CD Review: The Little Things (Rickie Mann)

The Little Things
Rickie Mann
Ram Jam Records
2003
13 Tracks

Rickie Mann has no problem knowing the niche into which his music fits. Mann describes the music on this release as an “old school R&B, Rock, and Blues tinged excursion from the usual airplay … a fun-filled, not-too-deeply-complicated, energized project.” Well, yes, but as Billy Joel wrote: it’s still Rock and Roll to me. In fact, this is good old-fashioned big-band Rock and Roll spiced up with just a bit of Funk and Seventies theatre and Soul. It’s definitely worth a listen, or maybe two.

Mann has a real grasp of this genre. Although each of the thirteen songs in this set was written by Mann, listening brings echoes of artists and songs from some past hit parade. These are new songs with memories built in. This set would warm the mood of any house party and any one of the songs could become our song for some celebratory couple.

In the tradition to which he aspires, Mann writes simple songs. His lyrics are tight and well-written, touching on the everyday lives of his intended audience. Keeping his tunes as simple as the words laid over them, Mann has a knack for arranging the parts so that the music is powerful and affecting. The result is that these songs are sustainable and should hold up over time.

Mann has a strong voice and an excellent sense of the balance between just singing the words and performing the role. Mann’s vocals are supplemented by a full complement of a dozen or so instruments arrayed behind him and several voices singing backup or alternate-lead parts. This is music that draws you in and makes you want to hear more.

I’ve always been a fan of big band Rock and Roll, everything from the up-tempo screamers of Little Richard through the American theatre of Meatloaf. I love the sound of a big horn section blasting away with sax in the forefront and the brass not far behind. I love those rocking boogie woogie piano sounds and the tension between the guitars as they struggle for ascendancy. I love the heavy thrum of the bass and the driving rhythm of the drums as they carry the whole thing forward. If that’s what you’re looking for, Rickie Mann delivers.

While he clearly has talent as a singer, arranger, and producer, Mann sees himself as primarily a songwriter. This shows in the variety of songs presented here, often sounding very much like certain popular artists who might have been the target audience for a particular song. If Mann is as good at marketing himself and his work, then we may indeed be hearing hitmaking artists performing his songs.

I won’t go into all of the songs in this set – which are uniformly well written, performed and produced – but I’d like to mention a few that do stand out. “Junkstore Junkie” is a classic jump jive piece that would be at home in Forties R & B or Fifties Rock and Roll. A very cool touch is the bit of voice-under chatter at the end, very reminiscent of some of the old Johnny Otis tracks. “Cry” is a heavy rocker with big drums, cool keys, and romantic lyrics that brings to mind artists like Bob Seger, Pablo Cruise, and Jackson Browne. “Hand in Hand” has much the same feel but is a harder-driving number and introduces powerful, soulful vocals by Treva Henderson. “I’ll Give” is the sort of romantic ballad often requested by couples to play at their weddings. It brings to mind songs performed by artists like Cliff Richard some thirty years ago. “Princess Cinderella” presents a strange mix of styles. The verses feature a jumpy vocal that harks back to some of the early Elvis Costello, but the chorus has a smoother and more romantic feel to it. Mann somehow makes this apparent mismatch work. “Powerful Love” is a sweet, sentimental piece meant to seduce, and loaded with the romantic dynamite to do just that. Oh, and Mark Douthit’s smooth sax adds just the right touch of sexuality. “Jill the Ripper” is another throwback to earlier times, the sort of down and dirty blues-rocker that would be a hit in any local bar.

If The Little Things is an indication of Rickie Mann’s abilities as a singer, musician, and songwriter, then he should do well. In the meantime, we have this release to remind us of the talent waiting in the wings. This one is well worth the price of admission.

You can purchase The Little Things and learn more about Rickie Mann at CD Baby, where you’ll also be able to listen to clips of six of these songs.

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CD Review: Where the Action Is (Sue Foley)

Where the Action Is
Sue Foley
KOCH Records
2002
12 Tracks

How do you critique an icon, especially one who may well be on her way to becoming a legend? A popular artist who has earned the respect of fans and fellow artists alike and garnered an impressive number of awards and accolades can present a daunting challenge to the reviewer. A new or little-known artist presents only the challenge of evaluating the work itself: the craft, skill and potential of the artist. The only baggage, if any, is brought to the process by the reviewer’s own experience. To review a star, whether established or rising, presents a whole other set of problems. Whether the reviewer praises, criticizes, or presents a balanced picture of the work under review, the process can feel like a no-win situation. The reviewer who offers the artist only praise can be seen as an uncritical fan. The reviewer who points out flaws in the performace or suggests areas for improvement may experience the ire of fans who have elevated the artist to perfection. A balanced and fair reviewer may come under attack from both sides, who see only the bits with which they disagree. What’s an honest reviewer to do?

Reaching at random deep into my backlog, I found Where the Action Is, a six year old release by Canadian blues artist Sue Foley. Foley is a case in point. Starting in her teens, Foley has by now enjoyed a successful career of some 24 years. At forty, she’s young as blues artists go, beautiful, and has opened for and played with the top Canadian and American blues artists. She has a powerful singing style and guitar licks to match the best of them. If she’s not a star already, then she’s certainly a blues-icon headed toward stardom. She has the prestigious honours to prove it. She’s won the Canadian Maple Blues Award eighteen times and France’s Trophée de blues three times. In 2002, the year Where the Action Is was released, she was nominated for W.C. Handy Award for best contemporary female artist. Foley is also a winner of the covetted Juno Award, Canada’s equivalent to the American Grammy. Foley has eleven releases on CD as well as a live DVD Sue Foley, Live in Europe. Where the Action Is was produced by and features supporting performances by fellow Canadian blues-icon Colin Linden, who recruited some of North America’s finest musicians to back up Foley’s performances. How do you approach such a phenomenon with any sort of objectivity? Perhaps you don’t.

Arguably, some of the best modern blues is being played and recorded in Canada. There’s a large and supportive community of fans and players across The Great White North, and American artists often bring their own brand of blues north to perform and record in our largest cities. Ottawa’s Sue Foley is part of that blues-movement, helping to popularize the form not only among the already-converted but among fans of folk music and Rock and Roll as well. She’s become known from her native Ontario to the American South and from coast to coast across the continent. That she has a great deal of talent cannot be denied. Rather than take a narrow look at Foley as she is now or as she may have been when she recorded this, her eighth release, through the filter of Foley’s work I’d like to draw upon a broader palette: Canadian blues, of which this release is an example.

Somewhere across the decades, the definition of The Blues both changed and blurred. This is normal for any genre of music that grows and reaches audiences beyond its roots. Jazz was once one recognizable form but now encompasses a wide range of forms and styles. Rock and Roll, itself the outgrowth of last century’s ever-evolving music, evolved into Rock and a range of related styles. So it is with The Blues. In Canada, much of the blues music to be heard in local bars and on recordings would once have been called Rock and Roll. This blues is big, electric, and rocking. It’s still The Blues but it’s also so much more.

Fifty years ago, I was exposed to blues music a lot and never realized it. My parents had very eclectic musical taste, some of which extended to pop covers of blues songs, rocking blues-based country songs, rhythm and blues, and traditional blues. By my early teens, I was listening to static-ridden American radio and haunting second-hand stores for old records, buying them mostly because the titles interested me and not for any particular songs. A lot of what I bought was jazz, R & B, and blues music. I was in Calgary, far from the centres of this type of music. What I was buying was, I believed, up-tempo Rock and Roll and what was then sometimes called slow-rock. I realized later that sometimes the up-tempo numbers were blues-based Rockabilly, Country music, or covers of blues songs by mainstream artists and the slower songs were blues-based Rock and Roll, R & B, or even electric blues. When I discovered Alan Freed, a lot of what he had been calling Rock and Roll was in exactly this same blues-based vein. Cliff Richard’s blues-based Rock and Roll was followed into Canada by the music of other British artists like The Rolling Stones, John Mayall so on. I was also listening to music from Europe, especially France, that had similar influences. It was not obvious to me in my teens that this music was particularly American. My idea of American blues was the very traditional, folksy guy and a guitar material: Josh White, Bill Broonzy, Leadbelly.

Sue Foley is substantially younger than I am. Even so, as a youngster in Canada, she would have been exposed to later versions of the same influences. It’s easy to imagine that Foley’s style may have been shaped by not just the blues in the music she heard but also the other forms with which that sound had been infused. There is a thin line between the electric blues of B. B. King, Muddy Waters (McKinley Morganfield), Willie Dixon, and others and the sounds of groups such as the Rolling Stones, Electric Light Orchestra, or John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers. Perhaps there is no line at all but a subtle transition from the one to the other. In this, her eighth release, the Sue Foley I hear is walking that line, as much in the world of Rock and Roll as that of The Blues

Take, for example, Etta James’ 1955 hit “Roll With Me Henry” (also known euphemistically as “The Wallflower”). An answer-song to the controversial hit “Work With Me Annie,” released by Hank Ballard a year earlier, this song was on the leading edge of early Rock and Roll. While clearly blues-based, this song remains among the best of old-time Rock and Roll. Foley’s remake of The Rolling Stone’s “Stupid Girl” retains some of that Stones’ sound but the rhythm section also carries strong echoes of ELO’s “Don’t Bring Me Down” and at times Richard Bell’s organ brings to mind some of the harder-rocking songs of Dylan’s early electric period. Much of the sound of “Two Bluebirds” also seems influenced by The Rolling Stones. “Gotta Keep Moving” reminds me of a couple of album tracks recorded by Chuck Berry, circa 1956. “Baby Where Are You?” and “Get Yourself Together” could easily have been recorded by Johnny Rivers forty years ago. Both songs definitely have his sound. A bit more bluesy, “Vertigo Blues” reminds me ever so much of Canned Heat’s “On the Road Again” with a bit more of a Rock edge. Contrary to the hard-edge of most songs on this release, “Every Hour” is a very cool, soft R & B love song composed by Foley but sounding like it had been lifted straight out of 1953.

There’s also an underlying country-music feel that surfaces in these songs from time to time and brings a bit of Rockabilly into the mix. A good part of this sense comes from Foley’s voice and her vocal style. On this release at least, Foley reminds me less of Etta James or Ruth Brown than of the Rock and Roll vocal style epitomized by Rockabilly queen Wanda Jackson. I would say this is a good thing. Some Blues afficionados might disagree with me. See for yourself. Check out Foley’s rocking style on her video of “Walking Home” or watch her slip even further to the Country side as she sings the classic “Careless Love” while on a 2006 tour in Europe. [Of course, neither of these songs is on the release we're discussing here and they serve only as illustration.]

Sue Foley is one of Canada’s finest blues guitarists. That’s not me saying so but her fans and her musician peers. She is also a fine vocalist with an excellent sense of the words she sings. Listening to her songs, her talent as a lyrist and composer is clear. Where the Action Is, her eighth release, can provide interesting insights into where this artist has been and where she’s going. With eleven CD releases, a DVD of her concerts in Europe, and a new book soon to be released, Foley is one of Canada’s rising stars. I may hear a lot of great Rock and Roll in this music but, at root, at the heart of everything Sue Foley does is The Blues.

Discover Sue Foley at SueFoley.com where you’ll also find the two performance videos included in this review plus two more. If you go to Myspace, you can hear four of Sue Foley’s songs.

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Music DVD Review: Various Artists (Rock ‘n Roll’s Greatest Teen Idols)

Rock ‘n Roll’s Greatest Teen Idols
Various Artists
Quantum Leap Group Ltd.
2006
Running Time: 120 minutes

This is the sixth of six reviews of DVD releases selected from the Quantum Leap series of “Rock ‘n Roll Legends” featuring stars of the late-Fifties and early-Sixties. This DVD series is quirky and uneven, yet manages to be both interesting and entertaining.

These nostalgic releases feature live performances by popular stars, often years after they were in their prime, mostly at Little Darlin’s, a nostalgia club in Florida, but also at other locations. Some performances are taken from television or movies, including a documentary from Canada’s National Film Board. A horde of other popular stars, and some not so well known, make guest appearances. The visuals, on clips often apparently dubbed from old film stock, range from disconcertingly blurry to quite good but never flawless. Usually, the music makes up for the lack of visual clarity.

There’s a “Fanzone” that includes biography, discography and other background information. As well, the “Quantum Leap Propaganda” section features a variety of interesting, sometimes documentary plugs for events and products as well as web links.

While this “Rock ‘n Roll Legends” series includes other DVD releases, in these six alone, you can see performances by some 25 vintage artists, singing not only their own hits but other popular songs of the era. Any one of these releases provides an interesting, if eccentric, window on this past time. Together they present a fascinating pastiche of popular music as it was a half-century ago.

The “Fanzone” includes fairly extensive biographies of all of the artists on this release, including: Tommy Sands, Joey Dee, Frankie Ford, Bobby Vee, Tommy Roe, Lenny Welch, Troy Shondell, Ray Peterson, Buddy Knox, Jack Scott, Jimmy Calvallo, Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, Cirno & the Bowties, and Paul Anka. While these sections do make interesting reading, the visual quality is far less than ideal.

The “Quantum Leap Propaganda” section is an eccentric mix of archival footage, rough edits and promotional material, including a quirky, clip-packed documentary video that seems more like a sampler pieced together from diverse sources plus a brief commercial for the Quantum Leap website. The purpose of “Quantum Leap Propaganda” appears to be to sell other Quantum Leap releases. At the left side of each title bar in these segments is what appears to be a release number indicating the release on which that clip may be found. The visual quality is again often less than desirable and the editing is rough and amateurish, but the viewing experience is interesting and sometimes even educational.

Having little to do with what is commonly called soul music, “Cool Soul” is a bit of a misnomer. Running to more than 12 minutes, this musical section is more an eclectic sampler featuring a variety of musical genres, including clips of live performances and bits of documentary footage. The clips include everything from solid funk through peaceful acoustic Spanish guitar, rousing big band swing, parts of three songs by Willie Nelson, and a segment from a documentary on the life of reggae master Jimmy Cliff. Whether or not it may be misnamed, this segment is interesting and entertaining to watch.

Even though this release features thirteen different artists and at least thirty songs, a brief commentary on each performance is well worth while. Especially interesting are the vintage film clips at the end as well as the full-length NFB documentary on Paul Anka filmed in 1960.

In the late-Fifties, the recording industry began to take over the once-rebellious rock and roll music, creating clean-cut, made-to-order artists performing rock and roll music with lyrics touting mainstream “white picket fence” values. Handsome movie star and recording idol Tommy Sands was one of the first to introduce this new pop-rock style, singing mostly about young love, teen jealousy, and marriage. Ranging from hard rockers to sweet love ballads, Sands’ performance of “Going Steady.” “Worrying Kind,” and “Graduation Day” typefy this genre of rock and roll. Among the manufactured idols, Sands is one of the best and is well worth revisiting.

Joey Dee and The Starlighters brought an exciting new sound to rock and roll. Unlike Chubby Checker’s mellowed out versions of Hank Ballard’s “The Twist” and “Let’s Twist Again” The Starlighter’s recordings brought back some of the spirit of the original Fifties rockers. “The Peppermint Twist” and “Hey Let’s Twist” bring fond memories of The Twist in its heyday. While I remember the Johnny Nash version as the big hit where I lived, “What Kind of Love is This” works well for Joey Dee.

It’s interesting that Frankie Ford’s big hit “Sea Cruise” isn’t included on this compilation, but he rocks out on several other songs. “Roberta” is jumping rock and roll and great blues. Just try not dancing to this one. Ford also sings his 1959 million seller “You Talk Too Much” and the comedic “Alimony.”

Another pop rocker with a string of hits, Bobby Vee gives animated performances of “Devil or Angel” and “Rubber Ball” that will bring back fond memories to many listeners of my generation.

Tommy Roe fell somewhere between the manufactured pop rockers and the old-style rock and roll, but he brought us some solid rocking sounds. On this compilation, he presents versions of three of his biggest hits: The Buddy Holly sound-alike “Sheila,” the coy, jumpy “Sweet Pea,” and the big rocker “Everybody.”

R & B artist Lenny Welch sings his slowed-down hit version of Neil Sedaka’s up-tempo rocker “Breaking Up is Hard to Do” as well as his own classic hit, “Since I Fell For You.” Beautiful!

Troy Shondell rocks the audience with live renditions of his own romantic hit “This Time” and, sounding very much like the original hard-hitting recording, Tommy James’ “Mony Mony.”

Ray Peterson delivers excellent live versions of his hits, “Corrina, Corrina” and “Tell Laura I Love Her” along with his own interpretation of the Little Willie John hit “Fever” with Peggy Lee’s added lyrics.

Although his name is listed on the front of the package, Buddy Knox is not listed on the back, making his performance of “Hula Love” and “Party Doll” the hidden-tracks of this set. With Buddy Knox and Jimmy Bowen switching off as lead singer, the Rhythm Orchids were solid hit-makers with a smooth rocking sound. That sound is still evident in these performances.

“The Way I Walk” and “Goodbye Baby” are two great rockers from Canadian Rockabilly star Jack Scott. In these live performances, Scott is right on form, delivering solid hard-driving rock and roll to an appreciative audience.

Once the “revival” concerts are done, this collection includes a series of vintage film clips dating back to the early days of Rock & Roll. The first set of clips features Jimmy Calvallo and The House Rockets rocking out with “The Big Beat” and “Rock Rock Rock,” Even though clipped from a teensploitation movie, these are exciting performances and the young nightclub dancers are a delight to watch.

While the set is missing “Why do Fools Fall in Love” and other big hits, the film clip of Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers performing “Pretty Baby” and “I’m Not a Juvenile Delinquent” is a wonderful flashback to this long ago era. The music is fast and lively with a solid doowop edge. And just check out that choreography. Fantastic!

The patio party clip of an uncredited young lady with a big voice is classic Fifties pop-rock reminiscent of Brenda Lee or Teresa Brewer. Here’s a young girl only about eight years old who can rock it out with the best of them. This little girl with an awesome voice is backed by Cirno and the Bowties, an awesome foursome of harmonizing young men and a big band along the lines of Don Costa. Behind the singers, the patio party gang swings and sways to the music.

Cirno & The Bowties continue to rock and swing in a harmonic style reminiscent of The Lettermen or The Crewcuts, singing “Ever Since I can Remember” as they flirt with four pretty girls inb a cosy nightclub scene. It’s actually pretty schmaltzy. I prefer them with the young girl singing a rocking lead vocal.

What a surprise! The final track on this release is a complete half-hour documentary on Paul Anka, Lonely Boy, produced by Canada’s award-winning National Film Board in about 1960. Here’s a short film packed with music, interviews, and Rock & Roll history. What a great bit to top off a sensational collection of old favourites and lost classics.

Not everything is perfect in this release, but it’s definitely worth owning and watching over and over again. Each time you watch, you’ll discover something new that may surprise you or may just bring back memories of those long ago days.

You can find much more information on most of the artists on this DVD just by searching the internet. Also check out the Quantum Leap Online Catalogue for a wide selection of live music on DVD.

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Music DVD Review: The Platters & The Coasters (Rock ‘n Roll Legends: The Platters & The Coasters)

Rock ‘n Roll Legends: The Platters & The Coasters
The Platters & The Coasters
Quantum Leap Group Ltd.
2005
Running Time: 60 minutes

This is the fifth of six reviews of DVD releases selected from the Quantum Leap “Rock ‘n Roll Legends” series featuring stars of the late-Fifties and early-Sixties. This DVD series is quirky and uneven, yet manages to be both interesting and entertaining.

These nostalgic releases feature live performances by popular stars, often years after they were in their prime, mostly at Little Darlin’s, a nostalgia club in Florida, but also at other locations. Some performances are taken from television or movies, including a documentary from Canada’s National Film Board. A horde of other popular stars, and some not so well known, make guest appearances. The visuals, on clips often apparently dubbed from old film stock, range from disconcertingly blurry to quite good but never flawless. Usually, the music makes up for the lack of visual clarity.

There’s a “Fanzone” that includes biography, discography and other background information. As well, the “Quantum Leap Propaganda” section features a variety of interesting, sometimes documentary plugs for events and products as well as web links.

While this “Rock ‘n Roll Legends” series includes other DVD releases, in these six alone, you can see performances by some 25 vintage artists, singing not only their own hits but other popular songs of the era. Any one of these releases provides an interesting, if eccentric, window on this past time. Together they present a fascinating pastiche of popular music as it was a half-century ago.

This release includes two powerful sets performed live at Little Darlin’s, The Rock ‘n Roll Palace in Orlando, Florida. On its own, either set would make this release worth owning. Together, the sets by The Platters and The Coasters provide priceless memories of a long-passed but important musical era.

The Platters perform nine songs in slightly different order than listed on the package. The performance is solid and brings to life the spirit if not the exact sound of the original hit recordings. There are some surprises here. Some of the songs are not The Platters hits but covers of hits by other artists and B-sides of The Platters hits. I was especially interested and pleased to hear the wonderful R & B song “He’s Mine” in this set. A B-side with a female lead vocal and lively doo-wop backing vocals, this song is a real rocker that brings some variety and excitement to the set.

The partnership between songwriters Jerry Lieber and Mike Stoller with The Coasters may have determined the success of Rock and Roll and was certainly a powerful influence on the direction the genre would take following The Coasters’ first hits. Here, The Coasters perform six of their most popular releases penned by Lieber and Stoller, rocking out with their familiar blend of solid R & B rhythms, slightly off-colour lyrics, and comedy. This set is fun and may also make you want to jump out of your seat and dance.

The section for “Artist Profiles” includes a reasonably complete history of The Coasters over the past half century and a less complete history of The Platters that’s primarily a listing of the group’s regularly shifting personnel over the years. This makes intereting if not exciting reading.

The “Quantum Leap Propaganda” section is an eccentric mix of archival footage, rough edits and promotional material, including three quirky, clip-packed video presentations plus a brief commercial for the Quantum Leap website. Rather than finished productions, these short videos seem more like samplers pieced together from diverse sources. The viewer never knows what will come next. The purpose of “Quantum Leap Propaganda” appears to be to sell other Quantum Leap releases. At the left side of each title bar in these segments is what appears to be a release number indicating the release on which that clip may be found. Here again, the visual quality is often less than desirable and the editing is rough and amateurish, but the viewing experience is interesting and sometimes even educational.

A seven minute feature that appears on a number of Quantum Leap releases, the “W.P.M.A.” video plugs the World Peace Music Awards, a large televised concert event that features hundreds of well-known musicians and is broadcast worldwide. This production appears to have been pieced together from two earlier pieces advertising the concerts in San Francisco, California (2002) and Nagasaki, Japan (2005) plus other, not always related, materials. Although now out of date, this short video is still interesting to watch.

“Pure Pop” also seems to be standard fare on many of the releases in this series. Almost seventeen minutes long, “Pure Pop” is a pastiche of interesting clips assembled in a chaotic attempt at a documentary film featuring a half-dozen or more popular stars in interviews, commentary and performance. The clips include part of a documentary on New York songwriters featuring Neil Sedaka and Howard Greenfield; a musical performance from The Frank Sinatra Timex Show featuring Sinatra, Joey Bishop, Sammy Davis Jr. and others; a segment on Dusty Springfield featuring commentary from Petula Clark and others and a performance by Springfield of her signature song, “I Only Want To Be With You;” John Sebastian joking with his audience and then singing “What a Day for a Daydream;” very cool blues sung by Bonnie Koloc, a blues instrumental featuring the trumpet of Arturo Sandoval, and a long lost music video of “The Longest Time” by Billy Joel; and a dramatic segment from the movie “The Fabulous Dorseys.” Again, the purpose appears to be to sell other Quantum Leap releases. At the left side of each title bar is what appears to be a release number. Although the visual quality is inconsistent and often leaves a lot to be desired, this piece is interesting and perhaps educational to watch.

“Beauty & The Beast” is the least music-related of these bonus sections, featuring primarily documentary selections. At about seventeen minutes long, “Beauty & The Beast” includes segment on award-winning underwater explorers and marine conservationists Ron and Valerie Taylor, incuuding dramatic footage of sharks in their natural habitat; sections of travelogues on northern Australia’s wilderness, some of the more rugged areas of northern England, and the American desert, this last presented with only dramatic music and no narration; a singularly unfunny selection of bits by American comic Tom Green; a tour of the 2004 Chelsea Flower Show presented by a woman dour enough to invite parody from the likes of Monty Python; and black and white features, probably released during or very shortly following World War II, about the American submarine-hunting aircraft carrier USS Guadalcanal and about the British aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal, when it was launched the only first line fleet carrier in the world. The usual cautions apply about segments having poor visual quality and being incomplete, apparently intednded as teasers to sell the complete releases.

If you want to hear two of the most influentual groups to bring R & B to American mainstream audiences, and ultimately to the world, and change forever the sound of what would become Rock and Roll music, this is a DVD for you. Cranked up loud, the fifteen songs on this release will rock your house. These two sets are filled with energy that may make it impossible for you to not get up and dance.

You can find information on the newest configuration of The Platters at the The Platters website and the history of The Platters since they formed in 1953 at Wikipedia. You can find a history of the coasters, information on the newest lineup, and other interesting facts at The Coasters Official Website and at Wikipedia and at various unofficial websites. Also check out the Quantum Leap Online Catalogue.

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Music DVD Review: Martha Reeves (Greatest Hits Live)

Greatest Hits Live
Martha Reeves
Quantum Leap Group Ltd.
2005
Running Time: 54 minutes

This is the fourth of six reviews of DVD releases selected from the Quantum Leap series of “Rock ‘n Roll Legends” featuring stars of the late-Fifties and early-Sixties. This DVD series is quirky and uneven, yet manages to be both interesting and entertaining.

These nostalgic releases feature live performances by popular stars, often years after they were in their prime, mostly at Little Darlin’s, a nostalgia club in Florida, but also at other locations. Some performances are taken from television or movies, including a documentary from Canada’s National Film Board. A horde of other popular stars, and some not so well known, make guest appearances. The visuals, on clips often apparently dubbed from old film stock, range from disconcertingly blurry to quite good but never flawless. Usually, the music makes up for the lack of visual clarity.

There’s a “Fanzone” that includes biography, discography and other background information. As well, the “Quantum Leap Propaganda” section features a variety of interesting, sometimes documentary plugs for events and products as well as web links.

While this “Rock ‘n Roll Legends” series includes other DVD releases, in these six alone, you can see performances by some 25 vintage artists, singing not only their own hits but other popular songs of the era. Any one of these releases provides an interesting, if eccentric, window on this past time. Together they present a fascinating pastiche of popular music as it was a half-century ago.

Although this release features only five of Martha Reeves’ hit songs, it provides almost nineteen minutes of energetic live performance by Reeves and her original Vandellas. Performed live at Little Darlin’s, The Rock ‘n Roll Palace in Orlando, Florida, these songs capture the spirit of the original hit recordings combined with the energy that can only come from a live performance. It should be noted here that order of performance on the DVD is not same as listed on the package. There are two different performances of “Dancing in the Street” included here, providing a sixth performance track. I would question inclusion of the first version, which seems to be performed with a lack of enthusiasm by all concerned. The second version is a powerful performance and perhaps the best in this set. This one could have stood on its own without inclusion of the weaker version earlier in the set.

Special guest star on this release is Sam Moore who, with his partner the late Dave Prater (1937-1988), had been very influential in soul and R&B music for more than a decade. Moore gives gutsy performances of four great Sam and Dave hits.

On this release, the “Fanzone” features an extensive biography of Martha Reeves and history of her career with The Vandellas along with a very limited discography of their album releases only. These sections make interesting reading but, the visual quality is far less than ideal.

The “Quantum Leap Propaganda” section is an eccentric mix of archival footage, rough edits and promotional material, including three quirky, clip-packed video presentations plus a brief commercial for the Quantum Leap website. Here again, the visual quality is often less than desirable and the editing is rough and amateurish, but the viewing experience is interesting and sometimes even educational. Rather than finished productions, these short videos seem more like samplers pieced together from diverse sources. The viewer never knows what will come next. The purpose of “Quantum Leap Propaganda” appears to be to sell other Quantum Leap releases. At the left side of each title bar in these segments is what appears to be a release number indicating the release on which that clip may be found.

A seven minute feature that appears on a number of Quantum Leap releases, “W.P.M.A.” is a plug for the World Peace Music Awards, a large televised concert event featuring hundreds of well-known musicians and broadcast worldwide. This promotion appears to have been pieced together from two earlier pieces advertising the concerts in San Francisco, California (2002) and Nagasaki, Japan (2005) plus other materials. While now out of date, this short video is still interesting to watch.

“Cool Soul” is a bit of a misnomer. Over its running time of more than 12 minutes, this musical section contains nothing that could properly be called soul music. Rather, it’s an eclectic sampler of a variety of musical genres, featuring clips of live performance and documentary footage. The clips include everything from solid funk through peaceful acoustic Spanish guitar, rousing big band swing, parts of three songs by Willie Nelson, and a segment from a documentary on the life of reggae master Jimmy Cliff. Misnamed or not, this segment is interesting and entertaining to watch.

At just over fourteen minutes long, “Sport” includes documentaries featuring archival soccer footage with voice-over commentary in Italian, surfers talking about a giant wave alternated with surfing footage in black and white and colour, a biography of soccer player Diego Maradona, a segment of a documentary about Formula One race drivers, a Sensei demonstrating the various stances in Shotokan Karate, brief footage of several Ultimate Kickboxing matches, and an excerpt from the movie Joe Louis Story Interesting? Yes. Educational? Probably not. The clips are just too short and clearly meant as a tease so that those interested will be tempted to buy the DVD release.

Featuring ten live performances by two of America’s most influential soul and R&B artists, this release combines pure nostalgia with the power of great performances. This release will be enjoyed by the generation who originally bought the records made the songs hits and by their children and grandchildren as well.

Find a treasure trove of information on the Martha Reeves and the Vandellas at the Miss Martha Reeves website or at Wikipedia. Read more about Sam and Dave at Wikipedia and at various unofficial websites. Also check out the Quantum Leap Online Catalogue.

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Music DVD Review: Shirelles (Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow)

Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow
Shirelles
Quantum Leap Group Ltd.
2005
Running Time: 45 minutes

This is the third of six reviews of DVD releases selected from the Quantum Leap series of “Rock ‘n Roll Legends” featuring stars of the late-Fifties and early-Sixties. This DVD series is quirky and uneven, yet manages to be both interesting and entertaining.

These nostalgic releases feature live performances by popular stars, often years after they were in their prime, mostly at Little Darlin’s, a nostalgia club in Florida, but also at other locations. Some performances are taken from television or movies, including a documentary from Canada’s National Film Board. A horde of other popular stars, and some not so well known, make guest appearances. The visuals, on clips often apparently dubbed from old film stock, range from disconcertingly blurry to quite good but never flawless. Usually, the music makes up for the lack of visual clarity.

There’s a “Fanzone” that includes biography, discography and other background information. As well, the “Quantum Leap Propaganda” section features a variety of interesting, sometimes documentary plugs for events and products as well as web links.

While this “Rock ‘n Roll Legends” series includes other DVD releases, in these six alone, you can see performances by some 25 vintage artists, singing not only their own hits but other popular songs of the era. Any one of these releases provides an interesting, if eccentric, window on this past time. Together they present a fascinating pastiche of popular music as it was a half-century ago.

In the world of popular music, the Shirelles are both important and
influential. The first all girl group to ever score a number one record, the Shirelles are touted as the first ever girl-group, defining the genre and becoming the template for all who followed. For a while, they had as powerful an influence on my generation as The Beatles had later. I can remember in my mid-teens sitting with a group of friends in the cafe of the main bus depot in downtown Calgary as we played “Soldier Boy” over and over on the jukebox, all of us singing along at the top of our lungs. Needless to say, we were finally thrown out of the place. There you have it, the ultimate girl-group as an incentive for rebellion.

This release features “Soldier Boy” and six other Shirelles hits performed live at Little Darlin’s, The Rock ‘n Roll Palace in Orlando, Florida. The sound is true to the original hit recordings, but with the energy that only a live concert can bring to the music. These are solid, well-written pop songs penned by some of the best songwriters of their era and they stand up very well to the test of time. This is a fun concert to watch and may even inspire you to get up and dance to the music. Who knows, you may even want to sing along, over and over again.

The four bonus tracks feature two more of the great girl groups of the Sixties, The Angels and The Dixie Cups. The quality of the performances by these two groups is also outstanding and well worth the time spent watching. I was especially taken by The Dixie Cups’ version of “Iko Iko” with its blend of African and Caribbean sounds and rousing rhythms.

The “Fanzone” On this release features a extensive history of the Shirelles along with a very comprehensive discography of their releases throughout their career. Even though the visual quality is far less than ideal, these sections do make interesting and informative reading.

Here, as on all of these releases “Quantum Leap Propaganda” is an eccentric mix of archival footage, rough edits and promotional material. It includes three quirky, clip-packed video presentations plus a brief commercial for the Quantum Leap website. The visual quality is often less than desirable and the editing is rough and amateurish, but the viewing experience is interesting and sometimes even educational. Rather than finished productions, these short videos seem more like samplers pieced together from diverse sources. The viewer never knows what will come next. The purpose of “Quantum Leap Propaganda” appears to be to sell other Quantum Leap releases. At the left side of each title bar in these segments is what appears to be a release number indicating the release on which that clip may be found.

“Cool Soul” is a bit of a misnomer. Over its running time of more than 12 minutes, this musical section contains nothing that could properly be called soul music. Rather, it’s an eclectic sampler of a variety of musical genres, featuring clips of live performance and documentary footage. The clips include everything from solid funk through peaceful acoustic Spanish guitar, rousing big band swing, parts of three songs by Willie Nelson, and a segment from a documentary on the life of reggae master Jimmy Cliff. Misnamed or not, this segment is interesting and entertaining to watch.

At just over fourteen minutes long, “Sport” includes documentaries featuring archival soccer footage with voice-over commentary in Italian, surfers talking about a giant wave alternated with surfing footage in black and white and colour, a biography of soccer player Diego Maradona, a segment of a documentary about Formula One race drivers, a Sensei demonstrating the various stances in Shotokan Karate, brief footage of several Ultimate Kickboxing matches, and an excerpt from the movie Joe Louis Story Interesting? Yes. Educational? Probably not. The clips are just too short and clearly meant as a tease so that those interested will be tempted to buy the DVD release.

A feature that appears on a number of Quantum Leap releases, “W.P.M.A.” is a seven minute plug for the World Peace Music Awards, a large televised concert event featuring hundreds of well-known musicians and broadcast worldwide. This promotional piece appears to have been pieced together from two earlier pieces advertising the concerts in San Francisco, California (2002) and Nagasaki, Japan (2005) plus other materials. While now out of date, this short video is still interesting to watch.

With eleven vintage hits and featuring live performances by three of the seminal girl-groups, this release is definitely a worthwhile addition to anyone’s collection of Sixties popular music. This is one that I’d definitely recommend, not just for fans in my generation but for younger listeners who’d like to discover some of their music’s roots.

Find a treasure trove of information on the Shirelles at the Official Homepage of The Shirelles and find even more at Wikipedia. You can learn more about The Angels at The Official Website of The Angels. You can find out about The Dixie Cups at The Dixie Cups Official Website or at Wikipedia. Also check out the Quantum Leap Online Catalogue.

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Music DVD Review: Johnny Tillotson (Rock ‘n Roll Legends: Johnny Tillotson)

Rock ‘n Roll Legends: Johnny Tillotson
Johnny Tillotson
Quantum Leap Group Ltd.
2005
Running Time: 60 minutes

This is the second of six reviews of DVD releases selected from the Quantum Leap “Rock ‘n Roll Legends” series featuring stars of the late-Fifties and early-Sixties. This DVD series is quirky and uneven, yet manages to be both interesting and entertaining.

These nostalgic releases feature live performances by popular stars, often years after they were in their prime, mostly at Little Darlin’s, a nostalgia club in Florida, but also at other locations. Some performances are taken from television or movies, including a documentary from Canada’s National Film Board. A horde of other popular stars, and some not so well known, make guest appearances. The visuals, on clips often apparently dubbed from old film stock, range from disconcertingly blurry to quite good but never flawless. Usually, the music makes up for the lack of visual clarity.

There’s a “Fanzone” that includes biography, discography and other background information. As well, the “Quantum Leap Propaganda” section features a variety of interesting, sometimes documentary plugs for events and products as well as web links.

While this “Rock ‘n Roll Legends” series includes other DVD releases, in these six alone, you can see performances by some 25 vintage artists, singing not only their own hits but other popular songs of the era. Any one of these releases provides an interesting, if eccentric, window on this past time. Together they present a fascinating pastiche of popular music as it was a half-century ago.

This release features two live sets by Johnny Tillotson, a total of ten vintage performces at two separate clubs in Orlando, Florida. The first set of four Tillotson hits was recorded at Little Darlin’s, The Rock ‘n Roll Palace. The second set, including five Tillotson hits plus a lively interpretation of Arthur Crudup’s “That’s All Right, Mama” was recorded at the Church Street Station Theatre. While “It Keeps Right On A Hurting” is included in this second set, it’s not listed in the set listing on the case. These two sets are quite different from one another. The Little Darlin’s concert is pretty standard golden oldies revival material, with the performances pretty much replicating the sound and style of the original recordings. At Church Street Station, Tillotson seems more relaxed, less the pop music performer and more a guy enjoying playing his music and interacting with the audience. This is a country music concert complete with steel guitar and all the musical frills that entered country music in the Sixties. The performances here are Tillotson at the top of his form, performing some of his top country music hits.

The bonus tracks on this release feature two classic sets. In a blast from the past, The Dovells perform their rocking hits “The Bristol Stomp” and “You Can’t Sit Down” at Little Darlin’s. New Seekers’ vocalist Lyn Paul sings a slightly rocked-up version of Johnny Ray’s “Cry” then takes a softer approach on a pure country interpretation of Tammy Wynette’s “Stand By Your Man” to an appreciative country music audience at Church Street Station. Here again, the bonus sets are quite different from one another and make an interesting contrast.

The “Fanzone” on this release features an extensive biography of Tillotson along with a very limited discography of his album releases only. These sections make interesting reading but, once again the visual quality is far less than ideal.

“Quantum Leap Propaganda” is more than just propaganda. It includes three interesting, if quirky and a bit rough in many aspects, clip-packed video presentations plus a brief commercial for the Quantum Leap website. Rather than complete finished productions, these short videos have the look and feel of samplers pieced together from diverse sources. The viewer never knows what will come next.

Showing up on several of these Quantum Leap releases, “W.P.M.A.” is a seven minute plug for the World Peace Music Awards concerts, a large event featuring hundreds of well-known musicians and broadcast worldwide. This promo appears to have been pieced together from two separate pieces advertising the concerts in San Francisco, California (2002) and in Nagasaki, Japan (2005) plus other materials. While now out of date, this short video is still interesting to watch.

Like the W.P.M.A.” promo, “Pure Pop” seems to be standard fare on releases in this series. At almost seventeen minutes long, “Pure Pop” is a pastiche of interesting clips that comes across as a chaotic attempt at a documentary film. It features a half-dozen or more popular stars in interviews, commentary and performance. The purpose appears to be to sell other Quantum Leap releases. At the left side of each title bar is what appears to be a release number. The clips include part of a documentary on New York songwriters featuring Neil Sedaka and Howard Greenfield; a musical performance from The Frank Sinatra Timex Show featuring Sinatra, Joey Bishop, Sammy Davis Jr. and others; a segment on Dusty Springfield featuring commentary from Petula Clark and others and a performance by Springfield of her signature song, “I Only Want To Be With You;” John Sebastian joking with his audience and then singing “What a Day for a Daydream;” very cool blues sung by Bonnie Koloc, a blues instrumental featuring the trumpet of Arturo Sandoval, and a long lost music video of “The Longest Time” by Billy Joel; and a dramatic segment from the movie “The Fabulous Dorseys.” Although the visual quality is inconsistent and often leaves a lot to be desired, this piece is still interesting to watch.

Perhaps the weirdest addition to the “Propaganda” section is the seventeen minute “How To” featuring a Holiday Spanish lesson, various artists in segments on painting with watercolours, a tutorial on Beginners Modern Jive, demonstrations of a boxing martial art called Muay Thai, a brief documentary on professional golfer Donna White meant to introduce a series of golf lessons, sailing lessons, lessons on playing acoustic guitar, and a video called “Women Fight Back” featuring martial arts training. Each of these segments is incomplete starting mid-stream and is clipped before the end. This video quality ranges from not very good to just plain awful. Again, there’s what appears to be a release number at the left side of each title bar So the purpose of this “How To” section may be to market other Quantum Leap releases featuring these various lessons.

Featuring thirteen live concert recordings, this release is worth owning for the music alone. As for the rest of it: well, those bonus segments do make for fun viewing. They’re silly and quirky enough to probably make good party-time viewing. I’d recommend this release for anyone who enjoys the old music and the stars who recorded it or for any Johnny Tillotson fan who’d like to see him in a live performance.

Find out more about Johnny Tillotson at the Johnny Tillotson Official Website or at Wikipedia. You can look up The Dovells at The Dovells Home Page or at Wikipedia. You’ll find information on Lyn Paul at The Lyn Paul Website or, again, at Wikipedia. Also check out the Quantum Leap Online Catalogue.

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Music DVD Review: Bobby Vee (Rock ‘n Roll Legends: Bobby Vee)

Rock ‘n Roll Legends: Bobby Vee
Bobby Vee
Quantum Leap Group Ltd.
2005
Running Time: 45 minutes

This is the first of six reviews of DVD releases selected from the Quantum Leap “Rock ‘n Roll Legends” series featuring stars of the late-Fifties and early-Sixties. This DVD series is quirky and uneven, yet manages to be both interesting and entertaining.These nostalgic releases feature live performances by popular stars, often years after they were in their prime, mostly at Little Darlin’s, a nostalgia club in Florida, but also at other locations. Some performances are taken from television or movies, including a documentary from Canada’s National Film Board. A horde of other popular stars, and some not so well known, make guest appearances. The visuals, on clips often apparently dubbed from old film stock, range from disconcertingly blurry to quite good but never flawless. Usually, the music makes up for the lack of visual clarity.

There’s a “Fanzone” that includes biography, discography and other background information. As well, the “Quantum Leap Propaganda” section features a variety of interesting, sometimes documentary plugs for events and products as well as web links.

While this “Rock ‘n Roll Legends” series includes other DVD releases, in these six alone, you can see performances by some 25 vintage artists, singing not only their own hits but other popular songs of the era. Any one of these releases provides an interesting, if eccentric, window on this past time. Together they present a fascinating pastiche of popular music as it was a half-century ago.

Rock ‘n Roll Legends: Bobby Vee features five of Bobby Vee’s biggest hits performed live at Little Darlin’s, The Rock ‘n Roll Palace in Orlando, Florida. The music is energetic and well-performed and the songs retain the sound of the original hit recordings. The audience is lively, filling the dance floor throughout the perfomance, and Vee is clearly having a ball interacting with them. There’s something a little off-centre about doing the bunny hop to “Walking With My Angel” or asking the dancers to twist to “Rubber Ball” but Vee and his audience carry it off. The track-listing on the package does not match the actual order of songs as performed.

Guest artists on this release are Danny and the Juniors, here called The Original Juniors, featuring three original members without the late Danny Rapp (1941-1983). Also performing at Little Darlin’s, The Original Juniors do a respectable job performing this music, sounding slicker and more “Vegas” than the original recordings I remember. Even so, this is good Rock and Roll, performed with sincerity and energy.

On this release, “Fanzone” features an extensive biography of Bobby Vee along with a comprehensive discography of his releases over the decades. These sections make interesting reading but, once again the visual quality is far less than ideal.

“Quantum Leap Propaganda” is more than just that. It includes three interesting, if rough in many aspects, clip-packed video presentations plus a brief commercial for the Quantum Leap website. Imagine the movie That’s Entertainment produced not by a professional but by a YouTube amateur and you’ll have a good idea what to expect in these video presentations.

Running almost seventeen minutes, “Pure Pop” is a pastiche of interesting clips that comes across as a chaotic attempted documentary film. It features a half-dozen or more popular stars in commentary and in performance. The purpose appears to be to sell other DVD selections. At the left side of each title bar is what appears to be a release number. Some of the clips you can see include part of a documentary on New York songwriters featuring Neil Sedaka and Howard Greenfield; a performance from The Frank Sinatra Timex Show featuring Sinatra, Joey Bishop, Sammy Davis Jr. and others; a segment on Dusty Springfield featuring commentary from Petula Clark and others and a performance by Springfield of her signature song, “I Only Want To Be With You;” John Sebastian joking with his audience and then singing “What a Day for a Daydream;” performances by Bonnie Koloc, Arturo Sandoval, and Billy Joel (in a long lost music video); and a segment from the movie “The Fabulous Dorseys.” Here as well, the visual quality leaves a lot to be desired but is more than made up for in historical interest.

At about seventeen minutes, “World Music” is set up along the same lines as “Pure Pop”, including the embedded release numbers, but features concert and interview clips of a variety of contemporary artists from around the world. Also included are clips of a children’s entertainer (a character garbed as a large indefinable animal) and documentary clips of dance teachers at work. Because of the music, the visuals, and the tight, fast pacing, this selection maintains a high interest level. For the most part, this section flows better and seems more unified that “Pure Pop” until near the end, where, for no apparent reason, there’s a short documentary clip on the rise and fall of communism.

“W.P.M.A.” is a seven minute plug for the World Peace Music Awards concerts, a large event featuring hundreds of well-known musicians and broadcast worldwide. While this promotional piece seems more unified than some of the other material on this release, it also seems to be pieced together from two separate pieces advertising the concerts in San Francisco, California (2002) and in Nagasaki, Japan (2005). This now outdated advertisement is mostly of interest for the documentary content included to support its cause.

Combining the pop rock of Bobby Vee with sanitized versions of Danny and the Juniors’ rock and roll, this release is a worthwhile investment for anyone interested in this vintage music. The additional video segments, while clearly advertisements and not that well produced, are just plain fun. I’d definitely recommend this DVD to anyone seeking a couple of hours light entertainment.

You’ll find more information on Bobby Vee at the Bobby Vee Home Page or at Wikipedia. You can look up Danny and the Juniors at the Official Danny and The Juniors Site or at Wikipedia. Also check out the Quantum Leap Online Catalogue.

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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: Texas Tornado (The Sir Douglas Band)

Texas Tornado
The Sir Douglas Band
Collectors’ Choice Music
2006
11 tracks

Although I’ve been a fan of the late Doug Sahm’s music for more than four decades, I’ve really been aware of only one facet of this artist’s multi-facetted work. I first discovered Sahm (1941-1999) through rockers like “She’s About A Mover” and “Mendocino” released by his Sir Douglas Quintet. Decades later, I found Sahm again at the heart of the Texas Tornados, a rocking band with a solid Tex-Mex attitude. My image of Sahm has been as a Tex-Mex rocker. In fact, Sahm is credited with having created much of the Tex-Mex sound as we recognize it today. Texas Tornado, an obscure title originally released in 1973, has shown me several new sides to the music of Doug Sahm.

Texas Tornado is a mixed bag of jazz, swing, Cajun, country and rock sounds that somehow hangs together in spite of itself. Most of the songs have that quiet sensibility that would relegate them to the afternoon drive slot on AM radio. While a couple of the songs are rockers, this is definitely not a rock album.

The impression I have is much the same as the first time I heard Bobby Darin sing a jazz song. I had first heard Darin singing songs like “Queen of the Hop” and “Splish Splash” as a young rock and roll star. I was very impressed to hear songs like “Mack the Knife” and “Beyond the Sea” performed so well by the same artist. Doug Sahm makes that same sort of seamless transition on this release, often sounding less like the lead singer of the Sir Douglas Quintet than Sammy Davis Jr. or John Prine. It appears that, in music, there was little if anything that this man could not do.

The title track, “Texas Tornado” is very much a country song, a roots rocker that would play well on any Americana chart. The lyric is a sort of Mellenkamp story of what happens as a tornado sweeps its way across Texas, clearing everything in its path. The interplay between Sahm’s guitar and the rocking piano provides a lively contrast to the steady drive of the rhythm section and gives a Rockabilly feel to Sahm’s very Country and Western vocal.

In contrast, songs like “Someday” and “Blue Horizon” take us back to jazz crooners like Mel Torme or Sammy Davis Jr. The band has a lively jazz sound, including flutes, brass section, and hand drums and Sahm proves that he can croon with the best of them. “Ain’t That Loving You” brings back the big band swing sounds of the same era with Sahm coming on strong like Frankie Laine or Bobby Troupe.

“Chicano” and “I’ll Be There” have a Cajun sound with a difference. Perhaps because much of the instrumentation is the same in the two styles, the ambience of these two songs seems to swing between Louisiana Cajun and Mexican country music. The result is a bright, interesting sound that makes good listening and should make good dancing.

While they have more of a swing-rock sound, “San Francisco FM Blues” and “Nitty Gritty” bring back some sense of the original Sir Douglas Quintet songs. As the first and last songs on this set, they bring this release a sort of historical continuity that serves it well.

Beyond the music, this CD includes extensive liner notes by Richie Unterberger. These notes provide an interesting and informative read, filling out the story of both the artist and his music.

Go to Wikipedia to learn everything you ever wanted to know about Doug Sahm. You can find songs by Doug Sahm in his various incarnations at the Sir Douglas Quintet and Genuine Texas Groover MySpace pages. There are many personal stories of Doug Sahm and his music on the Doug Sahm Memorial Page.

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