CROSBY, STILLS, NASH & YOUNG
DÉJÀ VU
1970-ATLANTIC
Produced By CROSBY, STILLS, NASH & YOUNG
1. Carry On
2. Teach Your Children
3. Almost Cut My Hair
4. Helpless
5. Woodstock
6. Déjà Vu
7. Our House
8. 4 + 20
9. Country Girl: Whiskey Boot Hill/Down, Down, Down/Country Girl (I Think You’re Pretty)
10. Everybody I Love You
As if having a supergroup with David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash wasn’t unfair enough…they had to go and add in Neil Young for their second album. The CSN (&Y) franchise was so successful that they were able to put together a full greatest hits album after only two records. They had a successful debut album, then played at Woodstock, were already stars in their previous bands, and in 1970, they could do no wrong. Déjà Vu divides the songwriting pretty evenly, with each member contributing two songs each. The remaining two songs consist of a cover (Joni Mitchell’s “Woodstock”) and “Everybody I Love You”, co-written by Stills and Young. The inclusion of Young on the album has been often overstated. While “Helpless” is one of his greatest songs, his other contribution, the mini-suite “Country Girl”, may be the album’s weakest track. And he only appears on half of the songs on the album, making Déjà vu really more of a CSN project with Neil as more of a guest than anything else. But even so, his presence definitely adds an edge to the songs he does play on.
But what really makes this work is that the two songs each from the other members are all exceptional. Stills hits big with “Carry On”, a perfect song for all that harmony, but also with the stunning “4 + 20”, which may be his most beautiful track. Crosby’s “Almost Cut My Hair” is a bluesy rocker buoyed by Young’s stinging guitar, while the title track is proof of his understated genius. And Nash adds his pop sensibility with the charming “Our House” and the neat “Teach Your Children”, which features solid pedal steel work by Jerry Garcia. As an album, Déjà Vu kicks off the 70’s in fine fashion, and showcases not only the strengths of the individual members, but also their ability to sing so strongly and seemingly effortlessly together. This, alongside their debut, is all of the CSN you’ll ever really need…it would be seven years before their next studio effort, by which time Stills had dried up as a writer and the distance between the three made them sound less cohesive. But at the turn of the 70’s, there was no one who did it better than these guys.
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BAND OF HEATHENS
2008-BAND OF HEATHENS
Produced By RAY WYLIE HUBBARD
1. Don’t Call On Me
2. Jackson Station
3. Maple Tears
4. Heart On My Sleeve
5. Second Line
6. 40 Days
7. This I Know
8. Unsleeping Eye
9. Cornbread
10. Nine Steps Down
11. Hallelujah
Born in Austin, The Band Of Heathens became familiar to me because of my wife and the success they have playing many shows in the Denver area. The band came together from its three songwriters sharing a stage separately at shows in Austin…if you can have three major forces in a band together, why not try and make it work? They released two live albums that were very well received before recording this, their debut studio album. Despite being a self-released work, they were able to nab the services of alt-country legend Ray Wylie Hubbard as producer, and pulled in guest performances by Hubbard, Patty Griffin, Stephen Bruton and Gurf Morlix. Pretty strong way to start things off, and it says a lot about the band’s already growing reputation as a live act. The album reached number one on the Americana Music Association charts, and remains a highly regarded work for the band. A very remarkable achievement for an independent release.
The three guitarist/songwriters, Ed Jurdi, Gordy Quist and the since departed Colin Brooks share the writing fairly evenly, either separate or together. And having a five piece band in which everybody sings doesn’t hurt at all. “Don’t Call On Me”, by Jurdi, is a powerful opener, and things stay steady and strong from there all the way through. Other highlights include Brooks’ “Cornbread” (which features Hubbard), “Jackson Station” by Jurdi and Quist, and “Second Line”, which was written by all three. At first listen, this album seemed unremarkable, but it has grown over continued listens into a fine piece of work, and should be viewed as a major victory for anyone who has ever made an independent album: The Band Of Heathens show that you can be successful this way. Better now than I ever thought it was, and getting better still with every listen. The band continues on, having released three more studio albums and another pair of live recordings. Since the departure of Brooks, they now play as a four piece with two songwriters and guitarists instead of three.
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THE BLACK CROWES
FREAK ‘N’ ROLL…INTO THE FOG: THE BLACK CROWES ALL JOIN HANDS, THE FILLMORE, SAN FRANCISCO
2006-EAGLE
Produced By THE BLACK CROWES
1. (Only) Halfway To Everywhere
2. Sting Me
3. No Speak, No Slave
4. Soul Singing
5. Welcome To The Goodtimes
6. Jealous Again
7. Space Captain
8. My Morning Song
9. Sunday Night Buttermilk Waltz
1. Cursed Diamond
2. She Talks To Angels
3. Wiser Time
4. Non Fiction
5. Seeing Things
6. Hard To Handle
7. Let Me Share The Ride
8. Mellow Down Easy
9. Remedy
10. The Night The Drove Ol’ Dixie Down
In 2006, The Black Crowes were in the middle of a seven year gap between the studio albums Lions and Warpaint. Part of the reason for this was a three year hiatus that lasted from 2002 to 2005. As well, there was the constant shift in personnel that has forever plagued this band…mainly at the lead guitar spot. So, at the end of this hiatus, and with their classic era lead player Marc Ford back in the fold, the Crowes headed to San Francisco in 2005 and recorded a live (horribly titled) album. The result is a multi media (CD, DVD) project that was all culled from a single night at the Fillmore in August of 2005 with as close to their most famous lineup as possible. Great idea…keep your name out there with a big, over two hours long live show complete with a horn section (ala The Band) that relives the glory days of your band. And the band is up to the task here. It sounds great to be back together playing those old songs again. The band has good energy, they mix well with the original material as well as the covers, and even though there are a LOT of people on stage for this, it doesn’t really ever get to the point of being muddy.
So, what’s wrong with this picture? Lead singer Chris Robinson is what’s wrong. This once highly energetic and soaring frontman had already been, at this point, reduced to singing out of his nose. The lead vocals on this album alternate from “he almost got there” to really uncomfortable moments of “nope…he wasn’t even close”. By 2005, Robinson was no longer able to carry this material the way he had, resulting in strong performances by the band being dragged into mediocrity by a singer who really needed to be told to stop. Always unwilling to sing the melodies he had written for the song, he now sounded like he was reaching at every turn, worn out and tired, nasal to a fault. This is a matter of one person taking a great sounding band and making them seem even older than they were. As well, their decision to simply take one whole show and slap it on an album was probably not the best one. This was in the middle of a run of shows, and it would not have hurt them to have multiple concerts to choose from (particularly vocally) rather than just one night…you get it, good or bad. Also, the inclusion of the particularly silly hippie anthem “Space Captain” doesn’t add anything positive. This could have been, and almost was, a triumphant return. Instead, it’s a whimper of “we’re back. And we’re old”.
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BLACK UHURU
SINSEMILLA
1980-MANGO
Produced By SLY DUNBAR & ROBBIE SHAKESPEARE
1. Happiness
2. World Is Africa
3. Push Push
4. There Is Fire
5. No Loafing (Sit And Wonder)
6. Sinsemilla
7. Endurance
8. Vampire
Black Uhuru (Uhuru is Swahili for freedom) was formed in Jamaica in 1972, and has been in existence in one form or another ever since. After releasing three albums in the 70’s, the band had their best years and their most consistent lineup during the 1980’s. Included in that decade’s success was a Grammy award for their 1985 album Anthem. But they started off the decade with two albums in 1980: Black Uhuru and their almost breakthrough, Sinsemilla. Reggae was a big deal in 1980, thanks to the efforts of mostly Bob Marley & The Wailers. This incarnation of Black Uhuru was led by lead singer Michael Rose, who also handled all of the songwriting, and the rhythm section of Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare, who also happened to be reggae’s finest production team. Black Uhuru is better known now for being a groundbreaking dub act, but during this time, they were leaders in basic reggae rhythms, and were vocally maybe the best band to have come out of Jamaica, thanks to Rose, Puma Jones, and the one constant member of the band over 40 plus years, Derrick “Duckie” Simpson.
The album does have some holes…but not a lot of them, and the holes are not big ones. The beginning one-two punch of “Happiness” and “World Is Africa” is highly upbeat, catchy and very, very good. Also of note, with strong melodies that will stick with you, are “Push Push”, “No Loafing (Sit And Wonder), and the sweet groove of “Sinsemilla”. This album was a great way to start off their greatest decade, and is a fine reminder of how much fun reggae music was in 1980. This incarnation of the band splintered in the middle of the 1980’s, and would continue on in much smaller incarnations, always including Simpson. They haven’t released a studio album (or any other) since 2001’s Dynasty, but they continue as a live act. They have also released a large number of dub albums, although Sinsemilla has never been given that treatment. Sensemilla is Black Uhuru at the beginning of their peak, and it’s a solid, almost exceptional, document of how good reggae was at the turn of the 80’s.
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MERLE HAGGARD
HIS EPIC HITS – THE FIRST 11 (TO BE CONTINUED)
1984-EPIC
Produced By CHIPS MOMAN, WILLIE NELSON, MERLE HAGGARD,RAY BAKEY, LEWIS TALLEY & BILLY SHERRILL
1. Reasons To Quit
2. You Take Me For Granted
3. That’s The Way Love Goes
4. Are The Good Times Really Over (I Wish A Buck Was Still Silver)
5. Big City
6. Pancho And Lefty
7. Someday When Things Are Good
8. What Am I Gonna Do (With The Rest Of My Life)
9. My Favorite Memory
10. Going Where The Lonely Go
11. C. C. Waterback
Let’s just get this out of the way up front. The photo on the cover of this album is, by far, the worst part of this collection. Don’t let the cover art deter you. As for Haggard himself…after being released from San Quentin in 1960 and working around Bakersfield as a sideman, he signed with Capitol Records and spent a decade making classic albums, and becoming a legend. After a short stint with MCA, he signed with Epic Records in 1981, staying with the label until the end of the 80’s. This collection, however, covers only a four year period, but in those four years, Haggard released four solo studio albums (one was a Christmas album), a live album, and one collaboration each with Willie Nelson and George Jones. That’s quite a busy four years that Haggard had, so the short period of time that this collection covers is justified. Taking the best from this period makes for a solid, but imperfect album. As always, Haggard keeps the traditional country spark alive, and this period, the early 1980’s, marked the end of Haggard being a consistently powerful force in the industry. His work since has been sporadic and uneven. But here, Merle is still at the top of his game.
Two songs are from his 1983 collaboration (Pancho And Lefty) with Willie Nelson. “Reasons To Quit” is masterful. Written by Haggard, it’s the strongest track here. The version of “Pancho And Lefty is fair, but a little frantic and below the great standard set by such a great song. “C. C. Waterback” is from his 1982 album with George Jones, and is less than memorable. And while songs like “Are The Good Times Really Over”, which laments the passage of time, can sound a bit whiny and overly political (and dated), you also get great tracks like “Someday When Things Are Good”, “Going Where The Lonely Go”, and “That’s The Way Love Goes”. Haggard understands that the best country song is a sad song, and he delivers the sentiment as well as anyone who ever put boots on. There never was a “second 11”…the rest of his Epic career, while prolific, never reached the heights of his previous years. This is a nice collection of a strong period in the career of a giant. Just keep that picture turned down…
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KANYE WEST
LATE REGISTRATION
2005-ROC-A-FELLA
Produced By KANYE WEST, JON BRION, DEVO SPRINGSTEEN, JUST BLAZE & WARRYN CAMPBELL
1. Wake Up Mr. West (Intro)
2. Heard ‘Em Say (Feat. Adam Levine)
3. Touch The Sky (Feat. Lupe Fiasco)
4. Gold Digger (Feat. Jamie Foxx)
5. Skit #1
6. Drive Slow (Feat. Paul Wall & GLC)
7. My Way Home (Feat. Common)
8. Crack Music (Feat. The Game)
9. Roses
10. Bring Me Down (Feat. Brandy)
11. Addiction
12. Skit #2
13. Diamonds From Sierra Leone (Remix)(Feat. Jay-Z)
14. We Major (Feat. Nas & Really Doe)
15. Skit #3
16. Hey Mama
17. Celebration
18. Skit #4
19. Gone (Feat. Cam’ron & Consequence)
20. Diamonds From Sierra Leone
21. Late
Kanye West became a star with the release of his debut album, The College Dropout, in 2004. He didn’t lose any traction with his second effort, 2005’s Late Registration. As on The College Dropout, West doesn’t forget that his talents lie more in the area of production than in rapping. So, while a lot of what was being done in rap at the time was more gangster oriented and had a more stripped down and basic sound, Kanye West was showing what could be done with hip hop when produced on a higher level. He was smart enough to supplement his less than exceptional rapping skills with plenty of guests, from Adam Levine to Jay-Z to Jamie Foxx to Common and Nas. He substitutes the more annoying aspects of his debut album (the sped up chipmunk voice) for lavish arrangements, and even strings, which makes sense…a lot of the music tracks on hip hop albums are pretty bare. Not all...but quite a bit. Kanye deserves credit for taking that part of the genre that can sometimes sound like an afterthought and turning it into the centerpiece of his albums. The results here are powerful, and given the subject matter of Kanye’s songs and the caliber of his guests, even more so.
Late Registration was a huge hit, holding down the number one spot on the US Billboard chart for two weeks in 2005. The biggest recognizable track here would be “Gold Digger”, with help from Jamie Foxx and featuring a sample from Ray Charles’ “I Got A Woman”. Other standout tracks include “Drive Slow”, “Touch The Sky”, “Heard ‘Em Say”, and the lead single “Diamonds From Sierra Leone”. Instead of thug life, West touches on subjects like poverty, drugs, and health care. And while, at times, there may be almost too much going on musically, you never get the feeling that you’re listening to music that’s cheap or thin. Late Registration is actually a step above his debut, and is an almost perfect album. There’s a reason why the star of Kanye West is so big…especially early on, this guy knew what he was doing. West followed this up with a live companion album called Late Orchestration, and he’s continued with his successes with albums like My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and 2013’s Yeezus.
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THE TRAVELING WILBURYS
THE TRAVELING WILBURYS VOL. 1
1988-WILBURY
Produced By OTIS WILBURY & NELSON WILBURY
1. Handle With Care
2. Dirty World
3. Rattled
4. Last Night
5. Not Alone Any More
6. Congratulations
7. Heading For The Light
8. Margarita
9. Tweeter And The Monkey Man
10. End Of The Line
11. Maxine
12. Like A Ship
Without question the greatest lineup for a supergroup ever assembled. The question remains, why is this not the greatest album ever made? The Wilburys, as is well known, was not just a collection of greats, it was a collection of legends. George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Roy Orbison and Jeff Lynne was an unbelievable lineup, and Vol. 1 was going to be superb. So…why isn’t it? The album has moments of absolute glory, but it also has severe lows that defy logic. The easiest explanation is this: supergroups of this caliber simply do not work. How many top grade front men can you have on one stage at the same time? How do you relegate these guys to being backing musicians for each other, no matter how strong their friendships? But there are other reasons why this never rises above a certain level. They approached the project in more of a “let’s have some fun” manner rather than “let’s make some phenomenal music”. The anonymity of the Wilbury name was thin (they put their pictures on the front cover). And no one was going to really bring their “A” material to a project like this one. Right?
The high points are magical. “Handle With Care”, by Harrison, is their best track by far…the perfect vehicle for five lead singers. “The Closer, “End Of The Line”, is almost as strong. The Dylan contributions, “Dirty World” and “Tweeter And The Monkey Man” are excellent, as is “Last Night”. From there, the fall is mighty. The other five tracks (and the two bonus tracks) are poor and forgettable filler, especially given the pedigree of the performers. What we ultimately have here is an uneven album with some truly magical moments and lots of disappointment…but it’s still a lot of fun, especially if you remember that that’s what the Wilbury’s were going for. The liner notes by Michael Palin are also worthwhile…”The original Wilburys were a stationary people, who, realizing that their civilization could not stand still forever, began to go for short walks…”. Not long after this was released, Orbison died, and although there was one more album (Vol. 3), the fun was over. But this is always worth putting on once in a while. Because the Wilburys were ultimately what they set out to accomplish: they were a lot of fun.
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FLEETWOOD MAC
RUMOURS
1977-WARNER BROTHERS
Produced By FLEETWOOD MAC, KEN CAILLAT & RICHARD DASHUT
1. Second Hand News
2. Dreams
3. Never Going Back Again
4. Don’t Stop
5. Go Your Own Way
6. Songbird
7. The Chain
8. You Make Loving Fun
9. I Don’t Want To Know
10. Oh Daddy
11. Gold Dust Woman
When guitarist Bob Welch left Fleetwood Mac in 1974, the band was left with just Mick Fleetwood, Christine and John McVie, a legacy of a once proud blues band that had slid into mediocre pop, and a long roster of former guitar players who barely shone inside the group or after they had gone (with the exception of Peter Green). The band was about to end when Lindsey Buckingham was discovered in California, and when he was asked to join the band, he insisted that his girlfriend, Stevie Nicks, be part of the deal. The result was the album Fleetwood Mac, an almost perfect album that was based in newfound energy and the sudden connection that the five members of the band made. Rumours is the absolute peak of the career of Fleetwood Mac. It’s also the beginning of the end of that spark that made them so special for such a short time. Instead of being magical because the players involved were so good together, Rumours is magical because it’s a chronicle of a band publically eroding before our eyes. And what an absolutely good time we all had with that! The songs that came from the drama, the broken relationships of the couples in the band, and the ability they still had to blend together musically made for an album that was simply perfect.
The songwriting is split almost evenly between Christine McVie, Buckingham and Nicks. And there’s not a single track that isn’t perfection, or that doesn’t help make the album what it is. Buckingham’s “Second Hand News”, “Never Going Back Again” and “Go Your Own Way” are the best of his career. Nicks chimes in with “Dreams”, “I Don’t Want To Know” and “Gold Dust Woman”, all of which helped cement her reputation as a songwriter. McVie’s “Don’t Stop”, “Songbird”, “You Make Loving Fun” and “Oh Daddy” are the foundation of the album, and are exceptional. The group effort, “The Chain”, is simply perfect. This calm pop rock album, built around a fleeting cohesion of talents and internal chaos, remains perfect to this day. The cracks started showing musically on the next album, Tusk, and the magic of Rumours was never regained. But, from 1975 through the release of the somewhat disappointing Tusk, this was the biggest band in the world. It was short, but it was also very sweet.
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CREAM
BBC SESSIONS
2003-POLYDOR
Produced By BILL BEBB, BERNIE ANDREWS, JEFF GRIFFIN & BEV PHILLIPS
1. Sweet Wine
2. Eric Clapton Interview 1
3. Wrapping Paper
4. Rollin’ And Tumblin’
5. Steppin’ Out
6. Crossroads
7. Cat’s Squirrel
8. Traintime
9. I’m So Glad
10. Lawdy Mama
11. Eric Clapton Interview 2
12. I Feel Free
13. N.S.U.
14. Four Until Late
15. Strange Brew
16. Eric Clapton Interview 3
17. Tales Of Brave Ulysses
18. We’re Going Wrong
19. Eric Clapton Interview 4
20. Born Under A Bad Sign
21. Outside Woman Blues
22. Take It Back
23. Sunshine Of Your Love
24. Politician
25. SWLABR
26. Steppin’ Out
The life of Cream was woefully short, and the amount of material we were left with was small. 4 studio albums and 2 live albums released in the 70’s was it. And then, in 2003, this gem was released, and it was almost like having two brand new Cream albums. These recordings were made live at the BBC studios between 1966 and 1968, and they are exceptional. Only two tracks from this collection had ever seen the light of day since they originally aired: “Steppin’ Out” and “Lawdy Mama” had been included on Eric Clapton’s box set Crossroads. Otherwise, this was all new to everyone. Not only are there 22 live tracks by the band, but there are also four interview snippets with Clapton that add even more to the value. Each is under a minute long, but they are all interesting enough to merit inclusion. Topped off with great liner notes and some classic photos of the band, BBC Sessions is a must have, and the final piece of any good Cream collection.
Part of what makes BBC Sessions so great is that it doesn’t focus as much on the more popular Cream tracks as it does lesser known songs. “Strange Brew”, “Crossroads”, and “Sunshine Of Your Love” are here, but the bulk of the song list (taken from 7 different sessions) shows how good the band’s deeper tracks were. Six tracks from their debut album are featured, including the instrumental “Cat’s Squirrel”. Versions of “Born Under A Bad Sign”, “SWLABR”, and “Politician” (which was written specifically to be performed on the show) are excellent, and give a good indication as to how great they could be live. This band was tight, despite the animosity between Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker. BBC Sessions not only displays their live prowess, but is also a fine document of how well they sounded throughout their brief history. If you’re a fan, this is a must have album by one of the better bands of the late 60’s. Cream really was exactly that.
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PATTI SMITH
HORSES
1975-ARISTA
Produced By JOHN CALE
1. Gloria
2. Redondo Beach
3. Birdland
4. Free Money
5. Kimberly
6. Break It Up
7. Land
8. Elegie
“Well, if you think you can make better music, then go do it yourself”. Patti Smith, a poet, playwright and, yes, music critic, did just that. The result was Horses, her debut album, and maybe the ultimate pre-punk album. The opening line of her masterful reworking of Van Morrison’s “Gloria” marks the urgency and immediacy of her message: “Jesus died for somebody’s sins, but not mine”. Patti Smith was punk before anyone knew what it was, but she also had elements of jazz and beat poetry in her music. Her time at the top of the world of musical relevance was short lived: by the time she had her biggest hit three years later with Bruce Springsteen’s “Because The Night” (maybe because of it), she was finding herself passed by. She’s remained busy, still recording albums, but she’s never reached the heights or power of her first three releases. Horses, in particular. The Patti Smith Group is a powerhouse, led by guitarist Lenny Kaye. The album also features guests Tom Verlaine from Television and Alan Lanier of Blue Oyster Cult (whom Smith had helped write songs for in their early days).
The aforementioned “Gloria” is masterful. Smith makes the narrative dangerous and almost frightening. “Redondo Beach” foreshadows the use of reggae in punk music. “Free Money” and “Break It Up” would have been among the best punk songs of all time…had punk actually existed yet. But where Smith really hits home is on the two longer tracks, “Birdland” and “Land”. Both stretch out over nine minutes in length, and both show the considerable lyrical power that Smith possesses. “Land” is a suite that contains three separate parts, while “Birdland” is surprisingly beautiful. The production by former Velvet Underground multi instrumentalist John Cale only adds to the legend of the album. Smith is ultimately not the best singer, and she can be grating in spots, but most of that can be forgiven when taken alongside the quality of the material here. Horses is an important album in the history of punk, and the one starting point for a look at the career of Smith.
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