Gimmie Some Love

C'mon, c'mon ... C'mon to Bako ...



Bands I wish would come to B-town so I can have an excuse to legitmately fawn all over them.

If Prince and Harry Connick Jr. proved anything to me its that dreams really do come true. Sometimes your favorite band/musician/singer/rapper/whatever will look at their agent and say, "Hey, why not Bakersfield?" and swing by. It's not that I don't like writin about the other rock, jazz, punk, whatever acts that roll into town, but we all have our favorites.

Here are some folks that I'm "wishing on a star" that they come to Bako and show us some love.

1. Rilo Kiley, featuring that girl who was sometimes on "Rosanne."



Rilo Kiley went on tour this spring and they went to Fresno and they went to Santa Barbara and LA to promote their latest release "More Adventurous," which I already own, along with their best album to date "The Execution of All Things." I even own the "This Christmas Too" compilation which contains the most depressing holiday song ever written ("Xmas Cake") performed by Rilo Kiley. I love the band because of Jenny Lewis's honey-sweet vocals and the band's retro-alt.country-rock-80s-pop-kitchen sink craftsmanship. That and they sing some of the most depressing songs in an infectious, upbeat manner. They're like a happy soundtrack to a suicide. I couldn't tell you what my favorite Rilo Kiley song is since even the songs I don't like I always eventually end up liking later on, so ... um, here's some links to free downloads of "The Execution of All Things" and "With Arms Outstreched." (From Saddlecreek.)

2. The Von Bondies, Detroit Rock City at its finest



I, personally, like my rock with a beat that you can dance to. Which is why I love Franz Ferdinand, Louis XIV, the French Kicks and all the other New Wave-ish sounding acts out that aren't The Strokes. God, I'm so over The Strokes. The Von Bondies are a bunch of recycled power cords from the midwest, thus endearing them even more to me. (Yeah, midwest!) If you know any song by the Von Bondies it's probably "C'mon C'mon" which was used in a summer Olympic's promo TV ad in 2004. The Von Bondies, aside from puting on a kick-ass live show, were blessed by Detroit's own resident rock God Jack White of The White Stripes, who I also love and would go bananas over if they ever rolled into town. White produced their first full length LP "Lack of Communication" gave the Bondies an excellent assist by taking them on tour with the Stripes back in 2001.

3. Joshua Redman, jazz man



I've liked jazz saxophonist Joshua Redman ever since he first came out as some kind of child prodigy genuis back in the 1990s. He got woefully overexposed and people griped about him not being the second coming of whatever. But whatever, I adore him. On his 1998 release "Timeless Tales (For Changing Times)" he does a great cover of a Prince song, "How Come You Don't Call Me Anymore?" And you all know how I feel about Prince. Redman, Terenece Blanchard, Brandford Marsalis and Wynton Marsalis are my favorite modern jazz musicians. (Mostly because they all sound like throwbacks). He's doing some tour dates with M'Shelle N'Dgeochello and I would keel over and f-ing die if they came here and set PJ's on fire one night. I saw him live about five or six years ago back in St. Louis with Sgt. Kabukimann. He gave such an exciting, wonderful show. Of course Sgt. Kabukimann fell asleep, as that's what he did at the time. Fall asleep at the front table of St. Louis jazz bistros when a living legend is on stage blowing your mind.

4. Hall & Oates, don't you judge me!



Yeah. I like Hall & Oates. So what? I like them so much I own 1970s Hall & Oates, their first album "Abandoned Luncheonette" which features their first hit, "She's Gone." And I like blue-eyed soul. Big deal. It makes me happy. H&O were supposed to come to Bakersfield last year for a World Records show, but a family emergency kept them out of town. I still want them back, World Records! I want them back bad. As for me not loving the H&O, I can't go for that. No can do.

5. Kanye West, because I still like rap music ... to an extent.



As someone who came to love hip hop during the 80s and 90s, I like all other hip hop old fogies at the rip old age of 27 hate most new hip hop. No offense new hip hop. Like my mother who likes blues, but not present-day R&B, I'm just not feeling you. I'm sure that Lil' Jon is some kind of wonderful. Just don't expect ME to listen to it. That said, while I sometimes talk like all good hip hop died the day they shot Tupac n' Biggie, I do enjoy some present-day artists, like Kanye West. I find Kayne West highly satisfying. He brags as much as any schooler (as being arrogant and boastful are requirements of any old school rhymer ... see "LL Cool J."), yet creates interesting beats you can both think and dance to. And, yes, "The College Dropout" was one of the best, weirdest, mainstream hip hop albums made last year. Subversive and commercial all at the same time. Just like "Chappelle's Show."

Kanye's just interesting enough that he might buck the trend and, gasp, put on a rap show that it's dull as hell. You know? He might have a costume change or dare I say it? A backdrop that's something other than a black curtain. Give the kids a show for their money like D'Angelo used to during the "Voodoo" tour before D'Angelo got all fat and became a drug addict.

Plus, "Diamonds From Sierra Leone" is pretty tight and steals an excellent Shirley Bassey/James Bond sample.

In conclusion ...


Stop pretending to be British and a children's author and just go on tour again already ...

Oh ... and I wouldn't mind if, you know, some giant, mega-musical acts came to town. Like OutKast or if Madonna had felt we'd been fitting to grace us with her presence; the aformentioned Kanye West; Jay-Z (we couldn't get any kind of love, eh?); even Dave Matthews or, dare I say it, John Frickin' Mayer, who I wouldn't go see, but feel that other people who love him should be able to endulge in that sort of thing, if they see fit. And I wish more R&B acts would find us worthy of their presence. I'd kill for some Sade right about now. Can't you get, like, Boyz II Men for five dollars and a stick of chewing gum now? Some promoter in town ought to hook that up. Heck. I'll take Boyz II Men knock off Shai right about now. If we can't get Eminem are we good enough for Bubba Sparks? Inquiring minds want to know.


* * *
Who do you wish would come to Bako and give us some love? Gimmie yer comments!