Joe Bonamassa "Black Rock"

OK, I'm going to get this out of the way so I can get into my
brief Bonnaroo experience in a couple of days. I had high expectations for this record as you can tell from the other two posts about JB. Sadly, it was more like the old JB records than the newer two, just barely making my grade for a keeper. Black Rock has 13 tracks, of which 7 were good, the other filler in my book. So just over 50% was good enough for me to keep the whole album, based on his most recent work. It is certainly his best selling record to date, and I'm happy for him, but my recommendation, JB if you are reading this, is to trust your own songwriting capability and do a complete record of your own compositions, not 50/50 with covers. In fact, I think I'll go back over these last two records and track a set list of the JB originals. That, my friends, will be a great album.

Oh, and the anticipation factor is still up for the next release, which is set to feature Glenn Hughes, the rock and roll legend from Trapeze and Deep Purple who Stevie Wonder once claimed was his favorite white singer, and Jason Bonham, timekeeper of many a legendary name. The group will be called Black Country and I believe will tour late this year. I don't see how this could be a letdown...

Road Trip

On the recent trip to Tennessee, I grabbed a case of CDs which was filled about the year 1991, so everything included was approximately twenty years or older. So essentially I-75 became Memory Lane, so to speak. Besides the obvious Mad Rocker pleasers, ie. Crowded House, the Cult, Pat Travers, the first Widespread Panic, Cold Chisel and a solo record by Chisel's guitarist, Ian Moss, I stumbled across a couple of records that some of you may spit your beer out as you read the name, and others of you may want to investigate. So here goes...



The Bogeymen was on Delicious Vinyl, better known for rap and R&B records than rock. Featured 2 ex Masters of Reality members and also sounded like Cream or Budgie. Believe it or not, you can still buy this record for $9. Great cover, too.


House of Freaks was a band from Virginia who moved to LA for a major label and promptly farted out. A two-member band waayyy ahead of that current trend, they eventually became Gutterball, which some of you may recall.


Starz was formed by the Looking Glass rhythm section (Brandy, You're a Fine Girl) and became one of the 70's most unlikely and under-appreciated arena rock bands of the decade. They opened for Aerosmith"Rocks" tour in 1976 and I was hooked. Also toured with Ted Nugent and Rush to name a couple of others. Far better than Kiss and real close to being as good as Sweet. Later cited by Cinderella and Bon Jovi as influences.



Material Issue out of Chicago area, I believe. Just look at this promo disc and check out the covers, the Boxer by Simon & Garfunkel, the Cowboy Song by the great Thin Lizzy, and Blockbuster by the aforementioned legendary Sweet! And their own music was a cross between Cheap Trick and Split Enz, so I don't understand how they flew by unnoticed. Bugged the principal songwriter, too, as he committed suicide a few years later.

Stone Temple Pilots Deluxe Edition

STOP! Save your money. Don't buy into the hype...
This record is a turd. Well, that's not fair, it's OK if you want the same ol' shatola. I guess I expected too much from this release. I had all the respect in the world for this band until now. STP's first three records in the 90's were outstanding, but this is a prime example of major music label crap. Recycle, repeat, regurgitate, just to make big money for all the top heavy executives. I may have raised an eyebrow on two or three tracks, but it took a live version of "Vasoline" from 1994's "Purple" for me to smile. Might as well go back and listen to the early stuff. I have "Tiny Music" lined up for the road trip to Bonneroo...

Portugal. The Man "American Ghetto"

If you go all the way back to the beginning of this blog, you will find this band on my list of best releases of 2008. Little did I know that it was their third album. The media covering the Alaskan connection to Sarah Palin put them on my map. Without that coverage, I missed an album last year, and I'll have to get it to trace the evolution of the band's sound to this one. "Am. Ghetto" is a much more produced product than '08's "Censored Colors," and if you know the Ol' Mad Rocker, that can be a good thing. This record has a funky, groovy, slinky feel to it, like some of the best
80's danceable new wave. The guy has a higher register vocal and at times I thought it was a female, so much so I had to scan the credits more than once. This is good eclectic, intelligent pop music, along the lines of the Scissor Sisters but without all the glam. And it's too damn short at 36+ minutes...

John Hiatt "The Open Road"

Back in the early 80's a good friend of mine kept praising the
talents of this guy but I just didn't get it. Some ten years passed before I caught on to what he meant. "Perfectly Good Guitar" was the record that broke my barrier, and I even went back and got the three previous albums. Also got to see him live in New Orleans when he was in the "supergroup" Little Village (go ahead, look it up, I'll wait)...
He writes good pop/country/rock songs, swaying from style to style. He's had more success from others doing his work, i.e. Jeff Healy "Angel Eyes" for one example. "Open Road" has a decidedly country bent to it, so if you're a fan of the genre, you owe yourself a listen to one of the great songwriters of the last 35 years.

Chuck Prophet "Live at the Starry Plough"

I found out he was here one day after the show in Orlando at Will's and I was sorely upset. This is from the same tour and I bet I would have enjoyed this recording more if I had made the concert. Don't get me wrong, this is a fine performance, but I'll stick to my studio recordings. As I said, if I had been there...
What I did find was a New Year's Eve 2008 clip of a song at the same small Irish pub this record comes from. It's a place close to his home that he must have played a hundred times. Damn, now that's a house band! Fans of TP & the Heartbreakers should enjoy... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkfdeIZnOKU

Angus & Julia Stone "Down the Way"

This is the type of record I like to find when I go off scouring the international charts. This little gem was found on the Australian-Only chart. This is a brother/sister pairing performing mostly simple, acoustic songs with an occasional faux string passage or three. They trade off lead vocals and subtly back each other up . She has a light, breathy voice, possibly influenced by Kasey Chambers, and a bit of a sssssssssst in some of her endings. His songs come off like a Ray LaMontagne, but one track hinted at the Waterboys. I had originally categorized this album as Aussie Outback country, but let's call it Australiana. They are scheduled for Bonneroo on Saturday, but they are going up against Weezer, Jeff Beck, and John Prine. If I actually get to go this year, I'll be at the Cafe Where? Stage listening to the Stones...

What is it?

I just watched a replay of the Lady Gaga song from "American Idol"......
First of all, I would have been pissed to have to sit there for 90 minutes while she worked out the kinks of the performance. Of course, I wouldn't have been in the audience anyway... I don't watch the drivel on TV, either. But this girl/guy/whatever has patterned her/his/it self after a very successful group of stars. To me, she is a Madonna/Cher/Aguilera compilation that obviously works for a lot of people. But out of those three multi-platinum female artistes, the Rocker vaults has one record out of the bunch. So I'm not a fan, but it's difficult to not watch the train wreck.