Butch Walker and Fan Loyalty

The holidays give Bibi time to reflect about important life matters. 

From last year, Bibi thinking profoundly again.

My relatively recent introduction to Butch Walker and consequent fabulously hard fall for his music almost instantly became a source of wonder for friends and acquaintances.  (Guess I was a bit intense about it. Not like now--lol.)  I've gone out of my way to give reasons why--think I've done a more than adequate job with that.  However, just the other day, I thought:  whoa, feel kind of casual about Butch Walker right now; like the initial rush I experienced in listening to his music, reading his book, watching videos of his live performances, et al, has leveled off.  Felt relaxed, almost indifferent to checking out his recent tweets.  hmmm, not a bad feeling, everything was just okay.  Even thought about changing the Butch Walker cd in the car to, I don't know, something else.  I had been thinking about Tom Petty cds, ie, don't have any, so maybe would go buy some.  Got in the car and Hot Girls in Good Moods came on....BAM!!!  That raw, growly guitar intro, party adrenalin charged, and WO-HO that breathy, slithery, too-cool-for-you voice: 

I got a girl that lives at the mall / She dances on the dark side of the disco ball / Drives a silver Mercedes / Made in the 80s / Swears and stares at the buckhead ladies....

As if I'd just heard the song for the first time (suddenly stinks of Foreigner here, I know), there was this overwhelming wave of OMG and, please, more. . .  more. . .  more. . . BUTCH WALKER!

And that's how I got past that feeling of being over Butch and then completely swooned back into being so enthralled by him in about 10 minutes one day.  That's really intense. 

Hey, Butch:  give me everything you got....please!

PR for Butch Walker

So, who does this for Butch?  Is the job currently unfilled?  Shouldn't there be frequent, or going with the absence makes them scream for more theory, even infrequent mentions of Butch in the media?  He played at the Los Angeles Petty Fest recently which gives Bibi a case in point:  where is the follow-up buzz about his  performance?  He KILLED with his version of Breakdown on the first night. 

Butch says: It's alright if you love me, it's alright if you don't...

                                                                      this pic is from the second night of Petty Fest West

Let's be clear on this:  Bibi would strongly vote (4 paws worth) against Butch appearing during half time at football games.    Seems that Lenny Kravitz's management is utilizing the any publicity is good publicity model to re-energize his career.  hmmmmm.  However, there must be some middle ground where knowledgeably timed press releases and/or noteworthy appearances, like Petty Fest, could raise awareness without being a sell-out junket for Butch, right?  This leads to discussion of why Butch Walker isn't better known and appreciated. Have lots to say about that, but that's a different post, or two. 

As devoted readers, you know Bibi intends to check with the NY Times and the NYorker about their plans to review Butch's upcoming shows in Chicago.  Oh, right, also something to Rolling Stone.  Content and stylistic questions arise:  use of the impersonal voice, signaling not only decorum and reason, but good taste?  Or, go with the naturalistic, giddy, total fan tone?  As a subscriber to both pubs, imply exasperation that this hasn't happened for Butch already?   (Maybe their people have already informed Butch they will be catching the shows?)  There's really no way to say to the NYT or the NYer, "Who does Butch Walker have to ---- to get attention from your organization?"  Maybe you could say it to RS, but why give those guys the satisfaction?  Bibi is saying this from a fan perspective, it's not what Butch would say--ever--since we all know Butch won't sell out--an issue germane to the point brought up in the last paragraph.

Have to craft a concise, coherent request, emphasizing increased readership satisfaction that such a review  would engender for the NYT and the NYer, both of which continue to seek ways to connect with a younger base.  (whoa, Bibi, MBA!) Need an engaging opening, finish with a flourish, of course.  Keep forgetting that I have to send something suitable to Rolling Stone, too.  Given their past unfathomably dismissive treatment of Butch, that will be a tough one.  Same music mag that dismissed AC/DC, right?  Anyway, back on point...include pictures?  Links to live performances?  Don't want that old Salieri criticism (something like):  Ah, Mozart, you are passionate but you do not convince.

Maybe Bibi hasn't mentioned a small pr effort she's been working lately:  made some business cards with Butch's picture, webpage and link for Episode 54 of Live From Daryl's House.  I leave them at just about every store or public place I go.  Today, at the Clear Lake Half-Price Books found the Letters cd--second time I've found a cd by Butch at this location!--and as I was paying, I told the guy about Butch and gave him one of the cards.  He said he'd check Butch out on the web.  Grass roots, I know, but presidential elections have been won using this angle.  It could help in raising Butch Walker awareness, too.

Butch Walker Story for the New York Times, The New Yorker, Rolling Stone

Bibi was wondering if any of the influential print/online news sources will be reviewing Butch's shows in Chicago.  Using Kevin's advice from Home Alone: don't be afraid of the basement, just check it out.  (That's what Bibi heard.) So, I plan to email the New York Times,  the New Yorker and Rolling Stone.  Not that I read RS with any regularity, but I do read the other two all the time.  AND, Rolling Stone seriously owes Butch after that introduction at Petty Fest a week or so ago.  Watch that flub here:

  Butch at Petty Fest, Break Down 

Can almost forget the mis-introduction.  Butch delivers a sizzling version of Break Down, like the pro he is!  Again!




It may be a long shot, but due diligence on the part of an avowed Butch Walker fan is the way I look at it.  They might not know that Butch will be performing in Chicago in December and if I don't say something, they could miss out on an article their readers would otherwise clamor for, right?   Butch has merited at least mentions by all three in the past, so it's not like he's an unknown entity to them.  He's talented, personable, a great interview, a notable crowd draw for boisterously memorable shows,  and the holiday season needs some non-holiday articles to get us into the new year.  Win, win, win, win all the way around.

Will begin work on the email tonight; has to be truly readable and worth following up.  Have some time before December 30, but want to give them some lead time and you know how it goes sometimes. 

Fingers crossed!

Thanksgiving and of course, Butch Walker

Yay, Thanksgiving!  It's a great time marker--the year's coming to a close soon and let's think about how things have gone so far.  The good and the bad, the ups and the downs, what's been accomplished, left to be done.  Uh-oh.  Could get scary and maudlin fast,  mine field promenade area, so let's not go too far.  What to be especially thankful for?  In the land of milk and honey to spare, now that the President is elected and our way of living is secure once more, so thankful that the family is fully-employed, homes secure, in relatively good health.  Hope things hold through the holidays.

But let's get serious, right?  Really thankful for discovering Butch Walker.  Found a cd cover I hadn't seen before:   
Another one of the things I really like about Butch--he has such a sense of humor!  Not just a pretty, pretty  face with a great voice and music.   lol I realize I lose some of the significance since I never saw, much less heard the cds that are being spoofed.  But now, would really like to have the cd.  My Black Friday schedule:  get up at the usual weekend time (10 am ish), breakfast, drive to Clear Lake to check out the Half Price Books where I found my first Butch Walker cd, The Rise and Fall of Butch Walker.  That location will always have a cherished place in my heart.  We'll see.

For a long time now, I've gone to bed early....well, not really, just quoting from one of my readers' favorite books, In Remembrance of Things Past. another lol  The point is that Thanksgiving is such a time of remembering the past, triggered by food, food smells, for Bibi, food tastes, since she can't smell anything.  Mostly, Thanksgiving reminds me that family is interesting and great for me in limited, if intense, doses.  The food is secondary to catching up, touching base, sharing the day, the recent events.  Hope everyone has a great day!  Also, don't get trampled tomorrow at the sales.

Have more to say on other Butch-related topics, so later!  Love you, Butch!

AC/DC now available on iTunes! Worthy research project.

WOW!! Huge AC/DC paradigm shift!!



End of an era. 

You know how it is for humanities majors (though Bibi has an MBA; she will always be a French lit major/English minor--you thought cats couldn't do that?), what is the significance of this move on the part of the greatest living rock n roll band?  No new albums need be expected?  Future set lists will be Greatest Hits' Compendiums?  Of course, that's what the usual show has always been, so not a stretch there.  Only difference:  no down time that the new songs gave you so you could go get a beer or go to the bathroom.  And like any true, diehard fan:  since all the hits are great, who cares which songs they play as long as they tour? 
Angus always gives Malcolm props for being the brains in the group, so maybe Mal thought it was the optimum time for this moneygrab?  Not that AC/DC shouldn't do this--their music is well worth every shekel it makes for them.  If there were some easy way to track the revenue, another very interesting research effort.

There was some cachet for me about this kinda Luddite attitude AC/DC had about iTunes, though.  I didn't buy that it was only because AC/DC wanted purchases made of entire albums; seemed more intrinsic to the  AC/DC ethos of good old fashioned rock n roll that had to be heard as scratchy vinyl or cds that skipped every now and then.  ahh, the good times.

Butch Walker's Birthday at Petty Fest in LA and lessons in how to drink wisely

Looks like an excellent time was had by all at Petty Fest--and why not?   You knew the music was going to be great: Tom Petty's stuff is the epitome of classic rock n roll, resonating for so many of us, no matter the background or age, with its far-ranging emotions and experiences set in a rocking, must-enjoy again and again blend, guitar band best, often magical in its intensity and effect.  When we saw him back in the early '90s, or maybe that was the really late '80s--ah, les neiges d'antan, right?--what a show it was!  Still have the t shirt, somewhere.  The stars of Petty Fest, including the surprize guests, were some of the best of the best musicians.  Maybe some desperate wannabes were there, too.  No names and no judgment here. (Can't stop you from checking out YouTube on your own, though.) 

Of course, Butch was the best one: kick-ass rocker talent and professionalism on full-out display, total class act.  If I had been there, would I have left after he played? 

First night, Butch did Breakdown--excellent, ever so delightfully sinister version.  He shaded it with just a soupcon of bitter experience and lots of self-assured confidence.  Goes down so good n tantalizingly tasty!  
Butch Hancock, er Walker, Tom Petty's Breakdown,

Bibi wonders, though, what was the person filming this thinking?  Me, I would focus on Butch Walker--he's the featured musician, he's singing lead, he's playing the rock star role completely--yet, the camera meanders around, filming the other musicians, Butch is often just out of camera range or kind of fuzzy.  Why? Anyway, here's a still of the stage while Butch is playing:  Butch at Pettyfest 2012)

and an even better photo:

Butch (looked and) sounded fantastic on his birthday AND his hair was perfect!  Loved the whole look!  (Bibi never claimed to be profound.) He took being introduced by the wrong name like a man, shrugged it off with a jab at Rolling Stone.  (The guy doing the introductions is an editor/writer at RS.)   Cool for Butch!  Jameson's was one of the event sponsors and understand there was a lot of free range drinking going on, so some flubs were to be expected. 

I know when I unexpectedly went out to a wine tasting on Thursday--what? Bibi went drinking on a school night?!?!  Bibi doesn't EVEN drink--then we moved on to not one, but two more bars, there were probably many mots inattendus sprinkled in the lively converations that, hopefully, promptly wafted into the alcohol-induced ether.  Probably, each of the people I was with (M, J, S, and wow! can't even remember the other guy's name) just remembers a quite enjoyable evening.  No hangover either!  So, Bibi 's recommendation:  if you're going to drink when you have to go to work the next morning, drink sparingly of the wine, eat as many of the exotic hors d'oervres as you can nonchalantly quaff (a nod to Butch's sage advice:  ‘Cause we’re hotter when we don’t give a damn) and then switch to good, mid-level Champagne for the rest of the evening.  End the evening with a few bites of food, take a shower and go to bed.  Worked for me.

Haven't seen a video of the second night of Petty Fest, when Butch played "Even the Losers", but heard he brought the house down.  No less than a Butch Walker aficionada would expect.  Will keep checking YouTube and report later.

Today's tweets from Butch signal a move from LA to Georgia (should watch the stock market for the butterfly effect from this announcement) and a renewed sense of purpose in terms of new material for an album.  Whatever it takes, Butch!  The fans are solidly behind you on this and are fervently awaiting the songs AND the tour!

Butch Walker and the Looming Fiscal Cliffs--no not really!

Haven't had time or energy to talk about Butch in the last few days.  What with work, life, and the looming fiscal cliffs facing America, the air is filled with dread, right? . . . although, like all of Butch's fans, that doesn't mean I don't think about him throughout the day.  Especially about seeing him in Chicago in December (Bon Scott scream here, but only on the inside.  I'm in a public place.).  If other fans are like me--and why wouldn't we basically all be the same?--you spend some time watching for tweets, checking for anything new on butchwalker.com, are there any YouTube videos of Butch we haven't seen (see below), and what about that Calvin Klein ad from back in the day?  Is that really Butch Walker?  Guess we've all done things in our past that we wonder about later.  Not apologetically, necessarily; we just wonder about how/why we did them.  What we fans do know is that over time, Butch has inhabited many personae (ooooh, there's that big brain on Bibi, again).  Just look at his hair through the years, listen to his albums, the interviews some lucky, lucky few were able to score, to get a multi-faceted picture of THE Butch Walker.  Sometimes, in my more idle moments, I wonder if I would have liked Butch through all his versions since I'm so picky about tiny little things in general.  Slippery slope there.  Like the fiscal cliffs, maybe.  It must be very frustrating to be an economist listening to the inanities coming out of non-economist legislators' mouths and outright dodos talking economics.  Glad I'm not them and please, Mr. POTUS, don't bring Larry Summers back (that guy! what a jerk) to muck up the waters more than they are.  Looked at from that vantage point, guess waiting for Butch to make a concert appearance is relatively anxiety-free.

Last weekend, got a chance to talk Butch up to some new people.  Well, new people in terms of their connaissance de Butch Walker.  Some of them have known me for dog years and they're French.  Gave them copies of The Butch Walker Mixtape IV.3, talked about Chicago in December (woo hoo!), got suggestions on which smart phone to buy.  They're on the upper end of the economic scale so of course they said the iPhone. Unequivocally, they love their iPhones 4.  They like me, so they were very indulgent about this Butch Walker phase, listened with interest about how it has evolved, what Butch is all about.  Guess that's why I like them, too, right?  They've been with me since before the AC/DC-Angus phase.  Marc has a special place in my rocker heart since he's my Paris AC/DC concert buddy as well as my entree to the guys' hotel.  I will always and forever love him for that.  Plus, I like these people so much, I not only drank (and drank) Champagne and had a couple of shots of bourbon with them to celebrate Marc's birthday.  They only buy the good stuff, so it's not so bad as having to share Andre with people at the usual parties.  So, it was a very pleasant time, indeed.  Hope they follow through and really listen to the BWM IV.3 (includes Freak of the Week).

Recently, Butch suffered what could have been a career-shattering blow to the face from one of his band mates.  Chipped tooth!  In the LA culture, devastating.  Butch really suffers for his art!




I guess the moustache is coming along...okay?  Thought/hoped there might be then and now moustache photos on Movember, but not so far.  If he were to do that, would it mean more donations?  Think about it, Butch.

Also, saw a funny video of someone playing Let It Be in the background with Butch saying let it be in the right places in the song.  Honestly, what fans think is entertaining.  I thought it was very entertaining.

Butch hangs out in a musical bar

Have to say--again--Butch is really easy to look at.  And he's so camera-ready!  It  just loves him!  To our benefit.  Thanks, Butch!

Back to the Basics: Butch Walker

YAAAAYYYY!!! Finally the election is done!  Bibi got an email from the re-elected President (!!!) to cap off a tough campaign for all of us. Exhausting! Our American way of life is safeguarded for another four years and now we can get back to the basics of blogging about Butch Walker...and if any news comes up, AC/DC!    

I'm sure that this picture from Butch was among the factors that worked toward the election result:



That good ol' Butch Walker Ameliorative Effect at work! 
Thanks, Butch!

Win a Red Vinyl Edition of AC/DC's New Live LP!

Hadn't been to acdc.com in awhile--the site is not well-managed and whoever is purportedly in charge of it and takes our $40/year doesn't care--but have always enjoyed (most) of the fans who post comments.  Met a few--like all rabid, er, devoted fans, well, there's a continuum of crazy for the band, right?  I'm sure that to some, I may seem over the crazy end for Butch Walker, but I'm told that I was that way about AC/DC in the early days, back in 2008-9.  Makes me a bit sad--you mean I won't always feel this strongly about Butch Walker?  I still think that if AC/DC were touring, my enthusiasm and interest would be back up there.  Plus, that's what being a fan is all about:  fervor and single-minded devotion.  I could go on and on....Maybe next time.

Anyway, one of the fans on acdc.com let us know about a contest to win a red vinyl 3-disc set of Live from River Plate.  I put in my entry, which requires you to reveal your fave live song by AC/DC.  (sarcastic snort here)  Right, give me a break!  But, I said Whole Lotta Rosie.  If you've seen 'em live, you know that AC/DC's entire show is a total energy overload--the only let up in the sustained adrenalin rush that re-charges again and again each time the guys whack us black n blue with each mega-rockin' classic is when they play one of the new songs--but Whole Lotta Rosie, as they say, has it all.  The lyrics, sleazy and oh so Bon Scott, hammed up by Brian, Angus at his half-dressed, guitar god BEST (it's played after The Jack so he's down to his school boy shorts)--his riffs are UNBELIEVABLE.  The exchange between Malcolm and Angus kills.  The rhythm section is just jackhammerin' it throughout.  There is nothing to rival Malcolm, Phil and Cliff backing Angus.  Ahh, the good times. 


Can't wait to see you again, Angus!

If you want to enter, go here:  http://www.spin.com/articles/acdc-live-river-plate-new-album-best-concerts-contest

The Butch Walker Ameliorative Effect at Work

Lordy, lordy, some Mondays are the most soul-deadening days of the week!  Just getting to work was an ordeal--two wrecks to get past.  So much for getting (vaguely) to work "early" or at least not late.  Once I got there, almost immediately:  REGISTRATION EMERGENCY!!!  Geez, everybody get a grip, please.  No emergency except once again, some people insist on not doing their work.  Instead, let's get everyone in the tri-state area hyped up about . . . n o t h i n g.  Bibi wishes they would just deposit the paycheck in the account and DON'T MAKE ME COME HERE everyday for this abuse.  Nothing for me to do but stay calm, go to the internet, click on to Butch Walker Say It Isn't So, sit back and let it flow over me.  I was soon restored, set the "emergency" right and was (more or less) ready for the rest of the weirdness that came down the pike for the rest of the day. 

I soon realized that I would have to stay late.  No problem:  let's listen to The Butch Walker Mixtape II.2.  Really have been preferring IV.2, but whatever.  So, yes, I was able to get through the rest of the late afternoon with equanimity.  I'm telling you:  there is NOTHING like the Butch Walker Ameliorative Effect (BWAE) to get you past the rough spots of the day. 

Didn't use the ultimate in BWAE today--certain pictures of Butch--but here's one for my vast and loyal readership. 
Bibi hasn't expressed her views on guns previously, cats don't think about guns much, but I will say I was  surprized that Butch was into this.  Don't think it means he packs heat everywhere he goes and that he's NRA, so will just leave it at you can never tell what those rock stars will be into for their leisure activities.

A bit nervous (not quite as if in a room full of rocking chairs) about the election results tomorrow.  Thinking I will stay up late, if required.  Paws SO crossed!

Thanks, Butch, for helping me through today!

The Butch Walker Mixtape IV and IV.2

Had a doctor's appointment and--COOL--gave away two of the Butch Walker Mixtapes (II and II.2) to the really nice doctor's assistants (Bibi's policy remains:  protect identities of the blameless).  Got to talk Butch up a bit, too, why I liked him--he's not just a pretty face--he's a really talented singer and songwriter, has some GREAT recordings and videos,  AND, he had a great look going for Halloween:

 
Arlo "The Apache" Laine from Inglorious Basterds

'Course, you can't take it away from him--he is a good looking guy!

He shaved as part of his pledge work for Movember; I was a bit off put; I've grown accustomed to his (moustachioed) face. 
Here's the link if you want to make a contribution to this group that works on awareness of male health issues:  Movember

So easy to digress...I spent some time thinking about why Butch's work is so good.  A fan's dream assignment, right?  Listened to cuts from Letters on the way home, pondering.  I'll be honest; of the four cds I have:  The Rise and Fall of Butch Walker, Letters, Sycamore Meadows, and The Spade--Letters is my least favorite. (significant glances around the room)  I know.  Blasphemy! 



Mixtape
 Maybe It's Just me
#1 Summer Jam
Don't Move
Best Thing You Never Had
Race Cars and Goth Rock

Of the 12 songs on the album, these 6 are SO strong, such completely cohesive creations, melding the lyrics, Butch's expressive, wistful, often ethereal, sometimes frustrated voice, instrumental breaks and riffs so effectively, although I sometimes listen to the other songs, I usually end up just listening to these songs again and again.    Maybe It's Just Me--okay, a bit unfair to other songs in existence since this one makes such great use of that keyboard bit from everyone's favorite guilty pleasure song, Brandy, repeated at key points in this song--and then, Butch's liquid voice, in the words of the best sensitive guy-boyfriend ever: Maybe we should be alone forever after/... I can't wait for you to shine/, and THIS phrase: The only thing I'll hold against me is a picture of you tonight.  (Anguished Bon Scott scream here! from Bibi) SUCH a love song.  When I hear it, I can almost forget that the first time I saw the video for it, I realized  it was what must have been the highlight of an Ashton Kutcher movie.
Mixtape has such great stand alone phrases:  You say hello, Inside I'm screaming I love you/ ...
You drive away from my car crash of a heart/...
It crushes my head when you call me your friend/...
You can't hear the pain I feel....
It's love and I'm in it/You gave me the best mixtape I have and even all the bad songs ain't so bad/
Just wish there was so much more than that about me and you/
Whoa. And, if you ever see the version of Mixtape from Butch's dvd, Live at Budokan, the section of the dvd filmed in Atlanta, omg!  He goes full out on this one to unbelievably moving effect.  I've read that he no longer does Mixtape in concert; well, what a loss.  Here's the version from Live at Daryl's House.  Butch does it beautifully and Daryl Hall and his band are way better singers than the fans at Butch's shows (lol)

Mixtape, Live from Daryl's House

#1 Summer Jam:  Great line--Won't you come back Sunday/Every day's a Monday now that you're gone.  We won't go into an explication de texte on the first couple of lines of this song, but those lines alone encapsulate that something about Butch's songwriting--his ability to succinctly and in a musically effective way express a place we've all been for at least one set of ineffably incredible moments in past; whew!

Don't Move:  What an impassioned love song--Listen to me as my hands shake/Cause I want you, I need you/I can't live without you, baby/Baby don't move at all--Butch's delivery is phenomenal.  His voice is so full of hurt, regret, hopeless hope.  Again, to see him sing this one in the Live at Budokan dvd--fab u lous!   Here's a live version from 2009:
Don't Move
The Best Thing You Never Had is an anthem among bitter break up songs and really hits you in a place you thought you'd gotten past a long time ago.  The fans just love to sing along with this one at the concerts to the point that sometimes Butch just plays guitar.  Hopefully, he'll include it on December 30th, though, and I can sing along, too.  Great, gutty delivery song!

Race Cars and Goth Rock:  I've read that some of Butch's work could be classified as emo.  He does seemingly reveal a lot about his personal life experiences in his songs.  That said, rationality indicates that for all his songs about heart wrenching breakups, it's just not possible that there have been so many breakups in his past.  Maybe the few break ups there were have been so imprinted on Butch's psyche that he can revisit those rare occurences and write yet another song about coming in second, not being the one.  Whatever, this one adds his feelings of being the cultural outsider, not so much out of her league, but out of her social network.  And his knowledge that even if the object of his unrquited affection realizes she's mismatched with her current guy, she's not going to leave him.  He views her and that time with a regretful, but distanced eye.  I'm a broken down Camaro overheated but you'll never know you're the one that caused this crash.
Butch's metaphors...so expressive!

This pondering led to the creation of the Butch Walker Mixtape IV and IV.2


Butch Walker Mixtape IV and IV.2


She Likes Hairbands

Maybe It's Just Me

Mixtape

Don't Move

Best Thing You Never Had

Race Cars and Goth Rock

Oooh, Aaah…

Hot Girls in Good Moods

Bethamphetamine

Too Famous to Get Fully Dressed

When Canyons Ruled the City

The Weight of Her

Going Back/Going Home (not available on IV)

Here Come the . . .

Ponce de Leon Ave.

Ships in a Bottle

Passed Your Place, Saw Your Car

Bodegas and Blood

Sweethearts

Synthesizers

Closest Thing to You

Sucker Punched

One day, I will master the technical skills to actually and finally make my Butch Walker Mixtape, but that day's not here yet.