Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Perfectly Matched Team Of Musicians - Renegade Creation

Michael Landau: Session guitarist for  Joni Mitchell, Seal, Michael Jackson, James Taylor, Richard   Marx, Steve Perry, Pink Floyd and a host of others.

Robben Ford: Named one of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of the 20th Century" by Musician magazine.

Jimmy Haslip: Founding member of The Yellowjackets and has worked with  Chaka Khan, Al Jarreau, Donald Fagen, Anita Baker and many more famed artists.

Gary Novak: Session drummer for  George Benson, Alanis Morissette, Brandon Fields, Lee Ritenour, Michael McDonald, Natalie Cole, David Sanborn, Anita Baker and many more..

Other than the roster of legendary & popular artists these musicians have worked with, they have something else in common - "Renegade Creation"





Already with very successful careers of their own, these top notch musicians collaborated in 2010 and the end result was this great Blues/Rock album "Renegade Creation".

Robben Ford & Michael Landau share the lead vocals throughout the album and of course show us how great they are as guitar players. With strong support from the awesome rhythm section of Gary Novak & Jimmy Haslip one couldn't imagine a better team of musicians for this album - perfectly matched.

Eleven songs of which my favorites are  track 5 "The Darkness" and track 9 "Who Do You Think You Are". This album is one you should definitely check out if you're into guitar oriented music - Blues/Rock.

 Here they are performing "What's Up"




Have a great day!!

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

"For me, music and life are all about style." Miles Davis: Cool & Collected







"For me, music and life are all about style". - Myles Davis.

With a statement like that, we can all grasp why this man's approach to music wasn't much different from that of his life: He played is trumpet & lived his life with style.

"Cool & Collected" is a compilation of Miles Davis' recordings from 1956 to 1984.  With such a time span you'd expect about a hundred songs, but this album only has thirteen.
Fret not, these are thirteen well selected songs from he legend's repertoire. If you're into jazz you'll be familiar with songs like "So What", "'Round Midnight", "Seven Steps To Heaven" & "Milestones".  The album also has the MJ cover "Human Nature" & "Time After Time" (the Cyndi Lauper cover).

I think this album shows how diverse Miles Davis was in terms of genres & styles. With this collection of songs one can hear how he progressed through the jazz scene in the '50s & '60s then later crossed into the pop/smooth jazz and experimental arena in the '80s quite effortlessly.  

If you're into Jazz or you're just in the mood to listen to something quietly that ranges from intense to really soft and mellow then "Cool & Collected" is a great album you should check out in my opinion.

Here's Miles performing "So What" & "Human Nature"





Have A Great Day!!

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

'The Strong One' Brings A "Better Tomorrow" - Etana

Often referred to by the title of her debut album "The Strong One", Etana has been around since maybe 2007/2008. And though she already has two albums under her belt, I've only recently heard the album that I think is her best work to date - "Better Tomorrow".





Released February 25th 2013 by VP records (argumentatively the premier record label that releases/distributes Reggae worldwide by Jamaicans), "Better Tomorrow" isn't the typical reggae album with a slew of singles compiled from various record producers - which was the norm in the past. Fifteen tracks including a two minute interlude, really pleasing to the ear with her soulful vocals accompanied by great compositions. Though Reggae is the primary genre on the album,  there are songs with strong African & World Music influences which shows her versatility and ability beyond being just another Reggae singer, the title track is an example of this.

My faves include "Better Tomorrow", "Queen", "Silly" (Deniece Williams cover), "Smile" and "Strongest".

"Better Tomorrow" is a great album in my opinion for you to check out if you're looking for something fresh, appealing, uplifting and entertaining. 

Here's Etana's Video for the song "Wrong Address" which made her popular in 2007




Have A Great Day!!