This Week's Playlist - 9/12 to 9/16
One of the things I thought I'd do when I started this blog/journal was to note my daily work listening (the CD per day I bring with me). Seduced by the power of the long entry, I've gotten away from that without really thinking about it. This morning I thought about it, and decided to include a weekly list. That way I only do the pure journaling part once a week, while continuing to post my current periodic small essays/reviews, etc.
The format is simple: I'll list the CDs by day and comment briefly on each one. Notes from readers are always welcome, of course, including contrary opinions, related recommendations, etc.
To start off, here's this week's list. Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday were all birthday presents, BTW. Yes, I'm another one of those annoying Virgos (as if you couldn't tell from the list habit- - and no, we Virgos do NOT believe in astrology). I'm not going to say any more about the birthday thing except to note that as a former coder, I claim the right to state my age in hexadecimal (for example, 50 dec is 32 hex). And now, the envelope, please:
9/12 – Unclassified by Robert Randolph and the Family Band. Gospel, funk, rock all come together with a solid dose of P-Funk, some Sly and Stevie Wonder-like inventiveness on the beats and arrangements, and Randolph's soaring pedal steel guitar to put a unique signature on the package. Solid band, great sound, and no way you get to sit still.
9/13 – Number Ones by the Bee Gees. I didn't like them that much in their first go round, and I never cared much for disco with a few exceptions. So it surprises me that I like them more now, and particularly for their dance numbers. This collection of #1 hits includes singles like "World" and "Massachusetts", which are smart, very well-crafted and executed pop confections. But the tracks I dig the most now are cuts like "Stayin' Alive" and "Night Fever", even without Travolta's dancing.
9/14 – 'I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning by Bright Eyes. Somewhere I read this guy is the new Dylan. No way, says I, because being the New Dylan is Dylan's full-time occupation. What Bright Eyes may actually be is the new Donovan-in-training. He's got the whiny tone, the precious attitude, and the semi-poetic lyric thing working for him, but there's no song on this set that comes close to "Fat Angel" or "Sunny Goodge Street" or even – musically – "Mellow Yellow". Emmylou Harris, a personal favorite, sings along on a few tracks but that only serves to spotlight Bright Eyes' vocal weakness. I haven't heard enough of his other work to judge him fairly, but based on this CD he's definitely not my cup of bubble tea.
9/15 – No Direction Home by Bob Dylan. Come gather ye Dylan completists wherever you roam - this set is for you. It's the soundtrack to the forthcoming Scorsese documentary, and it offers a large (2 disc) selection of previously unreleased live tracks, alt takes, demos, etc. documenting Dylan's career from its beginnings up to the motorcycle accident (i.e., pre-"John Wesley Harding"). Some of the live tracks are interesting, but just about all the actually released takes are better than the alts, and there's not a lot of new insight into the songs or Dylan's head as a musician. I'm glad I have it, but I suffer from Dylanophilia and I wouldn't recommend this set to anyone who didn't.
9/16 – Blues Summit by B.B. King. Today is Riley B. King's 80th birthday (and if you've been paying attention, that's only 50 in hex!). Of his many recordings, this one struck me as the most party-like, so I'm celebrating along with the likes of Buddy Guy, Etta James, Albert Collins, Ruth Brown, and John Lee Hooker – all of whom, and more, perform with the Beale Street Blues Boy on this set; they're great, and the master of the electrified delta blues is in fine form as usual. So Happy Birthday, B.B. - and I know all lovers of the blues will join me in wishing you many more to come.
The format is simple: I'll list the CDs by day and comment briefly on each one. Notes from readers are always welcome, of course, including contrary opinions, related recommendations, etc.
To start off, here's this week's list. Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday were all birthday presents, BTW. Yes, I'm another one of those annoying Virgos (as if you couldn't tell from the list habit- - and no, we Virgos do NOT believe in astrology). I'm not going to say any more about the birthday thing except to note that as a former coder, I claim the right to state my age in hexadecimal (for example, 50 dec is 32 hex). And now, the envelope, please:
9/12 – Unclassified by Robert Randolph and the Family Band. Gospel, funk, rock all come together with a solid dose of P-Funk, some Sly and Stevie Wonder-like inventiveness on the beats and arrangements, and Randolph's soaring pedal steel guitar to put a unique signature on the package. Solid band, great sound, and no way you get to sit still.
9/13 – Number Ones by the Bee Gees. I didn't like them that much in their first go round, and I never cared much for disco with a few exceptions. So it surprises me that I like them more now, and particularly for their dance numbers. This collection of #1 hits includes singles like "World" and "Massachusetts", which are smart, very well-crafted and executed pop confections. But the tracks I dig the most now are cuts like "Stayin' Alive" and "Night Fever", even without Travolta's dancing.
9/14 – 'I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning by Bright Eyes. Somewhere I read this guy is the new Dylan. No way, says I, because being the New Dylan is Dylan's full-time occupation. What Bright Eyes may actually be is the new Donovan-in-training. He's got the whiny tone, the precious attitude, and the semi-poetic lyric thing working for him, but there's no song on this set that comes close to "Fat Angel" or "Sunny Goodge Street" or even – musically – "Mellow Yellow". Emmylou Harris, a personal favorite, sings along on a few tracks but that only serves to spotlight Bright Eyes' vocal weakness. I haven't heard enough of his other work to judge him fairly, but based on this CD he's definitely not my cup of bubble tea.
9/15 – No Direction Home by Bob Dylan. Come gather ye Dylan completists wherever you roam - this set is for you. It's the soundtrack to the forthcoming Scorsese documentary, and it offers a large (2 disc) selection of previously unreleased live tracks, alt takes, demos, etc. documenting Dylan's career from its beginnings up to the motorcycle accident (i.e., pre-"John Wesley Harding"). Some of the live tracks are interesting, but just about all the actually released takes are better than the alts, and there's not a lot of new insight into the songs or Dylan's head as a musician. I'm glad I have it, but I suffer from Dylanophilia and I wouldn't recommend this set to anyone who didn't.
9/16 – Blues Summit by B.B. King. Today is Riley B. King's 80th birthday (and if you've been paying attention, that's only 50 in hex!). Of his many recordings, this one struck me as the most party-like, so I'm celebrating along with the likes of Buddy Guy, Etta James, Albert Collins, Ruth Brown, and John Lee Hooker – all of whom, and more, perform with the Beale Street Blues Boy on this set; they're great, and the master of the electrified delta blues is in fine form as usual. So Happy Birthday, B.B. - and I know all lovers of the blues will join me in wishing you many more to come.
posted by DJStan at 6:30 AM
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