What Are You Listening To?

[Dennie]

Happy Saturday everyone..... :banana-dance:

I'm Old Fashioned -- CD

Bill Charlap with Peter Bernstein and Peter Washington

2010 Venus Records (Import Japan)

Nobody would argue that Bill Charlap is one of the most preeminent jazz pianists of his generation. His encyclopedic knowledge of the American Songbook is second to none, and his beautiful touch, amazing skills and imagination make it a pleasure to listen to him at all times.

As some of you already know, Charlap has recorded a number of great albums for Venus Records of Japan with his great New York Trio (with Jay Leonhart and Bill Stewart). For this, latest release, he decided to take a slightly different direction with a drum-less trio with guitarist Peter Bernstein and bassist Peter Washington.

Having a guitarist instead of a drummer softenes the texture of the trio sound and make it more intimate. It also makes the sound of the bass come forward so one can appreciate, in this case, the virtuosity of Washington. Charlap's tone is pristine and his solos are sigh-inducingly beautiful. The group's style may seem "old fashioned" on surface, but their interpretations of standards are modern, sophisticated and urban. This CD is a must-have item for fans of Bill Charlap! Enthusiastically recommended!

Produced by Tetsuo Hara & Todd Barkan. Recorded at The Avatar Studio in New York on December 17 & 18, 2009. Engineered by Katherine Miller. Mixed and Mastered by Tetsuo Hara / Venus Hyper Magnum Sound Direct Mix. - Swing Journal Gold Disc.

Track Listings:
1. I'm Old Fashioned (J.Kern) 5:10
2. I Can't Get Started (V.Duke) 4:08
3. Stella By Starlight (V.Young) 3:01
4. Ghost Of A Chance (V.Young) 5:00
5. All The Things You Are (K.Kern) 4:24
6. Easy Living (R.Rainger) 4:17
7. Darn That Dream (J. Van Heusen) 4:18
8. Angel Eyes (M.Dennis) 4:08
9. What Is This Thing Called Love (C.Porter) 4:22
10. Body And Soul (J.Green) 4:11
11. Gone With The Wind (A.Wrubel) 3:37
12. Everything Happens To Me (M.Dennis) 4:46
13. These Foolish Things (J.Strachey,H.Link) 3:56

Recorded at The Avatar Studio in New York on December 17 & 18, 2009

Performed by:
Bill Charlap - piano
Peter Bernstein - guitar　
Peter Washington - bass

 

[Dennie]

Holly -- CD

Nick Waterhouse

2014 Innovative Leisure

Rooted in rhythm & blues with a damned Bobby Darin stance that says "I'm the Mayer Hawthorne-type singer that's perfect for adding sensual tension to any given David Lynch soundtrack," Nick Waterhouse is in fine form on his 2014 effort Holly; just don't take that Dan Fogelberg-ish album cover for music filled with '70s nostalgia. Go back a decade or two as the '50s and '60s are where this sometimes garage-rocking, sometimes Allah-Las member gets his kicks, something easily picked up on the album's title track, where a tight horn section, a standard beat combo, and plenty of wet reverb power the lusty tune. Indie Chris Isaak is the way that the cleverly titled third track "It #3" rocks over the detached lyrics, which are an almost haiku-like exploration of paranoia, with the short yet vivid words given more meaning by Waterhouse's increasingly itchy and anxious performance. Impressionist tactics are also applied to the story of the nightmare lady found in "Sleeping Pills," and while the organ and the shuffling beat of "Dead Room" suggest it could turn into the '60s hit "The In-Crowd" at any moment, lyrics come from the Joy Division or Radiohead schools of expressing angst. Hawthorne may have injected his throwback songs with exciting modern slang and swag, but Waterhouse's style is arguably more interesting, blurring the lines between contemporary and classic and offering a version of Roy Orbison's great Mystery Girl album for the post-everything set. Ten tight songs and out, and the album feels like a mystery itself, but artists who nail that stoic sense of wonder, like Isaak and Orbison, don't come around often. Waterhouse is certainly of their ilk, and since he adds his own abstract touches and modern emotions to the mix, he's arguably one of the best. ~ David Jeffries

1. High Tiding
2. This Is a Game
3. It #3
4. Let It Come Down
5. Sleepin' Pills
6. Holly
7. Dead Room
8. Well It's Fine
9. Ain't There Something That Money Can't Buy
10. Hands on the Clock

Personnel: Nick Waterhouse (vocals, guitar, piano); Rob Douglas (double bass); Richard Gowen (drums); Carol Hatchett, Francisco Torres, Roberta Freeman, Jeff Babko, Larry Goldings, Matthew Correia, Kyle Stephens, Gavin Paddock, Ron Blake, Jon "JT" Thomas, Brit Laur‚n Manor, Anthony Polizzi, Andres Renteira, Jason Freese.

 

[topper]

the latest from Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band
*

(May, 2014)

 

[Babs]

FIYA baby! :happy-smileygiantred:

 

[Dennie]

BassFace - Live At Kuumbwa -- 20 Bit CD

The Ray Brown Trio - Benny Green - Jeff Hamilton

1993 Telarc Jazz

For this Telarc CD, bassist Ray Brown and pianist Benny Green split the solo chores almost evenly with drummer Jeff Hamilton, giving them stellar and creative support. Green has his best improvisations on "Phineas Can Be" and "Taking a Chance on Love," and the trio plays very close attention to dynamics (often swinging very quietly) and quickly reacting to each other's ideas. Rather than merely jamming the songs (the majority of which are standards), the bop-oriented group gives each melody a colorful framework filled with plenty of subtle surprises. ~ Scott Yanow

Track Listing
1. Milestones
2. Bass Face
3. In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning
4. Tin Din Deo
5. Crs-Craft
6. Taking a Chance on Love
7. Remember
8. Makin' Whoopie
9. Phineas Can Be

 

[Babs]

I am really loving this man! Not as much as I luv Zing mind you, he will NEVER be as cool as Roman Angelo.

But, WOW, what a talent! I never really listened to the true 'Daughtry' until recently.

 

[Dennie]

Weird Scenes Inside The Gold Mine -- Remastered 2 CD Set

The Doors

1972/2014 Elektra Records

A very interesting double LP retrospective two years after Jim Morrison's version of the Doors had officially closed. Weird Scenes Inside the Goldmine contained the first album release of two B-sides, Willie Dixon's "(You Need Meat) Don't Go No Further," sung by Ray Manzarek, originally on the flip side of the 1971 45 "Love Her Madly," and the beautiful "Who Scared You," "Wishful Sinful"'s flip with Jim Morrison on vocals from a session in 1969. Both are worthwhile additions not found on their first "greatest hits" collection, 13. This compilation is a strange amalgam of their music, the LP title taken from a line in the song "The End," which concludes side two. Five of the 22 songs are from the L.A. Woman sessions, including the title track of that album and the full length "Riders on the Storm," both clocking in at seven-plus minutes. With "The End" and "When the Music's Over" at 11:35 and 11:00 respectively, that's 38 minutes and 38 seconds between four titles, more than a third of the 99-plus minutes of music on this collection. Nothing from Absolutely Live is included, and surprisingly, the classic "Waiting for the Sun" is not here, though that Morrison Hotel number would fit the mood perfectly. "Love Street," the flip of "Hello I Love You," is here, but pertinent singles like "Wishful Sinful" or "Do It" and its flip, "Runnin' Blue," from The Soft Parade, are all missing in action. The cover art pastiche by Bill Hoffman is worth the price of admission if you already have all this material, while the inside gatefold picture looks like an outtake from the first album. Bruce Harris' liner notes are truly the '60s merging with the '70s; he calls Jim Morrison "merely the index of our possibilities" and states that Morrison didn't want to be an idol "because he believed all idols were hollow." The essay is all the more silly when you realize it isn't tongue-in-cheek in the way Lou Reed's incoherent ramblings inside Metal Machine Music are more enjoyable than the disc. Harris seems to actually believe what he pontificates. But the music is awesome, so put it on and read the Metal Machine Music scribblings instead. Weird Scenes Inside the Goldmine is a work of art in the first order, the way the Beatles #1 album is wonderfully redundant, and it should see the light of day again. This time they could add "Tree Trunk," the flip of the "Get Up and Dance" 45 RPM from 1972's Full Circle album. ~ Joe Viglione

Disc: 1

1. Break On Through (To The Other Side)
2. Strange Days ( Lp Version )
3. Shaman's Blues ( Lp Version )
4. Love Street ( Lp Version )
5. Peace Frog/Blue Sunday
6. The Wasp ( Texas Radio And The Big Beat ) ( Lp Version )
7. End Of The Night ( Lp Version )
8. Love Her Madly ( Lp Version )
9. Spanish Caravan ( Lp Version )
10. Ship Of Fools ( Lp Version )
11. The Spy ( Lp Version )
12. The End ( Lp Version )

Disc: 2
1. Take It As It Comes ( Lp Version )
2. Running Blue
3. L.A. Woman ( Lp Version )
4. Five To One ( Lp Version )
5. Who Scared You
6. (You Need Meat) Don't Go No Further
7. Riders On The Storm
8. Maggie Mcgill
9. Horse Latitudes ( Lp Version )
10. When The Music's Over ( Lp Version )

 

[Dennie]

Happy Sunday everyone..... :banana-dance:

Summer Wind: Live at The LOA -- SACD

The Ray Brown Trio

1990/2003 Concord Jazz

Ray Brown has many great contributions to jazz as a leader and a sideman, but one additional way in which he helped jazz was his encouraging Gene Harris to give up his early retirement and go back out on the road. The pianist was a part of Brown's groups for several years before he formed a working quartet and became a leader for good once again. This 1988 concert at a since-defunct Santa Monica night club (co-owned by Brown) finds the two, along with drummer Jeff Hamilton, at the top of their game. A phone ringing in the background distracts momentarily from Brown's opening solo in his composition "The Real Blues," during which Harris repeats a bluesy tremolo, which may be an inside joke about the early distraction. Harris take a blues-drenched approach to "Mona Lisa" before giving way to the leader's solo, while his lyrical approach to "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man" is shimmering. Hamilton's soft brushes are prominent in "Little Darlin'," but his explosive playing provides a powerful pulse to the very unusual strutting take of "It Don't Mean a Thing." This extremely satisfying CD is warmly recommended. ~ Ken Dryden

Track Listing
1. Summer Wind
2. The Real Blues
3. Li'l Darlin'
4. It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)
5. Mona Lisa
6. Buhaina Buhaina
7. Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man
8. Bluesology

Ray Brown Trio: Ray Brown (acoustic bass); Gene Harris (piano); Jeff Hamilton (drums).Recorded live at The Loa, Santa Monica, California in July 1988. Includes liner notes by Chip Deffaa and Leonard Feather.

 

[Dennie]

The Soulful Blues -- Remastered CD

Johnny "Hammond" Smith

1967-68/2000 Prestige/Fantasy Records

Soulful Blues combines Johnny Smith's Ebb Tide LP from 1967 and Nasty from 1968 onto one CD of decent soul-jazz, albeit often sounding predictably like what you'd expect Prestige soul-jazz from this era to sound like. For Ebb Tide, Smith came right out and declared it in the liner notes: "I'm thinking more commercially and I don't care what the critics say." That meant covering soul hits like "Knock on Wood," "Stand By Me," and "The 'In' Crowd," presumably, in addition to throwing in standards like the title cut and "Summertime," as well as three Smith originals. So what does this critic say? Good job, Johnny! This is superior organ-soul-jazz with a feistier edge than much of the genre, evident right from the opening "The Sin-In," which has riffs worthy of a TV detective show and some fine stuttering keys from the leader. The feistiness in this combo is in large part down to drummer John Harris, who really bashes it out; on "Knock on Wood," for instance, he sounds rather more like a rock drummer than a jazz drummer. Prestige stalwart Houston Person is on hand with tenor sax, while Virgil Jones' trumpet lends the arrangements some good complementary color. In some respects this is more of the same as far as mid- to late-'60s soul-jazz goes, particularly in repertoire ("Summertime" certainly isn't the most imaginative cover choice), but there's a brash energy that makes it a cut or two above the norm for the genre. On the quartet session comprising Nasty, Smith was accompanied by a young John Abercrombie on guitar, Grady Tate on drums, and Prestige mainstay Houston Person on tenor sax. With the exception of "Unchained Melody," the musicians gave the tunes space, with all of the other five tracks clocking in at about seven to nine minutes. Yeah, in a sense it's more run-of-the-mill Prestige late-'60s soul-jazz: quite fine grooves, a dependable yet somewhat predictable house sound, and a reliance upon cover versions for much of the material (two-thirds of the songs, in this case). It's solidly executed, though, in a lean fashion that, to its credit, runs counter to the more excessive arrangements that were creeping into soul-jazz around this time. Smith hits a comely slow-burn groove on his version of Horace Silver's classic "Song for My Father," does a surprisingly swaggering and infectious job with the overdone "Unchained Melody," and gets down into his funkiest and bluesiest mode on the title cut, a nine-minute original composition. Review by Richie Unterberger

1. The Sin-In 4:20
2. Stand By Me 2:47
3. Knock On Wood 2:47
4. The Soulful Blues 7:25
5. Ebb Tide 2:46
6. Summertime 3:36
7. Gettin' Up 6:10
8. The "In" Crowd 3:15
9. If I Were A Bell 8:39
10. Song For My Father 7:19
11. Speak Low 6:43
12. Unchained Melody 3:48
13. Nasty 9:00
14. Four Bowls Of Soup 7:08

with Virgil Jones, Houston Person, Thornel Schwartz, Jimmy Lewis, John Harris, John Abercrombie, Grady Tate

 

[Dennie]

Texas Rain - The Texas Hill Country Recordings -- CD

Townes Van Zandt

2001 Tomato Records

The only thing wrong with this album is its title. Texas Rain (with the subtitle "The Texas Hill Country Recordings") doesn't suggest anything about the contents. To be useful, the name of this album would be "Townes Van Zandt and Friends Sing the Songs of Townes Van Zandt," because that describes the contents accurately. In the early '90s, as he frequently told interviewers, Van Zandt was at the Fire Station recording studio in San Marcos, TX, recording what was supposed to be a 60-song box set of his material. That project did not appear before his death at the start of 1997, but these 12 tracks derive from the sessions. On them, Kevin Eggers -- who produced Van Zandt's early Poppy/Tomato albums of the late '60s and early '70s, on which many of these songs got their first recorded performances -- puts together sympathetic, filled-out arrangements and brings in a series of sympathetic duet partners for Van Zandt. These include Emmylou Harris, who scored a hit with Van Zandt's "If I Needed You" and joins him on it here, and Willie Nelson, who, with Merle Haggard, hit with Van Zandt's "Pancho and Lefty" and here performs "No Lonesome Tune" and "Marie." ("Pancho and Lefty" itself gets a Tex-Mex treatment courtesy of three-quarters of the Texas Tornados -- Freddy Fender, Doug Sahm, and Augie Meyers -- along with Rubin Ramos and the Texas Revolution.) But Van Zandt himself is never overwhelmed by the assistance. He is in good voice and dominates the proceedings with his matter-of-fact phrasing, which emphasizes the dry wit and detail of the lyrics. There has been a glut of Van Zandt releases since his death, and this one doesn't present any new material, so it can't be considered essential. But there are some terrific performances of the songwriter's better songs. Review by William Ruhlmann

Track Listing
1. If I Needed You
2. Pancho & Lefty
3. Waiting Around to Die
4. Blue Wind Blew
5. Kathleen
6. No Lonesome Tune
7. Brother Flower
8. Two Girls
9. Marie
10. Quicksilver Daydreams of Maria
11. Snowin' on Raton
12. At My Window

Personnel includes: Townes Van Zandt (vocals, guitar); Emmylou Harris, Freddy Fender, Calvin Russell, Jerry Jeff Walker, Willie Nelson, Kimmie Rhodes, James McMurty, Kathy Mattea (vocals); John Inmon (acoustic & electric guitars); Doug Sahm (12-string guitar); Gene Elder (fiddle); The Texas Revolution (horns); Augie Meyer (accordion); Rubin Ramos, The Chromatics (background vocals).Recorded at The Fire Station, San Marcos and Pedernales Studios, Perdernales, Texas. Includes liner notes by John Kruth

 

[Dennie]

Wrecking Ball -- Remastered Deluxe Edition 2 CD/DVD

Emmylou Harris

1995/2014 Nonsuch Records

Emmylou Harris's groundbreaking album Wrecking Ball is reissued on Nonesuch Records. Produced by Daniel Lanois (U2, Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Willie Nelson), Wrecking Ball won the 1996 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album and was highly praised by critics worldwide. The new three-disc set features the remastered original album, a bonus CD of previously unreleased material, and a DVD of the documentary Building the Wrecking Ball, which includes interviews and studio footage of Harris and Lanois as well as special guests Kate and Anna McGarrigle, Neil Young, Steve Earle, Brian Blade, and others.

Originally released in 1995 to widespread critical praise, Uncut called the album "the most daring, inventive album of Harris's career," while Rolling Stone said, "The album features unvarnished, otherworldly renditions of songs written by Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix, Steve Earle, and other lesser-known artists," and the Los Angeles Times said, "The pace is deliberate, unhurried, meditative, the atmosphere rich, dark, and ghostly."

The reissue follows a very successful year for Harris, whose collaborative album with longtime friend and colleague Rodney Crowell, Old Yellow Moon, recently won the Grammy Award for Best Americana Album. Harris and Crowell were also honored with two awards at the 2013 Americana Music Association Honors & Awards Show: Album of the Year and Duo/Group of the Year.

Features:
• 2CD / 1 DVD-Video
• CD 1: Remastered original album
• CD 2: Bonus disc featuring previously unreleased
• DVD: Building the Wrecking Ball documentary

Selections:
CD 1 - Remastered original album
1. Where Will I Be
2. Goodbye
3. All My Tears
4. Wrecking Ball
5. Goin' Back to Harlan
6. Deeper Well
7. Every Grain of Sand
8. Sweet Old World
9. May This Be Love
10. Orphan Girl
11. Blackhawk
12. Waltz Across Texas Tonight

CD 2 - Deeper Well: The Wrecking Ball Outtakes
1. Still Water (#1)
2. Where Will I Be? (alternate version)
3. All My Tears
4. How Will I Ever Be Simple Again (#1)
5. Deeper Well (#1)
6. The Stranger Song
7. Sweet Old World (alternate version)
8. Gold
9. Black Hawk (alternate version)
10. May This Be Love (acoustic)
11. Goin' Back to Harlan
12. Where Will I Be? (alternate version/incomplete)
13. Deeper Well (#3)

DVD
Documentary: Building the Wrecking Ball
• includes interviews and studio footage of Harris and Lanois as well as special guests Kate and Anna McGarrigle, Neil Young, Steve Earle, Brian Blade, and others

 

[Dennie]

...and then I wrote -- Reissue CD

Willie Nelson

1962/2013 Liberty/Hallmark-Pickwick

an understated masterpiece October 13, 2003
By J. Kruppa
Format:Audio CD

Willie Nelson recorded these songs in 1961 and 1962 for Liberty Records under the supervision of producer Joe Allison, who wisely took a chance on the unknown Nelson and launched the career of one of the greatest writers in any style of music.
This is simply an amazing collection. The original version of Patsy Cline's signature tune "Crazy" is here (the Cline arrangement was reproduced almost note for note from Nelson's record) but every song is of equal quality and shines with the same brilliance of conception. Ironically, the punch of some of these songs is due at least in part to Nelson's restrained delivery; nearly all of these songs have been recorded by other artists, but I'll take these versions any time for the little twists that Nelson gives them. The arrangements are reserved but absolutely dead-on, reflecting producer Allison and session arranger Harold Bradley's decision to "stay the hell out of the way," as Bradley put it, and just let Nelson sing. The two guitars, bass, drums, piano and male and female background singers create the atmosphere and let Nelson's lyrics and idiosyncratic phrasing take center stage. The result is a peerless songwriter's album and, while it's a scant thirty minutes in length, it's so perfect that you'll have no problem listening to it twice.
All these songs are also on the 2CD set "Willie Nelson The Early Years: The Complete Liberty Recordings plus more," which makes available other songs from these same sessions as well as a great deal more. If you have that set, my best advice is to make a CD or tape of these 12 songs in order, sit back and enjoy one of the best albums of Nelson's (or anyone's) career. This is really as good as it gets.

Track Song title Writer(s) Time
1. "Touch Me" Willie Nelson 2:12
2. "Wake Me When It's Over" Willie Nelson 2:48
3. "Hello Walls" Willie Nelson 2:23
4. "Funny How Time Slips Away" Willie Nelson 3:02
5. "Crazy" Willie Nelson 2:50
6. "The Part Where I Cry" Willie Nelson 2:18

Side two

Track Song title Writer(s) Time
1. "Mr. Record Man" Willie Nelson 2:10
2. "Three Days" Willie Nelson 2:33
3. "One Step Beyond" Willie Nelson 2:20
4. "Undo the Right" Hank Cochran, Nelson 2:56
5. "Darkness on the Face of the Earth" Willie Nelson 2:19
6. "Where My House Lives" Willie Nelson 2:24

 

[Dennie]

Today's work truck music....

Rene Olstead - CD

Rene Olstead

2004 Reprise Records

Amazon.com

No less an expert on pop affairs than Neil Sedaka likens the impossibly mature voice of 14-year-old vocalist/TV star (CBS' Still Standing) Renee Olstead to "Patsy Cline, Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday all wrapped in one." There's no disputing the sultry vocal talents showcased on this debut that balances familiar chestnuts from the great American songbook ("Summertime," "Someone to Watch Over Me," "Sentimental Journey") with more recent fare that veers from R 'n' B sass ("Is You Is Or Is You Ain't My Baby") to 70s chart hits like Sedaka's own "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" and Maria Muldaur's "Midnight at the Oasis." A cynical ear might question how much of Olstead's own life informs these bluesy performances: how trying can eigth grade be for an attractive redhead with a major label contract? Indeed, the tagline for at least one latter-day Ella Fitzgerald project comes frequently to mind here: "Is it real, or it Memorex?" Olstead is yet another teen protege of hugely successful producer David Foster (who's midwifed the careers of Josh Groban and Michael Buble in recent years), and he provides her with some sturdy jazz arrangements to riff emotively on here--even if his production is as slick and bloodless as ever. Still, Foster's penchant for overwrought melodrama is kept mercifully in check on his own composition "I Want a Love to Last," while his shrewd teaming of the young chanteuse with fellow teen pop phenom Peter Cincotti on Sedaka's "Breaking Up.." deftly underscores the promising talents of both. --Jerry McCulley

1. "Summertime" (Gershwin, Gershwin, Heyward) ? 4:12
2. "Taking a Chance on Love" (Duke, Fetter, Latouche) ? 3:31
3. "Is You Is or Is You Ain't My Baby" (Austin, Jordan) ? 3:20
4. "Someone to Watch Over Me" (Gershwin, Gershwin) ? 4:26
5. "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" (Greenfield, Sedaka) ? 4:11
6. "A Love That Will Last" (Foster, Thompson) ? 3:32
7. "Meet Me, Midnight" (Manilow, Sussman) ? 2:56
8. "Sunday Kind of Love" (Belle, Nye, Prima, Rhodes) ? 4:34
9. "On a Slow Boat to China" (Loesser) ? 3:16
10. "What a Diff'rence a Day Makes" (Adams, Grever) ? 3:27
11. "Midnight at the Oasis" (Nichtern) ? 3:21
12. "Sentimental Journey" (Brown, Green, Homer)

 

[Dennie]

Whatever It Takes -- CD

Larry Goldings

1995 Warner Bros. Records

Larry Goldings is one of the most promising of the younger organists. Although he was originally known as a pianist, Goldings has been mostly concentrating on organ, including a high-profile stint as a member of John Scofield's quartet. For his Warner Bros. debut, Whatever It Takes, Goldings is teamed with guitarist Peter Bernstein and drummer Bill Stewart for ten numbers, five of which include some notable guests. Two songs match together the soulful altos of Maceo Parker and David Sanborn, young tenor giant Joshua Redman is on three other numbers (including "Yipes," which also includes Parker), and there are two appearances by trombonist Fred Wesley. The music features a lot of appealing grooves that look back to the classic Hammond organ era of the 1960s while remaining contemporary. ~ Scott Yanow

Track Listing
1. Big Brother
2. If You Want Me to Stay
3. Willow Weep For Me
4. Boogie on Reggae Woman
5. That's Enough
6. Wrappin' It Up
7. Slo-Boat
8. Up For Air
9. Prayer
10. Yipes!

Personnel: Larry Goldings (piano, organ, clavinet); David Sanborn, Maceo Parker (alto saxophone) Joshua Redman (tenor saxophone); Fred Wesley (trombone); Peter Bernstein (guitar); Richard Patterson (electric bass); Bill Stewart (drums).

 

[Dennie]

The Dream of The Blue Turtles -- CD

Sting

1985 A&M Records

Amazon.com essential recording

From one spin of The Dream of the Blue Turtles, Sting's first solo release, it's obvious that for him there would be life beyond the Police. Teamed with a band of top jazz players, he presents his musical visions that had gone unrealized while he was still constrained by his former ensemble. In style and subject matter, it's a decidedly diverse collection of songs and the playing is excellent throughout. The love songs are mostly focused on endings or escapes, and it's quite possible to interpret much of the imagery in reference to the bitter breakup of the Police. Sting's concern with history and politics is in evidence: he makes a father's plea for sanity and restraint in the nuclear age, takes up for the U.K.'s much-abused coal miners, and relates the savage stupidity of World War I to the destructive effects of adolescent heroin addiction. Songs that seem elaborately constructed and recorded contrast with others that are presented as one-take jams. Seen as a whole, The Dream of the Blue Turtles is eclectic, ambitious--sometimes pretentious--but altogether worth owning. --Al Massa

Side one

"If You Love Somebody Set Them Free" – 4:14
"Love Is the Seventh Wave" – 3:30
"Russians" (Prokofiev, Sting) – 3:57
"Children's Crusade" – 5:00
"Shadows in the Rain" – 4:56

Side two

"We Work the Black Seam" – 5:40
"Consider Me Gone" – 4:21
"The Dream of the Blue Turtles" – 1:15
"Moon over Bourbon Street" – 3:59
"Fortress Around Your Heart" – 4:48

 

[Dennie]

Today's work truck music....

Shadowland - The Owen Bradley Sessions -- CD

K.D. Lang

1988 Sire Records

Amazon.com essential recording

Pulling out all the Nashville stops, k.d. lang's 1988 album is a meticulously crafted work, her bid for mainstream country acceptance, and an homage to her idol Patsy Cline. Surrounded by the brilliance of Owen Bradley's string-laced production and a host of legendary pickers (Buddy Emmons and Pete Wade) and singers (Kitty Wells, Brenda Lee, Loretta Lynn), lang's voice soars and moans like a dove. After the lush Chris Isaak-penned opener "Western Stars," lang follows with more-familiar country writers, from Roger Miller ("Lock, Stock and Teardrops") to Harlan Howard ("I'm Down to My Last Cigarette"). Both a commercial (the album went gold) and artistic success, Shadowland ranks as one of the best country records of the 1980s. --Roy Francis Kasten

Side one

"Western Stars" (Chris Isaak) – 3:12
"Lock, Stock and Teardrops" (Roger Miller) – 3:28
"Sugar Moon" (Cindy Walker, Bob Wills) – 2:26
"I Wish I Didn't Love You So" (Frank Loesser) – 3:07
"(Waltz Me) Once Again Around the Dance Floor" (Don Goodman, Sara Johns, Jack Rowland) – 2:35
"Black Coffee" (Sonny Burke, Paul Francis Webster) – 3:17

Side two

"Shadowland" (Dick Hyman, Charles Tobias) – 2:28
"Don't Let the Stars Get in Your Eyes" (Slim Willet) – 2:20
"Tears Don't Care Who Cries Them" (Fred Tobias, Charles Tobias) – 3:03
"I'm Down to My Last Cigarette" (Harlan Howard, Billy Walker) – 2:46
"Busy Being Blue" (Stewart MacDougall) – 3:40
"Honky Tonk Angels' Medley" – 2:55
"In the Evening (When the Sun Goes Down)" (Leroy Carr, Don Raye)
"You Nearly Lose Your Mind" (Ernest Tubb)
"Blues Stay Away from Me" (Alton Delmore, Rabon Delmore, Wayne Raney, Henry Glover)

 

[Dennie]

Chop Suey & Other Delights -- CD

Cornet Chop Suey

2002 Cornet Chop Suey

Tracks:
1. South Rampart Street Parade;
2. Eccentric;
3. It's Been a Long, Long Time;
4. Dan Rue d'Antibes;
5. Sweet Emma;
6. Little Girl;
7. Limehouse Blues;
8. Marie;
9. Who'll Chop Your Suey While I'm Gone?;
10. Tin Roof Blues;
11. That Old Black Magic;
12. Once In a While;
13. Sugar Foot Stomp.


Personnel: Brian Casserly (Trumpet); Tommy Tucker (Cornet); Jimmy Haislip (Trombone); Jerry Epperson (Clarinet, Saxophone); Bob Row (Piano); Al Sherman (Bass); & John Gillick (Drums).

 

[Botch]

:laughing-rolling: :text-goodpost:

 

[Dennie]

:laughing-rolling: :text-goodpost:

I picked it up for the novelty of it, but hell, it's pretty darn good! :handgestures-thumbup:




Dennie :dance:

 

[Dennie]

Today's work truck music....

Abandoned Luncheonette -- CD

Daryl Hall & John Oates

1973 Atlantic Records

Best early Hall & Oates, September 11, 2000
By David Hugaert (Honolulu, HI United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)
This review is from: Abandoned Luncheonette (Audio CD)

"Abandoned Luncheonette" features the kind of music at which Daryl & John are most adept-Philly Soul. All the songs here are excellent, with the cream of the crop being "When The Morning Comes", "Las Vegas Turnaround", "I'm Just A Kid (Don't Make Me Feel Like A Man)", the title track, "Lady Rain" and "Laughing Boy". "Everytime I Look At You" is the most soulful track on this CD, which has a "hillbilly" banjo and violin-laden instrumental at the end. This is probably as close to country that H & O ever got! This has to be the best CD in their entire catalog. Oh, and "Abandoned Luncheonette" also contains their first hit single, "She's Gone", which appeared on the Billboard charts on two separate occasions. If you are a fan of soul and/or pop music, you can't go wrong here. Please buy this CD!

"When The Morning Comes" (Daryl Hall) – 3:12
"Had I Known You Better Then" (John Oates) – 3:22
"Las Vegas Turnaround (The Stewardess Song)" (Oates) – 2:57
"She's Gone" (Hall, Oates) – 5:15
"I'm Just A Kid (Don't Make Me Feel Like A Man)" (Oates) – 3:20
"Abandoned Luncheonette" (Hall) – 3:55
"Lady Rain" (Hall, Oates) – 4:26
"Laughing Boy" (Hall) – 3:20
"Everytime I Look At You" (Hall) – 7:04