I've emailed with Cal a few times because from the first time I heard one of his songs I was just knocked out. I'm the least musical person in Ohio, I think, but I love to listen. I have a CD collection in the high hundreds, and like to think I know a little about terrific, literate songwriting. My favorite artists are Lucinda Williams, the Alabama Shakes, the Civil Wars, Buddy Miller, Rickie Lee Jones, Neil Young, and John Hiatt.
Anyway, Cal's band is the Eddy Band, and their new (and last!) CD is "Spanish for Hospital." Cal writes the songs with two other guys in the band, and the songs are all terrific.
Cal writes, "We kicked at the door for most of the 90s and never made any headway. We played hundreds of gigs a year for about a dozen years, but were only ever a club band in the Dallas / Ft. Worth area."
That's criminal. These two videos below are my favorites. The first is a song off the new CD, which I note isn't for sale anywhere yet. The second is a song from their "greatest hits" CD from a couple of years ago that I downloaded from CDBaby.
Why I'm not famous I understand. Why Cal isn't baffles me.
Eddy + Cindy • Bob Hate from Bob Hate on Vimeo.
Forgot the Way - Eddy Band from Bob Hate on Vimeo.
I'm one of the "others," BTW and this is my favorite song of his. But it's not on the new CD.
ReplyDeleteI think the liner notes are hilarious. It took me a long time to figure out the CD title because of all of the "Spanish Is: ____________" graphics.
It lists two drummers, and at least one of them is absolutely brilliant. I like all the songs, too, but my faves on the new CD are Hell Got Hold and The Take.
I like it. It sort of reminds me of The Northern Pikes and The Tragically Hip.
ReplyDeleteI know! I'm equally baffled. The lyrics are great on all of their tracks! And I feel lucky for having two of their CDs now!
ReplyDeleteWhen I was in grad school in Baltimore "Cal" taught me how to teach writing! He was the first person who ever taught me about the practical matters of actually being a professor. My (now) husband and I saw him play in some clubs in DC and he was breathtaking. We have the first CD his band did from 1994 and I'm going to find this new one too if its on iTunes. Is it?
ReplyDelete"Cal!" I miss you. I got my first teaching job because of what I learned teaching for you. (Oh, and thanks for all the rec letters over the years. I've actually stopped moving, so that's why you haven't had a request in two years!)
You rotten bastard, Hiram. You mean I'm NOT a rock star?
ReplyDeleteOkay, I don't swing this way, but... S W O O N !
ReplyDeleteHiram, sorry, but a bunch of email came in suggesting we move this story down a bit so that the academic content would appear at the top of the page. No offense to Cal, either. I love Cal's music.
ReplyDeleteNo, the people who complained were NOT the folks who posted. Not a big deal.
Fab
Sigh. I was soooo glad to see Hiram's post, because I had wondered how to post a fan review of "Spanish for Hospital," but wondered whether it would be voted off the blog.
DeleteOf all the crazy things the mods describe - only four writers, the Compound, relocating to Utah - it's the idea that you get email about shit like that which is the most unbelievable.
DeleteCal, I have your music on my iPhone because I enjoy listening to it.
ReplyDeleteMe too, Cal. Some of your songs were already in my iPod on the "workday" playlist. It's especially wonderful to hear your "Cry Me a River" on the way home when I have busted someone for cheating.
DeleteSo playing your new album and hearing your familiar voice and guitar gave me much warm, fuzzy joy. The feeling reminded me of ripping the cellophane off "The Who By Numbers" or "Little Criminals" or "Speaking in Tongues" -- all eagerly awaited, all by favorite artists who could do no wrong -- and carefully, carefully easing the virgin LP onto the turntable for a first listen.
Right now the two Kickstarter disks are in heavy rotation in my kitchen CD player as I cook. (Thanks for the second "samples" disk, by the way, for Kickstarter supporters.) Early favorites: "Gas Giants" and "Bad in My Car."
Thanks, PG.
DeleteGood stuff, Cal. It's no Foghat, but then we'll never their likes again.
ReplyDeleteAnd, Dallas? Is that where you lived? Oh dear. You surely played some Austin clubs back in the day.
Were you a fat bald bastard then, too? I think I got in a fight with you one night when you refused to play "Surrender" by Cheap Trick for me and my honey.
I forgive you.
Everybody knows Deep Ellum is what Austin was before it went commercial.
DeleteIndeed, Sawyer. We played in Deep Ellum from the late 80s until about 95 or so, Dada, 500 Cafe, Prophet Bar, Galaxy (worst room and worst bathrooms in America), Trees, etc.
DeleteAlways loved Dallas, and for our cover band it was a great city because of the number of sports bar all across Dallas / Ft. Worth. (We always had a lot more cover gigs than original gigs.)
We never were rock stars, but we played songs we loved to people 100 nights a year and it was truly great. I didn't appreciate it enough back then.
PS: A lot of folks saw the title blurb about my wife's emergency appendectomy, and she's doing great. It was a long 40 hour process from the time we went to the hospital until we got home again, but she's a lot tougher than I am. Thanks for all the emails.
Walt, I would NEVER have not played a Cheap Trick song for you. Maybe it was a different, fat, bald guy.
DeleteWorst music-venue bathrooms in America? It's hard for me to imagine one worse than the Ladies at the old Preservation Hall in New Orleans -- a one-seater whose "door" to the corridor was a greasy curtain insufficiently wide to be of use to anyone who wasn't suffering the pressure of a Hurricane. Perhaps it was meant to drive customers out to make room for new ones.
DeletePS: Best wishes to Mrs. Cal.