Sally Baby's Silver Dollars

 

 

 

I don't know all of the facts regarding Sal Geloso. I do know that he has somehow flown under my radar, and I consider myself a loyal follower of all things New Orleans.

Recently, I started seeing the name Sally Baby's Silver Dollars popping up while checking out the music scene a few weeks before my trip south. I did some YouTubing and found more than I bargained for, including a video from 2011 of Geloso busking in Brooklyn's Bedford Avenue subway station, a 50 minute film showcasing the Silver Dollars, an official video from 2025, and a Tiny Desk Concert that blew my mind.

I decided I had to see this band called Sally Baby's Silver Dollars and so on Saturday, 4/11, I caught the band at The Broadside on a perfectly hot New Orleans afternoon. Geloso, who also doubles as a New Orleans tour guide, introduced himself and the band, saying he was working on two or three hours sleep, but felt spirited. He then said, "I feel moved to play this one, a Ned Towns song called 'How Can You Baby-Sit A Man.'" (Opening with a deep soul cover? I'm in!) Within seconds, I knew there was no turning back. Geloso's voice is at times, somewhere between Sam Cooke and Otis Redding when he plays soul music. Occasionally, he sounds Cab Calloway when swinging, or Leon Redbone when he stays traditional. He and the band knocked every genre out of the park.

From what I could gather, Geloso is from San Francisco, where he started playing folk music. It is unclear how long he has been in New Orleans. One friend said, "He just moved here." Offbeat Magazine mentions how he has been playing in the French Quarter on Royal Street for 15 years. There is only one official release available on Bandcamp, a six track E.P. from 2025, that seems unreasonably priced at $20 for a half dozen MP3s. But almost everything I found on YouTube has turned me into a temporary fanboy. Watching these guys live, especially the brilliant horn section who have meticulously arranged their parts for each song, as opposed to just blowing solos, gives me a feeling that they are about to explode into the must-see act in New Orleans.

I was crushed to find out I had just missed their performance at Joe's Pub in N.Y.C. on March 31st, just a few days before I discovered the band.

Trust me, and find 20 minutes to check out Sally Baby's Silver Dollars' Tiny Desk Concert.

 

Rhapsody In Blue

 A friend, knowing I'm a vinyl guy, asked me to come over and go through his collection to help figure out what to do with it. Flipping through stacks of records is why I go to record stores so I said, "Sure".

We spent what could be described as all day, going through a large wooden box of LPs, one by one, checking the condition of somewhere between 300-400 of them. The covers showed their age, having been stored at times under sketchy circumstances, but the discs within were often very, very clean.

I divided them into "Dumpster", "Thrift Store", "Record Store", and "Mine". I found a few bucket list original copies I never thought I'd own, in particular, Billy Cobham's "Spectrum". I loaded up my car taking them all with me, got over $100 in record store credit, and took care of the rest. 

From 1924, the premier release of "Rhapsody In Blue", featuring an arrangement by Ferdie Grofe, who you probably know from "The Grand Canyon Suite", and (The Composer at the piano). 

Sal said he'd be back tomorrow.

I always enjoy filling in. Cheers!

-BBJ

Pretty Rough And Twisted

I'm one of those Rolling Stones fans who doesn't think much of anything after "Some Girls". I want to like more. I've bought a handful of albums over the years, and enjoyed a song or two. I think "Hackney Diamonds" is the best one in a long time, but I only played it a couple times.

I hear there's a new one coming out, but we don't know the title, and over the weekend "The Cockroaches" released a single, "Rough And Twisted" in a very limited fashion. It's not streaming anywhere I know of at the moment. I've heard at least some of the new album comes from the "Hackney" sessions. I can't say I have high hopes.  

I'm not in any way a fan of AI music, but when clicking on "That Look", I admit to being almost fooled the first time. Fingers crossed anything on the new album is as good.  I think it's easily as successful at recreating '70's Stones as "Angry" was on the last album.

Last night there was another, "Empty Handed", maybe not quite as good as "That Look", but still better, in my opinion, than any of the material on "Undercover" or "A Bigger Bang".

It's worrisome that AI has so successfully captured The Rolling Stones essence, specifically Charlie Watts drum sound, and especially Mick Jagger's vocals and lyrics. The similarities between "Angry" and the above fakery isn't funny.

Watching "Angry" I'm reminded that in all those billboards, AI played a huge role. 

I didn't post this to make anyone mad, but it's on my mind. See you in the comments.

-BBJ

Weekend Mix/ 'T' For Texas Road Trip

I made a CD for the car a month ago which I thought, with a few tweaks, might make a Weekend Mix.

I didn't think it would go over, but I had nothing on Tuesday so I posted about Guy Clark. I didn't expect the response to be so positive, with so many familiar with his work.

I finished the mix. It's not entirely '70's Texas. Emmylou wanted Gram's "$1000 Wedding" because it's such a great song, Lucinda and Gillian are here because she wanted a little company with all those Honky Tonk Heroes. Marty Stuart and the Fabulous Superlatives are a National Treasure, and "Altitude" fit nicely next to James Burton and the Hot band. It's a Road Trip CD playlist so Area Code 615's instrumental hot take, "Southern Comfort" is essential. It ends with "Black Haired Boy" written by Guy and Susanna Clark, and most certainly about Townes.

Have good trip! Buen Viaje!

-BBJ (Yes, that's me on the horse)

'T' For Texas Road Trip

 

The Devil Made Me Do It the First Time

 The second time I done it on my own.

12 years ago I bought The Bear Family's 7 volume 13 CD "Truckers, Kickers, Cowboy Angels- The Blissed Out Birth of Country Rock". From it I assembled my first Weekend Mix here at Burning Wood. I've been interested in this territory ever since Ringo sang "Act Naturally", The Grateful Dead's "American Beauty", and The Byrds "Sweetheart Of The Rodeo" to name a few.

I wish it was still possible to still buy or rent "Tales From The Tour Bus". The episodes with Billy Joe Shaver are really over the top. Here's a taste: 

Waylon recorded "Honky Tonk Heroes in 1973,  and considered an Outlaw landmark. It's success got Billy Joe into the studio with Kris Kristofferson to make "Old Five And Dimers Like Me", one of the best albums I've ever heard. 

A neighbor with an extra ticket invited me to see Rodney Crowell at The City Winery in 2021(?). I knew he played with Emmylou Harris as a kind of replacement for Gram, but I didn't know his music. He and his band were really good, but I regretted not being more familiar with his repertoire. 

On Discogs, I paid an extra $5 for an autographed original pressing of his first album, "Ain't Living Long Like This", released in 1978. I don't know anything about Miro, except he asked Rodney to sign it in '92. Later pressings increased the size of his name and the title.

Sorry to post so late, but that's my schedule.

-BBJ

Without Getting Killed Or Caught

YouTube's algorithm is constantly bombarding me with new territory to explore. Recently it was quite insistent I look into this documentary about Guy Clark, a singer songwriter I'd never heard of. 

Here's the trailer:

The full documentary turned me onto a whole world of Texas songwriters, the Outlaw's outlaws, if you will. It became a rabbit hole of record buying and research. I've been a Gram Parsons fan for decades, but somehow missed Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt, and a handful of others doing similar things at the same time. This is where Emmylou Harris went after Gram's untimely death.

I grew up in L.A., and this song is the one that got me.

I paid a small fortune for a near mint original pressing of Guy Clark's first album, "Old No1", and was not disappointed. Then came Townes Van Zandt, Jerry Jeff Walker, Billy Joe Shaver, and Rodney Crowell.

Sorry I'm late today.

-BBJ

Angine de Poitrine

Unless you've been sleeping under a rock, you've probably been exposed to this duo from Quebec.

For me, they check all the boxes, including ones I didn't know existed.

I've described them as Minimalist Prog, with a dollop of Lumpy Gravy over Beefhearts, while watching Television.

They loop microtonal, and groove odd time signatures like nobody's business. Combined with the costumes, that makes for great Art. They're doing everything right.

I don't think they've appeared in a post here before, so I'm happy to bring them to your attention. Their music might seem odd at first, but holds up well to repeated listening. In fact addictively fresh, and excellent in the car. 

Here is the clip that's gone viral at 7.9 million views in two months. I went straight to Bandcamp and bought both of their albums.

I hope this isn't old news you're all sick of hearing about.

I haven't been burning much wood lately, but Sal gave me the keys to the shop.

-BBJ