by MJ2004 As a lifelong A-ha fan, seeing Morten singing his beautiful unplugged rendition of Take On Me while masked in a giant Viking costume and watching NONE OF THE JUDGES recognize him most definitely falls in the category of things I'd never see. He has one of the most recognizable voices in pop and he's SINGING HIS OWN DAMN SONG...
I had no idea this show exists btw, what a crazy concept. And what an epic troll.
by MJ2004 It's been an extra crappy few weeks in the world, so I thought I'd just post this here. I watch it now and then when I need to watch something that will make me feel good.
Miyazaki manages to tell a better story in a 6 minute music video than most full-length movies. Obviously this will play better to fans of Studio Ghibli. And how psyched was this band to get Miyazaki to animate their video?
by Suliso A random youtube recommendation, but I liked
by ti-amie
If you've never seen the scene from the original West Side Story movie:
by Suliso Just a random youtube video. Not sure if these are professional dancers or high level amateurs, but in either case they're very good.
by MJ2004 Most of what Rick Beato says goes over my head, but nobody breaks apart a song like he does. I'm putting this up for fans of Comfortably Numb:
by
ponchi101 I really enjoyed it, and this man is obviously a very talented and educated musician, but...
The reason CN is such a great song is because Waters had been building up that album by more than 50 minutes by then. The moment right before CN starts, the previous song, which is the somber BRING THE BOYS BACK HOME, ends with that guttural question "Is there anybody out there?". Then CN kicks in.
Like most of PF's music, listening to a single song is missing the entire album. Is like getting a 7 meal Italian meal, picking some rice from the risotto, and claiming it was excellent.
Of course, the orchestration was out of this world, but that was the whole thing about Floyd. Waters was an absolute genius at that, and I would venture that nobody has even come close to what he did in those years, both with "The Wall" and "Wish You Were Here"* (maybe Roland Olazabal, with Sowing the seeds of love, comes close). But breaking the song apart to this level is not needed. Of course, the man is right, but he misses a couple of things: Mason's drumming is not ordinary and he is, to me, a totally underrated drummer, who could have easily been a great jazz drummer. And Wrigth's keyboard behind all of those, with Kamel's orchestration, gives the perfect canvas. When Floyd started, and if you listen to their early albums, they were not great musicians; they were not even good. Then they applied themselves and with Gilmour's addition, became a series of really great players (and actually, I believe that Waters is the least talented, as a natural bassist). The song has those two solos that are incredible but, as solos go, Wright's keyboards in Shine of You Crazy Diamond (part V) from WYWH is a more complex and interesting piece. Of course, guitar players don't focus on that.
I know I sound critical, which I am, but this guy sees it from the point of view of a guitar player. But as a fan, such a deep deconstruction is not necessary. It is a great song because if has ALL the ingredients: great lyrics (which only make sense if you have heard the entire album by then), superb orchestration, a mix of vocals that are almost choir like (Wright's voice is so similar to Gilmour that they were frequently confused and people thought it was only one man, when they were two) and a generational feeling that you get only in a few albums, all of them conceptual (Tommy, Journey to the center of the earth, Tales of Mystery and Imagination, for example).
But a really enjoyable clip. Txs.
Off Topic
* It is, I guess, the reason I so completely dislike today's music. Nobody orchestrates anymore
by mmmm8 I agree with you, Ponchi, about the reasons the song is great (lyrics, instrument and vocal orchestration - to me, the vocalization is very tied into the instrumental arrangement) but disagree that it only comes to live as part of the album. The conceptualization of the album is great and that's why the album is a masterpiece, but, IMHO, the song fully stands on its own and maybe takes on even more meaning outside the track list.
(Full disclosure, I haven't watched the above video)
by MJ2004 I agree that while it’s core to the album, this song very much stands on its own.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
by MJ2004 I'm a sucker for long shots in a single take. Think the opening scene in The Player, the seasons changing scene in Notting Hill.
This one take music video is impressively shot:
by
the Moz MJ2004 wrote: ↑Fri Aug 20, 2021 11:14 pm
I'm a sucker for long shots in a single take. Think
the opening scene in The Player, the seasons changing scene in Notting Hill.
Aces

by
the Moz ti-amie wrote: ↑Sun Aug 22, 2021 5:59 pm
Classic

by
the Moz And love dares you
To change our way of
Caring about ourselves

by
dryrunguy I guess I'll put this here.
Man photographed as baby on 'Nevermind' cover sues Nirvana, alleging child pornography
The man who was photographed naked underwater as a baby and later ended up on Nirvana's iconic "Nevermind" album cover filed a lawsuit Tuesday alleging he was a victim of child pornography.
The album cover shows Spencer Elden, now 30, in a swimming pool as a then-infant with his penis exposed.
The image used for the cover of Nirvana's sophomore 1991 album includes a digital imposition of a dollar bill on a fishhook that the baby looks like he is trying to grab. The cover was widely considered a rebuke of capitalism.
Nonsexualized nude photos of infants are generally not considered child pornography under law. But Elden's lawyer, Robert Y. Lewis, alleges the inclusion of currency in the shot makes the baby appear "like a sex worker."
Kurt Cobain "chose the image depicting Spencer—like a sex worker— grabbing for a dollar bill that is positioned dangling from a fishhook in front of his nude body with his penis explicitly displayed," the suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, stated.
Elden is asking for at least $150,000 from each of the defendants, who include include surviving band members Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic; Courtney Love, the executor of Cobain's estate; Guy Oseary and Heather Parry, managers of Cobain's estate; photographer Kirk Weddle; art director Robert Fisher; and a number of existing or defunct record companies that released or distributed the album in the last three decades.
Original Nirvana drummer Chad Channing is also named as a defendant, even though he had been replaced by Grohl in 1990, before the album was recorded or the cover photography shot.
Entertainment Weekly reported in 1992 that Elden, at 4 months old, was cast for the shoot along with four other babies. Cobain commissioned the shoot after he had seen a documentary on babies being born underwater and "thought the image would make a cool cover," Fisher told the magazine at the time. "That vision was a bit too graphic, so we went with the swimming baby instead.”
Weddle took the pictures in an Olympic-size pool at the Pasadena aquatic center in California.
"Weddle took a series of sexually graphic nude photographs of Spencer," the suit said. "To ensure the album cover would trigger a visceral sexual response from the viewer, Weddle activated Spencer’s ‘gag reflex’ before throwing him underwater in poses highlighting and emphasizing Spencer’s exposed genitals."
"Weddle produced these sexually graphic images with the goal of enhancing and increasing the commercial success of Nirvana, L.L.C.’s Nevermind album," the suit said.
The album was selling about 300,000 copies a week when it reached No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard 200 in early 1992. The album, with classics “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and “Come as You Are,” has spent at least 335 total weeks on the Billboard 200.
The cover image did receive pushback, at which point Cobain agreed to release the album with a sticker over Elden's genitals that said: "If you’re offended by this, you must be a closet pedophile."
"The sticker, however, was never incorporated into the album cover," the lawsuit said.
https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/pop ... y-n1277578
by JazzNU I can't begin to tell you how much I don't give a ish about Nirvana, so I've got no nostalgia about this group to say the least, just sharing what I saw on Twitter. I like Dave and that's it and that's got nothing to do with Nirvana.
I hope this grown ass man has sued his parents in addition to the rich musicians, who must have been present for every moment of everything that occurred and signed off on it.
by ponchi101 I could not find the proper term. Txs.
by ponchi101 Can somebody please explain to me why are Paul McCartney and Roger Daltrey trashing the Stones? Daltrey called them "a mediocre blues pub band". Did he become Tommy for real now?
The Stones are mediocre? What's left for everybody else?
by
ti-amie ponchi101 wrote: ↑Mon Nov 15, 2021 6:51 pm
Can somebody please explain to me why are Paul McCartney and Roger Daltrey trashing the Stones? Daltrey called them "a mediocre blues pub band". Did he become Tommy for real now?
The Stones are mediocre? What's left for everybody else?
by Deuce As these 'rockers' age, they become more and more desperate for validation that they were great in their time. Often, part of making oneself feel superior is to criticize one's peers.
That said, I never thought the Stones deserved their reputation as one of the greatest bands. Musically, they'd struggle to make the top 50 of MY list of greatest bands.
by
MJ2004 I’ve never liked the Stones. I do, however, recognize them a “great” band musically. No accounting for taste.

by
dryrunguy MJ2004 wrote: ↑Tue Nov 16, 2021 5:26 pm
I’ve never liked the Stones. I do, however, recognize them a “great” band musically. No accounting for taste.
Same for me. I know they are a great, legendary band. I just don't understand why. It must be over my head.
by ponchi101 I rank them barely ahead of The New Originals.
(I do like them better than The Beatles and The Who. But I like them all).
by
Deuce This is truly wonderful stuff...
I’ve just discovered this initiative - called ‘Playing for Change’ - but it’s been happening for several years.
If any of you have known about this, you’re fortunate to have been enriched since the time you discovered it.
It’s simply a beautiful example of the universal reach and appeal of music, and of how it moves people...
It was difficult to pick which song to include in this post, as there are so many inspiring ones. So I've included two. It's worth it to watch/listen to both all the way through.
Here is a link to the hundreds of songs that were done within this project - I strongly encourage all of you to take the time to go through the entire list and play these most special versions of your favourite songs.
Playing For Change - Song Around the World
...
.
by Deuce I’m sorry - but I couldn’t resist posting two more...
These two are done with the participation of a couple of people you may remember...
.
by dmforever I'd be curious to know what everyone's 10 favorite musical artists are. I'm pretty sure this will vary wildly.
Kevin
by the Moz Madonna
The Smiths/Morrissey
Depeche Mode
suede
New Order
The Killers
Saint Etienne
Pet Shop Boys
Interpol
White Lies
by dave g Clamavi de Profundus
Peter Hollens
James Taylor
Carole King
John Denver
Linda Ronstat
by ponchi101 I don't know about artists, but bands:
Pink Floyd
Depeche Mode
Duran Duran
Tears for Fears
Jazz:
Miles
Coltrane
Michael Franks
Pop/Funk:
Prince
Singers:
Carly Simon
Classic Americana:
Steely Dan
New artists:
??????
This was much harder than I thought it would be...
by dryrunguy I actually had to take a minute to think about this and review my YouTube playlist.
10. Rosalia
9. 5 Seconds of Summer
8. Twenty One Pilots
7. Mahmood
6. Avici
5. Jody Watley
4. Gavin DeGraw
3. Martha Wash
2. Adele
1. Aretha Franklin
Bubbling under the top 10 would be Maneskin and MARUV.
by
JazzNU dryrunguy wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 4:23 pm
Bubbling under the top 10 would be Maneskin and MARUV.
Don't know who that is, but FYI
by dryrunguy Sure you do, Jazz! Eurovision Song Contest 2021, Italian entry. They won. Then they debuted on the U.S. charts with a cover of Beggin that went top 20, I think. They have become quite the global sensation.
by
dmforever dryrunguy wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 7:53 pm
Sure you do, Jazz! Eurovision Song Contest 2021, Italian entry. They won. Then they debuted on the U.S. charts with a cover of Beggin that went top 20, I think. They have become quite the global sensation.
I'm not saying Jazz doesn't know, but just to be clear, Eurovision is by and large unknown and/or ignored in the US. And at least IMHO, it's one of the few things that I can say I'm very proud of as an American.
Kevin
by
JazzNU dryrunguy wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 7:53 pm
Sure you do, Jazz! Eurovision Song Contest 2021, Italian entry. They won. Then they debuted on the U.S. charts with a cover of Beggin that went top 20, I think. They have become quite the global sensation.
I'm trying to behave because I'm dying to post a gif as a reply to this. I kinda remember them I think, but you guys had me watching too many clips to honestly keep it all straight. No idea what Beggin is. I also don't know a good deal of the artists listed in people's top 10s are.
@Kevin,the only reason I know about anything Eurovision is because I asked like a single question on what the hell is going on in this thread last year and they had me watching video clips of a lot of (less than impressive) entries to the competition and tried to explain it to me. I still don't quite get the whole thing. But yeah, I only know anything about it because of this community.
by dryrunguy Kevin, just to clarify... Your proud that, as an American, you know what Eurovision is? Or you're proud that you've been able to ignore it?
Jazz, Beggin is a song from the 60s that was done by the Four Seasons. Maneskin first performed it as part of either their X Factor Italy journey or the Sanremo Festival (or both). This past summer, after they won Eurovision, it was released in the U.S. I remember the first time I heard it on the radio. I was immediately struck by the edge of it, but I had NO idea it was Maneskin performing it until about 1/3 of the way through the song when I realized it was Damiano singing it. Unfortunately, the song is far too repetitive and goes on far too long. I'm hoping they have a very bright future.
by dryrunguy P.S.--What I LOVE about lists like these is that I can look up a lot of these singers and bands I've never heard of and see what they're about. I'm bound to find at least a few that I REALLY like. But music is a deeply personal thing. A song can strike to the core of one person's being while dropping dead flat on someone else.
by
dmforever JazzNU wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 8:42 pm
dryrunguy wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 7:53 pm
Sure you do, Jazz! Eurovision Song Contest 2021, Italian entry. They won. Then they debuted on the U.S. charts with a cover of Beggin that went top 20, I think. They have become quite the global sensation.
I'm trying to behave because I'm dying to post a gif as a reply to this. I kinda remember them I think, but you guys had me watching too many clips to honestly keep it all straight. No idea what Beggin is. I also don't know a good deal of the artists listed in people's top 10s are.
@Kevin,the only reason I know about anything Eurovision is because I asked like a single question on what the hell is going on in this thread last year and they had me watching video clips of a lot of (less than impressive) entries to the competition and tried to explain it to me. I still don't quite get the whole thing. But yeah, I only know anything about it because of this community.
I think the Eurovision song contest is kind of like Vegemite. If you don't grow up with it, it's largely unpalatable.

I only found out about it because I lived in Italy. And I'd say the opinion there is mixed. But everyone there knows what it is.
I also only know maybe 1/3 of the artists people posted re their favorite music. That's kind of why I asked. It's super interesting for me. We (or at least I) interact with people here a lot, and yet we often don't know very much about each other.
Kevin
by
dmforever dryrunguy wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 9:01 pm
Kevin, just to clarify... Your proud that, as an American, you know what Eurovision is? Or you're proud that you've been able to ignore it?
Jazz, Beggin is a song from the 60s that was done by the Four Seasons. Maneskin first performed it as part of either their X Factor Italy journey or the Sanremo Festival (or both). This past summer, after they won Eurovision, it was released in the U.S. I remember the first time I heard it on the radio. I was immediately struck by the edge of it, but I had NO idea it was Maneskin performing it until about 1/3 of the way through the song when I realized it was Damiano singing it. Unfortunately, the song is far too repetitive and goes on far too long. I'm hoping they have a very bright future.
Sorry I wasn't clear. I'm proud that it's largely unknown and/or ignored here.

I'm happy that y'all like it. Rock your socks off. I'm just not a fan.
Kevin
by
JazzNU dryrunguy wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 9:01 pm
Jazz, Beggin is a song from the 60s that was done by the Four Seasons. Maneskin first performed it as part of either their X Factor Italy journey or the Sanremo Festival (or both). This past summer, after they won Eurovision, it was released in the U.S. I remember the first time I heard it on the radio. I was immediately struck by the edge of it, but I had NO idea it was Maneskin performing it until about 1/3 of the way through the song when I realized it was Damiano singing it. Unfortunately, the song is far too repetitive and goes on far too long. I'm hoping they have a very bright future.
Okay, definitely don't know that one. Only Four Seasons song I know off the top of my head for sure is
Oh What a Night.
I kind of remember you liking a couple of bands quite a bit, but honestly can't remember which ones they were. One was significantly better than the other imo, I remember that much. Hopefully that's this one.
by
dryrunguy dmforever wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 9:07 pm
dryrunguy wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 9:01 pm
Kevin, just to clarify... Your proud that, as an American, you know what Eurovision is? Or you're proud that you've been able to ignore it?
Jazz, Beggin is a song from the 60s that was done by the Four Seasons. Maneskin first performed it as part of either their X Factor Italy journey or the Sanremo Festival (or both). This past summer, after they won Eurovision, it was released in the U.S. I remember the first time I heard it on the radio. I was immediately struck by the edge of it, but I had NO idea it was Maneskin performing it until about 1/3 of the way through the song when I realized it was Damiano singing it. Unfortunately, the song is far too repetitive and goes on far too long. I'm hoping they have a very bright future.
Sorry I wasn't clear. I'm proud that it's largely unknown and/or ignored here.

I'm happy that y'all like it. Rock your socks off. I'm just not a fan.
Kevin
Most Eurovision song entries really are garbage. No question about it. I have only followed it for about 12 years or so, and historically speaking, Eurovision is all about being campy and silly.
But there's been a big shift over the past few years. When I first started paying attention to it, I couldn't understand why no one else in Europe seemed to like the songs I liked. Someone once said, "Some songs are just too good for Eurovision."
But in 2019 and 2021, truly good songs won though both of those winners were my second favorite song of the year. In fact, the 2019 winner, Arcade, by Duncan Laurence, charted in the U.S. around the same time as Beggin. I have no idea why they waited to release it in the U.S. 2 years after it won.
by
dryrunguy JazzNU wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 9:21 pm
dryrunguy wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 9:01 pm
Jazz, Beggin is a song from the 60s that was done by the Four Seasons. Maneskin first performed it as part of either their X Factor Italy journey or the Sanremo Festival (or both). This past summer, after they won Eurovision, it was released in the U.S. I remember the first time I heard it on the radio. I was immediately struck by the edge of it, but I had NO idea it was Maneskin performing it until about 1/3 of the way through the song when I realized it was Damiano singing it. Unfortunately, the song is far too repetitive and goes on far too long. I'm hoping they have a very bright future.
Okay, definitely don't know that one. Only Four Seasons song I know off the top of my head for sure is
Oh What a Night.
I kind of remember you liking a couple of bands quite a bit, but honestly can't remember which ones they were. One was significantly better than the other imo, I remember that much. Hopefully that's this one.
Yup, last year I was ALL about Ukraine and Italy.

by
JazzNU ponchi101 wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 4:17 pm
I don't know about artists, but bands:
Pink Floyd
Depeche Mode
Duran Duran
Tears for Fears
Jazz:
Miles
Coltrane
Michael Franks
Pop/Funk:
Prince
Singers:
Carly Simon
Classic Americana:
Steely Dan
Michael Franks! Now that's a name I haven't heard in a long while. Very nice.
by
dmforever dryrunguy wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 9:21 pm
dmforever wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 9:07 pm
dryrunguy wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 9:01 pm
Kevin, just to clarify... Your proud that, as an American, you know what Eurovision is? Or you're proud that you've been able to ignore it?
Jazz, Beggin is a song from the 60s that was done by the Four Seasons. Maneskin first performed it as part of either their X Factor Italy journey or the Sanremo Festival (or both). This past summer, after they won Eurovision, it was released in the U.S. I remember the first time I heard it on the radio. I was immediately struck by the edge of it, but I had NO idea it was Maneskin performing it until about 1/3 of the way through the song when I realized it was Damiano singing it. Unfortunately, the song is far too repetitive and goes on far too long. I'm hoping they have a very bright future.
Sorry I wasn't clear. I'm proud that it's largely unknown and/or ignored here.

I'm happy that y'all like it. Rock your socks off. I'm just not a fan.
Kevin
Most Eurovision song entries really are garbage. No question about it. I have only followed it for about 12 years or so, and historically speaking, Eurovision is all about being campy and silly.
But there's been a big shift over the past few years. When I first started paying attention to it, I couldn't understand why no one else in Europe seemed to like the songs I liked. Someone once said, "Some songs are just too good for Eurovision."
But in 2019 and 2021, truly good songs won though both of those winners were my second favorite song of the year. In fact, the 2019 winner, Arcade, by Duncan Laurence, charted in the U.S. around the same time as Beggin. I have no idea why they waited to release it in the U.S. 2 years after it won.
That's interesting. Thanks.

All I can add to that is that charting in the US isn't always a sign of quality, though of course that's super subjective.
Kevin
by
dryrunguy Indeed. Charting in the U.S. is definitely NOT a sign of quality. In fact, more often than not, charting in the U.S. might be a natural argument AGAINST quality. But yeah, quality is a subjective thing. And I am well known for loving songs that aren't necessarily quality--but I enjoy them immensely for one reason or another.
That said, the only singer or band in Eurovision history I can think of that did well in Eurovision and later had commercial success in the U.S. was ABBA. There have been several artists that had commercial success in the U.S. and elsewhere and then did Eurovision--and flopped badly. E.g., Bonnie Tyler and Engelbert Humperdinck come to mind. (Hello, UK.)

by
JazzNU dryrunguy wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 10:41 pm
Indeed. Charting in the U.S. is definitely NOT a sign of quality. In fact, more often than not, charting in the U.S. might be a natural argument AGAINST quality. But yeah, quality is a subjective thing. And I am well known for loving songs that aren't necessarily quality--but I enjoy them immensely for one reason or another.
That said, the only singer or band in Eurovision history I can think of that did well in Eurovision and later had commercial success in the U.S. was ABBA. There have been several artists that had commercial success in the U.S. and elsewhere and then did Eurovision--and flopped badly. E.g., Bonnie Tyler and Engelbert Humperdinck come to mind. (Hello, UK.)
I still don't remotely understand how or why she was in it, but Celine Dion is likely the most successful example I'd think, but that's obviously going off very limited knowledge about Eurovision and I had no idea she was in it before last year when you guys tried to go over the rules for me.
Kevin, I'm hardly the target market for Eurovision, so take this with a grain of salt, but to me, the quality of entries I heard was highly suspect. But I also don't have a reference point beyond what @dry and others were showing me as comparisons and favorites from prior years. It easily could be that what I heard last year was an improvement over several years earlier. I think it will definitely depend on your music tastes (and keep in mind, and you can see this from @dry's list, when he talks about quality, he likes quite a wide variety of music). But even those that were technically ones that I could like, a style of music I'm more open to, they were mostly underwhelming to me.
by dryrunguy Taking Jazz's post to heart, I'll add that Eurovision "experts" generally consider 2021 one of the strongest years ever. I would actually agree with that. There were several good songs. I think I have three or four of them on my YouTube playlist.
But there were also about 15-20 that clearly fell into the category of "awful". And yes, 2021 was still a good year in comparison to others.
by Deuce Shawn Phillips
Asia
Indigo Girls
Cat Stevens
REO Speedwagon
Sarah Harmer
Don Ross
Yes
Ruthie Foster
Suzanne Vega
Honourable Mention:
U.K.
Emerson, Lake, & Palmer
Eva Cassidy
Simon & Garfunkel
James Taylor
Joni Mitchell
Crosby, Stills, Nash (& Young)
by
mmmm8 dryrunguy wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 9:21 pm
Most Eurovision song entries really are garbage. No question about it. I have only followed it for about 12 years or so, and historically speaking, Eurovision is all about being campy and silly.
But there's been a big shift over the past few years. When I first started paying attention to it, I couldn't understand why no one else in Europe seemed to like the songs I liked. Someone once said, "Some songs are just too good for Eurovision."
But in 2019 and 2021, truly good songs won though both of those winners were my second favorite song of the year. In fact, the 2019 winner, Arcade, by Duncan Laurence, charted in the U.S. around the same time as Beggin. I have no idea why they waited to release it in the U.S. 2 years after it won.
Maybe Eurovision songs are getting better, or maybe you've just become too involved and have Stockholm syndrome
(Just kidding, I really like Maneskin)
by mmmm8 Going to stick to English-language artists here (+Chopin), otherwise, the list won't be very interesting for most. So, not necessarily my very top 10, but near it!
Adele
The Beatles
Cake
Frederic Chopin
Green Day
Lily Allen
Linkin Park
Matchbox 20
Pink Floyd
Queen
I feel like we're all dating ourselves a bit with the lists!
by MJ2004 Impossible task. These are the ten bands I've listened to the most in recent years.
a-Ha
Beach Boys
Coldplay
Alice in Chains
Depeche Mode
New Order
Nirvana
The Pixies
Sonic Youth
The The
by Deuce I saw this woman perform an impromptu version of this song on PBS tonight.
Prior to singing, they went over the inspiration for the song - an old advertisement of a slave woman for sale - with her baby also available 'at the purchaser's option'.
Then she played and sang the song.
I found it to be immensely powerful.
I did not know who this singer was before tonight.
I'm very happy that I now know who she is...
Her name is Rhiannon Giddens.
I hope you tell people about her - she deserves to be known.
I'm posting two versions of the song in question - the first is a live version, and the second is a studio version, but which includes a visual of the advertisement which inspired the song - as well as the very powerful lyrics...
.
by ti-amie I've been a fan of Ms Giddens for a long time. I'm glad that she's getting more recognition.
by ponchi101 Tinges of Joni Mitchell (lyrics-wise), the banjo is fairly unique. The voice reminds me a bit of Rhian Benson, another beautiful composer.
Worth the listening.
by ponchi101 40 years ago, the seminal disco-into-lounge RIO, by Duran Duran, was released.
I have made it clear to my family that a my funeral, SAVE A PRAYER must be played. It still sounds as fresh as if it was released this morning.
by
MJ2004
"It still sounds as fresh as if it was released this morning."
I can't quite agree with that. It certainly sounds very 80's. But that's not a bad thing.

by ponchi101 Oh, totally. It sounds completely 80's, but there is no other band that sounds like that.
And thanks for the video link, but... if you thought I have not heard the song today, you are in for a surprise.
by Deuce Watch (and listen to) the entire thing...
by ashkor87 Lovely post..my son is a musician, can relate...
by ponchi101 To live in a civilized country...
by Cuckoo4Coco I am currently listening to:
Avalanche- Avril Lavigne
As It Was- Harry Styles
Bad Life- Sigrid, Bring Me The Horizon
So Good- Halsey
Head On Fire- Griff, Sigrid
by
ponchi101 Other than Avril Lavigne, totally lost on these people.
Let me see what I have in my 8-Tracks...

by
Cuckoo4Coco ponchi101 wrote: ↑Sun Jun 26, 2022 9:39 pm
Other than Avril Lavigne, totally lost on these people.
Let me see what I have in my 8-Tracks...
Not even Harry Style?. He was a member of the huge boy band One Direction. One Direction is my favorite and all the members of the band are my favorites, especially Harry.
by
ponchi101 The problem with these new bands for me is that my hearing aid creates too much distortion when I play them. I am getting to the stage in which I need the music industry to create some device that I can plug DIRECTLY into my ears

Cuckoo, I am putting you on. But when I told you we are a bunch of grownups here, I was not lying. If I (because most people here are younger than me) were to start a rock band it would be called "Ponchi and the Wheelchairs". And our opening act would be "The Walking Canes".
You get my point.

by
New England Nitemare Cuckoo4Coco wrote: ↑Sun Jun 26, 2022 9:35 pm
I am currently listening to:
Avalanche- Avril Lavigne
As It Was- Harry Styles
Bad Life- Sigrid, Bring Me The Horizon
So Good- Halsey
Head On Fire- Griff, Sigrid
I agree w/Ponchi the only one I know is Avril Lavigne. Her 1st two CD's were the best. I'm more of a 70's, 80's, 90's and early 2000's kind of guy when it comes to most music. Some 60's too....but my musical tastes run all over the place. But, I do like Jazmine Sullivan and HER for newer artists.
by
Cuckoo4Coco New England Nitemare wrote: ↑Sun Jun 26, 2022 10:22 pm
Cuckoo4Coco wrote: ↑Sun Jun 26, 2022 9:35 pm
I am currently listening to:
Avalanche- Avril Lavigne
As It Was- Harry Styles
Bad Life- Sigrid, Bring Me The Horizon
So Good- Halsey
Head On Fire- Griff, Sigrid
I agree w/Ponchi the only one I know is Avril Lavigne. Her 1st two CD's were the best. I'm more of a 70's, 80's, 90's and early 2000's kind of guy when it comes to most music. Some 60's too....but my musical tastes run all over the place. But, I do like Jazmine Sullivan and HER for newer artists.
Since I was born in 2006, I am not up on much of the music from the 60's- 90's other than The Beatles, Madonna, and Nirvana. Jazzmine Sullivan and HER are awesome R & B,Pop musicians with great voices.
by ti-amie Avril and Harry and Halsey are the ones I've heard of. I like HER a lot. Motown, TSOP, Luther, Aretha, Nina Simone, Coltrane, Miles, Oscar Peterson, that's where my head is musically for the most part. Pharrell's early work is good too.
by Cuckoo4Coco I love the band One Direction and all the members especially Harry Styles after they split up and went all solo. I also love other boy bands like The Jonas Brothers, DNCE, 5 Seconds of Summer, and Why Don't We . I also love the music Joe and Nick Jonas do on their own. That is mostly the stuff I listen to.
Most of all of you probably never heard of any of that other than maybe the Jonas Brothers and One Direction.
Most kids who are into boy bands now seem to love the K-Pop band BTS which I know you all have had to have at least heard of with the songs like "Dynamite" and "Butter". They are huge international stars. I am not really into them though.
by ponchi101 I am curious now. When I was young, I got my music from friends, and the Music/Cd store. I would physically go to the store and browse through racks of albums. If you were lucky, the music store had a couple of people that could tell you what was new, what was interesting, what you could like. I was always very adverse to radio, as I really don't like commercials, so that was my route for new music. As JazzNu's series on R&B music has proven to me, I missed a lot of stuff.
How do young people today "find" their music? Obviously, one part is friends, but at the very least, there has to be ONE friend that is the one that finds an album/song/group that is enjoyable. How do you find your stuff?
by
Cuckoo4Coco ponchi101 wrote: ↑Mon Jul 04, 2022 12:41 am
I am curious now. When I was young, I got my music from friends, and the Music/Cd store. I would physically go to the store and browse through racks of albums. If you were lucky, the music store had a couple of people that could tell you what was new, what was interesting, what you could like. I was always very adverse to radio, as I really don't like commercials, so that was my route for new music. As JazzNu's series on R&B music has proven to me, I missed a lot of stuff.
How do young people today "find" their music? Obviously, one part is friends, but at the very least, there has to be ONE friend that is the one that finds an album/song/group that is enjoyable. How do you find your stuff?
Influence by friends is still a part of it, but there really isn't much of going to the music/cd store although they still sell them or at least I think they do. I also think they sell vinyl albums like from the olden days which is a big collectors thing now. Most of the music today is listened to by Apps like Spotify, Pandora, Apple Music. I have the Spotify Music App and just about every musician uses this App to share their music. The way it works is when a musician releases or drops a new album or song it immediately goes onto these Apps and the people who like the music listen to it. The more listens a song gets the more popular a song becomes for that musician and then it goes on to be played on the radio a ton.
So they have each artist and band and a fan can make playlists of their favorite songs or just click on the music of a certain artist they like a lot. Also the more you select your favorite artists then the Spotify App will also then make a favorites playlist that they recommend for you. This gives the fan the opportunity to listen to other musicians and bands that they may not know that are similar to the ones they like. So you just pay for the service of the App and then you have unlimited music. My mom pays for the family plan so we all have Spotify (Mom, My two brothers & me) and we all listen to our different stuff.
by
ponchi101 Cuckoo4Coco wrote: ↑Mon Jul 04, 2022 12:57 am...
and we all listen to our different stuff...
That would have been unthinkable for us. We had one stereo (later two because I got my own for my room) so we had to share it and, therefore, we had to take turns. So, when my older sister got into Earth, Wind and Fire, we had to discover it and enjoy it. I tortured my family with The Wall on a routine basis. My older brother kept us informed of the 60's stuff, and my grandmother would come to visit and it was classical music.
How much things have changed. But again, it is my antediluvian ways; I simply cannot envision paying for music on demand. I want MY cd's. MY Lp's. I like to see them there.
(I had my LP's lined up so I could find the one I wanted even in the dark. No need to turn on the lights when I was in my teenage-broody moods).
by
Cuckoo4Coco ponchi101 wrote: ↑Mon Jul 04, 2022 1:13 am
Cuckoo4Coco wrote: ↑Mon Jul 04, 2022 12:57 am...
and we all listen to our different stuff...
That would have been unthinkable for us. We had one stereo (later two because I got my own for my room) so we had to share it and, therefore, we had to take turns. So, when my older sister got into Earth, Wind and Fire, we had to discover it and enjoy it. I tortured my family with The Wall on a routine basis. My older brother kept us informed of the 60's stuff, and my grandmother would come to visit and it was classical music.
How much things have changed. But again, it is my antediluvian ways; I simply cannot envision paying for music on demand. I want MY cd's. MY Lp's. I like to see them there.
(I had my LP's lined up so I could find the one I wanted even in the dark. No need to turn on the lights when I was in my teenage-broody moods).
All of this stuff is on our phones as is just about everything. Teens and young people as you probably know pretty much have their phones attached to their hands at all times. I am really one of those teens except when I am on the tennis court.
by New England Nitemare Ponchi,
I remember the record stores well!! I used to go to the record stores on Tuesday's, that was the day when new releases came out. The first album I ever bought was Donna Summer's On The Radio, Greatest Hits Vol 1 & 2 back in 1979. Still love her 'til this day.
by ponchi101 Yes, it was a gathering place. You actually met people there. It was fun. And it was a great ice breaker. "Hey, I see you are buying that album by Tonino and The Peppercorns. How is it?"
by Deuce I always become a little more sad whenever I hear of a teenager being attached to their phone...
sigh...
On the subject of how music gets to people...
Many musical artists from the '60s, '70s, and '80s hate what the music industry has become - and the 'music' that it produces now. It's all about popularity and style - not substance. And it's all so incredibly calculated, and is much more related to business and financial profit than it is to musical artistry and expression.
One of the artists who doesn't like the direction things have gone in is Shawn Phillips. He's a thinking person's musician who has always been very well respected by his peers. He wrote this song about the direction of the music industry.
(Warning - there are two 'swear words' in the song - but they pass by quickly!)
I've included the lyrics below the video...
Radio
(Shawn Phillips)
Why should I write the melody
That’ll bring you joy and make you free
Talking about the way you love,
The ups and downs and all thereof
Using my voice to tell you tales,
Or try to describe the ocean’s gales
Making a plea for sanity in a f***ed up world of vanity?
What is the point of something new, apart from the fact it’s just for you
You can be sure you’ll never know, or hear it on the radio
Out of your mind to let them say
What you want to hear be played today...
Why don’t you let them know that you’re dismayed?
Why should I make myself a jerk,
And keep on doing this arduous work...
Writing the songs that no one will hear,
Unless they are in the room so near
I never did what I thought was soap,
A graph on a chart with an upward slope
To make some attorney think he’s real,
Gotta go through him to make the deal...
What is the point of something new, apart from the fact it’s just for you
You can be sure you’ll never know, or hear it on the radio
Out of your mind to let them say
What you want to hear be played today...
Why don’t you let them know that you’re dismayed?
A song is a work that’ll last for time,
It’s more than a chant, or just a rhyme
You have to be able to learn to sing,
And that takes years of practicing
I don’t give a sh*t, and I’ll be blunt -
A turntable’s not an instrument
Controllable idiots all in a row,
Faking you out with their playback show...
What is the point of something new, apart from the fact it’s just for you
You can be sure you’ll never know, or hear it on the radio,
Out of your mind to let them say
What you want to hear be played today...
Why don’t you let them know that you’re dismayed?
Corporate greed has made your cage -
You gotta break out and act your age
Listen to music that’s only true,
Or you’ll never know what it does for you
Giving your money for nothing of worth
To shallower people of dubious mirth...
What is the point of something new, apart from the fact it’s just for you
You can be sure you’ll never know, or hear it on the radio,
Out of your mind to let them say
What you want to hear be played today...
Why don’t you let them know that you’re dismayed!
by
Cuckoo4Coco Deuce wrote: ↑Mon Jul 04, 2022 3:26 am
I always become a little more sad whenever I hear of a teenager being attached to their phone...
sigh...
I totally get that as I hear it from my mom all the time and she gets on me and my two brothers about having the phones attached to our hands all the time. Of course my brothers don't drive while using their phones or anything like that and actually they don't seem to have them as much as I do.My mom also has rules with me about the phone, especially when school is going on. Also there is no phone use while eating dinner for all of us. I just love texting with my friends which is what I do the most with my phone.
by
Deuce Cuckoo4Coco wrote: ↑Mon Jul 04, 2022 3:38 am
Deuce wrote: ↑Mon Jul 04, 2022 3:26 am
I always become a little more sad whenever I hear of a teenager being attached to their phone...
sigh...
I totally get that as I hear it from my mom all the time and she gets on me and my two brothers about having the phones attached to our hands all the time. Of course my brothers don't drive while using their phones or anything like that and actually they don't seem to have them as much as I do.My mom also has rules with me about the phone, especially when school is going on. Also there is no phone use while eating dinner for all of us. I just love texting with my friends which is what I do the most with my phone.
Cell phones and the internet have had a devastating effect on interactive human communication. What passes for communication today is not real communication - it's simply a few typed sentences (usually with incorrect spelling) just skimming the surface of things. Very superficial stuff - because you can't get into profound matters via bloody text messages...
When E mails replaced telephone conversations, communication between people suffered. Then text messages replaced E mails, and communications became even worse.
People think they communicate more now with cell phones than they did before - but that's an illusion - people actually communicate much less of substance.
“Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end... We are in great haste to construct a magnetic telegraph from Maine to Texas; but Maine and Texas, it may be, have nothing important to communicate…. As if the main object were to talk fast and not to talk sensibly. We are eager to tunnel under the Atlantic and bring the Old World some weeks nearer to the New; but perchance the first news that will leak through into the broad, flapping American ear will be that the Princess Adelaide has the whooping cough.” - Henry Thoreau, ‘Walden’.
by Cuckoo4Coco I totally agree with you. When I text though with my friends it is to make really small silly messages to each other. We don't really talk about important stuff over texts. If we have to talk about something important like homework or something like that we will make a phone call.
by
Deuce Cuckoo4Coco wrote: ↑Mon Jul 04, 2022 4:41 am
I totally agree with you. When I text though with my friends it is to make really small silly messages to each other. We don't really talk about important stuff over texts. If we have to talk about something important like homework or something like that we will make a phone call.
The problem is that many, many people (I'd say most) use text messaging (or whatsapp, instagram, twitter, facebook, etc.) as their absolute primary mode of communication.
But it's not communication - it's just gossip.
With all due respect to homework, when I say profound, meaningful, and/or serious communication, I mean talking about LIFE - hopes and fears, experiences, relationships, etc. People used to actually communicate and share deep feelings. Now, it's pretty much all superficial fluff and nonsense.
A lot of people are even afraid to talk on the phone today - because talking directly with someone requires immediate response - and, because of E mail and text messages and 'social media', people are so accustomed today to rehearse their responses before 'sending' them that they're like a deer in the headlights when they have to actually speak with someone directly in real time.
And don't get me started about the importance that people (of all ages!) put on the number of 'likes', 'views', 'followers', etc. they have, as they try to improve their 'social status'. It's all about quantity over quality. And it's all so incredibly hollow and superficial.
by
Cuckoo4Coco Deuce wrote: ↑Mon Jul 04, 2022 5:38 am
Cuckoo4Coco wrote: ↑Mon Jul 04, 2022 4:41 am
I totally agree with you. When I text though with my friends it is to make really small silly messages to each other. We don't really talk about important stuff over texts. If we have to talk about something important like homework or something like that we will make a phone call.
The problem is that many, many people (I'd say most) use text messaging (or whatsapp, instagram, twitter, facebook, etc.) as their absolute primary mode of communication.
But it's not communication - it's just gossip.
With all due respect to homework, when I say profound, meaningful, and/or serious communication, I mean talking about LIFE - hopes and fears, experiences, relationships, etc. People used to actually communicate and share deep feelings. Now, it's pretty much all superficial fluff and nonsense.
A lot of people are even afraid to talk on the phone today - because talking directly with someone requires immediate response - and, because of E mail and text messages and 'social media', people are so accustomed today to rehearse their responses before 'sending' them that they're like a deer in the headlights when they have to actually speak with someone directly in real time.
And don't get me started about the importance that people (of all ages!) put on the number of 'likes', 'views', 'followers', etc. they have, as they try to improve their 'social status'. It's all about quantity over quality. And it's all so incredibly hollow and superficial.
Once again I agree with you and I think I learned the value of phones and Social Media and even though I still have it in my hand a lot and am checking tennis scores all the time, listen to music on it and texting my friends stupid things. I know when enough is enough or I know when mom says to put it down.
As a teen I don't know what I would really consider as meaningful conversation with my friends. Would that be talking about boys and relationships and stuff like that because for adults that wouldn't be very meaningful. As a teen I don't spend a lot of my time chatting on the phone about world issues. Yes I have talked about school shootings and stuff like that before with them and that stuff is important and I am also really big on the environment so sometimes that stuff comes up , but most of the time even when we talk we talk about movies, tv shows, or music, boys, school stuff and other stuff like that.
Social Media though is something that I do not follow much and if I do my mom filters a lot of it for me even with me being 16 years old. I had a friend who was bullied badly on FB and that really turned me off to Social Media.
The last thing you spoke of is so true and something that just adds to the whole aspect of I am better than you mentality. It comes down to a popularity contest really. When I had FB what really was weird to me is there were kids at my school who I really didn't know would send me friend requests. I was like why are they sending me a friend request when we are not friends in person at school? It was basically just to get as many friends as they could even though they were not really friends. It is pretty stupid. I am no longer on FB after my friend was bullied and I can really live without it. The likes I really don't mind as much because most people are liking the content of what someone is writing. I guess some people just like a post because it is the person who writes it , but most people and I think like with the system that is on here from what I have seen like what is posted and it doesn't matter who posts it. That to me is perfectly okay.
by ti-amie I miss record stores. You could get an hour or two out of the house by going there. The album covers were great too.
by ponchi101 Some album covers were simply art.
A recording label, CTI, which was greatly involved with Jazz musicians, produced some of the greatest photographs for albums. Bob James' records were priceless in that aspect. Eumir Deodato's PRELUDE was a visual masterpiece. I can also remember Santana's CARAVANSERAI. An incredible shot of a camel and his rider atop a sand dune, at sunset.
Alan Parsons' TALES OF MYSTERY AND IMAGINATION was an outstanding art design. A folding cover, it came with the entire lyrics in a booklet inside. The photographs were superb.
Others: THE WALL's artwork, by Gerard Scarfe. The artwork for WISH YOU WERE HERE. Those were the people from HIPGNOSIS, masters at album designs. Yes' CLOSE TO THE EDGE, and Rick Wakeman's NO EARTLY CONNECTION, which was a distorted photo; for you to see it, you needed to make a cylinder and place it on top of the center hole of the record, and then you could see the actual photo.
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club band, with all the shots of famous people, and the hidden messages.
Wonder were all the artists involved in those productions went.
by
Cuckoo4Coco
Those are really cool and that is something that is missed with these digital releases on the music apps.
aja.jpg
The photo was taken by Hideki Fujii, who took this striking shot of model/actress Sayoko Yamaguchi. Anybody with the most remote sense of photography marvels at this one. How was this man able to get the sharp contrast of the dark background (and model's hair), and then the vivid, sharp reds and white. Mind you, this album came out in 1977, so there is no photoshop or digital manipulation. Sure, it got worked in the lab, but the work was analog, not digital.
It is one thing that I would say really was unfortunate when we moved to CD's (the format, for obvious reasons, did not suit such investments in covers). And, most albums came with liner notes, elaborate pieces of literature describing the album. If you don't mind, I here copy the liner notes for Miles Davis' KIND OF BLUE, usually acknowledged to be one of the top five jazz albums of all times (and jazz aficionados get into some heavy, heavy discussions when talking about that list). The notes were written by Bill Evans, another immortal of jazz:
Improvisation In Jazz
By Bill Evans
There is a Japanese visual art in which the artist is forced to be spontaneous. He must paint on a thin stretched parchment with a special brush and black water paint in such a way that an unnatural or interrupted stroke will destroy the line or break through the parchment.
Erasures or changes are impossible. These artists must practice a particular discipline, that of allowing the idea to express itself in communication with their hands in such a direct way that deliberation cannot interfere.
The resulting pictures lack the complex composition and textures of ordinary painting, but it is said that those who see will find something captured that escapes explanation. This conviction that direct deed is the most meaningful reflection, I believe, has prompted the evolution of the extremely severe and unique disciplines of the jazz or improvising musician.
Group improvisation is a further challenge. Aside from the weighty technical problem of collective coherent thinking, there is the very human, even social need for sympathy from all members to bend for the common result. This most difficult problem, I think, is beautifully met and solved on this recording.
As the painter needs his framework of parchment, the improvising musical group needs its framework in time. Miles Davis presents here frameworks which are exquisite in their simplicity and yet contain all that is necessary to stimulate performance with a sure reference to the primary conception.
Miles conceived these settings only hours before the recording dates and arrived with sketches which indicated to the group what was to be played. Therefore, you will hear something close to pure spontaneity in these performances. The group had never played these pieces prior to the recordings and I think without exception the first complete performance of each was a "take."
Although it is not uncommon for a jazz musician to be expected to improvise on new material at a recording session, the character of these pieces represents a particular challenge.
Briefly, the formal character of the five settings are: "So What" is a simple figure based on 16 measures of one scale, 8 of another and 8 more of the first, following a piano and bass introduction in free rhythmic style. "Freddie Freeloader" is a 12-measure blues form given new personality by effective melodic and rhythmic simplicity. "Blue In Green" is a l0-measure circular form following a 4-measure introduction, and played by soloists in various augmentation and diminution of time values. "All Blues" is a 6/8 12-measure blues form that produces its mood through only a few modal changes and Miles Davis' free melodic conception. "Flamenco Sketches" is a series of five scales, each to be played as long as the soloist wishes until he has completed the series.
by
ponchi101 Take a look at this cover:
aja.jpg
The photo was taken by Hideki Fujii, who took this striking shot of model/actress Sayoko Yamaguchi. Anybody with the most remote sense of photography marvels at this one. How was this man able to get the sharp contrast of the dark background (and model's hair), and then the vivid, sharp reds and white. Mind you, this album came out in 1977, so there is no photoshop or digital manipulation. Sure, it got worked in the lab, but the work was analog, not digital.
It is one thing that I would say really was unfortunate when we moved to CD's (the format, for obvious reasons, did not suit such investments in covers). And, most albums came with liner notes, elaborate pieces of literature describing the album. If you don't mind, I here copy the liner notes for Miles Davis' KIND OF BLUE, usually acknowledged to be one of the top five jazz albums of all times (and jazz aficionados get into some heavy, heavy discussions when talking about that list). The notes were written by Bill Evans, another immortal of jazz:
Improvisation In Jazz
By Bill Evans
There is a Japanese visual art in which the artist is forced to be spontaneous. He must paint on a thin stretched parchment with a special brush and black water paint in such a way that an unnatural or interrupted stroke will destroy the line or break through the parchment.
Erasures or changes are impossible. These artists must practice a particular discipline, that of allowing the idea to express itself in communication with their hands in such a direct way that deliberation cannot interfere.
The resulting pictures lack the complex composition and textures of ordinary painting, but it is said that those who see will find something captured that escapes explanation. This conviction that direct deed is the most meaningful reflection, I believe, has prompted the evolution of the extremely severe and unique disciplines of the jazz or improvising musician.
Group improvisation is a further challenge. Aside from the weighty technical problem of collective coherent thinking, there is the very human, even social need for sympathy from all members to bend for the common result. This most difficult problem, I think, is beautifully met and solved on this recording.
As the painter needs his framework of parchment, the improvising musical group needs its framework in time. Miles Davis presents here frameworks which are exquisite in their simplicity and yet contain all that is necessary to stimulate performance with a sure reference to the primary conception.
Miles conceived these settings only hours before the recording dates and arrived with sketches which indicated to the group what was to be played. Therefore, you will hear something close to pure spontaneity in these performances. The group had never played these pieces prior to the recordings and I think without exception the first complete performance of each was a "take."
Although it is not uncommon for a jazz musician to be expected to improvise on new material at a recording session, the character of these pieces represents a particular challenge.
Briefly, the formal character of the five settings are: "So What" is a simple figure based on 16 measures of one scale, 8 of another and 8 more of the first, following a piano and bass introduction in free rhythmic style. "Freddie Freeloader" is a 12-measure blues form given new personality by effective melodic and rhythmic simplicity. "Blue In Green" is a l0-measure circular form following a 4-measure introduction, and played by soloists in various augmentation and diminution of time values. "All Blues" is a 6/8 12-measure blues form that produces its mood through only a few modal changes and Miles Davis' free melodic conception. "Flamenco Sketches" is a series of five scales, each to be played as long as the soloist wishes until he has completed the series.