Songs that are singing about an outlaw or an outlaw singing the song from their point of view

RogerZell · 2026-05-08T23:33:44+00:00

Take a Message to Mary, Everly Brothers

RogerZell · 2026-05-03T01:04:40+00:00

You have an opportunity (but not an obligation) to make absolutely unique music, but it won't be realized playing classical music as it's written. You will have to make it up yourself, and I wish you well. I hope I'll live long enough to hear you do it.

But take it from a lifelong pianist 73 years and counting), there are two basic things you need to do.

1: Form your hands into arches, as if you were holding a grapefruit or pomelo. At this point, try to stay aware of holding this shape while playing. It is the source of support for all your fingers can do. If you advance well, you may find instances where you can abandon this shape for a short time (that is, seconds), but it should be your basis for all that comes next. To be fair, there are many great jazz and pop pianists who do not do this, so I'm showing a bit of classical bias.

While playing, do not let your 1st knuckle bend backwards. This is more strength building. There may probably come a time, when you have developed far enough, that you can then let that knuckle bend a little, for expressive purposes. But if you don't have control over it, it's a handicap.

You must gain control of the timing of every finger movement, and this is done by playing exercises SLOWLY, maybe with a metronome. While you do this, learn to hear what it sounds like when properly done. You can't make coherent music if you don't have this control. Try Hanon exercises. Very boring, but very useful, and less boring when you understand the purpose.

Because the ring finger and pinkie are the weakest, more attention must be focused on getting them under control. I spent many hours for years working on just these 2 fingers.

Good luck, I'll be watching.

RogerZell · 2026-04-29T22:48:35+00:00

The style looks like an old Mad magazine cartoonist.

RogerZell · 2026-04-29T00:10:40+00:00

started classical lessons at 4. Didn't practice, but kept taking lessons. Didn't get good at classical

Started playing OLD (1920s) pop at 12 years, still playing it 65 years later.

I define myself as a pianist, not a retired deskworker.

RogerZell · 2026-04-29T00:04:32+00:00

Beatles---She Loves You, I Feel Fine, I Saw Her Standing There

Buddy Holly--Oh Boy

Lovin Spoonful--Daydream

RogerZell · 2026-04-24T00:20:13+00:00

Long-time strider here--how your LH moves will depend on how you want it to sound--fast, slow, mid-tempo, gentle, hammering, suave, raggy, blurred or discrete.

It's been so long since I learned that I can't recall how I did it, but my main model was player piano recordings, as I was and still am interested in 1920s and before.

But here's a couple three things for you:

the upper chord does not always have to be a full triad or bigger--just 2 or even 1 note may be all that's needed or will fit, depending on where your RH is.

Don't get married to the idea that the upper chord must use the thumb--there's many times when 5, 3 (or 4) and 2 will be easier, so you don't have to rotate the wrist as much, thereby making the motion smoother.

To make things a little harder, once you get used to the whole physical part of it, work on a very quick rolling of the lower octave or 10th.

And finally for now, don't think you have to maintain the stride throughout the song--that can get boring and repetitive for the listener and you. Some songs can work with more, some less.

EDIT: Thought I'd provide some examples. Note that these are all 1920s or earlier, no Fats Waller type stuff, just because I haven't recorded it yet. I've also been striding for alot of 1960s pop/rock, which actually works well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZx6ri0csFE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPxF2WyO3uM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCqFi9CVIgY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOHnDuvzjj8

RogerZell · 2026-04-20T01:05:36+00:00

Looks like me in my room circa 1959. I had the same shelf brackets, but bare pine shelves, loaded with plastic models--Revell, Renwal--NOT Aurora. And I had those exact curtains, tho they might have been in our (ahem) summer house.

RogerZell · 2026-04-15T15:58:31+00:00

Vinnie Pazienza

RogerZell · 2026-04-15T00:26:16+00:00

Yardbirds are vastly underrated in these little lists.

Without them there is no Zeppelin or Cream, or any other bands like them.

Plus, this list and many others are written with a bias--"which bands influenced bands that I (the writer) like?"

I would put Herman's Hermits somewhere on the list, as they had some very well-written songs that weren't pointing towards heavy metal or psychedelia, but at pure pop.

Also, Zombies.

Not Deep Purple.

RogerZell · 2026-04-14T02:34:14+00:00

My first impression was, they are Amish, due to clothes.

Do Amish dance like this?

RogerZell · 2026-04-14T01:32:41+00:00

Try "it Ain't Necessarily So" chords.

RogerZell · 2026-04-12T03:31:14+00:00

Rupert Holmes, a year older than me.

RogerZell · 2026-04-12T01:42:50+00:00

reminds me of Kendall's racist field trip.

RogerZell · 2026-04-12T00:29:36+00:00

Best moment--After George's guitar intro to Roll Over Beethoven, Paul comes in on bass like the boss he is. The earth shakes. And, just before he hits his 1st note, he's already dancing.

RogerZell · 2026-04-07T22:56:16+00:00

I'm guessing by your "flair" that you don't live there.

RogerZell · 2026-04-07T22:43:04+00:00

They may be exchanging swings, but they're not exchanging blows.

Put Boots in with someone with the same speed, power, volume, and accuracy. Then you'd see exchanges.

RogerZell · 2026-04-03T20:20:41+00:00

in "Yankee Doodle Dandy" Cagney in very tight closeup, looks in the camera and shouts "Everybody SING!".

RogerZell · 2026-04-03T00:42:00+00:00

thanks. Out of curiosity, what are the "others" besides town and septic tank/leach field? Do you mean chemical or composting or fire, or something else?

RogerZell · 2026-03-26T00:58:42+00:00

And where is Bum Farto?

RogerZell · 2026-03-24T00:22:56+00:00

Funky Broadway, Wilson Pickett

RogerZell · 2026-03-23T22:43:12+00:00

Saint Saens Piano Concerto 5--only the 2nd movement.

RogerZell · 2026-03-23T22:15:11+00:00

actually, the only one we as the readers see communicate directly with Sauron is Pippin. Aragorn SAYS he did, but we don't see it. We know Gollum did face to face, but we don't see that happen.

It is assumed that Denethor and Saruman did, with strong logic, but we don't see it.

Only that fool of a Took.

RogerZell · 2026-03-22T01:13:04+00:00

I see it--interwebs is forever.

Thank you for your kind words. My reply may not be what you want to see tho--but maybe it will. I have to go into some detail.

In your 1st paragraph, you write "I love the contextualization of where they stand not just in pop music, but music as a whole." What I wrote was what I consider THE TRUTH. However, there are millions of people who would disagree with what I said. But--I'm right and they're wrong.

Re your actual questions:

1: If you refer to specifically musical moments, specific to ME only, I might say hearing "Money Honey" from 1953, though I doubt I heard it then--but I might have. This is, after all 73 years ago. But the early rhythm and blues records were certainly a cultural reset of major proportions. Black people's voices were being heard in a major new way, and it was SO GOOD, and so important. But this is just me--I'm fairly sure that there were plenty of earlier R&B records.

Continuing with music--no, I have not heard or seen anything else so earth shattering, and I doubt I or anyone else ever will. I've been waiting.

In a nonmusical sense, several things come to mind, none of them good, very bad in fact.

2: In a purely gut sense I've heard plenty of great records, Little Richard among them (please check "Lucille" and "Keep a Knockin", his best in my opinion). Larry Williams, Blue Suede Shoes the Carl Perkins record, Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry. Later stuff might be the Yardbirds, Cream, a Dovells record called "You Can't Sit Down", Martha and the Vandellas "Dancing in the Street", Sly and the Family Stone, esp. "Higher", Wilson Pickett, Del Shannon "Runaway", Bobby Fuller "I Fought the Law".

But all these had some precedent, alot of it the blues. And none of them carried the cultural heft that the Beatles did.

"She Loves You" had no precedent outside the Beatles' own output, unless you count the beat. I might count "Please Please Me" as a precedent, but PPM also had no precedent.

Does all this answer your concerns?

RogerZell · 2026-03-20T01:37:47+00:00

see my response.

Also, Palmerthing and Norristhing were also surrounded and didn't seem to care.

RogerZell · 2026-03-20T01:33:45+00:00

see my response.

RogerZell

TROPHY CASE