Category Archives: Year Of Recording: 1990
Jan Garbarek – I Took Up The Runes (1990)
Posted on June 16, 2020 by allerlei2013riffmaster
Jan Garbarek (born 4 March 1947) is a Norwegian jazz saxophonist, who is also active in classical music and world music.
Garbarek was born in Mysen, Norway, the only child of a former Polish prisoner of war, Czesław Garbarek, and a Norwegian farmer's daughter. He grew up in Oslo, stateless until the age of seven, as there was no automatic grant of citizenship in Norway at the time. When he was 21, he married Vigdis. He is the father of musician and composer Anja Garbarek.
Garbarek's sound is one of the hallmarks of the ECM Records label, which has released virtually all of his recordings. His style incorporates a sharp-edged tone, long, keening, sustained notes, and generous use of silence. He began his recording career in the late 1960s, notably featuring on recordings by the American jazz composer George Russell (such as Electronic Sonata for Souls Loved by Nature). By 1973 he had turned his back on the harsh dissonances of avant-garde jazz, retaining only his tone from his previous approach. Garbarek gained wider recognition through his work with pianist Keith Jarrett's European Quartet which released the albums Belonging (1974), My Song (1977) and the live recordings Personal Mountains (1979), and Nude Ants (1979). He was also a featured soloist on Jarrett's orchestral works Luminessence (1974) and Arbour Zena (1975).
As a composer, Garbarek tends to draw heavily from Scandinavian folk melodies, a legacy of his Ayler influence. He is also a pioneer of ambient jazz composition, most notably on his 1976 album Dis a collaboration with guitarist Ralph Towner, that featured the distinctive sound of a wind harp on several tracks. This textural approach, which rejects traditional notions of thematic improvisation (best exemplified by Sonny Rollins) in favour of a style described by critics Richard Cook and Brian Morton as "sculptural in its impact", has been critically divisive. Garbarek's more meandering recordings are often labeled as new-age music, or spiritual ancestors thereof. Other experiments have included setting a collection of poems of Olav H. Hauge to music, with a single saxophone complementing a full mixed choir; this has led to notable performances with Grex Vocalis. In the 1980s, Garbarek's music began to incorporate synthesizers and elements of world music. He has collaborated with Indian and Pakistani musicians such as Trilok Gurtu, Zakir Hussain, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Bade Fateh Ali Khan. Garbarek is credited for composing original music for the 2000 film Kippur.
In 1994, during heightened popularity of Gregorian chant, his album Officium, a collaboration with early music vocal performers the Hilliard Ensemble, became one of ECM's biggest-selling albums of all time, reaching the pop charts in several European countries and was followed by a sequel, Mnemosyne, in 1999. Officium Novum, another sequel album, was released in September 2010. In 2005, his album In Praise of Dreams was nominated for a Grammy Award. Garbarek's first live album Dresden was released in 2009.
I Took Up the Runes is an album by Norwegian saxophonist Jan Garbarek released on the ECM label and performed by Garbarek, Rainer Brüninghaus, Eberhard Weber, Nana Vasconcelos, Manu Katché, and Bugge Wesseltoft with Ingor Ánte Áilo Gaup contributing vocals.
In a contemporaneous review, Jim Aikin described the album as a "hauntingly evocative Euro-jazz session" and identified the "Gula Gula" track as "especially memorable". (wikipedia)
A more eclectic release than his preceding releases, Jan Garbarek's I Took Up the Runes satisfies listeners who had been more or less impatient for something with some meat and some muscle. Opening with a jazzy cover of Mari Persen's "Gula Gula," made fuller with bass guitar accompaniment that modifies the chord structure of the whole tune, the album next features the five-part "Molde Canticle," which spans from a dreamy esoteric sound to African folk music. Garbarek really wails in places, and it is a welcome surprise — he should wail more than he does. Synthesizer sounds are starting to become less prominent as well. There is excellent piano work by Rainer Brüninghaus and excellent vocalizing by guest artist Ingor Ántte Áilu Gaup. A sign of good things to come. (by Mark Allender)
Rainer Brüninghaus (piano)
Jan Garbarek (saxophone)
Ingor Ánte Áilo Gaup (voice)
Manu Katché (drums)
Nana Vasconcelos (percussion)
Eberhard Weber (bass)
Bugge Wesseltoft (synthesizer)
01. Gula Gula (Mari Persen) (Garbarek) 5.56
02. Molde Canticle: Part 1 (Garbarek) 5.12
07. His Eyes Were Suns (Traditional) 6.05
08. I Took Up The Runes (Garbarek) 5.25
09. Buena Hora, Buenos Vientos (Garbarek) 9.01
10. Rahkki Sruvvis (Gaup) 2.23
More Jan Garbarek:
Posted in Garbarek Jan, Jazz, Year Of Recording: 1990	| Leave a reply
Natasha (Turner) – Same (1991)
Natasha Turner is a native New Yorker who has a very powerful, sharp vocal range, and her jazz/blues guitar playing is exceptional! Natasha opens with the Doc Pomus/Dr John classic 'Nightbird', this splendid song features a jazzy balance between Turner's guitar licks and Joel Diamond's organ chords. 'Nothing At All' is written by Turner and Diamond, and lyrically reminds me of 'Lets Call The Whole Thing Off' that Ella & Louis made famous. One of my favourite soul/jazz songs on Natasha is 'Open Up The Door' which features 'Chesky Records' Album Producer David Chesky on organ. 'Open Up The Door' is reminscient of Ray Charles' and Percy Mayfield's early recordings. 'The Night Is A Hunter'(Pomus/Dr John) is a slow blues dialogue that Turner creates an imtimacy that draws you ever closer to her flame. 'Just A Little Bit' is a Roscoe Gordon R&B gem and it's great to see it revived here. 'Endless Game' (Turner/Diamond) is jazzy. I've heard many bands record Nick Gravenites 'Born In Chicago', this version has to be one of the best; Teddy Erwin and Turner's guitars absolutely soar! 'Tell Me What You're Gonna Do'(Pomus/Dr John) is strutting blues featuring Joel on piano. 'Seven Angels' is a brilliant Natasha Turner original, and she begins with a dialogue, then moves into some very catchy lyrics. 'High Cost Of Loving'(Dr John/Duke Robillard) has a rockier edge to it. 'Wrong Kind Of Man' is another Turner original, and this leans heaverly to Charles/Mayfield influences. The coup de grace on Natasha is Jimmy Rogers' 'Walking By Myself'. Now this is an album that most people will not have heard about, least of all seen, yet it rates as one of my all time favourite R&B albums with jazzy/blues influences. Anyone who plays Doc Pomus/Dr John is alright by me. David Chesky made sure that Natasha(1991) was very well recorded, and Natasha Turner delivered with a fantastic band! (by Gazz)
Chesky Records was best known for jazz and classical in the early 1990s, but the New York label dabbled in New Orleans-influenced R&B, roots-rock and blues with this little-known CD by singer Natasha Turner (who simply went by Natasha). This isn't strictly a blues album — most of the tunes don't have a 12-bar blues structure — but because it's so rootsy and down-home, it ended up being placed in blues bins. And, to be sure, you'll find a lot of blues feeling on such earthy offerings as "Open Up the Door," "Wrong Kind of Man" (which Natasha wrote herself), and the Doc Pomus/Dr. John compositions "Tell Me What You're Gonna Do," "Nightbird" and "The Night Is a Hunter." Although its New Orleans influence is hard to miss, this CD was recorded in New York — not the Crescent City — and was produced by Chesky Records founder David Chesky. This isn't a fantastic album, but it's competent and satisfying. (by Alex Henderson)
Richard Crooks (drums)
Joel Diamond (keyboards)
Teddy Erwin (guitar)
Natasha Turner (vocals, guitar)
Stu Woods (bass)
David Chesky (organ)
01. Nightbird (Pomus/Mac Rebennack) 3.48
02. Nothing At All (Diamond/Turner) 3.53
03. Open Up The Door (Diamond/Wynters) 3.49
04. The Night Is A Hunter (Pomus/Mac Rebennack) 5.58
05. Just A Little Bit (Gordon) 2.49
06. Endless Game (Diamond/Turner) 5.33
07. Born In Chicago (Gravenites) 7.10
08. Tell Me What You're Gonna Do (Pomus/Mac Rebennack) 3.11
09. Seven Angels (Rodgers/Turner) 5.49
10. High Cost Of Loving (Pomus/Robillard) 4.12
11. Wrong Kind Of Man (Turner) 3.34
12. Walking By Myself (Lane/Rogers) 4.30
Posted in Blues, Turner Natasha, Year Of Recording: 1990	| Leave a reply
Van Morrison – Live With The Danish Radio Big Band (Barbican Center London) (1990)
Sir George Ivan "Van" Morrison OBE (born 31 August 1945) is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter, instrumentalist and record producer. His professional career began as a teenager in the late 1950s, playing a variety of instruments including guitar, harmonica, keyboards and saxophone for various Irish showbands, covering the popular hits of that time. Van Morrison rose to prominence in the mid-1960s as the lead singer of the Northern Irish R&B band, Them, with whom he recorded the garage band classic "Gloria". His solo career began in 1967, under the pop-hit orientated guidance of Bert Berns with the release of the hit single "Brown Eyed Girl". After Berns's death, Warner Bros. Records bought out his contract and allowed him three sessions to record Astral Weeks (1968). Though this album gradually garnered high praise, it was initially a poor seller.
Morrison has a reputation for being at once stubborn, idiosyncratic, and sublime. His live performances at their best are seen as transcendental and inspired; while some of his recordings, such as the studio albums Astral Weeks and Moondance, and the live album It's Too Late to Stop Now, are highly acclaimed.
Moondance (1970) established Morrison as a major artist, and he built on his reputation throughout the 1970s with a series of acclaimed albums and live performances. He continues to record and tour, producing albums and live performances that sell well and are generally warmly received, sometimes collaborating with other artists, such as Georgie Fame and The Chieftains.
Much of Morrison's music is structured around the conventions of soul music and R&B, such as the popular singles "Brown Eyed Girl", "Jackie Wilson Said (I'm in Heaven When You Smile)", "Domino" and "Wild Night". An equal part of his catalogue consists of lengthy, loosely connected, spiritually inspired musical journeys that show the influence of Celtic tradition, jazz and stream-of-consciousness narrative, such as the album Astral Weeks and the lesser known Veedon Fleece and Common One.
The two strains together are sometimes referred to as "Celtic soul". He has received two Grammy Awards, the 1994 Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music, the 2017 Americana Music Lifetime Achievement Award for Songwriting and has been inducted into both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In 2016, he was knighted for services to the music industry and to tourism in Northern Ireland. He is known by the nickname Van the Man to his fans. (by wikipedia)
And Van Morrison worked many times with The Danish Radio Big Band (see here)
And here´s another fine example, a nearly perfect bootleg (excellent broandcast reording) … what a wonderful night … what a brilliant combination !
… what a great addition to every Van Morrison collection … it´s a must to have !
Bit: This is the worst cover art for a Van Morrison I have ever seen !!!
Personnel;
Van Morrison (vocals, guitar on 05. – 15.)
The Danish Radio Big Band:
Jørgen Emborg (keybords)
Lennart Gruvstedt (drums)
Bjarne Roupé (guitar)
Mads Vinding (bass)
Ethan Weisgard (percussion)
saxophone, flute, clarinet:
Jesper Thilo – Jan zum Vohrde – Uffe Kraskov – Bent Jædig
trumpet, flugelhorn:
Benny Rosenfeldt – Jens Winther – Lars Togeby – Palle Bolvig – Perry Knudsen
trombone:
Jens Engel – Axel Windfeld – Steen Hansen – Ture Larsen – Vincent Nilsson
Georgie Fame (organ on 11. – 14.)
01. Basically Yours (Jones) 2.56
02. Introduction + Aura (Holdman) 6.01
03. Tiptoe (Jones) 7.44
04. Wild Bill (Pitts) 6.49
Van Morrison & The Danish Radio Big Band:
05. I Will Be There (Morrison) 2.51
06. Here Comes The Knight (Morrison) 3.26
07. Haunts Of Ancient Peace (Morrison) 4.12
08. Celtic Swing (Morrison) 5.00
09. Got To Go Back (Morrison) 5.07
10. A New Kind Of Man (Morrison) 3.15
11. Listen To The Lion (Morrison) 5.04
12. Vanlose Stairway (Morrison) 4.25
13. I`d Love To Write Another Song (Morrison) 2.44
14. Orangefield (Morrison) 4.00
15. Whenever God Shines His Light (Morrison) 4.09
16. To You (Jones) 4.27
17. Van Morrison Live With The Danish Radio Big Band (Barbican Center London) (uncut edition) 1.17.45
I got this concert many, many years ago as a tape:
More Van Morrison:
Posted in Jazz, Morrison Van, The Danish Radio Big Band, Year Of Recording: 1990	| Leave a reply
Quaterna Réquiem – Velha Gravura (1990)
The story of QUATERNA REQUIEM goes back to the late 80's in Brazil, when classically trained brothers Elisa Wiermann (piano, harpsichord, organ) and Claudio Dantes (Percussion), decide to blend their two passions (Classical Music and Rock) , the name of the band (Latin for "The other four") was a reference to the other members of the original formation.
Their first album called Velha Gravura (Ancient Engraving) was released by a quintet formed by the two founders and complemented by Jones Júnior (guitars), Marco Lauria (Bass) and violinist Kleber Vogel. The result is a carefully crafted fusion between Prog Rock, camera Music and a hint of jazz, with a special flavor provided by the dramatic violin of Vogel.
After an extended tour through Brazil, Kleber Vogel, Marco Lauria and Jones Junior leave the band and are replaced by guitarist Roberto Crivano and Fábio Fernandez (bass guitar and lute) and a Benedictine Monk with whom Elisa had worked, the band released "Quasimodo" (1994), where the title song (39 minutes Suite) is a complete work by Elisa based in Victor Hugo´s novel Our Lady of Paris. Due to the absence of virtuoso violinist Kleber Vogel, the sound gets more oriented towards keyboards.
After a long sabbatical, the band reunites to launch a new CD called "A Mão Livre" (A Free Hand) under the moniker WIERMANN & VOGEL, but we know it's QUATERNA REQUIEM because Claudio Dantes, Marco Laurias and Roberto Crivano appear in the record. Despite the new band name, the album is musically closer to the debut due to the formation and the fact that Vogel's violin is of huge importance.
Some of us believed that the story was over, but again under the original band name, the group released "O Arquiteto" with the final eponymous suite dedicated to notable architects as Bramante, Gaudi and Niemeyer among others. A good effort, even when slightly less satisfying to the previous.
That's QUATERNA REQUIEM story so far, but only time will tell, because I believe they still have a lot to offer. (by Iván Melgar-Morey)
Quaterna Réquiem's debut album "Velha Gravura" is an exhibition of compellingly beautiful musical pictures, mostly conceived under a symphonic drive, but leaving room for a varied array of folkish sorts and some jazz rock leanings. As points of reference I can mention 'Snow Goose' Camel, 'W&W'-era Genesis and The Enid, but I think it is fair to point out that this quintet manages to create and convey their own signature sound in the general context of vintage symphonic tradition. Since I regard QR as my all-time favourite Brazilian prog act, it may come as no wonder that I am so in awe with each piece contained in the album's tracklist. My only objection is a formal (not substantial) one: the opening number should not have been 'Ramoniana', since it is not precisely indicative of the overall symphonic pomp and circumstance that expands all throughout the entire remaining repertoire. But now that I mention it, let me tell you that this Creole folk based number is so beautiful, that all in all, I can't help but enjoy it regardless of the location it is in. That interplay between acoustic guitar and flute (the latter played by a guest), with a violin and an oboe intruding softly in order to add some ceremonious colours, and that high spirited coda that fills the last minute and a half, all these things are simply irresistible.
The band's caliber comes to the fore in full exposure in tracks 2, 3 and 6, which IMHO are the most notable numbers in the repertoire: 'Aquartha' and 'Toccata' are intense and complex, while keeping an appealing, clear sense of melodic sensibility; the namesake number incarnates a perfect balance between orchestral majesty and rock driven punch. 'Tempestade' and 'Madrugada' find the band sliding along the calmer side of things: the former is serene, something like a contemplation, and the latter is more notoriously introspective, as a reflection that revolves around the mysteries of the inner self. The colourful splendour of 'Toccata' lights things up at the end of the record's official repertoire. The last 2 numbers in the CD tracklist are bonus tracks, very much in the vein of tracks 2, 4 and 6: had they been developed further and arranged with a major dose of symphonic magnificence, each one might have overshadowed some of the official tracks. Since even the bonus tracks in this CD are so good, my rating must indicate "Velha Gravura" as an excellent addition to any good prog collectio (by Cesar Inca)
Oh yes … such a superb progrock album !
Cláudio Dantas (drums, percussion)
Marco Lauria (bass)
Roberto Meyer (flute)
Jones Júnior (guitar, violin)
Adauro Vilarinho (oboe)
Kleber Vogel (violin)
Elisa Wiermann (piano, synthesizer)
01. Ramoniana (Júnior) 6.23
02. Aquartha (Wiermann) 5.06
03. Velha Gravura (Wiermann) 12.16
04. Tempestade (Wiermann) 7.19
05. Madrugada (Wiermann) 10.35
06. Toccata (Wiermann) 6.03
07. Carceres (Wiermann) 3.54
08. Elegia (Vogel) 4.48
Posted in Quaterna Réquiem, Rock, Year Of Recording: 1990	| Leave a reply
Ludwig Güttler + Virtuosi Saxoniae – JS Bach Orchestral Suites (2014)
Posted on November 19, 2019 by allerlei2013riffmaster
Ludwig Güttler (born 13 June 1943) is an internationally known German virtuoso on the Baroque trumpet, the piccolo trumpet and the corno da caccia. As a conductor, he founded several ensembles including the chamber orchestra Virtuosi Saxoniae. His name is sometimes written in English as Ludwig Guttler.
He received a number of awards including Discovery of the Year in 1983, and Frankfurt's Musikpreis for extraordinary achievements in 1989. He was a founding member of the Rheingau Musik Festival and has appeared regularly since the first season in 1988.
As head of the society of the Dresdner Frauenkirche, Ludwig Güttler promoted the reconstruction of this famous Baroque church, which was destroyed during World War II and was rebuilt in 1994–2004. In recognition of these contributions, Queen Elizabeth II appointed him Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in November 2007.
Güttler was born in 1943 in Sosa, in the Ore Mountain region of Saxony. He studied at the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik – Mendelssohn-Akademie in Leipzig with Armin Männel. From 1965 to 1969 he played in the orchestra of the Handel Festival in Halle and from 1969 to 1980 with the Dresden Philharmonic. He has been teaching the trumpet at the Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber in Dresden until 1990, and at the annual International Music Seminar in Weimar from 1980 to 1990.
Since the mid-1970s, Güttler has been mainly active as a soloist and later as a conductor, at home and abroad, devoted mainly to the trumpet literature of the 18th century, especially the high-pitched piccolo trumpet. He was also involved in the development of a modern brass instrument to play parts designated for the historic corno da caccia. The instrument was made by Friedbert Syhre in Leipzig.
Güttler is also musical director of the festival "Sandstein und Musik" (Sandstone and Music) in Saxon Switzerland, founded in 1983 and of the festival Musikwoche Hitzacker in Hitzacker. Güttler is a member of the Sächsische Akademie der Künste (Saxon Academy of Arts).
Güttler founded the Leipziger Bach-Collegium in 1976, the Blechbläserensemble Ludwig Güttler in 1978, and in 1985 the chamber orchestra Virtuosi Saxoniae.[3] The group of members of the Staatskapelle Dresden concentrates on performing music from the 18th century found in Dresden libraries, in the fields of opera, sacred music and chamber music.
He supported the Rheingau Musik Festival from the beginning in 1988, both as a performer and a curator. In 2011 he appeared with his Brass Ensemble.[5] In 2012, he conducted his orchestra Virtuosi Saxoniae in Eberbach Abbey in works by Bach, Handel, Johann Friedrich Fasch, Christoph Förster, Telemann and Mozart, as part of the series "Companions along the way".
In 1983 he received a record prize of the Deutsche Phono-Akademie in Hamburg as "Discovery of the Year". In 1988 he was the second recipient of the Georg-Philipp-Telemann-Preis of Magdeburg, in 1989 the Frankfurter Musikpreis. In both 1978 and 1985 he received the National Prize of East Germany, which he returned in 1989, asking that the money should be devoted to the reconstruction of the Frauenkirche.
After the German reunification, Ludwig Güttler became chairman of the society for promoting the reconstruction of the Frauenkirche Dresden and curator of the foundation Stiftung Frauenkirche. He regularly conducted "Wiederaufbaukonzerte" (concerts for the reconstruction).[9] For his involvement in the reconstruction of the Frauenkirche, he received several honours. President Horst Köhler awarded him in September 2007 the Great Cross of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany. Erich Iltgen awarded him the Sächsische Verfassungsmedaille on 26 May 2005. Queen Elizabeth II appointed him Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in November 2007 in recognition of his contributions to the reconstruction of the Frauenkirche and his significant contribution to the reconciliation of the two peoples by this project. (by wikipedia)
Can one ever tire of the dancing inspiration that animates these four portmanteau collections which have delighted both serious and casual listeners ever since Bach compiled them for use in social occasions as the 30-something Kapellmeister at the briefly enlightened court of Prince Leopold of Cöthen, exulting in the multifarious influences which he had absorbed and could place at the service of a compositional mind of unequalled intellectual brilliance yet always conscious of his music's need to entertain, to give delight as well as accompany the sober thoughts of his congregations?
Not, at any rate, in these performances from a virtuoso German ensemble hailing from Bach's own part of the world and masterminded by a superb trumpeter-turned-conductor who well understands the exuberant, public character of these suites, their occasional purposes, for all that in such moments as the famous Air from the G major Suite, No.3, they appear to take on a more confiding aspect, drawing the listener in before dispelling the tension with another jolly minuet or charming sarabande.
This generously filled CD presents the complete Orchestral Suites (Overtures) by J.S. Bach. Bach's Suites count among his most popular and most frequently performed works, they are quintessential Bach: majestic, noble, tender and full of energy. They contain some of Bach's evergreens: the Air from the 3rd Suite and the Badinerie from the 2nd Suite.
Played by the Virtuosi Saxoniae conducted by trumpeter-conductor Ludwig Güttler, modern instruments in Historically Informed Performance Practice, the best of both worlds. (press release)
Recordings: 1990-1992, Lukaskirche, Dresden/Germany
Joachim Bischof (cello)
Ludwig Güttler (trumpet)
Eckart Haupt (flute)
Friedemann Jähnig (viola)
Thomas Käppler (timpani)
Günter Klier (bassoon)
Manfred Krause (oboe)
Andreas Lorenz (oboe)
Heinz-Dieter Richter (violin)
Roland Rudolph (trumpet)
Mathias Schmutzler (trumpet)
Roland Straumer (violin)
Guido Titze (oboe)
Werner Zeibig (bass)
Suite In C BWV 1066:
01. Ouverture 5.37
02. Courante 1.38
03. Gavotte I & II 2.27
04. Forlane 1.16
05. Menuet I & II 2.45
06. Bourrée I & II 2.25
07. Passepied I & II 3.02
Suite In B Minor BWV 1067:
09. Rondeau 1.39
10. Sarabande 2.52
12. Polonaise I & II 2.59
13. Menuet 1.09
14. Badinerie 1.20
Suite In D BWV 1068:
16. Air 4.16
18. Bourrée 1.15
19. Gigue 2.39
22. Gavotte 1.44
24. Réjouissance 2.17
Posted in Classic, Güttler Ludwig, Ludwig Güttler + Virtuosi Saxoniae, Year Of Publishing: 1991, Year Of Recording: 1990, Year Of Recording: 1992	| Leave a reply
Cassell Webb – Conversations At Dawn (1990)
Cassell Webb is a British-American musician.
Texas-born Cassell Webb has enjoyed a career that carried her from late 1960s psychedelia to country music and latter-day folk-rock to modern folk songwriting, classical music production and moved her across an ocean in the process. Her voice can sound ethereal or mournful and crosses genres as easily as Webb's career has over more than 30 years.
Born in San Antonio, Texas, in the late 1940s, Webb began playing guitar at 14 and later gravitated to the psychedelic scenes in San Antonio and Houston. She became a member of the Children, a psychedelic outfit that was part of Lelan Rodgers' stable of artists, appearing on their 1968 Rebirth album and several singles. She later joined Saddlesore, a Texas combo whose core members, Mayo Thompson and Rick Barthelme, were survivors from the Red Krayola (another Rodgers-managed act). They stayed together long enough to record one single ("Old Tom Clark") on the Texas Revolution label before disappearing in the early 1970s.
Webb spent time in California and New York working as a session singer and acquiring some knowledge of production as well and then returned to Texas, where she spent the next few years working with such country artists as Jerry Jeff Walker, Willie Nelson, Guy Clark, and B.W. Stevenson. It was around the time she began writing songs that she also began her long association with songwriter/producer Craig Leon. Webb went to Europe in the early '80s, first to Holland and then to England, where she remained permanently and began her solo recording career. Initially signed to the Virgin owned independent label Statik Records, for which she recorded her debut album, Llano, she later joined the roster of Venture Records, an avant grade offshoot of Richard Branson's Virgin Records label, through which she recorded Thief of Sadness in 1987. Webb's most representative and popular album was her third, Songs of a Stranger, which was derived from her concert repertory of other writers' music, including Jimmy Webb ("P.F. Sloan"), Nick Drake ("Time Has Told Me"), Townes Van Zandt ("If I Needed You"), and Phil Ochs ("Jim Dean of Indiana").
Her subsequent two albums Conversations at Dawn and House of Dreams continued her development as a songwriter. The former was again recorded for Virgin Venture and the latter released on China Records.
Webb remains based in England, where her work on such radio programs as Saturday Sequence, coupled with periodic album releases and projects, such as the dance score Klub Anima (co-written with Leon), and singing and production work with artists such as Marillion's Steve Hogarth and back ground vocal work on Blondie (band)'s "No Exit album have sustained her career in pop music.
She has worked consistently on the productions of Craig Leon, which since 1998 have been primarily in the classical field. Webb has also been a production assistant to Leon on television projects such as the 2009 documentary Orbit: Journey to the Moon, which aired on the U.S. Discovery Channel, and Bell'aria which aired in 2010 on U.S. PBS. Webb is also a producer on the 2012 PBS broadcast Quest Beyond the Stars as well as the creator of the story concept.
Her poetry has also been published by Pen & Ink of Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Webb's version of the Rolling Stones classic "Tell Me," from her 1990 album Conversations at Dawn (which also included her covers of Bruce Springsteen's "Reason to Believe" and, in a nod to her own Texas psychedelic roots, the 13th Floor Elevators' "Splash One"), has been included on the Connoisseur Collection's Jagger/Richard Songbook CD.
More recent work has been appearances on the new re recording of Nommos and Visiting along with live appearances of those pieces in New York; Moogfest (Asheville, North Carolina); Saint Petersburg, Russia; Berlin, Germany; and Kraków, Poland from 2014 to date.
She has also co produced the album "George Martin: The Film Scores and Original Compositions" released in 2018 on Atlas Realisations/PIAS. (by wikipedia)
Texas-born Cassell Webb has enjoyed a career that carried her from late-'60s psychedelia to country music and latter-day folk-rock to progressive rock/pop, and moved her across an ocean in the process. Her voice, which can sound ethereal or mournful and crosses genres as easily as Webb's career has over more than 30 years. Born in Llano, TX, in the late '40s, Webb began playing guitar at 14 and later gravitated to the psychedelic scene in San Antonio. She became a member of the Children, a psychedelic outfit that was part of Lelan Rodgers' stable of artists, appearing on their 1968 Rebirth album and several singles. She later joined Saddlesore, a Texas combo whose core members, Mayo Thompson and Rick Barthelme, were survivors from the Red Krayola (another Rodgers-managed act). They stayed together long enough to record one single ("Old Tom Clark") on the Texas Revolution label before disappearing in the early '70s. Webb spent time in California and New York working as a session singer and acquiring some knowledge of production as well and then returned to Texas, where she spent the next few years working with such country artists as Jerry Jeff Walker, Guy Clark, and B.W. Stevenson. It was around the time she began writing songs that she also began her long association with songwriter/producer Craig Leon.
Webb went to Europe in the early '80s, first to Holland and then to England, where she remained permanently and began her solo recording career. Initially signed to the tiny independent label Statick Records, for which she recorded her debut album, Llano, she later joined the roster of Venture Records, an off-shoot of Richard Branson's Virgin Records label, through which she recorded Thief of Sadness in 1987. Webb's most representative and popular album was her third, Songs of a Stranger, which was derived from her concert repertory of other writers' music, including Jimmy Webb ("P.F. Sloan"), Nick Drake ("Time Has Told Me"), Townes Van Zandt ("If I Needed You"), and Phil Ochs ("Jim Dean of Indiana"). Webb remains based in England, where her work on such radio programs as Saturday Sequence, coupled with periodic album releases and projects, such as the dance score "Klub Anima" (co-written with Leon), and singing and production work with artists such as Marillion's Steve Hogarth have sustained her career in music. Her poetry has also been published by Pen & Ink of Ann Arbor, MI. Webb's hauntingly lyrical version of the Rolling Stones classic "Tell Me," from her 1990 album Conversations at Dawn (which also included her covers of Bruce Springsteen's "Reason to Believe" and — in a nod to her own Texas psychedelic roots — the 13th Floor Elevators' "Splash One"), has been included on the Connoisseur Collection's Jagger/Richard Songbook CD, alongside recordings by the Flamin' Groovies, the Who, Mary Coughlan, Naked Prey, Melanie, Marianne Faithfull, and Ike & Tina Turner. (by Bruce Eder)
And here´s her fourth album …. and it´s a real beautiful one:
This album has the aura of a great musical landscape (like Loreena McKennitt but without the Irish bells & whistles (thank god for that).
The centerpiece is "Darkness, Darkness" (one of many covers…) (Lillebol)
Cassell Webb has an amazing country voice, yet made a few albums on Venture that nudged psychedelia (not surprisingly given her 13th Floor Elevators past) and Americana before the term was contrived by the music press. One of the most under-rated singers ever, in my opinion – check this album ! (pkrpmusic)
This woman can enchant you … believe me ! And another highlight is of course her soft and gentle version of The Rolling Stones classic "Tell Me" from the Sixties.
Andy Duncan (drums, percussion)
Craig Leon (guitar, keyboards, bass)
Cassell Webb (vocals)
B.J. Cole (pedal steel-guitar on 03.)
01. Tell Me (Jagger/Richards) 3.51
02. A Song For Sophie Jane (Webb/Leon) 4.34
03. River Run (Webb/Leon) 6.26
04. Freedom's Legacy (Smotherman) 4.09
05. Darkness, Darkness (Young) 5.12
06. You Take A Heart (Kaz) 3.30
07. Splash One (Hall/Erickson) 4.01
08. I Love The Wind (Vandiver) 3.40
09. In The Light (Webb/Leon) 4.33
10. Reason To Believe (Springsteen) 5.00
11. Bones And The Lady (Webb/Leon) 2.24
Posted in Folk, Webb Cassell, Year Of Recording: 1990	| 1 Reply
Roger Chapman – Hybrid And Lowdown (1990 – 2007)
In 1979 Chapman began a solo career and recorded his first solo album Chappo. His backing band became known as The Shortlist at this time and he toured Europe extensively. Mike Oldfield's song "Shadow on the Wall" from the album Crises (1983) featured Chapman on vocals and became a big hit. He appeared as a guest artist on the second Box of Frogs album Strange Land (1986) singing lead vocals on two songs. Chapman went on to record Walking the Cat (1989) and Hybrid and Low Down (1990). (by wikipedia)
And here´s is a more or less forgotten album by Roger Chapman … an maybe criminally underrated album, not only because all these very fine compositions, not only because this great gang of musicians in the studio (including Micky Moody on slide-guitar), but because of the wonderful voice of Roger Chapman.
At the end of the studios album you can hear a very unique version of the Everly Brothers Hit "Bye, Bye Love"
On the bonus album we hear another hot live appearance by Roger Chapman and his band (recorded in Germany in November 1990) … oh yes this place was hot ! And you another chance to listen to Micky Moody and his magic slide guitar on a tune called "Big River" (written by Johny Cash !)
Roger Chapman (vocals, harmonica)
Dave Courtney (drums on 08.)
Simon Edwards (accordion on 03.)
Chris Fletcher (percussion on 01., 04., 06.
Ian Gibbons (keyboards on 06.
John Lingwood (drums on 01., 02., 06., 07., 08.. 09., 10.
Mick Moody (guitar on 01., 04., 08. -10. mandolin, background vocals on 01., slide guitar on 02., 06.
Nick Pentelow (saxophone on 06.
Steve Simpson (guitar on 03., 06., 07.
Philip Spalding (bass on 04., 10.
Henry Spinetti (drums on 04.
Peter Stroud (bass on 01., 02., 06., 08.
Steve Simpson – Bob Tench – Zeitia Massieh – Sonny Spider
01. Hot Night To Rhumba (Simpson/Hinkley) 5.25
02. Holding On (Chapman) 4.31
03. Hideaway (Chapman/Simpson) 3.54
04. Beautifully Indecent (Chapman) 4.42
05. Sushi Roll (Chapman) 4.22
06. Someone Else's Clothes (Chapman) 4.17
07. Chicken Fingers (Chapman/Simpson) 2.55
08. House Behind The Sun (Chapman/Simpson) 5.06
09. Sushi Rock (Chapman) 2.34
10. Is There Anybody Out Here ? (Chapman/Tench) 4.56
11. Cops In Shades (Chapman/Tench) 3.55
12. Bye Bye Love (F.Bryant/B.Bryant) 5.02
14. Sushi Roll / Sushi Rock (Chapman) 8.44
16. Moody's Jump (Moody) / Big River (Cash) 7.04
Posted in Chapman Roger, Rock, Year Of Recording: 1990	| Leave a reply
Inspiral Carpets – Life (1990)
Posted on July 31, 2019 by allerlei2013riffmaster
Life is the debut studio album by the British indie rock band Inspiral Carpets. It was released on 23 April 1990 on Cow Records, through Mute Records, during the period dubbed Madchester by the British media. The group released three singles from this album: "Move", "This Is How It Feels" and "She Comes in the Fall", with the latter two in different versions from those found on the album.
It was reissued in 2013 with the PlaneCrash and TrainSurfing EPs and an unreleased John Peel session as bonus tracks, plus the 21790 live video on a bonus DVD. The 2013 reissue is based on the original UK CD release.
A slightly modified version of Life was released in North America. It dropped the track "Besides Me" and added "Commercial Rain" (a re-recorded version of a B-side to the "Joe" single) and three tracks from their then-forthcoming Island Head EP. (by wikipedia)
Inspiral Carpets had been honing their skills in their native Manchester, England, when the replacement of their original singer with Too Much Texas's Tom Hingley–and an increased reliance on the Farfisa organ–soon put them at the forefront of that northern city's burgeoning Madchester scene. Their debut album, LIFE, finds the group expanding their sound beyond the poignant hit "This Is How It Feels," which is included here. The Elektra-released U.S. edition of LIFE adds tracks from their ISLAND HEAD EP, released contemporaneously with the album. (by Daniel Fetherston)
In today's synthesizer era, the cheesy wheedle of an electric organ immediately locks a band into rock nostalgia (remember "96 Tears"?). As one of the psychedelic retro-pop groups currently dominating British charts, Inspiral Carpets features great big organ chords to distinguish itself from such momentary superstars of the Manchester explosion as Stone Roses and Happy Mondays. But that very act of nonconformity marries the quintet to groups of the past.
Life straddles the post-punk present and the psychedelic '60s with hook-filled songs that liberally quote specific chapters of rock history amid a dense wall of keyboards and guitars. "Directing Traffic," for one, mimics the Doors' sound and lifts a melody from the Electric Prunes' "I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night)"; "I'll Keep It in Mind" stresses folky vocal harmonies and inserts an organ solo straight out of a skating rink. (by Ira Robbins)
Clint Boon (keyboards, vocals)
Craig Gill (drums)
Tom Hingley (vocals)
Graham Lambert (guitar)
Martyn Walsh (bass)
01. Real Thing 3.09
02. Song For A Family 3.04
03. This Is How It Feels 3.05
04. Directing Traffic 3.55
05. Besides Me 2.24
06. Many Happy Returns 3.08
07. Memories Of You 2.15
08. She Comes In The Fall 4.41
09. Monkey On My Back 2.00
10. Sun Don't Shine 3.35
11. Inside My Head 2:01
12. Move 3.36
12. Sackville 6.43
All songs written by Clint Boon – Craig Gill – Tom Hingley – Graham Lambert – Martyn Walsh
Posted in Inspiral Carpets, Rock, Year Of Recording: 1990	| Leave a reply
R.E.M – Out Of Time (1991)
Out of Time is the seventh studio album by American alternative rock band R.E.M., released on March 8, 1991 by Warner Bros. Records. With Out of Time, R.E.M.'s status grew from that of a cult band to a massive international act. The record topped the album sales charts in both the U.S. and the United Kingdom, spending 109 weeks on American album charts and enjoying two separate spells at the summit, and spending 183 weeks on the British charts and a single week at the top. The album has sold over four and a half million copies in the U.S. and over 18 million copies worldwide. The album won three Grammy Awards in 1992: one as Best Alternative Music Album, and two for the first single, "Losing My Religion."
Out of Time combines elements of pop, folk and classical music heard on their previous album Green, with a new concentration on country elements that would continue on 1992's Automatic for the People.
Preceded by the release of "Losing My Religion", which became R.E.M.'s biggest U.S. hit, Out of Time gave them their first U.S. and UK No. 1 album. The band did not tour to support the release. In Germany, it is the band's best-selling album, selling more than 1,250,000 copies, reaching 5×gold.
The album was featured in Time magazine's unranked list of The All-Time 100 Albums.
In July 2014, radio show 99% Invisible said that because of this packaging, Out of Time is "the most politically significant album in the history of the United States."[7] They said that three weeks after the album's release, "they had received 10,000 petitions, 100 per senator, and they just kept coming in droves,"[7] and a month following its release, the campaign's political director and members of KMD "wheeled a shopping cart full of the first 10,000 petitions into a senate hearing." The bill was eventually passed in 1995 by Bill Clinton; one commentary later said this happened "in no small part because of R.E.M.'s lobbying." (by wikipedia)
Hiding political tics behind faux-formalist boilerplate, pop aesthetes accused them of imposing Solidarity and Agent Orange on their musical material, but in fact such subjects signaled an other-directedness as healthy as Michael Stipe's newfound elocution. Admittedly, with this one beginning "The world is collapsing around our ears," I wondered briefly whether "Losing My Religion" was about music itself, but when Stipe says they thought about calling it Love Songs, he's not just mumbling "Dixie." Being R.E.M., they mean to capture moods or limn relationships rather than describe feelings or, God knows, incidents, and while some will find the music too pleasing, it matches the words hurt for hurt and surge for surge. The Kate Pierson cameos, the cellos, and Mark Bingham's organic string arrangements are Murmur without walls–beauty worthy of DeBarge, of the sweetest soukous, of a massed choir singing "I Want To Know What Love Is." (by Robert Christgau)
Bill Berry (drums, percussion, bass, piano, background vocals)
Peter Buck (guitar, mandolin)
Mike Mills (bass, keyboards)
Michael Stipe (vocals, melodica)
Peter Holsapple (bass guitar on 01., + 03., guitar on 02., 06., 07. + 09.)
Ralph Jones (bass on 01., 03.- 06., 08. + 09.)
Kidd Jordan (saxophone)
John Keane (pedal steel guitar on 09. + 10.)
Kate Pierson (vocals on 04., 06. + 11.)
Cecil Welch (flugelhorn on 05.)
violin:
David Arenz – Ellie Arenz – David Braitberg – Dave Kempers
cello:
Andrew Cox – Elizabeth Murphy
Reid Harris – Paul Murphy
KRS-One – rapping on 01.)
Scott Litt (echo-loop feed on 01.)
01. Radio Song (featuring KRS-One) 4.16
02. Losing My Religion 4.29
03. Low 4.56
04. Near Wild Heaven 3.20
05. Endgame 3.50
06. Shiny Happy People 3.46
07. Belong 4.07
08. Half A World Away 3.28
09. Texarkana 3.40
10. Country Feedback 4.09
11. Me In Honey 4.06
All songs written by Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe
Oh, life is bigger
It's bigger than you and you are not me
The lengths that I will go to the distance in your eyes
Oh no, I've said too much, I set it up
That's me in the corner, that's me in the spotlight
Trying to keep up with you and I don't know if I can do it
Oh no, I've said too much, I haven't said enough
I thought that I heard you laughing
I thought that I heard you sing
I think I thought I saw you try
Every whisper of every waking hour I'm choosing my confessions
Trying to keep an eye on you
Like a hurt lost and blinded fool, fool
Consider this, consider this, the hint of the century
Consider this the slip that brought me to my knees, failed
What if all these fantasies come flailing around?
Now I've said too much
But that was just a dream
That was just a dream
Try, cry, why try?
That was just a dream, just a dream
Just a dream, dream
Posted in R.E.M, Rock, Year Of Recording: 1990	| Leave a reply
Nils Lofgren – Keith Don't Go (2013)
Posted on May 2, 2019 by allerlei2013riffmaster
Given his high profile status as a pianist and guitarist for both Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen, it's sometime forgotten that Nils Lofgren enjoyed a 4 year span with Grin, before embarking on his on-going solo career in 1975. 'Keith Don't Go – Live at the Town & Country Club, London 1990' dips back into his early career, for an acoustic to eclectic sweep of his formative years.
Best known as flamboyant guitarist occasionally given to trampolining – hence the album title of his last big label album 'Flip' – Lofgren is also a consistent song writer with a penchant for ballads and melodic pop rock as well as firebrand rocking.
And while this live set might disappoint some fans, especially as its light on material from his best studio albums 'Cry Tough' and 'I Came To Dance', he does a good job of reinvigorating some early career gems. The acoustic 'Secrets In The Street' and 'Keith Don't Go' are given new spark while the autobiographical melodic pop-rock of 'The Sun Hasn't Set (On This Boy Yet)' comes from his early Grin era.
The equally old 'See What Love Can Do' puts the accent more on a reggae/funk feel with a fiery vocal performance and inspired ensemble playing.
Given this live album represents 50 odd minutes of a full show, there's still an integral dynamic to a set that builds incrementally. The band smoulders on 'Rock And Roll Crook' – one of the few songs that doesn't sound much better with the passing of time – before igniting on the up tempo rocking of 'Moon Tears'.
The song originally received its greatest exposure on the 'I Came To Dance', but goes back to the first Grin album, and is a riff driven gem with jangling, unison guitars and sparkling band interplay.
Inevitably there's room for some lyric driven ballads such as 'No Mercy' and the love song 'Shine Silently' before Nils climaxes the show with the guitar driven 'I Came To Dance'. The audience response suggests it's that facet of his music that his fans love best.
This album is a decent snap shot of an in demand session musician with a rich solo career of his own. (by petefeenstra)
Or, just simple: An excellent album !
Recorded live at The Town & Country Club, London 1990
Digitally remastered from the original British television recording.
Larry Cragg (guitar, organ)
Nils Lofgren (guitar, vocals)
Tommy Lofgren (keyboards, guitar, vocals)
Ronnie Newmyer (bass)
Max M. Weinberg (drums)
01. Secrets In The Street (N.Lofgren) 4.00
02. Keith Don't Go (N.Lofgren) 5.41
03. Goin' Back (Goffin/King) 4.11
04. Rock And Roll Crook (N.Lofgren) 3.05
05. Moon Tears (N.Lofgren) 3.57
06. The Sun Hasn't Set (On This Boy Yet) (N.Lofgren) 2.57
07. Anytime At All (Lennon/McCartney) 2.38
08. No Mercy (N.Lofgren) 4.21
09. Shine Silently (Wagner/N.Lofgren) 7.30
10. See What Love Can Do? (N.Lofgren) 6.46
11. I Came To Dance (N.Lofgren) 7.33
The neons are hot tonight baby
Light me up, take me in your arms
There's so much we ought to learn baby
That ain't in books or schools of charm
Ain't in any university standin' right atop the law's long arm
Out in the streets you can get a real view and hope is the charm
The secrets in the street are waiting to remind you
Secrets in the street, high hopes will never blind you
Secrets in the street, they'll teach you about survival
Secrets in the street and not the self denial we've been sold
Been so uninspired and lonely
Been studying hard
The values of pain bottomed out, went waikin' at midnight
The streets breathed life
I danced with the rain
Gotta move my mind and heart from the celler
Out in the street where you get a real view
In the street where you find the real dreams
Know that some do come true
Posted in Lofgren Nils, Rock, Year Of Recording: 1990	| Leave a reply