1973 - Michael Nesmith - Pretty Much Your Standard Ranch Stash @320
After hitting a groove with And the Hits Just Keep on Comin', which Michael Nesmith recorded with just pedal steel guitarist Red Rhodes for accompaniment, Nesmith beefed his sound up again with a full band on Pretty Much Your Standard Ranch Stash. But the previous album seems to have reminded Nesmith about the virtues of restraint, and while he had a six-piece band at his disposal this time out, the arrangements are tight and efficient, offering the warmth and immediacy of his First National Band sessions (and sometimes even beating them for subtle, understated swing). Red Rhodes, as always, is the star soloist here, but the rest of the band also shines, in particular the guitars of Jay Lacy and Dr. Robert Warford and the solid drumming of Danny Lane. Nesmith wrote one of his best and purest country songs for this set, "Winonah," and offered up a solid remake of the Monkees obscurity "Some of Shelly's Blues," while dipping into bluegrass for the lovely acoustic medley "Back Porch and a Fruit Jar Full of Iced Tea." Pretty Much Your Standard Ranch Stash was Michael Nesmith's final album for RCA Records, and if it didn't fare especially well in the marketplace, from a musical standpoint he certainly left the House That Nipper Built on a high note -- it was hardly your standard '70s country-rock album. (AllMusic)
When this is posted I will be on holiday so there won't be any quick responses to comments.
Another set that has been sitting in the to post (needs work) folder for a long long time. I replaced the 8 or 9 fake 320 tracks with real 320, sometimes you find something and you had to wait to correct the fake tracks, it's worth it in the end. Just have a big folder of stuff you need to work on, replacements and work on the tags.
Have had this in my to post folder for some time, just needed to replace a few tracks, with true 320 versions, all done and here it is for your enjoyment.
So we are at Box 45, which starts with my tunes from 1 to 8, then comes Andy's Two themed tracks from 9 to 16 and Concha closes Box 45 with her selections from 17 to 24.
This was the last Box ready to post, will work on the next 15 as we have 60 compiled, just need to put the tracks together and edit the tags and then level them. Will work on them towards the end of the week, ready to post 46 next Monday.
Cowboy Junkies - 2023 - Such Ferocious Beauty @320
What with Michael Timmons’ day to day job as a ‘go to record producer’ it’s no wonder it’s over 5 years since Cowboy Junkies last album of new material; although their covers album RECOLLECTIONS was pretty damn good in every which way; but at RMHQ it’s ‘their songs’ we crave like a crack addict.
So it was with baited breath and a big mug of coffee that I tentatively pressed ‘play’ on the office Hi-Fi; as the Timmons siblings are more than capable of throwing us a curve ball … with great relief opening song What I Lost is as deep, dark and beautiful as any fan could hope for, with Margo’s stunning and distinctive voice as cool as ever, while Michael’s guitar playing swoops and soars with additional rumbling from the top end of the fret board unlike any of the Guitar Gods on the road today.
With that in mind; the opening to Track #2 Flood, is almost psychedelic …. even Gilmouresque; and continues throughout while Ms Timmons remains front and centre apparantly oblivious to the ‘wall of sound’ her brother is creating behind her.
While I can’t say I’ve liked every Cowboy Junkies album; like you can’t like every Neil Young album, as both are contrary at times; ‘never making the same album twice’ …. which is actually a good thing; and Such Ferocious Beauty is a perfect moniker for this particular bundle of songs, with the slow and acoustic Canadian Gothic song Hell Is Real being juxtaposed between the punchy Shadows 2; about the Timmins’s father falling deeper and deeper under the spell of dementia; and Circe and Penelope with it’s haunting harmonica and rustic acoustic guitars; which is one of their few songs this century that sounds anything like Trinity Sessions; but the addition of a cello halfway through takes it into a whole new stratosphere.
Even after four plays now; this album is still throwing up surprises; possibly because while I’ve been digesting one song it’s meant I haven’t always been listening intently to what follows; which is why the intense and simmering story in Throw a Match has just taken me by such surprise …. was it there this morning?
It must have been, but I couldn’t remember it from the first three plays.
Weird, I know … but that’s the Cowboy Junkies for you.
Tucked away in the middle is a very important song in the Cowboy Junkies canon of work; and that’s Knives. As intense and complex as you’d expect; but here the addition of a violin finds the band setting sail to unchartered territory …. and I love it.
There’s an all encompassing darkness, and even ‘fear’ (courtesy of some scary guitar playing!) to Mike Tyson (Here It Comes) but the sensitive way Margo delivers the story makes this a full on contender for being my Favourite Song; but the staggeringly beautiful Blue Skies with its birdsong opening and tender acoustic guitar accompaniment just about edges it out of that first place.
Yet, again there is another song here that has just unravelled and took my breath away; so I suppose I have to make Hard To Build. Easy To Break its equal and therefore a joint Favourite Song.
There are highs and lows here, darkness and light too and the three multi-talented Timmins siblings alongside lifelong friend Alan Anton are still pushing boundaries all the while; but you always know they will never over step the mark in the name of experimentation. (Rocking Magpie)
The Essential Leo Kottke is the double album from 1991, which may surprise some listeners with the familiarity of its tunes. What I discovered was the supreme delight of seeing Kottke’s guitar wrapped around such familiar songs as Bob Nolan’s Tumbling Tumbleweeds, the Everly Brothers All I Have to Do is Dream, and most surprisingly Kris Kristofferson’s Here Comes That Rainbow Again, written from a scene in The Grapes of Wrath, which I had only heard live by Kristofferson and recorded by Johnny Cash. You suddenly realize that Kottke is unafraid of great melodies, and goes constantly in search of them. It isn’t just countermelodies that captivate his guitarist’s fancy, but the innate power of a melody as well. You can’t have one, he makes me realize, without the other. In the end, that’s why I love his playing, and have stayed true to his muse all these years. Leo Kottke is a guitarist’s guitarist, one who opens up the fret board to all manner of virtuoso invention, without losing sight of his original purpose in creating a world of beautiful sound.(FolkWorks)
When this is posted I will be on holiday so there won't be any quick responses to comments.
1986 - A Cajun Legend (The Best of Nathan Abshire) @320
Nathan Abshire was born in 1913 near Gueydan, Louisiana. His love of the accordion began at the age of 6, when he’d sneak his uncle’s accordion away to practice. And practice he did – by the time he was eight, he had become accomplished enough to begin his long career as a regular musician. Years later, accompanying the Balfa Brothers to the Newport Folk Music Festival in 1967, he was one of the early representatives of Cajun music on the national scene. A Cajun Legend… The Best of Nathan Abshire (with guest musicians, the Balfa Brothers) is probably the most complete collection available of Nathan’s most popular recordings, compiled from the early Swallow recordings from 1965 to ’73. Released in 1986, 20 tracks.
When this is posted I will be on holiday so there won't be any quick responses to comments.
Vibes is now back to normal from Monday 10th August. While I catch up with things, there will only one post per day, the first post will be the latest Box Of Vibes.
I am going to look into forums to move maybe this site and but definitely private vibes to in the future.
We closed for a week to stop the spikes in visits to the site, from bots. Another blogger told me this works so thought I would give it a go.
Vibes will close in future for two weeks at Christmas and if this works with the bots we will revert to private over the Christmas period. Will make a post in December saying the dates we are closed from and to.
In 2027 we will close during July and August, makes sense with holidays. And again if my experiment with stopping the bots works, it will again revert to private. But we might have moved to a forum by then. I think vibes private club will go to a forum for sure, Vibes it's self, time will tell as they say. To be honest I think Vibes Private Club will move to a forum, but Vibes will stay on Google or another blog provider, will take another look at alternatives.
Also there will be no more Flac or wav posted on Vibes, you want them you will have to be invited to Vibes Private Club. Vibes will now only post 320 or post in lower mp3 bit rate. Comment on a regular basis is the way to get an invite there. I have a short list of names and once I have 20 again, I will make a post, but you need to have a Google account, sorry but there is no way around this, Google rules. But if it move to a forum then Google accounts won't be required and can have many more members than Google allows. If try to keep you updated in future posts.
We are getting bots attacking the site, another blogger told me a trick he uses to stop them.
So I am going to give it a go starting tomorrow Monday, I will turn the blog private for a week, and will do same at Christmas this year so there won't be any posts either.
I am thinking of moving to a forum site in the future anyway and will try them out with the private Vibes site first and if I like the results then the same will happen to the main site.
SO FROM TOMORROW (MONDAY) WE WILL BE A PRIVATE SITE FOR A WEEK.
Don't worry we'll be back to normal on Monday the 10th. This is just to let you know what is happening.
Jelly Roll Morton - 2000 - Complete Recorded Sides
1926-1930 @320
JSP's five-CD set devoted to Jelly Roll Morton contains all of his Victor recordings cut between September 1926 and October 1930. The sound quality is excellent and complete discographical information is provided along with insightful liner notes. Alternate takes are presented on separate discs so as to avoid redundancy. This creates doppelgΓ€ngers, as it were, of most of the sessions involving larger ensembles. Jelly Roll Morton is heard as a solo pianist and as leader of his trios, Red Hot Peppers, and orchestra. The only shortcoming is the absence of eight titles recorded for Victor's Bluebird imprint in 1939 by Morton's New Orleans Jazzmen. Had the producers of this otherwise excellent compilation opted for these classic latter-day Jellies instead of obsessing over every single alternate take from the earlier sessions, this would be a serious contender for the "best and most affordable Jelly Roll Morton set" award. As it stands, JSP's hefty anthology is a great way to obtain most of Morton's major work on CD at relatively little cost. The very best way to study this artist is to start at the beginning of his discography using the Classics Chronological Series and then move forward. After hearing these canonic classic jazz recordings as presented by JSP, some folks will indeed want to zoom in for close-ups and study every recorded episode in this primal jazzman's life and works.(AllMusic)
