Outlaw Blues

how about some "outlaw blues"? feel the warmth.

Don't Let Me Down (live backyard session)

thanks to super friend of the band andy (http://www.youtube.com/user/toomanythreads) we have a clip of the graduation party we got to play at last month. check out "don't let me down" & andy's youtube channel, he has some great stuff on there. do it!

Gordon Waller 1945-2009

Gordon Waller was one half of the 1960's duo Peter & Gordon. Known for singing songs given to them by Paul McCartney, Peter & Gordon were highly successful in the early 60's with hits such as: World Without Love, I Don't Wanna See You Again, I Go To Pieces, Woman, & Nobody I Know.
I had the chance to see him perform a few years ago at Beatlefest in Irvine. He was very funny and still in strong voice. One of the interesting things about seeing him live was how much of an Elvis fan he obviously was. Peter & Gordon's close harmonies remain a huge influence on my music.
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1960's Cover Project: Song 2 - Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I'll Go Mine)

"Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I'll Go Mine)"

(click the divshare logo to download)
The first track off the second disc of the 1966 double album Blonde on Blonde, the seventh album from singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. The lyrics speak of a man who has grown tired of the constant guessing at his partner's feelings and is going to move on with his life rather than continue fighting the unpredictability of his partner. The song presents a feeling of change and movement that was one of the trademarks of the 1960s. This song has a swinging beat and is representative of the album's sound as a whole.
I've always admired this song's lyrics and phrasing. Dylan is (obviously) the master of phrasing and I cannot say enough on how much of a influence he has been on my writing. "Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I'll Go Mine)" was a bit of a challenge for me as far as the vocals were concerned. I tried giving it my own feel, but really had to let some of the Dylan style creep through just a bit. My favorite line in the whole song has to be "you say my kisses are not like his, and i'm not gonna tell you why that is, i'm just gonna let you pass, yes and i'll go last...." such venom and yet so calm in its delivery. Dylan is the man. Go find his version right now!

New Weekly Feature: The 1960's Cover Project, Song #1 Soldier Of Love

"Soldier of Love (Lay Down Your Arms)" is a 1962 song, written by Buzz Cason and Tony Moon, originally recorded by soul artist Arthur Alexander, appearing as a B-side to his single "Where Have You Been". The song was later covered by The Beatles during a 1963 session on the BBC, which is available on the album Live at the BBC.

(click on the 'divshare' logo to download the mp3)

Hello Folks! We here at the Paul Starling blog have decided to start a weekly feature we would like to call "The 1960's Cover Project". Each week I will record a new cover of a 1960's song that I find to be of rare or interesting value. Rare or interesting you say? What does that mean? Well it means you won't be hearing "Good Vibrations" or "My Girl". You WILL be hearing songs that you may have never heard before, which, is the goal of this project. The idea is that you will hear my version and then seek out the original (which will always be much better). As most of you know I am a complete Beatle-nut, and one of the things (besides the other million) I've always enjoyed was finding the original versions of songs they would cover. I've found countless artists that I would have never heard of this very way. Some of those are: Little Richard, The Shirelles, Del Shannon, Peter & Gordon, Dusty Springfield, & this weeks artist; Arthur Alexander.
I first heard "Soldier Of Love" when my parents bought me "The Beatles: Live At The BBC" for my 13th birthday. I can remember driving with my whole family to my birthday dinner and listening to "Soldier Of Love" over and over again on my discman. I couldn't believe The Beatles never officially recorded this song at Abbey Road. (I must clear something up for you non-Beatle-nuts. The "Live At The BBC" album contains songs the band recorded specifically for the BBC's radio shows of the time. This means that many songs they played live were recorded (not very well) for the radio, but not for any of their official albums) "Soldier Of Love" always stuck in my mind as the highlight of the BBC album, and I found myself using it as a warm up song quite often. The chords are very simple (Bm,D,Em,A etc) and the melody just seems cut thru so very nicely. My cover version above stays pretty close to the Beatles version, with maybe a little bit more electric guitar than they had. I highly recommend checking out their version on "Live At The BBC".

Curtis Rx New Website

hello friends, wanted you let you know about my good friend curtis rx's new website Villains&Vaudvillians it's packed full of his original short stories, poems, history lessons, and much much more. check it out!

~paul

Radio Play Tomorrow

hello friends, my song "the door" from 'doors & windows' will be on the radio tomorrow (monday) night @ 6. if you live in ventura county you can tune into AM 1400 or if you do not, you can listen online @ http://www.1400kkzz.com
in addition to all of this you can download 'the door' on
or buy the whole 'doors & windows" album:

make sure to tune in at 6pm & maybe even request more paul starling!

st vincent

i would like to let you know about a new band that i have been in love with for the past year. they are from new york and feature the singing & songwriting talents of annie clark. her first album 'marry me' got many many hours of listening on my ipod. songs such as 'land mines', 'all my stars aligned', & 'marry me' struck me as amazingly original pieces of work. she now has a new album out titled 'the actor', which i believe is just as amazing as 'marry me', maybe even a bit better. i was lucky and got to see her perform in chicago while i was on my road trip. check out the video for 'actor out of work' below.

happy birthday brian wilson

my top 5 brian wilson songs (ever-changing)
1. surfs up
2. i guess i just wasn't made for these times
3. till i die
4. friends
5. the night was so young

happy birthday harry nilsson

my top 5 favorite nilsson songs:
1. think about your troubles
2. i guess the lord must be in new york city
3. open your window
4. the lottery song
5. sleep late my lady friend