Friday, January 05, 2007

Figgs Featurette: Pete Donnelly

The Figgs' other prolific songwriter (Mike's cohort in the "Slimmer Twins") is the multi-talented Pete Donnelly. Pete is a tremendous bass player who is also talented with keyboards and other instruments. He is a big fan of the Kinks (the Figgs have covered "Father Christmas", "Johnny Thunder" and "Village Green"). Pete D. has also played bass in the Candy Butchers and has done some engineering work for major label artists, as well as producing and playing on the Death Vessel album.

Wait on Your Shoulders is one of my most favorite Figgs songs, and I love to hear them perform it live. I get chills when Pete and Mike harmonize on the refrain, a celebration of freedom and indolence: "Cuz it won't have happened to me/ All day long, I'll be enjoying/ Hanging around in a tree/ Taking a load off my feet." The song is from the band's last album as a quartet, The Figgs Couldn't Get High.

Happy is not a Stones cover; it is a track from the Figgs' first cassette album, Ginger. The song was also the A-side of the "My Mad Kitty" single.

Powder King is the 7" single version of a Pete D. classic that was rerecorded for the band's only major label album, Banda Macho.

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5 Comments:

At 1/05/2007 4:36 PM , Blogger pasd137 said...

Thanks for all of the Figgs stuff. They are one of the more underrated bands around. Also wanted to say I've been diggin the blog for a while. keep it up.

 
At 1/09/2007 1:06 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hey Jon! Thanks for your Figgs posts and links! Pete D. is my birth brother but the whole band are family to me. New reviews in new Magnet and No Depression. Back to my google-ing. Cheers, Phil

 
At 1/09/2007 8:04 AM , Blogger jonder said...

Are you Phil as in Philthy Rex? Tell Pete & Pete & Mike that they have really topped themselves with the new record, and that they need to come back to the EARL in Atlanta!

Hendo Bendo is a great music blog (check my sidebar for the link). I tried to leave a comment there, but I'm not part of their club.

 
At 1/11/2007 2:20 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Yeah, that's me. Hendo Bendo is at least one person I know that went to school here in Saratoga and lives in Albany NY. I'll pass the word along for sure. Do you stoop to the myspace level? If so, friend 'em up and leave a comment there. I'm top eight. Corny? Sure. Got to check these blogs out more. I'm mostly a terminal-boredom man myself. Cheers, Philthy

 
At 1/11/2007 8:15 AM , Blogger jonder said...

Does that mean you read Terminal Boredom (the magazine)? Or just that you are terminally bored? I haven't ventured into myspace b/c I have no friends (a single tear falls.)

Last time I saw the Figgs was in Athens at the Caledonia Lounge on a Halloween night a few years back. They are way overdue for a Southern road trip. Before that, I saw them in ATL at the EARL, and at the Point (with Guy, the night they met Graham Parker.)

 

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