Bonham Discography of CDs

Audio Mixers: Bob Ezrin; Stan Katayama. Recording information: One On One Recording, North Hollywood, CA. Photographers: J.P. Morgan; Jeff Katz. Arranger: Trevor Rabin. Bonham: Daniel Macmaster (vocals); Ian Hatton (guitar); John Smithson (bass, keyboards); Jason Bonham (drums, percussion). Personnel: Daniel MacMaster (vocals); Ian Hatton (guitar); John Smithson (violin, keyboards); Jimmy "Z" Zavala (harmonica); Bill Millay (midi, keyboard programming); Jason Bonham (drums, percussion); Duncan Faure, Trevor Rabin (background vocals).

It would be near impossible to listen to this album without at least a passing knowledge of Led Zeppelin, the band that Jason Bonham's father played drums for throughout the '70s. Now that Bonham has his own band, he tries to capitalize on the sound that his father's perfected. This works both for and against him. In certain cases, such as the epic "Change of a Season," he proves that he has learned a lot about song structure and strong hooks from his pedigree. Bonham can sustain a long, atmospheric rock with a sense of dynamics, but on other tracks, like the hard rocking "Backdoor," he proves that he has not mastered the art of making a memorable barn burner. Still, it is hard to deny that tracks like "Ride on a Dream," "Hold On," and "The Good With the Bad" are fairly successful attempts at recapturing Zeppelin's glory. It is too bad that they are surrounded by some very average filler tracks that are more Poison-influenced than they would probably care to admit. Fans of good hard rock who do not expect something vastly original will be happy; others, especially fans of Zeppelin, may not want to spend their money on this. ~ Bradley Torreano Recorded at Advision Studios, Brighton, Sussex. Producers: Tony Platt, Bonham, Ron Saint Germain, Duane Baron. Engineers: Ron Saint Germain, David Thoener. Bonham: Daniel MacMaster (vocals); Ian Hatton (guitar); John Smithson (violin, keyboards, bass, background vocals); Jason Bonham (drums).

Track Listing of songs: Bing; Mad Hatter; Change of a Season; Hold On; Storm; Ride on a Dream; Good with the Bad; Backdoor; Secrets; Los Locos; Chimera;

Upon first glance, Riyel (pronounced "ree-yell") is a jazz trio that seems simple in its instrumentation of trumpet, trombone, and electric bass guitar. But with the addition of many extra friends, this band based in Haiti is much more powerful and resilient, just as the people who survived their earthquake-ravaged island nation. With American expatriate Ken Watters (son of the late and famous Harry Watters) alongside Andre Atkins and Yves Abel, this band creates a smorgasbord of ethno-funk, tapping on traditions from Port Au Prince, other Caribbean locales, and Africa itself. Very similar to bands like Antibalas or Nomo, Riyel plays exuberant, celebratory music, good for dancing and staying in the present. While many tracks come alive with the rhythm & blues-styled horns that shout out and leap from the speakers, trumpeter Watters is in many instances the focal point. His composition "Sommerset Road" and the Abel/Atkins contribution "Big Money" both groove in a tribal manner reminiscent of South African township jazz, but done in a purely Haitian dialect. Some choral music, sweeter waltz sounds, pronounced clarion horns, and Abel's popping bass are also accounted for. What one might not expect is the heavy and loud Led Zeppelin tune "Four Sticks" done in 5/4 time, or a version of the modal Joe ...