For The Sake of Clarity - The Digital Tavern » Music http://blog.digitaltavern.com -- There are no strangers here, only friends you haven't met Wed, 28 Dec 2011 00:58:46 +0000 en hourly 1 -- There are no strangers here, only friends you haven't met Allan Karl no Allan Karl allan@worldrider.com allan@worldrider.com (Allan Karl) © 2011 WorldRider Productions, Allan F. Karl Encintias, California -There are no strangers here, only friends you haven't met motorcycle, bicycling, bicycle, travel, around the world, culture, Finland, South America, India, Thailand, Food, WorldRider For The Sake of Clarity - The Digital Tavern » Music http://blog.digitaltavern.com/wp-content/plugins/powerpress/rss_default.jpg http://blog.digitaltavern.com/category/music Leucadia, California Monthly Dave Alvin Pleases and Delivers on his 11th Solo Release http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/dave-alvin-pleases-and-delivers-on-his-11th-solo-release http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/dave-alvin-pleases-and-delivers-on-his-11th-solo-release#comments Sat, 02 Jul 2011 07:45:01 +0000 allan http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/dave-alvin-pleases-and-delivers-on-his-11th-solo-release I can’t remember how I was turned onto the music of Dave Alvin. I liked the rockabilly and catchy music of the Blasters, the band he and and his brother Phil founded while growing up in the eastern Los Angeles community of Downey. I never saw nor bought any of the roots music recorded by the [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/dave-alvin-pleases-and-delivers-on-his-11th-solo-release/feed 1 Music I can't remember how I was turned onto the music of Dave Alvin. I liked the rockabilly and catchy music of the Blasters, the band he and and his brother Phil founded while growing up in the eastern Los Angeles community of Downey. I can't remember how I was turned onto the music of Dave Alvin. I liked the rockabilly and catchy music of the Blasters, the band he and and his brother Phil founded while growing up in the eastern Los Angeles community of Downey. I never saw nor bought any of the roots music recorded by the Knitters, an ambitious alt country/folk project Alvin participated with John Doe, Xene and others from the LA punk band "X". Dave Alvin performing with the Gene Taylor Blues Band at Casbah in San Diego in December 2010. But all this doesn't matter. It's Alvin's solo career that has captured my attention and turned me into admirer. Not only for his excellent songwriting prowess, but his fine guitar work. At once driving and rocking, and at other times grooving and contemplated, Alvin commands the electric and acoustic six-string instruments like anyone comfortable in their space. A few years back I saw him play a very intimate venue called Acoustic San Diego and have a few videos posted on YouTube from that show. This past winter I connected with Dave and saw him play the stale beer reeking downtown grunge bar The Casbah in San Diego. Packed into a tiny space that offers about 100 or so fans standing room views of local bands in an intimate if not claustrophobic space. Dave joined with ex-bandmate Gene Taylor, for a series of shows in California in December and January. But what truly brings me to this music-reflecting post is the release of Alvin's latest solo album, Eleven Eleven. According to Alvin's liner notes on the CD (yes, I actually purchased the physical CD) he named the disk largely due to his brief contemplation of numerology. That is, this is Alvin's 11th solo release, the disk was released in 2011 and there are 11 songs on the disk. Perhaps most interesting, Dave Alvin was born on November 11th. Though this makes me wonder why he didn't wait to release the album on his birthday this year: 11/11/11. Ahhhh, but this disk is titled: Eleven Eleven. Moving from the Americana folk-inispired releases of West of the West, King of California and his 2009 disk Dave Alvin & The Guilty Women , Eleven Eleven is a rocking driving and blues-inspired journey into Alvin's life on the road. From the saucy blues guitar licks of Harlan County to the feedback intro and rhythmic Bo Diddley-esque pounding of percussion that forms the bed for Alvin's deep resonating vocals and classic story telling on Run Conejo Run, Eleven Eleven doesn't fail to inspire or satisfy. Sure he pulls back for a few acoustical diversions with Manzanita and No Worries Mija with its heart-felt and whimpering accordion and pedal steel guitar, but the spirit of this release is the driving energy that once help define the Blasters. And for the sake of Nostalgia, Alvin recruits brother Phil to join him on the aptly titled What's Up With Your Brother. If you haven't heard of Dave Alvin or checked into his music lately, take a moment and check out his music. I'm sure there's something there to satisfy most musical tastes. And if he happens to roll into your area and you have a chance to see him at a dive bar or small venue, you should take advantage of the opportunity to see a true professional whose passion and commitment to his art and craft is evident in every minute of the more than two-hour sweat-building performance he'll deliver. Maybe I'll see you there! If you're a Bob Dylan fan you'll be blown away by his version of Highway 61 Revisited, the cut he chose to record for the Uncut Presents Highway 61 Revisited - Revisited songs of Bob Dylan. Check it out. Allan Karl no Riding That Train, Italian Wine & Late Night Jazz: The Streets of LA http://blog.digitaltavern.com/travelogue/riding-that-train-italian-wine-late-night-jazz-the-streets-of-la http://blog.digitaltavern.com/travelogue/riding-that-train-italian-wine-late-night-jazz-the-streets-of-la#comments Sun, 02 May 2010 19:02:56 +0000 allan http://blog.digitaltavern.com/travelogue/riding-that-train-italian-wine-late-night-jazz-the-streets-of-la Living in Southern California certainly has its benefits. The weather is perhaps the best in the country, there’s great live music, entertainment and most of the airports, even the smaller regional hubs are well served by the airlines. So when one needs to flee southern California, there are always many options.

Another benefit of Southern California is both its extensive [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/travelogue/riding-that-train-italian-wine-late-night-jazz-the-streets-of-la/feed 5 Treating Wanderlust With Live Music http://blog.digitaltavern.com/travelogue/treating-wanderlust-with-live-music http://blog.digitaltavern.com/travelogue/treating-wanderlust-with-live-music#comments Mon, 19 Apr 2010 06:43:25 +0000 allan http://blog.digitaltavern.com/travelogue/treating-wanderlust-with-live-music 201004182329.jpgSeems that the only traveling I find myself doing these days is either up and down the California coast. While my return to trip to Israel in December was an exception, I discovered this week that low mileage traveling combined with stellar live music can be quite satisfying to this nomadic wanderer. I got lucky. Lucky in several ways. First, [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/travelogue/treating-wanderlust-with-live-music/feed 0 Catching Up With The iPad, Al Stewart and Oregon Pinot Noir. http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/catching-up-2 http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/catching-up-2#comments Tue, 06 Apr 2010 18:56:30 +0000 allan http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/catching-up-2 Time for a quick update on the Digital Tavern. Pardon the diversion, but this post will focus on some personal and business items that I hope you’ll find interesting or at least somewhat amused.

First, it’s all the hype and there’s no doubt you’ve seen it on the news, heard strangers talking about it in line at Starbucks or the [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/catching-up-2/feed 0 YouTube On The Prowl http://blog.digitaltavern.com/creative-pursuit/youtube-on-the-prowl http://blog.digitaltavern.com/creative-pursuit/youtube-on-the-prowl#comments Sat, 10 Jan 2009 22:35:34 +0000 allan http://blog.digitaltavern.com/?p=622 I’ve got a few video composites from my motorcycle trip around the world posted on my WorldRider account on YouTube. About a week ago I received a notification from YouTube, ironically the message was in Portuguese, that my “Riding Bolivia” piece included copyrighted [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/creative-pursuit/youtube-on-the-prowl/feed 0 John Hiatt – Humphrey’s By The Bay, Shelter Island – May 22, 2006 http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/john-hiatt-humphreys-by-the-bay-shelter-island-may-22-2006 http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/john-hiatt-humphreys-by-the-bay-shelter-island-may-22-2006#comments Wed, 24 May 2006 11:00:26 +0000 allan http://www.allankarl.com/blog/?p=548 It was an idyllic southern California night complete with a burning orange and red sunset, gentle breeze swaying postcard palm trees and John Hiatt with North Mississippi Allstars (NMAS) tearing up the stage at Humphrey’s By The Bay in San Diego. Toward the end of his 90-minute set Hiatt said “the weathermen said it was going to rain…I guess they [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/john-hiatt-humphreys-by-the-bay-shelter-island-may-22-2006/feed 0 Demme’s Masterful Portrait of Neil Young in Concert http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/demmes-masterful-portrait-of-neil-young-in-concert http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/demmes-masterful-portrait-of-neil-young-in-concert#comments Sat, 25 Feb 2006 04:13:31 +0000 allan http://www.allankarl.com/blog/?p=14 Demme’s Masterful Portrait of Neil Young in Concert

HeartofgoldIt took a few years until I appreciated the music and genius of Neil Young. My high-school girlfriends all loved Neil Young, Crosby Stills Nash & Young and all the other derivations. His music didn’t fit into the profile of my young teenage angst. I was geared to Led Zeppelin, Blue Oyster [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/demmes-masterful-portrait-of-neil-young-in-concert/feed 0 The Worst Song of All Time? http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/the-worst-song-of-all-time http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/the-worst-song-of-all-time#comments Thu, 11 Nov 2004 14:44:23 +0000 allan http://www.allankarl.com/blog/?p=65 BBC reports that a Beatles song from the White Album has been voted as the worst song of all time. I'd have to disagree. Take virtually any song by Foreigner or Journey and it'd score much lower in my book. What's your worst song of all time?

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/the-worst-song-of-all-time/feed 0 I’ll Never Forget You Scott http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/ill-never-forget-you-scott http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/ill-never-forget-you-scott#comments Wed, 29 Sep 2004 23:20:20 +0000 allan http://www.allankarl.com/blog/?p=75 I missed Scott Alexander’s phone call this afternoon. His voice on the message was somber and monotone. “Big Al,” he cracked. “The legend is gone. Scott Muni is dead.”

Growing up in a small Connecticut suburb of New York City I spent hours and hours listening to Scott Muni on WNEW-FM. [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/ill-never-forget-you-scott/feed 0 I missed Scott Alexander's phone call this afternoon. His voice on the message was somber and monotone. "Big Al," he cracked. "The legend is gone. Scott Muni is dead." - Growing up in a small Connecticut suburb of New York City I spent hours and h... I missed Scott Alexander's phone call this afternoon. His voice on the message was somber and monotone. "Big Al," he cracked. "The legend is gone. Scott Muni is dead." Growing up in a small Connecticut suburb of New York City I spent hours and hours listening to Scott Muni on WNEW-FM. The low rumble and deep timbre of his voice flowed through my headphones as I learned and listened about the Rolling STones, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Bob Dylan, The Grateful Dead and many more rock legends of the 70's and 80's. Scott Muni died today. He was 74. You might call Scott the founding father of alternative radio. There's no question that WNEW-FM was responsible for creating a new format, a new genre of radio with Scott Muni its leader and icon. It was Scott who moved many of us from the top-40 bubble gum jingle of AM radio to the underground. The ethereal and mystic sounds of FM. My adolescent affinity and passion for music never faded. I can still hear Scott's's voice today. I later worked as a DJ in Hartford, Connecticut and Syracuse, New York. His cadence, casualness and immense knowledge of music influenced me and fueled my desire to learn about music and to fulfill my dream of being an FM DJ. It's sad that the days of DJs like Scott seem to be past us. Now we're pumped generic and homogenized payola pop courtesy of ClearChannel. Or, numb to the sterile corporate rock we turn to Internet Radio or satellite services like XM or Sirius. I do have hope. And maybe we'll see Scott's influence rise in these alternatives to broadcast radio. I'll miss you Scott. But your voice is in my ears forever. Thanks for the inspiration. Listen to Scott at Live Aid in 1985 - here. Allan Karl no Living Wirelessly: Airport Express Update http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/living-wirelessly-airport-express-update http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/living-wirelessly-airport-express-update#comments Sun, 25 Jul 2004 04:38:23 +0000 allan http://www.allankarl.com/blog/?p=93 My new Apple Airport Express arrived earlier this week. Within 45 minutes I had it connected to my wireless network here and streaming music to my home theatre sound system. About the size of a cigarette pack, it compacts a Airport Base Station in a portable device that adds ethernet and USB ports for expanding the network or adding [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/living-wirelessly-airport-express-update/feed 0 15,000 Songs and Counting. I Want To Access & Listen To Them Everywhere! http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/15000-songs-and-counting-i-want-to-access-listen-to-them-everywhere http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/15000-songs-and-counting-i-want-to-access-listen-to-them-everywhere#comments Sun, 18 Jul 2004 15:33:07 +0000 allan http://www.allankarl.com/blog/?p=95 Using netTunes, Airport Express and AirTunes. Isn't this what the Digital Hub was supposedly to be all about?

It was just about a year ago when I completed converting my more than 1,200 CDs into AAC/MP3 format where they now reside on a 2000 vintage G4 Cube. The Mac Cube is my Music Server. And since relegating this great [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/15000-songs-and-counting-i-want-to-access-listen-to-them-everywhere/feed 0 All Music Sports A New Face http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/all-music-sports-a-new-face http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/all-music-sports-a-new-face#comments Wed, 14 Jul 2004 16:26:42 +0000 allan http://www.allankarl.com/blog/?p=97 I noticed that AllMusic.com quietly updated their site and identity with a complete redesign. If you are a music fan and savour the history, discography, reviews, guest performers and nearly anything you could ever want to know about your favorite artists, then get over to AllMusic and see what you've been missing.

For me, [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/all-music-sports-a-new-face/feed 0 Gram Parsons Tribute – Santa Barbara http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/gram-parsons-tribute-santa-barbara http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/gram-parsons-tribute-santa-barbara#comments Wed, 14 Jul 2004 14:47:12 +0000 allan http://www.allankarl.com/blog/?p=98 So the last time I checked in I was off to spend a long weekend in the sunny Southern California community of Santa Barbara. The draw? Good friends, good music and good wine. Left the laptop at home and headed up the coast.

Highlight of the amazing weekend was a benefit concert paying tribute to Gram Parsons, the legendary musician [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/gram-parsons-tribute-santa-barbara/feed 0 iPods Threaten Corporate & Enterprise Security (oh no!) http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/ipods-threaten-corporate-enterprise-security-oh-no http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/ipods-threaten-corporate-enterprise-security-oh-no#comments Thu, 08 Jul 2004 14:55:57 +0000 allan http://www.allankarl.com/blog/?p=101 Ban The iPod On Campus! At Work!

Good God. I see it coming.

Even the driest of technical or trade publications aren't immune to the lure of hype that supermarket tabloids and Rupert Murdoch are famous for. In this article in the every exciting Enterprise Security Today, Esther points me to the article where the headline harps “iPods [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/ipods-threaten-corporate-enterprise-security-oh-no/feed 0 Sony Color MP3 Player? http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/sony-color-mp3-player http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/sony-color-mp3-player#comments Mon, 10 May 2004 23:54:01 +0000 allan http://www.allankarl.com/blog/?p=110 A rival to the iPod? This is interesting.

BTW, more updates from China later today…

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/sony-color-mp3-player/feed 0 RealNetworks Pleads With Apple To Go After Microsoft http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/realnetworks-pleads-with-apple-to-go-after-microsoft http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/realnetworks-pleads-with-apple-to-go-after-microsoft#comments Thu, 15 Apr 2004 13:50:16 +0000 allan http://www.allankarl.com/blog/?p=123 Ok. So maybe my title is a bit on the tabloid side of media hype. But according to an article in tomorrow's New York Times Rob Glaser, Real CEO offered to create a “tactical alliance” with Apple in an e-mail message to Steve Jobs.

Apparently there was a bit of “and if you don't” message [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/realnetworks-pleads-with-apple-to-go-after-microsoft/feed 0 Anything But Clear. Poof. Howard Stern's Gone, Gone, Gone. http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/anything-but-clear-poof-howard-sterns-gone-gone-gone http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/anything-but-clear-poof-howard-sterns-gone-gone-gone#comments Fri, 09 Apr 2004 07:15:03 +0000 allan http://www.allankarl.com/blog/?p=127 This just in. Clear Channel announced a few hours ago that it would permanently pull The Howard Stern Show from its airways and has been fined $495,000 for indecency stemming from the Stern Show. Clear Channel who last month temporarily pulled the show from its roster of stations after the FCC began its witch hunt for indecency, pointed [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/anything-but-clear-poof-howard-sterns-gone-gone-gone/feed 0 John Hiatt – Solo Acoustic – Coach House, San Juan Capistrano, California http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/john-hiatt-solo-acoustic-coach-house-san-juan-capistrano-california http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/john-hiatt-solo-acoustic-coach-house-san-juan-capistrano-california#comments Tue, 16 Mar 2004 15:23:09 +0000 allan http://www.allankarl.com/blog/?p=129 Another gig at the infamous Coach House in San Juan. The Coach House is one of those love/hate venues for me. I love the fact that they attract top artists such as Hiatt, Al Stewart, Adrian Belew, Peter Fripp, JJ Cale, Bruce Cockburn, Robben Ford, David Lindley, Norah Jones and many more. But the venue has questionable acoustics, they [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/john-hiatt-solo-acoustic-coach-house-san-juan-capistrano-california/feed 0 Al Stewart – Live http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/al-stewart-live http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/al-stewart-live#comments Mon, 15 Mar 2004 09:22:36 +0000 allan http://www.allankarl.com/blog/?p=130 It has been a busy week or so since I last was able to put some time into quality blogging. So I'll try to catch up with a number of posts today and tomorrow.

Music. I'm going to do a little housekeeping on musical activities of the last couple weeks.

Al Stewart – Live at The Coach House, San [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/al-stewart-live/feed 0 MacWorld San Francisco – Live Report http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/macworld-san-francisco-live-report http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/macworld-san-francisco-live-report#comments Wed, 07 Jan 2004 01:56:12 +0000 allan http://www.allankarl.com/blog/?p=157 iPod

iPod Mini Comes in 5 colors!

Jobs is talking iPod success. The holiday quarter for the iPod, Apple sold 700,000 + iPods. This means now Apple has sold more than 2 million iPods. Apple is showing the iPod sales curve.

Marketshare for Apple in MP3 market: 31% and 55% in revenues. (no December figures inlcuded in this market) [...]

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]]> http://blog.digitaltavern.com/mac-my-day/macworld-san-francisco-live-report/feed 0 What About The Pig? http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/530 http://blog.digitaltavern.com/music/530#comments Fri, 03 Oct 2003 06:32:10 +0000 allan http://www.allankarl.com/blog/?p=530 Years ago I saw Pink Floyd play live at Madison Square Garden. The real Pink Floyd, that is. The band that contained all members — especially the brain child of the band, Roger Waters.

I was a teenager naive, excited and alone in the Big Apple. Sitting in excellent seats while the band performed the entire works of both the [...]

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