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Many Fantastic Colors

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Lou Rawls had one of the greatest voices in late 20th century popular music. When he was here five years ago to tape a WHRO-produced PBS special with Petula Clark at Chrysler Hall, he still had the goods---the distinctive smoky-smooth baritone voice that graced hits like "Love is a Hurtin' Thing" and "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine," and gave those Garfield specials a touch of class, was in fine shape.

Three years later, though, he was diagnosed with lung cancer (he had smoked in his younger days) and last spring, brain cancer. When he died on January 6th at the age of 70 (or 72; his year of birth is listed differently in different places), he left behind a rich legacy of jazz, soul, blues, gospel and R&B deserving of rediscovery by those who may only know the hits, the beer commercials and the cat cartoons.


His passing was particularly poignant to me because I've been reading a fascinating new biography of Sam Cooke called Dream Boogie, by Peter Guralnick, in which Rawls plays a prominent role. I didn't know that Cooke and Rawls had been close friends growing up in Chicago, and that Lou actually took Sam's place in the teenage gospel group, the Highway QCs, after Cooke left to join the Soul Stirrers in 1950. They remained friends, surviving an automobile accident together near Marion, Arkansas, while traveling between gigs in St. Louis and Greenville, Mississippi, in November 1958. Though Cooke had only minor injuries, the driver was killed and Rawls was left in a coma that lasted a week. It took him three months to regain his memory and a year to fully recover.


In 1962, he began recording as a soloist in his own right. He'd been doing background vocals on his friend's records---his is the voice heard in duet with Cooke on "Bring it on Home to Me," both in harmony and in the "yeah - yeah" call and response sections of the refrain. But late on a cold January night that year, he entered the Capitol Records studio in LA with pianist Les McCann's jazz trio and laid down the tracks for his first album.


Released as Stormy Monday, it is one of my favorite jazz vocal records of all time. Hearing Rawls in such a sparse, unadorned setting is a revelation as he wraps his golden voice around the familiar words of a batch of bluesy standards. From the swinging title track and "Sweet Lover" to the blustery "I'd Rather Drink Muddy Water" and the soft balladry of "Lost and Lookin'" and "Willow Weep for Me," he takes these well worn chestnuts and gives them new life. It's an impressive performance. His "God Bless the Child" is the definitive version of Billie Holiday's most famous song.


Lou Rawls would go on to become an award winning, chart topping singer during the golden era of `60s and `70s soul music. He would cover many musical bases during his 40-year solo career---his last CD was called Rawls Sings Sinatra. But for a full appreciation of his vocal magic in its prime, Stormy Monday is a must-have.


Personnel:
Ron Jefferson (drums)
Les McCann (piano)
Lou Rawls (vocals)
Leroy Vinnegar (bass)



Alternate frontcover

Tracklist:
01. (They Call It) Stormy Monday (Walker) 3.40
02. God Bless The Child (Holiday/Herzog Jr.) 4.25
03. See See Rider (Rainey) 3.08
04. Willow Weep For Me (Ronall) 5.50
05. I´m Gonna Move To The Outskirts Of Town ((Waldon/Jacobs) 3.55
06. In The Evening (When The Sun Goes Down) (Carr/Raye) 3.25
07. Tain´t Nobody Biz-Ness If I Do (Grainger/Robbins) 2.40
08. Lost And Lookin´(Jordan/Alexander) 3.07
09. I´d Rather Drink Muddy Water (Miller) 3.50
10. Sweet Lover (McFarland/Wyche) 3.05
+
11.
(They Call It) Stormy Monday (alternate take) (Walker) 2.59



ARMU 0017
Views: 2281 | Added by: Riffmaster | Date: 2011-07-14 | Comments (0)

Tony Joe was already 26 when he started recording, so perhaps that explains his style was already fully formed from the beginning onwards and that he had already written a bunch of material. He’d release 5 studio in four years and Tony Joe – his third and last album for Monument – was also a third effort in less than two years. With a pace like that, things didn’t change that strikingly: the recognizable swamp sound is still intact, even though there are perhaps a bit more acoustic songs, but the fact that four of the last five songs on the album were covers perhaps signalled that the pace was getting the best of him. Anyway, those who liked …Continued will dig Tony Joe as well. Overall the sound is perhaps a bit gruffer and there are not as many ballads, while there are several more similarities. Like the second album, Tony Joe starts off with a "primal” stomper, a soulful slice of folklore that’s pure grits and sweat. During songs like these, White sounds as if he’s from an unspecified era and a region where time stood still, modern times never really had much of an impact, and media are replaced by folk tales and a stronger bond between a man and his soil. His earliest albums all share this natural plainness and authenticity that never sounds contrived. Op top of that, White also knows how to tell a story, as "High Sheriff of Calhoun Parrish” and "Widow Wimberly” perfectly fit in some rural narrative tradition. Both songs are basically also the same merger of acoustic swamp-rock with some pop-flourishes (strings, basically), but it’s the lyrical details in the songs (the "voluptuousness” of the sheriff’s daughter in the former and the pitiable widow in the latter ("how do you still manage to smile?”) that make ‘em so nice to listen to. After these cuts, the album picks up the drive again, first with the driven "Groupy Girl,” a wonderful song that combines the tough and laidback side to White to great effect, and then with the less interesting drone "Conjure Woman,” which has a particularly flimsy chorus. I presume that the poppy "Save Your Sugar for Me” was the last song on the original
A-side, so that means the second half contained five songs, "Stockholm Blues” being the only self-penned track. It’s an excellent one – a convincingly raw, Delta blues that features nothing but acoustic guitar, harmonica and a foot stomping on the floor, so it’s not much of a surprise that it’s followed by a romp through John Lee Hooker’s "Boom Boom,” and a greasy as hell version at that. The way it starts, with White playing the distorted riff once and then asking the producer "Could you dig this, Swan?” always cracks me up. White isn’t particularly creative with it – it’s not that it wasn’t a repetitive dirge to begin with in the first place – but of course it sounds right at home on an album by this guy. The other covers are fine as well, though Otis Redding’s "Hard to Handle” is the only standout track, as the songs exactly requires the grittiness and pure soul that White possesses. Like I said, the others aren’t that great, but "What Does It Take” (later also covered by Santana), with that wailing harmonica, is the kind of stuff (a combination of pop, soul, schmalz and country) that would’ve fit perfectly on, say, the soundtrack to Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. "My Friend,” finally, is the only real ballad here, a string-laden tearjerker featuring some moderately yelped vocals and some nice piano parts by David Briggs. Tony Joe doesn’t mark a stylistic shift from …Continued, as White probably still felt comfortable churning out muddy swamp drones, alternated with more pop-oriented stuff. He’d move on to a slightly different sound later on, but this is what he’s become most "famous” (well, only "Polk Salad Annie” cracked the charts I think) for. So, nothing really remarkable, certainly if you’re mainly intrigued by today’s self-conscious meta-music, but occasionally irresistible.

Produced by Tony Joe White and Billy Swan
ecorded at RCA Victor Studios, Nashville / Lyn-Lou Studios, Memphis 1970


Personnel:
David Briggs (keyboards)
Jerry Carrigan (drums)
Norbert Putman (bass)
Tony Joe White (guitar, vocals, harmonica)
+
Sammy Creason (drums on 04. + 05.)
Tommy McClure (bass on 04.)
Mike Utley (keyboards on 04. + 05.)

Tracklist:
01. Stud-Spider (White) 5.36
02. High Sherrif Of Calhoun Parrish
03. Widow Wimberly (White) 3.41
04. Conjure Woman (White) 3.59
05. Save Your Sugar For Me (White) 2.20
06. Groupy Girl (White) 3.04
07. Hard To Handle (Isbell/Jones/Redding) 2.52

08. What Does It Take (White) 3.40
09. My Friend (Fritts/Oldham) 3.09
10. Stockholm Blues (White) 3.27
11. Boom Boom (Hooker) 7.56

ARMU 0016

Views: 755 | Added by: Riffmaster | Date: 2011-07-13 | Comments (0)

Taken from the original liner-notes:

I remember this show quiet well. It was a very cold night and Leslie West pf Mountain opened the show which I did miss. I remembered that Johnny Winter played first, Alvin was the head liner this night. Folks this was 18 years ago.

My thoughts of this show was, that both guitarists played such excellent sets. That the only problem is they did not jam together. I´m not certain if they even met back stage. But that would have been of something to have two of the greatest guitarists jam together, when they were both in peak form.


Ok, no jam session, but real good handmade music .. enjoy it !
It´s not necessary to write which guitarplayer played on which song, I´m sure you will hear the difference !

Personnel:

Alvin Lee Band:
Tom Compton (drums)
Steve Gould (bass, background vocals)
Alvin Lee (guitar, vocals)

Johnny Winter Band:
Jon Paris (bass)
Bobby Torello (drums)
Johnny Winter (guitar, vocals)


Tracklist:
01. One Of These Days (Lee) 3.48
02. Hideaway Jam (King/Thompson) 9.23
03. Good Morning Little Schoolgirl (Williamson) 5.57
04. Unseen Eye (Williamson) 6.34
05. Slow Blues In C (Lee) 4.57
06. Love Like A Man (Lee) 5.09
07. Rock & Roll Hoochie Koo (Derringer) 6.03
08. Ain't Nothing Shakin' (AL) 15:34
09. Mean Town Blues (Winter) 10.24
10. Scat Encounter/Hey Joe (Lee/Roberts) 6.47
11. It's All Over Now (B.Womack/S.Womack) 5.09




ARMU 0015

Views: 2663 | Added by: Riffmaster | Date: 2011-07-12 | Comments (2)

Most reviews of post-war Goodman records are based on the thesis that "things ain't what they used to be". Obviously, at this point in time, Goodman is not the dynamic force or leading figure he was three decades ago so let us just accept Benny's records for what they are. Tese 12 titles are strung together (and how I loathe the now-obligatory 'programme' demanded by LP compilers!) by tenuous links with France, and Benny sounds as if he enjoyed the session. The rhythm section is workmanlike and comprises Goodman's pianist from the 1940 band, Bernie Leighton, bass player George Duvivier, guitarist Attila Zoller (who gets too little solo space for he is a fine musician) arid drummer Joe Marshall, late of Johnny Hodges's little band. On most of the tracks the front line comprises Goodman flanked by Joe Newman and Urbie Green. The recorded sound is quite brilliant with a sense of presence which seems to be part and parcel of the Command label's selling technique. There are a few fluffs here and there during Goodman's own solos but they are usually brought about by Benny's uninhibited approach to the faster tempos. Marshall occasionally lifts the entire group up by its collective boot-straps and the music takes on a purposeful resolution which is exhilarating. Strangely enough the sextet swings hardest on the more unlikely tunes including How Ya Gonna Keep 'Em Down On The Farm and Mimi. The weakest tracks are those on which Benny plays the melody slow and fairly straight but as these tracks ate in the minority the LP may be safely recommended to Goodman collectors and lovers of swing-style small groups. (by Grammophone, August 1968)

Personnel:
George Duvivier (bass)
Benny Goodman (clarinet)
Urbie Green (trombone)
Joe Marshall (drums)
Bernie Leighton (piano)
Attila Zoller (guitar)


Tracklist:
01. How 'Ya Gonna Keep 'Em  Down On The Farm (Young/Lewis/Donaldson) 4.02
02. Autumn Leaves (Kosma/Mercer/Prevert) 3.03
03. I Love Paris (Porter) 3,..26
04. April In Paris (Duke/Harburg) 2.26
05. A Man And A Woman (Barouh/Keller/Lai) 3.33
06. C'est Magnifique (Porter)) 3.09
07. Petite Fleur (Bechet) 2.56
08. I Wish You Love (Beach/Trenet) 2.33
09. Mimi (Hart/Rodgers) 3.50
10. C'est si bon (Betti/Hornez/Seelen) 3.03
11. Under Paris Skies (Gannon/Giraud) 4.08
12. I Will Wait For You (Demy/Gimbel/Legrand) 5.49



Alternate frontcover

Views: 1079 | Added by: Riffmaster | Date: 2011-07-12 | Comments (0)

Tony´s track record boasts some 250 albums. He has played with Earth, Wind & Fire, Kenny Aronoff, Bernard Purdie, Gianna Nannini, Young Generation, Chaka Khan, Rocky Roberts, Gregg Brown, Eddie Oliva, Steve Smith, Pete York, Omar Hakim, John Blackwell, Chuck Fryers to name only a few.

The critics, reviewing his latest album, hit the spot ; ""Colours of Life" - is a timeless document of the art of drumming (Sticks Magazine ).


Tony is a truly a passionate drummer with heart and soul, a lover of real sounds, and an explorer in the world of rhythm. Tony himself personifies the fascination of drums and rhythm, bundling all into a living work of art.

Personnel:
Ralf Bazzanela (saxophone)
Tobias Cosler (keyboards)
Hermann Eckholt (bass)
Jens Köhler (guitar)
Tony Liotto (drums, percussions)

Tracklist:
01. To My Kids (Liotta) 2.36
02. Latenight (Liotta) 3.18
03. New Orleans (Liotta) 3.37
04. Smalltalk (Liotta)
05. Strange Trip (Liotta) 3.24
06. Thursday In New York (Liotta) 4.17
07. Midnight Walk (Liotta) 2.54
08. Meeting In Milano (Liotta) 5.54
09. Few Days (Liotta) 3.16
10. Colours Of Life (Liotta) 4.43
11. Space And Time (Liotta) 4.18
12. Breathing Space (Liotta) 2.07
13. Deep Blue (Liotta) 7.41
14. Oxygen (Remix To My Kids) (Liotta) 1.42

ARMU 0013
Views: 773 | Added by: Riffmaster | Date: 2011-07-12 | Comments (0)

The Searchers are a British rock band who emerged as part of the 1960s merseybeat scene along with The Beatles, The Swinging Blues Jeans and Gerry and the Pacemakers.

The band´s hits included a remake of The Drifter´ 1961 hit "Sweets For My Sweet", remakes of Jackie DeShannon´s "Needley And Pins" and "When You Walk In The Room", "Sugar And Spice", "Don´t Throw Your Love Away" and a remake of The Clovers´ "Love Potion No. 9". They were the second group after the Beatles to have a hit in America when "Needles And Pins" chartet during the first week of March 1964.

Like many similar acts they would do as many as three shows at different venues in one night. They negotiated a contract with the Star Club in the St. Pauli distric Hamburg for 128 days, with three one-hour performances a night, starting in July 1962.


Of all the British bands that recorded at the Star Club in 1962/63, the Searchers gave the best performance -- polished, exciting, and utterly professional, lacking the finely honed 12-string guitar sound that their subsequent hits would display but still a fine testament to their early work and history. ~ Bruce Eder, All Music Guide


Personnel:
Chris Curtis (drums, vocals)
Tony Jackson (bass, vocals)
John McNally (guitar, vocals
Mike Pender (guitar, vocals)

Tracklist:
01. Sweets For My Sweet (Shuman/Pomus)
2.20
02. Ain´t That Just Like Me (Carrol)
1.40
03. Listen To Me (Petty/Hardin)
2.05
04. I Can Tell (Samuels/McDaniels) 2.33
05. Sick And Tired (Domino) 2.47
06. Mashed Potatoes () 1.39
07. Beautiful Dreamer (Foster)1.57
08. Sweet Nothin´s (unknown) 2.18
09. Sahkin´ All Over (Kidd) 2.22
10. It´s All Been A Dream (unknown) 1.46
11. Don´t You Know (Box/Hall) 1.53
12. Maybelline (Berry) 1.59
13. Sweet Little Sixteen (Berry) 2.58
14. I Sure Know A Lot About Love (unknown) 2.22
15. Rosalie (Porter) 2.13
16. Led In The game (Holly) 1.47
17. Hey Joe (Bryant) 2.30
18.Always It´s You (Bryant/Bryant) 2.26
19. Hully Gully (Goldsmith/Smith) 2.13
20. What `d I Say (Charles) 2.52

ARMU 0012

Views: 1068 | Added by: Riffmaster | Date: 2011-07-12 | Comments (0)

Good early '80s trio session with pianist Horace Parlan working alongside bassist Reggie Johnson and drummer Alvin Queen.

The material, mostly standards with some originals and ballads, isn't overly ambitious, but Parlan's dense, strong blues-influenced solos and good interaction among the three principals keeps things moving.

Recorded live at the "Domicile",
Munich/Germany on February 11, 1981




Personnel:

Reggie Johnson (Bass)
Alvin Queen (Drums)
Horace Parlan (Piano)


Tracklist:
01. There's No Greater Love (Jones/Symes) 5.33
02. Pannonica (Monk) 6.22
03. C Jam Blues (Bigard/Ellington) 7.02
04. Hi-Fly (Weston) 9.18
05. Who Cares? (Gershwin) 9.47


ARMU 0011

Views: 754 | Added by: Riffmaster | Date: 2011-07-12 | Comments (0)

Beat Club was one of the most important and fun packed TV pop and rock shows of The Swinging Sixties.
Once a month for seven frantic years, a cascade of stars were filmed for the show and as it turned out, for posterity, Beat Club became a treasure house of sounds and images that might have been lost forever.

It was a hit with viewers around the world, and the historic series has been repeated on TV many times in recent years.
This fantastic collection features historic live performances by the great groups, who were guests on the show, often at the peak of their careers.
Beat Club was presented by Racdio Bremen, which ran the small TV station based in the North West German port. The show was directed by Mike Leckerbusch and was presented by the legendary Uschie Nerke.There were unsually two guest British presenters.. First came BBC radio DJ Dave Lee Travis. Later came Dave Dee, the ever cheerful lead singer with "Dave Dee,, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich", one of the most popular acts of the day.

Dave Dee: "It´s fastinating to hear these recordings again today, because many people didn´t even know they existed". Enjoy these rare tracke from the early days of progressive rock !




Tracklist CD 1:
01. Humble Pie - For Your Love (Gouldman) 8.33
02. UFO - Boogie (Way/Moog/Parker/Bolton) 6.40
03. Hardin & York - Like A Rolling Stone (Dylan) 3.45
04. Hardin & York - Freedom (Hardin) 7.09
05. Atomic Rooster - Break Through (Crane/Darnell) 4.55
06. Ashton, Gardner & Dyke - Ressurection Shuffle (Ashton) 3.53
07. Curtis Mayfield - Move On Up/We Are The Winner (Mayfild) 13.40
08. Curtis Mayfield
- We People (Mayfield) 1.21

Tracklist CD 2:
01. Steamhammer - Junior´s Wailing (White/Pugh) 3.41
02. Steamhammer - When Your Friend Has Gone (Quittenton/White) 3.57
03. Humble Pie - Alabama 69 (Marriott) 4.35
04. Humble Pie - Natural Born Woman (Marriott) 4.32
05. Nice - Hang On To A Dream (Hardin) 7.20
06. Steamhammer - Louisiana Blues (Morganfield) 8.21
07. Hardin & York - Tomorrow Today (Hardin) 4.58
08. Hardin & York - The Pike (Hardin) 7.08
09. Humble Pie - The Sad Bag Of Shakey Jake (Marriott) 3.30
10. Ashton, Gardner & Dyke - Rolling Home (Ashton) 3.30
11. Ashton, Gardner & Dyke - Billy And His Piano (Ashton) 3.48


ARMU 0010A    
(CD 1)

ARMU 0010B   (CD 2)

Views: 895 | Added by: Riffmaster | Date: 2011-07-11 | Comments (0)

This is the first album by Bonnie Raitt.
After dropping out of college in 1969, she began playing on the US folk and blues circuit, turning heads due to her ability - almost unique in a white female - to play credible bottleneck guitar.

She became friendly with many of the surviving blues legends, including Howlin' Wolf, Mississippi Fred McDowell and particularly Sippie Wallace, with whom she later recorded.

After paying her dues in clubs, she signed with a major record label in 1971,when she released her eponymous debut album which included both contemporary songs by Stephen Stills and Paul Siebel and a number of blues covers, plus two selfpenned originals.


Personnel:
John Beach (piano)
Peter Bell (guitar)
Steven Bradley (drums)
Freebo (bass)
Russel Hsgen (guitar)
Voyle Harris (trumpet)
Eugene Hoffman (saxophone)
Willie Murphy (pianp)
Bonnie Raitt (guitar, vocals)
A.C.Reed (saxophone)
Douglas Spurgeon (trombone)
Junior Wells (harmonica)
Maurice Jacox (flute)


Tracklist:
01. Bluebird (Stills) 3.25
02. Mighty Tight Woman (Wallace) 4.19
03. Thank You (Raitt) 2.48
04. Finest Lovin´ Woman (Raitt) 4.41
05. Andy Day Woman (Siebel) 2.19
06. Big Road (Johnson) 3.31
07. Walking Blues (Johnson) 3.35
08. Danger Heartbreak Dead Ahead (Huinter/Paul/Stevenson) 2.50
09. Since I Feel For You (Johnson) 3.03
10. I Ain´t Blue (Koerner) 3.35
11. Woman Be Wise (Wallace/Beach) 4.13

RM 0009

Views: 616 | Added by: Riffmaster | Date: 2011-07-11 | Comments (0)

This is where it all started for Uriah Heep. The band’s transition from their previous incarnation as "Spice” was more than just a name change, with this album they became a formidable act. The nucleus of the band (Byron and Box joined by Hensley) was already in place, although the rhythm section still had a number of changes to come before the "classic” line up was completed. With Hensley only having recently joined the band, his song writing is much less in evidence than on future albums.

The group name is taken from a Dickens character, and the "‘umble” in the album’s title reflects his self declared personality. The "’eavy” reference is of course related to the music, but is a bit misleading. The band’s music does indeed often have a dominant rhythm section, but it is highly melodic. Most tracks are based around the (predominantly organ) keyboards of Ken Hensley, the great rock voice of David Byron, and the distinctive guitar sound of Mick Box.

The opening track, "Gypsy” is indeed "heavy”, with a driving Hammond organ, a thumping beat, and an early burst of Mick Box’s famous wah wah guitar soloing. There are however several decidedly softer moments. "Come away Melinda” (also recorded by UFO) is one of the very few covers the band has done. Their interpretation is quite stunning, with David Byron adopting various vocal sounds to distinguish between the two characters in the song. It’s a beautiful, haunting number, with a peaceful message. "Wake up (set your sights)” also has a lovely soft conclusion which follows an almost jazz like opening section.

"Lucy blues” sounds somewhat out of place on the album, and in fact was omitted from the US release (called "Uriah Heep”), being a straight forward blues number, pleasant but hardly essential. The remaining numbers are indeed generally " 'eavy” with tracks like "I’ll keep on trying” and "Dreammare” (a dream and a nightmare, get it?!) setting out the band’s stall for future albums perfectly.

There was better to come from the band, but this is a high quality first offering, with some excellent tracks.

"If the group make it ,I'll have to commit suicide" wrote rock critic Melissa Mills in Rolling Stone magazin.She may or may not be with us any more ,but 30 years on Uriah Heep still do it.

    

                                                          Uriah Heep 1970                        Alternate US frontcover
Personnel:
Mick Box (guitar)
David Byron (vocals)
Ken Hensley (keyboards, slide-guitar, vocals)
Paul Newton (bass, vocals)
Ollie Olsson (drums, percussion)
+
Alex Napier (drums ecepting on 04. + 05.)
Colin Wood (keyboards on 03. + 08.)

Tracklist:
01. Gypsy (Box/Byron) 6:37
02. Walking In Your Shadow (Newton/Byron) 4:31
03. Come Away Melinda (Hellerman/Minkoff) 3:46
04. Lucy Blues (Box/Byron) 5:09
05. Dreammare (Newton) 4:39
06. Real Turned On (Box/Byron) 3:37
07. I’ll Keep On trying (Box/Byron) 5:24
08. Wake Up (Set Your Sights) (Box/Byron)6:22
+
09. Gypsy (single version) (Box/Byron) 2.57
10. Come Away Melinda (alternate version) /Hellerman/Minkoff) 3.42
11. Born In A Trunk (out-take) 3.45

RM 0008


Views: 1776 | Added by: Riffmaster | Date: 2011-07-10 | Comments (0)

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