13 years ago this week, I was driving across the southwest US, helping one of my daughters relocate to Flagstaff, Arizona. This is from a quick stop in Continental Divide, New Mexico. I re-processed this from the original file yesterday...
I made a post recently about my frustration over them not having one J.J. Cale album. Shockingly, they haven't rectified that failure. Anyway, listing to some tunes today, I pulled up Pure Prairie Leage and lo-and-behold, they now have PPL's debut album, which they didn't have the last time I looked. Bravo!
PPL's first album didn't make much splash, didn't chart at all upon it's release in March of 1972. Seven Months later (and with new plays on bass, drums and steel guitar) they were back with Bustin' Out, which made #34 on the album charts, and gave us the song Amie which is a classic rock staple.
I didn't discover PPL until '75 or so, when Amie was re-released as a single. Checking my vinyl of their debut album, it is a re-release from 1975, I presume as a result of the song Amie. Anyway, I really like the debut album and the band in general. The entire first side is stellar, with Tears, Take It Before You Go, You're Between Me and Woman. I always liked PPL, but they never really had a consistent line-up, which (I think) hurt their ability to generate any sort of inertia. They had 14 different members over 7 albums in the '70s, and nobody played on all of them. But I own 4 of those 7, and like them all. And have seen them 3 or 4 times through the years.
Anyway, THANKS Spotify for having this one!
So, I quit doing monthly music posts a while ago. But as we hit the 1/2 way mark of 2025, I revisited my playlists of 1975 (50 years ago). There a Top 40 playlist and a Not-Top 40 playlist (covering #41-100).
I created a new playlist, merging those, and implemented it in spotify. 113 songs, 7.5 hrs. Check it out, let me know what you think:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1Y7E27RRDkUaeueU2lVeYC?si=de4a5963fa82491d
This cow hangs out over the sidewalk, next to the Wildey Theater in Edwardsville, IL. This was Edwardsville Frozen Foods going back to 1947, then the Goshen Butcher Shop in 2017. Sadly. it appears to be closed. But the cow remains, at least.
I've used Spotify for a while, but just upgraded to a subscription 3-4 months ago. Overall cool, but occasionally frustrating. They have lots and lots (and lots) of music, intersoersed with some head scratching omissions. I figure to start a series vent my frustrations.
First up: J.J. Cale's album #8.
This is one of my favorite J.J. Cale albums, and J.J. Cale is one of my favorite artists. I have almost all of his "original" releases... including all of his 70's and 80's releases. Spotify has 14 of his 15 studio releases, 20 albums when you include compilations and live releases. But not #8. Why?
It's not a record label thing, they have other albums of his released on Mercury. It can't be popularity, they have other albums from him that didn't chart as well. So why? They do have some of the songs available through compilations, but only 1/2. Missing songs like Reality and Living Here Too.
At least I still have it on Vinyl, and on CD, and ripped to my iPod. But if I'm going to transition to streaming, they need to be more complete.
I've taken a lot of photos at Watershed Nature Center, This one is from way back in April of 2003. That's my son at 3 yrs old, he's 25 now! Lots of memories at this place!
This was taken with my long-gone Kodak LS-443 compact digital, my second digital camera!
"Being Ignored is a great privilege...
That is how I think I learned to see what others do not see."
This is the closest I have to his style in my recent photos, but not very close at all... I'll need to study and try.
It has been a bad string for the music of my past. Rick Derringer passed away 5/26, Sly Stone on 6/9 and now Brian Wilson on 6/11. That's 3 big names in 16 days. Much melancholy.
So, to complete the trio, RIP Brian Wilson, who passed away 6/11 at the age of 82.
Brian Wilson was, of course, the genius behind The Beach Boys, writing most of their hits, and more or less single-handedly creating the masterpiece "Pet Sounds" (with lyrics by Tony Asher). There's a reason that Pet Sounds is universally acclaimed; There's only a few albums from the rock era I'd call "important", and Pet Sounds is one of them. [hmmm, there may be a separate post needed on that topic]
I spent the mid/late 60's listening to Top 40 radio, so The Beach Boys were a significant part of that. With 29 Top 40 hits between 1962 and 1969, they were pretty significant. I didn't get my first Beach Boys album until 1974's compilation "Endless Summer", and the subsequent compilation "Spirit Of America". I've long lost those albums, but picked up a CD version of the first somewhere along the line, plus a few digital copies of the later hits. It was several years later before I discovered "Pet Sounds", at least beyond the hits. I'm not sure I could've properly appreciated it at 6 yrs old!
Brian Wilson's passing is a huge loss, one of the really influential artists of the era...
Rest In Peace, Brian Wilson.
Recent bird photos from recent visits to Watershed Nature Center...
The RIPs are coming fast and furious, I'm behind.
Rest In Peace, Sly Stone, who passed away June 9, 2025.
Sly was, of course, leader of the band Sly And The Family Stone. They had a bunch of great songs in the 1967-1974, over a dozen hits between the US Hot 100 and US B&B charts. I remember watching them on Midnight Special, and the Woodstock move, and being duly impressed.
I never actually owned any Sly Stone albums, but I have over 1/2 of their Hot 100 hits, and always respected them. Funky, funky, funky.
I used to get to Spokane with some regularity, there was (and still is) a big conference there for my industry. I was on the conference Planning Committe for a few years, until I changed jobs, and the new company already had two others on the committee... It's a shame, I always enjoyed it. I enjoyed wandering around Spokane though, in the occasional down times. This spot was maybe 10-15 minutes outside town, IIRC.
Wolly Hedgenettle. At least that's what my phone Ap says... more properly Stachys byzantina.
The program was:
This juvenile Cooper's Hawk was hanging around today, It is welcome to take a couple of the rabbits and squirrels, but I hope it leaves the bluebirds alone!
