Best of 2012: Tim Livingston

Story by Tim Livingston

ALBUMS:

Ian Hunter – When I’m President
I have been listening to Ian Hunter/Mott the Hoople since I was about 11 years old. He is the only artist that I liked then that I still buy and listen to his new albums now. Reason: His last three records released in the new millennium have been as strong as anything he has ever done. Well written songs and a killer band. 73 years old and still rocking!

Trapper Schoepp & the Shades – Run Engine Run
Young Milwaukee-based roots rockers with all of the goods; the songs, the look, the live show. Destined for greatness! “Tracks” = song of the year!

Alejandro Escovedo – Big Station
The third album of the Tony Visconti-produced trilogy and IMO the best. A true rock & roll heart.

Michael Rank and Stag – Kin
Snatches of Pink main-man takes a dark trip through the end of a relationship with a double album steeped in traditional folk and Stones-flavored county-honk, all ending with redemption, hope and flourishes of SOP sonic mayhem.

Black N Gold – Pet the Lights
Hudson rap prodigy Young Paris takes a stab at rock, by collaborating with some top notch musicians, with very satisfying results.

LIVE SHOWS:

Tommy Stinson’s Benefit for the Tools For Timkatec Program in Haiti @ Club Helsinki, Hudson, 4/10/12.
A tremendous night of entertainment with killer sets performed by Tommy Stinson, Trapper Schoepp & the Shades and Elvis Perkins, all for a great cause.

Mike Watt + the Missingmen @ Valentine’s Music Hall, Albany, 10/18/12.
Alternative rock legend Mike Watt brought it big time. Even if it took three shots to get the opera off the ground.

Los Straitjackets and Eilen Jewell @ Club Helsinki, Hudson, 6/1/12.
Roots rock coming from different angles but one of the most interesting double bills of the year. Great fun!

Jon Spencer Blues Explosion and Daddy Long Legs @ Club Helsinki, Hudson, 11/2/12.
The loudest show to ever hit Helsinki as JSBX fired up their heat-seeking blues-fueled guitar attack.

J.B. Scott’s Reunion @ Michael’s Banquet House, Latham, 5/5/12.
This show had the potential to go a lot of ways, but in the end all of the bands brought their A-games, and it turned out living up to the “Party of the Year” promise.

DVDS:

“Charlie Is My Darling”
Spectacular transfer of this never-officially-released 1965 documentary of the early Rolling Stones in Ireland, featuring some fantastic behind the scenes footage of Loog, Stu and the boys in the band.

“Color Me Obsessed: A Film About the Replacements”
No interviews with the band. None of their music. And no live footage. But a compelling story none-the-less of the best band of the ’80s as told by their fans.

“George Harrison: Living in the Material World”
Released last year in the UK, but out in 2012 over here, this is a truly epic documentary of an iconic artist. Not to be missed.

BOOKS:

Pete Townshend – “Who I Am: A Memoir”
A well written, candid and honest attempt of exploring the events and people that shaped the man that “invented feedback.”

Mike Scott – “Adventures of a Waterboy”
Another autobiography written by a true writer. A literary account of his life and times as Mike goes through bandmates, romances and record labels.

Bobby Keys and Bill Ditenhafer – “Every Night’s a Saturday Night: The Rock ‘n’ Roll Life of Legendary Sax Man Bobby Keys”
Not the literary work of the two books mentioned above but some great stories from a gold ole boy who has seen it all and played on a lot of it. A nice focus on the making of the music as opposed to the debauchery of the lifestyle.

Rod Stewart – “Rod: The Autobiography”
A fun, spirited, rollicking romp through hit songs and beautiful women told in a upbeat and at times hilarious fashion, never once taking himself too seriously.

Peter Doggett – “The Man Who Sold the World: David Bowie and the 1970s”
An in-depth, song-by-song critical assessment of Bowie during the decade in which he became a star.

‘Tis the season when Nippertown contributors are weighing in with their picks for the Best of 2012, and only one thing is for certain – you can bet that no two lists are going to be the same. Writer-photographer Tim Livingston is the first of our year-end series. Stay tuned for more…