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December, 2000POP & ROCK REVIEWS |
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GRAHAM
GOULDMAN
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JACKIE DESHANNON
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JOAN OSBORNE Righteous Love (Interscope)
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PHIL KEAGGY Inseparable (Word Artisan)
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ALICE COOPER Brutal Planet (Spitfire)
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KING CRIMSON Heavy ConstruKction (DGM)
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THE FLOWER KINGS Space Revolver (InsideOut America)
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ROBERT URBAN Elegies (Urban Productions)
THIS JUST IN...ON NOVMEBER 5TH 2000 AMERICA WAS ONCE AGAIN ROBBED OF IT'S INNOCENCE.
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Listen
to RealAudio sample: 
It’s taken 35 years to
release his second solo album, but legendary U.K. pop singer-songwriter and
musician Graham Gouldman more than fills the bill with a great new solo
album that spans his many musical accomplishments. And Another Thing...
takes various cues from Gouldman’s days as the trendsetting songwriter who
wrote hit after hit for groups like The Hollies ("Bus Stop"),
Herman’s Hermits ("No Milk Today") and The Yardbirds ("For
Your Love") all the way to his fabulous ‘70s albums with 10cc and
Wax. The pop world ain’t what it used to be yet, on his new CD, Gouldman
manages to revive quite a few of his innovative trademark pop sounds. Among
the many highlights here include the lead off track "You Stole My
Love", a song written way back in 1966 and Gouldman’s new cover of
his self-penned ‘65 Yardbirds classic "Heart Full Of Soul".
Recorded in in London, L.A., Nashville and Italy, And Another Thing...
sees Gouldman joining forces with notable players like Wax band mate Andrew
Gold, Chris Difford of Squeeze and Madness vocalist Suggs.
Between the two of them Gouldman and Gold excel on a wide array of
instruments and the album’s sumptuous pop sound fills the soundstage. A
must for his many fans, And Another Thing... is topped off with lyric
sheet and new track by track liner notes by Graham. 
The first album in nearly
two decades from singer-songwriter and pop legend Jackie DeShannon is a
solid comeback worthy of her best efforts from years past. Of course, it was
Ms. DeShannon who penned the great, "What The World Needs Now",
"Put A Little Love In Your Heart", "Needles And Pins"
and countless other ‘60s pop anthems. It’s clear that DeShannon’s
songwriting skills and vocals are still very much in top form on You Know
Me, which finds the pop superstar supported by a cast of fine supporting
musicians. A list of notable female singers and groups - from Marti Jones to
The Bangles - have been carrying on the spirit of Ms. DeShannon’s earthy
blend of ‘60s style pop for years, but it’s a real treat to once again
hear it straight from the heart of one of the great pop originals. In
addition to 13 new DeShannon tunes, there’s also a heartfelt cover of a
rarely heard song called "Trader", written by the late, great Carl
Wilson, which first appeared on the ‘73 Beach Boys album Holland.
A welcome treat indeed, "Trader" is revived once again
here with Ms. DeShannon’s inspiring rendition. You Know Me is the
album DeShannon’s fans have long waited for. 
Following the success of
her 1995 album smash Relish, singer-songwriter Joan Osborne
strangely found herself without a record label. "I guess the record
company got tired of waiting", says Osborne although she’s quick to
reply that "I was pretty confident that if I make a good record I’d
have a place to go." And what a superb follow-up the Kentucky native
has come back with. Following the wild success of Relish, which
spawned the top hit "One Of Us, Osborne took to the east immersing
herself in Indian classical music. That sense of wild musical adventure is
quite apparent on Righteous Love, a most eclectic album ranging
from pure American pop and rock to bluesy R&B flavored pop and
Beatles-inspired, Eastern flavored rock. Whatever pop genre gets you high,
Osborne has it covered on Righteous Love. Part of the credit in
making the album such a listenable pop effort comes through the hand of
producer Mitchell Froom, who adds his skillful studio touches to
the sessions. Osborne’s first for Interscope is her best to date
and from start to finish it’s also one of the best of 2000.
In addition to releasing
Phil Keaggy’s new instrumental effort Lights Of Madrid, Word
Artisan has simultaneously issued the guitar great’s new pop effort Inseparable.
Keaggy’s reputation as a top singer-songwriter comes to the fore on Inseparable,
which blends contemplative folk-pop revelations with a harder pop-rock
flair. Keaggy performs all the vocals and instruments himself with a bit
of assistance on a couple tracks from drummer Steve Grossman. A
great starting point on Inseparable is clearly the catchy title
track, which merges a great melody and arrangement seasoned by Keaggy’s
obvious affinity for Beatles-inspired pop. Inseparable draws light
from Keaggy’s inspirational and religious convictions and in total the
album an all-around winner for his many fans. 
Anyone who remembers how
great those early ‘70s Alice Cooper albums were is advised to hunt down
Cooper’s recently released Brutal Planet. Kicking off with the
truly brutal title track, the CD seques into "Wicked Young Man"
a song of which Cooper says, "The only way to survive in the Brutal
Planet is to be like this guy and there are a lot of them out
there." The disc bears the classic Cooper touch and the sonic assault
is a grim reminder of the ominous soundscapes so vividly painted on Cooper’s
brilliant early ‘70s albums like Love It To Death and Killer. Essentially
Cooper’s latest vision of a rock opera depicting the sordid, morbid side
of society as it is today, Brutal Planet finds the rock legend
assisted by top players like guitarists China, Phil X. and Ryan
Roxie with further assistance from Eric Singer (drums) and
Cooper’s co-composer Bob Marlette (rhythm guitar, bass). Thanks
to Long Island-based Spitfire Records for bringing the spirit of
classic Alice into the 2000’s with the ultra sardonic and nightmare
visions of Brutal Planet. 
Perhaps the first real
classic outing by prog-rock icons King Crimson in the new millennium, Heavy
ConstruKction provides a triple disc set comprised of sonic snapshots
from KC’s 2000 European tour. It can’t be my imagination so it must be
that this new, leaner and meaner Crimson packs an even more potent wallop
then ever before. On Heavy ConstruKction the rock quartet of
guitarists Robert Fripp, Adrian Belew, Trey Gunn and
percussion ace Pat Mastelotto attain a rare chemistry together.
With a sound that is truly larger than life, the well balanced, live
soundboard recordings makes Heavy ConstruKction appear more like
Crimson live in the studio. Spread over three CDs are some incredible
instrumentals and vocal tracks recorded by the ‘90s Crim along with a
sprinkling of all time KC favorites like "Larks’ Tongues In Aspic:
Pt. 4". There’s even a KC cover of the Bowie hit
"Heroes". Robert Fripp has never been a guitar innovator to rest
on his laurels. Since ‘69 he has constantly evolved the progressive
Crimson sound and vision and he takes the 2000 Crimson on to new heights
on Heavy ConstruKction. The album features a CD booklet filled with
mind-boggling artwork, while disc two of the three CD set features
enhanced CD video footage. 
Making his mark early on
with his now classic instrumental ‘79 solo album Fantasia, Swedish
guitar great Roine Stoldt has been keeping the
progressive rock flame alive for nearly four decades in addition to
recording various albums with The Flower Kings since ‘93. Sweden has
produced a number of musical masters and Stoldt takes the spirit of
orchestral rock to the next level on the latest Flower Kings’ CD Space
Revolver. On Space Revolver, The Flower Kings, now with two
drummers, including the great Hasse Bruniusson, present a refined
blend of progressive rock sounds that naturally develops into a complex
brew of jazz-rock complete with symphonic overtures. Looking back on his
early career, Roine professes, "I started listening to bands like
Frank Zappa And The Mothers in the mid ‘60s. Vanilla Fudge, The Doors,
Jimi Hendrix... that’s what I consider to be progressive rock. For most
people today, progressive rock is ELP, Genesis, Yes and King Crimson. But
for me, progressive rock includes jazz-rock and fusion (groups) like
Mahavishnu Orchestra, Weather Report and a lot of psychedelic bands from
the late ‘60s." A prolific artist and always a European guitarist
to watch, Stoldt purveys a new rock fusion of sounds on Space Revolver.
Other classic Flower Kings CDs currently available on Inside Out
Music include Retropolis (1996), Alive On Planet
Earth (98/99), and Flower Power (1999). Fans
should also check out Stoldt’s noteworthy performance on the debut album
by the prog-rock supergroup Transatlantic. 
A
rare find indeed, the music of NYC-based Robert Urban combines a knack for
gifted pop melodies with a lyrically insightful blend of rock that’s
hard to top. Urban scored with the ‘97 release of his critically
acclaimed acoustic-rock debut entitled godless. Keeping
up his ability to amaze with penetrating lyrics, Urban changes the setting
a bit with the electric guitar-based rock vibe of his latest, Elegies. Guitar
fans will note Urban’s wide array of guitar effects and styles ranging
from electric and acoustic guitar to synthesized, bottlenecked and wah-wah’d
guitar shadings. Perhaps the most impressive thing about Elegies is
that the entire recording is almost entire performed by Urban himself. All
of this would be meaningless unless the music within measured up and sure
enough it does. Catchy pop layered with profound lyrics and a solid rock
beat abounds on Elegies. From the hooks and stirring vocals on the
set-opening "The Waiting Song" and the piercing,
pro-environmental purpose of "J’Accuse" to the CD’s two
guitar-based progressive instrumentals, Urban more than proves his caliber
as a gifted guitarist and a singer-songwriter worth checking out. Urban
will also please his fans with the new release of Who I Was,
a recent nine track retrospective of music he originally recorded in
the ‘80s. 