5 comments about BECAUSE OF THE TIMES.

1. All I can say is, wow. This is a phenomenal record and you're really missing out if you skip it. The last 3 songs alone are worth it even if "knocked up" doesn't put you in a trance; it's dang near hypnotic for me. Great stuff!!



2. Kings of Leon is a great, young, energetic band. They caught my attention with the first single On Call, which I find quite irresistible. The music on Because Of The Times has traces of artists such as Creedence Clearwater Revival and The Doors, but most importantly, Kings Of Leon have created a rather unique sound of their own.



3. The album plays with the your ear drums from the start. There are too many good things to say, so I will keep this very very short. I have been passionate about music my entire life. I even worked in the business for 4 years. I have had very few occurences where I was so swept away by the originality of an album. The Kings of Leon are not using wild new instruments, like homemade 3-string basses, but they are breaking rules. They are quickly moving into a class all by themselves, and their popularity (or lack thereof) in the United States shows how original they are.



4. I have listened to this album more than any other in the last year, that speaks for itself.



5. I really enjoyed the music on this Lp..but, the whole reason for purchasing an Lp was for better sonics... which, on this "red" colored album, are horrible...the background noise drowns out any low level music...A "re-issue" should be done for customers who have recieved the bad vinyl...Rick

5 comments about 1919 Eternal.

1. Thick tone and power chords is what this CD is about.A cheap version of this CD is worth it just for the patriotic America the Beautiful. Bleed for me rocks



2. IF YOU'VE NEVER LISTENED TO BLACK LABEL SOCIETY(OR IF YOU ARE JUST ADDING TO YOUR METAL COLLECTION), THIS ALBUM IS THE ONE FOR YOU. ZAKK WYLDE IS AN AWESOME TALENT, WITH FLAIR AND INTENSITY. SIMPLY PUT, THIS BAND WILL ROCK YOU! ALL METAL LOVERS SHOULD HAVE THIS ALBUM, BLS WILL GIVE YOU A FRESH SOURCE OF EXCELLENT TUNES TO KEEP YOU ROCKIN' THROUGH THE NIGHT. I WOULD ALSO RECOMMEND THAT YOU LISTEN TO THE SAMPLES AVAILABLE ON AMAZON TO SEE IF THIS IS THE RIGHT FIT FOR YOU. AMAZON ALSO OFFERS THE "TWO FOR CHEAPER" DEALS, AN EXCELLENT WAY TO SAVE TIME AND $$$, THINGS WE ALL WANT TO SAVE! REMEMBER IF YOU LIKE TO ROCK, THIS ALBUM WILL NOT DISAPPOINT, A GREAT ADDITION TO YOUR COLLECTION.



3. My God, have I been in a hole somewhere? How did I miss these guys?
   
   1919 Eternal is a blistering, withering, furious, head-banging assault of full-bore, confident metal: I picked it up not knowing what to expect---I thought, vaguely, that BLS was some bourbon-fueled Ozzy vanity project---popped it into the hopper, and seconds later, stunned and delighted, cranked up the volume setting to DEFCON-1. Within seconds, the rafters were shaking, trees and grass turned yellow and died, and frantic, furious neighbors called the cops.
   
   Zakk Wylde and his band of musical mercenaries (including current Metallica bassist Rob Trujillo) are solid musicians. "1919 Eternal" brews up some tasty metal: Good lyrics, crunching base, strong, mordant rhythms---not the prissy, mincing, navel-gazing "math-metal" so popular at the moment---not tiresome at all, not tediously technical, just heavy as a battleship and twice as brutal.
   
   Good metal for me? The kind of gut-stomping, hard-core, moody, melancholic, doom-laden stuff---power metal, with a little thrash, a little Death---that puts me in the mood to don my steel-horned helmet and ram my head into the wall, then trash my apartment. That kind of stuff. *This* kind of stuff. It's that good. Why the Hell are you reading this---go buy 1919 Eternal now, and bang your head!
   
   But that might be a little unfair to Zakk and his rebel crew, because---for every snorting, ripping warhorse like "Bleed for Me", "Battering Ram", and "Berserkers"---this is a taut, trained, disciplined band of musicians, calling to mind Iced Earth in their ability to quickly lock it down and Jesus, just *groove*, as with "Bridge to Cross" and "Lost Heaven".
   
   Like Iced Earth, yes---but more hellbent, far more brutal, and reeking of Jack Daniels and bloodshed.
   
   This is the kind of music the Kurgan would dig. You know, the Kurgan---the immortal bada** from the Russian Steppes in Highlander, the guy who lashed up his gaping neck-wound with safety pins and who---hell, by sheer a**-kickery alone---should have taken the Prize and McLeod's head?
   
   Yeah. The Kurgan would rock to Zakk Wylde. He'd load up "Berserker", and then he would thrash Hell out of every living thing, and wear their faces, and laugh like a demon.
   
   Let's paint the town Red.
   
   Enjoy.
   
   JSG



4. Everyone knows Zakk Wylde heck he's Ozzy's right hand man and obviously an amazing guitarist, but does he have his own band? Has he ever thought about making an album (a few albums) with a band of his own? YES!!!!!! I borrowed this album from a friend a few months back and I was not dissapointed. This is an awesome album.... one of my favorites. From the intro "Bleed for Me" to the follow up "Lords of Destruction" and then "Demise of Sanity", this album goes on and on with awesome tracks by Zakk Wylde and the Black Label Soceity. I mean who coulda thought that that voice would finaly come out, but hey I'm glad it did.
   
   
   
   
   
   R.I.P Dime



5. Its a toss up for me so far,i cant decide weather this one or the blessed hellride is my favorite.But yeah i was at the cd store deciding between this cd and stronger than death and for some reason i chose this one but wasnt for 100 percent sure why.Well i got it home and now i have listened to this cd about 10-15 times so far,heres my short reviews of the songs:
   
   
   
   Bleed For Me- 10/10 Killer track!
   
   Lords Of Destruction- 9/10 This was one of the first songs i heard from bls and would have gave it a 10 but i heard it a good bit
   
   Demise Of Sanity- 10/10 Very catchy song
   
   Life, Birth, Blood, Doom- 10/10 One of my favorites on the cd
   
   Bridge To Cross- 10/10 Slower song but still good,anyone who says zakk can't sing they need to listen to this song and then tell me he can't sing.
   
   Battering Ram- 10/10 Another catchy chorus yet awesom song
   
   Speedball- 10/10 Guitar solo thats a really short track
   
   Graveyard Disciples- 10/10 Another killer song!
   
   Genocide Junkies- 9/10 Good song,just dont appeal to me as much
   
   Lost Heaven- 10/10 My favorite next to L,B,B,D.Slower song,Zakks awesom singing voice
   
   Refuse To Bow Down- 8/10 Good song,but kinda gets old after a while
   
   Mass Murder Machine- 8/10 Same comment as the song above it
   
   Berserkers- 9/10 One of my favorite drinking songs
   
   America The Beautiful- 9/10 I hate to give this song a lower rating because this cd is dedicated to Zakks dad (it says it in the booklet) but yeah not into insturmentals as much.

5 comments about Highway Call.

1. This is a glorious fusion of country, rock, bluegrass, swing, jazz, and everything in between -- done by a bunch of master musicians, smiling and groovin' as they make themselves and everyone around them feel good.
   
   It is a mystery why this record is little-known and unheralded -- Dickie's fluid, sophisticated guitar runs are sublime, the bass is rollicking and in the pocket, the piano superior -- and it is wrapped by fiddles, background singers, and -- occasionally -- good time rock 'n roll.
   
   You cannot go wrong with this one, whether you are an ABB fan or not.



2. Stellar playing from veterans Vassar Clemens (fiddle) and John Hughey (steel guitar) make this country outing for Dickie Betts a keeper.
   
   The 14 minute Hand Picked is worth the price of the cd alone.



3. This was well thought out, you will like it.



4. This is the album that bridged the boundaries between country, rock, blue-grass and jazz in the most perfectly realized way possible. In the final analysis, it's the special vibe of this album that sets it apart from other blue-grass/rock fusion albums. What Betts and gang seem to be wordlessly communicating as a subtext to all the music is a bond between different generations of musicians from the South that's created solely from their dedication to being free spirits no matter what different paths they might have taken to get there. This is not just a foot-stomping backwoods party album. There's a completely laid-back lack of rigidity, a beautiful melodicism and deep romanticism that could only come from Betts' leadership and the hippie legacy he brings from the Allman Brothers Band. There's philosophy and deep meditation behind this music that communicates very intensely even if it was only 'the spirit of the times' that was subconsciously affecting the proceedings.
   
   The remastered album sounds fantastic. I played this one back to back with Greg Allman's classic "Laid Back" (remastered by the same people and released at the same time as the "Highway Call" remaster here) and the recording quality and production and the way the remastering brings it out on both just blew me away. I wonder if the musicians heard themselves sound so good on the studio playback monitors back then! If you want to be even more impressed, put some mikro-smooth polish from mapleshade audio products on the CD to eliminate laser jitter and you will be knocked out of your seat at how great the tones created by these master musicians 33 years ago sound today.



5. Highway Call is the album that set the table for generations of songwriters and players. Dickey took six songs and set them up with electric and acoustic instruments so the balance was a little on the country/bluegrass side. This album doesn't need a review. Dickey heard The Band and figured he knew what was up. Just listen to it and see how so many other albums found their sound. Within three years the balance swung a little back to rock, and then the whole country was into it. Every song on this album cooks. Vassar Clemmons comes into the light. The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band was listening. No one ever heard this album, but every one knows it.

5 comments about Strength in Numbers.

1. This is a very decent album. I am not a huge fan, but this album and Special Forces are true classic rock albums. There is not a bad track on this CD. And some of these are some really good rockers!!!
   
   Unfortunately, this was the last good album .38 Special made.



2. I have been a huge fan of .38 Special for a long time. This album, "Strength in Numbers" has been my favorite. I have the album and cassette but not the CD. This album has the best of the songs they have released.



3. "Strength in Numbers" is the 1986 album release from Southern Arena rockers 38 Special. At the time, the band was at the peak of a winning streak crafting albums of upbeat melodic pop-rock with a slight Country tinge. This album is no exception. It's a fantastic album from beginning to finish and displays the band's tight musicality and hook-filled songwriting at its best.
   Guitarist Don Barnes is mostly up front on lead vocals here while main lead singer Donnie Van Zant takes a step back from the microphone until the very end of the album bringing it to a dynamic finish on its final two tracks.
   Tracks such as the hits "Somebody Like You" and "Like No Other Night" were all over the airwaves when this album was released. Other standouts such as "Last Time", "Just A Little Love", "Hearts On Fire" and "Against The Night" are impossible to dislike and contain enough hooks to have you humming in no time. The slower tracks ("Once In A Lifetime" and "Has There Ever Been A Good Goodbye") are equally enjoyable and shows the band tackling ballads as effortless as their trademark rock numbers.
   With all this said, "Strength In Numbers" is a great album and a wonderful trip down memory lane. The album also marked the end of an era for 38 Special. Two years later, the band regrouped with a new line-up without guitarist/singer Don Barnes. Barnes did return to the band a decade later bringing back its signature sound.
   If you can find a copy of "Strength In Numbers" (as I was fortunate enough to find), pick it up. It's worth it.



4. In many ways, it's a mix of their early 80s hard Country tinged rock, and the arena pop/rock of their next album "Rock & Roll Strategy."

   1) Somebody Like You -- Energy packed arena rock minor hit with a slight southern sound. A heartbreak and break-up song these guys do so well. I'm still amazed this didn't become a huge hit.

   2) Like No Other Night -- Another small hit. Similar to the first song, but not quite as poppy or catchy.

   3) Last Time -- Melodic, only slightly less heavy pop tune about this being the 'Last Time' his girl will get another chance again. I don't think it was actually a hit, but I very vaguely *think* I might have heard it played on the radio. (Keep in mind, I was only about 4 years old when this came out). It's also worthy of being a big hit.

   4) Once in a Lifetime -- The first song to be a semi ballad. Not as good as the first three tunes, but another underrated pop masterpiece. Just another reason to pick this entire album up, even if you have a hits package.

   5) Just A Little Love -- More of a Country sounding mid tempo rocker, about how 'Just a little love can go a long way.'

   6) Has There Ever Been A Good Goodbye -- A good question. LOL. A slightly uptempo southern rock ballad which begs this very question. One of the more pop songs of the album.

   7) One in a Million -- Just about the most underrated song in their catalogue. A true ballad, with an '80s poppy, melodic sound. Could have easily been a huge hit. A precursor to what would be on their next album.

   8) Hearts on Fire -- A tougher edged mid tempo rocker sure to please fans of the bands' earlier, heavier work. It's less pop and the most Country sounding song on the album, but it still fits in.

   9) Against the Night -- A masterpiece which never deserved to be just an album track! Melodic, hard pop/rock arena anthem that's just a lot of fun. As an analogy, imagine Journey or Loverboy performing southern fried rock.

   10) Never Give an Inch -- Back to a more basic, mid tempo southern sound. This time, about not giving in. A good, but not great album closer.

   I'm not sure if this CD is even in print anymore. If you're into Eddie Money, Georgia Satellites, Lynyrd Skynard; 80 music; or even Country and you see this somewhere, pick it up! The best songs are actually the non-hits.




5. This was also my first 38 Special CD (actually it was an album), and everytime I play it, it ends too soon. Not a bad cut on this CD. There may have been stronger individual songs on their earlier stuff, but there was a big drop off in effort after that one or two songs, where the rest of the CD was not up to the same quality. Don Barnes had a hand in writing seven of the ten cuts here, and he is usually involved in their better songs. Rarely does he write one alone, but even on Flashback (a greatest hits CD), he was involved in eight of the fourteen cuts there. Not trying to put down the others in the band, but I personally enjoy his stuff the most. The song "Like No Other Night" is my personal favorite, but from beginning to end if you are looking for 38 Special's best that is not on a Greatest Hits package, this is the one you want to start with. The only drawback to buying this one first is that you will never be as pleased with any of the others from beginning to end. I have all but their live CD, and have never regreted having any of them.

5 comments about Premonition.

1. As Creedence was pretty much the John Fogerty Show, it is nice to see and hear him on a concert tour. It seems that he has retained the same upbeat spirit that has endeared Creedence fans everywhere. After all, there are many 60's retreads out there, like Eric Clapton amd Paul McCartney still going strong, so why not John Fogerty?
   
   Fogerty expertly recreates and reprises many Creedence hits such as the hypnotic Born on the Bayou, the easy Proud Mary, his stirring covers of I Put a Spell On You, and Susie Q,, and simple but energetic rockers like Travelin' Band and Fortunate Son. Singing and guitar playing are in top form here, and the backup band is every bit as compliant as the old Creedence, albeit less thin-sounding. New songs like Centerfield and Swamp River Days get an extra shot of adrenalin. And then there is one hearfelt ballad, Joy of My Life, with a fine slide guitar accompaniment.
   
   If there is anything for me to be less than ecstatic about, it's that Fogerty really hasn't shown much growth or progress in his musical career. Not to worry. The album is still worth getting if you really like him and crave Creedence.



2. Great value. If you remember the 60s' and 70s' you will love this one.



3. Fogerty goes through the motions with his CCR tunes and his own solo works, producing little more than a live version that could have been made in a studio with a canned crowd track. Banter in between songs is rehearsed sounding, and there's no good jams a la early Creedence Clearwater here.
   
   Worse yet I forgot this CD and bought it again months later, being so excited to get a chance for a Fogerty album of any kind!



4. I have always felt that the true measure of an artist lies in the quality of his live peformances where he cannot depend on the technical wizardry to be found in a recording studio. Mr. Fogerty delivers the goods in this excellent live CD. He sums up the American fascination with baseball in the song "Centrefield" and I was delighted to hear him perform his relatively unknown song "Almost Saturday Night" . His distinctive guitar work is a joy to listen to and he also entertains his fans with stories between songs aout the love of his life Julie and how he has been using the same amplificaion rig since Woodstock. Naturally 5 stars for this CD.



5. I am a huge fan of John Fogerty's solo music and his music with CCR. If you enjoy his roots-rock style then I strongly recommend that you check out the following:
   1) 24 Hours A Day by The Bottle Rockets
   2) Chooglin': A Tribute To The Songs Of John Fogerty
   3) Banjos and Sunshine by Sixty Acres
   4) Trace by Son Volt

5 comments about Chrome, Smoke & BBQ: The ZZ Top Box.

1. Awesome song selection, very thourogh and just the perfect little set with loads of extras. The artwork, book and flip book are excellent.



2. I'll let all y'all fans gush - suffice to say that ZZ Top is an essential Texas band. I mainly want to refute some other comments concerning these mixes. In the 80's, the band heavily remixed their first six albums for the "Six Pack" reissue, adding massive amounts of reverb. For years, those were the standard mixes on CD reissues.
   
   These mixes are the originals - they sound clean and dynamic, with a little tape hiss audible in only the quietest parts. I owned the old CDs, so I could 'A-B' them. Check out "La Grange." When the drums kick in, it's easy to hear the absence of echo. Buy with confidence!
   
   As for the track selection, I only found one cut - "Balinese" - that will be sorely missed, and a few more - like "Apologies To Pearly," "Low Down In The Street," and "(Somebody Else Been) Shaking Your Tree" - that would have been nice. But, nothing's perfect, and those cuts are available for download.
   
   Altogether, "Chrome, Smoke & BBQ" is the one to get. Haw, haw, haw...



3. well top fans the buck stops here this repersents the best from the boys from 70 to 90. zz top has so many great tracks and albums your best of buying a compilation. so either your a.(a casual fan who just knows radio zz top). b(a pretty serious top fan from over the years who wants the hits plus all the great cuts from the albums you use to own. or your c(a hardcore top fan who want pretty much every great track they made in cluding a bunch of rarites.
   
   
   if your A you need the one cd collection greatest hits
   
   if your b you need the two cd rancho texicano hits
   
   if you c you need the 4 cd chrome smoke and bbq
   
   
   *of note is worth mentioning no matter what you buy this hits only go up to recylcer album so none of the albums they have done in recent yaers are not covered,but thats not a problem for most people. either wat its all great music and wont disappoint.



4. Great box set! Could have done without the moving sidewalks stuff. Enjoyed the included flip book! If you are an old fan looking to supplement your vinyl or a new fan looking to get up to speed...this box set is for you. The enclosed booklet also provides some history and insight into how that lil ole band from Texas came to be.



5. This set is just about as complete as you can get with just four discs. Sure a few great songs are missing but you can't have them all. As someone else stated these are NOT the "disco-mix" aka the "six-pack-sound" mixes. They are the original album mixes. I do like the "medium-rare tracks" at the end of disc four as they were new to me. One thing though, the version of Legs on this set is NOT the same version as on my Eliminator cd. The rhythm guitar (that to me defines the track)is nowhere to be heard on here. What's up with that? I've never heard this version before, it doesn't even sound like the same song.

5 comments about Electric Rodeo.

1. It's an outdated term right? Shooter Jennings begs to disagree and shows us in a hard driving album. The first time I listened, I wasn't too impressed. Then, following a big night, I had to drive about 3 hours hung over as all getout, and popped this one in. I listened to it three times straight through. By the end of the trip my headache was intact, but I had a friend in the car with me and the volume at the proverbial 11.
   
   Well done.



2. I found this CD to be just as good as his previous album (Put the O back in country). It seems to me Shooter has only slightly more of a country "vibe" than a southern rock "vibe" on this CD but it's basically still split 50/50 (southern rock/country). Once again I find the whole CD to be outstanding, but if I had to pick just a few songs as "highlights" I'd say they are; "Hair of the dog," "The song is slipping away," "It ain't easy," "Gone to Carolina," and "Aviators."



3. Eletric Rodeo= Garbage
   Do not waste your time buying this CD
   If you wanna hear Real Country go and listen to Wayne"The Train"Hancock, Hank III & JB Beverley & The Wayward Drifters!!
   Shooter is just riding on his daddys coat tail!!



4. Shooter is just the best! Every review that said the good music is on the road and not in Nashville is so true! I saw Tim and Faith this past summer and it was a let down. Shooter is so much more a real muscian and talent. Good country / southern rock is alive and well with Shooter Jennings. I first heard these songs last New Year's Eve when I saw him in concert. I got the album on release day. It is the best. It reminds me of the music I grew up with--Lynyrd Skynyrd, Willie, Waylon, with some old classic rock. You will not be disappointed if you are a southern rock/real country music fan! Go see him in concert too! The best!



5. If you like country music but you think yer gonna puke everytime you have to suffer through a "country" song from Nashville these days, and you happen to like classic rock, you would probably appreciate what Shooter's trying to do here. Folks, this is the Real Deal. I don't mean real country or real rock - this is a hybrid - I mean he's making music that is honest and down to earth. A flash in the pan, he's not. He's going to be around for awhile.

5 comments about The Lost Crowes (The Black Crowes: The Band Sessions).

1. This is good album, some of the tunes were never lost, I knew them all along. But they have just a tiny different spin on them. The Crowes continue to rock and this cd is just another example of that.



2. Its been a while since I've been compelled to review anything but these discs have blown me away from the moment I put them on. Always have been a big fan and have been gradually disappointed with everything from 3 Snakes on.
   
   BOTH of these CDs rock. The Band disc is simply an amazing album that holds up to their greatest work. Another Roadside is one of the best rock songs I've heard in months. Why this didn't come out instead of the mediocre By The Way is totally beyond my comprehension.
   
   I went in thinking "why do I need another Amorica" because I already love that album. But the different takes on the album are great... a bit softer and smoother. And the unreleased gems buried in the middle are simply great rock songs.
   
   Lets hope the brothers Robinson can recreate some of this magic with their new album in the works!



3. This set of recordings not only sounds great, but it's an excellent look at the earlier versions of songs from Amorica. Fans may recognize some of the previously unreleased songs on disc 1, since a few have been staples of the live show. It's great to hear recorded versions.
   All in all, new Crowes is good Crowes...even if the songs are 10 years old...



4. Plain and Simple. If you're a Black Crowes fan get this recording.
   
   If you're new to the Black Crowes start with the first three albums than try this one. You'll appreciate it a lot more.



5. These albums have been collected by hard core Black Crowes fans for a while now and finally this excellent collection is now available. The general public can find out what some have already known. These are some of the best tracks they ever made. Its about time they were made available. If you like Southern Harmony and Amorica, then this is a must have collection .

5 comments about Down on the Farm.

1. Little Feat is such an unusually talented and funky band - probably one of the best American bands of all time. And I think that this is their strongest CD. Many Litte Feat songs have such incredibly complex rythmns and beats; they almost seem to not follow a steady beat, yet the songs are very tight and in their own way, are never off beat. Very unique songs! This CD, from 1979, was Lowell George's last, as he died right after the production. It has 4 very solid tunes - Perfect Imperfection, Front Page News, Straight From The Heart, and Wake Up Dreaming. I remember buying this album right after it came out and I played it to several friends - withing a month or so, all of them bought the album. Very high praise indeed - this a wonderful CD. You can't go wrong.



2. Down On the Farm would be Little Feat's final studio album to feature their leader Lowell George as the band would complete the release soon after his untimely death. While their previous release, Time Loves a Hero, showed an exciting new direction in fusion, Down on the Farm sounds like the band phoned it in. The great songs as well as their strong musical interplay were gone and a very glossy production didn't help matters.
   
   The title track is the best song here and remains a staple of their live show. "Six Feet of Snow", which the band still performs in a much stronger bluegrass version, and "Kokomo" are the only other tracks you could all decent and would have been better if they weren't so overproduced. The rest of the album comes off sounding way too professional, kind of like when the Allman Brothers Band went adult contemporary in the early-80's. In fact, Lowell George's vocals sound very similar to Dickey Betts at times. The performances have very little passion and the album gets progressively worse from "Be One Now" to the end. Based on the fact that George's death was a severe blow to the band, you can forgive them for this release and the band would put out several strong albums after they regrouped in the late-80's. However, I would recommend this only to a diehard fan who wants to have their entire catalog.



3. "Down on the Farm" was the last album to feature leadsinger, guitarist and songwriter Lowell George. Actually George had left the band before the album was finished, and sadly during a solo tour in 1979 he died from a heart-attack. George had always been the driving force in the band, but due to healthproblems ( drugs/alcohol) his position in the band had diminished after "Feats Don't Fail Me Now".
   
   The previous album "Time Loves a Hero" had very little input from George and their musical style had become much more slick and and funky.
   
   After George's death the other bandmembers decided to finish the album they had been working on before George left. Fortunately George had recorded vocals for most of the tracks, and he wrote 5 of the songs on the album. The album is often referred to as one of the weaker albums from the George era, a fact I never understood. It's no exaggeration that it's one my personal favourites.
   
   George's vocals were never better and his songs are outstanding. "Be One Now" is simply heartbreaking. "Kokomo" and "Six Feet of Snow" are as good as anything on "Dixie Chicken" or "Feats". The title track written by Barrere is catchy and funky and featuring one his strongest vocal performances - I used to believe it was George singing.
   
   Among the rest of the album's tracks "Straight From the Heart", written by George and Payne also deserves to be brought out.
   
   The final two tracks could be the reason that the album as a whole is often underrated. They are nice tracks; a little too polished for my taste, with very litle, if any, input from George. Still a great album.



4. This album was created using bits and pieces of an unfinished album found in Lowell's studio after his death. Be warned that Lowell never heard anything close to the final version of these songs. To credit him with co-production of "Down on the Farm" was a compliment to him at best and a commericial-backed white lie at worst. The truth is somewhere in between.
   
   Having said the above, I'm still glad his buddies released it because it gave the world a few more nuggets of his slide work and amazing voice to hold onto in his absence.



5. Many people are bit hard on this album, Lowell George's last with the group before his untimely death. While it may not be as brilliant as "Dixie Chicken" or "Feats Don't Fail Me Now," it is a definite improvement over "Time Loves A Hero." This is largely because Lowell contributions to this album are much greater than the previous one. And the songs he has written or co-written are great. "Kokomo" and "Be One Now" are the George standouts and Barrere contributes one of his best songs, "Perfect Imperfection." "Six Feet of Snow" is the band's one foray into Zydeco and is pretty good, too. The only real misfires on this album are the overlong closer, "Feel the Groove," and "Wake Up Dreaming." "Front Page News" is alright and the title track is solid. This is maybe not the best Feat album but it ranks pretty closely with "Last Record Album" and even the weaker tracks are quite listenable. And, as always, Lowell's voice and slide guitar playing are gorgeous and the entire band plays brilliantly.

5 comments about Wonder Boys: Music from the Motion Picture (2000 Film).

1. I absolutely love this album. I bought it because I'd come across the movie somewhere in the back row of a video movie gallery, hidden out of sight. The movie was awesome and so is the music. It includes tracks by some of the best musicians around each of whom have lots of heart and soul.



2. Incredible mix of some of the best tunes (in my mind) -- especially the Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan cuts. Now this is music from my younger era, but it was recommended to me by my 20-something-year-old daughter!



3. This CD contains four Bob Dylan songs, so how can you go wrong? I initially bought this disc for "Things Have Changed", which is a great song, but was instantly impressed with "Shooting Star" which I had never heard before but liked instantly. It was great to hear Dylan play harmonica on a newer song. This soundtrack is a showcase for songwriters: Van Morrison, Neil Young, Tom Rush, and Leonard Cohen are all featured. The really great thing was that some blues/R&B songs were thrown in for good measure. The Clarence Carter and Little Willie John classics make this a VERY enjoyable collection. This is one of the best movie soundtracks out there and contains NO filler. If you like good music you will like this.



4. Great movie and a great soundtrack! This is actually a great collection for grown-ups...Van Morrison, John Lennon, Leonard Cohen, Clarence Carter, Little Willie John, Tim Hardin, Neil Young, Tom Rush, Buffalo Springfield, and four songs by Bob Dylan including the Oscar winning "Things Have Changed". It's also made of all strong album cuts...the only two hits being "Old Man" and "Watching The Wheels".



5. Length - 52:10
   Just look at the names on this album. Just look at them! Neil, John, Van, Bob and Leonard all on one emotional hodgepodge of sadness, despair, longing, joy and love. This is an incredible soundtrack to an incredible movie. The word "classic" is rarely pertinent when speaking of soundtracks of recently released movies, but for the Wonderboys Soundtrack, classic is an understatement. I really love this album, and if you enjoy any of the artists listed above, I think you will too. See the movie, hear the soundtrack, long may you run. Recommended to all.
   (For people who enjoyed this record, try The Royal Tenenbaums Soundtrack too. It's equally rewarding.)