Music Diary – 4th February

Welcome to my Music Diary – today for the 4th February!

In 2009, Lux Interior, (Erick Lee Purkhiser) singer and founding member of The Cramps died aged 62. He met his wife (better known as Poison Ivy, a.k.a. Ivy Rorschach), in Sacramento in 1972, when he and a friend picked her up when she was hitchhiking. The couple later founded The Cramps.

https://melomaneblog.wordpress.com/2014/10/21/music-diary-21st-october/

On the 21st October 1946 Mr. Erick Lee Purkhiser alias Lux Interior was born in Akron, Ohio. He was singer and founding member of the the legendary Psychobilly-Rock’n’Roll band The Cramps. With his wife Kristy Marlana Wallace alias Poison Ivy Rorschach on guitar, the group started in 1976 and disbanded after Lux’s death in 2009.

Back in 1972 Lux met his future wife Kristy in Sacramento. The couple moved from California to Ohio and then to New York. In 1975 the duo was part of the flourishing punk scene. In April 1976 they founded The Cramps with Bryan Gregory on guitar and Pam Ballam on drums. Their performances were always very intense by an energetic frontman, who dressed also in high heels. Another trademark of The Cramps were their special cover versions of rare and obscure songs from the Fifties and Sixties.

In 1979 the EP “Gravest Hits” featuring the songs “Human Fly” and the cover versions of “Domino” (also recorded by Roy Orbison), “The Way I walk” (Jack Scott), “Surfin’ Bird” (The Trashmen) and “Lonesome Town” (Ricky Nelson) was released. One year later the debut album “Songs the Lord taught us” hit the stores. In 1981 the LP “Psychedelic Jungle” with new second guitarist, Kid Congo Powers, was recorded. Two years later the live album “Smell of Female” followed. The opening track “Thee Most Exalted Potentate of Love” was later covered by Queens Of The Stone Age for the EP “Stone Age Compilation” (2004).

With “A Date with Elvis” (1986) the fanbase became bigger and bigger. Over 250,000 copies were sold in Europe. Over the years the studio LPs “Stay Sick” (1990), “Look Mom, No Head” (1991), “Flamejob” (1994), “Big Beat from Badsville” (1997) and “Fiends of Dope Island” (2003) were released. Also some compilations and the live album “Rockin n Reelin in Auckland New Zealand XXX” (1987) hit the stores.

Beside Lux and Poison Ivy, the line up changed a lot. The final studio album “Fiends of Dope Island” came out on the their own label Vengeance Records and in 2006 The Cramps played their last shows. On 4th February 2009 Lux Interior passed away. He died at the Glendale Memorial Hospital after an aoritc dissection. He was 62 years old.

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Music Diary – 13th January

Welcome to my Music Diary – today for the 13th January!

On the 13th January 1968 a historic performancy by Johnny Cash happened: The Man in Black, featuring June Carter, Carl Perkins and the Tennessee Three, played a very special concert at Folsom Prison (near Sacramento, California). In front of 2,000 inmates, Johnny and his band played classics. like „Folsom Prison Blues„, „25 Minutes to go„, „Jackson“ and „Cocaine Blues„.

The concert was recorded and released under the moniker „At Folsom Prison“ by Columbia Records in May 1968. The LP became one of Johnny Cash’s most famous and successful albums and it reached number one the country chart and the top 15 on the regular album chart.

Get your Johnny Cash stuff here (for Austrian customer):

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Music Diary – 12th January

Welcome to my Music Diary – today for the 12th January!

Blixa Bargeld (Einstürzende Neubauten)

Happy birthday to Mr. Christian Emmerich alias Blixa Bargeld, who was born on the 12th January 1959 in Berlin, Germany. Blixa became famous with his band Einstürzende Neubauten and as a member of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Beside his work as a musician, he is also well known as a performance artist, writer and actor.

Bargeld left school without completing and started to teaching himself in music – especially in experimenting with all kind of equipments. In 1980 he founded his industrial-experimental band Einstürzende Neubauten („Collapsing New-Buildings“) in West Berlin. Beside Bargeld (lead vocals, guitar, keyboard), the line-up consists of Alexander Hacke (bass, guitar, vocals), N.U. Unruh (custom-made instruments, percussion, vocals), Jochen Arbeit (guitar and vocals) and Rudolf Moser (custom-built instruments, percussion, and vocals). On the 1st April 1980, the first performance took place at the Moon Club in Berlin. The line-up at that time featured Bargeld, N.U. Unruh, Beate Bartel and Gudrun Gut. One year later, the debut album „Kollaps“ („Collapse“) was released.

Blixa Bargeld became in 1983 also a member of The Bad Seeds, the backing band of Nick Cave – he stayed for twenty years, before leaving in 2003, because of focusing on his own band. With Einstürzende Neubauten, Blixa Bargeld recorded many albums all over the past 30 years. The latest release is called „Lament“ (2014). Blixa’s unique guitar style can also be heard on all  Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds studio albums from 1984 until 2003.

Get your Einstürzende Neubauten stuff here (for Austrian customer):

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Music Diary – 29th December

Welcome to my Music Diary – today for the 29th December!

Happy birthday to Marianne Evelyn Faithfull, who was born on the 29th December 1946 in Hampstead, London (UK). Marianne is working as a singer, songwriter and actress over six decades now. She became very well known during her relationship with Mick Jagger from The Rolling Stones (1966 until 1970).

In 1964 Marianne Faithfull startet her singing career and became quickly part of the Swinging London scene. At a party she met the Stones manager and producer Andrew Loog Oldham, who produced Marianne’s first single „As Tears Go By“ (released in June 1964), which was written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. The song became a hit and cracked the top ten UK chart.

Shortly after that, not only her relationship with the Stones frontman began – she also started taking drugs.  Faithfull had a huge influence to Jagger’s songwriting – like the tracks „Wild Horses“ and „I Got the Blues“ from the masterpiece LP „Sticky Fingers“ (released in 1971). On this album is also the song „Sister Morphine„, which she co-wrote with Jagger. In May 1970 the relationship came to an end and Marianne Faithfull vanished more and more from the scene. Five years later her solo album „Dreamin‘ My Dreams“ was released and it peaked the Irish album chart. With the follow-up „Broken English“ (1979) she had a great comeback.

In the eighties, the albums „Dangerous Acquaintances“ (1981), „A Child’s Adventure“ (1983) and „Strange Weather“ (1987) hit the market. In 1990 the live recording „Blazing Away“ was released. Alanna Nash from the „Stereo Review“ wrote about it: „Faithfull’s gritty alto is a cracked and halting rasp, the voice of a woman who’s been to hell and back on the excursion fare which, of course, she has.“

Seven years later, her unique voice was featured on the Metallica song „The Memory Remains“ from their album „ReLoad „. And in 1998, the compilation „A Perfect Stranger: The Island Anthology“, featuring songs all over the last decades and some unreleased tracks, was released. Also in the 2000s the British singer recorded several albums – like „Before the Poison“ (2005), for which she coloborated with other artitst like PJ Harvey, Nick Cave and Damon Albarn.

Marianne Faithfull worked also as a successful actress: So she was nominated as „Best Actress“ (European Film Awards) for her role in „Irina Palm“ (2007).

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Music Diary – 21st October

Welcome to my Music Diary – today for the 21st October!

Erick Lee Purkhiser aka Lux Interior (21st October 1946 – 4th February 2009)

On the 21st October 1946 Mr. Erick Lee Purkhiser alias Lux Interior was born in Akron, Ohio. He was singer and founding member of the the legendary Psychobilly-Rock’n’Roll band The Cramps. With his wife Kristy Marlana Wallace alias Poison Ivy Rorschach on guitar, the group started in 1976 and disbanded after Lux’s death in 2009.

Back in 1972 Lux met his future wife Kristy in Sacramento. The couple moved from California to Ohio and then to New York. In 1975 the duo was part of the flourishing punk scene. In April 1976 they founded The Cramps with Bryan Gregory on guitar and Pam Ballam on drums. Their performances were always very intense by an energetic frontman, who dressed also in high heels. Another trademark of The Cramps were their special cover versions of rare and obscure songs from the Fifties and Sixties.

Lux Interior & Poison Ivy (The Cramps)(©ÊSTEVE JENNINGS)

In 1979 the EP „Gravest Hits“ featuring the songs „Human Fly“ and the cover versions of „Domino“ (also recorded by Roy Orbison), „The Way I walk“ (Jack Scott), „Surfin‘ Bird“ (The Trashmen) and „Lonesome Town“ (Ricky Nelson) was released. One year later the debut album „Songs the Lord taught us“ hit the stores. In 1981 the LP „Psychedelic Jungle“ with new second guitarist, Kid Congo Powers, was recorded. Two years later the live album „Smell of Female“ followed. The opening track „Thee Most Exalted Potentate of Love“ was later covered by Queens Of The Stone Age for the EP „Stone Age Compilation“ (2004).

With „A Date with Elvis“ (1986) the fanbase became bigger and bigger. Over 250,000 copies were sold in Europe. Over the years the studio LPs „Stay Sick“ (1990), „Look Mom, No Head“ (1991), „Flamejob“ (1994), „Big Beat from Badsville“ (1997) and „Fiends of Dope Island“ (2003) were released. Also some compilations and the live album „Rockin n Reelin in Auckland New Zealand XXX“ (1987) hit the stores.

Beside Lux and Poison Ivy, the line up changed a lot. The final studio album „Fiends of Dope Island“ came out on the their own label Vengeance Records and in 2006 The Cramps played their last shows. On 4th February 2009 Lux Interior passed away. He died at the Glendale Memorial Hospital after an aoritc dissection. He was 62 years old.

Get your Cramps gear here (for Austrian customer):

Shop for THE CRAMPS here:                                         Shop for THE CRAMPS here:                                                         GERMANY                                                                              USA

 

Music Diary – 12th September

Welcome to my Music Diary – today for the 12th September!

Johnny Cash (26th February 1932 – 12th September 2003)

The 12th September 2003 is one of the saddest days in music history: The Man in Black,  John R. „Johnny“ Cash, died at the age of 71 years in Nashville, Tennessee.

Cash was well known as the outstanding Country musician, but he was quite more than this. He knew no borders and especially his last albums, the legendary „American Recordings„, which were produced by Rick Rubin, prove that.

Beside his many hits like „Ring of Fire“ (which was written by his later wife June Carter), „I walk the Line„, „Folsom Prison Blues“ or “ A Boy named Sue“ the two jailhouse recordings „At Folsom Prison“ (1968) and „At San Quentin“ (1969) are still classics and timeless albums.

In 2004/2005 James Mangold directed the biographical film „Walk the Line“ based on the early life and career of Johnny Cash with Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash and Reese Witherspoon as June Carter Cash.

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Music Diary – 13th November

Welcome back to my Music Diary – today for the 13th November!

In 2006 Nick Cave did a sort of solo tour – he was accompanied by the Bad Seeds members Martyn P. Casey, Jim Sclavunos and Warren Ellis. And yes, this line up is the same as in Grinderman, a side project by Nick Cave.

Setlist, pictures and reviews from Austrian newspapers can be found here – just scroll down to the date 13/11/2006!

Cheers,

Alex Melomane

Music Diary – 6th November

Welcome back to my personal music diary!

On the 6th November 1997 Mr. Kevin Paul Godfrey, better known as Epic Soundtracks, died at the age of only 39 years. With his brother Adrian Nicholas, who was known as Nikki Sudden (1956 – 2006), he formed the band The Swell Maps.

Epic also played drums with the fantastic group These Immortal Souls feat. Rowland S. Howard and also with Crime & The City Solution.

Epic Soundtracks – Rise Above

Thank you for the music & R.I.P.!

Alex Melomane

Music Diary – 2nd November

Hey music lovers all around the world – welcome to my personal music diary!

Today on the 2nd November I added some very different styles of music to my collection – so you can see properly that my taste has no boundaries at all 😉

Back in 1992 I was very happy to get my copy of the 3-CD-Box-Set „20 Years Of Jethro Tull„! Before that I had this release „only“ on vinyl (5-LP-Box-Set) and this one features unheard rarities, B-Sides and rare live recordings. So it was a kind of „Holy Grail“ for us Tull fans all around the world.

On the 2nd November 2007 I bought the albums of the German bands Die Ärzte and Einstürzende Neubauten. „Jazz ist anders“ which features a bonus EP comes in a pizza box – typically for Bela B,, Farin Urlaub and Rod. „Alles wieder offen“ is another fantastic release by Blixa Bargeld and his backing band.

And in 2012 I received my signed copy of the Woodbox Gang album called „Glorious Scars„.

Well, now you can see that I am into any kind of music 😉

Cheers,

Alex Melomane

Music Diary – 30th October

Welcome again to my personal Music Diary – today for the 30th October!

Back in 2002 Mr. Nick Cave played a special solo show feat. Warren Ellis, Jim White and Norman Watt-Roy in Vienna at the wonderful Burgtheater. It was obvious that this “band” didn’t play a long time together – I do think it was the very first time that they performed officialy. The soundcheck was VERY long so the show started one hour late. This performance was part of the 10th anniversary of the “schule für dichtung“, a school for poetry in Vienna for which Nick Cave did some lectures.

Setlist, pictures and reviews from different newspapers can be seen here (just scroll down to the bottom of the page).