Roger Joseph Manning Jr. shares new single "Just Lust" / new LP 'Hopium' out Sept. 18 via Omnivore Recordings

September 18 marks the date that acclaimed singer-songwriter/keyboardist Roger Joseph Manning Jr. will release his forthcoming album "Hopium" Listen to the sumptuous advance track "Just Lust" and learn more via the official media release. Additionally, check out my coverage of the artist's memorable appearance at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles on May 17, 2018 HERE..Robert Kinsler

Roger Joseph Manning Jr. shares new single "Just Lust"

Upcoming album 'Hopium' featuring new music and live tracks from the Jellyfish and Imperial Drag co-founder

Out September 18,  2026 via Omnivore Recordings

Roger Joseph Manning Jr. / Photo courtesy of the artist

August 28, 2026: Today, Roger Joseph Manning Jr. has shared his new single “Just Lust,” the next offering from his upcoming album Hopium, out September 18, 2026 on Omnivore Recordings. Available on vinyl, CD and digital, the forthcoming LP features five new songs and five live tracks from the beloved Jellyfish and Imperial Drag co-founder.

Roger on the new single: “‘Just Lust’ was actually written towards the final days of Jellyfish. Because it had to wait in line behind lots of songs contending for the third unrealized album, it didn’t see the light of day at that time. So many years later, I met the daunting task of writing and singing my own lyrics because I believed in it so much. While I did play all the instruments on this song, I didn’t believe in my guitar skills enough to take on the guitar solo the song was begging for. So my intention became to compose the greatest guitar solo ever but pull it off with a synthesizer. The end result is more exciting than I could have ever imagined. Hope you agree!”

 

Stream "Just Lust" HERE

Pre-order Hopium HERE

Side one of Hopium features five new songs, including “Modern Dance (The After School Specials),” some of which have been in the works for over 15 years. Across the ensuing years, Manning worked with musician friends Victor Indrizzo (drums), Steve Shane McDonald (bass), Jim Wilson (electric guitars), Ken Sluiter (mixing, mastering) and Jason Falkner (additional electric guitars) to perfectly craft the basis of the new album.

 

Roger Joseph Manning Jr. performing
at the Grammy Museum in 2018.
Photo credit: Robert Kinsler

About the songs on Hopium, Roger says, “I remember writing the lyrics in a hotel room in Germany. Out on tour, especially in the middle of the night when you’re jetlagging, you have all this time to think about lyrics that take forever to take shape. It’s a huge sense of personal victory when you realize you’ve got something. This collection of songs is like that, ideas that developed over time that I believed in enough to take the time and resources to flesh out and record thinking, ‘Somebody’s got to hear this someday.’ So I just keep going and it’s a method that’s worked for me over the years because as a freelance musician, we’re all so busy trying to make ends meet, the songs that make it through have a special place in my heart.”

 

The flipside of Hopium is drawn from Manning’s live appearance at the 2018 International Pop Overthrow Festival at Molly Malone’s in Los Angeles. Those five songs include a pair from his 2006 album The Land Of Pure Imagination, one from his previous Omnivore release, 2023’s Radio Daze & Glamping, and another pair from his former band, Jellyfish. The live band appearing alongside him for the IPO date includes Chris Price, Dan Rothchild, Ben Lecourt, Alex Jules, and Emeen Zarookian.

 

Music fans worldwide know Roger Joseph Manning Jr. as co-founder or member of the bands Jellyfish, Imperial Drag, The Moog Cookbook, TV Eyes and The Lickerish Quartet, in addition to being a member of Beck’s band and an in-demand session player. Over the years, he’s contributed to albums by Beck, Morrissey, Lana Del Rey, Blink-182, Johnny Cash, Cheap Trick and Adele, among many others.

 

Roger Joseph Manning Jr. – Hopium:

1. Modern Dance (The After School Specials)

2. Just Lust

3. My Magic Bicycle

4. Wish Away

5. The Lords Of Altamont

6. That Is Why (Live at International Pop Overthrow 2018)

7. The Loser (Live at International Pop Overthrow 2018)

8. Pray For The Many (Live at International Pop Overthrow 2018)

9. Funhouse (Live at International Pop Overthrow 2018)

10. The King Is Half-Undressed (Live at International Pop Overthrow 2018)

Visit Manning's official website HERE.

New music: Duran Duran, Firefall, The Foreign Films

Duran Duran is the focus of an essential new concert film available on DVD while Firefall and The Foreign Films are back with essential new albums.

Artist: Duran Duran
Title: A Hollywood High (Cherry Red Records)
You might like if you enjoy: Duran Duran, Roxy Music, Arcadia
Tell me more: A Hollywood High is a true celebration of modern British rock group Duran Duran's special relationship with Los Angeles. In addition to interviews with singer Simon Le Bon, keyboardist Nick Rhodes, bassist John Taylor, drummer Roger Taylor as well as unseen archival footage dating back to the early 1980s, the docu-concert film features a 12-song show filmed at The Aster in Los Angeles on March 17, 2022. Visually stunning (the location features the iconic Capitol Records Tower as a backdrop), the high-rise rooftop performance features 4K video and is enhanced by 5.1 and Dolby Atmos surround sound that fully capture the band at the height of their powers. The setlist includes a mix of Duran Duran's hits and shining new material. Among the many outstanding songs performed are the powerful opener "A View To A Kill," lovely "Come Undone," explosive "Pressure Off," a crowd pleasing cover of "White Lines," moving "Ordinary World" (the latter dedicated to the people of Ukraine) and festive closer "Hungry Like The Wolf." A Hollywood High is available on both Blu-ray and DVD. Information: duranduran.com. 

Artist: Firefall
Title: Friends & Family (Sunset Blvd Records)
You might like if you enjoy: The Doobie Brothers, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Firefall, Loggins & Messina, Poco
Tell me more: Because many of 1970s hitmaker Firefall's band members have also played with some of the most beloved artists of the 70s' and '80s — including The Byrds, Flying Burrito Brothers, Spirit, Heart, Dan Fogelberg and Gram Parsons — it's not surprising that the quintet's latest album Friends & Family is such a resounding success. The disc (due Sept. 22 via Sunset Blvd Records) showcases Firefall's solid ability to recapture the spirit and sound of the classic rock era that gave rise to their outfit and so many of their beloved contemporaries; Firefall offers up their own versions of 13 classic tracks originally recorded by others artists between the late 1960s and early '80s. Highlights include the mostly-faithful performance of the Doobie Brothers' "Long Train Running," harmonies-adorned take on Fogelberg's "Part of the Plan," inspired folk rock reading of the Marshall Tucker Band's "Can't You See," poignant version of Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Simple Man" (the latter bolstered by John Magnie's sublime accordion work) and delightfully driving version of Spirit's rocker "I Got a Line On You." They also rework Heart's 1985 rocker "What About Love" into a winning countrified version, while bringing a magic to versions of the Flying Burrito Brothers' soaring "Colorado" and Parson's rowdy country rocker "Ooh Las Vegas." Information: firefallofficial.com.

Artist: The Foreign Films
Title: Magic Shadows (Kool Kat Musik)
You might like if you enjoy: The Three O'Clock, XTC, Jellyfish
Tell me more: In the official press notes for The Foreign Films' album Magic Shadows, band leader Bill Majoros notes "I love the idea of taking the listener on a musical adventure, creating a sonic and emotional experience...I think of music as a time machine — visiting the past, present and future." Indeed, Magic Shadows does transport the listener on a wide-ranging sonic journey. The songs here recall the past while also celebrating the here and now. The luxurious "Cinema Girl" draws favorable comparisons with top-flight Jellyfish while the propulsive "Perfect Future" exudes an urgency in tune with our troubled times. Other memorable tracks include the Baroque pop nugget "Sparks In The Dark (Merry-Go-Round)," dreamy "Midnight Movies" and "Lost In Time," and Beach Boys-minded "Daydream In The Sun." My favorite track is the shimmering "Rain Clouds," a swirling cut that blends '60s' psychedelic stylings with the sound of '80s Paisley Underground heroes The Three O'Clock in glorious fashion. Information: koolkatmusik.com.

Robert Kinsler

Media Release: Power Pop Icon Matthew Sweet leads a cast of All-Stars and Legends on a Trip to Revisit The Beatles’ “ABBEY ROAD!”

 

Power Pop Icon MATTHEW SWEET Leads A Cast Of All-Stars And Legends On A Trip To Revisit THE BEATLES’ “ABBEY ROAD!”

Album features performances by Jellyfish's Roger Joseph Manning Jr., Vulfpeck's Charles Jones, British guitar legend Snowy White, Billy Idol guitarist Steve Stevens, GnR cohort Ron Bumblefoot Thal, Paul Shafer, God Of Hellfire Arthur Brown and lots more!

Los Angeles, CA - It probably comes as no surprise that Athens GA indie rock icon Matthew Sweet has a fondness for The Beatles. From his 1986 debut album to his early ‘90s breakthrough, including the MTV smash hit “Girlfriend,” on through to his most recent albums, Sweet has pulled off the same kind of melodically driven, seemingly straightforward but stealthily complex songs that turned the Liverpudlian foursome into a worldwide phenomena and one of the most influential artists of all-time. Recently, Sweet was invited to participate in a truly remarkable revisitation of The Beatles’ incredible crowning glory, the brilliant Abbey Road, and the results couldn’t be more satisfying.

Sweet sings, plays guitar and even adds a little bass to a brand new version of Abbey Road’s punchiest blast of rock psychedelia, “Polythene Pam.” The fourth segment of the album’s magnificent Side B medley, “Pam” is the perfect showcase for Sweet’s deft interplay of rapid fire vocals and powerfully overdriven guitars. Assisting in the track’s creation is fellow singer/guitarist Jason Berk, who adds texture with his acoustic guitar, and Fernando Perdomo who supports Sweet’s guitar with some tasteful Hammond organ. Perhaps the only thing that can be said against the track is that, with a running time of 1:27, it leaves too soon. But then, that’s what the repeat button is for!

Stream/download the single: https://orcd.co/matthewsweet_polythenepam

Abbey Road Reimagined, produced by Perdomo and packed with an astounding array of musical all-stars, will be hitting the digital and physical shelves on August 18, 2023. Order your copy today!

Order the CD/Vinyl: https://cleorecs.com/store/?s=Abbey+Road+Reimagined&post_type=product

Pre-save the digital: https://orcd.co/abbeyroadreimagined

TRACK LIST:
1. Come Together - Durga McBroom (Pink Floyd), Jackie Lomax (Apple Records Artist) & Snowy White (Pink Floyd)
2. Something - Charles Jones (Vulfpeck) & Sonny Landreth
3. Maxwell's Silver Hammer - Roger Joseph Manning Jr. (Jellyfish)
4. Oh! Darling - Eric Dover (Jellyfish) & Carmine Appice (Vanilla Fudge)
5. Octopus's Garden - Matt Axton & Brian Auger (Rod Stewart)
6. I Want You (She's So Heavy) -  Arthur Brown & Steve Stevens (Billy Idol)
7. Here Comes The Sun - Ron Bumblefoot Thal (Guns N' Roses)
8. Because - Rebecca Pidgeon & Patrick Moraz (The Moody Blues)
9. You Never Give Me Your Money - Graham Bonnet (Rainbow) & Rick Wakeman (Yes)
10. Sun King - James Booth & The Return, Albert Lee & Geoff Downes (Yes)
11. Mean Mr. Mustard - Jack Russell (Great White)
12. Polythene Pam - Matthew Sweet
13. She Came In Through The Bathroom Window - Adam Gaynor (Matchbox 20) & Paul Shaffer
14. Golden Slumbers - Terry Reid
15. Carry That Weight - Gregg Bissonette
16. The End - Frank Dimino (Angel) & Steve Hillage (Gong)
17. Her Majesty - Gary Wilson

The Lickerish Quartet follows up 'Masterpiece' debut EP with 'Threesome Vol. 2,' set for release on January 8, 2021

Check out The Lickerish Quartet's hard-charging new single. It is great!

The Lickerish Quartet's first single and video, "Snollygoster Goon," out today, Friday, Nov. 20, 2020!

 

The Lickerish Quartet, left to right: Tim Smith, Eric Dover,
and Roger Joseph Manning Jr.

 

 

November 20, 2020 -- THE LICKERISH QUARTET—ex-Jellyfish members Roger Joseph Manning Jr. (Beck, Air, Cheap Trick, Imperial Drag), Tim Smith (Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, The Finn Brothers, Sheryl Crow, Umajets) and Eric Dover (Imperial Drag, Slash’s Snakepit, Alice Cooper, Sextus)—is standing by their promise to their fans to release more new music before the end of 2020. 

 

Today they’re excited to announce their highly anticipated THREESOME VOL. 2 EP, which will be released January 8, 2021 via Stranger Danger Records and Tapes. Pre-orders will be available starting Friday, December 4 here. The first single and video, “Snollygoster Goon,” can be seen now on the band’s official YouTube page and streamed on Spotify, Apple Music and Amazon.

 

In addition to the new music, THE LICKERISH QUARTET is offering unprecedented access to the band thanks to a plethora of exciting “Experiences,” which will be available for purchase on their official website. These exclusive offers include: “Perform / Record On Your Song,” “Co-Write a Song With Us,” “Video Chat,” “Music Lesson,” and many others. 

 

It’s the follow-up to their debut EP, THREESOME VOL. 1, lauded by critics as “a masterpiece” which was released May 15, 2020 via The Lickerish Quartet/Label Logic, as distributed by Ingrooves and can be purchased and streamed on all digital outlets.

 

With song titles like “Snolllygoster Goon,” “The Dream That Took Me Over,” “Sovereignty Blues,” and “Do You Feel Better?” Manning, Smith, and Dover’s undeniable chemistry can once again be found throughout THREESOME VOL. 2. The songs formed from the same sessions that begun in 2017 offer a slinky and feisty landscape of temptation, freedom of thought, hope and dreams, and a shout out to all who game the systems. An edgy second round of soaring vocals, angular guitars, and pulsing drums, enveloped by timeless keyboard arrangements requires multiple listens to appreciate fully. Manning, Dover and Smith ruminate on these new songs:

 

“Do You Feel Better?” as told by Tim Smith:

A romp along the primrose path of temptations, internal and external, real or imagined, the tiny demons we dance with throughout our lives.
A pulsing bass and hypnotic guitar rhythm plays like the backing band to a striptease you’ve sneaked into, and don’t know where to sit, but all are welcome!
Some things are more dangerous than others, of course, but this song is sort of a combination of letting your guard down, because of preconceived notions of what’s right or wrong, and justification  of actions you think you understand to have under control. Who knows?
Experiences do give us perspective, and this song tries to play between the id and superego--a Screwtape letter demon, and an Angel of Mercy.
 

“Sovereignty Blues” as told by Roger Joseph Manning Jr.:

 

“Fears fire’s all they’re fanning, but I won’t light up their fuse.” A tale as old as humanity. Group control over another through the tried and true tactic of fear. And always partnered with a fatal dose of “divide and conquer.” But who’s actually pulling the levers and pushing the buttons of the propaganda machine behind the Wizard of Oz’ curtain of crowd control, so to speak? Irrelevant. Ultimately, the perennial question for any person, provided they value sovereignty above all else, is: am I going to choose love over fear, peace over chaos, and God over the ego in any given moment? Everything can be taken from a man but one thing (to quote Viktor Frankl): “The last of the human freedoms, to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” And with that in mind, grab a torch, march to your own drum, and sing along!

 

“The Dream That Took Me Over” as told by Eric Dover:

 

You are driving without a destination lured by the wanderlust of your own making.  You turn up the stereo volume and continue along, moonlight reflecting off the chrome of your vehicle.

We invite you to put the top down and take a ride into the inner dialectic of our conflicted protagonist as we answer the question: Is there equilibrium in the chaos or does science hold the key? 

 

“Snollygoster Goon” as told by Eric Dover:

 

A frenetic forensic foray into classic old as civilization themes involving

greed, graft and corruption as applied to any political sphere.

The music is Adderall based in theory to reflect the absolute

breakneck speed at which the corruption flourishes. The snake oil salesman kissing babies, the saccharine unimaginative public image.

 

The first single from THREESOME VOL. 1, “Lighthouse Spaceship,” has had nearly 50,000 plays on Spotify since its release in March. Lyric videos for “Lighthouse Spaceship” and “Fadoodle,” as well as an acoustic performance video for “There Is a Magic Number,” can be seen on the band’s official YouTube page.

 

Rave reviews emerged about THREESOME VOL. 1 since before its release. Popmatters.com hailed, “Fans of both Jellyfish and Imperial Drag will rejoice at the Quartet's sound. There are doses of XTC/Queen/ELO-style harmonic structures, flirtations with progressive and psychedelic rock, and tasteful but deeply impressive musicianship.” While the Minneapolis Star-Tribune declared, “If you love the harmonies of Queen, the songwriting of Brian Wilson and the lushness of Borns, (‘Lighthouse Spaceship’) is a must-add to your playlist.” The Day (CT) proclaimed, “This mini-masterpiece offers the same joy-crafted recipe fans loved about the '90s-era band (Jellyfish): Four sugar-packed tunes of Queenisms, lick-the-spoon Wings frosting, wry Fountains of Waynery, and a quick waterside through Brian Wilson's acid-period brain.” And MusicPlayers.com concluded, ““…these tracks are dreamy good! The songs cover a variety of classic pop styles from a time when you didn’t have to clarify that pop was actually a form of rock music, with a heavy dose of ‘70s vibe and incredible vocal harmonies draped over jangly electric guitars, folky acoustics, vintage keyboards, and bass grooves that can only be called… exceptional.”

 

Proclaims Tim Smith, “THREESOME VOL. 2 finds our threesome in fine form, with four new songs to get you through COVID times and beyond!”

 

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The Lickerish Quartet release lyric video for “Fadoodle” from debut EP, ‘Threesome Vol. 1,’ due out May 15

The Lickerish Quartet has a new single (“Fadoodle”) and accompanying lyric video from their forthcoming debut due May 15, 2020. What a great song! Robert Kinsler

THE LICKERISH QUARTET

(ROGER JOSEPH MANNING JR., TIM SMITH, ERIC DOVER, FORMERLY OF JELLYFISH)

RELEASE LYRIC VIDEO FOR “FADOODLE”

FROM DEBUT EP, ‘THREESOME VOL. 1,’ DUE OUT MAY 15

PRE-ORDERS AVAILABLE NOW

April 15, 2020 -- THE LICKERISH QUARTET--Roger Joseph Manning Jr. (Beck, Air, Cheap Trick, Imperial Drag), Tim Smith (Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, The Finn Brothers, Sheryl Crow, Umajets) and Eric Dover (Imperial Drag, Slash’s Snakepit, Alice Cooper, Sextus)—have released the second video from their highly anticipated debut EP, THREESOME VOL. 1 EP, which is set for release on May 15 via The Lickerish Quartet/Label Logic, as distributed by Ingrooves. Pre-orders are now available here. The first single, “Lighthouse Spaceship,” was recently released on the band’s official YouTube page.

Today, the lyric video for “Fadoodle”—created by Todd Productions, Inc.--premiered exclusively on the band’s Facebook page. It can also be viewed now on the band’s official YouTube page. 

The Lickerish Quartet

“Fadoodle” is a Dover-driven look at how to rekindle the fires of a long-entrenched relationship. “Well, I’m always looking for new ways to say dirty things,” Dover observes with a laugh. “I found a big list of naughty words from back in the day for what people used to denote fornication. It’s fascinating, because this has the distinction of being a pop song that has the world’s oldest slang yet is released in the 21st Century.” Adds Manning, “This one has that eighth-note driving thing that was a big part of the glitter sound of the early punk wave, so it’s got that kind of energy right out of the gate. Thankfully, once we had Eric’s lyric in place, it was just a free-for-all in having fun with the vocal interplay.” 

From the mischievous harmonic invitation of “Fadoodle” to the folk-tinged uplift of “Bluebird’s Blues” to the twangy lamentation of “There Is a Magic Number” to the cosmic muscle of the EP’s first single, “Lighthouse Spaceship,” THREESOME VOL. 1 confirms the communal strengths of a trio of songwriters who have clearly retained an intuitive sense of knowing exactly how to elevate the sum of each other’s musical chops. 

Early rave reviews are starting to emerge about THREESOME VOL. 1. Popmatters.com hailed, “Fans of both Jellyfish and Imperial Drag will rejoice at the Quartet's sound. There are doses of XTC/Queen/ELO-style harmonic structures, flirtations with progressive and psychedelic rock, and tasteful but deeply impressive musicianship.” While the Minneapolis Star-Tribune declared, “If you love the harmonies of Queen, the songwriting of Brian Wilson and the lushness of Borns, (‘Lighthouse Spaceship’) is a must-add to your playlist.”

While THE LICKERISH QUARTET don’t anticipate playing any live dates together anytime soon, they can confirm there are two more four-song EPs waiting in the wings, if demand warrants their release. Acknowledges Manning, “Realizing original ideas of my own is the most gratifying thing about making music, and the natural progression of what the three of us are doing together is you want to share it with people.” Declares Dover, “I’m always going to have time for doing music with these two people, even if we don’t live near each other. And if we only do two songs instead of 12, then we only do two. I’m cool with that.” Concludes Smith, “There’s a level of trust between collaborators who all share the same general goal. Only that can keep it interesting and push it even further to where it can go. At the end of the day, as long as all three of us are excited and inspired with what we come up with, we’ll figure out a way to do more of it.” 

www.thelickerishquartet.com

www.facebook.com/thelickerishquartet

www.twitter.com/thelickerish

www.instagram.com/thelickerishquartet

www.youtube.com/channel/UCfWybdIebZGc5piOklNCJIw

Sights and Sounds: Paul McCartney, Kennedy Center Honors, Gov't Mule, Jason Falkner

Wow! Lots of big news to share...

Paul McCartney has announced plans to compose his first-ever musical, an adaptation of "It's a Wonderful Life." 


McCartney has partnered with British theatre and film impresario Bill Kenwright who will produce the show. Get all the details about the upcoming musical on Sir Paul's website here.

I have seen McCartney a number of times over the years. You can read my most recent concert review here.

Earth, Wind & Fire performing at the Pacific Amphitheatre in
Costa Mesa, CA, on July 27, 2018.
Photo courtesy of the Orange County Fair.

Linda Ronstadt and Earth, Wind and Fire are among the recipients announced to be honored at the next Kennedy Center Honors. I am especially thrilled to see Earth, Wind & Fire perform. I am a huge fan of the group and have seen them a number of times, including in Costa Mesa a year ago (you can read my review of that show here). The 42nd annual Kennedy Center Honors Gala will be held on Dec. 7, 2019. Get all the details on Billboard:

Gov't Mule have released the video to the title track "Bring On The Music" ahead of tomorrow's release of their new live film and album Bring On The Music - Live at The Capitol Theatre (Provogue / Mascot Label Group), directed by renowned music photographer and director Danny Clinch (Pearl Jam, Bruce Springsteen, Foo Fighters, Phish). PRESS HERE to watch and check out the first look via Guitar Player. The video evolves from an intimateacoustic jam to an electrifying stage performance showcasing Gov't Mule in all their rock glory. 

"'Bring On The Music' is a song about loss and inevitable change, and also about the relationship between the band and our audience which we feel extremely lucky to have," shares Gov't Mule frontman and GRAMMY Award-winning vocalist, songwriter, producer, and revered guitarist Warren Haynes.

PRESS HERE to watch the trailer for the film, and check out previously released video cuts "Mr. Man," "The Man I Want To Be," and "Life Before Insanity."

Check out the band's website for more information.

Finally, last night I was at FivePoint Amphitheatre in Irvine to catch the "Night Running Tour." After catching Spoon's impressive set I ran into Jason Falkner, a long-time member of Beck's touring band and famed artist known for his work with Jellyfish, The Grays, Pugwash and more! A true honor to meet one of the most talented artists on the planet!

Jason Falkner, left, with Robert Kinsler.
Photo: Ron Bronsgeest

If the "Night Running Tour" is coming to your town, make sure to go. Spoon, Cage The Elephant and Beck were all terrific last night. Next stop for the tour is in Las Vegas on Friday night, July 19th...

Information: https://www.cagetheelephant.com/2019/02/11/co-headline-tour-with-beck/


Robert Kinsler

Bird Streets (featuring John Brodeur & Jason Falkner) preview Omnivore Recordings album at Hotel Cafe, August 25

Here is breaking news on an exciting new release from Bird Streets, a project teaming artists John Brodeur and Jason Falkner...

Look what’s flying in from Brooklyn…the new band from John Brodeur and Jason Falkner

With new self-titled Omnivore debut album out August 10th.

BIRD STREETS

Sat. Aug. 25 • LOS ANGELES • Hotel Café, Second Stage

1623 North Cahuenga Blvd., Showtime: 9:00p.m.; Tickets: $10 pre sale

https://www.hotelcafe.com/tickets/?s=events_view&id=7987

Bird Streets' Jason Falkner, left, with John Brodeur.

Brooklyn-based musician John Brodeur is the New York songwriter and musician behind Bird Streets.  He will be live in Los Angeles at the Hotel Café Second Stage on Saturday, August 25.  He will be joined by Los Angeles-based friend, collaborator and producer Jason Falkner for this special show. 

Bird Streets will be released on August 10 via Los Angeles record label Omnivore Recordings.  The label is known primarily as a reissues label so when it releases something new, it’s always tuneful and noteworthy. 

In need of a creative rebirth after years on the music-industry margins, Brodeur reached out to his friend, the producer and multi-instrumentalist Jason Falkner, to suggest they record together. The album yielded by this pairing is both fresh and familiar — a dynamic collection of introspective indie-rock and power-pop that draws liberally on the music of decades past without being bluntly nostalgic, with Brodeur’s voice like an old friend you’re meeting for the first time.

Over a career that’s spanned nearly 20 years, Brodeur has independently produced and released several solo albums, including 2013’s Little Hopes; fronted rock trios the Suggestions and Maggie Mayday; and worked as a touring and studio musician for scores of acts, including the Morning After Girls, Freedy Johnston, and White Hills. Falkner is a widely respected performer and producer whose studio credits include Paul McCartney, Noel Gallagher, and Daniel Johnston. He’s a founding member of power-pop legends Jellyfish, and is the one-man band behind a string of critically lauded solo records, including 1996’s Author Unknown; and a longstanding associate of Beck, currently serving as the lead guitarist in his live band.

The name Bird Streets springs from a tony real-estate enclave in the Hollywood Hills, which Brodeur first discovered when the recording sessions were first getting underway — but also references Brodeur’s one-time hometown of Albany, N.Y., which provided the characters and inspiration for some of the album’s 11 songs.

Brodeur and Falkner were introduced some years ago by mutual friend and fellow one-man-band type Luther Russell (The Freewheelers, Those Pretty Wrongs). Russell appears on Bird Streets via one of the three battling guitar solos that close the track “Stop to Breathe.” Other guests include Miranda Lee Richards and Maesa Pullman, whose voices form the “choir of angels” that gives wings to “Spaceship.”

Lyrically, these songs draw heavily on internal conflict — self-doubt, anxiety, depression — with an overarching feeling of wistful resignation rather than blind optimism. Periodically difficult themes are delivered via unshakable melodies, a dichotomy that recalls the tightrope walked by artists like Elliott Smith and David Bazan/Pedro the Lion. In album opener “Carry Me,” Brodeur celebrates “new beginnings and bitter ends” over a bright, bristling bed of electric guitars, then laments the end of a friendship that was once “tighter than Steely Dan” in the eminently catchy “Betting on the Sun.” From there the album jumps between epic power-ballads (“Stop to Breathe”) and British Invasion-flavored power-pop (“Thanks for Calling”), the George Harrison-via-Radiohead melancholy of “Heal” and the grungy jangle of “Until the Crown.”

Now, after years in the making — and decades on the outside looking in — Bird Streets is giving Brodeur a renewed creative energy, and a shot at reaching a larger audience.

Roger Joseph Manning Jr. thrills in remarkable return at GRAMMY Museum

Roger Joseph Manning Jr. at the GRAMMY Museum
on Thursday, May 17, 2018. Photo: Robert Kinsler 

On Thursday night (May 17, 2018), acclaimed singer-songwriter-keyboardist Roger Joseph Manning Jr. headlined his first solo public performance in "a decade" at the GRAMMY Museum in Los Angeles. 

Scott Goldman, the executive director of the GRAMMY Museum, interviewed Manning as part of  "The Drop," an ongoing series of live events held in the museum's Clive Davis Theater. The conversation delved into everything from Manning's childhood and influences (jazz piano, XTC, Elton John, Talking Heads, Thomas Dolby, Leon Russell and many more) to his early career as the co-founder of Jellyfish and his ongoing musical relationship with Beck (as a member of that multi-Grammy winner's touring band and contributing musician on a number of albums dating back to 1998's Mutations) as well as a myriad of projects that have utilized his talents as keyboardist, vocalist and arranger.

"I've been fortunate to accompany people of all kinds and styles," Manning said. 

Indeed, Manning's far-flung contributions include performing on Glen Campbell's 2008 masterwork Meet Glen Campbell, Cheap Trick's 2009 The Latest, Neil Diamond's 12 Songs, Interpol's El Pintor and even contributing orchestral arrangements to Morrissey's latest album Low in High School.

But it was clear from Manning's discussion of his return with new music (as well as the reissue of his first two solo albums The Land of Pure Imagination and Catnip Dynamite) that he was excited to be on stage again performing his own material.

"Realizing my own ideas from start to end; there is nothing more fulfilling to me," said Manning, noting he writes on piano and guitar because the two different instruments lead his songwriting in very different directions and that diversity is important to him. 



Many of the musical ideas on Manning's albums stretch back many years before they are finally completed in the studio. 

"Beck calls it 'Simmering'," Manning noted.

After the interview concluded Manning and his stellar four-man band performed a four-song set of original material touching off his newly-issued EP Glamping (available now via PledgeMusic) his 2006 solo debut Land of Pure Imagination and even a Jellyfish classic.

The players opened with the enticing new track "Operator," the first track off Manning's new Glamping EP. With its melodic structure and textured musical arc, "Operator" captures the sheer pop craft of which Manning is a master. Rooted in the power pop and melodic rock of the 1960s and '70s, Manning's songs featured at the GRAMMY Museum displayed just how successfully he has been able to both capture and expand the musical traditions of that early rock era. 

The next track was the second selection off Glamping, the more driving "Funhouse," a song that reminds me of classic Squeeze enhanced by the dazzling and wonderfully dizzying vocal harmonies of Queen. 

Third up was the title track off The Land of Pure Imagination, an ambitious gem that features Manning's poignant vocals, psychedelic sensibilities, a high-flying chorus and a just-right dose of progressive rock. 

Manning definitely pumped up the adorning crowd with his shining version of the classic Jellyfish track "That Is Why" off his former band's groundbreaking 1990 debut Bellybutton. 

It was sheer joy to be able to see Manning's career and talents celebrated at the GRAMMY Museum last night. Let's hope another decade doesn't pass before he is on stage again playing his own music. And in the meantime, be sure to pick up a copy of Glamping and catch him playing along with Jason Falkner in Beck's terrific band.

Robert Kinsler