Monday, April 30, 2007

Beez on Beale Street

Continuing on the theme of local bands and bars, here's another great bar experience of mine. I was in Memphis several years ago and stopped by the B.B. King's Blues club. The band that was playing that night was fantastic. Enjoying myself tremendously, I decided to buy their CD. Got all of them to autograph it too!

The band was the King Beez and the CD I bought was Against The Grain. This was a great, energetic band playing with a clean, strong, percussive sound. They handled the big band blowout songs just as well as the down, slow, groovy blues numbers.

The CD is outstanding, with the great instrumental title track and some good pure blues. Looking at the bios on their web site, it appears that the only members still playing from the lineup I saw are the founders James Jackson and Solomon McDaniel. Also, unfortunately, it almost appears that they have evolved into a blues cover band. The album Against the Grain has mostly originals except for one song. The key songwriter on the CD (David Bowen) seems to have left the band. Too bad. Listen to this tune - you won't be surprised that I heard this band at the B.B. King's Blues Club on Beale Street!

1. The King Beez - I Wanna Git It (4.43 MB; 128kbps MP3)

Saturday, April 28, 2007

Your Next Boyfriend - Cam Waters

After suggesting in my last post that music is universal and that melody is paramount, I'm going to do an about face. If you focus on catchy melodies and beat, you miss the emotion conveyed by the lyrics. Now, I'll admit that I'm not a "lyrics man." I almost never pay attention to song lyrics (about the only album I know all the lyrics to is Jesus Christ Superstar). But people who write their own songs generally seem to have something real to say - in a clever way. For example, read this lyric from Cam Waters' "Like Normal People Do."

And he said let's go to the living room and turn on the TV
And I won't speak to you and you won't even look at me
Then we'll be talking to each other like normal people do

Now isn't that a clever way to make a statement? Beautiful!

One of the things I enjoyed doing is (when possible) to pop into bars and listen to some local band. The best part of traveling in this country is that you can often find excellent singers in the smallest and pokiest bars and restaurants. These tend to be people who genuinely love the music and perform for peanuts. It just offers them a release for their pent up emotions. These are not the voices you're going to find on American Idol (Thank God for that!), but the music tends to be heartfelt. I'm not talking of the cover bands. I'm talking of the independent musicians - singers and songwriters who use music to express themselves - who don't perform to make a buck. Some are awful, some you feel sorry for, some are decent, some are great, but all are genuine.

So, I was in Rochester, Minnesota several years ago and stopped in a bar with Cam Waters. Not the voice that'll win awards, but he seemed to be enjoying himself while pouring his heart into his singing. I had such a great time that I could not resist buying his CD. Here are a couple of selections of pure American folk-blues from Mr. Cam Waters. The first song has simple, spontaneous lyrics with a catchy tune and the second also seems to have been written after a personal experience!

You can find Cam Waters' CDs on his web site http://www.camwaters.com. Both the selections here are from his album Shoetown. Unfortunately, when I checked his "gigs" page, it was empty. Sad.

1. Cam Waters - Your Next Boyfriend (2.01 MB; 128kbps MP3)
2. Cam Waters - Never Have Been Satisfied (3.11 MB; 128kbps MP3)

Friday, April 27, 2007

French In My Flesh!

Hopefully that morbid title will get you intrigued enough to try this band. When I was in France earlier this year, my brother recommended this band when I asked him a sample of local rock music. I listened to it in the car a couple of times and decided to go buy the CDs of this band myself. The band is an (apparently popular) French rock band called KYO. I was able to pick up a reasonably inexpensive set of two of their CDs at a Carrefour. Of course, as usual, I find I could have bought it Amazon a lot cheaper. Here's a link to the 2 CD set.

Even my 12-year old son loves this band and he often voluntarily puts this CD in the player. Catchy rock in the vein of Semisonic, The Wallflowers, and Maroon 5. Truly an indication of the importance of melody in music - none of us understand a word of what's being sung, but truly enjoy the songs. Here are a couple of selections from their CD 300 Lésions. You can find their debut album on Amazon here.

By the way, I have no idea how accurate this is, but the song title Dans Ma Chair was translated by Google Translator as "In The Flesh" Someone with a better understanding of French, please correct me if this is completely off base.

Meanwhile, enjoy "Contact" and "In The Flesh"!

1. Kyo - Contact (3.34 MB; 128 kbps MP3)
2. Kyo - Dans Ma Chair (3.09 MB; 128kbps MP3)

Thursday, April 26, 2007

Merle on Elvis

Now here's a real rarity. There were numerous tributes to Elvis after he died but few that were really memorable. One country great to record a touching tribute to Elvis on his death was Merle Haggard. I purchased this album when I was in India and loved the opening song, From Graceland to Promised Land. The rest of the album consists of Merle covering several Elvis tunes and these are great too.

I was told that this album has long been out of print, but as usual, a search on Amazon turns up miracles. Apparently, MCA Special Products released this 1995 but kept me in the dark. Go figure! I've been treasuring this vinyl album for years and now I find I can just go out and get it on CD? What's that all about?

Anyway, now that I've saved you the trouble of hunting for it, buy the album here. If this puts you in the mood for more Merle, here are all his albums on Amazon's list. It really is a great album with heartfelt renderings of the songs. Here is the title tune as well as one of the covers. These are from my vinyl version. I just transferred them to the computer, but there's minimal crackle and hiss. Enjoy!

1. Merle Haggard - From Graceland to Promised Land (2.25 MB; 128kbps MP3)
2. Merle Haggard - That's Alright Mama (2.27 MB; 128kbps MP3)

Wednesday, April 25, 2007

Bizarre Beatles!

Interestingly, the site records show that the most downloaded posts on this blog are the Ananda Shankar versions of the Elvis songs. That is the only one that also resulted in a comment being posted. So, on popular request, I'll return to some weird cover versions.

Consistent with the last versions, I'll start with a "sitar" version of I Want To Hold Your Hand. When I was kid, I distinctly remember this vinyl LP record of "Balsara and His Singing Sitars" with catchy (fusion, I guess) sitar-heavy versions of a variety of songs. Well, the first oddity I'll post here is from Balsara.

I got this selection from one of my many Beatles cover CDs. This collection is called The Exotic Beatles, Pt. 1and includes many off-beat and outright bizarre versions of Beatles songs in many languages (Spanish, Japanese, Malay, and more). Some are more bizarre than others. I have also included here a strange flamenco version of She Loves You from this collection. Many of the songs in this collection seem to be recorded off vinyl without too much reprocessing so the quality on some of these are not that great. Still, you'll agree they're quite interesting.

If you like such bizarre covers, you may want to pick up not only Pt. 1, but also Exotic Beatles Pt. 2 and Exotic Beatles Pt. 3 at Amazon (just follow the links) or your favorite music store.

1. Balsara and His Singing Sitars - I Want To Hold Your Hand (2.03 MB; 128 Kbps MP3)
2. Emi Bonilla Y Su Caudro - She Loves You [Te Quires] (3 MB; 128kbps MP3)

Tuesday, April 24, 2007

On Popular Demand - Ananda Shankar Does Elvis

Completely unexpectedly, it looks like the links to the two Elvis songs from Ananda SHankar in my earlier post got the most response. Of course, that could be because the first place on the Internet where I posted any information about this blog was the forum on Vinyl Vulture - and that too in response to a post about this album. I'm already learning about the importance of targeting the promotion of this blog appropriately. I guess if I had the time, I could go all out and publicize the existence of this blog. But then it would be a commercial venture more than just a fun hobby.

So, by popular demand, here is a posting of the remaining two Ananda Shankar songs from the India Remembers Elvis EP. Please remember that I just got these off my EP without any cleaning or editing, so it does include some pops and crackle. I would welcome your comments on these and other recordings. Remember, you can find the Ananda Shankar catalog for purchase on Amazon here.

1. Ananda Shankar - Can't Help Falling In Love (2.74 MB; 128kbps MP3)
2. Ananda Shankar - How Would You Like To Be (2.94 MB; 128kbps MP3)

Monday, April 23, 2007

Hawaii on a Silver Platter

Whenever I visit places, I like to sample music from the place I visit. Usually, I just try and find what is "hot" in the country I'm visiting and buy a sampling of the popular music from there. I find it much easier to evoke memories of the place from the music than just a plastic souvenir. Expect quite a bit of "world music" sampling in this blog down the line. In the near future, I have already lined up some music from France, India and Poland.

Before we travel that far, though, let me take you to Hawaii. While most of you have heard some Hawaiian music, I was entranced by CDs from Keali'i Reichel during my visit to Hawaii many, many years ago. Like most of my world music tastes, this is probably not "traditional" music but rather fusion music that blends traditional elements with modern melodies and instruments to make the sound easier for us to process. In addition to Keali'i Reichel, I also bought an album by Israel Kamakawiwo'ole (Facing Future) which was also great, but didn't find it as instantly likable as the one by Reichel. I just found myself putting the Reichel album on more frequently. Still, if you like these samples and decide to purchase a Keali'i Reichel album, make sure you also check out Israel Kamakawiwo'ole. You can find this album on Amazon here. If you'd rather see all the Keali'i Reichel albums carried by Amazon (including a Greatest Hits collection), click here.

The wonder of this album is that it consists of catchy melodies and a strong, clear tenor vocal. You may not understand a word of what is being sung, but you can't help but sway to the music. You'll also find it absolutely relaxing - nothing jarring or grating on this album at all. For you Beatles fans, there's even a cover of In My Life on the Kawaipunahele album. Even if you've never been to Hawaii, this album is bound to instantly generate the beautiful imagery of the islands. Now that's powerful music.

So, from the album Kawaipunahele, here are two songs from Keali'i Reichel ...

1. Keali'i Reichel - Ku'u Wehi O Ke Aumoe (3.63 MB; 128kbps MP3)
2. Keali'i Reichel - Kawaipunahele (4.38 MB; 128kbps MP3)

Sunday, April 22, 2007

Cliff Who?

Okay, to almost anyone except the masses in America, this is going to seem like a ridiculous post and not worthy of "underheard music." Anticipating the flaming, I'm going to get defensive and remind you of the fact that this blog is called UNDERheard music and not unheard music.

Cliff Richard (Sir Cliff Richard to you) is one of the most legendary singers of our time. It would be ludicrous for me to try and describe his career here. He has had a #1 hit in every decade since the 50s. You can read about him here or visit his official page here. He still sells out stadiums in most countries around the world, but remains relatively unknown in America.

Cliff's style of music has changed quite a bit over the years, so it is difficult for me to select one or two songs that characterize Cliff's music. However, for this initial post, I'll focus on his early years around 1959-1961 (maybe returning to Cliff's 70s, 80s, 90s and 2000s stuff later this year).

Both these selections are among his greatest hits, so would be familiar to almost anyone except, as I said, the American masses. I would love it if you could add a comment here if you have never heard these Cliff Richard songs.

Both these songs are characteristic of his 50s-60s stuff in that it offers simple, beautiful melodies with very basic, heartfelt lyrics. None of the overproduction you see in today's music. I guess if you didn't have a real good voice (that would allow you to sing without much instrumental backing) you wouldn't have been able to hack it in the "old days."

Here are all the Cliff Richard albums available on Amazon. If you like the songs below, you may want to start with this 40 Golden Greats album that focuses mostly on his earlier hits. If you remember Devil Woman (one of his few American hits) you may want to move on to his 70s-80s hits with this Razor & Tie compilation called The Cliff Richard Collection.

Please let me know if this is the first time you're hearing these songs. What do you think?

1. Cliff Richard - Living Doll (3.61 MB; 128kbps MP3)
2. Cliff Richard - Theme for a Dream (2.4 MB; 128kbps MP3)

Saturday, April 21, 2007

Justin Roth - Singer, Songwriter

I teach at a University in the business school and am fortunate to have musicians as students every now and then. One of my former students is Justin Roth who I would describe as a troubadour (he may object, in which case I'd be happy to alter this description). While I enjoyed his first album, I think his 2003 album Shine is a particular joy to listen to. I think it is well recorded, well balanced, and I also think his voice has developed to have a better tonal quality than on his first album.

Although I missed him on his last visit to town, I did get the album and have listened to it many times since then. Both the songs I am featuring here are from Shine. However, the "fun" frolic titled "Dead Horse Trampoline" is not written by Justin (almost all the other songs on the album are written by him). I challenge you to listen to Dead Horse Trampoline without smiling.

You can find out more about Justin here. His touring schedule is here. Please buy his CDs here.

1. Justin Roth - Dead Horse Trampoline (2.85 MB; 128kbps MP3)
2. Justin Roth - Pull (3.21 MB; 128kbps MP3)

Friday, April 20, 2007

There's Starbucks in Atlanta?

Okay, admit it - how many of you have heard of Starbuck? No, I'm not talking coffee, though this upbeat, happy song could certainly perk you up. This selection is another one from the "Maxell Rock Sampler" that I transferred from vinyl recently.

Starbuck was a 70's era Atlanta band that had a few hits, most notably Moonlight Feels Right. Frankly, I had not heard of Starbuck, even though I thoroughly enjoyed this perky tune. When I was writing up this little intro to the music clip, I decided to see if any of their albums were available. Amazingly, Amazon listed a couple of Starbuck albums, but the lead singer of the band, Bruce Blackman had posted on the Amazon page that these were illegally released demos and not the original album versions of the song. I guess Starbuck is still unreleased. Like all the "Maxell Sampler" recordings I'll add here, the sound is sonically clear. According to the liner notes, "full vocal harmonies and fuzz-tone guitars back an extremely clear, strong tenor lead vocal ... Listen for the clear ringing of the opening brush hitting the cymbal. Listen also for a rarity in modern rock music: a crystalline unfuzzed guitar solo that's completely free from intentional distortion." Don't these liner notes sound like wine tasting notes?

Enjoy this song and then hope that some more Starbuck is released soon. You can check out the Starbuck MySpace page to hear Moonlight Feels Right. According to that page, Bruce Blackman is still around and in the industry and has written a couple of movie scores.

Great pop/rock that actually makes you smile!

Starbuck - It Feels So Good (3.26 MB; 128 kbps MP3)

Thursday, April 19, 2007

India Does Elvis

Ananda Shankar was a musician way ahead of his time. He was a nephew of Ravi Shankar and an extremely talented musician. In the sixties, he moved to California and was one of the first to create some exceptional fusion albums that blended Indian instruments and melodies with those from the West. After moving back to India, he and his wife (choreographer Tanusree Shankar) would tour with a large troupe performing these multimedia extravaganzas with a full orchestra and a large dance troupe. With great lighting effects, the audience would be treated to a great show of dances choreographed by Tanusree while Ananda conducted the orchestra. I attended a few of these concerts in my early days in India and thoroughly enjoyed them.

His famous 1975 album Ananda Shankar and his Music was re-released in 2005 and is available at Amazon.com. You can find other Ananda Shankar albums on Amazon here. His self-titled first album, highlighted his initial experiments with fusion by including the Rolling Stones' Jumping Jack Flash and The Doors' Light My Fire in his trademark sitar-tinged style.

When I was in Calcutta in the early 80s, I had seen a few of his shows and, as an Elvis fan, was delighted to see that he had produced a 4-song EP called India Remembers Elvis as a tribute to Elvis Presley on his death in 1977. The record store I bought it from had hosted Ananda Shankar some time ago and this EP was autographed by Mr. Shankar himself. It included four Elvis songs done with all the usual Indian instruments. It is my understanding that these songs have never been released since their original appearance on this E.P.

So, from my record collection, here is Ananda Shankar and his orchestra performing two of the Elvis songs from the India Remembers Elvis extended play record.

[NOTE: I have also added the other two songs from this EP in another post later]

1. Ananda Shankar - Teddy Bear (2.42 MB; 128 kbps MP3)
2. Ananda Shankar - His Latest Flame (2 MB; 128 kbps MP3)

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Triumph in Melodic Rock

Moving from one extreme to the other, lets go from Broadway show tunes to classic rock. A brilliant band that masterfully blended solid guitar rock with orchestral themes was the Canadian band Triumph. One of my first introductions to this band was from a widely distributed vinyl audiophile sampler called the Maxell Rock Sampler. That record included as its opening tune a sweeping, rocking, melodic, classic rock masterpiece medley Blinding Light Show/Moonchild. This eight-odd minute movement was breathtaking not only for its sonic quality but also for its extraordinary blend of classic rock with classical guitar and string instruments. The drums are tight and clear and the recording of the classical guitar interlude is heavenly.

Enough gushing, now you must be anxious to hear the tune. Although I did transfer this from my Maxell Rock Sampler vinyl record, there were a couple of loud pops and some minor distortion that I could not eliminate from my recording. So, I got a copy of this spectacular song from a CD. You can buy the whole CD from Amazon here. It really is worth it. Most guitar enthusiasts are familiar with the absolutely brilliant picking of Triumph's guitarist Rik Emmett. I strongly recommend his albums (here's a list from Amazon), especially the fiendishly addictive Absolutely. Perhaps I'll post my favorite song from that album (Drive Time) here in a later post.

Here's a recommendation: Listen to this LOUD. Close your eyes and imagine the classical guitar is being played right in front of you. And when the drums kick back in .... sheer joy!

Triumph - Blinding Light Show/Moonchild (8 MB; 128kbps MP3)

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Unheard Fiddler?

My wife is a huge fan of Fiddler on the Roof and at one point, I had purchased several versions of the record to pique her interest in record collecting. Recently, I hooked up my record player to my computer and attempted to digitize some of these records.

One particularly interesting version of the album was sung entirely by Herschel Bernardi. I found his voice to be particularly interesting and different. He's got a slightly whimsical tone to his voice that seems to suit my impression of Tevye. You can find it on Amazon here.

On this album, were two songs that were written by lyricist Sheldon Harnick and composer Jerry Bock for the original production but were eventually cut from the stage play. I actually found these two songs instantly catchy and likable. When Messiah Comes actually was released in the 30th Anniversary edition of the album of the Broadway Cast Recording. The other, Fiddler on the Roof may also be on the re-released album as a bonus track, but I'm not sure.

So, for my first post, here's a link to MP3s of these two songs from Herschel Bernardi's presentation of songs from Fiddler on the Roof. Note that these were transferred from the original vinyl record so contain all the crackling and hiss of vinyl recordings.

1. When Messiah Comes - Herschel Bernardi (3.63 MB; 192 kbps MP3)
2. Fiddler on the Roof - Herschel Bernardi (4.39 MB; 192 kbps MP3)

What's This All About?

I enjoy a great variety of music. While most of my music listening is quite traditional (you'll find Pink Floyd, Elvis, The Beatles, Jethro Tull, Deep Purple, BB King and more in my music collection), I particularly enjoy finding music that does not get as much airplay on the radio.

A variety of things about a piece of music may pique my interest. Sometimes, it is just something I heard in my childhood that I haven't heard in ages. Sometimes it is a catchy melody from a regional band. Sometimes it is an unusual piece of history that isn't that easy to find.

I just figured there may be someone out there with an interest in listening to music that is not easy to find on U.S. radio. Some of the bands I'll feature here may be very popular in other parts of the world, but simply under appreciated in the U.S. Other names may be quite familiar to people who listen to a certain genre of music, but not to others. Still other songs may just be unusual pieces from well known names in music.

You'll also find a wide range of music featured here from pop to rock to jazz to Broadway. Hope you enjoy at least some of the selections.

There's no rhyme or reason to why I may select a piece of music except that I found it interesting for some reason I'll outline in my post. Let me know if you enjoy any of the pieces in this blog. If you do like any of the music, PLEASE buy the CD so the artist gets their well-deserved royalties.

The goal here is just to share music that I like for some reason. The goal is to give underheard artists a greater airing and help people find out-of-print recordings. If you are an artist (or their lawyer) and would like me to remove any of the music here, please let me know and I'll take it off immediately. No hard feelings and no need for threats! :)

Email me at rvblogs@gmail.com!