the soul of the sea

In February, English chanteuse, Corinne Bailey Ray will release "The Sea", her sophomore album and the follow up to her self-titled, 2006 breakthrough.

The first single will be "I'd Do It All Again", a lovely, honey soaked, tear stained song that could easily be an ode to her husband, Jason, who passed away about 18 months ago.


The video beautifully captures the precious balance of mournful and joyous feelings in the tried and true "Groundhog Day" theme. A sense of comfort and security in a routine. The song itself, not a million miles away from her debut, carries on with the soulful and languid Billie Holiday and Marvin Gaye influences. Many of the artists that inspire Corinne can be found here.

Then there's this recent, stripped down performance for "Later...With Jools Holland".


Goosebumps! Such a gorgeous combination of heartbreak and exalted joy.

The final tracklisting for "The Sea" is as follows:

1. Are You Here
2. I'd Do It All Again
3. Feels Like The First Time
4. The Blackest Lily
5. Closer
6. Love's On Its Way
7. I Would Like to Call It Beauty
8. Paris Nights/New York Mornings
9. Paper Dolls
10. Diving For Hearts
11. The Sea

from a Ferry to a cruise ship

Bryan Ferry and Roxy Music weren't exactly household names in the US. But they were massive in the rest of the world. These days, you can hear their influence in acts like The Killers and Scissor Sisters.



One of my many, favorite Bryan Ferry songs is "Slave To Love".



If you haven't heard more than one or two of Bryan Ferry's hits, may I direct your attention to a new greatest hits simply titled, "The Best Of Bryan Ferry". It features two, new recordings. The first is Bryan's cover of "I Don't Want To Go On Without You", which was originally recorded by The Drifters and appeared as the b-side to their legendary single, "Under The Boardwalk", in 1964.

At one point it was going to feature on Bryan's next album. However, it was decided it was best for it to be included on this current collection.

Speaking of The Dirfters, watch this segue! The Drifters will be one of many of the acts singing live on the Malt Shop Memories Cruise which departs May 13, 2010 for four days and sails from Tampa to Cozumel. Request "I Don't Want To Go On Without You" while you're on board!

scratching the ten year itch

Fresh from being announced as one of this year's inductees into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame as a member of Genesis, Peter Gabriel has revealed he will be releasing a brand new album on February 15.



Seems like 2010 is the year many legendary luminaries will return from the musical wilderness. Sade is making a much heralded return nine years after her last studio album. Now, Peter Gabriel breaks his long silence with a nearly ten year absence with "Scratch My Back".

It's an album of covers. Gone are the monosyllabic titles. That's not the only thing that has disappeared. Peter describes it as a very personal record with twelve songs performed only with orchestral instruments and voice. Peter has recorded the album's eclectic array of cult favorites and classic tracks without any guitars, drums or electronics. It's quite a departure for him. You knew he couldn't just record a bunch of other people's songs.

He performed Paul Simon's "The Boy In The Bubble" at last year's WOMAD festival. I'm very curious to hear his take on "Heroes", which is such a massive, signature tune for David Bowie that it's nearly impossible to imagine anyone else recording it. Covering Radiohead is quite a monumental challenge, even for an artist of Peter Gabriel's stature. So there will be plenty of surprises when "Scratch My Back" finally sees the light of day.

The following is tracklisting for PG's forthcoming longplayer, only his eighth studio album in 32 years. Please note that the artist who recorded the original is listed next to each track.

1. Heroes (David Bowie)
2. The Boy In The Bubble (Paul Simon)
3. Mirrorball (Elbow)
4. Flume (Bon Iver)
5. Listening Wind (Talking Heads)
6. The Power Of The Heart (Lou Reed)
7. My Body Is A Cage (Arcade Fire)
8. The Book Of Love (The Magnetic Fields)
9. I Think It's Going To Rain Today (Randy Newman)
10. Après Moi (Regina Spektor)
11. Philadelphia (Neil Young)
12. Street Spirit (Radiohead)

in with the in crowd

The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame 2010 inductees have been announced. They are:

ABBA



Genesis



Jimmy Cliff



The Hollies



The Stooges



For more info on the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, go to their official website. And if you want to see amazing performances and induction speeches from past ceremonies, get yourself a copy the "Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Live" 9 DVD set!

hail, hail rock n' roll

Sixty years ago today, Fats Domino cut his very first recordings in the backroom of the J&M Music Shop at 838 North Rampart Street in New Orleans. Dave Bartholomew produced the session and Cosimo Matassa was the engineer. Dave and Fats wrote the songs, the first four of which were "Detroit City Blues", "The Fat Man", "Hide Away Blues" and "She's My Baby". All the tracks were recorded live onto lacquer discs.

This was just the beginning of a long line of Fats Domino successes and despite the fact that its sound is limited by comparison to today's recording techniques, it emphasizes what an outstanding pianist he is. Fats' endearing Creole accent demands you listen to every word and also memorable are his wonderfully improvised ‘wah-wah-wah’ phrases which perfectly complement the powerhouse eight-bar blues that propelled the infectious track into becoming what many believe was the very first rock 'n' roll record.



Adapted from the traditional "Junker's Blues" and inspired not by Fats' size but by the hero of a radio detective program, "The Fat Man" became the very first Fats Domino hit, charting eventually on the rhythm & blues lists in February 1950. It ended up selling a million copies nationwide.



The lasting value of the recordings that Fats made for Imperial is also a testament to the outstanding musicians whom Dave handpicked for the sessions. They, along with Dave himself on trumpet, provided much of what we now recognize as the vintage New Orleans sound.

For the record, Fats Domino is 81 years old, Cosimo Matassa is 83 and Dave Bartholomew will be 89 on Christmas Eve.

And if you think you've never heard of Dave Bartholomew, you do know one his most famous recordings. It's "Lady Marmalade", originally recroded by but made famous by Labelle.

Many thanks to music historian, Alan Warner, for supplying us with this amazing information. If you want to follow more of Alan's decades of insight into the music and entertainment industries, check out his website at The Alan Warner Show.

By the way, Fats Domino was one of the first people to be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

singular soldier

After nearly a decade in the wilderness, Sade is starting to show up on the radar once more like a celestial body making a rare, return visit to the Earth's orbit.

"Soldier Of Love", the title track from Sade's forthcoming album, is scheduled as the first single to be lifted from it. In fact, you can listen to it on Sade's official website.

The artwork is very simple and understated, but it's a stunner. Does she ever age? She looks as regal and elegant as the day she first graced our MTV riddled television screens back in 1984.

But what about the song? I can confirm that the song is not a cover of Donny Osmond's hit from 1989 which reached #2 in the US and the dizzying heights of #29 in the UK. You can breathe a sigh of relief.

The song doesn't sound like anything Sade has released previously. Sparse and rhythmic with a chunky, metal guitar flicking its tongue about, it's a muscular, six minute number set to a martial beat over a hip-hop underpinning. Light touches of a somewhat middle eastern figure is repeated from the middle of the song through to the end.

I couldn't help notice that Sade sings in a deeper, richer tone, especially toward the front end of the song. Her more familiar voice soon appears and instantly captivates. Hearing her reference "Wild Wild West" by Kool Moe Dee (also used featured heavily in Will Smith's single of the same name) in the opening lyrics certainly took me by surprise.

"Soldier Of Love", Sade's sixth longplayer, will hit the "shops" on February 8, 2010.

fierce competition

Grammy Award nominations were announced last night and Beyoncé received a whopping TEN nods. Taylor Swift got eight with Black Eyed Peas, Kanye West and Maxwell earned six.



Beyoncé was nominated in the following categories:

• Album Of The Year - "I Am...Sasha Fierce"
• Record Of The Year - "Halo"
• Song Of The Year - "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)"
• Best Female Pop Vocal Performance - "Halo"
• Best Female R&B Vocal Performance - "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)"
• Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance - "At Last" (from "Cadillac Records - Music From The Motion Picture")
• Best R&B Song - "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)"
• Best Contemporary R&B Album - "I Am...Sasha Fierce"
• Best Rap/Sung Collaboration - "Ego" (Beyoncé and Kanye West)

That's nine categories. I can't locate the tenth one. Perhaps some kind soul can offer up a little assistance. The caffeine hasn't fully kicked in this morning.

But can someone explain to me how "I'm On A Boat" is worthy of a nomination? Seriously?

The 52nd Grammy Award Ceremony will be televised in January.

Go here for a complete list of this year's Grammy nominations.

Luke The Drifter

As promised, here is the third and final part of the overview of Time Life's 3 CD, Hank Williams collection, "Revealed". As is the case with the previous, two parts, it has been written by well renowned Hank authority and biographer, Brian Turpen.

But first, here's one more look at the back story behind the collection as told by Hank's daughter, Jet.



Disc 3 of the new "Revealed" 3 CD set is titled, "Luke The Drifter". This disc is a collection of homilies and stories, many of which were narrations done as Luke the Drifter. Hank had done these types of numbers for years. On his early days at radio station WSFA in Montgomery, Alabama, Hank was known close his shows with a recitation. Hank wanted to record these types of numbers once he got his recording contract, but his producer and publisher Fred Rose, as well as his record label MGM at first resisted. Once Hank got enough clout, they relented. However, in order to distinguish themselves from his popular releases, it was decided to release them under the pseudonym name of Luke the Drifter. Hank once stated he didn’t know where they got the “Luke” part, but knew where the “Drifter” part came from.

Hank recorded a total of 14 of these “talking blues” numbers that were released under Luke The Drifter. None of the Drifter releases ever made the charts, but it didn’t slow down Hank’s desire to record them. Many feel these recordings revealed more about Hank himself than anything else he ever did. Although the content may be considered corny by today’s standards, at the time they appealed to the religious rural audiences of the day. Most of the numbers had a moral theme, not all of which were heartening or inspiring. They did however give advice, most of which Hank ignored himself. One can see the influence of early gospel music in many of the numbers.

Disc 3, contains 11 selections from the 1951 Mother’s Best Flour shows. Over half of the tunes are considered Luke the Drifter numbers.

If you want to read a more detailed description of the "Revealed: The Unreleased Recordings", check out Brian Turpen's full overviews on Time Life's official Facebook page.