The Rolling Stones – Prodigal Son (Live in Oakland; Archival Footage)
A folk-blues number off 1968’s Beggars Banquet, “Prodigal Son” stays true to its name. Jagger sings the tale of a young man leaving home, risking it all, failing, and returning home to a father just happy to see his boy again. It’s a rather happy ending for a blues song.
The biblically-inspired song is not a product of Mick and Keith but of a Black bluesman-turned minister, Reverend Robert Wilkins. In another surprise happy ending, Wilkins was (apparently) accidentally uncredited on a major rerelease of Beggars Banquet. This led to a loss of royalties for him. When London Records (the Stones’ label) found out, they did the right thing and credited him and paid out his share of the royalties.
“Prodigal Son” is played in Open E and is “really easy” according the guy leading a YouTube guitar lesson I watched today. Hey man, if it was so easy I wouldn’t be watching your tutorial. Less condescension, more explanation. Thank you kindly.
Neal Francis – Changes, Pts. 1 & 2 (Live on KEXP)
No, not that NEIL FRANCES, this is Neal Francis. And from what I can tell they’re engaged in a full-blown proxy war over the name.
Well, maybe war isn’t the right term. More like good-humored bout. FRANCES did request Francis to change his name, but after some adult conversation the two acts decided to lean into the confusion and make light of it. No lawsuits? No bitterness? In the American music industry? Happy endings for all today (get your mind out of the gutter).
NEIL FRANCES – Show Me the Right
Yes, that NEIL FRANCES.
We Were Promised Jetpacks – If it Happens (Live Session)
Like The Temper Trap? Melodic Rock? Scottish Twitter? We Were Promised Jetpacks is for you.
The bandmates are friends since their high school days in Edinburgh (though I’m guessing it’s called Finishing Preparatory School or something).
See, you can still be friends with people from your high school and be cool. Just make sure to be an indie rock band with a few FIFA soundtrack hits, too.
LCD Soundsystem – oh baby (electric lady sessions)
I’m not going to tell you to appreciate this version of “oh baby.” You’re your own person. But I can suggest you throw on some good headphones. Let it be mid-to-late afternoon on a nice day. Take a stroll. Let that creeping main character feeling settle in. It’s okay to enjoy it for a little, you earned it. Let it pass. Embrace the sunlight. Find a groove to your step. See the leaves in the trees. Throw this song on. How we feeling?
...and the rest of ’em.… yall wanna throw the football with The Brook & The Bluff?…. an old favorite from when Old Filters was all blog and no newsletter (resurfacing credit to Tim L.)… and Amtrac gives Shakka’s “When Will I See You Again” a deep remix.
<===>Portland, Maine is getting its first bikeshare system (including e-bikes!). Late to the game, but better than nothing.
I wish these were around when I was growing up because I could have made a small fortune picking up citybikes from surrounding towns on Sunday mornings, in exchange for a reasonable fee.
<===>An article on artificial intelligence safety (think Terminator scenarios) exploring the pros and cons of certain development timelines (do we slow development to ensure safety guardrails are in place? Does that just allow China to overtake us?). I’m still trying to grasp this debate, but Mark Zuckerberg is on the side of “killer AI is not a real threat” so I’m going to assume killer AI is a real threat.
<===>Reality is an illusion, and the demon behind it is… our own brain and eyes?
<===>With great power...