Gods and Monsters - New York 1992

By 1988 Gary Lucas was making a name for himself in New York as a solo artist having left Captain Beefhearts Magic Band some years earlier.

Having written 'Grace' & 'Mojo Pin' with Jeff Buckley in 1991 Jeff began performing with Gary Lucas in his band Gods And Monsters.

As has been mentioned on the previous Jeff Buckley post, days after Gods and Monsters officially debuted in March 1992, Jeff Buckley decided to leave the band.

In October 2002 Gary Lucas released 'Songs To No One' an album of material from studio sessions, home tapes, and club performances over two years of collaboration between himself and Jeff Buckley.

The final track on that album 'Grace' was from a live performance at the Roulette Club in New York. This is the full set recorded live at Club Roulette, New York on the 5th April 1992.

Source: Soundboard.

Sound Quality: Very good stereo mp3@256kbps.

Genre: Alternative Rock.

Set: Full Set.

Set List:

1. Dinks Song
2. Sweet Thing
3. Mojo Pin
4. Hymn To Love
5. Grace
6. Angelina

Links: Official Gary Lucas Site HERE. Jeff Buckley HERE.

Comments:

Gary Lucas remains a highly regarded guitarist and continues to tour with 'Gods and Monsters' playing what they describe as intense psychedelic rock avant rock and art rock.

Download link in comments below or click on the picture.

Buy: Mp3's at Amazon.co.uk - Jeff Buckley - Gary Lucas

Bruce Hornsby and The Range - New York 1986

This is Bruce Hornsby and The Range recorded from the Midnight show broadcast live by WNEW-FM, New York on the 2nd September 1986.

The band formed in 1984 and were signed to RCA Records in 1985. Bruce Hornsby's recording career started with the biggest hit he has had to date, entitled "The Way It Is". It topped the American music charts in 1986.

With a propulsive yet contemplative piano riff and the refrain, That's just the way it is / Some things will never change / That's just the way it is / But don't you believe them, the song was catchy and described aspects of the American Civil Rights movement and institutional racism.

The song also hit a nerve with the American public, reflecting dissatisfaction with perceived economic decline in the early-to-mid 1980s. In years to come, the song would be sampled by at least six rap artists, including Tupac Shakur, E-40, and Mase.

Source: FM Broadcast.

Sound Quality: Very good stereo mp3@192kbps.

Genre: Contemporary Rock.

Set: Majority of Concert.

Set List:

01 Jacob's Ladder
02 The Way It Is
03 The Long Race
04 Mandolin Rain
05 Piano Solo
06 The Red Plains
07 I Know You Rider (small edit due to tape flip).
08 Every Little Kiss
09 The River Runs Low
10 Wild Frontier
11 Western Skyline
12 Till The Dreaming's Done
13 Down the Road Tonight (fade out, last couple minutes missing).

The Band:

Bruce Hornsby - keyboards, vocals
Peter Harris - guitar
George Marinelli - guitar
Joe Puerta - bass
John Molo - drums

Links: Official Site HERE.

Comments:

With the success of the single worldwide, the album The Way It Is went multi-platinum and produced another top five hit with "Mandolin Rain" (co-written, as many of Hornsby's early songs were, with his brother John Hornsby). "Every Little Kiss" also did respectably well. Other tracks on the album helped establish what some labeled the "Virginia sound", a mixture of rock, jazz, and bluegrass with an observational Southern feel. Bruce Hornsby and the Range would go on to win the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 1987.

Bruce Hornsby and the Range's sound is somewhat distinctive. For one, Bruce Hornsby's consistent use of syncopation in his piano solos was different from other pianists during the 1980s. Bruce Hornsby used a brighter piano sound, which was typical for 1980's Pop Music. There is also extensive use of synthesizers used as background for Bruce Hornsby's solos, most notable on the tracks "The Show Goes On" and "The Road Not Taken". John Molo's drumbeats were often looped throughout the recorded versions of songs. They are typical double-time beats, which allowed Bruce Hornsby and the rest of the band to do more with their solos.

Download links (two) in comments below.

Buy: Mp3's at Amazon.co.uk - Bruce Hornsby and the Range

The Kinks - Live At The Rainbow 1977

This is The Kinks towards the end of their Sleepwalker Tour from 1977. The album Sleepwalker marked a return to straight-ahead, self-contained rock songs after several years of concept orientated albums.

It was the first album in what critics usually call the "arena rock" phase of the group, in which more commercial and mainstream production techniques would be employed. The line up of The Kinks would be trimmed downed significantly in 1977 following the album's release, as the brass section and backup singers were removed and the band returned to a standard rock band outfit. It is however notable in this gig that both brass and backup singers are very much in attendance. This is The Kinks live at The Rainbow Theatre, London on the 24th December 1977.

Source: Soundboard

Sound Quality: Very good stereo mp3@192kbps.

Genre: Rock, Pop.

Set: Majority of Concert

Set List:

01 Sleepwalker
02 Life on the Road
03 Waterloo Sunset
04 All Day And All Of The Night
05 Slum Kids
06 Celluloid Heroes
07 Get Back In Line
08 The Hard Way
09 Lola
10 Alcohol
11 Skin And Bone
12 You Really Got Me
13 Juke Box Music

Links: Official Ray Davies site HERE. Dave Davies HERE.

Comments:

This is a superb concert both in terms of sound quality and a very much 'on form' band with excellent supporting musicians and singers. The Rainbow Theatre was a live rock music venue in north London that opened in September 1971 with a concert by The Who, supported by Quiver and closed for the last time in January 1982. It was one of London's key venues to perform at during it's time with live albums from Bob Marley through to The Ramones being recorded and officially released.

Download link in comments below or click on the picture.

Buy: Mp3's at Amazon.co.uk The Kinks

Beehive Recommends - Kittens Ablaze

Having just listened to their current album 'The Monstrous Vanguard' I have to say Kittens Ablaze deserve all the praise and recognition they have received to date.

OK here's the setting. I have some sort of virus and am running a fever. I am feeling sorry for myself, and am not really in the mood for music. If I want to hear anything it needs to be gentle and soothing, however there is an album in my inbox & I feel obliged to give at least one song a listen. Half an hour later I am still feeling groggy but am aware that some kind of tornado has just ripped through the room thanks to a six-piece indie rock band with cello, violin, guitars, bass, piano, and drumming lead singer. The energy, passion and sheer pace of this band is something else.

So in a couple of days or so from now I am quietly confident this band will be blasting from my car speakers when upbeat & loud music is back on the menu!

Listen:
'Gloom Doom Buttercups'



Website: MySpace. Official.
Buy: (mp3's at amazon uk) Kittens Ablaze or CD's at Insound.


The band was formed in 2007 among six friends from diverse musical backgrounds, spanning classical, folk-punk, indie rock… and metal. The Kittens released their debut album, a five-track EP in the fall of 2007. With help from producer Nic Hard (The Bravery), the band self-released its full-length album, The Monstrous Vanguard, in early 2009. The album has propelled them to be an official showcasing artist at 2009 events such as SXSW, NXNE, CMJ, and L Magazine's Northside music festivals as well as selling out venues around New York and out on tour.

The band has received mention in Vice Magazine, Rolling Stone, New York Magazine, Paste Magazine, Oh My Rockness, Brooklyn Vegan, The Music Slut, Ear Farm, The New York Times (by Mick Jones of The Clash), and numerous other indie music magazines and blogs. They're known for their wild shows and tight sound and have been named Artist of the Month by both mtvU and The Deli Magazine, been on the cover of Starved Magazine, and, with their music video for “Strobelight,” they became one of a few unsigned bands to receive regular rotation on Vice’s internet TV channel, VBS.tv. The Kittens currently live in Brooklyn, New York.

Colosseum II - Germany 1977

We have decided to introduce a new occasional series under the banner 'Rarities and Collectors Items' where the audio might not be first class but the interest factor is likely quite high. There are many live recordings and demos to be found in varying degrees of quality and probable interest. These are just some that we are delighted to share.

Several years after the dissolution of Colosseum, Jon Hiseman recruited Gary Moore and Don Airey to form Colosseum II. The mandate this time, however, was not the jazz and blues inflected rock of the original band, but a full-tilt journey into hyperkinetic jazz fusion that stretched the players about as far as they could go.

This is the band live on WDR Radio Nachtmusik, Cologne, Germany from the 29th October 1977.

Source: FM Broadcast

Sound Quality: Good stereo mp3@128kbps some tape hiss between numbers.

Genre: Jazz Rock, Fusion.

Set: Edited set.

Set List:

01. Wardance
02. The Inquisition
03. Trilogy: Star Maiden - Mysterioso - Quasar
04. Lament
05. Desperado
06. Drum Solo
07. Fighting Talk

Comments:

Colosseum II were a British band formed by the former Colosseum drummer and leader, Jon Hiseman, following the 1974 demise of his band Tempest.

Hiseman announced his plan to form the band eventually named Colosseum II in November 1974, but only Gary Moore was named. Rehearsals were due to begin on January 1, 1975, but a permanent unit was not finalised until May 1975. Among musicians who almost made the group were Graham Bell, Duncan MacKay and Mark Clarke. The line-up was completed by Don Airey, Neil Murray and Mike Starrs.

The sound was oriented toward Jazz fusion, much of which was based around the guitar work of Moore, leading to a much heavier sound than the original Colosseum band. After disappointing sales of the first album, Murray and Starrs were unceremoniously sacked by the bands record label (Bronze) in July 1976.

The band continued with a new record label and a new bass player (John Mole), and recorded two further largely instrumental (and still commercially unsuccessful) albums. They also performed on Variations with Andrew Lloyd Webber, which also featured Julian Lloyd Webber on cello, Rod Argent on keyboards and Hiseman's wife, Barbara Thompson, on flute and sax. This album reached number 2 on the UK charts.

In August 1978, Moore left to rejoin Thin Lizzy for a fourth spell, and Airey's brother Keith Airey replaced him on guitar. Sadly plans for a fourth album fell through when Don Airey decided to join Rainbow in December 1978.

Download link in comments below or click on the picture..

Buy: Mp3's at Amazon.co.uk - Colosseum II