What Are You Listening To?

[Dennie]

Taming The Tiger -- CD

Joni Mitchell

1998 Reprise Records

Amazon.com

Following the Grammy triumph of Turbulent Indigo by four years, Joni Mitchell rewards our wait with an album that's even better. Taming the Tiger finds Mitchell playing her guitar through a Roland VG8, adding fresh texture to her continuing musical association with Wayne Shorter's sax and the rhythm section of Larry Klein and Brian Blade. "Happiness is the best facelift" is the line you'll hear quoted, but it isn't truly representative. Song painter Joni knows that light creates infinite gradations of shadow, and this is as varied a collection as she's given us. "Love has many faces," she sings in "Love Puts on a New Face"; and her portraits of longing ("Man from Mars"), abandon ("Crazy Cries of Love"), and quiet fury ("No Apologies") are exquisite. --Ben Edmonds

All tracks composed by Joni Mitchell; except where indicated

"Harlem in Havana" – 4:25
"Man from Mars" – 4:09
"Love Puts on a New Face" – 3:46
"Lead Balloon" – 3:38
"No Apologies" – 4:17
"Taming the Tiger" – 4:18
"The Crazy Cries of Love" – 3:54 (Mitchell, Don Freed)
"Stay in Touch" – 2:59
"Face Lift" – 4:41
"My Best to You" – 2:52 (Gene Willadsen, Isham Jones)
"Tiger Bones" – 4:18

 

[Dennie]

BONUS PICTURE from back of CD booklet:

Another fantastic painting by Joni.....

Dennie :eusa-clap:

 

[Dennie]

Marc Cohn -- CD

Marc Cohn

1991 Atlantic Records

Amazon.com

With rootsier, acoustic neofolk ascendant, Marc Cohn's 1991 debut harkens back to the more sophisticated rock and pop inflections of singer-songwriters of two decades past. His supple, velvety baritone and elegant piano-based arrangements frame shrewdly crafted songs ripe with pop touches, none more intricate or deftly executed than the set's epochal "Walking In Memphis," an epiphany rooted in rich musical history, studded with allusions to Elvis and Al Green, Beale Street and Graceland, and buoyed by a rippling piano motif and surging gospel choruses. Giving the set depth, as well as commercial legs, are of "Silver Thunderbird," infectious and intimate in its evocation of his father, husky meditations "Ghost Train" and "Dig Down Deep," a sexy update of Willie Dixon's "29 Ways" (the probable seed for Paul Simon's antithetical "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover"); and the fervent lover's anthem, "True Companion." --Sam Sutherland

All songs written by Marc Cohn, except "29 Ways" written by Willie Dixon.

"Walking in Memphis" – 4:19
"Ghost Train" – 4:13
"Silver Thunderbird" – 4:39
"Dig Down Deep" – 5:09
"Walk on Water" – 4:02
"Miles Away" – 3:23
"Saving the Best for Last" – 5:35
"Strangers in a Car" – 2:47
"29 Ways" – 3:06
"Perfect Love" – 4:23
"True Companion" – 4:10

 

[Botch]

King Crimson - Lizard:

This is great fun, as its a Steve Wilson 5.1 remix, and its a KC album that I've never heard before. Very, very bizarre mix, but already there's one tune I need to bring to the next GTG I can attend; hearing the lead vocal in mono behind my head, then in stereo behind my head (surrounds only), then it sweeps into stereo, then reverse stereo, in front, and finally settling into mono in the FC, is cool in its own right (not to mention what the rest of the instruments are doing). Dizzying...

 

[Dennie]

My last one for the evening......

Here We Go Again - Celebrating The Gunius of Ray Charles -- CD

WIllie Nelson - Wynton Marsalis featuring Norah Jones

2011 Blue Note Records

Product Description

Once in a while the stars align and something magical happens...as on the night Jazz at Lincoln Center presented a salute to the late, great bluesman, Ray Charles. Two musical iconoclasts, Willie Nelson and Wynton Marsalis, along with the stunning songstress Norah Jones, collectively brought their unique musical perspective to the legendary artist's hits such as "Hallelujah I Love Her So", "Hit the Road Jack," and "Unchain My Heart." Country music legend Willie Nelson and Pulitzer Prize-winning jazz artist and Jazz at Lincoln Center Artistic Director Wynton Marsalis share more in common than their multiple GRAMMY® awards. They also share great respect and admiration for the late musical pioneer Ray Charles. Nelson and Marsalis joined musical forces for a two-night Jazz at Lincoln Center concert event at New York City's Frederick P. Rose Hall, home of Jazz at Lincoln Center. Their set list explored the legacy of Charles, cleverly sequencing the songs to tell the story of a love affair from beginning to end and beyond. This fine idea was made finer by the inclusion of fellow multiple GRAMMY® winner Norah Jones, whose style suggests a middle ground between Nelson and Marsalis. The sold out performance was captured and the resulting footage expertly mixed and mastered for the brand new album.

1. Hallelujah I Love Her So (Gospel 2-beat / Boogaloo / 4/4 Swing)

2. Come Rain or Come Shine (Walking Ballad)

3. Unchain My Heart (Bolero with Habanera bass)

4. Cryin' Time (Country Ballad)

5. Losing Hand (Dirge with Chain-Gang Shuffle)

6. Hit The Road Jack (Gospel 2-beat / 4/4 Swing)

7. I’m Moving On (Boogaloo with Afro-Latin Backbeat / 4/4 Swing)

8. Busted (Gospel 12/8 Shuffle)

9. Here We Go Again (Rhythm & Blues 12/8 Shuffle)

10. Makin’ Whoopie (Hard-Bop 2-beat / 4/4 Swing)

11. I Love You So Much (It Hurts) (Waltz)

12. What'd I Say (Boogaloo)

 

[mazersteven]

1. Being Boring
2. This Must Be The Place I Waited Years To Leave
3. To Face The Truth
4. How Can You Expect To Be Taken Seriously?
5. Only The Wind
6. My October Symphony
7. So Hard
8. Nervously
9. The End Of The World
10. Jealousy

1981 - August
On August 19th, Neil and Chris meet by chance in an electronics shop on the Kings Road. Realizing they have a common interest in dance music, they begin to write together. Initially they call themselves West End; later they come up with the name Pet Shop Boys, a name derived from some friends who work in a pet shop in Ealing. "We thought it sounded like an English rap group".

Behavior was a retreat from the deep dance textures of Introspective, as it picked up on the carefully constructed pop of Actually. In fact, Behavior functions as the Pet Shop Boys' bid for mainstream credibility, as much of the album relies more on popcraft than rhythmic variations. Although its a subtle maneuver, it would have been rather disastrous if the results weren't so captivating. Tennant takes this approach seriously, singing the lyrics instead of speaking them. That doesn't necessarily give the album added emotional baggage -- all of the distance and detachment in the duo's music is not a hindrance, it's part of the concept -- but it does result in an ambitious and breathtaking pop album, which manages to include everything from the spiteful "How Can You Expect to Be Taken Seriously?" to the wistful "Being Boring."

 

[Flint]

If you love fusion, rock interpretations of classical music, and prog rock, you HAVE to get this CD:

I got it mainly out of my bizarre fetish for the Chapman Stick and because I find just about everything Tony Levin does to be at least technically amazing. Well, this music is not only technically amazing, but it is musically fulfilling and emotionally satisfying.

Get it! GET IT!

G E T I T ! ! !

 

[PaulyT]

WHAT?!? > $10 for a USED CD? That blows my music budget for a !&@$#* month! :angry-tappingfoot:

 

[Dennie]

Today's work truck music.....

ADELE 21 -- CD

Adele

2011 Columbia Records

Beautiful. February 22, 2011
By Madeline (USA)
This review is from: 21

Adele's 19 was strong. 21 is simply timeless.

In the past two years, Adele has refined and reinvented her unique sound that always puts her aching yet powerful vocals and lyrics at the forefront. These are songs that could have been released in the 60s as easily as 30 years from now. Adele has injected her trademark piano ballads with the best from several different musical genres including Americana roots and country, r&b, blues and gospel. The music is exciting and simply is. It lives, breathes.

There are a few tracks towards the middle that are remarkable only because Adele sings them-- and while they aren't quite filler, they aren't as memorable as standout tracks like "Rolling in the Deep," "Set Fire to the Rain," "Someone Like You," and "Turning Tables." Adele set the bar so high with these songs that anything else short of magic, is sort of a letdown. However, as a whole--this album so involves you that you can feel these stories as your own.

I played a couple songs for my mom, who at forty years older than I, generally criticizes my music taste, and the first thing she said was "Wow, this girl really knows how to write a story--those songs are beautiful."

21 is haunting, pulsing, soaring and very intimate. It's music that will be remembered.

1. "Rolling in the Deep" Adele Adkins, Paul Epworth Epworth 3:48
2. "Rumour Has It" Adkins, Ryan Tedder Tedder 3:43
3. "Turning Tables" Adkins, Tedder Jim Abbiss 4:10
4. "Don't You Remember" Adkins, Dan Wilson Rick Rubin 4:03
5. "Set Fire to the Rain" Adkins, Fraser T. Smith Smith 4:02
6. "He Won't Go" Adkins, Epworth Rubin 4:38
7. "Take It All" Adkins, Eg White Abbiss 3:48
8. "I'll Be Waiting" Adkins, Epworth Epworth 4:01
9. "One and Only" Adkins, Dan Wilson, Greg Wells Rubin 5:48
10. "Lovesong" Robert Smith, Simon Gallup, Roger O'Donnell, Porl Thompson, Lol Tolhurst, Boris Williams Rubin 5:16
11. "Someone Like You" Adkins, Wilson Wilson, Adkins 4:21

 

[Dennie]

Blues for the Soul -- SACD

Mighty Sam McClain

2000 Telarc Blues

Amazon.com

All those young up-and-comers who think they know how to sing R&B and soul should really get themselves a dose of Mighty Sam McClain. The man waited years to record any albums (though there were a few singles in the 1960s), but it's been worth the wait. Blues for the Soul is McClain's first for Telarc Records, and it's a near-perfect debut. The slower, lazier songs are ideal for the heat of summer, but one could just as easily imagine listening to McClain in a dark, smoky nightclub in November. His voice is strong, but so smooth that at first you don't notice, and his backing band knows exactly how to support him; they're tight and on the money, but never overwhelming. McClain's perspective is quirky, yet mature, as exemplified by "Jesus Got the Blues" and "Sweet Lady" (in the latter, he sings the praises of smart women--recognizing that beauty's a transient thing, but brains last a lifetime). While there's no doubt he's passionate about his music, McClain's solid record is all the more appealing for its unassuming presentation. --Genevieve Williams

Track listing

1. All We Need Is Love
2. Dark Side of the Street
3. Love One Another
4. Going Back to New Orleans
5. No One Can Take Your Place
6. Jesus Got the Blues
7. Sweet Lady
8. Battlefield of Love
9. Mighty's Prayer
10. Sing Me Some Blues
11. Can't Stand It
12. Not I

 

[Dennie]

At Last -- SACD

The Gene Harris/Scott Hamilton Quintet with Herb Ellis, Ray Brown & Harold Jones

1990/2004 Concord Jazz

If anyone ever asks you what jazz is, words won’t do. Just play this music. The pulse, the flowing time that is the nurturing essence of jazz is distilled by Gene Harris, Herb Ellis, Harold Jones, and Ray Brown as they shape rhythm waves on which Scott Hamilton’s tenor glides, dives, and soars. And Gene Harris, when he solos, also rides the tides of the past as well as the powerful presence of the moment. Each of the players has a full, open, personal sound—and each always has sound in mind...It is being heralded as a lost art that has been rediscovered. But the guys on this date have never lost that art.”—Nat Hentoff (From the original 1990 liner notes)

Track listing

1. You Are My Sunshine
2. It Never Entered My Mind
3. After You've Gone
4. Lamp Is Low, The
5. At Last
6. Blues for Gene
7. I Fall in Love Too Easily
8. Some of These Days
9. Stairway to the Stars
10. Sittin' in the Sandtrap

Gene Harris (piano); Scott Hamilton (tenor saxophone); Herb Ellis (guitar); Ray Brown (double bass); Harold Jones (drums).

 

[No-L]

Drove from Pennsyltucky to Michigan today. Plugged my iPhone in the aux slot and hit random play for six hours straight! It was awesome!!!
Here is a short list of what I remember.
Tom Jones, Manhattan Transfer, JJ Grey, Katy Peery, Tab Benoit, Marques Houston, Patti LaBelle, Patty Austin, Seether, Evanescence, Frank Sinatra, Beth Hart, Aretha Franklin, Susan Tedeschi, Etta James, Bruce Willis, Men At Work, Jodeci, Gerald Levert, Janis Seigel, Sarah McLaughlin, Jon Cleary, David Clayton-Thomas, Eva Cassidy, John Legend, Kascada, Nellie Furtado, Beyonce, Rhianna, Chaka Khan and many more!!

Sure made the haul a LOT better!!!

 

[Zing]

Drove from Pennsyltucky to Michigan today.

Hmmmmm. Interesting. :think:

Playful banter between No-L and Huey.

Huey lives in Michigan.

No-L drives to Michigan.

I say again, hmmmmm, interesting.

:eusa-whistle:

 

[No-L]

Wow. You boys are gossip-mongers!! A girl is on the forum for a couple weeks and I've apparently REALLY BEEN GETTING AROUND!!

:banana-gotpics:

LOLOLOLOLOL!

 

[Dennie]

Today's work truck music....

Cry Like A Rainstorm Howl Like The Wind -- CD

Linda Ronstadt Featuring Aaron Neville

1989 Elektra Records

Amazon.com essential recording

An album that defines virtually everything that is right about adult contemporary pop--and yes, there are a few things--Cry Like a Rainstorm, Howl Like the Wind contains lush, orchestrated arrangements of songs by first-rate tunesmiths such as Jimmy Webb, Eric Kaz, Paul Carrack, Barry Mann and Cynthia Weill, Isaac Hayes, and Karla Bonoff. Four cuts, including the Grammy-winning "Don't Know Much," feature duets between Ronstadt (still singing with power and assurance even at the top of her range) and angel-voiced Aaron Neville. Other highlights include "Adios," with multitracked background vocals by Brian Wilson, and the title song, which is driven to new heights by the Skywalker Symphony Orchestra and the Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir. Beautiful stuff. --Daniel Durchholz

1. Still Within the Sound of My Voice - Aaron Neville, Linda Ronstadt
2. Cry Like a Rainstorm - Aaron Neville, Linda Ronstadt, Linda Ronstadt
3. All My Life - Aaron Neville, Linda Ronstadt, Linda Ronstadt
4. I Need You
5. Don't Know Much - Aaron Neville, Linda Ronstadt, Linda Ronstadt
6. Adios
7. Trouble Again
8. I Keep It Hid
9. So Right, So Wrong
10. Shattered
11. When Something Is Wrong with My Baby
12. Goodbye My Friend

 

[PaulyT]

Drove from Pennsyltucky to Michigan today.

Hmmmmm. Interesting. :think:

Playful banter between No-L and Huey.

Huey lives in Michigan.

No-L drives to Michigan.

I say again, hmmmmm, interesting.

:eusa-whistle:

Oh yeah, we promote pornography, prostitution, drugs (somehow I overlooked that one earlier), religious extremism, and now we have a married persons affair & sex scandal in the works! SWEET!

Who says we're a bunch of boring A/V nerds? :laughing-rolling:

 

[topper]

Shake 'Em On Down by Rory Block
a tribute to Mississippi Fred McDowell

(2011 release)

 

[Dennie]

Greatest Hits -- CD

Bruce Springsteen

1995 Columbia Records

Amazon.com

About as complete a selection of fan and artist favorites as any single-disc Bruce collection could be, this is a surprisingly coherent listen given the many stylistic and attitudinal shifts it charts. The inclusion of only four of Born in the U.S.A.'s seven Top 10 entries leaves space for less obvious choices like "Atlantic City" and four new cuts, among them songs recorded by a briefly reunited E Street Band. The pace lags a bit near the end--"Secret Garden" is turgid enough to take its place on a Sting album--but Greatest Hits earns its place in the car CD player with stuff like "Born to Run," "The River" and "Dancing in the Dark." --Rickey Wright

"Born to Run" – 4:30
(Originally released on the album Born to Run in 1975.)
"Thunder Road" – 4:48
(Originally released on the album Born to Run in 1975.)
"Badlands" – 4:03
(Originally released on the album Darkness on the Edge of Town in 1978.)
"The River" – 5:00
(Originally released on the album The River in 1980.)
"Hungry Heart" – 3:20
(Originally released on the album The River in 1980.)
"Atlantic City" – 3:56
(Originally released on the album Nebraska in 1982.)
"Dancing in the Dark" – 4:03
(Originally released on the album Born in the U.S.A. in 1984.)
"Born in the U.S.A." – 4:41
(Originally released on the album Born in the U.S.A. in 1984.)
"My Hometown" (early fade edit) – 4:12
(Originally released on the album Born in the U.S.A. in 1984.)
"Glory Days" (early fade edit) – 3:49
(Originally released on the album Born in the U.S.A. in 1984.)
"Brilliant Disguise" – 4:15
(Originally released on the album Tunnel of Love in 1987.)
"Human Touch" (edit) – 5:10
(Originally released on the album Human Touch in 1992.)
"Better Days" – 3:44
(Originally released on the album Lucky Town in 1992.)
"Streets of Philadelphia" (single edit) – 3:16
(Originally released on the soundtrack to Philadelphia in 1994.)
"Secret Garden" – 4:27
Recorded in January 1995 at The Hit Factory, New York City
"Murder Incorporated" – 3:57
Recorded at The Power Station in April/May 1982
"Blood Brothers" – 4:34
Recorded in January 1995 at The Hit Factory, New York City
"This Hard Land" – 4:50
Recorded in January 1995 at The Hit Factory, New York City

 

[Dennie]

Live From Central Park -- CD

Sheryl Crow and Friends

1999 Interscope Records

Amazon.com

This is how a live album should sound--full of irony, crackling energy, and stellar guest pairings. Those who looked askance when Sheryl Crow--never a girl's girl--joined Lilith Fair for 1999 may develop a different perspective after hearing Central Park. After all, Lilith allowed Crow to share mascara wands and bond with Chrissie Hynde, the Dixie Chicks, and Sarah McLachlan, and they all dropped in for her concert at Central Park. Hynde makes "If It Makes You Happy" into the ultimate bad-girl song, and when Stevie Nicks takes over on "Gold Dust Woman," you can almost feel the wind whipping through her witchy hair. But while Dixie Chick Martie Seidel's fiddle gives "Strong Enough" an authentic country feel, Natalie Maines's leaden vocal drags the scathing feminist tract down to a greeting-card level. And a grizzled-sounding Eric Clapton serves up a tired version of the Cream's "White Room." But Crow is in peak form throughout the 14 songs, exposing herself as a rocker in sheep's clothing who's more than up to the task of taking on the Mick Jagger role in an edgy version of the Stones' "Happy," with Keith Richards as her sidekick. --Jaan Uhelszki



"Everyday Is a Winding Road" (Crow, Brian MacLeod, Jeff Trott) – 5:29
"My Favorite Mistake" (Crow, Trott) – 4:13
"Leaving Las Vegas" (David Baerwald, Bill Bottrell, Crow, Kevin Gilbert, David Ricketts) – 7:21
"Strong Enough" (Baerwald, Bottrell, Crow, Gilbert, MacLeod, Ricketts) – 3:36
"It Don't Hurt" (Crow, Trott) – 5:56
"A Change Would Do You Good" (Crow, MacLeod, Trott) – 5:17
"Gold Dust Woman" (Stevie Nicks) – 4:25
"If It Makes You Happy" (Crow, Trott) – 5:03
"All I Wanna Do" (Baerwald, Bottrell, Wyn Cooper, Crow, Gilbert) – 5:59
"Happy" (Mick Jagger, Keith Richards) – 3:21
"The Difficult Kind" (Crow) – 5:55
"White Room" (Pete Brown, Jack Bruce) – 5:50
"There Goes the Neighborhood" (Crow, Trott) – 5:32
"Tombstone Blues" (Bob Dylan) – 5:03

"Gold Dust Woman" was originally performed by Fleetwood Mac. "Happy" was originally performed by the Rolling Stones. "White Room" was originally performed by Cream. "Tombstone Blues" was originally performed by Bob Dylan.

 

[GreatDane]

:shock: