CD Review: Tenor Madness (Sonny Rollins Quartet)

Tenor Madness
Sonny Rollins Quartet
Prestige Records
2006
5 tracks

There are only five songs on this CD, but they’re songs no lover of great jazz saxophone should be without. The title song alone makes this a release worth owning. The others are the icing on the cake and the sweet cherries on top. Each time one listens to this set, it yields new surprises and delights. Wonderful!

Originally recorded by Rudy Van Gelder on May 24, 1956 and remastered by him in 2006, these songs feature not only Sonny Rollins on tenor saxophone but a classy jazz combo that included John Coltrane on tenor saxophone (on the title track only), Red Garland on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Philly Joe Jones on drums. In combination, the sounds they put out are some of the finest jazz of the last century.

“Tenor Madness” features two of the greatest jazz tenor sax players, Sonny Rollins and John Coltrane, wailing together and separately within a marvelous ambience of solid drums and bass with grooving piano. This madness goes on for a thoroughly enjoyable twelve minutes plus. It’s a not to be missed performance.

Starting with the thrum of Chambers’ bass until Rollin’s rolls in mellow on sax, “When Your Lover Has Gone” is a mellow lounge rendition. It makes a sweet listen that would be ideal backgound for a quiet conversation between lovers, yet it’s up-tempo enough to allow for dancing just close enough. The instrumental mix is sweet and lovely.

“Paul’s Pal” has more of a swing to it, bringing the drive of Rollin’s tenor sax up front and dancing across the soundscape. Test yourself. Do you really think you can sit still while listening to this one? It’s unlikely. This song is sure to bring the dancers to the floor. There’s a very nice bass solo in the middle that showcases the talent of Paul Chambers.

The song “My Reverie” has always had a certain subtlety built in, like an expensive mattress that softly embraces you as you settle into it. This arrangement takes that soft comfort to its limits, creating a comfortable ambience ideal to back a candlelit dinner for two.

“The Most Beautiful Girl in the World” is like a party. At times it feels like relaxed conversation over cocktails and at other times it’s wild and rollicking. It escalates and pulls back, swings slow and powerful then moves up-tempo and rocks the room. There are bits and pieces of other songs in the solos, and every player gets a solo or two, including some great bits by Jones on drums and Garland on piano. This is an ideal song to end this set.

Of historical interest, this album’s jewel-case insert includes Ira Gitler’s original liner notes from the 1956 release ((Prestige 7047), Mark Gardner’s new liner notes for the 1969 reissue (Prestige 7657), and interesting new notes written by Gitler for this release. These notes give the reader a compelling historical and contemporary perspective on Sonny Rollins and the music he created.

At just over 35 minutes, this is a short set in today’s CD market but it out-values many releases twice the length. This is classic Fifties jazz at the top of its form, played by masters of the craft at the top of their careers. Any collector who doesn’t have this release already should definitely add it as soon as possible.

You can find a wealth of information on jazz great Sonny Rollins at the Official Home of the Saxophone Colossus or at Wikipedia.

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CD Review: Gently Weeps (Jake Shimabukuro)

Gently Weeps
Jake Shimabukuro
Hitchhike Records
2006
17 tracks

If you’ve ever thought of the ukulele as a simple instrument or even a type of toy instrument, the playing of Jake Shimabukuro will shatter that illusion. I first became aware of this young Hawaiian musician through a music video of Shimabukuro playing “While my Guitar Gently Weeps” which had been posted on YouTube, google and other websites. This young man’s performance was, at the very least, impressive.

Played by such popular artists as George Formby, Ukulele Ike (Cliff Edwards), Frank Crumit, and Roy Smeck in the first half of the last century, the ukulele has found its own unique place in the world of popular music. It’s been played by such musical luminaries as Arthur Godfrey, Don Ho, George Harrison, Buster Keaton, Herbert Khaury (Tiny Tim), Eddie Vedder, Eric Clapton, Chrissie Hynde, and many more.

The ukulele may seem a simple instrument but, in the right hands, it’s versatile and capable of making beautiful music. Jake Shimabukuro is a master of this instrument, taking it to its limits and even, if this is possible, beyond. The most recent player in a long tradition, Shimabukuro raises the bar, bringing this humble Hawaiian instrument to a whole new level of class and respectability. His virtuoso playing may even surpass that of the wonderful Roy Smeck, known in his day as the “Wizard of the Strings.”

I’ve never really understood the idea of so-called “bonus tracks” on CD releases. There’s really nothing “bonus” about them at all, and the whole idea seems just silly. Take this CD, for instance. It has seventeen tracks total. The packaging lists the first twelve tracks then adds the heading “Bonus Tracks” and lists five more songs. To me, that would suggest that somewhere there’s an identical CD available for the same price that includes only the first twelve tracks. I suspect that’s not the case. So why not just list all seventeen tracks and be done with it?

I could say a lot about each of these songs, but that would make a very long review. Shimabukuro’s “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” is an exceptional interpretation of this classic. “Ave Maria” is soft and gentle, a lovely, old-fashioned solo instrumental. “Let’s Dance” is a lively dance number with a bit of flamenco flavour reminiscent of Jose Feliciano. Other songs appear to show the influence of Antonio Carlos Jobim, Clapton, and other guitar greats of the past forty years. Several tracks, such as “Misty,” have a cool, jazzy feel to them that harks back to mid-century. Others, like “Beyond the Break,” with a surfing music style that takes me back to Dick Dale, have a definite rock edge. Every song includes different elements that set it apart and demonstrate the versatility of Jake Shimabukuro.

While each of the instrumental songs in this set impressed me both for the consistent high quality of Shimabukuro’s performance and for the variety of style that set each song apart, I was especially impressed by the final track, “Wish on a Star.” It wasn’t so much Shimabukuro who impressed me on this one song in the set with a vocal part, but the wonderful voice of Jennifer Perri. This is a beautiful, sensitive interpretation of a quiet love song. Perri has one of the sweetest voices I’ve heard in a long time.

Jake Shimabukuro, a young man with an impressive talent, is clearly not one to hide his light under a bushel. This is a brilliant set of music by an accomplished young artist. I would definitely recommend getting this release, recorded while his light brightly shines. Already widely known, this young man is destined to become a star.

Learn everything there is to know about Jake Shimabukuro at the Official Jake Shimabukuro Website. You can hear four tracks from this release on Jake Shimabukuru’s MySpace page.

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CD Review: The Very Best of Jerry Garcia (Jerry Garcia)

The Very Best of Jerry Garcia
Jerry Garcia
Rhino Records
2006
26 tracks

I was never a Deadhead but I was listening when The Grateful Dead first hit the radio in 1965 and I liked what I heard. I only later became aware of Jerry Garcia as an individual writer and performer. Because Garcia was so influential in creating the sound of The Grateful Dead, I find it difficult, if not impossible, to separate the two. Perhaps the biggest difference is that, on his own, Jerry Garcia is far more eclectic and perhaps even more eccentric than was his most famous band, even at its most extreme. Listening to this double set of studio and live performances, I still like what I hear. I like it a lot.

To get the most out of these two sets, I recommend that the listener approach this music with no expectations. Rather than as a famous icon of a generation, think of Garcia as just another musician. Don’t buy into that “very best of” label. Don’t even accept that the music may be good because I’ve said it is. Just listen.

Given a career as long, varied, and eclectic as Garcia’s, I don’t believe that anyone can determine what is really the “very best” of an artist’s career. It’s all too subjective. What criteria are to be used? Who decides what is good, what is better and what is best? Even so, although it’s uneven in some ways, this 26 song retrospective presents a fairly complete picture of who Garcia was as a musician.

Almost half of the songs presented here had first been recorded by other artists. I find these eleven performances the most interesting. I’ve always found the term “cover” offensive because, when I was younger, this term had meant to perform the song pretty much as it had been on the original recording. Back then, and even earlier, artists had interpreted songs, performed them in their own manner without much, if any, attempt to be true the original version. I found no cover versions in these sets, but I did listen to some wonderful interpretations by a master stylist.

Written by Leon Chapeleau, “Deep Elm Blues” was first recorded in 1957 as the B-side of the rockabilly song “Wow Man” by Bobby Jackson, a disk jockey from Amarillo, Texas. It was subsequently recorded by a series of rockabilly and country artists. Somewhere along the line, the title morphed into “Deep Ellum” or “Deep Elem” and that version became a standard of The Grateful Dead. The 1987 live version by the Jerry Garcia Acoustic band holds true to this song’s rockabilly roots, intertwining elements of blues, country, and folk music. Rambling on for more than six minutes, this interpretation of “Deep Elem Blues” is unlikely to lose the interest of even the most jaded listener.

When I was a teen, two of the songs most discussed by me and my would-be musician friends were “Johnny Be Goode” and “Let it Rock” by Chuck Berry. To this day, they remain among my favourites. Jerry Garcia’s studio version of “Let it Rock” is a powerful interpretation. While it doesn’t replicate Chuck Berry, it echoes some lesser-known Chuck Berry sounds. Unlike many recordings of this song, my album cut from the 1956 Berry album of the same name is replete with Jazz and Blues references and sometimes wanders off the Rock & Roll track. I don’t know whether Garcia ever heard this recording, but his interpretation takes much the same approach, enriching this song with a variety of musical references. I could have listened to this track for six or even twelve minutes and still enjoyed it. Unfortunately, the track ends at just over three minutes with a fade that sounds like the original must have been much longer. In my opinion, Garcia or his producers should have taken the song’s advice and let it rock.

While both discs in this release span many genres, often mixing several in one song, they are different in overall approach. The studio disc tends to centre on Jazz, Blues, and mid-century popular music sounds. The live disc tends very much toward Country & Western or Folk music. What unifies the release is the sweet Rock and Roll centre that pervades every song on both discs.

It probably shouldn’t, but the Reggae on the live disc comes as a bit of a surprise. The two longest songs in the set are both based in the jumpy rhythms of this Caribbean music. At almost thirteen minutes, Jimmy Cliff’s “The Harder They Come” is a masterpiece, as is the almost twelve minute long previously unreleased track of “Dear Prudence” from the pens of Lennon and McCartney.

Garcia’s interpretations of Bob Dylan’s “Positively Fourth Street” [also long at nearly eleven minutes] and “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” [another Reggae arrangement] stand with the best recorded versions of Dylan’s songs. It appears that Dylan was correct when he said that “Garcia was the best at covering his songs and if he wondered how to perform his own songs live, he looks at how the the Dead/Garcia did it.” [Wikipedia]

Other performances with which I was especially impressed include the very folky “Catfish John,” the plaintive “Senor,” Irving Berlin’s classic “Russian Lullaby,” Clyde McPhatter’s R&B standard “Without Love,” and the rocking “Evangeline.” Even so, there’s not a bad song on these two discs. I’m sure that each listener will discover his or her favourites.

Depending on who’s listening, the 26 tracks on this release may or may not be “The Very Best of Jerry Garcia” as the title suggests, however they do present a solid retrospective of Garcia’s career. For collectors, for fans, for hard-core Deadheads, and for those who may just be curious about this man and his work, I recommend giving this double set a listen.

You can learn more about Jerry Garcia and his art at the Pure Jerry website. This website also includes a Pure Jerry Sampler page where you can download six songs (one disc) in mp3 format or listen to an entire set of songs culled from the Pure Jerry series in the summer of 1995. There’s also a comprehensive biography of Jerry Garcia at Wikipedia. Gordon Hake has created a website In Memoriam for Jerry Garcia (1942-1995) which includes many interesting links. You can find the latest information about The Grateful Dead at the Official Site of the Grateful Dead. You’ll find some limited information about this release along with clips of all the songs at the Rhino store.

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CD Review: Workin’ with the Miles Davis Quintet (The Miles Davis Quintet)

Workin’ with the Miles Davis Quintet
The Miles Davis Quintet
Prestige Records
2006
8 tracks

A long time ago but not that far away, in a world that was beginning to expand ever more rapidly, there existed a tightly knit community where excellent musicians were drawn together to play evolving styles of Jazz. That’s the real beauty of Jazz recordings made a half-century ago. The music feels as new now as it did then and playing with each great horn player is an equally great pianist, bassman, drummer, and so on. The result is magical. This reissued recording from 1956 is no exception.

Originally recorded on May 1 and October 26, 1956, these songs feature not only Miles Davis on trumpet but John Coltrane on tenor sax, Red Garland on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Philly Joe Jones on drums. The sound they achieve together is flawless, a flowing resonance of the times in which this music was made but with a sense of timeless grace that holds up even fifty years later.

For a release with only eight songs on board, this set covers a lot of musical territory. Beginning with cool solo piano that is quickly resolved into a warm, comfortable, even sexy mix with Davis’ trumpet sliding soft in and around the keys, the first song sets the listener up for romance. The rest of the set blends seamlessly between this relaxed mood and livelier, swinging, groove sounds that wake the listener out of the trance with an invitation to dance.

In mid-century, the old genres had begun to meld together and then to break the mold and separate again into exciting new forms as distinct from one another as had been the old distinctions. This is as true of Jazz as of any other musical denomination. The old Jazz was giving way to the new Jazz. The music on this release shows the diversity and variations of this evolving music. Throughout can be heard smatterings of folk music and popular songs of the day, each enriching the sound of this Jazz. Among others can be heard allusions to “An English Country Garden” and the Blues standard “Corrina Corrina,” a touch of “Tweedlee Dee” and even a bit of Erroll Garner’s “Misty” threading through the improvisations.

As much as this is a Miles Davis recording, this release is an ensemble work featuring five equally stellar artists working in perfect synchronicity. There are moments of sweet communication among the instruments but there are also superb solo bits by each of these artists spread throughout the eight songs. And all of this only serves to complement the virtuoso trumpet work of Miles Davis. Workin’ with the Miles Davis Quintet would make an ideal addition to the collection of any jazz fan.

Of historical interest, this jewel-case insert includes both Jack Maher’s original liner notes from the 1956 release and new liner notes written by Joe Goldberg in 2006 plus a brief note from sound engineer Rudy Van Gelder, who made the masters for both releases. These notes give the reader an interesting historical and contemporary perspective on this artist and the music he created.

You can find a wealth of information on the late Miles Davis (1926 – 1991) at the Official Miles Davis Website or at Wikipedia.

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CD Review: Girl Time! (The ChoirGirlz)

Girl Time!
The ChoirGirlz
Riverdale Records
2006
11 tracks

Every time I play this CD, the final song comes far earlier than I might have hoped. This release is a sweet confection like my mother’s divinity fudge, rich and delightful and addictive. At only 41 minutes long, this set leaves the listener wanting more, lots more of this tasty treat. Debbie Fleming, Mary Ellen Moore, and Dorothy McDonall each have a lifetime of experience and it shows. Together, they are wonderful. This is perhaps the finest a capella singing trio in Canada.

On this release, The ChoirGirlz are only a capella for one song. On the rest of the songs, they are supported by members of the Canadian western swing band Bebop Cowboys. In part because the vocals are set against this Bob Wills ambience and in part because of some of the lyrics and vocal arrangements, at times I feel as though I’m listening to a reissue of an album from 1953.

Some listeners might compare this trio to fellow Canadians Quartette (Cindy Church, Caitlin Hanford, Gwen Swick, and Sylvia Tyson) or to the American Trio (Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, Linda Rondstadt). When I first listened to these songs, I was transported back in time some fifty years. At first and now after listening several times, I’m reminded most of The Dinning Sisters, who had perhaps the longest successful career of any singing sister act, from Thirties Jazz to Fifties Rock & Roll. When listening to a couple of these songs, I’m also reminded of the British vocal group The Seekers.

There’s a definite country music feel here, but the sound evokes the country music of mid-century, before Rockabilly started to take hold and subtly change the music. It’s quiet music with a comfortable ambience that brings back those old times when the world was less dangerous.

Ten of the eleven songs on this release were written either by Debbie Fleming or by Fleming in partnership with her two singing partners. Listening to the CD, it soon becomes clear that the talent in this group transcends singing and harmonizing and extends to composing and arranging and writing lyrics. In fact, all of the lyrics are tightly written and expressive, ranging from humourous tales to touching family reminiscences.

It’s not obvious at first, but there’s a weird selection of songs on this CD. Of course, it may be just a Canadian thing or it may be that I spent far too much time watching Canadian children’s TV with my kids. While some of the songs are quite adult and some even tend toward a certain darkness, others tend to be what I would call “Sharon, Lois, and Bram” songs, the sort of song these performers would perform on The Elephant Show. “Favourite Book,” “Good Ol’ Jim,” and “Chocolate” especially have this feeling and, while it’s a bit more esoteric, “See BC” comes close. With these kiddie-crossover songs, moving adult songs, dark foreboding songs, and a gospel hymn all included I’m impressed how consistent and unified this set seems.

While I enjoyed all of the songs on this release, both for the excellent vocals and harmonies and also for reasons individual to each song, two of the more serious songs stood out as special favourites: “Tennessee Waltz” and “Back to the Light.”

“Tennessee Waltz” was on the hit parade when I was only five or six years old. So, believe it or not, was the gruesome “Waltzing Mathilda” by, I think, Mitch Miller. In my young mind, I somehow confused and combined the two songs. So I had a couple waltzing on the big patio of an antebellum mansion then breaking up, after which the man (or the woman sometimes) wanders off into the surrounding darkness and is murdered beneath a tree by the billabong. Although most covers of “Tennessee Waltz” present this as a sweet love song [it is not], The ChoirGirlz sing it with a certain dark sorrow which is enhanced by the mournful violin of Drew Jurecka. Immediately following the bridge, the dark closes in as the most bitter verse of all is sung with all the sorrow of “The Long Black Veil” and sets the song up to end in a very “Hush, Hush, Sweet Charlotte” mood.

While I enjoy the music of the Bebop Cowboys and it certainly adds to my pleasure listening to ten of these songs, where these three singers really shine is on a capella harmonies. The final song in the set, “Back to the Light” is the only a capella song on this release. This is a very old-fashioned, traditional gospel song written by Debbie Fleming. It reminds me very much of Hank Williams’ “I Saw the Light” or several of the Carter Family’s gospel songs. On this recording, the song is delivered in a very reverent, sincere fashion that makes it the ideal song to close out the set.

The second CD released by The ChoirGirlz, this one is a very special treat for anyone who enjoys sweet harmonies, country music with a bit of swing, or just plain excellent playing and singing. Just be warned, like divinity fudge, the ChoirGirlz just may be addictive.

Discover everything you want to know about Debbie Fleming, Mary Ellen Moore, and Dorothy McDonall at The Choir Girlz Official Website. Go to MySpace.com/choirgirlz to hear three songs from this new release by The ChoirGirlz.

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CD Review: Studio Cameroon (Sally Nyolo and the Original Bands of Yaoundé)

Studio Cameroon
Sally Nyolo and the Original Bands of Yaoundé
Riverboat Records/World Music Network
2006
14 tracks

I’m afraid I’m in the position of the proverbial art gallery patron who was heard to exclaim “I may not know much about art, but I know what I like.” I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t know a whole lot about African traditional music, especially its regional variations in areas such as the small nation of Cameroon. Fortunately most of the songs on this release, while they contain traditional elements, are really the stuff of popular music in the new genre, World Music. The music has a familiar ring to it.

If we forget hokey adventure movies featuring lots of frantic drumming and chanting, I suppose my first exposure to African music came almost sixty years ago, when my parents were listening to Americanized versions of African songs such as The Weavers’ “Wimoweh” released in 1952. A decade later, artists like Miriam Makeba and Hugh Masekela brought African music to North American airwaves and, pop songs like Millie Small’s hit “My Boy Lollipop” introduced the rhythm of Ska to teens around the world. Since then, I’ve discovered the African elements that have influenced Jazz, Blues, and Rock & Roll Music over the decades.

Sally Nyolo is a Cameroon expatriate who had moved with her family when she was 13 to live in Paris. In Paris, she built a career first as a back-up singer and then as lead singer and finally headliner. Her work with the group Zap Mama and as a solo act earned her a degree of stardom in both Europe and America. Drawing upon her success as a proponent of African music to the world, Nyolo returned to her native Cameroon with the goal to develop the local music scene. There she set up a modest studio and sought out talented musicians across the nation. This compilation is the result.

With tracks by thirteen separate artists plus one by Nyolo herself, it would be difficult to comment on the tracks individually. Separately and together, these songs exhibit a very high quality of musicianship that’s a joy to hear. This bright, lively music can’t help but have a cheering influence on the listener. The high quality of the recordings belies the promotional tale that Nyolo had set up her recording studio in “a modest tin-roofed building” so that she could meet with her musicians in a relaxed environment.

In the literature, it’s often unclear what is meant when music is attributed to the new “World Music” genre. If any music exemplifies this genre, it’s the music on this release. While the language of the vocals is sometimes the African language of Cameroon, the lyrics often contain elements of English and French and sometimes seem to be a sort of Creole, mixing two or more of these languages in a new configuration. While at root African, the music is just as diversified, often incorporating very European sounds that bring to mind French or Spanish music with the rhythms sliding between purely Afro beats, something like Ska, and a more complex style that sounds more like Jamaican Rock-Steady or Reggae music.

The musicians appear to be playing a mix of European and traditional African instruments, bringing to the music a varied and rich sound that often defies being tied down to any specific locale. The result is that the arrangements have a depth and fullness that enriches the experience of the listener.

Even the vocals on several of the songs seem to belong less to Africa than to French popular music. What sounds most African to me in the vocals is the backing chants and choruses and the call and response that fills the space behind the lead singers. In a number of the songs, there are also powerful drum rhythms that, at least to the North American ear, evoke the sound of Africa.

I may not know much about African music, but I know what I like. I like the music on this compilation very much. Sally Nyolo and the artists who worked with her have created a delightful anthology to represent the music of Cameroon to the world. This is a release of which they should rightfully be proud.

To learn more about Sally Nyolo, go to the RFI Musique website. Unfortunately, there appear to be no clips available online at this time to give a sense of this wonderful music.

Note:

A reader writes to tell me that: “…the fact of Sally recording in “a modest tin-roofed building” is no promotional tale, it’s the truth! I saw video footage of her recording and that’s exactly what it is. There was nothing in it except four walls, the tin roof, some mics and some rudimentary recording gear.”

This just makes the high quality and clarity of these recordings all the more amazing.

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Music DVD Review: Live From Austin TX (Sir Douglas Quintet)

Live From Austin TX
Sir Douglas Quintet
New West Records
2006
DVD 17 songs

Don McLean was mistaken when he spoke of the day the music died. The music never died. True, for a while the Big Music establishment buried it in the commercial pop of Bobby Vees and Frankie Avalons, but the music couldn’t be held down for long. Out of Buddy Holly’s Texas, Detroit, across the United States and around the world, Rock & Roll came back better than ever. A powerful influence in that revitalization of the music that never died was the Sir Douglas Quintet. On this live concert, recorded some sixteen years after “She’s About a Mover” became their first big hit, this all-star band still rocks it out with the best of them.

Fronted by the indefatigable Doug Sahm and powered by the driving, and driven, organ riffs and accordion wizardry of Augie Meyers, this group may just rival a certain British band for the title of The Greatest Rock & Roll Band Ever. Certainly the Sir Douglas Quintet had a powerful influence on the sound of many contemporary and later bands. It doesn’t hurt that in this concert Sahm and Meyers are backed up by Speedy Sparks on bass, John Perez on Drums, Shawn Sahm (Doug’s son) on guitar, and the wonderful Alvin Crow on guitar and fiddle.

Although this is nominally Sahm’s band, it’s definitely not a one-man show. Originally formed as a union of two bands, one led by Doug Sahm and one led by Augie Meyers, this band has kept that sense that it’s less about top-down leadership than collaboration. It may be the Texas roots, but this Rock & Roll band comes across with the comfortable ambience of an old-time barn dance. When the Sir Douglas Quintet performs, everyone on stage gets an opportunity to shine. Besides Sahm, Meyers and Crow both have featured vocals, and each of the players is featured on several songs.

Recorded in 1981 for the half-hour Austin City Limits television show, this DVD features one full hour of great music. Packed with seventeen live tracks, it’s a treat to watch and a joy to hear. In fact, while this would make a great concert CD, having the visuals is a real bonus. This band has a collective charisma that draws you in and lets you feel like you’re actually there, watching the performance live in Austin.

The concert is bracketted by the band’s two biggest hits, beginning with “Mendocino” and ending with “She’s About a Mover.” The band does a rousing version of “96 Tears” [Actually a hit for ? and the Mysterions, a Michigan band whose members mostly came from Texas or Mexico and whose sound was also built around the classic Vox organ.] Other songs include “Groover’s Paradise” and other Sir Douglas Quintet hits as well as other songs recorded by Doug Sahm with various configurations of his band.

Although Doug Sahms’ stylish guitar rides through every song and although every musician in this set is superb, the hallmark of this group’s sound is the classic Vox Continental Organ, stretched to its limits by Augie Meyers. Meyers style has been credited with influencing numerous other keyboard players, including The Doors’ Ray Manzarek.

During this concert, Meyers also plays lively Cajun flavoured accordion and sings. “Going Down to Mexico” is a very Tex Mex sounding country song driven by a simple two-step rhythm and lots of ee-ha shouting by band members in the background. Watching him perform this song, it’s clear that Meyers is having a ball.

“Tonight, Tonight” features Alvin Crow on guitar and vocals, and what a rocker that is. It helps that Crow has his rockabilly image down pat. He’s on stage in a shiny satin red and white cowboy shirt straight out of 1957, with both sleeves removed. Crow’s vocal and guitar are extremely reminiscent of fellow Texan Buddy Holly at his best. Augie Meyers rocking Vox in the the background adds more than a touch of Chris Montez to the sound.

There’s even a bonus song in this concert, not listed on the cover or in the liner notes. The group performs its own version of Charlie Pride’s hit “(Is Anybody Going To) San Antone” featuring some bright fiddling by Crow. In the middle of the song, the band transitions smoothly into a full length version of Sahm’s roots rocker “Texas Tornado” and then transitions just as smoothly back to complete the rest of “San Antone.” It’s two great songs for the price of one.

You don’t have to watch. The music on this release works well played in the background while you do other things, just like playing a music CD. To sit and watch the show adds a whole other dimension. Either way, if you want to hear one of the best rock and roll bands of the last forty years, you have to own this DVD.

Go to Wikipedia for more information on the Sir Douglas Quintet. You can find information on Austin City Limits at pbs.org.

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CD Review: Black Talk! (Charles Earland)

Black Talk!
Charles Earland
Prestige Records
2006
5 tracks

Groovy! That about covers it, but there’s more to this album than that. When this music was originally released, the word “groovy” had not yet become cliché. Especially when spoken or written in reference to music, to be referred to as groovy was a very special thing. Charles Earland is groovy not just for this music but because he was a pioneer. Even now, nearly forty years after this album was first released, this music sounds fresh, alive, and up-to-date. There’s a creativity here and a power that simply can’t be replicated.

Long ago and far away, or so it seems now, a number of progressive musicians ventured into unknown territory somewhere between Jazz, popular music forms, and Rock & Roll, bringing with them a massive dose of soul. These musical innovators included artists as diverse as Isaac Hayes, Bill Cosby [yes, The Cos in his alternate persona as bandleader Badfoot Brown], and Charles Earland. Earland’s Black Talk, with its highly successful translation of contemporary hit music into a creative new style of jazz, was early and influential in the development of this new sound.

Although there are only five tracks on this CD, they bring the listener more than forty minutes of the finest jazz performance to be heard any time, any place. Any one of these songs makes this album well worth the price of admission.

“Black Talk” took the essential shape of the Beatles’ “Eleanor Rigby” and ran with it, taking the music in an entirely new and innovative direction. With its rhythmic breaks, groovin’ organ, and interplay of sax and trumpet, this song sounds very much of the Sixties, yet there’s also something there that even now sounds fresh and new.

“The Mighty Burner” is a nice little jump jive blues number that would as easily have pleased an audience ten or twenty years earlier. Written for WHAT Radio DJ Sonny Hopson, this song straddles the line between great Jazz and great Rock and Roll.

“Here Comes Charlie” takes a more standard direction, with a feel much like many of the better contemporary jazz intrumentals of the day. Like each song on this release, the song leaves lots of room for the players to strut their stuff, and strut they do.

Before or since, you’ve never heard “Aquarius” played like this. Here’s a long [well over eight minutes], lush, opulent version of this new age pop song. The sound is big and lively with a full-bodied flavour available only in the finest jazz performances.

It may have been a hit record, but I got real tired of hearing the Spiral Starecase song “More today Than Yesterday” repeatedly on the radio so long ago. This was a sickenly saccharine love song that, in my opinion at the time, could have been relegated to the remainders bin. Here I am listening to eleven and one-quarter minutes [I've typed the whole thing out just to give a sense of how really long that is] of this song, over and over again. It’s wonderful. It’s jazzy. It’s, well… groovy.

Players on this set included Charles Earland, organ; Virgil Jones, trumpet; Houston Person, tenor saxophone; Melvin Sparks, guitar; Idris Muhammad, drums; and Buddy Caldwell, congas. Together, these highly talented artists make a joyful noise.

Did I tell you that I like this set a lot or that the music is just wonderful. It’s true. This music is so creative and innovative that, if it came out today, it would still be setting standards for young artists to aspire toward. Now that’s groovy.

This CD includes both Bob Porter’s original liner notes from the 1969 album and new liner notes written by Porter in 2006 plus a brief note from sound engineer Rudy Van Gelder, who made the masters for both releases. These notes give the reader an interesting historical perspective on this artist and the music he created.

Those who my be interested will find a concise biography of the late Charles Earland (1941-1999) on the SoulWalking website. You can find all that and more at Fuller Up, The Dead Musicians Directory.

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CD Review: Live! (Roy Rogers & The Delta Rhythm Kings)

Live!
Roy Rogers & The Delta Rhythm Kings
Chops Not Chaps Records
2004
12 tracks

Listening to this music, it quickly becomes clear that this Roy Rogers is not the King of the Cowboys. Bluesman Roy Rogers has been nominated eight times for Grammy Awards and three times for the prestigious W. C. Handy Awards. Between recording albums with his band, The Delta Rhythm Kings, Rogers has been featured on albums with Bonnie Raitt, John Lee Hooker, Zucchero and other artists. When he’s not performing, he hosts a Saturday morning radio show that discusses genres that have grown from our musical roots and the influences on each.

While Roy Rogers is widely-known as a bluesman and this release is clearly at root a blues album, the sound here is not necessarily pure Blues. What I hear more clearly is the blues-influenced end of the Rockabilly spectrum. There’s a very thin line that divides electric Blues and Blues-based Rock and Roll. Slide a ways across that line and throw in a few country music influences and you’ve got the Rockabilly sound of artists like Carl Perkins and Wanda Jackson. I hear that sound in this live set.

Take the classic rocker “Shake Your Moneymaker” for example. This song started out as a Rockabilly hit by author Elmore James. Later it was recorded by a dozen other artists, including Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels, who released a heavy up-tempo Rock & Roll version. Rogers actually takes the song back a step or two in the other direction, slipping in elements of Western Swing that give it a certain Bill Haley flavour.

Willie Dixon’s “Built for Comfort” and Robert Johnson’s “Terraplane Blues” especially take the listener back to the middle decades of the last century. “Terraplane Blues” actually harks from earlier in the century, but the treatment here is very 1954. “Built for Comfort” moves the mood up somewhat to ’56 or ’57. Doesn’t much matter the year, though. In any year, this music just sounds great.

A master guitarist in any style, Roy Rogers is especially known for his polished technique on slide. While some of his slide guitar work is clearly influenced by the Blues, a lot of his playing takes me back to the great slide guitar sounds I was hearing on Rockabilly and Country & Western music during the Fifties. This very country sounding slide guitar definitely contributes to the Rockabilly sound of many songs on this release.

Six of the songs on Live! were written by Rogers. Set against the classic numbers that are also included, these original compositions stand up very well. Strong rockers with well-written lyrics, these songs demonstrate that, more than simply a guitar player, Rogers is a highly talented all-around musician who has clearly earned the acclaim and respect he receives from fans and his peers.

A treat on this release is vocalist Shana Morrison. This girl rocks and rolls with the best of them, wailing out her words with howls that immediately bring to mind Buddy Guy’s unique vocal style. And these vocals are rich and sensual, imbued with feeling that’s darkly primal and sexual. It’s unfortunate that this powerful vocalist sings lead only in a duet with Rogers on “Stranger Blues” [listed on the cover as "I'm a Stranger Here"] originally recorded by Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee.

“Gertie Ruth” starts out with a very bluesy guitar break then quickly slips into a very Cajun sound complete with bayou-flavoured fiddle, almost like a Louisiana take on “Long Tall Sally.” Shana Morrison powers this one up with some very gutsy backup vocals. The effect reflects not so much authentic Cajun folk music as it does the faux Cajun sounds created by Chuck Berry (“You Never Can Tell”) or Hank Williams (“Jambalaya”), but with a tad more of that Rockabilly energy.

This release is an enhanced-CD. I usually enjoy getting an enhanced CD because of all the extra features it can be expected to offer. Placed in a CD player, it will play like any other CD. Put in a CD-ROM drive, the enhanced mode will kick in. On such releases, I’ve found extended liner notes, interesting biographical information on all players, extra mp3 tracks, videos, internet links, and more. This CD is no such joy. Most enhanced-CD products offer the user the choice of using the enhanced section or not, and they do not install programs on the computer. This CD asks the user to install and then sign up for something called Bandlink before the bonus features can be accessed. This is more likely to turn-off than please listeners.

Even with its clunky computer enhancement, this CD, recorded live in the Big Room at the Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, would make an excellent addition to any collection of contemporary Blues artists or to the music library of any fan of the very best Rock & Roll music.

Those who may be interested can find additional information about Roy Rogers & The Delta Rhythm Kings at “The Slide Zone” website. You can listen to some clips of Roy Rogers & The Delta Rhythm Kings at the same website.

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