It's Friday!

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Graham Maby! Why is he not more legendary than he is? But at least Freaks and Geeks gave him a call out, which is one more reason I loved that show.

Actually, the entire Joe Jackson band is one of the more underrated outfits in the history of rock. Maby, Gary Sanford and Dave Houghton all kicked major ass. Man-for-man, a better band than the Attractions, their supposed mirror image? Let's see...

Guitar - Sanford vs. EC? Sanford!

Bass - Maby vs. Bruce Thomas? Maby!

Keys - Jackson vs. Nieve? Hmmmm...Nieve by a nose!

Drums - Houghton vs. Pete Thomas? Thomas!

Vocals - Jackson vs. EC? Eh, a draw. Jackson has never had any of the annoying mannerisms that EC sometimes falls prey to, but he's never punched you in the gut the way EC's best performances can.

So it's a split decision, but I would probably have to go with the Attractions because they showed more range. I have no doubt that the JJ Band had just as much range, but they never quite got the chance to show it because they went away just as Jackson's songwriting was beginning to get more ambitious - had Jackson continued in the vein of Beat Crazy for a couple more albums, who knows what they could have done?



Post Edited (10-01-10 08:52)

Not only is it Friday - it's ROCKTOBER!

Hey Delvin! Was Sanford's foot in a cast when you saw them on the Volume 4 tour? In St Louis, he played the whole show seated in an office chair, but that still didn't stop him from zinging all around the stage the entire night.

Thanks for posting that, Brad. I agree - JJ's band is criminally underrated, and I might even call the Houghton/Pete match a draw.

> I have no doubt that the JJ Band had just as much range, but they never quite got the chance
> to show it because they went away just as Jackson's songwriting was beginning to get more
> ambitious – had Jackson continued in the vein of Beat Crazy for a couple more albums,
> who knows what they could have done?

If you haven't listened to JJ's album Volume 4, you need to check it out. It provides a clue to Reno's what-if question.

In A Cure for Gravity, JJ states that the original band split up when Dave Houghton decided he'd had enough of the rock-star life. Maby, of course, continued to work with Joe through nearly all his subsequent recordings and tours; no idea why Sanford didn't stick around.

Last time I saw JJ (on the Volume 4 tour), when he introduced the band members and heard the cheer go up for Maby, he told the audience, "That was pretty weak, considering that we're talking about the best fuckin' bass player in history."

His work on Freedy Johnston's Can You Fly is amazing. Empathetic and blasting when necessary. Blaze of Glory is criminally underrated, in my opinion.

Yep. That describes Sanford's appearance and behavior during the Denver show on the Volume 4 tour as well. (Joe told the audience he'd injured his foot in a freak gardening accident.)

Now that Costello has his own talk show, I think it would be a hoot if he sat down and did an hour with Jackson and Graham Parker.

Get me exec producer Sir Elton's email address - I want to send that idea in!

You know, this reminds me: Jackson, Costello and Parker were always compared to each other (fairly or unfairly) and have always been lumped together. We know we all think of them - but what do they think of each other? What they think of the comparisons aside, do they think of each other as peers, or competitors, or merely fellow denizens of the world of music, or what? I honestly don't know.

Edit 10/4/10: geez, what a convoluted garble. Not sure what was up when I wrote that - as a teetotaler I don't have STEVE's excuse. At least Delvin understood what I was trying to ask.



Post Edited (10-04-10 10:45)

In A Cure for Gravity, Jackson admitted he used to get irate whenever he was compared to Costello. With maturity, though, he's lost that attitude. In fact, he said he now finds such comparisons flattering, considering how long EC has endured, and how much stylistic ground he's covered.

I was reminded of this thread as I listen to At The BBC, which I recently found at my library. I think it's a pretty solid selection of songs and covers his best era, in my opinion. I will say, however, that the latin percussion in the later version of the band here doesn't add much to, say, "Sunday Papers" or "Look Sharp."

The thing that primarily struck me though was something that was pointed out in the liner notes: that all those great albums up through Night and Day came out in only about three years. That's a hell of a lot of (mostly) great music - and musical development - in a pretty short span of time. Look Sharp! to Night and Day ain't quite Pink Flag to 154, but it's close.

Anyway, go watch the "Friday" video again and raise a Foster's in STEVE's general direction.

could i love that guy in oregon more?
btw, i'm slinging back BECK's tonight. it was on sale.