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What Are You Listening To?

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:music-rockout:
 
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Live At The Blue Note -- 20 Bit CD

Stephane Grappelli

1996 Telarc Jazz

Grappelli - master of jazz violin in a rare Telarc recording October 9, 2000
By Michael Schelb
Format:Audio CD

Stephane Grappelli was one of the masters of the jazz violin. In this wonderful Telarc recording one can witness the master's playfulness, charm and talent as he plays before an appreciative and polite audience. I was surprised at the recording quality of the CD - the warmth of reproducing string usually requires vinyl, a VPI turntable and a Jadis tube amp - however this reproduction has a less digital and more natural sound. An enjoyable CD - highly recommended in terms of Grappelli's talent as well as it's engineering.


1. All God's Chillun Got Rhythm
2. Night And Day
3. I Get A Kick Out Of You
4. It's You Or No One
5. I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart
6. Honeysuckle Rose
7. Medley: 'S Wonderful/Someone To Watch Over Me/I Got Rhythm
8. Nuages
9. Daphne
10. Blue Moon
11. Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans
12. Lady Be Good
13. Medley: I'm Thru With Love/I'll Never Be The Same/I Can't Give You Anything But Love
14. Sweet Georgia Brown
 
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Every Note Counts -- CD

Joe Jewell Quartet

2006 Joe Jewell Records

Every Note Counts pays homage to several jazz guitarists: the opening "Something Special" is a Jim Hall composition, and the popular Bobby Hebb song "Sunny" is done up a la Wes Montgomery from his most popular period with Verve Records in the late 1960s. Thad Jones' jazz classic "A Child Is Born" is presented as an homage to Kenny Burrell. Jewell also renders a version of Bruno Bartino's "Estate" as a nod to either guitarist John Pisano or Joe Diorio and leads into it via a composition from Paraguayan composer/guitarist Aujgistin Barrios Mangore ("La Catedral"). The group plays other pieces, like Dietz and Schwartz's "Alone Together" and Thelonious Monk's "In Walked Bud," attractively. Unfortunately, Cole Porter's "Dream Dancing" is marred by a heavily amped guitar opening and a lengthy Fender Rhodes solo.

Track Listing:

Something Special

Sunny

La Catedral(Prelude)/Estate

A Child Is Born

Alone Together

Back At The Chicken Shack

Beatrice

I've Grown Accustomed To Your Face

While We're Young

Dream Dancing

In Walked Bud

-------------

Personnel: Joe Jewell: guitar; Reed Gratz: Fender Rhodes; Babe Elefante: bass; Mike Bennett: drums, percussion.
 
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Grand Funk -- 24 Bit Remastered CD

Grand Funk

1969/2002 Capitol Records

One of the top 2 or 3 blues-based rock trio albums!, April 4, 2003
By John Dewey Stewart (Park City, KS United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)
This review is from: Grand Funk (Audio CD)

I put this album right alongside "Disreali Gears" and "Are You Experienced". A tight, unified sound from start to finish - never mind that there weren't any radio hits on it. At that time and place, radio hits were beside the point. The music was rapidly evolving, and the power-trio format was the cutting edge of that evolution. Not as frenetic and competitive as Cream, and with a MUCH better rhythm section than the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Grand Funk Railroad was at the top of their game on this one! Led Zeppelin would take the power-trio format, add a great lead singer, and dominate the sound of the next decade. If you're into power-trios, you should DEFINITELY have this album. If you want to hear the very SOUL of Grand Funk Railroad, buy this one FIRST! You can pick up the "hits" any time, but this one is a jewel from start to finish!

"Got This Thing on the Move" – 4:38
"Please Don't Worry" – 4:19 (Don Brewer/Farner)
"High Falootin' Woman" – 3:00
"Mr. Limousine Driver" – 4:26
"In Need" – 7:52
"Winter and My Soul" – 6:38
"Paranoid" – 7:50
"Inside Looking Out" – 9:31 (John Lomax, Alan Lomax, Eric Burdon, Bryan "Chas" Chandler)

Bonus Tracks - CD Release

"Nothing is the Same (Demo)"
"Mr. Limousine Driver (Remix)"
 
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Pretzel Logic -- Remastered CD

Steely Dan

1974/1999 ABC/MCA Records

Dan's Logic, June 12, 2003
By Alan Caylow (USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)
This review is from: Pretzel Logic (Audio CD)

Steely Dan's third album, 1974's "Pretzel Logic," was the last album the group made before co-leaders Walter Becker & Donald Fagen decided to quit touring altogether and make the recording studio their exclusive musical laboratory, using various top-notch session players to help them flesh out their latest creations. But first, there was still room for one more "band" recording (as well as a tour), with Walt & Don helped out by fellow members Denny Dias & Jeff "Skunk" Baxter on guitars, and Jim Hodder on drums. Without foregoing their flare for rock, "Pretzel Logic" finds Steely Dan in a looser, jazzier mode. There's an ace Duke Ellington cover on it ("East St. Louis Toodle-oo"), as well as a very hip salute to jazz great Charlie Parker ("Parker's Band"). And of course, more terrific, totally cool Dan numbers, with Fagen's trademark lyrical acid wit. The pop radio staple "Rikki Don't Lose That Number" was a big Top Five hit for the band (though I think Walt & Don are tired of it these days--they never play it live!). "Night By Night" is a classy, funky rocker. "Any Major Dude Will Tell You" is a lighter number but tremendously melodic, "Barrytown" has a great rollicking feel to it, "Through With Buzz" is brief but strong (with a clever string arrangement on top of it), and the title song is a swinging jazz throwdown. "With A Gun" is almost country, but has terrific, strumming acoustic guitar to drive it. "Charlie Freak" has a dark, almost ominous tone to it's piano line, but it certainly sticks with you, and the concluding "Monkey In Your Soul" is a great groover, with a memorable baseline that literally quakes. As always with Steely Dan, the band's musicianship cooks, the production is tremendous, and Fagen's lead vocals are soulful. "Pretzel Logic" is a classic Steely Dan album, one of the band's best. Make sure you don't lose this number, Rikki!

Side 1

"Rikki Don't Lose That Number" – 4:30
"Night by Night" – 3:36
"Any Major Dude Will Tell You" – 3:05
"Barrytown" – 3:17
"East St. Louis Toodle-Oo" (Duke Ellington, Bubber Miley) – 2:45

Side 2

"Parker's Band" – 2:36
"Through with Buzz" – 1:30
"Pretzel Logic" – 4:28
"With a Gun" – 2:15
"Charlie Freak" – 2:41
"Monkey in Your Soul" – 2:31
 
Today's work truck music...


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God Willin' & The Creek Don't Rise -- CD

Ray LaMontagne and the Pariah Dogs

2010 RCA Records

Grammy nominated and critically acclaimed, Ray LaMontagne returns with his anticipated fourth studio album, God Willin' & The Creek Don't Rise. Entirely self produced (for the first time) the album was recorded in two weeks at LaMontagne's home in the woods of western Massachusetts. The newly restored historic home served as a homemade recording studio for Ray and his fellow musicians. With Ray's vocals at the forefront of the songs and a loose, almost live sounding recording, the album stands as a testament to a band at the height of their powers. The newly coined 'Pariah Dogs', consists of Jay Bellarose (drums), Jennifer Condos (bass), Patrick Warren (keyboard), Eric Heywood (guitar) and Greg Leisz (pedal steel guitar). Individually these musicians have contributed to the live work of such heralded musicians including Beck, Joe Henry, Tom Waits, Lucinda Wlliams, Ryan Adams and Joe Cocker to name a few of their career highlights. Together with Ray they shared a sense that the sessions for this record were rare and extraordinary.

1. "Repo Man" 6:08
2. "New York City's Killing Me" 4:13
3. "God Willin' & the Creek Don't Rise" 3:10
4. "Beg Steal or Borrow" 4:32
5. "Are We Really Through" 4:59
6. "This Love Is Over" 3:30
7. "Old Before Your Time" 4:04
8. "For the Summer" 3:52
9. "Like Rock & Roll and Radio" 6:05
10. "Devil's in the Jukebox" 3:59
 
Dennie said:
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Grand Funk -- 24 Bit Remastered CD

Grand Funk

1969/2002 Capitol Records

One of the top 2 or 3 blues-based rock trio albums!, April 4, 2003
By John Dewey Stewart (Park City, KS United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)
This review is from: Grand Funk (Audio CD)

I put this album right alongside "Disreali Gears" and "Are You Experienced". A tight, unified sound from start to finish - never mind that there weren't any radio hits on it. At that time and place, radio hits were beside the point. The music was rapidly evolving, and the power-trio format was the cutting edge of that evolution. Not as frenetic and competitive as Cream, and with a MUCH better rhythm section than the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Grand Funk Railroad was at the top of their game on this one! Led Zeppelin would take the power-trio format, add a great lead singer, and dominate the sound of the next decade. If you're into power-trios, you should DEFINITELY have this album. If you want to hear the very SOUL of Grand Funk Railroad, buy this one FIRST! You can pick up the "hits" any time, but this one is a jewel from start to finish!

"Got This Thing on the Move" – 4:38
"Please Don't Worry" – 4:19 (Don Brewer/Farner)
"High Falootin' Woman" – 3:00
"Mr. Limousine Driver" – 4:26
"In Need" – 7:52
"Winter and My Soul" – 6:38
"Paranoid" – 7:50
"Inside Looking Out" – 9:31 (John Lomax, Alan Lomax, Eric Burdon, Bryan "Chas" Chandler)

Bonus Tracks - CD Release

"Nothing is the Same (Demo)"
"Mr. Limousine Driver (Remix)"

Now we are talking about some good stuff!!!! :music-rockout: :bow-blue: :music-rockout:
 
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Perfectly Good Guitar -- CD

John Hiatt

1993 A&M Records

A Missed Masterpiece May 13, 2000
By A Customer
Format:Audio CD

There are certain CDs - maybe 10 in a lifetime - that if you could know ahead of time the joy and emotion they would bring you, you would gladly pay $100's of dollars for. For me, this is one of them. Like another reviewer, I bought it on the basis of hearing "Perfectly Good Guitar", and ended up finding there were 5 other songs better than a perfectly great song in its own right. The album is a rocker, but also one of the most lyrical albums I can think of, which is what gives it its lasting power. This was my first Hiatt CD, and has lead to the purchase of 7 others. All of them are good, but none as good as this one.


All tracks written by John Hiatt except where noted

"Something Wild" – 4:31
"Straight Outta Time" – 4:30
"Perfectly Good Guitar" – 4:38
"Buffalo River Home" – 5:11
"Angel" – 3:18
"Blue Telescope" – 4:21
"Cross My Fingers" – 4:02
"Old Habits Are Hard To Break" – 4:42 (Hiatt, Marshall Chapman)
"The Wreck Of a Barbie Ferrari" – 4:35
"When You Hold Me Tight" – 5:23
"Permanent Hurt" – 3:22
"Loving A Hurricane" – 3:58
 
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REPTILE -- 24-bit HDCD Import

Eric Clapton

2001 East Record & Tape Company

"Reptile" - as in "Lizard Lounge" and it's Great!, April 5, 2001
By Martin A Hogan "Marty From SF" (San Francisco, CA. (Hercules)) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE) (TOP 100 REVIEWER) (2008 HOLIDAY TEAM) (REAL NAME)
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Reptile (Audio CD)

For those expecting the rock of "Layla", the variety of "Pilgrim" or the funkiness of "461 Ocean Boulevard", you might be disappointed, but "Reptile" is a masterpiece. All fourteen songs are what you might expect from a personal concert in a small cafe from Eric Clapton. Rythym and Blues are the mainstay here and it shows with classic covers of Ray Charles', "Come Back Baby", James Taylors' "Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight" and Stevie Wonders', "I Ain't Gonna Stand For It". This collection stands out for consistency and pure love of 'feel good' club music. Granted, Clapton does push more energy on "Superman Inside", almost 'out-blues' himself on "Got You On My Mind" and pulls at your heartstrings with the lovely instrumental, "Son & Sylvia". Each of Clapton's albums vary from time to time and usually for the better. This is a 'low key evening by the fire' collection. It's just one of the things Clapton does the best.

"Reptile" (Eric Clapton) – 3:26
"Got You on My Mind" (Joe Thomas, Howard Briggs) – 4:30
"Travelin' Light" (J. J. Cale) – 4:17
"Believe in Life" (Clapton) – 5:05
"Come Back Baby" (Ray Charles) – 3:55
"Broken Down" (Simon Climie, Dennis Morgan) – 5:25
"Find Myself" (Clapton) – 5:15
"I Ain't Gonna Stand for It" (Stevie Wonder) – 4:49
"I Want a Little Girl" (Murray Mencher, Billy Moll) – 2:58
"Second Nature" (Clapton, Climie, Morgan) – 4:48
"Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight" (James Taylor) – 4:47
"Modern Girl" (Clapton) – 4:49
"Superman Inside" (Clapton, Doyle Bramhall II, Susannah Melvoin) – 5:07
"Son & Sylvia" (Clapton) – 4:43
"Losing Hand" [Bonus track from Japanese release] (Jesse Stone) – 4:18
 
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Cloud Nine -- CD

George Harrison

1987 Capitol Records

Cloud Nine, June 16, 2011
By Cole Schaffner "Rockband Freak ((*J*))" - See all my reviews
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Cloud Nine (Audio CD)

This is one of my favorite Harrison albums! Great vocals and instrumentals. also it has a great crew of musicians working on it (Eric Clapton, Jeff Lynne, Elton John, Ringo starr and more). Harrison really out played many of his 70's work. this record is a gem and i highly recommend.

All songs by George Harrison, except where noted.

"Cloud 9" – 3:15
"That's What It Takes" (George Harrison, Jeff Lynne, Gary Wright) – 3:59
"Fish on the Sand" – 3:22
"Just for Today" – 4:06
"This Is Love" (George Harrison, Jeff Lynne) – 3:48
"When We Was Fab" (George Harrison, Jeff Lynne) – 3:57
A celebration of The Beatles and the 1960s.
"Devil's Radio" – 3:52
Masters of Reality recorded their version of the song for "Songs from the Material World: a Tribute to George Harrison" album
"Someplace Else" – 3:51
An earlier version of this song appeared in the 1986 film Shanghai Surprise.
"Wreck of the Hesperus" – 3:31
"Breath Away from Heaven" – 3:36
An earlier version of this song appeared in the 1986 film Shanghai Surprise.
"Got My Mind Set on You" (Rudy Clark) – 3:52
 
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Black and Blue and Tabacco Road -- Remastered CD

Lou Rawls

2006 Blue Note Records

This excellent twofer brings together a pair of albums Lou Rawls recorded for Capitol in the early 1960s. Both sessions feature Rawls with a hard-swinging big band and flanked by a three-strong saxophone section and the soul-jazz organist Richard "Groove" Holmes. The results, as one might expect, are both raucous and smoky. And while Rawls wouldn't hit his stride commercially until 1966's LOU RAWLS LIVE, he sounds utterly in command here.Both BLACK AND BLUE and TOBACCO ROAD focus on jazz and blues standards, including George Gershwin's "Summertime," Hoagy Carmichael's "Rockin' Chair," W.C. Handy's "St. Louis Blues," and John D. Loudermilk's "Tobacco Road," which would become Rawls's signature tune. The artist's rugged, soulful singing is the perfect match for the well-arranged big band, and the 2006 CD-issue of these classic albums is a welcome arrival.

Track Listing
1. Roll 'Em Pete
2. I'd Rather Drink Muddy Water
3. How Long, How Long Blues
4. Everyday I Have the Blues
5. St. James Infirmary
6. Black and Blue, (What Did I Do to Be So)
7. Gloomy Sunday - (previously unreleased)
8. Kansas City
9. Goin' to Chicago Blues
10. Trouble in Mind
11. World of Trouble
12. Six Cold Feet of Ground
13. Strange Fruit
14. Tobacco Road
15. Cotton Fields
16. Rockin' Chair
17. Stormy Weather
18. Ol' Man River
19. Blues For a Four-String Guitar
20. St. Louis Blues
21. Georgia on My Mind
22. Sentimental Journey
23. Summertime
24. When It's Sleepy Time Down South
 
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Blues Caravan -- Remastered CD

Buddy Rich and his Sextet

1962/2005 Verve Records

Buddy Rich Drums In A Winner On This Session!
, March 18, 2008
By J. Rich - See all my reviews
This review is from: Blues Caravan (Dig) (Audio CD)

"Blues Caravan" recorded in 1961 is, in my opinion, one of Buddy's best records to date. What makes this record so fresh besides the incredible musicians and the compositions is the instrumental line-up, which can only be described as inventive. I don't think Buddy has recorded anything this unique before or since. It's amazing that even though this recording is a sextet, it sounds like an octet!

Most of the compositions are uptempo, but there is a very beautiful rendition of Benny Golson's "I Remember Clifford" that closes the album. As I mentioned before, all the musicians are incredible and they are: Buddy Rich (leader and drums), Sam Most (flute), Rolf Ericson (trumpet), Mike Mainieri (vibes), Wyatt Ruther (bass), and Johnny Morris (piano). You couldn't have asked for a better band than this. What surprises me is this is the only album with this line-up. I wished they made another one!

If you're a Buddy Rich fan or just a fan of good jazz, then I highly recommend this record.

LP side A

"Blowin' the Blues Away" (Horace Silver) – 8:40
"B.R. Blues" (Buddy Rich) – 3:14
"Late Date" (Maynard) – 5:12

LP side B

"Caravan" (Duke Ellington, Irving Mills, Juan Tizol) – 9:44
"Young Blood" (Mike Mainieri) – 5:59
"I Remember Clifford" (Benny Golson) – 3:35

----

Wyatt Ruther - double bass
Buddy Rich - drums
Sam Most - flute
Johnny Morris - piano
Rolf Ericson - trumpet
Mike Mainieri - vibraphone

Production

Creed Taylor - audio production
 
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Naste' -- CD

Roy Ayers

1995 Grovetown/RCA Records

Once one of the most visible and winning jazz vibraphonists of the 1960s, then an R&B bandleader in the 1970s and '80s, Roy Ayers' reputation s now that of one of the prophets of acid jazz, a man decades ahead of his time. A tune like 1972's "Move to Groove" by the Roy Ayers Ubiquity has a crackling backbeat that serves as the prototype for the shuffling hip-hop groove that became, shall we say, ubiquitous on acid jazz records; and his relaxed 1976 song "Everybody Loves the Sunshine" has been frequently sampled. Yet Ayers' own playing has always been rooted in hard bop: crisp, lyrical, rhythmically resilient. His own reaction to being canonized by the hip-hop crowd as the "Icon Man" is tempered with the detachment of a survivor in a rough business. "I'm having fun laughing with it," he has said. "I don't mind what they call me, that's what people do in this industry."

Growing up in a musical family -- his father played trombone, his mother taught him the piano -- the five-year-old Ayers was given a set of vibe mallets by Lionel Hampton, but didn't start on the instrument until he was 17. He got involved in the West Coast jazz scene in his early 20s, recording with Curtis Amy (1962), Jack Wilson (1963-1967), and the Gerald Wilson Orchestra (1965-1966); and playing with Teddy Edwards, Chico Hamilton, Hampton Hawes and Phineas Newborn. A session with Herbie Mann at the Lighthouse in Hermosa Beach led to a four-year gig with the versatile flutist (1966-1970), an experience that gave Ayers tremendous exposure and opened his ears to styles of music other than the bebop that he had grown up with.

1. Nasté
2. Mama Daddy
3. Your Love
4. Treasure
5. Swirl
6. Fantasy
7. Olé José
8. Baby Set Me Free
9. No More Trouble
10. Satisfaction
11. I Like It Like That
12. Last XT
13. Nonsense
 
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