No new content for a while

The site has suffered from a succession of IT problems over the last few months; they’ve prevented me posting new content as frequently as I’d like.

In order to sort out the problems once and for all – and to take the opportunity to upgrade the site – we won’t be carrying any new material for a while. Please accept my apologies for not using any material you may send for the duration.

The site has a considerable following, so we intend to be up and running as soon as possible. Please keep checking back.

Thanks to all contributors and readers for your support over the years.

See you soon.


Gerry Smith, Editor

Bob Dylan and Miles Davis: Sony’s big box sets compared

As far as Bob Dylan and Miles Davis, its major assets, are concerned, Sony does a creditable job managing the treasures locked away in its priceless vaults.

However much hardcore fans might moan about the slow drip-feed of the unreleased Dylan legacy, Columbia Legacy is to be commended on its Bootleg Series.

Columbia Legacy also manages its Miles Davis assets pretty astutely, though some Miles aficionados whinge that Sony has released too much inconsequential blathering by the Prince Of Darkness!

But the imminent release of the Complete Miles Davis Columbia Album Collection will leave Bobfans drawing unfavourable comparisons with the Zim equivalent, 2003’s Bob Dylan Revisited: The Reissues Series.

The two reissue projects are similar in key respects – all the albums in both collections have remarkable upgraded sound and both boxes reintroduce the original album artwork, in seductive digipak format.

But, in other ways, the new Miles box is more compelling:

* it pulls together all of the label’s Miles albums – Bob Dylan Revisited: The Reissues Series was selective, with only 15 titles, against the Miles box’s whopping 52, many of them double albums!

* many of the Miles albums carry worthwhile bonus tracks – the Dylan reissues eschewed any.

* even if you already own most of the original recordings, the incentives to buy the Miles box are persuasive – a newly released live DVD, a couple of previously unreleased CDs-worth of music, a substantial 250 page book by two leading Miles experts, and striking packaging.

* value: the “street” launch prices of the two boxes are similar, but the Miles box gives you far more bang for your buck.

Bottom line: I already had virtually all releases by both musicians. I passed on the Dylan box; I’ve ordered the Miles box.



Gerry Smith

More on: New Age rock: But Is This Music for Grown-Ups? #1

Thanks to Phil Swann:

“You ask: But is this music for grown-ups?

“I’d say – not a chance.

“An essential ingredient of music for grown-ups is that it’s original. This kind of stuff is just so derivative. How can people listen to this when they can spend the same time listening to the original music?”

New Age rock: But Is This Music for Grown-Ups? #1

The record label have sent me details of a new album “which transforms popular rock bands like Bob Dylan, The Beatles and U2 into relaxing meditation music.”

But is this music for grown-ups?



Gerry Smith

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Information and song samples:

www.modernmeditations.com


FROM THE PRESS RELEASE:

Slated for release November 17, the ³Modern Meditations² series¹ ³Rock Classics² and ³Modern Classics² 12-track collections feature meditative renditions of some of rock music¹s best-known
and most beloved songs. Also available on November 17 is an album dedicated to the songs of The Beatles. Aimed at introducing a brand new, modern rock perspective on ³new age² music fare, the ³Modern Meditations² series will be available for purchase at all traditional music retail outlets and online services, as well as distributed to many high-end lifestyle retailers.

Featuring the work of renowned producers from across the globe, ³Modern Meditations² has transformed contemporary rock favorites into meditation music for the rock & roll generation. Shimmering rock guitars and warm percussion create lush instrumental soundscapes. While yoga, Pilates, and meditation have all entered the mainstream, the music has not. The ³Modern Meditations² series aims to introduce an alternative to traditional new age fare to the growing modern rock audience.

The first of two compilation releases, ³Rock Classics,² features serene instrumental versions of songs from classic rock¹s most revered artists including Bob Dylan, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Police, Led Zeppelin and many others. ³Modern Classics² dives into the contemporary rock catalog with tranquil renditions of songs by The Verve, U2, The Cure, Oasis, R.E.M., Nirvana and more.

Radiohead @ Reading 2009: spellbinding

I’ve been re-watching a video of Radiohead’s recent Reading gig. Their performance was spellbinding.

Radiohead @ Reading 2009 had it all: an inspired festival set-list from across the seven-album catalogue (below)… impressive stylistic range… virtuosic musicianship…

Not to mention Thom Yorke, who reached a special place, playing, er, Thom Yorke to perfection. And a stage set which enriched the music, emphasising its sheer ambition.


Set-list:

Creep
The National Anthem
15 Step
There There
Karma Police
Arpeggi
Just
Give
Jigsaw
Paranoid Android
Everything In Its Right Place


Those of us who are resolutely anti-outdoor gigs (and festival-averse) were well served by Britain’s Ministry Of State Culture, aka the BBC, bringing Reading into our homes.

And while I’m hardly in the target demographic for BBC3, the digital TV channel targeting acne-ravaged bed-wetters, this superlative concert illustrated a core Music For Grown-Ups belief: great art knows no boundaries.




Gerry Smith

Dylan Different: jazz singer Ben Sidran covers Dylan

I’m not over-fond of Dylan cover albums, but when a favourite singer – Bryan Ferry, most recently – interprets Bobsongs, I usually buy and enjoy.

So I’m looking forward to Dylan Different, an album of covers by jazz singer/pianist Ben Sidran.

Sidran crossed my radar with his contribution on the grossly under-rated Van Morrison album, Tell Me Something (1996), a collection of Mose Allison covers which also featured Georgie Fame and Mose himself.

I searched out Sidran and saw him play a tiny London gig. He was outstanding – laconic, droll and a beautifully lyrical musician. Very similar to Mose Allison, in fact. Watching him perform at close quarters for a couple of hours a was sheer delight.

Ben Sidran’s Dylan Different, due 16 November, is a must-buy in these parts.


Tracklist:

Everything Is Broken
Highway 61 Revisited
Tangled Up In Blue
Gotta Serve Somebody
Rainy Day Woman
Ballad of a Thin Man
Maggie's Farm
Knockin' On Heaven's Door
Subterranean Homesick Blues
On The Road Again
All I Really Want To Do
Blowin' in the Wind

www.bensidran.com



Gerry Smith

Krautrock for beginners

After last week’s Synth Britannia, a minute, unnecessary examination of the generally lightweight genre of late ‘70s/early ‘80s Anglo electronic pop, BBC4 atones tonight with Krautrock, a new doc exploring the legacy of rather more substantial musicians like the great Can, as well as Neu!, the Tans and Kraftwerk.

And it’s followed by a rare transmission of the legendary Kraftwerk gig, Minimum/Maximum.

They’re showing twice tonight, and repeated over the weekend.

You can also see them online for 7 days after broadcast:

www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer

Highly recommended - unlike the vapid English pop pap of last week’s programme, this is quintessential electronica for grown-ups.



Gerry Smith

New Sting CD - If On A Winter's Night – due next week

Sting has always been a Music for Grown-Ups favourite and I’m looking forward to his new CD, on which Mr Sumner continues to ignore musical genre.

Bravo, bonny lad!

If On a Winter's Night is due next week on Deutsche Grammophon.


Gerry Smith




Here’s the PR promoting the new CD, and a link to a sound sample:

Sting will release a new album dedicated to his favorite season – Winter - a season which has inspired countless songwriters over the centuries and produced a wealth of music exploring all of its many guises. "If On a Winter's Night..." presents an arc of songs that conjures the season of spirits, resulting in a haunting, spiritual and reflective musical journey.

“The theme of winter is rich in inspiration and material,” comments Sting; “by filtering all of these disparate styles into one album I hope we have created something refreshing and new.” He continues, "Our ancestors celebrated the paradox of light at the heart of the darkness, and the consequent miracle of rebirth and the regeneration of the seasons.”

In collaboration with esteemed producer and arranger, Robert Sadin, “If On a Winter’s Night…” features traditional music of the British Isles as its starting point. Sting and guest musicians interpret a stirring collection of songs, carols, and lullabies including The Snow it Melts the Soonest (traditional Newcastle ballad), A Soalin’ (traditional English "begging" song) Gabriel's Message (14th century carol), Balulalow (lullaby by Peter Warlock) and Now Winter Comes Slowly (Henry Purcell).

Two of Sting’s own compositions are also featured on the album, Lullaby for an Anxious Child and The Hounds of Winter, which originally appeared on his previous release Mercury Falling, alongside Hurdy Gurdy Man, - a musical reworking and English translation (by Sting) of Der Leiermann from Schubert's classic winter song-cycle Winterreise.

For this exploration of the themes and emotions of Winter, Sting is joined by friend and long time colleague, guitarist Dominic Miller. Additional guests include an ensemble of three remarkable musicians from Northern England and Scotland: Kathryn Tickell (fiddle and Northumbrian pipes) Julian Sutton (melodeon) and Mary MacMaster (metal string Scottish harp), along with Daniel Hope (violin), Vincent Ségal (cello), Chris Botti and Ibrahim Maalouf, (trumpet), Cyro Baptista and Bijan Chemirani (percussion), the Webb Sisters (vocals) and Stile Antico (vocal ensemble).

Audio stream for “Soul Cake”:

http://decca.edgeboss.net/wmedia/decca/sting/soulcake.wax

Bob Dylan’s Christmas In The Heart – reviewed by Matthew Zuckerman

Well, Christmas In The Heart arrived in the post today -- nice efficient service from Isis. They always manage to get the new releases on the doormat the day before official release. Many thanks to Derek and Tracy (& great to see you at the Mott the Hoople reunion show!)

The deluxe version is just the regular jewel case in a cardboard sleeve, with five cards -- blank inside -- all with the album cover and envelope.

As for the album, I downloaded it on to my iPod and listened to it as I walked the dog around the local cemetery. What immediately struck me -- well, not immediately, but what started to dawn on me by the second or third song and was clear by the fourth -- was that this is not just a little dashed off side project.

Like it or not, the emotional commitment that Dylan has given to these songs makes Christmas In The Heart very much the new Bob
Dylan album.

For many people, certain albums -- Bringing It All Back Home,
Highway 61, Nashville Skyline, Self Portrait, Slow Train Coming, Saved, Shot of Love -- were too associated with something they hated (rock & roll, country, schmaltz, Christianity) for them to want or be able to appreciate the albums for themselves.

You can add Christmas In The Heart to that list.

Those who cannot accept the fact that Bob might want to have such an album in his catalogue -- as Bing Crosby, Elvis, Frank Sinatra, Dinah Washington and many other of his favourite singers have done -- will find the album a closed door.

But for anyone else, it could be a small delight.

I have only listened to the album once, and do not have time to write more than the most fleeting impressions. All I would say is listen to the musicians (Bob's road crew plus David Hidalgo and a few others -- and a startlingly fine piece of harmonica playing on one track); the really very fine melodies; the instrumental and vocal harmony arrangements that both recapture the slick 1940s/50s studio sounds that Bob grew up with and breathe life into them, humanizing them; the battered and beaten voice sometimes flaring and phlegming up but still hitting all the notes – and singing with the same intense intimacy that he invested in A Simple Twist of Fate.

And then there's Must Be Santa. Bob Has often talked about his love for polka. And with this manic -- yet always controlled -- performance you can see why. I wonder what the world would have done if Bob had mixed his folk lyrics and surreal verse with a polka outfit like the one backing him here instead of a rock & roll band. Would we have booed?

And would we all -- supporters and booers alike -- follow him down his various roads, as we have done in this layer of the multiverse?

I digress, and I must end. I have much to do and time is short.

Outstanding new releases from Kraftwerk, Sting, Cecilia Bartoli, Joyce Didonato, John Coltrane and Miles Davis

Forget the Beatles remasters. Forget Dylan’s Xmas album (due in the UK on Monday).

There are some exciting new releases by Music for Grown-Ups favourites about to hit the streets, notably:

* Kraftwerk’s back catalogue – remastered, released singly and in a collectable box set, The Catalogue. Prima!

* Sting’s tempting foray into traditional and classical song – If On A Winter’s Night.

* Top mezzo-soprano outings – Cecilia Bartoli with Sacrificium; and Joyce Didonato with Rossini.

* John Coltrane’s early work on Prestige as a sideman with a variety of bands (except Miles’s), collected as Side Steps

* All of Miles Davis’s Columbia albums – 70 discs! - in a single box.

A bumper autumn in store…



Gerry Smith

Paris, by Malcolm McLaren: Recent Discoveries #1

Thanks to neighbour Mike Middleditch who lent me a copy of Paris, by Malcolm McLaren.

It’s a heady mixture of dance beats, jazz inflections and not a little Maghrebian influence. All in the service of spoken vocals by McLaren as he successfully evokes the spirit of the French capital.

Particularly evocative are the trance-like songs featuring Gallic icons Francoise Hardy and Catherine Deneuve.

A lovely disc, unexpectedly engaging: recommended.


Gerry Smith

JOHN MARTYN: Music for Grown-Ups Insider’s Guide #2

By Martin Cowan

Criminally underrated in his lifetime, especially when compared to such highly praised colleagues and contemporaries like Nick Drake and Richard Thompson, John Martyn was a highly innovative vocal and guitar stylist.

More “rock’n’roll” than rock’n’roll, his death-defying escapades became legendary, as did the dichotomy between the at times disturbed and disturbing man and the moving and beautiful music he created.

Assuaging his demons – whatever they were – with drink, drugs and out of control behaviour, Martyn was a deeply romantic poet whose blurred and slurred singing style challenged the listener in much the same way as Van Morrison.

Putting aside such over-anthologised gems as “Solid Air”, “May You Never” and “Sweet Little Mystery”, Martyn’s extensive catalogue is hard to fillet.

Quickly tiring of the fast finger picking style espoused by the Bert Jansch school of guitar playing (heard to good effect on his second LP, 1968’s The Tumbler), Martyn soon moved into more experimental and jazz-flavoured areas by amplifying his acoustic guitar and using distortion.

Feeding his uniquely percussive guitar playing through an echoplex unit, Martyn achieved layer upon layer of startling and innovative guitar noise, best heard on live solo recordings.

There was so much more to the man’s output than those ‘70s touchstone releases Bless the Weather (1971), Solid Air (1973) and One World (1977).

1981’s Glorious Fool is astonishing in its range and diversity (from the libidinous “Perfect Hustler” to the keening protest song “Don’t You Go”) and as the years rolled by, Martyn continued to experiment with sounds and textures.

Listeners should check out the intimate “Number Nine”, the trip hoppery of “A Little Strange”, the quasi religious “My Creator” and the wilfully bizarre “Back to Marseilles.”

Over a recording and performing career that spanned 40 years, John Martyn proved himself to be a soul singer extraordinaire, an artist with his heart on his sleeve, and someone who was wounded by, and yet in thrall to, love.



John Martyn: A 2CD primer

Disc 1
1) Don't You Go GLORIOUS FOOL 1981
2) A Little Strange AND.1996
3) Seven Black Roses THE TUMBLER 1968
4) Hurt In Your Heart GRACE AND DANGER 1980
5) Parcels ROAD TO RUIN 1970
6) Perfect Hustler GLORIOUS FOOL 1981
7) Couldn't Love You More ONE WORLD 1977
8) All In Your Favour AND. 1996
9) Walk To The Water BLESS THE WEATHER 1971
10) Don't Want To Know (live) PHILENTROPY 1983
11) Wildflower GLASGOW WALKER 2000
12) Sunday's Child SUNDAY'S CHILD 1974
13) Piece by Piece PIECE BY PIECE 1986
14) John The Baptist STORMBRINGER! 1970
15) The Cure COOLTIDE 1991
16) Ways To Cry INSIDE OUT 1973
17) Back To Marseilles ON THE COBBLES 2004
18) Small Hours ONE WORLD 1977

Disc 2
1) My Creator ON THE COBBLES 2004
2) A Day At The Sea THE TUMBLER 1968
3) Fine Lines INSIDE OUT 1973
4) Save Some (For Me) GRACE AND DANGER 1980
5) You Can Discover SUNDAY'S CHILD 1974
6) Suzanne AND. 1996
7) Let The Good Things Come BLESS THE WEATHER 1971
8) Number Nine COOLTIDE 1991
9) Hung Up (live) PHILENTROPY 1983
10) Please Fall In Love With Me GLORIOUS FOOL 1981
11) Stormbringer! STORMBRINGER! 1970
12) One World ONE WORLD 1977
13) Rope-soul'd SAPPHIRE 1984
14) Ain't No Saint INSIDE OUT 1973
15) Go Down Easy SOLID AIR 1973
15) The Field Of Play GLASGOW WALKER 2000
16) Never Let Me Go WELL KEPT SECRET 1982
17) Call Me Crazy SUNDAY'S CHILD 1974



Music for Grown-Ups will be publishing similar Insider’s Guides to other musicians from all genres. If you’d like to contribute to the series, please contact website Editor Gerry Smith - before you start writing - gerrysmith@musicforgrownups.co.uk

TOM WAITS: Music for Grown-Ups Insider's Guide #1

By Martin Cowan


Tom Waits may be the only true genius operating in rock music today.

Shedding his boho beatnik image seven albums into his career with an astounding left turn (1983’s Swordfishtrombones LP), Waits is one of the few writers and performers who has actually improved with age.

There is little doubt that Waits can be a challenging listen, his growled vocals taking some getting used to.

Whether his songs are blues stomps or schmaltzy ballads, like no-one else he adorns the material with a deliberately “lo-fi” sonic ambiance, featuring bizarre instrumentations and the deliberate distortion of his voice.

Waits is something of an enigma, fiercely guarding both his privacy and the artistic integrity of his music (he has successfully sued would-be advertisers using his songs). He rarely tours or gives interviews, and the mystique that surrounds him is probably unique in modern rock.

Highly respected, with quite a sideline in movie acting (he has starred with Jack Nicholson, Meryl Streep and Gary Oldman), it is in the quality of the music where Waits’ originality really shines.
Clues to his post-Swordfish direction are there in some of his earlier songs (“Barber Shop” from 1976), but nothing quite prepares the listener for the bizarre and plain bonkers bent of some of the later material (“Cemetery Polka” 1985, “Russian Dance” 1993).

A poetic lyricist who crafts melodies that are simultaneously original and yet sound traditional, Waits is a master songwriter who maintains a rigid control of his output, writing and producing his CD releases, along with his wife Kathleen Brennan. Waits attributes his change of direction to Kathleen, and he is happy to credit her with saving his life from his drunken barfly days.

There is much to reward the dogged listener, and the schizophrenic nature of Tom Waits is no more evident than when comparing “Pony” and “Filipino Box Spring Hog” from 1999’s Mule Variations LP and the insane “Kommienezuspadt” with anything else from the Alice LP from 2002.

Waits has described his music as “grand weepers and grim reapers” and there is no better summary of the output of this unique, startling and innovative creative artist.


TOM WAITS: a 2CD primer

Disc 1

1) Cinny's Waltz FOREIGN AFFAIRS 1976
2) Lullaby BLOOD MONEY 2002
3) Lie To Me ORPHANS 2006
4) Johnsburg, Illinois SWORDFISHTROMBONES 1983
5) Barber Shop FOREIGN AFFAIRS 1976
6) Alice ALICE 2002
7) Road To Peace ORPHANS 2006
8) Last Rose of Summer BLACK RIDER 1993
9) Franks Theme FRANKS WILD YEARS 1987
10) Saving All My Love For You HEART ATTACK AND VINE 1980
11) Clang Boom Steam REAL GONE 2004
12) World Keeps Turning ORPHANS 2006
13) Straight To The Top (Rhumba) FRANKS WILD YEARS 1987
14) Pony MULE VARIATIONS 1999
15) Such A Scream BONE MACHINE 1992
16) Hang Down Your Head RAIN DOGS 1985
17) You Can Never Hold Back Spring ORPHANS 2008
18) Whistlin Past The Graveyard BLUE VALENTINE 1978
19) November BLACK RIDER 1993
20) Time RAIN DOGS 1985
21) Spidey's Wild Ride ORPHANS 2006
22) If I Have To Go ALICE 2002
23) Take Care Of All Of My Children ORPHANS 2006
24) Diamonds and Gold RAIN DOGS 1985
25) Woe BLOOD MONEY 2002
26) Black Box Theme BLACK RIDER 1993
27) Cemetery Polka RAIN DOGS 1985
28) I'm Still Here ALICE 2002 Disc 2


1) Fawn ALICE 2002
2) Somewhere BLUE VALENTINE 1978
3) Russian Dance BLACK RIDER 1993
4) Cold Cold Ground FRANKS WILD YEARS 1987
5) Filipino Box Spring Hog MULE VARIATIONS 1999
6) Whistle Down The Wind BONE MACHINE 1992
7) Down Down Down SWORDFISHTROMBONES 1983
8) Day After Tomorrow REAL GONE 2004
9) Starving In The Belly Of A Whale BLOOD MONEY 2002
10) Kentucky Avenue BLUE VALENTINE 1978
11) We're All Mad Here ALICE 2002
12) A Little Rain BONE MACHINE 1992
13) Goin Out West BONE MACHINE 1992
14) No One Knows I'm Gone ALICE 2002
15) Let Me Get Up On It BONE MACHINE 1992
16) Jayne's Blue Wish ORPHANS 2006
17 Low Side Of The Road MULE VARIATIONS 1999
18) In The Neighbourhood SWORDFISHTROMBONES 1983
19) Telephone Call From Istanbul FRANKS WILD YEARS 1987
20) Briar and the Rose BLACK RIDER 1993
21) Bend Down The Branches ORPHANS 2006
23) Kommienezuspadt ALICE 2002
24) I Don't Wanna Grow Up BONE MACHINE 1992
24) Come On Up To The House MULE VARIATIONS 1999
25) Presents ONE FROM THE HEART 1982


© Martin Cowan 2009



(Music for Grown-Ups will be publishing similar Insider’s Guides to other musicians from all genres. If you’d like to contribute to the series, please contact website Editor - gerrysmith@musicforgrownups.co.uk - before you start writing.)

The Beatles: over-rated

You’d need to be media-averse to have missed today’s launch of the re-masters of The Beatles’ albums. Newspapers, mags, tv and radio, in this part of the world at least, are overflowing with Fab Four hype.

It’s all gone over my head, though: the Beatles were – and are – over-rated.

I loved the first two albums and the early singles: massively refreshing, the Fabs swept away half a decade of appalling pop pap.

Yes, the Beatles were the biggest pop musicians ever, far more popular than everyone else. And yes, their influence was far wider than the pop charts.

But they were less interesting than the Stones; and they weren’t even my fave mid-1960s Scouser popsters – take a bow, Gerry… The Searchers… The Big Three… and several more Merseybeat bands.

To compare the Beatles’ legacy, as many halfwit journalists have done in the current frenzy, to that of Dylan is plain stupid – it’s like comparing Dylan with Madonna or Abba. The Beatles were show biz entertainers. Dylan is the 20thC’s dominant musician.

I haven’t played a Beatles record for over 20 years; there’s little chance of that changing, re-masters or not.


Gerry Smith

Radiohead at Reading

If you didn’t catch headliners Radiohead’s gig at Reading Festival on TV last weekend, you can still check it out on BBC Red Button (and maybe online at iPlayer).

The gig was sensational. Playing a one hour (on TV) greatest hits set, Radiohead showed just why they are revered: a memorable, diverse, anthemic songbook, musical vision and innovation rarely encountered in rockpop, and a charismatic main man in Thom Yorke.

And the Reading staging did justice to the great music pouring from the speakers.

Marvellous stuff – Reading underlined Radiohead’s claim as the most interesting rockpop band since The Stone Roses.

If you can’t catch the BBC recording, consider buying the recent Best Of CD.


Gerry Smith

Two Miles Davis tribute programmes on BBC radio this week

You can hardly accuse BBC Radio of ignoring Miles Davis.

Last night’s Jazz Line-Up on BBC Radio 3 featured Julian Joseph’s celebration of the Miles Davis album Kind of Blue, in the company of trumpeter Henry Lowther, who performed with Davis's regular collaborator/arranger Gil Evans.

Lowther also met Miles whilst playing in Hollywood, as well as seeing him perform in England not long after the release of Kind Of Blue. He talks about the impact the album has had on his own playing, and provides musical insights and illustrations highlighting the importance of this landmark recording.

Title: So What
Artist: Miles Davis/John Coltrane/Bill Evans/Cannonball Adderley/Paul Chambers/Jimmy Cobb
Album: Kind of Blue
Label: Legacy 8869 733552
Track: 1
Comp: Miles Davis
Publ: Sony
Dur: 8m45s

Title: Freddie Freeloader (studio Sequence 1)
Artist: Miles Davis/John Coltrane/Bill Evans/Cannonball Adderley/Paul Chambers/Jimmy Cobb
Album: Kind of Blue
Label: Legacy 8869 733552
Track: 7
Comp: Miles Davis
Publ: Sony
Dur: 30s

Title: Freddie Freeloader
Artist: Miles Davis/John Coltrane/Bill Evans/Cannonball Adderley/Paul Chambers/Jimmy Cobb
Album: Kind of Blue
Label: Legacy 8869 733552
Track: 2
Comp: Miles Davis
Publ: Sony
Dur: 9m32s

Title: Blue in Green
Artist: Miles Davis/John Coltrane/Bill Evans/Cannonball Adderley/Paul Chambers/Jimmy Cobb
Album: Kind of Blue
Label: Legacy 8869 733552
Track: 3
Comp: Miles Davis
Publ: Sony
Dur: 5m23s

Title: All Blues
Artist: Miles Davis/John Coltrane/Bill Evans/Cannonball Adderley/Paul Chambers/Jimmy Cobb
Album: Kind of Blue
Label: Legacy 8869 733552
Track: 4
Comp: Miles Davis
Publ: Sony
Dur: 11m27s

Title: Flamenco Sketches (Alternate Take)
Artist: Miles Davis/John Coltrane/Bill Evans/Cannonball Adderley/Paul Chambers/Jimmy Cobb
Album: Kind of Blue
Label: Legacy 8869 733552
Track: 5
Comp: Miles Davis
Publ: Sony
Dur: 9m29s


And tomorrow, Tuesday 25 August, at 2230, BBC Radio 2 celebrates the 40th anniversary of Miles Davis' In A Silent Way, and explores the extraordinary music that Miles produced in the period dubbed the "Electric Era" from 1969-75.

The documentary includes newly sourced interview material from musicians who collaborated with Miles including Wayne Shorter, John McLaughlin, Jack DeJohnette and Dave Liebman.

You can listen to many BBC radio programmes online for 7 days after broadcast:

www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer



Gerry Smith

The Stone Roses’ first album: best rock album since… ?

The Stone Roses’ eponymous first album is the best rock album since… ? Beggars Banquet? Into The Music? The Queen Is Dead? It’s one of the top rock albums, and contender for best ever debut rockpop release.

Every grown-up music collection should have one. There’s no need to pay the extra for the new anniversary release (PR puff below) – it only has one extra. But if you don’t possess The Stone Roses, you should pick up the now heavily discounted original and play it loudly, repeatedly on long car journeys.

Great art. Highly recommended.



Gerry


xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Promo for new release:

To commemorate the 20th Anniversary of The Stone Roses debut album this iconic release has been remastered by John Leckie (Pink Floyd, Radiohead) who produced the album back in 1989, and singer Ian Brown.

The Stone Roses debut is rightfully cited as one of the UK’s greatest debut albums of all time, and is an album that helped change the face of British music at the end of the 1980’s by reintroducing a swagger which had been lacking from the UK scene since The Rolling Stones when they were in their prime.

The album follows the same track listing as the original (is there a better start to an album than ‘I Wanna Be Adored’, ‘She Bangs The Drums’ and ‘Waterfall’?) but now finishes with the full length version of the single ‘Fools Gold’ which was not included on the original release, but is one of the band’s finest pieces of work.

This remastered edition is an essential purchase for all the original fans as well newcomers who want to check out British Indie Guitar music at its finest. Many bands have been influenced by The Stone Roses over the last 20 years but only Oasis have come close to producing a landmark record of to rival them.

‘The Roses’ never reached the soaring heights of this album again, but it has left a legacy in the UK music scene that few will surpass. Classic is a word thrown around far too easily, but this is a genuine classic album that should be in your collection.

The Stone Roses (20th Anniversary Special Edition) by THE STONE ROSES

1.I Wanna Be Adored
2.She Bangs The Drums
3.Waterfall
4.Don't Stop
5.Bye Bye Bad Man
6.Elizabeth My Dear
7.(Song For My) Sugar Spun Sister
8.Made Of Stone
9.Shoot You Down
10.This Is The One
11.I Am The Resurrection
12.Fools Gold

Dylan “too selfish”, according to female singer-songwriter

Singer-songwriter Dory Previn regards Bob Dylan as selfish. In an interview with Jonathan Wingate published in Record Collector (Jan 2008?*), she tells of a gig she performed where Dylan asked to meet her backstage:

“Yes that was the worst… you can’t have a chat with him because he’s too selfish, so he won’t give you anything…“

Dory Previn was a cult favourite in the early 1970s. Her bleak confessional lyrics documented her mental health problems, marital breakdown, and a world going wrong.

In my list of favourite women rockpop artists from the 1970s, I’d place her second only to Joni Mitchell, and well ahead of every other female writer/performer.

(* The interview, pulled out the monthly mag Record Collector, looks as if it promoted the Jan 2008 release of The Art Of Dory Previn, a must-have compilation CD summarising the gifted singer-songwriter’s legacy.)



Gerry Smith

Blues Britannia – must-watch TV broadcast, Friday 7 August

BBC4 repeats its intermittently enlightening night of blues programming tomorrow night, Friday 7 August.

The core programme is a new BBC4 doc, Blues Britannia, a 90-min examination of how Anglo musicians took the blues, turned it into a key popular music form and exported it to the world (and back to the US, or so the story goes).

It covers the 1950s missionary work of jazzer Chris Barber and bluesman Alexis Korner, leading to the ‘60s R&B boom and the ascendancy of the Stones, right through to Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac, Cream and finally to Led Zep.

It’s a valuable primer, though the self-satisfied succession of old men in full-on reminiscence mode can be irksome; the narration, by Nigel Planer, isn’t to my taste, either.

The central argument (indeed, the party line peddled by Brit musos of a certain age) about the US market being oblivious to the blues until the English Invaders sold it back to them, has always struck me as self-serving bullsh*t: Music for Grown-Ups would welcome the views of American readers on the matter.

Blues Britannia airs at 2200 tomorrow, with related programmes before and after. And can be viewed online via BBC iPlayer for a week after transmission.



Gerry Smith

Van Morrison - a greater talent than Dylan?

Thanks to Martin Cowan:

“Need to take issue with Andrew from Adelaide on a couple of points:

1) Dylan v Van

I'm not sure you can compare Van's "Astral Weeks", "Moondance", "St Dominic's Review" and "Veedon Fleece" (released over a 6 year period) with Dylan's "rolled gold" classics as selected by Andrew, "Freewheelin’", "Bringing It All Back Home", "Highway 61 Revisited", "Blonde on Blonde" which were not only released over just 4 years, but the last three were recorded and released over a ridiculously tight time frame:

* Bringing It All Back Home (14 and 15 Jan 1965); (2 days)
* Highway 61 (15 June, 29/30 July, 2/4 August 1965 (5 days)
* Blonde on Blonde (14 -17 Feb, 8/9 March 1966 (6 days)

So, three undeniable classic LPs recorded in 13 days over a 14 month period! Can anyone else match that? And wasn't he touring during that time too...?


2) Dylan's second golden era

Planet Waves 1973
Blood on the Tracks 1974
Desire 1975
Hard Rain 1976
StreetLegal 1978


3) Classic songs

I would suggest that Dylan has more classic songs in his songbook than Van that are more well known to the public at large eg Blowin in the wind, lay lady lay, knockin on heaven's door etc


4) Sustained sequence of clunkers

Can anyone top Van's output of clunkers from 1995 to the present?

 Tell Me Something: The Songs of Mose Allison (1996)
 The Healing Game (1997)
 Back on Top (1999)
 The Skiffle Sessions - Live in Belfast 1998 (2000)
 You Win Again (2000)
 Down the Road (2002)
 What's Wrong with This Picture? (2003)
 Magic Time (2005)
 Pay the Devil (2006)
 Live at Austin City Limits Festival (Live) (2006)
 Keep It Simple (2008)
 Astral Weeks Live at the Hollywood Bowl (Live) (2009)

That's not to deny the brilliance of "Astral Weeks" which is unique in the Van canon, and possibly one of the greatest albums of all time.


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Van Morrison - a greater talent than Dylan?


Thanks to Andrew Robertson:

No surprise that Oh Mercy was rated the best Dylan album of this period (1978-89) – it was, indeed, the only album of that period that I would rate as a classic Dylan album or potentially a Desert Island Disc.

To provoke debate among other music lovers (and perhaps to annoy Dylan Diehards) I would like to repeat my previously expressed view that this confirms Van Morrison as the greater music talent, and indeed, the greatest in contemporary music.

The same period (1978-89) was Morrison’s second golden era in which he produced 6 “rolled gold” classics, as follows (in chronological order):
Into The Music
Common One
Beautiful Vision
No Guru No Method No Teacher
Poetic Champions Compose
Avalon Sunset

In addition, several other worthy additions to his canon (also in chronological order):
Wavelength
Inarticulate Speech of the Heart
Live at the Belfast Grand Opera House
A Sense of Wonder
Irish Heartbeat (with the Chieftains)

And not one weak album, not one that is not a worthy addition to my music collection.

A very significant difference to Dylan’s output from the same years, as your reader poll confirms.

Ah, but what of Dylan’s early years, do I hear you – and Bernard McGuinn – say (defiantly)?

OK, ignoring Bob Dylan, on which he only wrote 2 tracks, Dylan’s only golden era comprised 7 albums of which 4 were “rolled gold” classics:
Freewheelin’
Bringing It All Back Home
Highway 61 Revisited
Blonde on Blonde

While 3 were simply excellent:
The Times They Are A-Changing
Another Side
John Wesley Harding

In Van Morrison’s case, ignoring Them and the Bang output, his first golden era also comprised 7 albums of which, similarly, 4 were “rolled gold” classics:
Astral Weeks
Moondance
Saint Dominic’s Preview
Veedon Fleece

While 3 were simply excellent:
His Band and the Street Choir
Tupelo Honey
Hard Nose the Highway

I would argue that Morrison’s “best of the best” (namely Astral Weeks) is better than Dylan’s but putting arguably subjective judgments aside, my point is that Morrison had two golden eras compared to Dylan’s one (not that Dylan hasn’t had other great albums – Oh Mercy being a case in point – however he hasn’t, in my opinion, had another sustained period of such extraordinary excellence).

Let the debate begin…

Andrew in Adelaide