This soundtrack album was created by Speech of Arrested Development. It features him collaborating with a number of prisoners who were doing time when this was recorded.
This new double disc set features two different compilation albums. The first is a tribute to John Lee Hooker and the second is a sampling of British blues guys.
These kinds of tribute albums are always mixed bags, with some material coming across very strong and others not working very well. This one is no exception, but in many ways it is one of the most consistent you'll find.
If record labels have personalities like people, then The End records can be compared to the eccentric cousin who swears a lot and acts tough but has a secret soft side and an intellectual bent. That's the impression I get from seeing the diversity of artists on this off-the-wall label.
AMY-Cyberian Khatru Review by Gary Hill Out in cyberland there lives a news group called "alt.music.yes". It is one of the oldest of its kind, and one of the most lively. It is known to its members as "AMY".
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It’s always a cool quest to look for new music to help set the mood for your holiday festivities. When you get a set like this it’s general an iffy proposition.
You get a pretty good idea of what you get here when you read the title of this album. That said, while this is modern funk, you might not know it by listening to the disc.
Back Against the Wall Review by Gary Hill There are few people who haven't at least heard of Pink Floyd's The Wall. I would hazard to say that those who have never heard the album are in the minority as well.
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This is a new edition of a psychobilly compilation that was originally released in 1983. That original set is augmented by a lot of bonus tracks on the first CD and even more making up a full second disc.
While a lot of attention has been focused over the years on blues scenes in towns like Memphis and Chicago, there was a prominent and vital blues movement in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
CPR Volume 3 Review by Gary Hill “CPR” stands for Christian Progressive Rock and that’s precisely what we get here (well, I’d argue that one of the tracks is actually metal, but that’s just me).
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I’ve said for a very long time that unless you are doing a tribute band, when you cover something make it your own. Unless you can bring something new to the table, don’t even bother.
I recently reviewed the first installment of "Destination Lust." I think this is the more consistent set of the two, but both have a lot of shining moments.
This is an interesting collection. The tie that binds all of this together is the undercurrent of sex that was sort of hidden with a wink in the post World War II, pre-sexual revolution days.
This is quite a cool album. It's a tribute to man's first journey to another world, our moon. It includes a wide variety of music along with a couple spoken pieces from history.
While not everything here lands under progressive rock, there is a lot of prog in this set. There is also a lot of artsy soundtrack music that fits under the prog banner.
Drum Nation Vol. 2 Review by Gary Hill The concept is simple but unique: put together a number of tracks from various artists showcasing influential and potent drummers. This was the concept for Magna Carta's first drum nation CD, and they continue it here - why mess up a good thing?
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Drum Nation Volume 3 Review by Gary Hill With the latest entry in the Drum Nation series Magna Carta has changed the rules. First, this disc is not progressive rock, by any means.
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This new collection gathers up some music that is connected to Elvis Presley - as they describe it, roots and covers. I have to admit that I'm one of the people who has never really gotten Presley's allure.
Encores, Legends and Paradoxes Review by Gary Hill With a cast of players that reads like a prog "who`s who", this ELP tribute takes the classics and makes them fresh and new again. The result is an incredibly listenable piece of music that really entertains.
Fenriz Presents: The Best of Old School Black Metal Review by Mike Korn They say that rock and roll is the devil's music. Well, there are those definitely agree and who do their level best to make tunes that Old Nick would be proud of.
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This collection from Bear Family records gathers up a heaping helping of roots music. The sound varies from early rock and roll to country, bluegrass and even jazz.
As the weather is heading toward warmer zones (at least in the Northern Hemisphere), the theme of this compilation from Bear Family Records seems appropriate.
Got Prog? - Sampler 1 Review by Greg Olma Sampler compilations are always sketchy endeavors. I for one would not want to compile one myself. My tastes are far too wide and I would be thinking of what I like and not what I thought fits best.
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I reviewed another of these compilations in the last issue of Music Street Journal. Here we've got a collection of old school music that was released on Sun Records.
This various artists collection was assembled by Brian Tarquin. He's a guitar player who really seems to have a reverence for great guitar playing in all its various forms.
I recently reviewed another release from this outfit (Fedogan and Bremer). This could be seen as a companion to that release, which was a reissue of an older set with additional material.
Halloween Hootenanny Review by Rick Damigella A few years back, Rob Zombie started his own Zombie A Go-Go Records label. Amongst the first releases was this ghoulish treasure trove of tracks featuring some of the best and scariest “Zombified” music bubbling under the radar like a witches cauldron.
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Howe White Squire - The More Drama Tour Limited Edition CD Review by Gary Hill This is a compilation album that was made to promote the Yes related More Drama Tour that wound up not happening. While it's not available for sale, any time you purchase a CD from Syn's official site, they include this puppy for free - now that makes it a great value.
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Inhale Review by Gary Hill Billed as a collection of “stoner rock”, this disc has a hard edged texture that is at once modern, while still having a classic rock feel to it. As with most various artists collections, it has its high points and its low points. More...
I was born a little too late for the whole Beat Generation thing. This album, released on the 100th anniversary of Jack Kerouac's birthday both celebrates the era and helps to document it.
Dreampop and shoegaze might not be what people think of traditionally as progressive rock, but really, isn’t a lot of very close to what bands like Porcupine Tree do?
Kinections: The ProgDay Support CD Review by Josh Turner There are two great things about this release. First off, it's for a charitable cause. Second, it is truly great music. Lew Fisher (on behalf of the ProgDay foundation) is the mastermind behind this project.
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This box set of four CDs compiles soundtrack music from a number of Stanley Kubrick's movies. A booklet goes into a lot of the thought process and other factors involved with the music.
La Guitara: Gender Bending Strings Review by Gary Hill The brainchild of Patty Larkin, this compilation showcases women who excel at playing guitar. While there is no one particular style most of the music here is instrumental.
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The music on this set was all released on Feisted Records originally. That label wasn't really known as a rock and roll label, but rather for crooner and pop music.
This new album showcases a lot of cool Beatles covers from a number of artists. It's actually compiled of tracks previously released on a number of albums.
Leonardo The Absolute Man Review by Gary Hill This is a rock opera based on the life of Leonardo da Vinci. Although this album says "original cast recording" and I have (as does Magna Carta on their website) listed it here as by "Various Artists", it is probably closer to the truth to say that it is by Trent Gardner and friends.
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When you hear “tribute album” you usually think of a disc that features a number of artists playing songs by the artist to whom the disc is being dedicated. Well, this one has a bit of a twist.
This new three-CD set showcases a number of songs that were originally released on the Transatlantic Records label. There is an intriguing range of music here.
Half of each issue of Music Street Journal is progressive rock. That means that things that don't fit that category can get delayed, particularly when we get a lot of expedited review orders.
Magna Carta Guitar Greats – Volume I Review by Gary Hill These Magna Carta sampler discs serve as a great way for people to sample a number of their releases without having to shell out the cash for each and every one of them. I'd have to say that as these things go, this is one of the better ones – and they are all quite good.
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Mullets Rock Too Review by Gary Hill It's a safe bet you've heard every song on this disc – although you might not have heard the Ace Frehley track as performed by him. That doesn't mean this set isn't enjoyable.
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Nativity In Black Review by Rick Damigella It is safe to say that while there were forces all happening simultaneously in music in the late 60’s, which would later be regarded as the elements from which heavy metal evolved. One band crawled forth, nay, stomped out of, the primordial ooze of the late sixties music scene to single handedly create an entirely new sound heretofore unheard coming from the speakers of stereos of the youth of the world.
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This is a sampler of artists from the Asheville, North Carolina area. The music is mostly along the punk rock boundaries, but it covers a lot of range within that field.
This various hits collection is pretty effective. While there are some tracks that have some different leanings, overall this is old-school rock and roll.
Progressive DisDURPance Review by Gary Hill This sampler of German progmetal and prog bands is produced and released by a webpage that focuses on such bands. The website is Die Ultimate Review Page,www.durp.com . More...
Let me start this by saying that I've never heard the original Ram album. I dig the Beatles and McCartney with Wings, but I never got any of this solo stuff before Wings.
It's hard, in retrospect, to understand the importance of King Crimson's debut album. It really did set a new standard for what would be known as progressive rock.
Rock N Roll Christmas Review by Gary Hill f you are looking for a CD that combines solid rock with Christmas themes to augment your holiday festivities, this is a good choice.
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As you can probably gather, this is a collection of songs held together via a loose thematic thread of being winter-related. There is a very wide range of styles here, although all are retro.
I am a big fan of pretty much anything Billy Sherwood is involved with and I love Supertramp, so when I heard Sherwood was in charge of assembling an all star tribute to Supertramp, I was excited.
This various artists collection is definitely not a tight fit under the prog heading. Probably the two biggest impediments to that categorization are the final two tracks.
Mushroom Records formed in 1970 and released a dazzling variety of music over the course of three years. This new compilation gathers a lot of music from that period onto the first CD here.
Stairways to Heaven Review by Gary Hill Stairways to Heaven is one of the wackiest albums ever released. Every song on here is Stairway to Heaven, but all performed in very different styles.
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Steinway To Heaven Review by Gary Hill It seems like a rather novel, but still somewhat obvious concept. Take various keyboardists, mostly from the world of progressive rock and have them record various classical piano pieces.
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I generally like things like this where an album is created by taking the track list of a famous album and having different artists reproduce the songs.
Strange Aeons Review by Gary Hill According to the liner notes, Strange Aeons is "a musical tribute to H. P. Lovecraft and the ever expanding 'Cthulhu Mythos'". Steve Lines "directed and produced" the disc, but there are a number of artists who contributed to it.
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Subdivisions - A Tribute To Rush Review by Gary Hill Subdivisions is a new Tribute album devoted to the music of Rush from Magna Carta Records. Those paying close attention and with a good memory, may be saying now; "didn't they do one before?"
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I have to say that I'm probably not the target demographic for this set. For one thing, the older pop-oriented music on here is often not really my kind of taste.
Supper`s Ready Review by Gary Hill A tribute album devoted to the music of Genesis, Supper`s Ready is a strong work. The renditions here stay more true to the original performances than on some similar albums, but this does not take away from the relevance of the CD. More...
Tales From Yesterday Review by Gary Hill A tribute to the music of Yes, Tales From Yesterday, features some very fine renditions of Yessongs performed by a variety of artists (including several past and present members of Yes). This is a mixed bag. Some of the tracks are quite faithful to the original, while others represent major reworkings. More...
This collection of songs about telephones and telephone calls is a mixed bag. That's generally common of something like this, so it's not a big surprise.
The Coolest Christmas Review by Gary Hill This disc, as many various artists compilations, is a mixed bag. Some of the cuts here are very good, while others are forgettable, and many fall somewhere in between.
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The Craft Motion Picture Soundtrack Review by Gary Hill This album is really a very good work, even taken out of the context of the film. The music here is fresh, and sets an interesting tone.
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The Moon Revisited Review by Gary Hill Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon was more than likely not only the best selling prog album of all time, but definitely the album, of all albums (not just prog) to stay on the charts the longest. From that point of view this tribute disc makes sense.
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This album is a compilation of various progressive rock performances that were presented on the King Biscuit Flower Hour radio show. All of the outings are quite good, and the selection of artists is also.
The Shy Volcanic Society at the Bear and Bird Parade Review by Gary Hill This is a split release from both Volcano the Bear and La STPO. Both groups create a seriously odd form of prog rock that fits well within the Rock In Opposition movement. More...
This sampler disc gives a varied look into a number of releases from the Sireena label. While it's not all progressive rock, there are enough prog leaning things here, and real prog, for me to include it under that heading.
The fourth installment in the “This is the Blues” series, this disc has some interesting performances and perhaps the most eclectic and famous group of performers.
To Cry You A Song: A Collection of Tull Tales Review by Gary Hill One of the first tribute albums ever done by Magna Carta, this one includes some intriguing arrangements of Jethro Tull songs. There are some definite winners here (witness Aqualung, To Cry You a Song, and Locomotive Breath) and no real losers.
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Twisted Forever...A Tribute to Twisted Sister Review by Mike Korn Twisted Sister was one of my favorite "hair" bands from the 80's. Despite the fact that I loathed most of the glammy commercial metal at that time, there was something fun about these goofy looking New Yorkers that appealed to me. More...
Vladivostok FM - Music from Grand Theft Auto IV Review by Rick Damigella Now before you panic, no, Music Street Journal is not suddenly shifting focus to review video games. However comrade, the unique sounds of Russian and Eastern European popular music found on one of the in-game “radio stations” in GTAIV is definitely worth a listen.
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Doing a Music Street Journal type review of something like this is a bit challenging. These are dance mixes, designed more for grooving to than analyzing and listening deeply.
This four-CD set has some great music contained within. We get some of the bigger prog acts in terms of songs from Renaissance, Emerson Lake and Palmer, Electric Light Orchestra, Procol Harum and Yes.
This three-CD set really serves as a great introduction to the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. You get songs from bands ranging from Diamond Head to Venom to Girlschool, and everything in between.
For the first time since the film’s release in 1977, Andrew Belling’s soundtrack to Ralph Bakshi’s groundbreaking animation Wizards has finally made it to CD.
Working Man Review by Gary Hill One of the early Magna Carta tribute CD's, this one is definitely not one of their finest. It does have some strong points, though, and the main area in which it is lacking is vocals.
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Featuring The Meat Puppets, Redd Kross, The Minute Men and Twisted Roots, this really is a glimpse inside the world that was the LA punk rock scene of the 1980s.
Various Artists - A Night At The Family Dog DVD Review by Gary Hill Those looking to recapture the 1960’s should really dig this DVD. Originally captured for PBS Television, this show from 1970 featured Santana, The Jefferson Airplane and The Grateful Dead. It has been remastered and digital extrapolation has been used to create a dolby 5.1 experience on the audio track.
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Come for the performances, stay for the documentary type stuff. A big chunk of this is all about some incredible live performances with musicians ranging from Joe Satriani to Buddy Guy to Slash, Neal Schon and Steve Lukather and more.
First things first, this is not actually a "Various Artists" release. Other than some music playing and some interview clips, it really isn't about musicians.
This is a concert from 1983 and while the staging and other aspects have a tendency to be a little silly or dated, the performances make it all worthwhile.
Various Artists - Bang Your Head 2007 DVD Review by Gary Hill I have to admit that sometimes I get put off by a lot of modern metal festivals. I’m not a big fan of growling death vocals (there are some I can deal with, but few) or other forms of extreme voice tactics.
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Various Artists - Bang Your Head!!! Festival 2006 DVD Review by Greg Olma The Bang Your Head!!! Festival in Europe is a metal fan’s dream come true. Aside from the Wacken festival, this is a must for any European metal fan, although I’m sure that many people from around the world make that trek.
Various Artists - Bang Your Head!!! Festival DVD Review by Greg Olma Ah, summer in Europe; the warm weather, the tourists, and most of all the Heavy Metal festivals. The poor American metal fan has to suffer through Ozzfest while the European audiences get fests that bring together many name acts for a weekend of good music.
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I like to think that as connoisseurs of much the same cultural material, those of us in the US are not that different from the people of England. The truth is, though, there are a lot of differences.
Various Artists - Carlos Santana Presents Blues At Montreux 2004 DVD Set Review by Gary Hill This whole series of Live at Montreux DVD’s is quite good. The older ones sometimes have some issues in regards to video and sound quality, but as for the ones recorded more recently the production tends to be close top notch.
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It should be noted right from the start that, although this film is about a punk rock scene, it’s less about the music and more about the scene and the club where it flourished.
Various Artists - Death Metal: A Documentary DVD Review by Mike Korn The mangy mutt of the rock world, death metal is usually considered horrid even by hardcore punk rockers. Heaven help those into mainstream music after getting a dose of Krisiun or Dying Fetus! The question that usually comes from the uninitiated is: is it music or is it garbage?
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Anyone coming into this video looking for a concert film is likely to be disappointed. Also, anyone offended by nudity and/or drug use should probably steer clear.
Various Artists - Go Ride The Music and West Pole DVD Review by Gary Hill For fans of 1960’s rock (and who isn’t, really?) this DVD set is a treat. It features two films of music from the heady days of 1969 and is a real tribute to the peak of psychedelia.
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Various Artists - Heads Up 2007 DVD Review by Gary Hill I’ve got to admit that some of the Christian rock thing leaves me perplexed. I can’t help but think of the second Spinal Tap movie and the reference to the “Monsters of Jesus” tour.
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Various Artists - I-Crusher Complete DVD Review by Mike Korn Looks like it's time for Earache Records to clear out the vaults and see if they can make a buck. I-Crusher Complete is a slapdash DVD combining two previous videodiscs throwing together old video clips from bands that have either left the Earache roster, broken up or are underperforming.
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This DVD reminds me of the good old do-it-yourself days.It is slightly better in production than those old video fanzines, but that is really what makes this DVD work.
Various Artists - Iron Maiden and the New Wave of British Heavy Metal DVD Review by Gary Hill Considered by many to be one of the most important periods in the history of metal, the New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) saw the rise of groups like Iron Maiden (hence the title), Def Leppard, Samson, Saxon and others.
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This is listed as Various Artists at Music Street Journal because it features a lot of different musicians. Izzy Young was the founder of The Folklore Center.
Various Artists - Jamaican Gold DVD Review by Gary Hill When you watch this film it would be easy to think that it takes place in Jamaica. The truth is, it doesn’t.
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A benefit to help kids affected by war, this concert was hosted by Keane. I’ve heard about this band quite a bit, but never really heard of them before.
Various Artists - Legends Live at Montreux 1997 DVD Review by Gary Hill Well, they couldn't have titled this one better. This DVD is an excellent film record of a concert from the renowned Montreux Jazz Festival, and all these guys are legends.
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Various Artists - Let It Rock DVD Review by Steve Alspach "Let It Rock" by Eagle Vision is a DVD that gives us a thoughtful look at the origins of rock and roll. The main occasion was a 1995 concert in Toronto's Massey Hall for Ronnie Hawkins, one of the pioneers of rock and roll in the 1950s.
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Whenever I see one of these sets – they have the Wacken Festival every year and always release it for video later – I am amazed at the range of sounds presented.
This DVD is the second group of selected episodes from Merrell Fankhauser's cable television show “Tiki Lounge” It consists of another six shows including a road trip to the Rock Creek Guitar company, and a very good cover of “All Along The Watchtower” by Fankhauser.
Various Artists - Musicares: A Tribute to Brian Wilson DVD Review by Gary Hill From The Red Hot Chili Peppers to The Back Street Boys this is a concert that featured diverse performers covering the songs of Brian Wilson. While I'm not a big Beach Boys fan, I found that some of the showings were simply spectacular, while others didn't excite me so much.
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Here we have a documentary that really shines the light on some common misconceptions, while telling a fascinating, although often not so pretty, story.
Various Artists - Pete York's Super Drumming, Vol. 3 Review by Gary Hill This is quite a cool DVD. While much of the music is pure jazz I've included it in the progressive rock section because Bill Bruford, Simon Phillips and Cozy Powell all appear here and have worked in prog rock.
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Various Artists - Punk in England DVD Review by Gary Hill When Bob Geldof talks about punk rock it leads you to really question the genre. He begins by talking about how so much great rock and roll is from England. More...
Various Artists - Punk In London DVD Review by Gary Hill London, England was certainly an epicenter of punk rock. For that reason this documentary really is important and interesting. More...
Various Artists - Punk’s Not Dead DVD Review by Gary Hill This is quite an interesting documentary. It shows the history of punk rock from its beginnings through rare footage and interviews with many of the bands involved. You can tell that the people involved here really love punk rock.
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Various Artists - Reggae in Babylon DVD Review by Gary Hill I’m not so sure about this being a real documentary. I say that because it really doesn’t have a coherent pattern to tell a straight-line story. More...
Various Artists - Rock For Asia DVD Review by Greg Olma Musicians in general are some of the most charitable people on earth. They use their fame to raise money and create awareness for the pet causes.
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Various Artists - Sixteen Days in China DVD Review by Gary Hill This is one of the coolest music documentaries I’ve ever seen. I’d highly recommend this for anyone who has a quest for new understandings and cultural conceptualizations – oh, and a love of music wouldn’t hurt.
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Various Artists - The Drum Pad's 20th Anniversary Show Review by Gary Hill Drummers and drum fans unite and purchase this DVD! It features a number of world class drummers and you just don't get any better than this if your musical passion is geared towards percussion.
This is a new documentary about the first US Festival. It features interviews with various people involved, including a lot of the musicians, backstage footage and performance footage.
MTV "Unplugged" was a great idea but in the late 90's, music changed again, causing acoustic performances to go underground. None of the new artists could go unplugged.
In the modern era it might be fairly simple to overlook Woody Guthrie's contribution to music, but it would be unwise. The man really was responsible for writing so many folk standards and influencing a generation (or more) of performers.
This is the first book to be written by one of Deep Purple and Rainbow's entourage, and a most interesting story it is, told by Colin Hart, their long running tour manager.
Various Artists - A View From The Side written by Mike Visceglia Review by Bruce Stringer As members of the entertainment industry feel their way via hazy borderlines, many crossover products arrive on the shelves well intentioned but, sadly, missing the mark. Occasionally, an article manages to intelligently steer its way to attaining a shelf life and gain the respect of peers but rarely does an item stand out above the competitors in a totally separate field.
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At the start of this, let me just say that the book lands under "Various Artists" because it focuses on two specific tours of two different bands, but it's largely about a scene more than it is completely a music book.
Various Artists - Hell Bent For Leather: Confessions of a Heavy Metal Addict written by Seb Hunter Review by Lisa Palmeno Hell Bent for Leather is Seb Hunter's account of his love affair with heavy metal music. He details the courtship beginning with AC/DC's "Let's Get It Up", and chronicles what he calls metal's "golden years" from 1969 with Led Zeppelin's first album to 1991 with Nirvana's second album, Nevermind.
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In the interest of full disclosure, there are some things I need to get out of the way before getting into this review. First, over the last year or so, I've gotten to know Tim Cundle over the internet.
One caveat that I need to get out right away is listing this book under Various Artists. Here’s the thing, Patrick Campbell-Lyons was one of the main guys in the band Nirvana.
If you were ever a reader of fanzines, opening up this book will be a familiar pleasure. There was always something special about fanzines that just can't be replicated on the internet.
Various Artists - The Little Black Leather Book of Rock 'N' Roll Review by Gary Hill It's only partially black, definitely not leather, but it is certainly little and undoubtedly about rock 'n' roll. This is a pocket-sized volume of quotes about all sorts of topics surrounding the musical style that started out as rock 'n' roll and later became just plain rock.
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Do you remember the era of print fanzines? I certainly do. I collected them and even contributed to one. Well, technically I still contribute to it, but it's not print anymore, but rather online.
One of the problems with doing book reviews for Music Street Journal is that the deadlines for making the issues mean that I don't have a lot of time for reading.
The preface takes us “back in time: The 1970s…”The personalized context introduces Snider’s authorial tone – relaxed, knowledgeable and thoughtful, without even a hint of pretense or pomposity.
I have to admit that my previous experience with the artists documented here is very minor. I mean, as a “Doctor Who” fan, I love The Timelords hit “Doctorin’ the TARDIS.”
