Franco Battiato Come Un Cammello In Una Grondaia CD - Import

Most of the 14 tunes on 'Fire & Water' were written by Padula with a few exceptions. Vermont writers Carol Abair, Susannah Blachly and the late Rachel Bissex also appear as songwriters. 'There is a definite Vermont vibe to this project,' Padula says. 'It also deals with a lot of opposing ideas and conflicts- fire and water, love and loss, red states and blue states. For me, what's more interesting than polarized points of view is what happens in between them when things get mixed up and real communication happens.

Upon listening to Jacobs-Strain's latest CD, Liar's Day, you can imagine him inviting his touchstone, American bluesman Taj Mahal, on a musical walkabout. You can imagine them conferring with Salif Keita, Afro-pop songster of Mali; and conversing with Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, Indian slide guitarist; and even conjuring the spirit of John Lennon while tramping in the Siskiyou Mountains of Oregon. The traces of these musical excursions interweave with the fat sounds of a rock rhythm section. The results cohere into a genre-defying journal of Jacob-Strain's pursuit to honor both the roots of American country blues and the possibilities that can grow from them.

The mix of instruments and old-school analog effects on this album produce 'a sonic palette that's neither just blues nor just rock and roll,' Jacobs-Strain says. Liar's Day was produced by his mentor and collaborator, Kenny Passarelli (Otis Taylor, Stephen Stills), who's also featured on the bass. They're joined by Joe Vitale on drums. 'I wanted a big, aggressive drum sound-a Neil Young or Tom Petty sound-that still allowed space for the Traugott acoustic and National steel guitars. I got it by working with Joe and Kenny, Joe Walsh's rhythm section in the '70s.

'His obsession with sound serves a deeper purpose than a mere desire to display technical wizardry. 'For me, there's something about rural blues that has a transcendent quality, a wide open sound. Think of the rhythm of a train. There's a cross between spiritual and secular music in Fred McDowell. Compared to commercial electric blues, the Delta blues are more interesting modally and have a spiritual depth to them. You can also hear anger, humor, and empathy. I'm going after the texture, the tone and feel of that.

''I've always been drawn to the trance-oriented, heavier, Delta blues-to the driving, passionate, raw, distraught sound of somebody like Son House,' he says. 'When you're in the flow of the music, there's an ecstasy to it. Of course, when I was 12, I thought I knew what Robert Johnson's 'Come on into My Kitchen' was all about.