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The Best of 2010
Here’s my Top 10 for the past year along with a few bonus selections and various related categories:
1. The Union, Elton John & Leon Russell: A collaboration made in heaven and one wonders why it took so long for these two to get together. The record brings out their similarities, differences and a wonderful melding of their talents with some of their best songwriting in years. A truly inspirational collection.
2. Band Of Joy, Robert Plant: Another entry on the road of Americana from the transplanted Led Zeppelin lead man. Almost every bit as good as The Union with interesting and well-executed covers as only Plant has been able to deliver in recent years.
3. I’m New Here, Gil Scott-Heron: 28 minutes of bliss from the commander of narrative R&B. Scott-Heron is still here and as relevant as ever.
4. San Patricio, The Chieftains with Ry Cooder: A mythical adventure, cloaked in reality, that brings together Mexican, Celtic and American blues and country into one steaming pot of influences.
5. Tears, Lies & Alibis, Shelby Lynne: Stripped-down Shelby Lynne and she greatly benefits from the sparse arrangements putting the emphasis on her singing and songwriting.
6. Have One On Me, Joanna Newsom: It took a while to warm to this unusual songwriter with the reedy, young girl voice but this triple album is captivating and expressive.
7. The Stanley Clarke Band, Stanley Clarke: A bass hero for the ages re-engages with his jazz-rock roots on new and revisited material with a sympathetic and proficient group of musicians.
8. Chamber Music Society, Esperanza Spalding: One of the most unusual and ultimately satisfying collection of songs from a performer/composer who continually surprises and delivers.
9. Grace Potter & The Nocturnals (self-titled): Fourth outing from a group with all the signs of breaking out big-time and it appears they’re finally starting to catch on in a bigger way.
10 Naked Honest, Kala Farnham: Honest, heartfelt, poignant lyricism backed with prodigious keyboard chops and crystal clear vocal styling from this rising solo artist. Continue reading The Best of 2010
Gil Scott-Heron’s poetry resonates with relevancy
Sometimes gems are found in the most unusual places. Well, the public library isn’t that unusual, particularly our town library, which has a nice collection of CDs.
But there are rarely recently released albums. So when I found the new Gil Scott-Heron title I’m New Here, his first in 13 years, I was surprised and delighted.
I’ve always been a fan on Heron’s and his unusual and effective mix of R&B, soul, blues, vocals and spoken word that burst on the contemporary music scene in the early 1970s. His poetry, containing a mixture of political awareness, life experience, insight and character, penetrates the listener because of his distinctive voice with its tortured, raspy world-worn quality. There is no denying, his art definitely has been a major influence and precursor to today’s rap and hip-hop artists.
The album has a string of narrations, many interludes between tracks, that help tie this compact 28 minutes together for an overpowering listening experience. Heron advises on the back of the album to stop, sit down and listen to this music, not on a portable player, in the car or through any of the many electronic devices available today. Listen to it like his generation listened in a room through a genuine music system without distractions. You won’t be disappointed if you do. When you’re finished, share it with someone and do it all over again.
The opening narration, On Coming From A Broken Home (Part 1), sets the scene of Heron’s upbringing in the South with his grandmother, whom he dearly loved, in a house devoid of men and how he was “full grown before he knew he came from a broken home.” It easily segues into a most interesting interpretation of Robert Johnson’s Me And The Devil, with a hypnotic, trip-hop rhythm track that works so well, at once establishing Heron’s relevancy today and updating his sound. And oh that voice, unlike any other in the music world. Continue reading Gil Scott-Heron’s poetry resonates with relevancy