Blogcritics Author: Donald Gibson

Music Review: Buddy Guy - Skin Deep

Donald Gibson — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 00:00:04 EDT

The legendary bluesman demonstrates how it�s done.
It’s a classic case of a teacher showing up his students. In Shine A Light, Mick Jagger invites Buddy Guy to “help us out” on the Muddy Waters cut, “Champagne And Reefer.” As he waits for his cue, Guy leers at the band with this mischievous grin – this knowing look – as if to say, ”Let me demonstrate...

Music Review: David Bowie - Live Santa Monica '72

Donald Gibson — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 20:22:20 EDT

Thirty-six years on, this bootleg remains an onslaught of rock �n� roll abandon.
In June 1972, David Bowie released The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars, the album that launched his most provocative, mercurial persona into the zeitgeist. When he landed in America later that year for a concert tour – his first-ever in the country – he not only introduced an intriguing realm of showmanship and...

Music CD/DVD Review: John Mayer - Where The Light Is: Live In Los Angeles

Donald Gibson — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 22:18:55 EDT

Mayer delivers a solid performance that works far better as an album than it does as a film.
Lately the man garners more press for his private life than for his professional one, but John Mayer would be the first to concede that music remains his greatest passion. On his latest release, Where The Light Is: Live In Los Angeles, which comes in both CD and DVD formats, he delivers a solid performance that works far better as an album than it...

Music Review: Ron Sexsmith - Exit Strategy of the Soul

Donald Gibson — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 17:30:17 EDT

Sexsmith offers an endearing batch of songs, underscoring a wellspring of emotional depth and craft.
Like well-kept secrets, some of the most affecting and proficient artists are only enjoyed by a core group of admirers. One such artist, Canadian singer/songwriter Ron Sexsmith, has released a steady stream of solid albums for nearly twenty years, yet his audience has remained of relatively modest size. Such is certainly no slight to his abilities,...

Concert Review: Tom Waits, 7/1/08, at the Moran Theatre, Jacksonville, FL

Donald Gibson — Thu, 3 Jul 2008 20:31:21 EDT

He's got the fire and the fury at his command.
Gothic and poignant, grotesque and sublime, Tom Waits envisages characters and stories through song like a seasoned author does in literature. Before an audience nearing 3,000 on Tuesday night at the Moran Theatre in Jacksonville, Florida – his first-ever appearance in the city – the iconic artist rendered his distinctive creations with...

Music Review: Various Artists - The Motown Collection (10 CD/1 DVD Set)

Donald Gibson — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 02:31:20 EDT

"The Sound of Young America" comprises 150 songs over 10 discs.
“The Sound of Young America” was the slogan that Berry Gordy ascribed to the music coming out of his recording studios in Detroit, but Motown Records also proved a phenomenon. The caliber of songwriters, producers, musicians, and performers that assembled under Motown’s banner in the late ‘50s and throughout the ‘60s...

George Carlin, Dead At 71

Donald Gibson — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 04:51:50 EDT

The legendary comedian, author, actor, and counterculture icon, died Sunday of heart failure, age 71.
George Carlin, legendary comedian, author, actor, and counterculture icon, died Sunday of heart failure, age 71, at Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, California. He is survived by his second wife, Sally Wade, and daughter Kelly Carlin McCall. His first wife, Brenda, predeceased him in 1997 after 36 years of marriage.Considered one...

Music Review: The Mooney Suzuki - CBGB OMFUG Masters: Live June 29, 2001, The Bowery Collection

Donald Gibson — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 12:33:03 EDT

Yes, it's loud...And no, I won't turn it down.
The Mooney Suzuki scored a radio hit (and, curiously, an endorsement deal with Suzuki automobiles) in 2004 with “Alive & Amplified,” a song that – in its title and irreverent disposition – pretty much describes their sound. This New York City garage-rock band had already carved out its niche a few years before, though,...

Music Review: Emmylou Harris - All I Intended To Be

Donald Gibson — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 23:26:12 EDT

Summoning the homespun grandeur of her earliest works, Harris delivers one of her finest albums to date.
As I stood outside the stage door of the Tampa Theatre, I hoped to get an autograph, but my chances seemed unlikely given the number of other likeminded fans wanting the same thing. The concert that had preceded this street assembly, on the night of May 27, 2005, marked the first time Emmylou Harris had come to town in years.My aspiration dwindled...

Music Review: Priscilla Ahn - A Good Day

Donald Gibson — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 02:24:33 EDT

The songs are like glittering trinkets, unique in their individual character yet reflective of an overall allure and aura.
Sometimes you’ll hear a melody that’ll make you smile or a voice so gorgeous it’ll melt your heart. In the case of Priscilla Ahn, both scenarios apply and often at the same time. This formidable singer/songwriter renders an enchanting realm of folk-pop fare on her full-length debut on Blue Note Records, A Good Day.Before signing...