Toscho Todorovic – Good Company

April 22, 2011 by 3songsbonn

When Hollywood producer Ian Gurvitz was looking for a theme tune for his 2006 film ‘LA Blues’ he didn’t find it in Chicago or the Mississippi Delta, he found it in Germany – in Osnabruck to be precise. It doesn’t take more than a couple of songs from the crowded Harmonie to understand why. Imagine someone with the calm simplicity of BB King, the feel for melodious solos of Peter Green and the voice and commercial savvy of Eric Clapton and I’ll give him a name for you – ‘Toscho’ Todorovic. On this particular evening Todorovic is introducing the new CD for his 1976 founded band Blues Company to a crowded and enthuastic crowd of varied ages but of common appreciation for the Blues.

Todorovic hails from Osnabruck but there is a fire in his belly when he talks of conflict that reveals his family roots. Both parents fled from Yugoslavia (Bosnia & Macedonia) at the close of World War 2, but he follows the news there still and feels the growing pains of the Region. Most notable for this is the song ‘Red Blood’. In one of his frequent monologues of the evening (I did say he reminded me of BB King) he spoke of 1991 as a year with a World seemingly without peace. Civil War in Yugoslavia that was portrayed in the media like Hollywood films. Seeing people die onscreen and the need to remember that somewhere there are parents, children and loved ones who will mourn them.

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Support your local Record Store

April 17, 2011 by 3songsbonn

Saturday (April 16) was ‘Record Store Day’ internationally, so it seems like a good time to reminisce about the good old days of searching out those rare (and often scratched) black vinyl gemstones in grubby old shops that really seemed as dirty and dark as a real mine.

My first record purchase was actually made as a birthday pressie from my parents. It was ‘Bits & Pieces’ – a pop masterpiece from the oft under-rated Dave Clark Five. (Up there with Freddie & the Dreamers for forgotten heroes of my musical youth). The shop, indeed every house that stood around it, has now been replaced – ‘Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy like – by a main road (and there isn’t even a restaurant at the end for consolation). By the time I was old enough to actually enter such shops on my own, which had less to do with age but rather more to do with having enough pocket money to actually buy anything, there were two shops in the same road selling records. Imagine that today people, two shops selling more than the top twenty in the same Street never mind the same city. Add the Top Twenty’ specialists like Woolworths and Weston Harts (who?) and the likelihood of spending all your candy money on black plastic was high – a healthy alternative to all that sugar, records should have been subsidized by the National Health Service.

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Toaster–Fried Air (TST 001)

April 15, 2011 by 3songsbonn

A search for ‘Toaster’ on YouTube turns up the band playing Queens ‘Tie Your Mother Down’ and ‘Wheels’ by the Foo Fighters.
A play of the CD ‘Fried Air’ turns up the band playing very much in the style of those two very bands – Queen in their ‘The Game’ phase at any rate. Rock n Roll songs that sound like they’ve been thought about and worked on a lot rather than jotted down in five minutes on the back of a paper napkin. Very likely that’s the case too. When I spoke to Ronald Jonker recently he told me that with his other commitments (touring the World as bassist with Ana Popovic!) the CD has taken a couple of years to go from idea to actual plastic.

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Henrik Freischlader Interview

April 10, 2011 by 3songsbonn

3SONGSBONN managed to grab a few words from rising German Blues star Henrik Freischlader before his concert recently at the Harmonie in Bonn.

A lots happened since I saw you play here last year. Most of it good but some of it bad. I’m referring of course to Gary Moore’s tragic death. What are your thoughts on that.

Yes of course. I’m deeply sad because he was my first guitar hero. He brought me into blues music and on the path of music generally. I picked up the guitar when I was fourteen after hearing Gary play the song ‘Cold Day In Hell’ from ‘After Hours’ and that was my initiation into Blues and into guitar music. It’s very sad because he was almost like a family member to me.

Did you meet him?

I met him in Germany in fact, in a small town called Mosbach (July 2009). We played support and after the show I had a chance to meet him backstage. We talked for about one and a half hours and it was like all my dreams had come true.

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Little Caesar – Big Fun

April 6, 2011 by 3songsbonn

Many bands take a break between records but LA Band Little Caesar must actually be record breakers. It’s taken 17 years between releases. Mr Music in Bonn brought them back to Germany for a show at the Harmonie on Tuesday and they wasted no time in showing why they were once touted as the next big thing on Geffen Records.

“None of us associated ourselves with the hairspray thing” is a quote from Little Caesar singer Ron Young in the magazine ‘Classic Rock’. It’s certainly hard to imagine the band standing in front of me this evening as a contender for the Glam Rock crown and looking like Alice Cooper meets The Sweet. Time can be a hard Master of course, but factor in the fact that David Bowie guitarist Earl Slick was in the band at one point and you get an idea of how things could have gone famewise. Fame was never the bands aim though and singer Ron Young immediately dispels the ‘Rockstar’ bubble when he walks onstage. “It’s an honour to be here” he says, and follows it up with “for us I mean, not for you!” At shows end he again reiterates how honoured the band is that we’ve come out to see them. “Because we’re not rockstars” he says apologetically. We’re just some guys who love playing Rock n Roll”

'Rock & Roll' Paniagua & Young

Humility or humbug? Well the smiles and the energy looked genuine to me. True they’re no ‘Spring chickens’ but the effort onstage would put many a band half their ages (and talent) to shame. Aside from new guitarist Joey Brasler this is the same band that made a name on Sunset Strip in the early 80’s and 90’s. A lot of the old songs are still with them too ‘Rum & Coke’ and ‘Ballad of Johnny’ from 1992’s Influence album for example and their Rockified version of ‘Chain of Fools’ made a dent in Billboards Hot 100 when it first came out for them.

Songs from their new CD were of the same high calibre for getting the audience shuffling their feet as the earlier foot tappers. Sleazy riffs and meaty rythm rule, as on ‘Sick & Tired’ or the Status Quo boogie riff of ‘Real Rock Child’. This is how live RnB/Rock music should be! Like Britains Dr Feelgood the music transcends age. Guitarist Loren Molinare shakes his body like he’s plugged into the mains in place of his guitar at times – reminiscent of Wilko Johnson in his manic movements. Bassist Fidel Paniagua, ZZ Top sunglasses and beard, looks cool and Ron Young has the sort of Rock voice that would give him a gig with any Rock band in the world. From the first note of ‘opener ‘Rock n Roll’ to the closing one on finisher ‘Down to the Wire’ this was a powerhouse of a show.

A word of praise too for the light show. There’s always a bit more colour when Rockpalast is in town and this was no exception. The Harmonie really does know how to literally put on a show and once again WDR had a feast for it’s cameras.

Shakin all over - Loren Molinare

The music is what counts of course though and it’s difficult not to like a band that enjoys playing as much as Little Caesar so clearly do. The Harmonie becomes their Living room and the audience is friends who are passing through. It’s only Rock n Roll. Or is it? Young makes reference to the power of music. Do AC/DC really sing such poetic lyrics as “She was like the Venus di Milo with arms”? Is Young serious, or taking the p*ss? Who knows? Who cares? this is Rock n Roll. “Life is short so enjoy yourself” as Molinare points out. To which I might add that there is no better place to enjoy yourself than at a Little Caesar concert.

Sometimes the old ones really are the best!

Museumsplatz Concert Season 2011

April 5, 2011 by 3songsbonn

Canadian Jimmy Bowskill during last years Museumsplatz Season

Today saw a press conference to introduce the coming Concert season at Bonns Museumsplatz.

No Elton John, or Liza Minnelli this year, but whoever thought that the financial restraints after those heady (and expensive) years gone by would mean a boring season of has beens and never will be’s has been proved decidedly wrong. There are some ‘Big Hitters’ still set to play.

Martin Nötzel from ‘Kult Event’ promised a very varied calendar this year: Buena Vista, Brazilian with Sergio Mendez, traditional German with Bläck Fööss, Italian Rock with Gianna Nannini, Folk with Hannes Wader, Jazz with Til Brönner, for the Irish there’s the marvelous ‘Pogues’ . You want a musical? how about the British production of ‘Hair’? or comedy? there’s TV comic personality Kaya Yanar. Oh, and if you want Blues and Rock you are definitely living in the right Bundesstadt this year: BB King with Ana Popovic, Joe Bonamassa with ‘Black Country Communion’ and, on 10 July Greg Allmann with Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi (what a week for Blues Lovers that promises to be!

My recommendations are certainly The Pogues with the irrepressible Shane Mcgowan – man of many words and few teeth. ‘Rum, Sodomy & the Lash’ is still an all time favourite disc of mine. Gregg Allman has made an excellent new CD ‘Low Country Blues’ and with Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi alongside has two of America’s most influential and popular modern Blues stars.

Of course there would be no modern Blues Stars without the original Blues Stars and they don’t come any better than Mr BB King. Now well into his eighties; BB won’t be doing a two hour set but a dozen songs from the King are worth a hundred from just about any other musician in the genre. Not that anyone will have grounds to complain about the music on that evening as Promoter E.L. Hartz promised that unlike BB’s last appearance here there would be only one special guest so we can look forward to a full set from Ana Popovic and her great band (of whom I need say no more – you all know I’m a fan!).

A ‘Geheimtipp’ for the Season from Martin Nötzel is French Jazz/Pop singerIsabelle Geoffrey. The lady better known as Zaz, has had an album at nr 1 in France for 9 weeks and her career is gaining momentum by the day. The “Piaf of the Blues” says Rolling Stone Magazine.

Yes, I can safely say that from July to September Summer will most definitely be here in Bonn!

FULL CONCERT DETAILS

Ana Popovic in Koblenz

April 3, 2011 by 3songsbonn

Evenings are lighter, the Cherry Tree in the garden has blossoms, and Ana Popovic is back at Café Hahn. Three sure signs that Spring is here and all is right with the World.

Things are certainly right with Ana Popovic right now. She’s just returned from her most successful American tour yet, with ‘Sold Out’ signs fast becoming a regular feature on the doors and windows of venues Stateside. Her ‘live video ‘An Evening at Trasimeno Lake’ has garnered lots of well deserved praise , and she’s recently finished work on her next CD who’s release around July this year will coincide with a concert right here in Bonn supporting the most famous and revered Bluesman on the planet, Mr BB King, at the Museumsplatz. Not that the huge audience expected for the King of the Blues will distract Ana – last years Beer Festival in her hometown of Belgrade saw her perform in front of a sobering 75.000 people.

The APB in action

At Café Hahn in Koblenz on this pleasantly warm evening the audience is very much smaller but no less attentive as Ana mesmerizes with her guitar magic. Flying Dutchman Ronald Jonker on Bass introduces her still in the manner of Fabrice Ach when I first saw her in Koblenz seven years ago. I doubt there is anyone here who doesn’t know her now though – most of this audience has probably come back every year since as I have.

The intro might not have changed much since 2005 but the music that follows it and it’s presentation certainly has. The old three piece band always had something of a jazz feel about it and the show had a slightly lighter touch that tended to drift off into long solos – which tended to lead to a similar drift to the bar from the hardcore Bluesrock fans present. In 2011 though there is no drifting off to the bar. The band and their blonde tousle haired leader hit the stage running musically and stay there for two hours of high octane Rock/Blues.

As always Ana Popovic is as good to look at as she is to hear. Her entrance onstage this year brings even more cheers than usual as she appears in a leather skirt and trademark leather studded high boots. The outfit is an indication of the way the evening is going to be musically. The rockier moments from Ana’s recent discs are well represented in storming renditions of her best up-tempo numbers like ‘Nothing Personal’, Hold On’, and ‘Steal me Away’ with it’s ‘coming right atcha!’ chug along guitar riff.

Quieter moments when they come are slow Blues rockers like her marvelous ‘Blues for M’ and of course Ana’s tribute to Steve Ray ‘Navajo Moon’. The latter is always my touchstone to Ana’s development, a constant throughout the years I’ve seen her. It was the number that in the early shows first brought people to the stage through it’s staggering array of guitar playing dexterity, only to lose them again when the dexterity seemingly teetered on the edge of self indulgence. In 2011 it’s been stripped down – not from it’s complexity because it still has a high ‘wow’ factor – but into raw emotion. It builds and builds and just when you think it can’t get any higher, Popovic switches from plectrum to finger picking and pushes it a little further in the direction of heaven. In short, these days everyone listens and bar sales are down!

Red Hot - Ana Popovic and band in Koblenz

Following Ana’s time spent in New Orleans with Producer John Porter there are also a couple of new numbers on offer this evening. “Don’t be too hard on us” Ana pleads to the audience. “We’re still playing these songs in at the moment” The good news for all Blues fans is that both songs are a return to her bluesier roots. The first “Unconditional” could be a further take from her last, love themed, ‘Blind for Love’ CD and the second ‘Worksong’? is more rootsier. “It won’t all be Blues, but there will be more Blues than before” is how she later described it to me. Good news indeed for Blues lovers. The same bluesy emotion rings out in ‘Sitting on top of the World’ which made a welcome return to the set-list after a lengthy absence. A song full of fire and emotion. Indeed the best moments in an Ana Popovic concert are are when the lady just closes her eyes to play more from her heart and less from her fingers. I would love to have had an acoustic set from her on Friday with numbers like ‘Calendars’ and ‘Blind for Love’ as she did a couple of years ago, but with every new release there are more great rocksongs songs to play and acoustic has taken a back seat. If you feel the same then you will be pleased to hear that Ana is planning to record an unplugged show at Linoui, Luxembourg this coming October. Maybe there will be an acoustic Tour to go with it? I can’t imagine an entire evening without Ana and a Strat hung from her petite shoulder.

Did I mention the APB? Ana’s band has been together now for some six years and it shows in their seamless interplay. I forgive Stephane Avellaneda for always forcing me to check the spelling of his surname because he has really made the drum-stool position in the band his own. He and bassman Ronald Jonker are a formidable rhythm combination and although they laugh and smile back and forth throughout the show it’s clear they could be locked in two separate rooms in two separate Countries and still keep the beat to perfection. Both are fexible musicians but it’s clear they are rockers by nature. Avellaneda has a powerful style and Jonker has just released a CD with his own band ‘Toaster’ which is in the best 70’s Hard Rock tradition. Blues or Hard Rock, Mike Papadia on Hammond can be relied on to deliver the right emotional tone from his corner of the stage. Despite sitting on the opposite stage side from his fellow band members he’s right there with them on the beat and rythm as well as giving Ana someone to trade riffs with.

Papadia, Popovic and Jonker making music

Blues fans have a tendency to be critical about musicians who have risen through the ranks on Blues music and Blues labels to find a more mainstream level of success. In an interview I did with Henrik Freischlader the German Blues Star recognized the need for innovation to get youngsters ‘feeling the groove’ and into the music. I saw Ana’s father taking a walk in the morning air the day after Ana’s show. He was proud that Ana has her own musical style. “Your daughter is very special” I told him. “Yes” he smiled “ but of course I would say so, she is my daughter “. Well I am in no way related to Ana Popovic, so take it from me, without any bias whatsoever, Ana is a special talent. If her musical journey takes her away from the Blues we will have a fresh sound to enjoy – and if, as the next release promises, her journey takes her back to the Blues – we will have a lot to enjoy too. So you can have your cake and eat it too. Food for thought indeed. If you were in two minds over the price of a ticket for BB King at Museumsplatz in July remember there’s a second good reason to be there and the ladies name isn’t ‘Lucille’ it’s Ana!