Jon Corneal / International Submarine Band - Back at Home/Jon Corneal and the Orang CD

Back at Home/Jon Corneal and the Orang CD music Warren Zevon came roaring out of the '70s touchy-feely California singer-songwriter gene pool with one hand on the piano and the other waving a pistol. While his more genteel peers were primarily concerned with taking it easy, Zevon crawled under the seedy side of L.A. and poured it into his ivories, taking in every ounce of decadence and excess. Although the weight the underworld would eventually all but break him, EXCITABLE BOY finds Zevon empowered by his surroundings. The terrain is unsettling, bizarre and often soaked with blood. Stalking across the landscape are pina colada-sipping werewolves, headless mercenaries, and desperate gamblers. That the sound and overall musical mood of the record is upbeat underscores Zevon's ability to attach a winning melody to a gallow's tale. The home runs are the instantly memorable "Werewolves of London," the murderous glee of "Excitable Boy," and the affecting "Accidentally Like a Martyr." The inclusion of obvious filler cuts detract from the overall focus of the record but that is a small complaint. After all, it takes a special man to turn a tale of rape and murder into a cheery singalong. "Excitable Boy", originally released in ’83 and produced by Jackson Browne and Waddy Wachtel, hit #8 on Billboard®’s Pop albums chart and made Zevon a star. Includes the essential signature songs “Werewolves Of London”, a #21 hit single and “Lawyers, Guns And Money.” Also features “Roland The Headless Thompson Gunner,” “Excitable Boy,” “Accidentally Like A Martyr,” and other Zevon classics. Four previously unissued bonus treasures include an alternate version of “Werewolves,” a solo piano version of “Tule’s Blues,” and an outtake of “I Need A Truck.” In-depth liner notes by Rolling Stone writer David Fricke. Audio Mixers: Dennis Kirk; Greg Ladanyi. Audio Remasterers: Dan Hersch; Bill Inglot. Liner Note Author: David Fricke. Recording information: Sound Factory, Los Angeles, CA. Photographers: Jimmy Wachtel; Lorrie Sullivan. Personnel includes: Warren Zevon (vocals, piano, organ); Danny Kortchmar (guitar, percussion); Arthur Gerst (harp); Waddy Wachtel, Jim Horn (saxophone); Kenny Edwards, John McVie, Bob Glaub, Leland Sklar (bass); Rick Marotta, Mick Fleetwood, Jeff Porcaro (drums); Greg Ladanyi (percussion); Karla Bonoff, Jennifer Warnes, Jackson Browne, Jorge Calderon, J.D. Souther, Linda Rondstadt (background vocals). Personnel: Warren Zevon (piano, organ, synthesizer); Waddy Wachtel (guitar, synthesizer); Danny Kortchmar (guitar, percussion); Manuel Vasquez (requinto); Luis Damian (jarana); Jim Horn (recorder, ...

Back at Home/Jon Corneal and the Orang album for sale As the fourth Nuggets box from Rhino, LOVE IS THE SONG WE SING: SAN FRANCISCO FRANCISCO 1965-1970 is easily the most specific and idiosyncratic yet, a set devoted to a time and a place: namely the Bay Area that sowed the seeds of the Summer of Love in 1967. Released in conjunction with that 40th anniversary, LOVE IS THE SONG WE SING is surely a time capsule, but it may not be as much interest to those who lived through it as those who pine for the glory days of free love, hippies, and psychedelia. No less of an authority than legendary rock critic Greil Marcus noted in his Interview magazine review that many of these bands are obscure to him -- and he lived through the time, in the Bay Area, so he should know. Chances are the average listener looking for a heavy dose of nostalgia will also find LOVE IS THE SONG rather overwhelming in its reliance on momentary sensations and obscurities, but that's kind of the point of all the Nuggets sets: to dig way deeper than the surface and find the best of its chosen subculture. Fans of Nuggets know this, but the odd thing is that they may not be entirely satisfied with this set either, as it deviates from the Nuggets formula in a couple of crucial ways. First, there are some genuinely huge songs by genuinely huge bands -- like Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit," Country Joe & the Fish's "I Feel Like I'm Fixing to Die Rag," Blue Cheer's "Summertime Blues," and Santana's "Evil Ways" -- a few more marquee names than normal (including the Grateful Dead, Steve Miller Band, Janis Joplin, Sly & the Family Stone, and Moby Grape), and bands are occasionally repeated, but the biggest musical difference is that this is a decided shift away from the wild, wooly guitar rock of the previous Nuggets, lacking both the raw garage and hard, swirling psychedelia that has been the hallmark of the series. Instead, LOVE IS THE SONG WE SING is firmly within the camp of the hippies, documenting their rise, their peak, and softly disguising their fall by ending the set in 1970, when the Summer of Love was still echoing strongly but just beginning to fade. This set takes its time to get to 1967, as that legendary summer doesn't roll around until disc three, but the pace never seems leisurely, as the first two discs document how that summer came to be, beginning with Dino Valenti's "Let's Get Together" (which provides the chorus to the Youngbloods' "Get Together," the '60s standard that closes the set), then winds its way through a lot of folk-rock before tougher, bluesier, trippier sounds work their way into the mix toward the beginning of the second disc. Just like the hippies, LOVE never really abandons these folkie beginnings and that communal vibe is always present even as soul, jazz, bluegrass, blues, and avant-garde bubble toward the surface. Ultimately, it's best to view this box set as a document of the era of the hippies, a piece of pop culture anthropology that might not be perfect but there is no comparable compilation to this, no other set that has the same scope or ambition. Various Artists Liner Note Authors: Ben Fong-Torres; Gene Sculatti. Love Is The Song We Sing: San Francisco Nuggets 1965-1970 - Import CD

Back at Home/Jon Corneal and the Orang buy CD music Although the Zombies broke up at the end of 1967, there wasn't a wholly clean break between that era and the time by which Rod Argent and Chris White established themselves with Argent, and Colin Blunstone established himself as a solo artist. For a year or two, they variously wrote, recorded, and produced demos and low-profile official releases as they hatched their next moves, Blunstone even left the music business entirely for a while. While some of this material came out under the Zombies name, much of it either remained unreleased or (in the case of Blunstone's recordings) was issued under the pseudonym of Neil MacArthur. The 20-track Into the Afterlife compilation rescues much of this rare material, combining numerous previously unissued demos recorded by the group's primary songwriters (Argent and White) with both sides of all three of the singles Blunstone released as Neil MacArthur. It also offers a couple MacArthur/Blunstone outtakes, alternate "orchestral" mixes of a few late Zombies tracks, an Italian-language recording of MacArthur's "She's Not There," and even a genuinely live-on-TV 1967 Zombies cover of the Miracles' "Going to a Go-Go." Far from being a barrel-scraping exercise, it shows the musicians to be making interesting music in its own right that often sounded like a natural continuation of what the Zombies had recorded in the late '60s. Argent handles lead vocals on the Argent/White demos, and while he's not quite as good a singer as Blunstone, he's both good and has a similar style, making those cuts sound pretty close to genuine Zombies tracks. Their songs share many traits with the Zombies' material circa Odessey and Oracle in their baroque melodicism, breathy vocals, and haunting flavor, though with just a tinge of the progressive rock that was starting to emerge at the end of the '60s. "Telescope (Mr. Galileo)" and "Unhappy Girl" are both standouts in this regard, and "To Julia (For When She Smiles)," the best track on the entire CD, is more than a standout; its delicate combination of quasi-classical balladry and choral backup vocals is every bit the equal of the best tracks on Odessey and Oracle. The Neil MacArthur tracks (including the minor U.K. hit remake of "She's Not There") are more floridly produced orchestrated pop/rock, but also have their silky charms, particularly the cover of Nilsson's "Without Her" and the more understated, acoustic-oriented sad ballad "World of Glass." Thorough annotation by Zombies expert Alec Palao ices the package, and as none of the tracks appear on the otherwise thorough Palao-compiled Zombies box set Zombie Heaven, this CD is a necessary supplement to that box for fans of the group. ~ Richie Unterberger Almost a decade in the making, Big Beat releases Into The Afterlife. A natural sequel to the acclaimed box set Zombie Heaven, this compilation is essentially what they did next. After The Zombies split in April 1968 songwriters Rod Argent and Chris White Liner Note Author: Alec Palao.

Back at Home/Jon Corneal and the Orang songs Gram Parsons casts a long shadow in the history of the Flying Burrito Brothers, but while he started the band, he didn't finish it, and the rest of the group continued to make music after he moved on to a solo career. This CD from the Australian Raven label contains the third and fourth Flying Burrito Brothers' albums, recorded in the wake of Parsons' departure and with Chris Hillman taking the reigns as the group's leader. The self-titled third album, with Rick Roberts signing on as lead singer, lacks the spark of the Burritos' instant-classic debut, but if nothing else it's more consistent and better focused than Burrito Deluxe (recorded as Parsons was growing tired of his own creation), and the brief appearance of Gene Clark on his classic "Tried So Hard" suggests that adding another Byrds alumnus to the act could have returned this band to greatness. The album's chief drawback is in the songwriting, as the covers and contributions from outside writers tend to outshine what Roberts and Hillman brought to the sessions, but this was still a better than average country rock band that knew its way around the studio. They were also a crack live act, and Last of the Red Hot Burritos captured the band playing a set of tunes from their studio albums, some acoustic bluegrass chestnuts, and some classic R&B tunes before an audience of rowdy fans on what was supposed to be the group's final tour. (It was indeed Hillman's swan song with the Burritos, but pedal steel man Pete Kleinow obtained rights to the name and toured under the Burritos banner well into the '90s.) By the time Last of the Red Hot Burritos was recorded, Hillman was the only original member left, but this lineup more than delivers the goods, and their respect for the music is clear and audible throughout. Raven has done a fine job of remastering both albums, and Ian McFarlane's liner notes offer a fine overview of this period in the band's career. This is a worthwhile release for fans of classic country rock. ~ Mark Deming Liner Note Author: Ian McFarlane. Recording information: Electric Lady Studio. Photographer: Jim McCrary. The Flying Burrito Brothers: Chris Hillman, Al Perkins , Rick Roberts , Bernie Leadon. Personnel: Mike Deasy Sr. (guitar); Bob Gibson (acoustic 12-string guitar); Earl Ball (piano).

Back at Home/Jon Corneal and the Orang album for sale Memphis-based Ardent Records was an outgrowth of the legendary Ardent studios, whose clients were top-shelf artists from both sides of the Atlantic, but the label drew from a stunningly deep pool of local talent, eventually becoming best known for power-pop icons Big Star. THANK YOU FRIENDS is a two-disc collection that charts the course of the little label that could, following it from its lo-fi origins in the 1960s through to its `70s heyday and its partnership with Stax Records. The first disc, covering Ardent's humble beginnings, is a treasure trove of psych/garage-rock rarities, including not only obscure names like The Goatdancers and Christmas Future, but also some of the earliest work of Big Star singer/guitarists Alex Chilton and Chris Bell. The second disc overflows with power-pop glory, featuring a wealth of classic Big Star cuts, as well as solo gems from Chilton and Bell, and some choice tracks from `70s power-pop cult heroes the Scruffs and Tommy Hoehn. (2-CD set) The compilation is neatly divided between two eras of the studio/label. Disc one (the 60's) features rare and unissued garage and psychedelic singles and early studio experiments of Big Star's Alex Chilton and Chris Bell. Disc two (the 70's) e Liner Note Author: Alec Palao.

Back at Home/Jon Corneal and the Orang CD music While it might not be the mainline shot of rock & roll that was their debut, the Sonic's second studio full-length, released in 1966, is a stellar album in its own right. BOOM, which alludes to both the band's regional origins and the inspiration for their name (the Pacific Northwest being a fabled testing ground for Boeing jets), contains raw garage-rock originals such as "Cinderella" and "The Hustler"; punked up versions of "Jenny Jenny Jenny" and "Don't You Just Know It"; and a howling, scorched-earth take on the definitive anthem for rock-&-roll delinquency "Louie Louie." The Sonics embodied everything rock & roll was and is still about: taking the most primal and carefree aspects of being alive and providing them with a musical avatar. Three chords never sounded so truthful. The 1999 Norton Records reissue contains three bonus tracks. UK 12-track CD album - Originally released as Etiquette LP 027 in 1965, it is every bit as explosive and influential as their debut 'Here Are The Sonics'. Big Beat. 2007. Recorded in 1965. Originally released on Etiquette. Includes liner notes by Miriam Linna. Digitally remastered by Bob Irwin. Recording information: Wiley/Griffith Studios. Photographer: Jini Dellaccio. The Sonics: Larry Parypa, Andy Parypa, Gerry Rosalie, Bob Bennett, Rob Lind.