Album Reviews

Aretha Franklin’s escape from the squares at Columbia Records to become the Queen of Soul on groovy Atlantic is one of the great legends of popular music.

Think about it: Aretha Franklin, John Hammond and Jerry Wexler —three giants of music— all converge in one story. But do the facts support the legend? This album certainly gives pause.

Ian Anderson himself may wonder why people are still interested in Aqualung thirty-six years after it was first released&#151or maybe not. Though almost comically simple, the opening riff to the title cut is one of rock�s most ingenious and indelible. The contemplative album is packed with memorable melodies expressing anger, nostalgia, pity, regret, tenderness and contempt.

Whatever "it" is, Welsh born 23 year old Duffy has it. If you're old enough to remember and were a fan of Lulu's "To Sir With Love,"  you'll love Duffy's surprising debut, co-produced by Suede guitarist Bernard Butler, who's had an extensive solo and collaborative career since the breakup of that '90's band, the very busy Jimmy Hogarth, producer of Susan Vega's excellent Beauty and Crime reviewed elsewhere on this site as well as co-producer of James Blunt's unfairly reviled debut album, among many others and Steve Booker. 

Josie Cotton, best known for her “controversial” 1980 song “Johnny Are You Queer” that turned into a minor international phenomenon while outraging evangelical types and has a back story worthy of a mini-novel, returns with a high low-concept album. You can search the internet for the backstory and watch her perform the song on YouTube.

The Blue Note reissue explosion continues with these attractively packaged XRCD24s from Audio Wave. We’ve got two current purveyors of Blue Notes: Music Matters and Analogue Productions, each having gained access to different catalog titles.

If you go for Waits’s “Louis Armstrong meets Screamin’ Jay Hawkins meets Captain Beefheart” blues/jazzbo thing, obtaining it live or recorded live is probably as pure as it gets and arguably the best way to consume an artist energized by the crowd’s adulation and an adept touring backup band capable of creating thick, churning atmospherics.

Here’s one you don’t often see in the bins. Mary Wells auditioned for Berry Gordy when she was 16 and not long afterward had a monster, world-wide hit with “My Guy” back in 1964. It hit #5 in England and The Beatles asked her to tour with them.