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oblivionrecords: Mississippi Fred McDowell: Live at the Gaslight Recorded: November 5th, 1971, New York City By Pete Simonelli  July 29, 2009 “Greeted by an eager and excitable crowd, McDowell takes that energy and works off it…” After more than 40 years being involved in producing stuff for distribution out in the world, it still seems impossible to when I get direct evidence of actual people paying attention. It’s a little easier in this day and age of email, twitter and tumblr comments on my contemporary projects, but when it’s an album from decades ago it still blows my mind (to use a 40 year old phrase).  That’s how I felt when I bumped into writer/bandleader Pete Simonelli’s 2009 review of our Oblivion album Mississippi Fred McDowell: Live in New York (on photographer Ted Barron’s blog Boogie Woogie Flu). In an email exchange I had with Pete the other day he said “It’s a seminal piece of work from a seminal performer and artist. I relish it.” That would have meant the world to Mr. McDowell and the album’s bassist and co-producer (and my partner) Tom Pomposello. It was why Tom worked so hard his entire life to make sure the album stayed available, and I’ve tried to fulfill his wishes. As I told Pete, I guess that’s what so powerful about the whole recording medium; it allows an isolated man like Fred McDowell to find his way around the world to people forever. Please check out Pete’s writing about the recording. He captures the mood of the night perfectly, though he was probably was an infant at the time. Thanks Pete, we all appreciate it. “Several years, and many miles, after his discovery by the great (and sometimes controversial) Blues musicologist, Alan Lomax, Mississippi Fred McDowell’s two sets this night in New York City proved to be the culmination of a long and rich career. “Greeted by an eager and excitable crowd, McDowell takes that energy and works off it throughout the entire recording. People gleefully heckle and cheer him on, entirely in love with him. It goes on like this throughout the show, McDowell being a consummate showman and kindly host, peppering his tuning breaks with explanations of how the Blues, “and Spirituals, too”, are conveyed to him and thus onto his listeners.” (Read Pete Simonelli’s entire post here.) -Fred Seibert Photograph of Fred McDowell by Lee Friedlander, Senatobia, Mississippi, 1960.

June 18, 2012

oblivionrecords: Mississippi Fred McDowell: Live at the Gaslight Recorded: November 5th, 1971, New York City By Pete Simonelli  July 29, 2009 “Greeted by an eager and excitable crowd, McDowell takes that energy and works off it…” After more than 40 years being involved in producing stuff for distribution out in the world, it still seems impossible to when I get direct evidence of actual people paying attention. It’s a little easier in this day and age of email, twitter and tumblr comments on my contemporary projects, but when it’s an album from decades ago it still blows my mind (to use a 40 year old phrase).  That’s how I felt when I bumped into writer/bandleader Pete Simonelli’s 2009 review of our Oblivion album Mississippi Fred McDowell: Live in New York (on photographer Ted Barron’s blog Boogie Woogie Flu). In an email exchange I had with Pete the other day he said “It’s a seminal piece of work from a seminal performer and artist. I relish it.” That would have meant the world to Mr. McDowell and the album’s bassist and co-producer (and my partner) Tom Pomposello. It was why Tom worked so hard his entire life to make sure the album stayed available, and I’ve tried to fulfill his wishes. As I told Pete, I guess that’s what so powerful about the whole recording medium; it allows an isolated man like Fred McDowell to find his way around the world to people forever. Please check out Pete’s writing about the recording. He captures the mood of the night perfectly, though he was probably was an infant at the time. Thanks Pete, we all appreciate it. “Several years, and many miles, after his discovery by the great (and sometimes controversial) Blues musicologist, Alan Lomax, Mississippi Fred McDowell’s two sets this night in New York City proved to be the culmination of a long and rich career. “Greeted by an eager and excitable crowd, McDowell takes that energy and works off it throughout the entire recording. People gleefully heckle and cheer him on, entirely in love with him. It goes on like this throughout the show, McDowell being a consummate showman and kindly host, peppering his tuning breaks with explanations of how the Blues, “and Spirituals, too”, are conveyed to him and thus onto his listeners.” (Read Pete Simonelli’s entire post here.) -Fred Seibert Photograph of Fred McDowell by Lee Friedlander, Senatobia, Mississippi, 1960.

oblivionrecords:

Mississippi Fred McDowell: Live at the Gaslight
Recorded: November 5th, 1971, New York City
By Pete Simonelli  July 29, 2009

“Greeted by an eager and excitable crowd, McDowell takes that energy and works off it…”

After more than 40 years being involved in producing stuff for distribution out in the world, it still seems impossible to when I get direct evidence of actual people paying attention. It’s a little easier in this day and age of email, twitter and tumblr comments on my contemporary projects, but when it’s an album from decades ago it still blows my mind (to use a 40 year old phrase). 

That’s how I felt when I bumped into writer/bandleader Pete Simonelli’s 2009 review of our Oblivion album Mississippi Fred McDowell: Live in New York (on photographer Ted Barron’s blog Boogie Woogie Flu). In an email exchange I had with Pete the other day he said “It’s a seminal piece of work from a seminal performer and artist. I relish it.” That would have meant the world to Mr. McDowell and the album’s bassist and co-producer (and my partner) Tom Pomposello. It was why Tom worked so hard his entire life to make sure the album stayed available, and I’ve tried to fulfill his wishes.

As I told Pete, I guess that’s what so powerful about the whole recording medium; it allows an isolated man like Fred McDowell to find his way around the world to people forever.

Please check out Pete’s writing about the recording. He captures the mood of the night perfectly, though he was probably was an infant at the time. Thanks Pete, we all appreciate it.

“Several years, and many miles, after his discovery by the great (and sometimes controversial) Blues musicologist, Alan Lomax, Mississippi Fred McDowell’s two sets this night in New York City proved to be the culmination of a long and rich career.

“Greeted by an eager and excitable crowd, McDowell takes that energy and works off it throughout the entire recording. People gleefully heckle and cheer him on, entirely in love with him. It goes on like this throughout the show, McDowell being a consummate showman and kindly host, peppering his tuning breaks with explanations of how the Blues, “and Spirituals, too”, are conveyed to him and thus onto his listeners.”

(Read Pete Simonelli’s entire post here.)

-Fred Seibert

Photograph of Fred McDowell by Lee Friedlander, Senatobia, Mississippi, 1960.

12 notes | Comments
#blues #guitar #Oblivion Records #Mississippi Fred McDowell #press #review

Dr. John, the undoubtable Mac Rebennack, is releasing a fantastic new album today, a stellar addition to his discography, produced with great care and talent by the Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach. Here’s a free version of the first single, “Revolution”: The release gives me a great excuse to highlight a couple of projects I worked on with the good Doctor involved with in the late 1980s. The chance to work with one of the rhythm & blues greats was really a career highlight. In both cases Mac’s participation because one of his record producers was Ed Levine, a colleague at my ad agency Fred/Alan in New York. Fred/Alan IDs 1988 from fredseibert on Vimeo. My favorite was probably the set of animated IDs we did for an obscure television station in St. Cloud, Minnesota in 1988. TV Heaven was a local version of what Fred/Alan had done with Nick-at-Nite on a national basis, where we made an overnight hit station from an obscure UHF transmitter in the sticks. Mac came into the recording studio planning on recording one track for us, and ended up improvising six melodies on the spot during our scheduled time. I don’t remember the writer for this one, but I think I like it the most: “Some people go from dollars to donuts, but I’ll take pennies from heaven. TV Heaven 41.”  The animations you see here were done after the style of the legendary Fred Mogubgub, and directed by Fred in New York, Marv Newland and International Rocketship in Vancouver, and Marc Karzen in New York.  You can get the entire TV Heaven story here at Fred/Alan’s archive. Ed probably thought about Mac for TV Heaven because he’d already had a big hit when he asked Dr. John to play the annual Fred/Alan holiday party the previous December (invitation above). We took over a belly dancing club on a second floor on 8th Avenue in New York, and for one night transformed it into a soul food juke joint. With Dr. John presiding, natch. The whole story’s here.

April 3, 2012

Dr. John, the undoubtable Mac Rebennack, is releasing a fantastic new album today, a stellar addition to his discography, produced with great care and talent by the Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach. Here’s a free version of the first single, “Revolution”: The release gives me a great excuse to highlight a couple of projects I worked on with the good Doctor involved with in the late 1980s. The chance to work with one of the rhythm & blues greats was really a career highlight. In both cases Mac’s participation because one of his record producers was Ed Levine, a colleague at my ad agency Fred/Alan in New York. Fred/Alan IDs 1988 from fredseibert on Vimeo. My favorite was probably the set of animated IDs we did for an obscure television station in St. Cloud, Minnesota in 1988. TV Heaven was a local version of what Fred/Alan had done with Nick-at-Nite on a national basis, where we made an overnight hit station from an obscure UHF transmitter in the sticks. Mac came into the recording studio planning on recording one track for us, and ended up improvising six melodies on the spot during our scheduled time. I don’t remember the writer for this one, but I think I like it the most: “Some people go from dollars to donuts, but I’ll take pennies from heaven. TV Heaven 41.”  The animations you see here were done after the style of the legendary Fred Mogubgub, and directed by Fred in New York, Marv Newland and International Rocketship in Vancouver, and Marc Karzen in New York.  You can get the entire TV Heaven story here at Fred/Alan’s archive. Ed probably thought about Mac for TV Heaven because he’d already had a big hit when he asked Dr. John to play the annual Fred/Alan holiday party the previous December (invitation above). We took over a belly dancing club on a second floor on 8th Avenue in New York, and for one night transformed it into a soul food juke joint. With Dr. John presiding, natch. The whole story’s here.

Dr. John, the undoubtable Mac Rebennack, is releasing a fantastic new album today, a stellar addition to his discography, produced with great care and talent by the Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach. Here’s a free version of the first single, “Revolution”:

Print

The release gives me a great excuse to highlight a couple of projects I worked on with the good Doctor involved with in the late 1980s. The chance to work with one of the rhythm & blues greats was really a career highlight. In both cases Mac’s participation because one of his record producers was Ed Levine, a colleague at my ad agency Fred/Alan in New York.

Fred/Alan IDs 1988 from fredseibert on Vimeo.

My favorite was probably the set of animated IDs we did for an obscure television station in St. Cloud, Minnesota in 1988. TV Heaven was a local version of what Fred/Alan had done with Nick-at-Nite on a national basis, where we made an overnight hit station from an obscure UHF transmitter in the sticks. Mac came into the recording studio planning on recording one track for us, and ended up improvising six melodies on the spot during our scheduled time. I don’t remember the writer for this one, but I think I like it the most:

“Some people go from dollars to donuts, but I’ll take pennies from heaven. TV Heaven 41.” 

The animations you see here were done after the style of the legendary Fred Mogubgub, and directed by Fred in New York, Marv Newland and International Rocketship in Vancouver, and Marc Karzen in New York. 

You can get the entire TV Heaven story here at Fred/Alan’s archive.

Ed probably thought about Mac for TV Heaven because he’d already had a big hit when he asked Dr. John to play the annual Fred/Alan holiday party the previous December (invitation above). We took over a belly dancing club on a second floor on 8th Avenue in New York, and for one night transformed it into a soul food juke joint. With Dr. John presiding, natch. The whole story’s here.

7 notes | Comments
#party #network IDs #animation #music #branding #1987 #1988 #blues #rhythm & blues #R&B

Coming of age in the 60s I got hit square in my brains with the blues revival. So, after producing records in the 70s by Mississippi Fred McDowell, Johnny Woods, and Charles Walker & the New York City Blues Band, it seemed like the right time to add to the Frederator enterprises with our crossroads store, bar, juke joint, and gas station in Melrose, Louisiana 1944, near Natchitiches. Mash up with a 1944 photograph by Marion Post Wolcott, courtesy of the FSA/OWI Collection at the Library of Congress. The original is available from the United States Library of Congress’s Prints and Photographs division under the digital ID fsac.1a34361. Marion Post Wolcott, Farm Security Administration, Office of War Information Collection. This work is in the public domain in the United States because it is a work of the United States Federal Government under the terms of Title 17, Chapter 1, Section 105 of the US Code. From the postcard back:  Congratulations! You are one of 200 people to receive this limited edition Frederator postcard! www.frederator.com An alternative History of Frederator The Headquarters Mash up with a 1944, Library of Congress photograph Series 14.5, mailed July 20, 2011 ©2011, Bellport Cartoon Company, Inc. All rights reserved.

July 20, 2011

Coming of age in the 60s I got hit square in my brains with the blues revival. So, after producing records in the 70s by Mississippi Fred McDowell, Johnny Woods, and Charles Walker & the New York City Blues Band, it seemed like the right time to add to the Frederator enterprises with our crossroads store, bar, juke joint, and gas station in Melrose, Louisiana 1944, near Natchitiches. Mash up with a 1944 photograph by Marion Post Wolcott, courtesy of the FSA/OWI Collection at the Library of Congress. The original is available from the United States Library of Congress’s Prints and Photographs division under the digital ID fsac.1a34361. Marion Post Wolcott, Farm Security Administration, Office of War Information Collection. This work is in the public domain in the United States because it is a work of the United States Federal Government under the terms of Title 17, Chapter 1, Section 105 of the US Code. From the postcard back:  Congratulations! You are one of 200 people to receive this limited edition Frederator postcard! www.frederator.com An alternative History of Frederator The Headquarters Mash up with a 1944, Library of Congress photograph Series 14.5, mailed July 20, 2011 ©2011, Bellport Cartoon Company, Inc. All rights reserved.

Coming of age in the 60s I got hit square in my brains with the blues revival. So, after producing records in the 70s by Mississippi Fred McDowell, Johnny Woods, and Charles Walker & the New York City Blues Band, it seemed like the right time to add to the Frederator enterprises with our crossroads store, bar, juke joint, and gas station in Melrose, Louisiana 1944, near Natchitiches.

Mash up with a 1944 photograph by Marion Post Wolcott, courtesy of the FSA/OWI Collection at the Library of Congress.

A crossroads store bar juke joint and gas station in Melrose, Louisiana 1944

The original is available from the United States Library of Congress’s Prints and Photographs division under the digital ID fsac.1a34361. Marion Post Wolcott, Farm Security Administration, Office of War Information Collection. This work is in the public domain in the United States because it is a work of the United States Federal Government under the terms of Title 17, Chapter 1, Section 105 of the US Code.

From the postcard back: 

Congratulations! 
You are one of 200 people to receive this limited edition Frederator postcard! 
www.frederator.com

An alternative History of Frederator 
The Headquarters
Mash up with a 1944, Library of Congress photograph

Series 14.5, mailed July 20, 2011 
©2011, Bellport Cartoon Company, Inc. All rights reserved.

8 notes | Comments
#photography #postcards #Frederator postcards #Series 14 #alternative history #blues

“The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” are words that didn’t (and don’t) need to taken lightly, and they sure weren’t by their author, Gil Scott-Heron, a musician and poet who tragically passed away at the end of May. Pull out your Google search and Wikipedia to figure out a lot of the references (Spiro Agnew, “pigs shooting down brothers on the instant replay,” Whitney Young, Roy WIlkins, “Search for Tomorrow”), unless your of a certain age, though Frederator readers will, of course, recognize Bullwinkle.  Others have written more eloquently than I could about Gil’s meaning in the larger scheme of things, but I didn’t want to ignore the moment the way I have for the last few decades, frankly, the way Gil himself did. I’ll only tell you his words never left the recesses of my cranium, a potent fact for someone (me) who ignores lyrics almost completely. He wrote some indelible music (much of it with his partner Brian Jackson). Though some called him Gil a godfather of hip-hop, he disagreed. You decide. 

June 10, 2011

“The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” are words that didn’t (and don’t) need to taken lightly, and they sure weren’t by their author, Gil Scott-Heron, a musician and poet who tragically passed away at the end of May.

Pull out your Google search and Wikipedia to figure out a lot of the references (Spiro Agnew, “pigs shooting down brothers on the instant replay,” Whitney Young, Roy WIlkins, “Search for Tomorrow”), unless your of a certain age, though Frederator readers will, of course, recognize Bullwinkle. 

Others have written more eloquently than I could about Gil’s meaning in the larger scheme of things, but I didn’t want to ignore the moment the way I have for the last few decades, frankly, the way Gil himself did. I’ll only tell you his words never left the recesses of my cranium, a potent fact for someone (me) who ignores lyrics almost completely. He wrote some indelible music (much of it with his partner Brian Jackson). Though some called him Gil a godfather of hip-hop, he disagreed. You decide. 

5 notes | Comments
#jazz #poetry #R&B #soul #blues #hip-hop