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| What's
on Disc by Thomas Schulte |
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GOLDEN
THROATS
Dinah
Washington and Ella Fitzgerald are often corned by history
into separate and narrow confines of "pop music" and "jazz vocals."
Actually, each was a queen of songs at a time when blues, jazz and
R&B intersected in an advanced popular art form. The music of each
is celebrated in separate, 3-CD sets from Golden Stars, a Portuguese
label distributed in America by Qualiton. On The Diff'rence
is Dinah, we here Dinah's pop songs, like "What A
Difference A Day Makes" along with swinging R&B numbers like "Ain't
Misbehavin'" and such blues numbers as "Me and My Gin." It was "A-Tisket,
A-Tasket" that brought Ella to a wide audience in 1998. That is
on First Lady of Song, along with its follow-up
"I Found My Yellow Basket" and other such pop-jazz songs in a big
band setting. The collection also includes examples of here inimitable
scat singing. |
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SINGER-SONGWRITERS
Discs
from several talented singer-songwriters came my way this month.
There are four I do not want to go without mentioning.
 Barbara
Kessler has a way of putting songs together that reminds me
of Jonatha Brooke. Her simple, unadorned style comes across bright
and distinct in the basic arrangements. Barbara Kessler
( Artist Development Associates, 47 Mellen St., Framingham, MA 01702;
http://www.barbarakessler.com
) is the first album in four years from the Boston's Kessler. Part
AAA, part neo-folk. Her contemporary sound and gift for a personal
delivery and understated melodies make this an excellent disc. |
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Theresa
Sareo goes for a larger sound on Embrace ( Rocking
Chair Records, 222 E. 35th St., No. 1G, NYC, NY 10016; http://www.theresasareo.allhere.com
). Programmed strings and background vocals added by Sareo in the
studio fill out the songs. Her singing style (I can imagine her
doing a version of "To Sir With Love") and arrangements give a '70's
and '80's feel to her music. Not that this is a bad thing. She does
it very well and coming across today, it sounds classic.
On her Monroe album, J.C. Sone goes for a stark,
dark sound. This is available on her Left Over Records ( http://www.jcsone.homepage.com
). Haunting and varied, her album runs the gamut from bare, strumming
guitar and multi-tracked vocals to a proto-industrial siren call
with electronic accompaniment. Sone wrote and produced the album
as well as playing all instrumentation.
Chris McCall offers an EP titled The Real You
( http://www.mp3.com/chrismccall
). A bit funky, this album includes some background vocals and saxophone.
With some programmed drums, this is much wider, more forward-looking
sound than that of her previous bands, rockers Jugglers and Thieves
post-folk ensemble Thunderharp Choir. Still, some of each is in
hear, along with a definite dash of Detroit rock-n-soul. All this
makes out for a superlative album from an experienced, expansive
and talented vocalist. |
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| NOVEMBER
2000 REVIEWS >>>>>>>>>> |
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Blonde
Redhead
Melodie Citronique
Touch and Go
POB 25520, Chicago, IL 60625
Blonde
Redhead is a post-modern trio of a Japanese, Italian and American.
The five songs on this CD are sung in either French or Italian.
For this release, they use material from Melody of Certain Damaged
Lemons with one new song and their first yet recorded cover.
For their first interpretation, they chose Serge Gainsbough's "Slogan"
(previously available on a Touch and Go 7"). While this may sound
like an ad hoc assembly, this is a project that group personally
wanted to see happen for some time. The union as a one continuous
listening experience of the French and Italian material works exquisitely.
More song-oriented and less avant-garde than the typical Blonde
Redhead release, this is their most accessible and unpretentious
recording. (4.5) |
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Ann
Rabson
Struttin' My Stuff
M.C. Records
POB 1788, Huntington Station, NY 1746
http://www.mc-records.com
 Three
years after leaving Saffire, this is Rabson's first solo effort.
For seven tracks she tears it up on vocals and honky-tonk piano.
Three pieces feature Rabson on acoustic guitar and vocals. On the
balance of the 16 cuts she plays electric guitar or piano in a band
setting. From bold boogie to blues ball, "Struttin' My Stuff" exhibits
the length and breadth of Rabson's potent blues expression. Besides
writing her own material here, Rabson also performs excellent covers
by Eddie Bo ("Check Mr. Popeye"), Brownie McGhee ("Sportin' Life
Blues") and more. (4) |
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Diana
Darby
Naked Time
E-Squared/Delmore
Recording Society
POB 50744, Nashville, TN 37205
http://www.delmorerecordings.com
http://www.dianadarby.com
 Naked
Time is the dark debut album for Diana Darby. Diana has been
writing disturbing poetry since she was 5. After an ill-fated attempt
at sit-com television writing, she went to Nashville to be a songwriter.
Vivid, if sad, sketches, Darby's songs haunt the listener. This
bleakness is in the starkness of the situation described, not the
music that describes it. Diana employs a full complement of instrumentation;
various acoustic and electric guitarists, cello, chimes and more.
Admittedly influenced by Steve Earle, there is a country streak
in this Houston-born woman like an abandoned stretch of rural road
along the moonlit kudzu. (3.5) |
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Nikki
& The Corvettes
Nikki & The Corvettes
Bomp!
Records
POB 7112, Burbank, CA 91510
http://www.bomp.com/
 They
had a sound between The Romantics and The Ramones with a dose of
the Shangri Las. Led by a "new wave Betty Boop," to quote one review,
this power group offered sounds and sex appeal. Combining those
undeniable elements of energy, enthusiasm and amateurish rock, the
Nikki & The Corvettes recordings presented here are fun, bubble
gum rock classics. This is the original album, on CD twenty years
after is originally came out. Four bonus tracks come from the 1977
single "Young & Crazy" and the 1981 single "I Gotta Move." Very
few heard the '77 single, because only one thousand copies were
originally pressed. Together, this shows us where the group came
from and where they were headed. (4) |
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The
Danubians
The Danubians
Cuneiform
Records
POB 8427, Silver Spring, MD 20907
The Danubians created this document of jazz and experimental rock
live in Italy and Hungary during a 1999 tour. The progressive multi-national
(largely European) ensemble blends Old World folk roots with cutting
edge jazz expression. The keystone here is Amy Denio of Seattle,
Washington. In the contemporary avant-garde movement, she is known
for her skills instrumentally and vocally. Besides singing, she
also performs here on accordion, sax, bass and guitar. (3.5) |
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Sarah
Harmer
You Were Here
Rounder/Zoë
 Taking
a break from being the lead singer and songwriter of Weeping Tile,
Ontario singer-songwriter Sarah Harmer found time to release this
strong folk-pop album. Rootsy, rocking and reeling with hooks this
is an excellent neo-folk opus. The tough guitars and punchy poetry
on You Were Here make this accessible to No Depression/alt-country
fans, as well. (4) |
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Snog
Relax Into The Abyss
Metropolis
POB 54307, Philadelphia, PA 19105
http://www.webweaver.com.au/imcc/
 Snog
is an Australian project, the result of DJ David Thrussell's efforts.
After forming in 1988, Thrussell used his group through the early
'90's as a vehicle for electronic dance music fueled by '70's funk.
The latter half of the decade saw him producing a hard techno sound,
always with an overt, anti-capitalist message. Such a message and
sound is heard in "Real Estate Man" on "Snog." Some of the funk
shows up on "The Last Diamond," but largely this is an amalgamation
of Thrussell's influences and successful sonic alchemy. Trippy,
weird Snog is freakish adventure in post-techno, post-psychedelic
sounds. Thrussell leaves the genres behind as he throws monkey wrenches
into the machine. (3.5) |
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Erin
McKeown
Distillation
Signature
Sounds Recordings
http://www.signature-sounds.com
http://www.erinmckeown.com
 Distillation
is an excellent name for this album. Rather than being of derivative
of roots music, bluegrass, country blues and folk, Eric distills
these genres. She melted down these styles, incorporated the spirit
of them, and came up with her own voice. All but one track here
is original. They reach back into remote, rustic regions for sounds
and ideas. Erin is a mirror that reflects it all in new form. The
Virginia native comes up with a sound that is part gypsy jazz, part
blues, part folk-pop. The one cover is an excellent rendition of
a Tin Pin Alley classic, "Mustn't Kick It Around." (4.5) |
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Mariana
Montalvo
Cantos Del Alma
Putumayo
 Like
Susana Baca or Mercedes Sosa, Montalvo is captivating voice in contemporary
Latin American music. Her music exhibits strong ties to the folk
traditions of her native Chile. These "Songs of the Soul," as the
album title translates, are rich, warm pieces with lively background
vocals and Latin percussion. While this her debut album, she is
not new to music. She was previously a member of Los Machucambos
and toured Europe winning fans for the groups South American interpretations.
She is still succeeding at finding exciting ways to recreate the
traditional music of her homeland. It is important to have the right
tools for the job and the varied instrumentation on this album includes
the South American charango guitar, the Andean pipes known
as quena and brass. (4) |
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Satoko
Fujii
Toward, "To West"
Enja
http://www.enjarecords.com/
 Satoko
Fujii is know for her challenging, improvisation orchestra and smaller
ensembles that rival the Orchestra for the size of their sound.
On Toward, "To West" Satoko presents a more reflective, tranquil
side, especially on the 32-minute title track. This classically
trained free-jazz pianist has a vocabulary that allows her to express
herself in the dynamism of Cecil Taylor and the serenity of Abdullah
Ibrahim. Compared to the Sextet and her Orchestras, these trio recordings
allow us to indulge ourselves in every bit of her amazing playing.
This, more relaxed material, allows the listener to get closer to
Fujii than on any previous record. (4.5) |
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Emmylou
Harris
Red Dirt Girl
Wea/Atlantic/Nonesuch
 The
world knows Emmylou Harris for her ability to do a song beautifully.
Her Nonesuch debut finds her summoning latent powers of song creation.
She wrote all but one of the dozen songs here. There is true poetry
here in the lyrics to such pieces as the dream-inspired "Michelangelo"
and the redemptive album opener "The Pearl." Along with this we
still have her expressive, compelling vocals. While Emmylou Harris
definitely has a county-music background that is apparent here,
her post-folk, adult alternative arrangements are very much in the
realm of popular music. On hand to help her are several guest vocalists:
Dave Matthews, Bruce Springsteen, Patti Scialfa and Patty Griffin.
(4) |
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_________________________________
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DID
YOU MISS ANY OF TOM SCHULTE'S REVIEWS?
BACK ISSUES:
1999
| JULY | AUGUST
| SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
| NOVEMBER | DECEMBER
|
2000
| JANUARY | FEBRUARY
| MARCH | APRIL
|
MAY | JUNE
|
2000 |
JULY | AUGUST
| SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
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_________________________________
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Outsight
brings to light non-mainstream music, film, books, art, ideas and
opinions.
Published, somewhere, monthly since July 1991. Feel free to re-print
this article.
Ratings are (1) = :(, (5) = :)
"Don't be normal, be natural!"
Visit or Join Outsight's Web ring: http://d.webring.com/hub?ring=music1432
Outsight Radio Hours Webcasts
Sundays 6pm-8pm EST @
http://www.outsight.mu
NEW MAILING ADDRESS:
Tom 'Tearaway' Schulte,
5224 Shoreline Blvd.,
Waterford, MI 48329-1670
E-mail Outsight at: outsight@usa.net
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_________________________________
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Current
reading list:
"Don't Sweat the Small Stuff (At Work)" (Carlson)
"Peyton Place"
"What Will Be" (Michael Dertouzos)
"Dadaist manifestoes and Lampistries"
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