Announcement: Short-content feeds

Phillip Winn — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EDT

Sunday, August 26, 2007, marks the switch of all Blogcritics.org article feeds from full-content to short-content. This is the result of several converging factors, and is unfortunately a permanent decision (as permanent as any decision can be on the web, that is). We are aware of all of the reasons that this is a Bad Idea, and we are aware that some of you will be quite upset about having to click on something to read the free content, and we're sorry. Unfortunately, despite great effort, full-content feeds are not currently economically viable. Two other factors are involved: full-content feeds have resulted in an unprecedented level of content theft, with BC content appearing on many websites, usually spam sites, without attribution or permission. This duplicate content causes a cascading set of problems, not the least of which is that search engines generally aren't favorable to duplicate content, and don't always guess correctly. Finally, our RSS advertising partner is strongly in favor of short-content feeds. We hope that you'll continue to subscribe to BC via RSS, and when an article grabs your eye, it's only a click away, still free on the BC website. Thank you for your understanding.

Music Review: Pat Metheny and The Heath Brothers - The Move To The Groove Session

Michael Neal Morris — Sun, 25 Feb 2007 17:20:54 EST

Pat Metheny and The Heath Brothers' disc The Move To The Groove Session is a slightly disappointing release, not because of weak material or poor performances, but because the disc as a whole is uneven. Metheny's guitar is a bit subdued in some places, but the solos are nice, and the Heath Brothers are terrific and always enjoyable. But the disc as a whole seems like a bit of a compilation, rather than a cohesive whole.The first two songs, "Sassa Samba" and "Arthurdoc" are nice collaborations of what might seem too disparate musical entities. They swing nicely and provide plenty of room for nice solos. The final, title track works the same. However, in the middle are also good pieces that just don't seem to fit the disc. I really like the "Guitar Improvisation." Metheny transmits a lucid, beautiful solo that takes a piece of his composition "James" near the end. Next comes the group's take on "All The Things You Are," a classic sweetly rendered.My liner notes say that for the next two songs, "Is That So" and "I Waited For You" Tony Purrone is at the guitar. One of these songs, however, has guitar/and vocal (as instrument, not singing words) lines that remind me of some of the pieces on Metheny's fantastic Secret Story. This is a disc that fans of Pat Metheny and/or The Heath Brothers will want in their collections. But I suspect it won't get as much play as others.

Michael Neal Morris attended East Texas State University (now Texas A&M in Commerce) and teaches English at Eastfield College in Mesquite. He has published numerous poems and stories both online and in print. He has worked as a secretary, technical writer, janitor, and tutor. He lives with his wife and children just outside the Dallas area. His blog is Monk Notes.

Blogcritics Author: Michael Neal Morris

Announcement: Short-content feeds

Music Review: Pat Metheny and The Heath Brothers - The Move To The Groove Session