new music

New Song: Mike Campbell & The Dirty Knobs Return With “Dare To Dream” Featuring Graham Nash

~ kcorsini ~ 2 Comments

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Mike Campbell & The Dirty Knobs (Campbell, guitar/vocals; Mattt Laug, drums; Lance Morrison/bass; now Chris Holt, guitar) have released a new single “Dare To Dream” that features a wonderful backing/harmony vocal from none other than Graham Nash of CSNY fame. The song is from the Dirty Knobs upcoming album Vagabonds, Virgins & Misfits. Is that not a fantastic album title? That title kind of sums up the whole B&V ethos… well, except that “virgin” part.

I think all of us were wrecked when we lost Tom Petty in 2017, but probably no one more than the members of the Heartbreakers – Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench in particular – as they had been on the ride with Tom for his entire career. I was so delighted that Mike Campbell, who I consider one of the greatest guitarist to ever strap the instrument on, has found himself a nice solo career after the passing of Petty. Sometimes a band leader passes and the other members are lost and fade away. Of course Campbell had guested on other people’s albums outside the Heartbreakers during their career, like Don Henley’s “Boys Of Summer” from way back in 1984, which he co wrote. With Benmont Tench he also formed my favorite ever surf band, The Blue Stingrays, which the Rock Chick discovered one night while musically spelunking. Well, I think Tench was involved in that project, it was pretty secretive. When Fleetwood Mac fired Lindsey Buckingham, they enlisted Mike Campbell – who was longtime friends with Stevie Nicks – along with Neil Finn to replace him. Finn for the vocals and Campbell for that fabulous lead guitar… he even brought back some of the great Peter Green era songs. Fleetwood Mac toured with Campbell, but they never went into the studio and with the passing of Christine McVie, it appears they’re done. I read somewhere that Christine told Campbell he “was fun to play the blues with,” high praise indeed.

While the thought of Campbell in Fleetwood Mac was cool, the guy was just too talented to be confined to just that as his post-Heartbreakers career. He co wrote so many great songs with Tom. I was thrilled in 2020 when it was announced that Mike Campbell and his band, the Dirty Knobs were putting out an album. Apparently the Dirty Knobs had been a live, side project to allow Campbell to play when he wasn’t busy with his “day job” for a while, prior to recording together. Campbell had stockpiled quite a few tracks and the result was Wreckless Abandon. The title track was the first song on the album and the first single and it was a great single that sounded, well, like Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers. I really dug “Wreckless Abandon,” both the song and the album.

I was wondering if, like his stint in Fleetwood Mac, Wreckless Abandon was to be a one off. Thankfully, I was wrong. 2022 saw Campbell & the Dirty Knobs release External Combustion, another great rock n roll album. That album was preceded by the first single, “Wicked Mind,” which we loved down here at B&V. It was more of a road song, fast and rocking.

And now, here in 2024, we have a brand new song/lead single from the upcoming new album, entitled “Dare To Dream.” I’m so delighted Campbell and the Dirty Knobs are back. These guys are just a solid rock n roll band and we need those in 2024. “Dare To Dream” has such a great message. “These are the best of times, This is the good life and all you dare to dream can come true…” I like the sound of that. There’s a lot of negativity running around out there, it’s time for an uplifting message. The track itself is different than past first singles. It’s got a stab-y guitar riff. Campbell’s vocal is more prominent. I have to admit, it took me two listens for the track to click in my head. I had to get it first into the car for a good, windows down, volume cranked listen… and then I put it on the headphones. This track is utterly elevated by the amazing harmony/backing vocal of Graham Nash. That guy is an unsung hero…his vocals really make the vocals soar. I think I gave him short shrift on my post about CS&N solo/duo projects. Here’s the cool video:

Pretty cool stuff, and I don’t usually dig videos. Heartbreakers drummer Steve Ferrone is playing drums in the video, I do not think he plays on the song, but I could be wrong, we’ll have to see when the LP drops and I can read the liner notes. I do know there are other guests beyond Nash including Chris Stapleton and Benmont Tench. I love that Campbell says the theme of the song is “everything will be okay if you hold onto hope.” Seems like a very timely message.

I’m not sure what this means for Vagabonds, Virgins & Misfits, but with Mike Campbell at the wheel, with his track record, this just might be my summer album this year. Rest assured, B&V will be keeping our ear to the ground for this one…

Cheers!

David Gilmour Of Pink Floyd Announces New Solo LP, ‘Luck And Strange,’ Releases First Song, “The Piper’s Call”

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It appears the rumors I’ve been hearing are true and erstwhile Pink Floyd guitarist/singer David Gilmour is set to release his fifth studio album Luck And Strange this coming September. Today he’s released the first single from the album, “The Piper’s Call.”

It may seem odd that David Gilmour, a very famous musician, has only put out five studio albums (if I include Luck And Strange) over the years. Of course from the 60s through the early 80s he was busy in Pink Floyd with Roger Waters, Rick Wright and Nick Mason. And from the late 80s on he was busy… well, in Pink Floyd with only Rick Wright and Nick Mason. I don’t think there was a more contentious break up in rock n roll history as Pink Floyd’s split between Gilmour/Mason/Wright and Waters. These guys make the Beatles break up look like a slightly unruly evening at a bingo night at the local church.

I have to admit, like most critics I’ve been up and down on Gilmour’s solo career. His guitar playing is some of the most melodic, recognizable, soulful sounds ever generated from the instrument. When Gilmour played guest guitar on a Pete Townshend or Paul McCartney record, you knew it was Gilmour. Pink Floyd ranks amongst Zeppelin and the Stones in the 70s pantheon of “cool” bands that every rock head loved. If you weren’t into those bands you might as well have been listening to disco. You were simply “uncool.”

However, in his solo career Gilmour has been less successful. Of course a lot of Pink Floyd “purist” would say that A Momentary Lapse Of Reason and The Division Bell, Pink Floyd’s albums without Waters are merely Gilmour solo records disguised as Floyd records. Sigh… Most critics will tell you that About Face from 1984 is the “pick of the litter” in terms of his solo career. I would probably agree with that assessment but I really liked his last studio album, Rattle That Lock. One of the issues that most critics, and fans for that matter, bring up is that Gilmour’s songwriting partner and lyric writer is his wife Polly Sampson. You get the usual “Yoko” kind of complaints about that. Hey, the guy can partner with whomever he wants, and he chooses to partner with his wife. Although I’m not immune to the ol’ trope that it’s a bad sign when you invite your significant other into the band.

Having enjoyed Rattle That Lock, I’m actually sort of looking forward to Luck And Strange. I’ve been listening to this new track, “The Piper’s Call” all morning. It wouldn’t have been out of place on his last album. The track starts off with a quiet acoustic guitar, quite lovely actually. It’s almost a Spanish guitar thing. Suddenly Gilmour’s voice – which I’ve always loved – comes on. The guy has lost nothing vocally over the years. The track kind of meanders along until the chorus when some fabulous Gilmour electric guitar comes in. He’s so plaintive in the way he plays. The track is mellow for the first minute and a half. But that chorus with Gilmour’s distressed vocals and wonderful guitar drew me in. His guitar playing is the main reason to stick around. Here’s the track:

It’s not a track that’s going to change anybody’s life or reignite a career the way say, Billy Joel’s “Turn The Lights Back On” did, but it’s not a bad little song. And if you’re a Pink Floyd fan – and who among us isn’t? – you’ll probably dig this one.

The album isn’t out until September but rest assured B&V will be out there with our ear to the ground… heeding the piper’s call, so to speak.

Cheers!

Review: Pearl Jam’s 12th Studio LP, ‘Dark Matter’ – A Triumph!

~ kcorsini ~ 5 Comments

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While I was in the midst of mourning the loss of former Allman Brothers’ guitarist/singer/songwriter Dickey Betts, who passed Friday – which required me to listen to the entire early Allman Brothers’ catalog over the weekend including “Mountain Jam” – Pearl Jam released their 12th album Dark Matter. My apologies for the delayed reaction to this new Pearl Jam, but everyone mourns in their own way. I hate to be one of those guys who say, “This is Pearl Jam’s best record since…” but this is Pearl Jam’s best record… well, in a long time. It’s only been four years since their last LP, the uneven Gigaton, which of late is rather quick for Pearl Jam. They’d gone 7 years between Lightning Bolt and Gigaton prior to that. That seven year gap didn’t see Pearl Jam disappear. They toured almost every summer. It began to feel like Pearl Jam was treating the studio pretty casually… like they were old buddies from high school who got together every summer for a “guy’s trip.” Only in this case the “guy’s trip” was a world tour.

I began to wonder if they even cared about making studio albums any more which is unfair. Any of us who were fans of their early work – Ten, Vs, or Vitalogy – tend to have very high expectations of any new Pearl Jam release, not dissimilar to the expectations that surround any new U2 release. It’s just that Pearl Jam’s early stuff was so earnest and it touched an emotional chord in so many of us and I think we all long for a similar dopamine hit like we got from those early records. Those expectations were probably a drag for the band. But as everyone knows, Pearl Jam started to change their music – perhaps like a lot of bands it was to shun the fame and attention they’d garnered – and their albums sold less and less. For me, Riot Act was the album where Pearl Jam almost lost me. It may have been “the record they always wanted to make,” but man, it was a grim affair. Although, like every Pearl Jam record there were a few stone cold classic tracks.

It seemed like they’d really re-dedicated themselves on the self titled 2006 LP, Pearl Jam. A lot of bands try to make a major statement with a mid career eponymous album but that record didn’t really take off and was seemingly overshadowed by the Chili Pepper’s Stadium Arcadium at the time. They continued putting out really strong albums every 3 or 4 years since then – Backspacer (2009) and Lightning Bolt (2013) – and I really liked those records. But I don’t know if the sales or the attention were what they expected. So they did what a lot of bands did, they went on tour a bunch and kind of ignored the studio work. Gigaton dropped right before COVID hit so I feel a bit like that was a “lost album” of sorts. I still like “Superblood Wolfmoon.” But I have to admit, I’ve liked all of those Pearl Jam records since Pearl Jam, so it’s hard for me to pin down the “best Pearl Jam album since…” conversation. Pick your last favorite Pearl Jam LP and use that one in that sentence.

Dark Matter is simply put, the best Pearl Jam album I’ve heard in ages. Song by song, it’s their most consistent, strong album in perhaps decades. They just seemed so focused on this record. And while there haven’t been a lot of changes in approach, everything seems to be taken up a notch. Much of this may be because of the presence of producer Andrew Watt who worked with Vedder on Earthling. He’s also worked with Ozzy (Ordinary Man and Patient No. 9), Iggy Pop (Every Loser) and the Stones (Hackney Diamonds). Some of the ol’ audiophiles complain that Watt-produced albums sound “brickwalled” (highly compressed to sound louder), but I’m a huge fan of Watt’s. He seems to pull the best out of the artists he works with by getting them to do what they do best, to “be themselves.” The record was recorded quickly over a three week span, where as the band says, “Watt kicked our ass.” I love Pearl Jam, but if there was ever a band who needed an ass kicking in the studio…

Pearl Jam remains Eddie Vedder (vocals/guitar), Stone Gossard (guitar), Mike McCready (lead guitar), Jeff Ament (bass) and former Soundgarden member Matt Cameron (drums). Watt also added some guitar and keyboards. The band also brought former Chili Pepper Josh Klinghoffer who has been touring with them – and who was in Vedder’s backing band on his tour for Earthlings – into the studio to play some keyboards and guitar.

With that same personnel, the band sounds like Pearl Jam, but as I said, it’s all taken up a notch. The first thing I noticed was Vedder’s vocals. On their most recent albums, I’ve liked the ballads and slower tracks better because Vedder – who has one of the best and most emotionally expressive baritones in all of rock – actually sings on those songs. On the recent rockers, which often sound very punk influenced (“Mind Your Manners” for example), Vedder almost barks the lyrics, like he’s mad at us for listening. Not so on Dark Matter. From the title track to the ballads, Vedder is emotively singing and that is a very good thing for a Pearl Jam record. And might I say, Watt seems to have just completely unleashed Mike McCready’s lead guitar. I just love it every time he solo’s on this record. With those two stepping up, it makes this a great record, but Gossard/Ament/Cameron lock in the riffs and grooves and create a great foundation for each song.

There’s so much to like here. I loved the title track, “Dark Matter,” but have already posted on that one, I’ll add no more here… While I had to listen to “Scared Of Fear” twice before it clicked, it’s a great Pearl Jam rock song. McCready just shreds. I love the riff and the bouncy nature of the song… “We all like control, I surrender to you, dear,” Oh, yes. “React And Respond” is another tough rocker that may require a little more time to grow on me. I like Ament’s bass on that one. It’s a twitchy, punk thing. “Running” is a meet-me-at-the-finish-line, full tilt rocker. But again, here Vedder sings vs barks and I like it. It’s a heavy track. “Got To Give” competes with “Dark Matter” for my favorite rocker. It starts with some lovely acoustic guitar and then Cameron comes hammering in on the drums (in a good way). It’s an uplifting track and I believe will be sung along to in many a stadium near you this summer.

“Wreckage,” a track I saw someone compare to Tom Petty which I don’t hear, is another personal favorite. It’s a midtempo ear worm that I can’t stop listening to. “Won’t Tell” is another gorgeous tune. I’m calling it midtempo but it’s got a nice riff and beat. I love Eddie’s vocal here, but I’m starting to gush… “Waiting For Stevie” is epic rock at it’s best. It’s a track that must be listened to loud… not to improve it, I just like it loud. “You can be loved by everyone, And not feel, not feel love.” A lot of these lyrics seem to center around loss of some kind – loss of a relationship or the loss of American democracy, it’s hard to tell.

I will admit there are no ballads that hit me as hard as say, “Sirens” or “Yellow Moon” (the Rock Chick’s favorite) that were on Lightning Bolt. But the ballads here are all still great tunes. “Upper Hand” is the first one coming roughly in the middle of the album. It’s probably my favorite of the slower tracks. “Something Special” is another great one. “Setting Sun” ends the album on an atmospheric, acoustic note. They’re all three really good ballads but for the first time in quite a few Pearl Jam albums, my favorite songs are the rockers not the ballads.

Pearl Jam remains one of the greatest American bands ever. It’s nice to see them dig a little deeper, try a little harder, and come up with such a stunning late career album (or it maybe mid-career, one never knows about longevity). A good friend of ours procured a couple of tickets to see these guys on their upcoming tour and the Rock Chick and I couldn’t be more thrilled. It’ll be great to see our good friend and the lads in Pearl Jam as well… they feel like old friends too at this point. In the interim, I’ll just continue to keep Dark Matter on high rotation.

Play this one – one of the best albums of the year so far – up loud. Cheers!

Review: Black Keys, ‘Ohio Players’ – Slightly Flawed Albeit Fun & Fabulous Album

~ kcorsini ~ 3 Comments

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Last Friday the Black Keys released their twelfth studio album, Ohio Players. Clearly the title is a tip of the hat to 70s soul masters The Ohio Players who hailed from Dayton, Ohio. The Keys – Patrick Carney (drums/percussion) and Dan Auerbach (guitars/vocals/keys) – are originally from Akron, Ohio. But the album title clearly cuts deeper than mere geography. This is an album that sees the Keys putting some groove into the tunes. And God knows, the Ohio Players were all about groove! “Love Rollercoaster,” anyone? And if I may digress, as a former league bowler as a kid, I love the cover art.

The Black Keys have been putting out consistently great records for so long – and so often by today’s standards, roughly every 2 years – that it’s easy to miss how far they’ve come from those early, raw, garage rock/blues punk days. As I think I’ve shared in the past, I got on the Keys bandwagon on the Rubber Factory album, which was their third album – and as I’ve stated before the third album can be very critical in a band’s career. It was the early 2000’s and I was really into the White Stripes and so it was only natural I’d get into the Black Keys. Although for some reason, after a few listens, I put the album back into our enormous pile of CDs at the time and didn’t return. I wandered into the music room some time later to find the Rock Chick jamming on Rubber Factory. “These guys are kick ass!” she exclaimed… Perhaps this band merited further study…and before I knew it, we had purchased their debut album, The Big Come Up.

I really dug that blues punk, raw rocking sound of the Keys early days, especially that debut. After 2008’s Attack & Release the Rock Chick and I have been all over every album the Keys have put out, save Turn Blue, which I couldn’t connect to. With each successive album, the Keys have developed their sound. They maintain that great, guitar/drums rock base, but have expanded to include additional musicians – bass players, keyboards, back up singers. And I’ve embraced every step they’ve made. But as I listened to Ohio Players, it suddenly dawned on me how far they’ve come since “Do The Rump.” Some of that musical expansion of their sound probably comes from the heavy collaborations on this album with Beck – who was co-wrote 7 tracks and sings backing vocals on a number of songs (and co-lead on one) – and with Noel Gallagher who co-wrote three songs. This album is produced by a gentleman named Dan The Automator, who I’ll admit I haven’t heard of before.

The album is 14 tracks long, but only clocks in at 44 minutes. Many of the tracks glide by on a smooth groove and before you know it, the album is over. I think the collaboration between the Black Keys and Beck is one made in rock n roll heaven. There is a ton I like here on Ohio Players. First and foremost I love the lead single “Beautiful People (Stay High).” I reviewed it when it came out, so I won’t go into too much detail other than to say that song is nothing short of an epic party anthem! That’s a track, co-written by Beck where the collab just works.

And don’t get me wrong, there are songs that are classic Black Keys, thick, fuzzy riffing guitar and insistent drumming. “Only Love Matters,” co-written by Gallagher, is one such great track. “Please Me (Till I’m Satisfied)” is where Auerbach’s guitar really kicks in. It’s a stand out track. In fact, the latter third of the LP reads like a slightly smoother early Black Keys album. All the back end stuff is great – “Live Till I Die” may be my favorite track. “Read Em And Weep” has a noir-ish, James Bond (or maybe Dick Dale) kind of guitar thing that I really like. “Fever Tree,” another Beck co-write is trademark Keys but with a Beck feel. “Every Time You Leave,” co-written by producer Greg Kurstin (who recently produced the Liam Gallagher/John Squire album) ends the album on a bright rocking note.

However, as I said earlier, there are a lot of Beck styled groove tunes here. The album starts with “This Is Nowhere,” with a heavy bass and a smooth groove. It’s a great song, although I’m not sure it’s what I’d have led off with. It leads to “Don’t Let Me Go” which is downright soulful. Auerbach employs a nice falsetto vocal on that one along with a cascading guitar figure. “On The Game,” co-written by Gallagher, has echos of Oasis but maintains the Keys sound. I was kind of hoping we’d see some guitar pyrotechnics and dueling between Auerbach and Gallagher, but alas it didn’t happen. Noel mostly provides backing vocals.  “You’ll Pay” might be my favorite of the Gallagher collaborations. It’s got falsetto vocals and a funky groove. And who doesn’t love a good “you done me wrong but you’re gonna pay” kinda song.

The Keys pull out a cover song, written by singer William Bell and none other than Booker T. Jones (of Booker T & the MGs), “I Forgot To Be Your Lover” and it’s sensational. I’m always a sucker for a soulful ballad. Sadly, for me there are two missteps to my ears here. “Paper Crown” starts off promising and features Beck singing lead. But at the end they have Juicy J come in and rap. I’m probably showing my rock n roll bias, but I just couldn’t connect with the song. The same story goes for “Candy & Her Friends” which features Lil Noid who raps at the end of the song. Again, it just felt jarring and out of place on a Black Keys album. The Stones had some rapping way back on “Anybody Seen My Baby?” and I liked it… it worked better than this for me. At least “Paper Crown” had that Beck feel and it made more sense to me… I’d have preferred an epic guitar solo.

Again, this is another great album from the Keys. There were a couple of tracks I didn’t connect to, but overall the Keys are so consistently great that the rest of the record overcomes it. I know there are songs on this album that I’ll be coming back to for a long time. I recommend this album highly – as usual played at high volume – but you might end up skipping a couple of the tracks along the way. Overall, this album is gonna get a lot of airplay down here in the B&V labs! And remember, “all those beautiful people stay high,” so try to stay up and good out there.

Cheers!

Billy Idol – Previously Unreleased “Love Don’t Live Here Anymore” From Upcoming ‘Rebel Yell – Extended Edition’

~ kcorsini ~ 4 Comments

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I was looking at social media yesterday and I saw Billy Idol reference that he was releasing Rebel Yell – Extended Edition. I love that iconic 1983 album which I believe I may have mentioned when I reviewed the Idol concert I saw in Vegas last October. I was about to continue scrolling through when I saw that he’d released an outtake – a track recorded during the sessions for Rebel Yell, but not released at the time – called “Love Don’t Live Here Anymore.” It’s apparently a cover song, written and done originally by Rose Royce the group that was best known for their hit “Car Wash.”

None of that should have been a big surprise, but I realized almost immediately, the song came out on March 8th. How’d I miss this? In my defense, I’ve spent my month of March immersed in great vault releases from The Who (Live At Shea Stadium 1982), The Rolling Stones (Live At The Wiltern) and Alice Cooper (Billion Dollar Babies – 50th Anniversary) not to mention great, brand new releases from Liam Gallagher & John Squire and the Black Crowes. With all that great music cascading around me, I guess I can be forgiven for not catching this Idol track… I do so try to stay on top of new music from the artists I like.

I didn’t know what to expect from an outtake from Rebel Yell. Outtakes can be a mixed bag. In this case, it would be hard for me to overstate how blown away I was when I heard “Love Don’t Live Here Anymore.” I can’t believe it’s taken 40 years for Idol to release this in some format. I keep asking myself, why would he leave this off Rebel Yell? Maybe because it was cover song and musicians are always more prone to put their own songs on the record vs a cover song… there’s the publishing money to consider. Not to mention, Rebel Yell is stacked with great songs. Also, this is, on it’s face, a ballad or at least “ballad-esque,” and Idol already had a semi-ballad on the album with the iconic “Eyes Without A Face.” Either way, this is a remarkable song. I was reminded of Petty who left “You Saw Me Coming” off of Wildflowers…such a phenomenal song left in the can for decades…

As I mentioned, this is a ballad but there’s nothing mellow about it. It starts with muted synth then that Idol sound kicks in, light percussion, slightly menacing. The song just moves… Then Idol comes in… “You abandoned me, love don’t live here any more, oh no, just a vacancy, love don’t live here anymore.” Idol sings the song with such anguish. It grips my heart when I listen to this. In ’83, this song would have simply devastated me. The drums beat like a metallic heart… There’s something about the vocal, the gravelly nature of it, that makes me think Idol might have recorded the vocal more recently, but I’m just speculating. At one point in the song, Idol begins to repeat the word “anymore” and it’s so pained it sounds like he’s saying “animal,” which for some reason makes the feeling more palpable to me. Steve Stevens, as usual, lays down not one but two great guitar solos. The first is just a tease. His guitar solo at the end ranks with some of the best he’s played. The guitar just brings out the emotion in the song that much more for me. Here’s the track:

This track, for me, ranks up with his recent song, “Bitter Taste” as one of the best Idol has done. It’s that f’ing good. The Rock Chick was leaving the house and I came staggering out of my office after hearing the song for the first time and said, “Uh, you’re going to need to listen to this Billy Idol immediately in your car…” I wasn’t sure what she’d think… she is the Rock Chick after all… but when she returned she said, “That’s an amazing song.” We ran an errand last night to buy lotto tickets – hey, I’m human – and I can tell she digs it because she pulled it up in the car to listen with me. It’s that amazing of a song.

Rebel Yell – Extended Edition comes out in April and you can bet, B&V will have it’s ear to the stereo on this one… It looks like the bonus material is mostly demos but there is another outtake, “Best Way Out Of Here,” written by Idol & Stevens… I can’t wait to hear that one. Until then, crank this one up LOUD.

I hadn’t intended to post anything more this week until the weekend. I’m seeing Adam Ant (with special guests the English Beat, no less) on Friday and I figured I’d wait and post about that, but this song was just too good to wait.

Cheers!

LP Review: The Black Crowes’ Solid, Rocking Comeback – ‘Happiness Bastards’

~ kcorsini ~ 2 Comments

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I can’t tell you how much we’ve been waiting for this new Black Crowes album down here at B&V. The phrase, “highly anticipated” doesn’t do it justice. Both the Rock Chick and I have been fans of the Crowes since their early days. The Black Crowes, formed by brothers Chris Robinson (vocals) and Rich Robinson (guitars) have had an up and down career. That can happen when brothers form bands. When the Crowes first started out, we thought they were the Stones of the 90s. They had a similar sound to the Stones or perhaps more accurately a sound similar to Stones’ acolytes Humble Pie and the Faces. We hoped they’d have the Stones’ longevity… Somewhere along the line the Crowes turned into a bit of jam band, or at least that was the impression many of us got. They broke up after 2001’s Lions and I’m not sure any of us were terribly surprised. If my brother and I had formed a band I’m sure he would have fired me a long time ago…

However, by the time they broke up again in 2015, I’m not sure I even noticed. After reuniting in 2005 they’d put out two very solid albums – 2008’s Warpaint (which is sadly overlooked) and 2009’s Before The Frost…Until The Freeze. They’d recorded that latter double LP of new material, live in Levon Helm’s barn in front of an intimate crowd. I still don’t think that album was a jam band album. It was more rootsy than jammy? I think that whole jam band reputation comes more from Chris Robinson’s solo projects like the Chris Robinson Brotherhood. Not that there’s anything wrong with jam bands but I digress. The animosity between the brothers Robinson was so bad in 2015 I never thought they’d get back together.

But, and good for them as humans, they reconnected as brothers before they reconnected as band mates. I’m sure that made Thanksgiving less awkward and made their mother happy. Everybody wins. Eventually they decided, like you do, to get the band together. They were criticized for not involving any former members, especially erstwhile drummer Steve Gorman. But Gorman had written a tell-all book about the Black Crowes that wasn’t a terribly flattering portrait of the Robinson Brothers. They said when they first got back together that they were trying to keep influences who were “negative to their relationship” out of the band. Read that how you want. Sometimes you’ve got weigh the pro’s and cons of a relationship, especially in light of the chemistry within a band. Chemistry is so important and yet so fragile in a working rock n roll outfit.

I think it’s safe to say at first the reunion was a tentative one. They intended to tour for the 30th anniversary of Shake Your Money Maker, their sensational debut album but then… Covid. I loved the deluxe edition of that album. In particular one of the outtakes from those sessions, “Charming Mess” is sensational. In light of their tour being cancelled they recorded a great, fun little EP of cover songs all from 1972, creatively titled 1972. I dug that little exercise. They did everything from Bowie to the Stones to Little Feat. It was fun but it could also be read as an experiment to see if their formerly combustible chemistry could take being in  the studio together. With the release of their first album of all new material in 15 years, it seems the answer was yes, it could.

The Brothers Robinson did eventually get a former member of the Black Crowes back into the fold, bass player Sven Pippien. They augmented the line up with Erik Deutsch on keyboards, Cully Symington on drums and Nico Bereciartua on guitar. Sure, I’d like to see Weird Eddie Harsch back on keyboards, but alas I think he passed in 2016. The new album is called Happiness Bastards and was produced by Jay Joyce. Oddly, I have never heard of this producer. I hear he’s been tied to rootsy albums. I know he’s worked with Emmylou Harris, John Hiatt, and Cage The Elephant… although admittedly most his credits read country. Have no fear though, this is not a country album.

I guess the Crowes had a choice to come back rocking or come back jamming and they chose to rock. I will admit, my first listen of Happiness Bastards didn’t grab me like I thought it would. Expectations can be tricky, and mine were pretty high. Sometimes though, you just have to commune with a new album – put it on the headphones… listen in the car… really spend some time with it. And I’ll tell you, the more I listened to this album the more I like it. I mean, if you’re looking for Southern Harmony And Musical Companion 2.0 – and considering the cover art is that album’s cover photo painted over like graffiti, so you could be forgiven for hoping for that – you’re likely going to be disappointed. Not many bands are gonna pull off a second Southern Harmony in a career. As mentioned the Crowes have definitely decided to come out swinging. It’s all guitars/drums/vocals with a few harmonica and keyboard accents. And in 2024 we need good ol’ solid rock n roll like this in our lives.

I think one of the reasons I didn’t immediately connect with this album on first listen – it’s more of a “grower” – is because of the first two tracks, “Bedside Manners” and “Rats And Clowns.” They’ve grown on me, believe me, but on first listen it sounded like they were trying too hard. They’re both balls-to-the-wall rockers but like on Van Halen’s first album with Sammy, the songs “Good Enough” and “Get Up” sounded like they were trying too hard to establish chemistry with the new singer. So too, these first two Crowes tunes sounded a little like they were trying too hard to re-establish their chemistry. But, the more I listen to these songs the better they sound. “Rats And Clowns” may be aimed at former band members?

There are two, great rootsy, acoustic songs. I really dug “Kindred Friend,” the track that ends the record. It’s not “She Talks To Angels,” but it’s a nice upbeat strummer. I love the lyrics, “Sit at my table, let me fill your glass with something strong and fine, Stay forever or leave tonight, Thankful for the time…” Nothing better than sharing a glass of something dark and murky with an old pal. The other track is “Wilted Rose” and features country singer Lainey Wilson. I’ll be honest, I had to google her. Her contribution here is more of a harmony vocal, it’s not a duet. But again, I love my Crowes old style acoustic songs.

When we get into the meat of this record, there is so much kick ass rock n roll to like. “Wanting And Waiting,” the first single, is just a great song. It’s a classic Black Crowes tune. “Cross Your Fingers,” the second single is a wild ride of a song. It starts acoustic and then turns into rocking funk, like they had too many ideas… but in a good way. “Dirty Cold Sun” is maybe my favorite… rocking guitars over an organ and a snarling vocal. Oh, yes the Crowes are back! “Bleed It Dry” is a fantastic blues song, complete with harmonica. It might end up on my Rockers Playing the Blues/Blues Rock playlist. I love that the Black Crowes still play the blues. “Flesh Wound” is another galloping rocker that should be played up loud.

The Crowes are back with a solid, if not completely sensational album of rock n roll. That, to me, is grounds for celebration. Two warring brothers, putting aside their feud and instead picking up instruments and making a glorious racket. Let’s all cross our fingers that this time the reunion holds and these guys continue to build that all important rock n roll chemistry. I know I’ll be keeping my eyes on the tour for this album… I haven’t seen them since the By Your Side Tour…

Cheers!

Review: The Rolling Stones, ‘Live At The Wiltern’ From the ‘Forty Licks’ Tour (2002) – A Glorious Theater Show!

~ kcorsini ~ 7 Comments

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When I think about artists who have a great “official bootleg” business going – i.e., bands who are actively releasing stuff from their vaults – I tend to think about Neil Young (whose Archive Series is remarkable), or Bob Dylan (whose “official bootleg” series started it all). Or I think about Springsteen who mostly (other than the box set Tracks, or deluxe versions of past LPs) has focused mostly on releasing concerts from years gone by (seriously, do yourself a favor and pick up anything from 1978 or 1980). Meanwhile, while I’ve been focused on those artists, my favorite band on the planet, the Rolling Stones have been quietly releasing – much like Springsteen – a series of concerts from past tours. Believe me, I’ve been front row for the Stones’ “Deluxe LP” versions of Tattoo You or Goats Head Soup with all those box set’s extra goodies (“Criss Cross” is still in high rotation around here). However, I guess I own so much live Stones that I’ve kind of turned a blind eye toward the live stuff they’ve been putting out. Shame on me…

I saw recently (last Friday), the Stones were releasing a concert from the Licks Tour which ran from 2002 to 2003. Recently I’ve seen the Stones release Steel Wheels Live or Voodoo Lounge Uncut or Grrr! Live from the 50 & Counting Tour. I saw the Stones on all of those tours and they were always great. Typically the Stones release a live album from every tour – and I’ve purchased many of those – so I figured I was covered. However, now that Stones are releasing complete shows from those tours, I have to admit, those play so much better than the live albums culled from those tours. Much like I said for the Who’s recently released Live At Shea Stadium 1982, when four or five certain musicians inhabit that magical space we call “the stage,” the chemistry can create magic. I’ve always felt that way about the Stones. It’s a kinda magic.

Originally, when I saw that the Stones were releasing this new live LP, Live At The Wiltern, I consigned it to the long list of live Stones’ stuff I probably wouldn’t jump in on. I mean, this wasn’t a legendary show like Live At The El Mocambo, or was it? Eventually curiosity got to me. I checked, and the Wiltern is a 1,850 seat theater in Los Angeles. That piqued my interest. The Stones can play the biggest stages/stadiums in the universe, but when you get them in a theater something special happens. Jagger always seems so much more relaxed in a theater when he’s freed from the onus of performing in front of 70,000 people. The show was from the Licks Live tour, in support of the greatest hits package Forty Licks, which was the first Stones show I went to where the Rock Chick was with me. I did see that this show was from November 4th, 2002 and the Rock Chick and I saw this tour in Chicago, less than 2 months prior on September 10th, 2002 at the United Center and that was a great, great show. The Pretenders opened up and Chrissie Hynde dedicated a reggae track to Mick & Keith who she said “helped bring reggae to the world.” Indeed, they did.

I couldn’t help myself, I had to check out Live At The Wiltern. Charlie Watts was still on drums, and that’s worth the price of admission. Charlie is joined, as always, by Mick Jagger (vocals), Keith Richards (guitar), and Ronnie Wood (guitar). The band that night was filled out with Darryl Jones (bass), Chuck Leavell (keyboards) and killer back up singers: Lisa Fischer, Bernard Fowler, and Blondie Chaplin. They even brought along a horn section (4 folks) which included legendary, late sax man Bobby Keys who had played on such classics as “Brown Sugar” and “Can’t You Hear Me Knocking.” When the Stones play theaters, they tend to mix up the setlist and they end up playing a bunch of deep tracks, which frankly I want to hear more than the usual stuff. And, once I saw the setlist on this concert album I knew it was going to kick ass. I put on some headphones and what a listen!! The guitars – one in each ear – accomplish what Keith always describes as “the ancient art of weaving.” This really is a special show. I am only commenting on the 2 CD version of this, I haven’t seen the Blu-Ray. As I mentioned  recently on a post about my journey as a collector, I’ve switched back to CDs, but I have to sneak those into the house in elaborate ways to get them past the Rock Chick…I do have a birthday coming… but I digress.

For a long time Stones fan, this set list is a treat. They open with “Jumping Jack Flash,” which I consider a Stones’ “standard.” When the Rock Chick and I saw them they opened with “Street Fighting Man,” so I knew they were shaking things up here. But I never expected a rocking version of deep track “Live With Me” as the next track. A rocking “Hand Of Fate” from Black And Blue, one of those albums only I like, was a wonderful surprise. Again, I love that the guitars are right up front and Jagger sounds delighted to be singing something other than “Satisfaction.” Country-blues track “No Expectations” is an absolute highlight with Ronnie on pedal steel. They even do “Stray Cat Blues” (which they did when I saw them) and while it’s not politically correct anymore, it’s a great blues tune. The whole first half of the set is a Rolling Stones’ Deep Tracks fan’s wish list.

They even dig deep for one of their disco songs from the 70s, “Dance, Part 1.” Like, I’ve said before about disco, if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em. It’s sloppy as hell, but as usually happens the Stones lock into the groove and pull it out in the end. After that, the Stones go into the “soul review” part of the show where they play three tracks from the acts that inspired them. It was a cool mini-set and utilized the horn section well. They do Solomon Burke’s “Everybody Needs Somebody To Love” which they’d recorded years and years ago. Since Solomon was the opener that night, it makes sense he’d come out and join them to sing the song. From there, they cover the wonderful Otis Redding song “That’s How Strong My Love Is.” They wrap the soul thing up with “Going To A Go-Go” which is a track they started playing on the first tour I saw them on, in support of Tattoo You. Bobby Keys kills on the sax solo.

After Mick introduces the band, it’s Keith’s turn at the mic. Keef’s singing sends a lot of people to the beer line, but I’ve always loved the Keith songs. He starts with “Thru And Thru” which I think is much better live than on record. He then digs deep for a reggae tune “You Don’t Have To Mean It.” Keith used to just do “Happy” and I just love that he’ll sing any song he’s ever sung at any point in the Stones’ career. It’s always a highlight when he walks up to the microphone. Mick comes out and they just kill “Can’t You Hear Me Knocking,” a song I would have sworn they played at the United Center… I’d never seen them play that song… it turns out, I didn’t hear it until the Bigger Bang tour. Memory is a tricky thing… After the old blues tune “Rock Me Baby,” which perhaps foretold that Blue And Lonesome might happen and the great track “Bitch,” the Stones start to hit the “standards” list again. To get to the finish line they run through “Honky Tonk Woman,” “Start Me Up,” “Brown Sugar” and finally “Tumbling Dice.” And I’m not complaining, they rock those songs. Yes, I’d have loved if they’d kept on the deep tracks thing and played say, “Ventilator Blues,” but then I’d have been the only one jumping up and down on that one. Ronnie Wood is solo’ing all down the line on these tracks and he’s fabulous.

Live At The Wiltern captures the Stones on a very, very good night in L.A. When the Stones are sloppy and off, they’re still pretty good – just like pizza. But when they’re good – like they are at this show – they are simply sublime. The Stones get dinged for being sloppy but to me it’s more about a willful recklessness that to me represents freedom… freedom from restraint or worry – than mere sloppiness. They come out and leave it all on the stage. When the Stones gel, it’s magic, baby.

Turn this live treat up loud and dance around the room doing your best Jagger impersonation, I know I’ll doing that. It’s one of their better live performances. Sure, it’s not Get Your Ya Ya’s Out, but not many live albums are. The guy we got the United Center Tickets from actually had a spare ticket to a show they did a few nights later in a Chicago theater, the Aragon. Bono jumped on stage and sang with the band on “It’s Only Rock N Roll.” The dude, didn’t go… he wasn’t a Stones fan. I’d have flown back up for it… Oh well. I now realize, listening to this album, what a magical night I’d missed when the Stones played that theater. Bygones… At least I now have this wonderful document to sooth my wound…

Cheers!

Review: ‘Liam Gallagher & John Squire’ – Manchester Rock Stars United For Superb Rock N Roll – Come For The Vocals, Stay For The Guitar

~ kcorsini ~ 6 Comments

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An album I didn’t even know was coming at the beginning of the year – Liam Gallagher John Squire – came out last Friday and I am delighted. I won’t lie, after the sensational first single came out, “Just Another Rainbow,” I had to go back and do a little research on guitarist extraordinaire John Squire but since I’ve done that, this pairing makes complete sense to me. Manchester Rock Stars United…indeed.

Liam Gallagher, the erstwhile lead singer of Oasis and Beady Eye, likely needs no introduction to rock n roll fans. And frankly, he’s no stranger to B&V. Since Oasis split up and then Beady Eye imploded Liam launched a solo career that started as B&V was getting off the ground. After the disappointment that was Beady Eye’s second album we just loved Liam’s first two LPs, As You Were (2017) and Why Me? Why Not? (2019). Heck, we even dug his Unplugged album. But after a very promising first single, the Dave Grohl cowritten “Everything’s Electric,” Liam disappointed us a bit with C’mon You Know (2022). At first I was surprised Liam teamed up with John Squire but knowing what a huge influence the Stone Roses were on Manchester’s music scene – both Liam and Noel have said their first concert was the Stone Roses – this tracks for me. Liam got to make a rock n roll album with a hero! Good for him.

John Squire, who’s blistering guitar is all over this album, may not be as well known to rock n roll fans on this side of the pond, as they say. The Stone Roses released their influential debut, self-titled album in 1989 establishing them as the front runner in the “Madchester” music scene. In many ways the Brit-pop sound of Oasis can be directly drawn from the Stone Roses’ sound. The Stone Roses took years to put out a second album due to legal issues and inter-band squabbles and faded away. Apparently Squire, after playing a festival where Liam was playing, sent Liam a few demos. Liam liked them, laid down some vocal tracks and the rest, as they say is history. It makes sense that Liam – who used to be in a band where the guitar player wrote most the songs – would team with a guitar player who had written 10 songs and needed a singer. It’s a yen and yang thing.

I went back, as “research” for this post, and listened to that Stone Roses debut LP. While Squire’s guitar was impressive, it evoked more psychedelia and perhaps the Byrds than it did Hendrix. There were a couple of songs on that album that hinted at a Hendrix-y bent from Squire, “Waterfall” and “Made Of Stone” but nothing that prepared me for the guitar extravaganza that is this album. This record has all of that trippy psychedelic vibe but with much stronger guitar solo’ing from Squire. And in these days, we always welcome more lead guitar here at B&V. This may be the best thing Liam Gallagher has done in his solo career since As You Were. It’s that good.

The album starts with a stomping rocker, “Raise Your Hand.” It’s a call to arms kind of track. “If you’re running out of time, if you’re not sure which way to go, if the pieces don’t seem to fit, if nothing ever goes the way you plan, raise your hand!” It’s uplifting and a great invitation to rock. Squire gives us a great guitar workout on the fade out. Liam may not have written any of these songs but they sound like he did. The band just locks in – Squire on guitar, Liam singing with session drummer Joey Waronker and producer Greg Kurstin on bass and keyboards. “Mars To Liverpool” was the second single released from the album and rides a great Squire riff. “Jesus Christ, about last night, I can only apologize.” Oh my, how many times have I said something like that? Squire has a way of torturing his guitar just to the point of distortion and then pulls back. I just love what he does with the guitar on this album.

“One Day At A Time” incorporates some acoustic guitar that’s a nice change of pace. The blend of acoustic and electric guitar is such a classic sound, just ask Zeppelin (not that anything about this is Zeppelin-esque). I do love the line, “You should have fucked me when you had the chance,” naturally… I am who I am. The guitar solo is exceptional. “I’m A Wheel” is the biggest surprise here. It’s a flat out electric blues tune. Blues? In 2024? This track is a direct nod to Hendrix. It feels like you just wandered into the Kingston Mines in 1968…exquisite guitar. I mean, I’m on record as loving blues rock/blues, but this is a great track. I’ve already posted on “Just Another Rainbow,” but I will add that along with “Everything’s Electric” it ranks among Liam’s finest moments.

“Love You Forever” continues that Hendrix’y vibe. It almost evokes a more laid back “Foxey Lady.” This song rocks yet retains that trippy vibe that pervades the album. Squire is taking no prisoners. I have seen some complaints that the guitar tone is “monochromatic.” The way this guy shreds, none of that bothers me. “Make It Up As You Go Along” is another acoustic strummer, change of pace. “Thank you for your thoughts and prayers and fuck you too” is a line that I can’t believe wasn’t written by Liam Gallagher. It sums up how I feel about a lot of things… Using the acoustic strumming as a base Squire continues his electric guitar onslaught with a great little noodling undercurrent that burst through like sunshine through a cloud.

“You’re Not The Only One” has a great rollicking piano that for some reason evokes Chuck Berry’s pianist, boogie woogie pianist extraordinaire, Johnnie Johnson. Good ol’ time rock n roll… rolling piano, crunchy guitar. “I’m So Bored” continues the guitar crunch… I love it’s just guitar/vocals/bass/guitar. This track could be the next single, although it may rock too hard for a single? It certainly captures my current mood…It may be the hardest rocker here. “Mother Nature’s Song” is as close as we come to a ballad on the album. It’s another track that utilizes a lovely acoustic guitar. It’s very Beatle-y. I love Liam’s vocal on this track. “Listen to Mother Nature’s song, the melodies are beautiful,” indeed.

If you’re like me and were only vaguely aware of John Squire, prepare yourself for an education. This guy is a phenomenal talent on guitar and god knows, we need guitar talent around here these days. I might go so far as saying this is a tremendous comeback for Liam after C’mon You Know. It’s got to feel good to the guy to just lay down vocal tracks and not have to write an album’s worth of material. Heaven knows, Noel is probably green with envy…

I have to say, along with Green Day’s latest album Saviors, this is one of 2024’s best LPs. I’m not a natural optimist but I’m beginning to think this is going to be a great year for rock n roll and it’s only early March. This one is a must listen, especially for those of you Oasis/Liam Gallagher/Madchester fans out there.

Cheers!

Review: Pearl Jam Release New Song, Title Track Of Upcoming LP, The Heavier Sounding “Dark Matter”

~ kcorsini ~ 1 Comment

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“It’s strange these days when everybody else pays for someone else’s mistake…” Pearl Jam, “Dark Matter”

Oh man, I wish I could tell you how excited I am about new Pearl Jam. After teasing it for a few days on “the social media,” Pearl Jam have just dropped the first song from their upcoming twelfth album, the title track “Dark Matter.” The song and the new album were produced by red hot producer Andrew Watt who has recently worked on LPs with Ozzy (on 2 different ones), Iggy Pop, and the Stones. And perhaps more relevant to this discussion, Watt also worked on Eddie Vedder’s fine solo project, Earthling. Perhaps that was just an audition for this band album.

I was thrilled it’s only been four years since their last LP, 2020’s Gigaton… they took seven years between albums prior to that one. I think we all got “jipped” a little bit on Gigaton. It dropped in March of 2020 right when the COVID pandemic started. Any big tour plans they had were cancelled. I do think they did play some shows but not till much later. Anymore with Pearl Jam one gets the sense that it’s more about the touring than the new albums. I haven’t seen Pearl Jam in ages and would love to see them again live, they’re sensational.

Typically when Pearl Jam record a new album it’s a long and laborious process. Dark Matter was recorded over a three week stint at a studio in Malibu. Andrew Watt came in and “kicked the band’s ass” to get it done. Pearl Jam remains Eddie Vedder (vocals/occasional guitar), Stone Gossard (guitar), Mike McCready (lead guitar), Jeff Ament (bass), and Matt Cameron (formerly of Soundgarden on drums). Vedder has been quoted as saying this is the best thing they’ve done… Having been a long time fan of albums like Ten or Vitalogy, that’s a pretty bold statement.

The band has also hinted that this album is going to be much heavier than recent work. If “Dark Matter” is any indication, it will indeed be heavier… almost more Soundgarden-y. This new single is an 180 degree turn from the first track released off of Gigaton, “Dance Of The Clairvoyants,” which sounded like early Talking Heads to my ears. I played “Dark Matter” for the Rock Chick and her response was, “Hey, that’s good.” And trust me, that’s high praise from her.

I really like this song. I could use some heavy rock right now. The track rocks but it isn’t that old anthemic style from their early days. This song comes straight at you. It kind of reminds me, stylistically, of “Mind Your Manners” the first rocking track off of Lightning Bolt. It starts off with some great tribal drums from Cameron. Then the guitars kick in. Stone Gossard is a masterful rhythm guitarist. It’s a halting riff that throbs in your ears. Vedder’s vocal is as impassioned and intense as usual. At points in the song his voice becomes more of a pained howl. I can’t say enough about Mike McCready’s guitar solo on this track. He shreds. Oh, Hell yes. Here’s the track on YouTube…

This is a great, heavy start for an album that I hope is just as heavy. This might end up being as good as Vedder thinks it is… we know Watt has a way of getting bands to do what they do best. We need some good, socially conscious hard rock around here. Pearl Jam seem motivated and focused which after 30-plus years is hard to do with a band… it’s just so hard to get 5 guys (with instruments) marching in the same direction. It seems Andrew Watt has worked the same, “let’s get it done” magic here that he worked with the Stones on Hackney Diamonds. I’m almost as excited for this new Pearl Jam as I was for that Stones LP… although admittedly after 18 years the Stones had me on the edge of my chair…

Turn this one up loud and crank it. The new album drops in mid April and you know B&V will have our ear to the speaker for this one!

Cheers!

Billy Joel, ‘Turn The Lights Back On,’ His First New Song In 17 Years – A Welcome Return To Recording

~ kcorsini ~ 7 Comments

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“Did I wait too long to turn the lights back on?” – Billy Joel, “Turn The Lights Back On”

“No, you didn’t.” – BourbonAndVinyl.net

I can’t tell you how thrilled I am to be writing about a new Billy Joel song in 2024. I’ve been doing this blog for a while now and I’ve never posted about Billy Joel. Of course Joel has been relatively silent since 1993. I’m a big fan of Billy Joel’s and have been since college. I was actually kind of into Joel when I was in junior high/high school – it was hard not to be into Joel in the late 70s/early 80s. But it wasn’t until I was in college and I met future roommate and life long friend Drew that I jumped in on Billy in earnest. When we met, Drew was a Who/Billy Joel guy and I was a Stones/Springsteen guy. Naturally, as happens in college, we cross pollinated musical interests. I’ve been a fan ever since. I never thought we’d hear anything new from Joel again, as he’d retired from songwriting and recording, but on February 1st he dropped “Turn The Lights Back On,” billed as his first song in 17 years.

The headlines all say it’s been 17 years but for me at least, it’s been longer. In 2007 he released a song “All Of My Life,” which I never heard until this week. In fact, I’d never even heard of the song until this week. It was a string drenched, Sinatra-torch style song. It’s nice, but it’s no “Big Shot.” The only place you can find “All Of My Life” is on YouTube on a grainy video. He did sort of release another song in 2007, “Christmas In Fallujah,” a song he wrote but he let some kid, Cass Dillon (who was dating his daughter), sing the song. Does that really count? You can also find a live version of Joel singing the song and it’s worth hunting down. Billy wrote the song after getting countless letters from the troops, which is kind of awesome when you think about it.

So like most of you, Billy Joel’s last batch of original songs was on his 1993 album River Of Dreams. The last song on that album was “Lost For Words.” In light of his walking away from writing/recording, some folks saw that as symbolic… perhaps Billy had run out of things to say. In the 30 years that he’s been away from doing original music he’s of course toured incessantly and has even done a continuous “residency” of playing venerable Madison Square Garden every month. Billy has claimed in the intervening years that he’s continued to compose songs but he just “didn’t write them down.”

I’m not sure why Billy dropped out of the game. He had a string of great albums from 1973’s Piano Man through 1989’s Storm Front. I don’t think any of us were terribly thrilled with River Of Dreams in 1993 but by that point he was allowed to have an off album. I was dating a woman who owned that disc and I tried listening to it… I did like “All About Soul.” And for the record I hated all that Innocent Man stuff. Let’s leave the “Uptown Girl” uptown if you will… Apparently disappointed with River Of Dreams Joel just decided to take his considerably large song book on the road for the rest of his career. I’ve always wondered if Joel’s issues with booze (and car crashes) stemmed from the fact that he’d gone idle in terms of songwriting and recording. Idle hands… as they say.

I don’t know what inspired him to sit down and write/record again but goddamm I’m glad he did. He co wrote “Turn The Lights Back On,” which surprised me… most of his songs read, “Written by Billy Joel.” But after 30 years maybe he needed some gutter guards to keep the ball moving down the lane. I’ve been pulling up the video for the “teaser” for the song for a while now and “Turn Up The Lights,” in the teaser at least, reminded me of “And So It Goes” a beautiful piano ballad from Storm Front. Now that I’ve heard the whole thing it gives me more of a Nylon Curtain vibe. In the video for the teaser, Joel turns the page on a note book from “Lost For Words,” to a new page with “Turn The Lights Back On” which really brings it all home for me.

The track is a piano ballad with some big drums – one can only hope that is Joel’s longtime drummer Liberty DeVitto banging away. There are strings and crescendos. It’s told from the viewpoint of a lover who’s been away a while. He’s asking if it’s too late to turn the lights back on and start again. Obviously it’s a metaphor for his songwriting career. I love the way Billy plays piano but can we just pause for a second and comment on how superb his voice sounds. Perhaps the constant touring has made his voice stronger as opposed to say… Elton who sounds… well, bad. Anyway, “Turn The Lights Back On” may be criticized for sounding like a tentative return from Joel, but after 30 years he’s allowed to sound tenative… I mean, that’s kind of the vibe of the whole thing. It’s a, “Hey, I haven’t done anything in 3 decades, do you guys dig this?” And for the record, I don’t think it does sound tentative. I really like the song. Here’s a lyric video:

I hope this means Joel has an album’s worth of material on the way for us. Or it could be another 17 years before we hear anything… although that might be a miracle of modern science at his age. Billy has always been a great songwriter, performer, piano player and the dude can rock. He can go from the sensitive ballad to the ballsy rocker all on one side of an album. The Stones waited 18 years, Peter Gabriel waited 21 years… why can’t Joel wait 31 years between albums? It’s never too late Billy, turn those lights back on, fire up the piano and let’s rock n roll… And let’s remember when an artist breaks his silence after 31 years, it’s a big deal.

To quote Billy… “Don’t take any shit from anybody.” I really like this song and I’ve certainly got my fingers crossed on a new album!

Cheers.