From Sylvie Simmons MOJO review of the new Patty Loveless record:

“The songs on her nineteenth album are all covers, most about love gone wrong, from country’s classic age, when in its varied forms was handled by singers with stoicism and a stiff drink rather than Celine-Dion-in-a-stetson histrionics.

Old R.E.M. is comfortable for me, like old jeans and t-shirts, jasmine tea and Tom Robbins in the grass with a nice looking girl. Spring brings that out in me, as I mentioned in my recent post called The Great Pastry Debate.

I really loved Life’s Rich Pageant, thought Green was a good record and still like to play Crush With Eyeliner really loud. And contrary to what a lot of people thought, I found some of the songs on Around The Sun to be really beautiful.

Life’s Rich Pageant F45 Favorites

R.E.M. – Fall On Me
R.E.M. – Cuyahoga
R.E.M. – Hyena

Green F45 Favorites

R.E.M. – You Are The Everything
R.E.M. – Stand
R.E.M. – World Leader Pretend

Automatic For The People (Hmmmm…or maybe that was Monster?) F45 Favorite

R.E.M. – Crush With Eyeliner

Around The Sun F45 Favorites

R.E.M. – Leaving New York
R.E.M. – I wanted To Be Wrong

Namaste,
_/\_
Music Junkie

Do I go to Peet’s Coffee and Tea, a regional chain with an exceptional selection of teas, or Panera Bread, which has better pastries and comfier chairs (but lousy tea service)? I chose the later and their standard issue Earl Grey just ain’t cutting it. Maybe I should get Peet’s to go and smuggle it into Panera. They’re next door to each other.

We had to take the car without the CD player to school this morning, so the kids didn’t get to hear anything new (and I have little interest in tainting them with local radio).

I have a bunch of stuff on my hot list right now.

While my guitar player friend, Dale, rendered some tracks to CD at band practice last night, we listened to Side One of R.E.M.’s Document album (on vinyl). He’s not much of an R.E.M. guy, but he listened along graciously. Following the example of our friend, Jeff, over at The Midnight Tracker here are the tunes from that very side:

R.E.M. – Finest Worksong
R.E.M. – Welcome To The Occupation
R.E.M. – Exhuming McCarthy
R.E.M. – Disturbance At The Heron House
R.E.M. – Strange
R.E.M. – Its The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)

We balanced Dale’s karma by spinning some cuts from Jeff Beck’s Truth record. We gave extra listens to I Ain’t Superstitious and Shape Of Things (but, sorry, I don’t have them handy on this computer).

I wrote a piece on WNEW on how different the first Sly Stone album iss from the second (and why). Since then, that first record, A Whole New World, has been in hot rotation.

Sly And The Family Stone – If This Room Could Talk
Sly And The Family Stone – Run, Run, Run

Sure doesn’t sound like Dance To The Music, does it?

I’m not much for the hype that surrounds “deluxe editions,” but I’ll admit the extra stuff added to the lone Blind Faith album is pretty cool. The electric version of Can’t Find My Way Home is a nice change and one of the jam sessions — labeled “Change Of Address Jam” — is pretty cool:

Blind Faith – Can’t Find My Way Home (Electric Version)
Blind Faith – Change Of Address Jam

Last but not least, I spent my last dozen eMusic credits this month on M. Ward’s Transistor Radio album. What a tremendous work, the perfect mix of noise and melody, simplicity and texture. I can’t find bad tune across the board, but these are my faves:

M. Ward – Hi-Fi
M. Ward – Fuel For Fire
M. Ward – Big Boat

Namaste
__/\__
Music Junkie

Original Recording | September 1994 | Ithaca, NY

Digital Remaster | September 2007 | Brush Prairie, WA

The Iguanas – Oye Isabel
The LA’s – There She Goes
Barenaked Ladies – Jane
Doobie Brothers – Natural Thing
Darden Smith – Trouble No More
Crash Test Dummies – Afternoons and Coffee Spoons
James – Sometimes
Gin Blossoms – Found Out About You
Counting Crows – Mr. Jones
Dire Straits – Sultans of Swing
U2 – One Tree Hill
Rhythm Corps – Common Ground
Bob Dylan – Lay Lady Lay
REM – Belong
Sting – Nothin’ Bout Me

Notes from original tape: “This tape was was (sic) recorded early fall 1994 on the original Atus/Technics system used at the end of Chuck Clark’s Bar many years before. The original edit of side one also included Van Morrison’s “Chick-A-Boom”. It was recorded over 2 weeks (9/17-24) in the musty living room at Dryden Farm”.

<a href=”http://www.fusion45.com/wp-content/uploads/audio/2007/master_1.mp3″>A-Frame Tapes, Volume 4</a>