My Amazon Reviews: Vince Neil "Tattoos & Tequila"

Platinum Roots
3 Out Of 5 Stars

Motley Crue started life as glam-metal before morphing into hard rocking, and "Tattoos and Tequila" is front-man Vince Neil's tribute to the bands and songs that helped formulate his contributions to the band, While it's not terribly inspiring or all that original, it is in good fun and Neil acquits himself just fine. It's also a pretty interesting look into the guy's pysche; just what was he listening to while he was dreaming little rock star dreams?

Some of the choices are obvious. I'd easily guessed Scorpions and Aerosmith, and perhaps Elton John's "The B---- is Back" given Elton's omnipresence on seventies radio. A bit more interesting are Sweet ("Ac/Dc") and a selection from the first Cheap Trick album, "He's a Whore." Then you get the oddballs. I wouldn't have pegged Vince for a fan of Elvis or Creedence Clearwater Revival, but they both turn up with "Viva Las Vegas" and "Who'll Stop The Rain," respectively. And how about them Sex Pistols?

As to the performances, they are spotty. He's got a basic three piece combo backing him for the bulk of the disc, and they bludgeon their way through just about everything here. Drums are pumped to arena boom levels and the drenching of reverb over everything (especially Vince's vocals) doesn't allow the songs much room to breathe. The couple moments of subtlety ("Who'll Stop The Rain" and new song - one of two fresh cuts - "Another Bad Day") unmask the fact that Vince isn't much of a singer these days, which is why he blasts his way through most of the CD. Frankly, the CCR track is painful to listen to.

But this is Vince Neil we're dealing with here. If you were expecting "Sgt Pepper," you were gonna get snookered anyway. "Tattoos and Tequila" is Neil have a good laugh with a night of oldies at the local pub. It's also tied into a book and Vince's own brand of Tequila, so it's just one prong in a three point marketing strategy. He's not taking it all that seriously (I have a hard time listening to him trying to snarl like Johnny Rotten on "No Feelings" without imagining him cracking up), so take "Tattoos and Tequila" for what it is; a bit of a lark and a savvy piece of salesmanship. To assume more would be exaggerating your expectations.

     

My Amazon Reviews: Counting Crows "Underwater Sunshine"

A Day At The Beach
4 Out Of 5 Stars


If you were jamming on your 'summer vacation' and you just happened to be the Counting Crows, the "Underwater Sunshine" is allegedly what you'd come up with. Your favorite oddity songs played in a loose and jocular manner, nothing too slow to kill the buzz, but nothing too rocking or you'll tire yourself out. "Underwater Sunshine" is a cool groove of a jam session, loaded up with songs as familiar as Rod Stewart or Pure Prairie League to band fan-club types like Fairport Convention and Teenage Fanclub.

This eclectic if steady album is a pleasure. Adam Duritz sings like nothing much matters, with a confidence that belies his usual nervous sounding voice. "Jumping Jesus" pops along like a song from "Discovering the Satellites" and was originally by "Sordid Humor" (whom I never heard of), but the CC's sound almost like the Grateful Dead at times here. Especially on Dylan's "You Ain't Going Nowhere." Another surprise is just how Southern Cali The Faces' "Ooh La La" sounds...so much so that new California sunshiners Dawes' song "All My Failures" sounds like it came from the same pen.

That is just one of the many reasons "Underwater Sunshine" has had a spot on my CD deck for a few weeks now. Adam and the Crows may have chosen these songs from a multitude of stylistic sources, but under their microphones, they all sound tailor-made for Counting Crows. There's nothing profound here, just a solid album of enjoyable music rendered lovingly.

   

My Amazon Reviews: America "Back Pages"

All Come to Look for America
3 Out of 5 Stars


In an irony of chance, America's "Back Pages" CD of cover songs was issued and, within a month, former founding member Dan Peek passed away at the age of 60. Founding members Dewey Bunnell and Gerry Beckley have been recording and touring as a duo since the late 70's, even having some singles without Peek and maintaining the trademark harmonies. Still, for those nostalgic for the trio harmonies of "Horse With No Name" or "Sister Golden Hair," this CD is a reminder of a past that can not be revisited.

That said, "Back Pages" stands alone nicely as a covers/tribute type of album, as Bunnell and Beckely chose to go to Nashville and used selected studio perfectionists and special guests to make this into the kind of lite-folk-pop they've always specialized in. Time has coarsened the still recognizable harmonies, and producer Fred Mollin frame the duo with perfect backing. The selections are both typical (Paul Simon, Brian Wilson, Dylan) to surprising (Gin Blossoms, New Radicals). Fountains of Wayne's Adam Schlesinger (who co-produced America's last album in 2007) gave them FoW's "Road Song" before issuing on his own album, and America actually sound better with it. Dewey and Gerry take the archness from the FoW version and actually sound sincere when they sweetly chirp "between stops at Cracker Barrel, and 40 movies with Will Farrell..." while dropping a sly nod to "Sister Golden Hair" in the process.

Which is the key to how much you'll enjoy "Back Pages." America are still a sweet confection that has gained a nostalgic burnish as time has passed. On covers like "Caroline, No," which was Brian Wilson's 'old before his time' moment of lost innocence, they pull the song into the future for which it was written. Same for Dylan's "My Back Pages," which closes the CD with the immortal lyric "I was so much older then, I'm younger then than now." When Dylan and The Byrds sang these words, they were rebelling. Sung by a pair of men that were likely taken by the original's force, America sound both understanding of their years and aware of the present. With the loss of Dan Peek, the enjoyable "Back Pages" becomes a memento of past glories and firm statement of present potentials.