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Lengthy Album Shorts

2/19/2012

2 Comments

 
"As my friend Utah (Phillips) would say, freedom is something we are born with, like our eyes and our ears. Then we wait for someone to come along and try to take it away. The degree to which we resist is the degree to which we are free."                                            
 --Ani DiFranco conversing with Sekou Sundiata, in the former's book of lyrics, Verses  (published by Seven Stories, 2007)

Ani DiFranco--Which Side Are You On? (Righteous Babe): Which Side, DiFranco's first album in three years, finds the woman who re-invented punk-folk in the 1990s at peace with herself while never failing to ask the tough questions. Her records have been strained, somewhat hit and miss in recent years, but this one's a keeper. Topics range from the continued pollution of our souls (via living in the modern world) to getting older and enjoying our own growing wisdom--in "If Yr Not," the hook is, "If yr not getting happier as you get older/Then yr *%#^ing up." DiFranco's version of the title track, long associated with Pete Seeger, is a glorious transformation of a folk classic into a startling piece of music, complete with New Orleans-style horns and updated lyrics.
Though not a match the great run of records DiFranco made in the mid-'90s (Not a Pretty Girl, Dilate and the startling live set, Living In Clip), Which Side Are You On? is quite a return.

Eric Dahl--Live By Your Word (Yew Lane): His first record in ten years, Dahl's latest was tossed off rather carelessly in an Austin Chronicle review last August, which opined that his "raspy vocals aren't very musical," just one of several unfair little snips. It took me
until November to hear the album; I was struck by Dahl's varied styles, from rock to Americana, and an impressive vocal approach, as his singing vaguely recalls Chris Rea's. Dahl was based in Seattle for years and then recorded these tracks during a three-year period in Austin before he moved to Georgia. How could a journalist--no matter where they're based--take this excellent stuff for granted? I guess there's so much good music in Austin that some reviewers have lost their ability to appreciate it.

Sista Monica Parker--Living In the Danger Zone (Mo Muscle): Parker's always been a powerhouse blues and gospel vocalist, but with Danger Zone, she's picked up the tempo and tightened up her arrangements, echoing what Tracy Nelson did last year with Victim of the Blues. There are several self-determined songs that rank among Parker's best ("Fierce Force of Nature," "Unstoppable!") and her tough, concise approach makes
Living In the Danger Zone come alive.

Ringo Starr--Ringo 2012 (Hip-O): Our pal Ritchie makes fun, serviceable albums; I must admit that I usually file them away after a couple of listens--though I usually play a new album cut on the radio when it's his birthday. Ringo 2012 has its moments ("Samba," written with Van Dyke Parks, has a great feel), but there are also unnecessary remakes of his songs like "Step Lightly" and a repeat of "Think It Over" from one of  last year's Buddy Holly tributes. Kinda skimpy in length--29 minutes (what is this, Beatles '65? No it's not, or even 1992's Time Takes Time). Perhaps the true test of whether Ringo 2012 is worthwhile or not has to do with the performance video that is included in the commercial copies. Haven't tracked that part down yet.

Glen Campbell--Ghost on the Canvas (The Record Company/Surfdog): Jennifer Hudson's powerful, intimate voice-and-piano tribute to the late Whitney Houston wasn't the only moving part of last week's Grammy Awards presentation. The celebration of Glen Campbell's life in music, which included the man himself, re-established his artistic virtues that have been all but ignored for years--don't forget that Ray Charles considered Campbell's "Wichita Lineman" one of the most soulful records of the late '60s. You probably know that the singer-guitarist's current tour and Ghost on the Canvas are GC's final two projects, as he battles severe health problems. It's such a beautiful, heartbreaking record, full of the stellar, orchestrated pop and even some wonderful uptempo stuff (Teddy Thompson's "In My Arms"--it's easy to pick out Dick Dale's playing on it). Other modern material comes from Guided By Voices' Robert Pollard, Jakob Dylan and ex-Replacements leader Paul Westerberg, and Campbell himself. "It's Your Amazing Grace," co-written with producer Julian Raymond, is as poignant as any doomed person's reflections could ever be. That Grammy audience sure threw back a lot of love Campbell's way; perhaps he will find the strength and luck to hang around some more.

2 Comments
Vic Doucette
2/21/2012 12:05:17 am

I sent you a slightly different version of this in an e-mail, but wanted to post it here in case anybody else might find it interesting:

Glen Campbell, Nancy Griffith and Emmylou were all on the Saturday night bill at the Ann Arbor Folk Festival.

It was a very moving and emotional evening, a sort of circle closing for my wife; GC was her first "big" concert, circa 1968; her dad took her.

It started off with the band (half of them are his kids) playing "Gentle on my Mind" as he came onstage. Ten seconds in the train wreck started; he completely forgot where he was in the song and they had to start over. He was reading the lyrics (and maybe some of the stage patter) from three TelePrompTers at the front of the stage. Much of the between-song patter seemed forced and didn't always make sense. He seemed to have trouble playing guitar and singing at the same time. He dropped his pick twice, the first time strumming bare-handed and the second time just not playing for the rest of the tune. He muffed the lyrics a few times, and seemed uncomfortable between songs.

But, oh, the highlights: His guitar playing was often stunning, as good as it had ever been. He and his daughter did a guitar/banjo duet on "Dueling Banjos" that sounded like they needed to finish so they could go fight a house fire. He did a version of "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress," backed only by solo piano, that showed why he's the best Jimmy Webb stylist ever. His voice was in much better shape than you'd expect from a sick, 75-year-old man. He looked good and seemed genuinely happy and grateful to be performing for us. The crowd was loving and supportive.

Inside story: A co-worker/friend of mine volunteers for the Ark (a wonderful music venue in Ann Arbor) -- she's the one who got us the tickets and she was at the show the night we were there. There were some snafus and problems early in the show that forced the evening long. The stagehands were entitled to overtime of the show ran past 11 p.m. There was a spirited discussion backstage about truncating some of the later performers' sets so that the overtime wouldn't kick in. The stage manager finally exclaimed, "Look! I'm not going to be the one to tell Glen Campbell he has to end his show early!"

Reply
J.J. link
2/21/2012 02:42:36 pm

Thank you, Vic. Fabulous info and insight.

Reply



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    The J2 Blog

    J.J. Syrja (born in Detroit, 1955)  is a veteran rock
    and soul music observer/participant,   journalist, broadcaster and drummer/vocalist. He nearly perished at the hands of corporate thugs in 2010 (ask him), but is still kicking. The son of a teacher and an electrician, J2 has hosted the Roots Rock radio show Retroactive, heard weekly on 89.3 KAOS-FM/Olympia (WA) Community Radio, since 1994. Catch it live (Saturdays from 9am to noon/Pacific time, U.S.) at www.kaosradio.org

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