DAVID MALLETT
"VITAL SIGNS"
Mastodon Post

Evidently "Vital Signs" is the David Mallett fan favorite. It starts strongly with "Midnight Madness" and ends with "Highways," which, according to an apparently knowing Amazon customer comment, was often a very big number in concerts. Side One's "April" and the title track are spoken of favorably by Mallett's followers. The first side ends with one of Mallett's best known songs, "Red Red Rose," which was covered to perfection by Emmylou Harris. It is surprising how many covers and interpretations of David Mallett songs closely follow the original arrangements. This may be seen as a testimonial to the production.

"Vital Signs" is notable for the team effort - from piano to drums - of the players, with each contributing catchy riffs.

"Vital Signs" is something like David Mallett's forbidden fruit album. It has never been reissued; and, as far as I am aware, it does not stream. (Some re-recordings do.) A track that once was posted to YouTube has been removed. Evidently the label, Flying Fish Records, made a mistake on the cover which is mirrored on the LPs label, crediting all words and music to Mallett. Judging by the publisher credits, the first song on the second side, "(Coming Apart) At the Seams," appears to be an exception. Evidently pianist Chris Neville claims a co-writer credit. The album got locked up by a lawsuit. Vinyl LPs and at least one cassette can be had online and, one would imagine, in used record stores.

Following popular concert attractions "Good Times" and "These Times," the album ends with Mallett's re-recording of "Highways," which first came out on the live "Hard Light" album. Mallett's singing here on "Highways" is so different that it ought to be considered as a rearrangement.

Jim Rooney did his usual excellent job with this production. David Mallett's home, Sebec, Maine, shares a town line with my old hometown, Milo. For me, then, it is more than a little ironic that Jim Rooney got his start performing on Boston's WCOP Hayloft Jamboree for Nelson Bragg, "The Merry Mayor of Milo, Maine."

A clean burn of the vinyl LP keeps me happily listening. Anyone who has read this far may want to hunt up a copy of the vinyl album. If you are a devoted singer-songwriter fan, chances are good that you have a friend who has burned it. A reissue would have been ideal but ways still exist to enjoy what may very well have been David Mallett's most popular record release, "Vital Signs."

Here are two of the best covers of David Mallett songs:

Summer Of My Dreams
Kathy Mattea - Topic

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzFUG4zQWGU

Red Red Rose
EmmyLouharris

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmL0QSPJhTo

And one by David Mallett:

David Mallet - Summer Of My Dreams
from Live At The Iron Horse Vol. 1 by Signature Sounds Recording Inc.

https://signaturesounds.bandcamp.com/track/summer-of-my-dreams

Music Museum of New England (MMone) Jim Rooney article

https://www.mmone.org/jim-rooney/

:

#april #bostonmusic #chrisneville #comingapartattheseams #davemallett #davidmallett #emmylouharris #flyingfish #flyingfishrecords #goodtimes #hardlight #hayloftjamboree #highways #jimrooney #kathymattea #mainemusic #merrymayorofmilomaine #midnightmadness #mmone #music #musicfeed #musicmuseumofnewengland #musicnews #nelsonbragg #nemsbk #newenglandmusic #redredrose #sebec #sebecmaine #singersongwriter #summerofmydreams #thesetimes #vitalsigns #wcop #wcophayloftjamboree

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DAVID MALLETT
"VITAL SIGNS"
Mastodon Post

Evidently "Vital Signs" is the David Mallett fan favorite. It starts strongly with "Midnight Madness" and ends with "Highways," which, according to an apparently knowing Amazon customer comment, was often a very big number in concerts. Side One's "April" and the title track are spoken of favorably by Mallett's followers. The first side ends with one of Mallett's best known songs, "Red Red Rose," which was covered to perfection by Emmylou Harris. It is surprising how many covers and interpretations of David Mallett songs closely follow the original arrangements. This may be seen as a testimonial to the production.

"Vital Signs" is notable for the team effort - from piano to drums - of the players, with each contributing catchy riffs.

"Vital Signs" is something like David Mallett's forbidden fruit album. It has never been reissued; and, as far as I am aware, it does not stream. (Some re-recordings do.) A track that once was posted to YouTube has been removed. Evidently the label, Flying Fish Records, made a mistake on the cover which is mirrored on the LPs label, crediting all words and music to Mallett. Judging by the publisher credits, the first song on the second side, "(Coming Apart) At the Seams," appears to be an exception. Evidently pianist Chris Neville claims a co-writer credit. The album got locked up by a lawsuit. Vinyl LPs and at least one cassette can be had online and, one would imagine, in used record stores.

Following popular concert attractions "Good Times" and "These Times," the album ends with Mallett's re-recording of "Highways," which first came out on the live "Hard Light" album. Mallett's singing here on "Highways" is so different that it ought to be considered as a rearrangement.

Jim Rooney did his usual excellent job with this production. David Mallett's home, Sebec, Maine, shares a town line with my old hometown, Milo. For me, then, it is more than a little ironic that Jim Rooney got his start performing on Boston's WCOP Hayloft Jamboree for Nelson Bragg, "The Merry Mayor of Milo, Maine."

A clean burn of the vinyl LP keeps me happily listening. Anyone who has read this far may want to hunt up a copy of the vinyl album. If you are a devoted singer-songwriter fan, chances are good that you have a friend who has burned it. A reissue would have been ideal but ways still exist to enjoy what may very well have been David Mallett's most popular record release, "Vital Signs."

Here are two of the best covers of David Mallett songs:

Summer Of My Dreams
Kathy Mattea - Topic

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzFUG4zQWGU

Red Red Rose
EmmyLouharris

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmL0QSPJhTo

And one by David Mallett:

David Mallet - Summer Of My Dreams
from Live At The Iron Horse Vol. 1 by Signature Sounds Recording Inc.

https://signaturesounds.bandcamp.com/track/summer-of-my-dreams

Music Museum of New England (MMone) Jim Rooney article

https://www.mmone.org/jim-rooney/

:

#april #bostonmusic #chrisneville #comingapartattheseams #davemallett #davidmallett #emmylouharris #flyingfish #flyingfishrecords #goodtimes #hardlight #hayloftjamboree #highways #jimrooney #kathymattea #mainemusic #merrymayorofmilomaine #midnightmadness #mmone #music #musicmuseumofnewengland #musicnews #nelsonbragg #nemsbk #newenglandmusic #redredrose #sebec #sebecmaine #singersongwriter #summerofmydreams #thesetimes #vitalsigns #wcop #wcophayloftjamboree

:::

THE FOOLS AT 50
Mastodon Post

The attachment is the top part of a Fools concert poster for THE Official April Fools Show. At the bottom, it quotes the band as saying,

"Wait .. 50 What??!!"

Music Museum of New England The Fools article

https://www.mmone.org/the-fools/

:

#1970smusic #1980smusic #bostonbands #bostonmusic #bostonrock #fools #massachusettsbands #massachusettsmusic #massachusettsrock #mmone #music #musicmuseumofnewengland #musicnews #thefools

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THE REMAINS ON PBS
Mastodon Post

https://06880danwoog.com/2025/02/21/roundup-board-of-finance-budgets-earth-animal-project-staples-stem-champs/

We had nothing quite like The Remains until this band came along. Widely known for loudness - loudest band I ever heard was a common expression - The Remains ought to be at least as well known for tightness. One of the bootlegs had a track that, no doubt, was not intended for the public to hear. Vern's bass started out too loud, Barry's vocal was a little tentative. It sounded to me like a song they had just reworked and they recorded it promptly to get the arrangement down for reference in future sessions. Then they came to the refrain and the four just hammered it in really close formation. They transformed instantly from four guys working out a song to THE REMAINS ready to take on the world. It was a terrific thing to hear. Some of the available film footage shows a young Vern Miller characteristically hopping about on stage and Barry answering with hops of his own. "Remains Nights" at the early-1960s incarnation of The Rat were where Boston's highly productive rock scene got its start. When Chip Damiani left the band in the lead-up to the Beatles tour, The Remains added a remarkable drummer, ND Smart II. ND was subsequently in a John Hall group, Kangaroo; and then he was in one of my all-time favorite bands, The Great Speckled Bird with Ian and Sylvia. Chip is the drummer The Remains wanted but the band, nonetheless, aced the percussion position with ND, easily one of the very best drummers I ever heard live. Bill Briggs, as The Remains tech guy, was a big part of the band's success. The best equipment and knowing stage set-up were fundamental to what made these four musicians The Remains. This was a highly professional, focused band with what Nancy Neon calls "garage spirit." "Ticket To Ride" by Barry Tashian is one of New England rock history's essential books. A music store in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, displayed a collage made up of various newspaper headlines and notices, each in its own way speaking of The Remains blowing The Beatles off stage. It was great! RiP Chip Damiani.

[This is an expanded version of a comment I posted at the Music Museum of New England's Facebook page. One attachment is a scanned image of a concert poster, of a reunion of The Remains and The Lost, given to me by my friend, Susan Green (RiP), who produced the reunion show.]

Music Museum of New England Remains article

https://www.mmone.org/the-remains/

:

#1960sbands #1960smusic #1960srock #barryandtheremains #barrytashian #beatles #billbriggs #billybriggs #bostonbands #bostonmusic #bostonrock #chipdamiani #garage #garagerock #garagepunk #greatspeckledbird #ianandsylvia #johnhall #kangaroo #lost #mmone #music #musicmuseumofnewengland #musicnews #nancyneon #nemsbk #newenglandbands #newenglandmusic #newenglandrock #pbs #remains #susangreen #thebeatles #thelost #theremains #tickettoride #vernmiller #westportconnecticut #williambriggs

:::

THE REMAINS ON PBS
Mastodon Post

https://06880danwoog.com/2025/02/21/roundup-board-of-finance-budgets-earth-animal-project-staples-stem-champs/

We had nothing quite like The Remains until this band came along. Widely known for loudness - loudest band I ever heard was a common expression - The Remains ought to be at least as well known for tightness. One of the bootlegs had a track that, no doubt, was not intended for the public to hear. Vern's bass started out too loud, Barry's vocal was a little tentative. It sounded to me like a song they had just reworked and they recorded it promptly to get the arrangement down for reference in future sessions. Then they came to the refrain and the four just hammered it in really close formation. They transformed instantly from four guys working out a song to THE REMAINS ready to take on the world. It was a terrific thing to hear. Some of the available film footage shows a young Vern Miller characteristically hopping about on stage and Barry answering with hops of his own. "Remains Nights" at the early-1960s incarnation of The Rat were where Boston's highly productive rock scene got its start. When Chip Damiani left the band in the lead-up to the Beatles tour, The Remains added a remarkable drummer, ND Smart II. ND was subsequently in a John Hall group, Kangaroo; and then he was in one of my all-time favorite bands, The Great Speckled Bird with Ian and Sylvia. Bill Briggs, as The Remains tech guy, was a big part of the band's success. The best equipment and knowing stage set-up were fundamental to what made these four musicians The Remains. This was a highly professional, focused band with what Nancy Neon calls "garage spirit." "Ticket To Ride" by Barry Tashian is one of New England rock history's essential books. A music store in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, displayed a collage made up of various newspaper headlines and notices, each in its own way speaking of The Remains blowing The Beatles off stage. It was great! RiP Chip Damiani.

[This is an expanded version of a comment I posted at the Music Museum of New England's Facebook page. The attachment is a scanned image of a concert poster, of a reunion of The Remains and The Lost, given to me by my friend, Susan Green (RiP), who produced the reunion show.]

Music Museum of New England Remains article

https://www.mmone.org/the-remains/

:

#1960sbands #1960smusic #1960srock #barryandtheremains #barrytashian #beatles #billbriggs #billybriggs #bostonbands #bostonmusic #bostonrock #chipdamiani #garage #garagerock #garagepunk #greatspeckledbird #ianandsylvia #johnhall #kangaroo #lost #mmone #music #musicmuseumofnewengland #musicnews #nancyneon #nemsbk #newenglandbands #newenglandmusic #newenglandrock #pbs #remains #susangreen #thebeatles #thelost #theremains #tickettoride #vernmiller #westportconnecticut #williambriggs

:::

DAVID MALLETT
Jim Rooney on the Death of Singer-Songwriter David Mallett
MASTODON POST

Attached are Jim Rooney's memories of David Mallett.  This is no small thing.  Rooney is a very long-time and prominent professional in the music and recording businesses.

https://www.mmone.org/jim-rooney/

He got started performing on Boston's WCOP Hayloft Jamboree for my own personal merry mayor, Nelson Bragg, the "Merry Mayor of Milo, Maine" (the place of my very own birth).  He has produced Grammy-nominated albums by Tom Paxton, John Prine, and Peter Rowan.  Rooney was one of the key players in the rise of Nanci Griffith.  Rooney produced at least three albums for a singer-songwriter I much admire, Iris DeMent.  Jim Rooney has done a lot since his 1950s start.  So, to get a little context here, Rooney's recollections of David Mallett have a great deal of professional weight behind them.  This Facebook post by Rooney came from a Web search hitlist on a related but different topic.  While going through the hitlist, it was apparent his post had been reposted I don't know how many times. David Mallett was from Sebec, Maine, which shares a town line with my old hometown, Milo. Being easily among his first fans, I have three singles by his 1960s group, The Mallett Brothers, and two tracks by his next duo, Hinkley and Mallett with memorable guitarist Don Hinkley.

:

#bostonmusic #bostonradio #davemallett #davidmallett #donhinkley #hayloftjamboree #hinkleyandmallett #irisdement #jimrooney #johnprine #mallettbrothers #merrymayorofmilomaine #milomaine #mmone #musicmuseumofnewengland #music #musicnews #nancigriffith #nelsonbragg #nemsbk #newenglandmusic #peterrowan #radio #sebecmaine #singersongwriter #themallettbrothers #tompaxton #wcop #wcophayloftjamboree

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JEANNE FRENCH
"WILD HORSES"
Mastodon Post

http://www.jeannemariefrench.com/data/documents/wildhorses.mp3

I have been listening to Jeanne French a lot lately: - tracks from this concert CD ("Mean Man Blues") and all of her debut album, "Diamond in the Rough" (Columbia Records), which is among the finest first albums to my experience. Jeanne is a terrific singer and this interpretation of "Wild Horses" (Rolling Stones) is one of the very best. It is my hope a lot of people will give it a listen.

The following Music Museum of New England article has only a brief mention of Jeanne but it is an example of a common occurrence: - hearing a pretty good band fronted by a sizzling Jeanne French.

https://www.mmone.org/parker-wheeler/

:

#blues #bluesmusic #columbiarecords #diamondintherough #jeannefrench #meanmanblues #mmone #music #musicmuseumofnewengland #nemsbk #newenglandmusic #parkerwheeler #rollingstones #singersongwriter #therollingstones #wildhorses

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MARK ERELLI
"AIN'T NO TIME OF YEAR TO BE ALONE"
Mastodon Post

Ain't No Time Of Year To Be Alone
from Hillbilly Pilgrim by Mark Erelli

https://markerelli.bandcamp.com/track/aint-no-time-of-year-to-be-alone

One of my all-time favorite Christmas songs.

:

Music Museum of New England Mark Erelli article

https://www.mmone.org/mark-erelli/

:

#aintnotimeofyeartobealone #bandcamp #christmasmusic #christmassongs #hillbillypilgrim #markerelli #mmone #music #musicmuseumofnewengland #nemsbk #newenglandmusic #singersongwriter

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TANYA DONELLY
"HEART OF GOLD" -- Mastodon Post

Tanya Donelly - Heart Of Gold
from Cinnamon Girl - Women Artists Cover Neil Young for Charity by Various Artists
https://americanlaundromatrecords.bandcamp.com/track/heart-of-gold

YouTube suggested "Heart of Gold" by Tanya Donelly. It is the lead-off track for the various artists tribute album, "Cinnamon Girl: Women Artists Cover Neil Young for Charity" (2008). So, here we are sixteen years after the album's release and Donelly is having something of a current streaming service hit with her contribution. The Web works in many mysterious ways. My suggestion is to listen to "Heart of Gold" and then look through the "Cinnamon Girl" tracklist. I liked a lot of tracks, such as Donelly's "Heart of Gold," "Comes a Time" by Kate York, "Down by the River" by Jill Sobule With John Doe, "Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere" by Carmen Townsend, "Only Love Can Break Your Heart" by Amilia K. Spicer, and "Walk On" by Heidi Gluck (Juliana Hatfield's bandmate in Some Girls), while friends generally gravitated toward "Like a Hurricane" by Kristin Hersh. A popular music fan can hardly go wrong with the "Cinnamon Girl" collection.

Music Museum of New England Tanya Donelly article:
https://www.mmone.org/tanya-donelly/

:

#amiliakspicer #amiliaspicer #bandcamp #carmentownsend #cinnamongirl #comesatime #downbytheriver #everybodyknowsthisisnowhere #heartofgold #heidigluck #jillsobule #johndoe #kateyork #kristinhersh #likeahurricane #mmone #music #musicmuseumofnewengland #musicnews #neilyoung #nemsbk #newenglandmusic #onlylovecanbreakyourheart #singersongwriter #somegirls #tanyadonelly #walkon

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SUSAN TEDESCHI: , HALL OF FAMER
Mastodon Post

@Mommacran

You may know that blues singer-guitarist Susan Tedeschi is of the Tedeschi supermarket family. In high school, she played basketball, was involved in theater, ad took interest in physics and chemistry. And, like Taylor Swift, she was a cheerleader. Tedeschi either has been or is about to be inducted into her high school's sports Hall of Fame for her cheerleader excellence. Don't know, either way, whether she is there already for basketball. So, Tedeschi's Hall of Fame honor will give Taylor Swift something to shoot for.

:

Music Museum of New England (MMone) Susan Tedeschi article

https://www.mmone.org/susan-tedeschi/

:

#bostonmusic #massachusettsmusic #mmone #musicmuseumofnewengland #musicnews #nemsbk #newenglandmusic #norwell #norwellmassachusetts #singersongwriter #susantedeschi #taylorswift #tedeschisupermarkets #tedeschitrucksband

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