What are you listening to?

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movieman
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Post by movieman »

Hollis

I've heard of, but never heard, Doc and Merle Watson.
Alison Krauss is, in my opinion, one of the greatest singers alive.
Haven't got any of her albums though...

Have a couple Dixie Chicks albums: "Wide Open Spaces" and "Home" where the former is the best. They try to keep traditional country music alive, or at least they did.

Even B
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movieman1957
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Post by movieman1957 »

John:

Who is that doing "Tell Me To My Face"? I am only familiar with the Dan Fogelberg version. It's a jazz/rock blend.

"Superstar" is great. I like the Carpenters very much but only until about 1976. At that time their hits, at least, seemed to become to "bubblegum" like. One of my early favorites was "A Song For You." Karen's is about the most pure voice ever. Great harmonies too.
Chris

"Time flies like an arrow, fruit flies like a banana."
jdb1

Post by jdb1 »

In Barnes & Noble yesterday, I found a CD of After the Ball, which I thought was out of print. This wonderful album of American songs was made in the 1970s, and I never got around to buying it, although I loved it, having heard many tracks from it played on our classical radio station over the years.

The composer/pianist William Balcom and his wife, mezzo Joan Morris, perform a selection of songs by American song writers which were popular at the turn of the 20th Century; some are "parlor songs," and some were sung in music halls and Vaudeville. Morris, in her liner notes, points to these as the precursors of Broadway musicals. I listened to the whole thing last night and loved it all over again.

Morris has a sweet voice, just right for the sentimental favorites of the time, but she can belt it out as well, and she performs a few comic numbers with great skill. She does them as they would have been done at the time, with melodramatic spoken sections, and ethnic accents, where required. Her gentle rendition of "Under the Bamboo Tree" (sung in Meet Me In St. Louis by Judy Garland and Margaret O'Brien) is lovely. Oh -- and she sings "Meet Me In St. Louis" as well, with all the verses. A funny song. I'm putting this one on my iPod Mini.
Metry_Road
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The ball is sadly over

Post by Metry_Road »

Dear jdb1, God bless you. I thought I was the only person in the universe listening to ‘After The Ball’. I have the vinyl album, which I bought sometime in the 1970’s. Joan Morris certainly is a wonderful singer, thankfully not of the excruciating twittering soprano type that was typical of the period. Turn-of-the-century America is one of my favorite era’s. I find myself watching ‘Meet Me In St. Louis’, ‘The Music Man’, ‘The Magnificent Ambersons’ etc. just to look at the fashions and manners. Going to the local ‘Music Hall’ to see the best (and worst) performers of the day for a nickel must have been an amazing experience. Then movies came along and killed Vaudeville.

Beautifull Alice Faye as Lillian Russell with Don Ameche looking handsome and elegant as the composer Edward Solomon.

Regards
jdb1

Post by jdb1 »

Thanks, Metry. When I was a girl people were still aware of these songs, and some of them were taught in school. Nowadays, youngsters are taught very little of American culture. Too bad.

I was Googling around yesterday, trying to find info on May Irwin - one of the tracks on After the Ball is "May Irwin's 'Frog Song'." I learned that this is the same May Irwin who was immortalized by Edison in his very early short film, The Kiss. She was a major North American musical star (she was born in Canada) in the last quarter of the 19th Century. I also learned that her specialty was "Negro Songs" (hence the dialect used in "Frog Song"), and that one of her acts consisted of music and quips known as "coon shouting." I haven't looked that one up yet, but I'm sure it will be groan-inducing.

In any event, I found a site dealing with early American (meaning 19th Century) musical theater, which you might be interested in looking at. It gives and overview of the industry, describes the theater owners and the popular stars, and has some ancient and scratchy recordings and film of the performers:

http://xroads.virginia.edu/~MA02/easton ... emain.html
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MichiganJ
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Post by MichiganJ »

Found this thread late but I’ll toss in my 2-cents:
I like most kinds of music (I admit I don’t get rap/hip-hop) so here’s a list of the CD’s I’ve recently listened to (they are still on my desk, waiting for me to re-shelve them):

Elvis Costello and the Imposters--momofuku
Nick Drake--Fruit Tree
Jethro Tull--Songs From the Wood
Charles Mingus--Ah Um
Bebel Gilberto--Bebl Gilberto
Robyn Hitchcock and the Egyptians--Element of Light
The Beatles--Help!
PJ Harvey--Rid of Me
Miles Davis--’Round About Midnight
Lucinda Williams--West
Bob Dylan--infidels
Paul McCartney--Ram
Stax 50th Anniversary Collection
Frank Zappa--Crusing With Ruban and the Jets
Nellie McKay--Obligatory Villgers
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ChiO
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Post by ChiO »

How is Lucinda William's West? I believe that (other than her first record) is the only one I don't have. Although I like her, each one holds a little less interest for me than the one before.

Mingus Ah Um probably is my favorite jazz record. And anything with the word "Stax" or "Volt" or "Satellite" qualifies as an unqualified gem.

Elvis C., Dylan, Miles, Robyn, Nick, Frank Z. -- ah, my friend, we have many common points of musical reference. Visit Dewey's Record Party! and perk up our ears.
Everyday people...that's what's wrong with the world. -- Morgan Morgan
I love movies. But don't get me wrong. I hate Hollywood. -- Orson Welles
Movies can only go forward in spite of the motion picture industry. -- Orson Welles
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MichiganJ
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Post by MichiganJ »

ChiO,

West is a fine album. Many of the songs are about Lucinda’s mother who had recently died, but the album isn’t somber. My favorite is still Car Wheels (do you have the Deluxe Edition? The second disc is live and it ROCKS...)

So far Ah Um is the only Mingus I have. I’m more into Davis and Coltrane (A Love Supreme, rules.)

In the thread I didn’t mention the Nuggets set, but since you know Stax, you might be aware of Rhino’s amazing collection. It, too, rocks!

Kevin
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Post by benwhowell »

I became an immediate fan of Lucinda Williams with the first listen to "Car Wheels On A Gravel Road." I'm still playing that CD.
She really put her heart and soul into that "nostalgic" look back at her poignant and free wheelin' past. I'm from her neck of the woods so it wasn't at all difficult for me to "imagine" the people and places she remembers. And I love her country/blues voice...raw from all those years of singin' with the kitchen radio.
When "West" came out I was really anxious to hear about her going West (which is, ironically, what I did) I was hoping maybe she found her "joy."
She may have found her "joy" out West, but this album isn't about that.
"West" is quite a painful ode to something/someone she left behind...sort of like Joni Mitchell's "Blue."

"Who knows what the future holds
Or where the cards may fall
But if you don't come out west and see
You'll never know at all

I look off in the distance
And blow a kiss your way
The thousand miles between us
Will disappear some day..."
Handsome Johnny Eck
Hollis
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Post by Hollis »

Good morning all,

Just picked up a new release, "The Essential Bruce Springsteen" which fills in the few blanks in my collection of his albums very nicely. It also has a 3rd "Bonus" disc featuring a dozen previously unreleased tracks. A steal for less than $15. He's just about in a class of his own. There's very, very little of his music that I've heard that wasn't absolutely (fill in your own superlatives here) amazing. But that's just one man's opinion.

As always,

Hollis
Hollis
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Post by Hollis »

Chris,,

I'm sorry, but both Linda Ronstadt and Alison Krauss have far "purer" and stronger voices than Ms Carpenter could even begin to dream of!

As always,

Hollis
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movieman1957
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Post by movieman1957 »

Don't know enough about Krauss to disagree and I'll admit Carpenter couldn't carry off "Hurts So Bad" like Ronstadt (nor would she have tried) but I think Karen was as good as anyone in her style of music. Now somone like Jane Olivor (who no one hardly knows) is great too.
Last edited by movieman1957 on June 30th, 2008, 3:35 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Chris

"Time flies like an arrow, fruit flies like a banana."
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