Brendan BensonAlternative to Love
Benson came to my attention as the not-Jack White guy from the Raconteurs. This is one of his solo albums from the pre-Rac days, and it is great. At first it reminded me of the previously endorsed "Girlfriend" from Matthew Sweet mixed with a bit of Michael Penn. But the more I listen to it (which is often) the more it reminds me of old Squeeze. And that's a very good thing. You can hear two songs from Benson at his website here, but they are not from this album. Just go to iTunes and grab "Alternative to Love." If you like any of the artists I mentioned, you won't be disappointed.
Rodrigo y GabrielaRodrigo y Gabriela
I'm late to the party on this one, but I cannot say enough about how infectious this album is. I put this on in the living room, and no one in the house can stay still. Baby and Kid F start bopping around and the next thing you know we are all doing the flamenco. Literally. You may have heard of this Mexican guitar duo by way of Dublin as they had a radio hit last year and some notoriety for covering "Stairway to Heaven" and Metallica on this album. Highly recommended for both aural pleasure and cardio benefits.
Robert Plant and Alison KraussRaising Sand
The most recent acquisition, it has gotten the fewest listens, but this sounds like a keeper. A haunting yet melodic collection of blues and folk standards with some Tom Waits thrown in, produced by T-Bone Burnett. Each vocalist trades solos and harmonize amazingly. As I type this I am cursing myself for not bringing the CD in to put on my work computer.
FLASHBACK BONUS: Not really "making the rounds" but just brought out for an encore...
Paul Simon—Graceland
Yeah, I know this is twenty years old, and probably seems like you heard it enough times for a lifetime, I recommend pulling it out and giving it a listen. I put it on the other day, and it was perfect Saturday afternoon music as we went about our business in the house. Every bit as good today as it was when I bought it as one of my very first CDs.
9 comments:
We LOVE rodgrigo y Gabriela at our house. Finn dances around like a maniac too! So fun. Tim saw them in NYC about 2 or 3 months ago. He was right at the edge of the stage. Awesome. Gald to hear you like the Alison Kraus + Robert Plant so much. I haven't bought it yet but am dying to. Just heard today they are coming to the Mohegan Sun together in June. We saw her perform last year with Union Station. Her voice is gorgeous. Oh--and Graceland? Totally with you on that one. Another of Finn's favorites since he was a few months old!
Oh! Funny--forgot I added an avatar and my business name! I am adding a blog to my website soon...Nothing as cool and politically charged as yours, of course, more photography-centered...Ciao!
Your link is not right!
Yes on the R&G and Plant & Krauss.
Though, right now, I can't get Mike Doughty's new one, Golden Delicious, off my iPod.
Ridiculously good, and infectious.
I miss the Graceland CD. You have inspired me to dust it off. And your revbiew of the Plante-Kraus CD is enough to get me to spring for it on iTunes.
It's sort of an interesting side-note you bring up: what have people dusted-off to listen to from the older annals of your collections; a rediscovery of sorts?
For me, it was Freddy King's Getting Ready. That man could play some guitar...had it in my collection for years, and have sort of set it aside. Heard a track the other day when the iPod was on random, and have played the colleton every day since.
If you like "Alternative to Love" you should like his "Lapalco" as well. You might recognize "Good to Me" if you've ever seen the White Stripes live or "Tiny Spark" from a VW tv ad. BTW, I'm taking credit for recommending Alternative to Love to you whether you remember or not. :-)
Interesting to hear someone else acknowledge knowing Michael Penn. Did you know he played at the Ark last year?
neighbor j
I'm taking credit for recommending Alternative to Love to you whether you remember or not. :-)
Oh, I remember. But I never did anything about it. Months later, I was at the library just flipping thru the CDs and they had it.
I remember one day after we first moved in, you were cranking, and i mean CRANKING, Urge Overkill's 'Saturation' and thought, "Nice. J's got good taste."
I love Allison Krauss, but I try and avoid any interviews. She comes across as such a dingbat. It is painful to watch.
I have recently dug out some old gangsta rap, such as Ice Cube's, "The Predator" and Ice T's, " OG: Original Gangster."
Ooo. I'll have to dig out "O.G." That's a good one.
It's no "Nation of Milions" by P.E., but then again, what is?
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