Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Monday, June 18, 2012
Jukka Gustavson Organ Fusion Band with Strings - Root & Stalk & Flower Music (2011 RockAdillo)
Music for modern gardeners? The upper sleeve is a painting on wild flowers but inner sleeves are full of pictures of flowers in garden. Just garden flowers... not even one radish, beetroot, carrot, swede or turnip. But yet there is some beatroot to find among all those roses, lilies and daffodils. Fortunately there aren't any white lilies! "Being" is my all time favourite Wigwan album. Jukka G played organ and other keys with them and was the head of the band on Being. The music on this one is serious fusion, funky fusion, progressive rock, blues, classical music, and skillful musicianship of course. But to the roots again... this is not any "Happy Hammond" -music and it is just a good thing that there do not grow any hidden beetroots (in finnish "punajuuri" = redroot) in Gustavson's garden anymore, but the "beatroot" of "Being" which still grows seasoning here and there is the best thing on the album. once more... Most i like those parts where i can hear some echoes from Being and when JG sings. He is a great sounding original vocalist too.The rest material around and the main beingbeetroot sound of the album is important and obligatory framework. R&S&FM is very Hammond-organic music and JG will allways be my favourite organist. "This Elegy Will Always be" is my favorite piece after hearing the album two times for now.
Jimmie Spheeris - Isle Of View (1971
The cover art did not mislead me even it seems to be making war on the contrary to the music on the album which is plainly made for making the other one thing. Beautiful music with extended instrument gathering such as viola, violin, flute and conga.
The Nest: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y30P9OMZ4HY
For Roach: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jMZjeNTvRM
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Big Brother And The Holding Company - How Hard It Is (1971)
Janis Joplin is not with them anymore but the music is is still good, rolling and jammy blues based stuff.
Jethro Tull - Thick As A Brick 2 (2012)
Thick As A Brick means me a lot. What happened to fictious Gerald Bostock after 1972 is to be heard on this new album. As i said, TAAB means me a lot, the music, the sounds, everything on the album is one and takes me always back to time and place where i used to listen it again and again. So what to think of this second one? It is not about what happened to Gerald later but what might have happened. He might have come banker, homeless, military man, chorister or just ordinary man. Anderson tells us about those possible histories of Gerald. This album unfortunately does not take me to any retro feelings. The sounds are mostly today's sounds of course and the spirit is only partly 70's. I must confess i was hoping TAAB2 would sound somehow more like TAAB1 and somehow it does, but is not stuffy enough to fulfill all my expectations. The compositions and production itself are top, but when even Dream Theater occasionally comes to my mind it makes me drift in some other worlds than in 1974 when i heared the original one first time. Maybe it would be too much to ask for Ian Anderson to make me feel the same again 40 years later on the same concept, but i always demand for the best. Great post-progressive record but not great enough when comparing it to my world according to "GB". I don't like those spoken word parts at all. I think Anderson made this as a compromise for both old and new listeners. Now it is proved: You can not step two times in the same river. Or maybe i just am thick as a brick.
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Ralph Humphrey - Drums
I'd like to introduce some of my favorite musicians who maybe are not too well known, but who i think are masters on their own area.
Some of my favorite Zappa albums from the first half of seventies are those on what Ralph Humphrey played drums at the same time as Chester Thompson.
C.T. may be better known than Ralph Humphrey but how R.H. plays his instrument on "Overnite Sensation" for example (One size fits all, Roxy & Elsewhere) is something that makes the album. I listened that record today and once again thought what is the main thing that makes the sound of it. There are many things but to me one of the most important ones are how Ralph H- plays his set. "Overnite Sensation" is one of those album i know throughly note by note.
Ralph Humphrey's way of doing things with his drums is something i have not heard from anyone else.
Wow, i found this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wN9eZNfWbEo
Supertramp - S/T (1970)
It was in late 70s or early 80s when i first heard "Supertramp" and did not like it at all. It was the kind of irritating thin and high-pitched aor rock sound that i can not stand. When i much later, in fact just last year found this their debut album, my feeling was totally different. This is excellent light, smart and born-nostalgic progressive pop-rock. What bothers me is that i have a feeling i have heard this before somewhere maybe by some other bands, but i'm sure i haven't. The whole thing on the album brings many kind of things to my mind, but i don't know where they come and that is enigmatic. As i listen to this it is like suffering amnesia, like remembering and getting, but not... "Try again" is great!
Rare Earth - MA (1973 Rare Earth)
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
London Pop News - Sampler (1969 Island)
Sorry these news are a bit late but aren't not the not the seventies news. How i hate mr. Bean! What am i talking about?
Pop Sound 70 - Sampler (1970 Polydor)
Very listenable cavalcade. But why did they smother the tiger with that plastic bag?
Jamul - Jamul (1970 Lizard)
This is the third time for me to stumble upon on this album. I paid 10 euros for this near mint condition one copy and that makes me happy because Jamul is so good music. It really is one of those so called "lost gems" or at least "hidden pearls". Worth investigating!Monday, June 4, 2012
Jan Garbarek & Bobo Stenson Quartet - Witchi-Tai-To (1973 ECM)
When i saw this in a second hand book shop i thought i finally found my first Jim Pepper album. That was because i knew Witchi-Tai-To is his song. So i was a bit disappointed to notice that Witchi-Tai-To was just the name to this Danish fusion jazz band's album. Pepper's song is on the album and because fusion jazz is my music too i decided to purchase this. G-S Q's music is quite soprano saxofone-orienteed. That is natural of course, because Garbarek is saxophonist. I used to like the sound of it some, but in the long run i got a bit bored with if. It is funny that I don't recognize W-T-T when played this jazz way. "Kukka" is a song by Palle Danielson and it means "Flower" in my own language. It also is a girls name, but i don't know what Palle was thinking when composing it. This album is nice and easy jazz, but sorry to say too saxophone driven for me.
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