VARIOUS ARTISTS
I AM SAM
2001 – V2 RECORDS
Produced By MITCH ROTTER & ROB SCHNAPF
1. Two Of Us (Aimee Mann & Michael Penn)
2. Blackbird (Sarah McLachlan)
3. Across The Universe (Rufus Wainwright)
4. I’m Looking Through You (The Wallflowers)
5. You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away (Eddie Vedder)
6. Strawberry Fields Forever (Ben Harper)
7. Mother Nature’s Son (Sheryl Crow)
8. Golden Slumbers (Ben Folds)
9. I’m Only Sleeping (The Vines)
10. Don’t Let Me Down (Stereophonics)
11. Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds (The Black Crowes)
12. Julia (Chocolate Genius)
13. We Can Work It Out (Heather Nova)
14. Help! (Howie Day)
15. Nowhere Man (Paul Westerberg)
16. Revolution (Grandaddy)
17. Let It Be (Nick Cave)
This is an interesting album. I Am Sam is a film about an intellectually challenged father (Sean Penn) and his fight to keep custody of his 7 year old daughter. Penn’s character, Sam, loves The Beatles, and he named his daughter Lucy Diamond, after the song. Good movie. The producers intended to have an all Beatles soundtrack using the original recordings. But very late in the production, they were unable to get the rights to the Beatles’ tracks. They had many popular artists record the songs, but there was a catch. Because the filming was already done, and because scenes were completed around the lengths of the Beatles original tracks, the artists had to record the songs in the exact same times as The Beatles had. So there is no variation in tempo and no improvisation compared to the originals.
The result is a fun album of Beatles covers…but there really isn’t any creative input from the artists who recorded them. These songs are basically all as The Beatles initially laid them down. As a result, the songs sound uninspired and tightly wound. This is a film that works better than the soundtrack. Strangely…there was also a film from 1976 called All This & World War II, which featured artists covering Beatles songs. The film was public for 2 weeks in theaters (I actually did go to see it) before being critically trashed and pulled forever. But that soundtrack was much better, because the artists were able to play the music with more freedom and add their own touches to the songs. (Elton John’s “Lucy In The Sky” was a number one hit.) I Am Sam is a fine movie and a stiff soundtrack that is simply okay.
Link _________________ May we all get to heaven
'Fore the devil knows we're dead...
ROBERT EARL KEEN
GRINGO HONEYMOON
1994 – SUGAR HILL
Produced By GARRY VELLETRI
1. Think It Over One Time
2. Tom Ames’ Prayer
3. Gringo Honeymoon
4. The Raven And The Coyote
5. Lonely Feeling
6. Merry Christmas From The Family
7. Barbeque
8. Lynnville Train
9. I’m Coming Home
10. Dreadful Selfish Crime
Robert Earl Keen should be designated as a national treasure. What a great songwriter he is, and if you listen to alt country at all, you know that voice anywhere. Gringo Honeymoon is Keen’s fourth album. It‘s his last on Sugar Hill Records, and the last before he started to become well known. Actually, his song “The Road Goes On Forever” had been recorded by Joe Ely the year before…and word of his songs was spreading across Nashville and Austin. Gringo Honeymoon is loaded with such great songs that were not big hits, but should have been. And the musicians on this record are so good. Steel player Tommy Spurlock and guitarist Gurf Morlix. Springsteen’s longtime bassist Garry Tallent. And backup singers that include Gillian Welch and the great Dennis Locorriere. And then there are the songs.
“Think It Over One Time” and “Gringo Honeymoon” have become alt country must haves. “I’m Coming Home” is just a thing of beauty. His sense of humor explodes on maybe the greatest trailer park holiday song of all time, “Merry Christmas From The Family”. He expertly covers Steve Earle’s “Tom Ames’ Prayer”. And the closer, “Dreadful Selfish Crime” is so good, you’ll want to play the whole album one more time just to hear it again. What an overlooked classic this record is. Keen called it a day in 2022, but he’s left a truly impressive body of work that will stand for years to come. So many great songs, by himself and others. Some really terrific studio albums, and quite a few live ones too. Robert Earl Keen is one of the greats. More people should know about that. Without question.
Link _________________ May we all get to heaven
'Fore the devil knows we're dead...
SLEATER-KINNEY
ONE BEAT
2002 – KILL ROCK STARS
Produced By JOHN GOODMANSON
1. One Beat
2. Far Away
3. Oh!
4. The Remainder
5. Light Rail Coyote
6. Step Aside
7. Combat Rock
8. O2
9. Funeral Song
10. Prisstina
11. Hollywood Ending
12. Sympathy
1. Off With Your Head
2. Lions And Tigers
Sleater-Kinney may just be the coolest band on the planet. If not, they have to be close. Their sixth album, One Beat, was recorded in the aftermath of the September 11th attacks, and is quite political lyrically, including criticism of President George W. Bush. The band referred to the album as a voice in the silence following the attacks. What this album does do is rock. This trio of Corin Tucker, Carrie Brownstein and Janet Weiss always sounds like a much bigger band than what they are, even though they have the uniqueness of not having a bass player. Tucker’s vocals are shocking and attention grabbing, and the guitar interplay between Tucker and Brownstein is always interesting and exciting. The band was growing in maturity and songwriting from album to album, and six discs deep, they were on top of their game.
There were no hits from One Beat (hit singles have never been a priority with Sleater-Kinney). There are some really terrific tracks here. “Far Away” is all about 9/11. “Hollywood Ending” addresses the issue of female body image, while “Sympathy” addresses the scary birth of Tucker’s premature son. But more than anything, these songs all work together as a unit. You’ll want to hear the whole thing, and it’s a worthwhile listen. I got lucky with this one…it’s the limited edition release that came with a second disc containing two extra tracks. The more Sleater-Kinney, the better, I say. The band split up for eight years in 2006, and they’re back at it, having released three more albums since reuniting. This is a band you simply can’t go wrong with. One Beat is a fine record. I recommend!
Link _________________ May we all get to heaven
'Fore the devil knows we're dead...
DREAM THEATER
METROPOLIS PT. 2: SCENES FROM A MEMORY
1999 – ELEKTRA
Produced By JOHN PETRUCCI & MIKE PORTNOY
1. Regression
2. Overture 1928
3. Strange Déjà Vu
4. Through My Words
5. Fatal Tragedy
6. Beyond This Life
7. Through Her Eyes
8. Home
9. The Dance Of Eternity
10. One Last Time
11. The Spirit Carries On
12. Finally Free
Ah…prog. Progressive rock is one of those things that drive me crazy. Yes, we know you can play really fast, and yes, we get that you have somehow figured out how to make your songs really long and complicated. The golden days of prog were the 70’s, when dinosaurs like Yes, Genesis, Rush and Emerson, Lake & Palmer roamed the earth. But as much as I like to be irritated by prog bands, I have to also admit that they all have some pretty positive things in common. Mainly, prog bands tend to be impressive musically, no matter how dizzy their millions of notes may make you. Enter Dream Theater, an American progressive metal band from New York that has been at it since 1985, when they were known as Majesty. They are the true carriers of the prog torch, and as musicians, they are not to be messed with.
Metropolis Pt. 2 is their sixth album, and is the sequel to a song called Metropolis Pt. 1 from their 1992 album Images And Words. It’s a concept album about a man discovering his past life. If you have the patience to follow such things from rock bands, it’s all here. Guitarist John Petrucci plays a whole lot of notes, each of them perfect. James LaBrie sings with enough dramatic force to rival an opera, and drummer Mike Portnoy does his best Neil Peart impersonation. It’s full, dramatic, and powerful. Musically, this is a pretty impressive set of songs. Dream Theater keeps a part of rock alive that could have otherwise fallen by the wayside…there is a place in this world for prog. Dream Theater does it as well as anyone. Kudos to them for that.
Link _________________ May we all get to heaven
'Fore the devil knows we're dead...
EUROPE
THE FINAL COUNTDOWN
1986 – EPIC
Produced By KEVIN ELSON
1. The Final Countdown
2. Rock The Night
3. Carrie
4. Danger On The Track
5. Ninja
6. Cherokee
7. Time Has Come
8. Heart Of Stone
9. On The Loose
10. Love Chaser
11. The Final Countdown (Live)
12. Danger On The Track (Live)
13. Carrie (Live)
It used to be a theory that the bigger the continent a band named themselves after, the worse they were. America had a lot of hits, but even more forgettable music. Asia was bigger, and more bombastic. But consider that the continent of Europe includes the massive land mass of the former Soviet Union. I am not familiar with ten of this Swedish band’s eleven studio albums, except that they remain to this day huge stars in their native country. What I am familiar with is their most famous album, their third. The Final Countdown made them worldwide stars (for the moment) with their brand of over-bloated rock, the kind which had killed off many a seventies band. That Europe’s star faded throughout most of the world after this record is a good thing.
The Final Countdown is loaded with the worst of eighties keyboards, especially on the moronic title track. From there, of course, we’re gonna “Rock The Night”. Til when? Til the morning light, of course. Which leads directly to the required power ballad with zero substance but lots of trying to sound sincere, “Carrie”. It never gets better, including their laughable take on Native American history (?????), “Cherokee”, which came with a really bad video of the Swedish metal band in full 80’s glam wear (and all their instruments) hanging out with a native tribe in the middle of the desert, presumably sometime in the 1800’s. Marching on the Trail Of Tears, you know. And, as a bonus, this particular version includes three live bonus tracks. Trite, predictable, and honestly not very good. I suggest passing on and avoiding this at all costs.
Link _________________ May we all get to heaven
'Fore the devil knows we're dead...
EUROPE
THE FINAL COUNTDOWN
1986 – EPIC
Produced By KEVIN ELSON
1. The Final Countdown
2. Rock The Night
3. Carrie
4. Danger On The Track
5. Ninja
6. Cherokee
7. Time Has Come
8. Heart Of Stone
9. On The Loose
10. Love Chaser
11. The Final Countdown (Live)
12. Danger On The Track (Live)
13. Carrie (Live)
It used to be a theory that the bigger the continent a band named themselves after, the worse they were. America had a lot of hits, but even more forgettable music. Asia was bigger, and more bombastic. But consider that the continent of Europe includes the massive land mass of the former Soviet Union. I am not familiar with ten of this Swedish band’s eleven studio albums, except that they remain to this day huge stars in their native country. What I am familiar with is their most famous album, their third. The Final Countdown made them worldwide stars (for the moment) with their brand of over-bloated rock, the kind which had killed off many a seventies band. That Europe’s star faded throughout most of the world after this record is a good thing.
The Final Countdown is loaded with the worst of eighties keyboards, especially on the moronic title track. From there, of course, we’re gonna “Rock The Night”. Til when? Til the morning light, of course. Which leads directly to the required power ballad with zero substance but lots of trying to sound sincere, “Carrie”. It never gets better, including their laughable take on Native American history (?????), “Cherokee”, which came with a really bad video of the Swedish metal band in full 80’s glam wear (and all their instruments) hanging out with a native tribe in the middle of the desert, presumably sometime in the 1800’s. Marching on the Trail Of Tears, you know. And, as a bonus, this particular version includes three live bonus tracks. Trite, predictable, and honestly not very good. I suggest passing on and avoiding this at all costs.
Love your assessment of The Final Countdown!
One nit to pick though.... the majority of the former Soviet Union (and today's Russia along with some former Soviet republics, namely all the 'stans) is considered to be on the Asian continent (the Ural Mountains generally considered to be the dividing line). Asia is much larger than Europe.
EUROPE
THE FINAL COUNTDOWN
1986 – EPIC
Produced By KEVIN ELSON
1. The Final Countdown
2. Rock The Night
3. Carrie
4. Danger On The Track
5. Ninja
6. Cherokee
7. Time Has Come
8. Heart Of Stone
9. On The Loose
10. Love Chaser
11. The Final Countdown (Live)
12. Danger On The Track (Live)
13. Carrie (Live)
It used to be a theory that the bigger the continent a band named themselves after, the worse they were. America had a lot of hits, but even more forgettable music. Asia was bigger, and more bombastic. But consider that the continent of Europe includes the massive land mass of the former Soviet Union. I am not familiar with ten of this Swedish band’s eleven studio albums, except that they remain to this day huge stars in their native country. What I am familiar with is their most famous album, their third. The Final Countdown made them worldwide stars (for the moment) with their brand of over-bloated rock, the kind which had killed off many a seventies band. That Europe’s star faded throughout most of the world after this record is a good thing.
The Final Countdown is loaded with the worst of eighties keyboards, especially on the moronic title track. From there, of course, we’re gonna “Rock The Night”. Til when? Til the morning light, of course. Which leads directly to the required power ballad with zero substance but lots of trying to sound sincere, “Carrie”. It never gets better, including their laughable take on Native American history (?????), “Cherokee”, which came with a really bad video of the Swedish metal band in full 80’s glam wear (and all their instruments) hanging out with a native tribe in the middle of the desert, presumably sometime in the 1800’s. Marching on the Trail Of Tears, you know. And, as a bonus, this particular version includes three live bonus tracks. Trite, predictable, and honestly not very good. I suggest passing on and avoiding this at all costs.
Love your assessment of The Final Countdown!
One nit to pick though.... the majority of the former Soviet Union (and today's Russia along with some former Soviet republics, namely all the 'stans) is considered to be on the Asian continent (the Ural Mountains generally considered to be the dividing line). Asia is much larger than Europe.
Sorry, I'm a hopeless geography nerd.
I will give you that. I just always remembered the Soviet Union being referred to as Eastern Europe. My bad for not looking closer!
BTW...are you familiar with the book Terrible Maps? It's comedy perfection for geography nerds! _________________ May we all get to heaven
'Fore the devil knows we're dead...
VARIOUS ARTISTS
APPALACHIAN STOMP: BLUEGRASS CLASSICS
1995 – RHINO
Produced By PATRICK MILLIGAN & JAMES AUSTIN
1. Uncle Pen – Bill Monroe & His Blue Grass Boys
2. Foggy Mountain Breakdown – Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs & The Foggy Mountain Boys
3. This Weary Heart You Stole Away (Wake Up, Sweetheart) – The Stanley Brothers & The Clinch Mountain Boys
4. Are You Missing Me? – Jim & Jesse (McReynolds Bros.) & The Virginia Boys
5. You Don’t Know My Mind – Jimmy Martin
6. Rocky Top – Osborne Brothers
7. Blue Moon Of Kentucky – Bill Monroe & His Blue Grass Boys
8. Orange Blossom Special – Stanley Brothers
9. The Ballad Of Jed Clampett – Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs & The Foggy Mountain Boys
10. Dooley – The Dillards
11. Nine Pound Hammer – The Kentucky Colonels
12. Roving Gambler – The Country Gentlemen
13. Roll In My Sweet Baby’s Arms – Del McCoury
14. Deuling Banjos – Eric Weissberg & Steve Mandell
15. Will The Circle Be Unbroken – The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
16. Old Home Place – JD Crowe & The New South
17. Little Cabin Home On The Hill – Ricky Skaggs
18. Love You In Vain – Alison Krauss & Union Station
I’m a fan of albums that serve as history lessons, and also as reminders of how fortunate we are to have Rhino Records in our lives. Appalachian Stomp is not just a collection of some really great music, but it’s also an important part of American roots music history. Bluegrass is often dismissed, but please take another listen. This is Americana at its deepest and most exceptional, right there with the greatest of Delta blues and New Orleans jazz. The artists represented on this disc are not just good at what they do…they are legends of our country’s music. And these songs are not just hits…they are forever a part of what makes American music unique and special. The content here is as important as anything you will ever listen to. It’s as American as American music can be.
And it’s played by people who are truly gifted. A fan of metal? This is the equivalent of metal without amplification. Bill Monroe, Flatt & Scruggs, Del McCoury, all of the artists here are the very best, and the songs here are so deep in the history of our culture that they will never go away. And not just mind numbing instrumental virtuosity. Vocal harmonies as good as anything the Everly’s or Simon & Garfunkel ever laid down. Songs about life in the South and America that are just as important today as they ever were. And the breakneck speed of perfect songs like “Foggy Mountain Breakdown” and “Orange Blossom Special”. The true Southern beauty of “Will The Circle Be Unbroken”. Even the timeless theme songs from The Beverly Hillbillies and Deliverance. Buy this. Own this. Love this. And turn your kids on to it. American music at its very best.
Link _________________ May we all get to heaven
'Fore the devil knows we're dead...
THE REPLACEMENTS
DON’T TELL A SOUL
1989 – SIRE
Produced By MATT WALLACE & THE REPLACEMENTS
1. Talent Show
2. Back To Back
3. We’ll Inherit The Earth
4. Achin’ To Be
5. They’re Blind
6. Anywhere’s Better Than Here
7. Asking Me Lies
8. I’ll Be You
9. I Won’t
10. Rock ‘N’ Roll Ghost
11. Darlin’ One
The sixth of seven albums by The Replacements is Don’t Tell A Soul. Released in 1989, it has been described as the worst album by the band. It may not be at the same level as records like Let It Be, Tim and Pleased To Meet Me, but this is not a bad album, although there are many who would like you to believe that. As a Replacements album, it IS different. The sound and production is a lot cleaner. The songs are…prettier. And the overall energy is not what we had come to expect from the band. There are positives here, for sure. The songwriting of Paul Westerberg has grown a lot since the days of “Gary’s Got A Boner”, and even with guitarist Bob Stinson gone (replaced by Slim Dunlap), there is growth instrumentally. This is a more mature version of The Replacements.
Don’t Tell A Soul also contains their biggest hit, and their only single to reach the top 100 in America in “I’ll Be You”. “Back To Back” and “Achin’ To Be” are very good as well. This is a good album, but it’s true that it’s not at the same level as their earlier work. It’s also the beginning of the end for The Replacements. There would be one more album, 1990’s All Shook Down, that was more of a Westerberg solo album than anything else. This was a band of the eighties, with a career that spanned the entire decade and not much more. There have been reunions, but no new material aside from a pair of EP’s in the 2010’s. Don’t Tell A Soul is a record that has been underrated and undervalued…it is, after all, still The Replacements. And that itself is worth something.
Link _________________ May we all get to heaven
'Fore the devil knows we're dead...
THE REPLACEMENTS
DON’T TELL A SOUL
1989 – SIRE
Produced By MATT WALLACE & THE REPLACEMENTS
1. Talent Show
2. Back To Back
3. We’ll Inherit The Earth
4. Achin’ To Be
5. They’re Blind
6. Anywhere’s Better Than Here
7. Asking Me Lies
8. I’ll Be You
9. I Won’t
10. Rock ‘N’ Roll Ghost
11. Darlin’ One
The sixth of seven albums by The Replacements is Don’t Tell A Soul. Released in 1989, it has been described as the worst album by the band. It may not be at the same level as records like Let It Be, Tim and Pleased To Meet Me, but this is not a bad album, although there are many who would like you to believe that. As a Replacements album, it IS different. The sound and production is a lot cleaner. The songs are…prettier. And the overall energy is not what we had come to expect from the band. There are positives here, for sure. The songwriting of Paul Westerberg has grown a lot since the days of “Gary’s Got A Boner”, and even with guitarist Bob Stinson gone (replaced by Slim Dunlap), there is growth instrumentally. This is a more mature version of The Replacements.
Don’t Tell A Soul also contains their biggest hit, and their only single to reach the top 100 in America in “I’ll Be You”. “Back To Back” and “Achin’ To Be” are very good as well. This is a good album, but it’s true that it’s not at the same level as their earlier work. It’s also the beginning of the end for The Replacements. There would be one more album, 1990’s All Shook Down, that was more of a Westerberg solo album than anything else. This was a band of the eighties, with a career that spanned the entire decade and not much more. There have been reunions, but no new material aside from a pair of EP’s in the 2010’s. Don’t Tell A Soul is a record that has been underrated and undervalued…it is, after all, still The Replacements. And that itself is worth something.
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum
