Saturday, April 17, 2010

Emotion & Commotion - by Jeff Beck



Just finished and loved the first listening of the new release, "Emotion & Commotion" by Jeff Beck.

This is one of those CDs you immediately know you will hear and enjoy a hundred subtleties you missed, once you listen to it the 2nd and 3rd time.

Beck's first studio album in seven years, it is an interesting and well blended mixture of blues, mellow rock and classical.

Long known as a veteran rock guitar virtuoso, Beck has you wondering what you'll even hear at first. You half expect a barrage of distortion and blistering scales to break out any second, but it remains controlled and deliberate.

I am not as much of a fan of the more orchestral, "musical" parts (recorded with a 64-piece orchestra) as I am the bluesier instrumentals, but you have to admire the sheer scope of merging them so seamlessly.

The crying guitar over strings on "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" might be the album's best crafted example of this combination of the genres.

The four tracks with guest vocals were well placed, particularly the subtle take of "I Put a Spell on You" with Joss Stone, that certainly does justice to the Hawkin's classic.

The two later threaten to throw off all previous restraint with the building intensity of "There's No Other Me", only to see Beck bring it right back down again with the sad wail of the last instrumental, "Elegy For Dunkirk".

Unsurprisingly, Jeff's signature, melodic and understated solos effortlessly shine above the rest.

Monday, April 5, 2010

04/05/10 - Where were YOU when it happened?



Tiger works the crowd

April 5th . . . 2010 . . . a day . . . that will live in inferiority. The fact that Tiger Woods went out and played golf again today is the LEADING story on CNN.com, FOXNews.com and MSNBC.com.

Most people are less concerned about it than belly button lint, but there are reports of ONE man that was overjoyed when he woke up and saw that Tiger was hogging the headlines (hint: he works in D.C. in a "big white house").

Forget the fact that oil (and tomorrow's gas) just hit it's highest price since October 2008.

And pay no mind to the crisis that the unemployment rate for "workers ages 16 to 29 was 15.2% in March, the highest rate since 1948"....

These things have to wait, America. Somebody who cheated on his wife is swinging a golf club. I'm ****ing riveted.