The Sunday Six

Happy Sunday! In case you’ve been celebrating the holidays and perhaps feel a bit exhausted between indulging in food and drink and gatherings with family and friends, I’d like to offer you a great remedy just in time before the new year: Come and join me for the final music time travel trip of 2023! If none of the aforementioned applies to you, hop on board of the magical music time machine anyway. We’re gonna have a lot of fun!

The Charles Owens Trio/Best Part

This time, our little excursion starts in the present with contemporary jazz by The Charles Owens Trio. His web bio notes Owens is a master tenor saxophonist, composer, band leader, recording artist, and educator and has been performing, composing, and teaching for over 25 years…He has made 9 albums as a leader and appeared and continues to appear on a plethora of recordings as a hired soloist. He’s performed with such jazz luminaries as Brad Mehldau, Mark Turner, Omer Avital, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Brian Blade, Peter Bernstein, Larry Goldings, Ari Hoenig, Alexander Claffy, Jeff Watts, and Joel Frahm among many others. Off his latest album Here It Is, released earlier this month on Dec 8, here’s Best Part. Owens is backed by Andrew Jay Randazzo (hybrid guitar) and DJHarrison RVA (drums).

Bob Dylan/Man of Peace

After what may have been a smoother opening than what you anticipated based on the slightly creepy album cover, let’s pay a visit to Bob Dylan. To borrow from a famous mid-’90s movie, the brilliant master is like a box of chocolate – you never know what you gonna get! After Dylan’s conversion to Christianity and three evangelical records, he returned to secular music on his brilliant 22nd studio album Infidels, which came out in October 1993. The album, co-produced by Dylan and then-Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler, who also played guitar on it, was well received by fans and critics alike. Other musicians on Infidels included Dire Straits’ Alan Clark (keyboards), Mick Taylor (guitar), Benmont Tench (keyboards), Robbie Shakespeare (bass) and his Sly and Robbie partner Sly Dunbar – that’s what I call a neat backing band! Here’s Man of Peace.

The Everly Brothers/Wake Up Little Susie

Our next stop takes us back to Sep 1957 and the second big hit by The Everly Brothers. Wake Up Little Susie was penned by husband and wife songwriting team Felice Bryant and Diadorius Boudleaux Bryant. They also gave the duo of Don Everly and his younger brother Phil Everly their first big hit with Bye Bye Love. Wake Up Little Susie, first released as a single, did even better, topping the pop charts in the U.S., Canada and Australia and surging to no. 2 in the UK. Both songs were also included on The Everly Brothers’ eponymous debut album released in January 1958. Amazing harmony singing and a captivating groove make for my kind kind of combo!

Pretenders/I’ll Stand By You

Time to pay a visit to the ’90s with a great song by Pretenders: I’ll Stand By You, off their sixth studio album Last of the Independents, which appeared in May 1994. At that time, the English-American rock band already had seen significant changes, leaving frontwoman Chrissie Hynde (guitar, vocals) and Martin Chambers (drums) as the only remaining original members. Adam Seymour (guitar) and Andy Hobson (bass) were still new to the group. Notably, the entire line-up only recorded one song, while for the remaining tracks Hynde relied on Seymour and a rotating series of musicians on bass and drums. There’s no doubt who ran that band and still fearlessly does to this day! I’ll Stand By You was written by Hynde, along with songwriting partners Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly. Not only does this ballad sound beautiful, but Hynde once again proves what an outstanding vocalist she is!

Iron Butterfly/In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida

For our next stop, take a deep breath for a psychedelic rock tour de force from June 1968. That’s when American group Iron Butterfly released their sophomore album In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida. Peaking at no. 4 in the U.S. on the Billboard 200, the album sold an incredible more than 8 million copies within just its first year of release – outselling every record in the history of recorded music to that time! Eventually, it would rake up worldwide sales of more than 30 million. Here’s the epic title track, which at 17:05 minutes occupied all of side two. It was written by co-founder Doug Ingle (Vox Continental organ, vocals). The strange title reportedly came to be when Iron Butterfly drummer Ron Bushy misinterpreted the words “In the Garden of Eden” when writing down the lyrics for Ingle who was drunk and slurred the words as he sang the song to Bushy. Well, it was the late ’60s!

Gram Parsons/Ooh Las Vegas

After all that brilliant weirdness, I hope you’re still with me! If yes, congratulations, we’re getting to the final stop of today’s trip. For this, let’s set the time controls of the magical music machine to January 1974, which saw the release of the second and final studio album by Gram Parsons. Sadly, by the time it came out, Parsons already had died from an overdose of morphine and alcohol. He was only 26! Grievous Angel was compiled from recording sessions that had taken place in the summer of 1973. They prominently featured his singing partner Emmylou Harris and other prominent guests, such as Linda Ronstadt and Bernie Leadon, co-founder of the Eagles. Here’s the incredible Ooh Las Vegas.

Of course, this post wouldn’t be complete without a Spotify playlist featuring the above tracks. I also would like to take this opportunity to thank of all my readers for reading and commenting and wish everybody a Happy New Year! If you’re out there celebrating, please be safe. Peace and Love!

Sources: Wikipedia; Charles Owens website; YouTube; Spotify

New Music Musings

Just in time before seeing off the year, I’d like to take a final look at new music. This post highlights my six favorite albums of 2023 I reviewed.

Highway 61 – Driving South

After 30 Years and an incredible background story including the global pandemic, a near-fatal cancer episode and the death of a music mentor, Los Angeles blues rock four-piece Highway 61 released their debut album Driving South on March 24. While after their formation in the early ’90s the band managed to establish themselves on the Southern California club circuit, the record deal they sought remained elusive, and they broke up in 1993. Fast forward to the summer of 2022 when they reconvened for the first time in decades at an L.A. studio to finally record their first album. Highway 61 blend flavors of The Rolling Stones and Tom Petty with dashes of The Black Crowes and Stevie Ray Vaughan. For a little taste, here’s the kickass opener Walk On Water (full album review). Thanks again to Gregg Bell of Wanted Management, who brought Highway 61 on my radar screen!

Ian Hunter – Defiance Part 1

Ian Hunter may be an octogenarian, but he sure as heck can show all the young dudes how to rock. After his departure as lead vocalist from British glam rockers Mott the Hoople in 1974, Hunter launched a solo career and has released his own albums at a fairly steady pace. He frequently collaborated with Mick Ronson until the untimely death of David Bowie’s former sideman in 1993 at the age of 46. His 15th and latest album Defiance Part 1, recorded during COVID lockdown and released on April 21, features the late Jeff Beck, Slash, Billy Gibbons, Todd Rundgren and Ringo Starr, among others, who all added contributions at their home studios. The album also includes Hunter’s longtime collaborator Andy York, one of John Mellencamp’s guitarist, who also served as co-producer. Here’s This Is What I’m Here For, written by Hunter and featuring the late Taylor Hawkins (formerly of Foo Fighters) on drums, Waddy Wachtel (guitar) and Def Leppard’s Joe Elliott (backing vocals) (full album review).

Lucinda Williams – Stories From a Rock n Roll Heart

Lucinda Williams may be among the ultimate rock & roll survivors. Only two and a half years ago, things looked pretty bleak for the singer-songwriter, who turned 70 in January. After her East Nashville home had been damaged by a tornado in March 2020, she suffered a debilitating stroke in November of the same year. Not only did the stroke limit Williams’ physical mobility, but it also took away her ability to play guitar, the instrument she had relied on to write her songs. None of this stopped Williams. After intense rehab, she returned to the stage. Still unable to play guitar, she adjusted her way to write music, collaborated with her husband and co-producer Tom Overby and others, and recorded the incredible album Stories From a Rock n Roll Heart, which dropped on June 30. I don’t mean to romanticize hardship, but I find Williams’ strength truly inspiring. Here’s the de facto title track Rock n Roll Heart, co-written by Williams, Overby and Travis Stephens, guitarist and Williams’ road manager. The song features Bruce Springsteen and Patti Scialfa on backing vocals (full album review). Only select songs of the album are available on streaming services.

Cordovas – The Rose of Aces

East Nashville, Tenn.-based Americana and country rock band Cordovas have become one of my favorite contemporary groups since the summer of 2018 when I coincidentally caught them at a free open air summer concert in New Jersey. Their three-part harmony vocals and warm sound remind me of other groups like The Band, Grateful Dead, Eagles and Little Feat. Cordovas were formed in 2011 by songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Joe Firstman  after he had put out a series of solo projects and served as bandleader on NBC’s former late-night TV show Last Call with Carson Daly from 2005 to 2009. On August 11, they released their fourth studio album The Rose of Aces, another gem. Here’s Love Is All It Takes, a song written by Firstman with a neat Allman Brothers Band vibe (full album review).

The Rolling Stones/Hackney Diamonds

Hackney Diamonds is no Sticky Fingers or Exile On Main St., but the first new Rolling Stones album with original music in 18 years still marks a late-stage career highlight. Released on October 20, Hackney Diamonds sounds remarkably fresh and dynamic for a band that has existed for 61 years! The first Stones album since the 2021 death of longtime drummer Charlie Watts features Elton John, Lady Gaga, Stevie Wonder, Bill Wyman, Paul McCartney and even Watts, among others. One of the most effective contributions are Lady Gaga’s backing vocals on Sweet Sounds of Heaven, a great soulful ballad credited to Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. It also includes Wonder on keyboards and piano, but you don’t notice unless you carefully listen to Jagger telling Wonder, ‘Play me something, Steve’, at around the 5:30-minute mark or check the credits – a relatively small wrinkle on what I think is the Stones’ best studio album since 1989’s Steel Wheels (full album review).

Raze Regal & White Denim Inc. – Raze Regal & White Denim Inc.

The collaboration between Raze Regal, who AllMusic calls an eclectic, psych, jazz, and rock-influenced guitarist, and James Petralli, vocalist of Austin, Texas indie rock band White Denim who he co-founded in 2006, is one of my most intriguing new music discoveries this year. The album’s sophisticated sound blending jazz, rock, soul and pop at times reminds me of Steely Dan and some of Gino Vannelli’s work I’ve heard. Here’s the cool opener Ashley Goudeau, named after a local Austin morning news anchor, a song about a parasocial relationship with a TV personality (full album review).

Sources: Wikipedia; AllMusic; YouTube; Spotify

A Pretty Good Get Up! Mix

The algorithms my streaming music providers use to serve me listening suggestions have greatly improved. Until four or five years ago, I used to make fun of them thinking, ‘gee, how do they come up with their recommendations?’ Now I have to say they evidently have a pretty darn good idea about my music taste.

Welcome to the age of A.I.! If you use Google, which of course also already leverages A.I., to search for the key trends in music projected for 2024, you quickly get to the emergence of new technologies, including A.I.-assisted music production!

While I have decidedly mixed feelings about A.I. and feel there needs to be some level of regulation to limit misuse, in entertainment and beyond, the reality is the genie is out of the bottle. As such, I might as well enjoy A.I. when it does something good, such as separating tracks of old recordings to enable sound-enhanced remixes and, of course, spitting out playlists, based on my historical listening patterns.

This brings me to the subject of this post – a playlist that was recently offered to me by one of my streaming music providers. Overall, they hit the nail on the head about 95% of the time! Here are clips of four of the picks I dig, followed by a Spotify link to the entire playlist. Hope there’s something you like as well!

Steely Dan/Kid Charlemagne – The Royal Scam (March 1976)

Yes/Beyond and Before – Yes (July 1969)

Traveling Wilburys/Inside Out – Traveling Wilburys Vol. 3 (October 1990)

Bonnie Raitt/Give It Up Or Let Me Go – Give It Up (September 1972)

And here’s a Spotify link to the entire playlist!

Sources: Wikipedia; Apple Music; YouTube; Spotify

On This Day in Rock & Roll History: December 28

Welcome to the latest installment of my music history series, the oldest recurring feature I launched in early July 2016, less than two weeks after I had started the blog. While it was always irregular, it became less and less frequent over time. With the most recent installment dating back to early May 2023, I thought this would be a good moment for another post in the series before the year is over. In case you’re new to the feature, the idea is to highlight select music happenings that occurred on a specific date over the past 60-70 years or so.

1961: American doo-wop band The Tokens topped the Billboard Hot 100 with The Lion Sleeps Tonight, scoring their biggest hit. The song was originally written in Zulu, and recorded and released in 1939 by South African musician, singer and composer Solomon Linda under the title Mbube. The song was subsequently adopted and covered internationally by many pop and folk artists. For the rendition by The Tokens George Weiss created the English lyrics. In addition to him, The Lion Sleeps Tonight was credited to Hugo Peretti and Luigi Creatore and eventually Lindo, following litigation and a settlement in 2006.

1963: Country singer-songwriter Merle Haggard enters the U.S. chart Billboard Hot County Songs for the first time with his second single Sing a Sad Song, his debut on the small Tally label. Eventually, it would reach no. 19 in January 1964. The song was written by Wynn Stewart who ended up recording it as well in 1976. Not only did his version make the country chart as well, but it also peaked at no. 19.

1968: The eponymous studio album by The Beatles, aka. The White Album, peaked at no. 1 in the U.S. on the Billboard 200. It became the 12th U.S. Beatles studio album to top the U.S. pop chart. Only two of their preceding U.S. albums, Introducing… The Beatles (January 1964) and Something New (July 1964), narrowly missed the top of the chart, reaching no. 2. The most recent 50th anniversary reissue of The Beatles peaked at no. on the Billboard 200.

1976: Guitarist Freddie King, who together with B.B. King and Albert King was known as one of the “Three Kings of the Blues Guitar,” died at age 42 from complications of stomach ulcers and acute pancreatitis. King who hailed from Gilmer, Texas, picked up the guitar as a six-year-old, initially learning from his mother and uncle. He moved to Chicago as a teenager and eventually got a deal with Federal Records after Chess Records had repeatedly turned him down. In 1960, King recorded his first single Have You Ever Loved a Woman with that label. Written by Billy Myles, the tune also appeared on King’s 1961 debut album Freddy King Sings. Over his 14-year recording career, he released 13 studio records.

1978: Rolling Stone magazine voted Some Girls by The Rolling Stones as album of the year. The band’s 16th studio release became their sixth no. 1 album in a row on the U.S. Billboard 200 since 1971’s Sticky Fingers and is considered to be among their best records by many of their fans. It also holds the distinction of being the only Stones record to be nominated for a Grammy in the Album of the Year category. There was some controversy surrounding the cover showing the Stones with select female celebrities and lingerie ads. Following the threat of legal action from the likes of Lucille Ball, Farrah Fawcett and Liza Minnelli, the album was quickly reissued with a different cover that replaced all celebrities with black and punk-style garish colors with the phrase “Pardon our appearance – cover under re-construction”. Here’s the album’s second single Beast of Burden, which appeared in August 1978.

Sources: Wikipedia; Songfacts; Songfacts Music History Calendar; This Day in Music; YouTube

Song Musings

It’s hard to believe today is the final Wednesday of 2023. I hope everybody is feeling groovy. For the last time this year, welcome to my weekly feature, where I take a closer look at a song I’ve only mentioned in passing or not covered at all to date.

If you’ve visited this blog before or are aware of my music taste otherwise, you know The Beatles are my all-time favorite band. I also like a good deal of each member’s solo work and have featured them and the band on many other occasions but not in Song Musings except for John Lennon.

Today, I’d like to turn to George Harrison. While he had become a seasoned writer by the mid-’60s, many of the songs he presented to The Beatles were rejected by Lennon and Paul McCartney. My pick was one of them. Ironically, it’s titled Isn’t It a Pity.

Harrison wrote Isn’t It a Pity in 1966 and proposed it for inclusion on a Beatles album various times, including the Get Back sessions that resulted in Let It Be, as well as The Beatles (White Album), Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and Revolver. Like many other such songs it ended up on All Things Must Pass, Harrison’s massive first solo album after the break-up of The Beatles and his third overall.

“‘Isn’t It a Pity’ is about whenever a relationship hits a down point,” Harrison explained in his 1980 biography I, Me, Mine. “Instead of whatever other people do (like breaking each other’s jaws) I wrote a song. It was a chance to realize that if I felt somebody had let me down, then there’s a good chance I was letting someone else down. We all tend to break each other’s hearts, taking and not giving back – isn’t it a pity.”

Isn’t It a Pity, paired with My Sweet Lord, was released as a double A-side lead single on November 23, 1970, four days prior to the All Things Must Pass album. In the UK, My Sweet Lord was paired with What Is Life. The single became a massive hit worldwide, topping the charts in the U.S.; Canada; various European countries, including the UK, Republic of Ireland, Germany, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Norway and Sweden; as well as Australia.

It also became Harrison’s best-selling single, reaching Platinum status in the U.S. and the UK, and 2x Platinum in Japan. In the mid-’70s, that success got him into trouble with My Sweet Lord, and he was found guilty for subconsciously having plagiarized Ronnie Mack’s He’s So Fine, a 1963 hit for The Chiffons. Going back to Japan, here’s a live version of Isn’t It a Pity, captured there in 1991 during Harrison’s tour with his friend Eric Clapton. While it’s a pity the video is blurry, the audio is pretty good!

Co-produced by Harrison and Phil Spector, Isn’t It a Pity included a remarkable amount of high profile musicians: Tony Ashton (piano); Billy Preston (piano); Gary Wright (electric piano); Bobby Whitlock (harmonium), of Derek and the Dominoes; Badfinger’s Pete Ham, Tom Evans and Joey Molland (each acoustic guitar) and Mike Gibbins (tambourine); Klaus Voormann (bass); and Ringo Starr (drums). In addition to providing slide guitar and vocals, Harrison played acoustic guitar and Moog synthesizer. Orchestral and choral arrangements were done by John Barham. All of this creates a lush wall of sound, but I think it works magnificently for this song!

One of the things I absolutely love about Isn’t It a Pity is Harrison’s distinct slide guitar – a true signature sound. Apart from melodic playing and overdubbed harmony action, the soft tone is outstanding. The latter likely resulted from Harrison using his thumb instead of a pick. It’s also part of the equation for Jeff Beck’s magic tone.

In addition to the famous long 7:10-minute version, All Things Must Pass includes a shorter edit, Isn’t It a Pity (Version 2). At 4:48 minutes, this cut isn’t only significantly shorter but also noticeably slower. Apparently, Harrison initially wasn’t happy with the long version. The shorter version is said to have come about by chance on a separate occasion after one of the backing musicians began playing the song.

Taking a look at the credits for version 2 reveals the following: George Harrison (vocals, acoustic guitar), Eric Clapton (electric guitar), Tony Ashton (piano), Bobby Whitlock (organ), Carl Radle (bass), Ringo Starr (drums), Mike Gibbins (tambourine) and John Barnham (woodwind arrangement). It’s a more subdued cut, but I like it as well.

Isn’t It a Pity has been covered by many other artists, including Matt Monro, Nina Simone, Cowboy Junkies, Annie Lennox and Peter Frampton, among others. The songs was also performed during the commemorative Concert For George on November 29, 2002 by Eric Clapton and Billy Preston who were backed by a large band that included Jeff Lynne and Harrison’s son Dhani Harrison.

I’m leaving you with three of the above renditions, as well as the lyrics.

Isn’t It a Pity

Isn’t it a pity
Now, isn’t it a shame
How we break each other’s hearts
And cause each other pain

How we take each other’s love
Without thinking anymore
Forgetting to give back
Isn’t it a pity

Some things take so long
But how do I explain
When not too many people
Can see we’re all the same

And because of all their tears
Their eyes can’t hope to see
The beauty that surrounds them
Isn’t it a pity

Isn’t it a pity
Isn’t is a shame
How we break each other’s hearts
And cause each other pain

How we take each other’s love
Without thinking anymore
Forgetting to give back
Isn’t it a pity

Forgetting to give back
Isn’t it a pity
Forgetting to give back
Now, isn’t it a pity

[Repeat: x6]
What a pity
What a pity, pity, pity
What a pity
What a pity, pity, pity

Sources: Wikipedia; Songfacts; YouTube

Peter Gabriel’s New Album Was Worth the Wait

“Gabriel still dazzles on sumptuous tenth solo album” (Mojo). “It is utterly mesmerizing that Gabriel can still find new and unique ways to present his art to the world “ (Glide Magazine). “There are points where his relentless utopianism can sound trite” (Uncut). “While the “Bright Side” mixes bring out the album’s more dynamic range, the lyrics lack the edge of Gabriel’s early music” (Slant). Reviews of Peter Gabriel’s new album have been pretty favorable overall, but he isn’t for everybody. If you like the British music artist’s previous work and don’t necessarily expect another hit-loaded album like So, I think you’re going to dig i/o.

Finally released on December 1, 2023, Gabriel’s 10th studio album took 21 years to come together. Factoring in that by the time i/o dropped Gabriel already had released each of its 12 tracks as singles over the past 12 months, this still leaves 20 years since Up, which came out in September 2002. While there’s no obvious hit like Sledgehammer or Big Time, the music is accessible, and some of it is pretty groovy. What struck me the most are Gabriel’s vocals, which virtually haven’t changed since So, his fifth studio album from May 1986.

Bright-Side and Dark-Side Mixes 2CD

Each song on i/o is offered in two mixes, resulting in a whooping 2-CD package of 24 tracks, translating to 2 hours and 18 minutes in total length. An additional third version is included on the 2-CD + Blu-ray format of the album. That’s a massive 36 tracks totaling more than 3 hours. I wonder how many folks are going to listen to all these different versions. Out of curiosity, I checked out the bright-side and dark-side mixes for a few tracks and couldn’t tell significant differences. There are two caveats to this observation: A measly audio setup and some degree of high-frequency hearing loss!

Here’s how the official album announcement explains the mixes: All 12 tracks are subject to two stereo mixes: the Bright-Side Mix, handled by Mark ‘Spike’ Stent, and the Dark-Side Mix, as reshaped by Tchad Blake. “We have two of the greatest mixers in the world in Tchad and Spike and they definitely bring different characters to the songs. Tchad is very much a sculptor building a journey with sound and drama, Spike loves sound and assembling these pictures, so he’s more of a painter.”…A third version – the In-Side Mix, in Dolby Atmos, comes courtesy of Hans-Martin Buff “doing a wonderful job generating these much more three-dimensional mixes”.

Bright-Side Mix 2LP

Initial production work for i/o dates back to April 1995, but Gabriel ended up focusing his attention to recording Up. His original intention was to release the successor to that album in 2004. But Gabriel got side-tracked with his two orchestral albums Scratch My Back (2010) and New Blood (2011), and other projects. Not only did this result in repeated delays but also in many reworks and re-recordings. At the same time, the pool of song ideas swelled, and in 2005 Gabriel reportedly was working on a 150 songs. Gabriel kept mentioning his work in various interviews throughout the years to the point where some observers doubted he would ever finish the album.

Finally, things fell into place. Instead of releasing i/o in one shot, Gabriel in late 2022 announced his 2023 i/o Tour, which featured material from the new album. Starting from January 2023, he also began putting out one new track each month as a single. The bright-side mixes were timed to full moon, while the dark-side mixes came out on the following new moon. Thematically, the songs are about life and the universe, touching on topics like the passing of time, mortality, grief, injustice and terrorism. While that doesn’t sound exactly cheerful, i/o isn’t all doom and gloom and has its moments of joy, optimism and hope.

Time for some music! Let’s start with Panopticom, which became the album’s first single with the release of the bright-side mix on January 6. “The first song is based on an idea I have been working on to initiate the creation of an infinitely expandable accessible data globe: The Panopticom,” Gabriel stated. “We are beginning to connect a like-minded group of people who might be able to bring this to life, to allow the world to see itself better and understand more of what’s really going on.”

Here’s the album’s title track i/o, which means input/output. “You see it on the back of a lot of electrical equipment and it just triggered some ideas about the stuff we put in and pull out of ourselves, in physical and non-physical ways,” Gabriel explained. “That was the starting point of this idea and then trying to talk about the interconnectedness of everything. The older I get, I probably don’t get any smarter, but I have learned a few things and it makes a lot of sense to me that we are not these independent islands that we like to think we are, that we are part of a whole. If we can see ourselves as better connected, still messed up individuals, but as part of a whole, then maybe there’s something to learn?”

Road to Joy, co-produced by Gabriel and Brian Eno, is a groovy track and perhaps the closest to what you could call a hit. The song features the Soweto Gospel Choir, a string arrangement from John Metcalfe, as well as contributions from a number of musicians of Gabriel’s touring band. “I’m working on a project which is partly a story focused around the brain and how we perceive things and this song connects to that,” Gabriel said. “It deals with near-death experience and locked-in syndrome situations where people are unable to communicate or to move. It’s an amazingly frustrating condition. There have been some great books and films about this subject, but at this point in our story the people looking after our hero manage to find a way to wake him up. So, it’s a lyric about coming back into your senses, back to life, back into the world.”

Olive Tree, the eighth track released from i/o, is another song about connection, both how we interact with nature and the other species around us, but also a greater sensitivity to the potential for broadening human experience, explained an accompanying statement. In Gabriel’s words: “In some ways I do think we are part of everything and we probably have means to connect and communicate with everything that we often shut off. We only want to see and listen to the things that seem important and relevant to us and shut out the noise of everything else when, probably, hidden in that noise there are all sorts of things that can help us realise our place in this future world.”

Let’s do one more, This Is Home, which Gabriel called a love song. “It began with inspiration from some of the great Tamla Motown rhythm sections so we’re trying to recreate that in a modern way, complete with the tambourine and handclaps,” Gabriel said. “The groove I like a lot, Tony Levin does a great bass part there.” He added, “I did an unusual thing for me in that I tried doing this low voice / high voice thing, so you get this almost conversational voice at the beginning and the second part is a higher, more emotional voice. I thought that would be both intimate and emotive to put the two side by side.”

“I’m a tinkerer,” Gabriel told The New York Times when addressing the drawn-out process of making i/o. “So there’s always a diversion. I’ve never had trouble — touch wood — with musical ideas. But getting to a point where I think there’s a lyric that I’m happy with — that has been harder for me. I think the critic in me is tougher now than it used to be, for better or for worse. But part of the creative process is to feel good about lowering your standards sometimes and just, you know, letting the energy rip.”

i/o features Gabriel’s longtime collaborators David Rhodes (guitar), Tony Levin (bass) and Manu Katché (drums). In addition to co-producing the above-mentioned Road to Joy, Brian Eno also contributes musically to various other songs. Among other contributors are Richard Russell, who co-produced one of the tracks (Four Kinds of Horses), Evan Smith (saxophone on Olive Tree), Josh Shpak (trumpet on Road to Joy and Olive Tree) and Oli Jacobs (synthesizers on Panopticom, i/o and This Is Home). Gabriel’s daughter Melanie Gabriel provides backing vocals on various tracks.

i/o is available in multiple formats, which apart from the previously noted 2-CD and 2-CD+Blu ray versions include 2-LP versions of each the dark-side and the bright-side mixes. On March 8, 2024, there will also be a 4-LP, 2-CD, 1 Blu-ray box, featuring all three mixes for each track. Last but not least, here’s a Spotify link to the album (2-CD version with each the bright-side and the dark-side mixes).

Sources: Wikipedia; Mojo; Glide Magazine; Uncut; Sant Peter Gabriel website; The New York Times; YouTube; Spotify

Merry Christmas!

Between renditions of traditional carols and contemporary tracks, there are countless Christmas songs, and each season new ones pop up. While I like some, I’ve become lukewarm about others, especially those that keep getting played over and over again each year. In more recent years, a rendition of a traditional Christmas carol has emerged as my favorite: Silent Night by The Temptations. Apart from being a beautiful song, the mighty vocal group’s singing is just out of this world – I never get tired of it!

The Temptations initially recorded Silent Night for their October 1970 studio album The Temptations Christmas Card. First tenor/falsetto vocalist Eddie Kendricks sang lead. He was backed by Dennis Edwards (tenor/baritone vocals), Paul Williams (second tenor/baritone vocals), Melvin Franklin (bass vocals) and Otis Williams (second tenor/baritone vocals). Instrumentation was provided by The Funk Brothers, a group of Detroit-based session musicians who performed on most Motown recordings between 1959 and 1972.

In 2022, The Temptations celebrated their 60th anniversary. Otis Williams, who this past October turned 82, remains the only original member of the group’s current version. Ron Tyson (tenor) and Terry Weeks (second tenor) have been part of The Temps since 1983 and 1997, respectively, while Tony Grant and Jawan Jackson joined more recently in 2021 and 2022, respectively. So, yes, The Temptations have seen many changes over the decades, but they still sound magnificent. Check out this fan video of Silent Night captured live in December 2022. Nobody does it like The Temps!

Silent Night (original German title: Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht) was written in 1818 by Austrian church organist and composer Franz Xaver Gruber, with lyrics by Joseph Mohr, an Austrian Roman Catholic priest and writer. Fellow blogger Tom MacInnes recently had a great write-up about the song’s remarkable background story.

No matter whether and how you celebrate Christmas, I wish you peace and happiness!

Sources: Wikipedia; YouTube

The Sunday Six

Happy Sunday! I’d like to invite you to join me on my latest music time travel excursion. Since many folks like to call it the most wonderful time of the year, I decided to give today’s trip a Christmas theme. Other than that, everything will stay the same, i.e., six tracks from six different decades in different flavors!

In my original home country Germany, people who celebrate Christmas traditionally start the festivities today, December 24, in the early evening, followed by two days that are part of the Christmas holiday. Here in the U.S., the holiday is observed on December 25 – not everything is bigger in America after all! 🙂

Regardless of whether you celebrate Christmas, I hope to see you on board of the magical music time machine. As always, our itinerary is pretty eclectic. It’s gonna be fun, even if you don’t celebrate Christmas. All aboard, fasten your seatbelts and off we go!

Louis Armstrong/Christmas In New Orleans

Our trip starts in 1955 with an iconic jazz artist who I trust doesn’t need much of an introduction: Louis Armstrong. Over a 50-year-plus career between 1919 and 1971, Satchmo touched various genres from Dixieland to swing to pop. The man with the distinct gravelly voice also helped popularize scat singing, a vocal improvisational style using wordless vocables, nonsense syllables or no words at all, and was an inventive trumpet and cornet player. Christmas In New Orleans, which Armstrong released as a single in 1955, was written by Joe Van Winkle and Richard Sherman. Listening to Satchmo just makes me happy!

AC/DC/Mistress For Christmas

How about a hard rock Christmas song? I told you this was going to be an eclectic experience! Let’s head to Australia and September 1990, which saw the release of AC/DC’s 12th studio album The Razors Edge. Other than that it was co-written by the band’s Angus Young and Malcolm Young, I couldn’t find any specific information about Mistress For Christmas. Perhaps the song is deemed too naughty. If that’s the case, perhaps looking at it with a sense of humor would help! In the UK, Mistress For Christmas also became the B-side of the single Moneytalks. It’s classic AC/DC, and I love it!

James Brown/Santa Claus Go Straight to the Ghetto

Time to pay a visit to the ’60s with a groovy and soulful Christmas song by James Brown. Santa Claus Go Straight to the Ghetto was penned by Alfred Ellis, Charles Bobbit and Hank Ballard. It appeared on Brown’s second Christmas album A Soulful Christmas, released in November 1968. Christmas was special to Brown. In addition to recording various Christmas albums, he started the James Brown Toy Giveaway in the early ’90s where he dressed up as Santa and handed out presents to needy children during Christmas gatherings. The annual toy giveaways continue to be conducted to this day by the James Brown Family Foundation.

Cher/Run Rudolph Run

Our next stop takes us all the way back to the present. Undoubtedly, you’ve heard Run Rudolph Run, a staple during the Christmas holiday season. Initially recorded and released by Chuck Berry in 1958, and credited to him, Marvin Brodie and Johnny Marks, the classic Berry rock & roll-style song has been covered by numerous other artists over the decades, such as Lynyrd Skynyrd, Foo Fighters, Sheryl Crow, Bryan Adams and Keith Richards. The latest is Cher who included it on her first-ever Christmas album, Christmas, released on October 20 this year. At 77, Cher surely still knows how to rock!

Run-DMC/Christmas in Hollis

Did anyone say there’s no such thing as a Christmas song that raps? In case that myth ever existed, American hip hop and rap group Run-DMC busted it in 1987 with Christmas in Hollis. Co-written by their three members Joseph Simmons, Darryl McDaniels and Jason Mizell, and co-produced by them and Rick Rubin, the track first appeared on A Very Special Christmas, an October 1987 compilation to benefit the Special Olympics. In November of the same year, it also came out as a single. Unlike Walk This Way, Run-DMC’s hugely successful 1986 collaboration with Aerosmith, Christmas in Hollis missed the charts.

Greg Lake/I Believe in Father Christmas

And once again, we’re reaching our sixth and final destination. This will take us to November 1975 and I Believe in Father Christmas, a single by Greg Lake. The English bassist, guitarist, singer and songwriter, who passed away in December 2016 at the age of 69, first gained prominence as a co-founding member of progressive rock bands King Crimson and Emerson, Lake & Palmer. Composed by Lake with lyrics by English poet and songwriter Peter Sinfield, I Believe in Father Christmas also borrows some music from Russian composer Sergei Prokofiev’s 1934 Lieutenant Kijé Suite. While Lake called the song a protest of the commercialization of Christmas, Sinfield said the lyrics are about a loss of innocence and childhood belief. Check out this beautiful sound!

Last but not least, here’s a Spotify playlist of the above goodies. Hope there’s something for you here. To anyone celebrating it today, Merry Christmas!

Sources: Wikipedia; YouTube; Spotify

New Music Musings

Happy Saturday and I’d like to welcome you to part 2 of my 2023 in review series. This second post highlights some of my favorite new songs that were released during the second half of the year. In case you missed it and are curious, part 1 is here.

The Arcadian Wild/Shoulders

Led by songwriters Isaac Horn (acoustic guitar, vocals) and Lincoln Mick (mandolin, vocals), with Bailey Warren on fiddle, The Arcadian Wild from Nashville, Tenn. have their roots in formal vocal music and influences from progressive bluegrass and folk. They have been around for about a decade and released their eponymous debut in 2015. From their third and new full-length album Welcome, here’s Shoulders – love that warm and beautiful sound!

Cordovas/Fallen Angels of Rock ‘n’ Roll

If you’ve followed my blog or know my music taste otherwise, you won’t be surprised to see Cordovas in this post. I’m a fan of this East Nashville, Tenn.-based Americana and country rock band. They were formed in 2011 by singer-songwriter, bassist and vocalist Joe Firstman after a six-year stint as bandleader for former NBC late-night show Last Call with Carson Daly. Cordovas who have named The Allman Brothers Band, Grateful Dead and The Band as influences released their fourth and latest studio album The Rose of Aces in August. Here’s the fantastic opener Fallen Angels of Rock ‘n’ Roll co-written by Firstman and Cory Hanson, frontman of Los Angeles rock band Wand. If I would be asked to pick my favorite song of 2023, this would be it!

The Natvral/A Glass of Laughter

The Natvral is a music project of Kip Berman, who previously founded American indie rock band The Pains of Being Pure at Heart and was their main songwriter during their active period between 2007 and 2019. In April 2021, Berman released his debut solo album Tethers, and I included one of the tracks in a previous installment of this weekly feature. His sophomore project is titled Summer of No Light. Here’s A Glass of Laughter, a great folk rock tune penned by Berman. Just as I felt when listening to the above song from his debut album, I can hear a Bob Dylan vibe. Gosh, I love it, we need more artists like him!

Tré Burt/Traffic Fiction

Tré Burt is a Sacramento-based singer-songwriter I first included in an October 2020 installment of this series. During his childhood, he was exposed to music by The Delfonics, Otis Redding, Marvin Gaye and The Temptations. As he became a musician himself, he tapped into American folk and blues. Bits of those and other roots were reflected on the August 2021 studio album You, Yeah, You, the result of what Burt’s website calls his “first proper studio sessions.” His latest, titled Traffic Fiction, is an “alchemy of soul, dub, and more than a little punk.” Here’s the great-sounding title track penned by Burt – so good!

Jake Thistle/The Dreamer

Among young music artists I’ve come across, Jake Thistle is the one I feel most excited about. The 19-year-old singer-songwriter from New Jersey first entered my radar screen on Facebook in 2021. Last summer, I saw him perform a Jackson Browne tribute show at a free summer outdoor concert. Browne is one of the artists who’s not only an influence but who Thistle actually has met, along with the likes of Tom Petty, John Hiatt, Stevie Nicks and Foo Fighters – in fact, he played or shared bills with most of them! Following his June 2021 home-produced debut CD Down the Line, Thistle is now out with his first studio EP The Half Left Out (see my reviews here and here, respectively. My favorite track off the latter is The Dreamer, which reminds me of a young Jackson Browne.

Harp/Country Cathedral Drive

This brings me to my final pick in this 2003 songs in review mini-series. Harp is a music project created by musician and songwriter Tim Smith, which also includes his wife Kathi Zung. According to their AllMusic profile, Harp combines British folk rock, vintage alternative rock and prog rock. Smith initially gained prominence as the primary songwriter of Texas indie rock band Midlake who he co-founded in 1999. After his departure in 2012, he met and married Zung, an artist and puppet fabricator with a career in stop-motion animation, who also is a musician. Off Albion, Harp’s first album, here’s the gorgeous Country Cathedral Drive.

Following is a Spotify playlist of the above songs and 16 additional picks from the second half of the year. I hope you’re going to check out the playlist, which includes many other great songs I didn’t get to feature in this post.

Sources: Wikipedia; AllMusic; YouTube; Spotify

Reliving the Live Music Experience

It’s safe to assume most music fans agree that seeing a beloved artist or band live is a special experience. In fact, to me, it’s the ultimate thrill! Nearly every time I go to a concert, big or small, I also get “the itch”, thinking perhaps I should have continued playing music actively. Even though my band days date back more than 30 years, I think I will always remain a musician at heart! As such, it felt right to take a look back on my live music experience in 2023.

Hopefully, it doesn’t come across as bragging when I say this year was really busy on the concert front. In fact, I was surprised myself when realizing how many shows I visited. I don’t know, I guess it just happened. Much of it was driven by spontaneous action. I will add that given high ticket prices, especially for prominent acts, I doubt I can keep up that pace next year. For now, let’s focus on some of my favorite concert moments of 2023.

Big ticket/prominent artists and bands I saw this year include Southern Avenue (review), Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band (review), The Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band (review), Peter Frampton (review), The Doobie Brothers (review), James Taylor (review) and Los Lobos (review).

In the following, I’d like to let the music do the talking, or perhaps I should say writing. Going through old clips and pictures I took was a lot of fun. Hope you enjoy my little collage!

Southern Avenue/Don’t Give Up – SteelStax, Bethlehem, Pa., Sep 7

The Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band/Ways and Means – Lizzie Rose Music Room, Tuckerton, N.J., Aug 17

Peter Frampton/Shine On – Wind Creek Event Center, Bethlehem, Pa., Jul 15

Los Lobos/Kiko and the Lavender Moon – Pollack Theatre, West Long Branch, N.J., Feb 24

Catching prominent music acts I love is great, but as in previous years, my live music experience wasn’t limited to them. Once again, I was also fortunate to see great tributes, such as Sugar Mountain (Neil Young), Who’s Next (The Who), Stiff Upper Lip (AC/DC) and Good Stuff (Steely Dan, Sting, Stevie Wonder & Gino Vannelli), as well as various other bands.

Luckily, a good deal of these “non-big ticket acts” were free and/or very affordable. I believe in supporting live music, but there’s only so much I can do. Otherwise, the hole in my wallet would even be bigger! Here’s a small sample. My apologies for not featuring everybody I saw!

Sugar Mountain/Like a Hurricane – Lizzie Rose Music Room, Sep 9

Who’s Next/Won’t Get Fooled Again – British Invasion Festival, Golden Nugget, Atlantic City, N.J., Jul 22

Stiff Upper Lip/It’s a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll) – Readington Brewery, Readington, N.J., June 9

Good Stuff/Deacon Blues – New Jersey Brewing Company, Mount Olive, N.J., Mar 31

There you have it. What’s in store for next year? Not much to report yet, except for two events I really hope will happen. First is seeing The Rolling Stones during their Hackney Diamonds Tour at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. on May 23. I’m thrilled I was able to get a ticket I could pay for. Granted, I settled for the least expensive seat. But for a live music nut like me, being there means nearly everything!

I also look forward to Rock the Farm, the main annual fundraiser of the New Jersey nonprofit CFC Loud N Clear Foundation, featuring great tribute acts to raise funds for programs to prevent relapse after drug rehab. Due to bad weather, CFC made the tough but right call to postpone last year’s event until June 1, 2024. I love the idea of music for a cause and have attended this festival on the Jersey shore multiple times over the past six years. My review of Rock the Farm 2022 is here.

As for the rest of 2024, we’ll see. I guess I’ll take it one show at a time!