STREAM STRINGS IN THE TEMPLE FILM NOW
Hey folks,
Attention all you streamers, loss-leaders, grim reapers, and powdered egg beaters. We’ve got something to share with all of you shut-ins.
Stream The STRINGS IN THE TEMPLE FILM NOW. FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER. FOR THE LOW COST OF FREE.
WATCH IT HERE NOW: https://found.ee/jRYk
I don’t know about you, but I am totally barricaded, holed up, shut in but not shut down. And make no mistake, this crisis is serious. Life and death serious. As for now, I’ve got all I need. I’ve actually got three Honeycrisp apples in the kitchen. Plus, one Fuji apple. Fujis are not my first choice but I am 100 percent prepared to eat that Fuji if the whip comes down. Although I could be hurting for paper towels here before too long. (Stephanie’s out of town. Pray for me.)
As for this film. A little background:
Back in 2012, we released the Temple Beautiful LP - an open love letter to San Francisco and its history and characters. Written in my shoebox no-internet-having work space South of Market along with klipschutz. Lunches were had. Arguments were settled. (Never did we stoop to tossing a coin.)
After two years of playing the songs around the world, in late 2013 my band and I delivered the 12-song cycle at the Great American Music Hall - itself a former bordello and an art deco S.F institution - with a string octet scored and conducted by Brad Jones. Which turned out to be the first step that culminated in Strings in the Temple.
Director Darrell Flowers brought along at least four camera operators and a few more assorted pros from Dover to film it. We had one chance to get it right. And this film is a document of the twists and turns in the road that brought us to that one-night-only sold-out performance at the GAMH.
Some will have you believe that here in Start Up City, USA technology is the new culture. Then again, how can technology equal culture? (On what planet?) Where’s the google bus - or better yet, the Virtual Stock Option (VSO) - for the out-of-work dishwasher who commutes in every day from Stockton? Or the people who commute three hours each way just for the privilege of cleaning our toilets? Where’s the facebook live Zuckerberg Tip Jar (ZTJ) for them?
Let me ask you a question: Can songs connect people to the world? I’ll take my answer off the air.
The songs performed that night touch on all kinds of San Franciscos and include characters like Willie Mays, martyred supervisor Harvey Milk, Cain & Abel porn kings Jim & Artie Mitchell, mythic oddball “Red Man,” preacher/Svengali Jim Jones, politician-turned assassin Dan White, and Emperor Norton himself, with cameos by Laffing Sal, Carol Doda, Bill Graham, and Fatty Arbuckle. Locations too. Including the Castro and Mission Districts. One song channels the White Night Riots, sparked by the light sentence handed out to poster-boy-for-closet-cases Dan White for the assassination of Milk and Mayor Moscone.
Dig in. And do yourself a favor and stick around. At the 10:00 mark don’t miss the image of Stephie smiling and James shrugging when Roy Loney makes a kind of sideways entrance. That’s why I play music. I could watch that moment once a week forever. We miss you Roy.
P.S.: If you want to download the LP of the concert. You can do it over at Bandcamp. For the next 24 hours Bandcamp is waiving their 10% fee, so you know what that means, right? More paper towels for ol’ CP.
Here is the Bandcamp Link https://found.ee/uO1W
And if you are feeling like you want to give back. My newsletter costs money. I pay a service to deliver it. And sometimes, even though I’m on the list I don’t even receive it. I don’t know what the dealio is but if you want to show your appreciation feel free to roam around my online store and throw down.
Sincerely,
-Chuck Prophet
——————————————————————————————————
What the critics have to say about Temple Beautiful:
“Experience the album as one man’s alternative history of three decades of West Coast culture and politics.” - Fresh Air
“A heroic all round smash and grab raid on rebel rock across the generations.” - Classic Rock
“A dozen beautifully melodic, razor-sharp guitar-pop elegies. Mythological in scope, soulful in execution – tracking everything from the city’s vaunted musical history to baseball star Willie Mays and madman/murderer Jim Jones, it’s a feast of contextual songwriting and sizzling guitar. The whole lot is first rate.” - Uncut
“Not since Lou Reed paid homage to the city and era that forged him with New York has there been a song cycle dedicated to a place and reality that offers the core immediacy with the thump, churn and ferocity of Chuck Prophet’s Temple Beautiful” - Paste
“Above all it rocks. A hooky, memorable album.” - Mojo
——————————————————————————————————
Obviously everything is a hot mess due to the current state of events surrounding COVID-19. We’re taking all of this serious. Life and death serious. And exploring the possibility of rescheduling shows down the road. Some shows will be postponed. Some promoters have no plans to reschedule. All the regional UK dates will be postponed to Jan 2021 which we are working on now. We’ll gather all that info for you including refunds and the like here in coming newsletters and on the CP web site. Please be patient. And don’t hesitate to e-mail if you think we can help.
We plan to send an updated list of rescheduled/confirmed dates soon.
For now, these dates appear to be on.
5/8/2020 SEBASTOPOL CA HOPMONK TAVERN**
5/9/2020 SACRAMENTO CA HARLOW’S**
5/16/2020 BIG SUR CA HIPNIC**
Show details: http://chuckprophet.com/gigs/
