***** Dream Theater by Dream Theater: The Best Album in the World to Date.

This is the best album I have ever heard, hands down, everything else is secondary, and probably everything after Dream Theater by Dream Theater will be secondary. This is it. This is perfect. This is the new standard. This is better than any jazz I know of. This is better than any classical music that I know of, including greats like Beethoven and Dvorak. This album is eternal. I can rest now in my search for great music because this one will probably hold my attention for years and years.

I have been a music lover since I was a child. I can still remember listening to Vivaldi on my Walkman at my now deceased grandmother’s house, which means my love of music goes back to the time when cassette tapes ruled the market and cds had not yet been invented. I am now in my thirties, and I have been a fan of Dream Theater since I heard Pull Me Under on the Z Rock 50 on 94.1 WHJY, which was a hard rock top 50 countdown that prided itself by saying Casey Casum (or however you spell his last name – the guy who did the pop music countdown, which never seemed to give metal a chance) doesn’t have a clue.

Well, now that I have heard Dream Theater by Dream Theater, I can die, and know that there is probably never going to be another album that is as good as this one, especially when it comes to complexity. I’m a cerebral guy, and I don’t believe that it can get better than this. This stuff blows away Aphex Twin, a computer musician programmer who actually tried to program good music. Because I am a guitarist, programmed music will never touch me the way people do who are actually playing real instruments, even if effects are used.

Reviewing this album, I am so happy to hear my son say one of the songs on this one is his favorite. My boy already has good tastes, and without coaxing. He knows what he likes, and Dream Theater is a part of that already. He likes the song that sounds like Limelight by Rush, but is 10 times as good as it.

I completely enjoy the seriousness of this album, as compared to A Dramatic Turn of Events. Don’t get me wrong, both albums are 5 star albums, but A Dramatic Turn of Events was super dorky with all its silly messiah talk.

*** The Blue Note Years: The Best of Kenny Burrell - A Major Disappointment

Considering that Kenny Burrell is one of the best known jazz guitarists, this greatest hits package is unimpressive. The funny thing is that I kept giving this one more chances because I thought that perhaps I was mistaken and that I would grow to love this disc. Loving The Best of Kenny Burrell was something that never happened. All I did was get more familiar with these songs. This sounds like jazz guitar in a box because it sounds as if there is no passion put into any of the notes. Even my son who is but 5yrs old now and already an avid fan of jazz always complains when this one comes on in my 100 disc changer mix.

I know Kenny Burrell is capable of putting out good albums. Recently, I reviewed Burrell’s album Midnight Blue, and I thought rather highly of it. It is hard to imagine how a single album could be so much better than a greatest hits package. Perhaps, the person selecting the songs was a numbnut. I don’t know. At this point in time I only own these two Kenny Burrell discs. However, one thing is for sure, I am not venturing out into Burrell’s catalogue any further because when the greatest hits aren’t that great, it doesn’t indicate that there is much depth to the rest of this musician’s catalogue. I could be completely wrong about that, but usually greatest hits albums are at least like a litmus test. I admit that this comes as a surprise, as I have heard musician’s rave about Kenny Burrell, and he is usually listed among the greatest jazz guitarists in the world.

Despite all my lambasting of this work, I am not as harsh as my son. I like most of the songs on it a little bit, but not enough for me to give this stale piece of jazz a rave review. This style of guitar has come to be standard for the industry. For example, if I were still playing jazz guitar, my attack toward playing the songs would probably be nearly identical, and for me that is a weakness, but that is not to Kenny Burrell’s credit either.

***** Midnight Blue by Kenny Burrell – The Only Legitimate Criticism of It Is That It Lacks Aggression

Firstly, I would like to say that all of the songs on Midnight Blue are great, and that that is the reason this one is a 5 star album. Though don’t mistake this one for the shred style albums, I am likely to give 5 stars, because Midnight Blue is a mellow album, in the vein of Kind of Blue by Miles Davis. Midnight Blue is better than Kind of Blue, but that may only be because I prefer guitar to trumpet. I am a guitarist, and if you ask me, Kenny Burrell on Midnight Blue is the real deal. Clearly, aggression wasn’t Burrell’s goal, but so often I go for the aggressive album, as compared to the blue album. That is, when it comes to Kind of Blue by Miles Davis, Blue Trane by John Coltrane, Midnight Blue by Kenny Burrell, and so many other jazz artists that had a blue album, frankly, this isn’t my favorite style of music. I can appreciate it, and that is where the 5 stars come in, but in the long run, this really isn’t my favorite style.

One thing that is striking about Midnight Blue is how well the guitar functions as a chording instrument. These aren’t boring chords. The chording on this album is quite skilled.

I like jazz, and that is probably one reason that I am a fan of Kenny Burrell. If you get into jazz guitar, then Kenny Burrell is a staple, but he is slowly being forgotten. There are better artists out there today that are less heard of than Burrell. Really, nothing separates Kenny Burrell from the local jazz act in many places. Such an act may have a name guitarist, but because he or she did not come along until this generation, he or she is lost in the shuffle. However, this is where the problem starts for giving him a 5th star. That is, because Kenny Burrell is really only known well among cloistered groups at universities where people go to study music in order to get a degree in it, and he is then only remembered among those knowledgeable in jazz, increasingly Kenny Burrell’s popularity has been waning. If you ask me, while this is a great album, it will eventually lose its status as a standard. I think it can be outdone because for the most part I prefer shred to music like King of Blue, or Midnight Blue. As for now though, I think this album is still a 5 star standard.

**** Live at Budokan by Dream Theater – Far From Bad, but also Far From Essential

Let’s face it; Dream Theater is better in the studio than live.  Live at Budokan isn’t bad at all though.  The mix does suffer a bit.  Live at Budokan sounds like an assembly of songs with less sound quality than a studio disc, and it doesn’t even serve well as a greatest hits package because there is never a song that seems like parts of it aren’t filler.
Why Dream Theater bothers releasing anything but their best live stuff is beyond me.  All the way back to “Once In a LIVEtime” they released a cd where James LaBrie’s voice was hoarse.  Why on earth that they would have picked this, one of the last stops on that tour to make a live set (for Once in a LIVEtime) is perplexing?  They did the same thing when they practically wasted the first cd of Live Scenes from New York.  Disc 2 was great off that one, but when they played the entire Scenes from a Memory from start to finish on Disc one, on that particular day in New York it was a catastrophe, IMHO.
Most bands never come close to being this good, and that is where the 4th star comes from.  However, what Dream Theater is doing with disc sets like Live at Budokan is saturating an already saturate market.  I would scarcely miss this one if I no longer had it.  Additionally, there is enough good prog metal that makes this even further nonessential.
It is a good set of three discs and all 3 are good, but it is just no where near as good as their average studio album, and they have plenty of studio albums by now, well maybe.  It does seem like I always end up craving a new Dream Theater album.
I have been burnt enough on Dream Theater’s low quality live albums that I am not looking for the next live album coming down the pike.  For example, I am not even going to waste my time on Live at Luna Park.  I am not going to say DT can’t play live.  They proved that they are one of the best live acts on earth when they released Score.  However, for the most part their live acts are a disappointment.  Even the times when I have personally seen them live, the band seems to lack personality, and can’t compare with more suave acts like Queensryche.
Granted it seems like there is not a track that doesn’t have both a highlight, and also lull.  But, for the most of the part, I wouldn’t reach for this one off the shelf, having a chance to listen to others is because the bulk of this material has dry parts, or parts that are cheesy in quality or lack feeling.

**** Without a Net by the Grateful Dead – No Drugs Necessary to Enjoy This!

First, of all, I am not much of a dead head. I have never seen them live. I don’t do drugs. However, this is a really good concert. Phish is better, but the Grateful Dead was a good prototype. There is more to Without a Net than just humdrum scatterbrained sound. The Grateful Dead are definitely talented, and their improvisational skills shine through on Without a Net. Is this the Dead’s best? I’d have to say, “No.” However, this one is up there as being one of their better efforts.

What interested me in this disc was the Grateful Dead’s inclusion of “Eyes of the World” on the band’s greatest hits compilation from the Arista Years. I later learned who Branford Marsalis was, and that would happen to be that he has been one of the most influential musicians ever; captured in this song on saxophone. I figured that since Eyes of the World was so good on the Greatest Hits compilation that it would be worth it to pick up a copy, and I figured right. I can’t say that is true for some of the other albums by the Dead.

I have to admit Jerry Garcia’s voice sounds rather worn out, no doubt due to drug use. However, the voice does have a bit of charm to it.

Another highlight is the Grateful Dead’s version, “Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodleloo,” which at times is quite emotionally evocative, at least for me, though I have never crossed the Rio Grande, or any of those other rivers.

This is a stand out disc from the Grateful Dead’s mediocre Arista years. It is good from start to finish though I would hesitate to call it great. This time period may be compared to the Rolling Stones releases late in their career, where the disc usually has one good song, and yet the Dead put out a really good album. However, this disc stands out from this time period as being worthy of purchase.

What is really great about Without a Net is that I have had it since High School, probably 1996 or so, and it still entertains me.

*****World Play by Soul SirkUS - This Rocks Hard from Start to Finish. This Isn’t Popular Because Why?

This cd goes great in rock and prog mixes. It has been in the mix of my hundred disc changer now for a few years (at least 4). The local rock station WPXE could probably have played Soul Sirkus and been a part of making a new band popular. The problem with Soul Sirkus is that they never got the promotion necessary to make it big.

World Play, the band’s only album to date has a few well know session names in it, such as it Neal Schon, Jeff Soto (temporarily sung) and Deen Castronovo, both of which played in the mega popular band Journey. Also, that this music has music that was salvaged from an album with Sammy Hagar is apparent. Just listen to the album through, it sounds like it could have been one of Hagar’s best works. I can only guess that Sammy Hagar walked away from this group to have a chance to play with the guitarist Joe Satriani, in Chicken Foot. This album is better than Chicken Foot, IMHO.

This band makes also me think of Van Halen, or Chicken Foot. The singer sounds like somewhere between King’s X and Van Hagar.

Honestly, Soul Sirkus probably would have gone under my radar had not Virgil Donati played on tour with them, replacing Deen Castronovo. Donati is one of my heroes, as I champion the underground virtuosos in progressive metal, jazz, and rock.

Last, but not least, if you like the harder side of Van Hagar –Van Halen with Sammy Hagar on vocals -, then get this album.

*****The Kindness of Strangers by Spock’s Beard – Excellently Written Prog That Isn’t Showy

A part of the reason why people who aren’t musicians listen to music that is not good (the popular junk that is on the radio) is because progressive music is often quite showy, especially prog metal.  Usually, half of the prog in prog it that it is about the guitar solos.  If you are looking for solos that will wow you, there aren’t any on The Kindness of Strangers.  The music doesn’t even rely on high speed licks.  What makes this prog in my opinion is that the song writing is superior.  Someone could probably pull this album out from the shelf 500 or 1,000 years from now and would still find it as enjoyable as I am as I write this review while listening to the album.

The songs are beefy on the song craft, very catchy, very diverse, and very mature.  It is easy to listen to a lot of Spock’s Beard and not grow fatigued.  This isn’t children’s music though the content is not over the top with risqué topics.  It would appear that Neal Morse has been a champion of wholesome music even before he became Christian.

Really, the hardest part about listening to an album like this one from Spock’s Beard is that it is extremely good music - catchy, hip, etc. - music, but despite being so awesome it never got popular.  Neal Morse is to music is as, Vincent van Gogh is to art.  If you ask me, this is every bit as good as the ever more popular Phish.  However, I don’t believe the front man, Neal Morse, would put up with the drug use that Phish puts up with at their shows.  However, why Neal Morse isn’t nearly as big as Phish perplexes me.

If you like this one, I encourage you to check out the Flower Kings, Phish, and Transatlantic.  Of course there are other good similar progressive acts, but I will keep my list short, but I would put this music also in the same category as the Gypsy Kings, Soulive, Jimmy Smith (really the organ stands out), and Medeski Martin Wood.

So what do I think of most when I listen to this cd?  I think of song craft that is awesome from start to finish.  I also think of organ, because the Neal Morse is a vocalist/organ player.  However, while he does stand out as the front man in Spock’s Beard, the whole band comes across as awesome.

The hardest part of listening to this band is when Neal Morse converted to Christianity, and formed the Neal Morse band, which played Christian music that was absolutely terrible.  I think of the song that said, “In the name of Gd you must die,” which was supposed to be mocking the idea of slaying someone in the name of Gd, but that song never came across as was intended, and it ended up sounding like Neal Morse was serious about happily slaying people for fun in the name of religion.  Once on his Christianity binge he broke up Transatlantic, and Spock’s Beard.  Now, I am glad that he is back and into with Transatlantic.  I am also sure he would not hesitate to put out a new Spock’s Beard at some time in the future.