What Are You Listening To?

[Dennie]

Sunshine On Leith -- CD

The Proclaimers

1988 Chrysalis Records

Sunshine on Leith is The Proclaimers' second and best known album, released in August 1988. The album had three singles, including the title track, "I'm On My Way," and "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)," which also became a hit following its inclusion on the soundtrack to Benny & Joon five years later in 1993. It is about their birthplace, Leith, and the title track Sunshine on Leith is played by Hibernian F.C. at the beginning of matches.

All Songs Written By Craig & Charlie Reid, except where noted.

"I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" – 3:33
"Cap in Hand" – 3:24
"Then I Met You" – 3:50
"My Old Friend the Blues" – 3:06 (Steve Earle)
"Sean" – 3:23
"Sunshine on Leith" – 5:16
"Come on Nature" – 3:34
"I'm on My Way" – 3:45
"What Do You Do?" – 3:38
"It's Saturday Night" – 3:24
"Teardrops" – 2:32
"Oh Jean" – 5:55

 

[Dennie]

Cool Yule -- Cd

Bette Midler

2006 Columbia Records

Amazon.com

She smiles, she sizzles, she coos, she swings. So goes the lively and completely charming Christmas record by the cheeky Divine one. There's never a note out of place, a chart too excessive, or the sentiments too sentimental. Plus Midler's tasty stable of producers and arrangers have packed the big band and stringed arrangements with their own musical warmth against Midler's smart song choices and contagious vocal performances. Cool Yule mixes the standard traditional pop pieces--like Steve Allen's snappy title track, "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," and "I'll Be Home for Christmas"--with the sole hymn, "O Come, O Come, Emanuel." But nobody's picking up this stocking stuffer because they want to go to church. Bette's got merrymaking on her mind more than anything else. Her duet with Johnny Mathis on "Winter Wonderland/Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!" is as much fun as her "From a Distance (Christmas Version)" is a somber and sobering antiwar statement. How she can move from sounding girlish and playful to sophisticated and jazz-smart in the space of one note to the next may not be supernaturally inspired, but it sure is fun to hear the joyful sounds she makes. From her lips to your ears, you gotta love it. --Martin Keller

"Merry Christmas" (Spielman, Torre) – 3:13
"Cool Yule" (Steve Allen, Eric Kornfeld) – 2:28
"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" (Blane, Martin) – 3:55
"Winter Wonderland/Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!" (Duet With Johnny Mathis) (Bernard, Smith/Cahn, Styne) – 2:46
"I'll Be Home for Christmas" (Gannon, Kent) – 3:21
"What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?" (Loesser) – 3:58
"I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm" (Irving Berlin) – 3:25
"I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" (Henry Wadsworth Longfellow/Johnny Marks) - 2:47 [Bonus Track on CDs released at Target]
"O Come, O Come, Emmanuel (Veni, Veni Emmanuel)" (Traditional) – 3:12
"Mele Kalikimaka" (Robert Alex Anderson) – 2:34
"From a Distance (Christmas Version)" (Julie Gold/Bette Midler/Buchanan/Landers) – 5:11
"White Christmas" (Irving Berlin) – 3:20

 

[Dennie]

O Brother, Where Art Thou? - Soundtrack -- CD

Various Artists

2000 Lost Highway Records

Amazon.com's Best of 2001

The best soundtracks are like movies for the ears, and O Brother, Where Art Thou? joins the likes of Saturday Night Fever and The Harder They Come as cinematic pinnacles of song. The music from the Coen brothers' Depression-era film taps into the source from which the purest strains of country, blues, bluegrass, folk, and gospel music flow. Producer T Bone Burnett enlists the voices of Alison Krauss, Gillian Welch, Emmylou Harris, Ralph Stanley, and kindred spirits for performances of traditional material, in arrangements that are either a cappella or feature bare-bones accompaniment. Highlights range from the aching purity of Krauss's "Down to the River to Pray" to the plainspoken faith of the Whites' "Keep on the Sunny Side" to Stanley's chillingly plaintive "O Death." The album's spiritual centerpiece finds Krauss, Welch, and Harris harmonizing on "Didn't Leave Nobody but the Baby," a gospel lullaby that sounds like a chorus of Appalachian angels. --Don McLeese

1. "Po' Lazarus" traditional James Carter and the Prisoners 4:31
2. "Big Rock Candy Mountain" McClintock Harry McClintock 2:16
3. "You Are My Sunshine" Davis, Mitchell Norman Blake 4:26
4. "Down to the River to Pray" traditional Alison Krauss 2:55
5. "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow" (radio station version) Dick Burnett Soggy Bottom Boys & Dan Tyminski 3:10
6. "Hard Time Killing Floor Blues" James Chris Thomas King 2:42
7. "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow" (instrumental) Burnett Norman Blake 4:28
8. "Keep On the Sunny Side" Blenkhorn, Entwisle The Whites 3:33
9. "I'll Fly Away" Brumley Alison Krauss & Gillian Welch 3:57
10. "Didn't Leave Nobody but the Baby" traditional Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, Gillian Welch 1:57
11. "In the Highways" Carter Leah, Sarah, and Hannah Peasall 1:35
12. "I Am Weary, Let Me Rest" Roberts (Kuykendall) The Cox Family 3:13
13. "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow" (instrumental) Burnett John Hartford 2:34
14. "O Death" traditional Ralph Stanley 3:19
15. "In the Jailhouse Now" Blind Blake, Rodgers Soggy Bottom Boys & Tim Blake Nelson 3:34
16. "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow" (with band) Burnett Soggy Bottom Boys & Dan Tyminski 4:16
17. "Indian War Whoop" (instrumental) Hoyt Ming John Hartford 1:30
18. "Lonesome Valley" traditional The Fairfield Four 4:07
19. "Angel Band" traditional The Stanley Brothers 2:15
Total length:
61:24

 

[Dennie]

Bigger, Better, Faster, More! -- CD

4 Non Blondes

1992 Interscope Records

the best, March 28, 1999
By Megan M. Mccarron "coulbean" (St. Louis, MO) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)
This review is from: Bigger, Better, Faster, More! (Audio CD)

This is the best album I've ever owned, but I need to correct something, the lead singer is not dead!! Don't worry. Her name is Linda Perry, and she has 2 (TWO!!!) solo albums which are both excellent. In Flight and After Hours. Check them both out. 4 Non Blondes can also be found on a lot of soundtracks(Waynes World 2, Airheads) and tributes(Encomium: A tribute to Led Zepplin, If I Were A Carpenter: A Tribute to the Carpenters).

1. "Train" 3:42
2. "Superfly" (Perry, Katrina Sirdofsky) 4:37
3. "What's Up?" 4:55
4. "Pleasantly Blue" 2:28
5. "Morphine and Chocolate" (Shaunna Hall) 4:44
6. "Spaceman" (Hall, Perry) 3:40
7. "Old Mr. Heffer" (Wanda Day, Hall, Christa Hillhouse, Perry, Dawn Richardson) 2:16
8. "Calling All the People" 3:17
9. "Dear Mr. President" 4:43
10. "Drifting" 3: 31
11. "No Place Like Home" (Day, Hall, Hillhouse, Perry) 3:08

 

[Dennie]

Going Home -- CD

Bill Mays Trio

2003 Palmetto Records

Very enjoyable, August 2, 2009
By RHR3 "Music Lover/Book Fan" (Rockford, IL USA) - See all my reviews
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Going Home (Audio CD)

This is some top-notch jazz. First of all, there is wonderful interplay between these three very creative instrumentalists. Secondly, the recording is very clean and natural. Turn it up to the appropriate volume level and it sounds like they're in the room! The only drawback is the vocal on Homebody. After all of the top-notch instrumental musicianship, the singing is a little mediocre. Nothing against vocals in general. As an instrumentalist myself, I have grown to respect greatly the art of singing well. It's not easy. That's why I usually leave it to the vocalists. But, this is Bill Mays singing. He's not terrible, but his piano playing is way better. The last song is the only one with vocals, so it doesn't hurt the quality of the music much.

Track Listing
1. Judy
2. You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To
3. Shohola Song
4. Home
5. On the Road
6. Shoho Love Song
7. Nosey Neighbors
8. In Her Arms
9. Comin' Home Baby
10. Going Home
11. I'm a Homebody

 

[Dennie]

Aja -- CD

Steely Dan

1977/1990 ABC/MCA Records

Amazon.com

History gives Steely Dan's Walter Becker and Donald Fagen the last, hearty laugh on this, the crown jewel in their remarkable canon of '70s Mensa pop. Sneaking onto the charts a half-decade earlier with sinuous, jazz-inflected "rock," the dysfunctional duo's acerbic, anti-heroic visions had been critically lauded for their band identity and killer guitar riffs, then promptly challenged when the two songwriters retired from the road, dissolved any formal band lineup, and used the studio as laboratory. Aja carried the added indignity of its increased focus on sophisticated jazz models and musicianship, which carried the Dan's ambitions even further in terms of suave harmonies, intricate song structures, and brilliant playing. Time has proven them wiser than their rock crit detractors: These seven songs abound in knotty plots, sneaky imagery, and drop-dead brilliant performances from a blue chip studio repertory studded with first-call jazz players epitomized by Wayne Shorter's towering solo on the title song. From the hard-boiled jazz romance of "Deacon Blues" to the twisted Homeric vamp of "Home at Last," the veiled but ominous swing of "Peg" to the sci-fi eroticism of "Josie," Aja is a modern pop classic and the coolest fusion record no one ever thought to lump in that category. --Sam Sutherland

Side one

"Black Cow" – 5:10
"Aja" – 7:57
"Deacon Blues" – 7:37

Side two

"Peg" – 3:57
"Home at Last" – 5:34
"I Got the News" – 5:06
"Josie" – 4:33

 

[Dennie]

Yakety Sax!

Boots Randolph

Monument Records

Album Notes

Boots Randolph's signature tune, "Yakety Sax," was inspired by the sax solo in the Coasters' "Yakety Yak," and is much better known than its modest chart placement might suggest. Randolph had recorded "Yakety Sax" for RCA several years earlier without success, but his Monument recording clicked in 1963 and the accompanying gold-selling album spent nearly a year on the charts. Randolph's unique status as the man who popularized the saxophone in Nashville is reflected in half an album's worth of country songs like "I Fall to Pieces" and "If You've Got the Money." Randolph acknowledges the Coasters again on a version of "Charlie Brown," and gives the commercial folk craze the nod with renditions of "Cotton Fields" and "Walk Right In." "Cacklin' Sax" is a novelty number on which Randolph imitates the sound of a chicken with his versatile horn. The album is split into two halves, with the slow songs grouped on the second side, and the first half is the clear winner of the two. ~ Greg Adams

Track Listing
1. Yakety Sax
2. Walk Right In
3. If You Got the Money I Got the Time
4. Cotton Fields
5. Charlie Brown
6. Cacklin' Sax
7. Smoke Gets in Your Eyes
8. I Can't Stop Loving You
9. Lonely Street
10. It Keeps Right on Hurtin'
11. I Fall to Pieces
12. I Really Don't Want to Know

 

[heeman]

Pat Travers Baby!!!

A bunch of great covers on this one!



1. I Guess I'll Go Away

2. Pack It Up

3. Outside Woman Blues

4. Your Cash Ain't Nothin But Trash

5. Whipping Post

6. Take It Back

7. Taxman

8. Purple Haze

9. Bring It on Home to Me

10. I Don't Know

11. Walkin' by Myself

12. One More Heartache

 

[Dennie]

It's 30 degrees outside here! Today's work truck music.......

Breakfast In America -- CD

Supertramp

1979/1990 A&M Records

Amazon.com

After a shaky start followed by several critically acclaimed releases, the English group Supertramp hit the commercial jackpot in 1979 with Breakfast in America. The album combined the band's FM radio, AOR-rock style with an almost carnival-like nature. Breakfast gave the band major hits with "The Logical Song," "Goodbye Stranger," and "Take the Long Way Home." The plinking piano and dramatic clarinet runs of "The Logical Song" imparted a comic, yet bittersweet tone to the release as a whole. In another example of the band's devotion to alternative ways to carry their melody lines, "Goodbye Stranger" rings with some of the purest whistling ever recorded. There's also a healthy dose of cynicism running through the 10 tracks with "Just Another Nervous Wreck." --Steve Gdula

Side one
No. Title Lead vocals Length
1. "Gone Hollywood" Hodgson and Davies 5:20
2. "The Logical Song" Hodgson 4:10
3. "Goodbye Stranger" Davies and Hodgson 5:50
4. "Breakfast in America" Hodgson 2:38
5. "Oh Darling" Davies and Hodgson 3:58
Side two
No. Title Lead vocals Length
6. "Take the Long Way Home" Hodgson 5:08
7. "Lord Is It Mine" Hodgson 4:09
8. "Just Another Nervous Wreck" Davies 4:26
9. "Casual Conversations" Davies 2:58
10. "Child of Vision" Hodgson, Davies and Helliwell 7:25

 

[topper]

 

[PaulyT]

Blue Country Heart -- CD

Jorma Kaukonen

Listening to this one now, this is great stuff! Thanks, Dennie.

I'd love to have an SACD of this one, which I can get for a mere $66 (used!) from amazon... sigh.

 

[Dennie]

Blue Country Heart -- CD

Jorma Kaukonen

Listening to this one now, this is great stuff! Thanks, Dennie.

I'd love to have an SACD of this one, which I can get for a mere $66 (used!) from amazon... sigh.

Hey Pauly, I'm glad you like it. It is a great disc with great musicians. Did you read what Jorma wrote on the back of the CD case? Good Stuff! :handgestures-thumbup:

Yeah, get me an SACD of it also! Thanks!


Dennie

 

[Rope]

Rope

 

[Dennie]

Take To The Skies -- CD

Richard Elliot

1991 Blue Note Records

A Genius, A God, The Master of the Saxophone, November 5, 2001
By H. J. Sandford "jazzyjaney" (Yorkshire, England) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)
This review is from: Take to the Skies (Audio CD)

Why hasn't anyone written a review on this album? This man is a genius, he is a god and the master of the sax. There isn't an artist alive with his passion, he loves to give you his music and it shows in all his work.

Don't ask me why but I never seem to collect albums in the order they were released and despite this being one of Richard's earliest releases it was the latest to my collection with the exception of Crush. Take to the Skies bears Richard's spirited and moody playing, he really is the best at getting every single emotion out of each and every note. If your familiar with his work then you'll know what I mean when I say his music is instantaneously recognisable and only others can follow. A saxophone comes alive in the lips of Richard and this album is an excellent example of his heady and fervent playing. His latest release, Crush, demonstrates a little mellowing with age so for any one new to Richard my recommendation would be this album or Chill Factor. Take to the Skies is a worthy purchase just for the classic track "When a Man Loves A Woman" alone. There aren't the words to describe this guy's talent, each and every album is a masterpiece, his works should be in every jazzers collection.

Track Listing
1. I'm Loving You
2. Boardwalk Walk
3. Take to the Skies
4. In the Name of Love
5. When a Man Loves a Woman
6. Grip, The
7. In Your Arms
8. Moonlight in Your Eyes
9. Down to the Keys
10. 4:00 A. M.

 

[Dennie]

Pushing The Envelope -- CD

Gerald Albright

2010 Telarc Jazz

2011 GRAMMY NOMINEE: BEST POP INSTRUMENTAL ALBUM

Jazz and R&B icon Gerald Albright is considered to be one of the most innovative and successful artists of the last twenty-five years. With the release of Pushing The Envelope, Albright's super cool side is back. With its polished soul/jazz vibe, Pushing The Envelope is a showcase for Albright's remarkably fine balance of songcraft and musicianship, and features special guest appearances by Fred Wesley on trombone, Earl Klugh on acoustic guitar and George Duke on acoustic piano.

Produced and arranged by Albright, Pushing The Envelope provides the perfect opportunity for this master musician/saxophonist/songwriter to exhibit his skills. He plays soprano, alto, tenor and baritone saxophones, flutes, bass guitar, and keyboards, and also handles synthesizer, EWI and drum programming. Albright's band on most of the album includes keyboardists Tracy Carter and Luther "Mano" Hanes, guitarist Ricky Watford and drummer Ricky Lawson.

Pushing the Envelope is easily Gerald Albright's most rewarding session to date. "The title reflects all the tunes on the project," Albright says. "I didn't want to hold anything back. I really wanted to push the envelope and give people a little more edge. I come from the era where we didn't think of a formula - we went from the gut."

Track Listing
1. What Would James Do?
2. Get on the Floor
3. Bobo's Groove
4. Capetown Strut
5. Close to You
6. I Found the Klugh
7. Embrace the Spirit
8. Road to Peace, The (A Prayer for Haiti)
9. Highway 70
10. From the Soul

 

[Dennie]

What Now My Love

Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass

1966 A&M Records

Classic TJB, June 18, 2005
By Abbasolutely "Hannah" (Dodgeville, WI United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: What Now My Love (Spkg) (Audio CD)

Ignore the silly gripe in that other review that lamented the decision to offer only the stereo mix of this cd. Herb wisely embraced stereo, not mono. So thankfully the mono sources were not utilized on this cd. The remaster job is good, although a little more treble would benefit the entire Signatutre series...They sound a tad muffled. But their reisssues are definately a highlight of 2005. I look forward to more to come...But "What Now My Love" is their best album ever! It's a pleasure to hear again and again...Cheers to you Herb and the entire team responsible for the reissues. The covers reproductions and inside booklets are delicious and great fun...just like the music itself. Bravo!

"What Now My Love" (Gilbert Bécaud, Carl Sigman) – 2:18
"Freckles" (Ervan Coleman) – 2:12
"Memories of Madrid" (Sol Lake) – 2:23
"It Was a Very Good Year" (Ervin Drake) – 3:37
"So What's New?" (John Pisano) – 2:07
"Plucky" (Alpert, John Pisano) – 2:21
"Magic Trumpet" (Bert Kaempfert) – 2:18
"Cantina Blue" (Sol Lake) – 2:34
"Brasilia" (Julius Wechter) – 2:30
"If I Were a Rich Man" (Sheldon Harnick, Jerry Bock) – 2:33
"Five Minutes More" (Jule Styne, Sammy Cahn) – 1:53
"The Shadow of Your Smile" (Johnny Mandel, Paul Francis Webster) – 3:28

 

[Botch]

What Now My Love

Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass

Did you know that Herb Alpert was the "A" in "A&M Records"?

 

[Dennie]

What Now My Love

Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass

Did you know that Herb Alpert was the "A" in "A&M Records"?

Yes I did. Did you know Jerry Moss was the "M"? Without Google/Bing/Bong/ding/dong/? LOL

I read it years ago in a "Goldmine" record book and never forgot. But it's not one of those things you can just throw out at a party to impress people. Or so I've found out........ :confusion-shrug:


Dennie

 

[Dennie]

A Premiere Performance of Other Voices

Erroll Garner in debut with Orchestra, under the Direction of Mitch Miller

1957 Columbia Records CL 1014

Magical, October 3, 2011
By Susan Campbell "Susan Campbell"
This review is from: Other Voices (Audio CD)

I have all of Erroll Garner's CD's and this is without a doubt my favourite. He plays standards both upbeat & sentimental. The addition of the orchestra creates an "out of sight" experience. It takes you to another place in time...enjoyed it immensely.

SIDE ONE:

Moment's Delight
On The Street Where You Live
Other Voices
This Is Always
Solitaire

SIDE TWO:

I Didn't Know what Time It Was
Dreamy
It Might As Well Be Spring
The Very Thought Of You
Misty

 

[Rope]

Rope