Recording Reviews

Dave Crossland
Molly's Street
Roadmonkey Music RMCD4 (1998)

Having seen Dave Crossland only as a solo artist, I did not expect him to produce a New York-style soul-rock album in the tradition of the Rascals, Springsteen, and Willy DeVille. Although he may not replace Van Morrison any time soon, Crossland rocks convincingly on the powerful title tune, a sort of "grass is greener"/ "coming of age" piece, and on the hilariously bitter "Annie," for whom Crossland laments being a "second string guy." Other highlights include the infectious "London Town" and the tender love ballad, "Run to California." Crossland lets down his guard on the poignant "Mother's Cross." A rocked out reprise of "When the Buffalo Come Back" from Crossland's last CD has all the electric bombast that the song's powerful message demands. It seems virtually pointless to cover "Eleanor Rigby," but Crossland's cello-heavy version captures the drama of the original while adding some canny new embellishments. All in all, this is a very impressive record, truly folk-rock (with a capital R) at its finest. - Michael Parrish (Downers Grove, IL)

Ruth MacKenzie
Kalevala, Dream of the Salmon Maiden
Omnium OMM 2021(1998)

In 1993, MacKenzie was touring Finland with her band, Trova, and fell under the spell of a high-pitched Swedish vocal style called "kulning," which is used for calling animals. She returned to study that and other traditional vocalizations. The effect is stunning. As MacKenzie sings in "Give Us Room to Roar," "Where our voice is heard, there the trees break." Kalevala is a cast recording of a stage production, with musical backing provided by an ensemble that features Peter Ostroushko on fiddle, his partner Dean McGraw on guitar, and others on traditional instruments and vocals. The play tells the story of Aino, a young maiden who is confronted by Vämämömen, a 900-year-old magician and singer, who claims her as his wife. She, of course, refuses because that’s what young girls do in such stories. Her parents, of course, think a wedding’s a great idea. Aino leaves and transforms herself into a salmon to gain her freedom. I’m not sure what dramatics take place onstage when Kalevala is performed, but I hope they carry the story better than the recording. The songs don’t explain the narrative without the album’s liner notes. Also, while the singing is breathtaking, the melodies of the songs themselves sound too much alike. The most striking songs are the ones that feature the vocalists backed mainly by percussion, allowing them to show off their stylistic effects. — Jeff Lindholm (Charlottesville, VA)

Maddy Prior
Flesh & Blood
Park PRKCD38 (1998)

This is hardly the first solo album from Maddy Prior, who has been one of the dominant voices in English folk circles for nearly 30 years, but as her first release since she ended her longstanding role as the vocal keystone of pioneering folk-rockers Steeleye Span it has a special significance. Old fans have nothing to fear. This is a strong and confident recording that blends some of the best of her old sound with a few new tricks.

Her band these days is based around keyboardist Nick Holland and multi-instrumentalist Troy Donockley, who also sing hearty harmonies and contribute to the arrangements. On the fast songs, Holland makes his synthesized piano a worthy folk-rock instrument, as on "Sheath and Knife," the disc-opening traditional ballad of incest and murder, where Prior’s voice soars in a sound reminiscent of her classic Steeleye years. Holland’s lush keyboards support most of the quieter tracks, as well. Donockley’s overdubbed electric and acoustic guitars, cittern, pipes, and whistles provide the rest of the instrumental framework, along with Andy Crowdy’s bass and Teri Briant’s drums.

Other traditional tracks include "Hind Horn," a call-and-response Child ballad of love lost and found, and "Bitter Withy," a clever old tale that purports to tell of Christ’s career as an amateur ballplayer. The bulk of the disc’s material is of modern origin, though. There’s a compelling unaccompanied arrangement of "Honest Work," a powerful plea from an unemployed worker that has a surprising author, pop/rocker Todd Rundgren. About half of Flesh & Blood is devoted to a seven-part song cycle called "Dramatis Personae" written by Prior and her husband, onetime Steeleye bassist Rick Kemp. She describes it as "a series of songs about personality" and the format will be familiar to those who have heard her previous solo work. The suite opens with "Who Am I," an eerie, whistle-backed, ancient-sounding riddle song, with other highlights including the myth-based anthem "Boy on a Horse" and a story of a wise old monk called "Brother Lawrence." The disc concludes with "Heart of Stone," a thoughtful Kemp song about the misdirections of modern life.

Flesh & Blood marks a change for Prior, but it’s an affirmation that she has leaped into her post-Steeleye life with all the vocal power and musical taste she always brought to that band, and a sign that there’s a lot more to look forward to in this woman’s musical career. — Tom Nelligan (Waltham, MA)

Los Super Seven
Los Super Seven
RCA 07863-67689 (1998)

Imagine yourself at an all-star Tex-Mex/Chicano/Conjunto song swap. Los Super Seven is David Hidalgo and Cesar Rosas (of Los Lobos), Rick Treviño, Joe Ely, Flaco Jimenez, Freddy Fender, and Ruben Ramos. They come from different generations and different genres of music, but are united in their musical sensibilities to the roots of this music. All of them grew up surrounded by the music of Mexico, albeit in different eras — Freddy Fender listening to players on the streets of San Benito, Texas; Rick Treviño, the son of a sometime Tejano player in Austin, Texas; Joe Ely, an Anglo who was influenced by the migrant workers in Lubbock, Texas; Hidalgo and Rosas (who was born in Mexico) in East L.A., where the radio played Los Alegres de Teran, among other Mexican groups; Ruben Ramos — "El Gato Negro" — fronting a Tejano band in Texas since the early 70s; and Flaco Jimenez, son of conjunto pioneer Santiago Jimenez.

According to producer Steve Berlin, "It took us only about a week in all. Max Baca and Joel Guzman of the Austin band Los Aztex were there doing a lttle bit of everything. David and Cesar were there, and the other players would come in when they could with a couple of songs, and we’d work it out on the spot." The sponteneity is evident, not in any sloppiness of musicianship, but rather in the freshness of the arrangements.

There are 13 songs and tunes comprising this album; none are standouts only because all are so good and each contributes mightily to the breadth of beauty, passion, and longing presented. The players take turns leading some of their favorite tunes. All are in Spanish, with the exception of Woody Guthrie’s "Los Deportees" (Joe Ely) and one of David Hidalgo’s contributions, "Río de Tenampa" (written by Hidalgo and Louis Perez while touring Mexico with Bob Dylan), which has English verses and a singalong Spanish chorus. Rollicking fun is had by all when Flaco Jimenez leads the group in his father’s song "Margarita," a tune with party beat and a laughing, gurgling accordion part that will make you smile, too. Ruben Ramos infuses his contributions ("La Madrugada," "La Morena") with energy. Special mention should be made of the wonderful voices on this album, particularly those of Rick Treviño and Cesar Rosas, which are smooth and pleasing on "El Canoero" and "Mi Ranchito." Freddy Fender brings out a song he learned from an old man in a bar in Mexico, one morning in the wee hours many years ago. "Un Lunes Por la Mañana" had been laying dormant inside him until he found the perfect release in the recording of this album, when it all came back to him.

The booklet that comes with the CD is worthy of mention for the extensive liner notes that have lyrics in Spanish and English, brief biographies of the artists, quotes from the artists about the process of choosing and producing the songs, and beautiful artwork. To present so much information so clearly and elegantly took great thought and vision. This recording by Los Super Seven richly and abundantly feeds the ears, the eyes, and, most importantly, the soul. — Susan Hartman (Baltimore, MD)

Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys
Bayou Ruler
Rounder CD 6083 (1998)

This is an exciting time to be a fan of Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys. Of course, there have been no dull moments in the band’s 10-year history, but with Bayou Ruler the Playboys strike out in a new direction. The sound stretches and changes, and not everything new on this recording is good, but the overall drift is in the right direction.

A quick listen to the six other recordings by Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys shows that they are at the forefront of Cajun music. The Playboys have done a lot in the on-going revival of traditional Cajun and zydeco music. But even their name, echoing Western swing, suggests that good things change, and that evolution is part of the tradition.

There is a new sound — new arrangements, new instruments, brought together by new producer C.C. Adcock, a staple of Lafayette’s rock scene. Fiddler David Greely, on saxophone this time, adds new flavors and textures. There’s swamp pop, country, zydeco, blues, swing, and a few other elements drifting around. Not all of this new material succeeds: The title track and "Tough Get Going" are lyrically weak, and in some places, the music tries too hard to please the deadened ears of the MTV crowd.

All of this is not to say that the Playboys have left traditional Cajun music behind. Dewey Balfa’s "Voyage d’amour" and "J’ai été au bal" are in fine form, as old-time and powerful as anyone could wish. It is out of these roots that the new songs emerge. David Greely is the group’s pre-eminent composer, and his French songs are very engaging. The bluesy "La rosée" or the country-pop inflected "Laisse-moi connaître" move the music ahead in directions no one but the Playboys could go. Things really come together on "Chez Personne" by Greely and Peter Schwarz, which combines an almost sparse arrangement with a recurring violin riff and plaintive vocals, ending in a very traditional sound. What is it, exactly? It is something new. Think of it as gumbo: If you start out with a great roux, you can add all sorts of new ingredients and still have something delicious. — Bruce E. Baker (Goose Creek, SC)