Tag Archives: Cover Songs

Tony Bennett: The Best of the Improv Recordings

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Sampling of a master vocalist’s indie sides from the mid-70s

At the turn from the ‘60s into the ‘70s, Tony Bennett – the vocalist’s vocalist – parted ways with his longtime label, Columbia. The parting dissolved their business contract, but also served as a declaration that having fruitfully co-existed with the commercial dominance of youth-oriented rock ‘n’ roll, he would not compromise his artistry by covering lightweight, contemporary pop tunes. He wasn’t alone, as Barbra Streisand, Lena Horne, Johnny Mathis and others were each having their arms twisted in the same direction. Bennett’s concert draw was increasing, and in his mid-40s, his voice offered a maturity and richness that may have been the best of his long and distinguished career. So rather than giving in to Columbia’s demands, and accepting other slights, he fled to MGM, and after failing to find success there, spent a few years without a recording contract.

His commercial fortunes wouldn’t be revived until his son Danny rebuilt his career in the 1980s, reuniting him with musical director Ralph Sharon, and, ironically, Columbia. But in the interim, Bennett founded his own label, Improv, and laid down some of the most artistically satisfying sides of his entire catalog. The label failed after only a few years (due to a lack of distribution, rather than a lack of quality goods), but without the major label bean counters breathing down his neck, Bennett was able to surround himself with the talents of Bill Evans, Charlie Byrd, Jimmy McPartland, Marian McPartland and others, and deeply explore jazz-inflections of the great American songbook. His five albums for Improv, along with a wealth of previously unreleased session tracks, were anthologized on the 2004 4-CD set, The Complete Improv Recordings; this single disc surveys many of the larger set’s highlights.

The selected tracks essay Bennett’s mastery in several different settings, including orchestral arrangements, duets with pianist Bill Evans, and a collection of Rodgers & Hart tunes recorded with a quartet led by cornetist Ruby Braff. The latter tracks show the jazziest edges of Bennett’s vocals as he dances atop John Guiffrida’s string bass and trades phrases with Braff and guitarist George Barnes. The duets are deeply thoughtful, as Bennett and Evans speak to each other through their music as much as to the listener, and the orchestral pieces have refined arrangements by Torrie Zito, including lovely bass and strings on “Reflections,” that winningly frame Bennett’s voice. Bennett vocalizes novel interpretations of several well-trod chestnuts, including “Blue Moon,” “The Lady is a Tramp” and “I Could Write a Book.”

The set ends with a pair of live tracks that includes a rousing take on Bennett’s trademark “I Left My Heart in San Francisco.” From the thrill heard in Bennett’s voice, the enthusiastic playing of his all-star band and the crowd’s fevered response, you’d guess they were at the Fairmont atop Nob Hill, but in fact the recording was made at his record label partner’s Statler Hilton hotel in Buffalo, New York. It’s a thrilling end to a terrific set that gives listeners a taste of an artistic giant’s most independent statement of art. At just a little over twice the price for four-times the music, it’s hard not to recommend the full 4-CD set, but if a taste will satisfy you, this is a rich one. [©2011 hyperbolium dot com]

Tony Bennett’s Home Page

Ronnie and the Pomona Casuals: Everybody Jerk

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Stomping rock ‘n’ soul from the East Side

Guitarist Ronnie Duran was the eponymous leader of this mid-60s East Side rock ‘n’ soul group, managed by the ubiquitous Billy Cardenas, they were fellow travelers of Cannibal and the Headhunters, the Premiers, Thee Midniters and others. Their one full-length album is deeply indebted to the early Chicago sound of Curtis Mayfield, but also to Bobby Womack, Junior Walker and Major Lance. The soul base is strained through the garage and club sounds of mid-60s East Los Angeles, and powered by the rhythm of “The Jerk.” The bulk of the material is covers, which is what you’d expect to hear on a Saturday night out, but there are a few originals, including the Arthur Lee penned lead off “I Wanna do the Jerk.” This is excellent garage soul, fronted by the strong R&B vocals of Charles Lett, and backed with solid organ, deep baritone saxophone, and foot-stomping bass and drums. It’s hard to believe that music this solid and mature was made by, literally, a group of teenagers. Crank it up as the soundtrack to your next dance party. [©2011 hyperbolium dot com]

Buck Owens & Susan Raye: The Very Best Of

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Terrific early ‘70s duets from Buck Owens and Susan Raye

Susan Raye was a solid 1970s country hit maker, but having shared peak years with Loretta Lynn, Dolly Parton and Tammy Wynette, her long-term fame has been overshadowed and her Capitol catalog has been neglected by the reissue industry. The last collection of her solo work, Varese’s 16 Greatest Hits, was released over a decade ago, and is now joined by this selection of fourteen duets recorded with her mentor, Buck Owens. The pair recorded four albums between 1970 and 1973, launching six chart hits, all of which are featured here. The hits include Buck Owens originals “We’re Gonna Get Together,” “The Great White Horse” and “The Good Ol’ Days (Are Here Again),” as well as endearing covers of the Browns’ “Looking Back to See” and Mickey & Sylvia’s “Love is Strange.”

Owens had been a hit maker for over a decade when he and Raye cracked the charts as a duo. He continued to be a strong presence in the Top 10 for another five years before switching to Warner Brothers and successively peaking lower and lower through the rest of the decade. In 1970, however, Owens could virtually do no wrong; he was co-hosting Hee Haw, and the stinging Bakersfield sound he’d pioneered with the Buckaroos had broadened over the years alongside his public appeal. Owens had long been absorbing pop influences, heard here in the harpsichord on “The Great White Horse,” and the rock ‘n’ roll dynamics of the Buckaroos continues to spark up the twang. Amid all the influences, though, Owens’ voice always retained its country core.

Raye proved to be an excellent traveling partner for Owens’ explorations. The duo’s song list reprises several of Owens’ earlier hits with the Buckaroos, including “Together Again,” “Cryin’ Time,” “I Don’t Care (Just As Long As You Love Me),” “Think of Me When You’re Lonely,” and “Your Tender Loving Care.” Many of Owens’ recordings with the Buckaroos were sung with his own voice doubled in harmony, or with the backing of Don Rich, but Raye adds a female dynamic that winningly changes the tenor of the lovelorn lyrics. Owens’ albums with the Buckaroos have been extensively reissued, but most of these superb sides with Raye have previously remained in the vault. Lawrence Zwisohn provides liner notes and the CD is screened in the orange of a 1970s Capitol label, but the gold is in the grooves. [©2011 hyperbolium dot com]

Frank Sinatra: Ring-A-Ding-Ding

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It was Frank’s world, and we were lucky to live in it

Sinatra’s 1961 debut for his own record label, Reprise, is the product of a man who was on top of the world, with records, films, concerts and a fraternal social life each running flat out. It wasn’t, however, the sort of artistic reinvention he created on his late ‘50s albums for Capitol, nor the middle-aged discoveries he’d make on September of My Years or with Antonio Carlos Jobim. Still, Sinatra was in the pocket, and the self-confident swagger of his performances made up for the lack of a new artistic leap. Together with arranger Johnny Mandel, Sinatra pushed hard on the swing side of these tunes, eschewing balladry, and spurring his band of West Coast musicians to some sizzling performances. Mandel gained the arranger’s slot when Sinatra’s previous partners, Nelson Riddle and Billy May, were found to be exclusively contracted to Capitol. Mandel brought both jazz and film scoring experience, along with connections to some of Los Angeles’ finest players.

The song list includes a title track written expressly for Sinatra by Cahn and Van Heusen, along with standards both new to and revisited in the Sinatra catalog. Those who enjoy Sinatra’s swing records will love the unbridled verve with which he and Mandel attacked these tunes. Concord’s 2011 reissue adds insightful liner and song note from Frank Sinatra Jr. and a ten-minute session track as a bonus. On the latter, Sinatra is spied working on Rodgers & Hart’s “Have You Met Miss Jones,” dissecting Mandel’s arrangement in the process, digging out notes that disagreed with his knowledge of the song, and eventually discarding the tune altogether. As a ballad, it wouldn’t have fit the hard-swinging album, but as a bonus track it provides a fascinating peek into Sinatra’s intense work ethic, his leadership in the studio, the response he provokes from fellow musicians, arrangers and producers, and his tremendous ear as an artist. [©2011 hyperbolium dot com]

Sarah Jarosz: Follow Me Down

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Sophomore outing confidently meshes string band, bluegrass and modern sounds

Though only 19 when she wrote and recorded this set, Sarah Jarosz has pushed well beyond the “prodigy” title of her early years on the bluegrass circuit. Even her 2009 debut, Song Up in Her Head, showed her to be a lot deeper than a musical wunderkind. Her string-band background is still evident on this sophomore outing, but as on the earlier single, The New 45, she also reaches to progressive folk and indie-rock.  The album menu remains the same as the debut: a wealth of original material and an ingeniously selected pair of covers (Bob Dylan’s “Ring Them Bells” and Radiohead’s “The Tourist”), played by a mix of her regular musical compatriots (Jerry Douglas and Stuart Duncan), young bucks (Alex Hargreaves, Nathaniel Smith), guests (Shawn Colvin, Darrell Scott, Dan Tyminski, Bela Fleck), and a dozen more interesting players.

Jarosz stamps all eleven tracks with her musical vision. The haunting tone of her voice, the assuredness with which she weaves through the melodies, and the thoughtfulness of her delivery are all impressive. She isn’t polished from twenty years of roadwork, but instead seems to have been fully delivered as an artist from birth. Even more incredible is how her sure-footedness invites response from the assembled players. Young and old alike respond with terrific ideas, including Bela Fleck’s vamping and banjo solo on “Come Around,” Stuart Duncan’s duet, counterpoint and violin leads on “Floating in the Balance,” and the progressive instrumental jam “Old Smitty.” Her trio singing with the Punch Brothers (and Gabe Witcher’s superb violin) both breaks down and intesifies the mood of Radiohead’s “The Tourist.”

The emotional quality of Jarosz’s singing magnifies the open-ended meaning of her lyrics. The opening “Run Away” extends an invitation that may be one of innocence or sexuality, and the following “Come Around” strains to maintain faith in someone who may be either mortal or godly. Jarosz seeks connection in “Here nor There,” but it’s not clear whether the kinship is with another person or with her musical gift; the latter is explicitly serenaded in “My Muse,” and her adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s “Annabell Lee” provides a lyrical story of unconsummated love. It’s often said that you have eighteen or twenty years to write your first album, and only one year to write the follow-up, but with this sophomore outing, Jarosz shows she has both gas in the tank and a long road ahead. [©2011 hyperbolium dot com]

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Burns & Poe: Burns & Poe

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Nashville country duo sings with terrific passion

Keith Burns (previously of Trick Pony) and Michelle Poe form this unabashedly mainstream Nashville duet, but beneath the grooming, market trending and AOR production, you can hear real passion in their vocals. Burns sings with the husked edge of Don Hensley (and the chiseled looks of a model) while Poe has a clear, soulful tone that works both as a lead and harmony voice. Their material doesn’t break any new ground – sunny days, broken hearts, the healing power of love and a man’s love of trucks – but their talent and enthusiasm are truly infectious. Beyond the singles (“Don’t Get No Better Than That,” “How Long is Long Enough?” and “Second Chance”) there are many rewarding album tracks, including the sharp kiss-off “Life’s Too Short” and the bluesy rocker “Gone as All Get Out.” The fourteen tracks are split between two CDs, with the second disc given over to duet arrangements. The latter disc opens with the conversational back-and-forth of “Second Chance” and culminates in a live medley that salutes Kenny & Dolly, David & Shelly and Sonny & Cher. Producer Mark Oliverius balances the interests of radio and roots, mixing big guitars with quieter twang (including some chiming 12-string on “Move On”), showcasing the vocalists on everything from power ballads to gentle weepers. Burns and Poe are talented singers with an artistic vision that’s polished, but not subverted, by Nashville’s commercial demands. [©2011 hyperbolium dot com]

MP3 | Second Chance
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The Norvins: Yoga With Mona

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Retro 60’s garage from France

For their second album (their debut was 2009’s Time Machine), this French quintet continues to create garage and beat sounds that echo the R&B of the Animals and Small Faces and revivalists like the Miracle Workers, Fuzztones, Lyres and Chesterfield Kings. The driving bass, reverbed guitars, hard-blown harmonica and whining organ will be familiar to fans of the Nuggets/Pebbles/Boulders series, even without the scratchy patina of original 45s.  You pretty much know what you’re getting when there’s a pentagonal Vox Phantom guitar pictured on the album sleeve and the band has the taste and knowledge to cover the Gentlemen’s Texas punk classic “It’s a Crying Shame.” The Norvins make good their vintage equipment and give you the soundtrack for the hottest yoga session of the year. [©2011 hyperbolium dot com]

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Tom Glazer: A Treasury of Civil War Songs

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Rich collection of mid-nineteenth century American songs

In remembrance of the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War, Smithsonian Folkways has reissued Tom Glazer’s 1973 collection of wartime songs. Many of these compositions are so deeply ingrained into the American musical lexicon that listeners have all but stopped thinking about their origins. So while it’s unsurprising that “Battle Hymn of the Republic” and “Dixie” were each canonized amid the War Between the States, it’s surprising to find that “The Yellow Rose of Texas” (whose period lyrics will make twenty-first century sensibilities wince) and “Goober Peas” were also created amid the songwriting boom of the nineteenth century. The rise of song publishing was fueled not only by a growing American appetite for music making, but the development of war reporting in all manner of written form. Topical songwriting became a way of recording events, defining sides and rallying support. The folk tradition (and loosely-formed nineteenth-century sense of intellectual property) is heard in the sharing of melodies between “John Brown’s Body” and “Battle Hymn of the Republic,” as well as “Maryland, My Maryland” borrowing its tune from “O Tannenbaum.” Glazer and a backing chorus sing mostly to a solo guitar, reflecting an era when music lovers were more likely to engage in making music than listen to it. The reissue’s booklet includes period photos of soldiers, musicians and most interestingly, soldier musicians, as well as extensive historical and song notes from University of Maryland musicologist Patrick Warfield. [©2011 hyperbolium dot com]

MP3 | When Johnny Comes Marching Home
Smithsonian Folkways’ Home Page

Kermit Lynch: Kitty Fur

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The blossoming of a wine master’s music career

Kermit Lynch is well-known to oenophiles for his unique wine importing business; but even his most ardent customers would be surprised to find he’s also a gifted musician. Throughout the sixties, Lynch fronted bands in the Berkeley area, only giving it up in the early ‘70s when his travels through Europe begat a career in wine. With the encouragement of vintner/musician Boz Scaggs, Lynch returned to music in 2005, and with co-producer Ricky Fataar, released the album Quicksand Blues. In 2009 he followed-up with Man’s Temptation, mixing literate, world-traveled originals with well-selected covers that included a terrific old-timey take on Lee Hazlewood’s rockabilly classic “The Fool.”

With Fataar once again in the producer’s seat (and drummer’s throne), Lynch offers up his third course, adding an original title track to ten covers. Much like his taste in wines, Lynch’s music is varied and at times eclectic. He sings country, rock, blues, folk, reggae, Cole Porter’s “Every Time We Say Goodbye,” and even the romantic WWII-era “It’s Been a Long, Long Time.” His voice is a bluesy instrument with the weathered edges of someone more partial to grain than grape, and it adds new shades to each interpretation. The opening original “Kitty Fur” has the blue jazz feel of Mose Allison, the Rolling Stones’ “Winter” is played more like Sticky Fingers than Goats Head Soup, and Dylan’s slight “Winterlude” (from 1970’s New Morning) is slowed into a luscious waltz that’s more classic country than the original’s old-timey vibe.

Lynch is backed by top-notch players, including Rick Vito on guitar, Michael Omartian on piano, Dennis Crouch, Michael Rhodes on bass, Glen Duncan on fiddle and Lloyd Green on pedal steel. The core players are augmented by a horn section for Bobby Blue Bland’s “She’s Puttin’ Something in My Food,” and sound really together as a band, suggesting Lynch is as accomplished at leading a band as he is leading a business. [©2011 hyperbolium dot com]

MP3 | Kitty Fur
Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant

Little Faith: Spirituals

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Hammond organ spirituals flavored with sounds of Nashville and New Orleans

The Hammond organ is no stranger to spiritual music, but seasoned with jazz, blues and country flavors of second line drumming, saxophone, fiddle, and lap steel, Little Faith delivers on what it calls “Madri Gras erupting at a tent revival behind the Grand Ol’ Opry.” The material also mixes things up, ranging from the nineteenth century African-American spiritual “Wade in the Water” (led here by the violin of Leah Zeger) to Christian hymns “I’ll Fly Away” and “How Great Thou Art” to the traditional New Orleans funeral dirge “Just a Closer Walk with Thee” (with a terrific blues guitar solo by Nelson Blanton) to the Hebrew “Kol Dodi” and the Carter Family staple “Will the Circle Be Unbroken.” The album includes only two vocal tracks, a full gospel chorus on “Fire Shut Up in My Bones” and a reprise of “I’ll Fly Away” that complements the opening instrumental. Organist Jack Maeby’s pulled together an assortment of Los Angeles roots musicians who take these tracks to interesting new places anchored by the rock-solid soul of the Hammond. [©2011 hyperbolium dot com]

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