Cult of the Record Bar
January/21/2012
Cult of the Record Bar
A love letter to the mall record store
By Bill Ramsey | Dec. 15, 2011
The Pulse | Chattanooga’s Weekly Alternative
A couple of months ago an obscure music website posted a story under the headline “CD-format to be abandoned by major labels by the end of 2012.” Through the power of the Internet, the just-believable-enough story — which carried no byline and quoted no sources — reverberated across the web with the power of a New York Times blockbuster, at least to the music-buying public, who are so accustomed to downloading and streaming the article seemed altogether likely.
Pulse Quadrophenia Cover Shoot
December/12/2011
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Art directing the cover of The Pulse’s vinyl issue was a blast. I knew I wanted to recreate a classic album cover and immediately turned to a favorite album, The Who’s “Quadrophenia,” which is both a classic and very easy to mimic. With some washable paint and a donated Army field jacket, I crafted the band’s signature logo, replacing WHO with CHA, Chattanooga’s airport code. At the Brainerd Army Store, we picked up a set of Air Force technical sergeant stripes for the sleeve. The rest was all about a model, location and a scooter. Our clear choice to play the Mod “Jimmy,” was Pulse videographer Josh Lang. He’s young, lithe and fit the bill. The scooter was simple: Borrow a classic Vespa from Friend of The Pulse Dave Smotherman, owner of the ultra-cool Winder Binder Gallery. We had purchased an M-80 smoke bomb to create the Brighton fog effect, but at the last minute, photographer Lesha Patterson secured a fog machine. Because it had rained the night before the shoot, the atmosphere at the loading dock behind The Pulse offices were perfect. On the crisp, clear and still evening of December 8, 2011 (the anniversary of the shooting of John Lennon, incidentally), the entire shoot took less than an hour. Our intent wasn’t to perfectly recreate the cover, but to pay homage, make it Quadrophenia Chattanooga. The video camera rolled automatically, capturing just enough to make this fun video.
The cover itself? Awesome. I’ve designed more than a dozen covers for The Pulse since joining the paper this fall. The final version appears above and was published on Dec. 15, 2011. This is by far my favorite, one of my favorites of my career. View the gallery here. Here’s the original cover of “Quadrophenia” for comparison. I’d say we got pretty damn close on zero budget.
P.S. — That’s my Volvo 240 Wagon in the most of the shots.
Art directing the cover of The Pulse’s vinyl issue was a blast. I knew I wanted to recreate a classic album cover and immediately turned to a favorite album, The Who’s “Quadrophenia,” which is both a classic and very easy to mimic. With some washable paint and a donated Army field jacket, I crafted the band’s signature logo, replacing WHO with CHA, Chattanooga’s airport code. At the Brainerd Army Store, we picked up a set of Air Force technical sergeant stripes for the sleeve. The rest was all about a model, location and a scooter. Our clear choice to play the Mod “Jimmy,” was Pulse videographer Josh Lang. He’s young, lithe and fit the bill. The scooter was simple: Borrow a classic Vespa from Friend of The Pulse Dave Smotherman, owner of the ultra-cool Winder Binder Gallery. We had purchased an M-80 smoke bomb to create the Brighton fog effect, but at the last minute, photographer Lesha Patterson secured a fog machine. Because it had rained the night before the shoot, the atmosphere at the loading dock behind The Pulse offices were perfect. On the crisp, clear and still evening of December 8, 2011 (the anniversary of the shooting of John Lennon, incidentally), the entire shoot took less than an hour. Our intent wasn’t to perfectly recreate the cover, but to pay homage, make it Quadrophenia Chattanooga. The video camera rolled automatically, capturing just enough to make this fun video.
The cover itself? Awesome. I’ve designed more than a dozen covers for The Pulse since joining the paper this fall. The final version appears above and was published on Dec. 15, 2011. This is by far my favorite, one of my favorites of my career. View the gallery here. Here’s the original cover of “Quadrophenia” for comparison. I’d say we got pretty damn close on zero budget.
P.S. — That’s my Volvo 240 Wagon in the most of the shots.
John Hiatt Interview
November/11/2011
John Hiatt: The Road Goes on Forever
The Best Songwriter You’ve Never Heard of Drives South to Chattanooga. Don’t Make Him Say ‘Damn This Town’
By Bill Ramsey | Nov. 10, 2011
The Pulse | Chattanooga’s Weekly Alternative
Every two years or so, John Hiatt makes a record that gives music critics and DJs at those few radio stations worth listening to in America something to agree on. Which is to repeat, this time in the words of WUTC-FM’s Richard Winham, “John Hiatt is the best songwriter you’ve never heard of, but you’ve almost certainly heard his songs.” It’s sadly true, but after 40 years, Hiatt has long made peace with this bit of cruel irony.
State of Shock
October/28/2011
When the original Dr. Shock, Tommy Reynolds, died in 2008, the spirit of Shock found a new mortal form in the unwitting body of local musician Jack Gray. Becoming Shock turned out to be the easy part.
Panic! The Halloween Video
October/01/2011
My walk-on role in The Pulse Panic! Halloween Guide promotional video, featuring Dr. Shock and Dingbat, filmed in downtown Chattanooga in September.