Under The Radar: Franklin Bruno

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Lo-fi. Indie. Minimalist. Sparse. DIY. 

No, no, no.you’re thinking Elephant 6 or Lou Barlow or Elliot Smith. Let me try again. 

Pensive. Ironic. Wry. Subtle. Original. 

Ahh, now we have it. Franklin Bruno is a witty writer whose stripped down songs toss the focus onto his sterling wordplay where it belongs. You will have to sail some obtuse melodies and offbeat vocals on occasion, but it’s a journey worth taking.** 

As you know, I sometimes hit the music library and pull out a title that’s either a great old memory, a lesser-known artist, or sometimes both. And then I write a new essay and perhaps link to an old one and suggest you give a listen. Often times I’m pretty clear about what happened to the artist since then; often they’re pretty well known or perhaps joined a different group that attained success. 

But sometimes I have no idea. Such is the case with Franklin Bruno, who at the time I felt drew small comparisons to witty songwriters like Randy Newman, Martin Mull and Loudon Wainwright III. So after a listen to Kiss Without Makeup I was curious to find out. 

Looks like he continued to release more music on Absolute Kosher. There’s another album that came out not long afterwards and a collection of songs from over the next decade. 

And I guess my Elvis Costello reference in my original review bore some merit. Bruno wrote about Armed Forces for the 33 1/3 (Thirty-Three and a Third) book series. According to these Amazon reviews, it’s much like his music you either like it or you don’t. 

He’s a fellow music scribe, working for the Village Voice and Salon, among others. (Since we underpaid hooligans don’t have union meetings or annual conventions, it’s not always a given that our paths cross.) 

He went on to get his doctorate from UCLA and he is (or was) the visiting Professor of Philosophy at Bard College? Sweet job, although I know he must be freezing hs ass off walking across the quad with that wind whipping off the Hudson. Perhaps someday they will show prospective students some of his work as they tour the campus. (When I made the rounds I was baited with projects by Chevy Chase and Donald Fagen.) 

So Franklin Bruno has continued firmly down the path of arts and academia, which is a good thing. I’ll have to circle back and check out some of the music I missed, and I recommend that you at least give Kiss Without Makeup a try. 

** Continue reading that decade old review at PopMatters. 

His page at Absolute Kosher.

Another John and Paul

 

Not that John and Paul. 

John Wicks and Paul Collins fronted two of the best power pop bands of their era in The Records and The Beat. Now, thirty years later, they’ve been hitting the stage together from clubs to theatres to living rooms bringing the gospel of pop to the masses. 

Wicks and Collins have continued to record since their heyday and between them they represent a traveling encyclopedia of classic hits. “All Over The World”, “Hearts in Her Eyes”, “Rock and Roll Girl”, “Walking Out On Love”, “Starry Eyes”, “Don’t Wait Up For Me”, “Teenarama”, “Different Kind of Girl”…the list goes on and on. Both men had success with prior bands (Wicks with a short tenure in Kursaal Flyers and Collins with The Nerves) but in the late 70s they both found greater success by creating music that echoed The Beatles, The Raspberries, Badfinger and The Byrds. 

Now for a special treat – a recent live performance is available through two of their biggest proponents on the Internet. Power Pop Overdose and Power Pop Criminals (or as I prefer to call them, PPO and PPC) are sharing the hosting duties for this great recording, Live At McCabe’s from August 23rd, 2009. It’s a free download authorized by the artists, people! 

And if that’s not enough to get your skinny tie out of the closet, did I mention that Peter Case joins in? 

Hopefully many of you got the chance to see them live during their Living Room Tour last year. If not, this is one hell of a consolation prize. Kudos to Curty and Angelo  for providing the links and artwork and to John and Paul for generously making this recording available through them. 

Part One: Power Pop Criminals 

Part Two: Power Pop Overdose 

Even better news – there’s a 2010 House Concert Tour being planned. Check out their website for details. 

Here’s a quick audio overview. 

The Kids Are The Same

One Last Word on the Subject

High Roads, Haiti and Grande Ballrooms

Class act, class exit.

Conan O’Brien proved last night that it is possible to walk away from an ugly situation by taking the high road. His last show was filled with fun, pranks, great music and a heartfelt message to his fans.  

Watch here.  

And in case NBC takes down the video, here’s a transcript of his comments, plus clips from his fellow talk-show hosts.  

I could write fifty pages on why people love Conan O’Brien and not touch that four minute speech.  

***  

If you’re the type of person who likes to contribute to worthwhile projects, here are a couple of opportunities on wildly different scales.  

  

I’ll Stand By You  

Hope For Haiti Now conducted a very successful telethon last night where millions of dollars were raised for the cause. I’m as skeptical as the next person about charity scams and how some organizations skim large percentages off the top for administration costs with little of the money actually going to the charity. But this project was set up with public transparency and a guarantee that one hundred percent of the donations will go to a handful of specific organizations who are on the ground in Haiti.  

Please beware of scam sites. This is the official one.  

Of course, you might be donating through work (with an employer match) or directly to an established organization you trust (i.e. The American Red Cross). Nothing wrong with that – charity comes from the heart, and whatever you do is greatly needed and surely appreciated. It could even be non-monetary, like volunteerism or prayer. But know that despite what some religious nutjobs and political wingnuts are saying, this is not reparation but a natural disaster that has flattened a helpless people.  

We take much for granted. There but for geography and fate go I.  

***  

Where rock'n'roll met its match in Detroit

On a whole different level, documentarian Tony D’Annunzio is completing a film project about the legendary Grande Ballroom in Detroit. The Grande was as critical to the development of the Detroit rock music scene as the Fillmore West was to San Francisco and the Fillmore East to New York. This is where every band from Detroit aspired to play, and where every band from out of town had to walk the gauntlet and prove themselves worthy.  

Check out this amazing trailer featuring several legendary musicians who fondly recall the place where magic happened.  

Here’s the official blurb from the project website:  

LOUDER THAN LOVE is the story of the Grande Ballroom in Detroit Michigan. The Grande Ballroom was the birthplace of the Detroit Rock Music Scene. Bands like MC5,Iggy & The Stooges,Ted Nugent & The Amboy Dukes,Alice Cooper and many more got their start here. The Grande not only influenced local Detroit musicians but inspired bands from all over the US & from Europe. Legendary acts like Led Zeppelin, Cream, BB King, Janis Joplin, Pink Floyd and The Who graced the stage at the Grande on a regular basis. While the west coast was groovin’ to the sounds of the “Summer of Love” in 1967, Detroit was pumping out a hard driving,gritty and raw sound that was LOUDER THAN LOVE.  

Sounds like a worthy project and a great tribute to a landmark. Contact Tony D’Annunizio through that webpage if you need more information.  

Just don’t accidentally contact this guy.

T.G.I.F. – I’d Rather Coco

Before anything else, let’s credit the man who created this artwork in the first place – Mike Mitchell. I’ve seen this replicated everywhere and not only does he not get the props but people are slightly modifying and then selling his image without compensation. I believe we call that (ugh)… sampling.

Now on to the guest of honor.

Tonight is the last Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien. Final guests? Tom Hanks, Will Ferrell and Neil Young, plus an unannounced pop-in or two, I’m sure. An unfunny comic segment that appears to cost NBC a fortune in royalties. A long standing ovation before the show – and afterwards, of course. Ratings to die for. And the last glimpse of what should have been a show we could have all grown old with.

This whole situation has been nothing buy ugly, and while I don’t blame Jay Leno for setting the chain of events in motion, I do think he should have taken the high road and just moved on. His weak explanation – I’m just an employee doing what my boss asks – isn’t fooling anyone. He never wanted to leave the Tonight Show and although he might feel bad for Conan, I’d bet the farm that he’s secretly delighted that he’s back in the chair. But this mess is squarely on the NBC executives shoulders.

Conan is a brilliant writer and knows funny. He’ll survive. He’ll come up with something that will entertain and amaze us, and whether that’s a new show on Fox or an Internet podcast that opens the door to the next generation of broadcasting, it doesn’t matter.

Thanks for a short but great run, Conan. Kudos for fighting to get severance for your entire staff, the majority of whom will hopefully be asked to rejoin Team Conan for the next adventure.

Tonight, in honor of Conan, I defer my usual Friday TGIF routine of posting ten links, clips or facts to someone who will surely do it better. Tune in tonight and see.

Watch the Hope for Haiti telethon this evening and please give what you can; there but for the grace of fate go you. Then let’s all dial in one last time to say “see you soon” to Coco. It will be tough to top Robin Williams (try here or here – I’m sure these clips will come down as quickly as NBC can find them) but let’s give it a shot.