The Lonely Forest, Big Time

The Lonely Forest come from Anacortes, just a short drive from where I live, but I'd never heard them before this album, just released. Yes, me listening to an album from THE CURRENT YEAR!! Quick take from just a few listens: skip the first track, and the last track, but otherwise you get a U2/Coldplay thing filtered through the Death Cab for Cutie Northwest semi-emo over-earnest vocal style, yet performed without lasers or smoke bombs. Wow, I wrote that and I barely know what I mean... Unfortunately, the CD booklet was already missing, so I can't supply any more information (produced by Chris Walla of Death Cab??)

Anyway, thumbs up from this geezer!

Tony Rice and 58957

I've written before about how much I love the music of Tony Rice, and when I saw the library bought copies of this, his latest, I was pretty jazzed. Turns out it's not really new; the subtitle is "The Bluegrass Guitar Collection", an instrumental best-of focusing on Tony's strictly (more on that later) bluegrass stuff -- and it came out in 2003?!?

A quick look at the official Tony Rice website reveals a 2012 release of Bill Monroe tunes -- again, a compilation of older tracks. There's a news item about a recent family tragedy, and there've been stories about Tony having carpal tunnel issues, and it's reported that he no longer sings in concert due to voice problems. But his calendar still shows Spring concert dates on the East Coast, so...?

But enough of the bad news -- how's this collection hold up? Well you have to understand this is maybe an indication of 25% of Tony's work. There's his singer/songwriter stuff interpretations, the 'jazzgrass' albums, and his outside-the-canon collaborations with Jerry Garcia, etc. That being said, it's a great introduction to Tony's guitar work, with informative liner notes (mostly by Tony himself, and he's not shy about suggesting that Bill Monroe may have attached his name to many a song he never actually wrote) and a rich overview of a stellar career. Again, it's not indicative of Tony's albums, so it's focused on the high-speed picking rather than a mix of styles. Featuring performers Norman Blake, Doc Watson, Bela Fleck, David Grisman (and many more)-- this is like a bluegrass all-star team.

Earlier I mentioned Tony's "strictly bluegrass" picking -- check out Track 18 "Cherokee" for an illustration of what I love, absolutely LOVE about Tony's playing. He throws into a bluegrass setting whatever strikes his fancy, his magpie instincts sprinkling jazz licks, whatever, into his solos, in this case, Middle Eastern licks in a bluegrass tune. Genius!

Finally, the title "58957" refers to the number of the Clarence White guitar that Tony now plays, Clarence White being the 'father of bluegrass guitar'. Tony has done Clarence proud, and this album is a great, though limited, resume.

Smile, At Last

The best reissue of 2011? Well, actually, it was most likely the best new album of 2011. Huh? Okay, the Beach Boys' "Smile" album was, until 2011, the most famous unreleased album ever. Recorded in pieces in 1967, this was supposed to be Brian Wilson's ultimate check and mate to the Beatles. But Brian's shattered confidence, his drug use and the sheer complexity of his vision for the album took its toll; "Smile" was shelved, the Beatles released "Sgt. Peppers", and the rest is history. Shards of "Smile" appeared over the years as some reworked tracks were sprinkled throughout later albums. But then in 2009, Brian revisited the "Smile" tracks, and re-recorded his version with his new band...

Finally, a blueprint for the REAL "Smile"! (Brian's new version is okay, but we all wanted to hear those gorgeous original Beach Boy vocals, especially because Brian's voice hasn't aged well...) So I figured it'd be a matter of months while the record company guys slapped together all the "Smile" snippets already released into a complete package. Nope, they did this one right. "Good Vibrations" is here intact, and other tracks were released as part of the "Good Vibrations" box set a number of years back as unfinished tidbits, but most versions here on "Smile" are subtly different than what's been previously released. Ah, those BB harmonies intact!

So, bottom line: if "Smile" had been released as originally planned in 1967, would it have stopped "Sgt. Pepper's" in its tracks? Hard to say, since the good Sgt. has had a 45-year head start staking a claim on popular culture. Here's my spin: "Sgt. Pepper's" has been maligned as "the death of rock", mainly because the ornate arrangements and overdubs were the antithesis of 'rock & roll' -- who knows, this may have been the primordial genesis of the latent punk movement! -- but if "Smile" came out first, those same arguments would then have been aimed Brian's way. Finally I think that "Sgt. Pepper's" is the better album experience, but that the best songs on "Smile" kick the Sgt. to the curb. "Cabin Essence", "Surf's Up" and "Good Vibrations" win, hands down. Jeez,"Cabin Essence" and "Surf's Up" give me goosebumps just typing the titles -- take that, "A Day In the Life"!

Faces, Small and Otherwise

The Small Faces (with singer Steve Marriott) and later version of the band The Faces (with Rod Stewart) are to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this year, and that news sent me back to reaquaint myself with their music.

Still haven't heard much of The Small Faces, other than "Itchykoo Park", their '60s hit (and one of rock's first uses of phasing.) For starters, there's a great Faces best-of CD titled "Good Boys...When They're Asleep", but I eventually went all in for the 4CD box set "Five Guys Walk Into a Bar...". Great, great collection, all the best songs, plus live versions, b-sides and studio tracks from their last recording session. The box tracks were selected by Ian McLagan, the band's keyboard player, and he does a masterful job of juggling the track listings. Even in their final days, they sounded just fine (Rod dissed the last proper album "Ooh La La" as mediocre, but I disagree, and so apparently does Ian, because the box features 9 of that album's 10 tracks.) And here's the sad part: I'm keeping my copy of said album for that one instrumental track (it's excellent in a Booker T/BarKays way) because it's worth more to me as 1 track than I'd get trading it in. Ah, the market...

So, in a nutshell, the Faces were a rag-tag r&b outfit, tossed with some Stax/Motown sounds, and then an added dose of acoustic singer-songwriter-ish heartfelt soul. As much as they flouted their lad-ish-ness, they so often wore their hearts on their sleeves. They gave Rod Stewart a platform to practice, then launch his stellar career (which grew more successful but less heartfelt as he strayed from his Faces roots.) Ooh la la, indeed! Cheers,lads.

Oh, and just to show off their sense of humor, their box set plays off the band's lack of height by packaging the set in a shorter box -- very clever!

Rummaging Around the Used CD Bins...

A few weeks ago, spent some time scouting out used CDs in Bellingham, something I haven't done in way too long. (Spent more money than I should have, which is probably why it's been a while...)

First stop, The Archives in Fairhaven, which has an 'eclectic mix' (or just random, depending on your point of view...). Picked up "Birth of the Cool" by Miles Davis (finally), the latest Wilco, a double-disc import of Al Green producer Willie Mitchell, a disc featuring "Children's Corner Suite" by Debussy, Beethoven's Third Symphony in a fine original-instrument recording, and the first India Arie disc for my wife.

Then on to Henderson's Books while my wife scavenged in Michael's Books. (Neither store has a website, though there is a Michael's Books site that had a big red warning banner.) My wife likes the ramshackle, funky nature of Michael's, but I prefer Henderson's because it's well-stocked, well-organized, and well-lit (do I sound like a geezer?)

Yes, Henderson's carries used CDs, but previously, they were in a locked cabinet and really hard to look at, but now that CDs appear to be losing their value (!), the cabinet is open for browsing.

Struck gold there -- found 3 John Renbourn imports!







His first & second LPs from the mid-60s, and "Faro Annie" from about 5 years later. The first is mostly guitar instrumentals, with a few rough vocals, more vocals on the second "Another Monday", and mostly vocals on "Faro Annie". I was never much of a fan of John's singing, probably because I always heard it in context with Bert Jansch in Pentangle, and I always preferred Bert's voice. But the John discs really opened my ears to what he was trying to put across, almost like 'chamber blues', very soft-spoken and subtle. We're all familiar with the British blooze singers that try to out-Ray-Charles each other, but John took the opposite approach, and now after hearing the CDs, I'm a big fan. Just because he performs from a different aspect of the blues doesn't mean his style is invalid, and I for one am glad I finally figured that out!





Also snagged the two-disc Time-Life bluegrass collection (great, basic classic bluegrass, and a bargain used; I used to buy Time-Life CDs for the library because they were good anthologies with fine liner notes, but they charged way too much -- this bluegrass collection only had 20 songs on 2 CDs -- could have fit almost 40 -- and new it would have been $24.95 or higher from Time-Life. Get it used if you can, otherwise, don't bother.) Also picked up a nice Strauss waltz collection, and some Vivaldi flute concertos.

Topped it off with pizza at Cicchitti's, a nice family run business that we've been going to since college. Heck, by now, the original owner's grandkids are working shifts there! It's East Coast style pizza, and sadly, consistency has been a problem lately, but when they're good, there's nobody better. Ciao!

"Merry Christmas" from Shelby Lynne

With about 15 Christmas CDs in our collection, it takes something very special for us to consider adding another one. This year's winner, hands down, is Shelby Lynne's Christmas album from 2010. It's very simple, almost homemade, and sounds like it was recorded in someone's front room. Shelby's voice has that country twang with a bluesy tinge, sorta like Wynonna Judd without the bluster. There are all the usual suspects here ("Sleigh Ride", "Rudolph", "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" -- spelled 'Clause'!) but there are a few originals, including "Ain't Nothin' Like Christmas" featuring the great line "I'll bring the 'nog, you put on a log".

I lucked out and found this at the library -- and tomorrow I'll own a copy, it's that good!

Old Dogs, New Tricks?

It may seem a quaint notion now, but there was a time when Peter Gabriel actually had a sense of humor. Even back in the Genesis days, his lyrics were sprinkled with puns and absurdity, and of course, the videos from the "Sledgehammer" era were always entertaining. Even in recent interviews, he seems pretty engaging, but Peter's newest "New Blood" seems light years away from that time; after the "Scratch My Back" covers album, "New Blood" continues the orchestral experimentation and career overview. "Scratch My Back" moved at a glacial pace, and at least "New Blood" perks things up a bit, and it's nice to hear songs like "The Rhythm of the Heat" and "San Jacinto" again, even if the orchestral bits don't really work. I was surprised, because the original studio tracks of those songs gave a nod to the new music of Philip Glass and especially Steve Reich, and what we get on "New Blood" wouldn't sound out of place in the next James Bond movie. I'm glad Peter's still experimenting, though.



Wilco seem to have stepped back some from their more experimental efforts in the new "The Whole Love", which unfortunately means less shredding from guitarist Nels Cline. Pity. The very last song on the CD runs for almost 12 minutes, and I'll probably buy the CD for that track alone -- the band does a great job of little fills that carry the arrangement along.




Gillian Welch and David Rawlings have a new disc out too, and it's up to their usual high standards. I won't pick this one up right away -- "Time (The Revelator)" is still my go-to disc when I want to hear Gillian -- but I'm sure eventually when I've worn off all the oxide from "Time", I'll get "The Harrow and the Harvest". It's nothing we haven't heard before, but Gillian and David still nail it to the wall.




Bjork has made some of the music I've most enjoyed over the years, but she sure doesn't make it easy. I think her music is adult music in the best sense; meaty, difficult to hear at first, mature and always moving forward. "Medulla" came out in 2001, and I'm still getting used to it. On initial hearing, it sounded so foreign, so...odd that I really didn't like it. But I knew it was a big leap from her previous albums, so I stuck with it. Now it's 2011, and Bjork's released "Biophilia", and so my homework begins. There are many things familiar here from previous albums: the harp, the Icelandic choirs -- but I don't hear the melodies yet. But I'm willing to do the work, as Prince says. Bjork's never let me down yet.