66 posts tagged with folk by flapjax at midnite.
Displaying 51 through 66 of 66.
Dance Into the Fire
A brand new song, from a gig I did on March 25, 2010, at Super Deluxe here in Tokyo. Video of this same performance at YouTube here.
Sitting On Top of the World
This is my other brand new band, the Ghost Steppers. We do old-time, early blues, jug band, mountain music: all traditional stuff, no originals. Here's our rough-and-ready take on an old favorite, originally written and recorded by the Mississippi Sheiks, that's been interpreted by many, many folks over the years. I've changed the lyrics a bit (maybe more than a bit) but that's part of the longstanding folk tradition, of course. Video of this same performance at YouTube here.
Little Bug on the Floor
This fast and dirty recording is from the mic on a Sony CyberShot camera. It's no audiophile's dream, for sure, but I just felt like getting some recent jaw harp tunes down to live video the other day, as I had a free hour in a big conference room. The room is definitely present in the recording. Anyway, video of this performance can be seen at YouTube and Vimeo. [more inside]
You Came Out of Nowhere
i keep thinking there's something i need to do - and i keep not doing it... Recorded live in performance at Nana Hari, Hachobori, Tokyo. Here I'm accompanying myself on the strumstick. Video at YouTube and Vimeo. [more inside]
Only Passing Through
...we're all in Folsom Prison, but there ain't no Johnny Cash... Recorded live in performance at Nana Hari, Tokyo, on January 17, 2010. For this song I'm playing the Vietnamese jaw harp known as the Dan Moi. Video of this performance at YouTube and Vimeo.
[more inside]
As I Slowly Disappear
Recorded live in performance at Nana Hari, Tokyo, on January 17, 2010. Accompanying myself on the strumstick. Video at YouTube and Vimeo. [more inside]
Oh Death (live)
In the very first hour of the brand new year of 2010, I was on a stage in Tokyo, part of Mike Watt's yearly "We Jam Econo" event, singing about death. Video of this same performance can be seen at YouTube or Vimeo. [more inside]
Until You Sever The Snake
Written and recorded for the serpentine challenge now underway. My buddy Ken Kawashima brought in the North Mississippi blues riff and yours truly did the rest. Apologies to animal rights advocates, but some snakes were severed during the recording of this song. Had to be done. [lyrics inside]
Used To Ride That Train
There must've been hundreds of times over the years that I've tapped out a rhythm on a pan full of water while doing the dishes, the pitch woozily shifting as the h2o sloshes about. At those times I've almost always thought, hey, I should put this on a track sometime. Of course, I never did, until the first MeFi Music Challenge, with its "water" theme. Along with the big metal bowl full of troubled waters, you'll hear jawharp, talking drum, bombo drum, bell, shaker and vocal. [Lyrics and more inside]
Lexington Avenue Line
In a departure for me, this tune features no percussion, synths, jaw harps, scrap metal or hand held mini-vibrators, but is simply accompanied by... an acoustic guitar. Radical, huh? Anyway, as you might guess from the title, the tune is a kind of meditation on New York City. Hope you enjoy.
Bring Me The Head Of Elmo
Lyrics [with handy reference links!] and more information inside.
Just Blew Into Town
Here's a song from the RPM '07 CD that I just popped into the mail today. In the end I was able to get 8 presentable tunes together within the space of the month. Whew!
Blues Wrapped Round My Head
In a slow count of 5, here's some kind of convergence of Burma and the blues, or thereabouts. "scissors cut paper / paper blows away / stone smashes scissors / and so it goes / another day / but it's all downhill from here / at least that's what sisyphus said /ah you're fucked six ways from sunday / with the blues wrapped round your head"
Undefined
Out of several tunes in various states of completion for the RPM project, this is the most presentable. In use for this track are: voice, talking drum, bells (metal and wooden), guiro, synth bass and organ. Every so often I write a song which is overtly political (a protest song, for want of a better term), and this is one of them.
Oh Death
Here's my version of this most haunting of American folk songs. It's very stripped-down: just voice, drone, a bass drum and a shekere. In the time-honored folk tradition, I've made a few minor lyrics changes here and there, and the melody I'm using is different from the Dock Boggs or Stanley Brothers versions of the tune. Anyway, it's one of my very favorite traditional songs. Hope you enjoy.
Until You Kiss Me
"i blew across the great plains like a plastic bag / from the broken heart of town to the dock of the bay / there ain't that much to say about the wide wide world / people everywhere just sleepwalk in their own little way / and ain't no hope of waking up / until you kiss me babe"
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