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April music reviews

Chicago: The Best of Chicago - 40th Anniversary

Rhino Records

Hmm. 30 tracks over two CDs. How we wait for a well-remastered good compilation from one of rocks most seminal bands, Chicago. Sadly we are still waiting. I couldn’t get it at first, memory being what it is, but further investigation revealed these are in fact the radio versions of some now very classic tracks. The fine print on the cover states “Features 30 Top 40 Radio hits”. 25 Or 6 To 4, Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is? Saturday In The Park – they keep coming but something is missing. Sometimes a complete verse, sometimes a guitar solo. Not a bad nostalgia trip in the car but as I said a big Hmm. And given Rhino’s usual excellence at remastering we now have to accept that the quality just isn’t there to start with. Seek an earlier compilation to get the fuller picture. Allan McFarlane

Guy Clark: Hindsight 21/20 – The Anthology 1975-1995

Raven Records

A legend among poets that sing, Guy Clark has led the pack of troubadours that invented the genre label “Americana”. The at times alarming honest of his lyrics and the well-crafted settings he composers mark him as an undisputed leader of the genre, though the battle weary-drunk-down in his luck traveler he so often pens can be wearisome for some. Clark continues to tour and record extensively.

Hindsight 21/20 brings a welcome compilation of material covering 20 years. For unknown reasons not all of these tracks have made it to CD making this release all the more welcome, and thanks go to the ever enterprising Australian label Raven records for their efforts in making this happen.

Whoever put this together really knows their Guy Clark. This is a dream compilation skillfully picking the eyes out of a disparate catalogue with as good a selection as could be wished for, Texas Cookin’, Boats To Build, and The South Coast of Texas being notable standouts.

Sound quality suggests master tracks have been located and the booklet provides a good introduction for those that need it. For those that don’t, don’t hesitate. A great mix of memories and discoveries. Allan McFarlane

Eagles: Long Road Out Of Eden

Eagles Recording Co

It’ s a long road out of 1978, when I was but a lad busy plastering my bedroom walls with Eagles posters, to today when I find myself reviewing a new studio album by a relatively intact Eagles band 30 years on.

Long Road Out of Eden is reported to have been the biggest selling album in the US of A in 2007. Well done lads, but talk about keeping your die hard fans hanging on the longest string! New songs penned by Henley, Frey and co have been far and few since the last studio album The Long Run in 1979.

A new studio album by the Eagles was always to be something worth writing about. Long Road Out Of Eden is, in my view, a mixed bag and definitely worthy of discussion. Initial listening to the 20 song/2 CD album was simply disappointing. In fact, had I not given the album time I would have well and truly slammed it for being corny, out of touch and the biggest comeback album failure, ever. I admit to being almost in denial that the Eagles I loved were now reduced to producing pedestrian music and without their main guitarist, Don Felder.

But, but, but. Hold it right there, more time yielded more favourable results - so much so that Long Road Out Of Eden is a collection of satisfying, well crafted and catchy pop songs deserving of a more approving appraisal.

For my money, the best song on the album is Waiting In The Weeds, a Don Henley penned and sung ballad in the same vein as The Last Worthless Evening and The Heart Of The Matter from his 1989 solo album. Another strong song is How Long, an obvious single with its chugging guitar and clear bloodline back to Take It Easy (1972) and Already Gone (1974). Joe Walsh’s funk flavoured Last Good Time In Town is a beauty. Original Eagle Glenn Frey chimes in on the driving and rock-edged Somebody, a straightforward boogie.

Timothy B Schmitt, bass player and Eagle since only 30 years ago, steps up to microphone on no less than three ballads. The advancing years since I Can’t Tell You Why appear to have thinned out Schmitt’s always delicate vocals and the songs, while adding to the “let’s share the work around guys” sit closer to the bottom of my favourite tracks list.

Felder replacement Steuart Smith is worth noting as appearing as co-writer of many of the songs. While SS may know his instrument, it’s a hard road to find the perfect Felder replacement, son!

All in all, Long Road Out of Eden will keep most Eagles fans happy for most of the time. The production values are high and the musical performances excellent. It is commendable that, like 1994s Hell Freezes Over the band can come together and produce new work. In a bizarre way, we should be grateful to be blessed with 20 new songs! However, it’s been over 30 years since the Eagles were at their peak with One Of These Nights (1975) and Hotel California (1977).

The Eagles I cut my teeth on through my formative years are still around. The new album has so much to live up to that I can’t see Long Road Out of Eden getting the air-time on my hi-fi it probably deserves.
Oh, by the way, it is compulsory that one owns all back catalogue Eagles before buying this album! You knew that anyway. Lloyd Macomber

Herbie Hancock: Possibilities

Hear Music

Hot on the heels of other collaborative ventures Herbie Hancock has released a genre breaking collection featuring a mix of artists and styles. Artists as different as Damien Rice, Sting and Christina Aguilera, to name a few step up to explore Possibilities.

The album opens with Stitched Up a funky and upbeat track from John Mayer. Herbie Hancock’s piano provides a perfect foil to Mayer’s guitar and right from the start you are reminded that Hancock is no one trick pony. In a complete change of pace Annie Lennox does a smouldering version of Paula Cole’s Hush Hush Hush that is just mesmerising. Piano flourishes flesh out the otherwise sparse musical landscape. Sting’s Sister Moon is another opportunity for Herbie to display his versatility. He slips easily in the groove adding his own signature to the already cool track. One of the most enjoyable performances on the album is Jonny Lang and Joss Stone doing the classic When Love Comes to Town. Jonny and Joss share the singing duties while Herbie does his best to drag the song it a totally new direction.

Although these tracks have been recorded on both sides of the Atlantic most tracks were mixed by the same person and so the album is reasonably consistent. The sound quality while slight variable is generally very good.

All in all, Possibilities is a great listen that clearly displays the depth of talent of this truly iconic artist. Warmly recommended. Richard Nelson

Jimmy Eat World: Chase the Light

Interscope Records

Big choruses, slick production and chiming pop-rock guitar – this album contains all the elements we’ve come to expect from Jimmy Eat World (JEW).

The album kicks off with Big Casino - an upbeat rocker which sets the tone for a generally fast-paced album. This is followed by another top tune in Let it Happen. Electable is a guitar driven rocker with a multi-vocaled chorus. Things are taken down a bit by Gotta Be Somebody’s Blues which kind of acts as the end of Side 1 of the album before the pace picks up again with Feeling Lucky.

JEW generally make sure they close their albums with a bang, saving a quality track for the end. This album’s closer is Dizzy, which certainly doesn’t disappoint – emotional vocals, big drums, and chainsaw guitar!

There’s a bit of a Wall of Sound feel to the production, and having seen the band live (way back in 2000) I can confirm that in a live setting they deliver a full frontal assault. It’s difficult to recreate this live feel on CD, and in some ways the sound on this album is a little too clean, but the quality of the songs - especially the trademark soaring choruses, make up for this.

JEW are the kind of band who seem to be able to appeal across a number of genres –including the more commercial end of the alternative/Emo scene, as well as the more pop oriented Fall Out Boy crowd. So if you’re a fan of this style of music and haven’t checked out JEW then this album would be good place to start.

A goody! Douglas Lang

Killers: Sawdust

Island

This feels like a bit of a filler album to me –made up of some remixes of tracks like Mr. Brightside, some covers, and outtakes from the likes of the Hot Fuss and Sam’s Town album sessions.

There’s an okay cover of Joy Division’s Shadowplay and some other “interesting” other covers of Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love To Town and Dire Straits’ Romeo and Juliet – but why? This is a song which I never liked when Dire Straits sang it and I have to say that The Killers’ version hasn’t made me change my mind about the song – it’s still dross!

But there’s some good stuff in here – including the rocking All the Pretty Faces, the piano-driven version of Sam’s Town and the remixes of Where the White Boys Dance and Mr. Brightside.

Provided you look at this as a bit of a disparate collection of material to keep Killers’ fans happy until the third album comes out, then there is plenty to be enjoyed in its 18 tracks. Just don’t expect a perfectly-formed album – because I think you may find it too up and down in style and quality for that. Nevertheless it’s actually pretty good! Douglas Lang

Rolling Stones: Rolled Gold +

ABKCO/Universal

A few years ago the pre-1971 Rolling Stones catalog was overhauled and remastered, with wonderful results. However, in the 1960s album releases in the UK and USA for pop bands were often quite different and the remastered releases concentrated on the USA versions, rather than UK albums.

This reissue of the 1975 double album compilation is welcome, therefore, as it concentrates on the UK single releases. Starting off with their first single, the 1963 cover of the Chuck Berry song Come On, the CD dives straight into other early Stones releases: Lennon-McCartney’s I Wanna Be Your Man, Buddy Holly’s Not Fade Away and Carol,h another Berry composition. One highlight of the first CD is their last real blues number, the UK #1 Little Red Rooster. From there it’s into the Rolling Stones purple patch: The Last Time, Satisfaction etc, on through to the end of the 1960s.

The “plus” addition to the title refers to twelve extra tracks over and above that found on the original album including, curiously, four songs from their first non-Decca album, Sticky Fingers. Many of the additions are Stones classics, such as Tell Me and Heart of Stone, and are very welcome.

This is a wonderful addition to the CD catalog for the Rolling Stones. Michael Jones

Sweet Honey and the Rock: Experience… 101

Appleseed Recordings.

Think Southern U.S.A. Think Black. Think early 60’s. Unaccompanied female voices in tight harmony, as clean and pure as an early Elvis movie. Think of walking past a church on a gentle autumn Sunday morning. The music floats past you. You believe that education will get you everything and that the family and a prayer session will solve most things. The American way is right. God is in his heaven. JFK and Marilyn will live forever.

In any of this rings a bell with you: then you must buy this CD. So why did I even chose to review this? Well it is beautifully done and what’s wrong with nostalgia anyway? John Groom

Thin Lizzy: Live and Dangerous

Mercury

This remastered version of Thin Lizzy’s seminal live album from 1978 certainly brings back a few memories for me. I used to have a vinyl copy of this album, but unfortunately that got sold a while back when I had a clear out. As a result I’m not able to make a direct comparison of the new and the old version and report on any major differences in sound quality or mix levels between the two.

However the sound on this version seems pretty clean to me, with a good sense of space between the various instruments (for a live album).

All the old Lizzy favourites are on here – opening with a storming version of Jailbreak; a classy version of Bob Seger’s Rosalie; and of course The Boys are Back in Town. There’s a bluesy interlude in the shape of Still in Love With You before things get nice and raucous again for the closers including Are You Ready, a storming version of Suicide and The Rocker.

If your old vinyl version of this has worn out I’d recommend replacing it with this new version. I’ve certainly had a lot of fun reminiscing about the 70s with this as my soundtrack. Douglas Lang

McCoy Tyner: Afro Blue

Telarc

Piano man Mc Coy Tyner presents to us a collection of eight songs compiled from five albums during the period of 1998 to 2003. From the latin sound of Afro Blue we are taken on a south American journey with the help of Gary Bartz on saxophone & Dave Valentin on Flute.

Moving onto his own jazz roots, Tyner performs George Gershwin’s piano track Summertime in a smooth jazz style that wouldn’t be a miss in a seedy, smoky, dark café somewhere in the world.

With the assistance of Stanley Clarke on acoustic guitar and bass and Al Foster on drums, Carriba is an upbeat track that goes into a great acoustic guitar solo while being led by Tyner’s leading piano lines.

A great album by Telarc which lets us appreciate the diverse sounds of McCoy Turner in collaboration with numerous other talented jazz musicians. Favourite track is the fast paced but stylish Blue Bossa. Magnificent! Ants Fong

The Valves: Liberty Angel

Broken Records

This debut offering from Christchurch rock outfit The Valves reminds me at times of fellow Kiwi rockers Shihad (One in Ten) and The Feelers, and Aussie band Jet (Light it Up).

Gritty lead vocals from Brent Black are in the style of Jon Toogood of Shihad and, like Toogood, he too is backed by a proficient and solid, guitar, bass and drum supporting cast.

The album contains some decent tunes but it is let down by the production which is a little one dimensional at times. I’m not sure I can say exactly what the problem is but it kind of sounds like the band were playing in another part of the studio from where the mikes were set up. As a result there is a veil over the sound and a resulting lack of excitement and crispness. In some ways it’s a bit like a Feelers album whose albums I sometimes find sound a bit ‘ordinary’. James Reid (The Feelers frontman) produced the album, and so this may account for this aspect of sound.

The tracks that stand out tend to be those with a bit more light and shade and variety to them (Walking in the Rain has a nice piano riff through it; and Before and After rises and falls in a kind of Coldplayish way;).

In summary, it’s okay but unlikely to set the world on fire. My recommendation for next time would be to find a producer who is going to allow The Valves sound to come through. The sound on this one doesn’t cut it for me and detracts from the songs themselves. Douglas Lang

Various: Sweet Soul Music – The Best of Stax

Concord

Packed with over 50 soul classics, this double CD provides you with a smorgasbord of music from the Stax Stable of artists. CD 1 features well known classics such as Sam & Dave’s Soul Man and the 70’s smooth sound of the Theme from Shaft by Isaac Hayes to other gems such as Linda Lyndell’s What a man and Mr Big Stuff by Jean Knight. There’s the oddball track like Rufus Thomas with Do the Funky Chicken and the Mod sounds of Booker T & the MG’s Green Onions.

CD2 opens with one of the Stax anthems (Sittin’ on) the Dock of the Bay by the one and only Otis Redding. This is followed by a very soulful version of Burt Bacharach’s Walk on by by Mr Isaac Hayes. Favourite tracks include William Bell’s beautiful I Forgot to be your Lover and soulful vocals of The Soul Children with I’ll be the other woman.

Overall a good collection of soul music from all different perspectives. Ants Fong

Neil Young: Chrome Dreams II

Reprise Records

Neil Young is a man on a mission. At a time when most artists have difficulty putting out an album every couple of years, Young has released three albums in as many years. Chrome Dreams was scrapped in 1977 and two tracks on the new album come from that failed project. The album also contains seven new tracks.

The center piece of the album is one of the old tracks, the 18 minute long epic Ordinary People complete with brass accompaniment and nine verses. No Hidden Path is the other track from 1977 and it is also of epic proportions coming in at over 14 minutes. Half the remaining tracks fit with the feel of the two songs from the original Chrome Dreams. These tracks include Box Car, Spirit Road and the grungy Dirty Old Man. Some of the remaining songs don’t feel like they belong on this album at all. The sickly sweet Beautiful Bluebird and Shining Light sound like discards from Prairie Wind and perhaps they should have stayed in the bin. However this is a very enjoyable listen with some excellent moments if a little changeable.

This album contrasts sharply from the plushly produced Prairie Wind. While Prairie Wind was a triumph of studio production this album has more of a live-in-studio atmosphere. My copy was HDCD and sound quality is good but not excellent. Neil Young has been working hard and long may it continue. Richard Nelson

Mozart: Sinfonia concertante

Pentatone Classics

Julia Fischer (violin); Gordan Nikoli? (viola); Netherlands Chamber Orchestra conducted by Yakov Kreizberg

Mozart: Sinfonia concertante for Violin, Viola and Orchestra in E flat, K.364; Rondo for Violin and Orchestra in C, K.373; Concertone for 2 Violins and Orchestra in C, K.190

Julia Fischer, though born as recently as 1983 already enjoys a highly successful career as violinist worldwide with a large following in North America. This release has earned good press for her and her colleagues performances. However it is a release that failed to spark for myself and seems to offer little that has me searching for superlatives to mark its welcome. In summary others have enjoyed it more. Allan McFarlane

Various: Masters and Commanders

Telarc Records

Erich Kunzel and the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra

Alfred Newman: Conquest from Captain from Castile. Mikos Rozsa: The Mayflower from Plymouth Adventure. Badelt: The Medallion Calls; The Black Pearl. He's a Pirate. Hans Zimmer: Jack Sparrow; Hornpipe. Erich Wolfgang Korngold: Overture to Captain Blood. Luigi Boccherini: Los Manolos from Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. Elmer Bernstein: Prelude; Out to Sea. Franz Waxman: Overture to Anne of the Indies. Henry Mancini: Artic Whale Hunt from the White Dawn. Korngold: Suite from The Sea Hawk. Bronislau Kaper: Main Title from Mutiny on the Bounty. Waxman: Suite from Captain Courageous. Morton Gould: Main Title ("The Ship") from Windjammer. John Debney: End Title from Cutthroat Island

Given the reviewers lot is to hear the good along with the bad it was some trepidation that I accepted this disc for review. Well blow me down me hearties, what a jolly fine sonic romp this turned out to be. Okay, there is perhaps one or two musical clichés too many but the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra seems to revel in them as I do in their playing. Fear not if the titles above are unfamiliar, be assured of a bountiful time, largely in a major key. The Telarc sound is once again brilliantly realistic, the music is mostly well worth hearing, the playing is virtuositic. What are you waiting for? Cast off. Allan McFarlane