[RE-UP] MARTHA VELEZ

MARTHA VELEZ
FIENDS & ANGELS (1969)
REMASTER
320 KBPS

Martha Velez only issued five albums in her recording career of the 1960s & 1970s. But she has a cult fan following and her albums feature a host of guest musicians. Recorded in 1969, Fiends & Angels is making its worldwide CD debut & features Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce, Brian Auger, Christine McVie, Jim Capaldi, Mitch Mitchell and the list goes on.
the sound is straight out of the late sixties-a slight blending of instruments and voice that makes for a good,naturally warm sound. As expected,the quality of the backing band is great and helps place this album above the average run of the mill release. On various tracks its easy to hear which guitarist is playing,and while there are no long solos,the arrangements are just fine.
A lost gem you've got to listen to.

1. I'm Gonna Leave You
2. Swamp Man
3. Fool for You
4. In My Girlish Days
5. Very Good Fandango
6. Tell Mama
7. Feel So Bad
8. Drive Me Daddy
9. It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry
10. Come Here Sweet Man
11. Let the Good Times Roll

TOM WAITS

TOM WAITS
GLITTER AND DOOM:
LIVE (2009)
320 KBPS

In 2008, Tom Waits launched a sold out tour, garnering intense critical praise by the press which called it the best live show of 2008. It thrilled fans across the world. For the occasion, Waits played in some in cities where he had never played before. Now comes the document of those concerts, 17 performances hand picked by Waits from along the tour. Leaning heavily on songs from his ANTI releases including a haunting Trampled Rose from Real Gone and roaring Get Behind the Mule from Mule Variations. Waits also digs into the vaults for tracks like a reimagined Singapore from 1985's Rain Dogs. Glitter and Doom Live will reside in the Waits catalog alongside earlier live albums like Nighthawks at the Diner and Big Time, both discs held on par with his classic studio releases by fans.

Disc 1
1. Lucinda/Ain't Goin Down (Birmingham 07/03/08)
2. Singapore (Edinburgh 07/28/08)
3. Get Behind The Mule (Tulsa 06/25/08)
4. Fannin Street (Knoxville 06/29/08)
5. Dirt In The Ground (Milan 07/19/08)
6. Such A Scream (Milan 07/18/08)
7. Live Circus (Jacksonville 07/01/08)
8. Goin' Out West (Tulsa 06/25/08)
9. Falling Down (Paris 07/25/08)
10. The Part You Throw Away (Edinburgh 07/28/08)
11. Trampled Rose (Dublin 08/01/08)
12. Metropolitan Glide (Knoxville 6/29/08)
13. I'll Shoot The Moon (Paris 07/24/08)
14. Green Grass (Edinburgh 07/27/08)
15. Make It Rain (Atlanta 07/05/08)
16. Story (Columbus 06/28/08)
17. Lucky Day (Atlanta 07/05/08)

Disc 2
1. Tom Tales

GREAT WHITE

GREAT WHITE
SAIL AWAY (1994)
320 KBPS

Great White must be one of the best American hard rock bands from the dreadful "hair metal" era. Wanna know why? Well, simply because when most of the other bands from that scene played party rock'n'roll with a bigger sound, GW had a little something extra, a.k.a. the blues, to enrich their sound and make it less of a "Mode du Jour"... On Sail Away, the guys took a bold move by tryin' their hands on mellower material. Indeed, most of the tracks featured here are acoustic numbers and...it works! And with the addition of the live CD, where singer Jack Russell makes his first imprinted impression of Robert Plant (Babe [I'm Gonna Leave You]) and a few of the bands classics thrown in for good measure, it's a package which will please the blues, rock and hard rock lovers.

1. A Short Overture
2. Mother's Eyes
3. Cryin'
4. Momma Don't Stop
5. Alone
6. All Right
7. Sail Away
8. Gone With The Wind
9. Livin' In The U.S.A.
10. If I Ever Saw A Good Thing
Bonus Disc
Anaheim Live
1. Call It Rock N' Roll
2. All Over Now
3. Love Is A Lie
4. Old Rose Motel
5. Babe (I'm Gonna Leave You)
6. Rock Me
7. Once Bitten Twice Shy

TINARIWEN

TINARIWEN
AMASSAKOUL (2003)
320 KBPS

Tinariwen strip rock down to its basic building blocks of rhythm, guitars, and voice. On their second CD there are no fancy studio tricks or multiple overdubs. They stick to what they've shown they do well — keep the music raw and emotional. While there are similarities to the desert blues of Mali, these Tuareg nomads from the Western Sahara are as much as rock band as the Stones at their best, capable of conjuring up magic with a guitar riff or lick. Oftentimes, the music has the same bluesy, undulating, hypnotic rhythm of a camel crossing the sand, as on "Aldhechen Manin." But they can also crank the amps and unleash something to tingle the spine and feet, which they do on "Oualahila Ar Tesninam," as frantic and primal a piece of rock & roll as you're likely to find. There's even a touch of rap on "Arawan." But there's a complexity in their basic approach, the interlocking layers of electric guitars and the plaintive, defiant voices. To listen to Tinariwen is to believe once more in rock and its power. This is angry and passionate; it's dangerous music in the very best sense. Western bands might have forgotten how to rock as if their lives depended on it; Tinariwen can teach them.

1. Amassakoul 'n' Ténéré
2. Oualahila Ar Tesninam
3. Chatma
4. Arawan
5. Chet Boghassa
6. Amidinin
7. Ténéré Daféo Nikchan
8. Aldhechen Manin
9. Alkhar Dessouf
10. Eh Massina Sintadoben
11. Assoul

CALVIN RUSSELL

CALVIN RUSSELL
DAWG EAT DAWG (2009)
320 KBPS

Calvin Russell is back with a new album recorded in Austin, Marrakech and Paris with producer and guitarist Manu Lanvin.
At 65, the Texan country-bluesman delivers his usual mix of blues, rock and country, one that made him famous iin France and Europe but failed to gain him more than a local audience in his homeland. His deep and touching voice is still here and so are the lyrics which tell the tales of everyday people as well as the story of his life.
Along the 12 songs of Dawg Eat Dawg, you'll hear a man that manages to mix the best of tradition and modernity. You'll also find the theme song from the latest "Lucky Luke" movie (directed by James Hutt and featuring Jean Dujardin, "Gangster of Love) as well as a duet with French actor Gérard Lanvin, "5 m²" inspired by the words of Charlie Bauer who was Jacques Mesrine's, the French public enemy #1 in the 70s, partner in crime.

1. Like A Revolution
2. 5m²
3. Halloween
4. To You My Love
5. Texas Blues
6. Sweetest Tenderness
7. Rolling Wheel
8. Gangster Of Love
9. Are You Waiting ?
10. Dawg Eat Dawg
11. Too Old To Grow Up Now
12. 5m² (Feat. Gérard Lanvin)

[RE-UP] ARNO & THE SUBROVNICKS

ARNO & THE SUBROVNICKS
WATER (1994)
320 KBPS

This album is not an Arno album and shouldn't be considered as such. It didn't get much praise from the critics when it was released and went almost unnoticed by the potential buyers. This may come as a surprise when considering Arno's reputation even in 1994 but one has to remember this was, for the Belgian singer/songwriter, a recreation from his solo career, and a good one at that!
Reuniting with some old friends from the TC Matic era, Arno has cooked a broken down rock and blues album which bears the influence of Captain Beefheart, Tom Waits, Bob Dylan and Ian Dury. Yes, I know, that's quite an impressive list and the album lives to it.
True the production of Mike Butcher (better know for his work on Black Sabbath's Sabotage) helps pack it up nicely but it's Arno's talent that inhabits this electric feast and turns it into a work of Art. Not an easy one for sure, but certainly an album which will put a few smiles on a few faces.

1. Meet the Freaks
2. A Eux Je Montre Mon Derrière
3. I Couldn't Get Up
4. Hot Head
5. Freddy
6. The Smell of Roses
7. Watch Out Boy
8. Chicken Song
9. What the F. Is Going'on
10. I Am Still Allright
11. Rock Them Out
12. Women Beat
13. Mathilda

CALVIN RUSSELL

CALVIN RUSSELL
UNREPENTANT (2007)
320 KBPS

9th album Austin, Tx's most popular bluesman in France. Actually, throughout his career, Calvin has proven to be a little more than a bluesman as his country roots often show in his music. "Unrepentant" is not a surprise, nor it is a revolution in Russell's sound, the man stil does what he knows which will please his fans. This 2007 album, if it isn't up to his first three albums ("A Crack in Time", "Sounds from the Fourth World" & Soldier) - his finest works in my opinion -, is a solid return to form after the so-so "In Spite of It All". Sure, it's still the same mix of raw/basic blues and country music influences but, just because of Calvin's voice, it's as tasty as this kind of fusion can ever get and, with lyrics that portrait an america too few Europeans know, it also has a sociological interest which is not to be undermined. Try it.

1. Are You Ready
2. Free In Freedom
3. Don'T Want To Go To Heaven
4. Midnite Man
5. When You Smile
6. Why I Love Her
7. The More I Know
8. Me And You
9. Different People
10. Petit Gars

KEB' MO'

KEB' MO'
JUST LIKE YOU (1996)
320 KBPS

On his second album, Keb' Mo' begins to expand the borders of his Delta blues by recording with a full band on a couple of tracks and attempting more expansive, rock-based song structures. The attempts aren't entirely successful and it's ironic that he decided to try rock-oriented material after he received such praise for his traditionalist debut. Still, there are a few songs on the album that rank with the best on his first album, which suggests that Just Like You is merely a sophomore slump.

1. That's Not Love
2. Perpetual Blues Machine
3. More Than One Way Home
4. I'm on Your Side
5. Just Like You
6. You Can Love Yourself
7. Dangerous Mood
8. The Action
9. Hand It Over
10. Standin' at the Station
11. Momma, Where's My Daddy
12. Last Fair Deal Gone Down
13. Lullaby Baby Blues

STEVE CROPPER & FELIX CAVALIERE

STEVE CROPPER & FELIX CAVALIERE
NUDGE IT UP A NOTCH (2008)
320 KBPS

Nudge It Up a Notch is a collaborative effort by Booker T. & the MG's/ Blues Brothers guitarist and songwriter Steve Cropper and former Rascals organist, songwriter, and frontman Felix Cavaliere. It was recorded at Jon Tiven's Hormone Studio in Nashville, and released on Stax. This trio co-wrote most all of the tunes together, then hired the great drummer Chester Thompson (who else do you know who could play drums with Frank Zappa, Genesis, and Frank Black?) and his pal, former Impressions bassist and musical director Sammy Louis "Shake" Anderson. Backing vocalists Mark Williams and N'nandi Bryant round out the band. David Z. mixed the sessions, which were co-produced by Cropper, Cavaliere, and Tiven.
So what's it sound like? It sounds like Felix Cavaliere fronting a completely killer Southern soul band! Their musical structures come from timeless sources of blues, R&B, gospel, and modern funky reggae. The opening cut, a steamy, gritty broken love song, simply choogles its way along a simple breakbeat-driven vamp in a minor key. Cavaliere's voice hasn't lost one iota of its range or its expressiveness since the Rascals disbanded 35 years ago. Here he offers a sultry, emotionally wrought call and response with his chorus. Cropper offers stunning blues fills and a solo above the B-3 and rhythm section. The tune is a signature in a sense, because the tunes themselves are solid, beautifully written, and smartly arranged. But it's not only the cookers that come off this way — check the very next track, "If It Wasn't for Loving You," which nods to "My Girl" for its verse melody, but it's pure Cavaliere in the tag before the chorus. It's a ballad with near doo wop backing vocals and Cropper doing his slippery chord riffs to center the tune. The bassline is a tight stroll along the snare line, and Cavaliere's organ soars above the top. The instrumentals come off seamlessly as well. Check the nocturnal gritty soul-blues shuffle of "Full Moon Tonight" for proof. Cropper gets to let the high strings cut and slither. The reverbed backing chords are all played in shimmering tension as Cavaliere and the rhythm section bubble and pop underneath.
Despite each of these songs being a gem, some production elements in the sound — in a couple of places — are a tad strange: on "Impossible" the seemingly looped tablas pull the listener's attention a bit from Cavaliere's gorgeous vocal. The hard funky loops and rap in "Making the Time Go Faster" would have been better served without a synth and using organic hand percussion on top of Thompson's breaks. "Jamaica Delight," a Caribbean-flavored instrumental, has slightly cheesy keyboards, but the tune works anyway because of Cropper's razored guitar inventions. Yet these are minor quibbles — this album is so groove-laden and loaded with honest, uncontrived songs that minor flubs hardly matter. Just before the record's end, "Imperfect World" uses a dubby, modern reggae cum R&B confection that's so infectious, lean, and punchy that it could make the Police turn green with envy. Nudge It Up a Notch is a top-flight collaborative effort by a veritable soul supergroup that is vital and astonishingly creative, and offers plenty of proof that soul music is very much alive as a force of 21st century musical expression. This set is one of the great surprises of 2008, and further evidence of Concord's genuine commitment to the revamped Stax imprint.

1. One of Those Days
2. If It Wasn't for Loving You
3. Without You
4. Full Moon Tonight
5. To Make It Right
6. Impossible
7. Still Be Loving You
8. Cuttin' It Close
9. Make the Time Go Faster
10. Jamaica Delight
11. Imperfect World
12. Love Appetite

TOM WAITS

TOM WAITS
ALICE (2002)
320 KBPS

The grizzled modern persona of Tom Waits finds new life on Alice, a slow, grave record that explores physical and moral decay with the same harrowing insight of 1992's Bone Machine. Originally written as an opera with his longtime songwriting partner, playwright Kathleen Brennan, the songs on Alice were performed live in a Hamburg theater for 18 months in 1992 and 1993, but were never committed to tape (officially, at least). This studio recording retains a sense of narrative cohesion, giving Waits a set of tormented and bizarre characters that go well with the motley crew he's assembled over the years. It is, in fact, the most consistent record of Waits's career, offering not only a stable train of thought, but a musical approach that, while featuring the same vaudevillian touches that have characterized his work since Swordfishtrombones, finds a voice all its own. Without much percussion to back them up, violins, cellos, and horns dominate the record, bathing Waits's familiar growl in a sly, slow cacophony that sounds like an underwater fugue, the notes like rust on the strings. "Watch Her Disappear," with its sparse, sad pump organ, and the twisted torch song "Reeperbahn" have the smoky café mystery of Edith Piaf by way of Leonard Cohen, recovered from the water-logged tapes in Cole Porter's long-lost dingy. It's a burst of dark, world-weary poetry for lonely Saturday nights, cloudy days on the beach, or long strolls through graveyards.

1. Alice
2. Everything You Can Think
3. Flowers Grave
4. No One Knows I'm Gone
5. Kommienezuepadt
6. Poor Edward
7. Table Top Joe
8. Lost In The Harbor
9. We're All Mad Here
10. Watch Her Disappear
11. Reeperbahn
12. I'm Still Here
13. Fish & Bird
14. Barcarolle
15. Fawn

TOM WAITS

TOM WAITS
BLOOD MONEY (2002)
320 KBPS

For Tom Waits to reinvent himself at this point in his career would probably be a mistake, given that he remains as inimitable today as he was when he recorded Closing Time in 1973. Moody at best, dark for sure, BLOOD MONEY, with vaudeville-esque, boot-stomp-like percussion romps such as "Misery is the River of the World" and "God's Away on Business," Waits revisits his own territory. The melody of "Coney Island Girl" is so reminiscent of "Innocent When You Dream" from FRANK'S WILD YEARS that Waits could either be said to be winking to or ripping off himself. While Blood Money is not as original or chaotically magnificent as RAIN DOGS or BONE MACHINE, it does contain Waits' characteristic brilliance. Colin Stetson's clarinet in "All the World is Green" and his slow-swerving horns in "Another Man's Vine," make the album worth owning. These songs are familiar to the Waits pantheon but are carried off so well that they stand alone as masterpieces. "The Part You Throw Away," a heartbreaking song of music's oldest subject, is just lovely. The best compliment one can pay an album is that it gets better and is more revealing with each listen. That is true of this one. All said, BLOOD MONEY is good work, standard fare for Waits, which is to say that it's better than most albums released these days, even if it's not on the level with his best efforts.

1. Misery Is The River of the World
2. Everything Goes to Hell
3. Coney Island Baby
4. All The World Is Green
5. God's Away On Busines
6. Another Man's Vine
7. Knife Chase
8. Lullaby
9. Starving In The Belly Of A Whale
10. The Part You Throw Away
11. Woe
12. Calliope
13. A Good Man Is Hard To Find

STEVIE SALAS

STEVIE SALAS
COLORCODE
BACK FROM THE LIVING (1994)
320 KBPS

On Back From the Living, Stevie Salas comes crashing out of the gate with the funky, high-octane rocker "Tell Your Story Walkin,'" which boasts his ability to work a groove with pure hard rock muscle and deadly guitar firepower. Other tracks like "Start Again" and "God I'm Going Down" further emphasize these strengths, although the album's momentum starts sagging early on, due mostly to unfortunate sequencing. Sonically, Back From the Living packs far more punch than Salas' debut, and the guitar sounds are more interesting and, even if the songs aren't as good as on the original Colorcode album, there's still plenty to enjoy on this entertainingly groovy (hard) rock album.

1. Tell Your Story Walkin'
2. Start Again
3. I Once Was There
4. Wonderin'
5. Crack Killed Applejack
6. Born to Mack
7. Lying Truth
8. Amelia
9. God I'm Going Down
10. Much Ado About Buttin' (Suckermangrubby Mouth Mix)
Bonus Tracks
(Japanese Edition)
11. I Need You
12. I Thing You Need to Think

WALTER TROUT BAND

WALTER TROUT BAND
TELLIN' STORIES (1994)
320 KBPS

Walter Trout has been a fixture on the electric-blues scene for years, but many of his later albums are inconsistent. The playing is always vintage Trout, but on virtually everything in the last decade there are peaks and valleys. If you never heard the original Walter Trout Band lineup on "Telin' Stories", you have missed the genesis of the artist. It's the cradle of his rock, and this CD kicks from beginning to end. Each song is completely different from the next, at least for a blues rock record, and there's no gristle in this meat. Solid blues with power and believability, opening to closing. Highly recommended.

1. I Can Tell
2. Tremble
3. Wanna See the Morning
4. I Need to Belong to Someone
5. Runnin' Blues
6. On the Rise
7. Time for Movin' On
8. Head Hung Down
9. Please Don't Go
10. Tellin' Stories
11. Somebody's Cryin'
12. Take Care of Yo' Business

JACK ROSE

JACK ROSE
LUCK IN THE VALLEY (2010)
320 KBPS

A native of Virginia and resident of Philadelphia since 1998, Jack Rose first rose to prominence with the drone/noise/folk unit, Pelt. Pelt can be counted among the early influential new music underground bands such as UN, No Neck Blues Band, Charalambides, Tower Recordings and Six Organs of Admittance. Rose recorded and toured with the band up until 2006. Rose released his first solo LP in 2002, "Red Horse, White Mule", of post-Takoma, American primitive guitar. Along with the influences of John Fahey and Robbie Basho, Rose also incorporated North Indian classical, early American blues, bluegrass and minimalism into his singular style. 2005 saw the release of his fourth LP, "Kensington Blues", which incorporated all of the aforementioned influences and his playing/composing fully flowered. That LP is now considered a classic of contemporary guitar music.
In 2008 and 2009 Rose released "Dr. Ragtime and Pals" and "Jack Rose and the Black Twig Pickers" respectively. Those recordings featured many additional players like Glenn Jones, Micah Smaldone, Harmonica Dan and the Black Twig Pickers. The songs drew heavily on pre-war influences, either written by Rose or were his arrangements of early American classics. "Luck in the Valley " will be the third album in this set of recordings that Rose jokingly refers to as his "Ditch Trilogy". Rose continues his exploration of pre-war American music with a set brand new material featuring the Twigs, Jones, Harmonica Dan and Hans Chew along with a handful of solo pieces. This recording set out to capture the energy and feel of the classic three-track shack recordings by the Wray Brothers and Mordicai Jones. "Luck In The Valley" was written and recorded over a period of nine months off the road, an unusually long time for Rose to be at home and woodshedding. The album finds Rose employing new themes and techniques that haven't appeared on previous releases.
Like all pre-war recordings and all of Rose's releases, this album was recorded live. It was not created using overdubs but rather by recording a few "takes" and selecting the best performance out of those. Rose stated, "I wanted the songs to have an immediacy and spontaneity as they were being recorded. All the musicians chosen for the record know how to play the songs without overworking the material, but at the same time creating memorable accompaniments on the spot." Several of the songs are in fact the first takes like “Blues for Percy Danforth”, “Lick Mountain Ramble” and "Woodpiles on the Side of the Road". Also Included in the set are three covers: “St. Louis Blues”, “Everybody Ought to Pray Sometime” and “West Coast Blues”. All of these pre-war classics are Rose’s unique arrangements.
The album title refers to the old red light section of St. Louis and was a code for procuring the services of a prostitute. Says Rose "I read about it on some liner notes to a reissue of pre-war St. Louis recordings and I liked the ring of it." An avid record collector with an encyclopedic knowledge of pre-war American music, Rose has been acknowledged as a rising star among contemporary guitar players. "Luck in the Valley" finds Rose at his best surrounded by like-minded friends on a recording that is enriched by a sense of history but entirely new, vibrant and warm.

1. Blues For Percy Danforth
2. Lick Mountain Ramble
3. Woodpiles On The Side Of The Road
4. When Tailgate Drops, The Bullshit Stops
5. Moon In The Gutter
6. Luck In The Valley
7. Saint Louis Blues
8. Tree In The Valley
9. Everybody Ought To Pray Sometime
10. West Coast Blues

MARTHA VELEZ

MARTHA VELEZ
FIENDS & ANGELS (1969)
REMASTER
320 KBPS

Martha Velez only issued five albums in her recording career of the 1960s & 1970s. But she has a cult fan following and her albums feature a host of guest musicians. Recorded in 1969, Fiends & Angels is making its worldwide CD debut & features Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce, Brian Auger, Christine McVie, Jim Capaldi, Mitch Mitchell and the list goes on.
the sound is straight out of the late sixties-a slight blending of instruments and voice that makes for a good,naturally warm sound. As expected,the quality of the backing band is great and helps place this album above the average run of the mill release. On various tracks its easy to hear which guitarist is playing,and while there are no long solos,the arrangements are just fine.
A lost gem you've got to listen to.

1. I'm Gonna Leave You
2. Swamp Man
3. Fool for You
4. In My Girlish Days
5. Very Good Fandango
6. Tell Mama
7. Feel So Bad
8. Drive Me Daddy
9. It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry
10. Come Here Sweet Man
11. Let the Good Times Roll

THORNETTA DAVIS

THORNETTA DAVIS
SUNDAY MORNING MUSIC (1996)
320 KBPS

Working with her previous employers from Big Chief, specifically bassist Matt O'Brien, guitarist Phil Durr, and drummer Mike Danner, turned out to be the perfect approach for Thornetta Davis' solo debut. It's not quite Big Chief with a different lead singer, happily, with Sunday Morning Music showcasing her affinity for the blues while not losing the powerful punch of that band. Davis' singing is just wonderful — she's got a rich, warm voice that she doesn't show off with, avoiding pointless vocal high jumps and wails for confident, often soaring delivery. She can really turn it on when needed, and the results on "Helpless" and the hard-rocking "The Deal" are well worth it. There's one cover song, Stevie Wonder's "You Haven't Done Nothin'," which Davis does a great job on and then some (a duo between the two would be amazing). She splits the lyrical work with album producer Al Sutton, another Big Chief vet, both having a good ear for statements of love, heartbreak and inspiration that avoid warmed-over clichés. "Only One," a message to a departed partner, and "Sunday Morning," a reflective comparison of past beauty and hopes and present, grimmer realities delivered over a lovely acoustic guitar melody, are two standouts. Her backing bandmates, meanwhile, create excellent music for her to work with, touching on everything from full funk chops to, on the concluding "Come Go with Me," delightful retro-soul. Various guests stop by to make things almost a Detroit-area love-in, from keyboardist Chris Codish to Kid Rock, who creates the beat on the striking, passionate "Sunset," one of the album's best tracks. Black Crowes member Eddie Harsch also adds keys and clavinet at various points, easily slotting into the band's smoky sound. Through it all, Davis sounds on top of her game, and the whole album makes for a worthwhile, invigorating listen.

1. Cry
2. Helplesss
3. Try to Remember
4. Sunset
5. Only One
6. You Haven't Done Nothin'
7. Box of Memories
8. Sunday Morning
9. The Deal
10. And I Spin
11. Come Go With Me

STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN

STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN
AND DOUBLE TROUBLE
THE SKY IS CRYING (1991)
320 KBPS

The posthumously assembled ten-track outtakes collection The Sky Is Crying actually proves to be one of Stevie Ray Vaughan's most consistent albums, rivaling In Step as the best outside of the Greatest Hits collection. These songs were recorded in sessions spanning from 1984's Couldn't Stand the Weather to 1989's In Step and were left off of the LPs for whatever reason (or, in the case of Soul to Soul's "Empty Arms," a different version was used). What makes the record work is its eclectic diversity — Vaughan plays slide guitar on "Boot Hill" and acoustic on "Life by the Drop"; he smokes on the slow blues of "May I Have a Talk With You" and the title track just as much as on the up-tempo Lonnie Mack cover, "Wham"; and he shows the jazzy side of his playing on Hendrix's "Little Wing" and Kenny Burrell's "Chitlins Con Carne." But it's not just musical diversity that makes the record work, it's also Vaughan's emotional range. From the morbidly dark "Boot Hill" to the lilting "Little Wing" to the exuberant tributes to his influences — Lonnie Mack on "Wham" and Albert King on "The Sky Is Crying" — Vaughan makes the material resonate, and in light of his death, "The Sky Is Crying" and the touching survivor-story ballad "Life by the Drop" are two of the most moving moments in Vaughan's oeuvre.

1 Boot Hill
2 The Sky Is Crying
3 Empty Arms
4 Little Wing
5 Wham!
6 May I Have a Talk with You
7 Close to You
8 Chitlins Con Carne
9 So Excited
10 Life by the Drop

AC/DC

AC/DC
BACKTRACKS (2009)
320 KBPS

As handsome as this package is — or in the case of the super limited edition, housed in a working guitar amp, as ridiculous — Backtracks is essentially just a clearinghouse for AC/DC rarities, rounding up all the released tracks and videos that have yet to appear on a collection, throwing in a full-length DVD of 2003 for good measure. In other words, it's a set designed for the kind of diehard who would purchase a box set housed in a working amplifier, but its pleasures aren't limited to the dedicated, particularly when it comes to early AC/DC. Prior to 1979's Highway to Hell, all the band's LPs differed in their Australian and international incarnations (one, 1975's TNT, was just cannibalized for other albums), so there are quite a few stray tracks — a full 12, ranging from the priceless boogie "R.I.P. (Rock in Peace)" to the throwaway instrumental "Fling Thing," plus alternate takes of "High Voltage," "It's a Long Way to the Top," "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap," and "Ain't No Fun (Waiting Round to Be a Millionaire)" (only available on the deluxe, giving another good reason to opt for the big set). The studio disc is rounded out by some OK latter-day tracks, highlighted by "Big Gun" from the Last Action Hero soundtrack and the nifty little rocker "Cyberspace," and it's quite nice to have all these cuts rounded up. If the live tracks aren't quite as noteworthy, it's largely because there have already been several live releases — proper albums, box sets, and home videos alike — but the quality of the two CDs is quite high, opening with a clutch of Bon Scott cuts before settling into a stretch from a dynamite set from Detroit's Joe Louis Arena in 1983, then finding the group trotting around the globe on the third disc. This is supplemented by a DVD dubbed Family Jewels 3, a disc that rounds up all the videos not on the original double-disc collection, including a pair of clips from 2008's Black Ice ("Rock N Roll Train," "Anything Goes"), and alternate takes of seven videos featured on the original compilation. Finally, Backtracks ends with that 2003 show, finding AC/DC in a relatively small venue in Munich, tearing through a concert that relies heavily on early classics. It's a set list that could pretty much be called a hardcore fan's dream, which makes it a fitting close to this box, because if this is anything, it's one for the fans, the ones who have stuck with the band though 35 years of unrelenting rock & roll.

Disc 1
1. Stick Around
2. Love Song
3. Fling Thing
4. R.I.P. (Rock In Peace)
5. Carry Me Home
6. Crabsody In Blue
7. Cold Hearted Man
8. Snake Eye
9. Borrowed Time
10. Down On The Borderline
11. Big Gun
12. Cyberspace

Disc 2
1. Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap (Sydney Festival, 30 Jan. 1977)
2. Dog Eat Dog (Apollo Theatre, Glasgow, 30 Apr. 1978)
3. Live Wire (Hammersmith Odeon, London, 2 Nov. 1979)
4. Shot Down In Flames (Hammersmith Odeon, London, 2 Nov. 1979)
5. Back In Black (Capital Center, Landover MD, 21 Dec. 1981)
6. T.N.T. (Capital Center, Landover MD, 20 Dec. 1981)
7. Let There Be Rock (Capital Center, Landover MD, 21 Dec. 1981)
8. Guns For Hire (Joe Louis Arena, Detroit MI, 18 Nov. 1983)
9. Rock And Roll Ain't Noise Pollution (Joe Louis Arena, Detroit MI, 18 Nov. 1983)
10. This House Is On Fire (Joe Louis Arena, Detroit MI, 18 Nov. 1983)
11. You Shook Me All Night Long (Joe Louis Arena, Detroit MI, 18 Nov. 1983)
12. Jailbreak (Dallas TX, 12 Oct. 1985)
13. Highway To Hell (Tushino Airfield, Moscow, 28 Sept. 1991)
14. For Those About To Rock We Salute You (Tushino Airfield, Moscow, 28 Sept. 1991)
15. Safe In New York City (Phoenix AZ, 13 Sept. 2000)

BAREFOOT SERVANTS

BAREFOOT SERVANTS
BAREFOOT SERVANTS (1994)
320 KBPS

I bought this album when it came out because I wanted something that had both rock and blues and this had good reviews and fell in love with the gritty bluesy sound of the 'Barefoot Servants' immediately. From Jon Butcher's gravely vocals that clearly reflect the fire in his soul, to the electric artistry of Ben Schultz' guitar accompanyment, this debut CD works out to be a clear treat for any blues enthusiast even though the most purists of those might raise a suspicious eyebrow now and then. Anyway, From the sardonic humor of 'Foolish Behavior', to the barroom brallish excitement of 'Muscle Car', you'll agree that this album is an excellent addition to your personal collection and a scandalously overlooked opus.

1. Jealous Man
2. Box of Miracles
3. Love's Made a Fool
4. It Hurts Me Too
5. Foolish Behavior
6. Drinking Again
7. Whiskey Man
8. Red Handed
9. Fire and Gasoline
10. Better off Dead
11. Blackbird
12. Muscle Car
13. Bound for Glory
14. Railroad Line Revisited

KEB' MO'

KEB' MO'
KEB' MO' (1994)
320 KBPS

There's something about acoustic blues, the idea of playing on a street corner deep in the Delta, running a bottle over a National Steel. Keb' Mo' is one of the best acoustic blues players today. Sometimes it's just him and his guitar, other times he's backed by drums and keyboards. Moore's playing is full and you rarely notice that there is no one else playing but him. His solo guitar work brings visions of Robert Johnson, and he pays tribute to the Master with two of his cuts. The rest of the tracks are penned by Moore with some collaboration from others.
Every tune on this album is good. Moore's playing adjusts between strumming, fingerpicking and slide. He also adds in banjo and harmonica, but his great asset is his voice. Smooth and sweat, it lacks the gravel sound we've become accustomed to for the blues, but his voice is perfect for solo guitar, almost as if it matches the sound of the guitar. "Victims of Comfort" is my favorite off the album with his strumming and voice interaction. The song is just him and his guitar, almost slow and sad sounding. "Angelina" throws in drums to keep the beat and Moore's fingers pluck the strings with an upbeat tempo. "Come On In My Kitchen" is the first of the Johnson covers, and he plays with a slide, and belts out some on the harmonica, with a little help from an organ and drums. Another great cut. More of the straight blues shuffle is heard on "Love Blues" again a solo guitar bit.
Each track is good on this album, and proves that Keb' Mo' is a name to be recognized with his unique sound of yesterday. Anyone who likes the original blues players like Johnson, will love this album, as will many people who don't love the blues. Moore's voice is soothing, and his playing has a relaxed feel to it. A pure joy to listen to.

1. Every Morning
2. Tell Everybody I Know
3. Love Blues
4. Victims Of Comfort
5. Angelina
6. Anybody Seen My Girl
7. She Just Wants To Dance
8. Am I Wrong
9. Come On In My Kitchen
10. Dirty Low Down And Bad
11. Don't Try To Explain
12. Kindhearted Woman Blues
13. City Boy