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Dennie
Well-Known Member
Today's work truck music...
Motherland -- CD
Natalie Merchant
2001 Elektra Records
In the post-Lilith Fair solo career of former 10,000 Maniacs frontwoman Natalie Merchant, MOTHERLAND stands as something of an achievement. It melds the lyrical craft she began developing all those years ago with the Maniacs, the contemporary pop sensibilities she's been crafting since the beginning of her solo work, and a variety of new influences that seem to have seeped in somewhere along the way. Things kick off distinctively with the creepy, violin-colored reggae slow-burner "This House is on Fire." From there it's off to an eclectic mix-and-match of styles, including the folk-ballad feel of the title track, the sultry blues of "Put the Law on You," and the gospel-soul tinge of "Build a Levee" (where Merchant is aided by considerable pipes of Mavis Staples. Even as MOTHERLAND traverses a variety of genres, the distinctive approach Merchant applies to the songwriting, performance, and arrangements makes this both one of her most memorable and most consistent solo albums.
All songs written by Natalie Merchant.
"This House Is on Fire" – 4:42
"Motherland" – 4:44
"Saint Judas" – 5:44
"Put the Law on You" – 5:01
"Build a Levee" – 4:46
"Golden Boy" – 4:10
"Henry Darger" – 4:24
"The Worst Thing" – 5:46
"Tell Yourself" – 5:14
"Just Can't Last" – 4:31
"Not in This Life" – 5:22
"I'm Not Gonna Beg" – 3:40
Motherland -- CD
Natalie Merchant
2001 Elektra Records
In the post-Lilith Fair solo career of former 10,000 Maniacs frontwoman Natalie Merchant, MOTHERLAND stands as something of an achievement. It melds the lyrical craft she began developing all those years ago with the Maniacs, the contemporary pop sensibilities she's been crafting since the beginning of her solo work, and a variety of new influences that seem to have seeped in somewhere along the way. Things kick off distinctively with the creepy, violin-colored reggae slow-burner "This House is on Fire." From there it's off to an eclectic mix-and-match of styles, including the folk-ballad feel of the title track, the sultry blues of "Put the Law on You," and the gospel-soul tinge of "Build a Levee" (where Merchant is aided by considerable pipes of Mavis Staples. Even as MOTHERLAND traverses a variety of genres, the distinctive approach Merchant applies to the songwriting, performance, and arrangements makes this both one of her most memorable and most consistent solo albums.
All songs written by Natalie Merchant.
"This House Is on Fire" – 4:42
"Motherland" – 4:44
"Saint Judas" – 5:44
"Put the Law on You" – 5:01
"Build a Levee" – 4:46
"Golden Boy" – 4:10
"Henry Darger" – 4:24
"The Worst Thing" – 5:46
"Tell Yourself" – 5:14
"Just Can't Last" – 4:31
"Not in This Life" – 5:22
"I'm Not Gonna Beg" – 3:40
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Today's work truck music...
All I Intended To Be -- CD
Emmylou Harris
2008 Nonesuch Records
Amazon.co.uk
Emmylou Harris has always had a way with woe. On All I Intended To Be, she seems more maudlin than ever as she sings her way through songs about loss, heartbreak, even the odd funeral. Of course, this is the kind of material Harris has always been comfortable with, but as her career and years advance gracefully, so her gliding soprano seems to breathe ever more refinement and soul into her material. All I Intended To Be has been produced by Brian Ahern, her former husband and the man behind her first 11 albums--another reason the album sounds so comfortable and accomplished. Joined by a virtuoso set of players including keyboardist Glen Hardin and multi-instrumentalist Stuart Duncan, plus vocalists Vince Gill, Buddy Miller, and Dolly Parton, Harris blends a handpicked selection of cover versions with her own material. Tracy Chapman's "All That You Have Is Your Soul" gets a honeyed reworking, as does Merle Haggard's "Kern River" and Mark Germino's "Broken Man's Lament". Billy Joe Shaver's "Old Five" and "Dimers Like Me" both get respectfully and sublimely covered too. But her own songs--in particular "Sailing Round the Room" and "Gold"--stand up well to these evergreens. An eclectic and profound set, All I Intended To Be is also one of Harris’ best in recent years.--Danny McKenna
All I Intended To Be -- CD
Emmylou Harris
2008 Nonesuch Records
Amazon.co.uk
Emmylou Harris has always had a way with woe. On All I Intended To Be, she seems more maudlin than ever as she sings her way through songs about loss, heartbreak, even the odd funeral. Of course, this is the kind of material Harris has always been comfortable with, but as her career and years advance gracefully, so her gliding soprano seems to breathe ever more refinement and soul into her material. All I Intended To Be has been produced by Brian Ahern, her former husband and the man behind her first 11 albums--another reason the album sounds so comfortable and accomplished. Joined by a virtuoso set of players including keyboardist Glen Hardin and multi-instrumentalist Stuart Duncan, plus vocalists Vince Gill, Buddy Miller, and Dolly Parton, Harris blends a handpicked selection of cover versions with her own material. Tracy Chapman's "All That You Have Is Your Soul" gets a honeyed reworking, as does Merle Haggard's "Kern River" and Mark Germino's "Broken Man's Lament". Billy Joe Shaver's "Old Five" and "Dimers Like Me" both get respectfully and sublimely covered too. But her own songs--in particular "Sailing Round the Room" and "Gold"--stand up well to these evergreens. An eclectic and profound set, All I Intended To Be is also one of Harris’ best in recent years.--Danny McKenna
mcad64
Well-Known Member
Picked it up at Target for 4 bucks as part of their liquidation sale here in Canada. Woman at the checkout looked at it quizzically as I paid for it. Turns out she was of Hispanic backround and the first tune was Horchata. She found it quite comical I think that they would name a tune after a drink I guess?!
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Jazz For A Day In The Park -- 2 CD Set
Various Artists
2003 Savoy Jazz
Jazz for a Day in the Park, as released by Savoy Jazz in 2003, is a continuation of the popular Jazz For series released by 32 Jazz in the late '90s. Those discs contained songs from the catalog of the Muse label from the '70s, '80s, and '90s, and so does this disc. The 16 tracks are spread over two discs, and jazz giants like Clifford Jordan, Grant Green, Phil Woods, and Bobby Hutcherson all contribute tracks and brush shoulders with jazz middleweights like Ralph Moore, the Drummonds, and Freddy Cole. As the title suggests, the songs are sunny and the mood is swinging in a polite and sophisticated way. Although the songs date from well beyond jazz's peak years, the performances are uniformly solid and the disc is a nice low-priced collection of mood music. Review by Tim Sendra
DISC 1:
1. Blues for Muse - Clifford Jordan
2. Joy Spring - Houston Person/Ron Carter/Houston Person & Ron Carter
3. Samba de Orpheus - Grant Green
4. Willow Weep for Me - Phil Woods
5. Breeze and I, The - Willis "Gator" Jackson
6. River Walk - Dr. Lonnie Smith
7. Nascimento - Bobby Hutcherson
8. And So - Pete Sims (LaRoca)
DISC 2:
1. Nature Boy - The Drummonds
2. 310 Blues - Ralph Moore
3. Good Bait - Bobby Hutcherson
4. Garr - Jaki Byard
5. Do Nothin' Til You Hear from Me - Richard "Groove" Holmes
6. You Can Go - Joao Donato
7. Girl from Ipanema, The - Arturo O'Farrill
8. Place in the Sun, A (Movin' On) - Freddy Cole
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Today's work truck music...
Hard Promises -- CD
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
1981/1990 MCA Records
Amazon.com
Tom Petty's love affair with the more pop-oriented output of the Byrds and Dylan at their mid-'60s prime continued to find an increasingly wide audience in the '80s--and damned if some people didn't persist in calling it "new wave." Go figure. If writing hook-laden, instantly memorable pop-rock songs was both a sign of genius and one of music's toughest feats, Hard Promises (and its FM evergreens, "The Waiting" and "A Woman in Love") confirmed that Petty was one skinny, little, hard-working prodigy. Picking up effortlessly where *** the Torpedoes left off, Petty and the equally conscientious Heartbreakers took nothing about their newfound fame for granted, delivering their fourth strong effort in a row, this one increasingly seasoned with touches of their Southern roots. The title hints at the tough underbelly beneath the jangly veneer of Petty's ever-accessible songwriting, exemplified here by "Nightwatchman," "Something Big," and "The Criminal Kind." All tracks on this edition have been upgraded via digital remastering, and the album's original inner artwork and lyrics have also been restored. --Jerry McCulley
Side one
1. "The Waiting" – 3:58
2. "A Woman in Love (It's Not Me)" (Petty, Mike Campbell) – 4:22
3. "Nightwatchman" (Petty, Campbell) – 3:59
4. "Something Big" – 4:44
5. "Kings Road" – 3:27
Side two
1. "Letting You Go" – 3:24
2. "A Thing About You" – 3:33
3. "Insider" – 4:23
4. "The Criminal Kind" – 4:00
5. "You Can Still Change Your Mind" (Petty, Campbell) – 4:15
Hard Promises -- CD
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
1981/1990 MCA Records
Amazon.com
Tom Petty's love affair with the more pop-oriented output of the Byrds and Dylan at their mid-'60s prime continued to find an increasingly wide audience in the '80s--and damned if some people didn't persist in calling it "new wave." Go figure. If writing hook-laden, instantly memorable pop-rock songs was both a sign of genius and one of music's toughest feats, Hard Promises (and its FM evergreens, "The Waiting" and "A Woman in Love") confirmed that Petty was one skinny, little, hard-working prodigy. Picking up effortlessly where *** the Torpedoes left off, Petty and the equally conscientious Heartbreakers took nothing about their newfound fame for granted, delivering their fourth strong effort in a row, this one increasingly seasoned with touches of their Southern roots. The title hints at the tough underbelly beneath the jangly veneer of Petty's ever-accessible songwriting, exemplified here by "Nightwatchman," "Something Big," and "The Criminal Kind." All tracks on this edition have been upgraded via digital remastering, and the album's original inner artwork and lyrics have also been restored. --Jerry McCulley
Side one
1. "The Waiting" – 3:58
2. "A Woman in Love (It's Not Me)" (Petty, Mike Campbell) – 4:22
3. "Nightwatchman" (Petty, Campbell) – 3:59
4. "Something Big" – 4:44
5. "Kings Road" – 3:27
Side two
1. "Letting You Go" – 3:24
2. "A Thing About You" – 3:33
3. "Insider" – 4:23
4. "The Criminal Kind" – 4:00
5. "You Can Still Change Your Mind" (Petty, Campbell) – 4:15
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Happy Saturday everyone... :banana-dance:
Yellow Moon -- CD
Neville Brothers
1989 A&M Records
Amazon.com essential recording
The Neville Brothers are a New Orleans institution. Their voices glide freely and harmonize into a rich texture. For Yellow Moon, they enlisted the help of producer Daniel Lanois to meld their voices and rhythms with his swampy dreamscapes. The percussion is subtle, the guitars melt into the background, and the voices puncture the placid night sky, as if providing the soundtrack to an old western. Two protest-era Dylan songs ("With God on Our Side" and "The Ballad of Hollis Brown") are recast as modern anthems for spiritual reconciliation. The Sam Cooke classic "A Change is Gonna Come" remains an envied promise, while the original material (the title track; "Sister Rosa," about Rosa Parks) is among their finest. Not a return to form, but rather a welcome break from tradition. --Rob O'Connor
"My Blood" (Darryl Johnson, Cyril Neville, Willie Green, Charles Moore) – 4:11
"Yellow Moon" (Aaron Neville) – 4:04
"Fire and Brimstone" (Link Wray) – 3:57
"A Change Is Gonna Come" (Sam Cooke) – 3:43
"Sister Rosa" (Darryl Johnson, Cyril Neville, Charles Moore) – 3:29
"With God on Our Side" (Bob Dylan) – 6:37
"Wake Up" (Cyril Neville, Brian Stoltz, Willie Green) – 3:21
"Voodoo" (Aaron Neville, Darryl Johnson, Cyril Neville, Brian Stoltz, Willie Green) – 4:26
"The Ballad of Hollis Brown" (Bob Dylan) – 5:45
"Will the Circle Be Unbroken" (A. P. Carter) – 5:16
"Healing Chant" (Aaron Neville, Austin Hall, Cyril Neville, Brian Stoltz, Willie Green) – 4:34
"Wild Injuns" (Aaron Neville, Austin Hall, Cyril Neville, Brian Stoltz, Willie Green) – 3:17
Yellow Moon -- CD
Neville Brothers
1989 A&M Records
Amazon.com essential recording
The Neville Brothers are a New Orleans institution. Their voices glide freely and harmonize into a rich texture. For Yellow Moon, they enlisted the help of producer Daniel Lanois to meld their voices and rhythms with his swampy dreamscapes. The percussion is subtle, the guitars melt into the background, and the voices puncture the placid night sky, as if providing the soundtrack to an old western. Two protest-era Dylan songs ("With God on Our Side" and "The Ballad of Hollis Brown") are recast as modern anthems for spiritual reconciliation. The Sam Cooke classic "A Change is Gonna Come" remains an envied promise, while the original material (the title track; "Sister Rosa," about Rosa Parks) is among their finest. Not a return to form, but rather a welcome break from tradition. --Rob O'Connor
"My Blood" (Darryl Johnson, Cyril Neville, Willie Green, Charles Moore) – 4:11
"Yellow Moon" (Aaron Neville) – 4:04
"Fire and Brimstone" (Link Wray) – 3:57
"A Change Is Gonna Come" (Sam Cooke) – 3:43
"Sister Rosa" (Darryl Johnson, Cyril Neville, Charles Moore) – 3:29
"With God on Our Side" (Bob Dylan) – 6:37
"Wake Up" (Cyril Neville, Brian Stoltz, Willie Green) – 3:21
"Voodoo" (Aaron Neville, Darryl Johnson, Cyril Neville, Brian Stoltz, Willie Green) – 4:26
"The Ballad of Hollis Brown" (Bob Dylan) – 5:45
"Will the Circle Be Unbroken" (A. P. Carter) – 5:16
"Healing Chant" (Aaron Neville, Austin Hall, Cyril Neville, Brian Stoltz, Willie Green) – 4:34
"Wild Injuns" (Aaron Neville, Austin Hall, Cyril Neville, Brian Stoltz, Willie Green) – 3:17
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Shangri-La -- SACD
Mark Knopfler
2004 Reprise Records
Amazon.com
Mark Knopfler isn't afraid to drop names. The heavyweight Cassius Clay laid low, the man who made burgers and fries into big business, the kings of rock & roll and skiffle are among the motley assortment who pass through Knopfler's fourth solo album. Recorded in Malibu with a tight crew of steadfast Knopfler sidemen, Shangri-La (the title comes from the studio where the entire set was recorded) chronicles the foibles of the acclaimed and the adrift, all delivered with the nonchalant grace that has marked Knopfler's music since Dire Straits emerged in the late '70s. Seven of album's 14 originals clock in at between five and seven minutes. That's Knopfler in a nutshell--don't rush things, but don't loose the thread, either. As a songwriter, Knopfler has a storyteller's eye for minutiae, which he delivers with practiced nuance. He overreaches here and there ("Song for Sonny Liston" fails to capture the pathos of the menacing fighter), but also pulls off a few career highlights (the understated crime-drama opener "5.15 a.m."). --Steve Stolder
All songs written by Mark Knopfler.
"5.15 A.M." – 5:54
"Boom, Like That" – 5:49
"Sucker Row" – 4:56
"The Trawlerman's Song" – 5:02
"Back to Tupelo" – 4:31
"Our Shangri-La" – 5:41
"Everybody Pays" – 5:24
"Song for Sonny Liston" – 5:06
"Whoop De Doo" – 3:53
"Postcards from Paraguay" – 4:07
"All That Matters" – 3:08
"Stand Up Guy" – 4:32
"Donegan's Gone" – 3:05
"Don't Crash the Ambulance" – 5:06
Dennie
Well-Known Member
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