***** Bridge Across Forever by Transatlantic - Unbelievably Awesome!!! Never a Dull Moment!!!

This album remains among the somewhat hidden treasures of today’s musicians. I love a good secret, as long as nobody gets harmed in the process.

If this album had been cut when the Baby Boomers were young, I predict that this band would be filling stadiums. Transatlantic is better than The Who, or The Rolling Stones, and might be considered on the elevated level of a timeless band like Led Zeppelin, or Jimi Hendrix. I love that though. It would be a shame if Transatlantic filled stadiums full of beer drinkers throwing up and doing drugs. Transatlantic is a lot like Phish. However, fans of Phish are almost always drug users as well as music aficionados. If you listen to Transatlantic, then you will probably find that drugs are not cool at all by this band.

The songs on this album are too long to make it readily accessible by the regular America crew. I would definitely opt to see Transatlantic live though for that reason. It is really good music that would only attract an intimate audience. Most people just can’t stand for songs that are long, but I can assure you that though these songs are long, there is never a dull moment.

Bridge Across Forever is even better than Transatlantic’s first album, “SMPTe,” and I give both albums a 5 star rating. I don’t just hand out 5 star ratings like most people. If an album gets 5 star rating from me, then that means something.

So who is this album not for? I would have to say the masses of teenagers, and frat boy college students, that are merely looking to fit in because they feel uncomfortable listening to anything except something that has promotion, and national attention that only major label records can afford. As Rush says in their very famous song Subdivisions, its “Be cool or be cast out,” and I would figure that a Rush fan would dig this, but not someone who listens to Rush only when they are on the radio. If you seek Rush, then I hope you find Transatlantic.

I like this album because at times it is very jazzy, and then at other times it is very rigidly written. Also, unlike many albums I like this album sounds beautiful in the way that level headed person would perceive. It is an album where the musicians have taste, and it is not so difficult to play that compression dominates the sound.

This is moderately complex music though this is prog rock. It is not musicians showing off their chops. Every note has its place, and though there is jamming there isn’t a single superfluous note on the entire album! There are very few albums I could give such high praise to. However, when this was released it could still be said that usually if a Dream Theater member is on an album, or in this case a former Dream Theater member, then there is no filler on the album.

**** Live at Budokan by Dream Theater – Spotty. Buy It If You Are A Fanatic. Skip It If You Are Not.

This was my first indication that the album 6 Degrees of Inner Turbulence was not a total loss. Score proved that without a doubt, and so did 4 Degrees of Radio Edits. Score is a 5 by any standard, and those that criticize are not correct, they are wrong, but that is not this album.

Now, I know that I am in the minority, as most fans loved 6 Degrees of Inner Turbulence. My major criticism of that album, 6 Degrees of Inner Turbulence, is that the songs on it are too repetitious. For some reason on Live at Budokan, songs from that album don’t bother me as much.

There are definitely some tracks on this one that are not as good as they could have been. If they took Live at Budokan into the studio, and worked some magic, I might have loved this album. For example, “In the Name of God,” has an absolutely incredible guitar solo, but LaBrie is a little lacking on that song, and there are a few times when it sounds like the show nearly falls apart given a little improvisation. That is how this album goes. Usually, it is not perfect like a studio album, and Dream Theater is the type of band that needs to sounds perfect, or else they sound like they are playing under their own ability levels!

Sometimes Jordan’s keyboard sounds cheesy, sometimes John Petrucci’s guitar sounds cheesy, James LaBrie’s voice sometimes sounds awesome, other times it needs some help, and the bass is almost non-existent. Mike Portnoy comes across very well.

This is not an essential Dream Theater album IMHO. With Dream Theater, you can expect to hear flawlessness, especially with their studio albums, but as usual, and with Live at Budokan, the live albums Dream Theater releases are spotty.

**** Scenario by Al di Meola – Good Music During the Techno Jazz Fusion Period

This album can definitely stand as a marker in time and that is why it is 4 stars and not 3. The techno sounds that where incorporated with the music now sounds like the music that comes out of children’s toys, or primitive video games. Seriously, I could totally bet some of this music could be swapped for something on the NES (original Nintendo Entertainment System) and I doubt anyone would notice a difference in quality.

So yes, this dates back to early attempts to fuse techno with music. However, this effort though it does have some good songs, really only serves as a relic, such that people can point to it and say, “That is what music used to sound like.” These particular sounds used on this album have largely vanished from good music because they seem to lack the overtones that come with actually playing a wooden guitar without some effacing sound for example. To put it bluntly: The sounds on Scenario are too cheesy!

Also, though this music is dated, Al di Meola’s performance on it is often quite good. It is the other stuff, such as the processors, even the guitar processors, that subtract from the goodness of Scenario. It is a good album, but you have to put up with primitive techno that sounds like something out of Super Mario Brothers, and that is why it loses a star.

**** Spontaneous Combustion by the Liquid Trio Experiment – Mixes Well With Modern Jazz Fusion

I can totally see someone getting this album and being completely disappointed with it.  Unlike the Liquid Tension Experiment album, on these songs the musicians are just jamming away.  Seriously, this stuff is like hit the record button and run to your instrument as fast as possible and join the jam.  I have to wonder if this one sounds at all like John Myung’s Jelly Jam, because this jam is quite gelatinous.   

That this project was seemingly going nowhere is the reason why Mike Portnoy called up John Petrucci to join the jam (I think as legend has it), and at that point the Liquid Trio Experiment became the very famous 

Liquid Tension Experiment.

I know that the album is called Spontaneous Combustion, and looking back on it, that was probably a warning that this experiment wasn’t going to work out like Transatlantic, or Office of Strategic Influence, as far as having song hooks goes.  Spontaneous Combustion lacks the hook that would catch a fish.  However, this is darned good music, and that is how I came to look at this one in retrospective.  That is as the jazz content of my cd player increased, suddenly, the Liquid Trio Experiment’s Spontaneous Combustion album was mixing well with Wes Montgomery, Niacin, King Crimson, John Scofield, Bill Frisell, and so many others.

Don’t mix this one in with a mix of heavy or light song structures that are very ridged.  This one won’t mix in that well, and it is a 4 star album rather than a 5 star album because this one can’t take the spotlight on its own, unless it is all by itself.

Bottom line, this really is a great album.  It is not for everybody by a long shot.  However, if you are a fan of progressive rock jazz fusion moderately aggressive jamming, then this one should fit the bill well!

**** Spontaneous Combustion by the Liquid Trio Experiment – Mixes Well With Modern Jazz Fusion

I can totally see someone getting this album and being completely disappointed with it.  Unlike the Liquid Tension Experiment album, on these songs the musicians are just jamming away.  Seriously, this stuff is like hit the record button and run to your instrument as fast as possible and join the jam.  I have to wonder if this one sounds at all like John Myung’s Jelly Jam, because this jam is quite gelatinous.   

That this project was seemingly going nowhere is the reason why Mike Portnoy called up John Petrucci to join the jam (I think as legend has it), and at that point the Liquid Trio Experiment became the very famous Liquid Tension Experiment.

I know that the album is called Spontaneous Combustion, and looking back on it, that was probably a warning that this experiment wasn’t going to work out like Transatlantic, or Office of Strategic Influence, as far as having song hooks goes.  Spontaneous Combustion lacks the hook that would catch a fish.  However, this is darned good music, and that is how I came to look at this one in retrospective.  That is as the jazz content of my cd player increased, suddenly, the Liquid Trio Experiment’s Spontaneous Combustion album was mixing well with Wes Montgomery, Niacin, King Crimson, John Scofield, Bill Frisell, and so many others.

Don’t mix this one in with a mix of heavy or light song structures that are very rigged.  This one won’t mix in that well, and it is a 4 star album rather than a 5 star album because this one can’t take the spotlight on its own, unless it is all by itself.

Bottom line, this really is a great album.  It is not for everybody by a long shot.  However, if you are a fan of progressive rock jazz fusion moderately aggressive jamming, then this one should fit the bill well!

***** Metanoia by Porcupine Tree – Top Notch Rock Jazz Fusion That Is Not for Everyone

Lol. I was reading on the internet that this album, Metanoia, has been called the opposite of Stupid Dream, but every bit as good. That is so accurate! Why they didn’t release it first as a regular Porcupine Tree album is beyond me…well sort of…this music is great, but it doesn’t sound at all like Stupid Dream, which is often called Porcupine Tree’s best cd, especially by those that don’t commonly listen to progressive rock.

Stupid Dream does not lend itself very well to jazz blending. Stupid Dream’s songs are written seemingly to catapult the band to the fame of bands like Rush. Rush is one of those bands that plays a song again, and again, and again, until they get it correct, and then the song is played exactly the same way for the rest of all time.

Also, if you are looking for something with lyrics, then this one will fail you.

If you want to know how good jazz fusion can get, I highly recommend this album. This is like the sound Miles Davis was trying to achieve in his later years. In fact, Metanoia reminds me a little of the Miles Davis album Bitch’s Brew, except in my opinion Metanoia is better.

Metanoia has some fantastic jams.  In fact, they go really well with the other album I am reviewing today, "Spontaneous Combustion," by the Liquid Trio Experiment. You just have to give it a chance though. If you don’t like this one on first listen, I completely understand. However, if you walk away from this album with a negative opinion of it, I judge that you are not a fan of good music. If you don’t like Metanoia, go listen to it when you drink or something, as for me I like this one sober.

***** The Best of by Earl Klugh by Earl Klugh – Really Good If Smooth Jazz Is Your Thing

If smooth jazz is not your thing, then this one is not for you.  End of story.  Don’t argue with me.  I don’t want to hear it.  This is the rating.  This is as good as it gets for the smooth jazz genre.  This belongs right next to Kenny G, a musician who has been tremendously popular, so far as jazz is concerned.  It is very likely that if you have heard of Kenny G, then you may or may not have heard of Earl Klugh.  Earl Klugh never achieved the popularity of Kenny G, and by many people’s standards Kenny G is fairly obscure.  I rate Earl Klugh higher than someone like Kenny G because he is obscure.  I root for the underdog even though this is genre is not my particular taste.

Most jazz musicians will admit that they didn’t get in to music to play on their instruments in that way that they could just totally fall into the background at a party, and nobody would really notice the musicians there, but that the party goes on as the ladies sip Zinfandel, Riesling, or some other dessert wine, while cracking into some lobsters and getting a tan in the evening sun at an expensive restaurant or beach house.  That is the niche of the Earl Klugh band.  Primarily, that is what this disc consists of; music that is semi-sophisticated background music.

I am pretty sure that this is the only smooth jazz cd in my collection.  I purchased it because I wanted to know what Earl Klugh sounded like as I am a guitarist, and I play and listen to jazz.  I’ll take a chance on most any artist.  In my opinion, though I don’t think all jazz is good, I do believe some of it is better than others.  This just happens accomplish its goal.  It mixed in well with my 100 disc changer for the time that I had it in the mix, but now it is time to move on.

While I won’t say this cd lacks chops at all, he is not playing as fast as Yngwie Malmsteen and for some people that is a good thing and for others it is not.  I would venture to say that most folk would think that this is a good thing.  However, I just think that it is a thing, and that it is what it is, nothing more, and nothing less.  

**** Listen By Jordan Rudess – Excellent, But Not Jordan’s Best

If you like Marillion, then chances are that you will like “Listen” by Jordan Rudess. My guess would be that if you have heard of and listened to Marillion before looking for this more obscure work, as it is his first album, predating his more famous work with Dream Theater, but times are a changin’, and Jordan Rudess has achieved super star popularity in the band Dream Theater, far more popularity than Marillion ever had.

If you are looking for something that reminds you of Dream Theater, while this music is still quite technical, I would have to urge you to look somewhere else. This album has hardly any resemblance to Dream Theater. If you are interested in collecting all of Dream Theater’s and their members solo projects, then this one might be a good one to own in the way that James LaBrie’s Winter Rose is worth owning (both of these pre Dream Theater efforts are really good.) I do have to admit, though the rest of the band does not remind me of Dream Theater at all, by the time Jordan produced Listen, a good deal of his technical style, which so far as I know was uniquely developed by him is possibly a result to the musical doors that had been unlocked to him through keyboard technology. Some people find this technical stuff, sounds that only could be produced by a keyboard played with what seems like high precision randomness to be annoying, others, like me, love it.

This album is not a 5 star work though. It is not an essential album in any way. It is the music of a serious young musician, someone well on the path toward being virtuoso, if not even a virtuoso by this album. I can’t quite put my finger on why this work falls short of 5 stars from a technical point of view. Dare I say that it is the song craft that makes this a 4 star album; I think so. That’s it. If you believe this is a 5 star album, I understand if you disagree with me, however.

***** …And Justice for All by Metallica – Trailblazing Metal Innovation

I think I was in 4th grade when this album was released. I vaguely remember that Metallica had been nominated for a Grammy or some other award, and that at the show they were to perform a song. However, I don’t remember much more than that.

Metallica was really just starting to gain in popularity with this one. This was when they still had something to prove. In my opinion, they proved themselves to world fully with the black album. After that, there was nothing left to say. Load and Reload where after the fact, superfluous and not necessary. Over Metallica’s first 5 albums they proved they play beyond a reasonable doubt. They proved that their names belonged to the ranks of musicians that have influenced the world in the same way Beethoven has, even though there are bands that are better than Metallica.

S&M was a silly little ditty, though that is generally considered to have bridged the gap between metal and classical music, I, personally, find that idea hilarious. If you are a classical musician, and can’t hear the talent on Metallica’s early albums like this one, then I would question your credentials.

First, and foremost, if you don’t like most metal, I might suggest that you give this album a try. It is really one of those albums that almost anyone should be able to appreciate. For example, try listening to the song, “One.” You shouldn’t need any help from a lyric sheet. Sure the vocals do have some rasp, but only to the extent of adding flavor in a tasteful way.

***** Emergent by Gordian Knot – Obscure But Awesome

It should be no surprise that this album is tremendous.  Look at the names of the players.  They are the names most progressive rockers should know.  For example, Jim Matheos (Fates Warning, OSI) plays on this one.  If you want a really good album by him, pick up either this one (Emergent) or Office of Strategic Influence by OSI.  Fates Warning also has some darned good albums.  Also, I recognize the name Bill Bruford, a guru on his instrument, (King Crimson) who plays on Emergent.

Apparently this incarnation of Gordian Knot has all the original members of Cynic.  I remember listening to Cynic at college and not finding the music to be that great.  However, my tastes have changed radically since college, so that doesn’t mean anything.  Cynic was at one time considered one of the best progressive heavy metal bands, along with bands like Fates Warning.  However, over time so far as I know Cynic has fallen into obscurity.  I never hear anyone talking about the new Cynic album, or if Cynic is going on tour.
Really, it is a shame that Gordian Knot’s Emergent didn’t take off.  To date the band has 2 albums, the first of which had John Myung on it.  Apparently, John Myung’s name was not enough to carry this band to a level where they might play small clubs.  Gordian Knot is essentially unknown.  The world is upside down.  Most musicians in popular bands deserve to bow before these musicians.

What’s In My 100 Disc Changer 2014: Good Stuff in Time for Day After Thanksgiving Christmas Shopping!

Firstly, I may have reviewed a few of these albums already, elsewhere. I find that occasionally, and by accident, I review an album twice, but often both reviews are very similar. However, the vast majority of these albums are in my 100 disc changer because I plan to review them someday, and of course because I love to listen to them.

These albums are that which is in my player. I can vouch for this: I have already listened to some of each of these albums and each does seem to be quite good.

To be less confusing to those who might be interested in purchasing any of these albums, only the name of the album is given, and not disc 1 or disc 2, even if each separate disc has a name, such that I don’t arrive at the number 100 in the list, as labeling which disc is in my player for multi-disc sets, especially when they aren’t even near each other in the player, is of no assistance to a potential buyer. For instance, with Steven Wilson, though both Grace for Drowning cds are in the player; I do not label each of the Grace for Drowning cds that are in the player, meaning that there is only one entry for Grace for Drowning though the set has 2 discs.

1. Dregs of Earth and What If by the Dixie Dregs

2. Grace for Drowning by Steven Wilson

3. In Absentia by Porcupine Tree

4. Free Fall and Unsung Heroes by the Dixie Dregs

5. The Wake of Magellan and The Dungeons Are Calling by Savatage

6. Live at Birdland by John Coltrane

7. Back in the World of Adventures by The Flower Kings

8. Spontaneous Combustion by The Liquid Trio Experiment

9. Soul Sirkus

10. Kings of Damnation Era by Black Label Society

11. Without a Net by the Grateful Dead

12. Metatonia by Porcupine Tree

13. Self-titled by Niacin

14. III Sides to Every Story by Extreme

15. …And Justice For All by Metallica

16. Emergent by Gordian Knot

17. United Abominations by Megadeth

18. Stardust We Are by the Flower Kings

19. The Ritual by Testament

20. Bridge Across Forever by Transatlantic

21. Individual Thought Patterns by Death

22. Live at Budokan by Dream Theater

23. The Kindness of Strangers by Spock’s Beard

24. Drukqs by Aphex Twin

25. The Odyssey by Symphony X

26. Machine Head by Deep Purple

27. The Raven That Refused to Sing and other stories by Steven Wilson

28. Listen by Jordan Rudess

29. Start Today by The Gorilla Biscuits

30. The Essential Frank Sinatra: The Columbia Years

31. The End of Silence by Rollins Band

32. Doin’ Something by Soulive

33. Effigy of the Forgotten by Suffocation

34. Toxicity by System of a Down

35. Scenario by Al di Meola

36. Led Zeppelin and Tony MacAlpine mix cd

37. Aenima by Tool

38. Fire Garden by Steve Vai

39. Surfing With The Alien by Joe Satriani

40. Secret Story by Pat Metheny

41. Retrospective by Django Reinhardt

42. Deadwing by Porcupine Tree

43. Here In the Now Frontier by Queensryche

44. Full House by Wes Montgomery

45. Fear of a Blank Planet by Porcupine Tree

46. The Vibe by Roy Hargrove

47. Empyrean Isles by Herbie Hancock

48. Up All Night by John Scofield

49. Greatest by Bee Gees

50. Lightbulb Sun by Porcupine Tree

51. Amazing Journey w/Mike Portnoy

52. The Rainmaker by The Flower Kings

53. Coma Divine by Porcupine Tree

54. The Guitar Artistry of Charlie Byrd by Charlie Byrd

55. The Uplift Mofo Party Plan and The Abbey Road EP by the Red Hot Chili Peppers

56. The Blue Note Years: The Best of Kenny Burrell by Kenny Burrell

57. Transgression by Fear Factory

58. Impressions by John Coltrane

59. Birds of Fire by The Mahavishnu Orchestra

60. Coast to Coast and High Tension Wires by Steve Morse

61. Industry Standard and Full Circle by the Dixie Dregs

62. Retropolis by The Flower Kings

63. The Best of Earl Klugh by Earl Klugh

64. First Meditations by John Coltrane

65. Virtuoso #2 by Joe Pass

66. Space Revolver by The Flower Kings

67. Super Hit by Ted Nugent

68. Eat a Peach by Phish

69. II Pornograffitti by Extreme

70. Like Minds by Chick Corea, Gary Burton, Pat Metheny, Roy Haynes, and Dave Holland

71. School Days by Stanley Clarke

72. Youthenasia by Megadeth

73. Coda by Led Zeppelin

74. Vulgar Display of Power by Pantera

75. Midnight Blue by Kenny Burrell

76. Gretchen Goes to Nebraska by King’s X

77. Ok Computer by Radiohead

78. Greatest Hits by Stevie Ray Vaughn and Double Trouble

79. Freaky Styley and The Abbey Road EP by the Red Hot Chili Peppers

80. Born This Way by Lady Gaga

81. Fusion by Wes Montgomery

82. Shadows Fall

83. What Did He Say? by Victor Wooten

84. Live by Bill Frisell

85. A Dramatic Turn of Events by Dream Theater

86. Pork Soda by Primus

87. Twilight in Olympus by Symphony X

88. Sex and Religion by Steve Vai

89. Notes on a Dream by Jordan Rudess

90. Pick Hits Live by John Scofield

91. Surrealistic Madness by Candiria

92. Enter Suicide Angles and Character by Dark Tranquility

***** My Favorite Things by John Coltrane – Tasteful Excellence for Anyone and Everyone

My Favorite Things gets my highest recommendation. It is a timeless classic. You could pull this cd out 1,000 years or more later, and this cd would still be cherished by listeners, both tone deaf and those with perfect pitch, and everyone in between. From start to finish, everything about My Favorite Things, the compact disc, remade from the original, is every bit as worthy of cherishing. If someone said, “I’m interested in jazz. Where should I start?” This would be one of probably the top 10 cds I would recommend.  I would say, “If you are looking for jazz, My Favorite Things won’t let you down, and if it does then you might consider yourself as some sort of new species, other than human.”

I actually purchased this disc a long time ago, back when I was at college and in my John Coltrane phase. That would be roughly the year 2001. That disc, the original, got scratched. However, I had burned a copy of it for the car, and that disc, the one I am reviewing, has no scratches. The original got tossed in the trash. That brings me to an important issue. The issue of duplicating cds, which I believe is completely okay to do in the same way people duplicated cassette tapes back in the day. Having a back up is an important thing! I currently have at least one cd in my 100 disc changer that can’t be duplicated for whatever reason, such that if I try to burn a copy, computer won’t comply. If that had been the case with My Favorite Things by John Coltrane, I wouldn’t have been able to have even a copy to write a review, all these years later, because the original would have been scratched. That’s just food for thought, and really almost aside from the review of this cd.

This disc is definitely one of my favorites by Coltrane tied with discs such as, Giant Steps, that are among my favorite discs. This disc is among my favorite things. I love music, and My Favorite Things is a sonic jazz treasure. However, it didn’t spend that much time in my 100 disc changer this time, not because I don’t like it anymore, but because I have much of it memorized. I don’t like to listen to the same thing over and over, and I tend to favor music that does not have a lot of repetition, as I could definitely say I am not sick of this disc. It is just to say that it is time to move one.

Much if not all of this music is in the Real Book. Honestly, I can’t quite remember if everything from this disc made it in. I often overlook the local jazz musicians, who have not composed their own music, and continually play the same stuff from the “Real Books,” as opposed to Fake Books, where it is thought that what makes a Fake Book, “fake,” is that somehow the original has been perverted just a little bit, such that copyright infringement has not occurred.

When it comes to jazz, there is no danger in writing a Real Book, because of the nature of jazz. Jazz is not supposed to be played the same way, and also to argue before a tone deaf jury of tone deaf walkers that the Real Book was indeed copyright infringement would probably be impossible, as there is just simply not enough information about the songs in the Real Books, because it is jazz, that one could arrive at the original completely through just copying the music.

Jazz is a music that by nature must have improvisation. The Real Book provides what is called the “head,” of the song, which is sort of like the theme of the song, almost like a chorus, though perhaps it is only played only once, twice, or thrice during a song.

**** I Care Because You Do by Aphex Twin – As With All His Works; You Love It or Hate It

Firstly, I like artsy fartsy music, so it should come to no surprise to the reader that I really like this cd.  Every song is weird in its own strange way.  Be prepared for some very unusual music if you should buy this cd.  Mostly, I like this though because it is music.  As far as I know, in the techno genre Aphex Twin was the original artist that tried to make music via computer that was also skillful and thought provoking, appealing to college students, and even geeks like me that don’t like any other techno artist.  Maybe there are other good techno artists by now, but Aphex is the original, and probably the best.  The reason I don’t give this 5 stars is that I don’t believe that it is timeless.  Computer technology will likely evolve and I Care Because You Do will probably become dated, in favor of better written music.  Though I love them, these songs just aren’t 5 star quality.

*** Greatest Hits: Back to the Start by Megadeth – Just Okay Because Some of Remakes Are Sub-Par

Let me tell you something. I have been a fan of Megadeth for a heck of a long time. One of the first compact discs I ever got was Countdown to Extinction back when it was brand new in 1993. That was back when compact discs used to come with extra cardboard paper packaging artwork. I put my picture of Vic in my Trapper Keeper notebook, as a proud statement that I was a fan of Megadeth, who for most of my life I have thought are one of the coolest bands on earth. I have seen Megadeth live twice. Really, Megadeth is one of my favorite bands of all time, along with Dream Theater. I even loved Killing Is My Business and Business Is Good.

So, by now you must be wondering, where did Megadeth go wrong on “Back to the Start?” That answer is entirely in the mix. I loved all the original mixes, and I detect that in this remake they tried to make the album sound better through doing a tad of things such as adding the effect, compression. I hate compression, probably, because it seems as if everyone uses it these days. Sure, the kids probably won’t know the difference, and maybe even will like it better, but Dave you’ve got to admit that you sold your soul to the devil on this one.

Of course, some of the tracks that were originally released with compression like Skin O’ My Teeth rock hard. It is just that I don’t like the touch ups on what I considered to be the old classic Megadeth albums. They didn’t need touch ups.

Additionally, while I don’t like this record mixed in with other discs, as I crave the original sound not the remix, as a whole the album mixes better with the touch ups. For example, Hanger 18 sounds hideous in this collection. Megadeth has been around for so long that technologies have changed, some for good, some for bad. What this means is that when listening to a bunch of music the technology on each album usually varies, and this hits package seems to try to overcome that, and it does so with a moderate amount of success.

**** Greatest Hit (...and 21 other pretty cool songs) by Dream Theater - Great for Fans of Mellow DT

Though I would give most every Dream Theater album 5 stars, it always seemed that on every album there was one song that stuck out like a sore thumb. These songs where often released as singles for some reason, as they never gave the band any popularity.

Most of Dream Theater’s fans like it complex, heavy, and fast. Most of the songs on songs on this album have a modest amount of complexity, but no heaviness or speed, and when I say heaviness I mean strictly slammin’ riffs, and not emotional heaviness, as one could perhaps conclude that these songs are in fact heavier than the others, according to personal taste.

Prior to this album, however, these songs were not among my favorites by DT. In fact, they were my least favorite prior, as I liked the more complex and heavy side of Dream Theater. However, the mix on these songs sounds like they have been redone, rerecorded, and that the general quality of the music was increased.

What I can say for this album is that in an amazingly coherent and well put together way, these kinds of songs on the albums that seemed as loners fit together very well. And, frankly I was surprised at this, but Dream Theater usually does surprise me. I was surprised because when I heard that when Dream Theater said that they were going to come out with a greatest hit like package, I had no clue what that would consist of, as to me every song on most every album belonged in that a package.

Also, it is worthy to note that finally the song, “To Live Forever,” made its way onto a major album, as prior to this release it had been kicked around and reworked several times on bootlegs prior to this release.

***** The Thirteen Petalled Rose by Adin Steinsaltz - One of The Best Books of This Generation of Judaism

I read a lot about Judaism.  Though I am not a Jew, I usually practice as much Judaism as I can because in my heart I know that the Torah is true because I believe G-d spoke to me during a difficult time in my life, and He completely changed my life through guiding me to find real world cures.  That is an introduction to me, so you know a little about where I come from.

I found The Thirteen Petalled Rose to be among the highest quality writings that Judaism has ever produced.  Another book that is on par with this book is Tzvi Freeman's Bringing Heaven Down to Earth, which in another review I said that this book should be added to the canon.  Maybe not the canon with The Thirteen Petalled Rose, but we should know that this one is at least considerable as a classic.  The Thirteen Petalled Rose is also up there with the books of Tanya by R. Schneur Zalman of Liadi, and the Mishneh by R. Judah the Prince.  This is really good stuff, and as such I give The Thirteen Petalled Rose my highest recommendation.

**** Friday Night in San Francisco by Al di Meola, John McLaughlin and Paco de Lucia – A Bad Moment Nearly Ruins It

A really bad moment on track 2 stole the show, literally.  For the most part the audience is into it, but the audience cheers the loudest during the most simple part of the cd, a mere 12 bar blues without any solo.  If I could merely edit out that part, then this album would rate a 6 out 5 possible stars.  Really though, this album doesn’t have enough tracks on it to keep something on track 2 that only a loser would like.

That makes me think two things about this album.  The first is that, maybe this audience was so trashed and drunk that they couldn’t tell what parts of the music were good.  The second is that, maybe this audience is completely tone deaf like most Americans are.  America is terrible at educating most of its high school students in the arts.  The result is that people act like parrots, such that when someone with credentials from the Baby Boomer Generation recommends something they listen, but the problem is that they don’t appreciate it.  Most of America even at the college level doesn’t know the difference between major and minor, and that is pathetic.  Take it from me.  I stopped listening to popular music in 8^th grade in favor of stuff that usually took more skill to play, though I do admit listening to Nirvana.

Other than that, this Saturday Night in San Francisco is magnificent.  It is a rare moment in history: A summit of the best known flamenco guitarists that may very well have been the best in the world when this album was cut.  These days often times it doesn’t matter how good you are.  You could be unknown and the best guitar player in the world at the same time.  I know of no other album that blends the skills of guitar in this style as well as this one.

Audience aside, it is a true gem, but it is a gem with a giant blemish.  Imagine a huge diamond that at its center has a colossal malformation.  That malformation is the audience cheering its loudest on the entire cd for the part that is the worst, and most contrived deformity, and should be thought of as an embarrassment to musicians everywhere.

The best track on this album is track 3.  I haven’t heard the song elsewhere, and so it is extra special in comparison to the other songs which if I recall correctly I was already well familiar with them before this live disc.

**** Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth by Reza Aslan – Aslan Finds the Real Jesus

Perhaps, the greatest insight of this book is right at the beginning.  Reza Aslan refuses to accept Jesus as Christ, something that is completely absurd, and looks deeper into developing who Jesus was based on what we know, what we don’t know the great supposition that Jesus is really only Jesus of Nazareth, and not some sort of deity or Christ.  That is Jesus is Jesus of Nazareth and not Jesus Christ.

This book is full of wonderful insights to Jesus of Nazareth.  My major criticism of Zealot in Part 1, chapters 1-6, is the overuse of names of ancient times, using them as if they were commonly known among us modernists of this century, and discussing these people, as if we might even find out who they where if we googled them.

Really, I don’t know of any other work where the information in part 1 is available.  I have never come across much of any of it elsewhere, to gauge my opinion of it fairly.  In fact, part 1 could have probably been made into a book by itself, all the while elaborating more on the various characters of the text, if there is anymore text available.

I come as a fairly knowledgeable person, reading this part 1, as a non-Christian, and even still it practically puts me on Mars.  I am not used to these words.  There were many capital letters to nouns, proper nouns that I am unfamiliar with.

In Part 1, Reza paints a picture that is hard to verify even without some grand library.  It is a picture that maybe someone like they highly decorated and great scholar Bart Ehrman would readily recognize.  However, for me, not knowing who each of these seemingly unknown and new entrances to the theological playing field at the time of Jesus is quite overwhelming.  I won’t criticize Zealot so much as to say that the reader probably won’t even get the crucial main ideas because of the difficulty knowing enough to criticize what Aslan is writing about in Part 1.

Part 2 is information that I don’t know cold, but most of which I am familiar with.  Reza Aslan did a really good job with this part of the book.  If there was any way to fix this book, it would be to be able to distill part 1 and part 2 into a single part.  However, that much I don’t believe is possible due to missing information.

Even though this work comes almost 2,000 years after the fact, I would say that it is as relevant to the teaching of Jesus as any work in the New Testament.  I almost see this book as the nearly the Final Testament, as what more could be done in the study of Jesus of Nazareth, such that we can put him in his proper place, as an intelligent Zealot from the underclass looking to change the face of Judaism, as well as gaining a following of poor Jewish folk who probably identified with Jesus of Nazareth as a person from a tough background, such that his early followers probably took because Jesus was born into impoverished circumstances and his followers wanted his story to be the one that was told, instead of that of rich priests.

Frankly, a part of me thinks that the reason Jesus despised what was going on in the Temple so much is that he was jealous of the money that was being made there, and would have accepted a priestly job if he were given one early in his life; late in his life though this was impossible, as he was a committed zealot messiah against the religious establishment; the Temple priests were his enemy, and he hated them for their wealth because it seemed that he was born into an unjust world.

Like part II, part III is also familiar, but I think it doesn’t even do justice to the start of the Christian religion cult, which really began under Constantine, with his vision, and the teaching of Jesus that Jesus said he had not come to bring peace, but that he had come to bring a sword.  Constantine’s sword is the true story of how Christianity began as a religion.  Christianity would have burned out like other cults without Constantine and his ethnic cleansing for the sake of “Christ.”

** Strange Brew: The Very Best of Cream by Cream Polydor – I Hate Eric Clapton’s Popularity. He Is So Overrated.

At best in modernity, this album should be considered as a really good demo.

That I am rating a greatest hits package by Cream as three stars should speak volumes for what a regular Cream album would be rated.

Firstly, I would have rated this album, The Very Best of Cream, three stars had it not been for the aged and out of date technology that it was recorded on.  If this album came out today it would probably never have gotten beyond the stage of being a Demo.  That is in today’s musical world, Cream might not have even got signed with a record deal.

The first song, Badge, is the best.  It isn’t half bad.  I like it.

Sunshine of Your Love is one that people seem to think absolutely grand, but if you ask me it is a terrible flop.  I can’t believe anyone bothered to listen to this, the pathetic guitar music of Eric Clapton.  The popularity and not only that, but also that people thought Eric Clapton was a good guitarist is only to my bane.  Don’t buy it.  Don’t buy that Eric Clapton is anything but a slightly above average guitarist.  The problem is not many people are above average people, such that they appreciate this musical junk.

The White Room with Black Curtains is only slightly good enough to be slightly better than annoying.  Again, the next song, Born under a Bad Sign, is only slightly better than annoying.  Thus, it is such for the entire album, most of the songs are usually only slightly better than annoying.  There is nothing on here that I don’t think a slightly better than average band struggling to put food on the table couldn’t write or play.  There is no genius to The Very Best of Cream.

Really, this is an album and a band that should be put to rest, if for no other reason than for poor sound quality.  I know that they were influential to some bands, but those bands were probably terrible.   Eric Clapton is perhaps the most overrated guitarist ever, right up there with Stevie Ray Vaughn.

***** A Show of Hands by Victor Wooten –Move Over Ron Carter, Victor Wooten Is Probably The Best

This album is a solo bass album.  Not too many bassists would do that.  It explores the bass in ways that only Wooten can.  Why?  Wooten is the probably the best bassist of his time.  I think he is far better than Ron Carter even.  He needs no other musician to aid him to fill out the sound.  In fact, I think the summit of music’s super powers, the Dennis Chambers, Greg Howe, and Victor Wooten album didn’t quite capture the essence of these players very well because they are all capable of performing solo and for them to play together tripping over each other’s beats must be very difficult.  So, I would recommend this album for anyone, and I would expect that just about anyone would like it.  Just because I would recommend an album for everyone however does not mean that I would also expect them to like it.  There are some vocals on the album.  However, they aren’t central to the album, and they add very cleverly to the sound.

***** Destroy Erase Improve by Meshuggah – Unique and Awesome Are an Understatements

From start to finish, this album has rhythms that I had never heard previously.  The aim is heaviness, and it is good heaviness.  There is some clean channel noodling that makes for a break from the onslaught making the heavy parts seem even heavier, rather than all heaviness, which in my opinion often just leaves the listener numb.  If you are into metal, then get this album; it is essential to any metal collection.  Because its rhythms are so unique, I would put the influence that Meshuggah has on par with bands like Black Sabbath, and Deep Purple.  Destroy Erase Improve is really the first album where Meshuggah evolves their trademark style of rhythms that nobody has heard anywhere ever before so far as I know.  I would recommend this album to anyone, even though anyone won’t like it.  Really, anyone who appreciates music should be able to appreciate this one.  This is some of the best metal ever made!

** III by Chicken Foot – Music of the Rich, For the Rich, and By the Rich

This album suffers from a major problem.  The problem is that there are loads of unknown bands that can play at this level of talent that are almost completely unknown.  I admit this album does have its moments where it is really good.  However, at its core this is same old same old rock n’ roll and I would rather go to a local bar and sit on the bar stool with a front row seat to listen to music like this.  Seriously, I don’t have a lot of money.  The chances I’d have the money to see Chicken Foot live are nil because I have no money.  I can’t believe the audacity of the singer thinking that he has something in common with the common man through adding a track about the woes of common people, as if this would make it okay when they bring in millions of dollars in album sales alone.  The music is worth 3 stars in my opinion, but the mass marketing of this band and its support that it has undeservedly received has this album clocking in at 2 stars IMHO.  I don’t like music of the rich, for the rich, and by the rich.

** Lovecraft and Witch Hearts by Cradle of Filth – No Longer Shocking But Annoying

I’ve got to admit; I am a dad, and this music really just doesn’t fit the bill when it comes to selection of music for the house.  Granted, I usually listen to music when my family isn’t home.  However, really I only like the Lovecraft cd, and that is probably because it brings me back to my college years where I saw Cradle of Filth live at Tramps in NYC, at one of their first USA shows.  It was a great show, exciting to see a metal band come from Europe, even if it was only Great Britain.  I had a lot of fun at the show.  I still remember when Dani said, “Smells like Catholics in here,” and the show was clearly sold out.  The place was packed!  However, this band seems to be all about attracting youth and then polluting them, hence the name Cradle of Filth.  I can remember listening to a video where some parents were concerned about their children listening to this band, and laughing in college.  Then, as a college student I wasn’t very interested in having morals to live by.  As an adult, in my 30s, this music seems totally inappropriate for children.  I bought it because I had lost all of my old Cradle of Filth cds, and boy was I disappointed by what I used to remember as a good metal band that pushed the envelope.  I recall the children’s size clothing Cradle of Filth sold, as well as their lunch pails, and there is a part of my conscience that says, I shouldn’t be promoting this stuff.  Of course I did when I was young and stupid in college.  I admit, I wouldn’t clothe my kid in the attire and give him a lunch box for school.  It is just poor taste, and as someone who is now grown up Cradle of Filth does not strike me the same way that they used to.  I used to love this stuff for shock value.  Now it no longer shocks me, so I see no value in it.

***** Dear Old Stockholm by John Coltrane – One Of My Coltrane Favorites

This cd was released before Coltrane’s very experimental cds like Stellar Regions, which was a terrible experimental album.  However, Dear Old Stockholm surpasses that age where he was trying to recreate Kind of Blue, something which almost all of the jazz musicians of the time sought to do, and it is no wonder as Kind of Blue is one of jazz’s bestselling albums.  (I haven’t a clue why, because I don’t like it much.)  First, in his solo career Trane tried to do what has already been done before with Blue Trane, and Soul Trane, each trying to copy Kind of Blue.  However, in my opinion these albums don’t represent the best Trane had to offer.  I guess there will be some disagreement with me when I post this.  Trane was at his best on albums that were experimental, where he was pushing the envelope in jazz.  That is precisely what Coltrane does on Dear Old Stockholm.  If you are expecting a same old same old jazz cd, don’t buy this album!!!  This album is nothing short of awesome!!!  So far as I know, this is what I would call a unique jazz album.  I have never heard any album like it!  So many jazz artists try to recreate what has been done before them, but now jazz isn’t healthy enough of a genre to push the envelope like John Coltrane on Dear Old Stockholm.

***** When Gravity Fails by Neil Zaza – Like Many Musicians, Zaza Is a Nobody That Deserves More

If Zaza was born a little earlier, so that he fit in right in the time when music was getting to be put on higher quality formats, back in the early kingship Joe Satriani, or even the kingship of Jeff Beck, and also Eric Clapton ruled, Zaza would have been a somebody. However, as Zaza pursues his career there is practically an infinite wall of good progressive music on record, such that there is no demand for someone like Neil Zaza, and that is a real shame because he is a tremendous musician.

I will admit there are a few that are better than Zaza, and that there could be some improvement of this album. However, I’m on Zaza’s side. I want to see him succeed. I won’t say that he is as good as Joe Satriani, but Joe Satriani is only as good as his background music, and I will say this; Satriani often plays to terrible background music. Zaza on the other hand solos to well crafted songs, where his part is central, but it fits in with the music and it doesn’t sound like there is someone who wants to be God who makes sure that no musician in the band challenges his power.

Zaza is at his best when he is playing thoughtfully, trying to craft excellent songs, and this album is chock full of them. I highly recommend this album!

***** The Arista Years by The Grateful Dead – An Amazing Song Collection From Late Weaker Albums

I know what you are going to say.  It’s probably something like this, “I bought a cd from when the Grateful Dead where on the Arista label and was totally disappointed.”  I agree these years generally where not as good.  However, this powerhouse greatest hits package would never leave you thinking that.
I am not an illegal drug user, nor do I condone the use of illegal drugs, but I have heard it said that the only time the Grateful Dead sound good is, “When you are high.”  I think I heard that before this album was released.
What is striking about this collection of songs is that they are good in a jazzy sort of way, with a little showmanship and a lot of crafty talent.  In fact, to date, I still think that this collection is the best of all their greatest hits, and albums, and since Jerry Garcia is dead, I can sit with confidence on my proclamation that of all the Grateful Dead’s albums this one is the best.  However, what I cannot say is that it has been the most important to people’s idea of the Grateful Dead.  Most of these songs are long forgotten, in favor of songs by Phish.

***** Mother’s Milk by the Red Hot Chili Peppers – Arguably Their Underground Breakthrough

About the time that Mother’s Milk came out, folks where starting to notice the Chili Peppers, if for no other reason than their album covers, and their legendary antics.  This album predates me a bit, as I was not a fan of them going back this far.  I hadn’t even heard of the Red Hot Chili Peppers when Mother’s Milk was released.  However, I felt the call to purchase it after soon after I was completely blown away by Blood Sugar Sex Magik all the way back in 1991.

Had it not been for the antics of the Chili Peppers antics, I still regard it unlikely that they would have made it big without it.  Just as it was the naked baby on the cover of the Nirvana’s Nevermind album that was a strong reason Nirvana was catapulted to stardom, so to was just having the word, “Sex,” in the Blood Sugar Sex Magik album title, the nudity on The Abbey Road EP, and the picture on the cover of Mother’s Milk album the reason for this album’s catching on.

So enough talk, what about the music?  Let me tell you this, if Mother’s Milk doesn’t deliver to you some of the best rock music you have ever heard, I think you need to get your hearing checked, or maybe even your soul, because Mother’s Milk is full of funky soul music.

If you don’t have the money for this one, then I would strongly recommend “What Hits? (1992)” or “The Best of the Red Hot Chili Pepper’s (2005).  However, I wouldn’t think of either of these albums as a substitute for getting the early Chili Peppers stuff that predates 1991.  Early in their career the Chili Peppers could do no wrong in my opinion.  Thus, while the greatest hits packages are good, they are no substitute for the early Red Hot Chili Peppers albums.

**** The Red Hot Chili Peppers (1984) - There Is Something About This Album, Something Amazing

This album was made in 1984.  By 1984, I think some of us thought we had heard all the newer sounding rock music that would be made.  When I think of what folks where listening to in 1984, the Van Halen album 1984 comes to mind.  That was a tremendous album, but by 1984 there was an incredible crust of amazing music that the Red Hot Chili Peppers had to crack through in order to make it big.  The band that broke the crust turned out to be Nirvana, with their album Nevermind.  That album gave a chance of success to albums like the album Blood Sugar Sex Magik, and if you liked that album, maybe you thought about checking out this one.
The Chili Peppers put out a lot of great music before their breakthrough album, but it was just that it is was hidden by 1980s big hair bands.  This album should come as a refreshing deviation from what is normal in music.  I love it, and I hope that you are able to do the same.  If nothing else pick up either one of the following greatest hits albums “What Hits? (1992)” or “The Best of the Red Hot Chili Peppers (2005),” if you aren’t planning on getting the Chili Peppers albums before Blood Sugar Sex Magik.  As to whether or not there are enough good songs on this one to make it worthwhile to buy the self-titled effort of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, I would have to say that is a, “Yes,” but not a strong enough yes for me to rate this album 5 stars.  I rarely rate any albums 5 stars for that matter.
Also, if you haven’t noticed that most of my reviews are of bands that are of lesser popularity than usual.  It just so happens to me that I don’t like being a part of the herd.  I don’t like being a part of things that are very popular.  Likewise, I was only naïve and in 8th grade when I bought the mega-popular album Blood Sugar Sex Magik, and I do have to admit; the crowds got it correct on this one.  Unusually, music that was popular was also good.  I think that has also happened in a few other instances like The Dave Mathews Band, and Lady Gaga, but for the most part I enjoy this album because it is still somewhat of a rarity that is very fun to listen to.
Last, but not least.  Unlike the other retro-champions of this time, such as Nirvana or the Smashing Pumpkins, The Red Hot Chili Peppers do not offend my ears with overly simple music.

*** High Tension Wires by Steve Morse – Three Stars for a Generic Prog Rock Album

You can never go by some popular album reviewing sites on the web.  Many of them get it all wrong when it comes to rating albums.  The best albums are rated low.  The albums that are not quite as good are rated higher.  My advice is to always stick with a reviewer that has the same taste as you, and that is not something you can get from a large website that tries to review every album.  Thus it is such, you have to know that you can never trust mega review sites because you will most certainly get reviewers with good tastes.  In this instance, the review site that I am think of got it correct for their review of High Tension Wires.

High Tension Wires has only one redeeming aspect, and that is that it is a technical album.  I’ll give them three stars for that.

**** Stand Up by Steve Morse – Awesome, But Likely To Get Lost In The Massive Shuffle of Prog

So what does 4 stars mean in this instance?  To me it means that there is superb music, outstanding song writing, but that this album won’t be remembered such that it stands the test of time.  Eventually, folks will probably stop bothering to seek out this far in Steve Morse’s catalogue, simply because most folk don’t have the time to listen to all the stuff out there, which is in one way kind of exciting, but in this case is sad, because this is a really good album, and will be sad when one day distributors stop bothering with it, and it can no longer be bought.

And, what about the songs, is it an good album through and through?  The answer to the is a resounding answer is a yes!  Stand Up truly is a world class work of art.

While Stand Up is not Steve Morse’s best work it is definitely worth picking up.  There are most certainly some really good songs on this effort.  It is both technical and interesting to listen to.  Steve Morse and the Dixie Dregs catalogue represents some of my most favorite progressive rock.  I heard of them all the way back when I was at college from a music teacher.  He was switching formats from tape to cd, so he offered me his tapes.

One thing that stands out on Stand Up is that the vocals sound a lot like Eric Johnson of the Eric Johnson band.  In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was him, but I lack the jacket of this work.  That Stand Up has any vocals at all on it is worth mentioning because usually Steve Morse plays without a singer.  It doesn’t have a lot of vocals, so be alerted.  To me it doesn’t matter who is singing, just that it is good.  If you have heard of Eric Johnson, chances are that you may not have heard of Steve Morse or his better known band the Dixie Dregs.  However, if you have heard of the Dixie Dregs, then chances are that you will have heard the music of Eric Johnson.  And, if you like this sort of music then the album Stand Up should make a great addition if you are an album collector who collects for the sake of listening.

*** Guitar Battle - Song Writing Is More Important Than Good Musicianship. Heard It 1,000 Times, Yet?

This album basically sounds like a bunch of musicians, really good musicians even, just got together and said, “Hey!  Let’s wing it on a couple classic songs and call it an album.”  I can definitely vouch for that they did not match the power of the original recordings.  And, maybe that is due to poor recording equipment, I don’t know.  This is obviously a low budget recording, and the folks that made it probably had no money to spare on making it.

Guitar Battle is anything but classic renditions of classic songs.  At other times, it seems that they just want to turn up the cheese factor with the guitar solos.  I know in certain instances people like John Coltrane where able to create amazing albums in this manner, but that is not the case with this one.

I should also mention that before he was the famed John Petrucci, the afore said musician plays on this one with lackluster.  As far as it concerns me, this is some of his worst recorded work, and should only be purchased for those looking to complete a collection, and not bought by folks expecting a good album.

John was never a great improviser.  Likewise, though when play with Dream Theater he has improvised, but I will state that these improvisations even in Dream Theater, which I will have you know is one of my favorite bands, never impressed me.  Likewise, I don’t feel that John Petrucci evolved much beyond the skill with which he played with on Guitar Battle.

What I will say for certain is that John is a great song writer, and a tremendous musician, but only so long as he does not venture far from the written music page.

**** Compact Jazz by George Benson – Great Jazz Guitar for the Jazz Enthusiast

Never mind what pop music fans like. This album is great in every way. It just takes a jazz enthusiast to appreciate an album like this one, maybe even someone so specialized as a jazz guitar enthusiast. Okay, so usually I reserve the five out of five possible star ratings for stuff that has appeal for anyone, and sorry, for the 15% that would say sausages grow on trees if polled, these are the kind of folk that will never appreciate the mastery of a virtuoso jazz musician. In fact, I imagine that this album wouldn’t have much appeal even for an average person, but let’s get one thing straight. I am not an average person. I like the arts, and the arts is usually not the stuff pop stars crank out, as far as I am concerned, that stuff is all crud. I will say this though, for the average guitar jazz enthusiast, the music on this album is timeless. Though this album may be forgotten, somehow I don’t think it will, as it is one of the earlier works of the jazz recording industry. Likewise, George Benson is one the first ever jazz guitarist to be recorded. Thus, it is such that because the Rolling Stones and the Beatles where among the first in their trade, so as well it will be with the recordings of early jazz virtuosos like George Benson.

***** Hotel Spendido by Al Di Meola – A Masterpiece: Buy This Album, It Is Not A Waste of Money

From start to finish this album is nothing but classic song after classic song. The mainstream really missed out on this album. Just as Joe Satriani and Eric Johnson made a short stint of radio airplay, I believe that this album could offer something to anyone in the way those two were a part of music even to a lowly pop music fan. Asides from that, as pop music is usually the worst kind of music, Al Di Meola could appeal to anyone, from the fan of Miles Davis to the fan of Metallica, or even a fan of Eric Clapton. In fact, Al Di Meola often borders on heavy metal shred, at the same time while never losing his jazz roots.

When I rate this album 5 stars, it is that I want to say that Hotel Splendido is one of the best albums ever! Really, Hotel Splendido is impossible to beat value as an album. It is one of my cherished classics, something that I could never really grow tired of. I use my 5/5 star rating very sparingly, and the reason for it is so that I can share with someone, anyone, that there is something magical about this album. There is something about this album that I could pull it out 50 years, 100 years, or even 1,000 years from now and sing the same songs of praise about the greatness of Hotel Splendido.

**** Live from Oz by Planet X – Calling All Planet X Junkies for a Poor Man’s Greatest Hits Package

There is some excellent improvisation on Live from Oz, but I was hoping for more.  The album is very good, except for the fact that it’s sound quality is slightly less than what we would expect from a studio album.  I don’t know how that could be changed.

I love that Virgil Donati’s drums are not triggered.

Planet X was created as a band that was created to “Strike fear into the hearts of musicians.”  I have to say that I think that they failed on that one, at least on the Live from Oz disc.  Derek Sherinian has a tremendously over inflated opinion of himself if he thinks Planet X is the best progressive rock act going.  While I would say this act is one of the better acts in music, the technicality of it is often reached by other artists, especially those who are also at the top of their discipline.  Also, I do believe that both Tony MacAlpine’s and Virgil Donati’s parts were better than Derek Sherinian’s.

One important issue I want to address here is whether or not someone should feel that he or she has a complete Planet X discography if he or she does not have Live from Oz.  At that one, I would say, if you don’t have this one, there is no reason to rush out to the store to get it.  Also, chances are the store might not have it, and additionally you may have to look pretty hard to find this one.  IMHO, in most instances, the studio versions are better than those on Live from Oz.  Live from Oz is for the Planet X junkie, and I won’t say that I wish I hadn’t bought it.  I happen to be a planet X junkie.  The price to buy the cd when I got it was well worth the price of admission for Live from Oz.

Lastly, Live from Oz can definitely serve as a type of poor man’s greatest hits for Planet X. 

**** Light Years by Chick Corea’s Elektric Band – Quirky, Unusual, Good Music That Never Caught On

My guess is that you have probably never heard of this band, unless you are specifically looking for it, and that much I guess is unlikely.  So, to describe this band I will list some bands that you may have heard of that remind me of the material on this work; those would be Liquid Trio Experiment, Bill Frisell, and John Scofield.  If you can dig stuff from those artists, I highly recommend this album.  One thing I will say is that you are most certainly not guaranteed to like this album from Chick and crew if you like his band Return to Forever.

I originally had this one in my player for probably a year, and then took it out in order to move some stuff in to replace it.  At that point I could only recognize the songs, but by now; having listened to this album in the mix for a few years, I definitely give it a thumbs up.  Every track is worth many, many listens.

I guess though is that this music is music for musicians, and pretty much musicians only will buy this album, and most us are poor, so I can’t imagine this album sold many copies.  Chances are you will only be able to find this album on your computer, but not at a record store.  These days even record stores sometimes won’t carry something this rare.  That is a shame, because this is really good music.

Another way I might describe this as 1980s jazz.  The musicianship is great, but the electronics aren’t quite that great, and after albums like this one flopped, I can definitely understand the move to return to more of an analogue sound, such as a Hammond B3 organ.  So, the hard part of this album to sell is that it is electric, and uses cheesy synthesizers from start to finish.  I do believe that was Chick’s aim; to explore new technology and to marry it with jazz.  I believe that Chick did an excellent job of that on this album.  The music on this album is great and timeless for those that love music, but someone who is interested in sound quality may turn his or her nose up at this one.

My wife who is more laid back than I is sitting here relaxing to the music while crocheting, as I type away.  There are a few cds in the 100 disc player that I couldn’t do that with.  My wife is also a musician, and thus she is already probably more keen on listening to good music, especially a work like this which is so easy to relax to.  It is good to feel connected with her musically, such that I have been thankful for such great music that appeals to both genders, as we all know music like metal often attracts 10 males for every 1 female.

100 Disc Changer: Mix for the Start of the 2nd Half of 2013 – Sophisticated Eclectic Jams

These are the cds that are most likely to be among those that I choose for review for the 2nd half of 2013. I realize some of them are already reviewed by me. Every 6 months or so I like to update the list of what cds I have in the 100 disc changer. For the most part, I would recommend most of what ends up in the changer, but there is naturally varying degrees for what I would rate cds. Those ratings appear at www.craig-hamilton-media-review.blogspot.com www.craig-hamilton-guitar-lessons.blogspot.com, and on my Amazon account.

1. Live At Birdland by John Coltrane

2. In the Wake of Magellan, and The Dungeons Are Calling by Savatage

3. Free Fall, and Unsung Heroes by The Dixie Dregs

4. Stand Up, and High Tension Wires by Steve Morse

5. Grace for Drowning Vol. 2 Like Dust I Have Cleared From My Eye by Steven Wilson

6. What If, and Dregs of Earth by the Dixie Dregs

7. Guitar Battle w/John Petrucci

8. Without A Net First Set by The Grateful Dead

9. Soul Sirkus

10. Kings of Damnation Era by Black Label Society

11. Spontaneous Combustion by Liquid Trio Experiment

12. Back In The World of Adventures by The Flower Kings

13. Hotel Splendido by Al di Meola

14. Greatest Hits: Back to the Beginning by Megadeth

15. Emergent by Gordian Knot

16. …And Justice for All by Metallica

17. Disc 2 of Greatest 1 and Other Cool Songs by Dream Theater

18. Niacin by Niacin

19. My Favorite Things by John Coltrane

20. Night of the Living Dregs, and California Screamin’ by The Dixie Dregs

21. Individual Thought Patterns by Death

22. Bridge Across Atlantic by Transatlantic

23. The Ritual by Testament

24. Light Years by Chick Corea’s Electrik Band

25. Machine Head by Deep Purple

26. I Care Because You Do by Aphex Twin

27. The Odyssey by Symphony X

28. Disc 2 Druqs by Aphex Twin

29. Scenario by Al di Meola

30. The Kindness of Strangers by Spock’s Beard

31. Effigy of The Forgotten by Suffocation

32. Doin’ Something by Soulive

33. End of Silence by Rollins Band

34. The Essential Frank Sinatra: The Columbia Years

35. Start Today by Gorilla Biscuits

36. Listen by Jordan Rudess

37. Surfing With The Alien by Joe Satriani

38. Fire Garden by Steve Vai

39. Aenima by Tool

40. A mix of Tony MacAlpine’s Maximum Security and Led Zeppelin

41. III by Chicken Foot

42. Full House by Wes Montgomery

43. Here In The Now Frontier by Queensyrche

44. Deliverance by Opeth

45. Grace for Drowning Vol. 1 Deform To Form A Star by Steven Wilson

46. 1940-47 Retrospective Vol. 2 by Django Reinhardt

47. Secret Story by Pat Metheny

48. Manchild, and Dedication by Herbie Hancock

49. Greatest Disc 1 by the Bee Gees

50. Up All Night by John Scofield Band

51. Self titled, and Mother’s Milk by the Red Hot Chili Peppers

52. The Vibe by Roy Hargrove

53. True by Too Human

54. The Artista Years Disc 2 by the Grateful Dead

55. Dear Old Stockholm by John Coltrane

56. Kind of Blue by Miles Davis

57. Still Life by Opeth

58. This Godless Endeavor by Nevermore

59. Amazing Journey Disc 1

60. Compact Jazz by George Benson, and Idle Moments by Grant Green

61. Industry Standard, and Full Circle by the Dixie Dregs

62. A Show of Hands by Victor Wooten

63. Coast to Coast, and High Tension Wires by Steve Morse

64. Friday Night In San Fransisco by Al di Meola, John McLaughlin, and Paco de Lucia

65. Lovecraft by Cradle of Filth

66. Transgression by Fear Factory

67. The Blue Note Years: The Best of Kenny Burrell

68. A Picture of Nectar by Phish

69. Greatest Disc 2 by the Bee Gees

70. Super Hits by Ted Nugent

71. Live from Planet Oz by Planet X

72. Virtuoso #2 by Joe Pass

73. A Dramatic Turn of Events by Dream Theater

74. The Best of Earl Klugh

75. Vulgar Display of Power by Pantera

76. Coda by Led Zeppelin

77. Youthanasia by Megadeth

78. School Days by Stanley Clarke

79. Minds by Chick Corea, Gary Burton, Pat Metheny, Roy Haynes, and Dave Holland

80. II Pornograffitti by Extreme

81. Greatest Hits by Stevie Ray Vaughn and Double Trouble

82. OK Computer by Radiohead

83. Gretchen Goes to Nebraska by King’s X

84. 1947-53 Retrospective Vol. 3 by Django Reinhardt

85. 1934-40 Retrospective Vol. 1 by Django Reinhardt

86. Midnight Blue by Kenny Burrell

87. Live by Bill Frisell

88. What Did He Say? by Victor Wooten

89. Can’t remember by Shadows Fall

90. Fusion by Wes Montgomery

91. Born This Way by Lady Gaga

92. When Gravity Fails by Neil Zaza

93. Destroy, Erase, Improve by Meshuggah

94. Character, and Enter Suicide Angels by Dark Tranquility

95. Surrealistic Madness by Candiria

96. Pick Hits Live by John Scofield

97. Notes on a Dream by Jordan Rudess

98. Sex and Religion by Steve Vai

99. Twilight In Olympus by Symphony X

100. First Meditations by John Coltrane

**** Lark’s Tongues in Aspic - Excellent Progressive Rock from One of the Genre’s Founders

Compared to In The Court of the Crimson King, and even In The Wake of Poseidon; Lark’s Tongues definitely measures up.  The band was essentially playing in the style of their earlier hits when they made this one.  If that was their aim, then I would have to say that they accomplished their aim.  Notice that the volume isn’t cranked on this one, and that is the sound of music before we had compressors.  I personally am fed up with the prevalence of compressors.  I think that they take away all the dynamic from music, and spoil it just to be loud.  In my opinion, if I want my music loud, then I’ll just turn up the volume, and there is no need to compress anything.

If you want to know where bands like Dream Theater and so many others got their sonic ideas, bands like King Crimson and Return to Forever were definitely influential to their sound.

Also, you may notice that I essentially wrote the same review for both Lark’s Tongues and Islands.  That is because I felt that the music of both of these cds is very similar.  Which is not to say that these albums are identical, but in my opinion, by the instrumental music alone, one would not be able to tell perhaps an unreleased B-side one of these cds from the other.  They are essentially the same in greatness. 

**** Islands by King Crimson - Excellent Progressive Rock from One of the Genre’s Founders

Compared to In The Court of the Crimson King, and even In The Wake of Poseidon; Islands definitely measures up.  The band was essentially playing in the style of their earlier hits when they made this one.  If that was their aim, then I would have to say that they accomplished their aim.  Notice that the volume isn’t cranked on this one, and that is the sound of music before we had compressors.  I personally am fed up with the prevalence of compressors.  I think that they take away all the dynamic from music, and spoil it just to be loud.  In my opinion, if I want my music loud, then I’ll just turn up the volume, and there is no need to compress anything.

If you want to know where bands like Dream Theater and so many others got their sonic ideas, bands like King Crimson and Return to Forever were definitely influential to their sound.

Also, you may notice that I essentially wrote the same review for both Lark’s Tongues and Islands.  That is because I felt that the music of both of these cds is very similar.  Which is not to say that these albums are identical, but in my opinion, by the instrumental music alone, one would not be able to tell perhaps an unreleased B-side one of these cds from the other.  They are essentially the same in greatness. 

**** The Very Beast of Dio by Dio – Excellent Dark Rock That Speaks to Downtrodden People

If I had to put this in a genre, I would have to call it dark rock.  In the same way, I would not classify Black Sabbath as metal, but as dark rock.  Surely, there is no essential problem to categorizing this music as metal.  This for me is just a personal category.  I believe that this categorization is the reason why my wife could listen to Dio, but not Morbid Angel, for example.  To her there are boundaries in music, and Dio does not cross the line to being a band like Slayer.  I would say that a more modern comparison to of a genre that this belongs in would be similar to Korn which I have heard described best as “Loud Rock.”  I would also call Korn dark rock, in addition to loud rock.

I would definitely recommend DIO to a fan of Korn, especially one who doesn’t mind more primitive production, or definitely to someone who enjoys listening to Black Sabbath, especially when Ozzy sang for them.  Also, fans of the metal band Manowar should definitely check out this album.  I imagine most of them already have.

I’ll also add that part of the reason I gave this cd 4 stars is that it is chock full of good songs.  It was a great cd for my hundred disc changer partly because every song is good and there are a lot of good song on it.

In the song, "Rainbow in the Dark," there is a lyric that says it all, "I cry out for magic."  For some of us, the one's whom have found that Gd has hidden himself, and is not worthy of calling upon, we hope that there can be some sort of magic that will get us through the dark depressive times.

**** Greatest Hit (… and 20 Other Pretty Cool Songs) by Dream Theater – Strikingly Complete

When I first heard Dream Theater was going to put together a greatest hits package, I thought, “That’s impossible because almost all their songs are good.”  I couldn’t even imagine how they were going to pull this one off, but they did!

They put all the songs that in my opinion didn’t fit well on their albums, it seemed as if every album had one extra song, but I was not conscious of this when I thought of what they would do for a greatest hits package.  Well, you may wonder how these songs all fit together; the answer is that the songs are more mild than most of the other stuff on their albums.  It was always as if Dream Theater always had a token slow song, and what’s more they even released that song though usually it would get no attention for radio airplay.

Perhaps, I should have thought otherwise, but because I usually thought the released song was weaker than the rest of the album, it never occurred to me that they would put them all on 2 cds and repackage it.  As far as I know, this album, repackaging all the slow songs together ends up hitting the sonic spot on certain days, and is well worth listening to.  You just have to be in the mood for it.  Even for people that love the heaviest music, I imagine there can come a time when you feel like you need a rest.  Let me tell you, or even warn you, there are many musical rests about on this collection, as this is not the typical busy, hard hitting music I think of most when I think of Dream Theater.

Spring Is A Go – A Poem

Spring is a go

Sing as we plow with our hoe

Scattering seeds of life

For back break harvest strife

Baseball games are ah playin’

My mood is a’ liftin’  I am just sayin’

And, in all that we do

Spring has sprung through and through

***** Nil Reccuring by Porcupine Tree – Short, Sweet and Old Fashioned In a Good Way

Porcupine Tree is a very unique band.  They never really hopped on any trendy bandwagons, like it seems all bands do.  For example, Porcupine Tree is not a metal band, but more so than just plain old rock bands they do get heavy.   Also, praise the L-rd, there is no effin’ compressor pedal usage that I can detect on this album.

Steven Wilson understands the need for dynamics in music, and that though he sacrifices radio play for not using a compressor.  (Radios only want music that uses compression, which is an effect that takes all the dynamics out of songs, and it essentially cranks the volume to 10, but really how many times can someone listen to songs all cranked to 10, or whatever the maximum volume is and not get bored.)  Wilson has gained a fairly large following through quality music, like this disc, and not catering to any band wagon.  Frankly, I couldn’t name you another band that plays without compressors or triggered drums in the days of the newest technologies.  This is how music was made back in the day when Led Zeppelin and Hendrix ruled.  All other bands seemed to have cowered in fear of losing audience in favor of using the latest gadgets that end up as toys for toddlers to push a button and have a song come out, but not Porcupine Tree.  Porcupine Tree is old fashioned in a good way.

**** Demanufacture by Fear Factory – An Excellent Work by a Pioneering Band

This is what I grew up listening to, and loving as a teen.  Though I think their first work is better, Demanufacture is a solid album, good song after good song.  Like their first effort, this one has a lot of really good songs.  As song writers, this work is more refined than the first one, and I think that is a minus.  Piss Christ is my favorite song on this album.

*** Obsolete by Fear Factory – Except for the Song Resurrection Fear Factory Lost Their Edge

Okay, I imagine some folks are saying, “What the hell?  This is a great album!”  And, had this been the first Fear Factory album, I would have given it 4 stars.  However, by the time of this album, Fear Factory is still writing good songs, but they just aren’t standing out against the rest of Fear Factory’s catalogue.  For all the ingenuity this band showed, this album doesn’t add anything stylistically.  However, Obsolete contains my favorite Fear Factory song to date, and that is the song Resurrection.  

*****self-titled by Boston – We Will Probably Groove To This Ageless Work for 1,000 Years Or More

I can hardly think of an album that more deserves 5 stars that Boston’s self-titled effort.  There is not any filler at all on this one.  Since its inception across generations, there is no generation that has not embraced this album as being anything but first quality music.  There is something at every moment on Boston’s self-titled that is appreciable for anyone.  Even the greatest musical snob breaks down and admits; this album is first quality. 

***** You Go Now by Chroma Key – Pure Mellow Brilliance

I did not get the impression that the keyboardist/leader of Chroma Key, Kevin Moore, was trying to alienate his audience with this one.  The album title is, “You Go Now,” which by itself can have many meanings, and I wasn’t quite sure what Kevin Moore was trying to get at when he made the album.  I listened to it, and thought it was better than Radio Head’s OK Computer album, which is very similar to this one.  I think I finally figured out what Kevin Moore meant when he called this album, “You Go Now,” when he recorded the follow up album, “Graveyard Mountain Home,” which in my opinion has no redeeming qualities.

My review is a comparison of this with the much more popular album, OK Computer, to which I believe Kevin Moore’s effort is far better.  However, it is possible that the listener will have a difficult time appreciating this album.  I hope that is not the case because You Go Now is in my opinion a classic in its own right.

**** Project by Jordan Rudess and Rod Morgenstein - Possibly The Disc That Put Rudess On The Map

Before this disc you probably wouldn’t have heard of Jordan Rudess, and while that remained true afterward, this effort, Project, was something that probably brought Rudess some much needed attention from the music industry.  The second discs that brought Rudess even further into the spotlight where Liquid Tension Experiment, and Liquid Tension Experiment II.  Suddenly, he was among the leaders in the industry.

In my opinion, Project never reached the greatness of the Liquid Tension Experiment discs, but it is a very good effort on the parts of both musicians.  Of course Jordan Rudess was already playing the part as the Dixie Dregs keyboardist, which was probably his greatest gig to date when he recorded Project, but this disc has original material, and it wasn’t Rod Morgenstein’s effort alone that pushed this disc to greatness.  Jordan Rudess and Rod Morgenstein played their hearts out on this disc and the result is unforgettable.  So, while I won’t go on to give this one 5 stars, I will say that this gig was the stepping stone for Rudess to go on to making 5 star albums with the greatest progressive band ever, Dream Theater.

If you already have some of the prog rock essentials, which are listed in many places on the web, then you might want to think about picking this one up.  It is a great album, and would probably only disappoint someone who is trying to be cool.

2nd Review of ***** The Blessed and The Damned by Iced Earth – The Definitive Collection of Their Work

I am a huge fan of Iced Earth.  Surprisingly, 4 discs of their stuff has gotten me nearly endless hours of happy listening enjoyment .  The other 2 discs are Days of Purgatory.  In the following blog: “50 Great Metal Bands: Maybe Some Are More Deserving, But I Figure This Is a Good List,” I rated Iced Earth number 3.  Also on the following list for www.amazon.com, I rated this work, The Blessed and The Damned of Iced Earth number 3, “40 Great Metal Bands and an Awesome Album by Each.”

Metal has been a defining characteristic of my life and it really started before my time with the Baby Boomer generation’s band Black Sabbath, which has also been a favorite of my generation as well, and may continue to enthrall younger generation for years to come.  So, IMHO, it is probably a good idea to pick up one of the great musical works of our time because I do believe that some of the metal of our time will be remembered as Beethoven and other classical masters will be remembered.

2nd Review of **** Days of Purgatory by Iced Earth – All That Metallica Could Have Been

While Metallica stopped writing music like this, Iced Earth stepped up and filled the void, and did it even better that Metallica had ever done.  Iced Earth packs the punch of Metallica’s heaviest songs like Damage Inc., and for lack of originality I subtracted a star.  However, don’t let that stop you from purchasing this album, as it is a tremendous work of art, and maybe on a different day of the week I would have rated it 5 stars, just depending on the mood that I am in.

I first got into Iced Earth about 14 years ago.  That would be 1999.  Days of Purgatory was my first purchase from this band.  Perhaps, that makes me a dinosaur, but when I put these discs into the player they never disappoint me.  I wouldn’t be surprised if I could listen to this stuff by itself indefinitely without getting tired of it.  The only reason to move on and put different stuff in my player is for the sake of diversifying, not out of getting bored of the songs.

**** Ice Cycles by Platypus – Relaxed and Smooth Prog Rockin’

I could understand someone if they were unable to even recognize this as progressive rock. You almost need to be a musician to figure out these fairly tricky rhythms. However, if you are uneducated, this music would likely slip by under your radar of music that is for dorky musicians like myself. It also might slip by if you are uneducated that these musicians are some of the best that progressive rock has to offer, especially because they aren’t wailing on their instruments. Perhaps, that is what is most ground breaking about Ice Cycles, it is good music that doesn’t wail. I have heard enough music to know that music that doesn’t wail, especially modern music is very rare. There is just a much larger audience for those that wish to listen to progressive metal that wails for the entire album or the entire show, such that when a band gets through a song and hasn’t injected a slammin’ attitude into their sound that this comes as somewhat of a surprise. Sure it may have a few pretty picked arpeggios. However, they don’t make for the meat of the song. In that way, this album is almost clandestine, and will probably remain as such. John Myung has always struck me as an introvert, and thus it is such that perhaps this style fits his modus operandi more than any other. Anyway, this effort is very much appreciated. I really like this cd though I would not go so far as to give it the 5th star and say that it is a classic.

**** Frizzle Fry by Primus – Few Rock Groups Have Been So Exploratory As Primus

First of all, from start to finish this is a great album. It’s also an old album, but if you listen to it, you should find it unique and interesting. Few bands of the 1990’s have achieved the level of originality as Primus. One other band that I think of as in this same category is the Red Hot Chili Peppers, especially earlier in their career. Though some may disagree, or even wish that it weren’t there is no denying that Primus is a Prog Rock band. Quite frankly, when I use the word Progressive, I simply mean talented or that they have broken free from the norm. With his band Primus, Les Claypool created a very unique style of a bass fronted band, and to do so it meant that the guitar did something different as well. Thus, it is such that the guitar is also key to the bass fronted sounded. This album goes back to the time of cassette tapes, and that was actually the first time I heard this album. My friend let me borrow his cassette tape. As a kid, I instantaneously knew that there was something special, unique, and creative about this cassette. However, I do recognize that cassettes are generally a terrible format because the tape itself can stretch, resulting in the band sounding out of tune, such that I don’t recommend Frizzle Fry on cassette. Get the cd. You will probably be able to find it for a reasonable price, used. I personally, prefer the cd version though I fully understand folks who like to download their music, so ultimately, my recommendation is to purchase the most budget minded version of this work of art, where Primus is describable as unlike anything that had come before it.

WTF??? Does AT&T Think That I Want To Pay More for Data Sometimes?

I just looked at my AT&T Go Phone message that just informed me that I have no money left. That is because I didn’t buy a bigger data package. However, it would have been nice if they had warned me to buy a data package, rather than run up the dough on my phone, as if I wanted to pay more money by not having a data package.

So hi! Let me introduce myself. I was a happy AT&T customer because Verizon screwed me for data to a much greater extent than AT&T did though nonetheless both companies have screwed me before.

I am a somewhat happy user of a Go Phone now, so that getting screwed to the extent of $1,000 over data with Verizon will never happen again because when my card runs out of money, that’s it. If I was with Verizon under contract, it could have been worse. Last I knew, you could spend yourself into oblivion with Verizon data without even a warning.

At least a warning would have helped me with AT&T. Now, I am without my phone because I was watching a long video on it that ate up all my data. AT&T courteously stopped me when I had spent my last cent, but they didn’t courteously tell me that my data plan had run out. I would have liked the option to buy a new plan when the last one ran out, such that I don’t have to wait until my next check to have a phone to use.

Like Verizon, AT&T is doing bad business. When I worked at McDonald’s if you ordered everything that comes with a value meal, it was automatic for us to make it at the value meal price. Why? It is good business to help the customer get deals. That makes your business at least seem friendly. In the same way, when your data package ends, it should automatically deny you use of data unless you purchase a data package, even if it is an emergency package that costs say, $1 for 1MB, because seriously AT&T who actually wants to spend more money on data by not buying a data package, especially without being asked!!!???

***** Houses of the Holy by Led Zeppelin – The Best Led Zeppelin Album

Everybody, or perhaps almost everybody has their favorite Zeppelin album.  This one is mine.  And, this isn’t some sort of new thing for me.  This has been my favorite Zeppelin album since even before I got the 10 disc box set of all their albums back in high school.  I remember reading a Zeppelin biography by an insider in the Led Zeppelin outfit and this is the album I played all the while I was so fascinated when I read it.  In my opinion, this album is the last good one before Robert Plant needed help to make his voice sound thicker by electronics.  Since I learned Plant was a smoker, it became very easy for me to identify that his career’s glory would be shortened because physically one can’t expect to be a good singer if he or she is a smoker.  It just can’t be done.

My favorite song on this one is, “The Song Remains the Same.”  I appreciate it for its complexity, especially when I was a kid and was not familiar with more music.  If you have been a reader of mine, despite how unpopular cerebral music tends to be these days, I can tell you this is a good one.  Certainly, not the most of all time or something like that, but it sounds like a lot of work was put into it.  The Song Remains The Same is a work I would hope that anybody would be able to enjoy.

John Bonham is most certainly one of the best drummers ever in my opinion.  Too many drummers today trigger their material, such that every time a drum is hit, it sounds exactly the same way.  If you ask me, that’s cheating.  He might very well be my favorite drummer of all time because sometimes Dennis Chambers plays too many notes, and sometime Virgil Donati lacks taste in favor of playing something that can be done.

However, if you just listened to The Song Remains the Same, it would be a shame.  This record is awesome from start to finish.  Even its weakest song The Crunge is worth listening to.

*** Black Clouds & Silver Linings by Dream Theater – The Least Essential DT Album to My Collection

I won’t say that this is a bad album.  However, I will say that Dream Theater seems to have something both similar and better than everything on this album that they have done prior to BC&SL.  Prior to this, I won’t say that Dream Theater had done no wrong.  I did think 6 Degrees of Inner Turbulence was a weak and repetitive effort.  However, that much was all cleaned up when I heard 4 Degrees of Radio Edits, which is I think is totally awesome.  I’ll also say that I can’t tell if A Nightmare to Remember is supposed to be comedy or is serious, which probably means that the band was serious. Lol!

I guess what I find most disappointing about this album is that physically it offers nothing more than a typical hair band album, like say Poison, or Warrant.  Yes, I admit to liking Poison, but I don’t have any delusions about their technical grandeur, and when it comes to technical grandeur that is what I expect from them, and I feel that their offering of technical albums fills a very important role in many people’s lives, in the same way that folks where angry when Pantera broke up because Pantera filled a very important niche in peoples’ lives.

Wither is nothing but an mediocre ballad.  You know the standard ballad Dream Theater puts on an album that is just trash to attract new fans to the other stuff that they do that is better.  Except, what is different on this album is that the cheese ballad is one of the better songs on BC&SL.  Enough said!!!  .  As for this album, it doesn’t have any redeeming greatness, just mediocrity that might help them get popular, so I suggest moving on to something that will challenge you more intellectually, and not stuff that would have made it on the radio in the 1980s.

My best advice is not to buy this one and to buy a real Dream Theater album like Awake or A Dramatic Turn of Events.