Still Miles Ahead of His Time

In December 1970, on the week before Christmas, Miles Davis, with his entourage of musicians in tow (keyboardist Keith Jarrett, Gary Bartz on alto sax, bassist Michael Henderson, percussionist Airto Moreira, guitarist extraordinaire John McLaughlin & drummer Jack DeJohnette), set up shop for three nights at a club in Washington, DC, The Cellar Door. Once upon a time back in 1969, Miles told Downbeat writer Don DeMichael, that he could put together "the greatest (expletive) rock n' roll band you ever heard." With this group of young bucks which he was prodding on for a few nights in a row, these sessions serve as a confirmation that he came awful close to doing just that. At the same time, these sessions reveal a very electric & electrifying group which was capable of tearing the roof off The Cellar Door; that's how intense they were as a collective unit.

As one can see, Miles played music, plain & simple. It wasn't just jazz. It wasn't just funk. It wasn't just rock either. In a sense, it was all of the above, music that was/still is far ahead of its time. He dug Sly Stone & James Brown in the same way that he dug Hendrix & this carryover of influences would find its way into what is now The Cellar Door Sessions 1970. For some, this 6-CD set is challenging as much as it is adventurous. But nonetheless, it is powerful, very imposing music which only Miles could bring forth. And if we think listening to the Grateful Dead or even Phish performing live is a heady experience (or should I say one heavy trip), nothing will prepare one for what The Cellar Door Sessions has to offer. This is as good as jamming gets on stage, with a real "out for blood" vibe Miles' various electric groups delivered in spades but none as close as this box set readily demonstrates: pure, unedited, passionate, aggressive, turbulent, futuristic music - in short, the real deal when it comes to the man himself in every phase of his career.

From CD 1 up through CD 4, there is hardly a dull moment to be had with Miles & company.(Airto Moreira shows up on percussion from CD 2 onwards.) The band approaches the music from different angles & perspectives, keeping things fresh & unique with each subsequent performance of "Directions," "What I Say," "Inamorata," & "Honky Tonk." Which brings to mind how John Coltrane performed his compositions at The Complete 1961 Village Vanguard Sessions or even the Dead everytime they played, say, "Dark Star," on The Fillmore West Concerts of 1969. But Miles wanted to take things a notch further, so he added guitarist John McLaughlin into the mix for the last night of shows (CDs 5 & 6). This may have led the group to rethink & restrategize their musical roles, but in the long run, their last night at the Cellar Door was a frigging good one, so much so that a live album was released in 1971 documenting this show in edited, tweaked-up form (Live-Evil).

Miles' soloing, either on open horn or through a wah-wah, is top-notch & of course majorly on fire. However, the two other key soloists for the Cellar Door recordings, Jarrett & McLaughlin, are equally smoking & definitely amazing. Jarrett gets a chance to shine through on his Fender Rhodes electric piano/Fender organ combination & his solo spots are superb as much as they are inventive (the four improvisations he takes here are great examples of what he can do when cut loose to explore the great musical unknown). McLaughlin, who can be heard on the last 2 CDs of this box set, proved he was up there with Hendrix when it came to administering blazing solos & delivered some of the most intense music of his career before making greater waves with his Mahavishnu Orchestra the following year.

I've given enough superlatives about The Cellar Door Sessions already. Yet there are some more: a 96-page booklet with reflections/insightful essays from each of the surviving band members, great sound (BTW), even a synopsis on how the Live-Evil album was pieced together. In the final assessment I'm giving this whole box set, this is another crown jewel in the Miles Davis Deluxe Box Set series. For folks who love listening to jam bands & are looking for something to intrigue & surprise them, The Cellar Door Sessions 1970 will fit the bill nicely. For diehard fans of Miles' electric period, this is a box set to consider looking into. For anyone with an open-minded love for music in general, The Cellar Door Sessions is everything you wanted to know about Miles Davis: fiery, passionate, intense, etc...a man who was far ahead of his time when it came to changing the history of not only jazz but the entire history of popular music in the process.

Listening to some of this compilation again, I can't help but come to the same conclusion: Miles was definitely miles ahead of his time for sure & for that we ought to give him our thanks. And one more reason why he's held a place as one of my top five musicians all-time.

Told ya so!!

In my previous blog, I focused on some of the more memorable events which went down in this season's NBA playoffs, & like I envisioned, the above stuff which I hoped (or wished) would happen did happen:

(1) The Spurs finally got a win this season @ Salt Lake City, at long last!! Now they've got a 3-1 advantage in the series & I'll be dipped if they don't take the Jazz out in one more game. San Antonio, right now, is running on all cylinders with the obvious suspects running the court like royalty (in Tim Duncan & Tony Parker) but they've got other lethal weapons that they can count on to pick up the slack if need be. Utah, on the other hand, needs more than Mehmet Okur & (even more so) Carlos Boozer scoring points if they're even thinking about making this a down-to-the-wire series (which so far hasn't been the case).
(2) The Detroit & Cleveland series is now tied @ 2 games apiece. Could this be reminiscent of last year when the Cavs fell oh-so-close to making it into the divisional finals & upsetting Detroit? Could Lebron James & co. finally purge last year's ghosts off the court & knock off the Pistons? If Detroit's not ready to play, the momentum & odds of getting into the NBA Finals could swing into Cleveland's favor real quick. Question is, which of the two teams has more fire in their eyes? And which one of them is most ready to finish business? This is shaping up to be the series I hoped that it would be & Cleveland actually is making a believer out of me at the present time.

As stated before, it isn't over until it's over. Not yet anyways. And not with some of the NBA's best players showing the upstarts how to make noise in the playoffs.

It Isn't Over Until It's Over

This season in the NBA playoffs has provided more twists & turns than I've ever wanted to experience. Among some of the memorable moments I could think of:

(1) Dallas (a #1 seed) getting knocked off by a #8 seed (Golden State). A lot of folks anticipated Dallas would win it all this season, while Golden State was barely above the radar, trying to salvage their season just to get into the playoffs. Imagine that. But in the first round, the tables got turned and Golden State waltzed into the second round, unfortunately to be deposed by the Utah Jazz. Then again, you've got to give (GS head coach & former coach for the Mavs, BTW) Don Nelson & his scrappy Warriors credit where it's due because they believed that they could accomplish what others believed was impossible: pulling off one of the biggest upsets in NBA playoff history.
(2) The Phoenix Suns versus the Spurs. A San Antonio-Phoenix matchup at this juncture of the playoffs seemed inevitable & of course it provided plenty of excitement...too much, in fact, some of Phoenix's go-to guys got suspended for the deciding games of this series (which San Antonio won to get into the Western Finals). Again, a lot of folks wanted Phoenix to win it all; man, it hurts to make an early exit, right? But so far, San Antonio, if they ever beat Utah at Salt Lake City, is firing on all cylinders; the Spurs are equally good with Tim Duncan & Tony Parker running the show.
(3) Miami, Orlando & Washington going a combined 0-12 in the first round. What happened to Dwyane Wade, Shaq & the rest of the Heat, getting swept by the Bulls? The Wizards didn't have it any better, getting knocked out by Lebron James & the Cavs. Same thing with Orlando against Detroit...everyone could have put up a fight with these dudes. Yet I'm particularly bummed by the Heat exiting as quickly as they did: What the...?
(4) The Detroit Pistons. So far, they're dominating in the Eastern Division. This isn't to say that their divisional finals (vs. Cleveland) are going to be a cakewalk. If so, it'll be a 7-game series for sure. If not...Detroit'll be preparing for their next opponent.

Like the old maxim goes, "It ain't over until it's over." Or borrowing a line from Animal House, "Nothing's over until we decide it is!!" In the NBA playoffs, like anywhere else in pro sports, anything can happen. Just ask Dirk Nowitzki or Steve Nash. Or even Baron Davis. Your call. But in the end, there's only one winner, one prize, one trophy to hold high as a testament of a team achieving success despite & in spite of all odds imaginable.

Music for everybody

Every time a new album from The Sea and Cake comes out, it's like a breath of fresh air. Or better yet, it's the perfect soundtrack for road trips, dancing around to...& if that's not enough, the summer months fast approaching!!

Everybody, their first release after a four-year hiatus, has definitely been worth the wait. Not only have TSAC remained true to creating the perfect indie-rock soundtrack to summer but they have continued to make music which is breezy, dreamy & danceable all at once. Even the album title itself is self-explanatory when it comes to explaining who The Sea and Cake made this music for.

For roughly 15 years now, Chicago's indie-rock stalwarts have been masters of great songwriting & songcraft, and Everybody is further proof of their accomplishments. At the same time, it's testimony of The Sea and Cake's longtime strengths working in their favor: guitarist/vocalist Sam Prekop's breathy croon & delivery are still intact; the guitars of Prekop & Archer Prewitt strumming merrily along over the telepathic rhythm section of bassist Eric Claridge and drummer John McEntire (who also plays drums/keyboards/etc. with Chi-town's other post-rock darlings & TSAC's fellow labelmates, Tortoise). And the playing of Claridge & McEntire are equally powerful, further solidifying their claim as one of indie-rock's most awesome rhythm sections around, period.

Yet, to quote an old maxim, "The more things change, the more they stay the same." What hasn't changed?
-the number of songs (10)
-the above stuff I mentioned about TSAC in the previous two paragraphs
-the cool front cover & photo art (done by Prekop himself, another one of his outstanding extracurricular activities)

What has changed? Everybody runs just over 36 minutes (as opposed to the usual TSAC release average of 40 minutes) but this brevity is also a benefit upon further listens: this album is one of TSAC's most direct, most straightforward sounding releases to date. Not only are The Sea and Cake getting more to the point; they also are living up to Thoreau's words, "Simplify, simplify." Great examples of this can be heard on "Crossing Line," "Coconut," "Exact To Me," & elsewhere, where the fab foursome of Chicago's indie-rock community deliver music that is kept simple, more stripped-down, minus the bells and whistles. And The Sea and Cake are still capable of going off into jamming mode as "Left On" readily confirms.

And instead of McEntire manning the boards for this recording (a longtime specialty of his; however, he did the finishing touches on this album back @ his home base in Chicago, SOMA Electronic Music Studios), the honors of recording Everybody went to Brian Paulson & with it the change of venue (up @ Benton Harbor, MI). The end results of this switch are not only a good call with all parties involved; this also gives Everybody a more warmer, immediate feel, reminiscent of its predecessors from 1995, Nassau and The Biz.

Picking up where they left off with 2003's more pop-oriented One Bedroom and Prekop's awesome 2005 solo release Who's Your New Professor, The Sea and Cake have truly created music for Everybody, that much is for sure - & this latest release is the best of both worlds from the above albums: danceable, breezy, dreamy...everything you could ever expect from The Sea and Cake & much more. If TSAC hasn't turned heads already, their latest release could do the trick. For The Sea and Cake has made a statement worth remembering in their roughly 15 years of existence, one that is going to endure for both new & longtime fans alike.

Yep, no kidding.

Being a proud fan of the Indianapolis Colts for the past several years (& well before they won it all a few months back), I can't help but think of one thing: will the Colts do it again next season? It's way too early to say but I've never held out hopes for repeats. I mean, the Cowboys did it during the early 90s, when their dynasty was still formidable with Aikman, Emmitt Smith & Michael Irvin running the show. Then, the Denver Broncos came along later on & proved that there are indeed second acts in the history of NFL football. Then New England stepped onto the scene (also, the Pats have always been one of the Colts' longtime playoff bugbears) to get their point across along the same lines as Denver & Dallas: no one said that it couldn't be done, right?

In NFL history, the doubters who felt Denver, Dallas, or the Pats couldn't pull off repeats were proven wrong & that to me is what makes pro football so exciting, not only to watch but to be a part of the excitement up in the stands, on the field...no kidding..

Back to my first question: can the Colts win another Super Bowl? Again, it's too soon to say. As is the case with many teams like Indy, the offseason is a time to rebuild, put new players into the mix, even worse trade your favorite stars. So who knows for sure? Positively, only the regular season will provide the answers to this question & it's a few months down the line. Until then, I'm patiently waiting (as who knows how many Colts fans were when they wanted Indy to finally win the Super Bowl).

Oh me, oh my...,it's Sky Blue Sky!!

Wilco, with its latest release, Sky Blue Sky, has taken another major step forward in their career but in an unusual way: by going backward. After the impressionistic, bring-the-noise soundscapes of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot & A Ghost Is Born (still love both albums, BTW), the more classic rock-oriented vibe of Sky Blue Sky might seem like a major letdown. But in the long run, this is still an awesome Wilco album & Jeff Tweedy is still one of the best flippin' songwriters around, yes, even now.

Another feature of Sky Blue Sky which might take some YHF & AGIB lovers aback is the mellow, laid-back vibe each song carries with it. But after Wilco's excursions into folk, a wee bit of electronic music, psychedelic & even Krautrock on the last two releases, this is a very welcome return to greener pastures. It's not that Tweedy & co. left the greener pastures behind on YHF & AGIB at all; there's a brighter ray of hope shining through this time around, however, which makes Sky Blue Sky such a warm & intimate album to love, even though it may take repeat listens to fully appreciate.

The opening track, "Either Way," is confirmation that things are more hopeful, that things are starting to look up - minus any barbed, cryptical punchlines. And if there are any defining moments which make SBS such a great album, it would be the centerpiece of the whole affair, "Impossible Germany." Talk about guitar heaven; this is as good as a 3-guitar attack gets when the sparks fly just right & the tape rolls merrily in the studio. Like an odd cross between Television, Steely Dan & Sonic Youth, "Impossible Germany" is one of my favorite tracks on the whole CD. With several dudes playing together in a room, you can feel the vibe just jumping out of the speakers, reminiscent of anything recorded during the late 60s-early 70s.

And the classic-rock connections are made in spades throughout: "Walken" channels Little Feat; "Shake It Off'" & "You Are My Face" recall the Grateful Dead at their early-7os peak (I think Tweedy's been listening to a little Pavement on the side as well...lol). The closer, "On and On and On" is one of Tweedy's brightest moments & at the same time one of the most gripping Wilco songs I ever have heard in an eternity due to its heartfelt delivery.

In the final analysis, Sky Blue Sky is one of Wilco's most enduring releases yet & another powerful document on why Jeff Tweedy & gang are still a force to be reckoned with in popular music. Not only that, but this is also the sound of a group which has arrived & finally come into its own musically. That much is beyond question. And equally enough reason to explain why this is one of the best releases of 2007.

Real Inspiration

When it comes to listening to music, I've always been an eclectic person at heart. In other words, I've always been open to pretty much every musical genre out there: pop, hip-hop, rap, dub, reggae, soul, post-rock, Krautrock, jazz...you get the picture. I'm not one to stay pigeonholed as far as listening to music is concerned. Likewise, when it comes to describing some of my all-time favorite albums, I try to keep things open & as interesting as possible. On a recent road trip which led me all the way to Sidney, Ohio, I had to put on Shuggie Otis' Inspiration Information, which'll be the CD of choice for this present review.

Released in 1974, Inspiration Information sounds like a more upbeat, sunnier version of Sly & The Family Stone's 1971 masterpiece of woozy, narcotic funky bliss, There's A Riot Goin' On & in a sense it is. Almost 3 years in the making, Inspiration is a song cycle which sounded far ahead of its time in more ways than one. It wasn't just soul, or straight R & B, or even funk - as a matter of fact, it sounds like a blurring of all three genres into something refreshingly beautiful & unique. If that isn't enough, virtually all the instruments - organ, electric piano, drums, bass, guitar, drum machine - were played by Shuggie himself. Talk about an awesome one-man band!! (& a precursor to like-minded folks like Prince, who performed primarily all by his lonesome on many of his early releases.)

Tim Gane, from the group Stereolab, remarked concerning this album, "...(Inspiration Information) is almost like a new style of music that could've developed but never did... That's the problem. It never developed past this record." To this day, I can't help but agree with Gane, because his observations about Inspiration Information are so right on. Add to the fact that Shuggie got dropped by his label (Epic) after finally completing his masterpiece; one wonders what could have been. In the musical climate of 1974, Inspiration sounded too futuristic, too startlingly unique. And yet this music sounds equally fresh in the present day as much as it did back then. Not only that, but it has also found ways to remain revolutionary & groundbreaking - as time has shown, it foretold other developments which would take place in popular music: DIY-style recording (of which Prince was a master, among others), post-rock, organic computer music, just to name a few.

Side two of the original album - BTW, 80% instrumentals - is an outstanding example of why Inspiration Information is still as startingly fresh & innovative over three decades later. From the proto-techno drum-machine marathon of "XL-30," the ambient soundscape done slow-jam style which is "Pling!", the angular reggae/funk of "Not Available," Shuggie was capable of demonstrating his strengths not only as a songwriter but also as an arranger, knowing what instrumentation to put into the mix as well as where & when to put it in. Side one follows the exact same lines as the second, with Shuggie's soulful vocals revealing a warmth & intimacy seldom found in too many musicians these days.

Inspiration Information, for me, was & has always been one of my favorite albums, bar none. (& despite the fact that I only fully embraced it after multiple listens...lol.) It isn't just R & B. Not soul either. Not just funk. In fact, it's all of the above & much more; good enough reason why I'm still singing praises about music in general.

Some things will never change...

Oh, my beloved Chicago Cubs!!

Just a few years after failing to get into the World Series, I can't help but wonder how this year's group will fare. So far, I haven't given up hope that they could win a divisional championship (then again, who hasn't among the diehard Cubs fans out there?); at the same time, I haven't held out hope that they could enter the World Series, as well as end their streak of futility in that department. But of course, it's still early in the season & the real tests are yet to come up for the Cubs during the next two months.

Then, clear across town from Wrigley Field, we have the White Sox. If this isn't a tale of two teams who have to prove to their fanbases that they can win ballgames; this is a tale of two teams who know their fans' expectations for this year. With the White Sox, they've got enough competition in their division & beyond to be worried about: Detroit, Minnesota, Cleveland, Boston (just to name a few bitter rivals other than the Cubs whom the Sox have to contend with).

And yes, there are the haters on either side of the fence who just can't stand the Cubs or Sox. True, the Sox shot themselves in the foot last season while the Cubs as usual had their season go down the tubes with injuries & other whatnot. But let's face it: the Windy City, when it comes to baseball, is one of the best places to be whether you're @ Wrigley or no. The question is, will both teams deliver the goods or will all the good intentions surrounding the Sox or Cubs' success for 2007 be "all talk, no action," just more false hopes promised to both young & hardcore fans alike?

Coming back to the Cubs, I can't help but wonder. There is still hope out there & if they play the style of baseball which they're capable of playing, anything good could happen. Whether it's against the Cards, the Reds, Braves, yes, even them White Sox too, the Cubs could make their presence felt on the field this season. But the question is, when? Only they can answer that question; we're just waiting it out hoping that they can live up to their potential & all the promises which come with it.

Looking into history

Last weekend was pretty eventful in more ways than one as I was able to take a random road trip which would finally lead me to Sidney, OH & by the way, one of the more important concrete railroad bridges in the United States (as well as one of the most awesome historic landmarks around): the Big Four (now CSX) bridge over the Great Miami River.

I've visited this bridge about 3 times already so I was prepared accordingly for this imposing structure. (For first-timers who don't know about this bridge already, you should check it out!!) Opened up to rail traffic in 1924, it is one of the more enduring landmarks of our times as well as the city of Sidney, OH & is great for photographing. Seriously, it's that awesome.

Not too far off, is another CSX bridge to take note of (& also the least accessible): it's over another CSX mainline (Toledo-on down south). I tried to get some reasonable photos here & I feel I did my best to get some awesome pics before heading back to Indiana...nice but challenging nonetheless.

If anything intrigues me or sparks my interest to the utmost degree, random road trips such as the one I just took on Saturday really do the trick. They even make you think of the directions your life could take when it comes to all things historical.