New Releases

Monty Alexander - Monty Meets Sly and Robbie
John Crossett

Little Willie G. - Make Up for the Lost Time
Marc Rigrodsky

Lee Konitz - Another Shade of Blue
John Crossett

Respighi - Pines of Rome, Fountains of Rome, Metamorphoseon Modi XII
Neil Walker

Music of Miklos Rózsa
Deryk Barker

José Serebrier - Serebrier Conducts Serebrier
Paul Schumann

Sibelius - Symphonies Nos. 1-7, Miscellaneous Orchestral Works
Deryk Barker

Rolf Smedvig - Virtuoso
Paul Schumann

Lavay Smith and Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers - Everybody’s Talkin’ ‘Bout Miss Thing
Doug Blackburn

Bill Staines - October's Hill
David J. Cantor

Starker Plays Baker
Roger Kanno

Eric Andersen - You Can't Relive the Past
David J. Cantor

Freddy Cole - Merry Go Round
John Crossett

Music of Hovhaness
Neil Walker

Paul Rishell and Annie Raines - Moving Back to the Country
Doug Blackburn

Randy Weeks - Madeline
Marc Rigrodsky

Remasters

Music by Ernest Bloch
Roger Kanno

• The James Taylor Collection
  

• Book Review - Gramophone Classical Good CD Guide 2000
  
  

• SoundStage! Talks with
  Bob Ludwig (11/1999)
  Jay Aston (10/1999),
  
  
• On That Note
  Hard Bop (9/1999)
  Alternative Rock (5/1999)
  
  
• The Best Recordings of
  1999
  
  
• Bustin' Out Our Best
  1998, 1997

SnapShot! Archives

Bad Livers - Blood & Mood
Sugar Hill SUG-CD-3905, 2000

SnapShot! Rating:

Ex-SoundStage! music writer Craig Schilling first told me about Bad Livers, but it's their musical schtick that hooked me. Imagine crossing Doc Watson with the Clash and then sprinkling the product with a bit of Sublime and They Might Be Giants and you get an idea of what Bad Livers are about -- bluegrassy punk with an urban edge and some too-smart-for-their-own-good attitude. Blood & Mood is the Livers third release on Sugar Hill, and I can't say it's their best or worst -- it's just theirs. "Fish Magnet" is hip-hoppy and wry, a collection of bemused observations, while "I'm Losing" sounds like Devo via George Jones. "Itty Bitty Town" tells a story about small-town life -- and it's bor-ing. Bad Livers would get run out of Nashville, but they're perfect for Austin, Texas, the only town I know of where a song like "The Legend of Sawdust Boogers" and its radio clips would be appreciated. Blood & Mood is a great choice for the musically adventurous....Marc Mickelson

Paul Simon - Greatest Hits: Shining Like a National Guitar
Warner Bros. WTVD 47721, 2000

SnapShot! Rating:

Paul Simon has been one of the 20th century’s most prolific and consistent pop singer/songwriters, and this single-disc greatest-hits package is a fitting tribute to his talent and will appeal to a wide audience. Spanning 1972 to 1997, crossing various musical styles, there’s "Graceland," "Mother and Child Reunion," "Slip Slidin’ Away," "Kodachrome," "Loves Me Like a Rock" and 14 others that most will know well. The sound is exceedingly clean with an abundance of detail, perhaps just sliding to the side of being a tad too crisp, but splendid overall. If you’re a fan of Paul Simon but don’t necessarily want to buy all his albums (or a boxed set), or perhaps you just want to own the latest remastering of his work, this is a must-have disc....Doug Schneider