Tag Archives for Leon Russell

July 4, L.A.: Arthur presents "Willie Nelson's 4th of July Celebration" screening at the 3rd Annual Cinefamily 4th of July BBQ Blowout

3rd Annual Cinefamily 4th of July BBQ Blowout (feat. The Fantastic Sights And Sounds of Virtual Fireworks and Other Movie Mayhem!!!!)

Co-presented by Arthur Magazine

From Cinefamily:

We’d like to invite you all to the best 4th of July party since the Capitol Celebration of 1778, when George Washington gave the United States Army an artillery salute and a double ration of rum! Well, we’re gonna give you a quintuple ration of cinema with one of our signature Cinefamily “Mondo” nights. It’s all planned out: an open door to our sweet back patio, good music, friends, and that most American of traditions—a BBQ, so bring something to grill! And if it gets too hot, just step inside our nice air-conditioned theatre, and catch our marathon film festival. “Mondo” means a world of weirdness built around a theme, and tonight’s theme is America, so it’s a patriotic free-for-all of film formats, from DVDs to 16mm industrials, to 35mm features. We’ll be keeping the fest alive all night long, just like our grill! Check out the highlights:

5PM: We light the grill. We begin the festivities… [Arthur Magazine deejays will be on hand to spin proper barbecue music. Also, courtesy Rounder Records, we will be giving away copies of Willie’s sweet new album — see below—to winners of a contest whose nature is yet to be determined.]

6PM-ish: WILLIE NELSON’S 4TH OF JULY CELEBRATION! An incredibly rare boozy ‘n woozy full-length concert film, shot at the 1977 edition of Willie’s very informal annual 4th of July concert festival. Featuring Willie, Waylon, Leon Russell, Doug Kershaw and other great country stars singin’, sweatin’, partyin’—and most importantly of all, drinkin’. These folks were some of the ultimate party animals, with Leon Russell emerging as the King of Booze in some of the most gloriously inebriated footage ever shot! As Austin, TX’s Alamo Drafthouse says: “These good ol’ boys knew as much about partying as Marie Curie knew about radium. Be there!!!!”

8:08PM: VIRTUAL FIREWORKS SHOW! According to the Farmer’s Almanac, the July 4th sun will set at 8:08 PM. We wouldn’t want you to miss the fireworks, so we’ll be screening best-of videos from international fireworks competitions, experimental films and enough jingoistic eye candy to make you oooh and aaah!

8:30-ish: UNCLE SAM The climax of the night is this patriotic back-from-the-dead revenge slasher from the fevered minds of William Lustig (Maniac) and Larry Cohen (It’s Alive, God Told Me To), featuring a Gulf War solider killed by friendly fire who returns to extract bloody payback from any draft dodgers, flag burners and oily military men he can find. Perfect viewing for when you’re chomping down the last charred remains of any remaining hot dog from the grill. Abbondanza!

Tickets – $10/free for members — Buy here

The Cinefamily
611 N. Fairfax Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90036
(323) 655-2510

Download: “Man With the Blues” — Wille Nelson (mp3)
Stream:[audio:http://www.arthurmag.com/magpie/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/ManwBlues.mp3%5D

“If you need a little shove in fouling up in love/come to me, I’m the man with the blues”

Sweet-to-these-ears new Wille-penned blues, from this great American outlaw’s new album, Country Music out now on Rounder Records, produced by T-Bone Burnett (!). More info at Amazon

Also of interest: Wille Nelson Peace Research Institute

And, very highly recommended: The Tao of Willie: A Guide to the Happiness in Your Heart by Willie Nelson with Turk Pipkin


Thanks Kevin Barker!

Headneck Bonanza: Doug Sahm live in 1972 with Leon Russell and the Dead


Sir Doug and Jerry Garcia, onstage in Austin. Photo: Steve Hopson

Our celebration of recently departed hippie-country music pioneer John “Marmaduke” Dawson of the New Riders of the Purple Sage’s legacy started a conversation about the history of “headneck” music: tunes beloved in equal measure to cowboys, hippies, bikers and all varieties of stoner hicks, country heads and longhaired rednecks.

Beyond the New Riders and the Dead, the consensus seems to be that Commander Cody, Asleep at the Wheel and Doug Sahm (in his many incarnations, from dusty Texas boogie, accordion-flecked Tex-Mex and sun-dappled Mill Valley country) represent some of the pinnacles of this rowdy sound. After a bit of digging around in the Google crates, we found one of the holy grails of headneck history over at The Adios Lounge: a bootleg recording of an impromptu 1972 Doug Sahm, Leon Russell, Jerry Garcia and Friends show at the Armadillo World Headquarters in Austin, Texas.

On Thanksgiving weekend in 1972 the Dead were in Austin, on tour of course, and they joined Sir Doug and country-time piano genius Leon Russell — you know his rollicking keys from session work with The Byrds, The Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan, his oft-covered song “Superstar”; and you really should seek out the riches of his 1971 solo album, Leon Russell and the Shelter People, as the psych-out cover art is just the beginning — on stage for a couple hours of once-in-a-lifetime country grooves.


Genuine Texas groover Sahm with spliff and brew

At our request, Lance — the gracious proprietor of The Adios Lounge — has re-upped the whole two-and-a-half hour jam session full of songs from Merle Haggard, Kris Kristofferson, Robert Johnson, Bob Dylan and Hank Williams, among many others. It’s a soundboard recording (A-/A for the tapers out there) full of Garcia’s lush pedal steel, Phil Lesh’s noodly bass, and fiddle duties handled by Marty Mary Egan and Thirteenth Floor Elevator (!?) Benny Thurman. Vocals are traded between Sahm, Garcia, Russell and what sounds like a room full of rowdy Texan headnecks having the time of their lives. “Holy shit” is right.

This is music for hot afternoons, sitting shirtless in the sun, chasing shots of green dragon with econo-brews and popping off at the empties with your “blaster of choice.” Many thanks to Lance for the re-post. Click here to go download yourself a copy.

Now who’s got the hook up on some vintage Commander Cody bootlegs? And “muchas Garcias” once again to longtime Arthur compadre Michael Simmons for initiating my search for this music.

Also: BONUS HEADNECK JAM after the jump …

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