Justin Currie ---- again

Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction!!! The Boss and lady gaga

Muse Live Concert

Full stream of gig from Seattle from current Muse tour.


Muse "The Resistance Tour - Live"

MUSE

MySpace Music Videos

Justin Currie - The Great War

Fantastic new album from the ex Del Amitri front man and a worthy follow up to What Is Love For! Just had the chance for a couple of quick run through but some superb material on this album which has much more of a band feel.

Standout tracks for me are

A Man With Nothing To Do
Cant Let Go Of Her Now
As Long As You Don't Come Back



It is just a superb record with great lyrics, brilliant playing......cannot recommend this highly enough.

The Villagers

Debut album and tour during May. Dont know much about them other than this from the myspace page:

‘Villagers’ began life as a nameless collection of musical poems, all under the pen of one Conor J. O’Brien. “Ultimately, I’ve learned that a song is not an isolated thing. You have to wash the dishes before you write a song. It should never be taken too seriously. It must be treated with joy and humour, regardless of the subject matter,” muses Conor, as he strokes his hairless chin.

Well whatever - but the lead single is a cracker.



And a good performance on Jools Holland:

David Byrne - Here is Love

I love David Byrne and last year his two shows were, perhaps, the best I saw that year.


Ride, Rise, Roar trailer from ride, rise, roar on Vimeo.


But I must admit I had serious reservations about his latest project, a song play about Imelda Marcos with many collaborations. My fears were totally unfounded as the music and vocals from the guest artists is just superb.

The 2CD set deserves a proper review and I look forward to pulling something together soon.

In the meantime here is a sampler of the album as a  stream, and I would point you in the direction of the magnificent Steve Earle track "A Perfect Hand".

Van Morrison

Van is currently playing a smattering of shows across USA and Europe, far from a tour as such and there are only 2 UK outdoor dates. Pity as the set;ists and Band are both excellent:

Setlist:


Nothern Muse (Solid Ground)

Brown Eyed Girl

Fair Play

The Mystery

Talk is Cheap

St James Infirmary

Moondance

Have I Told You Lately

Keep it Simple

School of Hard Knocks

Help Me

Healing Has Begun

Ballerina



Band:
Jay Berliner-electric guitar

David Hayes-double bass

Bobby Ruggiero-drums

Tony Fitzgibbon-violin, viola

Richie Buckley-flute, saxophone

Paul Moran-grand piano

Ian Hunter - Rain

Mary Chapin Carpenter - Live In The Studio, new song

http://www.amazon.com/gp/mpd/permalink/m1SDHJBCNWDOKW

Broooce Uncut Special

I quote.......

"Bruce Springsteen - The Ultimate Music Guide


Following on from the hugely successful Ultimate Music Guide: U2, Uncut are proud to present the essential guide to the most inspirational rock star of the last 40 years. Over 148 pages, our team of writers provide a comprehensive survey of Springsteen’s work, from his first stirrings in New Jersey to the passionate elder statesmen described by Barack Obama as “The rock and roll laureate”.

The Ultimate Music Guide: Springsteen includes detailed analyses of each one of his albums, revealing the hidden stories behind these landmark recordings. There is a guide to rarities, discographies and a wealth of info guaranteed to amaze the band’s legion of fans.

The Ultimate Music Guide: Springsteen exploits Uncut’s unique access to the NME and Melody Maker archives, reprinting a host of classic interviews with the man, unseen for decades. It also, as Uncut does each month, presents the very best in rock photography. "

Wonder if there can possible be anything new! Certainly the cover will not attract anyone other than committed Springsteen fans!

Betty LaVette - Forthcoming Album

I had not heard of Betty Lavette untilo fairly recently. It is worth checking out her version of Streets of Philladelphia and in 2008, she performed The Who’s “Love Reign O’er Me,” at The Kennedy Center Honors. The rendition reportedly brought the song’s author Pete Townshend to tears, and became the starting point for an album of covers titled Interpretations: The British Rock Songbook. The album comes out May 25 via Anti.


The record’s 13 songs give LaVette’s signature soul treatment to British-rock classics from the Beatles to Led Zeppelin to Pink Floyd to Elton John. Check out the tracklist below.

Interpretations: The British Rock Songbook tracklist:

1. The Word (John Lennon/Paul McCartney)

2. No Time To Live (James Capaldi/Stephen Winwood)

3. Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood (Bennie Benjamin/Gloria Caldwell/Sol Marcus)

4. All My Love (John Baldwin/Robert Plant)

5. Isn’t It A Pity (George Harrison)

6. Wish You Were Here (David Gilmour/Roger Waters)

7. It Don’t Come Easy (Richard Starkey)

8. Maybe I’m Amazed (Paul McCartney)

9. Salt Of The Earth (Michael Jagger/Keith Richards)

10. Nights In White Satin (David Hayward)

11. Why Does Love Got To Be So Sad (Eric Clapton/Bobby Whitlock)

12. Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me (Elton John/Bernard Taupin)

13. Love Reign O’er Me (Peter Townshend)

Danny and The Champions of The World

I have been enjoying this album very much. Although this is a new band I am reasonably familiar with the lead singer / guitarist / songwriter Danny George Wilson through his previous work in Grand Drive (who are also work checking out).



here is an early incarnation of the lead track Henry The Van  as well, it is brilliant on the record:

It's Josh Time! - Full album stream until May 4th

Enjoy!

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=126173168#playlist

Mary Chapin Carpenter - The Age of Miracles

I have found it really hard to get any information on this forthcoming release. Her web site has nothing and I eventually found a wee bit of info on the Rounder website:

"The Age of Miracles is Mary Chapin Carpenter’s third release on Zoe/Rounder Records. Written and recorded over the past three years, The Age of Miracles is a personal exploration of regret and resilience from the world-renowned singer-songwriter as a well as larger, more universal expression of wonder at the times we are living in. The record features an incredible line-up of musicians, including longtime collaborator Matt Rollings (piano, B-3 organ) as well as Russ Kunkel (drums), Duke Levine (electric and acoustic guitar) and Glenn Worf (bass). Also featured on the album are guest vocals from Vince Gill and Alison Krauss. "

Released on 10 May 2010 according to Amazon and from the previews another solid album from MCC!

Band Of Horses

The forthcoming Band Of Horses Cd is creating a lot of interest and they had a great performance on later tonight. There are a couple of preview tracks on their web page

Check out Laredo and Factory here:

www.bandofhorses.com