Ry Cooder, Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down. By this point, Ry Cooder
has shown us enough sides where it's obvious there isn't anything he
can't do. As a guitarist, it's like he's crossed haiku poetry with
higher mathematics, creating a world that is unlimited. There isn't
anyone like him and probably won't be again. Each new album is a turn
onto a street we haven't quite seen before, and the way Cooder builds
his own musical world continues to thrill.
Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down gathers a trunk full of different
styles, and is put together so each one sounds brand new. There is
bluesy folk, Tex-Mex bliss, gorgeous ballads, and even a John Lee
Hooker-inspired lament. You can almost see Ry Cooder chuckling away to
himself when he's finished recording each one, knowing he's topped even
himself. The Southern Californian has never been shy about bringing his
entertainment with him.
For those looking for unique guitaristics, a voice soaked in
experience and dripping with wisdom propelled by a philosophical outlook
that revels in reality but never loses hope, seek no further than Mr.
C. He always aims for the bullseye and never really misses. Ry Cooder
has been recording albums over 40 years and, believe it or not, still
sounds like he's just getting started. Open the door and let the man
come in.
Glen Campbell, Ghost on the Canvas. For an album that Glen Campbell
is calling his final studio effort, he gets close enough to perfection
to possibly call it quits. He says his advancing Alzheimer's could well
end his career, so he decided to go for the gusto now and give these
songs his all. It works so well that the results stave off the sadness
of thinking this might be it.
Listening to "A Better Place" or "It's Your Amazing Grace" is like
peeking in on a private prayer session as Campbell's voice breaks with
emotion. He may not always remember what exactly is happening to his
memory, but with songs like this the heart can't help but ache at what
is going on. Co-producer Julian Raymond had a hand in writing some of
these songs, and the way he can zero in on Glen Campbell's current state
is uncanny. It's almost like he is the singer's other half. Other
songwriters Paul Westerberg, Jakob Dylan, and Robert Pollard add their
own touch of the eternal to Ghost on the Canvas, and complete the
circle.
There aren't many modern musicians who have gone to the mountaintop
Glen Campbell has. A temporary Beach Boy in the mid-'60s, not to
mention a first-chair guitarist in Phil Spector's Wrecking Crew, soon led
to massive Campbell pop hits and his own network television series.
Even a later fall from grace didn't put Campbell down for the count long. He always came back, and for his final round he shines brighter than ever. It's like Roky Erickson once sang: "If you have ghosts then you have everything - in this world."
Even a later fall from grace didn't put Campbell down for the count long. He always came back, and for his final round he shines brighter than ever. It's like Roky Erickson once sang: "If you have ghosts then you have everything - in this world."
Junior Wells' Chicago Blues Band, Hoodoo Man Blues. There are a
dozen or so blues albums made in the last 60 years that defy gravity and
beg to be bought. And, yes, bought again when an expanded edition comes
out that shows why this music is a true lifeline to eternity. Junior
Wells made one of those keepers a long time ago and its recent
reemergence is cause for celebration.When it was first released in the '60s, Hoodoo Man Blues might not
have seemed like an instant classic. Maybe that's because it was so real
it blended in with the weather. Junior Wells was a singer and harp
player who had come up after Little Walter and the first wave of Chicago
bluesmen, but he was second-string to no one. He had a bad-ass persona
and low-down feel, so when he hooked up with guitarist Buddy Guy for
these sessions it was like the Windy City was unleashing another pair of
pathfinders on the world. There were no tricks involved, just rough and
tough playing crossed with cutthroat songs. No more was needed to mark
their spot.
Additional tracks are included here, as well as some studio chatter
captured during the sessions. It gives a great glimpse into the real
lives of these working bluesmen, not to mention their caustic humor and
zest for life. A few years later Junior Wells lost his way some in show
business trappings and too much attention. On these songs, though, he
cuts straight to the center of the blues universe and shows why this
music will always be that place where the soul of man lives forever.
