Short Cuts: Summary Reviews #6

2 Nights Solo: Terry Tufts Live @ Rasputin's
Terry Tufts
Nutshell Music
1998
13 tracks

Tufts' guitar fills out and brightens every track on 2Nights Solo, but it is in the three instrumental tracks ("Hai d'Nor h'Aire," "October Gold," and "Soaker") that he demonstrates the range and virtuosity of his playing. In fact, they are three of the four best tracks on this release.

It's very clear that this is a live performance. In the instrumental pieces especially, one can hear the audience talking in the background. The sound of voices is far enough in the background to not be distracting, and it adds a certain ambience to the music as a whole. An unsettling strangeness is added about four minutes into "Soaker" when a male voice can clearly be heard snarling like a pit bull.

As a lyricist, Tufts is not as strong. As with many of today's singer/songwiters, Tufts appears to write lyrics which are technically well structured but which tell commonplace stories undistinguished from a thousand others. I discuss only what Tufts appears to write because, unfortunately for those of us who listen to the words and like to look up the lyrics, no lyrics are included. [Absent four full panels of Tufts' face, the liner would have had plenty of room for lyrics.]

"All You Really Need To Know" is perhaps the best song, and certainly the finest performance, on this release. Written by Tufts with two cowriters, this song features lyrics that are tighter written and more compelling than those of the other songs on 2 Nights Solo. Tufts' performance on "All You Really Need To Know" is restrained but evocative, injecting into this song feeling not always apparent in the others.

Terry Tufts manages to avoid one pitfall that seems to trap so many of his peers. Where singer/songwriters often write and sound like an agglomeration of their several influences, Tufts voice is all his own. Any influences he may have had have been seemlessly blended into the mix that is his own personal style. Perhaps it is this which has made him in turn an influence for many younger singers and guitarists in Canada and beyond.

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Burning Bridges
Guitar Pete
Tangible Music
1998
10 tracks

This release is pure rock and roll. Listening to it, the blues masters come to mind. This is the blues of B. B. King, Muddy Waters, Willy Dixon, and a score of others. But there are also echoes of groups like the Sir Douglas Quintet, Golden Earring, Steppenwolf, and others who made driving blues-based rock and roll. This is blues in the pattern followed by groups like the Fabulous Thunderbirds, but without the raw edges sanded off. The closest comparison I can come up with is Montreal bluesman Frank Marino, also an exceptional guitarist, and his band Mahogany Rush, who put out the toughest version of "Roadhouse Blues" I've ever heard.

Many young musicians today understand the term "cover" to mean performing a song already done by someone else. In fact, to "cover" a tune is to do it the same way the original artist did. I abhor this practice, but I love when an artist brings his own interpretation to a song and breathes new life into it. "Mustang Sally" is the only song on Burning Bridges not written by Brasino. The original "Mustang Sally" is a solid rocker, but Brasino's treatment makes the original sound middle of the road quiet. Guitar Pete and his band dig deep into the steroid bin and pump out a driving rock and roll "Sally" that's much more than just a ride.

Unlike many contemporary bluesmen, Brasino isn't afraid to have some fun with his blues. Some of his lyrics hark back to the hocum blues of the Twenties, telling stories with a wink of the eye and a twist of humour. "Jellyfish" is a good example of his lighter side. Over a spritely rhythm, Brasino sings lyrics harking back to the double-entendre of songs like the Dominos' "Chicken Blues" ("If you don't like chicken, leave that hen alone/She'll give you so much chicken, you cannot do a thing but moan") or Eddy Vinson's "Kidney Stew Blues". In a politically incorrect lyric reminiscent of songs like Jimmy Soul's "If you want to be Happy" or Joe Tex's "Skinny Legs and All" and "Ain't Gonna Bump No More (With No Big Fat Women)," Brasino sings:

                                have i ever told you baby, pound for pound
                                nothin' i like better than a butt so big and round
                                so move on over with them hips
                                let me squeeze ya like a jellyfish
                                oh, gimme just a little bit
                                come on let me squeeze ya like a jellyfish ...

                                ...some people like 'em skinny
                                some people like 'em flattened
                                but i love the way when you're walkin'
                                it starts slappin'
                                oh, gimme just a little bit
                                let me squeeze ya like a jellyfish
                                once i start i'll never quit
                                let me squeeze ya like a jellyfish

Brasino shows off his guitar licks in his "J. B. Shuffle," an instrumental that's sure to start your feet moving to the beat.

While this release may all be heavy blues, it's not all up-tempo and some of the best songs are slow and soulful. Brasino's three long slow songs, "Do You Hear the Rain" (5:43), "Makes No Sense" (8:24) and "Gasoline"(5:54) are well worth the price of the CD all by themselves. These powerful, soulful interpretations prove the blues is alive and well in the new millennium.

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Traveler's Code
Darryl Purpose
Tangible Music
1999
11 tracks

As a songwriter, Darryl Purpose is adequate. He may even be a bit better than adequate. He is not, however, exceptional. There is nothing to his songs that will set them apart from the crowd. The lyrics, which were all written by Purpose, tend to be saccharine cliches or melodramatic heart-tuggers. Like a lot of singer/songwriters, Purpose is a competent versifier technically but his words leave something to be desired. Six of the songs on this release were co-writes, with the music written by someone else. Purpose wrote the music for the other five. No matter. There is a sameness to this music and a derivative quality to it that, while making it a very comfortable listen, fails to distinguish it from the run of the mill.

This is a shame. Given the right material, Purpose as a performer could be much more than just adequate. A beginning is here on Traveler's Code. Purpose has assembled a group of excellent musicians to perform with him, and the sound they achieve with this mundane material raises it above the average singer/songwriter release. Especially notable are the wonderful backup vocals by Lucy Kaplansky. It's also clear that Purpose is comfortable as a singer and performer. His interpretations raise many of these songs above what they might otherwise have been.

At his best, Darryl Purpose has an amicable vocal style that falls somewhere between Jud Strunk and Mickey Dolenz, with perhaps a dash of Gilbert O'Sullivan thrown in for good measure. He has a sweet, gentle voice ideally suited for the sort of story-telling songs he chooses to sing. He is at his best when singing songs in the genre of Strunk's "Daisy a Day" or "Eres Tu" style love songs.

It would be interesting to see what Darryl Purpose could do with songs that are better than just adequate. My bet is that release would be really something to hear. Maybe that will be his next one.

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the roving jewel
Paddy Tutty
Prairie Druid Music
2000
14 tracks

There are many artists today performing music that claims Celtic roots, but there are few who could with a straight face say they are playing the traditional music of Scotland and Ireland. Paddy Tutty is one who can. Hers is a music that celebrates Scots-Irish culture and the broad influences it has had on the culture of North America. And there are a few Sassenach songs included for good measure, and some from France. Those who have missed hearing Tutty will do well to pick up the roving jewel, a compilation of songs from her first two releases.

As Tutty performs it, this is no dead music of the past but a living and vital remembrance of one facet of the great cultural mosaic that makes up Canada and the United States. Even those who claim not to like folk music may, if exposed to this music, change their minds.

This is another release where it's difficult to highlight just one song because all are of such high calibre. My recommendation is to pick up a copy of the roving jewel, Paddy Tutty's fifth release, and give it a listen. If you're at all interested in traditional folk music, it will be well worth your while. While the title of this release is a reference to the first track, "Katy Cruel," it might also refer to Tutty, for she is surely a jewel of Canadian folk music.

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Geoffrey Wickham
Geoffrey Wickham
Roto Noto Music
1999
12 tracks

If forced to tie the music on this release to a specific genre, I would say it is mostly country, but an older style of pop-country we don't hear much today. The songs and the performances are especially reminiscent of Bobby Goldsboro, some Bobby Vinton, and other romantic artists of that era

"Anybody Seen My Girl" sets the stage with a sweet country sound that is at once reminiscent of Denver's "Leaving on a Jet Plane" and Rich's "The Most Beautiful Girl" yet stands comfortably on its own. There follows a series of soft country/folk songs that would fit easily into any easy listening format on small town radio or as background in some fine dining establishment.

Wickham's music is inoffensive and comfortable. There is nothing here to offend even the most contrary listener. However, there is also nothing here to distinguish Wickham or his music from the crowd. There is nothing deep here. The lyrics seem to be well written in the technical sense but are more the work of a clichéd versifier than of an original poet. Like the music backing them, the words seem derivative, a boilerplate pastiche of bits we've heard before.

With his technical facility as a musician and lyricist and his clear ability to play and sing his songs, Wickham is most likely a popular performer at his local folk club or other hometown venues. This may be what has prevented his music rising above the mundane. I've seen this in other artists. They enjoy the applause and the accolades of the home crowd and continue to perform the same thing over and over, never growing, never taking a risk. Based on this release, I believe Wickham has the talent to make that leap. I wonder, has he the courage?

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Muskoka Dreamtime
Naffin & Wright
Northern Breeze
1999
8 tracks

Separately, each is a successful Canadian musician. Brought together, Nick Naffin and Alyssa Wright create an exotic hybrid flower of music that defies genre and at times challenges the listener's sensibility. There is a wholeness to this music that at times doesn't allow the hearer to distinguish between the instruments but demands that they be heard as one. Often at the same time, there is a palpable tension that stretches and pulls at the edges of the music, the instruments pulling apart like halves of a cell dividing. In many duos, this organic complexity could become an aural wasteland. Somehow, Naffin & Wright make it work, and very effectively at that.

It might be expected that music played by guitar and cello would be very soft and quiet. At times this music is. More often, it's edgy and gripping, demanding the listener's attention. It may make appropriate dinner music, but would be distracting for the romance of candlelight and wine. This is spy-movie music. Think The Third Man.

Sometimes Wright plays along in a classical vein which often contradicts, but doesn't conflict with, what Naffin's guitar is playing. At other times, she seems to slip quite naturally into a soft jazz mode that complements the guitar. On several occasions, it sounds like Wright uses her cello to play a bass line and fill out the background with a bit harder sound.

It may be Wright's classical influence or it may be coincidence, but often Naffin's playing has a very Mason Williams pop-classical sound to it. At other times, there is a very jazz or bebop mood. And at other times, Naffin wanders perilously near rock and roll but backs off as he nears that edge. One clear example is "Octember Moon," which intersperses Mason Williams stylings with rock-like riffs including some reminiscent of Ritchie Valens' treatment of Lecuona's "Malaguena." Another is "The Shaman," which has the sort of hard-driving pseudo classical cello opening introduced to rock by Sixties groups like Procol Harum and Chicago, then is punctuated from time to time by brief rock licks. This hint of rock also shows up in varying degress in the other songs.

Naffin & Wright have attempted an unusual blend of their respective jazz and classical styles and, unlike many such efforts which die on the vine, they have succeeded in creating a new and vital sound. It will be interesting to see this music flower and grow to maturity.

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Moonglow
SwingSoniq
Independent
1998
11 tracks

SwingSoniq is a surprise. With the swing revival has come a plethora of groups aping the music of the Thirties through Fifties. Whether old-time jazz, big-band swing, or early bluesy rock and roll, the music swings but it's often very mechanical. It's the difference between hearing a note for note cover of a song and hearing a new interpretation of the same song. SwingSonic doesn't simply repeat but reincarnates the old music. If today's swing revival is making a big noise, then this is a Soniq boom.

There's a groove to the songs on this release that suggests these guys are playing the music not because it's the popular trend but because they truly enjoy playing it. The music has an organic feel to it, a comfortable feel that lets the listener just slip into it like an old bathrobe and relax. It's quiet music ideal for a romantic evening of candlelight and wine, yet it's also bright and danceable.

Usually, I can select one or two songs from a release that especially impress [or not]. Moonglow is an exception. This release is so uniformly performed and produced that to choose one song as exceptional would do a disservice to the others. This is a release that deserves a place in any collection of contemporary Canadian jazz.

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ancestors' eyes
David Leask
Independent
1999
11 tracks

In David Leask's recording, there are elements of jazz and rock reminiscent of a music pioneered by such artists as Van Morrison and the later James Taylor, among others. This makes for an interesting mix. On this release, a listener may hear songs that appear to be influenced by Morrison ("Halfway to Heaven" and "The Message in You"), The Blues Travellers ("The Other Side") and even Gerry and the Pacemakers ("Take Me In").

There are some quirky elements here. For example, "Make My Bed" begins with an a capella near-doowop line that repeats as a bridging theme throughout the song without ever actually connecting with Leask's singing.

"Talking Away" is a jazzy little number with a funky edge and a bridge that verges on spoken word, except that the patter is mostly buried beneath the music. I call it a "bridge" because it has all the sound and feel of those long freeform bridges we heard in Sixties rock, the sort of thing The Doors did. In fact, it does not "bridge" anything but just flows out to the end of the song. That it does so makes an interesting transition to the "Bridge Over Troubled Waters" piano intro of "I'm Alive," the final track on the CD. "Talking Away" is perhaps the best, or at least the most interesting song on ancestor's eyes.

One element that becomes irritating at times is that the drums seem to be mixed far too strong in several of the tracks and distract from the overall sound. However, this is a minor problem.

For those listeners seeking a break from the usual folkie fare, the music of David Leask's ancestor's eyes might be just the ticket.

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simple things
Derek Swain
Shaggy Mane Music
1998
11 tracks

This release has a very retro sound to it, echoing the popular folk music of the late Sixties and early Seventies. Most often, Swain's voice and vocal style is reminiscent of James Taylor or Neil Young during that period. Some songs move forward in time, bringing to mind Young's "Harvest" ("slow dance") and his later work with Pearl Jam ("gotta give"). Swain even manages to approach the sound of the blander Eagles material ("love of yesterday").

There's nothing specifically wrong with the songs, words or music, on this release. It's competently written and performed and certainly well produced. It is also very derivative, saying more about Swain's musical antecedents than about Swain himself as an artist. This is a safe album, folk-vanilla designed to offend no-one.

Swain is not a bad writer or a bad performer. The feeling on this release is of a fairly new artist who has not yet spread his wings, so takes timid steps toward that edge from which he must fly. That final step out from the safety of ground is the hardest for any artist to take. If and when Derek Swain takes that step, he may indeed soar to new heights where his songs can shine. It will be interesting to follow Swain's progress.

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AXIOLOGY
Andrew Riggs
Lucky Planet Records
1998
14 tracks

Andrew Riggs' music sounds most like the heavy blues British rock bands began playing in the early Sixties and that gradually began to be played by North American bands as well. Bands like John Mayall's Blues Breakers, The Yardbirds, and others discovered a slough of American electric bluesmen like Muddy Waters, Howling Wolf, and Willie Dixon and older artists like Robert Johnson and began to perform their music in authentic style but with rock instrumentation. From these bands came stars like The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce, and many more.

While it may have a retro feel to it, Riggs music stands up well today, offering an alternative style to what other contemporary artists playing. In a way, it's the other side of the looking glass. Listening to many contemporary bluesmen, I feel they think they are playing authentic blues but are really playing rock and roll with a blues edge. Here is an artist who thinks he is playing rock, but sounds more like he's playing the blues with that Sixties rock edge.

This is heavy blues, driving blues with all the force of the old songs like "Crossroads" or "Whipping Post." At times, I'm reminded of hard-rocking Canadian blues bands like the old McKenna Mendelson Mainline, The Mandala, or Mahogany Rush in their heyday. At times, there's a sound approaching the heavier end of Jethro Tull's repertoire ("Rising Tide"), but without the flute. At other times, Riggs' ragged voice is reminiscent of David Clayton Thomas ("Damn Your Eyes"), raw with hard living, hard drinking, and barroom smoke.

Over all, AXIOLOGY has the feel of a raw-edged blues band, a neat trick since budget-constrained Riggs played all the instruments himself without losing the spontaneous sense of a live performance.

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from where I stand
Maria Dunn
Independent
1998
12 tracks

The most important facet of folk songs, more than in most other art forms, is that there be a story, told with both concision and power. This is Dunn's forte. Maria Dunn is perhaps the finest lyricist and strongest storyteller of any artist I have reviewed here to date.

Part of why I think this is that her lyrics are tightly written and evocative, worthy of being called poetry in the literary sense, yet they maintain a conversational, colloquial feel.

The other part has to do with Dunn's feel for the tradition. She picks up the old forms, the standard phrases, the familar refrains and incorporates them seamlessly into her new lyrics, giving her words a comfortable timelessness. This is a great talent, for a poet to be able to write material that is at once both timely and timeless.

Like her words, Dunn's melodies pick up the old forms and make them new. The sound of this release is very traditional, bringing to mind the old Scots/Irish songs. In fact, although she is singing in English, on occasion Dunn sounds as though she is singing in Gaelic and one has to stop and listen again to be sure she is not.

While traditional sounding, these songs have background aspects that echo popular folk music of the past few decades. As examples, there are intimations of the folk styles of Andy Stewart ("Distant Whisper") and The Indigo Girls ("Sadly Real"), and others. There's even a bit of piano on the one country song on this release ("The Bus Song") that would feel right at home in rock and roll.

Not all songwriters are necessarily great performers. Maria Dunn has managed to gather a group of instrumentalists whose style is ideally suited to her own. Her singing too, is well suited to the songs she writes, so that the elements -- words, music, players, and voice -- come together as a wonderful whole.

Maria Dunn is an artist to watch. She may not be a household name now, but there's a very good possibility she will be.

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Sunny Lemon Tina
Sunny Lemon Tina
Joe & Al Productions/Bullcrap Records
2000
10 tracks

Sunny Lemon Tina's music is retro for sure. This is the sort of cool jazz rock that was being released some thirty years ago by groups like Steely Dan and [although it's a bit of a stretch] Earth, Wind and Fire. It's just old enough that it stands a chance of becoming new again, and the performances are strong enough that it should get airplay.

The mellow vocals of David Bull and Barb Wilson, given character by echo that makes them seem to be singing from somewhere else, float intricately not just over but through the instrumental, creating an unreal, dreamlike atmosphere. Overplayed, such an effect could just sound hokey. Because the echo is added with restraint sensitive to the needs of each individual song, more on some songs and less on others, it serves to enhance and polish the sound.

The vocals are ideally complemented by the instrumental mix, a balance of real instruments and electronics that stops just this side of becoming schlock pop. Instead, what Sunny Lemon Tina achieves is a laid back, soulful jazz mix, what in radio used to be called easy listening. In every sense, it's a class act.

The song which reminds me most of that early Seventies jazz is also arguably the best song on this release. "You didn't come home" is a intelligent composition presented in a balanced arrangement in which each component complements and enhances the others. David Bull's lyrics show a restraint not usually evident in Wilson/Bull songs. "You didn't come home last night...I hope it's because you lost your way." Here is a story told simply yet with exactly the right amount of detail to touch the listener's heart.

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Step Aside
Buh Duh
Joe & Al Productions
2000
7 tracks

Barb Wilson (Buh) and David Bull (Duh) are both seasoned musicians with a great deal of experience between them. It shows. Their writing and performance is clearly the work of consummate professionals.

There is, however, little on this release which really stands out, nothing destined to be a hit or even a cult favourite. What makes the music most interesting is that it is so eclectic. Here is a Sixties sound reminiscent of the Classics Four ("Step Aside"), funky disco ("Then Again"), retrobilly ("Rattlesnaked"), and four other songs with styles quite distinct from one another. Taken as a group, however, the songs are fairly run of the mill, lacking the necessary musical or lyrical hooks to distinguish them from the slough of similarly well written and produced songs filling the airwaves.

The lyrics are weak, technically well-written but tending toward cliche and lacking that indefinable something that will grab the listener's heart. In fact, the lyrics hew so to the standard that without credits it would be hard to determine which were written by Wilson, which by Bull, and which by both together.

As it begins, the words and music of "Just Someone" feel like "Eres Tu" [in my opinion one of the most beautiful popular love songs ever written]. This is a lovely song which could use an editor's touch on the lyrics. The song could also be more subtly orchestrated to give full expression to its romantic nature.

Perhaps the best song on this release is also the simplest. "Rattlesnaked" is an uptempo rockabilly number with a solid retro edge to it. This is hard bopping dance music with the sort of quirky lyrics found on the dark edge of rock and roll inhabited by songs like Bo Diddley's "Who Do You Love" or Gene Vincent's "Race with the Devil."

For readers who may not have guessed, knowing the talent involved in this project, I am quite disappointed in the resulting product. Much more can and should be expected from the team of Barb Wilson and David Bull.

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