later, Fleetwood Mac was moving through another incarnation of members. By 1975 the group opted to take on a hot young guitarist named Lindsey Buckingham and his talented girlfriend, Stevie Nicks. The band was working on a ton of material for their upcoming album, Fleetwood Mac. To date Ted Tocks has featured the Stevie Nicks contributions ‘Rhiannon’ and ‘Landslide’. That album was released in 1975 and it spent one year on the U.S. charts before reaching #1 on this day in 1976.This was the first of three #1 albums for the iconic band.

‘World Turning’ was largely a collaboration between Buckingham and the elegant Christine McVie. The pair modified the initial Peter Green song and turned it into a set list mainstay. In fact, it has appeared on every Fleetwood Mac tour since its release in 1975, often as a prelude to Mick Fleetwood’s captivating drum solo which has incorporated the flamboyant drummer’s talking drum and through the innovative technology of the ‘80s a drum vest that included a MIDI with five sensors. This production was performed much to the delight of Fleetwood Mac fans who loved Fleetwood’s engaging presentation as he came out from behind his kit and put his unique style on full display. Check out the combination of sounds created by the drum vest.

For today’s cover version I am keeping it within the Fleetwood Mac family. When Lindsey Buckingham joined the group as a guitarist, he was replacing Bob Welch. This represents just one chapter in the groups ever evolving soap opera. The reason I bring it up today is, in 2006 Bob Welch released his own version of ‘World Turning’ on an album called His Fleetwood Years and Beyond, Vol 2.

The Bob Welch contribution to Fleetwood Mac is somewhat underrated, and definitely controversial. As mentioned, it is a soap opera that would make ‘Young and the Restless’ blush. The band’s history is well chronicled, but as noted the band began as a blues band in London, England. It was at the urging of Bob Welch that the band moved to California to capitalize on the burgeoning commercial possibilities in the city of lights.

“My era was the bridge era. It was a transition. But it was an important period in the history of the band. Mick Fleetwood dedicated a whole chapter of his biography to my era of the band and credited me with ‘saving Fleetwood Mac’. Now they want to write me out of the history of the group. It hurts.”
Bob Welch

This is a reference to the fact that when Fleetwood Mac was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Bob Welch was not among the honoured members.

Welch added in an interview with the Cleveland Plains Dealer;

“Mick and I co-managed the group for years. I’m the one who brought the band to Los Angeles from England, which put them in the position of hooking up with Lindsey and Stevie. I saw the band through a whole period where they barely survived, literally.”
Bob Welch

Like so many rock and roll stories, Bob Welch’s ended in tragedy. A combination of health issues led to him committing suicide in 2012 at the age of 66.

The music world keeps on turning but we should always remember the artist’s who make contributions from the periphery. Today’s post is as much about Peter Green and Bob Welch as it is about Mick Fleetwood, Christine McVie and Lindsey Buckingham.

Landslide – Today’s classic song. How a personal reflection for #StevieNicks became the catalyst to a #RockandRollHallofFame career. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #FleetwoodMac #SmashingPumpkins #DixieChicks

July 6, 2019July 5, 2019 ~ tedlindsay0170 ~ 5 Comments

Oh Stevie Nicks! She has a way of capturing a moment, so people can relate forever. I am sure we all have songs that speaks to us through their lyrics and their poetry. Today’s feature song is ‘Landslide’ by Fleetwood Mac. It was written by Stevie Nicks during a period of time where she was contemplating a major change. In 1975 she was involved in a relationship with Lindsey Buckingham that was also a creative partnership. Buckingham/Nicks had recorded a self- titled album, but it was dropped by their label before they could release a follow up. Nicks was contemplating quitting music and going to school. She wrote ‘Landslide’ while staring out at the Rocky Mountains from her friend’s living room window in Aspen, Colorado. The beautiful vista helped her gather thoughts and make sense of things through the written word.

Evidently, it has helped thousands of people through personal challenges because over the years as a single it has sold approximately 1.5 million copies.

As for Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham, the rest was history. Through a twist of fate, they were discovered by Mick Fleetwood and John McVie of Fleetwood Mac and asked to join the band. They combined to sell millions of albums together. Stevie Nicks has since gone on to become the first female to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice.

To this day ‘Landslide’ is a crowd favourite during Fleetwood Mac concerts.

Before I move on to today’s covers, here is an early demo of ‘Landslide’. This shows the clear songwriting magic between Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham.

Here are the complete lyrics. Notice how they speak to life’s changes and how Stevie Nicks resolves to rise above the challenges.

I took my love, I took it down
Climbed a mountain and I turned around
And I saw my reflection in the snow covered hills
‘Til the landslide brought me down
Oh, mirror in the sky, what is love?
Can the child within my heart rise above?
Can I sail through the changin’ ocean tides?
Can I handle the seasons of my life?
Mmm
Well, I’ve been ‘fraid of changin’
‘Cause I’ve built my life around you
But time makes you bolder
Even children get older
And I’m gettin’ older, too
Well, I’ve been ‘fraid of changin’
‘Cause I’ve built my life around you
But time makes you bolder
Even children get older
And I’m gettin’ older, too
I’m gettin’ older, too
Ah, take my love, take it down
Oh, climb a mountain and turn around
And if you see my reflection in the snow covered hills
Well, the landslide will bring it down
And if you see my reflection in the snow covered hills
Well, the landslide will bring it down
Oh, the landslide will bring it down

It is so powerful. Time moves on and we must move with the changes. The key is we must chart our own course.

There are a couple of very strong cover versions. The first was a bit of a surprise to me. It is a cover by Smashing Pumpkins from 1994. The acoustic presentation is exceptional. Billy Corgan is flawless. He is so well suited. Wow!

While researching this song I discovered that it was on this date in 2003 that The Dixie Chicks performed a concert in Dallas that was mired in controversy. It seems that band member Natalie Maines had received death threats for speaking out against President George W. Bush and the Iraq War. Sanity prevailed, and the Dixie Chicks were able to perform the concert under tight security including police escorts to and from the show. Oh…by the way…The Dixie Chicks released a cover of ‘Landslide just a year previous. It was a massive hit and at the time it was their only #1 single to date on the Adult Contemporary Chart. The harmonies are stunning. What a treat.

For Your Love – Today’s classic song and a couple of interesting covers. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #TheYardbirds #FleetwoodMac #TheGregKihnBand

March 13, 2019March 6, 2021 ~ tedlindsay0170 ~ 1 Comment

Today’s song has the distinction of altering music history in a positive way. ‘For Your Love’ was a massive hit for The Yardbirds in 1965. Released 54 years ago today, it went to #1 in the U.K. and Canada. The song was a departure from The Yardbirds regular blues – based roots and as a result it drove Eric Clapton right out of the group. Clapton was heavily influenced by the blues and the idea of moving in a commercial direction, recently charted by the Beatles and the Rolling Stones was not something he wanted to explore. I will get back to Eric Clapton later. The evolution of this song is interesting, as commercial as it was, because it came from a relative unknown songwriter who wanted to follow the Beatles formula.

‘For Your Love’ was written by Graham Gouldman. Gouldman was a 19 year old aspiring songwriter who was inspired by the Beatles. He worked days in a men’s clothing shop and spent nights playing in a band, ironically called The Mockingbirds. During quiet time in the shop he would work at writing the next big hit single. He used the formula of the day as his guide. A simple hook for a title based on a man’s love for a woman combined with a catchy guitar riff and a driving beat. The result was ‘For Your Love’. When he finished the song he shopped it around to two local record companies, but received little interest. Graham Gouldman’s manager, Harvey Lisberg loved the song and his initial plan was to try to sell it to the Beatles. Gouldman was a little more realistic, thinking that the Beatles seemed to be doing alright on their own. Ultimately, they passed the song onto a publisher named Ronnie Beck of Friedman’s who had a plan that involved giving the song to the Beatles, who were performing at the Hammersmith Odeon. It was never presented to the Beatles but this pre-Christmas show in 1964 also included The Yardbirds. Ronnie Beck played the demo for their manager Giorgio Gomelsky and the members of the band. As the saying goes, the rest is music history.

The Yardbirds had some reservations about the recording. The bands organist Brian Auger is on record as to wondering;

Who in their right mind is going to buy a pop single with harpsichord on it?”
Brian Auger

Eric Clapton played a limited role in the recording and based on his concern related to the direction of the group, left between the time the song was recorded and its ultimate release. Clapton’s replacement would be none other than Jimmy Page.

Clapton would go on to join the legendary John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers. This would give way to Cream, Blind Faith, Derek and the Dominos and multiple groundbreaking solo releases with musical collaborations that are jaw dropping in their display of talent.

As much as ‘For Your Love’ created a bit of controversy within the Yardbirds world it did go on to be a monumental song in terms of production and the potential of the rock and roll sound. Like Brian Auger said…the harpsichord? But it worked and that sound took off for a period. ‘For Your Love’ was covered by some interesting acts down through the years. Here is the 1973 edition of Fleetwood Mac doing their version. This pre – Buckingham/Nicks release features Bob Weston and Christine McVie on vocals and Weston on slide guitar and Bob Welch on lead guitar. One of many incarnations of the ongoing Fleetwood Mac journey. This is fantastic though.

In 1980 the Greg Kihn Band release a handful of catchy rock songs. They received some reasonable airplay but they never quite got over the hump. Here is their version of ‘For Your Love’.

Tag: Fleetwood Mac