ARTHUR H (ABO #145)

ARTHUR H
SIMPL'HUMAIN

Arthur H is truly a one-of-a-kind artist. Son of poet/singer/troubadour Jacques Higelin he's been able to create a world of his own mixing jazz and chanson in a way no one has done before. The easier way to describe his style would be to label him "the French Tom Waits" which, in a sense, he is: his deep/broken voice, use of jazz instrumentations and peculiar lyrics certainly tend to remember good ole Tom though it has to be said he relies less on country and blues than Mr. Waits does. Whatsmore, there's also some Serge Gainsbourg and Randy Newman in the man's art which slowly evolved from an all-jazz background to more diverse and groovy territories while still remaining faithful to his roots.
All his 7 albums (released from 1990 to 2008 with "L'homme du Monde") are very consistent which made the choice of the tracklist to this compilation a quite hard one... I thus deliberately choose to pick tracks both from his more arty works and easier ones to display a good panorama of what the man's capable of. And if it sure helps to speak french to fully appreciate his art, I'm certain the music holds well enough on its own so that non-French speakers will be delighted too.

I hope you'll enjoy this selection and will want to explore Arthur H's catalogue further on, it sure deserves your attention. In the meantime, let your ears feast on Simpl'Humain and make sure to tell me what you thought of it!

La Chanson de Satie

My ARTHUR H top
1. Adieu Tristesse (2005)
2. Negresse Blanche (2003)
3. Trouble-Fête (1996)
4. Arthur H (1990)
5. Bachibouzouk (1992)
6. Pour Madame X (2000)
7. L'Homme du Monde (2008)

ATOM HEART MOTHER ... FROM WITHIN (VAC#017)

VARIOUS ARTISTS
ATOM HEART MOTHER ... FROM WITHIN

Now as an habit (bad habit ?), I'm purposing to you a cover version of a Pink Floyd album. This one could be the best of a long serie as AHM is my fav' PF album, but also because some tracks are simply amazing of interpretation... to begin with the eponymous track by the Paris Conservatory of Music which brings in this 30+ minutes version an incursion into Time (a song from Dark Side Of The Moon ... wouldn't yoy have guessed ? ;-) )
The other songs don't have to be ashamed because the versions are also nice. Even the Trance Remix version of Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast has an interest !

Extract (with the video !):

PINK FLOYD ATOM HEART MOTHER
envoyé par allainraphael

KING CRIMSON (ABO#143)

KING CRIMSON
ONE TIME
(1969-2003)

King Crimson is considered as the creator of progressive rock. Even if some other great so-called progressive albums were issued before KC's first issue in 1969, no one can object upon the fact that King Crimson has been the most creative, dignified and sacred band progressive music has ever generated. Even Pink Floyd nor Yes haven't much aura within music lovers community.
This baistophe was hard to set, first because so many best ofs have been made, second because of the 3 different eras that don't have much common points with each other. I finally decided just to keep the most pop/polished songs to establish what could be called a "beginner's guide"... but the beginner's guide had already been chosen for a KC best-of...
For those who will cry not to find their favourite song or more experimental ones, I (or another contributor) will be looking after a more technical King Crimson best of, comprising of only live material, be they official or not.

Extracts :
Cirkus

Three Of A Perfect Pair

One Time

My King Crimson TOP3:
1. Red (1974)
2. In The Court Of The Crimson King (1969)
3. Lark's Tongues In Aspic (1972)

My King Crimson BOTTOM3:
1. Beat (1982)
2. Three Of A Perfect Pair (1984)
3. In The Wake Of Poseidon (1970)

MES SOULIERS SONT ROUGES (ABO#142)

MES SOULIERS SONT ROUGES
21 GROSSES POINTURES
(1995-2003)

Behind the name of that band hides an old Quebec folk song's name which they made theirs. In their short lived discography, Mes Soulier Sont Rouges managed to unite both old France and Nouvelle France culture. Being celtic, acadian or only simple songs, Mes Souliers Sont Rouges had great success in the very early 2000 and could have become one of the hugest french folk bands ... if they had not decided to progressively drop their musical trademark to become much more Pop than before, so that they lost their recognisable sound !

Extracts :
Le Bout Du Banc

L'Arbre Est Dans Ses Feuilles

My MSSR TOP :
1. Proches (2000)
2. Tape La Galoche (1995)
3. En Dehors Des Clous (1998)
4. Gaillardises (1997)
5. Une Heure Déjà (2003)
6. 5 (2002)

LEONARD COHEN (ABO#141)

THE STORY OF
LEONARD COHEN
(1968-2004)


Leonard Cohen is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, poet and novelist. Cohen published his first book of poetry in Montreal in 1956 and his first novel in 1963.

Cohen's earliest songs were rooted in European folk music. In the 1970s his music encompassed pop, cabaret and world music. Since the 1980s his high baritone voice has evolved into lower registers (bass baritone and bass), with accompaniment from electronic synthesizers and female back up singers.

His work often deals with the exploration of religion, isolation, sexuality, and complex interpersonal relationships.

Cohen's songs and poetry have influenced many other singer-songwriters, and more than a thousand renditions of his work have been recorded. He has been inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame and is also a Companion of the Order of Canada, the nation's highest civilian honour. Cohen was inducted into the American Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with a speech by Lou Reed on 10 March 2008 for his status among the "highest and most influential echelon of songwriters" [source : wikipedia]

Extracts :
The Partisan

Hallelujah




In a way, you'll have the choice between a handful of covers including the one I chose. The reason is that we couldn't have dropped under an agreement on it, so you'll have to choose !

My Leonard Cohen TOP3 :
1. Songs Of Leonard Cohen (1968)
2. New Skin Of The Old Ceremony (1974)
3. Songs From A Room (1971)

My Leonard Cohen BOTTOM3 :
1. Death Of A Lady's Man (1977)
2. The Future (1992)
3. Dear Heather (2004)

or

GENESIS (ABO #140)

GENESIS
TWO SIDES OF THE STORY
(1970-1997)

I don't think Genesis needs an introduction, they pioneered the 70s progressive rock wave and became the quintessential expression of what progressive quality means. Unlike their peers of King Crimson or Yes, the band's line-up saw very few changes which created a feeling of unity and a slow evolution throughout their career. Even turning pop in the 80s didn't make them lose the Genesis sound altogether.
I've been waiting for the ultimate remasters final box (1970-1975, the Peter Gabriel era) to be released to finally complete this selection so that the sound would do justice to the quality of both songwriting and musicianship and, trust me, it does.
A little word of advice though: I deliberately chose to focus on songs that didn't become planetary hits. Therefore, you will not find the songs that have been overplayed on various radio stations and music tv channels throughout the years. It helped me cook a selection that does not suffer the lack of ambition some of those tracks display. However; if it's the hits you're looking for, you can find it here... (pwd = MOODSWINGS)
I hope you'll enjoy this selection though I'm sure some will think essential classics had been left aside, the hard task of compiling something coherent yet fitting the 3 cds selection lead me to hard choices and I won't deny that all the albums from the 1970-1977 are essential in their entirety but, that, you can find in stores now in terrificly remastered versions!
This is an introduction to the world of Genesis, I hope you'll like it!

Can-Utility and the Coastliners

Blood on the Rooftops

Uncertain Weather

My GENESIS Top Three
1. The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway
2. Selling England By The Pound
3. Foxtrot

My GENESIS Bottom Three
1. Invisible Touch
2. Mama
3. Calling All Stations

20 MINUTE LOOP (ABO #139)

20 MINUTE LOOP
A FREAK COLLECTION

Upon their 1998 formation, 20 Minute Loop have maintained their gender-mixed trademark of uppity hooks and new wave beats to their native of San Francisco. Resulting in their self-proclaimed sound of "freak-pop," the quintet brought on an added inspiration of X, the Pixies, Pavement, and PJ Harvey.
Belonging to the post-Pixies generation of alternative bands, 20 Minute Loop brings on the guitars and male/female vocal interplay that was at the core of that influential group's sound, while putting its own futuristic and gentle spin on the blueprint for modern alternative music. Vocalist and keyboardist Kelly Atkins and guitarist and vocalist Greg Giles share the bulk of the songwriting, and together they've created their own world of song — simultaneously bleak and melancholic but nonetheless hopeful. The sadness comes in the form of spooky and downbeat melodies, but there's a lighter take on their music too. There's an undaunted quality to the strength and determination of 20 Minute Loop's sound and a soulfulness all too rare during the icy age of early-21st century rock. (allmusic guide)

Everybody Out

Miriam Hopkins

UMMAGUMORE (VAC#016)

VARIOUS ARTISTS
UMMAGUMORE

Third part of a long serie of Pink Floyd tributes, this one had to be that way. My very first aim was to make each Floyd album covered but I already knew that it would be really uneasy for many of them such as Ummagumma (too underground), More and Obscured By Clouds (not enough acclaimed) or even The Wall (how will I find a different version of each track ?). So, I had to think about a different point of view : This Ummagumore brings together what I found and really liked, putting apart songs that were never covered (so sad for Grandchester Meadows or The Narrow Way pt3) or cover versions that weren't good enough to feature on those compilations. So this is an incomplete More and an incomplete Ummagumma you'll find in that Ummagumore, but I'm quite proud of the result. So enjoy, and don't hesitate to tell me about versions I would have missed in the past or would miss in the future. Thanks for all.

Extracts :
Human Instinct : The Nile Song (Pins In It)

Rosebud : Main Theme From More

SEU JORGE (ABO #138)

SEU JORGE

EQUILIBRIO

Seu Jorge (born June 8, 1970) is a Brazilian musician, singer/songwriter and actor. Born Jorge Mário da Silva, he was raised in a favela in the city of Belford Roxo in the Baixada Fluminense region of Rio de Janeiro state. He is considered by his fans a renewer of Brazilian pop samba. Seu Jorge cites samba school Estação Primeira de Mangueira, composers Nelson Cavaquinho, Zeca Pagodinho, and American soul singer Stevie Wonder as major musical influences, he is also a fan of footballer Romário .As a singer, Seu Jorge was part of the band Farofa Carioca, writing most of the songs of their 1998 debut album Moro no Brasil. In 2001 he released Samba Esporte Fino, a pop album influenced by musicians Jorge Ben Jor, Gilberto Gil, and Milton Nascimento. It was released outside Brazil under the name Carolina in 2003. His second album, the critically acclaimed Cru ("Raw"), was released in 2005. Seu Jorge also recorded the live duo album "Ana & Jorge" with Brazilian singer Ana Carolina, released in Brazil in 2005.Seu Jorge has gained exposure through his work as an actor and soundtrack composer. He appeared in the critically acclaimed film City of God as Mané Galinha, and then played Pelé Dos Santos in Wes Anderson's The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, for which he provided much of the soundtrack in the form of Portuguese language cover versions of David Bowie classics.In June 2006, he performed at Bonnaroo music festival in Tennessee and at the Festival Sudoeste TMN in Portugal. He has also performed in 2006 at the Bluesfest in Ottawa and performed at the Harbourfront in Toronto. Jorge's performances are known for their excitement and getting the crowd moving.Jorge has three young daughters, Flor de Maria, Maria Aimee, and Luz Bella. Flor and Luz live in São Paulo, Brazil with Jorge and his wife Mariana. Maria Aimee lives in California, USA with ex-wife Fernanda and her new husband. He also made incursions into political movements, especially when he took part of the Cansei movement, a 2007 manifestation critical of the Brazilian government. (wikipedia)

Rebel Rebel

Tive Razao

THE MOVE (ABO#137)

THE MOVE
CAN YOU HEAR THE GRASS GROW ?

Just to prove that I don't really drop my beloved project for good, just that I just slow dow a bit, I post one of my very last Baistophes I've made for you. That band I deeply like really had to feature on that blog for many reasons. The very first being that as popular as The Move had been, that starship has completely vanished behind Electric Light Orchestra's one.
The ones who don't know The Move but do for ELO must say "why the hell does he talk about ELO in that Move post ?" The reason is very simple : The Move are ELO. Bev Bevan, Jeff Lynne and Roy Wood are the common people in each line-up. The Music ? Much more like Electric Light Orchestra than any else bands, but in a heavier way. Just think that The Move were the Rock side, thanks to Roy Wood presence, while ELO is the Pop side as, after Wood's departure, Lynne was the thinking power of the band.
ELO is to be made on baistophe, maybe soon. Who knows ?

Extracts
I Can Hear The Grass Grow

Feel Too Good

My Move TOP :
1. Shazam (1970)
2. Looking In (1971)
3. Message To The Country (1971)
4. The Move (1968)

Any link to unreleased songs or a live form the 1970-1971 era would be appreciated
Thanks