dave matthews band-cd review big whiskey & the grookrux king

Hands down the most intelligent rock/pop recording of the last 2 or 3 years.

Why you ask???..Simple folks..Matthews and band do not cater, dumb down nor really care what you think..Debuting at No 1 in over 20 countries is cool, but DMB work from the head and heart in such a way that the American Idols of the world  will never understand.

FUNNY THE WAY IT IS..is a monster first single. However that track is possibly trumped by the pure funky pop of Why I Am, the horn driven Shake Me Like A Monkey, and the atmospheric beauty of Lying in The Hands of God.

Elsewhere the new gift here is electric guitars. It’s already been stated in other reviews..

But hell IT’S ABOUT TIME !!! 

For me personally aggressvie, meaty guitars was the misssing link with DMB. Check them out on tracks like Squirm, Time Bomb, Shake Me Like a Monkey and flashes throughout the disc.

DMB sax man Leroi Moore a founding member of DMB died in an accident with the making of this the group’s seventh album. It may sound like a cliche but Moore must be happy considering his bandmates are carrying on being one of the more intelligent bands on the planet.  john e

shaftmen new cd..de keyzer produces..paycheque blues..

THE FANS HAVE THEIR SAY

HEARD IT ON CBC..POINTS NORTH and  BOUGHT IT..hell it rocks..

I bought it at your show..then ..put it on at our barebecue……”EVERYONE..just loved it..they said wow who are these guys? 

BLUES SCHOOL I heard it on Saturday Night Blues.WITH HOLGER PETERSON….just rips–you guys mention all of my fave blues heroes ..thank you

25 TONS..I drive big rigs..up north…the lyrics are so true on that  song..GREAT SONG

“my wife and I love your cover of JIMMY REED’S Bright Lights Big City

we are big fans of JACK DE KEYZER..and now you guys,..he did a great job….producing you guys…..wow

NORTH WIND BLUES..when I hear that track I think of Rory Galallgher..he would have loved that slow blues

pete yorn/new..cd review/back and fourth

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THIS ALBUM  has it’s place for me this summer. Yet, SUMMER albums for me  are not what they used to be.  Sure, I will get back into my Blue Rodeo laments.  I’ll  tap the Van Morrison into the six pack cd changer, and last week I took Yorn’s latest for a spin. 

Maybe I’m too busy , maybe I want to dig deeper into heartbreak. Maybe it’s easier to sing the blues

Maybe as Yorn sings in Paradise Cove ” I got what I wanted and It’s never enough, And that could be bad for us both” Yeah that’s the one for me.

Relationships are at the heart of this record.  On the track Close and the more uptempo Last Summer Yorn yearns for the newness of an old relationship. but so do we all.

Listen this is not a rock record. In fact it simmers, but there is plenty of passion. Long Time Nothing New is the prime example.  It’s the good downer stuff. Plenty of imagery swashes and drifts.

Just let your mind take over on a long drive.

Heck, if your really thinking about the one that got away Don’t Wanna Cry will take you out to that sea of heartbreak.

Look it’s like this.  “Same old town, Loose ends surround me, Always drags you down”..That’s Yorn talking baby, but he’s in the ballpark

john e

duke robillard/review..stomp the blues tonight

Let’s face it Robillard has forgot more about blues music than most younger musicians currently know. That’s a stone cold fact.

As a throwback to his days with ROOMFUL OF BLUES, this disc proves to be very worthy.

With the  updated engineering of today coupled with Duke’s killer feel you might think you’re in some smoky club mid fifties but with the perfect seat, and nice clean ambience to boot. I’m talkin’  smack dab in your living room folks!!

The  material is mostly from the 1940’s and 50’s, and with the players all of Robillard alumni, the actual recording comes off as musicians totally in sync with the project.

In short they all love this stuff! That’s the trick folks.

Johnny Watson’s 3 Hours Past Midnight is a prime example of  how good the band and cd sounds. Nothing is forced and Duke whips off one of those ringing pure vibrato single note type solos, that are so good it makes you smile from ear to ear.

Elsewhere the horns play charts that anchor up the  melodies of Baby You Don’t Know and Do Me Right, and simply swing like hell on the title track written by Robillard 

I ’m not in love with all 16 tracks for one reason only.

If Duke had cut this cd back to 10 or 12 songs it would have been more  like an old vinyl album experience.

Other highlights are Look But Don’t Touch with Sunny Crownover,   the Ike Turner jump of Tore Up and the much recorded Early In the Morning, done here with real class.

Standout chops throughout the disc from drummer Mark Teixeira, sax guru Doug James, basssit Marty Ballou and Bruce Bears on piano.

You can’t fake this stuf baby, and that’s what makes this disc so vital.