The Original Chico Hamilton Quintet Complete Studio Recordings 2006

Recorded in 1955 and 1956, this CD is a splendid introduction to a famous group featuring an unusual line-up of drums, guitar, clarinet, cello and bass, once referred to as the last important group in West Coast jazz.

This music is perhaps best described as "chamber jazz", and it is mostly quite mellow. The interplay of cello, guitar and clarinet reminds the listener of classical chamber music, but the jazz sounds and structures dominate. The instrumentation keeps the sounds relaxed even on the upbeat songs.

A delicate and lovely version of My Funny Valentine is breathtaking. The Morning After is an oddly perky little number given the title. Chrissie is mellow enough to please smooth jazz listeners yet the intricate interplay amongst the group is pure jazz bliss. Gone Lover swings like crazy, and still you can relax.

Jim Hall plays guitar, and Mr. Hall is renowned in jazz as a great player. So is Buddy Collette, the clarinet, flute, and sax player extraordinaire. Carson Smith on bass and especially Fred Katz on cello are outstanding. The cello turns out to be a perfect, if not often thought of, jazz instrument. And Chico's drumming is subtly killer. Not a flashy guy, it is all in the service of the song.

I'd never heard anything quite like this, and although that isn't always a good thing, it is here. Laid back jazz that is full of ideas and swing. Great Sunday morning music. Or late night. Or right now.

All Back To My Place

MOJO magazine has a regular feature where they ask musicians and celebrities a specific set of questions about their musical tastes. Not unlike the Bernard Pivot questionnaire that James Lipton used on The Actor's Studio program, but focused on musical taste.

The feature in the magazine is called All Back To My Place. Since it seems unlikely that MOJO will ever call me, I'll give you my answers here.

What music are you currently grooving to?
Right now it's Justin Currie's The Great War, Lady Gaga's The Fame Monster, The Band Of Heathens' One Foot In The Ether, Melody Gardot's My One And Only Thrill, and Don Dixon Sings The Songs Of The Jeffords Brothers.

What, if push comes to shove, is your all-time favorite album?
Oh well, sometimes it's Rubber Soul by the Beatles, or Kiln House by Fleetwood Mac. But the one that rises to the top of the list most often is probably The Band by The Band.

What was the first record you ever bought? And where did you buy it?
The first record that was actually mine was 50,000 Elvis Fans Can't Be Wrong, which was given to me for my eighth birthday. My older brothers always had records and I got to listen to those, so the first record I actually bought was much later, and it may have been The Guess Who's Wheatfield Soul. I always liked These Eyes, the single from that record. I bought it at Culver Military Academy, where I attended one summer.

Which musician (other than yourself) have you ever wanted to be?
I'd want to be a musician that isn't too badly screwed up. Who would that be? Maybe Eric Clapton, or Elton John. No, make that Van Morrison. But I just want their talent and money, and I'll develop my own psychoses.

What do you sing in the shower?
Whatever is stuck in my head at the time. I always liked a lot of Elton John's stuff, so maybe Rocket Man or Amoreena. But it could be anything I heard recently. Boppin' The Blues by Carl Perkins is always good.

What is your favorite Saturday night record?
Getting ready to go out, I might fire up some ACDC, maybe You Shook Me All Night Long, or Edgar Winter's Keep Playing That Rock And Roll, or Sniff 'n' The Tears' Driver's Seat, or NRBQ's Me And The Boys. Sometimes it's more dancable, like Kirsty MacColl's Mambo De La Luna or Jackie Wilson's Baby Workout, or One Nation Under A Groove by Funkadelic.

And your Sunday morning record?
For a long time my Sunday morning music was Donovan's A Gift From A Flower To A Garden. These days it's more likely to be a female jazz singer such as Karrin Allyson or Barb Jungr.

Tubes or Solid State?

Tubes.

Solid state amplification devices are more efficient, so you can get a lot more watts for less money. Many types of speakers are relatively inefficient, or present unusual impedance loads that challenge an amplifier, and these devices require plenty of muscle to perform their best. The super high power tube amps are just really too expensive. So solid state has an important place in our world.

But take a highly efficient speaker than never drops too low in electrical impedance, and a well-crafted tube amp, and music just blooms out of the system.

I've heard great stereos that use solid state amps. But there's a magic to good tube amplification with the right speakers that solid state just can't do.

Tubes. More.

Roy Orbison Black And White Night 1989

Recorded live for a splendid DVD, this CD is a champ. Miraculously, Roy Orbison had lost not a single tiny bit of his angelic voice in 1987. He's backed by former Presley employees the TCB band of James Burton, Jerry Sheff, Glen Hardin and Ron Tuft. And that show would be a killer all by itself, but...

Add Michael Utley on keys, Alex Acuna on percussion, T-Bone Burnett, Elvis Costello, Tom Waits and Bruce Springsteen on guitars, and whoa! Lookout!

But wait, not only do you get the still vital Orbison, the TCB band, the stellar guests, but for a limited time only you also receive the back-up singer crew of (get ready for this) Steve Soles, J. D. Souther, Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt, k. d. lang, and Jennifer Warnes. Just read those last three again.

Everything is perfect. The guests play great, but never upstage the star, and Springteen is particularly reverential to Orbison. The band is, well, see above. If it sounds like a dream team, they will live up to your dreams.

With Orbison's All Time Greatest Hits, essential listening.

Don Dixon Don Dixon Sings The Jeffords Brothers 2010

What an exciting title. Who are the Jeffords Brothers? Who is Don Dixon?

There are way too many people who might ask that second question, and for no good reason. Don Dixon has released a run of great solo records since 1985, and has produced many excellent records for others, not the least of which a string of overlooked gems by his wife Marti Jones, but also REM, Smithereens, Marshall Crenshaw, and many others.

He's the American Nick Lowe. Songwriter, singer, bass player, producer, and consistently excellent at all of it. Blessed with a soulful rasp of a voice, he's up to the task of singing these fine, newly written R&B gems. Dixon played all the instruments except drums, which he wisely left in long-time musical partner Jim Brock's rock-steady hands.

So who are the Jeffords? Just two brothers from Carolina who write these particularly great songs, that Dixon turns into white soul the likes of which has been missing since the glory days of Dan Penn writing for the Box Tops. These songs are excellent, and Dixon does them as well as he does his own, with reverence and interesting arrangements.

I've Had Enough starts the CD off with a slinky soul put-down. All I Can Say is a funny-sad tale of cat-got-the-tongue shyness. Long Road Gone is a richly-orchestrated ballad that Dixon sings the crap out of. Me And My Radio is an under the covers romance with Top 40 broadcasts that swings with a strong chorus. I'm In Love With A Woman That I Can't Stand is another funny-sad gem, and the horn charts add a nice touch. The sweet soul of Love In Motion is irresistible, and Surprised By My Surprise is loaded with both lyrical and melodic hooks.

It's not soul or R&B like you're used to hearing, unless you've been following Dixon's work for a while, in which case this CD seems the natural extension of all he does so well, while letting him off the hook for the songwriting.

Killer smooth soul-pop from a talented artist and dynamic writing duo. Try something old, something new, in one package. Have some fun for a change. Highly recommended.

Cristian Cuff Chalkboard 2010

My wife and I took a lovely trip to the coast of Maine earlier this summer. Ogunquit, Kennebunkport, Portland, Bar Harbor, and especially Boothbay Harbor were delightful, and included really good seafood everywhere. Boothbay Harbour also had the Eastern Maine botanical garden, a not-to-be-missed stop.

While in Bar Harbor, we discovered a fine little Irish pub (stocking Paddy Irish whiskey, one of my faves) with an interesting bartender who told us his second CD had just been released. So we went back the next day to buy a copy from him. It turns out he is Christian Cuff.

While I don't generally buy much folk music (although Cheryl Wheeler and David Wilcox take up some space on the shelves), Cuff's material best fits into the category chamber folk, or as CD Baby calls it, anti-folk. It has taken me a while to get into the record, but as time and multiple listenings add up, I've come to enjoy much of what is on offer on this interestingly different CD.

Cuff is a folky singer-songwriter and a good guitarist. Joining Cuff on this CD are various musicians on keyboards, bass, guitar, drums, harmonica, vocals, woodwinds, trumpet, baritone horn, and string quartet.

There's not much happiness in the lyrics, but there is also not much cliche in them either. Cuff writes personal stuff quite well, and avoids the most common chord progressions in his music. This keeps things from sounding like "just another" anything, and gives the CD a uniqueness that is welcome.

The real thrill of the CD is the arrangements. Relatively simple songs augmented with string quartet and a variety of instrumental assistance keep the music interesting and varied in a way that simple guitar-based folk often misses. If there is a weakness, it is Cuff's voice, a husky-raspy whispered growl with limited range that nonetheless suits his songs well, and as tools go, it effectively communicates the tension in his lyrics.

South, Hobo Island, Red Rum, For Now, and Awful are standouts, and tend to move along at a slightly more sprightly clip than the others. But the entire CD benefits from the arrangements and that includes the more somber tunes. Cellist Jeremy Harman is consistently excellent, and all of the other musicians serve the music well.

Late night melancholy is soundtracked right here. If you like that sort of thing, this one will serve your listening pleasure.

Dan Wilson Free Life 2007

Back in the mid-nineties, Dan Wilson made several great records with his band Semisonic. The Great Divide 1996 and Feeling Strangely Fine 1998 were exceptional, and All About Chemistry 2001 was almost as good. Wilson then went on to co-write several songs with the Dixie Chicks for their album Taking The Long Way, and has written with several other artists.

Wilson has a nice, clear, high voice. He is a very competent singer, guitar and piano player, and his lyrics are interesting and personal without being sappy. But it is his songwriting that shines above all else.

I bemoaned the loss of Semisonic, and hoped that this latest studio effort would rival that fine band. I'm happy to report that it almost sounds like a new Semisonic album, with a few more ballads than most of their records. If you liked that band, you'll like this. It is not quite the rock band records that they made, but it is close enough. If you never heard Semisonic, check out The Great Divide and Feeling Strangely Fine. If you want to hear some great songs by a modern master of the rock-pop form, this newest one will work fine.