BRISTOL CALLING

Since the late 1970s, the city has been home to bands combining punk, funk, dub and political consciousness, the most celebrated being The Pop Group.
In 1980, both white and black youths were involved in a protest against heavy-handed policing There did seem to be a racial element as black youths felt that they were particularly singled out for unwarranted police attention.
The riots in St Pauls brought the area to national attention and were the first in a series of riots in large cities across the country. Contrary to popular belief, the riots in St Pauls were not strictly race riots.
This tense, multi-cultural environment would in time spawn a type of English hip-hop music called trip hop or the "Bristol Sound", youths from all races began to come together and form groups. Innovative artists such as Tricky, Portishead and Massive Attack would become very influential on the world music scene.


Bristol Calling in music:

Massive Attack: Blue Lines

The influence of Bristol, U.K.'s Massive crew on bringing trippy beats to the foreground is immeasurable. Not only were they the early test ground for other alterna-hop stars (ex-clansman Tricky, former songstresses Nicolette and Martina, and the lesser known productionists Smith & Mighty), they've spread their influence to everyone from fellow Bristol residents Portishead to Björk. Blue Lines is Massive's debut record and is the second musical union of Bristol's renowned collective, Wildbunch. The emotional purging and beat-driven orchestral movement of "Unfinished Sympathy" was among the first signs of life in contemporary English trip-hop culture. Blue Lines marks the beginning of a musical legacy that is ever expanding.

Portishead: Third

Portishead's Third has been a long time coming, the result of a lengthy creative torpor following 1997's dark, distinctly underrated album Portishead. Importantly, though, they've shaken it. While the core trio of Beth Gibbons, Geoff Barrow, and Adrian Utley remains, this is quite a different band to Portishead's 90s incarnation: gone is the slo-mo turntable scratching and smoky jazz feel, replaced by heavy, brooding rhythms, vintage-sounding electronics, and spindly guitar. Still present, though, is that sense of emotional fracture and deep gloom. "Silence" opens with a dense drum loop which suddenly falls away to reveal Gibbons' voice, cold but magnificent: At times, it's a harsh and foreboding listen. But Third is a brave and forward-thinking return, and one great enough to justify its lengthy gestation.

Tricky: BlowBack

Since the release of his debut, Maxinquaye, Tricky fans have wondered when he would or could match the nightmarish splendor of that trip-hop masterpiece. Blowback may not entirely appease the Tricky faithful, but it is the Bristol innovator's most satisfying album in a while. With Maxinquaye's surreal sonics lurking around its edges, Blowback is wonderfully schizophrenic, cavorting through robotically muted ragga, surging funk rock, nauseous, sample-mangled ballads, and bizarre versions of songs like the 1930s standard "Your Name" and Nirvana's "Something in the Way." In fact, with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Alanis Morrisette, Cyndi Lauper, and Live's Ed Kowalcyzk along for the ride, Blowback is Tricky's Tommy, delivered through the mouths and muscles of the stars.

Bristol Calling in words:

Straight Outa Bristol--Massive Attack, Portishead, Tricky and the Roots of Trip-Hop

The city of Bristol has emerged as one of the most innovative music scenes in Britain. Tracing the musical and cultural roots from the 1980 St Paul's riot and the creation of a home-made music scene, this account looks at how the "Bristol sound" has evolved, from Rip, Rig & Panic to Massive Attack.

DONOVAN

Born in Glasgow, Scotland Donovan was one of the most popular British recording artists of his day. He became a friend of leading celebrities and pop musicians including Mia Farrow, Joan Baez and The Beatles. He influenced both John Lennon and Paul McCartney when he taught them his finger-picking guitar style. His popularity enjoyed a revival in the 1990's when Manchester band Happy Mondays mane checked him as an influence.

Donovan in music: Troubadour: The Definitive Collection 1964-1976

Donovan was the ultimate flower child, listening to Troubadour, however, it's striking how versatile, melodic, and agreeable most of his material sounds decades after "Mellow Yellow" has faded into a jaundiced yellow. Clearly under the sway of Bob Dylan early on in his career, Donovan nevertheless was capable of directing his reverence into something as enchanting as "Catch the Wind." Amping up as the '60s progressed, he assembled a series of psychedelic-pop classics, including "Season of the Witch," the "Hey Jude"-like sing-along "Atlantis," and the uncharacteristically driving "Hurdy Gurdy Man". This two-disc anthology may be more Donovan than some desire, but the booklet, seven previously unreleased tracks, and expansive perspective it provides makes it a more-than-worthy overview for those who take their paisley folk-rock with a beatific smile.

Donovan in words: The Autobiography of Donovan: The Hurdy Gurdy Man

Donovan's autobiography charts his life from a post-war, Glaswegian childhood to the height of an international career as one of the leading figures of the 1960's music scene. Always feeling like an outsider, he found relief through music and poetry. The book reveals how he came to be influenced by Buddhist teachings, and the music of Woody Guthrie and Joan Baez. The book explores the significance of falling deeply in love with the woman who was to become his muse, and the profound sense of loss he felt when their relationship came to an end, and how the loss affected him both personally and creatively. A leader of the folk revival in both Britain and America, the book recounts how he rose to be an international star, releasing songs such as "Mellow Yellow" and "Catch the Wind", and his most successful album, "Sunshine Superman". Donovan is acknowledged as one of the most significant cultural icons of the 1960's. The book provides a frank account of his early experiments with drugs and his search for self. He reveals the story of how he developed friendships with Baez, Dylan and the Beatles, with whom he a shared spiritual sojourn to meditate with the Maharishi in India. Donovan's autobiography offers first-hand insights into his music and poetry, recollects his rise to fame and the way in which destiny was to play a hand by re-uniting him with the lost love of his life through a chance meeting.

Donovan in film: Sunshine Superman - The Journey Of Donovan

Sunshine Superman The Journey Of Donovan is the ultimate life story of the 60´s folk-pop phenomenon. The deluxe double-DVD set contains classic 60´s film and TV appearances, rare archive footage and never-before-seen material as well as 5 previously unreleased songs and all of the hits. With appearances by Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Pete Seeger, Arlo Guthrie, Mickie Most, Rick Rubin, Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Franco Zeffirelli, David Lynch (and many more) and a 40 page booklet chock full of informative liner notation and exclusive photo material, Sunshine Superman is the ultimate story of Donovan s remarkable and unique four decade career.

PETE SEEGER

Forget gangsta rap or Elvis '56. Pete Seeger was the original American music rebel!! He was the most picketed and black listed entertainer in American history. Indicted for "unamerican" actions in the 1960's, at the height of American commie paranoia, he was jailed for 12 months and black listed for 17 years!

An inspiration to Donovan, Dylan and Springsteen you need to hear his songs and you need to hear his story.......

Pete on CD: If I Had a Hammer: Songs of Hope & Struggle
Pete Seeger is a national treasure, a living American institution. Unfortunately in our fast-paced world we often forget about our treasures, our institutions, and our heritage. This wonderful collection, culled from his massive library of work with Folkways Records, is, if nothing else, a reminder of how much Pete Seeger means to America. Seeger sang for the people and their rights at a time when that could get rabble-rousers blacklisted and worse. What's more, he got the people singing for themselves. You'll know many of these songs--the title track, "Where Have All the Flowers Gone," "Turn, Turn, Turn"--you just might not know them in their original voice. If I Had a Hammer will set that straight.

Pete in words: How Can I Keep from Singing?: The Ballad of Pete Seeger
How Can I Keep from Singing? is the compelling story of how the son of a respectable Puritan family became a consummate performer and American rebel. Updated with new research and interviews, unpublished photographs, and thoughtful comments from Pete Seeger himself, this is an inside history of the man Carl Sandburg called “America’s Tuning Fork.” In the only biography on Seeger, David Dunaway parts the curtains on his life.Who is this rail-thin, eighty-eight-year-old with the five-string banjo, whose performances have touched millions of people for more than seven decades? Bob Dylan called him a saint. Joan Baez said, “We all owe our careers to him.” But Seeger’s considerable musical achievements were overshadowed by political controversy when he became perhaps the most blacklisted performer in American history. He was investigated for sedition, harassed by the FBI and the CIA, picketed, and literally stoned by conservative groups. Still, he sang. Today, Seeger remains an icon of conscience and culture, and his classic antiwar songs, sung by Bruce Springsteen and millions of others, live again in the movement against foreign wars. His life holds lessons for surviving repressive times and for turning to music to change the world.

Pete in film: Pete Seeger: The Power of Song

In Pete Seeger: The Power of Song, Director Jim Brown documents the life of one of the greatest American singer/songwriters of the last century. Pete Seeger was the architect of the folk revival, writing some of its best known songs including Where Have All the Flowers Gone, Turn, Turn, Turn and If I Had A Hammer. Largely misunderstood and criticized for his strong beliefs he was picketed, protested, blacklisted, and, in spite of his enormous popularity, banned from commercial television for more than 17 years. Musicians including Bob Dylan, Arlo Guthrie, Joan Baez, Bonnie Raitt, Brice Springsteen, Natalie Maines, and Peter, Paul and Mary appear in this intimate portrait and discuss Seeger s lasting influence on the fabric of American music.