Content tagged ''
Somewhere in the Stratosphere (Album of the Day)
Since their start in Jacksonville, Florida, shortly after the turn of the millennium, Shinedown has become a platinum seller largely through relentless touring, so it's little surprise that the group supported their SOUND OF MADNESS album with two rounds of concerts. An electric set from a Washington state show on their “Carnival of Madness” tour and a Kansas City stop on their acoustic “Anything and Everything” trek are paired on SOMEWHERE IN THE STRATOSPHERE, and the 2-CD/2-DVD Atlantic collection is Shinedown at its best. While there's some overlapping material – including Billboard Mainstream Rock chart-toppers “Save Me,” “Devour” and “Second Chance” - the performances are strikingly different, and the acoustic show includes frontman Brent Smith's stories behind the songs. Released 10 years ago today, SOMEWHERE IN THE STRATOSPHERE is an apt description of Shinedown's place in the alternative metal universe.
The Essentials: Ruth Brown (Album of the Day)
A decade before there was a Queen of Soul, there was a Queen of R&B, and that crown belonged to Ruth Brown. Though the Virginia-born singer grew up on pop and jazz, Atlantic Records' Ahmet Ertegun convinced her to try rhythm and blues, and her recordings were among the fledgling label's most popular (to the point that Atlantic was sometimes called “the house that Ruth built”). Every one of the dozen tracks on THE ESSENTIALS: RUTH BROWN was a Top 10 Billboard R&B hit, and such classic as “(Mama) He Treats Your Daughter Mean,” “Teardrops from My Eyes” and the Leiber/Stoller-penned “Lucky Lips” helped pave the way for rock 'n' roll. Ruth Brown was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993, and this vibrant collection shows why she is one of THE ESSENTIALS.
Latin Playboys (Album of the Day)
Working with Los Lobos in the early 1990s, producer Mitchell Froom heard demos from that band's David Hidalgo that seemed to go beyond the Grammy winners' usual sound – thus the Latin Playboys were born. With Los Lobos percussionist and songwriter Louie Pérez and Froom's colleague Tchad Blake joining in, the group's self-titled 1994 debut takes Mexican-American roots rock into experimental territory, and such impressionistic tracks as “Manifold de Amour” and “Forever Night Shade Mary” reward repeated listening. Giving the collection an A+ grade, noted critic Robert Christgau called it “Magical, mystical, the kind of inner-child fantasia that usually guarantees self-indulgence, but here is a field recording from two amigos' mutual unconscious.” Have a happy Cinco de Mayo with the LATIN PLAYBOYS.
Boxes (Album of the Day)
Released five years ago today, BOXES shows the Goo Goo Dolls continuing to mature without losing the heart and hooks that made them one of the most popular alternative rockers of the 1990s and 2000s. The Warner Bros. collection, the band's eleventh studio album, boasts a variety of musical styles and arrangements but with a solid guitars-plus-rhythm section foundation; new drummer Craig MacIntyre fits in well here. Frontman John Rzeznik is in typically strong voice and has (along with bassist Robby Takac) come up with some terrific originals - “The Pin,” “So Alive,” “Reverse” and “Lucky One” among them. A well-produced set that reached #3 on Billboard's Top Rock Albums chart, the inspiring BOXES will grow on you with each listen.
30 Trips Around the Sun: The Definitive Live Story (Album of the Day)
The Grateful Dead played 2,318 live shows, more than any other band in the history of music. For 30 years, the band's live performances were constantly morphing and evolving, making every show a unique experience. The four-CD 30 TRIPS AROUND THE SUN: THE DEFINITIVE LIVE STORY 1965-1995 serves as an introductory sampler to the Dead's live canon, including 30 unreleased performances - one for each year the band was together from 1966 to 1995, along with one track from their earliest recording sessions in 1965 (“Caution (Do Not Stop On Tracks)”). Today we mark another trip around the sun for the man behind the drums for all those years – happy birthday, Bill Kreutzmann!
Education Entertainment Recreation (Live At Alexandra Palace) (Album of the Day)
Held at London’s Alexandra Palace, New Order's only U.K. show of 2018 was a career-spanning celebration of perhaps the most vital British band of recent decades. The group's now established line-up of Bernard Sumner, Stephen Morris, Gillian Gilbert, Phil Cunningham and Tom Chapman was in relentlessly sparkling form, blending eras and genres during the show's 2 hours and 20 minutes. Now available, the 2-CD EDUCATION ENTERTAINMENT RECREATION (LIVE AT ALEXANDRA PALACE) opens with a track from their latest acclaimed album (2015’s MUSIC COMPLETE) before moving back in time to such favorites as “Regret,” “Love Vigilantes,” “Blue Monday” and “Temptation,” and closing with a three-song Joy Division mini-set. EDUCATION ENTERTAINMENT RECREATION is a timely reminder of the connection we get from live music and what to look forward to when New Order returns to the road.
Now in a Minute (Album of the Day)
Welsh-born singer-songwriter Donna Lewis studied piano and flute composition and spent time teaching music before embarking on a performing career, and that background lends a sophisticated air to her debut album, NOW IN A MINUTE. Cut in New York City and Birmingham, England, with co-producer Kevin Killen, the Atlantic collection is best known for “I Love You Always Forever,” a Top 10 single that broke the record for airplay with more than a million spins on U.S. radio. But the set has much more to offer beyond that; such tracks as “Nothing Ever Changes,” “Mother” and “Silent World” pair introspective lyrics with a dreamy pop-classical sensibility and top-notch instrumental accompaniment. Now celebrating its 25th anniversary, the platinum-certified NOW IN A MINUTE announced the arrival of a true talent and earned Donna Lewis a Brit Award nomination for British Female Solo Artist.
Houses of the Holy (Album of the Day)
On HOUSES OF THE HOLY, Led Zeppelin continued the progression of their classic fourth album to create one of their most diverse sets to date. Though there's no shortage of dynamic Jimmy Page riffs, the Atlantic collection ventures far afield from the blues-inspired heavy metal of the quartet's debut to touch upon funk (“The Crunge”), folk (“Over the Hills and Far Away”) and reggae (“D'Yer Mak'er”). Both guitarist-producer Page and multi-instrumentalist John Paul Jones had built home studios, allowing them to perfect tracks like “The Rain Song” and “No Quarter” in advance of recording sessions. Housed in a Grammy-nominated Hipgnosis sleeve, the Diamond-certified HOUSES OF THE HOLY was #1 on the Billboard chart on this day in 1973, and it's still tops with hard rock fans.
Servin' Up Some Soul (Album of the Day)
Born on this day in 1943, Mary Wells is best known to music fans for her signature smash “My Guy,” but the hitmaker had a fruitful career for many years after she left Motown. Case in point: the aptly-titled SERVIN' UP SOME SOUL, which Wells cut in 1968 for the Jubilee label. At the time, she was married to singer-songwriter Cecil Womack, and the pair teamed up to produce the album and co-write half of its dozen tracks. Among the outstanding originals are opener “Soul Train,” “Two Lovers History” and “The Doctor,” which would become the performer's final appearance on Billboard's Pop 100 Chart. Closing with an update of her very first single, “Bye Bye Baby” (produced by Cecil's brother Bobby), SERVIN' UP SOME SOUL will please any fan of 1960s R&B.
Exciter (Album of the Day)
Released 20 years ago today in Depeche Mode's native England, EXCITER marked a return to form for the synth-pop greats. A Top 10 debut on both sides of the Atlantic, the collection was produced by Mark Bell, who brought out the best in both vocalist Dave Gahan and songwriter Martin Gore. The baker's dozen tracks include singles “Dream On,” “Freelove” and club friendly “I Feel Loved,” and if the tempos are sometimes slower and the focus more personal than earlier work, the set boasts lots of variety and puts abstract electronic textures to excellent use. As U.K. music mag NME originally described the gold-certified EXCITER, “Not many long-running groups could make an album this fresh and confident in their 20th year, never mind one which bridges timeless soulman crooning and underground techno.”