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Listen To What The Man Said - Paul McCartney & The Wings
I saw Macca in St. Louis a couple of years ago with Gary Fiorino during the "Back In The U.S." tour, and it still ranks as the greatest concert I've ever seen. However, I was unfamiliar with most of his Wings-era material at the time. A few weeks ago, I picked up the Wingspan anthology, and fell in love with this opening track, which I'd heard in muffled contexts in the past. Upon an intense listen, the layers came out, and it hooked me. A strong intro to a great collection. |
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Palmetto Park - David Benoit & Russ Freeman
Ten years ago, David Benoit and Russ Freeman did their first collaborative record (unless you count Moonlighting, the Rippingtons debut which featured Benoit on piano). That was one of a handful of CDs that got me through my freshman year. This year, they joined forces once again, and the result begins with this track. In the wake of the "watering down" of smooth jazz, it was refreshing to hear that Benoit and Freeman aren't afraid--and are entirely capable--of returning to an acoustic environment. The epitome of class, right here. |
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Life Less Ordinary - Carbon Leaf
Two weeks ago, I spent a very cool evening with my friend Mary Beth Hascall. On the way to O'Connell's Pub, she slipped this CD into my Element's player. She had just recently interviewed the band for a music magazine, while I'd never heard of them. The band's sound is fun and upbeat, and tastefully eclectic (mandolin, flute, etc.) Upon first listen, they shook the bones of me. |
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Your Eyes Open - Keane
Following the Upper Room one Sunday night, guitarist Aaron Ankrum informed me that Keane's debut album was one I had to get. So I did. Great vocal harmonies, a cool, ethereal, piano-based platform, and excellent songwriting make this one of the best blind buys I've ever made. |
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Warm Sound - Zero 7
After waiting impatiently for Zero 7 to release a second album, I was pleasantly taken back to the Euro lounge effect they so deftly compose with the release of When It Falls. This track features vocalist Mozez, reprising his crucial role from the first album, in a signature mellow groove. I particularly enjoy the way it ends. |
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Hallelujah - Jeff Buckley
It seems like the late Jeff Buckley has received an even greater resurgence in popularity of late, across the board, amongst both musicians and music lovers. Pulling the not-so-dusty Grace from my CD rack, I listened closely to this track, written by Leonard Cohen, and was awed at the beauty in which Buckley tells the tale of how David first made music that pleased the Lord. The rest of the album is a total masterpiece anyway, but this track, with its sensitivity and Buckley's haunting vibrato, is almost too much to absorb, considering he's no longer with us. |
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Tryin' To Throw Your Arms Around The World - U2
It's a very simple song, falling in the immense shadow of Achtung Baby's "Mysterious Ways", but a wonderful little track nonetheless. I enjoyed the line in the Live From Dublin bootleg, when he said, "A woman needs a man/Like [bassist Adam] Clayton needs a Handycam/Tryin' to throw his bass around the world." I love the ethereal, spacey sound in the back of the mix. |
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My Favorite Things - Tony Bennett
I finally checked out "From The Earth To The Moon", which was broadcast on HBO a few years ago. During one of the segments, this hidden gem of Tony's rose to the surface and received airplay. I immediately went to my copy of The Essential Tony Bennett, and was delighted to find it included amongst the other tracks. Great orchestra section, Tony's usual fun demeanor and dialogue, capped by a crazy-tasty chord at the very end. |
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Edith And The Kingpin - Joni Mitchell
It's been said that Joni's The Hissing Of Summer Lawns is Prince's favorite album of all time. This track, seated third both there and on the live, dream-team project Shadows And Light, has been a favorite of mine for years. In the live version here, however, the band (consisting of Pat Metheny [gt], Lyle Mays [kb], Jaco Pastorius [bs], Michael Brecker [sx], and Don Alias [dr]. Jeez, are these hacks the only players Joni could get? :) takes the sensitive, lite mood of the original, and applies an essential pocket, seizing their opportunity to spread their wings. |
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Barren Ground - Bruce Hornsby & The Range
During the summer of 1998, I happened upon a sale at a used book store, and decided to complete my collection of Bruce Hornsby albums. Those procured were Hot House, Harbor Lights, and A Night On The Town, which features this cut. This has the classic Range sound, with lots of neutral synth in the background, behind Hornsby's rolling Americana. This track also features a great vocal layer by Shawn Colvin, who appears elsewhere on the same album. |
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Tunnel Of Love - Bruce Springsteen
I remember hearing this one years ago on the radio, fiendishly unidentified. I knew it was Springsteen, but considering the size of the man's catalog, the tracking down of this elusive song would be no easy task. It ended up on my "desert island" list of songs to identify before I died. In 2000, mere days before college graduation, a handful of us saw The Boss in St. Louis, and John Eto had this disc in his car afterward. Mystery solved. |
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Fool To Cry - Rolling Stones
As with many anthologies, Forty Licks entered my collection, and subsequently received almost no RPMs. Just enough to load the discs into iTunes, but not much beyond that. I recently picked up the Star Wars trilogy, and watched the documentary on the fourth disc. Mark Hamill talked about being in the Dagobah swamp, and hearing "Fool To Cry" in the background. Curious, I consulted the anthology, found it, and was immediately drawn in by the Richard Tee-esque Rhodes that foamed up the intro. Since I'd grown up listening to classic rock, I realized very quickly that I'd heard it--I just didn't know the name. |
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Thanksong - Dave Grusin
On a few of Dave's early albums, he featured himself on short piano solos, each near the end of the disc. On Mountain Dance, he rolled out this pensive ode to gratitude. Brilliantly brief. As St. Louis bassist Glen Smith would say, the man can do no wrong. |
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Before I'm Gone - Christopher-Sharratt
My dad grew up with Chip Sharratt and his older brother, Mike. During the early days of 1996, Chip hooked me up with his CD, which he'd done with nephew Dickie Christopher. This track immediately stood out, with the stellar harmonies and major-7 chords throughout. At the time, I was ensconced in my dad's office, working on a blueprint for a house that ended up being 13,000 square feet. As I designed, I also listened to... |
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If I Could - Seal
This album is an all-time classic, one that influenced me greatly during my early days of songwriting, particularly in the production department. This track features a brilliant duet with Joni Mitchell, whose smoky alto blends beautifully with Seal's rich tenor. Anyone who looked beyond the "Batman Forever" soundtrack (which featured "Kiss By A Rose") and dug deeper into Seal's catalog most certainly felt rewarded by this point in the disc. |
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In The House Of Stone And Light - Martin Page
Another "desert island" track which I'd heard on the radio. I tracked down Martin Page's sole solo effort during a season of fortuitous exposure and reckless ambition (others captured during this time included Joe Jackson's "Steppin' Out", Gerry Rafferty's "Baker Street" and Bob Seger's "Mainstreet"). This has the feel of a late-80's Mike-and-the-Mechanics-meets-David-and-David piece, well-buffered by synth beds and a warm set of chords. Released in 1994, however, it's obvious that Page was borrowing from tried-and-true methodology. But who cares? The track is eclectic, both structurally and lyrically. And any song that features a vocalese bridge is an instant winner: Page knew he'd scored with such chord changes--so much so that he left it lyricless. Marvelous. I wonder what ever happened to this guy. |
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The Fan - Little Feat
Frank "The Chase" Chase, once again, provides the hook-up. This song came personally recommended by The Chase as he handed me the Feets Don't Fail Me Now CD, and stood back as it messed me up. The beginning organ buzz draws from the school of prog-rock, and the outside synth solo in the middle serves as one of many bridges leading modern rock from the hazardous reaches of experimentation during the drug-addled early 70's, and safely paving the way for fusion a few years later. |
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Song For A Dead Friend - Kevin Gilbert & Thud
Recently, I picked up Kevin's live Troubadour performance from 1995 (along with the terrifying Kaviar, of whose tracks none will EVER end up on one of my mixes...). This song originally appeared on his Thud album, and carries a heavy weight here as he reminisces about his dead friend. Many of Kevin's friends would echo this lament after his passing in May 1996--less than a year after this performance. |
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