Saturday 6 April 2013

The Beta Band - 'Dry the Rain'

Saturday Night Jukebox.......
Everyone Has A Guilty Pleasure

We're fully prepared to take on the hoard of Brownies



The Beta Band - 'Dry The Rain' (1997)

I've been getting all excited about seeing Steve Mason next week and have been listening to all the Beta Band albums, King Biscuit Time, Black Affair and of course his awesome solo stuff. There is one track that I keep coming back to and don't mind playing over and over. Dry The Rain is one epic song that I think is right up there in my Top Ten, maybe in my Top Five! I don't know what it is about the song or melody but I find it sad but uplifting at the same time.


Bizarrely when I listen to it, towards the end when they go into the repeats of 'it'll be okay" etc, apart from the goosebumps, I get reminded of back when I was in the Girl Scouts (of the USA no less) when growing up in Saudi. We had an annual 'Camp Out' at what seemed like an American army base but I found out was actually a geologicial laboratory called USGS, which I remember was miles out in the desert. Bang smack in the middle of the base was a massive football field set down in a sort of dug out. There was the most beautiful freshly mowed bright green grass where we would pitch our tents. During the day, us senior girls would do artsy fartsy crafts and games which we would have to make up to entertain the Brownies for the day. I decided I would teach them how to catch grass hoppers. I was more of an outdoorsy Tom Boy back then!

In the evening, it was a good old fashion sing song around the camp fire and I remember being extremely impressed when we would do songs with a "round" in them. A round (in case you don't know and according to Wiki) is a musical composition in which two or more voices sing exactly the same melody (and may continue repeating it indefinitely), but with each voice beginning at different times so that different parts of the melody coincide in the different voices, but nevertheless fit harmoniously together.
 One of the volunteers who was a music teacher would teach us how to do it and it would be a mess at first, but when it got going it was great, much like the bit at the end of Dry The Rain. The music teacher would also try and burst in with a harmony as they do. Strange what you remember!


As if you needed anymore proof this song was awesome, have a look below!




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The Beta Band - 'Dry the Rain'
4/ 5
Oleh

5 comments

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6 April 2013 at 20:55

Good call Shell Hunter. I love Steve's music in all it's guises, but those first three Beta Band EP's were just exceptionally brilliant weren't they? I saw the band a couple of times early on and their stage show was staggeringly good and as innovative as their records. 'All Come Down' was one of my 2009/10 tunes of the year, but I've yet to catch Steve Mason live as a solo artist. Enjoy the show and make sure you report back with a review.

Nice memories too!

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7 April 2013 at 07:59

The word awesome was invented for this song. It reminds me of being in Cuba funnily enough, looking out over the Florida Straights from our bedroom window at the storms in the distance. Romantiche I know. Sfw made me a CD and this was on it. I remember USGS, it was probably a military facility masquerading as a geological site. I played football there with school. Catching grasshoppers, one life's many necessary skills! What about 'bridging'?

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7 April 2013 at 11:51

Fabulous song and the vid is pretty tasty...how many albums did you spot.
I wonder if any Brownie jumped off the bridge not wanting to cross?

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23 April 2013 at 11:29

TS, Steve was superb as expected and when he played All Come Down, I thought of you!

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23 April 2013 at 13:47

Glad to hear it was a corker, but I'm a jealous man Shell Hunter!

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