| |
Hi
Home
Leave
feedback |
|
|
 |
Copyright
Nick Morgan, Kate Kavannagh and Serge Valentin
2007
|
|
|
100%
Guaranteed without any publicity, whether hidden or
not,
like
everything by the Malt Maniacs. |
|
 |
 |
2007
Whiskyfun Music Award Winners
by Nick and Kate |
| It’s
gratifying to see that, as the world spirals into
a credit-fuelled recession, and the conscientious
carefully calculate the size of their carbon footprint,
at least some have still got time to swamp our mailbox
with nominations and votes for these most coveted
of awards. So thank you all, every one, for your
input, all of which was characteristically ignored
in favour of a selfish, subjective and totally self-indulgent
summary of a wonderful year of music. So here goes
… |
| Fractious
Family Feuding Lifetime Achievement Award |
| Well,
there didn’t seem to be any strong contenders
for this award in a year of fraternal friendliness,
that is until the New Musical Express published
an interview with Morrissey
by writer Tom Jonze, which included allegations
(not for the first time in the NME or for that matter
elsewhere) that the singing Harvey
Smith look-alike held racist sentiments. Author
Jonze subsequently distanced
himself from the piece (because, it turned out,
he felt it was “too soft” on Morrissey)
but the often miserable Mancunian songster and his
people, not to be placated, placed
the matter in the hands of their lawyers, where
it remains, “in court” as they say.
Meantime we have a party arranged to see the old
boy at the Roundhouse in January – moral dilemma
– should we go or should we stay (at home)? |
 |
|
I
had written in my notes, Paul Simeon, the stylish
and roguish ex-Clash bass player who teamed up with
Damon Albarn & Co, in the Good, the Bad and
the Queen for his performance on a very wet summer’s
night in the unlikely setting of the Tower of London.
But then out of nowhere came Tal
Wilkenfeld, the deceptively youthful
bassist who wowed everyone playing alongside Jeff
Beck in his wonderfully intimate gig at Ronnie Scott’s.
Stand aside men, for a worthy winner indeed. |
| Re-released
album of the year |
| Perhaps
you recall that we saw Glasgow’s finest funky
firebrand Lulu singing with Jools Holland in the
summer. If you want to know just how good she was
then get hold of The Atco Sessions 1969-1972 –
just released for Christmas, it’s her equivalent
of Dusty Springfield’s famous Memphis sessions,
and well worth the money. But the winner by a long-neck
is Fairport Convention’s mould-breaking and
genre-shaping Liege
and Lief from 1969, which I may add,
we were privileged to hear performed in its entirety
by the band’s original line-up (minus the
sadly departed Sandy Denny) at Cropredy in August.
More goosebumps, nostalgia and musical heaven under
the stars. Ace. |
 |
|
The
ZZ-Top Beard of the Year Award
Rarely
awarded but fought over with gusto this year,
when for some, facial hair was the new black (although
oddly the Kings of Leon shaved theirs off). Scrapping
for a gong were Grinderman’s wild men, violinist
and guitarist Warren Ellis and fearsome drummer
Jim Sclavunos (Nick Cave’s effort barely
warrants mention). But they were totally outshone
by Seasick
Steve, who launched himself on an
unsuspecting British public on a TV show on 31st
December 2006, and has been a huge force for the
blues and for good during the year. This little
tribute to a bearded wonder is the least we can
do. |
The
Luc Besson Cinematographer’s Award
for Music DVD of the Year |
| You
may have noticed that film crews have been almost
ever-present at gigs this year, as the tour DVD
becomes an essential piece of merchandise in artistes’
money-making armoury. Pity that the crews rarely
think of the audience when they plan their shoot.
And one from this year’s concerts is already
for sale. It’s Dear Mr Fantasy, the memorial
concert for Jim Capaldi that we saw back in January
with such luminaries as Steve Winwood, Pete Townshend,
Paul Weller (singing a memorable ‘Paper sun’
which has been playing on the i-Pod in my head ever
since), Jon Lord, Bill Wyman etc. etc. etc. But
it’s the film of a gig from back in 2004 that
takes the prize – although to be honest we
saw Nick
Cave and the Bad Seeds on November 12th, and
this was recorded at the Brixton Academy the night
before. But when I think about that night I can
still feel it, so powerful was the performance,
and it’s captured as well as it could possibly
be in this two-disc set which also includes film
of other performances and a live CD. The
Abattoir Blues Tour – if you’ve
any money left after Christmas then rush out and
buy it. |
 |
| Best
Bang for your Bucks Special Category Award |
|
A
previous contender for this distinguished award,
Ray Davies, was in the frame again this year –
as were Squeeze for their almost relentless stream
of hits a few weeks ago, while the star-spangled
guest list who turned out to remember Jim Capaldi
also brought Dear Mr Fantasy into consideration.
This has to go to Jarvis
Cocker and co-conspirator Hal
Willner for Forest
of No Return – Music from the films of
Walt Disney, part of this year’s Cocker-curated
Meltdown. With a band of thirty or so, and twenty
or more vocalists, ranging from Grace Jones to David
Thomas (with the likes of Nick Cave, Pete Doherty
and an unsurprisingly intoxicated Shane MacGowen
in between) this was already money in the bank.
And even if we didn’t quite get all of the
38 songs we were promised (you may recall they kept
us waiting in the foyers for half an hour or so
whilst rehearsals finished) the sheer breadth and
depth of eccentricity, entertainment and simple
fun was almost overwhelming. Awarded with honour. |
| Sadly,
she didn’t show up to collect it. |
| The
errr… what was that all about? Award |
| A
puzzling category, but no more puzzling than Steven
Seagal’s gig at the Shepherd’s
Bush Empire with his band, the unfortunately-named
Thunderbox. Quite why this purveyor of pornographically
violent action flicks (I should mention also that
he’s a famous philanthropist) should reincarnate
himself here as ‘The Mojo Priest’, a
wooden and stumbling blues guitar player (‘though,
as I’d be the first to admit, a hell of a
lot better than me) complete with a faux southern
accent, I can’t imagine. And why was Yussef
Islam there watching him in an almost empty theatre?
And come to that why were we there? What was that
all about? I think I need some Lightning Bolt Asian
Experience Energy Drink, with Tibetan goji berries
and Asian cordyceps it fortifies the immune system,
decrease blood pressure, and promotes energy and
vitality, then I’ll be able to perform like
Mr Seagal too. |
 |
|
Drummer
of the Year
We’ve
seen some pretty good skin-merchants this year,
but none went through their chops with as much
grace, grit and the occasional grimace as the
bearded and pink-suited “tallest man in
rock and roll”, Jim
Sclavunos of Grinderman, and sometime,
of course, of the Bad Seeds, and his own band
the
Vanity Set. If you want to get an idea of
his prowess then take a forensic listen to the
award-winning Grinderman album, from his driving
rhythms to his louche throwaway riffs. We got
all of this and more during a scintillating performance
at the Forum – and if you want to see what
Sclavunos looks like in action then take a look
at Whiskyfun’s Luc Besson Cinematographer’s
Award for Music DVD of the Year winner. |
| Blimey
– just think of Jeff Beck, Chick Corea, Pat
Metheny, Richard Thompson, Martin Carthy. Martin
Simpson, Bert Jansch, Guy Barker, Dave Swarbrick,
Allen Toussaint, Charlie Musselwhite, Donald Fagen,
Steve Winwood and the entire cast of the Ukulele
Orchestra of Great Britain – well it’s
almost impossible to pick between the immense and
varied musical skills of these and the many other
wonderful artistes whom we’ve been able to
see and listen to this year. And our award winner
has a shy and almost reluctant stage persona that
belies his genius and sublime performance. I wrote
the following of the gig he played with Chick Corea
at the Barbican: “Rarely will you see someone
engaged with an instrument with such intensity –
I count one missed note (“thud”) all
night – otherwise his playing is as close
to perfection as you might get.” And I meant
it. Virtuoso indeed, and truly memorable. If he
comes to your town don’t even think of missing
him. And he’s so shy you’ll just have
to guess who. |
| We
all liked Richard Hawley’s enchanting (is
that a word you can use about Sheffield?) Lady’s
Bridge very much, and personally I considered that
Richard Thompson’s Sweet Warrior was one of
his best works for a while. Martin Simpson’s
Prodigal Son was a real and very pleasant surprise,
and I have to mention that the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah
Band (who sadly postponed their Shepherds Bush Empire
gig a couple of weeks ago) came out with a new album,
Pour l’Amour des Chiens, which was much better
than one might have feared. All this and more. |
 |
| But
only one winner, the Nick Cave, Warren Ellis, Jim
Sclavunos and Martyn Casey co-operative’s
Grinderman. Grinderman, according to Sclavunos,
sums up the way the band play – “we
grind songs out” – possibly, but there’s
no grind listening to this powerful, dark, witty
and enervating stuff. Buy the CD, close the curtains
and play it VERY LOUD – it’s from the
heart of rock and roll. |
|
Performer
You Would Most Like Your Daughter to Bring Home
Well
apparently she almost did bring home a Bad Seed,
which would have been much against Daddy’s
advice. But to show that I bear no ill-feeling
against older men this award goes not to the youthful
and much commended Jamie T, but instead to the
heavily bearded Seasick
Steve, one of the year’s most
engaging performers, and certainly someone to
enjoy a dram and a jaw with while the girls cook
up a mess of who-knows-what in the kitchen …. |
Performer
You Would Never Want Your Daughter
to
be Seen Out With
The
winner of this award took the honour by such a
distance from other contenders that I can only
wonder at the degree to which he has developed
his venomous stage persona. Suicide’s Alan
Vega (who “now holds all the
threat and menace of an arm-waving crazed old
man at a wind-swept bus stop on a deserted South
Shields sea-shore”, or so I wrote earlier
in the year) can certainly forget any chance of
tea and scones chez Morgan. |
 |
|
Guitar
of the Year
What’s
going on? Suddenly everyone wants a trash guitar.
From Seasick Steve’s 3-stringed Trance Wonder
guitar, bought from his friend Sherman Cooper
in Cosmo Mississippi for $75 to Dexter Romweber’s
’64 Silvertone, everyone was headed for
a trash guitar. And the winner? |
| British
Blues Sensation Ian Siegal’s Harmony
Stratotone H44 guitar. Despite the
fact that when we last saw it both sellotape and
gaffer tape were largely responsible for keeping
it intact, Siegal uses it to deliver the sharpest
electric slide guitar you can imagine. Why would
anyone want to collect Single Malt Scotch Whisky
when you can buy guitars like this? |
| Strangely
an old aerodrome in the middle of Bedfordshire,
and home to Jim Driver’s Rhythm Festival,
it’s the Twinwood
Arena, a perfectly formed and friendly
little auditorium with (by festival standards) superb
facilities and really helpful staff. So it should
come as no surprise that we’ll be heading
there at the end of August for 2008’s weekend
of rhythm. |
 |
|
The
Whiskyfun Long Service Award
This
most honourable award goes to David
“Honeyboy” Edwards, who
on a long hot London summer night took us deep
into that space somewhere between the Delta and
Chicago, playing with a remarkable verve for a
man of 92. Don’t we all wish we would last
that long, and that well?…. |
| From
the moment that she leant forward on the microphone
at an almost impossible angle, foot on monitor,
jeans, long hair, baggy white shirt and long jacket
(sound familiar?) and sang “Jesus died for
somebody's sins but not mine” this was always
going to be the winner. No matter that it was only
May and that we had many fine gigs before us, Patti
Smith was just goose-bumpingly good.
Of course we didn’t get to see Led Zeppelin
at the 02 which many have written up as the best
gig of the year but I think it would have been hard
to beat Ms Smith’s burning-eyed passion and
electric delivery. |
 |
| Single
Most Outstanding Song of the Year |
|
Richard
Thompson came very close with two (which might be
considered to be cheating) performances of his Iraq
War song ‘Dad’s gonna kill me’
from his 2007 album Sweet Warrior, but the most
powerful, visceral and ear-splitting three and a
half minutes of the year came from Grinderman
performing ‘No pussy blues’ at the Forum.
|
| Simply
outstanding. “Nick” asked an interviewer
of Grinderman’s Nick Cave, “Is there
a deeper meaning to ‘No Pussy Blues’?”.
“No, it’s about getting no fucking pussy”.
‘Nuff said. |
The
Fookin’ Non-plus Ultra Award
Sheffield’s
fookin’ Richard
Hawley for a fookin’ wonderful
album (Lady’s Bridge) full of fookin’
wonderful tunes and guitar playing, and a fookin’
fantastic gig at the Roundhouse. And we’re
all off to see him in fookin’ February.
Fookin’ ace. |
 |
|
Serge’s
2007 Music Award
Nellie
McKay came close (her music lulled us during most
of our private tasting sessions at the Islay Festival
this year) but let’s face it, Natalie
Merchant is a more important artiste
and as she’s had a stunning Retrospective
album out this year, this Award goes must go to
her. |
Home |
|
|
|
|
There's nothing more down there... |
|
|
|
|
