A Touching Tribute To Michael Jackson

TAUNNIE - "MICHEAL"

I have been waiting for the right time to post this song, and now with Michael Jackson gone from this Earth, it just seems like the perfect chance to expose the feelings Taunnie had for him.
Taunnie Howery, a pre-teen blind pop-phenom, came out with a LP titled 'BOY SHOPPIN'" in 1984 or so. The touching, "Michael", is dedicated to her 'lover' and 'inspiration' Michael Jackson and sums up my feelings as well.
Enjoy this song and let the tears spill, as there is no better way to remember our fallen pop-god than by getting lost in this 12 year old girl's musical love letter to MJ.

TAUNNIE - MICHAEL

That's Some Killer Wood Block, Man...

Iota's "The Words Are True" ranks up there with 'All Right Now' as one of the finest wood block attacks in rock history, or something like that...

Not to be confused with SLC heavies, Iota, the Iota with the wood block came knocking along about 40 years ago, although that's all I really know about them.
maybe it is the same band.

Can You Feel The Country Funk?

Country Funk! It's kind of a deceiving band name, while you hope for some deep bass, hypnotic rhythm and some hot lap-steel-synth, you end up with a Parsons/Nesmith sound, which is by no means a let-down.

Download "Not This Time", its the groovingest track on their self titled record. Plays great between 'Tulsa Time' and 'The Funky Bird'.

-thanks to Lawrence Peters for this gem.

The Stoned Guitar

If the piano has been drinking, then, well, this guitar is high as hell.
Human Instinct's "The Stoned Guitar" is a study in extended intros, delayed wah and general freakiness. Its definitely something that could have gone on for half an hour at a live show, but gets its point across in under 7 minutes on this take.

HUMAN INSTINCT - THE STONED GUITAR

Flute-Rock mix

After a long vacation knee deep in the serene New England nature, the one thing that kept me awake at night was knowing that I'd finally have to deliver a flute-rock mix for the Steam Powered Man blog.
It was something I set my sights on when we started up this site.



The notion of Flute Rock is riddled with visions of one legged flautists at renaissance fairs wearing feathered caps, drinking mead and speaking with faux-British affectations whilst eating a massive turkey leg. In order to put the stereotype to bed, this mix was created. Granted, there are some frollic-y, twinkle ding-dong hippy parts, but don't let that take away the pure majesty of what you're about to experience.

FLUTE-ROCK MIX 1:
BLODWYN PIG - VARIATIONS ON NAMOS
GNIDROLOG - IN SPITE OF HARRY'S TOENAIL
GAA - GAA
STEEL MILL - SUMMER'S CHILD
GIFT - GROUPIE
HAZE - A WAY TO FIND THE PARADISE

download mix

We're Not Like Everybody Else

Here's three different covers of the Kinks' "I'm Not Like Everybody Else".

The Chocolate Watchband (Los Altos, CA). Introduced to me by my friend Jesse as 'the most punk song ever', this version is certainly the hardest of the three.
The Sacred Mushroom (Cincinnati, OH). This version is much more subdued and laid back, but still holds a mean torch to the band's dark side.
The Finchley Boys (Chicago, IL). This version is similar to the Sacred Mushroom's attempt, but that ugly wah-wah guitar adds an urgency to the track. The vocals sound the most tortured of the three, naturally putting the lyrics to good use.

Which is your favorite?

Long Song of the Week: Gracious

British prog group, Gracious, released This is... Gracious! in 1972. 'Super Nova' is a massive 22 minute long piece in 4 parts, with sounds shadowing King Crimson, Amon Duul II and even some of the weirder Beach Boys compositions.

Lots of MELLOTRON on this song! That in itself makes it important. Love it or hate it, ut the long song of the week!

DOWNLOAD SUPER NOVA