The Sunday Six

Sunday is fun day and I’d like to invite you to join me on another trip through space and time to explore great music from different eras. Rest assured the flux capacitor and the time circuits work, and I’ve already set the coordinates for the first destination the magical music time machine shall visit. Off we go!

Woody Herman and His Orchestra/Early Autumn

Today, we begin our journey in a studio in December 1947 to witness the recording of a beautiful jazz instrumental by Woody Herman – of course, without disrupting the space-time continuum! The American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, singer and big band leader was active from the mid-1930s until his death in 1987. This recording of Early Autumn, composed by Ralph Burns and Herman, featured Stan Getz (tenor saxophone) and Terry Gibbs (vibraphone), together with Herman (alto saxophone) and his band.

The Heavy Heavy/Miles and Miles

Let’s go back to the future, which really is the present, with a great tune by The Heavy Heavy, a UK-based five-piece band. Led by Will Turner and Georgie Fuller, they “create the kind of unfettered rock-and-roll that warps time and space, sitting at the reverb-drenched collision of psychedelia and blues, acid rock and sunshine pop” according to their Bandcamp page – sounds like a perfect fit for our trip! Miles and Miles, written by Turner, is from their debut EP Life and Life Only released in June 2022.

Led Zeppelin/Stairway to Heaven

Next, let’s set the time circuits to November 1971 and what I would consider the greatest rock tune of all time, on most days: Stairway to Heaven by Led Zeppelin, off their untitled fourth studio album, aka. Led Zeppelin IV. ‘No Beatles song?’ you may wonder. ‘And a band he constantly has called out for borrowing from other artists without giving credit?’ I know, I know. To be clear, I still think Messrs. Robert Plant and Jimmy Page should have put their big egos aside and admitted that Stairway’s intro clearly sounds like Spirit by Taurus (the part in question starts at 45 seconds). It wouldn’t have taken away anything from Stairway, nothing whatsoever! This masterpiece brilliantly builds from an acoustic into a full-blown metal tune, featuring one of the best rock drum parts I know, by the amazing John Bonham. And, yes, the song hasn’t exactly suffered from obscurity on classic rock radio stations, so let’s get it over with!

Marshall Crenshaw/What Do You Dream Of

Time for a dose of great power pop! To get it, we shall travel to July 1996, which saw the release of Miracle of Science, the seventh studio album by Marshall Crenshaw. When thanks to a recent post by fellow blogger Rich Kamerman I started listening to Crenshaw, I came across What Do You Dream Of and earmarked this tune right away for a Sunday Six. Crenshaw, who has been active since the early ’80s, is best known for hit songs, such as Someday, Someway, Cynical Girl and Whenever You’re on My Mind. But he has written many other gems including this one!

The Byrds/You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere

You know we simply can’t skip the ’60s as long as I man the controls of the magical time music machine. Today’s destination of this decade shall be August 1968. That’s when The Byrds fully embraced country on their sixth studio album Sweetheart of the Rodeo, thanks to Gram Parsons. Initially conceived by band leader Roger McGuinn as a double LP that would span American popular music ranging from (early) bluegrass to (then-current) electronic music, Sweetheart of the Rodeo became the first widely recognized country rock album. One of my favorite tracks is You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere, penned by Bob Dylan in 1967 in Woodstock, N.Y. during a self-imposed isolation following his motorcycle accident the year before. The maestro himself recorded the tune in September 1971. It was included on his second compilation Bob Dylan’s Greatest Hits Vol. II, released in November of the same year.

The Alarm/Sixty Eight Guns

Once again, we’ve reached the sixth and final stop. This one takes us to Feb 1984 and Sixty Eight Guns by The Alarm. Fellow blogger Max from PowerPop first brought the Welsh rock band and this great tune to my attention a year ago, and Rich Kamerman reminded me of them a few weeks ago. Ya see, Robert and Jimmy, giving credit is simple – just man up and do it! Co-written by the group’s Eddie Macdonald (bass, guitar, vocals) and Mike Peters (vocals, guitar, harmonica), the catchy song is from their debut album Declaration. If you made it grungy, it could be a Green Day tune.

As usual, I’ll leave you with a Spotify playlist of the above goodies and hope I’ll see you again next Sunday for another trip!

Sources: Wikipedia; The Heavy Heavy Bandcamp page; YouTube; Spotify

The Sunday Six

It’s hard to believe another Sunday is upon us when it feels like the previous one only passed a couple of days ago! In any case, I hope everybody is spending a nice weekend. To make it even better, once again, I’d like to invite you to join me on another music time travel journey!

Hiromi/Blackbird

Our first stop today only takes us back a few years, to September 2019, and the second-to-most-recent studio album, Spectrum, by Japanese jazz pianist and composer Hiromi Uehara. Professionally known as Hiromi, she started her recording career in April 2003 and has since released 11 additional studio albums. Hiromi blends diverse musical genres, such as post-bop, progressive rock, classical music and pop, and is known for her virtuosic technique and energetic live performances. Off the above album is her lovely rendition of The Beatles’ Blackbird.

Fats Domino/Ain’t That a Shame

Next, we set our magical music time machine to April 1955 and a song that makes me smile every time I hear it: Ain’t That a Shame by the incredible Fats Domino, who first released the classic as a single. Credited to his birth name Antoine Domino, as well as prominent New Orleans music artist and producer Dave Bartholomew, the tune also appeared on Domino’s March 1956 debut album Rock and Rollin’ with Fats Domino. Man, I love how that song swings. You don’t hear that type of music much these days and, yes, that’s a shame!

Bob Marley and the Wailers/Could You Be Loved

Now that we’re all movin’ and groovin’, let’s kick it up a notch and travel to the early ’80s and a Jamaican who was instrumental in popularizing reggae all over the world: Bob Marley. Creatively borrowing from a 1971 John Lennon quote about Chuck Berry, if you tried to give reggae another name, you might call it Bob Marley. Here’s Could You Be Loved, the best-known track from Uprising, the 12th studio album by Bob Marley and the Wailers, released in June 1980. Sadly, it turned out to be the final release during the life of Bob Marley who passed away in May 1981 at age 36 from melanoma that had spread to his lungs and brain.

B.B. King/The Thrill Is Gone

The time has come for some blues. When I think of that genre, B.B. King is among the first artists who come to mind. One of the most influential blues guitarists of all time, King never showed off when playing his beloved Gibson ES-355, a semi-hollow body electric guitar he called “Lucille”. Here’s The Thrill Is Gone, off King’s December 1969 studio album Completely Well. Co-written by Roy Hawkins and Rick Darnell in 1951 and first recorded by Hawkins that year, The Thrill Is Gone became a major hit for King in 1970. With its lush and somewhat trippy string arrangement, it may not be what you traditionally associate with the blues, but it’s one heck of a gem!

Golden Smog/Red Headed Stepchild

Our next stop takes us to the ’90s and Golden Smog, an alternative country supergroup formed in the late ’80s by members of Soul Asylum, The Jayhawks, Run Westy Run, Wilco and The Honeydogs. After releasing their debut EP On Golden Smog in December 1992, which entirely consisted of covers, the group came out with their first full-length album of original songs in 1995, Down By the Old Mainstream. Red Headed Stepchild was co-written by Dan Murphy and Marc Perlman, of Soul Asylum and The Jayhawks, respectively, who like the band’s other members used pseudonyms for the credits.

Bruce Springsteen/Prove It All Night

You know and I know that once again we need to wrap up another trip with the magical music time machine. We also still need to pay a visit to the ’70s. Let’s do both with The Boss! Prove It All Night, penned by Bruce Springsteen, is a track from Darkness on the Edge of Town, his fourth studio album that came out in June 1978. Like its legendary predecessor Born to Run, the album was recorded with the E Street Band and as usual released under the Bruce Springsteen name only. Well, they don’t call him boss for nothing!

Last but not least, here’s a Spotify playlist of the above goodies. I enjoyed being your imaginary music time travel guide and hope we all do this again next Sunday!

Sources: Wikipedia; YouTube; Spotify

Bruce Cockburn Is On a Roll on New Album With Songs of the Heart, Soul and Conscience

The name Bruce Cockburn first entered my radar screen a few years ago when my longtime music buddy from Germany mentioned the Canadian singer-songwriter. He did so again when I saw him last in December, recommending that I check him out. Subsequently, I started some listening and featured one of Cockburn’s tunes in a Sunday Six installment in January. But I’m still at the very beginning of exploring this artist, which makes a review of his new album O Sun O Moon, out May 12, a bit tricky. But after having listened to the 12 tracks a few times, I’m confident to say that would this be Cockburn’s debut album, I sure as heck would already look forward to his sophomore release!

O Sun O Moon is Cockburn’s 35th album and, according to this Glide Magazine review, “his first vocal album since 2017’s Bone on Bone.” At 77 years and soon to turn 78 on May 27, Cockburn sounds in amazing shape to me, both as a guitarist and as a vocalist. Sometimes, he reminds me a tiny bit of fellow Canadian singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot, who sadly passed away a couple of weeks ago at the age of 84. Unlike Lightfoot, Bruce Cockburn has pretty much been absent from U.S. charts since he started his recording career in 1970. That seems to be a real shame!

Before getting to some music, I’d like to provide a bit of additional background on Cockburn. I’m doing this by borrowing from his bio written by AllMusic. Most of the time, I feel they do an outstanding job I couldn’t beat. One of Canada’s greatest singer/songwriters, Bruce Cockburn has won international acclaim for his insightful songs of emotional honesty and social significance in a career that’s lasted well over five decades. While usually lumped in with the contemporary folk and singer/songwriter communities, Cockburn’s sound encompassed elements of blues and world music on early efforts like 1971’s High Winds White Sky and 1973’s Night Vision, and the gentle blend of folk and jazz on Dancing in the Dragon’s Jaws won him his first significant audience outside his homeland.

Cockburn’s progressive politics came to the fore on 1984’s Stealing Fire with songs like “If I Had a Rocket Launcher,” as well as a stronger rock influence, and these themes would become a major part of his work, extending to 2003’s You’ve Never Seen Everything and 2011’s Small Source of Comfort. Cockburn is also celebrated for his skill as a guitarist, and he’s matured into an éminence grise of Canadian music. 2023’s O Sun O Moon shows that he hasn’t stopped writing graceful, challenging songs of the heart, the soul, and the conscience.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the new album’s tracks. And where better to begin than with the opener On a Roll. The tune has a nice bluesy vibe and features The McCrary Sisters, Ann McCrary and Regina McCrary (of American gospel quartet The McCrary Sisters) on backing vocals. I love the resonator guitar sound! “The adventure continues,” Cockburn said in an interview with Innerviews posted on his website. “I don’t take any of it for granted. I do think that it’s going to hit the wall at some point. The hands are going to stop working or something else will happen, but for now, I’m able to keep doing this stuff.”

On Orders, Cockburn reflects on how religion keeps getting hijacked to serve political agendas. “I do hope that people will be encouraged by “Orders” and what it has to say,” Cockburn stated during the above interview. “It’s one thing to sit there and say, “Oh yeah, we’re supposed to love thy neighbor,” but Christians have been failing to live up to that for 2,000 years. And there’s no reason to think we won’t keep on failing at that. But it doesn’t hurt to be reminded every now and then, that’s what we’re supposed to be doing.”

To Keep the World We Know is another socially-conscious song. In this tune, Cockburn sings about environmental degradation, referencing more recent wildfires in California where he lives near San Francisco, as well as other countries like France, Greece, Spain and Australia. “The actual song came about because Susan Aglukark (a fellow Canadian singer-songwriter – CMM) called up and wanted to write a song together, and I thought it seemed like a good idea,” Cockburn explained. “We had a good time working together on it. The title was mine, but the idea of the world being in flames was hers. We’re seeing all this drought and wildfires all around the world, and it just seemed like something worth writing about.”

In addition to being a socially-conscious songwriter, Bruce Cockburn is also known as a talented guitarist. He gives us a nice flavor of his skills on the beautiful instrumental Haiku. “I’ve always felt like there was a sense of space that went with instrumental music that doesn’t typically happen with songs with lyrics,” Cockburn told Innerviews. “If I listen to Bob Dylan, I’m thinking about what he’s saying, as well as savoring the music and whoever’s playing on the record. But if I listen to Japanese flute music or Bach, I’m not doing that. Rather, I’m allowing myself to be transported to wherever that music takes me.”

The final track I’d like to highlight is O Sun by Day O Moon by Night, in which Cockburn reflects on death but does so in a peaceful way. “I think the manner of going is the part that scares us and the part that is too often tragic, and sometimes horribly inflicted on us,” Cockburn mused. “But the result of the departure I think can be approached with joy, or at least with kind of joyful anticipation. Not that I’m in a hurry or anything, but I think since it’s inevitable, death is as much a part of life as birth.”

Before wrapping up this review, a few words are in order about the other musicians on the album. First, there’s Cockburn’s longtime collaborator Colin Linden (guitar) who also produced O Sun O Moon. Other musicians include Janice Powers (keyboards), who is also Linden’s wife; Jeff Taylor (accordion); Jenny Scheinman (violin); multi-instrumentalist Jim Hoke; Viktor Krauss (bass); as well as Gary Craig and Chris Brown (both drums). In addition to Colvin and Ann and Regina McCrary, guests include Buddy Miller, Allison Russell and Sarah Jarosz.

Here’s Spotify link to the album:

With O Sun O Moon, Bruce Cockburn has delivered an impressive album, which not only demonstrates top-notch musicianship and great vitality but also a singer-songwriter who after more than 50 years still has a lot to say. If you like what you’ve heard and want to experience Cockburn live, he’s scheduled to embark on an extended North American and UK tour. It kicks off on June 1st in Plymouth, N.H. and wraps up on December 2nd in Berkeley, Calif. The current schedule is here.

Sources: Wikipedia; Glide Magazine; Innerviews; Bruce Cockburn website; YouTube; Spotify

The Sunday Six

I hope everybody is spending a groovy Sunday. To all the mamas, Happy Mother’s Day! None of us would be here without you! And to the papas and the kids, remember mothers are superheroes working hard every day, so please do not only be kind to them today but also during the remaining 364 days of the year!

Why don’t we all, the mamas, the papas and the kids, have some fun with another music time travel trip? As always, the magical time machine will take us to six different decades to listen to six tracks in different flavors. Let’s fasten our seatbelts and go!

Lester Young/There Will Never Be Another You

Our first stop today is June 1954 and what feels like a bar late at night with some relaxing jazz music by Lester Young. The American jazz tenor saxophonist and occasional clarinetist was born in Woodville, Miss. in 1909 and grew up in a musical family. By the age of ten, he already had learned the basics of the trumpet, violin and drums and joined the Young Family Band, touring with carnivals and playing in regional cities in the southwestern U.S. He first picked up the tenor saxophone in the 1920s and left the Young Family Band at the age of 18, since he no longer wanted to tour in the racially segregated Jim Crow South. Eventually, Young settled in Kansas City in 1933 and gained prominence playing in Count Basie’s band. Over the next 10-plus years, he also was in various other bands and recorded with Billie Holiday and Nat “King” Cole. In the ’50s, Young recorded a series of albums as a leader. Sadly, he passed away at the age of 49 in March 1959 from internal bleeding resulting from alcoholism. There Will Never Be Another You, a popular song with music by Harry Warren and lyrics by Mack Gordon, was included on Lester Young with the Oscar Peterson Trio, one of two compilation albums with that title released in June 1954. They were subsequently combined with music from a third album, The President, and reissued in 1956 as The President Plays with the Oscar Peterson Trio.

The Tragically Hip/Bobcaygeon

Next, we set our time machine to July 1998 and music by alternative rockers The Tragically Hip. Max from PowerPop recently featured the celebrated Canadian band, who in turn had been brought to his attention by Canadian fellow bloggers Dave from A Sound Day and DeKE from deKe’s Vinyl Reviews & More… – lots of cross-pollination happening in our blogger community, which is an important reason why I dig music blogging as much as I do! The Tragically Hip, formed in Kingston, Ontario in 1984, were the best-selling band in Canada between 1996 and 2016, yet they were much less recognized in the U.S. And, yes, you can call that a tragedy! During their 33-year run, which ended in October 2017 after the death of vocalist Gord Downie, the group released 13 studio albums, one live album, one compilation album, two video albums, two extended plays and a boxed set – Wikipedia had to count them all! There were also 54 singles. Nine of the Hip’s studio albums topped the Canadian charts and eight reached Platinum or multi-Platinum status there, not to mention Canada’s Walk of Fame, Canadian Music Hall of Fame, multiple Juno Awards and all the other accolades they received – a truly extraordinary record! Bobcaygeon is a great track off the Hip’s sixth studio album Phantom Power, which appeared in July 1998. Credited to the entire band, the tune also became one of the album’s five singles and is among their most enduring and beloved signature songs.

Cream/Outside Woman Blues

On with the trip to the ’60s and music by what may well have been the best power trio of all time. In November 1967, Cream released their sophomore album Disraeli Gears, less than a year after their debut Fresh Cream. During their short, less than 2.5-year recording career, Jack Bruce (bass), Eric Clapton (guitar) and Ginger Baker (drums) released four albums. By the time their final release Goodbye came out in February 1969, they already had disbanded. Given the oftentimes violent fights between Bruce and Baker, it’s actually a miracle they lasted as long as they did and all came out alive. In case you wonder why, you can watch the 2012 documentary Beware of Mr. Baker, which I did again the other day. It’s a fascinating and pretty sad film! Let’s hear Outside Woman Blues, written by folk-blues guitarist Arthur Reynolds who also first recorded it in 1929 as Blind Joe Reynolds. Mr. Slowhand did a nice job rearranging the tune for Cream.

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers/Change of Heart

Time to pay a visit to the ’80s and one of my favorite artists of all time, who sadly has been gone for five-and-a-half years: Tom Petty. It’s safe to assume most if not all readers have heard about the guitarist and vocalist who hailed from Gainesville, Fla. where in 1976 he formed Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, together with Mike Campbell (lead guitar), Benmont Tench (keyboards), Ron Blair (bass) and Stan Lynch (drums). Campbell and Tench had been members of Petty’s previous group Mudcrutch, which he had started in 1970. At the time, they only released one poor-selling single before disbanding in late 1975. Petty ended up reviving Mudcrutch more than 30 years later and releasing two albums with them, Mudcrutch (2008) and Mudcrutch 2 (2016). Petty passed away in October 2017. His death was subsequently declared as “multisystem organ failure due to resuscitated cardiopulmonary arrest due to mixed drug toxicity.” Only a week earlier, Petty, who had been on potent painkillers for knee problems and a fractured hip and was also battling other health issues, had finished the final show of the Heartbreakers’ 40th-anniversary tour at the legendary Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. Change of Heart, written by Petty alone, appeared on Long After Dark, the fifth studio album by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers released in November 1982. The tune also became one of three singles. Here’s a terrific live version I couldn’t resist using!

The Staple Singers/I’ll Take You There

For our next stop in the ’70s, we don’t need to set our time machine and instead can rely on The Staple Singers to take us there. Our specific destination is February 1972. That’s when the gospel, soul and R&B vocal group put out Be Altitude: Respect Yourself, which became their second-charting album, hitting no. 19 and no. 3 on the Billboard 200 and Soul charts (today known as Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums). At that time, the family group already had existed for 24 years and issued close to 20 albums. Be Altitude: Respect Yourself featured family patriarch Pops Staples and his children Cleotha Staples, Mavis Staples and Yvonne Staples. All have passed except for Mavis Staples, an amazing lady who remains active at 83 years and just embarked on a summer tour with dates until mid-September, mostly in the U.S. and a few in Europe! I’ll Take You There, written by Alvertis Isbell, became one of two no. 1 singles the group scored on the Billboard Hot 100, beating Respect Yourself, the other hit single from that album, which “only” reached no. 12 on the pop chart. Take us there!

The Lone Bellow/Gold

We have time for one more stop. Let’s finish our trip in the present, specifically in November 2022. The Lone Bellow are an Americana and roots trio that began as a song-writing project for Zach Williams (guitar, lead vocals). Following his wife’s temporary paralysis that resulted from an accident, Williams started writing a journal to cope with the situation. Urged by friends, he picked up the guitar and turned his journal entries into songs. After performing as a solo act in New York City, he joined with Brian Elmquist (guitar, vocals) and Kanene Donehey Pipkin (mandolin, bass, keyboard, vocals). In January 2013, the trio released their eponymous debut album. Fast-forward nearly 10 years to Love Songs for Losers, their fifth and most recent album. Here’s Gold, a roots rock tune with a dose of pop – quite catchy music and neat harmony singing!

This Sunday Six wouldn’t be complete without a link to a Spotify playlist of the above tracks. Hope there’s something that tickles your fancy!

Sources: Wikipedia; Mavis Staples website; YouTube; Spotify

The Sunday Six

Happy Sunday, and I hope you’re in the mood to accompany me on another zig-zag trip with the magical music time machine. As always, the journey shall include six stops in different decades, featuring music in different flavors. But this time, I’d like to shake things up a tiny bit. Let’s go!

Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble/Lenny

Today, our first stop is June 1983, which saw the release of electric blues guitar virtuoso Stevie Ray Vaughan’s debut album Texas Flood. But don’t worry, I’m not gonna hit you over the head (yet) with some hard-charging Jimi Hendrix-style blues rock. Instead, we’re gonna do it nice and easy with a relaxing jazzy instrumental, Lenny, the album’s closer. Just listen to that brilliant guitar tone and you know why I love Vaughan as much as I do. He was backed by Tommy Shannon (bass) and Chris Layton (drums), who were known as Double Trouble. Initially, they were a five-piece (including SVR) Vaughan had formed in 1978, and after some line-up changes evolved into a power trio. Sadly, the career of Vaughan, one of the most talented guitarists I can think of, was tragically cut short in August 1990 when he died in a helicopter crash, along with the pilot and three other passengers on board.

Buzzcocks/Ever Fallen in Love (With Someone You Shouldn’t’ve)

Okay, time to wake up in case you nodded off during the previous track – now we’re gonna kick some butt! This next tune takes us to September 1978. That’s when English punk rockers Buzzcocks came out with their sophomore album Love Bites. And I’m not talking about some fast and loud music and screaming vocals by some guys who can barely play their instruments. This is punk with catchy pop hooks and decent vocals – in other words, my kind of punk! The Buzzcocks were formed in Bolton, England in 1976 by singer-songwriters Pete Shelley (vocals, guitar) and Howard Devoto (lead vocals). Devoto already departed after the release of the group’s debut EP Spiral Scratch (Jan 1977) to form Magazine, an early post-punk band. By the time Love Bites appeared, the remaining line-up of Buzzcocks included original members Steve Diggle (guitar, vocals), Steve Garvey (bass) and John Maher (drums). Buzzcocks who are still around have since seen multiple changes. Shelley remained until his death of a suspected heart attack in December 2018. Diggle is still around. To date, Buzzcocks have released 10 studio albums, most recently Sonics in the Soul, which came out in September 2022.

The Platters/The Great Pretender

If you’re a frequent reader of my blog or know my music taste otherwise, you’ve probably noticed I dig great singing. A lot! As such, it shouldn’t come as a huge surprise that I like certain vocal groups. One of the first such formations I heard are The Platters. I can’t quite remember whether it was Only You (And You Alone), their first hit single from July 1955, or the follow-on, which I decided to feature here. Released in November 1955, The Great Pretender became an even bigger chart success, their first single to top the U.S. pop charts. Written by Samuel “Buck” Ram, who also was a prominent music producer and arranger, The Great Pretender was a no. 1 in The Netherlands as well and reached no. 5 in each the UK and Belgium. Amazingly, a touring version of The Platters exists to this day, though none of their founders are still around. The one constant member from the group’s inception in 1952 until his death in 2012 was Herb Reed. And, sure enough, The Platters are on the road and have a pretty busy schedule throughout the year. So, let’s hear it for The Great Pretender – what a marvelous classic!

Nirvana/Smells Like Teen Spirit

Our next stop is the ’90s, the decade where I began to largely tune out from contemporary music unless it was by a band or artist I had started to follow in the late ’70s or ’80s. I realize this time and again when fellow bloggers post about ’90s music. There were a few notable exceptions – thank goodness! One I initially wasn’t crazy about were Nirvana. It took me a few times until I fully appreciated the brilliance of Smells Like Teen Spirit, the opener and lead single of their sophomore album Nevermind, released September 10 and September 24, 1991, respectively. The tune was primarily penned by frontman and main songwriter Kurt Cobain with inputs from the band’s bassist and drummer Krist Novoselic and Dave Grohl, respectively. The title was derived from the phrase “Kurt smells like Teen Spirit,” which his friend Kathleen Hanna, lead vocalist of punk band Bikini Kill, had written on his wall. Cobain thought it was some revolutionary slogan. However, Hanna referred to the deodorant Teen Spirit, which she and Cobain’s then-girlfriend Tobi Vail had discovered during a trip to the grocery store. The dynamic changes in this haunting tune are just incredible!

The Rolling Stones/Child of the Moon

We’re four stops into this trip and haven’t visited the ’60s yet. This must be corrected immediately by setting our music time machine to May 1968. On the 24th of that month, The Rolling Stones released Jumpin’ Jack Flash as a non-album single in the UK. It also came out in the U.S. one week later. Since it appeared, the Stones have played Jumpin’ Jack Flash during each of their tours – I mean, it’s a dynamite tune, so who can blame them! By comparison, I think it’s fair to say the single’s B-side, Child of the Moon, has largely remained obscure, even though it’s a great tune as well. It got my attention the other day when I came across the cool official video. As noted by ABKCO Music & Record when posting the clip on YouTube, Filmed in 1968, this surrealist promotional film features all five original band members and Emmy Award-winning actress Dame Eileen June Atkins. Shot on a farm near Enfield, outside north London, the eerie music video for “Child of the Moon” is an early example of the narrative approach, when the format was in its infancy, over a decade before the advent of MTV.

Artemis/Lights Away From Home

And once again, this brings us to the sixth and final stop. You may wonder what happened to the “usual jazz track”. I told you things would be a bit different this time, though my first pick by blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan was jazzy. Here comes a second instrumental with a more traditional jazz sound, except it’s by a contemporary New York all-female sextet, Artemis, and it’s brand new. From their website: The brainchild of pianist and composer Renee Rosnes, Artemis is a powerful ensemble of modern masters. Named for the Greek goddess of the hunt, the multinational, multigenerational band was founded in 2017 under the banner of International Women’s Day. Artemis’ performance at the 2018 Newport Jazz Festival was so dynamic, Blue Note Records President Don Was signed the group to the label. Tour dates across Europe and North America followed, including performances at such iconic stages as Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, SFJAZZ, Chicago Orchestra Hall, as well as at the Detroit Jazz Festival, Saratoga Jazz Festival, and the Monterey Jazz Festival among others. Off their sophomore and new album In Real Time, which was released on May 5, here’s Lights Away From Home, a composition by the ensemble’s bassist Noriko Ueda. According to this review by Glide Magazine, this groovy track was inspired by watching a meteor shower. BTW, in addition to their involvement with Artemis, each of these six amazing ladies is leading their own band!

Of course, I won’t leave you without a link to a Spotify playlist featuring each of the above goodies. Hope you enjoyed our trip and will be back for more. And, who knows what may be in store next. Perhaps, I’ll throw in some yodel music! 🙂

Sources: Wikipedia; Artemis website; Glide Magazine; YouTube; Spotify

The Follow-up: Taj Mahal and Lucinda Williams

Here we go again: Another Monday brings another installment of The Follow-Up! The idea of this recently introduced feature is to supplement my weekly new music revue Best of What’s New with short takes of new music I missed or didn’t cover for other reasons.

Taj Mahal – Savoy

When music artists put out Christmas albums or Great American Songbook cover compilations, one could be forgiven to wonder whether they’ve run out of ideas, especially if they’re in the later stages of their careers. To me, this is definitely not the case when it comes to Savoy, the latest release by Taj Mahal, which appeared on April 28.

While I had known the name for many years, it wasn’t until May 2017 and TajMo, his dynamite collaboration album with Keb’ Mo’, that I started paying closer attention to Taj Mahal (born Henry St. Claire Fredericks Jr.). I quickly realized he’s much more than “just a blues artist” and yet his renditions of tunes by the likes of Duke Ellington, George Gershwin and Benny Golson took me by surprise. Not only do his vocals work beautifully but the musical arrangements beam with vibrancy!

The album is an homage to the Savoy, the iconic ballroom in New York’s Harlem where Mahal’s parents met in 1938 to see Ella Fitzgerald, backed by the Chick Webb Orchestra. Why don’t we hear it from the man himself, in the spoken introduction to Stompin’ At the Savoy, a 1933 jazz standard written by Edgar Sampson and first popularized by Chick Webb and Benny Goodman. The lyrics were subsequently added by Andy Razaf.

Okay, Follow-up posts are meant to be short takes, so let’s highlight one more track: Is You Is or Is You Ain’t My Baby, a song co-written by Louis Jordan and Billy Austin, and first recorded by Jordan in October 1943.

Oh, in case you’re wondering, according to this AllMusic review, Mahal’s fine backing band features Danny Caron (guitar); John Simon (piano), Mahal’s longtime friend who talked him into recording the album; Ruth Davies (bass); and Leon Joyce, Jr. (drums), along with backing vocalists Carla Holbrook, Leesa Humphrey, and Charlotte McKinnon, as well as a neat horn section.

Lucinda Williams – Stolen Moments

Stolen Moments is the second excellent track by Lucinda Williams from her upcoming album Stories from a Rock N Roll Heart, scheduled for June 30. Released on April 21, the song was written as a tribute to Tom Petty who passed away in October 2017 – man, I can’t believe it’s been already five and half years!

“Tom was a down-to-earth, sweet, loving person, and I miss his music but I miss him more,” said Williams, according to this JamBase review. “I wrote this song after he passed away. I was just heartbroken, and I’m still reeling.” Admittedly, I started welling up after reading that statement. Check out how great this tune sounds!

Stolen Moments follows the lead single New York Comeback, which appeared on April 4, featuring Bruce Springsteen and his wife and E Street Band member  Patti Scialfa. I previously covered it here. I’m really looking forward to Stories from a Rock N Roll Heart, which is shaping up to be a great album!

Sources: Wikipedia; AllMusic; JamBase; YouTube; Spotify

The Sunday Six

Are you ready to escape your surroundings for a little while and embark on another imaginary trip into the magical world of music? If yes, you’ve come to the right place; if not, I hope you’ll stick around anyway! It’s amazing what music can do, especially on a rainy weekend like in my neck of the woods of central New Jersey, USA. Without any further ado, let’s start up the music time machine!

Lars Gullin/Fedja

Our first stop leads us back to the year 1956 and some beautiful jazz by Swedish saxophonist Lars Gullin. He started out on the accordion and switched to the clarinet at age 13 before first embracing the alto saxophone. After moving to Stockholm in 1947, Gullin became a professional pianist, aiming to pursue a classical career. But in 1949 an unexpected tenure as the baritone saxophonist in Seymour Österwall’s band changed Gullin’s trajectory yet again, and this time he stuck with jazz. In the early ’50s, he was a member of Arne Domnérus’ septet and also started working with visiting American jazz musicians like James Moody, Zoot Sims, Clifford Brown and Lee Konitz. In 1953, Gullin formed his own short-lived group. In October 1955, he teamed up with Chet Baker for a European tour, which tragically involved the heroin-induced death of the group’s pianist Dick Twardzik. Sadly, Gullin developed his own addiction to narcotics, which eventually took his life in May 1976 at the age of 48. Here’s Fedja, a Gullin composition off his 1956 album Baritone Sax.

Marshall Crenshaw/Cynical Girl

Let’s next set our time machine to April 1982 and a neat artist I’ve started to explore recently, thanks to fellow blogger Rich who pens the great KamerTunesBlog where he featured Marshall Crenshaw and his 1983 sophomore album Field Day the other day. I instantly loved the American singer-songwriter’s catchy power pop and promptly covered Someday, Someway, a tune off his eponymous debut, which appeared in April 1982. It was a close decision between that tune and Cynical Girl, another song from that album I love. According to Wikipedia, the tune is a satire on the “mass culture” Crenshaw disliked, not about a specific girl.

Little Eva/The Loco-Motion

Time to go a little loco with one of my favorite early ’60s tunes: The Loco-Motion by Little Eva. It was one of the many great tunes by songwriting powerhouse Carole King and her husband and lyricist Gerry Goffin, who during the ’60s penned an impressive amount of hits for the likes of The Shirelles, Bobby Vee, The Chiffons, The Drifters, Herman’s Hermits, The Monkees and even The Animals. And, of course, Eva Narcissus Boyd, aka. Little Eva, the babysitter for King and Goffin, who became an overnight sensation with The Loco-Motion. Her debut single, released in June 1962, topped the U.S. pop and R&B charts and hit no. 2 in the UK. Initially, Goffin-King had written the tune for R&B singer Dee Dee Sharp but he turned it down, making Little Eva one of the most famous babysitters in pop history. What a timeless classic!

The Allman Brothers Band/It Ain’t Over Yet

This next pick is a bit out of left field. When you think of The Allman Brothers Band, tunes like Whipping Post, Melissa, Ramblin’ Man and the bouncy instrumental Jessica come to mind. It Ain’t Over Yet? Possibly not so much. I coincidentally came across that track a while ago and dug it from the get-go, so I earmarked for a Sunday Six. Co-written by Doug Crider and by the Brothers’ second keyboarder Johnny Neel, It Ain’t Over Yet became the closer of the group’s ninth studio album Seven Turns, released in July 1990 – their first after their second breakup in 1982. It Ain’t Over Yet, an appropriate title, also appeared separately as the album’s third single. Allen Woody’s slap bass playing gives the tune a bit of a funky vibe. Perhaps more familiar is the neat guitar work by Dickey Betts and Warren Haynes, and of course the vocals by the one and only Gregg Allman. Hope you dig that song as much as I’ve come to!

Alejandro Escovedo/The Crossing

Let’s go back to the current century and set our time machine to September 2018. I don’t recall how I came across that next tune and suspect it may have been served up as a listening suggestion by my streaming music provider. It’s another song that’s been on my list of earmarked tracks for a Sunday Six. Alejandro Escovedo, the son of a Mexican immigrant to Texas and a Texas native and, according to his website, one of 12 children, is an eclectic rock musician and singer-songwriter who has been recording and touring since the late ’70s. He played in various bands, such as punk groups The Nuns and Judy Nylon’s band, as well as country rock formation Rank and File, before releasing his 1992 solo debut Gravity, an alternative country and heartland rock-oriented outing. Fast-forward 26 years and The Crossing, the title cut of his 2018 studio album. You can find more about Escovedo’s story on his aforementioned website. For now, let’s listen to this excellent and haunting tune!

Sly And The Family Stone/Family Affair

And once again, it’s time to wrap up another trip. Our final destination takes us back to November 1971 and There’s a Riot Goin’ On, the fifth studio album by psychedelic funk and soul powerhouse Sly And The Family Stone. Mirroring other African American artists at the time like Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder and Curtis Mayfield, the record marked a departure from the group’s previous more upbeat songs by embracing sentiments like apathy, pessimism and disillusionment. The lead single Family Affair, which like all other tunes was written by frontman Sylvester Stewart (Sly Stone), became the group’s third and final no. 1 hit in the U.S. on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Best Selling Soul Singles (today known as Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs) charts. It also was their most successful international song, charting in Belgium, Germany, The Netherlands and the UK.

As usual, I’m leaving you with a Spotify playlist featuring the above tunes. Hope there’s something you dig!

Sources: Wikipedia; Alejandro Escovedo website; YouTube; Spotify

The Sunday Six

Happy Sunday morning, afternoon, or evening – in whichever time zone you are, I hope you’re doing great and are in the mood to join me on another journey to visit music of the past and the present century. This trip will have six stops in the ’50s, ’60s, ’70s, ’80s, ’90s and 2008.

Shorty Rogers Quintet/Breezin’ Along in the Trades

Let’s start today’s journey by setting our music time machine to the year 1957. That’s when the Shorty Rogers Quintet released an album titled Wherever the Five Winds Blow. Born in 1924 Milton Rajonsky, Shorty Rogers was a trumpet and flugelhorn player who was instrumental in creating West Coast jazz. According to Wikipedia, this jazz style was developed in the 1950s in San Francisco and Los Angeles and is often viewed as a subgenre of cool jazz. Rajonsky who hailed from Great Barrington, Mass. started his career in the ’40s, working with Will Bradley, Red Norvo and Woody Herman. In the early ’50s, he played with Stan Kenton. In 1952, he released his debut as a bandleader, Modern Sounds, the first of many such albums that would appear over the next 40 years. Apart from playing as a sideman, Rajonsky also became a sought-after arranger of jazz music and beyond. Notable examples of the latter include The Monkees, e.g., Daydream Believer, and Bobbie Gentry’s first three albums. Rajonsky passed away from melanoma in November 1974 at the age of 70. Coming back to Wherever the Five Winds Blow, here’s Breezin’ Along in the Trades, a beautiful original composition. Shorty Rogers (trumpet) was backed by Jimmy Giuffre (clarinet, saxophone), Lou Levy (piano), Ralph Pena (bass) and Larry Bunker (drums).

The Jayhawks/Wichita

Our next stop takes us to September 1992 and Hollywood Town Hall, the third studio album by The Jayhawks. Since coming across them in August 2020, I’ve come to like this American alt. country and country rock band. Initially formed in Minneapolis in 1985, The Jayhawks originally featured Mark Olson (acoustic guitar, vocals), Gary Louris (electric guitar, vocals), Marc Perlman (bass) and Norm Rogers (drums). By the time Hollywood Town Hall was released, Rogers had been replaced by Ken Callahan. After four additional albums and more line-up changes, the group went on hiatus in 2004. They reemerged with a new formation in 2009, which still includes Louris and Pearlman, and have since released four additional albums, most recently July 2020’s XOXO. Hollywood Town Hall became the group’s first album that made the U.S. mainstream chart Billboard 200 (no. 192). Notably, it also climbed to no. 11 on the Top Heatseekers. Here’s the great Wichita, co-written by Olson, Louris and Pearlman.

The Who/I Can See For Miles

Time for a stopover in the ’60s to visit one of my all-time favorite bands. In December 1967, The Who released their third studio album The Who Sell Out. Primarily written by guitarist Pete Townshend with contributions from bassist John Entwistle and Thunderclap Newman vocalist Speedy Keen, the brilliant concept album includes a collection of songs interspersed with fake commercials and public service announcements. One of the tracks is I Can See For Miles, which also appeared separately as the lead single in October 1967. Townshend was convinced he had written a hit, yet the single “only” reached no. 10 in the UK. It did best in Canada, where it climbed to no. 8, and also charted slightly higher in the U.S., getting to no. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also reached the top 40 in New Zealand (no. 13), Australia (no. 20), The Netherlands (no. 28) and Germany (no. 37). Yet Townshend was disappointed. To me, it was the ultimate Who record, yet it didn’t sell,” he later commented. “I spat on the British record buyer.” While I wouldn’t call the tune’s chart performance terrible, I do agree with Townshend that I Can See For Miles is one of the gems by the British rockers.

John Mellencamp/Theo and Weird Henry

Let’s move on to the late ’80s. In May 1989, John Mellencamp released his 10th studio album Big Daddy, the last under the John Cougar Mellencamp name. Musically, the record continued his transition from heartland straight rocker to roots-oriented artist, which had begun with its predecessor The Lonesome Jubilee. Lyrically, it presents a collection of largely reflective songs. “Big Daddy was the best record I ever made,” Mellencamp told The Associated Press in December 1991 in the wake of his 11th studio album Whenever We Wanted. “Out of my agony came a couple of really beautiful songs. You can’t be 22 years old and had two dates and understand that album.” For context, the AP story also quoted Mellencamp as saying, “I had a daughter who grew up and I didn’t know who she was [I assume he referred to Michelle from his first marriage to Priscilla Esterline – CMM]. I was getting a divorce [from Victoria Granucci, his second wife – CMM] and I didn’t want one.” Big Daddy became best known for its lead single Pop Singer, which topped the charts in Canada and New Zealand and peaked at no. 8 in Australia. In the U.S., it surged to no. 2 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock chart and reached no. 15 on the Hot 100. Theo and Weird Henry, on the other hand, is a deep cut I love. It’s got more of a heartland rock vibe.

10cc/The Things We Do For Love

Our next stop takes us back again, to December 1976. That’s when British art pop band 10cc released The Things We Do For Love as a single. Co-written by guitarist Eric Stewart and bassist Graham Gouldman, who had founded the group with Lol Creme (guitar, keyboards) and Kevin Godley (drums) in July 1972, the tune was also included on their fifth studio album Deceptive Bends from May 1977. The Things We Do For Love placed in the top 10 singles charts in the UK (no. 5), Australia (no.) and the U.S. (no. 6). In Canada, it became their second no. 1 after I’m Not in Love, which had become 10cc’s breakthrough hit outside the UK in May 1975. I’ve liked the band’s often quirky songs since my teenage years. 10cc are still around as a touring act led by Gouldman and have been on the road for The Ultimate Greatest Hits Tour, which has upcoming gigs in The Netherlands before moving on to New Zealand and Australia in June. The current schedule is here.

The Hold Steady/Constructive Summer

And once again, we’re reaching the final stop of yet another music time travel trip, which takes us to the current century. In July 2008, The Hold Steady released their fourth studio album Stay Positive – kudos to fellow blogger Graham from Aphoristic Album Reviews who recently reminded me of the New York indie rock band by ranking their nine studio albums that have appeared to date. One of the albums he suggested I check out is Stay Positive. I did and voila! The Hold Steady first entered my radar screen in late March with their most recent studio release The Price of Progress. Formed in 2003, their current lineup includes co-founders Craig Finn (lead vocals, guitar), Tad Kubler (lead guitar, backing vocals) and Galen Polivka (bass), along with Steve Selvidge (rhythm guitar, backing vocals), Franz Nicolay (piano, keyboards, accordion, harmonica, backing vocals) and Bobby Drake (drums, percussion). Wikipedia  notes The Hold Steady are known for their “lyrically dense storytelling”, “classic rock influences” and “narrative-based songs [that] frequently address themes, such as drug addiction, religion and redemption, and often feature recurring characters within the city of Minneapolis.” Let’s wrap things up with Constructive Summer, the kickass opener of Stay Positive. Like all other tracks on the album, it was co-written by Finn and Kubler.

So where’s the bloody Spotify playlist? Ask and you shall receive!

Sources: Wikipedia; Associated Press/Bowling Green Daily News; 10cc website; YouTube; Spotify

The Sunday Six

It’s Sunday, folks, and I’d like to invite you to join me on another time-travel journey into the amazing world of music. For first-time visitors, our eclectic trip will include six stops in six different decades and involve music in different flavors. Are you with me? All aboard, buckle your seatbelt and let’s go!

Cindy Blackman Santana/Passage

Our first stop today is in May 1998 and some groovy jazz music by Cindy Blackman Santana (then still Cindy Blackman). I first came across this amazing drummer in 2014 while watching this clip of Lenny Kravitz, a longtime favorite artist. At first, I primarily paid attention to him before noticing this stunning African American lady on the drums. Then, as oftentimes happens, I was on to other music and “forgot” about Blackman until fellow blogger Lisa from Tao Talk prompted me to think of female artists in connection with her excellent Women Music March series. I already committed to pen a contribution for the 2024 run about Blackman who was introduced to the drums as a seven-year-old when she spotted a drum kit at a friend’s house and began playing. Soon thereafter, she joined the school band and persuaded her parents to get her toy drums. At age 11, she studied at Hartt School of Music in Hartford, Conn. and two years later started developing an interest in jazz after she had listened to Max Roach. She got her first professional drum kit at age 14 and subsequently moved to Boston to study Berklee College of Music. I just love everything about this story! In 1988, then-29-year-old Blackman released her debut album as a leader, Arcane, which mostly featured her own compositions. In 1993, she met Lenny Kravitz and was featured in the official video of his great hit single Are You Gonna Go My Way. Yep, she surely did and became his touring drummer for the next 18 years! In December 2010, she married that other famous guitarist, and they remain together to this day. Going back to May 1998, here’s Passage, an original Blackman composition from her studio album In the Now. Blackman was backed by top-notch jazz musicians, including saxophonist Ravi Coltrane (son of John Coltrane), Ron Carter (bass) and Jacky Terrasson (piano, Fender Rhodes).

Dr. Feelgood/Down At the Doctors

I don’t know about you, but I don’t like going to the doctor, though I’m pretty quick with unsolicited advice to friends, telling them they should go if something bugs them. Miraculously, my reluctance tends to vanish pretty quickly when the treatment is music, so let’s next travel to October 1978 for a shot of R&B. Our doctor are kickass British pub rockers Dr. Feelgood. Fittingly, the treatment is called Down At the Doctors, a great blues rocker penned by Mickey Jupp. They recorded it for their sixth studio album Private Practice, best known for Milk and Alcohol, which became the band’s best-performing single. Founded in 1971, Dr. Feelgood are still around as a touring act, though with none of the co-founders. That said, three of the current members – Gordon Russell (lead and slide guitars, backing vocals), Phil Mitchell (bass, acoustic guitar, backing vocals) and Kevin Morris (drums, percussion, backing vocals) – first joined in 1983, a whopping 40 years ago! Lead vocalist and harmonica player Robert Kane has been with the group since 1999. Okay, let’s get some rock ‘n roll in the arm. While it’s not clear to me what happened to the eight bars on the piano, I know this: Down At the Doctors always makes me feel good!

Johnny Cash/Folsom Prison Blues

Charged up with a dose of R&B, let’s set our music time machine to October 1957 and the debut album by Johnny Cash. While for many years I essentially dismissed all country as hillbilly music, my obvious ignorance always had one exception. From the very first moment I heard Cash, I thought The Man in Black pretty much had the same coolness factor as early Elvis Presley. It also turned out the two artists started their recording career with producer Sam Phillips, founder of the legendary independent label Sun Records in Memphis, Tenn. Folsom Prison Blues, one of Cash’s best-known tunes, first appeared on Johnny Cash with His Hot and Blue Guitar! Nearly 10 years later, the tune also became the de facto title track of his first live album At Folsom Prison. On the original studio recording, Cash (vocals, rhythm guitar) was backed by lead guitarist Luther Perkins and upright bassist Marshall Grant, who ended up serving in that capacity for 25 years. In 1960, drummer W. S. Holland joined, and Cash’s backing band became known as The Tennessee Three. Folsom Prison Blues is a great example of that magic Sun Studios rockabilly sound. It also features one of the greatest storytelling lyrics I can think of: When I was just a baby/My mama told me son/always be a good boy/don’t ever play with guns/But I shot a man in Reno/ just to watch him die/When I hear that whistle blowing/I hang my head and cry – this is poetry!

Paul McCartney/I Don’t Know

While I love visiting music dating back 30, 40 and even more years, let’s not forget the current century. My proposition is September 2018, which saw the release of Paul McCartney’s 17th solo album Egypt Station. Sure, it’s no Band On the Run, but I would still call it a remarkable late career accomplishment and Macca’s best album in many years. Let’s check out I Don’t Know. The beautiful piano-driven ballad also became Egypt Station’s lead single in June 2018. Clearly, Paul’s vocals are weathered, but they are a perfect match for the tune, so I wouldn’t want them to sound any different! Last June, Macca turned 80. I had the thrill to see him at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey just a couple of days prior to his big birthday. He still had a ball on that stage!

Gang of Four/Call Me Up

Our next stop takes us to 1982 and Call Me Up, a cool tune by English post-punk band Gang of Four. Frankly, I can’t quite remember how I came across that song, off their third studio album Songs of the Free. I suspect my streaming music provider served it up as a suggestion after I had listened to Televison’s excellent studio debut Marquee Moon. Obviously, there are some stylistic similarities. Like all other tracks on Songs of the Free, Call Me Up was co-written by the group’s Andrew Gill (guitar, vocals) and Jon King (vocals, melodica). Sara Lee (bass, backing vocals) and Hugo Burnham (drums, percussion) completed their lineup of the band, formed in Leeds in 1976. Along with co-founders King and Burham, Lee remains a Gang of Four member to this day. In October 2021, David Pajo officially was announced as having joined the group. This came in the wake of Gill’s untimely death in February 2020 at the age of 64.

The Kinks/Got My Feet On the Ground

I hate to say it, but all things must pass, and once again we’re reaching the final destination of yet another Sunday Six. Let’s wrap up this trip with one of my all-time favorite bands, The Kinks. Together with The Who, they are early pioneers of punk, who influenced punk bands like Ramones and The Clash. In particular, I dig their ’60s music, which is convenient since we haven’t visited that decade yet on this trip – something that simply cannot occur, as long as I operate the time machine! So here are The Kinks with Got My Feet On the Ground, a deeper but nevertheless great cut. Co-written by the oftentimes feuding brothers Ray Davies (lead vocals, guitars) and Dave Davies (vocals, electric guitar), the song is off the group’s sophomore album Kinda Kinks. It’s one of the tracks featuring Dave on lead vocals. While The Kinks never formally split, the combative brothers’ relationship further deteriorated after their final show in 1996. But, dare I say it, things seem to have improved more recently, with media reports suggesting they have been talking to each other. Inevitably, this brings up the question about a formal reunion. “Ray and I have spoken about it,” Dave Davies told British online paper The Independent in July 2022, adding, “It’s possible!” We shall see!

Sources: Wikipedia; The Independent; YouTube; Spotify

Versatile Jazz Artist Grover Kemble Returns to R&B and Pop Rock Roots on New Album

Until recently, I had not heard of Grover Kemble. Then a dear friend and musician, Mike Caputo, lead vocalist of Good Stuff, a great band celebrating the music of Steely Dan, Sting, Stevie Wonder and Gino Vannelli, suggested that I check out Kemble’s new album I’m Serious, figuring I might dig the music. Mike was spot on and my decision to write a review came shortly thereafter. What’s more, I spontaneously reached out to Kemble who was kind enough to share some great insights about the album.

Notably, I’m Serious marks a return for Kemble to his musical roots of R&B and ’60s pop rock. For the past 40 years or so, the New Jersey singer-songwriter, guitarist and entertainer primarily has been known as a versatile jazz artist. From his website bio: Grover began playing professionally in his early teens and performed with numerous acts before touring nationally with the novel group  Sha-Na-Na. In 1983, before going solo, he fronted the highly popular New Jersey band Za Zu Zaz with whom he recorded the album “All That Zaz.”…In the late 1980s, he played in both duo and group settings with world-renowned jazz artist John Pizzarelli, and accompanied his band in 2005 at the JVC Jazz Festival at Carnegie Hall.

…In 2007, Grover assembled a band of accomplished musicians to showcase the music of Ray Charles in a presentation titled “Reflections of Ray.” In early 2013, Grover revamped Za Zu Zaz with a new lineup and gave this new band a strong entertainment style that encourages audiences to participate more freely. To give you an idea of Kemble’s more recent music with Za Zu Zaz, you can check clips on YouTube here and here – swings nicely!

Fast-forward to March 17 of this year, when I’m Serious was released. This album sounds very different from the music Kemble is known for. I was curious to know why this change in direction. “For the last 40 years, I’ve been regarded as a jazz artist,” he told me. “However, my roots started in R&B and the punchy pop rock from the 1960’s. I wanted to go back to those roots one more time, so I enlisted my best friend’s rocking and rolling sons to help achieve that earlier sound one more time.”

Kemble’s best friend is Harry Noble, aka Hap Noble, who is part of a multi-generational Northern Jersey family of musicians. It was Noble’s dad who showed Kemble how to play the guitar. Kemble, in turn, returned the favor and taught Hap Noble’s sons the guitar when they started out playing music. “There was always lots of music jamming in the Noble clan,” Kemble recalled.

Grover Kemble (second from left; guitar and vocals), Regan Ryzuk (far left) and The Noble Brothers, including Matt DiPaolo (drums), Bob Noble (bass) and Harry Noble (guitar and backing vocals) – August 2021

The two sons, Harry Noble (lead guitar) and Bob Noble (bass), who gained initial prominence in a country rock-oriented group called Quimby Mountain Band, are part of the fine musicians backing Kemble on the album. Matt DiPaolo (drums) and Regan Ryzuk (keyboards), with whom Kemble has played for more than 35 years, complete the line-up. Matt is a member of Harry’s and Bob’s current group, The Noble Brothers. I’d say it’s time for some music!

Let’s kick it off with the great opener Don’t Let the Morning Come. Like all of the 13 other tracks on the album, it was penned by Kemble. “I was listening to All Along The Watchtower by Hendrix early one sleepy rainy morning and wished to stay in bed and not let the sunlight in,” Kemble told me about the tune. “It crept into my brain later in the day and I morphed the two concepts into this song.” It’s got a nice rock vibe and at the same time, it’s smooth – cool tune!

The title track in Kemp’s words “is about a dude getting more serious about a relationship and not wanting to waste time on something that could possibly be more cavalier on the other person’s end….been there, done that a bunch…let’s not waste a lot of time if it’s not going anywhere.” Neat guitar work!

Things turn funky on Lovin’ On the Run, my early favorite on the album. I love the smooth jazzy guitar sound. Kemble and Harry Noble shared lead guitar work on this tune. The other musical standout for me is Bob Noble’s great bass work. Commenting on the lyrics Kemble said, “Ha- maybe the opposite of “I’m Serious”. This dude is playing around, then thinks he might have found someone more steady but then eventually returns to his old hit-and-run ways.”Lovin’ on the Run has an infectious groove – check it out!

What More Can I Say is another track I really like. It has a soulful touch and features great nylon guitar action, as well as beautiful melodic bass playing. “This is an old chestnut from way back that I wrote in the 1970’s,” Kemble explained. “I discovered it in a Za Zu Zaz (my once very popular band) song booklet I had in an old drawer. Just talking about what we all might do to lend a hand towards a better world.” Kemble may have written these lyrics in the ’70s, but the message certainly remains relevant to this day.

Let’s do one more: Make It, Take It, another smooth funky tune. “Years ago, my buddies and I played tons of schoolyard basketball,” Kemble recalled. “If your team made a basket you kept the ball for another chance until you missed or the ball was stolen or rebounded away. We called the game “Make it Take It”. The lyrics suggest the opposite realities happening in a relationship for each next line in regards to what’s happening in an unraveling relationship. The spoken word part towards the end was originally a guitar solo but changed to add something different that kind of says, ‘What are we so opposing each other for…let’s take advantage of the good stuff we could have going.'”

I certainly hope I’m Serious isn’t a one-off. While Kemble didn’t rule it out, for now he wants to continue focusing on his current recording project, which he described as “a little more smooth jazzyish.” Fair enough, though selfishly, I’d love to see more of that neat rock, R&B and funk – I’m serious!

I guess we should stay tuned. Meanwhile, for more on Grover Kemble, you can check out his website, Facebook and YouTube. I’m Serious is available on streaming and other platforms, such as Spotify, Tidal, iTunes, Deezer, YouTube, Amazon Music, etc. Following is a Spotify link to the album:

Sources: Grover Kemble website; YouTube; Spotify