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| Boz socially distancing himself, yesterday. |
Boz Scaggs knew exactly what he was doing when he cut this - singing for chicks. You have to leave all the stuff guys cherish most behind - irony, cleverness, virtuosity (or incompetence) for its own sake, meta-reference ... all that gnarly grist ... and sing from the fucking heart. Sing songs that make you want to strut onto the dancefloor or swoon into your lover's arms. Boz is not the world's greatest singer, but we can forgive him because there's not a note here he doesn't mean and feel, that isn't real. It's worth remembering that he wrote (or co-wrote, with the mighty David Paich) all except one of the songs on Silk Degrees. For an album that sounds like a greatest hits collection, that's some achievement.
In these shit times, it's good to let the pop delirium sweep you up and away for a while. Right now Georgia is blasting out, and the ecstatic high of "Georgia, we will be together dear ..." lifts me to my feet. Nobody's looking - I do some dumb dance moves, make with the air mic stand, and if only for a moment the shit times are good again.
Feeling good is what we do best - let's not lose the skill.
In the unlikely event that you don't have this already ...
ReplyDeleteYou just can't beat Boz for a real good time. And I've also had a lot of real good times courtesy of Th' House O' Foam, so I thought it was about time I tried to give a little back. Now, I'm a total neophyte (trans. clueless asshole) as far as uploading goes so let's hope I got this right. If it works, it's a very cool Boz gig from 1985 - good sound, great tunes. Maybe one or two of the four or five guys wont already have it. Thanks FT the Third!
Deletehttps://workupload.com/archive/P2cVBcr
Rob, on behalf of the 4/5, I thank you. Very cool.
DeleteHe, Bonnie Raitt and Jon Cleary performed an acapella version of What Do You Want The Girl To Do at last year's Jazz Fest. Was incredible. Still think his version of Somebody Loan Me That Dime might be one of the all time top 10 blues songs.
ReplyDeleteHis masterpiece for sure. I bought in my high school days, and still revisit it as I approach my 60's. It is still a sublime "pick-me-up" to this day. Thanks for the great article. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the fist-bump, Daddykin!
Delete"Boz is not the world's greatest singer"... true that, but he is head & shoulders above about 90% of them.
ReplyDeleteBoz owned Slims nightclub in San Francisco, closed for the Coronadaze, will not reopen. He said we could have changed things to be more successful but it wouldn't have been "us". My friend Bobby Mack was manager there for decades. We briefly played in a band called Nonfiction together there in the mid to late 80s. Slims beat the fuck out of most clubs in the city for 30 years.
ReplyDeleteI remember Nonfiction...Speak the Same To Everyone rules! A proud pork production!
DeleteOne of the great ones. Still have my vinyl with all the added pops and clicks from too many plays. Thanks for a clean version. And check out his last five years output - great blues stuff for evening gummie filled alone time.
ReplyDeleteOutside the rain begins/ And it may never end...
ReplyDeleteThank you, sir.
That was the best review I have ever read about this album. You are right on every point. Singing for chicks. Love that line. Now I know why my wife likes him so much. Wish I could write like you. Wish Cotton was a monkey.
ReplyDeleteThank 'ee, BillyMac! Written from the heart. Self-isolation album of the month - and it will be party album of the month when this whole mess blows over.
DeleteHere's a re-up of the Kaleidoscope "Kolors" album posted antecedently.
ReplyDelete... the above comment posted in entirely the wrong place. Oh well.
ReplyDeleteIf you don't dig this, then I just don't get you.
ReplyDeletehttps://youtu.be/Pefnn2Ccp-8