Spinning Today - What Are You Listening To Right Now? (Part 3)

[Pigmy Pony]

Never been a fan of U2. Only song of theirs I ever liked was "Bullet the Blue Sky", and even that wasn't enough to keep me from selling on the only U2 album I ever bought. But that Edie Brickell CD, that's a different matter, I think I'll get that.

[Barry]

Rolling Stones – 'Blue & Lonesome'

Label: Rolling Stones Records – 571 494-2, Polydor – 571 494-2
Format: CD, Album, Digipak, Sony DADC Austria Pressing
Country: Europe
Released: December 2, 2016
Genre: Rock, Blues
Style: Chicago Blues

Even my partner like this (but when it comes to R&B, she's not difficult to please).

So to follow:

Elmore James – 'The Sky Is Crying'

Label: Camden – 74321 523762
Format: CD, Compilation
Country: Europe
Released: 1997
Genre: Blues
Style: Delta Blues, Chicago Blues


And finally:

Ry Cooder & V.M. Bhatt – 'A Meeting By The River'

Label: Water Lily Acoustics – WLA-CS-29-CD
Format: CD, Album, Stereo
Country: US
Released: 1993
Genre: Blues, Folk, World, & Country
Style: Hindustani, Fusion, Delta Blues

V. M. Bhatt plays an instrument he calls a "Mohan vīnā": evolved from the slide guitar and resembling the hollow-bodied curved-top jazz guitars of the 1920s which had "f" shaped sound holes. The neck of the Mohan vīnā however has a wooden extension on the top side, adjacent to the fingerboard, onto which are fitted the tuning pegs for the twelve sympathetic strings. These run under, and are parallel to, the three melody and five drone strings. The tuning pegs for the primary eight strings are located conventionally on the head of the instrument. Bhatt's instrument was inspired by the North Indian instrument known as the Vichitra vīnā, which has a wide unfretted neck, two large resonating gourds, six main strings, and twelve sypathetic strings. It id played with plectra fixed to the fingers of one hand and stopped with a glass ball held in the other. Bhatt's Mohan vīnā sounds very similar to that of a sitar.

Clearly this is Ry Cooder's continuing his interest in exploring other musical genres, first started with his Chicken Skin Music in 1976.

I have to say that the recording level on this CD is ridiculously low, to the point I though there was something with my CDP. All of the four track are long; around 10 minutes long.

My partner said she found the CD 'sad', and what with the low recording level, I'm inclined to agree - so back to a charity shop from whence it came!

[Pigmy Pony]

You've gotta love partners' opinions on certain pieces of music - their descriptors tend to be less forensic than ours, but so often hit the nail on the head But then Anita goes and spoils my theory by stating that all Beatles music is cack.

[Dom66]

[Pigmy Pony]

The Handsome Family, Singing Bones

[Pigmy Pony]

Following Barry's comments I thought I'd give it another go:



And it does sound a bit better this time. But the recording doesn't work well with my speakers - not exploiting their qualities, while exposing their flaws. The result is a bit of a noise. I accept this is probably a failing of my speakers rather than the album.

This album is said to be among her most accessible work, and if that is so then I won't be going any further.

Edit: The album finished about ten minutes ago, and it has just started up again! Sleeve says it is called "This Wicked Tongue", and as the CD calls itself a Special Edition this must be a bonus track. Doesn't feel like a bonus to me, more like a punishment for not getting off the sofa quick enough.

Probably didn't help that it followed a Norah Jones CD (which is definitely charity shop bound btw). Polar opposite sound-wise.

[Pigmy Pony]

Something a bit more mellow now.

[Dom66]

Following Barry's comments I thought I'd give it another go:



And it does sound a bit better this time. But the recording doesn't work well with my speakers - not exploiting their qualities, while exposing their flaws. The result is a bit of a noise. I accept this is probably a failing of my speakers rather than the album.

This album is said to be among her most accessible work, and if that is so then I won't be going any further.

Edit: The album finished about ten minutes ago, and it has just started up again! Sleeve says it is called "This Wicked Tongue", and as the CD calls itself a Special Edition this must be a bonus track. Doesn't feel like a bonus to me, more like a punishment for not getting off the sofa quick enough.

Probably didn't help that it followed a Norah Jones CD (which is definitely charity shop bound btw). Polar opposite sound-wise.

IMHO the earlier the better with PJ, the first three albums were fantastic. I like the stuff she's done with John Parish as well.

[Dom66]

[Barry]

Good one Dom.