***** Bird’s Best Bop on Verve by Charlie Parker – This Is a Must Have for Any Inspired Young Musician

I thought for a few seconds that I might give this one 4 stars instead of 5 sighting the primitive production that the original recordings suffered from.  However, in this case, even with the poor production, Charlie Parker is a musician to be reckoned with.  Likewise, this album is chock full of standards that any jazz musician will be familiar with.  Get this album!  It is a collected history of recordings that have both good song writing and stellar skill.

***** The Thirteen Petalled Rose by Adin Steinsaltz – History Should Remember This Work Fondly

After reading this book, I definitely have to concede that it deserves a spot among my top 10 most favorite books though admittedly it is not #1.  Steinsaltz is probably the Maimonides of his generation.  The words of The Thirteen Petalled Rose exude like a magnificent display of fireworks.  However, The Thirteen Petalled Rose is a very difficult book.  Adin Steinsaltz is not easy reading.  I would say that it is his precision that makes this work difficult to comprehend in the same way I felt The Essential Talmud was difficult to comprehend.  I guess that much does not need to be said, for those are the people who will purchase this book, take a crack at reading it, become frustrated, and put it down.  Given the popularity of Kaballah, that is how the author will get much of his funds.  However, I don’t believe that was his mission at all, for as we know, not all pennies are created equal.

I wanted a hard copy of this work because I knew from the other rave reviews of this work that I wanted to have a printed copy of it, rather than just an electronic book.  If someone spots this book on my shelf, and has heard of it, I think it seeing its presence will possibly spur great conversations.

That I was able to read it, and benefit from it is probably due to all those countless hours I have toiled in Tanya study.  Otherwise, I may have become overwhelmed.  Additionally, The Thirteen Petalled Rose should not take the place of daily Tanya study though it has some information that the Tanya does not, and it is key information, especially since I can’t consider myself frum from birth.

*** The Very Best of by Emerson, Lake, & Palmer – Mostly Just So So Music

Track 1 is really good, and so are a lot of tracks on this disc.  However, there is not enough complexity to satisfy my craving for complexity in music.  I bought this because Emerson Lake and Palmer were recommended to me as an early progressive band.  However, though this may fit in the genre of early progressive there have been many albums put out since that even the best of Emerson Lake and Palmer doesn’t cut it for my taste for originality that is cerebral.

Track 2 makes me think of what the baby boomers considered great music.  It was nothing that was in comparison to the old jazz greats like Benny Goodman that the previous generation listened.  Truly the popularity of this is a part of the reason why my musical teachers rejected rock even as a valid medium for musical expression.

I personally did not give up hope in rock and I ended up finding some really good music there that is far more cerebral than this.  So there you have it, already by the second track on this album there is starting to be some mediocre rock of which by nature there is nothing really special about it.

The critic of this writing must face the fact that there are oodles of more cerebral jazz albums than even The Very Best of Emerson Lake & Palmer, and many more works that followed it in the vein of jazz fusion, making this album practically an irrelevant selection because there is so much stuff out there that is as good as this one.

I like track 3 and 4 though.  These are definitely a standouts.  However, this whole album would had to be at this level of quality in order for me to give it a 4 star rating.  Likewise, despite this bands luck as having a place in history, the time when audio recordings were really coming to be high quality, and due to their playability at home (which has done wonders for snuffing out the whole idea of live music), I believe that they will not stand the test of time, unless web pages keep them in their top 100 lists of bands.

When I bought this album I felt like I was unearthing old dinosaur hits that will be forgotten.  Why?  Though my son might be familiar with them, I would bet that he is the outlier, and that while Emerson Lake and Palmer may be able to live off of royalties in the lifetime.   I doubt that once they are gone, and the baby boomers that loved them are gone, people won’t search for them nearly as much.  The primary reason for they will be forgotten is that there has been a torrent of jazz/rock written at this level of quality, including both higher quality and lower quality.

Track 5, 6, 7, 8, etc, reek of mediocrity.  Some of them sound like movie soundtrack ideas that do not rise above my expectations.

Despite my criticisms that this band lacks in the technicality department, I do believe that these songs are pretty much beyond the scope of what a high school band could play.  In fact, very few cover bands at the adult level could play this music.  That is another reason why I expect Emerson, Lake and Palmer to be forgotten.

*** Thunder from Down Under by Frank Gambale – A Disappointment of Jazz Fusion Mediocrity

Jazz fusion is my favorite genre.  However, with this album Frank Gambale deals subpar work.  This is clearly not what attracts me to the jazz fusion genre.  Some folks may like it, and it is not as if I would have a problem with that.  I’ll be honest, Frank Gambale is an amazing guitarist, but the song writing on this is terrible.  However, I don’t see Thunder from Down Under blazing any trails for the jazz fusion genre.  Gambale would do better to pair himself with a song writer.

So what is with the stars anyway?  That is, why not 1 star instead of 3.  That is because these musicians are actually playing sophisticated music from their hearts.  As I have said before, an album need only be in the genre of what I would call jazz fusion to get 3 stars from me, and that is simply because I love it so much.  Maybe I would change that if there was more jazz fusion out there, and possibly give 1 or 2 star ratings, but it is not as if I look forward to such a world.

*** Veritas by Alex Skolnick trio – Needs Better Supporting Musicians

The first thing that comes to mind when listening to this cd is, “Wow!  That bassist sure knows how to come up with a pathetic groove.  Yeah, he might be able to hold down the fort in a metal band, but compared to a bassist well versed in jazz he comes across as a simpleton.”

The second thing that comes to mind is that this cd does have some redeeming tracks, and that Skolnick’s jazz version of a Metallica song for track 5 is flat out amazing.  If you are into collecting Metallica rarities, this version of a Metallica song is priceless.  In fact, what occurred to me is that this song could have made it as a jazz standard from the very beginning even if it was not a heavy metal song first.

I think Skolnick has the possibility of putting out better works than Veritas, especially if he plays with better musicians.

Let me put it this way:  About 15min away from me there is a music business that gives lessons for kids.  One of the best parts about this business is that the guy who runs it makes bands for the kids with folks at their age level.  Usually, the kids that play in the bands are 13 to 16 years old.  Some of them are quite impressive for their age and level of play.  Most of these kids from age 13 to 16 years old are at about the level that Skolnick’s rhythm section plays at.  However, for Skolnick himself, none of these kids I have known of have been able to play at his level of play.  Skolnick impresses me and I would call him a very gifted guitarist who deserves better surroundings, but I am a music snob, and Veritas doesn’t make the cut as far as really good jazz albums go.  That be the truth about this album.

40 Great Metal Bands and an Awesome Album by Each

The list author says: "First of all, I should not that this is not a direction I am heading in. In fact, probably the opposite is true. My favorite discs these days tend to be jazz fusion. The music here is primarily from the time of my high school and college, but that doesn’t mean I don’t like it either. So while my taste has evolved, it is still fairly clear in my mind what I think metal is, and while I have a taste for things other than metal, as I have always have, while retaining my taste in metal, I do realize that it is generally easier for me to make a list of bands, than a list of jazz musicians, who more than not cobble together albums rather than playing with any set group. Enjoy!"

1.          A Dramatic Turn Of Events by Dream Theater

2.  Rust in Peace by Megadeth

3.  Blessed and the Damned by Iced Earth

4.  Live From Mt. Fuji by Gwar

5.  Lapse of Reality by Ring of Fire

6.  Quantum by Planet X

7.  Edge of Thorns by Savatage

8.  Empire by Queensrÿche

9.  Dream Sequencer by Ayreon

10.  Ghost Reveries by Opeth

11.  Covenant by Morbid Angel

12.  Aenima by Tool

13.  Houses of the Holy by Led Zeppelin

14.  James LaBrie's Mullmuzzler 2 by James Labrie

15.  Low by Testament

16.  Kings of Metal by Manowar

17.  Evolution by Tony MacAlpine

18.  Destroy Erase Improve by Meshuggah

19.  Office of Strategic Influence by O.S.I.

20.  Sound of Perserverence by Death

21.  Surrealistic Madness by Candiria

22.  Them (Reissue) by King Diamond

23.  Number of the Beast by Iron Maiden

24.  Melissa by Mercyful Fate

25.  ...And Justice For All by Metallica

26.  Soul of a New Machine by Fear Factory

27.  In Consequence by For The Love Of

28.  Reign in Blood by Slayer

29.  All Out War by Earth Crisis

30.  Start Today [Explicit] by Gorilla Biscuits

31.  No More Tears by Ozzy Osbourne

32.  Divine Wings of Tragedy by Symphony X
33.  Visions by Stratovarius

34.  Painkiller by Judas Priest

35.  Disconnected by Fates Warning

36.  Vulgar Display of Power by Pantera

37.  Slave to the Grind by Skid Row

38.  Rage Against the Machine by Rage Against The Machine

39.  For All Tid by Dimmu Borgir

40.  IV: Constitution of Treason by God Forbid

**** Time Odyssey by Vinnie Moore – At the Guitar Virtuoso Level: Time Odyssey Is About Average

I can definitely recommend this album to someone who likes music like Jason Becker, Tony MacAlpine, Joe Satriani, James Murphy, Chris Poland, and the many others that put out albums where a soloing guitar player is central to the music.  This is the guitar virtuoso level, which is strangely a genre rather than an actual description.  This is because there are some folks who don’t play in the guitar virtuoso genre, that are guitar virtuosos nonetheless.  With the event of the earth’s population being in the billions, good guitarists grow on trees, and virtuosos are common enough.

I like this album.  I’d give every track on it a chance if you buy it.  You will probably like all of the tracks.  I know I did.  However, what I do have to say is that if you enjoy this genre, the guitar virtuoso genre, then Time Odyssey is only an average entry.  It is certainly not a bad album.  At this level, I’d rate an album that was a fizzle three, ***, stars, while I would rate a favorite five, *****, stars.

Pop music in my opinion generally ranges from 1 star to 3 stars.  I know that I drew a lot of angry comments from Smashing Pumpkins when I rated Melancholy and the Infinite Sadness only 3 stars.  Really, who thinks melancholy is all that great?  Lol!  Then, when I felt people were becoming over critical of my 3 star rating, I reduced it to 2 stars, the exact opposite direction.  That is when they really started to get angry, and millions of reviewers became rated higher than me.  Despite my lack of popularity, I was proud of myself for making my point provocative enough that people cared about it, even if it was only to try to demolish my point of view in favorite of the bitters of melancholy.

I pointed out that I don’t give starred ratings to music that I think has no redeeming qualities, which also seemed like Greek to those folks.  That’s right!  With me you have to earn every star you get!  Time Odyssey earned 4 out of a possible 5.  Therefore, Time Odyssey is a damn good album, that is definitely worth buying, and really what I mean by not giving it that 5^th star is that 100 years from now, I don’t believe people will still be seeking this album out for purchase anymore than they are now.

Like a Vincent van Gogh painting, I tend to reserve 5 star ratings for albums that might get remembered after the death of the artist, especially an artist who isn’t very popular in his or her lifetime, in the same way that generally folks ran as far as they could get when it came to Vincent van Gogh in his lifetime.  I have to admit, that does seem unfortunate, especially when you can probably figure that The Who will be remember 100 years from now, but would only draw 3 or 2 stars from me on most of their albums.

If the guitar virtuoso genre isn’t your thing, Time Odyssey may be easily overlooked, perhaps in favor of jazz album, or a good jam band album.  Whatever suits your taste, even if it be wasting away again in margarita ville .