Author: chimesfreedom

Editor-in-chief, New York.

Ickes and Hensley on Elton John’s “Ballad of a Well-Known Gun”

Ballad of a Well-Known Gun

Recently I have been reacquainting myself with Elton John’s 1970 concept album Tumbleweed Connection. In that album, John and and Bernie Taupin delved into country and Americana themes. Although the album included the single “Country Comfort,” many of the songs on Tumbleweed Connection are not among the singer’s most well-known.

I always enjoy going back to lesser-known songs by music icons.  It helps you re-discover their talent in a new way, separate from the songs that you already know and take for granted.

Tumbleweed Connection opens with the nearly 5-minute long “Ballad of a Well-Known Gun.”  The song creates the Western setting of much of the album by chronicling the tale of a fugitive who is finally caught (“Now they’ve found me / At last they’ve found me.”).  Instead of being proud of his reputation, the singer laments, “I’m tired of hearing / There goes a well-known gun.”

The duo Rob Ickes and Trey Hensley recently dusted off “Ballad of a Well-Known Gun” and gave it a Bluegrass twist on their album, The Country Blues.  Like Elton John, they use the track to open the record.

Ickes and Hensley had worked separately as session musicians for a number of Nashville’s big names while making other recordings before teaming up. Ickes first discovered Hensley’s vocal talent when he heard Hensley’s scratch vocal for an album that Ickes’s band Blue Highway was making. The band had planned to use a guest vocal but liked Hensley’s voice so much they used him for the released version of the song.

After that, Hensley moved to Nashville and has been working with the older Ickes. In 2015, the two released Before the Sun Goes Down, which was nominated for the Best Bluegrass Album Grammy.

Their recent album The Country Blues features covers like the Grateful Dead’s “Friend of the Devil” as well as an original track. If you are a fan of bluegrass music, check it out.

Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Say Hey: Willie Mays and “The Catch”

    Say Hey

    On September 29 in 1954, Willie Mays made one of the greatest and most famous catches in baseball history.  During the eighth inning of Game 1 of the 1954 World Series, Cleveland Indians player Vic Wertz hit a drive that centerfielder Mays chased toward the wall of the Polo Grounds to make an over-the-shoulder catch on the warning track.

    “The Catch” prevented two runs from scoring in a tie game.  Mays’s throw also kept the runners from advancing.  And the Giants went on to win the game in the tenth inning.  Then, the team completed a sweep of the World Series.  The win was the Giants’ last championship in New York.

    The Season

    Mays’s catch and the Series helped cap a great season for Mays.  During the year, he hit 41 home runs and led the league with a .345 batting average.

    What makes the season even more amazing is that Mays had not played Major League Baseball the previous season or for most of 1952.  Mays, who started his professional career in the Negro Leagues, had his rookie year in Major League Baseball in 1951 after a short stint in the Minor Leagues.  But in May 1952, the United States Army drafted Mays during the Korean War.  He missed most of the 1952 season and all of the 1953 season, although he did play some baseball while in the Army.

    “Say Hey (The Willie Mays Song)”

    There is another reason 1954 was a big year for Willie Mays. Early in the season he became a part of one of the greatest baseball songs of all time, “Say Hey (The Willie Mays Song).”

    When Mays returned from the army, a New York public relations man, Ted Worner, thought it would be a good idea to have a song about the player known as the “Say Hey Kid.” So Worner arranged for columnist Dick Kleiner to write some lyrics and then for Jane Douglass create the music and the chorus.

    Epic Records liked the song and gave it to the R&B group The Treniers, but insisting that Mays participate in the recording. Mays agreed, and he ended up adding some dialogue to the song. Quincy Jones produced the recording.

    “Say Hey (The Willie Mays Song)” did not become a hit that summer, perhaps because it had to compete with at least three other songs about Willie Mays. But like few other baseball songs, “Say Hey” would live on as one of the most popular baseball songs of all time.

    Say hey, say who?
    Say Willie,
    That Giants kid is great.

    Leave your two cents in the comments.

    Buy at Amazon

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    J.T. Van Zandt Remembers His Father Townes Van Zandt

    J.T. Van Zandt

    YETI, a maker of coolers, created a web series about sons and fathers.  In one of the episodes, entitled “Anchor Point,” Townes Van Zandt’s eldest son J.T. talks about growing up in the shadow of a destructive legend.

    In the video, J.T. explains how his relationship with his father led to him finding his own passion for fly fishing.  The short video is a fascinating look at how J.T. found his own path and how he reflects on his father’s legacy. He also talks about how Townes Van Zandt affects the way he is as a father himself. It’s really quite beautiful. Check it out.

    “Figure out what it is that makes you happy.  Work hard.  Forget about the rest.  Come home.  And be a good man.  Be a f-ing man.  And go to sleep, and wake up early, and do it again.”

    Other episodes in the My Old Man series are available online.

    Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt Travel Space in “Passengers”

    Pratt Lawrence

    The trailer for the upcoming movie Passengers shows Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt using all of their charms in outer space. The film looks like it is sort of a rom-com in space, although I suspect there might be a twist or two.

    In the film, Lawrence and Pratt are on a ship traveling to a distant planet with thousands of others in a sleep state. But something goes wrong, waking Lawrence and Pratt 90 years too soon.

    From the trailer, it is difficult to tell whether the movie features a good science fiction story or whether the makers are banking on the two popular leading actors. Still, it looks like it might be worth taking a chance on seeing the movie. Check out the trailer.

    Passengers is directed by Morten Tyldum based on a screenplay by Jon Spaihts. Passengers hits theaters on December 21, 2016.

    Will you see “Passengers”? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Sting Debuts New Song Inspired By Recent Deaths

    Sting 57TH & 9TH

    Sting recently debuted a new song on Later… With Jools Holland.  The song “50,000” was inspired by the recent deaths performers like David Bowie, Prince, Lemmy, and Glenn Frey.

    Sting recently explained that “50,000” reflects on mortality even though it does not mention any of the deceased stars by name.  The number in the title refers to fans singing and raising their hands, while the performer recognizes that the adulation cannot change the fact that he is mortal.

    Check out Sting’s “50,000.”

    “50,000” will appear on Sting’s upcoming album 57TH & 9TH, which hits stores and the Internet on November 11, 2016. As Rolling Stone reports, the album will be Sting’s first “rock” album since 2003 when Sting released Sacred Love.

    What do you think of “50,000”? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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