Reissues
Fri., Dec. 13, 1996
GONE WITH THE WIND
(TCM/Rhino)
Arguably the most popular film ever, Gone With the Wind was released
theatrically in 1939, but it wasn't until 1954 that the first recording of its
soundtrack was available. Its appearance even then was something of a miracle
-- in 1939 (the year that also saw The Wizard of Oz), the scoring of
soundtracks was less than a decade old and the notion of recording them
unthinkable. As GWTW was an independent film distributed by MGM, there
was even less concern that no masters for the music were kept; the 1954
versions were faithful orchestra reproductions and other masters weren't found
until 1965. This 2-CD set of GWTW with its copiously detailed 48-page
booklet, then, is this year's nod to Scarlett worshippers everywhere, as Max
Steiner's lush orchestration brings the ever-popular story back to life. At a
time when soundtracks have became mere compilation packages and much of
GWTW might be considered politically incorrect, the sentimental
soundtrack is a refreshing reminder of a time when tomorrow really was just
another day.
4.0 stars -- Margaret Moser
HANK MOBLEY & HIS ALL STARS
(Blue Note)
PAUL CHAMBERS
Whims of Chambers (Blue Note)
WAYNE SHORTER
Juju (Blue Note)
In the recent batch of Blue Note reissues, three of the major jazz tenor
saxophonists emerging since 1950 appear. Hank Mobley belonged to the first
permanently formed version of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers and later replaced
John Coltrane in Miles Davis' band. His major influences were Charlie Parker
and Sonny Rollins, although after this album was cut he absorbed ideas from
Coltrane. It's one of Mobley's best, containing four fifths of the 1957
Messengers: Hank, drummer Blakey, pianist Horace Silver, and bassist Doug
Watkins. Vibes great Milt Jackson replaces Donald Byrd and everyone's in top
form. Mobley displays the melodic inventiveness and sensitivity for which he's
noted, and the dark, warm, medium-sized tone that prompted Dexter Gordon to
label him "the middleweight champ of the tenors." Coltrane appears on fellow
Davis sideman Paul Chambers' disc, along with drummer Philly Jo Jones, Silver,
Byrd, and guitarist Kenny Burrell -- a post-bop all-star sextet. In 1956, when
this disc was cut, Coltrane had already developed an original style that would
soon be influential. It was derived mainly from Gordon, whose relatively
staccato phrasing and use of wide interval leaps impressed him. Here, 'Trane
plays infectiously, with a flood of ideas, excellent technique, and a narrow,
penetrating tone. Byrd, Silver, and Burrell contribute imaginative, swinging
spots, and Chambers, in addition to excellent rhythm section work, turns in
fine arco and pizzicato solos. Sonny Rollins and Coltrane were Wayne Shorter's
point of departure and could be heard in his playing with Blakey in the late
Fifties and early Sixties. His 1964 quartet album, Juju, finds Shorter's
style in transition, moving toward the airy, floating method of playing and
composing he would display with Davis' great mid-Sixties quintet. Here,
however, the overall sound is more reminiscent of Coltrane's quartet, which is
not surprising since his group includes Trane's sidemen, pianist McCoy Tyner
and drummer Elvin Jones, along with bassist Reggie Workman. Shorter contributed
six provocative original compositions here, as well as strong tenor work. Tyner
cops the solo honors, though, with his brilliant, emotional playing, and his
comping lights a fire under everyone. Finally, note how many of the musicians
here were involved with Davis, Blakey, and Coltrane. Their groups were
responsible for an amazing amount of the new developments in jazz during the
Fifties and Sixties.
(Hank Mobley...) 5.0 stars
(Whims...) 5.0 stars
(Juju) 4.0 stars -- Harvey Pekar
MILES DAVIS & GIL EVANS
The Complete Columbia Studio Recordings
(Columbia/Legacy)
 |
4.5 stars -- Brent Grulke
SONNY ROLLINS
Silver City -- A Celebration of 25 Years
on Milestone (Milestone)
Here's the rap on Sonny Rollins: He's absolutely incredible "live" but his
albums suck. That's been the conventional wisdom for the past quarter century,
anyway. There's virtually no argument that Rollins is, hands down, the greatest
living jazz musician; but since signing on with Milestone Records back in 1972,
his recorded output as a whole has been less than spectacular to say the least.
Skewered by critics and largely ignored by fans, these albums seemed to
alienate and/or anger Rollins purists with their use of electric instruments
and decidedly commercial bent. This, despite Rollins' unrelenting ability to
totally mezmerize his audiences in live performance with near superhuman feats
of sheer blowing power and saxophone virtuosity. The fact that Rollins' 20
albums over this 25-year tenure with Milestone have yielded a mere 2-CD box
whereas his classic Prestige material, covering maybe half as many years, was
reissued as a 7-CD set, tends to speak for itself. Having said all that, I'm
actually a bit surprised but happy to report that Silver City is a
rather enjoyable collection of highlights from Rollins' long collaboration with
Milestone. This is not Saxophone Colossus or Way Out West,
landmarks in the Rollins oeuvre and pinnacles in recorded jazz annals, by any
stretch of the imagination. Nonetheless, there is much to savor here with the
Rollins M.O. clearly in evidence: his penchant for Afro-Caribbean rhythms, his
love of American popular songs, his unfettered physical exuberance untouched by
musicians even half his age, and his immediately recognizable, diamond-hard,
large-toned tenor saxophone sound. Sure, there are electric keyboards and
basses to muddy the waters, but Rollins seems to soar above it all on these
selections. Not surprisingly, the live tracks tend to stand out in the crowd
with "G-Man" being a prime example of Rollins' incomparable firepower. Absent,
however, is any material from the Milestone Jazzstars live album with McCoy
Tyner and Ron Carter, and the rollicking, crowd-pleasing title track from
Don't Stop the Carnival. While there are numerous popular tunes
included, I would have enjoyed Rollins' take on Stevie Wonder's "Isn't She
Lovely," which garnered considerable airplay in its day. Maybe Rollins' entire
Milestone output warrants only a 2-CD retrospective. Or maybe the 2-CD idea is
governed purely by economic considerations. In either case, Silver City
offers some of Sonny Rollins' best recordings of the past two-and-a-half
decades at an affordable price. So, I ask, who can complain?
3.5 stars -- Jay Trachtenberg
THE DOO WOP BOX II:
101 MORE VOCAL GROUP GEMS
(Rhino)
 |
4.0 stars -- Greg Beets
FRANK ZAPPA
Läther (Rykodisc)
I was introduced to the music of Frank Zappa at a younger age than most,
through used albums with strange-sounding titles found in the pawn shops of
decrepit Victoria, Texas. For $1 apiece, I found myself enjoying all the
classic Mothers of Invention albums on Verve (which I still have today, thank
you) despite being cut off from much of the rest of civilization. Yet I
remember knowing, when Live in New York, Studio Tan, Sleep Dirt, and
Orchestral Favorites came out, that something was "wrong" with these
albums; that Zappa didn't authorize them or didn't like them or... something.
Somehow, I had heard some inkling of the long tale of Läther. To
boil it down, Zappa recorded a 4-album, 8-sided whopper of an album in 1977 to
tie up his contractual obligations with Warner Bros. and they didn't want it --
nor did they want anyone else to have it. So the ambitious, highly varied
Läther project was looted instead, with its various jewels being
spread out across the four albums mentioned above, separated neatly into a live
album, an instrumental album, etc. (The latter was another reason these albums
were "wrong" in my book -- at that age, I was yet unprepared for a Zappa album
without plenty of funny/dirty lyrics). In 1996, following instructions from the
late Zappa, Rykodisc finally has released the complete Läther
(pronounced "Leather," not "Lather") and to say that it's greater than the sum
of its unintended parts is an understatement. A handy sampler of Zappa's
strengths, all the dichotomies are here; rock & roller and jazz master,
silly lyricist and serious instrumentalist, blues & rock guitar whiz and
classical composer, swimming around amongst each other with abandon. Even
Zappa's fondness for doo-wop gets the occasional spotlight. Special points for
Ryko's generous booklet, which tells the whole sordid Läther tale,
and further, displays Billboard's Top 20 charts from 1974-77, just so
the listener can reflect on what the country was listening to (Mac Davis,
Starland Vocal Band) while this monster was being created. Overall, a broad,
excellent introduction to Zappa's myriad talents.
4.0 stars -- Ken Lieck
JAMES BROWN
Foundations of Funk: A Brand New Bag:
1964-1969 (Polydor)
Funk Power 1970: A Brand New Thang (Polydor)
Make It Funk: The Big Payback 1971-1975 (Polydor)
 |
(Foundations...) 3.5 stars
(Funk Power...) 4.0 stars
(Make It Funky...) 3.0 stars -- Andy Langer
JAZZ THE WORLD FORGOT, VOLS. 1-2
(Yazoo)
 |
5.0 stars -- Lee Nichols
MILTON BROWN AND THE MUSICAL BROWNIES 1932-1937
(Texas Rose)
It wasn't supposed to happen. What crazy idea compelled a bunch of Texas
string musicians to ditch "Cotton Eyed Joe" and "Dill Pickle Rag" in favor of
hotcha rhythms and hokum lyrics? Where did a native son of Stephenville get off
sounding like Mr. Hi Dee Ho, Cab Calloway? In 1932, Milton Brown and his
Musical Brownies concocted a new sound that would eventually be called "Western
Swing," and one that West Texas locals found rather disconcerting at first. In
fact, nearly everything about the Brownies seemed odd. For one thing, string
bands didn't usually feature vocalists. Certainly not one like Brown, who
favored Calloway or the swinging young Bing Crosby over Jimmy Rodgers, the
preeminent country singer of the day. String bands didn't have piano players
either. The Brownies' pianist Fred "Papa" Calhoun played with all the
double-fisted energy of his idol, Earl "Fatha" Hines. But the weirdest of the
bunch was steel guitarist Bob Dunn. Nobody in West Texas (or nearly anywhere
else) had heard an electrified steel-guitar, let alone one that eschewed the
conventional Hawaiian style for the exuberant, trombone-like sound that Dunn
coaxed out of his jerry-rigged contraption. The source of all this crazy
experimentation was hot jazz, then turning the country on its ear. Once the
locals caught on, they couldn't get enough of the Brownies -- daily radio
broadcasts, Saturday nights whooping it up at the Crystal Springs Dance Hall,
and a whole mess of shellac. Now, finally, all 102 recordings of the Brownies
are available in this 5-CD box. From uptown pop to down-home folk, the Brownies
could play whatever their fans wanted to hear, though jazz and blues, of
course, took precedence. Brown, Dunn, and Calhoun, as well a fiddlers Cecil
Brower and Cliff Bruner were all inspired improvisers -- hear how they tear up
"Sweet Georgia Brown," a pop tune that had already, by 1935, become a jazz
standard. Or listen how they masterfully build the tempo on W.C. Handy's "St.
Louis Blues," which they could groove on for up to 15 minutes at dances. The
Brownies could be convincing in any genre, a distinction more complicated than
is immediately apparent. On some sides, Milton boasts that he's going "down to
Cowtown to get my hambone boiled" or that he's "got a black-haired gal make a
tadpole hug a whale," while otherwise holding a torch for dear old Mammy, "My
Precious Sonny Boy" and "The Yellow Rose of Texas." Mixing the salacious with
the bathetic was no big deal, it just reveals the wide constituency that the
Brownies served: home and hearth on the daily radio program, and a
rough-and-tumble crowd at Crystal Springs where Bonnie and Clyde reportedly fit
right in. By 1935, the Brownies were ready to take their brand of swing beyond
state borders when Brown's car overturned on the Jacksboro Highway, killing him
at age 32. The band carried on for awhile under brother Derwood's direction (14
tracks from a 1937 session are included here), but couldn't sustain themselves
without Milton. Bob Wills, meanwhile, stood ready to assume the throne. So,
aside from historical appeal, why should anybody care about the Brownies today?
Because this music is about purely infectious joy, the rarest of all musical
properties. If the Brownies could make the downcast farmers of the depression
positively giddy, they can cheer us too. (Distributed by OJL, PO Box 85, Santa
Monica, CA 90406)
5.0 stars -- Charles Hutchinson
THE CHARLIE DANIELS BAND
The Roots Remain (Epic/Legacy)
After establishing himself with years of toiling in roadhouses and studio
sessions, Charlie Daniels spent the hitmaking leg of his career with one foot
squarely in the Nashville establishment and the other in the rebel camp of
southern rock and outlaw country. Not surprisingly, Daniels was an Armadillo
World Headquarters favorite during the Seventies. Songs like "Uneasy Rider" and
"Long Haired Country Boy" struck a chord not only with the prevalent hippie
ethos, but also with outcasts in general. However, as this 3-CD set proves in
its later numbers, Daniels' philosophy was cut from the same cloth as Merle
Haggard's. Growing your hair and smoking an occasional joint with your Falstaff
is all right so long as you mind your own business, but flag-burning and
bank-bombing are still anathemas. Although CDB rarely pushed the envelope of
innovation, they often did a superb job of integrating country, rock, and blues
in an uncommonly prolific manner. You don't hear Daniels mentioned in the same
breath as the Allmans and Skynyrd, but there is some serious virtuosity going
on in the guitar/fiddle interplay of songs like "Texas" and "In America." The
open-ended jamming of "No Place to Go" isn't enough to make you turn off
Live at Fillmore East, but it certainly establishes beyond a doubt that
Daniels is more than just that guy who did "The Devil Went Down to Georgia."
Daniels' music drifted more toward the country end of the spectrum during the
Eighties and Nineties. While his output became more uneven and subject to the
hat act production aesthetic, there were some bright spots; the lazy, bluesy
"To Be With Joanna Again," though previously unreleased and out of step with
its 1985 pedigree, may be the most resonant and evocative ballad on The
Roots Remain. At the same time, Daniels' later output showcases his
political about-face. While he once sang about the pleasures of the occasional
toke, "Simple Man" finds Daniels singing about lynching dope dealers. If
nothing else, this switch provides a sobering reminder of the extent to which
the working class has systematically abandoned the left wing to out-of-touch
intellectuals. Yet, the only thing truly abhorrent on The Roots Remain,
is the obligatory set-starting encapsulation of a career that is "Then, Now and
Until the End." Though Daniels' spoken-word explanation of his raison
d'etre is valid, it comes off more like an outtake of John Wayne's
America: Why I Love Her. The most convincing evidence of Daniels' vision
of a utopian musical gumbo lies in the songs, and they can speak for
themselves.
3.5 stars -- Greg Beets
EMMYLOU HARRIS
Portraits (Reprise Archives)
A lot of things are amazing about Portraits: Emmylou Harris' 61-song
catalog, her duet partners (Roy Orbison, Don Everly, The Band, Don Williams,
Flaco Jimenez, and Willie Nelson, among others), the pitch-perfect production,
the unreleased tracks (including the gently rollicking "You're Still on My
Mind" and a dead-on reading of Dylan's "When I Paint My Masterpiece"), but
what's most amazing is how little her voice and her vision have changed over
the almost 20 years (1974-1992) represented here. Her commitment to the innate
beauty of a song, her care in choosing her material, and her faith in the
musical traditions she grew up on all waver as seldom as her otherworldly voice
-- a voice that can only be described as angelic. And, clean as the production
is, hot as her always-top-notch backing bands (including Rodney Crowell, Vince
Gill, onetime husband Paul Kennerly, and the smokin' all-acoustic Nash
Ramblers) are, it's her voice that sustains this box set. Not her singing
voice, either, her personal voice. She has the rare ability to climb inside a
song -- no matter if it's by Townes Van Zandt, James Taylor, the Beatles, or
the Louvin Brothers -- and make it uniquely, totally her own. In doing so, she
weaves together disparate strands of America's musical landscape, ending with a
tapestry that includes the bluegrass of the Carter Family and Bill Monroe;
country icons Loretta Lynn, Buck Owens, and Johnny Cash; the pure pop
sensibilities of Paul Simon, Phil Spector, and Richard Thompson; rock &
rollers Chuck Berry, Roy Orbison, and Bruce Springsteen; and modern-day
folklorists Nanci Griffith, Butch Hancock, Kris Kristofferson, and John Hiatt.
Harris herself is probably not any of them -- the primary source that rings
through all but the poppiest cuts on Portraits is still her Grievous
Angel, Gram Parsons -- because she is so transcendent. Underneath that
majestic mane of gray hair lies a mind that combines the best of the Grand Ole
Opry, the Brill Building, Sixties hippie California cowboys, and the Broken
Spoke. Emmylou Harris' legacy -- far from over, as last year's Wrecking
Ball attests -- is as rich and pure as her songbird voice, and
Portraits paints quite a full, fetching picture.
4.0 stars -- Christopher Gray
BOBBY FULLER
El Paso Rock: Early Recordings, Vol. 1 (Norton)
Shakedown! The Texas Tapes Revisited (Del-Fi)
The Bobby Fuller Four (Del-Fi)
 |
(El Paso Rock) 4.0 stars
(Shakedown!) 3.0 stars
(The Bobby Fuller Four) 3.5 stars -- Tim Stegall
TELEVISION'S GREATEST HITS VOLS. 4-7
(TVT)
Tell me if this is an indication that TV plays too large a part in my life:
Before seeing his name, I immediately recognized the style of this series'
liner notes as being the work of Tim Brooks, co-author of the vapid Complete
Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present books. If
my use of the word "vapid" didn't clue you in, let's just say that's a bad
sign. The Television's Greatest Hits series has had its share of
complaints from TV/music fans from the beginning; the first volume raised
eyebrows when its claim that all tracks were the original themes, not
re-recordings, proved false. There seems little question of the authenticity of
the cuts that encompass Vols. 4-7 (Black and White Classics, In Living
Color, Remote Control, and Cable Ready, respectively), as even the
sound effects from Alien Nation's opening sequence can be heard on the
theme, even though one assumes the music master tapes sans FX are still
around somewhere. The reproduction is largely excellent, especially on the
Black and White set, where those who think we never should've made the
jump to stereo in the first place can revel in bold, crisp mono tunes from
Captain Midnight all the way down to Bourbon Street Beat. A TV
theme is made with one goal in mind, of course: to drag the viewer into the
show kicking and screaming. As such, the greatest composers and talents in
music can be heard in these collections. Composers range from Ennio Morricone
(The Man From Shiloh) to Dave Brubeck (Mr. Broadway) to Chuck
"Palisades Park" Barris (the relentlessly catchy Dating Game and
Newlywed Game themes), and bands run the gamut from the Beach Boys (the
previously unreleased Karen) to the Grateful Dead (The New Twilight
Zone and Vietnam: A Television History), all given roughly a minute
to create something people will want to hear week in, week out. If the liner
notes offered more clues to the sounds on the albums and the names behind them
(Peter Matz, Barry Gray, Vic Mizzy to name a few additional worthies) instead
of presenting mostly tired anecdotes about the shows themselves, these four
volumes would be true wonders. As it is, we can listen with nostalgia to those
we recognize, and with puzzled fascination to those we don't.
3.0 stars -- Ken Lieck
NEIL DIAMOND
In My Lifetime (Columbia/Legacy)
In his liner notes to In My Lifetime, David Wild makes the
argument that Neil Diamond, if you think about it, was one of the first
alternative rock stars. While this may make sense in a marketing department
trying to earn mileage off of Urge Overkill's rendition of "Girl, You'll Be a
Woman Soon," to someone who was forced to listen to their parents' favorite
adult contemporary station blast out "Song Sung Blue" ad infinitum on
the car radio, that notion seems positively spurious. If you really
think about it, Diamond has always aimed squarely for the middle of the road,
and he's always managed to tap into a willing audience there. However, just as
being tagged "alternative" doesn't make an artist worthwhile, being tagged
"centrist" shouldn't diminish Diamond's considerable achievements as a
songwriter. In My Lifetime marks the first time Diamond's work for Bang,
MCA, and Columbia has been collected in one set. We start out with some truly
self-effacing rarities from Diamond's teeth-cutting days. It's hard to fathom
Neil Diamond sounding like anyone other than Neil Diamond, but there he is,
vainly attempting to be the next Everly Brothers (Neil & Jack's "What Will
I Do?") and Neil Sedaka ("Clown Town"). From there, we enter the golden age
with punchy hits like "Cherry Cherry," "You Got to Me," and "Thank the Lord for
the Night Time." Diamond's Bang Records sides have a well-crafted simplicity
that makes them universally adaptable, which may be why so many bands have
covered him. When Diamond moved to MCA in 1968, his songs became more
introspective and less ebullient. "Cracklin' Rosie" and "Crunchy Granola Suite"
were about as light as it got. As the Seventies ushered in an age of
self-awareness and social relevance, Diamond hit ("I Am... I Said") and
sometimes missed ("Done Too Soon"). Compared to the period between 1968 and
1972, Diamond's growth as an artist at Columbia came at a snail's pace. After
starting with the ambitious-but-overblown soundtrack to Jonathan Livingston
Seagull, and the Robbie Robertson-produced Beautiful Noise, Diamond
settled into a complacency of romantic ballads with weighty arrangements. A lot
of this music makes your teeth hurt since dentist offices seem to have a
penchant for the stuff. Still, one noteworthy departure is 1977's
"Desirée," a fallow-yet-strangely-enjoyable take on disco that details a
youngster becoming a man with a woman twice his age. The songs from The Jazz
Singer hold up quite well. "Love on the Rocks" packs the wallop of 20 power
ballads, which makes it all the more hilarious to hear "Scotch on the Rocks,"
the reggae-tinged original version that sounds more like a sequel to Rupert
Holmes' "Escape (The Piña Colada Song)" than anything resembling angst.
On the other hand, it's ironic how popular "America" has remained in the era of
Proposition 187. Since the inspired-if-not-insipid Heartlight, Diamond's
albums haven't struck the universal chord they once did. A good example of this
man-in-search-of-a-formula mode is "I'm Alive," David Foster's vain attempt to
infuse synth-pop into Diamond's music without alienating his adult contempo
base. However, Diamond has retained viability with consistently solid live
performances that come complete with plenty of energetic hip-shaking and an
everyman demeanor that appeals to everyone from grandmothers to six-year-olds.
There will always be room in the middle of the road. As a result, In My
Lifetime is a good bet even for the most casual of Diamondheads.
4.0 stars -- Greg Beets
MEL TORME
The Mel Torme Collection: 1944-1985 (Rhino)
 |
5.0 stars -- Tim Stegall
FRANK SINATRA
The Complete Capitol Singles Collection
(Capitol)
As lyricist Sammy Cahn tells the story, "One time [co-writer Jule Styne] and I
were on the beach when a guy from Fox came up to us and asked us if we could
write a song called `Three Coins in the Fountain.' I told him we could write a
song called `Eh.'" It's precisely that quality of chutzpah that informs the pop
singles that Frank Sinatra (with a little help from Cahn and others in his
creative cabal) recorded for Capitol Records in the Fifties. Brashly confident
and occasionally over-the-top, these 45s, recorded at Sinatra's creative
height, engender the illusion that even with the barest of materials the man
could work miracles. The years that Sinatra spent at Capitol are justly
celebrated as revivifying and triumphant. His eight-year association with the
label began in the spring of 1953 when his career seemed in irreversible
decline. Yet within months he was on the rebound, thanks to both his affecting
performance in From Here to Eternity and to the first handful of Capitol
singles. In marked contrast to the caprices of his previous label, where such
indignities as "Momma Will Bark" were forced upon him, at Capitol, Sinatra was
in nearly total control. That freedom inspired him to create a glorious
succession of albums that linked standards by Porter, Gershwin, and others into
song cycles evoking complex moods and themes. These concept albums like
Songs for Swinging Lovers and Only the Lonely have attained the
status of classics over the years. Still, the majority of singles from the same
period have been largely overlooked. For one thing, they're an essentially
different listening experience. As an analogy, imagine the albums as
feature-length entertainment and the singles as coming-attraction previews.
With three scant minutes to put across their message, these records are all
about grand gestures and concentrated energy. There are also categorical
differences about repertoire between the two formats. Saving the classic pop
for albums, Sinatra sought out fresh material for his 45s, often written
specifically for him. This was an advantageous approach in an era when
performers recorded competing versions of the day's hits. Sinatra got these
songs first (and, not-so-incidentally, helped himself to a piece of the action
by retaining publishing rights). That many of these singles succeed, that they
make us willingly suspend our disbelief about anything mattering but the
marketplace, speaks volumes about Sinatra's gifts -- as well as those of
several other names below the title: arranger Nelson Riddle, songwriters Cahn,
Styne, Jimmy Van Heusen and Lew Spence, a crack squad of studio pros, and to
some extent, the various sharpies, pluggers and hustlers that made themselves
at home in the offices of Sinatra's publishing company. Occasionally, they
produced the song of "Eh" -- the musical equivalent of mere shrugging -- but
given the stature of Sinatra and company, it ended up sounding like the kind of
shrug that might have come from Atlas.
4.0 stars -- Charles Hutchinson
IN THEIR OWN VOICES:
A CENTURY OF RECORDED POETRY
(Rhino Word Beat)
Deep inside the pages of the hardcover booklet accompanying this 4-CD set,
there's an almost apologetic note reading: "T.S. Eliot was unavailable for
inclusion due to licensing restrictions." That in itself speaks more to the
completeness of this collection than any list of names could, for Eliot is
about the only significant name in 20th-century American poetry that the folks
at Rhino failed to procure. This collection had to be some poetry proponent's
labor of love, clocking in at a expansive 247 minutes, showcasing everyone from
the obvious (Whitman, Pound, Yeats, William Carlos Williams, Langston Hughes,
Maya Angelou, Sylvia Plath, Anne Sexton, and the list goes on) to the most
obvious Beats to current, emerging luminaries (UH professor Edward Hirsch,
Li-Young Lee). The pedigrees alone are enough to draw people sold on poetry
toward the collection. But for those of you not in that camp? The booklet
attempts to address that in an Erica Jong essay, which states, "People think
they can do without poetry. And they can. At least until they fall in love,
lose a friend, lose a child, or a parent, or lose themselves in the dark woods
of life." Still skeptical? Think of it this way: In Their Own Voices...
is a great way to satisfy any curiosity you've ever had about any of the 80
featured poets. Some of the poet's speaking voices are surprising departures
from what you'd expect, and some of the poets give startling insights, judging
from their inflections and emphasis, on which lines seem to matter most to the
pieces. Because of the strong performance background of the Beats, their
readings hold up well in this type of package. Certainly, Ginsberg's "America,"
despite its shaky sound quality, has the most satisfying, fun audience in the
collection -- their interjections and laughter actually build on the strength
and humor of the original. And it's hard to imagine hearing pieces like
Ferlinghetti's "Underwear" without audience response. Yet some of the
collection's best gems come from more obscure poets, such as Joy Harjo, Lucille
Clifton, and Lisel Mueller, showing that Rhino did their homework, going beyond
the literary canon and finding work that has loosened the transitory borders of
what poetry is in this day and age. As a singular listening experience, this
set is too long and disparate to be enjoyable to all but the most attentive
listeners, but as an anthology or even encyclopedia, it's a treasure. If we
Americans are going to get serious about poetry, then every home should have
one of these.
4.0 stars -- Phil West
THE MISFITS
(Caroline)
Yeah, I know: The fact that this lushly packaged, coffin-shaped collation of
the varying non-Walk Among Us pieces of these Jersey horror-punk kings'
oeuvre was released in the spring and is only now being assigned for review is
further grist for the lynching of my editors and their better-late-than-never
policy towards underground rock & roll coverage. Still, you can't fault
them for knowing a good band when they see one, even if it's a good 12 years
past the Misfits' expiration date. True, it's hard to remember the merits of
these citizens of Lodi in light of both their ungodly sloppy live sets, and the
fact that leader Glenn Danzig ended up such a steroid-damaged doofus who took
years to fork over monies due any of the former Misfits. And yes, thanks
partially to Metallica, the Misfits have also become the T-shirt band of choice
for the mouth-breathers of the world, be they spare-changers on the Drag or
habitues of the Back Room. But any of these four discs should prove there was
meat on them bones. Glenn Danzig knew a good tune when he met one, and his
tireless pillaging of Grade-Z horror shows for lyric matter also displayed
surprising wit, intelligence, and craftsmanship. On record at least, the
Misfits collaborated with muscle and efficiency, providing an economical blitz
of tight, viciously downstroked fuzz guitar, pressure-drop rhythm section work,
and hoarse, goon-squad choruses. They may've been that meeting of Kiss, the
Ramones, New York Dolls, and Manner Films you never realized you'd been eagerly
awaiting. Here's the evidence, sheathed in elegant, black jewel boxes
(including a limited release of the long-lost, unissued '78 Static Age
LP in a case that will take you three hours to figure out how to open),
nestled inside a red velvet-lined home and accompanied by an expensive-looking
Misfits Fiend Club pin. Worth the $66.66 list price? Sure, why not.
4.0 stars -- Tim Stegall
DEXTER GORDON
The Complete Sixties Blue Note Sessions
(Blue Note)
 |
5.0 stars -- Jay Trachtenberg
MUHAL RICHARD ABRAMS
Young in Heart/Wise in Time (Delmark)
ROSCOE MITCHELL
Sound (Delmark)
MAURICE MCINTYRE
Forces and Feelings (Delmark)
JOSEPH JARMAN
As If It Were the Seasons (Delmark)
Many of the initial free jazzmen were rough and ready, interested in playing
gutty, visceral music. Whatever their merits, pacing and subtle arrangements
were not their main priorities. During the late Sixties though, the new
generation of free players strove to infuse their music with more variety and
restraint. Prominent among them were members of Chicago's AACM, the Association
for the Advancement of Creative Musicians. Fortunately the area's Delmark
records took a keen interest in them and recorded a series of their albums,
which are now being reissued. Their latest batch includes one by AACM prime
mover Muhal Richard Abrams. Unlike many free jazzmen, Abrams was conversant
with a number of styles within and outside jazz, and enriched his work by
drawing from them. At times his percussive, dissonant playing was reminiscent
of the Cecil Taylor/Thelonious Monk school, as well as modern classical music.
On Roscoe Mitchell's Sound, the leader, on alto saxophone, clarinet and
recorder, is joined by trumpeter Lester Bowie, tenorman Maurice McIntyre,
bassist Malachi Favors, drummer Alvin Fielder, and Lester Lashley, who adds a
sonic dimension by doubling on cello and trombone. There's more unusual
instrumentation on McIntyre's Forces and Feelings, on which he appears
with a guitarist, bassist, drummer, and vocalist, and, on Joseph Jarman's As
if it Were the Seasons, which features Charles Clark on bass, cello, and
koto, and singer Sherri Scott. The improvisation on these recordings may not be
based on pre-set chord progressions, but the groups' performances are tight and
coherent; members pay attention to collective interplay and textural and
dynamic subtleties. All are full of the kind of color, life, and humor one
associates with Sun Ra, who anticipated their work, by the way. Add Anthony
Braxton and the Art Ensemble of Chicago to Sun Ra and the cats appearing on
these discs and maybe you'll agree that Windy City musicians had more of an
impact on jazz during the Sixties than at any time since the Prohibition
era.
(All) 4.0 stars -- Harvey Pekar
GALAXIE 500
(Rykodisc)
 |
4.0 stars -- Raoul Hernandez
