Al Kooper - I Stand Alone/You Never Know Who Your Friends Are CD

I Stand Alone/You Never Know Who Your Friends Are buy CD music A surprise best-seller when it was first released, this mostly improvised pairing of singer/keyboardist/producer Al Kooper with two major guitar heroes of the day sounds fascinating all these years later precisely because of the distance of time--nobody makes records like this any more. The material runs the gamut from folk pop (covers of Donovan and Dylan), to blues ("Albert's Shuffle," "You Don't Love Me"), to heady jams ("His Holy Modal Majesty"), to big-band jazz ("Harvey's Tune"). All the tunes make effective templates for the kind off-the-cuff music-making that in less capable hands might have resulted in simple noodling. In fact, although Bloomfield and Stills don't play together on any of the cuts (Bloomfield played on one side of the original LP, Stills on the other), all three principals get off lots of good licks and producer Kooper has some interesting tricks up his sleeve, as in the over-the-top phasing he lavishes on "You Don't Love Me." The only real disappointment here is that Stills, a far better singer than Kooper, never opens his mouth. Those familiar with the Live Adventures album these two recorded at the Fillmore West know how brilliant they could be on stage, and here's another gem, recorded at the Fillmore East this time and featuring 'One Way Out,' 'It's My Own Fault' (with Bloomfield trading licks with Johnny Winter...Johnny was signed to Columbia after this gig!). Newly remastered & now with 4 bonus tracks, 'Albert's Shuffle' (2002 Remix w/o Horns), 'Season of the Witch.' (2002 Remix w/o Horns), 'Blues For Nothing' (Studio Outtake) & 'Fat Grey Cloud' Previously Unreleased Live Track). Features 12-page booklet with unpublished photos from the recording session, new liner notes by Al Kooper & the Rolling Stone Hall Of Fame review by David Fricke. 60 scintillating minutes! 13 tracks. Colunbia/Legacy. 2003. Includes liner notes by Al Kooper, Michael Thomas. Includes liner notes by Michael Thomas. Full performer name: Mike Bloomfield/Al Kooper/Steve Stills. Personnel: Mike Bloomfield (electric guitar); Al Kooper (vocals, 12-string & electric guitars, piano, organ, ondioline); Steve Stills (electric guitar); Barry Goldberg (electric piano); Harvey Brooks (bass); Eddie Hoh (drums). Personnel: Mike Bloomfield (electric guitar); Al Kooper (piano, organ, ondioline, vocals, 12-string & electric guitars); Steve Stills (electric guitar); Barry Goldberg (electric piano); Harvey Brooks (bass); Eddie Hoh (drums). Reissue producer: Bob Irwin.

I Stand Alone/You Never Know Who Your Friends Are album for sale In an era of wishy-washy singer-songwriters, Zevon immediately stood out as a wild card, a singer unafraid of the heat in kitchen. His first albums revealed a gifted songwriter equally comfortable with heroin-based love songs and manic rockers rife with gunplay. With STAND IN THE FIRE however, he leaps into the flames with headlong abandon. Backed by a band of unknowns, Zevon embraces the spontaneous frenzy of what live performances aspire to but rarely achieve. The band pushes Zevon towards the edge of losing control and he answers every lick with crazed purpose. He throws in marvelously extemporaneous lyrics during "Werewolves of London," screaming bloodlust while calling for the head of James Taylor. Mayhem reaches an apex during a pounding "Poor, Poor Pitiful Me," in which he actually threatens to kill the audience if they don't dance. There is no real threat of bodily harm while listening in the comfort of your own home, though the urge to light fires and empty revolvers into the sofa may become overpowering. Why this searing live document, which captures the singer at the peak of his powers, has not been released on CD in anybody's guess. The 1981 live album masterpiece "Stand In The Fire", until now woefully out of print, prompted allmusic.com to write, “No one argues that Warren Zevon is a gifted singer and songwriter, but "Stand In The Fire" proves that, when he wants to, he can also rock with the best of ‘em.” Recorded at L.A.’s Roxy theatre in 1981, the disc features the two unforgettable original songs Zevon debuted on that year’s tour, “The Sin” and “Stand In The Fire.” Also includes searing versions of “Lawyers, Guns And Money,” “Werewolves Of London,” “Poor, Poor Pitiful Me,” “I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead,” “Mohammed’s Radio,” and “Jeannie Needs A Shooter,” a co-write with Bruce Springsteen, among other stellar performances. Boasts liner notes by David Fricke and four previously unreleased cuts including “Johnny Strikes Up The Band,” “Frank And Jesse James,” and “Hasten Down The Wind.”

I Stand Alone/You Never Know Who Your Friends Are CD music Recorded live at Bill Graham's Fillmore Auditorium, San Francisco, California on September 26-28, 1968. Includes liner notes by Mike Bloomfield, Al Kooper and Tom Wheeler. This warts-and-all document of three shows recorded live at the old Fillmore West in September 1968 is a genuinely entertaining period piece. Designed to cash in on the success of the Bloomfield/Kooper/Stills live-in-the-studio SUPER SESSION which had been a surprise hit earlier that year, this nonetheless features only one tune from that album, the lengthy psychedelic jam "His Holy Modal Majesty." The rest of the album is mostly traditional blues, with the notable exceptions of an inventive slow soul version of Paul Simon's "59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)," an all-instrumental take on the Band's "The Weight," and a loose run through of Traffic's "Mr. Fantasy," which gives Kooper the opportunity to quote from the Beatles then-current hit "Hey Jude." The ensemble playing is occasionally a little sloppy, and some of the soloing is by modern standards a tad indulgent, but by and large this is highly creative music-making regardless of its era. Engineers include: Phil Macy, Fred Catero, Don Puluse. Personnel: Al Kooper (vocals, keyboards); Mike Bloomfield, Carlos Santana (electric guitar); Roosevelt Gook (piano); John Kahn (bass); Skip Prokop (drums); Paul Simon (background vocals); Elvin Bishop. Reissue producer: Bob Irwin.

I Stand Alone/You Never Know Who Your Friends Are songs While moderation was never Warren Zevon's strong suit, his efforts to clean himself up in the early '80s resulted in two of his finest albums, 1980's literate but corrosive Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School and the following year's explosive live set Stand in the Fire. It seemed as if the wired chaos of Zevon's personal life had been channeled into his art on those LPs, but after another bout with the bottle and another attempt at sobriety, Zevon tried another approach at merging his music and his life on 1982's The Envoy. On The Envoy's best songs, Zevon tackles his dangerous appetites head on; "Charlie's Medicine" is a chilling requiem for a drug dealer who used to sell him dope, "Jesus Mentioned" is a spare but curiously moving meditation on the death of Elvis Presley, who "went walking on the water with his pills," and the ragged but right "Ain't That Pretty at All" is an unlikely but powerful recovery anthem in which he howls "I'd rather feel bad than not feel anything at all." When Zevon confronts his own demons on The Envoy, the album is intense and compelling stuff, but unfortunately there aren't enough of these moments to prop up the rest of the set, which is smart and literate but not especially exciting. Novelist Thomas McGuane co-wrote "The Overdraft," a hard-charging rocker that unfortunately doesn't make much sense, while the languid "The Hula Hula Boys" plays like a joke in which the punch line got lost, and the two love songs, "Let Nothing Come Between You" and "Looking for the Next Best Thing," manage to sound at once heartfelt and like lesser variations on themes he'd covered with greater strength before. The Envoy would prove to be Zevon's last album for five years after he took another stumble into addiction, but while it's an often brave and ambitious disc, the high points don't quite redeem its weaknesses. ~ Mark Deming "The Envpy", the reflective 1982 masterpiece that Zevon once described as “The Excitable Boy Grows Up,” makes its CD debut with this release. Highlights include the title track, the moving “Never Too Late For Love,” “The Hula Hula Boys,” and “The Overdraft,” a co-write with novelist Thomas McGuane featuring a ripping Lindsey Buckingham solo. Four previously unreleased tracks include outtakes of “Word Of Mouth” and “Wild Thing,” and the romantically skewed gem “Let Nothing Come Between You.” Liner notes by Rolling Stone editor David Wild. Audio Remasterers: Dan Hersch; Bill Inglot. Liner Note Author: David Wild. Recording information: Record One, Los Angeles, CA. Actors: Ted Shackleford; Gary Braglia; Don Grabowski "Don G."; James Houghton; Jonathan Exley; Greg Ladanyi; Harry Landry; George Gruel. Photographer: Randee Saint Nicholas. Personnel: Warren Zevon (guitar, acoustic 12-string guitar, piano, prepared piano, electric piano, synthesizer, background vocals); Waddy Wachtel (guitar, acoustic guitar, percussion, background vocals); David Landau (guitar, background vocals); Danny Kortchmar, Kenny Edwards, Steve Lukather (guitar); LeRoy Marinell (acoustic guitar); Jim Horn (recorder); Jeff Porcaro (drums, log drum); Mike Botts, Rick Marotta, Russ Kunkel (drums); Steve Forman (percussion); J.D. Souther (background vocals). Audio Mixer: Greg Ladanyi.

I Stand Alone/You Never Know Who Your Friends Are album for sale 2007 digitally remastered two CD release of Jefferson Airplane's complete final show recorded at the Winterland in San Francisco in September of 1972. 21 tracks in all mainly taken from their final two studio albums. Includes: 'Wooden Ships', 'Have You Seen The Saucers?', 'Crown of Creation', 'Somebody To Love', 'Papa John's Down Home Blues' and more. Charly. Recorded in 1972 at the Jefferson Airplane's final show before re-emerging as Jefferson Starship two years later, LAST FLIGHT captures the end of an era. Over the course of these two discs, we're taken on a tour of the Airplane's history, as they tear into career highlights like their signature smash, "Somebody to Love," all snarling guitar and wailing vocals; the moody sci-fi folk-rock of "Wooden Ships;" and the psychedelic glory of "Crown of Creation." The sounds the band seared into the heads of the crowd at the Winterland that night seem just as potent all these decades later. Jefferson Airplane: Paul Kantner (vocals, guitar); Grace Slick (vocals); Jorma Kaukonen (guitar); Jack Casady (bass guitar).

I Stand Alone/You Never Know Who Your Friends Are CD music Bill Tillman (flute, tenor saxophone); Tony Klatka, Forrest Buchtell (trumpet); Dave Bargeron (trombone, tuba); Larry Willis (electric piano); Danny Trifan (bass guitar); Bobby Colomby (drums); Don Alias (percussion). Additional personnel includes: Patti Austin (vocals); Steve Khan, Eric Gale, Hugh McCracken (guitar); Eric Weissberg (banjo, dobro); Sid Weinberg (oboe); Arnie Lawrence (alto saxophone); Marvin Stamm, Jon Faddis (trumpet); Dave Taylor (trombone); Dave Friedman (vibraphone, marimba, xylophone); Richard Tee, Bob James (keyboards); Gary King (bass). More Than Ever was the last studio effort by the re-formed, reconstituted Blood, Sweat & Tears, with David Clayton-Thomas back in the lineup and the whole group invigorated after coming off of a successful international tour. For the first time since its second album, the group -- with only drummer Bobby Colomby left from the original lineup and Bob James producing -- sounds bold, enthused, and fully positive in its approach. The sound is a little more R&B oriented and less rocking than the older lineup, which actually makes a better fit overall -- Thomas' singing style is a bit dated, from a tradition of '60s blue-eyed soul that seems fine, but which was really out-of-place amid the disco boom of the second half of the '70s. The group's obvious enthusiasm -- there's not a lot here that sounds like it wasn't played with joy -- and the smooth mix of R&B, jazz, and gospel influences coupled with the larger-than-life sound of the production (the ten-man band is joined by 13 guest musicians and eight backup singers, among them Patti Austin and Gwen Guthrie) helps put over some very solid material. "They," "I Love You More Than Ever," "You're the One," and the soaring, haunting "Heavy Blue" are highlights of a pretty strong album. Nothing here is remotely as revelatory as anything on Child Is Father to the Man or as startlingly fresh in a pop vein as the Blood, Sweat & Tears album, but it's a good 40 minutes of listening. The pity is that the Columbia Records art department couldn't muster as much inspiration on its end as the musicians did on theirs -- one can only wonder who got paid for coming up with the "idea" of using an enlarged copy of the album label as the front cover art. But bad art aside, this record is not only one worth finding -- it's one worth keeping. [The Wounded Bird CD reissue offers very good sound, incidentally, far outstripping the clarity of such old Columbia issues as the Blood, Sweat & Tears 3 album, and all but one song is new to CD.] ~ Bruce Eder Blood, Sweat & Tears was an extraordinarily successful rock group in the 60's and 70's. They had numerous charting albums. One that has never come out CD is More Than Ever, originally released in 1976. Featuring lead vocalist David Clayton-Thomas, fans will scarf this one up! Wounded Bird. 2003. Originally released on Columbia. Blood, Sweat & Tears: David Clayton-Thomas (vocals); Mike Stern (guitar); Personnel: David Clayton-Thomas, Ullanda McCullough, Gwen Guthrie, Yolanda McCullough, Lani Groves, Patti Austin, Zachary Sanders, Bill Eaton, Vivian Cherry, Frank Floyd, Chaka Khan (vocals); Mike Stern (guitar, electric guitar); Eric Weissberg (guitar, dobro, banjo); Eric Gale , Hugh McCracken, Steve Khan (guitar); Bill Tillman (flute, saxophone, tenor saxophone); Sidney Weinberg (oboe); Arnie Lawrence (saxophone, alto saxophone); Tony Klatka (saxophone, trumpet); Forrest Batchell, Jon Faddis, Marvin Stamm (trumpet); Dave Bargeron (trombone, tuba); Dave Taylor , David Taylor (trombone); Larry Willis, Richard Tee, Bob James (keyboards); Dave Friedman (vibraphone, marimba, xylophone); Bobby Colomby (drums); David Friedman, Don Alias (percussion).