10/25/07
CREATIVE SERVICE COMPANY
MARSHALL STYLER/Face in the Clouds: Since leaving his rock career behind, Styler has channeled his eclectic nature into a series of impressionistic new age albums that get deeper into the contemporary classic realm with each new outing. Letting himself be inspired by life in central Texas, his sounds assay personal aftermaths of 9/11, a German town in his local area, abandoned houses, snapshots of Austin and more. A welcome addition for anyone into the touchy/feely side of new age music, it’s introspective without noodling and he makes good use of obsolete electronics that have a cool sound that can’t be duplicated. A skillful player that knows how to work a crowd from the top for a long time, this could also be a nice introduction to new age for anyone that’s been avoiding it up to now.
215 (Styler Music)
HIP-O SELECT
COMPLETE MOTOWN SINGLES V. 8 1968/various: We could be envious of the fans in England since they just got a third volume of the “Cellar Full of Motown” series, but envy is so ugly, especially since we’ve got something better. 1968 was a messy year for the country, Detroit and Motown as well, but while the country and the city were getting nothing but upheaval with nothing to show for it, Motown used the energy of chaos to deliver some of it’s most enduring and iconic music. In the course of this collection of all the label’s singles for that year, we find the defection of Holland/Dozier/Holland and the ascent of Normal Whitfield among the biggest changes under foot. Ashford and Simpson got a greater role as well. Of course, this was the year Marvin Gaye heard it through the grapevine. The system might have been fractured but certainly wasn’t broken. The emergence of the Funk Brothers came this year as well. Once again, packaged in a what should be a Grammy winning package, the great, enduring music is packaged with a fat book that tells you everything you need to know about the story behind the music, the good, the bad and the fairly ugly. Cleverly housed in what looks like a leaf style 45 rpm album, let Chalkie and his pals be envious of us as they scratch to come up with the scratch to add this latest addition to the series to their collection. It’s impressive that they came up with such a majestic way to celebrate this killer music and make this more than a mere journey through the past.
9708 (Motown) (www.hip-oselect.com)
KARI ON PRODUCTIONS
ALEX CLEMENTS/Waiting for You: With the attention paid to crafting the cool cover concept, this set starts speaking to you before you even start to play it. Clements doesn’t let you down. Well decorated in Canada, it’s time they let the secret on this jazzy piano man out of the bag. Involved with the kind of high profile projects that make you take note, like doing a new score for the reissue of “It’s a Wonderful Life”, Clements is one of these low key cats really deserving of wider attention, although his dance card is already full enough that he might not have room for it. A tasty round up of his latest works, it’s simply a smart record that disguised as lite jazz that really cooks and is fun to play.
130 (www.alexclements.com)
ORIGIN
DEEP BLUE ORGAN TRIO/Folk Music: The only limiting thing about organ trios is that you better not stray far from that swing we know and love. And that’s a bad thing? Bobby Broom and his two Chicago pals understand that basic truth of organ trios as they issue their third outing. Not a folk music collection in the 50’s sense, like Ramsey Lewis Trio’s “Music From Earth”, this works on the word play that this is music for folks even if some of the songs are ancient jazz oldies and some are “only” 30 years old. Assaying the formidable challenge of making something familiar into something unique, this trio has it going on. If this set doesn’t turn your IPod into an after hours bar, nothing will. Hot stuff.
82489
Volume 30/Number 359
October 25, 2007
MIDWEST RECORD
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Lake Zurich, IL., 60047
CHRIS SPECTOR, Editor and Publisher
©2007 Midwest Record