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

 

I am taking a much needed, well-deserved break.

I have not been out of New York Shitty since October of 2024.

Posting will be sporadic, at best. Side bars will be dark. "Now Playing" will depend on how much I listen to while I'm away.

Regular posting will resume on Wednesday, 4/15.

Stay tuned.

Hope to see you all when I return.

 

 

 

 

Songs Of The Week, 2026: 3/28-4/3

 

Lips Like Sugar- Echo & The Bunnymen
Felix- Andwella's Dream
Passenger Side- Wilco
Rock Me When He's Gone- Elton John
The Birthday- The Idle Race
Inside Out- Close Enemies
Fools Die (For Want Of Wisdom)- Peter Tosh

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Lips Like Sugar- Echo & The Bunnymen
(One of my faves from these guys, this song always reminds me of a co-worker from the 80's named Ray. He was young kid with a huge personality and would always say, "My name is Ray from GB WIS, and my favorite bands are SWA-ZAY and The Banshees and Shmecko & The Bonzoids!")

Felix- Andwella's Dream
(From Ireland, these guys started off as a psych/folk band and ended up playing prog. The first album is lovely and this is from that.)

Passenger Side- Wilco
(This one reminds me of my very first trip to New Orleans. I stopped into Margaritaville for a Margarita, which they served with a compass because they were so strong, you needed help to get home. On stage was Lynn Drury and she played this song.)

Rock Me When He's Gone- Elton John
(Elton loves Leon Russell and you can really tell on this "Madman" leftover.)

The Birthday- The Idle Race
(Love both Idle Race records, though I think you can make one amazing record out of both. I might do that, actually. For now, enjoy some early Jeff Lynne.)

Inside Out- Close Enemies
(Brand new from Tom Hamilton of Aerosmith and Tony Brock of The Babys. Really good record if you dig those great rock records of the 70's. This track stood out.)

Fools Die (For Want Of Wisdom)- Peter Tosh
(Your Sunday moment of Zen.)

James Gadson, 1939-2026

 

Express Yourself
Use Me
Lean On Me
Kissing My Love
Dancing Machine
I Want You 
Love Hangover
Got To Be Real
If I Can’t Have You
I.G.Y. (What A Beautiful World)
I Will Survive
Dont Leave Me This Way
You Don’t Have To Be A Star"
Love Machine
Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel
Shake Your Groove Thing
Cruisin
Let A Woman Be A Woman

For starters...

"T.G.I. Ska Day": THE WEEKEND MIX

This music makes me feel good. Different. I can't help but smile or dance or just bop around. That's not a given for me. I'm wound up tight. Always have been. And I don't think you can just play it. I don't care how good of a musician you might be, it needs to be in your blood in order to play it right. Like the music and vibe of New Orleans, the music and vibe of Jamaica has healing powers, at least temporarily. It works for me, pretty much all the time.

Try it. 

 

TRACKLIST
Al Capone- Prince Buster
Liquidator- The Harry J All-Stars
My Boy Lollipop- Millie Small
Tighten Up- The Untouchables
Shame & Scandal-  Peter Tosh w/ The Wailers & The Skatalites
Hands Off...She's Mine- The Beat
Gangsters- The Specials
You're Wondering Now- Andy & Joey
Ruder Than You- The Bodysnatchers
Israelites- Desmond Dekker
Madness- Prince Buster
Wet Dream- Max Romeo
I'm In The Mood For Ska- Lord Tanamo
Eastern Standard Time- The Skatalites
Pressure Drop (Original Single)-The Maytals
Carry Go Bring Come- Justin Hinds & The Dominoes
Johnny Too Bad- The Slickers
Friday Night, Saturday Morning- The Specials
Corner Stone, Burning Torch- Don Drummond
Rivers Of Babylon- The Melodians

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