Paul Simon expands his catalog of jazz-, soul- and gospel-inflected pop After a lengthy world tour and live album ( Live Rhymin' ), Paul Simon returned in 1975 with his third post-Simon & Garfunkel studio album. Simon's comfort with his solo stardom is signaled in part by the return of Art Garfunkel for the album's top-ten "My Little Town." He also shares the microphone with Phoebe Snow and the Jessy Dixon Singers (the latter of whom had toured with Simon in '73 and '74) on "Gone at Last." On the [...]
Paul Simon live in 1974 With Paul Simon having licensed his early solo catalog to Sony, the Legacy branch has taken the opportunity to reissue four key titles on their original Columbia label. Of the four (which also includes Paul Simon , There Goes Rhymin' Simon and Still Crazy After All These Years ), this 1974 live album is the only one to get a fresh remastering (by Dan Hersch at D2 Mastering) and the addition of two [...]
Simon expands his reach with third solo effort Simon's third solo album (including 1965's The Paul Simon Songbook ), found the singer-songwriter expanding upon the freedom he'd displayed on the previous year's eponymous release. The branching out displayed with reggae, Latin and South American sounds was now expanded with bluesy doo-wop, New Orleans pop, gospel and Memphis soul. Simon deftly choreographed an impressive guest list that includes The Dixie Hummingbirds, The Roches, horns arranged by Alan Toussaint and strings arranged by Quincy Jones. His mastery weaves multiple studios, dates [...]
Paul Simon sets out on a brilliant solo career Though not technically Paul Simon's solo debut – that honor goes to the acoustic performances he recorded for 1965's The Paul Simon Songbook – this first post-Simon & Garfunkel album does represent the true beginnings of Simon's massive success as a solo artist. Released in 1972, it came two years after Simon & Garfunkel bowed out with the Grammy winning Bridge Over Troubled Water , and the same year as the duo's greatest hits [...]
The first album from the last Beatle to solo McCartney's first solo album, recorded as the Beatles were disintegrating, and released in the April 1970 slot originally slated for Let it Be , remains the least polished record in a legendary perfectionist's career. Many of the songs, particularly the numerous instrumentals, are sketches and jams rather than finished productions, and even some of the lyrical tunes are fragments rather complete compositions. For a lesser artist this might be uninteresting, but for someone of McCartney's stature, the album provides a [...]
Ferocious Mexicali-tinged garage-surf The Australia-based Puta Madre Brothers bill themselves as a "triple one-man band," and indeed they each play bass drum and assorted percussion along with their guitar or bass. Their garage-surf is heavily tinged with an ersatz mariachi style as they kick up the buzzing instrumental "Putananny Twist," the electric Flamenco "The One Legged Horse (Race)," and stomp the lights out of "Malaguena." Their stinging electric guitars, triple kick-drum backbeats and instrumental emphasis triangulates somewhere between Los Staitjackets, The Arrows and Thee Swank Bastards, which is a very fine place to be. [...]
Anthology of country brothers' songs of inspiration The Arkansas-born Wilburn Brothers began their career as part of a family act, starring as regulars on the legendary Louisiana Hayride before breaking off as a brotherly duo in 1953. They signed with Decca and had hits throughout the '50s and '60s, starred in a syndicated television show and developed both a publishing house and talent agency; the latter found them discovering both Loretta Lynn and Patty Loveless. Their two albums of inspirational song, 1959's Livin' in God's Country and 1964's Take Up Thy [...]
Anthology of country legend's songs of inspiration Varese's fourteen-track anthology combines titles from Buck Owens' chart-topping 1966 album Dust on Mother's Bible , and the 1970 release Your Mother's Prayer . The former album was reissued in 2003, but has since fallen out of print, and the latter album has yet to see digital release; all of which makes this anthology a good get for fans that missed (or wishes to upgrade from) the original vinyl. The song list combines original compositions, including the [...]
The New New Rhythm and Blues Quartet After a seven-year hiatus that included health issues for Terry Adams, side projects for Joey Spampinato and the virtual retirement of Tom Ardolino, NRBQ has reformed and renewed. Spampinato joined up full time with his brother in the Spampinato Brothers, and Ardolino released himself from the rigors of touring, leaving Adams to rebuild the band with new partners. Initially billed under their leader's name, the new quartet cut its teeth in gigs and the studio before Adams felt they captured grooves worthy of the name "NRBQ." Adams' [...]
OST two-fer featuring tunes from Sloan, Barri and Gouldman With oldies radio having reduced Herman's Hermits catalog to only a couple of their hit singles, many listeners may be unaware of the group's immense mid-60s popularity. The Hermits were the top-selling British group in 1965, besting even the Beatles, spurred manic responses from female fans, and starred in two feature-length films. ABKCO's two-fer pulls together the soundtracks from both 1966's Hold On! And 1968's Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter . To [...]
Genre-blending Austin-based acoustic string band If you imagine an intersection where the traditions of country and bluegrass meet the inventions of newgrass and the changes that swept through British contemporary folk, you'll have a sense of the music spun by the Greencards. Their songs feature the tight harmonies of country and bluegrass, the sophistication of jazz, and the pluck of folk. As on 2009's Fascination , the band traverses numerous styles from song to song, but unlike the contrasting colors of their previous outing, here they explore varying shades [...]
Country hall-of-famer sings inspirational songs of faith Varese Sarabande extends their lineup of country legends singing songs of faith with this remastered reissue of K-Tel's The Old Rugged Cross (something K-Tel also reissued as Country Gospel ). The tracks were originally recorded in the mid-90s, and though Price's voice wasn't the polished instrument of his earlier hit-making years, he still sang strongly; there's some wavering in his pitch, but it's balanced by passion and conviction. The arrangements are mostly by-the-books (or by-the-clock, as [...]
Terrific early '70s duets from Buck Owens and Susan Raye Susan Raye was a solid 1970s country hit maker, but having shared peak years with Loretta Lynn, Dolly Parton and Tammy Wynette, her long-term fame has been overshadowed and her Capitol catalog has been neglected by the reissue industry. The last collection of her solo work, Varese's 16 Greatest Hits , was released over a decade ago, and is now joined by this selection of fourteen duets recorded with her mentor, Buck Owens. The pair recorded four albums between [...]
It was Frank's world, and we were lucky to live in it Sinatra's 1961 debut for his own record label, Reprise, is the product of a man who was on top of the world, with records, films, concerts and a fraternal social life each running flat out. It wasn't, however, the sort of artistic reinvention he created on his late '50s albums for Capitol, nor the middle-aged discoveries he'd make on September of My Years or with Antonio Carlos Jobim . Still, Sinatra was in the pocket, [...]
Rocking blend of country, pub rock, post punk, folk and blues Patrolled by Radar is a long-running Southern California quintet, previously known as 50 Cent Haircut, and led by singer/songwriter Jay Souza. Their music mixes country, folk, blues, psych, pub rock and post-punk. Souza's singing occasionally suggests a rustic, nasal incarnation of the Bongos' Richard Barone, but he also brings to mind the promenading music hall soul of Ray Davies on the horn-lined "Pachyderm," and a polished, yet equally disturbing version of Holly Golightly's blues on "Widow Next Door." Souza's lyrics are more [...]
Early '70s soft- and country-rock from Detroit three-hit wonder Though they had three Billboard chart entries (including a cover of Mac Davis' "I Believe in Music" and the original "Big City Miss Ruth Ann"), the fame of their first and biggest single, 1972's "Nice to Be With You," and the reductionist view of oldies radio has reduced this soft-rock band to a one-hit wonder. Formed in Detroit by singer/songwriter Jim Gold, the band recorded two albums for the Sussex label before splitting; Gold recorded a few more solo releases, and continues to write and [...]
A bewitching album of rock, soul, glam, psych and more Brian Olive's second album continues to showcase the multi-instrumentalist's musical breadth. Singing, writing and playing piano, guitar, and woodwinds, his music is based in rock and soul, but stretches out with superb touches of psych, glam, jazz, blues, R&B, exotica and even a hint of the musical stage. As on his debut release, Olive interweaves his influences, evoking an Eastern feel with a guitar and tone generator solo on the funky "Left Side Rocking," layering brooding woodwinds on the thick drum backing of "Traveling," [...]
Expanded reissue of legendary bubblegum compilation Originally issued by Buddah in 1969, and reissued in expanded form by the UK Cherry Red label in 2010, this historic collection of bubblegum music is now available for domestic digital download through Sony's Legacy imprint. The fourteen tracks of the original LP were pulled together from the biggest hits of Buddah's Kasenetz-Katz production team, including the 1910 Fruitgum Company's "Simon Says," the Ohio Express' "Yummy Yummy Yummy" and the Lemon Pipers' "Green Tambourine." Brilliant melodic hooks, crisp studio productions and child-like lyrics combined to produce songs that [...]
Bo Diddley laying it down live in 1963 The dense, primitive, and at times overmodulated sound of this 1963 live recording might be a negative if it didn't reinforce the guttural punch at the core of Bo Diddley's rock 'n' roll. Seemingly recorded with a single microphone, you can make out the drums, bass and guitar, as well as Diddley's vocals, but it's the combination of the instruments with hard driving rhythms and the incessant shave-and-a-haircut rhythm that gives the record its power. Diddley sounds fired up for these two summer performances at Myrtle [...]
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