Tommy Conwell And The Young Rumblers - Rumble (1988)

Most bar bands aren't fortunate enough to cut one great song, but Tommy Conwell & the Young Rumblers pulled off a killer with "I'm Not Your Man," the first song and single on their 1988 debut, Rumble. It's a lean, mean slice of attitude and raunch, sanded somewhat by the major-label production they received the kind that was applied to any major-label act at the tail end of the '80s.
Arriving in the big leagues just when Stevie Ray Vaughan was turning into a superstar, Conwell & the Young Rumblers were give perhaps a bit more polish than they really deserved enough to slide them onto the AOR charts but not enough to remove that growling East Coast attitude that gives Rumble enduring appeal even when the sound of the record feels a bit slick, a bit like a rejected campaign for Miller Light because Eric Clapton had a sudden crisis of conscience after "After Midnight."
Where Conwell stumbles on Rumble is when he guns for anthems pitched halfway between John Mellencamp and John Cafferty, as when the first side screeches to a halt on "Love's on Fire." Conwell gets things twisting again almost immediately with the clever boogie "Workout," which is pitched much closer to his comfort zone of revved-up old-time rock & roll, performed with more wit, swagger, and verve than George Thorogood. “Rumble” doesn't hit that target quite as often as you'd like, but almost all of the misses feel like concessions to get Conwell & the Young Rumblers on the radio, whether it's the stiff, sequenced production not enough to kill a shuffle like "Everything They Say Is True" but enough to hamper it or those wannabe crossovers.
But, as post-SRV crossover productions go, this has some life in it and it's never enough to erase the power of the album's best songs the urgent "Half a Heart" (their best stab at Springsteen); the tightly wound Bo Diddley rocker "Tell Me What You Want Me to Be"; the nasty boogie "Walkin' on the Water"; and "I'm Not Your Man," which is as great a roots rocker as the late '80s produced, and reason enough for the group to get its shot at the big time.

Track listing

01. "I'm Not Your Man"  (Tommy Conwell)  - 4:17 
02. "Half A Heart"  - 3:39 
03. "If We Never Meet Again"  (Albert E. Brumley, Jules Shear)  - 4:44 
04. "Love's On Fire"  - 4:32 
05. "Workout"  - 3:37 
06. "I Wanna Make You Happy"  - 4:48 
07. "Everything They Say Is True" -  4:00 
08. "Gonna Breakdown"  - 4:57 
09. "Tell Me What You Want Me To Be"  - 3:25 
10. "Walkin' On The Water"  - 3:56 

Credits
Vocals, Guitar – Tommy Conwell
Bass – Paul Slivka
Drums – Jim Hannum
Guitar – Christopher Day
Keyboards – Rob Miller
Engineer - David Thoener, John Agnello
Producer – Rick Chertoff

Notes
Genre:  Blues Rock
Length:  37:30
Label:  Columbia Records

© 1988

Kris Kristofferson & Rita Coolidge - Full Moon (1973)

“Full Moon” is a duet album by Kris Kristofferson and Rita Coolidge, released in 1973 on A&M Records. It is the first of three duet albums by the couple, who married the year before the album's release. Unlike Kristofferson solo albums, it features several covers.
Kris Kristofferson was at his commercial peak as a recording artist at the time that “Full Moon”, his first duo album with Rita Coolidge, was released in September 1973. His single "Why Me" had topped the country charts two months earlier, and his album Jesus Was a Capricorn was about to do the same thing. And, only weeks before “Full Moon's” release, the couple had gotten married. All of that made for a terrific send-off for the record, which benefited the careers of both participants. Not surprisingly, it was an album of love songs. Despite Kristofferson's greater celebrity, the LP was made with Coolidge's strengths in mind. David Anderle, its producer, was her producer, and it was released on her record label, A&M. The songs were set in her key, with Kristofferson crooning along in an unusually high register.
The tempos were mostly slow, emphasizing the dreamy quality of Coolidge's voice. And the songs were mostly covers, though there were two joint compositions by the couple, one old Kristofferson song ("From the Bottle to the Bottom," a Top 20 country hit for Billy Walker in 1969), and one new Kristofferson tune, the Caribbean-flavored "A Song I'd Like to Sing," which was released as the first single and became a Top 40 pop hit while also reaching the country and easy listening charts. With that, the album became a number one country hit. "From the Bottle to the Bottom" won the 1973 Grammy Award for Best Country Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group. The album's second single, a cover of Tom Jans' "Loving Arms," also made the pop, country, and easy listening charts, and because it was released in the 1974 eligibility period for the Grammy Awards, it earned the couple a second nomination in the same category the following year.

Track listing

01. "Hard to Be Friends"  (Larry Murray)  - 3:25
02. "It's All Over (All Over Again)"  (Coolidge, Kristofferson)  - 2:45
03. "I Never Had It So Good"  (Roger Nichols, Paul Williams)  - 4:08
04. "From the Bottle to the Bottom"  (Kristofferson)  - 4:06
05. "Take Time to Love"  (Donnie Fritts, Tony Joe White)  - 2:55
06. "Tennessee Blues"  (Bobby Charles)  - 5:20
07. "Part of Your Life"  (Allan Rich, Margaret Ann Rich)  - 3:09
08. "I'm Down (But I Keep Falling)"  (Coolidge, Kristofferson)  - 3:08
09. "I Heard the Bluebirds Sing"  (Hod Pharis)  - 2:48
10. "After the Fact"  (Stephen Bruton)  - 5:05
11. "Loving Arms"  (Tom Jans)  - 3:50
12. "Song I'd Like to Sing"  (Kristofferson)  - 4:00

Credits
Kris Kristofferson - vocals
Rita Coolidge - vocals
Michael Utley - keyboards
Sammy Creason - drums
Donnie Fritts - keyboards
Stephen Bruton - guitar
Terry Paul - bass
Leland Sklar - bass
Jerry McGee - guitar, harmonica
Bobbye Hall - percussion
David Bromberg - guitar
Nick DeCaro
David Smith
Gary Scruggs - harmonica, bass, guitar, piano, organ, percussion
Randy Scruggs - guitar
Vassar Clements - fiddle
Josh Graves - dobro
Booker T. Jones - keyboards, oboe
Herb Alpert - trumpet
Strings arranged by Campbell-Kurban & performed by the Campbell-Kurban String Section
Produced by - David Anderle
Recording engineer - John Haeny
Mixing engineer - David Anderle
Mixing assistant - Rick Tarantini
Mastered at Mastering Lab, by - Doug Sax

Notes
Recorded at Sunset Sound Studios, Los Angeles, California
Genre:  Country
Length:  41:51
Label: A&M Records

© 1973

Billy Crystal - Mahvelous! (1985)

In 1982, Billy Crystal hosted his own variety show, The Billy Crystal Comedy Hour on NBC. When Crystal arrived to shoot the fifth episode, he learned it had been canceled after only the first two aired. After hosting Saturday Night Live twice on March 17, 1984 and the show's ninth season finale on May 5, he joined the regular cast for the 1984-85 season. His most famous recurring sketch was his parody of Fernando Lamas, a smarmy talk-show host whose catchphrase, "You look... mahvelous!," became a media sensation. Crystal subsequently released an album of his stand-up material titled Mahvelous! in 1985, as well as the single "You Look Marvelous", which peaked at No. 58 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US.
“Mahvelous” is a budget-line sampler of Billy Crystal's Saturday Night Live routines, which helped make him a star in the early to mid-'80s. Although it's better to experience the material with the visuals, it is kind of handy to have a lot of it all in one place.
Most of the tracks here are taken from a live standup performance at The Bottom Line in New York City. It's pretty funny stuff. But the highlight is the studio recording "I Hate When That Happens", which features Billy and Christopher Guest doing their "Willie & Frankie" characters from Saturday Night Live. There is also a song by "Fernando Lamas" called "You Look Marvelous", which is pretty funny. The album closes with "Fernando's Special Gift", which is an answering machine message you could actually use on your machine, if you wanted.

Track listing

01. "I Hate When That Happens" (feat. Special Guest) (Christopher Guest)  - 5:16 
02. "Live" From The Bottom Line"  (Billy Crystal)  - 5:21 
03. "Godammit, You... Bastard"  (Billy Crystal)  - 3:20 
04. "A Mind Of It's Own"  (Billy Crystal)  - 5:12 
05. "Now!"  (Billy Crystal)  - 4:58 
06. "Sammy For Africa" (feat. Special Appearance By Paul Shaffer)  (Billy Crystal)  - 3:22 
07. "You Look Marvelous"  (Billy Crystal, Paul Shaffer)  - 4:24 
08. "Where's Your Messiah Now?"  (Billy Crystal)  - 2:29 
09. "Buddy Young, Jr."  (Billy Crystal)  - 2:44 
10. "Howard Cosell, Right There!"  (Billy Crystal)  - 5:03 
11. "Face"   (Billy Crystal)  - 8:27 
12. "Fernando's Special Gift"  (Billy Crystal)  - 0:25 

Credits
Guitar – Dan Huff
Keyboards – Greg Phillinganes
Saxophone – Kim Hutchcroft, Larry Williams
Trombone – Bill Reichenbach
Trumpet – Gary Grant, Jerry Hey
Voice – Bob Tischler
Coordinator [Reissue Project Coordination] – Jeff Fura, Lynise Levine
Executive Producer – Billy Crystal
Producer – Bob Tischler
Written-By – (Billy Crystal)

Notes
Genre:  Non-Music, Comedy
Length:  51:08
Label:  A&M Records

© 1985

Stewart Copeland - The Rhythmatist (1985)

Stewart Armstrong Copeland (born July 16, 1952) is an American musician, multi-instrumentalist and composer best known as the drummer for the band the Police and for his film music soundtracks. He has also written various pieces of music for ballet, opera and orchestra.
With the breakup of the Police, the bandmembers found themselves free to indulge their personal musical obsessions. And so while Sting made a very lucrative venture into working with jazz musicians a logical step for a bassist Stewart Copeland made a drummer's pilgrimage to Africa. Combining field recordings with Copeland's multi-instrumental work in an Assyrian studio, “The Rhythmatist” is light years ahead of his sophomorically amiable work as Klark Kent.
The album and accompanying video didn't make much of a dent in any market, except among fellow drummers and die-hard Police fans. It's an unfortunate oversight, because its enthusiastic world music fusion has held up better than the other Police solo efforts of this period. The album as a whole focuses on (not surprisingly) the rhythm section of tastefully syncopated drums and percussion against a backdrop of atmospheric synthesizers. Ray Lema's chorused vocals over the pulsing beat of "Koteja" are absolutely hypnotic, while Copeland's dry narration after the clattering drum solo of "Serengeti Long Walk" is awkwardly endearing.

Track listing

01.  "Koteja" (Oh Bolilla)  (Ray Lema)  - 3:31 
02.  "Brazzaville"  (Stewart Copeland)  - 4:10  
03.  "Liberté"  (M.D.Baliardo, P.Baliardo, T.Baliardo, J.Bouchikhi, S.Copeland, R.Lema, A.Reyes, N.Reyes  - 4:04  
04.  "Coco"  (Stewart Copeland)  - 3:55 
05.  "Kemba"  (Stewart Copeland, Ray Lema)  - 5:55  
06.  "Samburu Sunset"  (Stewart Copeland)  - 6:16    
07.  "Gong Rock"  (Stewart Copeland)  - 3:36  
08.  "Franco"  (Stewart Copeland)  - 2:11  
09.  "Serengeti Long Walk"  (Stewart Copeland)  - 4:27  
10.  "African Dream"  (Stewart Copeland, Wasis Diop)  - 3:25 

Credits
Vocals – Ray Lema
Composed By – Ray Lema, Stewart Copeland
Guitar, Bass, Piano, Keyboards, Percussion, Vocals, Computer [Programmes] – Stewart Copeland
Engineer, Producer – Jeff Seitz, Stewart Copeland

Notes
Recorded By [Studio Sounds]
Genre:  Instrumental, Score, Pop
Length:  41:28
Label:  A&M Records

© 1985

Leo Unger - Run To The Sunshine (1974)

Leo Unger is een Nederlandse zanger/gitarist, geb. 20 dec 1936 uit Den Haag die jarenlang met zijn oude Otwin gitaar een éénmansband vormde. De band waarin hij speelde -The Low Down Blues Group- won  in 1965 het Loosdrechts Jazz Concours. Toen de lol er af was begon hij, samen met zijn vrouw Petra en de latere frontman van Gruppo Sportivo Hans vandenburg, de Leo Unger Group.  Onder Leo Unger word een LP gemaakt, "Run to the sunshine" waarvan de gelijknamige single in 1974 een 20e plaats in de hitparade haalt en in de Nederlandse uitvoering bekend is van Loeki Knol onder de titel Algebra.  Dit album werd geproduceerd door Will Luikinga, voormalig DJ bij Veronica.  http://www.bing.com/translator/

Track listing

01.  Run to the Sunshine  - 3:30
02.  Afternoon  - 3:08
03.  Big house  - 4:22
04.  It's nu use  - 3:31
05.  Sitting in a manhole  - 2:47
06.  Fences  - 3:30
07.  Old Kentucky home  - 2:52
08.  It isn't really like they say  - 4:34
09.  Pretty flower (In your backyard)  - 3:41
10.  Silver lining love  - 2:50
11.  Midnight special  - 4:04
12.  Will You Miss Me  - 4:16

Notes
Genre:  Pop
Label:  Polydor
Lenght:  43:05
Producer:  Will Luikinga

© 1974

Iggy Pop - American Caesar (1993)

Boasting a big-name producer and appearances from a handful of actual mainstream rock stars, Brick by Brick was a remarkably successful attempt (critically, if not commercially) to create an "event album" around Iggy Pop, so the follow-up came as a surprise “American Caesar” was cut fast and loose in a New Orleans studio, with Malcolm Burn (hardly known for his work in hard rock) in the producer's chair and Pop's road band backing him up. But the real surprise was that “American Caesar” ranks with Pop's very best solo work.
Dark, loud, and atmospheric, it's a far riskier album than “Brick by Brick”, lyrically following that disc's themes of America teetering on the edge of internal collapse with the same degree of hard-won maturity, but adding a wacked-out passion and force that recall the heady days of Raw Power. While Pop's group doesn't play with the subtlety of the studio cats on “Brick by Brick” (I'll leave it to others to debate if they won't or they can't), they also sound tight and forceful, like a real band with plenty of muscle and some miles under their belts.
Eric Schermerhorn's guitar meshes with Pop's vocals as well as anyone he's worked with since Ron Asheton, and Malcolm Burn's production is clear and detailed but adds subtle textures that season the formula just right. The hard rockers are full-bodied ("Wild America," "Plastic and Concrete"), the calmer tunes still bristle with tension and menace ("Mixing the Colors," "Jealousy"), the few moments of calm sound sincere and richly earned ("Highway Song," "It's Our Love"), the manic rewritten remake of "Louie Louie" actually tops the version on Metallic K.O., and the title cut is a bizarre bit of spoken-word performance art that's as strange as the entirety of Zombie Birdhouse, and a rousing success where that album was a brave failure.
In a note printed on the CD itself, Pop says of “American Caesar”, "I tried to make this album as good as I could, with no imitations of other people and no formula sh*t." And Pop succeeded beyond anyone's expectations; “American Caesar” is an overlooked masterpiece.

Track listing

01.  "Character"  (Pop, Eric Schermerhorn)  - 1:07
02.  "Wild America"  (Pop, Eric Schermerhorn)  - 5:52
03.  "Mixin' the Colors"  (Iggy Pop)  - 4:49
04.  "Jealousy"  (Iggy Pop)  - 6:04
05.  "Hate"  (Iggy Pop)  - 6:56
06.  "It's Our Love" ( Iggy Pop)  - 4:09
07.  "Plastic & Concrete"  (Iggy Pop)  - 2:55
08.  "Fuckin' Alone"  (Pop, Eric Schermerhorn)  - 4:56
09.  "Highway Song"  (Iggy Pop)  - 3:44
10.  "Beside You"  (Steve Jones, Pop)  - 4:29
11.  "Sickness"  (Iggy Pop)  - 3:15
12.  "Boogie Boy"  (Iggy Pop)  - 4:53
13.  "Perforation Problems"  (Iggy Pop)  - 3:15
14.  "Social Life"  (Iggy Pop)  - 4:12
15.  "Louie Louie"  (Richard Berry)  - 3:47
16.  "Caesar"  (Pop, Eric Schermerhorn)  - 7:09
17.  "Girls of N.Y."  (Iggy Pop)  - 4:15

Credits
Iggy Pop - guitar, vocals
Eric Schermerhorn - guitar
Malcolm Burn - guitar, keyboards, harmonica
Hal Cragin - bass
Larry Mullins - drums, percussion
Jay Joyce - guitar
Bill Dillon - guitar
Darryl Johnson - percussion
Henry Rollins - backing vocals
Katell Keineg - backing vocals
Lisa Germano - backing vocals
Producer - Malcolm Burn

Notes
Recorded sy Kingsway Studio, New Orleans and Bearsville Studios, NY
Genre: Rock, Pop
Length: 71:32

© 1993 Virgin Records

Chi Coltrane - Chi Coltrane (1972)

It's clear from the opening moments of Chi Coltrane's self-titled debut that she's a singer/songwriter a few musical cuts above the rest. Primarily, this is down to her piano playing. Where even the most respected artists of the genre could only play basic block chords or arpeggios (Laura Nyro and Joni Mitchell, respectively), Coltrane is a player's player, and the equal of any session musician. The 11 songs on Chi Coltrane give her ample opportunity to show off. "Thunder and Lightning" (an absolute white soul gem) was her first single and a Top 20 hit, but it tells only a fraction of the story. The rest of the album displays a complete mastery and understanding of gospel ("Go Like Elijah"), as well music of both the Classical and Romantic periods ("The Wheel of Life"), and in addition, she comes up with a few hybrids of her own ("You Were My Friend"). Her vocals, alternatively tender, spirited, angry, and with a wonderful on-the-verge-of-tears quality, are at odds with the dreamy inertia of most mid-'70s performers. They invest every cut with a compelling sense of drama and anxiety.
Coltrane may not be a top-drawer wordsmith (although she's certainly quite good), but her lyrics are clear-headed, unpretentious, and direct. For subject matter, she draws mainly on love, friendship, religion (tentatively), and philosophy. Although much press attention focussed on her glacial, blonde good looks (think a less scary, pre-heroin Nico), this album was a triumph of style and substance in equal measure.

Track listing

01.  "Thunder and Lightning"  (Chi Coltrane)  - 3:03
02.  "Goodbye John"  (Chi Coltrane)  - 4:12
03.  "You Were My Friend"  (Chi Coltrane)  - 3:47
04.  "Turn Me Around"  (Chi Coltrane)  - 4:13
05.  "Go Like Elijah"  (Chi Coltrane)  - 3:59
06.  "The Tree"  (Chi Coltrane)  - 3:58
07.  "Feelin' Good"  (Chi Coltrane)  - 3:56
08.  "It's Really Come to This"  (Chi Coltrane)  - 3:21
09.  "I Will Not Dance"  (Chi Coltrane)  - 3:55
10.  "Time to Come In"  (Chi Coltrane)  - 3:26
11.  "The Wheel of Life"  (Chi Coltrane)  - 5:01

Credits
Piano, Organ – Chi Coltrane
Bass – Larry Knechtel, Lee Sklar, Steve Lefever
Choir – Billy Barnum Chorus, The
Concertmaster – Sid Sharp, Sid Sharp
Congas – King Erison
Drums – Jim Gordon
Guitar – Ben Benay
Dean Parks Percussion – Victor Feldman
Engineer [Mixing And Recording] – Eric Prestidge
Technician [Recordist] – Miguel Morales, Willie Greer
Arranged By – Chi Coltrane, Toxey French
Arranged By [Horns] – Jim Horn
Arranged By [Strings, Woodwinds] – Paul Buckmaster
Producer – Toxey French

Notes
Mixed At – Armin Steiner's Sound Labs, Inc.
Mastered At – Artisan Sound Recorders
Genre: Pop, Rock
Length: 42:51

© 1972 Columbia Records

Les Claypool And The Holy Mackerel - Highball With The Devil (1996)

“Highball with the Devil” is a studio album by Les Claypool and the Holy Mackerel, released in 1996. "Les Claypool and the Holy Mackerel" is Claypool's first solo effort; many of the instruments on the album are played by Claypool himself including guitar, most of the drums and vocals as well as all of the bass. He also self produced and engineered the album at his own studio, "Rancho Relaxo". Credited musicians include Charlie Hunter on guitar for "Me and Chuck;" Marc "Mirv" Haggard on guitar on songs such as "El Sobrante Fortnight" and "Hendershot," as well as on the saw for "Precipitation"; Adam "Bob Cock" Gates on vocal; Jay Lane on drums; and Henry Rollins narrating "Delicate Tendrils."
There doesn't seem to be much reason for Les Claypool to release a solo album. As the leader and prime creative force behind Primus, he basically dictates the very sound of their records. The only excuse for a solo project like Les Claypool & the Holy Mackerel's Highball With the Devil or his other side project, Sausage is to give the bassist the chance to play with other musicians.
On Highball With the Devil, he rounds up a number of friends and session musicians and places them in his home studio. In other words, it's an informal jam session. Fortunately, the musicians are uniformly first-rate and occasionally, in the case of Joe Gore and Charlie Hunter, simply stellar. When the group concentrates on jamming, the music is fine and even more interesting than Primus' extended workouts. When Claypool tries to make these jams into songs by adding inane lyrics and his skittering, mannered vocals, Highball With the Devil loses all of its momentum. And that is his main downfall Claypool can't help but sabotage his music with his weakness for kitsch and art-funk, and that's why his first solo album will only be appreciated by dedicated fans.
The touring band for the album were Claypool, Marc "Mirv" Haggard, Adam Gates, and Bryan "Brain" Mantia. "Brain" Mantia was then a new member of Primus.

Track listing

01.  "Running the Gauntlet"  (Les Claypool)  - 1:35
02.  "Holy Mackerel"  (Les Claypool)  - 3:48
03.  "Highball with the Devil"  (Les Claypool)  - 3:58
04.  "Hendershot"  (Les Claypool)  - 2:22
05.  "Calling Kyle"  (Les Claypool)  - 3:54
06.  "Rancor"  (Les Claypool, Andrew Herod )  - 1:16
07.  "Cohibas Esplenditos"  (Les Claypool)  - 3:10
08.  "Delicate Tendrils"  (Les Claypool)  - 4:59
09.  "The Awakening"  (The Reddings cover)  - 3:32
10.  "Precipitation"  (Les Claypool)  - 3:53
11.  "George E. Porge"  (Les Claypool)  - 2:29
12.  "El Sobrante Fortnight"  (Les Claypool)  - 3:35
13.  "Granny's Little Yard Gnome"  (Les Claypool)  - 3:00
14.  "Me and Chuck"  (Les Claypool)  - 2:59
15.  "Carolina Rig"  (Les Claypool)  - 3:00

Credits
Les Claypool - guitar, bass, drums, vocals, string bass (arco), rhythm guitar
Joe Gore - guitar
Mark "Mirv" Haggard - guitar solo, guitars, electric-bowed backsaw
Jay Lane - drums
Adam Gates - additional vocals, vocals
Henry Rollins - narration
Charlie Hunter - guitar
Tim Soya - assistant engineer
Matt Murman - mastering
Jill Rose - project coordinator
Producer - Les Claypool

Notes
Recorded at Rancho Relaxo
Genre: Alternative Rock
Length: 47:05

© 1996 Interscope, Prawn Song

Graham Parker - Burning Questions (1992)

After Struck By Lightning, Graham Parker was dropped by RCA Records. He moved to Capitol in 1992, releasing another installment in his musical diaries called “Burning Questions”. A more open and polished affair than the previous record.
She walks past but you can't form a whistle," Graham Parker sings on "Platinum Blonde," one of thirteen tracks on “Burning Questions”. "Even her lips look artificial/You wanna follow her but you can't swallow her act." Only a handful of contemporary artists Elvis Costello, for one could write a lyric so briskly cynical and yet so pierced by implicit yearning.
Like Costello, Parker is one of the singer-songwriters who, drawing on the legacies of Bob Dylan and Van Morrison, carried the rock troubadour into the punk era. That era is long gone, of course, and Parker takes care to embellish Burning Questions with signs of the times. Topical references range from the humorous  "I've seen the future of rock, and it sucks," from "Love Is a Burning Question" to the sobering: "Here It Comes Again" takes aim at mandatory drug testing, fundamentalist preachers and politicians who seek to censor art "unless it falls to the right of the fence." Musically, however, Questions finds Parker unabashed about letting his late-Seventies roots show. Tracks like "Too Many Knots to Untangle" and "Just Like Joe Meek's Blues" recall the lean, graceful production that distinguished some of that period's most memorable pop singles; "Yesterday's Cloud" and the catchy "Platinum Blonde" are equally lithe but more driving, evoking the breathless energy that helped put Parker on the map.
Elsewhere, Parker indulges in more gentle reflection. "Mr. Tender is something I'm not," he insists on "Mr. Tender," but he protests too much. Questions offers further proof of the singer's softer side, from the bittersweet "Long Stem Rose," with its elegiac strings, to "Oasis," a rhapsodic meditation on the healing power of love.
One of the most poignant moments on “Burning Questions”, though, comes in its final song, "Worthy of Your Love." "If I could make up all the rules," Parker sings, "I would not carry out the work of fools/ Or use deception and fear as tools/And I'd be worthy of your love." The object of Mr. Tender's affections should be so worthy herself.

Track listing

01. "Release Me"  (Graham Parker)  - 3:55 
02. "Too Many Knots To Untangle"  (Graham Parker)  - 3:10 
03. "Just Like Joe Meek's Blues"  (Graham Parker)  - 4:08 
04. "Love Is A Burning Question"  (Graham Parker)  - 4:53 
05. "Platinum Blonde"  (Graham Parker)  - 4:20 
06. "Long Stem Rose"  (Graham Parker)  - 2:49 
07. "Short Memories"  (Graham Parker)  - 3:02 
08. "Here It Comes Again"  (Graham Parker)  - 3:11 
09. "Mr. Tender"  (Graham Parker)  - 2:30 
10. "Just Like Herman Hesse"  (Graham Parker)  - 2:50 
11. "Yesterday's Cloud"  (Graham Parker)  - 3:23 
12. "Oasis"  (Graham Parker)  - 4:08 
13. "Worthy Of Your Love"  (Graham Parker)  - 2:55 

Credits
Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Guitar, Harmonica – Graham Parker
Backing Vocals – P.P. Arnold
Bass – Andrew Bodnar
Cello – Caroline LaVelle
Drums, Percussion – Pete Thomas
Keyboards – Mick Talbot
Saxophone – Eddie Manion
Viola – Jocelyn Pook
Violin – Caroline Barnes, Sonia Slany
Design – Laurence Stevens
Written-By – Graham Parker
Written-By [Strings], Arranged By [Strings] – Baird Hersey
Mastered By – Steve Rooke
Engineer – Jon Jacobs
Engineer [Assistant] – Chris Bandy, Giles Cowley, John Yates 
Producer, Mixed By – Graham Parker, Jon Jacobs

Notes
Recorded At – Townhouse 3
Mixed At – Dreamland Recording Studios
Mastered At – Abbey Road Studios
Genre: Pop
Length: 45:14

© 1992 Capitol/Demon Records

Eric Clapton - Eric Clapton's Rainbow Concert (1973)

“Eric Clapton's Rainbow Concert” is a live album by English musician Eric Clapton, recorded at London's Rainbow Theatre on 13 January 1973 and released in September that year. The concert was organised by Pete Townshend of the Who and marked a comeback by Clapton after two years of inactivity, broken only by his performance at the Concert for Bangladesh in August 1971.
Along with Townshend, the musicians supporting Clapton include Steve Winwood, Ronnie Wood and Jim Capaldi.
This concert is the first live performance where Clapton used his famous Stratocaster guitar "Blackie".
The concert was recorded using Ronnie Lane's Mobile Studio.
A remastered expanded edition of the album was released on 13 January 1995, the 22nd anniversary of the original concert.

Track listing

1. "Badge"  (Eric Clapton, George Harrison)  - 3:32
2. "Roll It Over"  (Clapton, Bobby Whitlock)  - 6:43
3. "Presence of the Lord"  (Clapton)  - 5:37
4. "Pearly Queen"  (Jim Capaldi, Steve Winwood)  - 7:00
5. "After Midnight"  (J. J. Cale)  - 5:12
6. "Little Wing"  (Jimi Hendrix)  - 6:32

Credits
Eric Clapton – guitar (lead) & vocals
Pete Townshend – guitar (rhythm) & vocals
Ronnie Wood – guitar (rhythm and slide) & vocals
Ric Grech – bass guitar
Steve Winwood – keyboards & vocals
Jim Capaldi – drums & vocals
Jimmy Karstein – drums
Rebop Kwaku Baah – percussion
Producer - Bob Pridden

Notes
Recorded 13 January 1973 at Rainbow Theatre, London
Genre: Blues-rock
Length: 34:48

© 1973 RSO Records

John Fogerty - The Blue Ridge Rangers (1973)

The Blue Ridge Rangers is the first solo album by John Fogerty, the former lead singer and lead guitarist of Creedence Clearwater Revival.
Upon its initial release by Fantasy Records in 1973, the album was credited to "The Blue Ridge Rangers" with no mention of Fogerty on the cover. Fogerty chose to do this in order to distance himself from his Creedence legacy. The LP was later reissued and credited to John Fogerty with a different cover design. The CD reissue restores the original silhouette cover photo and credits the album to Fogerty. The album is made up entirely of traditional and country covers, and features Fogerty playing all the instruments.
With wonderfully chosen songs like "Hearts of Stone" and George Jones' classic country weeper "She Thinks I Still Care," John Fogerty's solo debut with The Blue Ridge Rangers has held up well over the last two decades. It isn't the most supple or technically proficient one-man recording of all time, but it's a wonderfully engaging record; upbeat, unpretentious, and loaded with good songs. Fogerty's rigid, no-frills drumming took a lot of heat for being mechanical, but no one has ever explained how Fogerty's abilities on the trap kit are significantly different from Creedence's Doug Clifford. In retrospect, this was a tremendously risky record to make; country music in the early '70s was regarded as the domain of right-wing, rock & roll-hating Nashville traditionalists, and it was reasonable to assume that fans (even staunch ones) wouldn't take kindly to this genre switch. While it wasn't a huge success, it was in no way a disaster, and perhaps more importantly, served as a much-needed rock & roll history lesson.
The album peaked at #47 on the charts. Two singles from the album became hits: "Jambalaya" and "Hearts of Stone".

Track listing

01. "Blue Ridge Mountain Blues"   (Traditional)  - 2:29
02. "Somewhere Listening (For My Name)"   (Archie Brownlee)  - 2:37
03. "You're the Reason"   (Fred Henley, Terry Fell, Mildred Imes, Bobby Edwards)  - 3:12
04. "Jambalaya (On the Bayou)"   (Hank Williams)  - 3:15
05. "She Thinks I Still Care"   (Dickey Lee Lipscomb, Steve Duffy)  - 2:57
06. "California Blues (Blue Yodel #4)"   (Jimmie Rodgers)  - 3:04
07. "Workin' on a Building"   (Traditional)  - 4:34
08. "Please Help Me, I'm Falling"   (Don Robertson, Hal Blair)  - 2:49
09. "Have Thine Own Way, Lord"   (Adelaide A. Pollard, George C. Stebbins)  - 2:59
10. "I Ain't Never"   (Mel Tillis, Webb Pierce)  - 2:49
11. "Hearts of Stone"   (Rudy Jackson, Eddy Ray)  - 2:10
12. "Today I Started Loving You Again"   (Merle Haggard, Bonnie Owens)  - 3:12

Credits
Producer, Arranged By, Vocals [Featuring] – John Fogerty
Engineer – Russ Gary, Skip Shimmin
Remastered By – Phil De Lancie

Notes
Genre:  Roots Rock
Length:  37:20

© 1973 Fantasy Records

Brendan Croker - The Great Indoors (1991)

Between his first album for Silvertone Records in 1989, (Brendan Croker & the 5 O'Clock Shadows), and 1991's The Great Indoors, British-born Brendan Croker would reach his commercial peak, charting as a member of the Mark Knopfler one-off, the Notting Hillbillies (number 52), as well as appearing with the group on Saturday Night Live. With the aid of such notables as Knopfler and his sometimes collaborator, guitar legend Chet Atkins, as well as Tony Joe White and the record's producer, Barry Beckett, the Nashville recorded The Great Indoors looked to broaden Brendan Croker's audience. This time, minus the 5 O'Clock Shadows, Croker expands on the American roots mix of his previous effort with pretty much the same results both musically and in the marketplace, failing to capitalize on his newfound visibility. Croker is an engaging singer whose husky baritone is well-suited to the eclectic mix of material here, which can be moving and memorable, or just miss, bordering on being merely genre exercises.
As was the case with his Silvertone debut, it's the more laid-back, country-tinged cuts that are most successful on The Great Indoors. Tracks such as the opener, "Heart and Home," the uncertainty of "Darlin'," and the resigned solitude of "I Guess That Says It All" are terrific, unassuming charmers, while the more R&B-based "Send Me to New Orleans," the thumping rocker, "What It Takes" (covered by Wynonna), the roadhouse blues of "Anything I Can Say" and the zydeco-flavored, "Take Me Back Baby," while containing all the right ingredients and not without their appeal, can leave you somewhat unfulfilled. Still, with a stellar supporting cast which includes Knopfler and Atkins' singular playing, a voice that can redeem even questionable material and a handful of first-rate songs, The Great Indoors shouldn't disappoint those who came to Brendan Croker via the Notting Hillbillies.

Track listing

01.  "Heart and Home"  (Brendan Croker)  - 5:10   
02.  "Nothing but Time"  (Brendan Croker)  - 4:55   
03.  "Send Me to New Orleans"  (Brendan Croker)  - 5:07   
04.  "I Hope That It Don't Go Away"  (Brendan Croker)  - 4:58   
05.  "I Guess That Says It All"  (Brendan Croker)  - 5:19   
06.  "Darlin'"  (Brendan Croker)  - 4:11   
07.  "Anything I Can Say"  (Brendan Croker)  - 4:22   
08.  "One Day"  (Brendan Croker)  - 5:35   
09.  "Tell Me"  (Brendan Croker)  - 3:27   
10.  "What It Takes"  (Brendan Croker)  - 5:12   
11.  "There'll Come a Day"  (Brendan Croker)  - 4:34   
12.  "Take Me Back Baby"  (Brendan Croker)  - 2:58   
13.  "What a Thing to Do"  (Brendan Croker)  - 3:22   
14.  "Running on Down This Road"  (Brendan Croker)  - 3:55 

Credits
Brendan Croker - guitar, acoustic guitar, electric guitar
Don Potter - acoustic guitar, electric guitar
Chet Atkins - acoustic guitar
Reggie Young - electric guitar
Paul Franklin - steel guitar
Howard Levy - harmonica
Mike Hurst - accordion
Charles Rose, Denis Solee, Michael Haynes - horns
Barry Beckett - piano, organ
Eddie Bayers - drums
Harry Stinson, Lonnie Wilson, Steve Davis , Thomas Cain, Tony Joe White, Troy Seals - background vocals
Producer – Barry Beckett
Audio Mixers - Justin Niebank; Barry Beckett; Brendan Croker

Notes
Recorded At: Digital Recorders
Mixed At: Battery Studios, London
Mastered At: The Town House
Genre: Blues Rock
Length: 1:03:05

© 1991 Silvertone Records

Chevy Chase - Chevy Chase (1980)

Admit it, you've always wanted to hear Chevy Chase rap. Yes, Chevy Chase released a musical comedy album back in 1980, the self-titled record. Believe it or not, the album's not great, and Chevy Chase's biggest contribution to music is still that song he plays on the keys when trying to woo Judge Smails's niece in Caddyshack.
There are a few stand-out tracks (or at least ones that stand above the rest of the musical parodies recorded here), like Chase's take on "I Shot the Sheriff" and "Never Never Gonna Sing for You," a riff on Barry White. Aside from that, the tracks are pretty rough, like his chipmunk-voiced cover of "Let It Be," hip hop track "Rapper's Plight," and parody of Randy Newman's "Short People," which was already a novelty song and therefore a weird subject for spoofing to begin with.
You can't blame Chevy Chase for wanting to cut an album in 1980, in the wake of his peers like Steve Martin, Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi (as the Blues Brothers) making waves in the record industry. Though the record doesn't really suggest it, Chase has a background in music.
He has perfect pitch, drummed for future Steely Dan founders Walt Becker and Donald Fagen in a college jazz outfit, and played in a band called Chamaeleon Church that cut one record MGM in 1969 and quickly broke up. Despite his musical background, Chevy Chase's self-titled record debut (and swan song) fails to reach anywhere near the heights of his SNL buddies' late 70s/early 80s album efforts.

Track listing

01.  "Nat'l Anthem"   - 2:03 
02.  "Short People"  (Randy Newman)  - 3:45 
03.  "Never Never Gonna Sing For You"  (Chevy Chase, Tom Scott)  - 4:40 
04.  "I Shot The Sheriff"  (Bob Marley)  - 4:02 
05.  "Let It Be"  (John Lennon, Paul McCartney)  - 3:32 
06.  "Love To Have My Baby"  (Chevy Chase, Tom Scott)  - 4:59 
07.  "Sixteen Tons"  (Merle Travis)  - 3:51 
08.  "Wild Thing"  (Chip Taylor)  - 2:35 
09.  "Rappers' Plight"   (Chevy Chase, Tom Scott)  - 5:30 

Credits
Vocals [Car Voices], Other [Sound Effects] – Chevy Chase, Tom Scott
Saxophone, Lyricon, Piccolo, Cowbell, Synthesizer, Piano, Other [Nitrogen Tank] – Tom Scott
Bass – Matt Bragg, Neil Stubenhaus
Drums – Ed Greene, Steve Gadd
Electric Piano – Don Grusin
Guitar – Carlos Rios, David T. Walker
Percussion – Victor Feldman
Congas – Victor Feldman
Bass – Neil Stubenhaus
Clavinet, Piano – Richard Tee
Percussion, Timbales – Victor Feldman
Trombone – Slyde Hyde
Trumpet – Chuck Findley
Organ, Electric Piano – Richard Tee
Backing Vocals – Bobby Kimball, Dennis Tufano, Slyde Hyde, Stephanie Spruill
Concertmaster – Gerald Vinci
Design, Art Direction – Ria Lewerke-Shapiro
Engineer, Mixed By – Terry Dianne Becker
Mixed By – Hank Cicalo
Photography By – George Hurrell
Producer – Chevy Chase, Tom Scott

Notes
Genre: Parody, Comedy, Pop
Length:  34:06

© 1980 Arista Records

Passage - Passage (1981)

Louis Johnson (born April 13, 1955) is an American bass guitarist. Johnson is best known for his group The Brothers Johnson, together with his brother George  and his session playing on several hit albums of the 1970s and 1980s including the "best selling album of all time" Michael Jackson´s "Thriller".
His signature sound is from the Music Man StingRay bass which Leo Fender especially made for him to first use and promote, and from his slapping technique.
Louis Johnson recorded a gospel music album in 1981 with his own group Passage, which included his then-wife Valerie Johnson and former Brothers Johnson percussionist/singer Richard Heath.


Track listing

01. "Have You Heard The Word"  (Louis Johnson, Valerie Johnson)  - 4:29 
02. "You Can't Be Livin'"  (Louis Johnson)  - 4:52 
03. "Faith Walking People"  (Ami Grant)  - 3:34 
04. "I See The Light"  (Louis Johnson, Richard Heath)  - 4:33 
05. "The Great Flood"  (Louis Johnson)  - 3:39 
06. "Open Up Your Heart"  (Louis Johnson, Raymond Crossley, Richard Heath)  - 3:48 
07. "Power"  (Louis Johnson, Valerie Johnson)  - 4:09 
08. "Love Eyes"  (Jaime Owen Collins)  - 3:33 
09. "The Son Will Come Again"  (Louis Johnson, Richard Heath)  - 4:04 

Credits
Louis Johnson - Bass, Electric Piano, Fender Rhodes, Keyboards, Synthesizer Bass, Guitar, Electric Guitar, Lead & Backing vocals
Richard Heath - Percussion, Lead & Backing vocals
Valerie Johnson - Lead & Backing vocals
Drums - John "JR" Robinson
Flute - Michael Perkins
Guitar - Curtis Nolen, David Williams & Greg Moore
Steel Guitar - Al Perkins
Keyboards - David Wolinski, Raymond Crossley & Rene Moore
Acoustic Piano - David Wolinski & Raymond Crossley
Saxophone Solo - Michael Perkins
Engineered & Mixed by Jack Joseph Puig
Assisted by Greg Falken
Additional Engineering by John Beverly Jones
Horns Arranged by David Diggs & Louis Johnson
Strings Arranged by David Diggs, Gerald Lee & Louis Johnson
Produced by Louis Johnson

Notes
Mixed at A&M Recording Studios, Hollywood, CA - USA.
Genre: Funk, Soul
Length:  36:46

© 1981 A&M Records

Barry Goudreau - Barry Goudreau (1980)

“Barry Goudreau” is the debut self-titled album of original Boston guitar front man, Barry Goudreau. With the use of Boston members Brad Delp (vocals), and Sib Hashian (drums), and future Boston singer Fran Cosmo the album displays a sound very similar to that of Boston's first two releases Boston (1976) and Don't Look Back (1978). However, neither this album, nor any of Goudreau's subsequent releases with other acts (Orion The Hunter, RTZ) proved to be as large of a commercial success as his work with Boston.
The album was released in 1980 and was Goudreau's only solo album. The song "Dreams" was released as a single in 1980 nearly cracking Billboard's top 100 and still receives air play today on Classic rock radio stations along with "Mean Woman Blues". Together with alum from the band Boston, Barry Goudreau put together an interesting nine songs recorded in Nashville and Los Angeles. It's the distinctive Boston guitar sound with more basic rock & roll. "What's a Fella to Do" could be a sequel to "Rock and Roll Band"; "Mean Woman Blues" goes in an almost Foghat direction. Fran Cosmo's vocals feel a bit more British than Brad Delp, and "Leavin' Tonight" leans more toward producer Mike Chapman and the sound of the Sweet than one would expect. Goudreau's guitar and Syb Hashian's drums are a powerful combo no bassist is listed. The song "Dreams" gave Goudreau's self-titled debut the radio attention it deserved, and a bit of a following. This track definitely sounds like the band Boston which, rumor has it, upset Tom Scholz. In 1992 singer Delp and guitarist Goudreau joined Brian Maes & the Memory.
They rode the Maes original "Until Your Love Comes Back Around" into the Top 30 in America, and the Return to Zero album was a nice reunion for the two major forces behind this. "Life Is What We Make It" and "Cold Cold World" are good slices of American hard rock. More refined than Grand Funk Railroad and not as slick as the Mickey Thomas version of Starship, the Barry Goudreau album is a fun record free from the restrictions of Scholz's meticulous production. While "Cold Cold World" may evoke thoughts of the song "Long Time," the string quartet on "Sailin' Away" gives the album a depth and identity. Just a bunch of professional musicians playing what they like and coming up with a gem.

Track listing

01.  "Hard Luck"  (Barry Goudreau, Brad Delp)  - 3:37
02.  "Nothin' to Lose"  (Fran Cosmo)  - 4:01
03.  "What's a Fella to Do?"  (Goudreau, Delp)  - 4:29
04.  "Mean Woman Blues"  (Goudreau, Delp)  - -3:53
05.  "Leavin' Tonight"  (Cosmo)  - 3:25
06.  "Dreams"  (Goudreau)  - 3:32
07.  "Life Is What We Make It"  (Goudreau, Delp)  - 3:11
08.  "Sailin' Away"  (Goudreau)  - 1:48
09.  "Cold Cold World"  (Cosmo)  - 4:55

Credits
Barry Goudreau - lead guitar, guitars, vocals, bass, keyboards
Brad Delp - lead vocals
Fran Cosmo - lead vocals
Sib Hashian - drums, percussion
Jesse Erlich - cello
Joy Lyle - violin
David Scwartz - viola
Sid Sharp - violin, concert master
Engineered By Paul Grupp
Assistant Engineers: Ed Cherney, Phil Jamtaas, Russ Martin
Mastering: Steve Hoffman
Producer - John Boylan and Barry Goudreau

Notes
Recorded in Nashville and Los Angeles
Genre: Rock
Length: 32:51

© 1980 Epic/Portrait Records

Lindsey Buckingham - Go Insane (1984)

“Go Insane” is the second solo album by American singer/songwriter and Fleetwood Mac vocalist/guitarist Lindsey Buckingham. The album was released in 1984 while Fleetwood Mac was on a hiatus between albums.
Like his first album, “Law and Order”, was a triumph of studio wizardry over songwriting craft. Buckingham's work was ear-catching, but once he'd gotten your attention with some gimmicky sound effect or busy arrangement, he had very little to tell you. The exception was Go Insane's most ambitious piece, the closing track, "D.W. Suite," on which Buckingham, always strongly influenced by the Beach Boys, took on what sounded like an elaborate tribute to Beach Boy Dennis Wilson, who died while the album was being made.
The title track, which also had massed choral sounds (all made by Buckingham) reminiscent of a Fleetwood Mac track, became a Top 40 hit, but the album lacked the accessibility to make it more than a moderate seller, and at least at this point it appeared that Buckingham's solo albums were going to serve as laboratory experiments in which he tried out new musical ideas before bringing them to greater popular attention through Fleetwood Mac.

Track listing

01. "I Want You"  (L. Buckingham, G. Fordyce)  - 3:18
02. "Go Insane"  (Lindsey Buckingham)  - 3:08
03. "Slow Dancing"  (Lindsey Buckingham)  - 4:05
04. "I Must Go"  (Lindsey Buckingham)  - 4:51
05. "Play in the Rain"  (Lindsey Buckingham)  - 3:21
06. "Play in the Rain (Continued)"  (Lindsey Buckingham)  - 4:14
07. "Loving Cup"  (Lindsey Buckingham)  - 5:02
08. "Bang the Drum"  (Lindsey Buckingham)  - 3:31
09. "D.W. Suite"  (Lindsey Buckingham)  - 6:50

Credits
Lindsey Buckingham - Guitar, Bass, Keyboards, Percussion, Fairlight CMI, LinnDrum, Vocals, Pump organ, Lap Harp
Gordon Fordyce - Keyboards and Cowbell
Bryant Simpson - Bass
Producer: Lindsey Buckingham, Gordon Fordyce

Notes
Genre: Rock
Length: 38:20

© 1984 Reprise/Warner Music Group

Buckwheat Zydeco - Taking It Home (1988)

Buckwheat Zydeco is the stage name of Stanley Dural, Jr. (born November 14, 1947), an American accordionist and zydeco musician. He is one of the few zydeco artists to achieve mainstream success. His music group is formally billed as Buckwheat Zydeco and Ils Son Partis Band, but often they perform as merely Buckwheat Zydeco.
On his second album for Island Records, Buckwheat Zydeco continues to mix things up, adding some rock and pop covers to his trademark zydeco gumbo. Like its predecessor, On a Night Like This, the results on Taking It Home are a little mixed  the production is a little slick, covers like Derek & the Dominos' "Why Does Love Got to Be So Sad" (featuring none other than Eric Clapton on guitar) are ill-advised, and there simply isn't the fire that distinguished his independent work. That said, no Buckwheat Zydeco album is a complete waste, and hearing him run through gritty, funky originals like "These Things You Do" and "Down Dallas Alley" makes Taking It Home worthwhile for long-term fans.

Track listing

01. "Creole Country"  (S.Dural, Jr., T.Fox)  - 2:08 
02. "Down Dallas Alley"  (S.Dural, Jr., T.Fox)  - 4:13 
03. "These Things You Do"  (S. Dural, Jr.)  - 3:37 
04. "Drivin' Old Grey"  (S.Dural, Jr.)  - 4:59 
05. "Make A Change"  (S.Dural, Jr.)  - 4:02 
06. "Why Does Love Got To Be So Sad"  (Bobby Whitlock, Eric Clapton)  - 4:43 
07. "Ooh Wow"  (Roy Montrell)  - 3:18 
08. "In And Out Of My Life"  (S.Dural, Jr., T.Fox)  - 3:51 
09. "Taking It Home"  (S.Dural, Jr.)  - 4:13 
10. "Creole Country Part 2"  (S.Dural, Jr., T.Fox)  - 1:40 

Credits
Buckwheat Zydeco - accordion, keyboards
Stanley Dural - vocals, accordion, melodica, organ
Eric Clapton, Melvin Veazie, Robert James Ahearn - guitar
Anthony Bulter, Anthony Butler - alto saxophone
Dennis Taylor - tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone
Calvin Landry - trumpet
Lee Allen Zeno - bass guitar
Patrick Landry - rub-board, percussion
Mednick, Lisa Mednick, Allison Young - background vocals
Herman "Rat" Brown - drums
Patrick Landry - rubboard
Engineers include: Peter Hodgson, Myles C. Davis, Billy Brady

Notes
Recorded at:  Goodnight Audio, Dallas, TX; Omega Studios, Rockville, MD; Sountech, E. Norwalk, CT; Southlake Studios, Metarie.
Lenght:  36:32
Genre:  Zydeco, Cajun

© 1988 Island Records

The Jesus And Mary Chain - Darklands (1987)

“Darklands” is the second album by Scottish alternative rock band The Jesus and Mary Chain. Unlike their previous album, drum machines were used in place of drummer Bobby Gillespie, who had left to pursue a successful career as the frontman with Primal Scream. The album marks a turning point in the band's music, going from the savage noise-pop of “Psychocandy”, to a more melodic indie/alternative sound.
Feeling no doubt burdened by the various claims of being the new Sex Pistols, and likely fed up with accusations that the walls of feedback were their own trick, the Reid brothers underwent a bit of a rethink with “Darklands”. The end result must have fallen squarely between two camps hardly eligible for sunny commercial airplay, not quite as flailing as the earliest efforts but, from a distance, this is an appealing, enjoyable record. Songs were often longer while the album itself was shorter than “Psychocandy”, walls of sound were often stripped away in favor of calmer classic rock twang and groove, while William Reid took the lead vocal at points, showing he had a slightly sweeter, wistful tone in comparison to his brother. However, the changes on “Darklands” can be overstated  the basic formula at the heart of the band (inspired plagiarism of melodies and lyrics alike, plenty of reverb, etc.) stayed pretty much the same, even if the mixes were cleaned up compare "Down on Me" to any “Psychocandy” cut for a good example of the difference. The use of drum machines in place of Bobby Gillespie's rumble tended to enforce the newer focus, but at the album's best, such a seeming dichotomy didn't cause too much worry. "April Skies" made for a great single, while the soaring-in-spite-of-itself "Happy When It Rains" was another winner, one that Garbage more or less made its own some years later for its own similarly titled hit. William's singing turns made for other highlights as well, notably "Nine Million Rainy Days," the overt misery of the title suiting the dark crawl of the song, and the lengthy lament "On the Wall."

Track listing

01. "Darklands"  (Jim Reid, William Reid)  - 5:29
02. "Deep One Perfect Morning"  (Jim Reid, William Reid)  - 2:43
03. "Happy When It Rains"  (Jim Reid, William Reid)  -  3:36
04. "Down on Me"  (Jim Reid, William Reid)  - 2:36
05. "Nine Million Rainy Days"  (Jim Reid, William Reid)  - 4:29
06. "April Skies"  (Jim Reid, William Reid)  - 4:00
07. "Fall"  (Jim Reid, William Reid)  - 2:28
08. "Cherry Came Too"  (Jim Reid, William Reid)  - 3:06
09. "On the Wall"  (Jim Reid, William Reid)  - 5:05
10. "About You"  (Jim Reid, William Reid)  - 2:33

Credits
Jim Reid - vocals, guitar, bass, drum machine programming
William Reid - vocals, guitar, bass, drum machine programming, production
Engineer – Tony Harris
Mastered By [Cut By] – Steve Angel
Producer - William Reid, Bill Price, John Loder

Notes
Recorded at: Wessex Studios, Southern Studios, Livingston Studios (all London)
Genre: Alternative Rock, Indie Pop
Length: 35:51

© 1987 Blanco y Negro Records

The Boomtown Rats - V Deep (1982)

“V Deep” was The Boomtown Rats' fifth album, and the first to be released after guitarist Gerry Cott left the group. It includes the minor hit single "House on Fire".
The Boomtown Rats started integrating their impulses into the most representative album they ever did. In sheer terms of songwriting, the results you'd get by paring everything down to vocals and simple guitar, I'd probably also grade it as their weakest (ignoring the debut), which makes it an ideal place to examine what, exactly, I find so consistently brilliant about their output.
They moved closer to Caribbean rhythms, employing a percussionist and upping the bass guitar in the mix. They even had Dennis Bovell do a dub mix of "House on Fire" and included it at the end of the album. Meanwhile, Bob Geldof's lyrics indicated an increasingly embattled sensibility; he noted in a song called "The Bitter End" that "It isn't too far." Unfortunately, nothing here matched the catchy, daring work on the Rats' first three albums, and even in England their star was beginning to fade.
Their strength was not, precisely, originality. The Rats were always with their time, not in front of it. Simon Crowe's polyrhythmic, multitracked, multiethnic, layered drum parts on “V Deep” were even more sophisticated and danceable than on “Mondo Bongo”.
In America, Columbia Records at first declined to release the album, opting for a four-track EP, then allowed it to escape in September 1982, when it failed to chart.

Track listing

01.  "Never in a Million Years"  (Bob Geldof)  - 3:46
02.  "The Bitter End"  (Bob Geldof)  - 4:26
03.  "Talking in Code"  (Bob Geldof)  - 2:53
04.  "He Watches It All"  (Bob Geldof)  - 3:15
05.  "A Storm Breaks"  (Bob Geldof)  - 5:59
06.  "Charmed Lives"  (Bob Geldof)  - 3:58
07.  "House on Fire"  (Bob Geldof)  - 4:43
08.  "Up All Night"  (Bob Geldof)  - 3:35
09.  "Skin on Skin"  (Bob Geldof)  - 3:33
10.  "The Little Death/... House Burned Down"  (B. Geldof, P. Briquette)  - 4:54

Credits
Bob Geldof – vocals, saxophone
Pete Briquette – bass, vocals
Johnnie Fingers – keyboards, vocals
Simon Crowe – drums, vocals
Garry Roberts – guitar, vocals
Producer - Tony Visconti, The Boomtown Rats

Notes
Genre: Post-Punk, Synth-pop
Length: 41:02

© 1982 Ensign / Columbia Records

Karla Bonoff - Restless Nights (1979)

Karla Bonoff followed up her debut with “Restless Nights”, which was again produced by Kenny Edwards. The ballads are still full of the pleasures and pains of love's ups and downs, conveyed all to clearly with her Carole King-ish voice, but the upbeat songs yield more rock guitar, giving her country/rock hybrid more grit.
The first country-rockish song, "Trouble Again" is one of those down songs, haunted by lost love. Yet another song covered by Linda Ronstadt.
A split love affair is the subject of the title track, which is a sad ballad country/rock ballad. One of the woman's loves she describes as ice, the other as fire, and it's the latter who seems more the pillar of support. However, she makes it clear she's to blame: "'Cause I wasn't very good at being true/And now I look back at all the broken dreams/And wonder if I could have changed them."
The next three songs are all standout cuts, and demonstrate Karla's songwriting skills, except for the cover tune, and her conveying the emotion of each song. The shock of finding a love letter addressed to a loved one and the realization that there has been another woman is the topic of "The Letter" The quiet and soft synth keyboards underscore that quiet realization; also when she sings, "As you came up the stairs/You asked "Are you all right?"/"I'd better go" was all I said/But there in your room I saw something that/I really wish I never read." My second favourite song here.
She covers Jackie DeShannon's "When You Walk In The Room" and the jangly rock guitar and pounding drums in the chorus gives this country-ish song a rock tinge. This is one of the up songs: "I can see expression on my face/I can strange sensation taking place/I can hear the guitar playing lovely tunes/everytime that you walk in the room."
"Only A Fool" is another quiet ballad, this time with an acoustic guitar accompanying those haunting quiet keyboards. The chorus tells what this song's about: "So don't say that it's love you lacked/I paid the price now we're paying the tax/I gave it all, and I got nothing back/Only a fool gives a heart like that." This song was also done by Maura O'Connell.
Pleading someone not to go away, that things will work out, telling them you need them is what the upbeat "Baby Don't Go" is about. "You're takin' all I got and now you're leaving/I thought love was something to believe in" she says in the opening. However, she warns, "And if you close the door/I can't wish you well anymore/You know you really turned on me/So don't come running back 'cause I know you'll never see." This song was also featured in the Atlantic City soundtrack.
Years before Sting sand "If You Love Someone Set Them Free", Karla did the similarly-themed "Never Stop Her Heart." depicts the follies of keeping someone caged and using the bird analogy, cutting her wings. There's also a conflict between wanting to be free and having someplace to belong. In the end, she is able to fly away, and how she does baffles the man.
If the "free bird" in the previous song decided to stick around and give up her traveling days, the rocking "Loving You" would be the song she'd sing. It's a song of confidence in one's partner.
Given Karla's songs of love gone bad, and her melodic voice, covering the traditional standard "The Water Is Wide" is apropos, and she does it so admirably. It's my favourite song here and I always feel something when I hear "Oh love is gentle and love is kind/The sweetest flower when first it's new/but love grows old and waxes cold and fades away/like morning dew." There is an accordion solo in the middle. I've heard Charlotte Church and Rory Block cover this as well, and Karla's rendition ranks way up with those two.
"Restless Nights" is better than the first album from the power and emotion Karla puts out in her song.

Track listing

01.  "Trouble Again"  (Karla Bonoff, Kenny Edwards)  - 3:37  
02.  "Restless Nights"  (Karla Bonoff)  - 5:18   
03.  "The Letter"  (Karla Bonoff)  - 2:47  
04.  "When You Walk in the Room"  (Jackie DeShannon)  - 2:59  
05.  "Only a Fool"  (Karla Bonoff)  - 6:04 
06.  "Baby Don't Go"  (Karla Bonoff, Kenny Edwards)  - 3:21  
07.  "Never Stop Her Heart"  (Karla Bonoff)  - 4:48   
08.  "Loving You"  (Karla Bonoff)  - 3:26 
09.  "The Water Is Wide"  (Traditional)  - 4:57 

Credits
Karla Bonoff - vocals, guitar, keyboards
Danny Kortchmar - guitar
Garth Hudson - keyboards, accordion
Russ Kunkel - drums
Rick Marotta - drums
Jackie De Shannon - backing vocals
Wendy Waldman - backing vocals
Steve Forman - percussion
Dan Dugmore - electric guitar
Ed Black - electric guitar
Waddy Wachtel - electric guitar
Kenny Edwards - backing vocals, bass
Don Grolnick - piano
Andrew Gold - guitar, keyboards
David Lindley - acoustic guitar
James Taylor - backing vocals
Don Henley - backing vocals
John David Souther - backing vocals
Arranged By [Strings], Conductor [Strings] – David Campbell
Art Direction, Design – Kosh
Engineer [Assistant] – Ernie Sheesley
Mastered By – Bernie Grundman
Photography By – Aaron Rapoport
Producer – Kenny Edwards
Recorded By – Jim Nipar
Recorded By, Mixed By – Greg Ladanyi

Notes
Recorded and mixed at The Sound Factory, Los Angeles. Strings recorded at A&M Studios
Mastered at A&M Studios
Genre: Pop, Rock
Length: 37:17

© 1979 CBS Records

The Lou Gramm Band - The Lou Gramm Band (2009)

On paper, it's unlikely that one of rock's greatest singers ever, who fronted one of the biggest mainstream bands of the 1970s and 1980s, would take a detour into the world of Christian rock. But that's just what Lou Gramm did in 2009 with his new group and its self-titled album, “The Lou Gramm Band”. It's his first "solo" effort since 1989's “Long Hard Look”. The album rocks convincingly, and the lyrics vividly reflect his born-again Christian faith. It's a miracle that the ex-Foreigner vocalist lived to reach this point.
After surviving surgery to remove a benign brain tumor in 1997, he struggled to regain his health and his voice. He left Foreigner for the second time in 2002 and eased back into performing with his own band, which now includes two of his brothers, bass guitarist Richard Gramm and drummer Ben Gramm, as well as guitarist Don Mancuso and keyboardist Andy Knoll. According to the liner notes, the band originally planned to just "re-record spiritual classics." The focus shifted to strong original material although two interesting covers remain: Billy Preston's "That's the Way God Planned It" and the Parliaments' "(I Wanna) Testify." Sonically, The Lou Gramm Band has some production flourishes, but it's mostly no-nonsense and straightforward. The best originals are "Made to Be Broken," "Willing to Forgive," "Baptized by Fire," "Single Vision," and "Rattle Yer Bones." "Single Vision" includes a bridge lyric that has Lou jumping from merely faithful to political: "Don't take our Lord from the classrooms/Please let us say our prayers of thanks/And when we pledge to our country/I know that without him, we would never be free." "Rattle Yer Bones" has the strongest Foreigner vibe, and it wouldn't have been out of place 30 years before on Head Games.
Truth be told, Lou's voice isn't what it used to be, and sometimes on “The Lou Gramm Band” he strains to reach notes he hit effortlessly in the past, but that's to be expected given the natural toll of aging and the effects of his health battles. It still has power, and a less than prime Lou Gramm is light years ahead of most others. Few "classic rock" singers have come close to sustaining their vocal abilities over the decades, even without fighting a life-threatening illness.
The Lou Gramm Band proves that inspired music can still emerge when the spirit is willing but the flesh is (slightly) weak.

Track listing

01.  "Made to Be Broken"  (Lou Gramm, Don Mancuso)  - 3:30  
02.  "Redeemer"  (Lou Gramm, Richard Gramm, Don Mancuso)  - 4:14  
03.  "Willing to Forgive"  (Lou Gramm, Richard Gramm, Don Mancuso)  - 3:29  
04.  "That's the Way God Planned It"  (Billy Preston)  - 4:04  
05.  "Baptized by Fire"  (Lou Gramm)  - 3:56  
06.  "(I Wanna) Testify"  (Deron Taylor)  - 3:25  
07.  "So Great"  (Lou Gramm, Richard Gramm)  - 4:00 
08.  "Single Vision"  (Lou Gramm)  - 3:59  
09.  "Rattle Yer Bones"  (Lou Gramm, Don Mancuso)  - 3:52  
10.  "You Saved Me"  (Lou Gramm, Richard Gramm)  - 4:44 

Credits
Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Percussion, Producer – Lou Gramm
Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals – Ben Gramm
Guitar – Don Mancuso
Guitar, Bass, Backing Vocals – Richard Gramm
Keyboards, Guitar, Backing Vocals – Andy Knoll
Artwork – Giulio Cataldo
Photography By [Cover Photo] – Scott Hamilton 
Engineer – Andy Knoll, Don Mancuso, Mark Gifford, Tony Gross
Engineered At – Little Doggies Studio, GFI Studios
Mastered At – DRT Mastering
Mastered By – David Torrey
Producer – Lou Gramm Band, The

Notes
Recorded At – Little Doggies Studio, GFI Studios
Genre: Rock
Length: 39:13

© 2009 Spectra Records