Mandolins On TV - Advance Notice

[journeybear]

The crystal ball is going back on vacation, as its perceptions have gone awry, and gazing into the future just keeps bringing into view the past.

No mandolins this week, but some odd occurrences worth noting.

10/19
Leno: Rod Stewart
Letterman: Rosanne Cash - from 10/7 - One of our finest singer/songwriters performs "Long Black Veil," not sure why ...
10/21
Ellen: Joaquin Phoenix - Just curious to see if he has regained his coherence after his very strange appearance on Letterman last winter; perhaps a progress report on his rap career ...
Letterman: Paul McCartney - Yet another repeat of Sir Paul's great 7/15 appearance, incl. good interview, two songs performed on the marquee of the Ed Sullivan Theatre, and a Top Ten List by Bruce Willis
10/23
D: Judy Collins - from 7/24 - "Someday Soon" - one of my favorites of hers

Gazing further into the future and seeing further into the past ... next week a lot of Rod Stewart and also Van Morrison ...

[journeybear]

As promised, lots of Rod Stewart this week - but no mandolins, I can guarantee that, as he is promoting his new album of covers of soul songs from the 60s and 70s. Today's The View was supposed to have Van Morrison but they had Paul Anka (chat only) instead. Glen Hansard does play mandolin, but no promises here. I included Andrew Bird because he favors eclectic instrumentation. Carly Simon's longtime utility player Mindy Jostyn played mandolin, but she has shuffled off this mortal coil. So all in all, though there may be some interesting viewing, it doesn't look good for the home team.

10/26
Today: Rod Stewart
Good Morning America: Carly Simon
10/27
The View: Rod Stewart
Jay Leno: Tim McGraw and Gregg Allman (interesting pairing)
10/28
Today: Carly Simon
Jimmy Fallon: Weird Al Yankovic
10/29
Ellen: Tim McGraw; Taylor Swift (Remember Taylor's first hit? Here they are together.)
Conan: The Swell Season
Jimmy Kimmel: Rod Stewart
10/30
Jimmy Fallon: Andrew Bird

[journeybear]

Wondering what's going on ... Rod was supposed to be on Letterman last night, but instead they had Harper Simon (son of Paul), and then he was supposed to be on The View this morning, but again, no ...

But the good news - and/or, go figure - is that in Sting's appearance on Today this morning, he had two fiddles (not violins) and a mandolin backing him on the Christmas standard "A-Soalin,'" here called "Soul Cake." Apparently he has a "winter album" out ("If On A Winter's Night..."), not specifically a Christmas album. Anyway, nice to see and hear a mandolin on the tube.

Amazon has a nice video of a bearded Sting discussing the album. Sounds very nice, but I am not going to get nostalgic about winter. As the wise man said, you don't need to shovel sunshine!

[Michael Gowell]

But up North....we don't use much AC. And the hard freezes kill the critters in the soil every winter so the farms and fields are healthy. And the snowmelt sources many brooks running downhill, the abundant waterpower that fueled America's first stage of industrialism and the power and wealth to prevail in a certain regional disagreement a century and a half ago. And, more pleasantly, playgrounds for brook trout today. I'm just sayin...

[journeybear]

Sting is on Letterman tonight. I expect more eclectic instrumentation, hopefully including a mandolin ...

[woodwizard]

[QUOTE=journeybear;727807]Wondering what's going on ... Rod was supposed to be on Letterman last night, but instead they had Harper Simon
***
Too bad ... always liked Rod's stuff. An old dear high school friend of mine who is a producer in Hollywood sort of introduced me to Don Teschner and his music. Don's a friend of hers and played at her birthday party recently. Don Teschner is the mandolin player on Rod's unplugged video stuff. He's really a good blues player and singer. I have been talking to him recently (by email), about the mandolin he plays. It's a 1919 Kalamazoo. I know he's not the original mando player but he sure does a good job with Rod. He's also got a new solo blues CD out that he shows off his mandolin, slide blues guitar work and even fiddle. You can see some of his stuff on youtube.

[journeybear]

Hmmm ... same song, same instrumentation. Still can't see the logo on the mandolin's headstock. Sting is scheduled to be on The View this morning. More of the same? Only one way to find out ...

[journeybear]

So, after seeing Sting three times on three different shows on three different networks on three different days do the same song in very much the same way, I have to think, to some degree, so what? I understand the need to flog the single (if "Soul Cake" is that) in order to sell the album, but isn't an artist of the stature (critical and financial) of Sting above such a consideration? I may be tilting at windmills here (one of my favorite sports), but it seems awfully repetitive and redundant and repetitive. Do those who make these decisions not understand people watching have remote controls and will be able to watch him on whichever show he appears? I'd like to have heard something different on at least one of these appearances. This is one reason why I like Jimmy Kimmel Live - at least performers get to play a second song while they roll the credits at the end of the show.

I remember many years ago when Little Village (Remember them? John Hiatt, Ry Cooder, Nick Lowe, Jim Keltner, a great one-off collaboration.) made three network appearances, doing a different song each time, and I thought that was brave of them to buck this standard practice. Then I realized these may well be the only opportunities they would get to reach such a wide audience, and it might be the smart thing to do, showcasing as much variety in their songs as they could. Yeas later, I notice Sarah McLachlan doing much the same thing while promoting a new album. Of course, she was much better known, and as the biggest star on her label could pretty much do as she wished.

But the best approach I've seen in recent years was that of Feist. It seemed like every time she appeared on one of these shows and performed "1-2-3-4," she used very different instrumentation and arrangements. So imaginitive, and absolutely brilliant.

[journeybear]

This is officially "Country Music Week" on Letterman, and unofficially everywhere else - the one week a year when the networks go nutty with this stuff, coinciding with the CMA awards (Wed on ABC, up against Game 6 of the World Series on Fox). Since most of these performers are standard Nashville types, mandolin won't be prominently featured, but may show up here and there. I refuse to predict MC with one exception, and since there are so many of these listings I'm sticking with my abbreviated format, initials indicating either show's or host's name. Hope you can follow; knowing they're generally chronological should help you decode:

11/2
E: Charlie Daniels Band
Ellen: Faith Hill
D: Carrie Underwood
F: Jack Ingram
11/3
G: Carrie Underwood
R: Reba McEntire
TS: Kris Kristofferson
D: Brad Paisley
JF: Reba McEntire
11/4
T: Keith Urban
TS: Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova
D: Ryan Bingham
11/5
T: Keith Urban
D: Keith Urban
C: Zac Brown Band
11/6
RR: Reba McEntire
D: Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys
11/7
SNL: Taylor Swift (host & musical guest)

TS is Tavis Smiley, mostly chat but sometimes there's a performance; it's on PBS so check your local listings. ED is Ellen Degeneres and RR is Rachel Ray, syndicated, and may or may not include a performance. If there ain't a mandolin in Dr. Ralph's band, I'll eat my hat, or a Stetson if someone wants to provide one!

[journeybear]

Well, much to my delight, Ryan Bingham's band, The Dead Horses, consisted of bass, drums, and ... mandolin! Imagine my surprise hearing a country act with a lean, stripped-down sound, driven by mandolin! Usually what passes for a country band these days is gonna include 2-3 guitars (on top of the singer playing acoustic rhythm) plus a slew of other instruments - pedal steel, fiddle, banjo, dobro, keyboards, maybe mandolin - and a backup singer or two or three. This was a lot more like it. Oh, yeah, and apart from the instrumentation, the song and the pickin' weren't too bad, either. But the real thrill was that every fill and solo - and there was a solo between each chorus and verse - was played on the mandolin. I couldn't tell you the last time I heard that on TV - if ever. Nope, I reckon that's a first for me.

[Patrick Market]

By all accounts, Ryan Bingham is a great act to see live. And he is still playing fairly small venues. That won't last much longer...

Hope he gets closer by here at some point.

[journeybear]

I've gotta say, I was fairly impressed. Never heard of him before, and I liked the lean sound, as I mentioned. This is one of the reasons I tune in to these things - learning about good music being made out there, that every now and then peeks through the curtain of conformity. I'll never forget the first time I saw Sarah McLachlan on the tube (Letterman) after reading a brief mention in the NY times about her, or Patti Rothberg (also Letterman), or Big Country (American Bandstand, believe it or not).

Last night's performance by Keith Urban included a mandolin (and banjo, and 3-4 guitars), though (as usual) it couldn't be heard out here in TV land. I dunno why the techs can't get this right. I could hear the harp in Florence and the Machine's appearance on Kimmel just fine, though ...

Don't forget - tonight on Letterman, Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys. Real, serious bluegrass seldom shows up on network TV, so catch it when it does.

[Mike Bunting]

Dr. Ralph, what a treat!

[GRW3]

Mike Compton was playing mando with Elvis Costello on Austin City Limits tonight. I caught the last song but scanned ahead on PBS and set the DVR to catch the repeat. Also playing - Jerry Douglas, Stuart Duncan and Jim Lauderdale.

[journeybear]

And over on my PBS station they were running something called "John Fogerty - Total Request Live" - I believe the premise is you could call in and request a song and he'd play it, some kind of fundraising deal - and on the very last song a mandolin appeared, on "Down On The Corner." Not that you could hear it.

Also, FWIW, Ralph Stanley's mandolinist couldn't be heard, and also didn't take a lead. I'd score it like this - banjo intro, fiddle solo, guitar solo, banjo solo. And while I'm at it, there were seven (count 'em, seven) folks on stage. Ralph singing only, two guitars, mando, banjo, fiddle, bass - in clear violation of IBMA guidelines for bluegrass band competition. Oh, that iconoclastic individual, Dr. Ralph! Don't get me wrong, I was awful glad to hear this, just a little frustrated, as usual.

Lastly, in Taylor Swift's astounding SNL appearance, her second song featured a mandolin, OK, it was an Ovation or something similar, but it could be heard, and it was even played reasonably well - some nice crosspicking and interaction with other instruments. Taylor was also host and did something I have never seen a host do in SNL's 35 year history - she was in each and every skit (except Weekend Update and the cold opening, of course) - a remarkable achievement, especially in light of typical hosts lately being in about 1/3 of the skits. And she was pretty darn good each time. She also introduced herself for the second song - very funny. I've liked her fairly well even with her pop leanings; she only raised in my estimation through this.

[journeybear]

After the glory that was last week - a week that included actual bluegrass from Ralph Stanley et al, a half-hour of Elvis Costello on Austin City Limits with Mike Compton in the band, and a mandolin being played in John Fogerty's and Taylor Swift's bands - it's back to business as usual ... slim pickin's.

11/10
Good Morning America: Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood (probably not)
Conan: John Fogerty (probably not)
11/12
Leno: Dolly Parton (probably not, but you never know)
11/13
Today (10 AM): Train (ukulele is a distinct possibility)

There is aso the CMA Awards Show on ABC Wednesday night, if you have the patience and persistence for that.

Best bet? Keep an eye peeled for a rebroadcast of ACL with EC.

And no MC, but tonight on my local PBS there is this:

How the Beatles Rocked the Kremlin: Although the Beatles never performed in Russia, the group inspired a generation of Russian teens

I have no idea what that will be like, but I know there are lots of Beatles fans here.

[OKMike]

At the CMAs Brooks of Brooks and Dunn was picking on a mando, couldn't hear it but saw it. LOL

Mike

[journeybear]

I find that's usually the case whenever country music is on TV. The instruments are mixed into what is supposed to be a wall of sound - more like a picket fence - but is really homogenized goo that swallows up its individual components till someone takes a lead or plays a fill, usually on fiddle or pedal steel. You'll see all these people on stage but only hear the band as a whole going through the chord changes. Pretty bland.

[journeybear]

Some genuine MC this week - three appearance by Elvis Costello, and as has been reported, Mike Compton is in the band (and on the album). Some other interesting stuff too, non-MC as usual ...

11/17
Bonnie Hunt (syndicated): Playing for Change
Jimmy Fallon: Neko Case
11/18
Early: Elvis Costello
Ellen DeGeneres: Carrie Underwood (could be)
Letterman: Ray Davies
11/20
Letterman: Lyle Lovett (ya never know)
Jimmy Fallon: Elvis Costello

Also, this weekend's Austin City Limits is Willie Nelson backed by Asleep At The Wheel. 'Nuff said!

[journeybear]

Make that four appearances by Elvis Costello - The Colbert Report (Comedy Central) Thursday 11/19.

[journeybear]

I can scarcely believe what I just saw - a mandolin in Shakira's band! I'm sure some of you might have noticed her - the Colombian star, known perhaps more for her provocative and energetic dancing than her music (personally I enjoy both as elements of her complete stage persona) - and if you have, one of the last things you would expect to hear from her typically rhythm-dominated music is what I just saw on The View. Imagine her seated, with her band seated, and the first thing you hear is a mandolin! OK, it was an Ovation, but still ... The instrumentation was tabla, udu (unsure? - a percussion instrument that looks like a round clay pot), acoustic guitar, small drum set, banjar (round body, six strings, flatpicked), and mandolin. Nice song, too, "Gypsy."

I'm guessing that she decided to go this route for a daytime talk show. Perhaps she will do this again when she is on Good Morning America Thursday ...

[Dan Hoover]

wha-wha-what??? Shakira? mandolin?....

[journeybear]

No kidding - It's like Johnny Mathis once said, "It's wonderful, wonderful!"

Just so I'm clear, it wasn't she playing, it was someone in the band, who probably usually plays guitar. (She does play a bit of harmonica, though.) And the inclusion of a banjar was probably even stranger - couldn't tell you when, if ever, I've seen one on TV. But Shakira has an adventurous spirit and a history of pushing the envelope, so I'm not completely surprised. In fact, this whole performance seemed so natural I wouldn't be at all surprised to learn she does something like this in her shows, a litttle unplugged segment. You can be sure I'll be tuning in to see what she does on Good Morning America Thursday.

[Dan Hoover]

thanks for that journeybear,that was a very nice performance..

[journeybear]

Not really a mandolin appearance, only kinda sorta ...

In today's episode of Jeopardy, there was a category called "Instruments Of Change," in which the correct response was achieved by solving an anagram of the name of a musical instrument. The $1000 clue was:

Pear-shaped?
Abso-lute-ly!
NIL NOMAD

Believe it or not, no one guessed the answer!