“..and I do appreciate you being ‘round” – The Beatles, Atlanta, 1965

Eighteen months after they appeared on the “Ed Sullivan Show” and virtually changed the world overnight, The Beatles made their way to Atlanta Stadium (it would later be changed to Fulton County Stadium) as part of their nine-city North American tour. When they emerged from the third base dugout a little after 9:30 p.m. more than 30,000 fans erupted into one, stadium-shaking scream. As flash bulbs lit up the night sky the Fab Four kicked off the show with a rousing rendition of “Twist and Shout,” followed by “She’s A Woman” and a bevy of other hits including their latest smash, “Help.” The screaming drowned out the music, first aid stations were packed with young girls who had fainted and police officers got a workout trying to keep rabid fans from jumping the railing to get a closer look.

It was August 18, 1965 and my sister-in-law, Cathy Mouledoux, was there. She was all of 12 years old. She wanted to see Paul, “the cute one,” and hear him sing her favorite song, “I’m Down.” The boys didn’t let her down. They closed the show with it….and just like that…they were gone, on their way to Houston for a 3:30 p.m. show the next day. Just like that…they were gone.

Review: “I Know You’re Married But I’ve Got Feelings Too,” Martha Wainwright

I was in Melbourne, Australia about ten days ago and I was watching a game show called “RocKwiz.” They take four people from the audience, divide them into two teams of two, and then match them up with a rock star. They answer questions, guess guitar riffs, and do other music type stuff. Overall, a very entertaining show. The episode I saw featured singer Martha Wainwright, daughter of Loudon Wainwright III (who she doesn’t thank on her new album, which leads one to think she’s not a big fan of “daddy”) and sister of Rufus, who is such a big Judy Garland fan, he recreated her concert at Carnegie Hall. Anyway….

While shopping one day, I decided to pick up Wainwright’s latest, I know You’re Married But I’ve Got Feelings Too. I really liked her voice, she was kind of sexy and I thought I would give it a shot, even though the Australian-only release cost $19.99 for a single disc (Bruce Springsteen’s Magic was selling for a whopping $26). The good news is the store was packed, which was encouraging for all of us fans of record stores, but I digress.

The disc turned out to be very entertaining. Wainwright sings about being unlucky in love with a married man on the sad, and best track, “Bleeding All Over You.” “You Cheated Me,” which is self-explanatory, is another excellent tune about the men in her life being unkind. Other tunes like “The Tower” show off her unique vocal stylings and she rounds out the disc with excellent covers of the Syd Barrett-penned “See Emily Play,” and the Eurythmics “Love is a Stranger.”

There are some slow moments throughout the 14 songs, but overall Wainwright’s second effort is a good one. I just wish the price was a little lower.

MP3: Bleeding All Over You

MP3: You Cheated Me

Martha Wainwright Official Website