AudioCircle
Music and Media => The Music Circle => Topic started by: PA on 5 Oct 2014, 12:21 am
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This hi-res download has me completely mesmerized. Impeccable recording quality and a beautiful deliverance of the songs with a singer who really draws you into the songs and the lyrics.
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=112798)
http://www.soundliaison.com/ (http://www.soundliaison.com/)
Her style is bluesy and intimate with a sexy voice that's sweet as dark tupelo honey, and her interpretations are unerring. The musicians play to her and to each other, and the ensemble is so tight that the four musicians breathe and move as one.
There are some standards on the set that knocked me over with their fresh approach. Any singer can misplace a few accents and rhythms and come up with something that's original, but perhaps also uneasy and a little strange. Not Gomes, who has taken the songs to their bones and then restructured them to suit her style. Thus "Fever" doesn't sound like a cover of Peggy Lee; it sounds like a brand new take on a familiar song. You emerge from hearing it not thinking it's better or lesser than Lee's version, but that it's a valid new interpretation that could have come first.
Rad Bennett, SoundStage Experience.
More suggestions in the same vein, please .
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Gregory Porter has something to say;
(http://cps-static.rovicorp.com/3/JPG_400/MI0002/931/MI0002931250.jpg?partner=allrovi.com)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmDcWr1yqCc (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmDcWr1yqCc)
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And this most be THE most story telling album of all times;
Joni Mitchell, "" Blue''
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=112579)
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No one can beat Sinatra on story to tell, his FBI file reach 1300 pages:
http://www.nytimes.com/1998/12/09/us/fbi-releases-its-sinatra-file-with-tidbits-old-and-new.html
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Three from Van Morrison, his earliest and his best (Astral Weeks, Moondance and His Band And The Street Choir) from HDTracks. Excellent recordings with the warmth of vinyl but more detailed.
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Just about any prog-rock concept album should fit into this category. Some of my fave's are
Genesis - the Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
Jon Anderson - Olias of Sunhollow
The Who - Tommy, Quadrophenia
Sylvan - Posthumus Silence
Pink Floyd - The Wall
Jethro Tull - Thick as a Brick, Passion Play
Then there are the myriad of folk singers from the 60's and 70's, like
Jim Croce (a master at the story)
Bob Dylan
Arlo Guthrie - Alice's Restaurant
Simon and Garfunkle
And don't get me started about country music. Was there ever a country song written that wasn't a story?
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And don't get me started about country music. Was there ever a country song written that wasn't a story?
The title of the thread is Great Singers....yeah, they tell stories but to really feel it is different.
Like this album -
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=112645)
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Mine are a little more gritty, slice of life like, but I really like;
Rodney Crowell (Houston Kid, Fate's Right Hand, The Outsider)
Steve Earle (albums up to 2004) Anxious to hear his new Terraplane Blues album.
Townes Van Zandt.
On the harder rock side;
Lynyrd Skynyrd - nearly all solid songs, great story tellers. Check out the lyrics to That Smell.
Drive By Truckers (Southern Rock Opera & The Dirty South) Check out the lyrics to The Sands of Iwo Jima and Puttin' People on the Moon.
Kenreau
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"Lynyrd Skynyrd - nearly all solid songs, great story tellers."
+1
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Stan Rogers - Canadian folk singer who sings of the tough life of the Maritimes. Great strength combined with tenderness.
While we're on the Canadian folk/roots theme, Tanglefoot, covers stories from the lumberjacks to the American Revolution, War of 1812, and the two World Wars from a Canadian perspective. Lots of humor, too.
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Anything by Jim White (http://www.allmusic.com/artist/jim-white-mn0000636940/discography)
Amazing singer/songwriter with a wild background:
"Southern Gothic singer/songwriter Jim White grew up in Pensacola, Florida, enamored with the sounds of the white gospel music he heard on the Gospel Jubilee television series. After spending his formative years on the outskirts of a deeply Pentecostal community, he entertained a career as a professional surfer, followed by a stint in Milan as a fashion model. A bandsaw accident which resulted in a maimed left hand seemed to end White's hopes as a musician, but after writing a collection of simple songs on his guitar, a friend convinced him to record a demo, which ultimately made its way to the offices of David Byrne's Luaka Bop label."
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Jack Johnson! :thumb:
Jim Croce!
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=112758)
When it comes to telling a stories, Bobby was one of my favs.
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Neil Young
Jackson Browne
Bob Dylan
Paul Simon
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Check out Sun Kil Moon's album called Benji.
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No one can beat Sinatra on story to tell, his FBI file reach 1300 pages:
http://www.nytimes.com/1998/12/09/us/fbi-releases-its-sinatra-file-with-tidbits-old-and-new.html
I agree, he was unique.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m121tmJzcAc (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m121tmJzcAc)
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(http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41UNwT6p6CL.jpg)
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"Bye, bye Country Boy"- Blossom Dearie.
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We are forgetting the master himself;
(http://www.bobdylan.com/sites/bdylan/files/imagecache/225x225/3992270_169.jpg)
Shadows are falling and I’ve been here all day
It’s too hot to sleep, time is running away
Feel like my soul has turned into steel
I’ve still got the scars that the sun didn’t heal
There’s not even room enough to be anywhere
It’s not dark yet, but it’s getting there
Well, my sense of humanity has gone down the drain
Behind every beautiful thing there’s been some kind of pain
She wrote me a letter and she wrote it so kind
She put down in writing what was in her mind
I just don’t see why I should even care
It’s not dark yet, but it’s getting there
Well, I’ve been to London and I’ve been to gay Paree
I’ve followed the river and I got to the sea
I’ve been down on the bottom of a world full of lies
I ain’t looking for nothing in anyone’s eyes
Sometimes my burden seems more than I can bear
It’s not dark yet, but it’s getting there
I was born here and I’ll die here against my will
I know it looks like I’m moving, but I’m standing still
Every nerve in my body is so vacant and numb
I can’t even remember what it was I came here to get away from
Don’t even hear a murmur of a prayer
It’s not dark yet, but it’s getting there
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZgBhyU4IvQ (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZgBhyU4IvQ)
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We are forgetting the master himself;
(http://www.bobdylan.com/sites/bdylan/files/imagecache/225x225/3992270_169.jpg)
Dylan was list twice above
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Richard Thompson
Sandy Denny
Gordon Lightfoot
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Here's 93minutes worth of singers with a story to tell. It's called "Greenwich Village, Music That Defined a Generation" and you can stream it on NetFlix.
Did you know that the birth of the protest movement in the U.S. was instigated by the mass arrest of people in Washington Square Park for singing The Star Spangled Banner on a Sunday? The movie tells this tale and many others. I found it fascinating and informative. I was pretty young in 1961 but I was nearby and could have at least leant spectator support if only I had better awareness of the world around me. At 13 I didn't know much outside of my provincial hometown. Pompton Lakes was it. But I was in my last year of Catholic elementary school and was quite excited about our new Catholic president. The nuns made sure we were very proud of him. Being Irish just added to my ecstasy.
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(http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61ACzGPsyhL._SS280.jpg)
Kate Wolf
Her "words fell like rain on the dry desert plain--precious and too quickly gone".
These Times We’re Living In
Words and Music by Kate Wolf
Down by the river the water’s runnin’ low
as I wander underneath the trees
In the park outside of town
the leaves turned brown and yellow now
are falling on the ground
Remembering the way you felt
beside me here when love was new
That feeling’s just grown stronger
since I fell in love with you
Now we’ve only got these times we’re living in
We’ve only got these times we’re living in
Winter wood piled on the porch
walnuts scattered on the ground
wood smoke risin’ to the sky
An old man comes home from work
and hugs his wife in a sweat-stained shirt,
steps through that door to where it’s warm inside
And I’m walking as the wind
rustles in the fallen leaves
My footsteps picking out a tune
my heart sings silently
How we’ve only got these times we’re living in
We’ve only got these times we’re living in
See the roses dried and faded
the tall trees carved and painted
with long forgotten lovers’ names
The old cars standing empty
and dogs barking at me
as I walk through the quiet streets the same
If I could I’d tell you now
there are no roads that do not bend
The days like flowers bloom and fade
and they do not come again
We’ve only got these times we’re living in
We’ve only got these times we’re living in
Like A River
Words and Music by Kate Wolf
It’s high on a mountain the warm winds are blowing
And where the winds are blowing to, there ain’t no way of knowing
The mountain grass is short, it’s dry and close to burning
Crying out for water as the season’s turning
The sweet smell of the pines, the tall western cedar
Drifting on the wind through the mountains
Like a River
I’ve been too long away from this wild open sky
On the concrete trails that wind through the canyons dark and wide
With the sounds of people talking in words of blue and grey
Smells of doors and windows closed against the day
Chorus
Now the dust lies thick and heavy where my feet are falling
There’s nothing but the sound of the jaybirds calling
My mind grows dry and thirsty as the memories linger
Drifting on the wind through the mountains
Like a River
Chorus
If you like these Kate Wolf "stories" there are many more here:
http://www.katewolf.com/songbook/songbook1_lyrics.htm#Back_Roads
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The title of the thread is Great Singers....yeah, they tell stories but to really feel it is different.
Like this album -
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=112645)
Or this video;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhdYoWhBKhM (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhdYoWhBKhM)
(http://i.ytimg.com/vi/sXRYdcQ6bbM/hqdefault.jpg)
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Gregory Porter preaching ''Worksong".
(http://i.ytimg.com/vi/y4BYPE4rnJc/hqdefault.jpg)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETnnHRnpXxA (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETnnHRnpXxA)
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Roberta Flak, "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" :thumb:
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Marty Robbins and his Gunfighter Ballads and old west Cowboy songs. :thumb:
Son's of the Pioneers and Pecos' Bill it is a hoot and a good story. :lol:
Jim
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Carmen McRae;
(http://i.ytimg.com/vi/hR0AQJAXM2o/hqdefault.jpg)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hR0AQJAXM2o (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hR0AQJAXM2o)
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I've always felt Peter Gabriel told some pretty good stories.
Tim O'Brien is also a good story teller.
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Here's Greg Brown with a great story
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wcs0oEz4QSE
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One more Greg Brown
(http://i.ytimg.com/vi/ix6aTsKBQaY/maxresdefault.jpg)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ix6aTsKBQaY (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ix6aTsKBQaY)
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Pearl Jam is one of my favorites. You can feel the emotion of the stories, not only in the vocals, but also in the instruments. They have grown into a band I love.
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=120240)
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For something a bit more warped, might I recommend
Billy The Mountain
Gregory Peccary
Thing Fish
and
Joe's Garage
all by Frank Zappa.
I don't know if Frank and Ike Willis count as great singers but Flo & Eddie certainly do (in my book).
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Tom Russell
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=120246)
Jeffrey Foucault
http://youtu.be/I5zgPSEMlPo
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Someone I forgot to mention before is Roger Whittaker from Australia beautiful velvet voice tells a musical story very well.
Jim
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Marty Robbins and his Gunfighter Ballads and old west Cowboy songs. :thumb:
Jim
+1! And I normally don't like that genre. :thumb:
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Tom Waits.
“I like beautiful melodies telling me terrible things.”
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One more Greg Brown
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ix6aTsKBQaY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jb4bGvkfW0I
Here's a little song about four wet pigs,
Just a little song about four wet pigs,
Two are little, two are big,
They're all dancing at the Mud-time jig.
The two that are little, little as an ear of corn
The two that are big, well they're bigger than a barn,
Bigger than a barn, taller than a tree,
Truck'em on down to the factory.
Cut 'em into bacon, slice 'em into ham,
Chop 'em into hot dogs, squeeze 'em into spam.
Throw their little eyes out in the rain,
Throw their little eyes out in the rain,
Throw their beady little piggy eyes out into the rain.
Pickle their feet and pickle their brains.
Here's a little song about two wet pigs,
Standing at the slop trough, smoking their cigs,
Wishing to god they'd never get big
Dancing out their hearts at the Mud-time jig.
Wishing to god they'd never get big,
And dancing out their hearts.
Dance little porkers!
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My great grandmother used to sing me a song when I was just a tyke and I've never forgotten the first few measures...
"Rabbit, rabbit where's your mammy?
Way down yonder in the corn patch.
The buzzards and the flies
are picking at its eyes,
and the poor little rabbit cried
Mammy."
I've tried to find this version, but with no luck. I'm sure it came from the hills of Georgia in the mid to late 1800's. My great,great grand parents came to Texas in 1880's, girls riding in a covered wagon, boys walking behind it.
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Mark Murphy
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Jim Croce
Harry Chapin
Scotty
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Warren Zevon
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John Prine
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=120567)
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+1 for John Prine. I've got all his music and he is a great story teller
He keeps his Christmas tree up all year long
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+1 for John Prine. I've got all his music and he is a great story teller
He keeps his Christmas tree up all year long
"It was Christmas in prison and the food was real good
We had turkey and pistols carved out of wood"
Prine's lyrics really stick with you. Not only is he a great storyteller, but a master of hyperbole. :thumb:
"There's a hole in daddy's arm where all the money goes"
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Neil Young
Jackson Browne
Bob Dylan
Paul Simon
Any list would have to include those, along with "The Boss" aka Bruce Springsteen
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Three pages and noone has mentioned Mark Knopfler?! :nono:
One of the best storytellers!
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Rodriguez .... his own.
(http://sugarman.org/images/Searching%20For%20Sugar%20Man%20%28Orange%29.jpg)
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Three pages and noone has mentioned Mark Knopfler?! :nono:
One of the best storytellers!
You are absolutely right! Oops!
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Dylan was list twice above
No problem, it's Bob Dylan!
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(https://www.carmengomes.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/CG-Sings-the-Blues-1024x1024.jpg)
Another gem from Sound Liaison, this recording is Carmen Gomes' take on Harry Belafonte's Belafonte Sings the Blues.
Recorded in DXD, this recording is available in any high Rez flavor you prefer. The sound is killer. Audiostream.com
Audiophile downloads; https://www.soundliaison.com/ (https://www.soundliaison.com/)
CD's and Mp3; https://carmengomes.bandcamp.com/ (https://carmengomes.bandcamp.com/)
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James Taylor
Cat Stevens
Joan Baez
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Bruce Springsteen
Peter Gabriel solo and with Genesis
Janice Ian
Lyle Lovett
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Johnny Cash - pick an album.
Roseanne Cash - Interiors
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Check out Big Thief , the band!!
Here is the lead singer playing a beautiful John Prine song :
https://www.instagram.com/p/B-XXr4FjhOW/
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Some of my favorites in no particular order:
Greg Brown (already mentioned)
Garnet Rogers
John Gorka
Hans Theesink
James McMurtry
John Stewart
Robbie Robertson
Chris Rhea
So many more good ones to chose from.....
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Just a few I've always thought can tell a good story in verse:
Ray Davies
John Hiatt
Micheal Stipes
Hector Rosa
Ian Anderson
Thanks everyone for some great singers so far. Glad to see this subject come back to life.
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On review of the artists listed here am surprised no one has mentioned Steve Goodman as yet. One of several folk artists of the Chicago area in the late '60s early '70s, along with John Prine. If you aren't familiar with his music, and enjoy John's songs, check out Steve. For those unaware he wrote "City of New Orleans", the best know recording of which was by Arlo Guthrie, another stellar singer/song writer/storyteller.
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Peter Paul & Mary, The Kingston Trio, Van Morrison, The Weavers. Whisteblowers :lol:
charles