What is Grunge?

Grunge Records

Grunge music starts with Dylan, the Velvet Underground, etc… then becomes John Lennon, Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band; then the Stooges, Modern Lovers, etc… through 1977 Punk; which is the Sex Pistols, Wire, the Talking Heads, etc…

Post-Punk is early Cheap Trick, U2, etc…existing in the mainstream; and the Minutemen, Sonic Youth, etc…existing underground until REM, Nirvana, etc. brought it mainstream; it continues through Hole, Bikini Kill, PJ Harvey, etc…and never dies.

Post-punk reclaims Elvis Costello, Graham Parker, etc.. and all the greatest Classic-Rock artists back to Elvis Presley.

Grunge claims Prince, Madonna, Gloria Estefan, etc… as great Contemporary Pop music cross-over artists.

Grunge claims post-Classic Heavy Metal artists such as Van Halen, Iron Maiden, Guns N Roses, etc…through to Metallica, Soundgarden, etc… and it never ends.

In Grunge, it is the courage to deliver bold new ideas, that binds.

Grunge claims Fripp, Eno, and all the other pioneering Electronic artists up to today.

Jazz & Rap are understood & appreciated, as African-American versions of Grunge.

Grunge in Jazz starts with Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, etc…and never ends.

Grunge reclaims Jazz’s roots in traditional Ragtime, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, etc.

Rap has roots in Punk & Disco.

This allows Disco final redemption from Punk, for its vapid nature.

Rap starts in NYC with Sugarhill Records, Afrika Bambaataa, etc…was at its creative peak when its greatest artists conquered the world; Public Enemy, A Tribe Called Quest, etc…and it never ends.

Black Grunge is originally defined as American Blues; Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, etc…through to the Rolling Stones.

Soul; James Brown, Otis Redding, etc… becomes the new Black Grunge.

In Rock, Black Grunge is originally Fats Domino, Check Berry, etc… through Jimi Hendrix, Sly Stone, P-Funk, etc…and it never ends.

Great Motown artists; Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, etc… are reclaimed.

American Country Music is Gospel in origin, making much of it the antithesis of Grunge; yet Country Outlaws such as Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, etc…through Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, etc… are reclaimed as Grunge.

Folk Music artists; Jimmie Rogers, Woody Guthrie, etc… to Bob Dylan & the Beatles are defined as early White Grunge.

Early Country Gospel & Bluegrass Music artists; the Carter Family, Bill Monroe, Flatt & Scruggs, etc… are reclaimed because they are great artists.

Reggae’s velvet knife; Bob Marley & the Wailers, Burning Spear, etc… crosses-over & becomes the Third World’s version of Grunge.

Fela Kuti’s Nigerian Afro-Beat literally opens up a whole new World (of) Music, infinite in richness & supply.

It’s all in there, if you listen.

——————-

      1. Tip of the Cap - Ric Size

Tip of the Cap

TomP: percussion & production
Craig Roy: bass
Bill Pelick: lead guitar
RS: gtr & vocal

================================================================

 

Thoughts on Earth Day

Every day is Earth Day. — RS

Earth Day (held annually on April 22) needs to be understood in the context of global warming and the imperative task for mankind to convert to solar power for its energy needs.  This is no longer a pipe dream to be discussed theoretically, then dismissed into the future.  Solar conversion goes to the heart of the issue of the continued existence of human civilization.

Current global greenhouse gas emissions can not continue unabated without catastrophic consequences for everyone & everything on this planet.  Earth has a fever and it is getting worse, daily. The graph below shows Earth’s atmospheric CO2 levels for the last 650,000 years, and how far it is above its historic levels.  Lowering those levels back to historical norms will be a huge scientific & technological challenge that will test mankind’s ability to innovate & problem-solve. Before that can happen, further emissions must cease, which at this point is more of a political problem than a technical one.

Evidence_CO2

The answer for human society is solar power, which is the only option that is truly clean and infinitely renewable.

Solar power is the conversion of sunlight into electricity, either directly using photovoltaics, or indirectly using concentrated solar power.  Solar energy, radiant light and heat from the sun, is harnessed using a range of ever-evolving technologies such as solar heating, photovoltaics, solar thermal electricity and solar architecture.

As integrated circuitry improves, and battery storage of solar power becomes more efficient; and more than enough electricity can be generated & stored for virtually any use. The total solar energy absorbed by Earth’s atmosphere, oceans and land masses is approximately 3,850,000 exajoules per year. This is more solar energy in one hour than the world uses in one year. If humanity could capture one tenth of one percent of the solar energy striking the earth, it would have access to six times as much energy as humans consume in all forms today, with neither greenhouse gas emissions nor nuclear waste.

Fossil fuel and biomass only add to global warming; while nuclear, geothermal, hydroelectric, and even wind power are far too destructive while degrading the environment.  Needless to say, nuclear power’s potential for catastrophe to human populations is all-too-obvious to anyone who studies history & thinks rationally.

Conversion to solar power can only be accomplished through revolutionary means.  The world’s most powerful corporations control the global energy market, and will not voluntarily give up this all-important lever of power.  Everyone in the industrialized world depends of electricity and automobile transportation.  Solar power is a revolutionary equalizer for the working people of the world, freeing them from their dependence on the energy cartels, while abating global warming.

The endless succession of imperialist wars being fought for control of oil & gas reserves in central Asia & beyond will only end with mankind’s conversion to solar power. Today, oil is the world’s most important commodity, so whomever controls it rules the globe. Solar power threatens that balance, and that is why its technology has been resisted, marginalized, discredited, and kept expensive as ruling class policy for decades.

When people can generate their own power using a solar panel, they free themselves from unregulated utility monopolies. When people can drive solar powered cars, using photovoltaic technology, they free themselves from Exxon/Mobil, Chevron & Texaco. These corporations do not tolerate such threats to their bottom line (and ultimately their existence), without fierce resistance.  For them, the future of civilization and our planet are secondary concerns, compared to their short-term fiscal profits.

Complete conversion to solar power will ultimately be the task of working people everywhere who demand a better life for themselves, their children, and everything that exists on this planet.  It happens when people everywhere regain their will to fight a powerful enemy as if all their lives depend on it, which it does.  It is a revolutionary task that ends with socialism, and it is the true spirit and meaning of Earth Day.

 

Excerpts from a Trashy Novel

He was dead tired, from what little restless sleep he had gotten the night before.  His appointment was at 11:00, and it was only 10:10, but he still felt an impulse to rush.  He didn’t want to be late for her. He got up; went into the kitchen to fix a fresh glass of juice; then jumped into the shower.
By 10:50 he was at the studio, sitting down and resting his eyes briefly; until she woke him in a low voice, “Are you ready?”
She led him into their usual room, which had been prepared with soft music & lighting, incense, and candles.
“I’ll be back in a minute” she said softly as she closed the door.
He then disrobed and slid under the sheet of the massage table.
He was resting his eyes again when she returned and commenced warming up her expert hands with jasmine-scented oil.
She began to rub his firm muscular body with her fingers, knuckles and wrists; coaxing his tightened muscles to release their stress.  He felt the pulsating waves of relaxation envelope his being, as he began to drift into that state of consciousness/unconsciousness where no pain or shame is felt, only the pleasure of relaxation.
She worked deep into the muscles of his neck, releasing months of built-up tension.
He groaned slightly at the early twinges of discomfort, which started to turn into moans of delight as the rubbing activated the endorphins in his brain.
His erections came & went as she worked every area of his body.
Energy repeatedly shot like electricity from his feet and inner thighs into his genitals.
The fatigue that he had felt earlier had now left him.
It had been completely replaced with love energy.

——————–

It had taken a while for him to become integrated into his new office environment.  Working in a new city, with new people was not a problem for him; he had always dealt with fresh situations in an enthusiastic manner.  The staff for the most part was the usual mixed-bag; mostly regular people trying to earn a living, along side elitist middle management–defined by their gossiping & backstabbing nature.
The woman he gravitated towards was the one with a foot in both camps.
She was the quiet type, with long hair & sad eyes– both brown.  She was highly sensitive to rude behaviour, and always wore a black suit & pants with high heels. He wondered if she was in mourning, but could never find an appropriate time & place to ask her such a personal question. She was too busy running the office all by herself.
Her personal hygiene was good, except for the fact that she let her hair go lifelessly flat. She rarely smiled genuinely, even though she had nice teeth.
The office stayed extremely busy with a steady trickle/stream of wealthy clients ending up at her desk, ready to pay her whatever she said they owed. She was definitely a killer when it came to collecting the money.
Her marvellous ability to instantly turn on & turn off conversation-mode with clients, while maintaining a high level of empathy & good listening, impressed the new hire. He noticed that clients tended to linger, which helped business. She never objected to those customers who wanted to waste her time.
One day he noticed something different about her. She had styled her hair, very subtly.  Noticing instantly, he quickly smiled and told her how much he liked it.  She looked at him intensely for a second, before thanking him and then returned to her business.
Freud once said, “There are no accidents”, and that was likely the case at the end of that day, as he lingered for no particular reason.  She was alone, closing out the day on her computer. He shuffled into her work area, which was typically off-limits to anyone else.
“May I ask you a personal question?” he inquisitively asked in a direct tone.
“Sure”, she cautiously replied.
He leaned in and whispered into her right ear, “Why aren’t you happy?”
She was stunned and hesitant to meet his eyes.  She was usually expert in deflecting any personal overtures, but her suffering & loneliness had been too long, and his tone too sincere to ignore his enquiry.
Her eyes melted into his as she trembled trying to formulate a response to a question that cut her to the quick.
She bit her lip, as he pressed in closer to her body.
He murmured into her left ear so softly that she felt his breath more than heard him say, “You are too beautiful to not be happy.”
His hands started randomly sliding over her body, as he pressed his chest and pelvis into hers.
Any will she had to resist was being quickly consumed by raw desire…

———————

They had fucked for two days & two nights straight; it was a blissful, spectacular orgy of young love.  She was leaving for college in six weeks and he was staying behind, entering his senior year in high school.
“No regrets!”, was their rule that gorgeous summer.  Everyday seemed to be sunny, 82 degrees with a mild breeze.
They would make love on the patio in the sun, as no one else was around the cabin.
It overlooked a lake that had only a few other dwellings on its shores. Everyone minded their own business.
At midnight they would drift out into the middle of the lake on an inner tube, and become one with nature by making love under the moon & stars.
Then, they would climb up to the roof with a sleeping bag; caressing & fucking, until they fell asleep until morning.
Right now they both lay naked in the afternoon sun, melting the tan lines away from their lithe & athletic bodies.
He especially loved watching her flesh brown in the sun.
A breeze from the lake kicked up and sent a waft of aroma from her pussy to his nostrils.
He breathed it fully & deeply, and was instantly hard again.
He looked at her with unlimited passion as he contemplated how her wanted to take her.
She was half-asleep, hypnotized by the warmth of the sun and glowing in her radiance.
He eased on top of her, and she began to awake only when he started teasing her nipples with his tongue while rubbing the head of his cock gently into her pussy.
She smiled at him in her sun daze, and then pulled him in with voluptuous rapture…

——————-

The artist shook his head and prepared for the worst as he packed his guitar into the trunk and headed to the Shithole.
That wasn’t the actual name of the club he was playing, but it would have been appropriate.
The place was beyond bad, and should have been closed down by the Health Department a long time ago, but that’s how it goes in the backwoods.
It was the type of place where most patrons are alcoholics or potheads, with many missing their teeth.  There were never any attractive women in there.
Cigarette smoke was a permanent feature along with skunked Budweiser, making it a favorite biker hangout.
The music at the Shithole is, of course classic rock, which means any kind of artist doesn’t really belong there; but since he was asked to play a few songs by a friend who books the place, he felt obliged.
Now the day had come and he regretted saying yes, envisioning the usual disrespect he was going to have to put up with from the classic-rock die-hards.
“I need to make something happen, otherwise this is a waste of time”, he fumed to himself on the road.
His friend was cool, an ace guitarist who could also play bass.  There was no need for that today, as the semi-regular bass player was there, at least in body.
A fair description of the bass guy would be to say that he had pro talent, but was a complete fuck-up–a burnt-out veteran of the 1980’s heavy metal wars.
The drummer was a friendly guy who smoked & drank too much. He kept the beat solid as long as he was provided a good groove, and that’s all that mattered.
The set began and the place immediately came alive, in a completely different way from the other performers in the club.
Instead of stale covers, it was original rock that actually excited the crowd.
At the second chorus of the first song, a strikingly pretty late-20’s blonde in a slinky blue dress begins to shake her stuff in front of the artist.
The combination of both sexes commanding the situation attracted everyone’s attention, and the entire set was a huge party for the performers and the audience.
After the set and a few games of pool, the artist & the chanteuse ducked out the back…