CD Review: Teddy Presberg - Blueprint Of Soul

Teddy Presberg – Blueprint Of Soul
2007, Ropeadope Records

Teddy Presberg is a St. Louis native (and recent repatriate) who spent a number of years living in Portland, Oregon. Long known as a gifted guitarist with a talent for improvisation, Presberg set out to recreate Portland in song. The result is 2007’s Blueprint Of Soul. Blueprint Of Soul is all about improvisation and being in the (musical) moment. This reactionary album was generally recorded in one take with one additional take to overdub. Presberg has succeeded in capturing a live, breathing instrumental sound with lots of spirit and double the funk.

Blueprint Of Soul seems to dance around between rock and roll, blues and even jazz. The jaunty Foster Fatty is one of the liveliest songs on the record and was inspired by Portland’s Foster Road. The funk grooves and jazz chords spun around the laughing bass line make for a party in a song. Sunrise On St. John’s has a thoroughly live feel to it that will have you grooving where you stand. 82nd Ave Strut was inspired by meth-induced stumble witnessed on the named street, and has a quasi-psychedelic feel to it. The song itself sounds like the sort of jam you might hear on an early Police record. Other highlights include Beneath The Burnside, Free Love and Colonel Summers.

Teddy Presberg brings in the funk of Blueprint Of Soul. This disc is an enjoyable listen from start to finish. It’s not an earth-shattering recording and doesn’t cut any new ground musically, but it will keep you solidly entertained and wanting to get up and dance throughout its 33 minutes. Blueprint Of Soul is definitely worth a listen.

Rating: 3 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Teddy Presberg as well as purchase a copy of Blueprint Of Soul at http://www.outrightmusic.com/.

CD Review: Andrea Ramolo - Thank You For The Ride

Andrea Ramolo – Thank You For The Ride
2008, Andrea Ramolo

Andrea Ramolo is a name you should know. I rather suspect you’ll be hearing a lot more of her over the next few years. Ramolo is a Toronto singer-songwriter with a penchant for gritty country/rock story songs in the vein of Emmylou Harris. If you saw Disney’s Once Upon A Mattress then you’ve seen/heard her before. Ramolo played one of the Dancing Ladies in the made-for-TV movie alongside the likes of Carol Burnett and Tom Smothers while recording two songs for the soundtrack. The former lead vocalist of Toronto’s Stifler’s Mom and co-lead of Oliver Piggot and the Dropshire Daddies greets October of 2008 with her debut album, Thank You For The Ride.

Ramolo has an earthy voice that’s sensual and fiery and full of life. She can project the vocal gravity of Stevie Nicks, the homey comfort of Emmylou Harris or the pure raw energy of Janis Joplin, often within the same song. As a songwriter Ramolo is a first-class talent, using the broad brush of lyrical narrative to infuse characters, places and events with vibrant panache. Thank You For The Ride is an earthy and unadulterated trip through Ramolo’s baser instincts; Longing for connections from the spiritual to the emotional to the physical.

Miss Uncensored has a sway and lilt that stands in stark counterpoint to the purely animalistic desire and confidence that pervades the song. The logical dissonance is overwhelmed by the pure melodic delight of the song and the sharply emotional delivery by Ramolo. Lovesick Blues has an old-time country feel to it that is as period as it is universal. This has the potential to be a classic. Late Night Lovin’ turns up the heat with a gritty, raw song about pure unadulterated human sexuality. Andrea Ramolo matches the subject matter with perhaps one of the most sensual vocal performances you’ve heard in a while. It’s not over-the-top or campy, but stands as a pure and dark monologue of the heart and libido. Even the guitar solo drips with pheromones and sweat. Other highlights include Aching Body, Oh Brother, Not My Story and Thank You For The Ride.

Andrea Ramolo sings from the heart. As the lead track suggests, there are no filters here. What you get is pure Andrea Ramolo, where in hunger, excitement, despair, longing or remorse. After hearing Thank You For The Ride it’s no surprise that SOCAN will be hosting her for two weeks of writing and a music showcase in Nashville, TN. Andrea Ramolo has star written all over her. Thank You For The Ride should be a critical darling in the music world and help establish Ramolo as one of music’s rising stars.

Rating: 5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Andrea Ramolo at www.myspace.com/andrearamolo. Thank You For The Ride will be released on October 30, 2008 at a show at Toronto’s The Dakota Tavern. Rumor has it that Ramolo is devastating live, so catch the show if you’re in the area. Keep checking Andrea Ramolo’s MySpace page for retail availability. In the mean time you can listen to tracks there!

CD Review: Sundad - The Journey Continues

Sundad – The Journey Continues

2008, Sundad Records

The heart of Sundad is father/son team John Eurell and John Eurell, Jr. Accompanied by percussionist Chet Soares and bass player Eddie Denise, the two acoustic guitarists write and perform some of the most soaring and relevant instrumental guitar music since the early days of Windham Hill. Their 2008 release, The Journey Continues, displays a parent-child connection that extends to their musical expression. It becomes difficult to tell where one ends and the other begins as father & son’s guitars cascade over one another and intertwine in the conjunction of musical spirits and mores.

The Journey Continues opens with The Veil, a Michael Hedges style progressive/new age composition full of musical and rhythmic complexities that can’t be unravaled with just a few listens. Out of Body builds to a release that is dark and transformational before morphing back into the sunlight. The Conquistador brings a very mellow Latin sound that plays like watching a leaf dive and dart in the wind. The rhythm of the moments is always clear but the eddies and currents are unpredictable. Moonlight In Manhattan has a serene yet complicated melody that suggestsa certain tension in the face of what should be an aesthetic delight. Other highlights include Somewhat Celic and Dancing In The Park.

The Journey Continues is a sparkling album full of light moments, complicated rhythms and gorgeous, tight musical interplay. The song The Veil may be one of the best instrumental pieces I’ve heard in quite some time, but it is clear that Sundad shares a special connection that transcends their music and creates the perfect storm for the stretching of musical boundaries. The Journey Continues is a master class for all guitar players, and a must hear album.

Rating: 4.5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Sundad at http://www.sundad.com/, where you can purchase a copy of The Journey Continues.

CD Review: Booze Monkey - 4th St.

Booze Monkey – 4th St.
2008, Sanity Check Musec, Inc.

This isn’t your Uncle Fuzzy’s Booze Monkey. Booze Monkey has been rocking the Northern Virginia music scene since 2002 with their blend of acoustic and electric blues rock. Originally a duo of Blue Ajay and Joel Ludwig, Booze Monkey has undergone a number of changes. The band has grown in size and seen the (amicable) parting of founding member Ludwig. After releasing three albums and one “bootleg” in 3 years, Booze Monkey took a hiatus in 2005 keyed by Ludwig’s departure. Blue Ajay took some time to compose a movie score and stretch his musical wings.

The return to Booze Monkey was a mulligan of sorts, allowing Ajay to reimagine and expand Booze Monkey’s sound by adding electronic elements and darker shading to the music without abandoning the original spirit of the band. The end result is 4th St., Booze Monkey’s most diverse and complex recording to date. Longtime fans may take a few listens to digest the added layers and nuance that’s grown around Booze Monkey, but in the end will be quite happy with the band’s growth. Potential new fans will just need a listen to be hooked.

4th St. has a live sound that is hard to capture on a studio recording. The energy and off-the-cuff ambience is very refreshing, all the more so because Booze Monkey is good enough to pull it off without making it sound like an amateur recording. Let’s Go Monkey is the sort of happy blues jam you might hear at a party of musicans or at an open mike session that encourages jamming. Solitaire (The Old Way) is a fun bit of musical naval contemplation. The rockabilly beat and guitar work make for a devilish combination that will get your toes tapping instantly. Hope introduces listeners to Booze Monkey’s new interest in samples and Electronica. Hope has a mellow industrial sound, a walking bass line, guitar and harmonica. It sounds like Pink Floyd, Nine Inch Nails and Neil Young had a jam session.

Dick Frankenstein’s Night Out starts out with a nasty guitar riff you could hear coming from the likes of Stevie Ray Vaughan and evolves into a heavy guitar-driven rock tune. Changin’ Lanes is an enigmatic member of the 4th St. family. It opens like a ballad and becomes a fairly straightforward pop tune. Blue Ajay is in fine voice here, as throughout, but there’s distinctly familiar quality to his voice is particularly notable on Changin’ Lanes. I can almost come up with who he sounds like but not quite. My guess is it’s a composite of more than one voice with familiar qualities. This is part of Booze Monkey’s charm, to lull you in with a voice that’s pleasant and almost recognizable and then knock your socks off with music you never could have imagined.

Be sure to check out Chip & A Chair, probably my favorite song on 4th St. It builds from a slow blues guitar riff into a frantic rock tune about someone who’s luck is running out but is still holding on to hope based on what little is left. Chip & A Chair moves with an energy that is vibrant and fully representative of the fatal optimism of the narrator. Other highlights include Tellin’ You, Firewater Fetish and Voice Mail (From The Blues).

Booze Monkey is the sort of band you take your friends to go see (the ones you really like). Booze Monkey is the sort of band you start conversations with strangers over. The innovative mix of blues, folk, rock and even occasionally Industrial is incredibly refreshing and unique. 4th St. is revelatory in its joy and energy. Here is rock and roll for the fun of it. Enjoy.

Rating: 4.5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Booze Monkey at http://www.sanitycheck.net/, where you can purchase a copy of 4th St. You can also pick up a copy at http://cdbaby.com/cd/boozemonkey4.

CD Review: Cailyn - New World In Blue

Cailyn - New World In Blue
2008, Cailyn Lloyd

Cailyn Lloyd spent much of her teenage years playing in the blues/rock scene in London, England. The guitarist/bass player had a reputation for intensity and rocking the axe better than most of her male counterparts. Lloyd stepped away from performance for a number of years, but found herself thrust back into the scene years later in Fond Du Lac, Wisconsin. Currently the lead guitarist for Fond Du Lac powerhouse IX Lives, Lloyd is striking out on her own with the side project entitled New World In Blue.

Cailyn Lloyd can play with the best of them. Her take on Jimi Hendrix' Little Wing is both reverential and expansive, with Lloyd adding her own little touches without really changing the original. Vocalist Ric Prida is in fine form here. Lloyd's original composition Clouds includes some decent guitar soloing, but is fairly light in content and composition. New World In Blue is an arrangement of Dvorak's Ninth Symphony, Movement #2. The piece has a Malmsteen-like quality to it without all of the grandiosity. For Elise is Lloyd's arrangement of Beethoven's Fur Elise. It is reverent of the original but done primarily on electric instruments.

Cailyn Lloyd is a talented guitarist, but doesn't offer up much that's original on New World In Blue. Her arrangements of classic tunes shows a certain talent on the part of Cailyn Lloyd, but we'll have to hear a little more from her before making a full judgment in that regard. For now, New World In Blue is a capable introduction.

Rating: 3 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Cailyn at www.myspace.com/cailynrox. You can purchase a copy of New World In Blue at www.cdbaby.com/cd/cailyn.

CD Review: WAR - Greatest Hits Live

WAR – Greatest Hits Live
2008, Rhino Records

WAR began as The Creators in Southern California in 1962. In 1969 The Creators joined forces with Eric Burdon (Eric & The Animals) to form WAR. The ever-volatile Burdon would only stay with the band through 1972, but WAR would go on to become of the most influential Rock/R&B hybrid bands of the 1970s. While only one original member (Lonnie Jordan) is still in the lineup, there is no doubt that WAR remains incredibly influential and commercially viable in the twenty-first century. 2008 sees the release of Greatest Hits Live, a 2-CD collection of 14 of WAR’s most memorable and influential songs in the environment where they’re best – on stage.

WAR combined rock, funk, jazz, Latin, R&B and even reggae in ways that one before them dreamed of. Rising out of the ghettos of Los Angeles, WAR always had an appreciation of and love for diverse musical styles and cultures. It was WAR’s ability to meld all these sounds and influences into dynamic rock and roll that helped WAR appeal to so many people from different backgrounds in the 1970’s. Greatest Hits Live captures the cream of WAR’s crop under the lights of a live stage. The love flows freely from WAR to the crowd and back throughout the recording, and it’s easy to see why. WAR will always be known for the ironic and cheesy Lowrider, but songs like The World Is A Ghetto, Galaxy and Me And Baby Brother have visceral connections to time and place for folks who lived through the 1970’s. For those of us who either missed the 1970’s or were too young to notice, WAR’s set list reads like a musical collage of 1970’s atmosphere, culture and essence.

Galaxy is a funk rock tune with some great jamming in the middle. Ballero brings in a Latin influence that’s infused into some of WAR’s writing, and has a very mellow feel to it. Everyone knows Lowrider, but also on the list of national consciousness is the campy hit Why Can’t We Be Friends? This song is delivered in all of its sunny glory not only as an homage to the past but also as an incredibly relevant message for 2008. Other highlights including Me And Baby Brother, The Cisco Kid, Gypsy Man and Spill The Wine make this set very much worth plunking down your hard earned cash for.

WAR inspired an entire generation of rock and R&B bands, and has even influenced a generation of hip-hop/rap artists. WAR continues to perform 150 or so dates each year and has sold over 50 million albums to date. They’ve also been nominated for induction on the 2009 Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame ballot. Not bad for a group of guys from Long Beach. WAR’s Greatest Hits Live not only offers a fine collection of some of WAR’s most influential and innovative songs, but also offers the opportunity to sample their on-stage wizardry. It’s a must listen.

Rating: 4 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about WAR at http://www.wartheband.com/. You can purchase a copy of Greatest Hits Live at Amazon.com or wherever music is sold.

CD Review: Bette Midler - Jackpot: The Best Of Bette

Bette Midler – Jackpot: The Best Bette
2008, Atlantic/Rhino Records

Bette Midler is a singer, actress and comedienne who has a distinguished 43 year career is show business. Stating out as a movie extra in 1965 (Hawaii, released in 1966), Bette quickly found her way to New York City. After playing in a pair of off-Broadway shows simultaneously in 1965, Bette found herself on The Great White Way as Tzeitel in Fiddler on The Roof in 1966 (a role she would play until 1969). She began performing in bathhouses in New York City in the early 1970’s. Her accompanist for those early gigs was none other than Barry Manilow. From these early beginnings sprouted a career that has seen Bette on Broadway, television and the silver screen. She has toured the world several times over, won four Grammy Awards, four Golden Globes, three Emmys and a Tony Award. Ms. Midler has also been nominated for two Oscars and currently headlines in Las Vegas. The Divine Miss M has earned her pedigree and status in the industry. 2008’s Jackpot: The Best Bette is the latest compilation to touch on highlights from Bette Midler’s career. While full of its highs and lows, Midler has never been anything but the consummate entertainer. Her voice migrates easily from jazz to pop to rock and roll, and Midler can sell a song like nobody since Sinatra.

Bette Midler has always been very at home with the whole Las Vegas small orchestral jazz/early rock and roll style profligated by the likes of Louis Prima, Bobby Darin and Sinatra; this is aptly reflected on Jackpot: The Best Bette. In The Mood shows Midler in her comfort zone with a first class jazz arrangement. As with every song Midler places her own personal stamp on this rendition with a campy, sassy flair. This Ole House is a little different than what you might normally expect from Midler. It’s one of those seminal songs from country music that seems to work well in any era and in a multitude of styles. Midler’s rendition is faithful and melancholy and full of life.

Midler has fun camping it up on The Rolling Stones’ Beast Of Burden. Here we see the wanton side of Midler’s schtick, channeling her inner Janis Joplin. The Rose is Bette Midler’s signature song and accounts for one of her four Grammy Awards. The song is as beautiful and poignant as it was 20 years ago. The same goes for The Wind Beneath My Wings. There are certain songs that once they’ve been done covering them is a pointless exercise. Midler owns these two songs in ways no one else ever can. Other highlights include The Glory Of Love (the jazz standard, not the Chicago song),Hello In There, From A Distance and her Andrews Sisters inspired take on Boogie Woogie Bugle-Boy.

The music business doesn’t encourage performers like Bette Midler anymore. Midler cut her performance teeth the old fashioned way. She worked her tail off from the ground up, along the way developing performance skills that stand up alongside her incredibly talented voice. There has never been many in music, movies or television who could match Midler’s talent and versatility, but she may be the last of the great show people. Folks like Audra McDonald, Taye Diggs, John Lithgow and Tim Curry can play to the same crowds. Each has shown the ability to own a crowd in a performance as Midler does, but there’s no one in showbiz who can do it night in and night out like Bette Midler. If you’re a new acquaintance, Jackpot: The Best Bette is a great chance to get to know The Divine Miss M. If you’re an old friend this is a great collection of memories. Either Way, Jackpot: The Best Bette is required listening for anyone who wants to learn the art of selling a song.

Rating: 5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Bette Midler at http://www.bettemidler.com/. You can purchase a copy of Jackpot: The Best Bette at Amazon.com or wherever CDs are sold. Bette Midler is currently performing 100 shows a year at The Colosseum at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. The show debuted on February 20, 2008 and will run through 2010. If you’re head to Vegas your trip won’t be complete without tickets to this show, entitled The Show Girl Must Go On.