22
Jul
2003
· This Tuesday the Northern Blues label releases a terrific new tribute to the master songcraft of Johnny Cash, entitled Johnny's Blues. Cash was already saluted earlier this year in two other CD tributes on other labels, and this new project collects 13 Cash songs spun in a wide range of blues styles, from acoustic soul to roadhouse boogie.
Most luxurious is Corey Harris' interpretation of "Redemption" into a reggae-blues glide that could slip seamlessly onto a Bob Marley mix tape. Other highlights alongside Colin Linden of Blackie & The Rodeo Kings, Maria Muldaur, and Sleepy Labeef include Garland Jeffreys' cover of "I Walk the Line" and Alvin Youngblood Hart's softly waking take of "Sunday Morning Coming Down."
· Also worth looking for this Tuesday is the upgraded and expanded re-issue of Joe Jackson's classic Night & Day album from 1982. If you missed this brilliant record back in the days of Walkmans and jacket badges, it is breathtakingly classy and cosmopolitan, combining Jackson's classical composition skills with big-city rhythms in tracks such as "Steppin' Out" and "Breaking Us in Two." Keeping in tradition with the stacks of goodies unearthed with its "Deluxe Edition" imprint, A & M Records has done right by this sophisticated stunner, featuring a bonus CD of surprises. The second CD features rare tracks from his 1983 soundtrack to Mike's Murder, six early demos, and live tracks from his closing tour performances in 1983.
· News is starting to leak about the scores of guests on the upcoming and anticipated The Twilight Singers album. Led by former Afghan Whigs frontman Greg Dulli, the ever-changing collective's new set, Blackberry Belle, is due in October and looks to feature Prince royalty Apollonia Kotero, Petra Haden of That Dog, Mark Lanegan of Screaming Trees, Mathias Schneeberger of The Earthlings, and - dig this - soulful burners Galactic.
· The first peeks at the upcoming Dandy Warhols album are due next week as three-part singles in Britain. The first single, "You Were the Last High," was co-written by Evan Dando of The Lemonheads and is being released as a white-vinyl seven-inch and a two-part CD single, each with exclusive re-mixes by Kenn Richards and Tony Lash and non-LP tracks including "Sun" and "Dye."
· The Vans Warped Tour is storming through the summer heat, but band members are dropping like flies for other reasons. Director Doug Sakmann is combining live footage filmed throughout the tour with a horror storyline entitled Punk Rock Holocaust with bands, fans, and tour merchants being systematically killed by a tour bus haunted by the fictitious band Brutal Enigma. The end result will most likely be released on home video and DVD later this year.
Television Alert:
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno hosts Natalie Imbruglia tonight, John Mellencamp on Monday, and Norah Jones on Tuesday; The Late Show with David Letterman welcomes the eels on Tuesday; and Late Night with Conan O'Brien features Cheap Trick on Thursday overnight, Train on Friday overnight, and Ja Rule on Monday overnight. This Sunday the Bravo television network airs a special two-hour look at young music artists both burdened and benefited by the instant name recognition of a famous parent such as Phil Collins, John Lennon, Ozzy Osbourne, Aretha Franklin, David Crosby, Jim Croce, Phil Everly, and James Taylor.
New Releases Coming Tuesday, July 29:
... and like the winds, young grasshopper, are subject to change
Alkaline Trio - Live at the Metro (Kung Fu) DVD release
Android Lust - The Dividing (Projekt)
ASG - The Amplification of Self Gratification (Volcom)
Fred Avril - That Horse Must Be Starving (Pias America) anticipated French electronica
Erykah Badu - Worldwide Connection (Motown) with guests Queen Latifah and Bahamadia
Balzac - Beyond the Darkness (Misfit Records/Rykodisc) horror punk from Japan, on tour now on the Misfits' Fiend Fest
The Bevis Frond - New River Head (Rubric) CD reissue expanded to two CDs
D. Boon - D. Boon & Friends (Box-O-Plenty) new compilation of home recordings and live tracks from the Minuteman founder
Cedric Brooks - Light of Saba (Astralwerks) new from the Skatellites saxophonist
Hiram Bullock - Try Livin' It (ESC/Rykodisc) with former David Letterman bandmate Will Lee
Circle II Circle - Watching in Silence (The End) new from Savatage vocalist Zak Stevens
The Clientele - The Violet Hour (Merge)
Endo - Songs for the Restless (DV8/Columbia)
Fear of a Black Hat - original motion picture soundtrack (Avatar) CD re-issue of this cult classic often referred to as the "rap This Is Spinal Tap"
Five-Way - Nothing Is Vinyl (Roadrunner) featuring singer Dustin Lowery
Tony Furtado & The American Gypsies - Live Gypsy (Dualtone)
Marvin Gaye - I Want You: Deluxe Edition (Motown) two-CD expanded re-issue
HavocHate - This Violent Earth (Root of All Evil) touring now with Anthrax and Motorhead
Hell House - music from the film (Pleximusic) original score by Matt and Bubba Kadane of Bedhead
Howard Hewitt - It's Time (Eagle) all new from the former Shalimar vocalist, featuring an a cappella version of "Amazing Grace"
The Kills - Fried My Little Brains (Sanctuary/Rough Trade)
Kitchens & Bathrooms - Vehicles Beyond (Sonic Unyon) math rock from Canada
Bob Marley - Legend (Island) DVD version featuring a 90-minute documentary
Misfits - Project 1950 (Misfit Records/Rykodisc) all new featuring covers of 1950's era rock-and-roll classics
Paint It Black - CVA (Jade Tree) new from members of Lifetime and Kid Dynamite
Pistol for Ringo - Solid State Neo-Hedonist (Aeronaut) catchy pop described as "David Bowie meets Air"
T. Raumschmeire - "Monstertruckdriver" (Novamute)
Dan Sartain - Dan Sartain Vs. The Serpentines (Swami) basement recordings from Birmingham, Alabama
Sense Field - Living Outside (Nettwerk)
The Sleepy Jackson - Lovers (Astralwerks) psychedelic pop from Perth, Australia
Soft Works - Abracadabra (Tone Center) new from former Soft Machine members Hugh Hopper, John Marshall, Allan Holdsworth, and Elton Dean
Squirtgun - Fade to Bright (Honest Don's) knee-bouncing power punk from this smart quartet, with guests Kris Roe of the Ataris and Justin Sane of Anti-Flag
Donna Summer - Bad Girls: Deluxe Edition (Motown) get your whistles on the dance floor ready to go "peep-peep" with this two-CD expanded reissue
The Trolleyvox - Leap of Folly (Groove Disques)
Ultra Nate - "Brass in Pocket" (BluFire) new electro dub single covering the Pretenders' classic from 1980
Paul Van Dyk - Global (Mute) DVD release of his globetrotting travels mixing his dance hits and trance visuals
various artists - Survive & Advance: Volume 3 (Merge) with demos and rarities from Spoon, The Ladybug Transistor, Portastatic, and the Buzzcocks
Danny Wood - Second Face (Empire Musicwerks) the former New Kid on the Block, all grown up
Zion I - Curb Servin' (Raptivism) CD and DVD package with guests Aceyalone, Planet Asia, and The Grouch
· Also worth looking for this Tuesday is the upgraded and expanded re-issue of Joe Jackson's classic Night & Day album from 1982. If you missed this brilliant record back in the days of Walkmans and jacket badges, it is breathtakingly classy and cosmopolitan, combining Jackson's classical composition skills with big-city rhythms in tracks such as "Steppin' Out" and "Breaking Us in Two." Keeping in tradition with the stacks of goodies unearthed with its "Deluxe Edition" imprint, A & M Records has done right by this sophisticated stunner, featuring a bonus CD of surprises. The second CD features rare tracks from his 1983 soundtrack to Mike's Murder, six early demos, and live tracks from his closing tour performances in 1983.
· News is starting to leak about the scores of guests on the upcoming and anticipated The Twilight Singers album. Led by former Afghan Whigs frontman Greg Dulli, the ever-changing collective's new set, Blackberry Belle, is due in October and looks to feature Prince royalty Apollonia Kotero, Petra Haden of That Dog, Mark Lanegan of Screaming Trees, Mathias Schneeberger of The Earthlings, and - dig this - soulful burners Galactic.
· The first peeks at the upcoming Dandy Warhols album are due next week as three-part singles in Britain. The first single, "You Were the Last High," was co-written by Evan Dando of The Lemonheads and is being released as a white-vinyl seven-inch and a two-part CD single, each with exclusive re-mixes by Kenn Richards and Tony Lash and non-LP tracks including "Sun" and "Dye."
· The Vans Warped Tour is storming through the summer heat, but band members are dropping like flies for other reasons. Director Doug Sakmann is combining live footage filmed throughout the tour with a horror storyline entitled Punk Rock Holocaust with bands, fans, and tour merchants being systematically killed by a tour bus haunted by the fictitious band Brutal Enigma. The end result will most likely be released on home video and DVD later this year.
Television Alert:
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno hosts Natalie Imbruglia tonight, John Mellencamp on Monday, and Norah Jones on Tuesday; The Late Show with David Letterman welcomes the eels on Tuesday; and Late Night with Conan O'Brien features Cheap Trick on Thursday overnight, Train on Friday overnight, and Ja Rule on Monday overnight. This Sunday the Bravo television network airs a special two-hour look at young music artists both burdened and benefited by the instant name recognition of a famous parent such as Phil Collins, John Lennon, Ozzy Osbourne, Aretha Franklin, David Crosby, Jim Croce, Phil Everly, and James Taylor.
New Releases Coming Tuesday, July 29:
... and like the winds, young grasshopper, are subject to change
Alkaline Trio - Live at the Metro (Kung Fu) DVD release
Android Lust - The Dividing (Projekt)
ASG - The Amplification of Self Gratification (Volcom)
Fred Avril - That Horse Must Be Starving (Pias America) anticipated French electronica
Erykah Badu - Worldwide Connection (Motown) with guests Queen Latifah and Bahamadia
Balzac - Beyond the Darkness (Misfit Records/Rykodisc) horror punk from Japan, on tour now on the Misfits' Fiend Fest
The Bevis Frond - New River Head (Rubric) CD reissue expanded to two CDs
D. Boon - D. Boon & Friends (Box-O-Plenty) new compilation of home recordings and live tracks from the Minuteman founder
Cedric Brooks - Light of Saba (Astralwerks) new from the Skatellites saxophonist
Hiram Bullock - Try Livin' It (ESC/Rykodisc) with former David Letterman bandmate Will Lee
Circle II Circle - Watching in Silence (The End) new from Savatage vocalist Zak Stevens
The Clientele - The Violet Hour (Merge)
Endo - Songs for the Restless (DV8/Columbia)
Fear of a Black Hat - original motion picture soundtrack (Avatar) CD re-issue of this cult classic often referred to as the "rap This Is Spinal Tap"
Five-Way - Nothing Is Vinyl (Roadrunner) featuring singer Dustin Lowery
Tony Furtado & The American Gypsies - Live Gypsy (Dualtone)
Marvin Gaye - I Want You: Deluxe Edition (Motown) two-CD expanded re-issue
HavocHate - This Violent Earth (Root of All Evil) touring now with Anthrax and Motorhead
Hell House - music from the film (Pleximusic) original score by Matt and Bubba Kadane of Bedhead
Howard Hewitt - It's Time (Eagle) all new from the former Shalimar vocalist, featuring an a cappella version of "Amazing Grace"
The Kills - Fried My Little Brains (Sanctuary/Rough Trade)
Kitchens & Bathrooms - Vehicles Beyond (Sonic Unyon) math rock from Canada
Bob Marley - Legend (Island) DVD version featuring a 90-minute documentary
Misfits - Project 1950 (Misfit Records/Rykodisc) all new featuring covers of 1950's era rock-and-roll classics
Paint It Black - CVA (Jade Tree) new from members of Lifetime and Kid Dynamite
Pistol for Ringo - Solid State Neo-Hedonist (Aeronaut) catchy pop described as "David Bowie meets Air"
T. Raumschmeire - "Monstertruckdriver" (Novamute)
Dan Sartain - Dan Sartain Vs. The Serpentines (Swami) basement recordings from Birmingham, Alabama
Sense Field - Living Outside (Nettwerk)
The Sleepy Jackson - Lovers (Astralwerks) psychedelic pop from Perth, Australia
Soft Works - Abracadabra (Tone Center) new from former Soft Machine members Hugh Hopper, John Marshall, Allan Holdsworth, and Elton Dean
Squirtgun - Fade to Bright (Honest Don's) knee-bouncing power punk from this smart quartet, with guests Kris Roe of the Ataris and Justin Sane of Anti-Flag
Donna Summer - Bad Girls: Deluxe Edition (Motown) get your whistles on the dance floor ready to go "peep-peep" with this two-CD expanded reissue
The Trolleyvox - Leap of Folly (Groove Disques)
Ultra Nate - "Brass in Pocket" (BluFire) new electro dub single covering the Pretenders' classic from 1980
Paul Van Dyk - Global (Mute) DVD release of his globetrotting travels mixing his dance hits and trance visuals
various artists - Survive & Advance: Volume 3 (Merge) with demos and rarities from Spoon, The Ladybug Transistor, Portastatic, and the Buzzcocks
Danny Wood - Second Face (Empire Musicwerks) the former New Kid on the Block, all grown up
Zion I - Curb Servin' (Raptivism) CD and DVD package with guests Aceyalone, Planet Asia, and The Grouch
