Music

Have you ever had one of those moments where you were just settling into you chair, just about all set to start listening to music. You’ve hit the play button on your CD player, but you’re still a moment or two from being truly situated and focused. All of a sudden, the first words and notes are sung and played, and you jerk your head up, stop what you’re doing, and shoot your eyes straight to the space between your speakers -- because what you just heard is recorded so well and the vocals so pure and lifelike that you forget finishing settling in and just stop and listen.

That’s what happened to me just now when I cued up the new CD from Diana Panton, “Blue.”

I confess, I had not heard Diana before this album, and was instantly blown away by her beautiful voice and singing style. This has only happened to me twice before, once with Eva Cassidy and the other with Julie London.

For those who only know of Phil Lynott and Thin Lizzy from either “Whisky In The Jar” or “The Boys Are Back In Town,” having heard them played on a classic rock station, let me tell you: you don’t know either, nor do you know the impact they had on hard rock specifically, and rock and roll in general.

Fortunately for those people, and those of us who have grown up listening to them and owning their records, there is a new release out from Mercury Studios that will not only offer an insight into just how powerful a rock band they were, but also give us a deeper look into the band and their leader, Phil Lynott.

This new set is comprised of a music CD of Thin Lizzy’s October 1978 concert performed at the Sydney Opera House, along with a DVD of the concert and a second DVD from 2020 entitled “Phil Lynott Songs For While I’m Away.”

Both the audio and video have been remixed and remastered by Mercury Studios.

What the first morning of summer sounds like.

The Greatest Now, The Greatest Then, The Greatest Forever

Blackmore’s Night (Candice Night and Ritchie Blackmore) along with their band of Minstrels -- Bard David of Larchmont, Earl Gray of Chimay, Troubadour of Aberdeen, Scarlet Fiddler, and Lady Lynn -- have remastered and enhanced their 2006 Holiday masterpiece, Winter Carols. This 2-CD Digipak Edition from E*A*R* Music (available also as a digital album) also contains four previously unavailable tracks: “Here We Come A-Caroling”, “It Came Upon a Midnight Clear”, “O Little Town of Bethlehem” and “Silent Night”, as well as a remastered version of their Christmas single “Christmas Eve”.

It is no secret that I am a huge fan of Blackmore’s Night, considering Candice Night one of the purest, most beautiful voices ever heard, and Ritchie Blackmore one of the most accomplished guitar players ever. I have enjoyed their music since they began, and use several of their albums as my reference recordings whenever I audition audio equipment.

I have learned three things in my 40+ year love affair with Bluegrass/Americana music—I’m talking real Bluegrass: Bill Monroe, The Osbourne Brothers, Earl Scruggs, and more recently Alison Krauss to name but a scant few—and all three are related:

1. You can’t be feeling mad or sad to play it.
2. You can’t be mad or sad to listen to it.
3. If you are mad or sad when you start to listen, you won’t be by the time you’re done listening.

Well folks, Folk for Little Folk is just the right medicine, at the right time, to bring this often mad and seemingly downright sadness-filled society we live in today out of its funk to start enjoying life again! From start to finish, every tune here is inspired to make us (you and me) feel good. I don’t know about you, but isn’t it better to feel good and happy than the other way round’?

Banjo players will readily agree that it's one of the fascinating musical instruments, and learning to play it – and play it well – is a definite challenge. But it's a challenge that's worthwhile, as mastering the instrument is an achievement. But many will also say that learning to play the banjo is easier than learning to play the guitar, so these are encouraging words for those just starting on their banjo-playing journey. But if you’re interested in learning it, it also pays to find out as much as you can about it – including the various types, as there is more than one from which you could choose to learn. Here, then, is your complete guide to banjos – and the different types available.

The two main kinds and various criteria

A musical high.

Run… Run… Run Like Hell and get yourself a copy!

Whether you’re an aspiring beginner, avid musician or experienced professional, having the right drum kit for your personal play style and preferences is vital to developing your capabilities. It also determines just how much fun you can have behind your set.

Of course, you want to make a wise investment and secure the best barrels in your budget range. As you might already know, prices for drum kits can quickly soar into the thousands depending on where you look. There are several brands to choose from and not all sets offer the same value for money.

In this guide, we review the leading options at various ends of the market. Let’s start by briefly discussing the key factors to keep in mind when searching for a drum kit.

Arrow Video presents the long lost footage of the creator of the SHOCK ROCK band "THE MENTORS" on Blu-ray.

When I say that the music on this CD is fresh as fresh air, I mean that in a much deeper sense than the first thing that may pop into your mind.

In his own words, Paul Winter wanted this album to be a celebration of light. “With the title of Light of the Sun, I intended to embrace the many meanings we attribute to light: light as spirit, love, consciousness, human kindness, serenity, heart, exaltation, fire, the light that is integral to beauty, and the smile that reflects the sunshine in our heart.” Paul continues, saying, “Music is the common medium that can embody both the spiritual and physical aspects of light.”

To that end I feel Paul succeeds in accomplishing that desire, something that many artists hope to achieve in their works but sadly fall short.

Whenever I set about to review an album or CD, I always include in my review any sonic attribute I feel compelled to mention for those of the audiophile faith, as I like to know these things myself to aid in the purchase of an album--things such as tonal and timbral accuracy, soundstage width and depth, hall sound. Instrument and performer placement, etc.

It wasn’t long after popping this shiny disc of new music from RRHF Ricky Byrd when all those things no longer really mattered; it was just simply the music that mattered. I was drawn into not only the music, but the message of each song.

One of the best cartridges you’ll ever hear that you never heard of and it comes from a land down under!

If you're a dyed-in-the-wool Lucifan, you've probably already binged the first eight episodes of the fifth-and-final season of LUCIFER released on Netflix today. I mean, what more could you truly desire?

How about all the great music that we've heard these past five seasons?

Part of the charm of LUCIFER has been Tom Ellis sitting down at the piano now and again as Lucifer Morningstar, entertaining (or, sometimes, depressing) the crowds at his nightclub, Lux. And sometime later into he series, we find that Lesley-Ann Brandt -- Lucifer's right-hand demon, Mazikeen -- also sports an exquisite set of pipes, as she's allowed to strut her stuff with some sultry numbers like "Fever" and "I Want to Be Evil."

Particular highlights of this set include the duet of Brandt and Ellis performing "I Will Survive," and Ellis's emotional interpretation of Beck's "Creep" which opened up the fourth season when the show made it's Netflix debut.

Toto has long been one of those bands that I could just put an album on (yes I said album) and listen to it from start to finish. Their music always sounded polished and complete, meaning they never had me saying to myself, “I wish they would play a little more this, or a little less like that.”

On “40 Tours Around The Sun” they have proven to me that they not only play as well as they ever did, but in some ways they are even more polished and consummate now.

This 2-disc set from Eagle Rock Music captures the band in great form, and the recording is first-rate (as I have come to expect no less from Eagle Entertainment). Recorded last March, Eagle Rock wasted little time bringing this set to light, so that the music you hear on this set will be as fresh as if you were to go see them tomorrow.

But don’t think of this as some sort of a rush job to cash in; nay, nay, Eagle Rock knocks it out of the park again.

The national tour of Escape to Margaritaville has arrived at the Fabulous Fox Theatre for an all too brief weekend run, October 18-20, 2019. If you're a true Parrothead, as Jimmy Buffett fans are known, you probably already have tickets. If you don't, or you're on the fence about it, I strongly recommend giving it a try. The show is quite fun and you'll surely know at least one of the songs by heart. 

Ever heard of progressive metal? Think of a progressive rock band such as Rush or Yes with soaring vocals and prominent bass, keyboards and synthesizers, and then toss liberally with heavy metal guitar and drums ala Metallica. That’s how an associate of mine described the sub-genre for which Dream Theatre and Queensrÿche are the best known examples. They played the Stifel Theatre in St. Louis on October 2, 2019, right next door to the home opener for the defending Stanley Cup Champions, the St. Louis Blues. Even against such a crowd next door, Dream Theatre’s “Distance Over Time Tour” filled the venue reasonably well.

In terms of sheer visual spectacle, ROCKETMAN is without peer. Brilliantly mixing magical metaphor with raw reality, this film straddles the boundaries between musical and biopic.

From the very first scene and the very first note, ROCKETMAN is riveting. The film opens with the adult Elton John (played superbly by TARON EGERTON) strutting into an addiction support group in full sequined regalia. It doesn't feel like it could be real, and it's the most subtle part of the film, as it's used as a storytelling device throughout the movie. As we progress, we return to this device, each time with more of the costuming stripped away--a metaphor for deconstructing the mythical Elton John and getting down to the man himself.

The 80s anthem, FOOTLOOSE, defined a generation that wanted--nay, needed!--to blow off steam through music and motion. It was a time when we wanted to get physical, to dance in the streets and dance in the sheets, and nothing was going to stop us now.

The classic show became a musical in 1998, and tonight the cast at The Muny delivered the penultimate performance of the show's St. Louis run.

The musical adaptation takes a few liberties with the script, of course, sometimes for time considerations, and sometimes for simplicity of stage direction. Instead of Ren McCormack (MASON REEVES) working at a grain mill, he waits tables at a burger joint. And preacher's daughter Ariel Moore (McKENZIE KURTZ) has her daredevil urges tamed down so that she's screaming at trains instead of in front of them.