Blogcritics

One Track Mind: Bugge Wesseltoft - "Change"

Pico — Sat, 2 Feb 2008 07:57:28 EST

Wesseltoft's conception for "Change" is a wonderful blend of sounds from four decades underpinned by a dry, cool beat.
Earlier in the week we introduced in this space the topic of "Nu jazz" that's all the rage in Europe, and has represented one of the frontiers of fusion jazz these days. One of the pioneers of this collision of acoustic jazz and electronic music is the Norwegian keyboard player, composer, and record company mogul by the name of Bugge...

One Track Mind: John Coltrane with the Red Garland Trio "Traneing In"

Pico — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 13:39:02 EST

You don't have to be a jazz snob to enjoy Coltrane when he's playing a blues jam like "Traneing In."
Just because I haven't written a whole lot about John Coltrane up to this point doesn't mean I don't seriously revere the man's music. But what is there left to be said about Coltrane that hasn't already been said with much more eloquent words than I can muster?There are, however, a few Trane tunes I love that I rarely see get...

One Track Mind: Charles Earland - "Happy 'Cause I'm Goin' Home"

Pico — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 08:41:15 EST

Charles Earland tackles a happy Chicago tune that was sadly part of trumpet great Lee Morgan's last recorded performances.
On prior columns I've made no bones about my affinity for early Chicago songs. Danny Seraphine's comeback album is a triumph because the band's founding drummer brought back the spirit of his old band. And singer/keyboardist/songwriter Robert Lamm's openness for melding complex jazz with straightforward blues and rock made for some...

One Track Mind: Gov't Mule "Perfect Shelter"

Pico — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 11:08:43 EST

Nothing like some good, funked-up hard rock from The Mule to get your weekend kick-started.
Covering High And Mighty about a year and a half ago gave me a convenient excuse to pull out and listen to some of the prior Gov't Mule CDs. Off of the previous release, Déjà Voodoo, came a tune that has lately been the perfect ear food for the testosterone-charged seventies kid in me. "Perfect Shelter," like much of the...

One Track Mind: Ellery Eskelin/Andrea Parkins/Jim Black - "43 RPM"

Pico — Thu, 3 Jan 2008 08:53:03 EST

Chicks who play whack jazz on accordion are hawt.
Jazz trios that push the envelope are a lot of fun to listen to. With only two other players to be accountable for, each member gets to take more chances than they might be able to get away with in a larger setting. And when it's an unconventional getup, like say, a sax, drums and accordion, there's bound to be even more surprises in...

One Track Of The Year: the subdudes - "Poor Man's Paradise"

Pico — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 10:55:47 EST

A good song should make you feel good. More than any other song I've heard this year, this one does.
With all the All Star albums of 2007 out of the way, there's just one more piece of year-end business to take care of: my favorite song of the year. Like the top CD of the year, this one didn't require much agonizing. It's a song that puts me in a great mood every time I listen to it, and it has a great message to go with a great sound....

One Track Mind: Kent DuChaine "Marilyn"

Pico — Fri, 7 Dec 2007 12:35:23 EST

Overlooked blues troubadour Kent DuChaine makes a rip-roaring tribute to his vintage Cadillac.
Among the blues musicians of today you've got your stars like Robert Cray, Jonny Lang, Shemekia Copeland and so forth, and then you've got the remaining 98% who are toiling away at this blessed craft in relative obscurity, anonymous to all but the patrons who catch their shows in bars and festivals across America and beyond. These...

One Track Mind: Dionne Farris "I Know"

Pico — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 12:08:48 EST

I don't know why Farris didn't give us an encore to "I Know."
Here's a One Track Mind that's also a One Hit Wonder. Remember Dionne Farris?If you do, then this song must have made an impression on you, too.This is usually the part where I delve into the artist's background and deliver the setup to the song of the moment. Well, there isn't much to say this time. Dionne Farris had a guest vocalist stint with...

One Track Mind: Rod Stewart "Every Picture Tells A Story"

Pico — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 01:52:38 EST

The anthem of Rod Stewart when he was a Young Turk.
Before he had hooked up with Clive Davis to transform himself into a dubious version of Tony Bennett...many MANY years before...Rod Stewart was a seriously good rock singer. I don't mean to imply that his raspy pipes are now shot to hell or anything like that. Rather, I mean that the material he covered, the style of his music and his attitude,...

One Track Mind: Cameo "Love You Anyway"

Pico — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 14:50:03 EST

Mid-tempo, old-school funk married to George Benson-style scatting? I'm there!
There was a time during my carefree youth when I was listening to little else outside of jazz and fusion but funk. We're talking Prince, Gap Band, The Time and several other lesser known acts on the scene at that time. Right up there with the Purple One in my book was Cameo. Now, you're probably thinking "Word Up" and the...