You will be interested in this album if you are a fan of: Chicago, Hall & Oates and Earth, Wind & Fire
Tell Me More: Bill Champlin is back.
Anyone who was concerned when the talented singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist left Chicago earlier this year will be pleased to know
Champlin has released his first solo effort in a decade.
Champlin, who got his start in the late 1960s as a founding member of San Francisco outfit Sons of Champlin, won his first Grammy award in 1979 for co-writing the Earth, Wind & Fire hit “After the Love is Gone.”
Champlin ascended to even bigger fame when he became a full-time member of Chicago in 1981. As a member of Chicago, Champlin played keyboards, guitar and sang, with his top-flight vocals featured on hits such as “Look Away” and “Hard Habit to Break.”
On Champlin’s 2009 album “No Place Left to Fall,” the talented singer-songwriter explores that pleasing sonic universe where classic rock ‘n’ roll, Chicago blues,‘70s funk and R&B meet. From the up-tempo groove of “Total Control” to the bluesy
“Tuggin’ On Your Sleeve” and Earth, Wind & Fire-styled soulful funk of “The Truth,” “No Place Left to Fall” is a fantastic return for the 62-year-old Oakland, California native. Fans of Chicago will love “Never Been Afraid,” which sounds like a lost classic from his former band, complete with his distinctive vocals blending with guest Peter Cetera and impressive guitar work courtesy of Toto fret wizard Steve Lukather.
Champlin reportedly recorded enough material to fill three CDs in the making of the album. Listening to the final track listing featured on the release, there is no doubt that “No Place Left to Fall” is a great-sounding album that is equaled by the strength of the material and the performances of the players. In addition to Champlin, kudos goes to drummer Billy Ward, bassist George Hawkins, Jr., lead guitarist Bruce Gaitsch and co-producer Mark Eddinger (who also performed some keyboards on the project).
Great stuff indeed.
Robert Kinsler 11/04/09
What about the packaging? “No Place Left to Fall” features a 13-song audio CD, as well as a bonus DVD with a movie featuring interviews and footage recorded during the making of the album.
Album: 1969 Artist: Los Lonely Boys Worth Buying: Yes
You will be interested in this album if you are fan of: Blues Rock, Latin Rock, Santana, & Stevie Ray Vaughan, and bands that do interesting cover songs.
Tell Me More: A short EP comprised of only cover songs, is pretty much a no brainer must have for the already converted. I would think that the real purpose of putting out an EP like this is partly to sate the appetites of the existing fans (while waiting for the next full length release) but also to try to gain some new followers. After all, all the songs on 1969 are covers of already established songs, so the newcomers already know the songs; now all they need is to know the band. And I think that this 5 song EP will do just that.
Trust me when I say that if you are already a fan of Santana, or Stevie Ray Vaughan , that you will no doubt love all the previous albums by the Los Lonely Boys. But if you are still a little gun-shy, give 1969 a try. This 5 song ep of covers should get you over any buyer’s remorse that you may be stopping you from becoming a fan. It’s affordably priced and serves as a good introduction to their sound.
As for the covers on this collection; Covering Santana’s Evil Ways seems terribly obvious. There have been so many comparisons already made to Santana by so many other writers that is almost seems unnecessary to cover it. But in the context of making new fans, it makes perfect sense. Te unexpected covering of the Beatles “She Came In Through the Bathroom Window”, is the antithesis of covering Evil Ways. It is the last thing you would have expected. I also have to give a hearty mention to the much beefed up version of the Door’s Roadhouse Blues. I like the original song too, but they gave this song a very cool facelift.
TJR 11/04/09
What about the packaging? I got a cheaper digital version, so I have no idea.
Album: The Monsters of Folk Worth Buying? Yes indeed. You might be interesting this album if you are a fan of: Bright Eyes, My Morning Jacket, She and Him, and……..Mike Mogis?
Tell Me More: It’s funny you know, I am not a fan of Bright Eyes. I listened to the latest album by My Morning Jacket and didn’t get that into it. I listened to a bit of She and Him and wasn’t all that intrigued by it (even though everyone was telling me to check it out)…..and prior to hearing this album, I had no idea who Mike Mogis is…..so it’s funny that I should start finding myself being enamored to an album that features members from all three of these groups (along with Mr Mogis) as a “Supergroup” with the humorous moniker of “The Monsters of Folk”.
The Monster’s line up is Connor Oberst (Bright Eyes), Yim Yames (Morning Jacket) M. Ward (best known for collaborating with Zooey Deschanel on She and Him). Rounding off the line up is Mike Mogis (an engineer and multi instrumentalist who has worked in the past with both Oberst and Ward).
A quick look at the album credits show that this is not a couple of Oberst songs here, a couple James songs there, etc, etc.
The 4 Monster’s have written all the songs together as a four way collaboration. They have also played all the instruments themselves (taking turns on various instruments) with no outside players.
Stylistically this album is all over the map, so what’s really impressive is just how cohesive it sounds. In the opening track entitled: Dear God (Sincerely M.O.F.) matters of the spirit are discussed over a white boys playing old school R&B style vibe.
Dear God …I’m trying hard to reach you.
Dear God….I see your face in all I do
Sometimes …it’s hard to believe in
But God….I know you have your reasons
Track two entitled, Say Please jumps right into classic rock (as in Rockin’) territory and track 3 entitled Whole Lotta Losin (I can’t help but feel that that title is a pun on Whole Lotta Love) moves into a fun early rock/americana vibe……Like I said, all over the map but it sounds like the same group with each song.
This is another one of those albums where I previewed the 30 seconds tracks on Amazon and was sold on just the 30 second previews.
When Crosby, Still’s and Nash, first got together and released that first CSN album it was like lightning in a bottle. And while this album sounds nothing like it I feel a similar kind of excitement when I listen to it. These four individual artists got together and did something that they couldn’t have done apart and in the process, they caught lighting in bottle. I don’t if there will be a follow MOF album. Sometimes you can only capture lightning once. But if there is, I will certainly be curious to find out.
What about the packaging? The CD is packaged in a beautiful mini LP gatefold sleeve that includes very nice artwork, and lyrics booklet with art and photos.
The other week I bought a USB turntable, and I have been re-discovering the joys of vinyl as I digitize a lot of old vinyl records that I haven’t been able to hear (or look at) for ages.
There has been a recent cult resurgence for vinyl lately with many artists releasing limited edition vinyl versions of their current CD releases (sure wish I could afford to do this). I think what’s been most interesting about this is comparing some of these records to their digital counterparts in back to back comparisons. I even indulged in buying a few NEW vinyl releases for just this reason.
Here is what I have discovered.
It is of course…..unfair to compare dirty scratchy vinyl record to a CD.
…But a clean Vinyl record is a different story. While the CD may lack those little vinyl clicks that even very clean records sometimes can’t avoid…..I have discovered that there are sometimes certain aural pleasures to vinyl that the CD just hasn’t quite got down.
Here are few observations that I made while listening.
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New Vinyl Vs New CD
U2 No Line On The Horizon
I listened to this album numerous times on CD and while I didn’t think it was bad, I also didn’t think it was great either. I listened to it on vinyl and it was like hearing it for the first time. I think I am starting to like it better.
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Kid Rock – Rock’n'Roll Jesus
I liked the CD better. It was beefier and crisper sounding.
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The Decemberists – The Hazards of Love
I Looooved this album on CD. It is one of my favorites of the year……I loved it so much that I bought a brand new vinyl pressing of it. As good as it was on CD, the vinyl pressing was a step above. Even my song writing partner Kathy noticed the difference immediately when I gave her a blind taste test
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Old Vinyl vs Old CD
The Beatles – Please Please Me
My 87 CD release of this album is cleaner and beefier…..but there is something warmer about the guitars on the vinyl record that is appealing.
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Old Vinyl
Wings - Wings Over America
I have had this 3 record set of Paul McCartney’s Wings over America for years now. This record is from the 70’s. I have never gotten the overpriced (and hard to get) CD version, so I can’t compare it….but the I was amazed at how full and warm and dimensional the recording of the band sounds on this record.
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CSNY – De Ja Vu
I want to get the CD of this record, so that I can compare it. The vinyl was an absolute journey of sheer aural delight. Besides the songs being fantastic, the record itself is amazing to just listen to.
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Part of it, is just the analog warmth of vinyl. Everything was analog to analog back in those days…..I think that is why, even with digital guitar amps doing amazing things, most guitarists (myself included) still prefer to use old style vacuum tube technology.
Another thing (and this has been a development only in the last 6 years or so) is that so many of todays CD releases are so over compressed (this has been done to make them louder) that all the dynamic range has bled out of them…….Older CD releases have more dynamic range because they haven’t been as compressed.
In the end beauty is in the ear of the beholder. Metallica took a huge amount of flack for how over compressed their last album was, so much so that later pressings were remixed with a lot of the compression removed. A backlash has already started against the massive amounts of compression used on todays CDs so think we will start to hear more dynamic range in CDs again.
Artist: The Decemberists Album: The Hazards of Love Worth Buying: It should be a classic.
You will be interested in this album if you are a fan of: Classic concepts albums like Dark Side of the Moon, and Thick as a Brick.
Tell me more: This is my first album by The Decemberists. I have not listened to any of their previous albums. I bring this up, because I understand that some of their longs time fans are bit put off by this album. Apparently because the band moved beyond from what many describe as a kind’ve Celtic Folk rock sound in order to record this epic concept album of star crossed love.
Some artists stay within their genre album after album and do a great job of it. Some feel the need to musically morph. When an artist with an established fanbase, and an established sound does this, it can turn off some fans and delight others. But I have no preconceived notions about what a Decemberists album should sound like, so I listened to their latest “The Hazards of Love” with no preconceived notions.
I think that it was somewhere in the middle of my 2nd listen through, that I
realized that this album can stand head and shoulders with classic rock concept albums like Dark Side of The Moon and Thick as a Brick……..Yes, it’s that good.
The albums story tells the tale of a mortal woman (Margaret), who falls in love with William, a magical shape shifter from an enchanted forest. But their love is threatened by William’s jealous mother, the Queen of the forest.
Amazon.com described this as an album that demands repeated listening, with more to be gained from each said listening. And I couldn’t agree more. If HOL had been released back in the heyday of FM rock radio, I think it would have gotten a lot of airplay and that by now it would be considered a classic. But it wasn’t. It was released now. In an era where there is no airplay for this kind of an album. There is only the word of mouth. So that is what I will give this album. If you enjoy epic rock albums GET THIS ALBUM! ………..And don’t illegally download it!!!! BUY IT and support these fine musicians so they can afford to live and make more music.
The Decemberists are now officially on my radar and I am now very interested too hear their previous releases. Are there any Decemberists fans that want to give me their recommendations?
TJR 10/12/09
What About the Packaging? Standard Jewel case format but with a nice lyrics booklet .
Artist: Drive By Truckers Album: The Fine Print Worth Buying: Every Track You might be interested in this album if you are a fan of: Neil Young,
Lynnard Skynnard, Southern Rock, Old School country music and albums where bands reveal their rare b-sides and alternate versions of their songs.
Tell me more: The latest release by the DBT is subtitled as a collection
of oddities, rarities and alternate versions. Sometimes collections like
this can be uneven and are made to appeal to the hardcore fan rather than
the first time curious. So it’s a pleasant surprise to hear how well this
collection works as an album even if you had not heard any of their
previous albums.
In the liner notes group member Patterson Hood talks about the origins of
these tracks. In one case a (fantastic) remake of the Bob Dylan record
“How Does it Feel” was released only as part of a compilation CD for Mojo
Music Magazine. In another case a song like When The Well Runs Dry was recorded for the Blessing and A Curse album and then later kept off. But these tracks are in no way leftovers, or tracks that weren’t considered good enough…..In fact on a couple of these Mr. Hood himself express’s the opinion that these tracks that didn’t make it on the album are better than anything that was on the album…..What he doesn’t bother to say is why?
I personally would have liked to have read more about the why on this, but
no information is given. Either way, though it is great to see hear these
tracks. All together there are covers from Tom Petty,Warren Zevon, and Tom T Hall. There is a sprinkling of alternate versions of tracks that did make it onto albums, and then just recordings that for one reason or another where never released.
Ever since I was introduced to the DBT via their epic 2 CD concept album
(Southern Rock Opera) I have been a fan. And when someone new to their
music asks me what’s a good album to start with, I always point to
Southern Rock Opera as a good starting point (I would use the same
philosophy with The Who or the Beatles and recommend either Who’s Next or
Sgt Pepper). For the most part I would still point to Southern Rock Opera
when making this recommendation, but as a second choice I might just go
with “The Fine Print”. A collection of oddities that comes together quite
well on it’s own as an album.
What about the packaging? DBT albums are always well packaged and this
one is no exception. It is packaged in a mini lp gatefold sleeve. The
artwork is beautiful and interior artwork is equally beautiful and makes
you wish you had it in a larger vinyl format. It comes with a booklet too.
There are no lyrics, but (as mentioned earlier ) there are notes by
Patterson Hood for each track and it makes good reading.
My song American Idol, and it’s video, made the Grammy Nominating Ballot this year in the categories of:
For performance by TJR:
Record for the Year
Male Country Vocal
For Songwriting:
Song of Year and Country song AMERICAN IDOL
Kathy Barrett & Timothy John Ramirez, songwriters
For video:
Best Short Form Music Video
TJR
Best Country Song AMERICAN IDOL
Best Short form video
Some of you may remember that this is the video that was banned from Youtube for a short while due to Fremantle Media’s claim of Copyright infringement.
First of all, I think it’s cool that I made the Country category because I am NOT a country artist…..But wouldn’t it be funny if I actually got nominated? (After all they did to try and shut me up).
A BRIEF TIMELINE
01/14/09 TJR premieres the video for his song “American Idol” On Youtube. The video uses clips from the TV show to parody the series and make it appear as if TJR is auditioning for the show.
01/17/09 In less than 4 days and after 20 thousand views, the video is pulled from youtube by request of Fremantle International Media claiming copyright infringement.
01/26/09 TJR premieres an alternate version of the video, replacing all the scenes used from the A.I. TV show with puppets. In less than four days this video is also pulled from Youtube at the request of Fremantle International claiming that this video (that uses none of their media) is violating their copyright. TJR’s entire Youtube channel is also taken down.
TJR contacts the EFF (www.eff.org) for help. He files the paper work to contest Femantle’s charge of copyright
02/19/09 A month later Youtube concludes that TJR’s 2nd video is not a violation of copyright and restores his Youtube channel, & the alternate version of the video.
03/11/09 After a month of complete inaction on Femantle International’s part to counter TJR’s challenge, TJR ’s original American Idol video is restored. Reactions to the video by A.I. fans range from outright hostility for daring to saying anything negative about their favorite show to kudos for calling them out on ageism.
09/21/09 TJR get’s the news that his song and it’s accompanying video has made the opening Gammy ballot for the 2010 Gammy Awards in the categories of: Record of the year, Song of the year, Best Country Song, & Best Short Form Music Video.
The entire Beatles Catalog has been rereleased in three different ways.
In stereo: Remastered and available as individual CDs, they feature new expanded packaging that includes extensive new liner notes, new photos, and are enhanced with a mini documentary on the making of the album. These new Stereo remasters are also available as a box set that includes all 13 Beatles albums, the 2 disc Past Masters CD (containing every song that was not released on an album) plus an additional DVD containing all the mini Documentaries. These new stereo remasters are widely available.
The stereo Box set currently sells for 179.99 on Amazon prices of he individual albums vary depending on where you go.
Not so widely available is the limited edition Mono Box set. It features the first 10 albums remastered from the original master tapes that where used for the original UK mono releases. Each one is packaged in meticulous re-creation’s of the original vinyl packaging right down to the last detail (including inserts and paper sleeves). Also included is the 2 CD Mono Masters with the UK mono mixes for every Beatles song that was not released on their albums, the mono mixes for the originals songs featured on the Yellow Submarine movie, a very nice booklet with essays and photos and what has been dubbed as the 1965 stereo mixes for Help and Rubber Soul
The Mono Box set currently sells for 229.99 on Amazon
I have decided to forgo these new Stereo masters in favor of the mono box set.
WHY MONO?
Isn’t Stereo better? And the Mono Box set doesn’t contain the entire Beatles catalog! Plus it costs more! Why in the world would anyone choose to pay more for something that has less?
I thought the same thing….at first. But sometimes, in order to understand art, you have to understand the history behind that art. So let’s look at the history first.
The Beatles first 3 albums where recorded and released in the UK and America in Mono….Because at that time there was no such thing as stereo.
When Stereo was first introduced, it caught on big in the US. But in Europe, not so much.
So little so, that the Beatles continued to record and mix their next 7 albums in Mono for their UK releases.
They would then send of a 2nd generation copy of the master tape to the US where it would be panned right and left for stereo release in the US.
Stereo was still a new thing in the US at the time, and in order to show off (dramatically) the difference between stereo and mono (and probably to help sell more stereo gear) These albums where panned far left and far right.
In other words: (as an example) You play a US release of the Beatles and you hear the drums and vocals panned to the extreme far right of your speaker system and guitar and bass panned to the extreme far left. Turn down or disconnect your right side and you can’t hear the vocals and drums. Just the guitar, and bass.
These are not true full stereo mixes.
WHAT IS TRUE FULL STEREO?
In True full stereo we are trying to create a mix where it sounds like the band is in the room with you. Lead vocals are in the center, drums are more or less centered with perhaps the high hat panned slightly right and cymbals and toms panned slightly left to right depending on brightness. Guitars, Keys, Bass, and back up vocals are each individually panned to varying degrees somewhat to the right or somewhat to the left. The idea is to create a more surrounding mix. Panning hard left or hard right is mostly not done except to create an effect or emphasis.
These ping pong stereo mixes of the Beatles albums, that I referred to earlier, where just an afterthought to satisfy the US marketplace at the time. The Beatles had no real input on them. And their producer George Martin had only minimal input on them. They where also taken from a 2nd generation master tape (which means that there was already a degradation of quality).
…………And for years this is how we listened to the music of the Beatles in the US.
It took so long for Stereo to catch on in the UK, that only their last 3 albums, Yellow Submarine, Abbey Road & Let it Be, that the Beatles had their albums mixed in stereo for both the UK and US releases (although there where mono mixes of the 4 original songs on the Yellow Submarine soundtrack there where released as singles in the UK….more on this in a moment).
THE 1987 RELEASES TO NOW
In 1987, when the Beatles albums where first released on CD, the first 3 where re mastered versions of the original Mono US releases. The next 7 albums, where taken from the same stereo masters that where used for the US vinyl stereo releases, so they featured the same extreme hard right, and left panning
Now back in 1999 in conjunction with the release of the Beatles movie Yellow Submarine on DVD, Capital records did an interesting thing. They not only remastered, but remixed all the songs from the film and released them On CD. For the first time these songs (at least) could be heard in true stereo (rather then the hard left and right panning that was previously available). Many fans found the difference to be quite astounding with favor falling towards these new remixes over the 87 remasters.
So prior to their 09/09/09 release date, there where a lot of speculation that these new rereleases would also be remixed in true full stereo.
Sadly for many fans, this was not the case.
So while these new Stereo remasters may be an improvement over the 87 versions (opinions vary on this greatly though). What we have with these new releases, are remasters of the same hard right and left panning that has plagued the US Beatles releases since day one.
Given the Beatles and Producer George Martin’s almost complete lack of involvement in the original US stereo releases, and given the fact that at times it would seem that the stereo releases where engineered more to show off how different stereo was from mono at the time (and not to serve the songs themselves). It is my opinion that, in the case of the first 10 albums, it is the mono mixes that are the definitive mixes. These are the mixes that the Beatles and George Martin took part in and signed off on. This is what they heard in the studio and this is the way they wanted audiences to hear these songs. And I have decided that this is the way that I want to hear them.
BUT DOES IT REALLY SOUND ANY BETTER?
In music, beauty is in the ear of the beholder. But most audiophiles who have compared the mono mixes to the stereo releases will agree (due to the hard R/L panning of the US stereo releases) that the Mono releases sound fuller and better. When you play them on a good stereo if feels more like the band is in the room with you. Also there can sometimes be startling differences. In some cases the American engineers may have used a different vocal take, Certain vocal and guitar effects may have gotten washed out during the conversion to stereo and sometimes (due to the tape machines) the speed of the recording was changed. The Sgt. Pepper album offers some of the most apparent differences. I had the chance to listen on line to the original mono mix of She’s Leaving Home. The song is already a thing of beauty, but it was unbelievable to hear how much different it sounded from its stereo counterpart. The tempo was a bit faster and it had a gorgeous richness that the stereo mix never had.
But once again, these mono mixes are what the Beatles and George Martin labored over and signed off on.
WHAT ABOUT THE LAST 3 ALBUMS?
The Yellow Submarine soundtrack, Abbey Road, and Let it Be are not included since they where mixed and released in stereo only. The mixes for the US and UK releases are the same. Therefore (in my opinion) the stereo mixes of these albums are definitive (and I already bought them back in 87).
The Original Yellow Submarine soundtrack album only featured 4 new Beatles songs (the movies title track and All you Need is love had been previously released) The rest of the album featured George Martin’s very under appreciated orchestral score for the film. But since Mono mixes of the original songs where released in the UK as singles, they are also included.
WHY ARE HELP, AND RUBBER SOUL ALSO INCLUDED IN STEREO?
Why not the other albums? Apparently George Martin did try some experimentation with Stereo mixes for these two albums. He was trying to create a stereo mix for the UK that would play well on Monaural players. These stereo mixes where not the same as the American versions. So they have been included in the Beatles Mono Box set.
FINALLY
So far from all the samples I have heard, and I have only heard these on youtube which is going to have compressed audio, these original Mono mixes are fuller and feel more real than their American stereo counterparts and probably always will be until they are not just remastered but remixed in true stereo.
But until the release of this new Mono Set, the only way you could hear these mixes was if you had those original British vinyl pressings. So this new Mono set finally offers a chance to hear these recording the way they were always meant to be heard.
I have not had the opportunity to hear the new Stereo remasters yet. They are more than likely an improvement over the 87 versions. And if you have never owned any Beatles CDs, I am sure they are worth your money, but it’s hard to believe that for decades now, We Americans have been hearing the Beatles music in mixes that where designed, more or less to show off stereo and sell stereo equipment, rather than a truly great and real sounding stereo mix.
Even more hard to believe is that their have been two opportunities (back in 87 and on 09/09/09) to fix this oversight.
I want the Beatles in stereo too. But I want to hear it done right. Until then…..Make mine mono.
Album: Shaka RockArtist: JetWorth buying: Every track rocksYou will be interested in this album if you a fan of: Jet, U2 at their more rocking, Classic rock, and rock that is fun to listen to. Tell Me More: When their first album “Get Born” was released, everyone was pretty excited about it. Everyone but me that is……A friend told me that I had to listen to the album and I did (several times as is my custom)…….But I just didn’t get it. I didn’t think they where bad mind you. I just wasn’t getting excited like everyone else was….But I let the songs sit in my ipod….and they started to creep into random rotation…..then a year later, I suddenly got it.
The lesson being that sometimes new music can hit you one way at one point in your life and then suddenly hit you differently at another point in your life. Never assume because you didn’t get into it now, that you won’t get into it later.
This brings us to Jet’s latest album Shaka Rock. I enjoyed every track on this CD. The opening track K.I.A (Killed in Action) opens with the band seeming to channel U2 as Nic Cester sings: I live in the middle of a combat zone. / And I’m too scared to pick up the phone. And while there is a strong U2 influence on songs like this one and on songs like Hollywood (check out the songs big sky opening chorus with it’s unexpected “Don’t let life kick you down” message and you’ll see what I mean) this in no way implies that the band doesn’t maintain their own identity and sound (which they do well). If anything I think the band (like all bands worth their salt) has spent a lot of time listening to other stuff and has allowed it to mix and meld into their own groove (and maybe done a little maturing in the process as songwriters). U2 isn’t the only new influence I hear on this album, She’s A Genius opens with a fun Zeppelin meets the Knack opening guitar line that is fun to listen to. Upon reflection, I think that fun is the operative word here. This is not music that is going to change the world (And I don’t think it was ever intended to be) This is Rock’n’Roll to bounce to while you are driving in the car. This is fun Rock’n’Roll. And we could all use a little fun.
What about the packaging:
This is the only place where they lose points. Standard Jewel Case, Metallic disc with black printing. There is a three way fold out insert with liner notes on one side and photo of the band on the other. No lyrics. The album still rocks though. TJR 09/17/09
