Albert King with Stevie Ray Vaughan - In Session (1999)

Recorded in 1983, first released in 1999, re-released in 2010, then re-re-released in 2024.

Allow me to expand on that: the show was originally recorded live on December 6, 1983, at CHCH-TV studios in Hamilton, Ontario then edited for broadcast. Somebody at the TV studios was thinking and saved the thing. The session was edited and released as a single CD in 1999 then re-released in 2010 with a bonus DVD of the television broadcast. Finally, the full show (in order) was released in a 2 CD set by Stax in 2024 for the album's 25th anniversary. That's the version I'm spinning today. The digisleeve packaging includes a 16 page booklet which reprints liner notes from both the 1999 release and the 2010 re-release. A 4K Blu-Ray upscale of the TV feed would have been a nice bonus, but no dice. Maybe I was just born under a bad sign.

Edited from the record label's website:

At the In Session taping, 60-year-old Albert ruled over the proceedings like a benevolent father, retaining control while allowing his 29-year-old guest loads of solo space in which to display his awesome command of the electric guitar. Stevie avoided flaunting his prowess, however, and instead delivered some of the most deliciously restrained playing of his career, laying back when his mentor dictated, turning up the heat only when Albert deemed it appropriate. The interplay between the two blues masters is uncannily empathetic, and Albert's fans will find special pleasure in hearing him play rhythm parts at such length. At one point between tunes, Albert complained about problems with his guitar strings, then told Stevie, "I'm about ready to turn it over to you.... I've got to sit back and watch you."

Albert was, in a sense, passing the torch to Stevie. In Session is the only known recording of Albert King and Stevie Ray Vaughan performing together. Its long-overdue commercial release stands as a fitting tribute to the genius of two of the greatest musicians ever to have played the blues on electric guitar.

The only known recording of Albert King and Stevie Ray Vaughan performing together. Simply put, it's well worth your time.

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: did not chart
• Billboard Blues: #1

Tracks: King's Born Under A Bad Sign is a stone cold classic and it leads things off and you immediately hear how well King's vocals and Vaughan's guitar mesh. Other top tracks on the first CD are Pride And Joy and Blues At Sunrise. From Disc 2: Overall Junction, Match Box Blues, and Don't Lie To Me. But this is the rare live 2 disc set you'll want to hear from top-to-bottom.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None.

Previously revisited for the blog:

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Stevie Ray Vaughan

Original Album Classics (2013)	Greatest Hits (1995)
The Real Deal: Greatest Hits Vol 2 (1999)	Family Style (1990)

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Albert King

Born Under A Bad Sign (1967)

Roy Ayers Ubiquity (2024)

UK import

2024 box set of five albums by vibraphonist Roy Ayers - sometimes known as the "Godfather of Acid Jazz" - released in the years 1975-1977. I almost didn't buy this set because I already had two of the five albums, but I wanted to hear Vibrations and this set was the cheapest way to pick up a (legitimate) copy. At $30 ($6 per album), it's a hard to pass up this shining set. I mean, everybody loves the sunshine, right?

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A TEAR TO A SMILE (1975)
10 tracks, 40 minutes

In which Ayers moves from his early '70s funky jazz to a funk-jazz-soul-R&B-disco mix while maintaining his bona fides as one of the best vibraphone players in the land. There's a new focus on vocal tracks that sometimes works, sometimes doesn't. There's some great grooves and performances to be had throughout. With this album, Ayers begins his slow transition from jazz player to conductor/producer/arranger as he inches toward the smoother, more commercial sound of his late '70s peak.

I love how he adds descriptors for each performer in the credits.

Reviews/ratings:

• Record World: "The feel flows throughout"
• CashBox: "a low keyed approach to funk, sprinkled ever so lightly with the essential life juices of jazz and rhythm and blues."
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: Did not chart
• Billboard Jazz: #8
• CashBox: #181
• Record World Jazz: #11

Tracks: I enjoy 2000 Black, Show Us A Feeling, The Old One Two (Move To Groove), and A Tear To A Smile. My current favorite cut is the ethereal ballad, Miles (Love's Silent Dawn). The only track that plays it safe is a cover of Earth, Wind & Fire's The Way Of The World, but just because it's safe doesn't mean it's not extrememly enjoyable. (And quite frankly, that song is just begging for jazz covers.) Ayers hits the vibes more on this album than a few of the subsiquent releases, especially on tracks like Ebony Blaze, Time And Space, That's The Way Of The World, Miles (Love's Silent Dawn), and the title track.

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MYSTIC VOYAGE (1975)
10 tracks, 43 minutes

Previously appeared on The CD Project. Note: the 7" version of Evolution is included in this box set as a bonus track.

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EVERYBODY LOVES THE SUNSHINE (1976)
10 tracks, 40 minutes

Previously appeared on The CD Project.

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VIBRATIONS (1976)
11 tracks, 42 minutes

Following up the success of Everybody Loves The Sunshine, so we've got more of the same. I'm not complaining. Rather than trying to reinvent himself, Ayers doubled down on the formula he had been refining all decade: warm vocals, sophisticated jazz harmonies, and irresistible funk grooves. This album also marks the beginning of a shift to utlizing disco/dance grooves on a few tracks. While not having the commercial success of Everybody Loves The Sunshine, Vibrations did quite well on a variety of charts.

Reviews/ratings:

• DownBeat (★½): "I've been known to walk out of restaurants for no other reason that stuff like this coming over the loudspeaker."
• Billboard: "elements of jazz and soul that fuse together for a varied array of mellow and upbeat compositions."
• CashBox: "Roy Ayers Ubiquity is a classy jazz/rock/funk aggregation that, on each album, gets better and better."
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #74
• Billboard R&B: #11
• Billboard Jazz: #8
• CashBox: #94
• CashBox Jazz: #4
• Record World Jazz: #4

Tracks that could have fit on Everybody Loves The Sunshine: Baby I Need Your Love, The Memory, Better Days, Searching, Vibrations, and Baby You Give Me A Feeling.

Tracks embracing the disco trends of the time: Domelo (Give It To Me), Come Out And Play, and Moving Grooving.

Too funky to fit neatly in either of the above categories: Higher and One Sweet Love To Remember.

Bonus track: 7" version of Domelo (Give It To Me)

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LIFELINE (1977)
10 tracks, 43 minutes

I bought this box set because I dig the albums Mystic Voyage and Everybody Loves The Sunshine and wanted more of the same. That's just what we're treated to here. (I also recommend the 2003 compilation, Virgin Ubiquity: Unreleased Recordings 1976-1981, which I recently discovered at my local library). To say I am pleased with this box set is an understatement.

Reviews/ratings:

• Billboard: "There are some subtly cooking gems on this set"
• CashBox: "shines with fresh vitality and as much variety as you'll hear pressed in vinyl"
• Record World: "Ayers has disco-fied his sound as never before and the results should reach a much wider audience."
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★
• The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide (1985): ★

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #72
• Billboard R&B: #9
• Billboard Jazz: #8
• CashBox: #74
• CashBox Jazz: #3
• Record World Jazz: #1

Tracks: my favorites are This Side Of Sunshine, Gotta Find A Lover, Lifeline, and Sanctified Feeling.

Bonus track: 12" version of Running Away, which peaked at #19 on Billboard's R&B chart and #14 on Billboard's dance chart

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Previously revisited for the blog:
Everybody Loves The Sunshine (1976)
Mystic Voyage (1975)

Talking Heads - Stop Making Sense (2024 reissue)

Note: this release was originally purchased as an LP, later replaced by a CD, later supplemented by a homemade "Special Edition" CD-R, finally replaced with this 2 CD + Blu-Ray set. This 18 track set is a far cry from the 9 track LP I purchased back in 1985.

As described on the band's website:

Stop Making Sense is widely regarded as the best concert film of all time. This 2CD/1Blu-Ray disc edition features the complete show on 2-CDs, additional liner notes written by Tina Weymouth, David Byrne, Chris Frantz, and Jerry Harrison as well as photos not previously available with the CD, and the audio mixed in beautiful Dolby Atmos surround sound on the Blu-Ray audio disc. A live "best-of," Stop Making Sense starts strong with the band's hit off their debut album "Psycho Killer," and dives into favorites and deep cuts from "Burning Down the House" and "This Must Be The Place" to "Girlfriend Is Better" and "Heaven." The band also performs' the Tom Tom Club's "Genius Of Love."

Yes, Stop Making Sense is indeed the best concert film of all time and this album has long been my favorite Talking Heads release. I've heard a lot of versions of this music on many formats and I gotta tell ya: the sound on this set is far superior to any previous version and it's not even close. Kudos to Jerry Harrison and E.T. Thorngren for the mix. This new mix really brings out the contributions of the added musicians Bernie Worrell, Alex Weir, and in particular, backing vocalists Lynn Mabry & Ednah Holt. Makes all previous releases (and rereleases) obsolete. 

Press of the time:

• Rolling Stone (★★★★): "a solid artistic statement from a band that's starting to have as much as they've given their listeners."
• Stereo Review: "a great live performance"
• Robert Christgau (B+): a soundtrack, albeit for the finest concert film I've ever seen"
• CashBox: "an electrifying LP"
• Billboard: "sustains remarkable polish"

Original album chart peaks:

• US Billboard Top 200: #41
• Billboard Pop CD: #25
• CashBox: #29
• CashBox CD: #10
• Rolling Stone: #16

Tracks: I don't skip any tracks; my favorites are Found A Job, What A Day That Was, This Must Be The Place (Naïve Melody), Once In A Lifetime, and Take Me To The River.

Blu-Ray: As if the 2 "regular" CDs weren't sounding spectacular enough, this set comes with a Blu-Ray disc containing a Dolby Atmos mix. When Atmos mixes starting appearing, I thought it would be a passing fad, much like other legacy music formats such as DualDisc, DVD Audio, CD+G, CD Video, etc., but I'll admit it has hung around longer than I thought it would. When I came across the first Atmos disc in my collection (Abbey Road), I didn't have a proper playback for the Atmos mix. I've since researched what it would cost to get me set up with a quality system and my fixed income quickly shot down that idea. However, I came up with a decent workaround. I discovered my Sony Xbox Series X is compatible with Atmos discs, so I purchased a wireless gaming headset and - Bob's your uncle - I was all set to enjoy the Atmos mix. And lemmetellya the surround sound is fantastic, especially with lights off and eyes closed. I won't go out of my way to buy Atmos discs, but it's nice to be able to listen to the discs I have.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: When the movie was restored and rereleased in 4K for the film's 40th anniversary, I drove downtown to take it in at one of the local IMAX theaters. I went to the 11 AM screening, so there were only about 5 or 6 of us in the audience. As such, the typical movie theater distractions (talking, phone use, etc.) weren't there and I could focus on the show. It was glorious. My only regrets are 1) they weren't selling Stop Making Sense merch at the theater, and 2) I didn't stay for a second screening.

And, as I've mentioned before, a movie poster has been hanging out above my CDs for many years.

Previously revisited for the blog:

The Best Of (2004)	The Name Of This Band Is Talking Heads (1982)
Little Creatures (1985)	Remain In Light (1980)
Stop Making Sense (1984)	Fear Of Music (1979)
Speaking In Tongues (1983)	Talking Heads: 77 (1977)

Norah Jones - Visions (2024)

It occurs to me that the relative quality of a Norah Jones album boils down to who she selects as a co-writer/producer. In the case of Visions, she chose to work with Leon Michels. I was completely unfamiliar with the name, but not the indie garage band production style he brings with him from his work with (according to Wikipedia) Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, Menahan Street Band, The Black Keys, etc. The overall sound reminds me of Dan Auerbach's album, Waiting on a Song, an album I enjoy. But, above all, we're treated to Norah's beautifully unique voice, often overdubbed, which sounds as effortless as her sublime keyboard work. Certainly her best album since Day Breaks, the LA Times describes Visions as "a funky, gently psychedelic garage-soul record that puts her sultry vocals amid fuzzy guitars, off-kilter drums and crinkly vintage keyboards." I couldn't come up with a better description - that one's perfect.

Over at the meta-analysis websites, Metacritic rated it at 81, whereas anydecentmusic.com has it lower at 7.1. It was recently nominated for a Grammy award in the category of Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album.

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard Top 200: #168
• Billboard Jazz: #1
• Billboard Rock & Alternative: #40
• Billboard Tastemakers: #17

Tracks: My favorites are Staring At the Wall, Paradise, Running, and I'm Awake. No skips. 

Bonus track: A country-flavored tune titled Until My Heart Is Found and I'll be damned if Norah can't channel Patsy Cline when she wants to.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: Before this purchase, I couldn’t tell you the last time I purchased an album on the day of release but I bought this CD on March 8, 2024 at the local Target (the location closest to my house still has a section of the store dedicated to physical media!). The CD's hype sticker (above) mentions a poster, which is simply the cover photo on the back of the CD booklet of the album's lyrics.

Not sure if that lives up to the claim of "poster" in my mind, but it could have been worse.

And my fantasy of singing a duet with Norah persists...

Previously revisited for the blog:

Pick Me Up Off The Floor (2020)	The Fall (2009)
Begin Again (2019)	Not Too Late (2007)
Day Breaks (2016)	Feels Like Home (2004)
...Little Broken Hearts (2012)	Come Away With Me (2002)