(February 2022) Episode 387 of the “opus project” is BLIND WILLIE McTELL One of the best blues artists there ever was, notable for his fingerpicking style associated with the Piedmont blues. He usually played a 12-string, and you can hear the direct influence on Jimmy Page and others. His voice was smooth and high in a ragtime sound. All without his sight.
Favorite song: East St. Louis Blues (Fare You Well)
Compared to expectations: ↑
Recommendation: essential for any tour of the blues
(February 2022) Episode 386 is KULA SHAKER. Their debut was lightning in a bottle, a Harrisonesque mix of Britpop, Indian music and Hindu mysticism. I had it in heavy rotation back in the day. Subsequent albums, despite occasional good bits, never matched the charm.
Favourite album: K
Favourite song: Into The Deep
Compared to expectations: ↓
Recommendation: just K (debut album)
(January 2022) Episode 385 is BLUE CHEER. One of the loud and heavy bands from the late 1960s – and you know how much I love loud and heavy bands from the late 1960s – that is seen as a precursor to heavy metal. The sound on their first four fuzz-laden albums (the only ones you need listen to) is like Vanilla Fudge mixed with Iron Butterfly with a cup of MC5. Like many of that era, inevitably, they reformed to record some terrible albums in later decades.
Favorite album: Vincebus Eruptum
Favorite song: Come and Get It
Compared to expectations: same
Recommendation: for those who like 60s deep cuts and metal historians
(February 2022) Episode 384 is HABIB KOITÉ. Guitarist from Mali who delivers a relaxed yet powerful style, with a reserved signing voice that blends well with the rhythms. He became quite popular in West Africa and partnered with some American artists. He adapted his guitar to the pentatonic tuning of a local stringed instrument, and his playing reminds me of Robert Fripp.
Favorite album: Musa Ko
Favorite song: Massakè
Favorite collaboration album: Brothers in Bamako (with Eric Bibb)
Compared to expectations: same
Recommendation: approachable and enjoyable
(January 2022) Episode 383 is THE BOO RADLEYS. As I continue my (second) tour of 90s UK bands, I come to The Boo Radleys, who trod the crowded path from shoegaze to Britpop. Their songs never settle on a singular style, both within and across albums, which makes them both an interesting listen but also hard to characterize.
Favourite album: C’Mon Kids
Favorite song: What’s in the Box? (See Whatcha Got)
Compared to expectations: same
Recommendation: should be on your 90s British rock list
(January 2022) Episode 382 is JENNIFER HIGDON. An award-winning contemporary composer with a catalogue of excellent works for string and wind. She’s somewhat more conventional (in form and sound, as in more tonal) than some of the other 21st century composers I’ve explored recently – with works more tailored for concert bands than for mixed media installations.
Favorite piece: Concerto for Orchestra
Favorite chamber piece: Sky Quartet
Compared to expectations: same
Recommendation: yes for the orchestral pieces
(January 2022) Episode 381 is BONNIE RAITT. I don’t think anybody can dislike Bonnie Raitt. Her bluesy/soulful voice and slidey guitar make a wholesome blend of blues/rock/roots music. But it can also be kinda basic. The albums from her mainstream success years are my least favorite, and I like her later, more atmospheric and introspective, recordings the best.
Favorite album: Slipstream
Favorite song: God Was In The Water
Compared to expectations: same
Recommendation: enjoyable but it does not challenge you
(January 2021) Episode 380 is COURTNEY BARNETT. Conventional yet enjoyable singer-songwriting, delivered in a somewhat laconic, sometimes Sprechgesang Australian accent. I was drawn to her by the grungy fuzz of “Pedestrian at Best” but that was more exception than rule.
Favorite album: Sometimes I Sit And Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit*
Favorite song: Pedestrian At Best
Compared to expectations: same
Recommendation: enjoyable but not spectacular
* one of my favorite album titles of all time
(January 2022) Episode 379 is SLAYER. 1980s music generally sucked, but it did bless us with thrash metal, in which Slayer reigned (in blood). I like my metal at the extremes and Slayer goes there with speed, speed, speed, with a full package of death and devil themes. And they seamlessly transitioned through groove metal too. So good.
Favorite album: Reign in Blood
Favorite song: Angel of Death
Compared to expectations: ↑
Recommendation: essential in the metal genre
(January 2022) Episode 378 is JOAQUÍN RODRIGO. You’ll recognize him from the main theme of Concierto De Aranjuez (used by Miles Davis, Chick Corea), a piece that sentimentally evokes a Spanish pastoral landscape. He elevated the guitar in classical repertoire, and it is my favorite part of his works, although amazingly he never mastered the instrument. Also amazing: he was blind and composed in Braille.
Favorite piece: Concierto De Aranjuez
Favorite solo guitar piece: Toccata para guitarra
Favorite solo piano piece: Cinco Sonatas de Castilla
Compared to expectations: same
Recommendation: Strongly recommend the guitar works
Opus Project 