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Episode 27 John Mellencamp & Merle Haggard

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I Am What I Am on CD

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TJR Reivews Ryan Bingham - Roadhouse Sun - Music Worth Buying 07/08/09

Artist: Ryan Bingham
Album: Roadhouse Sun
Worth Buying: Every song
You might be interested in this album if you are fan of: Springsteen, Mellencamp, Tom Petty, Michael Ubaldini, Americana Rock, Southern Rock

Tell Me More: It's no secret within the music industry that most new albums are way over compressed. New recordings are compressed and
compressed in an attempt to make them louder. The reason for making albums louder, is that everyone is afraid that if there album isn't as loud as everyone else's, no one will notice them when the first note starts playing. This is not relegated to just Rock, Pop, and Hip Hop. Even a soft acoustic ballad will be compressed so that it is just as loud.

The downside to this, is that there is no dynamic range to a lot of today's music. The softer parts of a song are just as loud as the.....louder parts of the song.

Studies have shown that louder will get the listeners attention...for a moment, but that if every song and every part of the song is at the same level of loudness, the listener starts dismiss it all as background.

So that is why it was such a surprise to hear dynamic range on the latest album by Country/Roots/Americana/Rock Singer Songwriter Ryan Bingham.

The albums first track "When The Day is done" opens with a quiet refrain. So quiet that I turned up my car stereo for a moment to hear it better, suddenly The Electric guitars came bursting into chorus and suddenly I was turning my car stereo down....I had to laugh, because It's been some time since an album or song fooled me like this, and then I realized.....There is some dynamic range to this album......What a novel idea.

The next thing I noticed about Mr Bingham's album is that on Amazon he is listed as Country, but when I put the CD into my itunes he is categorized as Rock.

My take: If this album had come out in the 70's, Ryan Bingham would have categorized somewhere between the Populist rock of Springsteen and the Southern rock of Skynnard.

There are definite country influences and some songs are definitely more legitimately country than most of the Pop disguised as country that has turned me off of Country radio....but for my money this is a rock album.

What about the packaging? The CD comes in a standard 4 panel digipak. Lyrics are not included.

NOTE: The amazon mp3 store version comes with an exclusive bonus track

2ND NOTE: Right now the CD version is only 6.99 at Amazon!....This could change at anytime.

listen to samples and get in mp3 version (with bonus track) here

CD Version

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXFc-OTNbxM

Music Worth Buying 11/24/08 Michael Ubaldini

Artist: Michael Ubaldini

Albums: Acoustic Rumble & Street Singin' Troubadour

Worth Buying: Yes, Both Albums

You will be interested in these albums if you are a fan of: Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, John Mellencamp, Brian Setzer, Johnny Cash, Roots Rock'n'Roll, Americana

Tell Me More: When Bruce Springsteen first hit the music scene there where those who called him a poor man's Bob Dylan. When John Mellencamp first hit the music scene there where those who called him the poor man's Bruce Springsteen. But when Micheal Ubaldini released Acoustic Rumble in 1999, LA Times critic Mike Bohem wrote "Better then Springsteen at probing the national soul".

As a musician working the local scene, I wasn't aware of any of this. But people would say to me "Have you heard Micheal Ubaldini?". No I would reply, figuring that I better start.

That start began with Acoustic Rumble. The title implied that this would be a stripped down acoustic album. It also implied that it would rock. It didn't dissapoint on either count. Starting with the album first track The Seventh Trumpet with it's mean rock groove and lyrics shouting out at me:

Well it's a death sentance if you have sex in the morning time

You wanna be a celebrity or a hero? commit a heinous crime!

Where we gonna go, yeah where we gonna go, when the 7th trumpet blows

Before this song even  ended I was thinking, "This guy could be the next Bob Dylan".

Acoustic Rumble is sparse with usually just two acoustic guitars playing together, some occasional lead guitar, some subtle bass guitar, and light percussion. But it rocks. It rocks with conviction, It it rocks like a young man who is hungry and anxious to get his message out.

I am not always sure if he always intended it to be an acoustic album. Sometimes I wonder if he just didn't have the resources to record a full band album, or if he was just in a hurry to get his musical statement out and doing it acousticly was the best way to achieve that. Either way it worked. Because when I listen to Acoustic Rumble, it feels like the band is there. Rocking right alongside him.

Now almost 10 Years later (and after releasing several albums with songs ranging from Rock, Blues, Rockabilly, Country, and Roots) He appears (at first glance) to be returning to Acoustic Rumble with his latest CD Street Singing Troubadour. Like Rumble, Troubadour is an acoustic album, but the similarities end there.

Troubadour is quieter. It is the quietest album he has ever done. It is also the darkest album he has ever done, and a whole helluva lot more reflective. This time it's just one guitar, one voice, and occasionally a harmonica. If Rumble is stripped down, then Troubadour is the skeleton. For all I know, he might have recorded each one of these tracks live, and if he did, so much the better, because the performance is startling. And even though this is very much a folk album, it is still able to convey feelings of anger and outrage at society's ills, and tell stories about life, as well as any rocker could. But then Ubaldini is a Rocker, and this is his folk album in the tradditional sense of the word.

Acoustic Rumble is an acoustic album that rocks you. It rocks you physically and intellectually. Street Singin' Troubadour does not rock. But take the time out from your busy schedule to really listen to it, it will move you in quieter more subtle ways that will surprise you.

I will close out this review with first lines of lyric from the first song from Street Singin' Troubadour

Kingdoms are slowly falling The sky's fire evil and despair

River waters overflow with anger

Winds of Fire Burn Terrain everywhere

The voice of anger is rising with the sonnets of the sage

The voice of truth the four winds rage

ringing out with the sound of the age

Listen to (and buy) Acoustic Rumble

Listen to (and buy) Street Singin' Troubador

To order in the CD format click here

Farm Aids Open Letter to Congress on the Bailout

Farm Aid Board of Directors Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp, Neil Young and Dave Matthews sent an open letter to Congressional leaders urging them to redirect funds to farm communities and working men and women, where they can be better used to address the country's economic, environment, energy and health crises.

Read the entire letter here

Music Worth Buying Week of 08/04/08

Life Death Love And Freedom

Artist: John Mellencamp

You will be interested in this album if you are a fan of: Rock, Blues, Old School Country, Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, Early Roots Music, Electric Folk

Worth buying? Yes, the whole album!

Tell me more: Sometimes, when an artist stops being concerned with releasing a hit, it becomes the time  when they create some of their greatest music.  For years I have only known John Mellencamp by his hits. I have never really bought or listened to any of his any of his albums.  So that opening statement may not be a fair one, but as I listened to this album, I couldn't help but feel that he doesn't care one bit anymore if he ever has a hit song again or not. John Mellencamp's latest CD is an astonishingly powerful music al statement about.......Well, life, death, love, and freedom. The title pretty much sums up what the album is about. There is a haunting sparseness to the sound of this album that just echos in your head long after you've listened to it. Like I said in the beginning, I knew his hits, but I wasn't really a fan....But with this album I have become one.

What about the packaging: The CD comes in a digipak with a nice lyrics booklet that is easy to read. What is really unique is that it also comes with a DVD version of the album that boasts a quality that is nearly indistinguishable from the master tapes. This DVD version can be played on your computer or DVD player and is a real plus for you audiophiles

Listen to the album and buy in mp3 format here

CD Version (Includes bonus DVD)

What if I am not ready to buy the whole CD? Try buying  Don't Need This Body (A song about a man accepting the end of his life).