The essential john denver album review
Tedeschi Trucks Band, “Made Up Mind’ (Sony Masterworks): The third full-length release from the virtuoso large-scale rock group led by the husband-wife team of Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks.
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Superchunk, “I Hate Music’ (Merge): The North Carolina indie rockers turn in another aggressive effort that will at least make you feel fond about the music they make.Įarl Sweatshirt, “Doris’ (Tan Cressida/Columbia): The Odd Future MC’s first solo album boasts features by Frank Ocean, RZA, Mac Miller and Tyler, The Creator among others. SOiL, “Whole’ (Pavement/AFM): Original singer Ryan McCombs return to the Chicago hard rock troupe for its sixth studio effort. Ricky Skaggs and Bruce Hornsby, “Cluck Ol Hen’ (Skaggs Family): Hornsby hooks up again with musical running buddy Skaggs and his Kentucky Thunder band, this time for a live set that leans heavily on improvisation. Ty Segall, “Sleeper’ (Drag City): The seventh solo album by the California garage rock singer-songwriter and member of bands such as Fuzz, Epsilons, the Traditional Fools and others. Run the Jewels, “Run the Jewels’ (Fool’s Gold): Rappers El-P and Killer Mike team up for their first joint album, with Big Boi and Prince Paul guesting. No Age, “An Object’ (Sub Pop): The fourth full-length outing by the experimental punk duo from Los Angeles. Tracy Lawrence, “Headlights, Taillights and Radios’ (LMG): The country singer moves to his own label for his 14th release.
Will Lee, “Love, Gratitude and Other Distractions’ (Sinning Saint Ltd.): The first solo release by the “Late Show with David Letterman’ bassist features guests such as Pat Metheny, ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons, Toto’s Steve Lukather and more. The Greencards, “Sweetheart of the Sun’ (Darling Street): The Austin, Texas, bluegrass group’s sixth album draws inspiration from co-founder Kym Warner and Carol Young’s Australian upbringings. Tim Easton, “Not Cool’ (Campfire Propoganda): The singer-songwriter returns to his folk and honky-tonk roots on his 10th studio album. Lee DeWyze, “Frames’ (Vanguard): The Season 9 “American Idol’ champ breaks from the reality show’s camp with his fourth overall album.
Somewhere’ isn’t quite as consistent as 2009’s “Buffett Hotel,’ but it’s a perfectly fine fix between boat drinks for any Parrothead worth his or her feathers.īlessthefall, “Hollow Bodies’ (Fearless): The hardcore group from Phoenix gets help from Lights and members of August Burns Red and Stick To your Guns on its fourth studio album.īlue October, “Sway’ (Up/Down): A markedly more upbeat effort after frontman Justin Furstenfeld’s bitter bloodletting on 2011’s “Any Man in America.’ Jimmy Buffett specializes in states of mind as much as songs - evidence the enduring “Margaritaville’ or new material such as “Somethin’ ‘Bout a Boat,’ “I Want to Go Back to Cartagena’ and the Toby Keith-assisted “Too Drunk to Karaoke.’ The 16 tracks here are mostly a soundtrack to time spent wastin’ away, although Buffett, who wrote or co-wrote 11 of the songs, remains a sophisticated songsmith with a taste for exceptional other writers such as Will Kimbrough, Jesse Winchester and Mark Knopfler, who also plays on two tracks including his own “Oldest Surfer on the Beach.’ “St. Mayer seems to be measuring the cost of his chosen craft these days - “I got that dream but you got yourself a family,’ he tells a former lover in “Dear Marie’ - but he’s also turned in some of his most peaceful music yet. Cale’s “Call Me the Breeze’ sounds more wheat field than Lynyrd Skynyrd’s roadhouse take, and the closing “On the Way Home’ is a folky soundtrack for last call. He and Katy Perry essentially come clean about their relationship with their shoulder-shrugging duet “Who You Love,’ while “Paper Doll,’ Mayer’s supposed retort to Taylor Swift’s “Dear John,’ jabs lightly at its subject. The opening “Wildfire,’ with its hand-clapping good-time feel, is about as rowdy as “Paradise Valley’ gets, although the 90-second mid-album reprise with Frank Ocean is considerably more subtle. There’s a twangy ambiance throughout the set thanks to pedal steel master Paul Franklin’s presence on a few of the songs, as well as an overall gentleness that makes the tunes sound like they’re being sung around a campfire or on a front porch. Following throat surgeries and recovery, its follow-up, co-produced by Detroit native Don Was, finds Mayer in a Montana state of mind - both on the album cover but also in the wide-open, anything-goes attitude of these 11 tracks.
On last year’s “Born and Raised,’ John Mayer dipped himself into California, circa early ’70s, especially the Laurel Canyon singer-songwriter scene. John Mayer, “Paradise Valley’, Columbia, HHH Album reviews: John Mayer, Jimmy Buffett, Ty Segall, more – The Denver Post Close Menu