Archive for February, 2011

Vinyl

Matthew Shipp – Art of the Improviser (2011)

by Mark Saleski The music of jazz composer/pianist Matthew Shipp isn’t fairly described as “avant garde,” mostly because to a great many people, that categorization can be read as “I don’t understand this music, can we please leave now?” This wouldn’t be fair to Shipp because over the course ofRead More

Vinyl

Delfeayo Marsalis – Sweet Thunder (2011)

Delfeayo Marsalis doesn’t just rediscover Duke Ellington. He reanimates Ellington as a living breathing thing, a collaborative voice.

Vinyl

Must Hear TV: Prime-time themes that still … rock!

by Something Else Reviews There are TV themes you remember. “All In The Family,” with its way-back talk of President Hoover and LaSalle cars. Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams cooing together, “What would we do, baby, without us?” Bars where everybody knows your name. Fat Albert and the Junkyard Band’sRead More

Vinyl

Gutbucket – Flock (2011)

photo: Natascha Rockwin by S. Victor Aaron According to Wikipedia, a gutbucket is “a stringed instrument used in American folk music that uses a metal washtub as a resonator.” There is even a “gutbucket blues” style of music that was played by those jug bands of long ago. And soRead More

Vinyl

Forgotten series: Nat ‘King" Cole – Welcome to the Club (1959)

The King has been dead for nearly a half century. Not that you’d know it with all the reissues, television specials and creepy rip offs from Nat Cole’s daughter over the last pair of decades. He’s funny that way. Cole has had more output over that period than many livingRead More

Vinyl

Radiohead – The King Of Limbs (2011)

Photo from NME.com by Tom Johnson Just a week ago, we were expecting nothing more than the usual – just distant wondering of when there might be a new Radiohead. It had to be coming soon, right? It’s been more than three years since they surprised us with In RainbowsRead More

Vinyl

Dr. John + the Meters – ‘Desitively Bonnaroo’ (1974)

Even today, there’s still no roadmap for Dr. John and the Meters’ crazy-eyed co-mingling of R&B, jazz, island beats, blues, boogie funk and hoodoo.

Vinyl

Todd Rundgren sets tour dates, will perform two complete albums

Photo from Todd Rundgren’s MySpace page by Something Else Reviews Todd Rundgren has announced five spring concerts, during which he will perform a pair of albums in their entirety, Todd and Healing. The first-ever live stagings of these two releases, held in September of last year, found Rundgren on stageRead More

Vinyl

The Friday Morning Listen: Justin Bieber – My World 2.0 (2010)

Photo by Sandrine Lee by Mark Saleski HA! Made ya look!! Wait, you’re thinking…that’s not Justin Bieber…it’s Esperanza Spalding! Yeah, I just couldn’t resist a little GrammySmugness2011™ … except that I’m really listening to Pizzicato Five! I’ve been thinking about this year’s Grammy awards. Specifically, the “shock” of jazz bassRead More

Vinyl

Something Else! Reviews on the 2011 Blues Hall of Fame honorees

by Something Else! Reviews Robert Cray tops this year’s class of inductees into the Blues Hall of Fame. He’s joined by acoustic bluesman John Hammond; soul-blues belter Denise LaSalle, 1950s singing star Big Maybelle, and singer/songwriters Alberta Hunter and J.B. Lenoir. Also to be recognized: Vivian Carter and Jimmy BrackenRead More