THE SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME (NEW RELEASES) By Michael McDowell

FUNNY FEATHERS:  Veteran composer and vocalist MARIA MULDAUR salutes her legendary mentor, Victoria Spivey in her latest Nola Blue Records release, One Hour Mama.  Editor / Publisher Michael McDowell professes solidarity below. (Click on above image to enlarge).

CDs AND VINYL - NEW RELEASES

(REVIEWS ARE POSTED IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER BY ARTIST)

MAN'S BEST FRIEND - 

Sabrina Carpenter (Island)

Humor is in the eye of the beholder.

Witness Manchild, the recent instant classic single by composer, vocalist and Quakertown, Pennsylvania native Sabrina Annlynn Carpenter. Therein, Carpenter laments her circumstances with a curious mixture of disconcertment and subtle resignation borne of a cavalier reaction with regards to the failure of others to live up to expectations. 

Carpenter dismisses such concerns out of hand at first with several pejoratives  (stupid, slow, useless) before taking a slightly more charitable high road with the less abrasive Manchild before reasserting her upper hand with, "Why you always come running to me?"

The reaction to Manchild among the rank and file to date has been anything but united. Many have dismissed it out of hand, only to be admonished by some to engage in a bit of introspection before passing judgement.

Conversely, Manchild has received glowing accolades from others. It has proven to be one of the most successful singles of the year to date.

For those who perhaps do not have such a vested interest in the subject matter and who maintain an art for art's sake perspective, Manchild stands out as a sterling example of the return to form that has blessed the overall musical landscape throughout the past year. Its strong verse, chorus and bridge template and inventive turn of phrase is in keeping with that which has long graced the best of the most impacting musical movements. 

Indeed, Carpenter shines in that respect throughout the remainder of Man's Best Friend, which was recorded at Electric Lady Studio (once the venue of choice of Jimi Hendrix). While her stark lyricism remains the predominant theme, the musical settings therein (aided and abetted by John Ryan and Jack Antonoff, who served as co-producers with Carpenter) most encouragingly suggest anything but genre myopia. 

To wit, the album's second single, Tears treads the fine line between Patrice Rushen's Forget Me Not and Debbie Gibson's Shake Your Love. My Man On Willpower stays the course in that respect, with a relatively more lavish arrangement worthy of Donna Summer's Love's Unkind. We Almost Broke Up Again Last Night brings it full circle, with a brief aside to the victim as anti-hero perpsective championed in recent years by Taylor Swift.

Conversely, Nobody's Son offers a pleasant turning of the corner with its mid-tempo arrangement in the spirit of Led Zeppelin's D'yer Maker. In turn, When Did You Get Hot? (a variation of sorts on Carpenter's 2024 Bed Chem single) provides an amusing adjunct to the 1978 monster classic Luv' hit, U.O. Me. Carpenter brings the musical diversity full circle with a good natured, tongue in cheek sing along in Go Go Juice (a term that became a permanent part of the landscape via its use by the great Jerry Reed's charismatic Cledus Snow character in the 1977 motion picture, Smokey And The Bandit before wrapping it up with the matter of fact opulence of House Tour and the operatic in a Bohemian Rhapsody way of the album's closer, Goodbye.

However, there persists an ongoing concern within some circles with regards to what is perceived as an impasse in terms of the methodology of the lyrical approach. The reasoning stems in part from a particular interpretation of Ephesians 4:29 about the uplifting nature of words.

That perspective is largely championed by a well intentioned contingent that (for example) most likely has first person experience of the mixed reactions to the lyrical approach of such singles as the Kingsmen's Louie, Louie and the MC5's Kick Out The Jams.

But what is often overlooked in such sectors is that there is an entire demographic (of which Carpenter is a part) that has no such cultural baggage in that respect, and which simply does not view such matters from that perspective. From their point of view, such verbiage no longer produces such an impact and is generally accepted within the the scope of everyday vocabulary. 

Nonetheless, for both camps, Man's Best Friend is a win-win solution. On one hand, that perspective has enabled Carpenter to soar as an inventive lyricist. Meanwhile, those who continue to remain true to certain linguistic guidelines can at least do so with an element of optimism for the future of the art, especially in light of the return to form that has blessed music overall in recent months. In the words of one of Carpenter's earlier triumphs, Man's Best Friend allows for all concerned to persevere with their Eyes Wide Open.

GREETINGS FROM YOUR HOMETOWN -

The Jonas Brothers (Republic)

It was time to break camp.

When the Wycliff, New Jersey sibling trio Kevin, Nick and Joe Jonas released their debut album, It's About Time in 2006, they were undergoing an inevitable season of growing pains. Therein, cuts such as 6 Minutes and Year 3000 reflected hardcore aspirations that were tempered by a sense of bravado that was still a work in progress.

But when the group signed with Hollywood Records and released their breakout album, Jonas Brothers the following year, the benefits of the team approach began to avail themselves. Their behind the scenes team provided the right balance of support and direction to enable them to better find their footing. The group soared over the next several years as a result.

However, one of the byproducts of working within the system in that capacity is that those providing the support will seek a return for their efforts via maximum exposure in a variety of settings. In the Jonas Brothers' case, that exposure culminated with their appearance in the 2008 motion picture, Camp Rock alongside Demi Lovato. 

With few exceptions, steps such as those usually signal that the mutual admitation society between artist, support system and the faithful has run its course. To their considerable credit, the Jonas Brothers took note and ultimately opted to embark upon a six year sabbatical in 2013 to pursue individual interests and reassess their priorities for the long haul.

Greetings From Your Hometown proves that their self-imposed hiatus was not an exercise in futility. While remaining faithful to the basic precepts implemented during their tenure with Hollywood Records, the Jonas Brothers herein reflect a subtle yet impacting maturation in mission statement that is not so much the byproduct of chronology as it is a reflection of lessons well learned.

While all encompassing in its outreach, Greetings From Your Hometown nonetheless reflects in spots the need to meet certain factions of the faithful on their own terms. To that effect, Heat Of The Moment and Star both downplay the prerequisite strong verse, chorus and bridge template to serve as a potential adjunct for an alternate media source; a variation of sorts on the late Michael Nesmith's "book with a soundtrack" concept. Moreover, Slow Motion (with Marshmello) placates the faithful who relate on an individual basis, underscoring the attribute of intimacy that has been germaine to their mission statement from the onset. 

Conversely, the single No Time To Talk reflects the inspiration of the Bee Gees' Stayin' Alive to the degree that Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb are credited as co-composers. Ultimately, those strong vocal harmonies and the impeccably structured verse, chorus and bridge template of Love Me To Heaven provide the trio with arguably their finest moment to date.

In the process, the Jonas Brothers have brought it full circle; reuniting with Lovato as co-producers for the third installment of the Camp Rock series. Likewise, Greetings From Your Hometown sustains that momentum by staying the course while ultimately taking it to the next level. To paraphrase a key track from their It's About Time album, it is still time for them to fly.

ONE HOUR MAMA:

THE BLUES OF VICTORIA SPIVEY -

Maria Muldaur (Nola Blue)

The work of true visionaries tends to pay itself forward.

To that effect, in the late 1960s, one time Imperial Records executive and cutout king, Ken Revercomb (whose clientele included the vaunted Arlans Department Store chain, which boasted a world class record department that was second to none) featured prominently in its delete bins the December 1963 Elektra label debut album by the ambitious Even Dozen Jug Band. Although the album had gone out of print by that time, it nonetheless earned a whole new audience by virtue of the subsequent successes of some of its storied alumni. Among them were the Blues Project's Steve Katz, prolific solo artist Stefan Grossman and Lovin' Spoonful cofounder and mastermind, John Sebastian.

Also among the Even Dozen Jug Band's ranks was the ambitious vocalist and multi-instrumentalist, Maria D'Amato. An avid student of the works of the early blues pioneers, D'Amato went on to an enormously successful solo career as Maria Muldaur.

To her considerable advantage, Muldaur at that time counted among her inspirations and mentors the vaunted composer, vocalist and Houston, Texas native, Victoria Regina Spivey. An instant success upon signing with the OKeh label in 1926, Spivey had also made her mark in film, as an entertainment industry journalist and as a church choir director. Spivey saw tremendous potential in Muldaur, and mentored her in a multi-faceted capacity.

Nearly a half century after Spivey's 1976 passing at age 69, Muldaur has returned the favor with this sublime twelve-track salute to her mentor's legacy. Joining forces with such like minded colleagues as Elvin Bishop (for What Makes You Act Like That?)  and Taj Mahal (on Gotta Have What It Takes), Muldaur herein soars with an all too rare combination of the seemingly incongruous attributes of whimsy and mastery.

Spivey's command of the verse, chorus and bridge template is celebrated impeccably by Muldaur's takes on No, Papa, No!, T-B Blues and Don't Love No Married Man. But by far the most magnificent moment comes from Muldaur's Spivey-inspired Any-Kind-A-Man. The latter track was composed in 1929 by Spivey's much loved colleague, fellow visionary and OKeh labelmate, the great Hattie McDaniel. McDaniel, who would of course go on to tremendous acclaim as an Oscar-winning film superstar (including landmark roles in Gone With The Wind and Thank Your Lucky Stars) and television pioneer, provided Spivey with one of her finest moments in the studio, enabling Muldaur to bring the process full circle nearly a century later.

One Hour Mama: The Blues Of Victoria Spivey is not the first project to champion the work of the early blues masters in recent months. In 2024, virtuoso guitarist Sue Foley paid tribute to a number of Spivey's like minded colleagues in her One Guitar Woman album for Stony Plain. And with this latest project, Muldaur not only pays her mentor's legacy forward, but (like Foley), brings it full circle. To invoke one of the many Spivey triumphs feted here, it is a Down Hill Pull that nonetheless finds one and all on a decidedly upward trajectory.

CHILLING, THRILLING HOOKS

AND HAUNTED HARMONIES  - 

Various Artists (Big Stir)

As a matter of perspective, it is often prudent to separate the art from the artist. But circumstances can occasionally also warrant separating the artist from the art.

Such methodology is of particular value if the art itself espouses a mission statement in which the artists' potential target audience finds itself championing potentially divisive trains of thought. 

In the case of this thematic compilation from the Southern California-based Big Stir label, the mission statement is the annual celebration of Halloween. For many, the occasion serves as an opportunity for little more than to don costumes and consume copious amounts of candy. However, at its foundation, Halloween espouses a perspective that champions the so-called underworld; a train of thought that is anathema to many. 

Over the years, the entertainment industry has often taken the high road with a cavalier approach to the subject that does not come down firmly on either side. This perspective can be found in such classic television series as The Addams Family and The Munsters, as well as such tongue in cheek recordings as Sheb Wooley's The Purple People Eater, David Seville's Witch Doctor and Bobby "Boris" Pickett's Monster Mash.

To their considerable credit, Big Stir takes likewise the high road in that respect. Chilling, Thrilling Hooks And Haunted Harmonies mixes a series of relatively light hearted, industry-themed narratives (including The Eternal Question, The Price Of Popularity and Don't Pull Down On The Tonearm) with a series of thematic originals by some of the front runners of the label's formidable artist roster. That roster includes such veteran favorites as the Spongetones, Sparkle*Jets UK, Shplang, Rick Hromada, new wave era pioneer Graham Parker and first generation garage rock giants the Strawberry Alarm Clock. 

"It really is well done, top to bottom", said Strawberry Alarm Clock bassist and co-founder, George Bunnell.

"It's an honor for us. Really excited for our future together!"

Whether or not label and artists will subseuquently come to terms with all factions via a Christmas collection remains to be seen. But for the moment, in terms of separating the artist from the art and getting the job done to the satisfaction of the majority, Big Stir has, in the words of project participants Hungrytown, made Footprints in an encouraging direction.

I'M THE PROBLEM  - 

Morgan Wallen

(Big Loud)

"Keep it Barbershop".

That simple admonition became an ad hoc mission statement for the late, great Richard W. "Dick" Briel. A tireless champion of the vocal harmony genre known as Barbershop, Briel was a lead vocalist with the San Gabriel Valley Harmony Statesmen during much of the second half of the twentieth centuy. Adamant in his resolve to keep the group's repertoire within that framework, Briel underscored his point by delivering unwaveringly as the consummate showman; augmented by his genial persona and impeccable sense of comedic timing.

Ironically, during its prolific run as the focal point of music's last collective gasp of consequence (the so called New Traditionalist movement of the late 1980s and early 1990s), country music found itself facing a similar dichotomy in some circles. While by definition the New Traditionalist contingent championed a return to form that in part saw some of the genre's most beloved pioneers (including George Jones, Johnny Cash, Buck Owens and Waylon Jennings) enjoy a late career renaissance, it also brought with it a faction that sought to take the genre to the next level via the incorporation of classic rock into the mix. Reactions among the hardcore faithful were mixed, to put it mildly. 

In a sense, composer, vocalist and Sneedville, Tennessee native Morgan Cole Wallen herein finds himself at a crossroads of sorts between those two perspectives. The beneficiary of extensive media exposure at the onset of his career in the mid-2010s, Wallen was rewarded at the onset with substantial mainstream acclaim.

But with I'm The Problem (a somewhat tongue in cheek profession of self-depreciation that was inspired in part via its use in Taylor Swift's October 2022 Anti-Hero single), Wallen finds himself at his own impasse of sorts between the multi-genre red carpet afforded him via his substantial media platform versus his innate leanings towards the purist perspective. 

To his considerable credit, Wallen herein draws from the best of both worlds and emerges triumphant. To wit, the thirty-seven originals in this collection (recorded over a two year period) find Wallen steadfastly walking in solidarity with the basic precepts of the country music experience and its prerequisite periphery. Wallen's resolve is perhaps best showcased in Revelation, in which he professes the need for salvation in the wake of listening to Billy Graham sermons after a disillusioning encounter with Jim Beam.

Conversely, Wallen's consistent mainstream exposure has afforded him the opportunity to join forces with artists whose own musical visions espouse a multi-genre perspective. His recent projects with Tate McRae (What I Want) and one-time Taylor Swift collaborator Post Malone (I Ain't Comin' Back) were both successful singles and are included here. Each provided a catalyst of sorts for Wallen's propensity towards a broader mission statement. That attribute is showcased quite well herein by his solo single, Love Somebody, as well as such standout tracks as Working Man's Song, Where'd That Girl Go and Leavin's The Least I Could Do.

Interestingly enough, Wallen brings the first half of I'm The Problem together as a thematic medley of sorts, in a manner similar to that executed in 1968 by the Amboy Dukes on the second side of their Journey To The Center Of The Mind album for Bob Shad's Mainstream label. Wallen further drives the point home by augmenting partially developed concepts with dreamscape interludes, as did the Rationals on their debut album for the Crewe label. 

All told, I'm The Problem is a best of both worlds endeavor that ultimately allows for the growth and expansion that has been indigenous to the genre all along. As Wallen himself somewhat prophetically observed in 2023, it is a methodology that is best realized One Thing At A Time.