The Grateful Dead - 30 Days of the Dead: 2017 Edition

Since 2010, the Grateful Dead through their website has released songs from their vault and celebrated "30 Days of the Dead" each November 1st to the 30th.  The daily song release is in conjunction with a contest that contains a clue as to where each song was recorded the particular tour and venue.  The winner is then entered into a larger drawing for rare and unreleased Grateful Dead music.  While I enjoy listening to the Dead and saw them a number of times between 1988 and 1992, I am by no means a "Deadhead" and cannot pick out the minute details of each performance like other people can.  But I do enjoy listening to the Dead and songs from various shows.  Here is this years track list.

1st - Uncle John's Band

2nd - Easy Wind

3rd - Unbroken Chain

4th - Feel Like a Stranger

5th - China Cat Sunflower > I Know You Rider

6th - Brown-Eyed Women

7th - Saint of Circumstance

8th - Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo > Franklin's Tower

9th - My Brother Esau > Might As Well

10th - Shakedown Street > Samson and Delilah

11th - Sugaree

12th - The Other One > Stella Blue > The Other One > Sugar Magnolia

13th - Lazy River Road

14th - Shakedown Street

15th - Bird Song

16th - Let Me SIng Your Blues Away

17th - Seastones > Playing in the Band

18th - Scarlet Begonias > Fire on the Mountain

19th - Candyman

20th - Picasso Moon

21st - Truckin' > New Speedway Boogie

22nd - Bertha

23rd - Comes A Time

24th - Terrapin Station > Jam

25th - Here Comes Sunshine

26th - Help On the Way > Slipknot > Franklin's Tower > Jam

27th - So Many Roads

28th - Here Comes Sunshine

29th - Friend of the Devil

30th - The Music Never Stopped

The songs can be downloaded from this location 30 Days of the Dead 2017.  From the Grateful Dead website (www.dead.net), you can access previous years songs as well.

RIP - Pat DiNizio

News came out that lead singer/guitarist/songwriter of the Smithereens Pat DiNizio passed away yesterday at the age of 62.  A product of the New Jersey music founded in Carteret, NJ, I have always described the Smithereens as "Jersey Beatles".  Their music had the melodic sensibility of the Beatles but the power that represented the alt-rock movement of the early 1980's.  I had the opportunity to see the Smithereens twice in concert.  The first, I still described as one of the best concert that I have ever since, was when the Smithereens opened for the Pretenders at Radio City Music Hall in 1987.  The combination of the intimacy of the venue added to the fact that the Smithereens left everything they had on stage gives its illustrious position.  The second time was while I was attending the University of Delaware and they played the school's field house and instead of assembling a stage, they set up in the middle of the basketball court and intermingle with the crowd of about 500-600.  It was a unique experience.  Their first four albums are the groups strongest works and best representation of their sound.  They recorded sporadically in the 2000's, when they did the recorded complete cover of albums that influenced them "Meet the Beatles", "Tommy" and "B-Sides and the Beatles".  The last studio album of new material was "Smithereens 2011" released in the same year.

Rest in Peace - Pat and thank you for your contribution to music.

Live - Songs from Black Mountain

Songs from Black Mountain was released in 2006 and was the 7th and last album to feature the original band line-up.  The album is a far cry from the first two releases Mental Jewelry and Throwing Copper.  Where those two album established Live as a premier "alternative rock" band, Songs From Black Mountain comes across as an "alternative lite" where Ed Kowalczyk exerts even more influence on the bands direction musically and lyrically.  Ed was always the lyric force within the band and his lyrics always had a religious/spiritual overtone to it and those theme continue on this album.  In addition to those themes, Ed has added an intensely anti-war message throughout as well.  Musically the album is weak and uninspiring, consisting mostly of acoustic, ballads or mid-tempo full electric with orchestration enhancing the tracks.  The song "The River" was the alone single from the album and by 2006 radio and Mtv/VH1 had moved to new platforms and genres as that there was no audience The band presented the album "as a back to basics" but it is not "a return form" which is unfortunate.  In 2009, it was announced that the band would go on a two-year hiatus but it eventually became a break up of the band.  The band reformed minus Kowalczyk in 2012 and released one album with him in 2014.  In late 2016, it was announced that Ed would be returning to band and that they would be touring throughout 2017 with a possible new album in 2018.  You can hear Songs from Black Mountain here: Live - Songs from Black Mountain

Yes - House of Yes: Live at the House of Blues

House of Yes was recorded on Halloween 1999 and the band was touring in support of its most recent release "The Ladder".  In its history, membership in Yes has always been on a rotating basis except for Chris Squire.  The line-up for this tour included Jon Anderson (Vocals), Chris Squire (Bass/Backing Vocals), Steve Howe (Guitars/Backing Vocals), Alan White (Drums), and relative newcomer Billy Sherwood (Guitars/Backing Vocals) who joined the band on the 1996 release "Open Your Eyes" and would be the handpicked replacement for Chris Squire upon his passing to assume his bass duties, and "newbie" Igor Khoroshev (Keyboards).  The set-list for this concert tour include 5 songs from "The Ladder", Homeworld (The Ladder), Lightning Strikes, The Messenger, Face to Face, and It Will Be a Good Day (The River).  The remaining tracks are their greatest hits from their back catalog.  In comprising the set, the band wisely interspersed newer songs around the older ones, this way they kept up the momentum in the show which is what usually does not happen when a new album is being represented.  Usually when new material is performed, the audience traditionally sits down in their seats and takes the proverbial "air out of the show".  The performance at the House of Blues was simultaneously released on DVD and it included the complete show.  For the CD release, "Closer to the Edge" and "Hearts" from 90125 were omitted.  Of their greatest hits, "Long Distance Roundaround/The Fish", "Heart of the Sunrise" and "Siberian Khartu" were not played.  Additionally, Yes did not go "deep into the catalog" for this tour as they would in subsequent tours.  The album can be purchased here either physically or digitally Yes - House of Yes: Live from the House of Blues

Extreme - Take Us Alive

Take Us Alive was recorded at the House of Blues in Boston, MA and was the last stop of the reunion tour of the same name.  The band reunited in 2007 to record their 5th studio album, Saudades of Rock, which was released in 2008.  Extreme was one of those bands who were victims of their success as far as having two Top 5 singles which were a departure sonically from the rest of the songs on the accompanying album.  Extreme's sound has been described as funk/rock/glam but the songs which received airplay and rotation on Mtv were acoustic based "More Than Words" and "Hole Hearted" and people were surprised by Extreme's "real sound".  I remember in college people commenting that they thought "Hole Hearted" was performed by The Alarm and not Extreme.  All this being said, for a band that endured two hiatuses they still play with a high level of proficiency and vocalist Gary Cherone's voice has not diminished to where he could not reach the higher register within the songs.  The 17 tracks on the CD take a little bit from every release and give a well rounded representation of their catalog.  A good of the tracks are "stretched out" into extended jams which highlight the bands musical prowess.  Take Us Alive is better than any of the compilation albums which have been previously released and is worth a listen.  The album can be purchased here: Extreme - Take Us Alive.

Jack Bruce & Robin Trower - Seven Moons

After the 2005 Cream reunion, Jack Bruce wanted to continue on with his power-trio mates who, unfortunately, declined.  Not to  be deterred, Jack Bruce recruited Robin Trower with whom he had played with in the early 1980's, added drummer Gary Husband and the result was the album - Seven Moons.  The background of Bruce and Trower are vastly different.  Jack Bruce, as played with Cream, is more blues based while Robin Trower has more of a progressive background but the combination works.  From the opening notes of the title, the listener knows that there is something good going on here.  Jack Bruce's voice sounds as vital as ever.  Robin Trower, brings a blues element to his playing that could be compared to Eric Clapton and it would not be an unfair comparison even though the majority of his solo work is not in the blues genre.  Gary Husband's playing rounds out this power trio and while people might think they were duplicating the "Cream formula" but the distinctive stylings of Mr. Trower and Mr. Husband avoid that comparison.  "Just Another Day", "Distant Places of the Heart" and "Perfect Place" are among the standout tracks on this CD.  The trio toured following the release and a follow-up live album was released in 2009 which had tracks from this album and a few Cream tracks included.  Unfortunately, this was the only and last studio release for this trio as Jack Bruce passed away in 2014.

Foo Fighters - Songs from the Laundry Room

Songs from the Laundry Room was originally released as part of Record Store Day in 2015.  For those who are unaware, Record Store Day is an annual promotion to celebrate the remaining independent record stores throughout the country.  There are traditionally exclusive releases on vinyl only available in limited quantities.  Songs from the Laundry Room initially had just 4,000 copies made available and included three songs; two were demos  from the Foo Fighters original release and one unreleased song from the same period.  Side A included demos of "Alone + Easy Target" and "Big Me".  Side B had the unreleased song "Empty Handed" which, again, was recorded around the same time.  Later in 2015, the Foo Fighters re-released Songs from the Laundry Room as a traditional release, as well as, making available for digital download.  The re-release include the three original songs and a cover of Kim Wilde's "Kids in America".  The EP is still available as a digital download and worth a listen as it gives insight to the origins of the Foo Fighter sound since Dave Grohl played all the instruments on the first album to their most recent release "Concrete & Gold".

Robert Plant - Shaken 'n' Stirred

Shaken 'n' Stirred is Robert Plant third solo album following the demise of Led Zeppelin and easily his worst.  His first two solo albums; "Pictures at Eleven" and "The Principles of Moments" were a distinct and purposeful move away from Led Zeppelin and their bombastic sound but at the core they held onto Plant's blues roots.  Unfortunately, while there are a few bright spots on the album, the single "Little By Little" is one of them, the rest of the album is a mess.  The album is a mixture of synthesizers, overbearing background vocals, incoherent lyrics and over lack of musical focus.  The album has contributions from the same musicians who played on his first two albums with one exception being Little Feat's Richie Hayward assuming the drumming from Phil Collins who returned to Genesis and his own solo career.  "Little by Little" should have been the example for the entire album and it would have been much better for it.  Throughout Robert Plant's solo career, he has explored various musical genres in the hopes of expanding his sound and deliver to the listener a rich landscape in this instance it did not happen on Shaken 'n' Stirred and renewed calls from fans to return to a more Zeppelin-esque sound which would happen on 1988's Now and Zen.

The Winery Dogs - Unleashed in Japan 2013

The Winery Dogs are a supergroup consisting of former Mr. Big bandmates Richie Kotzen and Billy Sheehan, along with former Dream Theater (and a lot of other bands) drummer Mike Portnoy.  After the release of their self-titled debut album, the band toured extensively worldwide.  The release of "Unleashed in Japan 2013" is a snapshot of the set list that the band played as it only contains 10 of the 13 songs which appeared on the DVD that was simultaneously released.  The live show is a testament to the showmanship and virtuosity of the three musicians.  Of the 10 songs on the CD, four are not Winery Dogs songs and one was not released in the US.  The second song, "Criminal" was only released on the Japanese version of the debut album and did not appear on a US release until "The Dog Years" EP was released earlier this year.  Of the other non-Winery Dogs songs, one was a Mr. Big song "Shine", another was a Poison song (which Richie Kotzen was briefly a member of) "Stand", a solo Richie Kotzen song "You Can't Save Me" and a cover of Elvin Bishop's "Fool Around and Feel in Love".  Mike Portnoy has stated that The Winery Dogs are his "power trio/straight forward hard rock" band in the vein similar to that of Led Zeppelin or Cream which is one of many reasons why none of his Dream Theater songs are represented.  The full concert included another 10 songs and those have been unreleased anywhere.  There is a full concert which has been uploaded to YouTube  Mr. Big - Live in Japan 2013 which contained the remaining tracks from the debut album, as well as, a bass solo from Billy Sheehan and a drum solo from Mike Portnoy.  The Winery Dogs are currently on hiatus and hopefully will reconvene in the future.  Until then, "Unleashed in Japan 2013" is a great postcard from a great live band.

Mr. Big - Defying Gravity

This is the third studio release since the original Mr. Big line-up reformed in 2009 and released the Back to Budokan live album.  "Defying Gravity" follows the same Mr. Big formula that can be found on the 2011 release "What If..." and the 2014's "...The Stories We Could Tell" which highlights the virtuosity of Paul Gilbert and Billy Sheehan, which is not entirely a bad thing, and good straight forward hard rock/heavy metal.  One change is that drummer Pat Torpey was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease in 2014 has been unable to play on this and last release.  Pat does serve as "drum producer" on this album for his stand-in Matt Starr and does play on select songs when the band does tour.   Defying Gravity also acts a reunion between the band and producer Kevin Elson who worked with the band on their first four releases and recorded the band biggest hits in the early 90's.  This is where, in my opinion, is the real issue with this album.  In interviews, the band members repeatedly stated that the album was written and recorded in six days and seem proud of that fact.  At times the songs do sound like they are "rushed" but it is the production of the music which I feel is lacking.  The overall sound of the album is, again in my opinion, very muddy and lacks the power of "What If..." which was produced by Kevin Shirley or the crispness of "...The Stories We Could Tell" by Pat Regan (who also produced 1999's Get Over It).  It begs to question if the band went their separate ways during final mixing and production.  The group released three singles from this album; "1992", "Defying Gravity" and "Everybody Needs a Little Trouble".  "1992" serves as a sarcastic look back to the band's "hey day" when they had a #1 single with "To Be With You" and received heavy rotation on Mtv.  "Everybody Needs a Little Trouble" is a classic Mr. Big song in every aspect.  The album also has its obligatory ballad "Damn, I'm in Love Again" complete with acoustic guitars and does not fit into the overall sequence of songs.  The most surprising song on the album is the closing song "Be Kind" which clocks in at over 7 minutes and a slow burn/bluesy number which is not typical Mr. Big.  Mr. Big has already completed a brief tour in support of this album and, unfortunately, most of the dates were overseas and with Billy Sheehan turning his attention towards Sons of Apollo for 2018 and Paul Gilbert returning to his solo career, nothing is planned for the near future.  Having seen Mr. Big open for RUSH twice and headline once at Hammerjack's in Baltimore.  They are one band who should definitely checked out.

The Church - Priest = Aura

The Church are one of those bands that you either like or you don't.  If you do, you look past the songs that generated interest in the band like "Under the Milky Way" from Starfish and "Russian Autumn Heart" from Gold Afternoon Fix and towards albums which highlight their songwriting and musicianship.  That is where Priest=Aura comes in.  Priest=Aura is a 14 song psychedelic/ethereal experience.  From the opening notes of the title track "Aura", the listener knew that they were hearing a band expand itself musically and lyrically.  The keyboard textures and the guitar interplay between Marty Willson-Piper and Peter Koppes throughout the album are a highlight.  The album also served as the unofficial soundtrack to "The Mind's Eye: A Computer Animation Odyssey" which demonstration computer animation when the art form was still in its early stages.  The songs on Priest=Aura synchronize incredibly well with the series of short films which are on the video.  Like Dark Side of the Moon, which went along with the Wizard of Oz both of which are completely coincidental but adds an interesting element to the release which most albums can not relate to.  New drummer Jay Dee Daughtery adds a jazz-tinged element to this release that was absent in earlier releases. What is equally amazing is that lead singer/bassist Steve Kilbey was struggling with heroin addiction throughout the record  and, fortunately, it did not effect his performance and was able to recover from his addiction.  In the end, Priest=Aura is a fan favorite and establishes the direction for the band on future releases but is solid at its core.

Quiet Riot - QR III

In three short years, Quiet Riot went from the pinnacle of popularity and stardom to not just irrelevant but loathed and hated throughout the music industry.  Quiet Riot was initially formed in the early seventies and released two albums in Japan only.  Up until that point, the band was only known as the launch pad for the late-Randy Rhoads.  In 1983, a reformed Quiet Riot released Metal Health with a cover of Slade's "Cum On Feel The Noize" as its initial single.  While band members have continually stated that they hated recording the song and try to do as bad of job recording, the song become a radio staple and its video was in heavy rotation on Mtv.  That summer, Quiet Riot performed at the three day US Festival and solidified their trajectory into superstardom.  Metal Health reached #1 on the Billboard charts which kept Michael Jackson's Thriller from reaching its pinnacle.  Unfortunately, the success was short lived and the beginning of the end for the group, due to lead singers Kevin DuBrow as he continually put his proverbial foot in his mouth.   By 1986, bass player Rudy Sarzo left the group and was replaced by "original" bassist Chuck Wright.  The music industry was also beginning to change from hard rock/heavy metal bands with loud guitars to "pop metal/hair bands" with power ballads and with keyboards incorporated or in the forefront.  This album follows that formula with the collection of 10 songs (not include the 1 minute bass instrumental) having sophomoric lyrics, overbearing keyboard/synthesizer textures, quick guitar solos and simple drums.  After this album was released, Kevin DuBrow was fired from the band and replaced by Paul Shortino and would go through various line-up changes in subsequent years and play in front of smaller and smaller venues.  In reality, the band should have called it quits after this album because QR III was the proverbial final nail in the Quiet Riot coffin.

Sammy Hagar - Sammy Hagar & Friends

Sammy Hagar, aka the Red Rocker, has had a long and storied career outside of Van Halen playing with numerous and various musicians along the way.  In 2013, he released a collection of songs with some of these friends.  Of the nine studio tracks, there are three originals and six cover songs.  The album reunites Sammy with his former Montrose bandmates Denny Carmassi and Bill Church on three tracks.  Sammy does a cover of Bob Seger's "Ramblin' Gamblin' Man" with his backing band The Waboritas.  The most impressive cover song is his interpretation of Depeche Mode's "Personal Jesus".  Sammy is playing along with Chad Smith (Chickenfoot), Michael Anthony (Van Halen/The Circle) and Neal Schon, who Sammy played along with in Hagar Schon Aaronson and Shrieve in 1984.  They recorded a live album and played a few shows in San Francisco but a planned studio album never materialized.  On "Personal Jesus", the song is converted from the techno original into a "Bluesy" romp complete with background singers who provide the extra soul and depth to the song.  The guitar work by Neal Schon is exceptional and the solo fits in perfectly as if it was originally part of the song.  The album is rounded out by two live tracks taken from a Ronnie Montrose tribute concert from 2012.  The two tracks again feature his former Montrose bandmates Denny Carmassi and Bill Church who are joined by virtuoso Joe Satriani.  This album like most recent Sammy Hagar solo work sets a tone and mood which would go perfectly with an ice cold beer and relaxing chair to back an enjoy.

RUSH - Hold Your Fire

September 9th also happens to be the 30th anniversary of Hold Your Fire the 12th studio album by RUSH and the fourth album in the "third chapter" of RUSH.  I have to admit that Hold Your Fire is my least favorite RUSH album and their weakest output in their entire career.  The album itself followed the same production formula as Power Windows.  It had Peter Collins producing again, engineered by Jimbo Barton, recorded in England and Montserrat but the results were vastly different.  While Alex mentioned in "Beyond the Lighted Stage" that Power Windows was the album that lacked guitars and brought their sound more "to the middle" and almost easy listening, in my opinion that analysis is really designated for Hold Your Fire.  During the recording of Power Windows, Geddy switched to Wal basses from Rickenbacker and Fender and Alex started using Paul Reed Signature (PRS) guitars instead of Gibson or Fender as his primary instrument.  The greatest switch was done by The Professor himself which saw him, after an extensive search, change his drums from the Tama Artstars to Ludwig Super Classics.  The Ludwigs had a flatter tonality than the Tamas and he also switched from open end tom-tom's to closed-end but the most striking change was the color.  He had moved away from the candy apple red to opalescent white with sparkles and a hint of pink.  Blah.  Hold Your Fire was written with the fact that Compact Disks were the dominant media instead of LP's or cassettes, so they had 78 minutes "to play with" so Hold Your Fire is the first RUSH album with more than eight songs.  As for the songs, "Force Ten" opens the album on a strong note and is a better song live than on the record.  Over the years, RUSH has "beefed up" the song and have made it better overall.  The second single "Time Stand Still" was the first to feature a guest singer, Aimee Mann.  The song is not quite a duet but her excellent vocals do highlight throughout the chorus and there is vocal interplay within the chorus and verses.  After these songs, the rest of the album declines on a slope of mediocrity.  Open Secrets just seems to meander and never build any momentum.  Second Nature is a sugary ballad that does not inspire the listener because the song does not sound inspiring.  Prime Mover starts off showing "signs of life" but quickly falls off into Alex playing monotonous notes before any chords, again the song does not seem to go anywhere and quickly you are hitting the next song button.  Lock and Key makes you okay now we are getting somewhere only to be disappointed with the fact the only "action" is in the chorus and a 30-second guitar solo.  Mission, like Force Ten, came across as a better song live than on the album and while it suffers from the same sins as the early songs because it works well live, it is the third best song on the album.  Turn the Page also starts out strong but quickly fades as the keyboards/synthesizers dominate the song and put Alex is back of everything.  The last two songs are hardly worth mentioning other than Tai Shan is simply the worst song RUSH has ever written.  I understand that it was inspired by Neal Peart's trip to China but the song itself is more appropriate for a Peter Gabriel album than RUSH.  As for High Water, it follows the same rhythmic formula as Mystic Rhythms but lacks that vibrance and energy that the latter has.  Even the album art work was uninspiring especially in comparison to the three most recent albums art work.  I have read online that Hold Your Fire is a favorite for a great many fans but I always come away thinking "what am I missing"?  At the end of the day, even though the album is weak, I still saw RUSH three times on that tour and love each or every show.

While Signals, who shares the same release date, has aged very well.  I can not say the same thing about Hold Your Fire.

RUSH - Signals

Signals was released 35 years ago today and cemented in the "keyboard era" for RUSH.  Some might disagree and say that Signals was the beginning but if you go back and listen to Moving Pictures, you will hear the prevalence of keyboards throughout. Signals also had the unenviable task of being the follow up to the monster Moving Pictures which catapulted RUSH into super stardom.  To create that buffer between studio albums, RUSH released Exit...Stage Left towards the end of 1981.  Once released, Subdivisions became an instant classic and the video highlighting division and isolation within a high school setting had regular play on Mtv.  The next three songs "The Analog Kid", "Chemistry" and "Digital Man" can be seen as a metaphor for RUSH's transition as a band going and growing from a power trio of guitar/bass/drums into the coming digital age with the addition of keyboards/synthesizers/electronics.  The Analog Kid has been played on and off on recent tours, Chemistry was only played on the Signals tour and Digital Man was resurrected on the Snakes and Arrows Tour.  Side Two of the album, "The Weapon (Part 2 of the Fear Trilogy)", "New World Man", "Losing It" and "Countdown" were as strong, if not, stronger than the first side of the album.   In 1994, when Mobile Fidelity re-issued Signals on it's Ultragold format from "Original Master Recordings" it omitted the last verse from "The Weapon" which created some controversy.  The band said that Mobile Fidelity did not use the original masters because RUSH does not/did not record "alternate versions" of any songs but the label stood by the recording.  New World Man became another radio staple and could claim to be the only "hit single" RUSH has ever written.  While a collection of 5/6 songs are played regularly on radio, New World Man is the only RUSH songs written with "radio friendly" synthesizer opening, guitar hooks and clocks in at 3:43 which is a station programmers dream.  Losing It is the first RUSH song to have a guest player on it.  The violin solo was played by Ben Mink, Geddy Lee's close friend and member of FM.  Losing It has the distinction of having no bass lines written for the song.  All of the bass was played on keyboards and when RUSH added the song to the R40 tour, Geddy Lee commented how he had to go back and write in the bass to the song.  When RUSH did play Losing It, it gave Signals the compliment by being the only RUSH album other than Moving Pictures to be played in its entirety.  One could argue that they played all of Hemispheres on that particular tour but it is unknown if they played Hemispheres (Cygnus Book II) in total.  The last song, "Countdown" highlights the launch of the Space Shuttle Columbia of which the band were guests to watch.  Excerpts of mission control's countdown and the shuttle's lift off interplay with the song and the line by one of the astronauts can heard saying "we have enjoyed the music Bob...thank you" and the song would be used on later shuttle mission as a "wake up" song to the crew.

What can be said definitively on this 35th birthday of Signals, is that it has aged very well.

Cheap Trick - The Latest

If a band is lucky enough to enter their third or even fourth decade, they are usually on one of the following trajectories; one primary member remaining touring under the band name and consistently touring while playing the "greatest hits".  Two, enlist a new singer who sounds a lot like the singer that made them popular or a band with largely current members who crank out either sub-par new material or release an album of cover tunes just to keep the band relevant.  A band which, as of 2008, bucked this trend was Cheap Trick.  Cheap Trick was relevant in the 70's with a slew of hits and a popular "Live at Budokan" release.  In the 80's, they released successive albums which had a radio ready singles with kept them on the air and drove record sales.  They reached the pinnacle in 1988 with the release of the "The Flame" which received regular rotation on Mtv but also welcomed the return of original bassist, Tom Petersson, which provide creative spark.  Unfortunately, the 90's brought on grunge and musical tasted changed drastically.  From 1990 to 2003, Cheap Trick released a string of albums which garnered little to no attention other than 1997's release (Cheap Trick) which had the notoriety of having their record label go bankrupt at the same time of the album's release.  The early 2000's Cheap Trick had a hit with the opening theme song for "That's 70's Show" but it did not translate to the release of new material.  The bands fortunes changed in 2006 with the release of "Rockford" and culminated in 2008 with the release of "The Latest" where they were putting out great songs regardless if radio noticed or not.  "The Latest", in my opinion, is the strongest release by the band since their first four albums which elevated the band to superstar status.  From the opening of "Sleep Forever" the continued strength of Robin Zander's legendary voice was apparent.  The next three songs "When The Lights Are Out", "Miss Tomorrow" and "Sick Man of Europe" give continued credence that Cheap Trick are the heir to The Beatles pop sensibilities but with a harder more guitar-focused edge.  And like all good pop songs, the longest song clocks in at 4:16 which fits within radio formats.  "Miracle" is the traditional pop ballad but still rocks.  Unfortunately, it is also the last album to include Bun E. Carlos as a member of the band because his drumming is a highlight and you realize that there is a lot more to his drumming and his sense of rhythm and timing then just being the "guy with the cigarette hanging from his mouth".  By the end of the album, the listener comes away realizing that this veteran rock band put together a kick ass collection of material which should have been celebrated and praised by everyone in the music/radio industry and not just by their fans.  

Chickenfoot - Chickenfoot

Released in 2009, Chickenfoot is the "super group" of Sammy Hagar, Joe Satriani, Michael Anthony and Chad Smith.  From the opening notes of "Avenida Revolucion" I knew that this album was going to be a monster but it also made me realize two other things.  First, since the group is comprised of half of Van Halen (Hagar) that this disc should have been what the next VH album should have been with Sammy as the singer.  Second, while Eddie Van Halen is and was a groundbreaking guitarist in the late 70's and early 80's, it is clear that he has been surpassed in that department and the music for Van Halen was written to highlight his excellence and not for the betterment of the group.  Throughout the Chickenfoot album, it is clear that Michael Anthony is a better bass player than what was presented from his Van Halen days and that can be traced back to Joe Satriani.  Joe can easily write an instrumental with guitar solos that will go for the jugular like "One Big Rush" but this album shows he can do that and write as an equal for the group as well.  My favorite track on the CD is "Get It Up" which combines all of the elements mentioned along a great guitar hook.  The disc also highlights that Chad Smith is an excellent hard rock drummer.  He brings elements from Red Hot Chili Peppers but then takes it to another level.  The CD was re-released in 2012 with a bonus studio track "Bitten by the Wolf" and four live tracks which originally released on the Europe-only Chickenfoot LV.  The album is a must-have for a music enthusiastic collection.

RIP - Walter Becker

Walter Becker, guitarist/bassist/songwriter, of Steely Dan passed away this morning at age of 67.  He and Donald Fagen wrote numerous classic songs including "Hey Nineteen", "Rikki Don't Lose That Number" and "Aja".  The duo utilized a collection of superior studio musicians in crafting their early albums and did not tour.  Steely Dan initially disbanded in 1982 after they released their "Aja" album.  Walter would re-join his Steely Dan bandmate on his subsequent solo albums and the band reformed to release two new Steely Dan albums in 2000 and 2003.  They also regularly toured throughout the years.  Steely Dan recently played the Classic East and Classic West festivals without Walter due to an undisclosed illness.

John Petrucci - Suspended Animation

I have to admit that I was late to join in on the excellence is Dream Theater.  My first, and favorite DT album, is "A Dramatic Turn of Events" and from that moment I was hooked.  I actually first heard John Petrucci as a solo artist as part of the G3 tour with Joe Satriani and Steve Vai on the subsequent CD release from the tour in 2009 even though his solo album was released in 2005.  The CD, which is currently out of print, highlights John's heavy metal/prog prowess that is present in Dream Theater but the CD also shows off his "softer side" on Wishful Thinking which if it had lyrics added could have easily been a "power-ballad".  Of the nine tracks on the CD, the average length clocks in at just over 7 minutes with the shortest timing in at under 5 minutes and the penultimate piece an eleven and a half minute exercise.  All in all, the album has the right mix of tempo, melody and guitar virtuosity desiring more.