Music and politics

Politics -- well? After Obama got re-elected, I lost my mojo. The commies control K-12, universities, nearly all media and Hollywood / TV, and an open Marxist has been elected twice in a row. My personal whining on the WWW seems futile. What's the point if the war is lost? The people of America seem to be enamored of collectivism, and I'm not, so bitching into the void doesn't feel purposeful anymore. Who's on the horizon as a savior for common sense, freedom, and fiscal responsibility? Chris Christie??? WTF? The frontrunner for the next prez election is busy losing weight to improve his chances. I think that says all that needs to be said.

So what to do? Listen to some music.

Here's what I'm listening to these days -- mostly guitar, with an emphasis on acoustic / folk. Forgive the spelling errors; I don't feel like looking anything up right now.

Bert Jansch
Jon Renbourn
Davy Graham
Jimmy Page
Rory Gallagher
Leo Kotke
Augustin Amigo

My favorite album at the moment is Bert and John, a joint venture with Bert Jansch and Jon Renbourn from the mid-1960s. Davy Graham, who I think is the class of the field, died recently, but not before releasing a new album. For anyone who wants to go farther, try Graham's album Folk, Blues and Beyond. Also, some of the names mentioned above became members of the bands Fairport Convention and Pentangle. Another name that should probably make the list is Roy Harper. Jimmy Page was friends with and was influenced by several of the names on the list. If you listen to Page's White Summer or Black Mountainside, then swim upstream a bit, you find Davy Graham's She Moved Through the Fair and Mustapha.

Bert Jansch and John Renbourn, East Wind:



Davy Graham, She Moved Through the Fair:



Davy Graham, Mustapha:



Jimmy Page, White Summer (acoustic 1989):



Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, White Summer (electric) is below. I couldn't find a good quality version, so I had to upload this myself. My YouTube account says the upload was banned globally on copyright grounds. If it's gone -- oops.



Leo Kottke, Easter:



Here is Led Zeppelin performing Bon Yr Aur Stomp live. Watch Jimmy Page closely, not just the guitar work, but his face. Knowing one's purpose in life must be a relief:



Bron-Yr-Stomp album version, Led Zeppelin III:



An incredibly rare cover of Black Mountain Side:



Same guy, YouTuber tonuslocus1, doing a fantastic cover of Bron-Yr-Stomp: