Chad Norman » Music

Truth & Salvage Co.

Chad Norman — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 02:44:34 +0000

Took some shots at the Truth & Salvage Co. show in January, and forgot to post them here. Great band, and I swear it’s not because I’ve know Timmy since I was a teenager. His a shot of most of the band. You can see the rest on Flickr.

Itchy Scratchy

Chad Norman — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 02:39:25 +0000

The rest of this DJ kind of looked like Sammy Hagar.

Animoto Version of NYC

Chad Norman — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 19:34:02 +0000

We just got back from spending a few days in NYC, one of our favorite places in the world. We took along our two boys to introduce them to the city, and they certainly loved it as much as we did.

I’ll be posting a few photos this week, but I wanted to use this chance to play around with the free video software at animoto.com. Still in beta, this web service allows you to upload or retrieve (Flickr, Facebook, etc) a group of photos, set them to any song, and render a shareable video – pretty slick. You can even remix the video if you are unhappy with the results…everything is just a couple clicks.

Anyway, enjoy…

July 4th Freedom Songs for the Kids

Chad Norman — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 12:29:26 +0000

Since we don’t watch TV with the boys very often, we constantly have our iPods plugged into various devices. They have playlists, but mostly they like to listen to our music. So as we made our way through our nation’s birthday, I made sure they heard some songs about freedom. Here are five of them:

Freedom, by Rage Against the Machine
Fight the Power, by Public Enemy
Get Up, Stand Up, by Bob Marley and the Wailers
Freedom, by Richie Havens (live at Woodstock)
Freedom ’76, by Ween (this was just for fun)

The 4-year-old really liked Fight the Power, and I loved explaining why that was important. What’s weird is that I actually think he got it…kids are smart. Since I usually fly my “Don’t Tread on Me” flag the whole 4th of July week, I might as well keep on with the Freedom Playlist…I want my kids to know why this country is important, and why they should stand up against their oppressors when the time comes.

From the Sketchbook :: Ross Dagley

Chad Norman — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 03:44:29 +0000

Yesterday, I recovered this sketch from the flyer junkyard.
Bob Evans, Ross Dagly, and Showermast – A winning combination since 1993.

Friday Morning Donut Call

Chad Norman — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 13:44:27 +0000

Sweet Home Dunkin’ Donuts

Big boxes keep on coming
Can’t even hardly see my chin
Singing songs about the Northland
I miss Dunkin’s once again
And I think its a sin, yes

Well I heard Krispy Kreme sing about it
Well, I heard ole Krispy put ‘em down
Well, I hope Krispy Kreme will remember
A Dunkin’ Donut don’t need them around anyhow

Sweet home Dunkin’ Donuts
Where the sprinkles are so blue
Sweet Home Dunkin’ Donuts
Lord, I’m coming home to you

In Dunkin’ Donuts they love the frosting
Now we all did what we could do
Now Boston Creme does not bother me
Does your frosting bother you?
Tell the truth

Sweet home Dunkin’ Donuts
Where the skies are so blue
Sweet Home Dunkin’ Donuts
Lord, I’m coming home to you
Here I come Dunkin’ Donuts

Now Krispy Kreme has got the warm ones.
And we’ve been known to eat a time or two
But Dunkin’s cheer me up so much
They pick me up when I’m feeling blue
Now how about you?

Sweet home Dunkin’ Donuts
Where the sprinkles are so blue
Sweet Home Dunkin’ Donuts
Lord, I’m coming home to you

Sweet home Dunkin’ Donuts
Where the sprinkles are so blu
Sweet Home Dunkin’ Donuts
Lord, I’m coming home to you

Have a great weekend!

Music Lust :: Reviewed

Chad Norman — Sat, 21 Jan 2006 04:48:56 +0000

I picked up Nic Harcourt‘s Music Lust the other night, and blew through it like an Entertainment Weekly. This collection of music categories is a worthy guide for rock’s uninitiated, but may seem basic to a music junkie. One section details Manchester UK bands by decade, while another suggests bands with cats and dogs in their names. Huge artists like Hendrix, Zappa, and The Rolling Stones get their own lists, as do niches like Irish music, Motown, and Latin Alternative.

It’s an interesting concept, and I dug in hoping to find a handful of musical leads. I didn’t finish the book with a year’s worth of CD purchases planned out, but I did walk away with a few artists to check out. Here are my notes:

Electronic Pioneers :: Tago Mago, by Can. I should check out Can’s 1971 double album Tago Mago, and their 1972 album Ege Bamyasi. They influenced artists like Gary Newman, Sonic Youth, and Stereolab. Can appealed to me because the paragraph referenced ”Krautrock”, and the author described it as sprawling and experimental.

Hey Ho, Lets Go:Punk in the U.S.A. :: Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables, by The Dead Kennedys. Released on IRS, and reissued on Cleopatra in 2002. I listened to the DKs on old, 5th generation Maxell tapes, so the clean recording would be a great way to revisit and old favorite.

Livin’ Large: The Big Band Boom! :: Atomic Mr. Basie, by Count Basie. The author notes that Count Basie’s thirties recordings are rough, so it’s best to start off with the 1958 Blue note release “Atomic Mr. Basie.”

Love is a Many-Spledored Thing :: Forever Changes, by Love; released in 1969 on Elektra Records. Nic says they were the West Coast’s best-known psychedelic rock band at the time, but I’m skeptical. This warrants and investigation.

Organ Grinders :: Blue Mode, by Reuben Wilson. released on Blue Note in 1969. I love Hammond B3 organs, and Wilson seemed like this section’s best offering. Mentioning that A Tribe Called Quest sampled his work really sold me.

Ten Albums You Missed :: I marked this whole section, but I’m not sure why. The bands include Spoon, Talk Talk, Azure Ray, The Blue Nile, and Jack Frost. We’ll see.

Music Lust is worth a read, especially if you have trouble finding new music. But at the same time, it’s one of those books that when finished, you want to start writing a better version yourself. On second thought, you may just want to check out a music recommendation site like Pandora.

From the Sketchbook :: Showermast Protectant

Chad Norman — Wed, 07 Dec 2005 11:24:10 +0000

A sampling style band logo from nearly ten years ago.

The CD Long Box

Chad Norman — Mon, 05 Dec 2005 01:36:17 +0000

I was going through and old stash in the attic, and came across something I hadn’t thought about in years: a CD long box. I had forgotten how big they were, and how much area was devoted to artwork. I remember hanging them in my locker like tiny posters, and on my bedroom wall like hunting trophies. I’m not sure how this “Axis: Bold as Love” box made it into my permanent storage, but I’m stoked to have it.

Long boxes encased CDs during most of the 1980′s, and were eventually phased out during the eco-friendly 1990′s. Now some of the only web references to this lost format are on eBay. While researching this post, I had assumed the boxes were used for security purposes. However, they were actually used to accommodate the 12″ deep record displays common in stores at the time.

Long live the long box!

XM Satellite Radio :: My First Impression

Chad Norman — Sun, 27 Nov 2005 03:11:20 +0000

The 2004 Grand Prix was a random rental, so I didn’t expect much as I drove away from the airport. In fact, I didn’t even turn on the radio. The next day was a different story however, and with speakers thumping I rocked out to Poison’s “Talk Dirty to Me.” When this was followed by Def Leopard’s “Photograph”, I had to see what was going on. Sure enough, my console simply said ‘The 80s’, and that’s when it hit me…this thing had XM Satellite Radio.

Over the next four days, I drove around a snowy Toledo bouncing back and forth between decades. A little Frieda Payne with a REO Speedwagon chaser. I really liked this. I even heard some obscure stuff, like that Mick Jagger/Michael Jackson duet from the 80s…I was literally in a State of Shock.

I didn’t get a chance to explore the other channels, though a brief scan revealed bluegrass, country, top 20, jazz, and just about everything else. I wish I had more time to ingest this orbital bliss, but my trist ended at the Hertz counter and I headed home. This was a great first impression, and I going to take a more serious look at this service after tha holidays.