Stone Temple Pilots – Core 25th Anniversary Edition – Album Review

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On September 29, 1992, the debut album ‘Core’ by the band Stone Temple Pilots was released to great fanfare.  The album kicked off the career of what would become one of the best bands to come out of the 90’s.  Well, on September 29, 2017, Stone Temple Pilots commemorated the 25th Anniversary of their stellar debut with a spectacular re-release of their debut album. I love how they were able to release on the same day as the original.  And yes, I already had a copy, but now I have it again, but this time there is so much more.

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What all do you get?  Well, I am glad you asked.  The set I bought was the Deluxe Edition.  You can get a Super Deluxe Edition which had a T-Shirt and 16″x20″ Litograph, but I didn’t see that offered on Amazon as that might have been a STP website only purchase.  The Deluxe had everything you see above which is as follows:

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The Debut: Maroon 5 ‘Songs About Jane’

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Welcome to another edition of The Debut.  This month is the debut album for Maroon 5 called ‘Songs About Jane’.  Maroon 5’s debut album came out on June 25, 2002 and went as high as #6 on the Billboard charts.  The album also has gone on to sell more than 10 million copies worldwide.

When the album came out, there wasn’t a lot of good pop music and there wasn’t a lot of uniqueness or original sounding music.  Then along came Maroon 5.  With Adam’s tenor vocals, a killer falsetto and that funked up rock sound, Maroon 5 offered up something different, unique and oh so memorable.

Who is in the band you ask?  Well, it consisted of the following members:

  • Adam Levine – lead vocals, rhythm guitar
  • James Valentine – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Jesse Carmichael – keyboards, backing vocals
  • Mickey Madden – bass guitar
  • Ryan Dusick – drums, percussion, backing vocals

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My Sunday Song – “Enter Sandman” by Metallica

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My Sunday Song #61 is Metallica’s “Enter Sandman”.  I needed to crank things up a bit and this is great song to turn up to 10 and blast out some windows and shake some walls.  A good song to test out my new speakers on.  The song is off the 1991 album, Metallica (or The Black Album) and was the song that made Metallica mainstream and helped turn them into megastars.  The song was released two weeks before the album and helped the album debut at #1 and go on to sell well over 22 million copies.

If you are not familiar with this song, it just might be one of the most recognizable metal songs of all time and one of the scariest. The song is about children’s nightmares and what might be lying under your bed.  I think what helps give it that eerie feeling is the child’s prayer that is in the song:

Now I lay me down to sleep
I pray the Lord, my soul to keep
If I die before I wake
I pray the Lord my soul to take

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Friday New Releases – October 13th

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Here we are on another Friday and another week of great releases.  But before I get into that I just noticed that this is my 400th post since I started.  Crazy to think it I have been able to think of that many things to write about and that people still come to check out the site.  Pretty cool.

Okay back to the post…If you like rock, there is a plethora of new music.  There is probably a little something for everyone.  My choices are highlighted in Blue.  Let me know what you are looking to pick up.  I hope you find something.  Have a great weekend.

  • 61ldUwPrdAL._AC_US218_  Revolution Saints – Light in the Dark – (Frontiers Records):  Frontiers Records has a knack for putting together little supergroups. Most of the time those supergroups only last one album.  Thankfully, Revolution Saints are back with record number two!!  Who is in Revolution Saints you may ask (please ask)?  Well, I am glad you asked…you get Jack Blades (Night Ranger and Damn Yankees), Deen Castronovo (Journey and Ozzy) and Doug Aldrich (Whitesnake, Dio, Dead Daisies).  The first album was spectacular and expect more of the same greatness.

  • 71ZApFbDTuL._AC_UL115_  Fozzy – Judas – (Century Media):  When you hear the name Chris Jericho, what is the first thing you think of???  Wrestling??  No, Heavy Metal Music.  Chris has been lead singer of Fozzy for 18 years and they are now on their seventh album with ‘Judas’.  As I always, I look forward to hearing what they bring to the table each time and this time is no different.

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The Original vs. The Cover – “Cum On Feel The Noize”

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For the third installment, I wanted to cover the Slade song “Cum on Feel the Noize”.  Yes, I said Slade.  If you didn’t know Quiet Riot did a COVER version of this song (any many others), they did not write it. As a kid, I thought they wrote it and it was their song.  They definitely made it their own, but it was years later I learned it was actually a cover of Slade’s song.

Of course, I am a huge fan of the Quiet Riot version as that is what introduced me to the band.  However, once I discovered the band Slade, years later, I became a bigger fan of them than Quiet Riot. I really enjoy the Glam rock era of the 70’s and the fact they are the ones that wrote these great songs, I now lean more towards their version.  Let’s talk a little about each version and then you can tell me which one you like best.

SLADE:

“Cum on Feel the Noize” was originally titled “Cum on Hear the Noize” until Noddy Holder changed it because he believed that at a Slade concert you felt the music and the crowd.*  The single went #1 in the UK in February 1973 and was their fourth #1 song.  It was also the first song to go #1 in its first week of release since the Beatles back in 1969.

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Living Colour – Shade – Album Review

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The band that brought us “Cult of Personality” back in 1988 is back after an 8 year hiatus from their last album.  Living Colour released their new album, ‘Shade’ on September 8th 2017 and it sounds like this band has a lot to say.  Their social commentary on today’s society is definitely worth listening to and not only will it open your eyes to life today, it will open your ears to some damn fine music.

The title of the album, ‘Shade’, has many different meanings for this album.  It could be referring to the many shades of color the album brings in its different styles and sounds.  Or is the band throwing ‘Shade’ at America and all that has been happening over the years.  I think it is both, but you should listen and decide for yourself.

What I really love about this album is the variety of the songs.  You, of course, get some hard rock, some funk, some blues and some hip hop and when they mix them up together in the song it gets even better.  Corey Glover sounds amazing throughout as does Vernon Reid with his kick ass solos, Doug Wimbash’s bass thumping and Will Calhoun’s drum keep the timing set perfectly.

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My Sunday Song – “Southern Cross” by Crosby, Stills & Nash

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For My Sunday Song #60, I am highlighting my favorite Crosby, Stills & Nash song “Southern Cross”.  The song was released in September 1982 and was featured on the album ‘Daylight Again”.  I remember seeing the video on MTV as it was in heavy rotation for awhile.  I just loved the laid back feel of the song and of course watching the boat sail across the water.  It seemed so relaxing. I really enjoy the phrasing of the lyrics and the song flow.  It is the song that actually made me a little fan of the group.

The song is about a man who decided to take a journey by sailing across the Pacific due to a failed relationship.  He determines all he needs is a boat and his music.  He hopes he will find that woman on his trek that will make him forget his past relationship and find a love that will endure (and you know it will).

In researching the song, I now know what the Southern Cross is.  I thought it was the boat as that is what the video would have you believe.  No.  The Southern Cross is a star constellation that is only seen in the Southern Hemisphere and some of the tropics.  Sailors in the Southern Hemisphere use it to navigate by.  The constellation is called Crux which means cross (thanks wikipedia).

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Friday New Releases – October 6th

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Welcome to October and of course, I have a list of new releases for you to check out.  There are definitely some I am getting this week and I will talk about those as they will be highlighted in Blue.  There are not a ton, but hopefully you will find something.  I know I have.

  • 61VQ92of-mL._AC_US160_  Whitesnake – Whitesnake (30th Anniversary Edition) – (Parlophone Records):  Duh!! No Brainer!!!  I can’t believe it has been 30 years since this album was released.  I have it on Vinyl, but I want this CD see.  With classics like “Still of The Night”, “Here I Go Again” and “Is This Love” you can’t go wrong with this one.  The only downside is the Super Deluxe Edition, which I ordered, is on hold until October 27th.  Oh well, still can’t wait to get ahold of it.

  • 61FIqt+D+pL._AC_US218_  The Darkness – Pinewood Smile – (Canary Dwarf Ltd):  The glam metal band that glorifies the excess of 80’s rocks brings us their new album.  After 5 albums has the schtick gotten old?  We will see.

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Bob Rock – Producer Extraordinaire #4

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We are now on our 4th Producer Extraordinaire in this series.  We have seen Robert John “Mutt” Lange, Brendan O’Brien and Bruce Fairbairn so far, and now it is time for Bob Rock.  Bob Rock actually got his start as a recording engineer and mixer under the great Bruce Fairbairn so he learned from one of the best.

Bob’s musical career started back in 1979 / 1980 when he started engineering from Bruce as well as joined the band Payola$ who had a big hit in 1980 called “Eyes of a Stranger”. They were pretty successful in Canada and won a Juno Award in 1983 for Single of the Year.  However, Bob’s real talent (or at least to me) is his ability to work with bands and produce amazing albums.

METALLICA:

Bob Rock has worked with some of the biggest bands in the world, but they don’t get bigger than Metallica.  Bob was selected as the Producer for the band’s biggest album they had ever done, however, at the time they did not know it would become so big. “The Black Album” as it is commonly known made Metallica cool in the mainstream world as well as the Thrash world.

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Jonny Lang – Signs – Album Review

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Grammy Award winning artist, Jonny Lang, is back with his new album, ‘Signs’.  If you aren’t familiar with Jonny, you are definitely missing out.  He is a Blues, Gospel and rock guitarist, songwriter and singer.  There is nothing this man can’t do.  He brings in so many influences and crafts them into heartfelt and moving songs that are either blues or straight up rock & roll and when he mixes the two together, watch out!!

I remember when his first album came out in 1997, ‘Lie to Me’, and he was only 16 years old.  I heard that album and couldn’t believe what I was hearing.  No 16 year old should be able to pull off what this kid could do.  Years went by and he struggled with substance abuse and in 2000 came clean.  He found Christianity after shunning it for so long and it changed his perspective on everything.  His writing, playing and vocals started hitting on all cylinders.  He won a Grammy in 2006 for his album ‘Turn Around’ and he kept putting out incredible music.

Now in 2017, can he still produce albums that strike a chord with you after 20 years in the business?  Oh yes he can.  Jonny Lang has released what could possibly be the album of the year for me.  His vocals, songwriting and guitar playing (damn can he play a guitar) are nothing short of awe-inspiring.  Sit back and let me walk you through this masterpiece.

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