Cold Fact- Rodriguez appretiation
LokoOne
1,823 Posts
Since I been on SS I aint heard anyone mention this LP. My all time favourite recording, the first record i would grab in a fire. The LP I will force my children to listen to. The songs I want played at my funeral.Timeless songs with heart and grit to them, great lyrics and sweet melodies backed by some ballsy basslines and the hardest drums i ever heard on a folky record... This one LP shits on the WHOLE Bob Dylan catalougue IMOI got put onto this outside of the digging world. My cus and mates used to score of a dealer who used to play the album when they where over there, and my cus kept telling me 'dude when you hear this guy Rodriguez your gonna flip, you should look for some of his stuff etc'.One day I was over at the dealers place and my cus made him play it for me... and the love affair began.The gods of the crate where shining on me cus 3 weeks later I scored a copy on wax, then I found his 2nd LP, then a best of.. with 3 unreleased songs and finally a live recording of a show he did in Australia (1977ish).He had a huge cult following here and came down 3 years after his 1st lp came out and pulled bigger crowds than Rod Stewart who played the same week.Plus an Melbourne based label (Blue Goose) was involved in re issuing alot of his stuff locally and was behinf the best of LP. And after all that I found out it was produced by Mike Theodore and Dennis Coffey (which explained why it doesnt sound soft like most folk records).One of my gravest mistakes an biggest regrets I have if f*cking up and missing out on seeing Rodriguez when he came down to play a few years back.....Now enough Sixto loving..... what are peoples opinions on this? (and feel free to drop more science on the man and his music and history) 
Comments
that graemlin is hilarious.
it's not that rare or anything, but an OG 'cold fact' has eluded me for years now - -surely i'll get hold of one soon!
we would sell 3 or 4 a week every week for the almost ten years i worked the counter.
good shit.
he lives up to any and all expectations with a unique world-view and lots of great songs/history to share...
really stoked to see the official "coming from reality" reissue on light in the attic... there's been a lot of boots over the years...
http://lightintheattic.net/releases/rodriguez/
RODRIGUEZ LIVE
Fri, Apr 24 Beachland Ballroom Cleveland OH
Fri, May 08 Schubas Tavern Chicago IL
Sat, May 09 Magic Stick Detroit MI
Wed, May 13 Rock and Roll Hotel Washington DC
Thu, May 14 Johnny Brenda's Philadelphia PA
Fri, May 15 Bowery Ballroom New York NY
Mon, Jun 22 Richard's On Richards Cabaret Vancouver BC
Tue, Jun 23 The Triple Door Seattle WA
Wed, Jun 24 Doug Fir Lounge Portland OR
Fri, Jun 26 Slim's San Francisco CA
Sat, Jun 27 El Rey Theatre Los Angeles CA
Fri, May 29 Paradiso Amsterdam Netherlands
Sat, May 30 Whelans Dublin Ireland
Mon, Jun 1 Nouveau Casino Paris France
Wed, Jun 3 Circolo Degli Artisti Rome Italy
Sat, Jun 6 Barbican London UK
Sun, Jul 12 Les Ardentes Festival Liege Belgium
*taken from the official light in the attic "cold fact" reissue (which also contains 2 large essays on rodriguez and his music + many unseen pictures)...
Post-script:
February 15, 2008
Rolling into town between breaks in the tough winter weather, I met Rodriguez at the Detroit Public Library. It???s a place where the enigmatic singer-songwriter spends a lot of time, reading and researching any number of topics from current affairs to archaeology. His ongoing quest for truth and knowledge is insatiable.
When we take to his beat, in-and-around Detroit???s Wayne State University campus ??? the area Rodriguez has called home for decades ??? it???s clear that he is a man of the people. As we slip through the streets, he takes time to talk up everyone, from the local parking attendant and convenience store clerk, to the eclectic caf?? crowd. When we venture into People???s Records on West Forest, he is warmly greeted with an interested ???How???s it going? Where you been???? from the store???s employees. These are the ???young bloods??? as Rodriguez calls them; the brothers and sisters who are making things click now.
They clearly give him inspiration and he sees close parallels with the young folks of his day. In the face of the growing generation gap that so many don???t attempt to shorten, it???s refreshing to see Rodriguez extend his hand to a new generation. There is a solid connection. He speaks with passion about Detroit, its inhabitants and its strong, yet complicated cultural fabric.
But despite these very public interactions, Rodriguez is also a private family man. In terms of his musical past, he is hesitant to pimp his personal histrionics. In these times of gross commercial over-saturation and gratuitous documentation, this is encouraging to see. I think he was always that way. It???s just not his style. Still, the poet in Rodriguez is alive and well and I learned a great deal over my far too short Michigan visit.
With a life that has taken so many unexpected turns, Rodriguez feels lucky to have been given the opportunity to share his words, art, and music with so many. We are truly honored to help continue to spread the message. As we said our goodbyes, Rodriguez left me with a copy of the latest New York Times, a paper he reads from front-to-back every day. It???s a symbolic gesture. Keep reading, keep listening, keep learning, and keep striving. It???s a simple goal we should all aspire to reach.
Kevin ???Sipreano??? Howes
Toronto, Ontario
I don't remember if you were here when we had a Sussex Records tribute thread, but we were showing all kinds of love then. Great album.
I don't agree with the better-than-Dylan claim - that's just record-collector wishful thinking, but yes, Rodriguez does have a hell of an edge compared to all the other singer-songwriters from the 1970-72 era.
Although I did make a mistake once when I passed up his Coming From Reality album in a used store for $1.99 (filed in the Latin section)...this was way before the current mania for his music, and I overlooked it because I thought he was just another fire-and-rain folkie, just from looking at the cover. I know different now...
as much as I like dude - he ain't touching the Zimmerman
This is up there with "The Beatles were really just a Bernard Purdie studio project when you think about it" for sheer SoulStrut littledudism.
Im gonna have to cop that re issue, cus my CF copy is getting pretty worn out. Good to hear the man is getting his props, and hopefully some money, cus Im sure he got F*ck all b.i.t.d
I wonder if he's still writing new music or has collabed with any new acts?
And yeah I got to give Extra P props for flipping the Sugarman vocals on the Nas track (still trying to figure out how he chooped them so well)...
* As for my Dylan comments, i have to admit I aint a big folk fan, and the reason I prefer CF to Dylans stuff is the fact its got more funked up bass and drum backing, and lyrically I think the subject matetr and images where much more working class and street.... plus I like Rodriguez voice better.
neither am i - i think he's at his best when he's rockin' or bluesin' it up
funk isnt really Dylan's bag, so i cant really compare. but i gotta say, as great as Cold Fact is, there's more than a little bit of "subterranean homesick blues" in Rodriguez' delivery. whether Dylan influenced him or not, i cant say, but i wouldnt be surprised if he did
Yeah I hear what your saying but I would think that style wouldnt have been exclusively Dylans, or he would have been influenced by others ppl.... and I think Rodriguez added a bit more grit to his stuff... Cus I alwyas remind myself when i listen to his songs thaat this was done late 60s/early 70s, some of the shit he was saying would have been pretty out there, sounds soft compared to the stuff we are used to nowdays, but he had
But apart from the music, Rodriguez had a huge influence on me as an MC, the way he phrases his stuff, the word he uses and images he creates, the duality and use of counterposing words etc. I found I start bring some of that into my rimes... his writing style does suit 'rimers'...
I remember picking it up just before Large Pro used Sugar Man for Nas.
Great album. Second album is solid too.
Not sure if this was mentioned, but he was opening for Animal Collective earlier this year.
Sip the juice.
I might have to try to catch him in Philly! Might have to sneak out of work a little early.