LISTEN UP
New releases and top sellers
‘Shrek’ soundtrack
elicits a shrug"Shrek -- Music from the Original Motion Picture"
Various artists (DreamWorks)
Review by Gary C.W. Chun Not having the benefit of seeing "Shrek," I can safely assure you that you need not buy this CD, unless you want a serviceable aural souvenir from the movie.
Star-BulletinActually, a better purchase would be the orchestral score by Harry Gregson-Williams and John Powell, if it ever sees the light of day. A medley of their work for the movie is patched together and put at the end of the CD as a mere afterthought. The rest of the soundtrack is a schizophrenic collection of songs that is done piecemeal. Like so many other popular movie soundtracks of late, this exists mainly as a marketing tool for the talent signed to the movie studio's recording label.
Some of it sounds appropriate to the movie's spirit, like Self's playful "Stay Home," eels' quirky goof of a song "My Beloved Monster" and the Proclaimers' "I'm on My Way," because 1) they're Scottish and 2) Mike Myers does his ogre voice in a Scottish brogue.
The two acoustic numbers by Jason Wade of Lifehouse (a very nice cover of "You Belong to Me") and Rufus Wainwright doing Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" (what in heck is a Leonard Cohen song doing in this kind of animated comedy?) are welcome respite to the mediocre stuff on this collection.Even Smash Mouth's lead singer, Steve Harwell, can't elevate the group's loping, hip-hoppy version of "I'm a Believer" (and the less said about Eddie Murphy's chorus reprise of the song, the better), but "All Star" is here, so it's a tradeoff. The movie's leadoff single by the Baha Men is a junkanoo dance track with nary a dog in sight. And the band Halfcocked is just that, with a mannered cover of Joan Jett's "Bad Reputation" that severely lacks some needed snarl.
"Like Wow!" is the latest pop confection from the Carter family line -- first Backstreet Boy Nick, then boy Aaron and now girl Leslie -- and their continued attempt to ingratiate themselves to the listening public. And the love theme from "Shrek" (?!?) is a merely functional ballad from, you guessed it, label artist Dana Glover.
Classical guitar fuses
well with jazz, rock"Nylon & Steel"
Manuel Barrueco, with Al Di Meola, Steve Morse and Andy Summers (Angel)
Review by Gary C.W. Chun This cross-genre recording pairs the renowned Cuban-born classical guitarist Manuel Barrueco with three of jazz-rock's best-known musicians. The genesis of the project came out of a tour six years ago involving Barrueco, Jorma Kaukonen of Jefferson Airplane, jazzman Kenny Burrell and Steve Morse, an original member of the Southern fusion band Dixie Dregs and, of late, Deep Purple.
Star-BulletinMorse's duets with Barrueco on this album, while not as strong as the ones Barrueco plays with Di Meola and Summers, does have its moments, especially on the earlier pieces Morse wrote while in the Dregs. The acoustic "Northern Lights" and "Up in the Air" are pleasant, impressionistic compositions. Morse plays the only electric guitar on the album, on an improvisation of Villa-Lobos' "Etude No. 1" titled "Wolvesville." Morse is at his shredding best, but his guitar is of an equal volume in the mix as Barrueco's nylon-stringed acoustic, which makes for a weird dynamic.
Barrueco performs solo on two pieces that bookend the album: "Odeon," written by Brazilian composer Ernesto Nazareth, starts off the proceedings with a bit of the rhythmic lilt from that musically rich country, and an absolutely charming arrangement of Aaron Copland's "Rodeo," played with such verve as to leave the listener wanting more.
While a majority of the pieces are relatively short, the duets with Di Meola are longer, more exploratory in nature. Di Meola actually shows some needed restraint in his playing with Barrueco -- no blazing speed and technique here.
The performances are reminiscent of the ones Di Meola did with John McLaughlin and Paco de Lucia, earning popular acclaim. Latin and flamenco influences can be heard on "Beyond the Mirage" and "Azzura." "The Grand Passion," despite its title, is gentle in nature, as the guitarists are nearly conversational in their playing.
Because of Summers' background in rock as a member of the Police, it's not surprising his pieces are stronger rhythmically. His compositions make for two of the album's more interesting moments; the moody "I Remember" is lyrical in the truest sense of the word, as the addition of finely crafted words wouldn't be out of place, and "Crow at Midnight" finds the two maneuvering their way through a particularly knotty arrangement.
Click for online
calendars and events.
