Mr. Heartbreak

Yeah, in a lot of ways, that makes it more disturbing and confusing. Was it deliberately provocative but not sincere? Seems unlikely. Was it based on self-loathing? Maybe. In any case, it had to feel like a real gut punch to the fans, especially those who experienced it first hand. And any catharsis she may have felt will quickly be outweighed by the huge negative feedback and immediate career consequences. I don't remember any event similar to this. It's like there's really no precedent.

She is committing career suicide. She had a decent little fanbase, I would imagine, although she never reached mass audiences. Most of her fanbase is people from the LGBT community. Imagine if Ellen Degeneres came out and said, "This was all bullshit. And by the way, God hates fags." It would devastate people, and make her extremely unpopular. This is worse, because Michelle Shocked has to rely on touring for her income, I would imagine. She ain't selling millions of CDs. Worst of all, it appears it may be all based on self-loathing, denial, etc. She may have gotten married to a man at some po

http://www.dallasvoice.com/michelle-shocked-said-what-1990-outlines-interview-surfaces-10434.html This gets sadder and sadder. Apparently, she came out as a lesbian in 1990, but then became a born-again later. I wonder if she went through some kind of "pray away the gay" retraining? And now she's out there saying this stuff. She's very talented, but obviously very tormented as well. And she just cut off her own fanbase.

The music comes first and foremost for me too, and I'll still take Buddy over Clapton any day of the week, whether they are singing, playing guitar, or both. So there you go. For that matter, I prefer Peter Green. As for that clip I posted, there is plenty of guitar playing during the first three minutes. And he's playing it held straight up in the air, behind his back, with his teeth. Even with his admittedly diminished skills, I find him much more enjoyable than any of the British "guitar gods" who play the blues. By the way, David Fricke posted a very complimentary, almost reverential revie

Oliver Twist is hard because it was only his second novel (at the ripe old age of 26!). Better to go with Great Expectations, A Tale of Two Cities, Dombey & Son, David Copperfield or Hard Times. They're all great in different ways, but those are among his best.

Why did that not come up for me? Maybe I used "guitar" instead of "guitarist" in the search function? No idea. Oh well, carry on... Edit: Yep, that was it...Searched for guitar, not guitarist. Oh man, I forgot Phil Manzanera. Love that guy.

Perfect example. I would never have thought of him.

Well, I think people like to see a show. That was one of the reasons Hendrix was so popular. Mick Jagger said he thought Hendrix's performance was "the most sexual" thing he had ever seen. Not a word about Hendrix's technical proficiency. He and Buddy Guy both copped a lot of that showmanship from another great blues guitar player, T. Bone Walker. In fact, one of the knocks on Jerry Garcia was always that he, like Clapton, pretty much stood there and played his guitar. Nothing else dramatic onstage. I honestly just grabbed the first Buddy Guy clip I found on YouTube that was of decent qualit

Hmm, the Clapton thread got me thinking: didn't we used to have a thread on top 10 guitar players? I looked for it and didn't find it with the search function, so here's a new one. People get really baffled by these: no Page!? No Beck!? No ______!? For me, it's part technical proficiency, and part feeling/soul/etc. I always like these lists, because people come up with names you don't hear much, like Roy Buchanan or Freddie King. Frank Zappa Jimi Hendrix Bruce Cockburn Syd Barrett Jerry Garcia Buddy Guy John McLaughlin Carlos Santana Hubert Sumlin Muddy Waters Honorable mentions: Howlin'

If you like him that much, you will have a great time. And if you read online later that anyone was disappointed by the show in some way, you will be baffled all over again! Lol One of my guitar heroes is the great Bruce Cockburn. Huge in Canada, barely known here in the states. I saw him 3 nights in a row earlier this month, and he can still deliver. But he didn't even sell out these little theaters that hold 400-500 people. Very strange.

This is how I feel too. I don't begrudge the guy his success, and I think he has plenty of good songs. I just much prefer his work with the Yardbirds and Cream to most of his other work. Pretty thin resume in my mind. I think he's a likable bloke, and I am glad he has worked hard to introduce Robert Johnson, Buddy Guy, Freddie King, Albert King, etc., to the masses. I just like all those cats better. Even the classic lengthy workout on Cream's version of Crossroads does not hold my attention. My mind wanders from it. So I guess I am hopeless. But if people love the guy, more power to 'em.

Peter Green is another of those early greats. Again, much prefer him to Clapton. It's just all about personal preference. By the way, SRV was only 10 years old in 1964, and his career as a musician didn't really take off until the late 70s to early 80s. Not exactly one of the "fathers." Just sayin'...

This is exactly right. Unfortunately, with the constant drumbeat of "government bad, lower taxes good," it seems unlikely that it will be done on the scale that is needed.

Clapton is a legend, so of course, many people consider him one of the greats. Not really surprising that not everyone thinks so. I happen to be a huge Zappa fanatic (as my icon indicates), and consider him one of rock's most underrated guitarists; by contrast, I find Clapton to be pretty tame. Kinda like a bluesier version of David Gilmour. Don't get me wrong, I like Gilmour okay, but he's not on my short list of top guitarists either, though I would rate him much higher than Clapton. Some of us like guitar that is either a little more "unhinged-sounding," for lack of a better phrase. I'm thi

Count me among the many who, mistakenly, thought she was a lesbian a long time ago.

Now that I've finally finished watching The Wire, what else is worth watching on HBO GO? Eastbound & Down? Treme? Six Feet Under? I've seen just about everything else on there that I'm interested in.

You guys are freaking brilliant. I could have sat here all day and talked about how I like the guy but always found him rather bland, insipid, etc., as a blues player, but I never in a million years would have identified the Gibson vs. Strat issue. That is probably a huge part of what bothers me (that, and songs like the heartfelt but dreadfully sentimental Tears In Heaven, which I hate to even criticize, due to its connection to the actual tragedy that inspired it, but still...) As for Clapton playing blues tunes, I'm sorry, but I still don't think he's anywhere close to Buddy Guy's league. T

What did people think about the CPAC straw poll? Looks like Rand Paul and Marco Rubio got the highest marks. Is that par for the course, picking the most right wing people available? Does it bode well or ill for the primaries? Did they learn nothing from 2012? After Paul and Rubio, Santorum (WTF?) and Christie polled a distant 3rd and 4th place. I could see Christie, but Rand Paul? Santorum? Jeez, what about Bachmann, too, while you're at it?

This sums up my feelings quite nicely. It's too bad, because Clapton himself seems like a genuinely nice guy, and I actually like some of his more well-known popular songs. I even kinda like Lay Down Sally! But when he tries to be Buddy Guy, he just comes across like a poser. He's done a lot of good (his rehab, getting people like Buddy more publicity, etc., etc.), but I just don't rate him in the pantheon of guitar heroes like so many people do. That being said, looks like a pretty solid set list...he's done worse sets in the past, that's for sure.

Not much point in creating a new thread for this question, so I'll just pose it here: what is your favorite Bowie album? I'm not counting greatest hits collections like ChangesOne. Just normal releases. For me, it's Low. Such a cool album. I'm a big Eno fan, and Eno is all over this thing, especially the second half: writing, singing, playing multiple instruments. Love it.

That TRI link is already gone from YouTube. Didn't take long. Bummer, I was going to make time to check it out today.

I think it's louder. Then again, I have tinnitus from too many rock shows, so what the hell do I know.

Once I finish a song, I'm ready for a different one right away. I'm kind of ADD like that. In fact...oh wait...cool, Dylan is on my iTunes now! What was I saying?

My name is Yon Yonson... Oh, wait, that should be another thread.

I am in the minority, as I like Summerteeth best. Very Beatlesesque. The others are too dry and claustrophobic for my taste.