SOUND CHECK.Los Lobos/``Los Lobos: El Cancionero, Mas y Mas'' (Rhino) When you think of great Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. bands, the usual suspects come to mind - the Beach Boys, the Doors, Little Feat, Van Halen and the Eagles. Listen to this remarkable collection and you might be whistling a different tune, and it has nothing to do with those indelible opening chords from ``La Bamba La Bamba can refer to:
Los Lobos can play anything - blues, ballads, folk, Tex-Mex, boleros, rancheras and rock - and make it their own, creating a body of work that can stand with any band, whether they hail from (East) L.A. or otherwise. This set features the best cuts from their studio albums along with a number of little-heard songs culled from soundtracks, tribute albums and offshoot projects. Beautiful music from a one-of-a-kind group. Four stars - Glenn Whipp Various/``Schoolhouse Rock'' (Rhino) Nobody has ever made learning multiplication tables or parts of speech more fun than the people behind ``Schoolhouse Rock,'' the '70s television shorts that ABC ABC in full American Broadcasting Co. Major U.S. television network. It began when the expanding national radio network NBC split into the separate Red and Blue networks in 1928. sandwiched between its Saturday morning junk food junk food n. Any of various prepackaged snack foods high in calories but low in nutritional value. junk food . Musical director Bob Dorough Bob Dorough (born 12 December 1923) is an American bebop and cool jazz pianist, composer and vocalese singer. He worked with Miles Davis and Allen Ginsberg, and his adventurous style was an influence on Mose Allison, among other singers. wrote most of the classics - ``Three Is a Magic Number'' and ``Conjunction Junction'' among them - along with the equally witty Dave Frishberg and this four-CD set (encased en·case tr.v. en·cased, en·cas·ing, en·cas·es To enclose in or as if in a case. en·case  ment n. in a metal lunchbox) collects 52 of the best tracks. Great for kids, not to mention their parents who might need to brush up to paint, or make clean or bright with a brush; to cleanse or improve; to renew.See also: Brush on grammar and the Constitution. Three and one half stars - G.W. Chick Corea/``Solo Piano: Standards'' (Stretch/Concord) On ``Standards,'' Corea gives us transcendent interpretations of such 1930s-40s Great American Songbook tunes as ``But Beautiful,'' ``Yesterdays,'' ``So in Love'' and ``How Deep Is the Ocean.'' But what makes the CD even more exciting is that Corea pays homage to the two pianists/composers who most strongly influenced him, playing four pieces by Thelonious Monk and two from Bud Powell. Corea captures Monk's impishness imp·ish adj. Of or befitting an imp; mischievous. imp ish·ly adv.imp and trademark angularity an·gu·lar·i·ty n. pl. an·gu·lar·i·ties 1. The quality or condition of being angular. 2. angularities Angular forms, outlines, or corners. Noun 1. beautifully on ``Blue Monk.'' Deep rumblings in the lower register propel Powell's lesser-known ``Dusk in Sandi,'' and Corea is cheerfully uninhibited uninhibited /un·in·hib·it·ed/ (un?in-hib´i-ted) free from usual constraints; not subject to normal inhibitory mechanisms. and even rowdy on the famous ``Oblivion.'' It is hard to imagine solo jazz piano being played at a higher level than this. Four stars - Bob Protzman Knight Ridder Newspapers Snoop Dogg/``The Last Meal'' (No Limit/Priority) It's hard to teach Snoop Dogg new tricks. Eight years after he made his debut on Dr. Dre's ``The Chronic,'' the rapper sounds more and more passe pas·sé adj. 1. No longer current or in fashion; out-of-date. 2. Past the prime; faded or aged. [French, past participle of passer, to pass, from Old French; see with each new simulated shotgun blast. Creatively speaking, gangsta-rap is on its last legs, but Snoop is in no hurry to give it a transfusion. ``The Last Meal,'' his latest CD for Master P.'s No Limit label, is a tired journey through gangstaland cliches - including the annoying over-reliance on guest stars. With the exception of Master P. and Magic's heated interplay on ``Back Up Off Me,'' Snoop's pals bring very little to the party. While his guest list is impressive (Eve, Ice Cube, MC Ren, etc.), most of the vocals aren't - including Mac Minista's blustery blus·ter v. blus·tered, blus·ter·ing, blus·ters v.intr. 1. To blow in loud, violent gusts, as the wind during a storm. 2. a. To speak in a loudly arrogant or bullying manner. ode-to-Snoop in ``Game Court,'' a song that blatantly rips off ``Theme from Shaft.'' Like so many No Limit discs, half of ``The Last Meal's'' obligatory 75 minutes feels like an exercise in time-killing. Two stars - Thor Christensen Dallas Morning News John Stetch/``Heaven of a Hundred Days'' (Justing Time) Pianist Stetch is an ensemble guy. He subsumes his playing into his quartet's sound, and the result gives teamwork a good name. This CD, one of this winter's most beautiful jazz records, is full of cool quiet and the kind of group interplay that genuine camaraderie can produce. Stetch isn't afraid to wait for ideas to develop. His judicious silences give room for his quartet - tenor saxophonist Bill McHenry, bassist Ben Street and drummer Jeff Ballard - to assert itself, ofter in the service of rich mood. Some of Stetch's modern classic forays seem unfriendly, but he shows exciting promise whether it's on his title track composition, which the quartet makes large and orchestral, or his finger-snapping take of ``Love for Sale.'' Three and one half stars CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1) Los Lobos (2) Bob Dorough, left, and Dave Frishberg make learning fun with ``Schoolhouse Rock.'' |
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