Slipcrackers!This section is for the worthy albums that were about to slip through the cracks.
Norman Blake—Flower From The Fields Of Alabama
Charivari—I Want to Dance With You
Curtis & Loretta—Gone Forever
Mark Fisher—Scratch Board—songs and drawings by Mark Fisher
Terence Martin—Waterproof
The Robbie McIntosh Band—Emotional Bends
Thelonious Monk—The Columbia Years – ‘62-’68
Jonn Serrie—And the Stars Go With You
Steppin’ In It—Last Winter in the Copper Country
Alan Whitney—The Borderland
Norman Blake—Flower From The Fields Of Alabama
2001, Shanachie
Flower From The Fields Of Alabama is filled with mostly traditional songs sung and played by the equally traditional Norman Blake. Fellow musicians have always especially appreciated Blake’s steadfast focus on expert musicianship, which may be why the CD notes also include a section listing the makes and models of every instrument he plays on each song. But even if you’re not a nylon string-head, you’ll most likely enjoy his takes on familiar tracks, such as “Salty Dog,” or his own instantly familiar compositions, like “T.A.G. Railroad Rag.” While many artists begin by playing traditional music, only to drift toward the greener pastures of more commercial music, nobody has ever had to ask “O brother, where art thou?” of Blake, because he’s been mainly unplugged for as long as anybody can remember. —Dan MacIntosh
Charivari—I Want to Dance With You
2000, Rounder
This is music from a band that grew up in Cajun country. Their sound is traditional yet distinctively young and cheerful. The two-step beat gets your legs hopping, the sweet fiddles make you head sway. The vocals put a smile on your face and the triangle keeps your toes jumping in your shoes. It’s a full body experience not to be missed! —Michael Devlin
Curtis & Loretta—Gone Forever
Haymarket Music, 1999
Loretta Simonet handles most of the singing with a clear strong folksinger’s voice and plays the Celtic harp. Curtis Teague plays guitar and mandocello and has a tenor voice well suited to traditional music. The lovely production and skill of the musicians would be enough to make this album worth a listen, but Loretta’s contemporary songs really set this music apart. Framing modern subject matter in a traditional style keeps the old ways of music making alive by way of relevant use. It also serves to open the listener’s ears to the traditional tunes that are so spiritedly presented here. —Michael Devlin
Mark Fisher—Scratch Board—songs and drawings by Mark Fisher
1999, White Noise Records
What a fine example of the state of the singer-songwriters art. Fisher has a powerful voice and sings with authority, yet he has no trouble conveying the subtleties of his fine lyrics. The songs range from wryly humorous to lump-in-your-throat poignant. Excellent guitar work and sense of melody make each song a pleasure. There are several songs here that I would like to learn to play, it’s that kind of album. —Michael Devlin
Terence Martin—Waterproof
2000, Good Dog Music
The mood of Waterproof is set by Martin’s deep, weathered voice and gentle introspective style. His work as a poet shows in lyrics that are elegant yet full of vivid close-up references. His mastery of the songwriter’s skills is evidenced by the way these songs lodge in your head. With guitar playing that is on the same high level and production that is perfectly matched to the material, this album belongs next to the finest singer-songwriter CDs in your collection. Perhaps his new album Sleeper, will bring him a much-deserved wider audience. —Michael Devlin
The Robbie McIntosh Band—Emotional Bends 1999, Compass Records
Unless you’re an obsessive credit-reader, the name Robbie McIntosh may be a new one to you. But he’s toured as a Pretender and a Paul McCartney sideman, so his guitar skills are highly esteemed. But singer-songwriters are never entirely happy being just hired hands, which is why McIntosh has also released a few albums on his own. He has a voice not unlike the gruff Mark Knopfler, and accompanies himself, naturally, on various acoustic and electric guitars. His songs are smart and engaging, and not just platforms for instrumental jams. The sound of this album falls somewhere between soft rock and blues. With Emotional Bends, Robbie McIntosh shows us that he has plenty to say, in addition to what he’s always had to play.—Dan MacIntosh
Thelonious Monk—The Columbia Years – ‘62-’68
2001, Columbia/Legacy
It’s fascinating to read the liner notes documenting Thelonious Monk’s days with Columbia Records. He recorded much of his groundbreaking material for smaller labels before arriving at the prestigious Columbia—home of greats like Miles Davis and Charles Mingus, among others. Such a career advance seemingly promised better exposure and continued adoration from the critics. But Monk mostly re-recorded many of his seminal works while at this label, oftentimes with the same group of musicians each time out. Many critics viewed this period as little more than an artistic holding pattern, at best. But just as some “Seinfeld” reruns are just as entertaining the second and third time around, disc one’s inclusions of “Rhythm-A-Ning,” “Think Of One” and “In Walked Bud” are simply ageless. Disc two finds Monk alone at the piano for performances of signature tunes like “‘Round Midnight” and “Ruby, My Dear.” These recordings highlight the beauty and complexity that was Thelonious Monk, and the performances are starkly amazing. Disc three is the most adventurous portion of the set, as it takes Monk outside the comfort zone of his main group, as well as away from his solo position. Here, staples like “Straight, No Chaser,” “Evidence” and “Well, You Needn’t” find him interacting with clarinet player Pee Wee Russell, Steve Swallow on bass and Bobby Bryant on trumpet.
The Columbia Years may not be your first destination if you’re seeking the original source of Thelonious Monk’s genius. But wherever Monk went, genius was always close behind—even here during his wilderness Columbia stay. —Dan MacIntosh
Jonn Serrie—And the Stars Go With You
2002, New World Music
Gently pulsating deep bass, unearthly swirling wind, icy barely audible high frequency accents, with expanding, exploring melodies. Yes, it’s space music, but not just in love with the synthesizers that created it. There is an unmistakable sense of wonder and motion reaching ever outward. Jonn Serrie’s is known as a composer of music for planetariums and has performed at NASA events. Let this special edition reissue of this 1986 album transform your space! —Michael Devlin
Steppin’ In It—Last Winter in the Copper Country
2002, Hippo Coop Records
Steppin’ In It may just cause you to step to it, as this album of traditional bluegrass-oriented music bounces along like a Saturday night dance. Songs like “Red-Haired Boy” make this band sound something like Blues Traveler-meets-“O Bother, Where Art Thou?” —Dan MacIntosh
Alan Whitney—The Borderland
2000, Because We Can
Whitney is a singer-songwriter who has a Western sound with a minimalistic solo tone that reminds me of Jesse Collin Young or a less gruff Bob Dylan. He has clearly listened to a lot of Springsteen, too. Life is traveling on, a struggle to break free, a memory of a wistful love, a crime spree and all points in between. An individual revels in grand theft auto of specific makes and marks. He’s only a Cadillac man. There’s a modern day Bonnie and Clyde, but Bonnie’s life blood is spilling into the soil of a Louisiana roadside. There is a Springsteen like tribute that is summed up in the closing line, “why do I still love this town?” Whitney seems to be from Rochester and LA and Texas and Nashville. The wide open desert and grand vistas fill his loves and the rush to escape as well. He’s a modern day Woodie Guthrie in a world of flashing neon, escapsim and drug ridden souls. Whitney writes come what may and come what was, on the road, locked at home by the light of the TV. He expresses gut hard feeling and sweet mystery. Life is good and it is bad and he’s a poet for us all and that’s more than most. Be caressed. Care again and listen to beauty some more. —Mark Gresser
