SOUND CHECK.SPOTLIGHT ON... Various/``The Doo Wop Box III: 101 More Vocal Group Gems'' (Rhino) Rhino's first ``Doo Wop Box,'' issued in 1993, is the company's best- selling box ever. The third volume in the series features more enduring examples of pitch-perfect street-corner harmony, shoulda-been hits, doo- wop favorites chosen by celebs who grew up on the music (Keith Richards, Robert Plant, Dave and Phil Alvin Phil Alvin (born March 6, 1953 in Downey, California) is an American singer and guitarist. He is known primarily as the frontman of the roots-rock band The Blasters , George Carlin car·line or car·lin n. Scots A woman, especially an old one. [Middle English kerling, from Old Norse, from karl, man.] , Dion, Quincy Jones and others) and a diverse set of current doo-wop tracks by the likes of Paul Simon Noun 1. Paul Simon - United States singer and songwriter (born in 1942) Simon , the Stray Cats The Stray Cats are a rockabilly band formed in 1979 by guitarist/vocalist Brian Setzer (Bloodless Pharaohs/Brian Setzer Orchestra) with school friends Lee Rocker (born Leon Drucker) and Slim Jim Phantom (born James McDonnell) in the Long Island town of Massapequa, New York. , the Beach Boys and Boyz II Men Boyz II Men is an American R&B/soul singing group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1988 as a quintet which originally included Marc Nelson, Boyz II Men found fame as a quartet, with members Nathan Morris, Michael McCary, Shawn Stockman, and Wanya Morris, on Motown . The intriguing four-disc collection, which once again makes an argument for doo-wop as the beginning of the novelty tune, is a delight, especially the shoulda-been selection, which is packed with superb lost tunes like the Harptones' ``My Memories of You,'' Little Anthony & the Imperials' ``Traveling Stranger'' and the El Dorados' ``Bim Bam Boom.'' The celeb ce·leb n. Informal A celebrity. picks offer surprise, too. Predictably, the Alvin brothers' well-informed choices, including the Colts' ``Sheik of Araby'' and the Honey Bears' ``One Bad Stud,'' are gems, as is Richards' pick, the Chantels' ``Maybe.'' But really, most every cut on this box set's first three CDs is a joy. The fourth disc, devoted to modern doo-wop, is useful, but only goes to prove doo-wop is a dish best served with a little aging. Three and one half stars - Fred Shuster Brian Setzer Orchestra/``Vavoom!'' (Interscope) You gotta hand it to Setzer, who on his new album updates the 17-piece swing sound he went to the bank on when ``The Dirty Boogie'' hit the Top 10 in 1998. Taking six scuffed-up standards, including ``Mack the Knife,'' an instrumental ``Caravan,'' ``Gloria'' and ``Pennsylvania 6-5000,'' the guitarist-singer stretches out and adds tape loops, hip-hop beats, female singers and even new lyrics for ``In the Mood.'' Best of all, though, are the album's eight originals, which range from late-'40s jump blues (``Jumpin' East of Java'') to swamp-rock (``If You Can't Rock Me'') and big-band crime-jazz (``From Here to Eternity''). With ``Vavoom!'' Setzer delivers another winner. Three stars - F.S. Various/``The Birth of Hard Bop'' (Savoy/Atlantic) When the term ``hard bop'' was coined in the '50s, it meant jazz that had rhythmic drive and blues harmonies and drew its inspiration from gospel. This sturdy two-disc set offers rare sessions from 1956, led by tenor saxophonist Hank Mobley and trumpeter Donald Byrd. Of course, with such star power, you can expect the backing crew to be stellar, too, and pianists Horace Silver and Hank Jones, drummer Kenny Clarke and a young, enthusiastic Lee Morgan all provide fireworks fireworks: see pyrotechnics. fireworks Explosives or combustibles used for display. Of ancient Chinese origin, fireworks evidently developed out of military rockets and explosive missiles and accompanied the spread of military explosives westward to , typified by the loose, driving tracks ``Budo,'' ``Hank's Shout'' and ``Thad's Blues.'' Three stars - F.S. Beenie Man/``Art and Life'' (Virgin) Reggae dance hall star Beenie Man - born Moses Davis, and a star in his native Jamaica since 1986's ``The Invincible Beenie Man, 10-Year-Old DJ Wonder'' - makes his big crossover move on ``Art and Life.'' Purists addicted to dance hall's digital rhythms and gruff ragamuffin rhymes will no doubt cry foul at the bald attempt to court American radio programmers with heavy-handed production and guest spots by r&b sirens Kelis and Mya and hip-hoppers Redman and Wyclef Jean. But those turned off by 'Clef's spotlight-hogging on ``Love Me Now'' or the macho posturing ``Haters and Fools'' are advised to dig into the sweet-and-tough Mya duet ``Girls Dem Sugar,'' muscular ``Jamaica Way'' or rugged neck-snapper ``The Best That I Got.'' ``Art and Life'' doesn't quite live up to its grandiose ambitions, but Beenie Man does manage to extend his reach without losing his soul. Three stars - Dan DeLuca Philadelphia Inquirer Morcheeba/``Fragments of Freedom'' (London/Sire) Longtime fans who have been following this beat-savvy UK trio for the past four years - 1996's ``Who Can You Trust?'' and 1998's ``Big Calm'' - may be surprised (let's hope pleasantly) by the aural landscape of ``Fragments of Freedom.'' Gone are the trip-hop-skewed beats, gone are the electronica mood swings, and gone is the band's signature downbeat down·beat n. 1. Music a. The downward stroke made by a conductor to indicate the first beat of a measure. b. The first beat of a measure. 2. Informal A period of stagnation or inactivity. vibe (don't fret, the band's thorough understanding of melancholia MELANCHOLIA, med. jur. A name given by the ancients to a species of partial intellectual mania, now more generally known by the name of monomania. (q.v.) It bore this name because it was supposed to be always attended by dejection of mind and gloomy ideas. Vide Mania., is in full effect, albeit with a touch more optimism). In their place are sunny rhythms, buoyant melodies and hip-twitchin' beats, which are only complemented by Morcheeba's seamless merging of live funk, blues and folk elements. Highlights include the Bill Withers-dusted ``Good Girl Down,'' the Dusty Springfield-hued ``Rome Wasn't Built in a Day "Rome Wasn't Built in a Day" is a single by Morcheeba released in 2000. Song information Track Listings ,'' the Tom Tom Club-shaded ``Love Sweet Love,'' the Meters-styled ``World Looking In'' and Prelude-era disco (''Shallow End''). The set also finds Morcheeba - brothers Paul and Ross Godfrey and Skye Edwards - collaborating with members of the hip-hop community, including Biz Markie, Bahamadia, Mr. Complex, DJ Crossphader, and DJ First Rate. Three and one half stars - Billboard Little Feat/``Chinese Work Songs'' (CMC International) Little Feat's 16th release revisits familiar territory, and for much of the disc proves that good songwriting and quality musicianship never go out of style. It kicks off in fine form with a rollicking rol·lick·ing adj. Carefree and high-spirited; boisterous: a rollicking celebration. rol version of ``Rag Mama Rag.'' The mood is up, the groove is solid, and with songs like ``Eula'' adding a Bayou flavor, or ``Just Another Sunday'' echoing township jive, the Feats aren't failing you now. The band shows it has energy to spare on the boogie ``Marginal Creatures'' and on the madly rocking title track. In addition to the original material, Little Feat also covers Phish's ``Sample in a Jar,'' the Hooters' ``Gimme gim·me Informal Contraction of give me. adj. Slang Demanding material things or especially money; acquisitive: today's gimme society; tired of gimme letters. n. a Stone'' and Bob Dylan's ``It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry.'' Shaun Murphy sings with a nicely rough edge, complementing the slide guitar, on ``Bed of Roses,'' but goes way over the top on the tear-in-a-beer ``Rio Esperanza.'' For the most part, however, this is an enjoyable, workmanlike work·man·like adj. Befitting a skilled artisan or craftsperson; skillfully done. workmanlike Adjective skilfully done: a neat workmanlike job Adj. 1. release from a longtime quality band that is not content to simply regurgitate re·gur·gi·tate v. 1. To rush or surge back. 2. To cause to pour back, especially to cast up partially digested food. re·gur its old hits. Two and one half stars - Richard Paton Toledo Blade Kina/``Kina'' (DreamWorks) There are so many reasons to champion r&b singer-songwriter Kina ki·na n. pl. kina See Table at currency. [Indigenous word in Papua New Guinea.] Noun 1. (the last name is Cosper, but just Kina, please). She's an original doing her own thing. Judging by her lyrics, she's keenly self-aware and unafraid of her emotions. From the potent ``Have a Cry'': ``Is it alright if I cry/Without no positive speeches/Don't need no lessons on God/He knows I'm human, I got weaknesses/Don't just say it's alright/My life fell into ten pieces/Don't just say it's fine/Just let me have a cry.'' She's strong, too. Here's Kina dissing a dude who underestimated her potential: ``I hope your Hell is filled with magazines/And on every page you see a big picture of me/And under every picture a caption should read/Not bad for a girl from the gutter like me.'' Not bad at all. Plus, Kina's voice is pliable, navigating the melodic musical territory between Tina Turner and Melissa Etheridge with aplomb a·plomb n. Self-confident assurance; poise. See Synonyms at confidence. [French, from Old French a plomb, perpendicularly : a, according to (from Latin ad-; see . She's probably one hell of a live act. So why isn't ``Kina'' the knockout it should be? Blame it on overly slick and pedestrian production. ``Kina'' needs an edge - her merging of rock and r&b demands this - but the CD's polished sound resembles one of Turner's '90s CDs minus the dance tunes. Better luck next time. Two and one half stars - Howard Cohen cohen or kohen (Hebrew: “priest”) Jewish priest descended from Zadok (a descendant of Aaron), priest at the First Temple of Jerusalem. The biblical priesthood was hereditary and male. Miami Herald CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Dion and the Belmonts Dion and the Belmonts were a leading American singing group of the late 1950s. The group formed when Dion DiMucci joined The Belmonts - Carlo Mastrangelo, Freddie Milano, and Angelo D'Aleo - in late 1957. can be heard on ``The Doo Woo Box III.'' |
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