Dave Mason - "Alone Together/Headkeeper"

Dave Mason, does the name sound familiar? If not do not worry, Mason is an unassuming rock guitarist and songwriter.  He was most active during the late 1960s and through the 1970s though he continued to record and release albums through the 1980s and more sparingly but all the way into the first decade of the 2000s.  Mason has a decent following and he has had hit songs that will be instantly familiar to many a listener ("Feelin' Alright" is his composition, first performed as a member of Traffic) his most famous song is "We Just Disagree" (written by friend Jim Krueger) a big hit in 1977 and still getting radio play.

Born in England, Mason is a very adept guitarist but never gained the popularity (or reached the innovation) of contemporaries like Clapton, Hendrix, and George Harrison.  He first gained notice as a founding member of Traffic with Steve Winwood, Jim Capaldi, and Chris Wood.  But Mason was not a team player while the other three worked as a composing unit Mason worked solo.  Mason left the group in 1968 after the release of their second album.  He went to work as a session guitarist for Jimi Hendrix's "Electric Ladyland" album most notably playing on Hendrix's version of "All Along the Watchtower."  He toured with Delaney and Bonnie and Friends appearing on their album "On Tour with Eric Clapton."  After that he was a session guitarist on George Harrison's epic "All Things Must Pass" album.

Shortly after working with Harrison, Mason completed and released his debut album 1970's "Alone Together." With backup from Jim Capaldi, Rita Coolidge, Leon Russell, Jim Gordon, Carl Radle, Jim Keltner and Delaney and Bonnie.  This started Mason solo career with such promise, all eight tracks are solid.  Opening with the semi-hit "Only You know and I know." There are nice banjo and acoustic numbers like "Just a Song" and "World in Changes."  The piano ballad "Sad and Deep as You." "Shouldn't have took More than you Gave" and "Look at you Look at Me" are more rock oriented and sound like Mason's work with Traffic. "Waitin' on you" is gospel styled obviously influenced by Delaney and Bonnie. "Can't Stop the Worrying, Can't Stop loving" is pure smooth pop.

After a second album that was a partial duet with Mama Cass Elliot.  Mason started recording his third album but got into a contract dispute with his record label.  The label took the five tracks that Mason had completed for his third album and paired it with five tracks recorded live (I believe at the Troubadour) and called the album "Headkeeper."  The record company released the compiled album without Mason's permission and Mason publicly denounced it.  Despite the controversy the live tracks are well performed but are not very different from the studio versions, however the studio tracks are some of the best of Mason's career. "To Be Free" with its great piano lines is gorgeous and ends with a Stephen Stills-esque choral movement. "Here we Go Again" with its chiming guitars, mandolins, and hand claps is one of Mason's catchiest compositions. "A Heartache, a Shadow, a lifetime" is wonderful pop. They find Mason expanding and capitalizing on the promise of his debut album.

In 2005 Mason released these two records on one CD set, for record buyers in England.  Available as a reasonably priced import from Amazon and other sources this is a great record and some of Mason's finest work.  There is a foldout booklet that is a bit short but still interesting.  If you are interested in Mason's work, a fan of Delaney and Bonnie's "On Tour" or Eric Clapton's solo debut this is a great addition to your collection. I'm glad I own it.

Gordon Lightfoot - "Gord's Gold"

A very strong greatest hits compilation of Lightfoot's most popular recordings. Released shortly after his commercial peak with the album "Sundown" and featuring songs like "Carefree Highway," "Sundown" and "If you Could Read my Mind."

Lightfoot was one of the most popular singer/songwriters of the 1960s and 1970s.  Hailing from Canada, some considered him the closest thing to a Canadian Bob Dylan. Lightfoot focuses on mellow acoustic based songs with strong lyrics that often tell stories. His deep, warm and husky voice carries his tunes well and he has more vocal ability than Leonard Cohen or Dylan.

This collection covers basically the first ten years of his career. This period actually turned out to be the best part of his career as well. He would continue to write good songs and have a very dedicated fan following but his commercial popularity and creative abilities are at their best here.

Picking at least one song from each one of his albums from his 1966's debut "Lightfoot" to his 1975 hit "Cold on the Shoulder." His earlier songs have been re-recorded like "Canadian Railroad Trilogy" and also turned into medleys like "I'm Not Sayin'/Ribbon of Darkness" (John Denver did the same thing with his early songs on his Greatest Hits album). The versions are not drastically different, but the new recordings do make a number of the songs sound similar since Lightfoot's voice and style on the old songs sounds similar to the "new" songs.

Upon first listen the songs may all blend together (it is a 21 track album!).  But repeated listens will reveal the great nuance and quality of Lightfoot's music. Originally released in 1975 as a two record set,  to fit the album on one CD they deleted the song "Affair on 8th Avenue" (die-hard fans will complain about this omission for years). The CD has a short but nice booklet with an overview essay of Lightfoot's career and photos of his longtime band members. This is a great compilation for those unfamiliar with Lightfoot.  A 2002, 20 track CD called "The Complete Greatest Hits" is another option for those looking to get Lightfoot all on one album. That disc covers a larger period of time 1966-the 1980s and features the original versions of the songs. In the end it is up to you dear listener to see which compilation fits your needs. I like this one.

Carole King - "The Carnegie Hall Concert, June 18, 1971"

This legacy edition of this 1971 concert was not released until 1996. But it is a little gem.

Performed for a sold out crowd shortly after the release of King's landmark "Tapestry" album that was climbing up the charts and her song "It's Too Late" had hit number one on the charts the morning of this concert.

The audience is incredibly excited between songs and in sheer respectful awe when songs are sung. The audience is so quiet during some songs you can hear her voice bounce of the walls. King is obviously nervous as evidenced by her stage chatter, she does get more comfortable as the show progresses and as noted at this point in her life she had terrible stage fright.

While the songs are largely from "Tapestry" there are several excellent renditions from her forgotten debut album "Writer" and songs from her at the time unreleased  album "Music." For the majority of the concert King is alone with her piano giving even the famous songs a different spin. It is almost as if King is in your living with a grand piano, that is how intimate this concert sounds. Sometimes her voice is shaky as she was not really a performer at this point in her career. Well known California session guitarist Danny Kortchmar appears on a few songs; There is also a special appearance by James Taylor who duets with King on some of her old hits like "Will you still love me tomorrow" and of course "You've Got  a Friend."

The liner notes are excellent as is the sound which is usual for Legacy releases. This is a great companion piece to the classic "Tapestry" album and a warm nice listen for a late cold night. Recommended for fans of King and "Tapestry."

Billy Joel - "Piano Man"

Billy Joel is one of my all time favorite musicians, his "River of Dreams" album was the very first CD I ever owned. Joel is one of those artists that despite a massive amount of hits, great songs, awards, and huge fan base he is still not given the credit he really deserves (much like Sheryl Crow and Joel's idol Paul McCartney). Well all us Billy Joel fans know how great a musician he is and love him for it.

After listening to "River of Dreams" I went back into Joel's catalogue and started falling in love with his music. "Piano Man" was his second album and really the record that started his career. The autobiographical title track became Joel's signature song and he became know as The Piano Man.

Released in 1973 this album by and large takes a cue from other 1970s contemporaries by creating a series of characters and story style scenes, some of which Joel inhabits other times he is simply the narrator. His first album was firmly planted in the singer songwriter genre and this album employs some of those songwriter elements, "You're My Home" and "If I only Had the Words" but really he expands his sound into what would become Billy Joel trademarks. His excellent melody abilities are on massive display that make all the songs sound spectacular. He also employs Western/Cowboy theme through the album, such as the banjo hoedown of "Traveling Prayer," the "Magnificent Seven" style "Ballad of Billy the Kid" and the country tinged "Stop in Nevada."

Occasionally Joel sounds like Elton John, particularly on "Ain't no Crime," but by and large this is Billy Joel finding his musical voice and identity with three of his best songs, the title track, "Ballad of Billy the Kid" and the rocking album closer "Captain Jack."

This is one of his best albums even though it has a terrible and creepy cover that has nothing to do with the album. I almost did not put a picture up because the cover freaks me out. Billy Joel is one of the greatest pop/rock musicians of all time and this was his genesis.

Tracy Chapman - "Crossroads"

Tracy Chapman's second album is very similar in tone and style to her first. The album is made up of confessional and observational singer/songwriter type songs. Much of the music again focuses on acoustic guitars and Chapman's excellent voice. The major difference is that the songs here are far less open and they don't draw the listener in like the first album did.

There are a number of excellent songs here but they are not as catchy as the songs on the first album were. The excellent songs include the powerhouse "Freedom Now," about Nelson Mandela and is definitely the best song here. Also wonderful tunes are "Bridges," "Be Careful of My Heart" and "All that you have is your Soul." The rest of the album is a little too closed off to really connect to. It is a strong album that gains from multiple listens as you can examine Chapman's lyrics, but it is a difficult album to get into. I often find myself only playing the five best songs on the album. But this is still a decent companion to Chapman's debut album.

Tracy Chapman - "Tracy Chapman"

I bought this album from Tower Records somewhere around the year 2001. I kept hearing the song "Fast Car" on the radio and thought it was awesome and in reading glowing reviews of this album I decided to buy it.

Tracy Chapman's eponymous debut did not disappoint. A true singer/songwriter album and it was definitely a throwback to the 1960s and 70s style of music when it was released. In 1988 the era of dance music, hair metal, and lots of effects and big sounds this was an oddity but it caught the ear of many listeners making it an unexpected big hit. There is the hit single "Fast Car" a quiet heartbreaking tale of someone who just can't get out from under the mud of life. But every song is a winner on this album produced very simply with Chapman on acoustic guitar and vocals. Some songs feature piano and drums but overall the only instruments are an acoustic guitar and Chapman's deep textured strong and beautiful voice. Other notable tracks include the excellent "Talkin' Bout a Revolution" and "Baby Can I Hold you," but like I said earlier every track is strong. The songs focus on often dark subjects but the album is consistently appealing and the honesty of the whole enterprise keeps me coming back to this album. A great debut.

John Lennon - "John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band"

Since tomorrow Oct. 9th, would have been John Lennon's 70th birthday I am breaking the sequence of my loosen the key blog to honor him. But next week we shall return to the alphabetical order that has been going on.

When I was in high school I was incredibly interested in John Lennon, I still have an interest in him it is just not as dominating. I used to have shirts with his picture and sayings like "Imagine" and "Give Peace a Chance." I found him mesmerizing in a way and just researched him and listened to his music.

His first solo album "John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band," excluding the sound experiments of "Unfinished Music," is a brutal confessional album focusing on all the feelings that Lennon was experiencing at the time, including loss, anger, insecurity, bitterness, love and hope. The album is incredibly demanding as it does not bend to the listener, Lennon wants to talk about these things and if you do not want to listen you should buy a different record. When he sings, "I was the Dreamweaver and Now I'm Reborn, I was the Walrus but now I'm just John, The Dream is Over," its a truly moving statement that is heartbreaking. While there is a bleakness to the album, Lennon wraps some simple yet melodic music around his lyrics. I connected with this album in High School because I knew what "Isolation" felt like, and "Love" but also losing dreams and "Look at me What am I supposed to be?" I was feeling those emotions and the confessional feel of the album connected. He also brought some hope on the horizon with songs like "Hold On" and "Love" which I also identified with.

As with all Lennon solo albums, with the exception of "Double Fantasy," some of the songs seem unfinished or simply demos but here it adds to the feel of the album. It is not a perfect recording, the screaming at the end of some songs gets overbearing, the CD reissue also adds two singles to the end of the album seemingly to balance the bleakness. This album brought Lennon from the heights of Beatle power to a regular person who happened to being feeling the same way that many of us everyday people felt. That is the power of the album it explores universal emotions in a simple confessional way. This album is not for everyone as it may be too demanding for some listeners, but it is something special from a very special musician.

So for what would be your 70th birthday I write this review to you John Lennon. You were stolen from us but thank you for the music that you made, as it connected us. I hope you are somewhere hanging with George and jamming with Elvis. Happy Birthday John.