The Magic Numbers "The Runaway" Limited Edition

I believe I ran across this while searching the UK charts a couple of months ago.  My guess is it had reappeared when the Limited Edition was released.  The original came out last July, so I guess adding four live tracks worked its intent.  I liked what I sampled so I took the dive.  And it's a keeper.

As I have learned, "The Runaway" is their third record, a departure from the first two, and comparatively a disappointment according to the charts and sales.  The first two LP's cracked the UK Top 10 Albums and the debut charted four singles.  That's setting the bar quite high out of the box.  "Runaway" barely crept past 50 before the Ltd.Ed. came out, and I don't know how far the reissue moved up, if so.  From what I've read, it's not as happy, poppy, hooky as its predecessors, but I have no exposure to them, and I believe this album stands on its own sound very well.  Let me list the artists that sprang to mind while listening to this record; Mama & Papas, Prefab Sprout, Dream Academy, Fleet Foxes, early MMJ, and Angus & Julia Stone.  Imagine my surprise when I found out that, much like the Stone kids, Magic Numbers are two sets of siblings.  Can't say the sisters fit the "beard rock" moniker like the guys, so let's call the girls gothy.  Who cares when they craft a record like this beauty?  They employ lots of 60's studio tricks, reverb, multitrack vocals, etc., strings and brass, and the overall production has that warm, fuzzy feeling.  The final studio track is split between a song and a gorgeous 4 1/2 minute orchestral piece, a fitting finish for the CD.  The four live tracks are on their own disc, which is a smart move since they are repeat songs from the studio record.  I wasn't initially impressed with the vocals, but the one track where they faltered could have been early in the set and/or the sound man hadn't adjusted the knobs properly.  The music is outstanding, so I would suggest a video search for some of the live excerpts if interested. 

Don't look for "Runaway" domestically.  It's available at a reasonable price for import, but stick to the original version.  I don't feel the live tracks justify the extra $7.

Red Box "Plenty"

I come across these things in all manner of ways, and this one was different from any before.  I had to move one of the big storage containers full of vinyl for a carpet repair job, and the only way to do so was empty it enough to allow it to be picked up.  Well, I can't just grab stacks of my vinyl (which see daylight only once or twice a year) without thumbing through a few and traipsing down Memory Lane.  I came across this record and the memories came flooding back. 

The cover was in excellent condition, but I know the vinyl had hundreds of spins in its history.  This came out in 1986 with little fanfare, just another of the many two-person English new wave bands happening during that time; Yaz, Erasure, OMD, Pet Shop Boys, etc..  I put it in light rotation in-store at the old Custom Sound location in the mall in Tullahoma.  Over the course of the next few months, this record got better and better, slowly but surely sinking its hooks in me.  A couple of the tracks hit the Top 10 in the UK, and apparently are still staples of British radio today.  Here's the original video for "Lean On Me", which went to #3.  You'll hear some of the vocal chorus effect that was used extensively throughout the album.  The record also featured a substantial portion of Native American Indian-styled chants and other World influences, similar to a very successful album in the same year doing the same thing, Paul Simon's "Graceland."  So let me summarize and say that it took well over a year for "The Circle & the Square" to become one of my most favorite records from the last half of the 80's. 

Now that I've offered my Memory Lane story, suffice it to say that I really wanted to hear TC&TS again, and since I'm sans a record player, off I went to the Internet to see if I could possibly find it available somewhere, anywhere.  Imagine my surprise to discover it had been re-released in 2008, along with a second album from 1990 that I never knew existed.  "Motive" was also a major label release, but I was probably so busy with the Music 4 Less expansion in Orlando and elsewhere that it slipped past me.  And hello?!  What is this?  A release from October of last year called "Plenty?"  Surely that's not new...

But it is.  And I purchased it immediately.  The European import with an additional six songs.  Straight into the changer at position #1.  In no way, shape or form did I expect 80's-era music, but I admit to being surprised at the quiet beauty of the album.  Down to one member, Simon Toulson-Clarke, "Plenty" is the definition of an Adult Alternative Contemporary record, mostly three to four minute songs with worldly lyrical content, set upon a soft musical palate of acoustics, piano, occasional strings, etc..  Of the fourteen domestic tracks, only three hark back the twenty-something years to a more full-bodied arrangement, flashing a chant or two, too.  This was the first single, "Hurricane", and my favorite of the record.  Just this week, the second single was released, "The Sign," one of the other two tracks with ties to the past sound.  Overall, the record is expertly played, as I'm sure Mr. T-C called in plenty of favors.  He has remained in the music biz as a consultant to A&R, producer and songwriter, so why not get some contacts to help out.  He's not the strongest of vocalists, and it's more noticeable in the stripped-down instrumentation of this album, but that's not a concern to Europeans.  It reminds me of Tony Carey/Planet P and how he was a master of the keyboards but not a microphone.  American audiences want all the vocal histrionics.  Eeesshh, just sing with passion, please . 

So I am adding "Plenty" to the vault, though certainly not a typical Mad Rocker selection, based on how long it took TC&TS to get to me.  While researching for this post, I found a review with a summary that stated it quite well, from rockfeedback.com: 

"Plenty is a beautiful album, as out of time and place as the band have always been, even during their early flush of success. It has been released without much fanfare, which is a shame, as it will have an appreciative audience if they can find it."

Joe Bonamassa "Dust Bowl"

Simply put, an early candidate for Album of the Year.  Since I jumped on this guy's bandwagon in '08, it's safe to say this is my favorite piece of work by the prolific guitarist.  My friend Bob had sent me the title track as a pre-release teaser, and upon the initial listen, I knew something special was soon to follow.  The song's got this 70's rock vibe with a haunting, rumbling bass line.  So I bought "Dust Bowl" as soon as possible and popped it in the changer.  The first track is called "Slow Train", and about thirty seconds into it, this shit-eating grin spreads across my face and remains there for the next six minutes of power blues.  The great title track follows, and well, this might be the best opening eleven minutes of any album in recent memory.  Track 3 starts and (imagine the standard soundbite of a needle pulling across a vinyl record)...WTF?  Is that John Hiatt?!  OK...wow...a severe left turn musically, but I love Mr. Hiatt and he wrote the song "Tennessee Plates" and trades vocals and guitar with JB.  So now we have a slight shift in direction, as JB has always included several covers per album, but now has the songwriter play along with him.  Also appearing with his own composition is Vince Gill, and "Sweet Rowena" could easily be mistaken for a lost Little Feat track.  Guesting on a cover of Paul Rodgers' song "Heartbreaker," the title track from Free's final album in 1972, is Glenn Hughes, his bandmate in Black Country Communion.  Other covers come from Julie London, Little Walter, Tim Curry, and
the Karen Lawrence-penned "Prisoner", which was a big hit for Babs Streisand from the movie "Eyes of Laura Mars."  As you may guess, I like this version better, and I believe it's more in line with the composer's original intent. 

Another of my favorite tracks along with the two openers is a JB composisition, "Last Matador of Bayonne," which has this lonely single trumpet floating in the background and JB's searing solo, the kind that provides goose bumps.  I've said it before, but he could easily do a complete record of his own material and I would be a happy man.

The greatest asset for JB is his continuous study of music and musicians.  I found a recent interview in which he cites a couple of my favorites as early influences, Paul Kossoff and Tommy Bolin, and both of these guys were dead before JB was born!  He also mentioned Gary Moore in the interview, and I heard plenty of his spirit on this album (RIP Gary).  I think JB has learned quite a bit of rock history over the last couple of years with Mr. Hughes, though honestly, I wasn't as infatuated with the BCC record as many were, and probably my least favorite track from "Dust Bowl" is the Free cover he's on.  If you search YouTube, you will find JB playing with all sorts of people, all the while observing and absorbing the other guitarist while smokin' along, ie. this Walter Trout video from '07.  He's on tour in Australia now, and on his Facebook page, he posted about Cold Chisel's Ian Moss joining him onstage a couple of days ago in Sydney for a cover of "Further On Up the Road."  Now THAT is something I'll be trolling YouTube for.  Yep, found it.  Mossy looked a bit overwhelmed, but as Joe says, last time he played that song was with some guy named Clapton.

Joe keeps looking for great guitarists from around the globe to observe and learn.  You have to love him for that...

Elbow "Build A Rocket Boys!"

This band has earned the right to be purchased without sampling, so when this record was released in March, it went straight to the cart.  So excited to hear new music after three years, but the previous album, "The Seldom Scene Kid", was going to be a tough act to follow.  Double platinum in the UK, it spawned a live rendition on the BBC which also stayed charted for some time.  This award, that award, top Single, yada yada yada.  So imagine my surprise when upon the initial spin, the notation I made for this post was "Turd."  I almost dreaded it coming back up in the rotation.  But as I've noted before, I give these things three spins minimum before posting anything.  And "Build A Rocket Boys!" is a perfect example why I do so.  This gets better and better with each spin, its tentacles reaching slowly into your brain one track at a time.  I've just finished the fourth spin and I'm unsure if I'll remove it from the changer just yet.  

For those of you who are not privy to the genius of Elbow, some background.  Though together for essentially twenty years, they've only been Elbow since 1997, releasing several EP's which were well accepted in Britain, with their first full-length album coming in 2001.  I recall that CD in my store, but I never heard it.  It was "Cast of Thousands" three years later that did it for me, and I've been a fan since.  The band has said there would be no Elbow if there wasn't Radiohead, and similarities abound, but without the pretentiousness.  They have toured with Coldplay, but they are nowhere near as bombastic.  For those of you who have discovered Snow Patrol, Elbow is more complicated.  The main stated influence is Peter Gabriel-era Genesis.  There is more than just a hint of Classical influence in the music, mainly in the use of volume dynamics, you know, soft passages, repetitive instrumentation, then the sporadic "power chord" followed by a pretty run of notes.  Let me give you an example, though this song doesn't have the power stroke.  This is the track from which the record is titled.  This performance was only last week.  They were here in the US for the Coachella festival about a month ago, and apparently, people were singing along.  Much like the feeling I got at last year's Bonnaroo when I caught the Mumford & Sons set, and boy, have they caught fire here or what!?  There is an Elbow fan base here, but so far there is no tour scheduled.  Maybe that will be what it takes, though Hollywood is already a fan, as Elbow tunes have shown up in movies and other entertainment vehicles.          

"...Rocket..." debuted at #2 in the UK and has had a modicum of chart success here.  Do yourself a favor if you're a fan of any of the aforementioned bands and give Elbow a listen...at least three times. 

Ansley Lister "Tower Sessions"

My music accomplice Bob set me up with this guy by introducing him to me through a YouTube video of a live performance of "Purple Rain".  So my first experience is a Prince cover.  Not just any Prince song, but the iconic power ballad with blistering guitar.  Have to admit that the live version was going quite well until the guitar solo.  Here, Lister dials it back, opting for a quiet, restrained solo.  For my ear, it doesn't work.  The studio cover is contained on "Tower Sessions", and it's the same technique.  So you may guess that I wasn't expecting much when I started spin #1 for this CD. 

Well then BAM!  Here's a live take of the opening track.  Kiss my Stevie Ray Vaughan!  And that's sober SRV, when he added Reese Wynans' organ to the trio.  The rhythm section here conjures up memories of Double Trouble, but I really like how the organ is right up front in the mix.  That fits because Lister isn't anywhere near SRV in either axe-slingin' or singing.  The strength of this record lies in the foundation of these songs and the overall group delivery.  A keeper from start to finish.

But who the hell is this guy?  Turns out he's British and has close to ten records on his resume.  Not all are available stateside, but enough are, so why haven't I heard of him before?  Upon further digging, I found that this record was recorded at the end of his last tour, and that the tracks contained were favorites from the shows, so they've been out on earlier albums.  The difference is the addition of the organ to the tour and record.  So maybe that's why I don't recognize the guy, because without the keys, I would have blown it off as lame. 

If you're a fan of British blues rock, then grab "Tower Sessions".  I pulled up Amazon just to see what was available and the list of names under the "Customers also bought" is impressive; Joe Bonamassa, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Walter Trout, Gov't Mule, Buddy Guy...  So how's that for a RIYL? 

Joan as Police Woman "The Deep Field"

 

Caught wind of this girl a few years ago but never found my way into a listen.  Saw this released in January and decided to give it a try in my latest batch of purchased tunes (nine albums, so please be patient with me, I'll get to them eventually).  Well, I really liked the way the record started.  The first two tracks were excellent.  Here is one of them.  The next three tracks were OK, with plenty of things to like but not enough to compare with the openers.  After that, however, was half a record of boring. 

Immediate comparisons were to Imogene Heap, that cerebral headphone studio art that is impressive sober, but benefits greatly from a dimly lit room and a buzz on.  Maybe that's what I was missing from "The Deep Field", the necessary altered state.  Since that's not an option much anymore, I guess I just didn't get it.  The album is fairly lengthy, so after the great start it gets to the "hurry up and finish" stage.  I actually kept a couple of additional tracks with the two openers, recognizing the chance that they will be better in a one-track style and not as a whole album.  Don't get me wrong, this is my type of record with the eclectic perfectionism I've come to enjoy over the years.  Plenty of Hammond B-3 and Wurlitzer organs, strings, horns, and even an autoharp to go along with the standard rock band instrumentation.  I think it's the foundation of it all that throws me, a unique interpretation of classic, old-school R&B. 

While conducting a little research on Ms. Wasser, I found that I already had her in my collection with the band the Dambuilders, a 90's band from New England that featured Joan's impressive violin work.  Actually, that instrument has been her moneymaker over the years as a session hire, for example, lending her talents last year to the recordings of the Scissor Sisters, Lloyd Cole, and David Sylvian.  Not bad, huh?  Her other claim of notoriety was her relationship to Jeff Buckley at the time of his demise in Memphis nearly fourteen years ago.  It doesn't appear that she's over him yet.