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The Woodstock Experience is a genius idea. Combining an artist's studio album and their Woodstock performance, along with a poster in nice little box set makes for one sweet package. There are five of these sets in total, (Santana, Johnny Winter, Janis Joplin, Sly and the Family Stone, and Jefferson Airplane).
For me, Johnny Winter’s is the best of the group. The only downside to the whole concept is most of the acts performing at Woodstock were terribly recorded. Unfortunately, only one song was recorded for many of the bands, such as Ten Years After. You could argue that some groups whose shows were perfectly recorded are so big, like The Who and The Band, their performances weren't released for contractual reasons.
In the case of Johnny Winter it's really a shame that his blues set was not appreciated at the time and was not given more prominence in original Woodstock film. Most folks would be surprised to hear that Johnny Winter even played at Woodstock. Paul Butterfield's set definitely did not show his band at its peak; Ten Years After’s set was plagued by recording equipment gone haywire.
The film crew only managed to get its cameras rolling in time for "I’m Going Home," the last song of the set. Canned Heat's contribution was barely released at all, but Joan Baez's performance was perfectly recorded. Oh the cruelty.
Johnny Winter, for me. is the king of Texas blues. He is so deeply rooted in the genre, that for his Woodstock set, he was allowed to step out of his studio shoes without having to stick with songs from his solo album, and it works wonderfully in this series. You don't end up with two versions of the same material, unlike Carlos Santana's Woodstock Experience set. Both discs are completely different experiences, although both include mostly familiar covers of blues greats such as Robert Johnson, and J.B. Lenoir. Johnny’s brother Edgar, even more unknown then Johnny at the time, comes on to play three songs near the end with "I Can't Stand It," "Tobacco Road," and "Tell the Truth."
Winters' only two originals in the live set “Leland Mississippi Blues,” and “Mean Town Blues,” show that there are few performers who understand the blues better then Johnny, and why among musicians he is so highly respected. His ten minute version of the multi-genre standard “Tobacco Road,” puts him at the top of the list of those who have covered it like the Animals, the Blues Magoos, and Spooky Tooth. Winter closes off the set with "Johnny B. Goode," and once again nails it perfectly, leaving the album with a high energy feeling.
The studio album is equally as amazing, if not better then the live performance, and only lacks the applause. Everything from the full band’s high energy "I’m Yours and I’m Hers," to the more subtle slide guitar on "Dallas," his three originals are once again amazing, and fit in perfectly with the six covers.
After the opening cut "I’m Your and I’m Hers," comes a typical slow blues song, with fast guitar playing, "Be Careful With a Fool," not the most impressive song on the whole album. However, it does show off Johnny’s amazing guitar skills, as does the more sparse "Dallas," with its really fine slide work.Winter is as good acoustic as he is electric, and it’s one of the highlights of the album. His gruff voice actually works better a lot of ways with these acoustic songs. Next comes "Mean Mistreater" originally titled "Mean Mistreatin’" by Jimmie Gordon, which features some really nice harmonica work from Big Walter Horton which reminds me a lot of Paul Butterfield’s playing on his first two albums. Johnny deftly keeps his guitar playing at a minimum and lets the harmonica power this one.
Winter’s last original song is “Leland Mississippi Blues,” the only song to appear on both the studio album, and the in the live Woodstock performance. Not much to say here, except that the live version outshines this track, and I have a feeling that if all of these songs on the studio album were on the live disc, the result would be the same.
Next up, is a song covered by every band from the Allman Brothers Band to the Grateful Dead: “Good Morning Little Schoolgirl.” Johnny switches very nicely on this album, from electric to acoustic guitar, something few artists can accomplish with equal dexterity; Clapton and Stills come to mind as the exceptions. Robert Johnson’s "When You Got a Good Friend," is another bare acoustic recording, emulating the original amazingly, and far superior to the version by the aforementioned Clapton. Then we are rewarded with “I’ll Drown in My Tears,” a slow soulful blues, featuring Edgar Winter on horns. It might be surprising to hear Johnny doing a song like this, but it works just as well as his most raucous material. Finally “Back Door Friend,” delivers some of the rawest, nattiest Texas blues you can find. The sound quality isn’t great by any standard on this song, but it doesn’t matter…..it doesn’t need to be.
In the end, this compilation shows Johnny at his best, with an earth-shaking live performance, and a equally inspiring solo album. The live disc is one of the best performances at Woodstock, and should be mentioned alongside albums like Blues Breakers with Eric Clapton, A Long Time Comin’, and Super Session as one of the best blues albums recorded. Though not as good as his next album Second Winter, his first solo effort makes this set the best in the entire Woodstock Experience series. Yes, better then Santana. I give this five out of five stars.
Hey guys! Sorry for missing out on a couple review saturdays, but we have been working hard on getting ready Woodstock Weekend for everyone. We thought we'd post this next, as we're going to see CSN this Wednesday. Thanks everyone, enjoy the review.
Crosby, Stills, & Nash’s Demos — released June 2nd — is their attempt at releasing unreleased material in the vein of Neil Young's Archives, but I'd much prefer that there was one complete "lost album" from their first period instead.
This is still a great project, though, and at least it arrived when the guys said it would (hint-hint, Neil). Almost everyone’s songs here ultimately surfaced on their own solo works, except for David Crosby's, as three out of his four tracks are from the CSNY album, Déjà vu. Overall, it’s interesting to hear how all of these songs evolved — even if they’re not in best form here.
Nash's "Marrakesh Express" is one of the finest songs on the whole album, resembling more of the Crosby/Nash live version. Actually, most of Nash’s songs here are some of the set's best. Next is Crosby’s "Almost Cut My Hair," and similarly his best song from the whole disc. After that comes Stephen Stills’ 1:30-minute demo of "You Don’t Have to Cry;" it’s gone before you know it, and it made me long for much, much more.
Even on a better song, Crosby still manages to drone on a bit, like during "Déjà vu," which is a little too long for an acoustic demo; it's striking how close to the final version it sounds, nevertheless. Culled from his solo debut, Songs For Beginners, Nash offers up the rarity,"Sleep Song." It's a perfect example of what he's known for — nothing deep or powerful — but rather just a pleasant and thoroughly enjoyable song. "My Love is a Gentle Thing" is his best song here by Stills, which goes to show why he has a demos album all his own, 2007's Just Roll Tape. Clocking at just under two minutes — still a tad short, or at least short compared to Crosby’s six-minute epics — one could only wish the rest of his tracks here were this good. Also from Nash's debut comes another quality song, "Be Yourself," which, by this point, strikes me as a little fishy given that his demos are the best here overall — especially since Nash personally assembled this set. I wonder if there remains a rivalry among these men after all these years.
The only song here to feature Neil Young is Crosby's "Music is Love," which also includes Nash. It's another nice addition — along the same lines as Nash's "Sleep Song" — and Young can be heard peeking through just a bit. It's a shame he doesn't show up more often in this set, but then again, his monstrous Archives project more than makes up for that.
Next is Stills’ "Singing Call," which later appeared on Stephen Stills 2 and holds up pretty well here, but not to the quality of Nash’s or Crosby’s contributions. It's clear that Stills released his strongest demo material on his own aforementioned 2007 set. The only song here accompanied by a full band, Crosby’s "Long Time Gone," is the only one that is majorly different than the finished version. It’s jazzier with noticeable changes in lyrics, and it really works without the electric guitars, which I was pleasantly surprised by. Nash’s last song here is "Chicago," featuring him on piano, and it's a good version, but if you want the best by far, get the one on the CSNY live album 4 Way Street. Actually, you'll find a lot of the definitive versions of their songs that classic album.
Concluding this album, though, is Stills’ "Love the One Your With," which is very up to par with the original, and a very nice way to end Demos, leaving you wanting to listen to and explore even more of the music of Crosby, Stills, & Nash.
Recorded on August 23, 1999, David Bowie’s Storytellers could have been a classic, instead it falls far from greatness in many ways. I wonder why VH1 decided to release this edition instead of others that are in the can such as CSN&Y or Steely Dan? Bowie’s Storytellers has some good tracks, but none that will leave you begging for more. Unless you are a Bowie maniac, you may want to pass on this live CD for the only one or two decent songs.
Bowie opens with “Life on Mars” from his 1971 album Hunky Dory and is off to a promising start. He then teases us with arguably the best song in this performance, “Rebel Rebel.” Unfortunately, either in good fun or because he is bored with performing the song after all of these many years, he ends it abrubtly a short way into the number. David! Please cut something else, something that isn't “Rebel Rebel.”
Next is “Thursday’s Child,” a good, but unimpressive newer song, followed by one of the best songs on the album, “Can’t Help Thinking About Me.” It’s a song from early is his career and Bowie has fun with what he believes are less then perfect lyrics. It’s at this point though that I begin to wonder what was going through his mind when he chose this track listing. I can dig obscure Bowie songs, but for Storytellers I want to hear and learn about the nuggets, those great Bowie tunes that everyone knows and loves.
I understand that he has distanced himself from a lot of the hits but Bowie fans never tire of them and this would be a great opportunity to learn more about their origins. Something that could of elevated this live record, "China Girl,” unfortunately is not up to par with the original, but is a welcome addition to the set list.
After the uninteresting and unnecessary song, "Seven," from his newest album (at the time), is the noteworthy, "Drive-In Saturday." This is an interesting choice because it was originally written for Mott the Hoople but rejected after the success of “All the Young Dudes.” From Bowie’s rendition you can actually imagine Mott performing the song, and I wish they would have recorded it. The last song on the album is “Word on a Wing” from Station to Station, and David’s voice is unusually deep and pitchy, especially at the beginning, He almost sounds like a David Bowie impersonator as though he needed to drop the original key down to reach some of the higher notes in the song. This is just one more instance of what could have been a great performance on this album, but falls short.
I’m a huge Bowie fan, and love almost everything he does, but the track listing for Storytellers as well as the performance is less then stellar. The DVD features four additional songs that could have been included on the CD ("Survive," "I Can't Read," "Always Crashing the Same Car," and "If I'm Dreaming Life"), since it only clocks in at 44 minutes. Even with the inclusion of the extra songs, the DVD doesn't offer anything different, only the images of Neo-Bowie fans bobbing their heads. In fact it shows a Neo-Bowie, caring very little for the music that made him famous.
At one point when Bowie tells a joke about the Small Faces you think the microphones can’t pick up the laughter from the audience, but then you realize there is no laughter because those present probably don’t know who the Small Faces are.
Storytellers is a great idea on paper, but it rarely delivers up to expectations. Many of the artists tend to trivialize their earlier work as if the music that brought them recognition is now irrelevant and unimportant. Many times the songs are good but stories behind them forgettable. One of the few times Storytellers worked well was with Bruce Springsteen. His song choice was excellent and the way he shared them was as if we were all sitting around his kitchen table and he was truly moved that we were interested, much like a loving grandfather remembering his glory days.
I highly recommend that edition of Storytellers over this one unless you want to hear about Bowie meeting Marc Bolan for the first time or of him having to pee in a sink at a club early in his career. That’s about as interesting as it gets. I give this two and a half stars out of five.
Recently, Sony Records, released the Complete Liberty Singles, by Gary Lewis and the Playboys, and your truly was asked to review it. We at Neotomic Aliviac are honored that major labels are interested in our opinions. Thanks for reading, hope you enjoy.
Although Gary Lewis never had the best musical chops in the business, he and his Playboys, managed to have a respectable string of hits through ’65 and ’66. Backed by a production team including Snuff Garrett, and Leon Russell, some of Gary’s best known songs include “This Diamond Ring” written by Al Kooper, and “Count Me In.” The compilation, The Complete Liberty Singles, weighs in at a hefty 45 songs, showing the best, and sadly, more of the worst of this band.
The first disc starts right away with The Playboys most memorable song, the Al Kooper penned “This Diamond Ring.” It was debuted on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1964 and introduced us to Gary Lewis as the “boy next door” and as the safe, clean cut alternative to the ragged mop topped look of the British Invasion which had American boys and girls screaming in ecstasy and American parents just screaming. “This Diamond Ring” quickly became a huge hit, even though Kooper was not thrilled with this version. I would have preferred to hear “Diamond Ring” as a later track because the collection immediately loses momentum and never fully gains it back. Track seven comes close with the simple innocence of “Save Your Heart for Me.” another of GL’s eight singles to reach gold status. In between those two songs tracks two and three, (“Hard to Find” and “Tijuana Wedding,”) are almost painfully forced upon us. Both instrumentals, they were, at different times, b-sides to “Diamond Ring.” “Tijuana Wedding” sounds eerily similar to of a couple of familiar songs of the times; “La Bamba” and “Louie Louie”. Sort of like an ugly step-child of two really good looking parents. According to the albums’ producers (Leon Russell and Snuff Garrett,) Gary Lewis and the Playboys never played on these tracks, which is why you get the feeling that you’re listening to a completely different band. Track four is the hit “Count Me In,” another squeaky clean, aw shucks, teen frolicking kind of song. Track five, “Little Miss Go Go” an obvious Beach Boys sound alike is good but skipable. By the time you reach track six, “Doin’ the Flake” you realize that you’re not listening to a real band but the commercial concoction of producer Snuff Garrett. “Doin’ the Flake” was recorded for Kellogg’s in 1965, and children received it free if they sent in two box tops to the cereal company. It’s unnecessary in this collection, and should have been left out, or at least put in at the end as a bonus track with a warning that too much sugar can cause cavities.
The CD gains some strength with “Save Your Heart For Me,” and the streak continues on for the next eight songs (“Without a Word of Warning,” Everybody Loves a Clown,” Time Stands Still,” She’s Just My Style,” I Won’t Make that Mistake Again,” Sure Gonna Miss Her,” I Don’t Wanna Say Good Night,” and Green Grass.”) “She’s Just My Style,” is another obvious Beach Boys “influenced” song, but written and produced so well that it could have been found tucked between “Wouldn’t it be Nice” and “Caroline No” on Pet Sounds if not for Mr. Lewis’ vocal range, or lack thereof. When recording these songs, other vocalists would lay down the voice tracks and then Gary Lewis’s vocals would be added and hidden in the mix. With the simplistic “I Can Read Between the Lines,” the cd nose dives once again and ends with a forgettable version of “Down on the Sloop John B.” These two tracks offer nothing new, and in some instances like “Paint Me a Picture,” are sadly even a little laughable. It’s at this point, that you realize there is still another disc to go before you have completed The Complete Liberty Singles.
Disc two features some interesting songs, but no major hits like This Diamond Ring. Those who are still listening may find themselves reaching for a Beach Boys or the Beatles album, since these songs draw heavily from those two bands but lack the same artistic and musical quality. There is however a sprinkling of decent material on this cd. An example is, track one “Where Will the Words Come From,” a fine song to be sure, but it’s followed by, “May the Best Man Win,” a vocal monstrosity. Sung in a higher register, by a man who never sounds comfortable with his normal voice, you can guess the outcome. The next track, “The Loser,” another good song, this time from producer Leon Russell, never realizes its full potential, again because of poor vocals. Tracks four to seven, “Ice Melts the Sun,” Girls in Love,” Let’s Be More then Friends,” and Jill,” are more or less unlistenable.
“New in Town,” one of the highlights on this cd, starts off with a funky bass line, lending some respectability but Happiness, is a perfect example of terrible songwriting, with annoyingly campy lyrics like, “Happiness to kids is peanut butter.” Similar campy lyrics of “Sealed With a Kiss” actually help create the mood of that song and it’s probably the best example of the type of song Mr. Lewis’ voice is best suited for even though on the recording he is sometimes pitchy and flat at times. “Sealed With a Kiss” was the last song to make it into the top 20 for GL and The Playboys and the rest of the songs on the cd show why Gary Lewis was left standing still in an ever changing music scene. In the dawn of Aquarius there was no room for these campy somewhat pleasant songs. The listening public was becoming more sophisticated and wanted more substance from their bands and Gary Lewis and The Playboys had nothing to give them.
In the end, this compilation is only for true Gary Lewis fanatics, if there are any, and those whom may have shared a first dance to “This Diamond Ring.” Newcomers to his music, would be better served with a ten to fifteen track compilation. Forty-Five songs are way too many for a Gary Lewis compilation, even if it is the complete singles collection. I give this three out of five stars.
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