INXS - X (1990)

It's no Kick, but how could it be, no matter how hard it tries? The results are uneven, but the good stuff is very good while the other tracks are easily forgettable. I'd rank this one behind Kick and Listen Like Thieves, about on par with The Swing.

Press of the time:

• CashBox: "full of singles that should fit into almost every format"
• Billboard: "there's nary a false step here."
• Musician: "instrumental finesse, sly shifts in dynamics and deep, deep grooves"
• Smash Hits (7 out of 10): "Not too remarkable in the innovation department, but 'X' is still pretty good."
• Rolling Stone (★★★½): "big-audience rock & roll that feels right for our time"
• Stereo Review: "the band's most flinty, knife-edged album of rock noir to date.

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #5
• CashBox: #3

Tracks: The album starts off with a one-two punch of the two best songs, Suicide Blonde (#9 pop, #1 album rock, #1 modern rock, #25 dance) and Disappear (#8 pop, #6 album rock, #10 modern rock, #41 dance). Also good are Bitter Tears (#49 pop, #4 album rock, #6 modern rock), On My Way, and The Stairs, which might be the best song Simple Minds never recorded. The so-so filler is Who Pays The Price, Lately, and Know The Difference. And I flat-out skip the depressing By My Side.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: When this album was released, I was 24 years old, had been married for a little over a year, recently moved back to my hometown, and had started my second "adult" job: teaching instrumental music classes at the same middle school I once attended. Part of that particular job included helping with marching band at the high school from about 7:15 to 8:45 each morning before driving my new Nissan truck (5 speed manual!) across town to start teaching classes to around 200 students aged 11 - 14. That morning drive between campuses usually included a stop at Shipley's Donuts or Jack In The Box to pick up a quick breakfast (didn't JITB have some sort of "breakfast pocket" served in pita bread back then?). In any case, I have specific memories of hearing Suicide Blonde on the radio during that drive down 6th Street and being absolutely mesmerized by the harmonica lick. The decision that kept me from buying X on cassette that fall was probably based more on finances than music.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Kick (1987)
Listen Like Thieves (1985)

David Bowie - Fame 90 (1990)

CD single

A 5 track maxi-single with five different mixes of Fame 90, itself an updated remix of Bowie's #1 hit from 1975. I prefer the earlier version to this 1990 remix, but couldn't pass up the chance to hear all these mixes, especially a 14+ minute track with the title 'Absolutely Nothing Premeditated/Epic Mix.' I was initially hopeful that at least one of the remixes would catch my ear - this is Bowie, after all - but ultimately I'm kinda disappointed in this one. Even the 'Epic Mix' is simply a long conglomeration of unfinished, unrelated ideas.

I bought a used copy so I'm unsure if it was originally sold separately or was packaged with the Rykodisc reissue of Young Americans:

Billboard, May 11, 1991, p. 41

Single chart peaks:

• US Billboard Hot 100: Did not chart
• Billboard Dance: #6
• Billboard Rap: #12

Tracks:

1. Fame 90 (with Queen Latifah) • 4:08
   This version charted on Billboard's Dance and Rap charts.
2. Fame 90 (House Mix) • 5:58
3. Fame 90 (Gass Mix) • 3:39
   This version included on Changesbowie and the Pretty Woman soundtrack album. To be honest, I would have preferred the original 1975 version on the Changesbowie compilation and I don't think I'm in the minority in that opinion.
4. Fame 90 (Hip Hop Mix) • 5:59
5. Fame 90 (Absolutely Nothing Premeditated/Epic Mix) • 14:25

All the remixes are worth hearing at least once because they're all very different. I prefer the first two tracks to the remainder of the disc, but they're not tracks I will seek out.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None, I don't recall hearing this newer version in the '90s other than when I listened to my Changesbowie CD. I don't even recall a video although I may have moved on from videos by 1990. A quick search over at YouTube finds a copy of an underwhelming video for the remix, directed by Gus Van Sant and co-starring Canadian dancer/choreographer Louise Lecavalier.

Previously revisited for the blog:

★ (2016)	Changesbowie (1990)
The Next Day (2013)	Sound + Vision: CD Press Release (1989)
Zeit! 77-79 (2013)	Tonight (1984)
Reality (2003)	Let's Dance (1983)
Black Tie White Noise (1993)

Dave Holland Quartet - Extensions (1990)

I picked up this used disc at the local Half Price Books simply because it was on the ECM label. I also recognized several names on the cover including Holland, Kevin Eubanks, and Marvin "Smitty" Smith, the latter two were playing in The Tonight Show band at the time of this release. This music, however, bears little resemblance to anything that was played during the commercials of Jay Leno's show. The critics liked it (see below), but it's a little too avant-garde for my tastes. I like my ECM releases a bit more...what's the word I'm looking for...atmospheric? relaxed? conjunct? ambient? moody? I'm not saying it's bad - Eubanks, in particular, brings his A game throughout the album - it's just not my bag, man.

Holland - bass
Steve Coleman - Alto Saxophone
Kevin Eubanks - guitar
Marvin "Smitty" Smith - drums

Reviews/ratings:

• DownBeat (★★★★★) : "stretched to the breaking point with engaging sounds"
• Musician: "These guys git it."
• Billboard: "a first-rate all-star session."
• New York Times: "an often brilliant album"
• The Penguin Guide to Jazz (5th ed., 2000): ★★½
• The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide (1999): ★★★★
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★★★

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: Did not chart
• Billboard Jazz: #6

Tracks: My top pick is track 2, Processional, written by Holland.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Selected Recordings :rarum X (2004)

A Donny Hathaway Collection (1990)

As one with any knowledge of Donny Hathaway (1945 - 1979) would expect, this is one of those "all killer no filler" compilations. The disc would be worth seeking out if all that were on it were the duets with Roberta Flack, but we're also treated to other Hathaway classics such as The Ghetto and Giving Up plus some non-singles that took on lives of their own as deep album cuts, including Someday We'll All Be Free and To Be Young, Gifted And Black.

CashBox, June 2, 1990, p. 10

So it's not just me that gets frustrated by poor/lazy packaging decisions. My other complaint about this disc deals with the song sequencing - if you're not going to do chronological order, why start the compilation with three consecutive slow/midtempo songs? I will readily admit, however, that putting the Christmas tune at the end was smart: you can quit the disc early if you're not ready for holiday tunes.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Did not chart upon original release in 1990 but continues to chart on occasion around Christmas, peaking at #108 in 2023.

Tracks, including Billboard chart peaks:

Title	Year	R&B	Pop
A Song For You	1971
I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know	1972	20	60
You Were Meant For Me	1978	17
Back Together Again (with Roberta Flack)	1980	8	56
Where Is The Love (with Roberta Flack)	1972	1	5
For All We Know (with Roberta Flack)	1972
Someday We'll All Be Free	1973
Giving Up	1972	21	81
The Closer I Get To You (with Roberta Flack)	1978	1	2
You Are My Heaven (with Roberta Flack)	1980	8	47
What's Goin' On	1972
The Ghetto	1970	23	87
To Be Young, Gifted And Black	1970
You've Got A Friend (with Roberta Flack)	1971	8	29
This Christmas	1970		34

Have mercy! How good is Where Is The Love??? One of the best soft rock tunes of the '70s plus it won a Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. And I'll admit to welling up today at hearing Someday We'll All Be Free.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: Just regret that I didn't pick this up in 1990.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Extension of a Man (1973)

Art Of Noise - The Ambient Collection (1990)

From Allmusic:

Art of Noise began in the mid-'80s and is now a touchstone to which all electronic music should be compared...These Art of Noise catalog remixes by Youth, bassist for Killing Joke, remain a classic of compositional ambient electronica.

And from the back album cover:

This album quickly became one of my favorite AoN releases. Back in the '90s, I purchased two other Art of Noise remix CDs: The FON Mixes (1991) and The Drum And Bass Collection (1996) and, to be honest, they didn't do much for me so those discs were quickly sold.* As the title implies, this album contains wonderfully relaxed versions of previously released AoN cuts. Not to replace any of the earlier releases, this is solid addition to their œuvre. As with most overly-repetitive ambient releases, this collection is especially suited to nighttime/naptime listening.

Press of the time:

• Entertainment Weekly: A-
• Select (★★): "nice, charming and a wee bit silly"
• Trouser Press: "an album of new age wallpaper"

Peak on the US Billboard 200 chart: Did not chart

Tracks: The first 12 tracks segue into each other; it's really just one long track so I don't separate them in my mind. However, if I had to choose my favorite "sections," I'd pick Crusoe, Island, and Robinson Crusoe. The final track, Art Of Love (7" Edition), isn't ambient at all but rather a remix of Moments In Love with a backbeat. I like it, but don't understand it's inclusion. It peaked at #67 on the British charts. 

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None

Previously revisited for the blog:
The Seduction of Claude Debussy (1999)
The Best of The Art of Noise (1988)
In No Sense? Nonsense! (1987)
In Visible Silence (1986)
(Who's Afraid Of?) The Art Of Noise! (1984)

*for the record (no pun intended), I quit selling my CDs around the turn of the century so, since that time, even if I don't care for the disc, I've kept it.

Soho - Hippychick (1990)

CD single

Years ago, after hearing Kiss Them For Me by Siouxsie & the Banshees on the satellite radio, I wished for a mashup of that song and the classic tune by The Smiths, How Soon Is Now? That mashup doesn't exist - that I can easily find, anyway - so this single is about as close as you can get. In fact, if someone wants to mashup all three tunes, I'm here for it.

As for this single, what a catchy, danceable protest tune! It samples straight up steals* Johnny Marr's epic tremolo guitar riff from How Soon Is Now? and rides that groove for 4 or 5 minutes. Must have driven Smiths fans crazy in '90 when the sampled drums kicked in and they realized it wasn't How Soon Is Now. I suspect the groove's backing tracks were lifted from Soul II Soul, but in the late '80s/early '90s, the copyright laws hadn't yet caught up the the emerging technology.

Singles chart peaks:

• US Billboard Hot 100: #14
• Billboard Dance: #2
• Billboard Modern Rock: #11

Tracks: this "CD5 Maxi Single" contains 5 mixes of Hippychick, but oddly doesn't include the 3:14 single mix that I remember hearing on KRBE.

1. Extended Vocal (4:31)
2. No Acid Ted Mix (5:07)
3. Never Trust A Hippy Mix (4:44)
4. Happiness Is A Warm Hippy Mix (4:26)
5. Dub Plate Instrumental (5:14)

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None.

*Marr doesn't even get a writing credit but Wikipedia claims that Soho had permission to use the sample. This guy tells a different story. Neither cites sources so take 'em for what they're worth.

Various Artists - Yule Struttin': A Blue Note Christmas (1990)

Every year I tell myself that I'm not buying any new Christmas CDs and that thought usually lasts until I see or hear a recommendation. I've broken that self-imposed rule several times already this year, including this recent purchase.

DownBeat, January 1991, p. 36

Most tunes were recorded around the 1990 release date, but the set also includes earlier tracks from Chet Baker, Count Basie, and Dexter Gordon. It's an uneven affair, sadly. I was hoping for more from Blue Note, but I'm going to put this in the "good, not great" group.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Did not chart

Tracks:

The better cuts are 3, 5, 8, 9 & 12. The "recently rediscovered" Monk tune is good and of the two versions here, the better is Benny Green on solo piano. My least favorite tracks bookend the set, Vauncing Chimes and Little Drummer Boy.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: I tried spinning this one as we decorated the tree this year, but the vibe wasn't quite right so I switched to other stuff fairly quickly.

Various Artists - Just Say Da (1990)

I don't listen to them very often, but I just can't pass up sampler discs such as this when I see 'em in the used/clearance bins. This is the 4th CD in the Just Say Yes sampler series from the Sire label and the first of the series to carry a PMRC parental advisory warning. Consider myself warned.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Did not chart

Tracks:

1. Depeche Mode - Personal Jesus (Kazan Cathedral Mix)
   A driving remix of the best cut off Violator. ✔
2. Merlin - Drop The Pressure
   In an admittedly brief online search, I couldn't find much about this British rapper. There's nothing remarkable about this track and the mix is bad but it's easy to dance to.
3. Erasure - Star (The Trafalmadore Mix)
   I like the original single mix, but I'm really digging this all-out dance mix with a groove totally removed from the version I'm more familiar with. ✔
4. Ofra Haza - Wish Me Luck (Karamazov Mix)
   We've got a great early '90s techno dance beat going - all that's missing is a hook.
5. Chris Thomas - Help Us, Somebody
   A welcome change of pace, here we're treated to some bluesy rock described by Thomas in the liner notes as music for "modern hippies." The artist now goes by the name Chris Thomas King. ✔
6. Ian McCulloch - Candleland (Second Coming Version)
   Not the version on McCulloch's first solo release, this is an "all-new rendition" featuring duet vocals from Elizabeth Frazer of Cocteau Twins. If I'm in the right mood, this cut is an elegant, dreamy mid-tempo pleasure. If I'm not, it's terribly bland. Fortunately, I'm in the right mood for today's spin. ✔
7. Ministry - Breathe (Live From The Gulag)
   Industrial metal is not my thing.
8. Ice-T - The Girl Tried To Kill Me
   Rock rap tune about an encounter with a dominatrix and her husband that which could be the plot of an episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Amusing and while it's not the best cut from the album, The Iceberg/Freedom of Speech... Just Watch What You Say!, it is one of the lighter topics broached there.
9. John Wesley Harding - When The Beatles Hit America
   A talking folk tune about an imagined Beatles reunion in the '90s that goes on about 2 minutes longer than it should.
10. Danielle Dax - The Id Parade
    I was previously familiar with Dax from her contribution to Just Say Roe, which I didn't care for. This cut doesn't bother me as much; it's a blues-based rock tune which sounds like something Billy Idol might have recorded.
11. Morrissey - November Spawned A Monster
    Either this song received some alternative radio airplay or it sounds like every other Morrissey song. Or both.
12. Bradford - Gang Of One
    A fairly generic indie rock tune which has decent Peter Buck-ish guitar riff but that's about all it's got going for it.
13. Debbie Harry - Maybe For Sure (Tunguska Event 7" Mix)
    Very much like a Blondie rock dance tune - written by Harry and Chris Stein, produced by Mike Chapman. ✔
14. My Bloody Valentine - Soon
    Every time I hear a MBV tune, I like it and it always leaves me wondering why I don't have more of their stuff. There's just something about the band that separates them from similar Manchester groups like Happy Mondays, Stone Roses, etc. ✔
15. Wild Swans -Melting Blue Delicious (St. Petersburg Mix)
    A great beat with too much going on top. I'm confused.
16. Primal Scream - Loaded
    The liner notes states the group's "ever-changing sound has them arriving at a place where sonic flowers groove in the wind and the sky is purple and raw." I don't understand that at all, but this cut is trippy enough in a Space-Monkeys-meet-Rolling-Stones kind of way that I find myself enjoying the thing. ✔

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None

Previously revisited for the blog:
Just Say Roe (1994)
Just Say Yo (1988)

Everything But The Girl - The Language Of Life (1990)

A few months back, I vowed to check out the early discography of EBTG when, serendipitously, this CD appeared in a used bin. The Rolling Stone ★★★½ review called the album "an exquisitely crafted work of intelligent jazz-inflected pop" and you just know that's right up my alley. Then I see the pièce de résistance: "Produced by Tommy LiPuma." I'm all in, baby! Other guest artists on the album include John Patitucci, Jerry Hey, Kirk Whalum, Russell Ferrante, Omar Hakim, Stan Getz, Joe Sample, and Michael Brecker - that's a helluva line-up.

In her first memoir, singer Tracey Thorn writes that LiPuma produced "a fully realised, immaculately performed and produced modern American soul-pop record." A bit of hyperbole, for sure, but there's some good stuff here, although a bit generic at times. It's a CD I wish I'd found in 1990. And, to be honest, since I enjoyed Amplified Heart so much in the mid-'90s, there's really no excuse for why I didn't go diving into the duo's back catalog at that time.

Press of the time:

• CashBox: "works on many levels, depending on how much the listener is willing to invest."
• Billboard: "Sultry shades of sound from coed duo fall squarely in the AC/contemporary jazz vein"
• Stereo Review: "the duo has wound up with a purely superficial coat of polish and little substance"
• Entertainment Weekly: "Too bad that, toward the end, the songs start sounding routine. The first few make you hope for just a little more than you get."

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #77
• Billboard Pop CD chart: #26

Tracks: Nothing here to skip - it's a very easy listen of sophisti-pop/soft rock from top-to-bottom, clocking in at 41 minutes. The album's lead single and a lead track, Driving, features sax work from Brecker and hooks galore, but only managed to reach #23 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart and #54 on the UK charts. The follow-up, a cover of Womack & Womack's Take Me, reached #30 on the AC chart. I was familiar with Me And Bobby D - with lyrics about Bob Dylan - from its inclusion on the Acoustic album and it's one of the better songs here and Whalum's solo takes it up a notch.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None

Exclusive CD longbox photo courtesy of
Dirk Digglinator of the Hambonian Archives.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Missing (1995)
Amplified Heart (1994)
Acoustic (1992)

The Meeting (1990)

I saw this CD recently priced at 99 cents, so I took a chance on it. With this line-up, can you blame me?

For more on the group's background, you can check out this article from the October 27, 1990 issue of Billboard.

Sadly, the whole doesn't equal the sum of the parts with this supergroup. A mish-mash of styles, writing, and arrangements. Don't get me wrong, the performances are top-shelf; there's just not much here that makes me want to give this thing many spins.

The group, less Alphonso Johnson, released a second album in 1995, titled Update.

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: Did not chart
• Billboard Contemporary Jazz: #17

Tracks: Eleven originals, written by group members, and one standard. Not surprisingly, the better tracks are those written by Patrice Rushen (Groove Now And Then, Walk Your Talk, The Meeting, and Cherry Blossom). There's also a bland take on Duke Ellington's African Flower. The rest is fairly innocuous and very much of its time, but by all means skip the rap in Steppin' Out.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None

Depeche Mode - Violator (1990)

Note: this release was originally purchased as a cassette tape, later replaced by a CD.

A few years back, I wrote these words about a Depeche Mode compilation: "I should have just purchased a CD copy of 1990's Violator and been done with it." Well, I recently came across a used copy and here we are.

I think it's the group's best album without Vince Clarke, but let's see what the rabid fans astute reviewers over at Amazon have to say about it:

• "It is dark and bleak and examines personal demons and feelings of loneliness, despair and neediness. Heavy stuff that is usally [sic] only found in the everyday rotation of the clinically insane and depressed unless you are really in the mood." (ed. note: yikes!)
• "their last GOOD album"
• "Depeche Mode remains the pinnacle of gothic techno-beat producing mongols [sic] that they are surrounded by."
• "The music is very dated"
• "it's still very current sounding!"

In the latest list of Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time list, Violator ranked at #167. It was also included in 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (2005): "Violator represents a group at the top of their game and still sounds effortlessly excellent today."

I listened to this album quite a bit when it was released but I haven't listened to the whole thing in over 30 years, so let's see what I remember.

Press of the time:

• Entertainment Weekly (B-): "drifts on a sea of unease. There’s a worm eating at Depeche Mode’s gut."
• Robert Christgau: C-
• Billboard: "much more accessible"
• Rolling Stone (★★½): "single-mindedly suffocating in Doorsy depression"
• Eight other contemporary reviews from Melody Maker, NME, Record Mirror, etc.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: #7

Tracks: I will admit this album flows better as a continuous CD rather than split in half on a cassette. A fun trip down memory lane to a time when I was newly married but didn't yet have children. Of course, I remember the singles:

	Hot 100	Modern Rock	Dance
Personal Jesus	28	3	12
Enjoy The Silence	8	1	6
Policy Of Truth	15	1	2
Halo		21
World In My Eyes	52	17	6

Definitely some legitimate chart success there. My top pick back in '90 was Policy Of Truth, but today it's Personal Jesus. The other singles aren't far behind. I've only vague memories of the remaining four tracks. Sweetest Perfection isn't on the top shelf like the other tracks but that's not a bad batting average for an album.

On a related note, Johnny Cash recorded a beautiful, stripped-down version of Personal Jesus in 2002 that rivals the DM original.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: In 1990, I started a middle school band director teaching job and one of the first things I did in my new position was authorize the purchase of a quality Denon rack stereo system for the band hall. I think I also refurbished some 4 ft high Klipsch speakers that were already there. It was probably a lot more equipment than was required - it had a pre-amp ferchrissakes - but it sounded fantastic. In an attempt to be the cool, young teacher on campus (I was 24), I played my Violator tape quite frequently before and after school as students would wander in and out of the band hall: "Hey, guys! I listen to the same music you do!" A pathetic attempt to be sure, but I think most young teachers probably go through similar experiences.

I left that middle school in 2000, it closed in 2011, and the building was finally demolished in 2020. In 2021, a new elementary school opened on the site. I wonder what happened to all that high-end audio equipment. Best case scenario: it was all moved to another campus. Worst case scenario: it's in a landfill. Most likely scenario: somebody "borrowed" it and now has a helluva vintage home system.

Previously revisited for the blog:
The Singles 86>98 (1998)
Speak & Spell (1981)

McCoy Tyner - Things Ain't What They Used To Be (1990)

A relaxing album of (mostly) standards on (mostly) solo piano. John Scofield plays guitar on tracks 3, 4, and 6 while George Adams adds tenor sax to the final two tracks. Released on the Blue Note label; recorded at Merkin Hall, NYC, November 2, 1989 (solos), and November 27, 1989 (duets). A perfect album with a cup of coffee on a cool, spring Sunday morning. It's almost like having Tyner playing piano in your living room.

Press of the time:

• Stereo Review: "Tyner's finest album in years, perhaps his best ever."
• Billboard: "Tyner's 88-key artistry has never been more poignant or swinging"
• The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide (1999): ★★★½
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★★

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: Did not chart
• Billboard Jazz: #9

Tracks:

1. The Greeting - 2:26
2. Naima (John Coltrane) - 3:42
3. I Mean You (Coleman Hawkins & Thelonious Monk) - 4:57
4. Here's That Rainy Day (Johnny Burke & Jimmy Van Heusen) - 6:02
5. Things Ain't What They Used to Be (Mercer Ellington & Ted Persons) - 3:52
6. Joy Spring (Clifford Brown) - 4:21
7. Lush Life (Billy Strayhorn) - 5:34
8. Song for My Lady - 6:28
9. Sweet and Lovely (Gus Arnheim, Jules LeMare & Harry Tobias) - 3:56
10. What's New? (Johnny Burke & Bob Haggart) - 3:53
11. Search For Peace - 6:09
12. Blues On The Corner - 6:25
13. My One And Only Love (Robert Mellin & Guy Wood) - 8:00

I prefer the solo piano stuff, but of the duets, give me Joy Spring and My One And Only Love.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None. A relatively recent pickup from the used bins at Hogwild Records.

Squeeze - A Round And A Bout (1990)

Note: this release was originally purchased as a CD which was either sold, stolen, traded or lost, then replaced by another CD.

About what you'd expect from a live album - crowd noise, between song banter, mostly faithful reproductions of the studio versions, few surprises. The mix is a bit off - heavy on snare, light on bass - if such things bother you. Soundboard recording, maybe? Essential only for fans and completists such as myself.

Billboard, May 12, 1990, p. 92

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: #163

also available on VHS

Tracks:

1. Footprints - originally on Babylon and On (1988)
2. Pulling Mussels From A Shell - Argybargy (1980)
3. Black Coffee In Bed - Sweets From A Stranger (1982)
4. She Doesn't Have To Shave - Frank (1989)
5. Is That Love - East Side Story (1981)
6. Doctor Jazz - Frank
7. Up The Junction - Cool For Cats (1979)
8. Slaughtered, Gutted And Heartbroken - Frank
9. Take Me, I'm Yours - U.K. Squeeze (1978)
10. If It's Love - Frank
11. Hour Glass - Babylon And On
12. Labelled With Love - East Side Story
13. Annie Get Your Gun - Singles: 45's And Under (1982)
14. Tempted - East Side Story
15. By Your Side - Cosi Fan Tutti Frutti (1985)

It's a nice blend of old hits and newer stuff - they were on tour at the time promoting Frank. I like the little changes they make to Footprints and Tempted plus the fan participation during Black Coffee In Bed & If It's Love (Tilbrook was still doing that bit when I saw him in 2013 and it continued to be a crowd-pleaser.) Jools Holland certainly brought his A-game to these shows - he completely steals the middle section of the disc. Neither Up The Junction nor Hour Glass translate well live, but they're hits so ya gotta play 'em, right? Nonetheless, the band sounds like they're having fun on stage and that's contagious.

The biggest surprise of the night comes after they've played their signature tune, Tempted, when Tilbrook announces, "We're gonna do something we worked out at sound check this afternoon. We have played it before but we haven't played it for a long while and it's a bit of a different version. Might work, might not, but there it is." then they launch into a reggae-ish version of By Your Side. The original on the Cosi Fan Tutti Frutti album is an over-produced, synth-heavy cut, so this rendition shouldn't work for several reasons, but it does.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: The first Squeeze CD I ever purchased - prior to that time, I only bought vinyl or tape. It seems unreal that there were 5-6 years when I bought CDs but had no in-dash CD player in my car/truck, but this album would definitely have been purchased during that span of time. Must have listened to this one at the house or I had to use one of these to hear it my car:

Previously revisited for the blog:

The Knowledge (2017)	Babylon and On (1987)
Cradle To The Grave (2015)	Cosi Fan Tutti Frutti (1985)
The Complete BBC Sessions (2008)	Difford & Tilbrook (1984)
Domino (1998)	Singles: 45's and Under (1982)
Ridiculous (1995)	Sweets From A Stranger (1982) and 2008 reissue
Some Fantastic Place (1993)	East Side Story (1981)
Play (1991)	Argybargy (1980) - 1987 reissue and 2008 Deluxe Edition
Frank (1989)	Cool For Cats (1979)
	U.K. Squeeze (1978)

The Clarke/Duke Project - Volumes I, II & III (1981, 1983, 1990)

EU Import

A 3-fer set from BGO Records. Clarke is a bass player who was a founding member of the jazz fusion group Return To Forever. Duke was a keyboard player whose background was with Frank Zappa and Jean-Luc Ponty and would go on to work with the likes of A Taste of Honey, Jeffrey Osborne, Deniece Williams, Anita Baker, The Pointer Sisters, Smokey Robinson, et. al. Solo artists in their own right, these three efforts saw the duo striving for a more mainstream, commercial, R&B sound.

---

Volume 1 (1981)
9 tracks, 37 minutes

A mixed bag, but not too bad overall. Starts off with a funky little instrumental, followed by one of the more puzzling covers of Louie Louie I've ever heard, followed by one the "shoulda charted higher" singles of '81. That single is Sweet Baby (#19 pop, #6 R&B), four minutes of smooth goodness written and sung by Duke and featuring one of the few Top 40 appearances of an electric sitar solo (courtesy of Clarke). Of the remaining tracks, I don't care much for Let's Get Started, despite a nice chorus. I was previously familiar with track 8, the ballad Touch And Go, from it's inclusion on the Clarke-produced album, Hollywood, by Maynard Ferguson. I dig the album closer, Find My Way, an uplifting tune both lyrically and musically.

This album was nominated for Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals, eventually losing to The Dude.

Press of the time:

• Stereo Review: Best of the month

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard Top 200: #33
• Billboard Jazz: #1
• Billboard R&B: #7
• CashBox: #31
• CashBox Jazz: #1

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Volume 2 (1983)
9 tracks, 38 minutes

The duo adds some New Wave sounds/drum machine/production - reminds me quite a bit of Richard Perry's production on Pointer Sisters releases of the time. The opener, Put It On The Line, is high energy and wouldn't have been out of place on the '84 Olympic compilation album. The singles released from this album were The Good Times and Heroes (#37 R&B) and, like most of the album, are pleasant, just not very memorable. For me, the highlight of the album is I've Got Every Reason To Smile. Not only is it an upbeat tune with great bass work from Clarke, we treated to vocals from Jefferey Osborne, Howard Hewlett of Shalamar, and Lynn Davis. It's so good that even the kid 'vocals' don't bother me much. Again, the album closer is a winner - this one a pulsating instrumental from Clarke.

About this album, Duke once wrote,

Although there were some special moments on this LP, overall it didn't make a statement and as a result was a failure as far as I'm concerned. The year was 1983. I was exerting so much energy producing Deniece Williams, Jeffrey Osborne and others, that in terms of focus, I let this one slip away.

Press of the time:

• Billboard: "fresh fusions with dazzling virtuosity"

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard Top 200: #146
• Billboard Jazz: #19
• Billboard R&B: #44
• CashBox: #133
• CashBox Jazz: #3

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3 (1990)
12 tracks, 46 minutes

Music of its time, the first half of this album is heavily-produced dance late '80s R&B/hip-hop/rap. Things calm down and get slightly more jazzy in the second half, but the sweet spot here is tracks 5-8: a cover of Parliament's Mothership Connection, Right By My Side with vocals from Gerald Alston (The Manhattans), a tasty but brief Clarke instrumental titled From The Deepest Corner Of My Heart, and a smooth Duke feature, Lady.

Press of the time:

• CashBox: "boasts some dope R&B thangz"

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard Top 200: Did not chart
• Billboard Contemporary Jazz: #7
• Billboard R&B: #52

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None, although I really don't have a good excuse as to why I didn't buy the Sweet Baby single back in '81.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Hideaway (1986)
A Brazilian Love Affair (1980)

Various Artists - Jazzin' (1990)

10 track budget compilation from Warner Special Products as part of JCI's "Hits" series. I was surprised to see this CD get a look over at allmusic, where it rated ★★½ and called "a mixed bag." Agreed.

A Jazzin' II CD was also released.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Did not chart.

Tracks: 8 of the 10 tracks have previously appeared on The CD Project.

1. Tutu by Miles Davis. Previously on this blog from the 1986 album Tutu.
2. Rio De Janeiro Blue by Randy Crawford. Previously on this blog from the 1996 compilation The Best of Randy Crawford.
3. Sweet Love by Najee. Previously on this blog from the 1986 album Najee's Theme.
4. Eggplant by Michael Franks. Previously on this blog from the 1998 compilation The Best Of Michael Franks: A Backward Glance.
5. Don't Make Me Wait For Love by Kenny G (vocals by Lenny Williams). From the 1986 album Duotones.
6. Eleanor Rigby by Stanley Jordan. Previously on this blog from the 1985 album Magic Touch, the 1991 compilation Blue Beat: Blue Note Plays The Music Of Lennon And McCartney, and the 2004 compilation Blue Note Plays The Beatles.
7. Blackbird by Bobby McFerrin. Previously on this blog from the 1984 album The Voice.
8. Man In The Moon by The Yellowjackets. Previously on this blog from the 1983 album Mirage à Trois.
9. What Love Can Do by Earl Klugh. From the 1989 album Whispers And Promises.
10. Makin' Whoopee by Dr. John and Rickie Lee Jones. Previously on this blog from the 1993 compilation Sleepless In Seattle: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack.

So if I already owned 80% of the tracks, why would I buy this disc? Well, I recently purchased an 8 CD lot on eBay for $10 and this disc was in that set. Nice to get a Earl Klugh track I didn't already have, though. I must say I enjoyed the Randy Crawford and Michael Franks tracks more this time than when I originally wrote about them.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None

Various Artists - Windham Hill - The First Ten Years (1990)

Today marks the tenth anniversary of The CD Project and I'll admit that I bought this 2 disc set based mainly on its title and solely for the purpose of featuring it today. But it's fitting so I make no apologies. Here's the gist of this new age compilation directly from the liner notes:

Note: label founder William Ackerman doesn't care for the term 'new age' when describing Windham Hill:

We actually pre-date the term considerably, and I don't see why we should be particularly enthused about settling for it.

However, I believe history will remember the label (1976 - 2007) as synonymous with the genre.

I thought I was quite familiar with the Windham Hill label since I've been listening to some of its releases since the early '80s. Plus, CDs from William Ackerman, George Winston, and Liz Story have all appeared on this blog. However, after giving these discs a listen, I quickly discovered there were quite a few Windham Hill artists I had never heard nor heard of. Overall, a very relaxing album, as you might expect, but with more variety than most new age albums - a nice primer.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Did Not Chart
Peak on the US Billboard New Age album chart: #10

Tracks:

Disc One:

Song	Artist	Year
Bricklayer's Beautiful Daughter	William Ackerman	1977
White Rain	Alex de Grassi	1979
Colors/Dance	George Winston	1980	✔
Angel's Flight	Shadowfax	1982
Bradley's Dream	Liz Story	1983	✔
Afternoon Postlude Soliloquy	Daniel Hecht	1980
2nd Gymnopedie	Bill Quist	1979	✘
Homfeld Suite	David Qualey	1980	✔
Rickover's Dream	Michael Hedges	1983	✔
Variations on Clair De Lune	Robbie Basho	1979
Oristano Sojourn	Scott Cossu	1984
Clockwork	Alex de Grassi	1983
Peace	George Winston	1982	✔
Aerial Boundaries	Michael Hedges	1984	✔
Egrets	Montreux	1985
On The Threshold Of Liberty	Mark Isham	1983

Disc Two:

Song	Artist	Year
Welcoming	Michael Manring	1985	✔
The 19A	Nightnoise	1984
Montana Half Light	Philip Aaberg	1985	✔
Shadowdance	Shadowfax	1983	✘
Pittsburgh 1901 (Theme From Mrs. Soffel)	Mark Isham	1984
The Calling	Stein & Walder	1986
Gwenlaise	Scott Cossu w/Eugene Friesen	1986
Dolphins	Mike Marshall	1985
Wishing Well	Schönherz & Scott	1987	✔
Theme for Naomi Uemura	Philip Aaberg	1986	✔
Toys Not Ties	Nightnoise	1987
Close Cover	Wim Mertens	1986
To The Well	W. A. Mathieu	1987
Hot Beach	Interior	1982	✔
New Waltz	Malcolm Dalglish	1985
Processional	William Ackerman	1986
Woman At The Well	Tim Story	1987

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None

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First post, 2010: Paul Simon - Graceland (1986)
1st anniversary, 2011 (post #378): Electric Light Orchestra - Time (1981)
2nd anniversary, 2012 (post #694): Seal (1994)
3rd anniversary, 2013 (post #948): Fun Boy Three - Really Saying Something: The Best of Fun Boy Three (1997)
4th anniversary, 2014 (post #1127): Ultravox - Quartet (1982)
5th anniversary, 2015 (post #1231): Soul Hits of the '70s: Didn't It Blow Your Mind, Vol. 5 (1991)
6th anniversary, 2016: no post
7th anniversary, 2017: no post
8th anniversary, 2018 (post #1461): Pat Metheny - Watercolors (1977)
9th anniversary, 2019 (post #1524): Tom Petty - Full Moon Fever (1989)