entry two / 11/21/2006

Good evening, folks. Behold! Another look at just some of the music your old pal Brian's been into as of late.

Maestro! You know what to do...

Bob Seger ~ Face The Promise (2006; EMI Music Canada)

Seger's first album since It's A Mystery (1995); his first solo effort -- sans Silver Bullet Band -- since Beautiful Loser (1975). A real return to form. Includes duets with Kid Rock ("Real Mean Bottle") and Patty Loveless ("The Answer's In The Question"). The title track will have you doing 100 mph down the highway if you listen to it in the car.

George Thorogood and The Destroyers ~ The Hard Stuff (2006; EMI Music Canada)

Thorogood's still rockin' his life away with The Hard Stuff, an excellent follow-up to Ride 'Til I Die (2003). Highlights have the Delaware Destroyers hammering through Fats Domino's "Hello Josephine" and John Lee Hooker's "Huckle Up Baby," as well as George's own "Hard Stuff," "Rock Party" and "Any Town USA." There's also a great version of Bob Dylan's "Drifter's Escape" (which is slightly similar in tone and tempo to "Oklahoma Sweetheart" from 1991's Boogie People -- a personal favorite). Now at age 56, George is showing no signs of slowing down.

J.J. Cale ~ To Tulsa And Back (2004; Sanctuary Records)

Cale's first studio outing in 8 years is another great set filled with the man's trademark sound. Like his earlier '90's albums Travel-Log and Guitar Man, here Cale uses some technically smooth instrumental effects which juxtapose nicely with his murky lyrics and gruff, laid-back singing voice. Favorite tracks for me include "My Gal," "New Lover," "Fancy Dancer," "I Step," and an absolute highway necessity, "Moto Mouth."

J.J. Cale & Eric Clapton ~ The Road To Escondido (2006; Reprise/WEA)

Finally! Clapton & Cale together on one album! (It's well-known that two of Clapton's biggest hits -- "Cocaine" and "After Midnight" -- were written and originally performed by Cale; their inevitable team-up has been a long time coming. ) This is signature stuff, with the guys grooving out on J.J.'s unique brand of laid-back country blues. The jumpin' "Dead End Road," "When The War Is Over," "It's Easy" and "Ride The River" are all excellent. Also features great new versions of "Anyway The Wind Blows" and "Don't Cry Sister."

Various Artists ~ Eric Clapton Crossroads Guitar Festival (DVD, 2004; Warner Strategic Marketing) 6

A birthday present from Nikki! Thanks, sweetie. :)


Held at The Cotton Bowl in Dallas TX in June of 2004, the Crossroads Festival showcases an incredible line-up of guitarists and musicians. Besides Clapton, there are appearances by Robert Cray, Jimmie Vaughan, Buddy Guy, B.B. King, Dan Tyminski & Ron Block, James Taylor, Joe Walsh, J.J. Cale, Carlos Santana, John Mayer, Jonny Lang, David Hidalgo, Steve Vai, Eric Johnson, ZZ Top and many others.

Clapton's thoughts on the Festival, from the booklet included with the DVD: "The Crossroads Guitar Festival started with a list of players I admire, musicians whose work on the guitar has inspired legions of others to follow the same path. My wish list grew into a three-day event as responses came back with resounding affirmation. The time had come for such an event. The musical history of Dallas, Texas, and my personal relationship with the city made it a natural fit for this get-together. On June 4 2004, the artists showed up, instruments in hand and ready to plug in, making a weekend of unforgettable performances...a celebration of music and life."

Royalties from the sale of the 2-DVD set benefit the Crossroads Centre in Antigua. Founded in 1998 by Eric after his own legendary struggles with drugs and alcohol, the Crossroads Centre is a unique, world-class addiction treatment facility located on the island of Antigua in the West Indies, within the tranquil Caribbean Sea. Clapton chose the location because "Antigua has always been a special refuge...a safe place, a serene place where one can begin the process of healing from even the most devastating life situation.

"The cause is a simple one. It's for people like me who used to drink and don't want to drink anymore. A lot of my heroes didn't have that option: Leroy Carr died drunk, Big Maceo died drunk, and maybe they wouldn't have today, if the kind of help I had was available to them."

www.crossroadsantigua.com // www.ericclapton.com

Bob Dylan ~ Modern Times (2006; Sony)

Following 1997's Grammy-winning Time Out Of Mind and 2001's Love and Theft, Dylan's latest caps a three-record streak that ranks among the best of his mythic 44-album career. The album contains a number of lengthy, down-tempo ballads, however its most rollicking tunes include the opener "Thunder On The Mountain;" the mellow and bluesy "Someday Baby" (which rolls along with an infectious John Lee Hooker "Boom Boom"-style groove); and "Rollin' and Tumblin,'" a great version of the 1950 Muddy Waters classic (with alternate lyrics by Bob). To quote a review in Rolling Stone, "There is no precedent for the territory Dylan is now exploring with albums that stand alongside the accomplishments of his wild youth."

John Gorka ~ Writing In The Margins (2006, Red House Records)

Gorka's tenth album, and his fourth for Red House. I've been a fan of 'The Gork' since I saw the video for his song "Good Noise" on CMT back in '94. Since then I've bought all his albums by either mail-order or as they're released. (I recall stumbling across the out-of-print - and usually hard to find - Temporary Road in a used bin at a CD Exchange a little while back...score!). John's voice is a rich baritone, and his lyrics are consistently clever.

Margins includes rare instances of Gorka performing tunes written by others - the ballads "Snow Don't Fall" by Townes Van Zandt, and "The Lockkeeper" by Stan Rogers. (John is a definite Rogers fan; "That's How Legends Are Made," from 1990's Land Of The Bottom Line, was apparently written with Stan in mind).

The Proclaimers ~ Born Innocent (2003; Persevere Records)

Craig and Charlie Reid put Born Innocent together in 2003 and cranked out a great follow-up to their 'comeback album,' Persevere (2001). From allmusic.com: 'If Persevere proved in both name and sound just how determined they were to keep making music after their unfair categorization as one-hit wonders, Born Innocent establishes The Proclaimers as an album-oriented act dedicated to endurance and stylistic growth.'

I prefer this record over their latest, Restless Soul (2005). I like Persevere better than this one, and my favorite Proclaimers album is still Hit The Highway (1994). There are a number of great songs in the familiar Proclaimers mold here though, such as "Born Innocent," "Hate My Love," "Role Model" and "Dear Deirdre." The album also features a couple of bonus live tracks.

The Flaming Lips ~ At War With The Mystics (2005; Warner Bros.)

The third Lips album I've gotten into, after The Soft Bulletin (1999) and Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots (2001). Another trippy experiment by Wayne Coyne and co.; choice tracks for me include "The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song," "It Overtakes Me," "Mr. Ambulance Driver" and "Haven't Got A Clue."

Various Artists ~ The Rocky Horror Punk Rock Show (2003; Springman Records)

Downloaded with BitComet during a search for Halloween music for the Ghostly Schoolhouse bash (see previous post). Most of it's pretty much crap (stick with the original soundtrack), but there are some half-way decent covers by the likes of Apocalypse Hoboken, The Migraines, The Chubbies and Me First and The Gimmie Gimmies.

"A painter paints a picture on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence." - Leopold Stokowski

((( W Rock on! X )))
Brian / 11/21/2006