The Lonely Goatherd Blog And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats - Matthew 25:32
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Al Barger and MoreThings - getting people's goats since 1998.
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All original content on MoreThings.com copyright 2008 Albert Barger or the respective authors
August 29, 2006
New Album Releases, 8-29-2006: Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Pet Sounds redux, Bob Dylan's shoebox Best bet this week is the Dirty Dozen Brass Band's track-by-track re-thinking of Marvin Gaye's What's Goin' On!. I've got this album, and it's pretty interesting. The predictable and utterly un-musical asininity-by-rote Chuck D rap is just pollution, and makes the main title song nearly unlistenable- though it'd be pretty good if you got a karaoke thing with Chuck D's nonsense simply wiped off the track. The rest of it works much better- particularly "What's Happening Brother" with Bettye LaVette. Guru also represents well on the final "Inner City Blues." It's not going to make you forget Marvin, but it's so different in tone and effect that it stands a unique and worthy artistic statement on it's own. Oh, the band is of course from New Orleans, and this is supposed to be some kind of response to Katrina- though it appears to have absolutely nothing to do with the actual music.
Bob Dylan once explained his creative process by saying that he jots down a line or two of words or a verse as they came to him on the back of napkins or scraps of paper and sticks them in his pocket. When he does the laundry, he empties those scraps into a shoebox. When the shoebox is full, he's got a fine new album. Dylan has emptied out his shoebox again with Modern Times.
Jessica Simpson has a new album celebrating the breakup of her MTV marriage, A Public Affair. I'm too bored with these idiots to even crack on her. Readers will kindly insert their own jokes here. Thanks.
Top re-release item in this week's listings would have to be The Beach Boys Pet Sounds [40th Anniversary]. This is the super beautiful sounding deluxe package with stereo and original mono versions of the album, and a DVD that sounds fascinating, including footage of Brian Wilson and George Martin in the studio, and vintage 66 promotional videos that I didn't even know existed.
Here's the complete list of this week's major new releases, courtesy AMG:
Bob Dylan Modern Times Columbia Album Rock, Singer/Songwriter, Blues-Rock, Pop/Rock, Folk-Rock, Rock & Roll
The Roots Game Theory Def Jam Hardcore Rap, Alternative Rap, Hip-Hop, Jazz-Rap
Jessica Simpson A Public Affair Epic Dance-Pop, Pop/Rock, Teen Pop
M. Ward Post-War Merge Adult Alternative Pop/Rock, Singer/Songwriter, Indie Rock
The Beach Boys Pet Sounds [40th Anniversary] Capitol Baroque Pop, Pop, Sunshine Pop, Pop/Rock
Beenie Man Undisputed Virgin Dancehall, Ragga
Black Between Two Churches Universal/Townsend Adult Alternative Pop/Rock, Pop/Rock
Catie Curtis Long Night Moon Compass Contemporary Singer/Songwriter, Contemporary Folk
The Dirty Dozen Brass Band What's Goin' On Shout! Factory New Orleans Brass Bands, New Orleans Jazz, Urban, Soul-Blues, R&B, Funk, Soul
Dream Theater Score: XOX - 20th Anniversary World Tour Live with the Octavarium Orchestra Rhino Album Rock, Progressive Metal, Guitar Virtuoso
GWAR Beyond Hell DRT Entertainment Heavy Metal, Thrash, Comedy Rock
Kenny Garrett Beyond the Wall Nonesuch Modal Music, Post-Bop, Modern Creative
The Grascals Long List of Heartaches Rounder Progressive Bluegrass, Contemporary Bluegrass
The Grates Gravity Won't Get You High Cherrytree/Interscope Indie Rock
Vadim Guzman Lera Auerbach: 24 Preludes for Violin and Piano Bis Contemporary Chamber Music
Hatebreed Supremacy Roadrunner Punk Metal, Hardcore Punk, Heavy Metal, Death Metal/Black Metal
Sam Hinton Whoever Shall Have Some Good Peanuts Smithsonian Folkways Children's Folk
Dave Holland Quintet Critical Mass Sunnyside/Dare2 Modern Creative, Contemporary Jazz
Daniel Johnston Continued Story/Hi, How Are You Eternal Yip Eye Music Indie Rock, Alternative Pop/Rock, Singer/Songwriter, Lo-Fi
Daniel Johnston Yip/Jump Music: Summer 1983 Eternal Yip Eye Music Indie Rock, Alternative Pop/Rock, Singer/Songwriter, Lo-Fi
The Kingston Trio The Essential Kingston Trio Shout! Factory Folk-Pop, Traditional Folk, Folk Revival
Ray LaMontagne Till the Sun Turns Black RCA Pop/Rock, Soft Rock, Pop, Singer/Songwriter
Steven Mercurio Many Voices Sony Contemporary Vocal Music
Method Man 4:21... The Day After Def Jam Hardcore Rap, East Coast Rap, Hip-Hop
Marian Mika Juliusz Zarebski: Les Roses et les Epines CPO Romantic Piano Music
Sam Moore Overnight Sensational Rhino Retro-Soul
Motorhead Kiss of Death Sanctuary New Wave of British Heavy Metal, British Metal, Speed Metal, Heavy Metal, Thrash, Hard Rock
Joshua Rifkin The Baroque Beatles Book Collectors' Choice Music "Baroque" Beatles Interpretations
Tonus Peregrinus Orlando Gibbons: Hymns and Songs of the Church Naxos Renaissance Sacred Vocal Music
Over It Step Outside Yourself Virgin Punk-Pop, Punk Revival
Persephone's Bees Notes from the Underworld Columbia Indie Pop, Indie Rock
Tomasz Stanko Lontano ECM Avant-Garde Jazz, Modern Free, Modern Creative
Stefy The Orange Album Wind-up Alternative Pop/Rock
Stereolab Serene Velocity: A Stereolab Anthology Elektra/Rhino Indie Pop, Experimental Rock, Indie Rock, Post-Rock/Experimental, Alternative Pop/Rock, Ambient Pop, Indie Electronic
The Summer Obsession This Is Where You Belong Virgin Alternative Pop/Rock, Emo
Too Short Blow This Whistle Jive West Coast Rap, Dirty Rap, Hardcore Rap
Pete Townshend Who Came First [Bonus Tracks] Hip-O Album Rock, Pop/Rock, Prog-Rock/Art Rock, Hard Rock, Singer/Songwriter
Bob Wills/His Texas Playboys The Legends of Country Music Columbia/Legacy Western Swing, Traditional Country
Pete Yorn Nightcrawler Red Ink/Columbia Adult Alternative Pop/Rock, Singer/Songwriter
Young Dro Best Thang Smokin' Grand Hustle/Atlantic Southern Rap, Gangsta Rap
