THE GROOVEMAN'S COLLECTION

REVIEWS FROM MY VINYL COLLECTION

Month: January 2023 (Page 3 of 11)

THE ROLLING STONES – Exile On Main Street

January 26, 2023 /

My two favourite Stones albums are this and Sticky Fingers, released one after the other when the band were in a gold period creatively. The main recording for this album took place in a villa in the south of France when the exotic substances were flowing. This is a very sprawling album that feels like every idea they had was put on tape and put out.

I love the loose feel, and the blues (or their take on it) is oozing from every groove. I don’t think the Stones got any better after this. There is a huge southern influence throughout this album after the recording of last album at Muscle Shoals.

Tumbling Dice is an obvious choice for favourite track, but I’m going for Shine A Light as that slight gospel vibe suits the band so well, and I love Mick Taylor’s solo. It’s a shame Mick Taylor didn’t stick around as he was perfect for the band.

This type of album would never get made today, as bands are not given the freedom to explore and create like the bands were in the late sixties, early seventies.

9/10 from The Grooveman.

JOE SATRIANI – What Happens Next

January 26, 2023 /

Being a fan of all things guitar, Joe Satriani has consistently released great records ever since I first became aware of him with Surfing With The Alien. This is Joe’s sixteenth release that came out in 2018. It was recorded as a 3-piece with Chad Smith on drums, and Glenn Hughes on bass. I really love this record, it has such a great groove and the production is superb.

Energy is very identifiable as Joe, but Catbot is just awesome. It has a monster bass line and Chad’s drums give Joe that platform to rip it up. Thunder On The Mountain starts with some experimental sounds and vibes, before the huge big beat arrives.

I’m going to skip to my favourite moments. As well as the already mentioned Catbot, the double kick blast of Headrush with a Peter Green inspired riff is up there, as well as the very funky Looper, which is my favourite piece on the album, and the reggae tinged Invisible.

Joe is a master of his craft and long may he release albums as good as this.

9/10 from The Grooveman.

THUNDER – All The Right Noises

January 25, 2023 /

Thunder are a band that that have been around since ’89. Born out of the ashes of Terraplane, they are a band I haven’t totally got to grips with. They can write some of the best rock tunes out there, but they’ve never released a killer record from beginning to end. I am amazed they never cracked America, their music is tailor-made for that market. Anyhoo, let’s dive in to their thirteenth album.

Just to prove my point, they lead off with Last One Out Turns Out The Lights, a monumental monster of a tune. Superb hook and chorus that will have you singing it for days. Absolute killer track and I’m loving the horns. They follow that with Destruction, a very heavy blues, really slow, and dirty. Great vocal from Danny and the ladies singing bv’s are superb. Sticking to that blues vibe with the acoustic driven Smoking Gun. This is all about Danny’s vocals, which are just superb. Not a bad side of tunes that’s for sure.

Going To Sin City has a huge AC/DC vibe to it, mainly due to the riff and the guitars. Whether that’s intentional or not, you’ll have to make up your own mind. A pounding bass and kick drum announce the arrival of Don’t Forget To Live Before You Die, it has a big Zeppelin vibe in places for sure, especially the big guitar riffs. I’ll Be The One feels a bit like a Bond movie theme tune. Again, a killer vocal from Danny and a superb solo from Mr. Morley. I love the main opening riff to Young Man, a big southern rock feel to this one with a just hint of T.Rex.

Here it is folks, the Faces-style tune that they put on every album. I guess they have a love of that barroom rock n’ roll. It seems that this album is quite nostalgic and patriotic, and sees them harking back to better times. St. George’s Day is all about that, with the undertone of Britain falling apart. Who says hard rock bands don’t have a social conscience? Force Of Nature starts with an acoustic riff that is very familiar indeed. It really comes alive when the power is turned on. Great tune! The album closes out with Millionairess, a tune that feels as though it was born in Muscle Shoals. A very cool Deep South groove.

I think this is one of Thunder’s best efforts, but doesn’t quite make the 10.

9/10 from The Grooveman.

SHY – Brave The Storm

January 25, 2023 /

Shy were originally known as Trojan, where they played a more hard edge rock before they changed their name and style. After seeing the success of bands like Journey and Foreigner, there were a lot of bands that changed their own sound to accommodate the more melodic aspects of rock. Shy were one of the UK’s more successful rock acts who followed that path.

Lead by the amazing vocal talents of Tony Mills, who had an unreal range hitting notes that no one else could, they had a brief time in the limelight. The first three albums (of which this is the second) were their best attempts. The single Hold Onto Your Love opens up the album, but it wasn’t allowed to chart as it had a T-shirt shrink wrapped with it and was disqualified.

My Apollo is pure keyboard aor nirvana, and Tony’s voice just soars above the song. Of course the ballad is king in aor circles and Reflections is just a run of the mill tune, some of the harmonies don’t quite work for me. Keep The Fires Burning  is an uptempo aor groover with a nice hook and chorus, and Mills’ high notes are incredible. Side 1 closes out with The Hunter. A simple riff, but the layered vocals on this track are a bit too much. Sometimes less is more.

The title track kicks off Side 2 and the intro could have been any New Romantic pop band of the time, it’s only the hook and chorus that bring them back to rock territory. Wild Wild Woman is a very American rock radio-style tune and there is a lot going on musically compared to the rest of the album. Caught In The Act follows and it’s a very west coast sounding, laid back tune. The album closes out with Was I Wrong. They say save the best till’ last, and they certainly did here. It’s definitely my favourite track as it’s a whole league above any of the other tracks here. Great hook, groove, and Mills’ voice is perfect on this tune.

Looking back now after all these years, it’s easy to see why they never made the big time. There is only one really good track here, and you have to have great songs to break through.

6.5/10 from The Grooveman.

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