6/4/98 to 7/22/98

Title: Julian Lennon - Photograph Smile

Label: Rough Trade (UK import) RTD 102.3483.2

Comments: It's all in the genes, kids. Who needs a Beatles reunion when Julian
puts out a brilliant slab of retro pop like this? 1998 has been the best year
for great new music in many a year and the pity is you'll never hear any of it
on the radio especially if awesome music like this goes unreleased in the U.S.
(no release at least currently is listed in ICE). I played the track "I Don't
Wanna Know" on my radio program (Rock Talk, Sat. 7-10 PM, KHOW-630 AM here in
Denver) and the response was "great new Beatles track." "Way To Your Heart"
references "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds" plus Lennon even adds authentic
record pops to the mix like an old slab of vinyl. Most of the tracks use dad
John's mellower "#9 Dream" side as a starting point (listen to "Cold" or "And
She Cries" which could be pre-disco BeeGees - that's good, by the way). Out
of the 14 tracks, there is maybe 1 you can skip. This is a keeper, Beatle
fans!

Posted by: George W. Krieger DDS, the rock and roll Dentist   7/22/98

Title: Colin Blunstone - The Light Inside

Label :Mystic Records (UK import) MYS CD 125

Comments :Coming from the Zombies, Colin Blunstone possesses the most
gorgeously romantic voice of all the British Invasion. His first solo LP (One
Year) was achingly beautiful and is still a forgotten classic two and one half
decades later. On listening to this new import, it's a pleasure to report
that the voice is still intact. About half the songs are louder synth driven
pop/rock and they're decent, but it's the ballads that draw you in (this from
a guy who skips the ballads usually and heads right for the rockers). It's
the pain of a broken heart and it hurts so good (gosh, somebody oughta write a
song with that title). "Walking In The Rain" is worth the price of admission
as is "Losing You" which is dedicated to drummer Cozy Powell who died in a car
wreck not long after completing these, his last sessions. 12 tracks that
won't startle or innovate, but belong in the collection of a fan of the 80's
style power ballad. Rod Argent was a perfect writer for Blunstone in the
past, but here he only supplies some backing vocals as the Zombie Male Vocal
Choir. While you're at it, look for his last CD Echo Bridge which did have a
U.S. release on Permanent Press (again, ICE does not currently list a U.S.
release for this one).

Posted by: George W. Krieger DDS, the rock and roll Dentist   7/22/98

Title: Soulful Divas Vol. 1 - Pop 'n' Soul Sirens

Label: Hip-O 40094

Comments: Here's a nice change of pace from the usual reissue syndrome that seems to have overtaken the industry lately.  On this package we not only get some nice clean sounding songs but we get Madeline Bell's "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me" in stereo for the first time in the US on compact disc and it sounds great.   Other titles included are: Dionne Warwick "I Say A Little Prayer" (S), Ketty Lester "Love Letters" (M), Timi Yuro "Hurt" (S), Betty Everett "There'll Come A Time" (S). 14 tracks in all and well worth checking out even if only for the stereo "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me.".

Posted by: Pat Downey 7/22/98  e-mail patdowney@uswest.net

Title: Greatest Hits Of Dean Martin

Label: Capitol 95961

Comments:  Capitol recently obtained the rights to release Dean Martin's Reprise recordings from the estate of Dean Martin.  This was one of the few "holes" in the list of major artists not represented on compact disc with their vinyl catalog so I was hoping for a superb package.  Unfortunately I could hardly call this release a superb package in fact it is very average to slightly below average in quality.  There just doesn't seem to be that wide spectrum of fidelity you expect on compact disc and I am at a loss to explain why.  There could be many reasons for this and only Capitol can tell us  why this package sounds so lame.  Speaking of Capitol, did they really have to include Dean's Capitol recordings in this package along with the Reprise hits?  If you think that Capitol was justified in doiing this then why didn't they release a 2 cd package or even a box set?  Because Capitol elected to include some of Dean's Capitol recordings, we don't get some of Dean's big Reprise hits like "Send Me The Pillow That You Dream On", "Remember Me, I'm The One Who Loves You" and "Come Running Back."  Now let me get back to Dean's Capitol recordings that are included on this package.  "Return To Me" is a stereo rerecording, "Memories Are Made Of This" is electronic stereo as is "Volare."  Obviously not a lot of effort went into producing this cd. The Reprise hits that we do get are all stereo and includle "In The Chapel In The Moonlight", "Houston", "The Door Is Still Open", "Somewhere There's A Someone", "I Will", and "Everybody Loves Somebody."

Posted by: Pat Downey  7/16/98  e-mail patdowney@uswest.net

Title: Cleveland Rocks! Music From The Drew Carey Show

Label: Rhino 75342

Comments:  There is a bumper sticker that reads "shit happens" and Rhino should enclose one with this release.  I guess some folks think the Drew Carey show is funny and perhaps it is but if you are not familiar with Drew Carey you will not find this cd in the least bit amusing.  Yes Drew sings, his friends sing and if you got excited by some of the performances of the big name performers, you had better go take a cold shower.  Here is a rundown on the legitimate hits on this cd: Vogues "Five O'Clock World" (M),  Peaches & Herb "Shake Your Groove Thing" (there were two different 45 versions of this hit and this is the hard to find 45 version that has the vocal introduction) (S),  Bachman Turner Overdrive "You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet" (S) but the previous selection tracks over the introduction,   Edgar Winter "Free Ride" (S) 45 version,  Joe Walsh "Rocky Mountain Way" (M) live,  Lee Dorsey "Working In The Coal MIne" (M) but the previous selection tracks into the introduction.

Posted by: Pat Downey  7/14/98  e-mail patdowney@uswest.net

Title: Have A Nice Decade - The '70s Pop Culture Box

Label: Rhino 72919

Comments: Wow talk about sheer volume, this box took me all weekend to review.  7 cd's in the box with great packaging and booklet.  Many tracks are the same version as found on the individual Have A Nice Day series but many are not as you will hear about shortly.  At least Rhino did not enter this project with a back to mono mentality as almost all songs are stereo.  If you are not familiar with the "Have A Nice Day" series, it was intended to be a compilation of all the musical styles of the '70s, with a lot of one hit wonders included as well as some of the biggest "turkeys" ever found on compact disc and this is the same approach that was used for this box set.  Here is a rundown on the pro's and con's of the box set:

Pro: many first time on compact disc 45 versions are included such as Gladys Knight "Midnight Train To Georgia". David Bowie "Fame", Electric Light Orchestra "Evil Woman" (yes I know my book lists a Time-Life cd as containing the 45 version but I was wrong on that statement), Foreigner "Feels Like The First Time", Little River Band "Happy Anniversary", Eddie Money "Baby Hold On" and Five Man Electrical Band "Signs" (the 3:25 45 version).

Con:  many songs were faded early to fit more songs on the box set like Murray Head "Superstar" (:14 early), Jackson Five "ABC" (:15 early), Chi-Lites "Have You Seen Her" (:21 early), America "Horse With No Name" (:21 early), Bachman Turner Overdrive "You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet" (:10 early) and Alicia Bridges "I Love The Nightlife (:10 early).  Most disturbing to me is the Harry Chapin track "Cat's In The Cradle" which is neither the 45 or LP version!

Leave It To Rhino Department:  This would have been the perfect opportunity to correct past sins by placing the correct versions of many songs on this cd but noooooo!   We still have to listen to versions that are neither the 45 version or LP version of songs like George Baker Selection "Little Green Bag", Isaac Hayes "Shaft", King Harvest "Dancing In The Moonlight"and the  Silver Convention "Fly Robin Fly".

This box set was obviously not targeted to collectors so you make up your mind if   you really need this box set in your collection.

Posted by: Pat Downey 7/12/98  e-mail patdowney@uswest.net

Title:  Rock 'n Roll Relix 1954-1959 5 cd box

Label: Eclipse Music Group 64605

Comments:  What a surprise this little budget package sprung on me!  Yes there is a lot of the standard run of the mill standard reissue material on this 5 cd set but we also get first time on cd (in the US) songs like "Tra La La" by Georgia Gibbs (M), "Freight Train" by Rusty Draper (M) and a stereo versioin of "She Say" by the Diamonds.  There are 18 tracks on each of the 5 cd's in the box and they are nicely mastered by Polygram.  Best of all, these cd's can be purchased individually if you wish.  Here is a quick rundown of each individual cd:

1954-1955 catalog #64600 includes Bill Hayes "Davy Crockett" (missing the jew's harp) (M), Georgia Gibbs "Tweedle Dee" and "Dance With Me Henry" (M), Crew Cuts "Kokomo" (M),  Chuck Miller "House Of Blue Light" (M) + others.

1956  catalog #64601 (all tracks mono) includes Georgia Gibbs "Tra La La", Cadets "Stranded In The Jungle", Diamonds "Ka-Ding-Dong", Sil Austin "Slow Walk" and Harry Belafonte "Day-O" + others.

1957  catalog #64602 (all tracks mono) includes Rusty Draper "Freight Train", Diamonds "Stroll" and "Little Darling", Ricky Nelson "Teenage Romance" and "I'm Walkin'" + others

1958  catalog #64603 includes the Champs "Tequila" (M), Platters "Twilight Time" (S), Chordettes "Lollipop" (M), Kathy Linden "Billy" (M) and the above mentioned Diamonds "She Say" (S) + others

1959  catalog #64604 includes Kathy Linden "Goodbye Jimmy Goodbye" (M), Jimmy Jones "Handy Man" (M), Conway Twitty "Lonely Blue Boy" (S), Skyliners "Since I Don't Have You" (M) + others

Discollector has these priced at $11.99 each or $54.99 for the box set.

Posted by: Pat Downey  7/10/98  e-mail patdowney@uswest.net

Title: Paul Revere & The Raiders - Just Like Us!

Label: Sundazed SC 6127

Comments:  Back in 1965, mom and dad bought the first Krieger family sound
system - KLH I think. To build a quick music library the folks signed up for
the Columbia Record Club. OK, so amongst the Andre Kostelanetz and Leonard
Bernstein LPs, little George was allowed to purchase two demon rock records.
Freddie & the Dreamers' Do The Freddie LP was a natural as I had just seen
them in Denver with the McCoys and the Beau Brummels (for probably $2, sigh),
but what about a second choice? It happened that a band of cool looking
cutups were on a new after-school TV show called Were The Action Is and they
played a great new song called "Just Like Me" that flat out stomped. The LP
was ordered and when the Just Like Us! LP showed up the cover picture was
enough to tell that the music inside had to be cool. Lord knows I drove my
parents crazy playing those 2 LPs over and over till the songs were embedded
in my brain. Which, FINALLY, brings us to the review of the CD reissue of
that LP (hope you made it this far, but - hey - wasn't that a wonderful human
interest story?). At the time I didn't really notice , but the original LP
was essentially a 'covers' record with the guys trading off lead vocals on
stuff like Them's "Baby Please Don't Go" and "Catch The Wind" by Donovan. The
covers vary in quality with the boys showing surprising instrumental chops on
"Night Train" and a Marx Brothers-like comedy style on "I Know." "Steppin'
Out" and "Just Like Me" are still the class here however while the nadir is a
lame Stones cover "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction." It's great to get the out-
take "Ride Your Pony", but it sounds like an out-take. The single B-side
"BFDRF Blues" never got played when I bought the single and it still won't get
played. The only other bonus track is a mono mix of "Just Like Me" with no
background vocals - why bother? OK, I love the Raiders and the Sundazed label
deserves your support, but this may not be the essential Revere LP to own.
However, if you buy it, maybe they'll put out the Hard & Heavy (With
Marshmellow) LP on CD and include "Do Unto Others" which deserves to be on CD.

Posted by:George W. Krieger DDS, the rock and roll Dentist   7/10/98

Title: Davie Allan & The Arrows - Fuzz Fest

Label: Total Energy 3016

Comments: You remember Allan from his nasty 60's guitar fuzz-outs for The Wild
Angels and The Devils Angels soundtracks. Some 30 years later the dude is
still at it and the m.o. is still the same. The best tracks are the ones
where the fuzz starts to buzz a bit out of tune when the whammy bar gets
bumped and the tune threatens to go berserk-o. Yes there are a couple of
those here and you oughta buy it for tracks like "Chopper" and "Roswell, N.M."
A few of the tracks are weak, but the nice thing about CDs is you can skip 'em
easily, right? This CD came out on Atomic Beat in '96 already and if you have
it, don't waste your money as the new one only adds two alternate takes
bringing the song total to 17. If you don't have it and you love late '60s
fuzz guitar instrumentals, this CD'll put you in a groovy time warp, so check
it out.

Posted by: George W. Krieger DDS, the rock and roll Dentist   7/10/98

Title: The Zombies - Odessey & Oracle

Label: Big Beat (U.K.) CDWIKD 181

Comments: Has there ever been a band so poorly named? I mean, the Animals -
you figure a bunch of nasty scruffs right? That's what they were. The
Zombies - hadda be mangy looking crazed rockers. No way Bubba, these guys
looked and sounded so clean and polished it was hard to take them seriously as
any more than singles artists back in the '60s. Turns out this 1968 LP was
brilliant and deserves to be remembered as far more than simply "Time Of The
Season" and filler. The songs feel like a mix of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts
Club Band with the progressive leanings of a band like Procol Harum (check out
the liberal use of mellotron strings by Rod Argent). Colin Blunstone had
arguably one of the best and most expressive voices of the British Invasion
(buy any solo album you can find by him, by the way) while Rod Argent and
Chris White were brilliant songwriters. Think of this as the Zombies' Pet
Sounds and buy it. Big Beat have offered up the stereo and the mono mixes
which offer slight differences in performance. Also included are alternate
versions of "A Rose For Emily,""Care Of Cell 44" and a different mix of "Time
Of the Season" with drums on the chorus. If you don't have the swag for the
exhaustive Zombie Heaven boxset on Ace, this is a must have along with a
collection of their singles for Parrot.

Posted by: George W. Krieger DDS, the rock and roll Dentist   7/5/98

Title: Robert Gordon

Label: Llist LLR 00792

Comments: All the classic Private Stock/RCA Gordon can be had on three Bear
Family CDs and they're worth it if you're hep to Elvis-like rock and roll.
Here comes an independent release with no liner notes and a cheesy cover
giving no clue as to the origins, but sounding more recent. After Gordon had
guitarists like Link Wray, Chris Spedding and Danny Gatton during his heyday,
some dude named Quentin Jones plys the 6 string with so-so results. If yours
truly has a gripe with this release it's the amateurish barband sound on a few
cuts. The other gripe is with material. At least two thirds is old country
like"Hello Walls." When you hear Gordon, you wanna ROCK! Them's the gripes,
now you still hasta buy it folks. There are enough rockers here to keep your
rockabilly party jumpin' Check out "Bertha Lou" (I wanna conjugate wit you)
or "Pretty Girls Everywhere" for the same tasty rockers you expect. The
production is sparce which is a shame - heck, can you imagine what a Dave
Edmunds could do with this stuff?

Posted by: George W. Krieger DDS, the rock and roll Dentist   7/5/98

Title: Johnny Rivers - Last Train To Memphis

Label: Soul City SCRI 3009

Comments: Whoa, where did this come from? After a string of rockin' blues
single hits ("Seventh Son,""Memphis") and a rebirth as soulful cover guy
("Tracks Of My Tears"), the music world pretty much forgot Rivers for over two
decades. What a shock to be holding a brand spanking new 12 track release on
his own label covering both facets of his style as if the '60s were yesterday.
"Down At The House Of Blues" and "Chicago Bound" have that nice shuffle blues
style though the voice may be a bit less forceful than the old days. Then
"Closer To You" and a great Casinos remake "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye"
remind you of "Poor Side Of Town." The CD evokes Americana a la John
Mellencamp only with a bit more restraint (sorta BB King, not Albert King).

Posted by: George W. Krieger DDS, the rock and roll Dentist   7/05/98

Title: Foghat - Road Cases

Label: Plum 56282

Comments: nother resurrection that shouldn't go un-noticed are the original
'Hat. Their comeback of a few years ago was criminally ignored (Return Of the
Boogie Men), but managed to spawn a series of concerts. If you have the
chance to see them live, do it and plan to be jazzed till dawn Mongo, cause
these guys actually seem to rock harder than 20 years ago (probably because
they're playing sweaty clubs instead of stadiums). At any rate, this CD has
10 live tracks to testify to the boys' abilities to blow waves of testosterone
to the masses. You still get yer "Slow Ride" and yer "Fool For The City" not
to mention searing versions of "Drivin' Wheel" and "Sweet Home Chicago."
Check out the newer tracks "Soakin' The Bone" and "Rock Your House" for proof
that Lonesome Dave can still come up with the nasty boogie woogie you know you
still crave. Oh, yeah, there are two bonus studio tracks tacke on to the end,
but they're curiously restrained organ based R&B.
This is how these guys need to be appreciated, live and sweaty.

Posted by: George W. Krieger DDS, the rock and roll Dentist   7/05/98

Title: Toga! Toga! Toga! by Little Caesar & The Romans

Label: Del-Fi 71262

Comments:  For a small label like Del-Fi was, they sure find plenty of ways to reissue their product.  There was previously a Little Caesar & The Romans cd on the market titled "Memories Of Those Oldies But Goodies" which was a straight reissue of the vinyl LP of the same name issued in 1961 but this cd ran a paltry 31:07.  Now Del-Fi has issued Toga! Toga! Toga! which contains all of the tracks found on "Memories Of Those Oldies But Goodies" plus a number of other additional singles and previously unreleased tracks to being the time up to 55:05.   The big hit "Those Oldies But Goodies" includes the LP introduction which runs :09 and is in mono as are all of the other tracks on the cd.  If you want the complete Little Caesar output this is the cd for you but the quality is no better than the previously released cd "Memories Of Those Oldies But Goodies."

Posted By: Pat Downey 7/03/98  e-mail patdowney@uswest.net

Title:  Very Best Of The Kingsmen

Label:  Varese Sarabande 5905

Comments:  Do you really need yet another Kingsmen's greatest hits cd?   Prerelease publicity focused on this cd being mastered in "stereo"  so my expectations were high even though Sundazed had previously released the Kingsmen's hits in stereo, just not on a "Greatest Hits" package.  Before you get your hopes up, Louie Louie is on this package but it is in mono as that is the way the song was originally recorded.   "Money" is in stereo and has the introductory crowd sound effects found on the 45 but about :12 of the ending is chopped off so that it is not the 45 version.   "Death Of An Angel" is also included but there is a lot of tape hiss noticeable just as all other versions of this song on compact disc.  And the last top 40 hit for the Kingsmen is here also, "Jolly Green Giant" but it is distorted just like the other versions of this song that have been issued over the years. Let's face it - the master tapes used to date are sinmply lousy.  On the positive side, I am told that this will be the first compact disc release where the Kingsmen will actually earn some royalty money.

Posted By: Pat Downey 6/17/98  e-mail patdowney@uswest.net

Title: Chart Toppers - R&B Hits Of The 60s

Label: Priority 51046

Comments: Priority has truly had a change in mastering philosophy.   Here's another of their newly released cd's that is budget priced yet sonically excellent!  Tracks include--Sam & Dave "Soul Man" (M), Martha & The Vandellas "Nowhere To Run" (S), Smokey Robinson & The Miracles "Ooo Baby Baby" (M), Inez Foxx "Mockingbird" (M), Delfonics "La La Means I Love You" (S), Fifth Dimension "Stoned Soul Picnic": (S), Jackie Wilson "Higher And Higher" (S), Little Anthony & The Imperials "Goin' Out Of My Head" (S), Aaron Neville "Tell It Like It Is" (M), Jay & The Techniques "Apples, Peaches & Pumpkin Pie" (S), Bobby Hebb "Sunny" (S), Jimmy Ruffin "What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted" (M), Drifters "Under The Boardwalk" (S), Little Milton "We're Gonna Make It" (S), Impressions "Gypsy Woman" (S).  15 tracks with a total running time of (42:05)

Posted By: Pat Downey  6/7/98  e-mail patdowney@uswest.net

Title: Chart Toppers - R&B Hits Of The 50s

Label: Priority 51045

Comments:  This is no April fool's day joke - it looks like a reissue label has risen from hibernation and awakened to discover how to master a reissue compact disc!  No more "Waring FDS noise reduction", no more low fidelity product and no more electronic stereo seems to be the New Year's resolution of Priority records.  Here is the first of 18 new releases for Priority and if the other 17 are as clean as the one I am reviewing here, Priority will get an award for "comeback" label of the year!  15 tracks on this volume with a total time of  41:57.  Here's the lineup: Jackie Wilson "Lonely Teardrops" (M), Platters "Great Pretender (M), Coasters "Young Blood" (M), Johnny Otis "Hand Jive" (M), Penguins "Earth Angel" (M), James Brown "Try Me" (M), Wilbert Harrison "Kansas City" (M), Joe Turner "Shake, Rattle And Roll" (M), Bobby Blue Bland "Farther Up The Road" (M), B.B. King "Three O'Clock Blues" (S), Chuck Berry "Sweet Little Sixteen" (M), Tommy Edwards "It's All In The Game" (S), Della Reese "Don't You Know" (S), Lloyd Price "Personality" (S) and Elegants "Little Star" (M).   Nice package and budget priced!

Posted By: Pat Downey  6/6/98  e-mail patdowney@uswest.net

Title: Original Soundtrack Recording to "Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas"

Label: Geffen 25218

Comments:  I hope the movie is better than the soundtrack to "Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas."  The track lineup indicates a nice package of nostalgic tunes like One Toke Over The Line by Brewer & Shipley, She's A Lady by Tom Jones, For Your Love by the Yardbirds, White Rabbitt by Jefferson Airplane, Get Together by the Youngbloods, Mama Told Me Not To Come by Three Dog Night, Time Is Tight by Booker T & The MG's, Magic Moments by Perry Como and Tammy by Debbie Reynolds.  The only problem is all songs are segued together with movie dialogue running all over the introductions to these songs.  To add insult to injury, Geffen didn't spend much time looking for the best available source tapes with Magic Moments and For Your Love appearing in electronic stereo.  Look for this one in your cutout bins shortly.

Posted By: Pat Downey 6/4/98  e-mail patdowney@uswest.net

01/20/09