Archive for November, 2007

Bobby Charles “Bobby Charles”

| Americana,Pop,RnB

Bobby Charles

Bobby Charles’ self-titled debut album is an easy favorite. Fans of The Band have no excuse not to track this one down, as it features production work from Rick Danko, keys from Garth Hudson and contributions from Levon Helm, and Dr. John as well. (Check the lineup here). If you love The Band (s/t) and Music From Big Pink, this is the next record you need.

The record hits you song after song with its relaxed vibe, authentic lyrics, and instantly gratifying hooks. Bobby kills me when he sings “oh what a good day to go fishing” on the ballad “I Must Be In A Good Place Now” and the 100th time thru the “Save Me Jesus” chorus gets me too. Bobby Charles s/t is split pretty much down the middle with soulful ballads and upbeat groovers. “Grow Too Old” borders on a Randy Newman sound. “He’s Got All The Whiskey” should be a standard! “Small Town Talk” is like a country-cajun Shuggie Otis! Who’s not going to dig this?

The songs on the B side take a little more investment to hear, but they all pay off. There’s the beautiful “Tennessee Blues” and an ahead-of-its-time treatment to (bonus track) “New Mexico.”   A really classic and contemporary sound on these tracks and just a perfect feel. Sick album, I love it.

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“Small Town Talk”

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mp3: New Mexico

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The Family Tree “Miss Butters”

| Concept Albums,Pop,Psych,Sunshine

Miss Butters

It’s great to see an album like Miss Butters finally getting the reissue treatment it deserves. The Family Tree was the product of the genius of Bob Segarini, and their only album is a fantastic and interesting conceptual piece with tunes as memorable as any Broadway musical (only really cool).

This record is a must for any Nilsson fan, not alone for some of the similar feels, it was recorded at the same studio as Aerial Ballet, using the same arranger for orchestra parts, same producer, and Harry even wrote a track. A Nilsson album in spirit, but unlike anything he was capable of creating. The Miss Butters recording is superb in its production, the equal of any Beatles record, and soars with string arrangement, backing vocal, and complex song structure.

Previously, Miss Butters was presented in an unapproved stereo mix on vinyl. The CD reissue has remastered audio from the master tapes presented in original mono (and really, really nice sounding). This is a masterful reissue from Revola for a record that truly deserves it. Bravo.

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“Any Other Baby”

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