The Muddy Waters Tribute Band – You’re Gonna Miss Me (When I’m Dead & Gone) (1997)

The Muddy Waters Tribute Band is an American blues band whose members all played in Muddy Waters’ band from 1974 to 1980.

Jack Randall, a concert agent from Boston, had the idea to honour Muddy Waters by reuniting the Muddy Waters Band from 1974 to 1980.

The first club gigs were well received and the tribute band played in Europe at the Montreux Jazz Festival and other major festivals.

In 1994 they went on a US tour with B. B. King, Dr. John and Little Feat. In 1995 they did another European tour. (wikipedia)

It’s been years in the making, and the eagerly awaited “Muddy Waters Tribute Album” is finally finished. In the April issue of “Blues Revue,” Bob Margolin, who sang and played guitar as part of the honorary compilation, tells what it was like getting it all together. “It’s a ’90s thing,” wrote Margolin. “We get tributes by the truckload; some succeed and some just suck. It was only a matter of time before someone would put together a high-profile tribute album for one of the most obvious icons, Muddy Waters. I think you’ll find that this one was done right.”

The album was engendered three years ago when Muddy’s ’70s band reunited for five bookings. Together again with Pinetop Perkins on piano, Willie “Big Eyes” Smith on drums, Calvin “Fuzz” Jones on bass, Jerry Portnoy on harp, and Luther “Guitar Jr.” and Margolin on guitars, the band was a magic time-traveling machine. According to Margolin, it was as if Muddy was resurrected for a time, and as Luther put it, as if “Muddy’s spirit was with them.”

Those first five gigs were the start of something big. The band continued to tour and have good times, often thinking of the man who was missing. At the same time, promoter Jack Randall was in the process of putting together the all-star list of musicians that would join the “Muddy Waters Tribute Band” on the up and coming album. Randall contacted famous Blues and Rock musicians who were Muddy’s friends and/ or music disciples, and ended up with an amazing roster. Special guests on the album include Gregg Allman, Buddy Guy, Junior Wells, Levon Helm, Koko Taylor, James Cotton, Sonny Landreth, Billy Branch and Peter Wolf. Margolin, who only recently received a preliminary copy of the finished album wrote, “I’m relieved to find that the musicians did not overplay and that John Snyder did not overproduce. This would make Muddy happy. The production itself is a tribute to the basic Blues sound that Muddy favored, raw and in-your face, with occasional Chess-style slap echo.” Margolin was especially pleased to find that the album delivers the distinctive, identifiable sound that helped make Muddy’s ’70s albums and performances a peak near the end of his career.

Margolin pointed out a few other highlights on the album, such as Luther “Guitar Jr.” and Buddy Guy’s vocals, and Jerry Portnoy’s acoustic harp solo on “Goin’ Down Slow.” He also wrote that “Koko Taylor’s vocal on ‘Mean Mistreater’ is just plain down and dirty, everything you would hope for.” From this insider’s review, it appears fans can expect the same from the tribute album. (House of Blues, March 1996)

This tribute album breaks no new ground but does a superb job of re-creating the Chicago ensemble sound, as well as the songs, of the latter-day Muddy Waters Band. That comes as no surprise, since the core group here literally was Muddy Waters’ backup unit from 1974 to 1980: Bob Margolin and Luther “Guitar Jr” Johnson on guitars, Pinetop Perkins on piano, Jerry Portnoy on harp, Calvin Jones on bass, and Willie Smith on drums. Each of these Muddy alumni takes a vocal turn (Margolin takes two). While none of them matches the majesty of Muddy’s voice, they certainly have the spirit of the thing down pat. A welcome note of variety is provided by the guest vocalists from the blues and rock world, who also stay very close to the Muddy Waters originals they cover: Greg Allman on “Trouble No More,” Buddy Guy on “Clouds in My Heart,” Levon Helm on “Going to Main Street,” James Cotton (another ex-Muddy bandmate) on “Blow Wind Blow,” Koko Taylor on “Mean Mistreater,” and Peter Wolf on “Walking Through the Park.” (by Steve Hoffman)

Personnel:
Luther “Guitar Junior” Johnson (guitar, vocals)
Calvin “Fuzz” Jones (bass, vocals)
Bob Margolin (guitar, slide guitar. bass, vocals)
Pinetop Perkins (piano, vocals)
Jerry Portnoy (harmonica)
Willie “Big Eyes” Smith (drums, vocals)
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Gregg Allman (vocals on 01.)
James Cotton (vocals, harmonica on 08,)
Buddy Guy (guitar, vocals on 02.)
Levon Helm (vocals on 06.)
Sonny Landreth (guitar, slide guitar on 11.)

Koko Taylor (vocals on 13.)
Junior Wells (vocals, harmonica on 03.)
Peter Wolf (vocals on 13.)

Tracklist:
01. Trouble No More (Morganfield) 3.04
02. Clouds in My Heart (Morganfield) 6.07
03. I Don’t Know Why (Dixon) 3.48
04. You Can’t Lose What You Never Had (You Can’t Spend What You Ain’t Got) 3.35 (Morganfield)
05. Don’t Go No Further (Dixon) 3.03
06. Going To Main Street (Morganfield) 3.26
07. Goin’ Down Slow (Oden) 6.22
08. Blow Wind Blow (Morganfield) 3.15
09. Honey Bee (Morganfield) 5.21
10. Sugar Sweet (London) 2.43
11. Messin’ With The Man (Morganfield) 2.47
12. Muddy’s Shuffle (Morganfield) 2.21
13. Mean Mistreater (Carr) 6.19
14. Walking Through The Park (Morganfield) 3.00

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More from Muddy Waters:

Marianne Faithfull – Weill – The Seven Deadly Sins (1998)

Marianne Evelyn Gabriel Faithfull (born 29 December 1946) is an English singer and actress. She achieved popularity in the 1960s with the release of her hit single “As Tears Go By” and became one of the lead female artists during the British Invasion in the United States.

Born in Hampstead, London, Faithfull began her career in 1964 after attending a Rolling Stones party, where she was discovered by Andrew Loog Oldham. Her debut album Marianne Faithfull (1965) (released simultaneously with her album Come My Way) was a commercial success followed by a number of albums on Decca Records. From 1966 to 1970, she had a highly publicised romantic relationship with Mick Jagger. Her popularity was further enhanced by her film roles, such as those in I’ll Never Forget What’s’isname (1967), The Girl on a Motorcycle (1968), and Hamlet (1969). However, her popularity was overshadowed by personal problems in the 1970s. During that time she was anorexic, homeless, and a heroin addict.

Noted for her distinctive voice, Faithfull’s previously melodic and higher-registered vocals (which were prevalent throughout her career in the 1960s) were affected by severe laryngitis, coupled with persistent drug abuse during the 1970s, permanently altering her voice, leaving it raspy, cracked and lower in pitch. This new sound was praised as “whisky soaked” by some critics and seen as having helped to capture the raw emotions expressed in Faithfull’s music.

After a long commercial absence, Faithfull made a comeback with the 1979 release of her critically acclaimed album Broken English. The album was a commercial success and marked a resurgence of her musical career. Broken English earned Faithfull a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance and is often regarded as her “definitive recording”.

She followed this with a series of albums, including Dangerous Acquaintances (1981), A Child’s Adventure (1983), and Strange Weather (1987). Faithfull also wrote three books about her life: Faithfull: An Autobiography (1994), Memories, Dreams & Reflections (2007), and Marianne Faithfull: A Life on Record (2014).

Faithfull is listed on VH1’s “100 Greatest Women of Rock and Roll” list. She received the World Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2009 Women’s World Awards and was made a Commandeur of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the government of France. (wikipedia)

The Seven Deadly Sins is a studio recording of the Kurt Weill opera of the same name by British singer Marianne Faithfull, released in 1998.

Marianne Faithfull had already performed The Seven Deadly Sins live at St. Anne’s Cathedral in Brooklyn,[3] but it was only after working with Dennis Russell Davies on 20th Century Blues that the idea of recording the opera came to her. Davies agreed to collaborate again with her, and the album was recorded in June 1997 at the Vienna Konzerthaus with Davies conducting the Vienna Radio Symphony orchestra.

The recording also includes other songs by Weill & Brecht like the “Alabama Song” and songs from The Threepenny Opera, which Marianne Faithfull also performed live in 1992 at the Dublin Gate Theater, playing the role of the prostitute Jenny and interpreting the famous Pirate Jenny song. (wikipedia)

If you’re looking for the angelic Marianne Faithfull of As Tears Go By, or the angry diva of Broken English, or the lusher but piercingly acute imagery of her work with Angelo Badalamenti, you will not find it here. What you will find, though, is a fully orchestrated work that she has been selling out the house with in Europe — a parable of commerce called The Seven Deadly Sins, with the Vienna Radio Orchestra and Dennis Russell Davies conducting. These are the songs of Kurt Weill, composer, and Bertolt Brecht, lyricist. This work, it would seem, is a perfect match of voice timbre and sound wished for by the composer. The husky and weary voiced Faithfull does these songs as they were intended to be done, her voice a beautiful match in tone and color. It is the heavy and somber tone of the music that blends so perfectly with her voice here.

Weill’s music tends toward a formality and somberness that shadows the concerns of the songs. Here Brecht’s lyrics tell the moribund story of a girl placed on a tour by her family to earn money for their luxury; her voice reflects the weariness that becomes the ideal vehicle for her travails and lacerations. According to the tabloids, if they are to be believed, Marianne has spent her life researching this work. She displays that rare intelligence that allows all “misfortunes” to be converted to her benefit. There is a detachment that allows one to be intimately involved with, but not consumed by this type of work. This is her best work in quite some time. She deserves all the accolades that come her way as a serious singer who can pull off the piece. A wonderful disc from one whose live presence we must count as miraculous considering what she has lived through. (by Bob Gottlieb)

Recorded live at the Konzerthaus Vienne/Austria, June 5, 1997 (01. – 08.)
Recorded at the Grosse Sendesaal Radiokulturhaus Vienna/Austria,
Februay 9, 1998 (09. – 12.). 

Personnel:
Marianne Faithfull (vocals)
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Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Dennis Russell Davies
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Peter Becker (Baritone)
Mark Bleeke (Tenor)
Hugo Munday (Tenor)
Wilbur Pauley (Bass)
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Hudson Shad (background vocals)

Tracklist:

The Seven Deadly Sins:
01. Prologue (Prolog) 3.50
02. Sloth (Faulheit) 3.57
03. Pride (Stolz) 4.49
04. Anger (Zorn) 4.47
05. Gluttony (Völlerei) 3.29
06. Lust (Unzucht) 5.22
07. Covetousness (Habsucht) 3.02
08. Envy (Neid) + Epilogue (Epilog) 5.55

Kurt Weill Songs:
09. Alabama Song 2.54
10. The Ballad Of Sexual Dependency 2.35
11. Bilbao Song 5.03
12. Pirate Jenny 4.24

Music: Kurt Weill
Lyrics: Bert Brecht
Translation:
W. H. Auden & Chester Kallman (01. – 08.)
Michael Feingold & Frank McGuinness (09.- 12.)

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More from Marianne Faithful:

The official website:

(Danny McCulloch´s ) Animals: House Of The Rising Sun (1997)

The Animals (also billed as Eric Burdon and the Animals) are an English rock band, formed in Newcastle upon Tyne in the early 1960s. The band moved to London upon finding fame in 1964. The Animals were known for their gritty, bluesy sound and deep-voiced frontman Eric Burdon, as exemplified by their signature song and transatlantic number-one hit single “The House of the Rising Sun” as well as by hits such as “We Gotta Get Out of This Place”, “It’s My Life”, “Don’t Bring Me Down”, “I’m Crying”, “See See Rider” and “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood.” The band balanced tough, rock-edged pop singles against rhythm-and-blues-oriented album material and were part of the British Invasion of the US.

The Animals underwent numerous personnel changes in the mid-1960s, and suffered from poor business management, leading the original incarnation to split up in 1966. Burdon assembled a mostly new lineup of musicians under the name Eric Burdon and the Animals; the much-changed act moved to California and achieved commercial success as a psychedelic and hard rock band with hits such as “San Franciscan Nights”, “When I Was Young” and “Sky Pilot” before disbanding at the end of the decade. Altogether, the group had 10 top-20 hits in both the UK Singles Chart and the US Billboard Hot 100.

The original lineup of Burdon, Alan Price, Chas Chandler, Hilton Valentine and John Steel reunited for a one-off benefit concert in Newcastle in 1968. They later launched brief comebacks in 1975 and 1983. Several partial regroupings of the original-era members have occurred since then under various names. The Animals were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.

And here is a low budget sampler … BUT … not from the Animals …

This album was made by Danny McCulloch and some studio musicians:

Between 1996 and 1998, McCulloch was involved in controversy concerning re-recordings alleged to have been made by certain artists, in particular Mott the Hoople, involving an alleged reformation of the band by Ian Hunter and Mick Ronson in 1993.

With musician and music promoter Gerry Chapman, McCulloch had formed McCulloch Chapman Music, which marketed to K-Tel International what were represented to be new recordings by original artists, such as Mott The Hoople, “The New Animals”, Paper Lace and The Byrds. (wikipedia)

All of the tracks are re-recordings and are really rather pitiful efforts on behalf of Mr Burdon. It’s the usual midi keyboard backing tracks with vocals added, total rubbish.(by Quad5point1)

In other words: These are fucking fake recordings !

Personnel:
Danny McCulloch (bass)
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a bunch of unknown studi musicians

Tracklist:
01. The House Of The Rising Sun (Traditional) 4,27
02. Howlin’ (McCulloch) 4.44
03. Night Fighter (McCulloch) 4.42
04. San Franciscan Nights (Jenkins/McCulloch/Burdon/Weider/Briggs) 3,26
05. Bist immer (McCulloch/Chapman) 3.31
06. Road Buster (McCulloch/Chapman) 4.06
07. We Gotta Get Out Of This Place (Mann/Weil) 3.38
08. Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood (Benjamin/Caldwell/Marcus) 3.50
09. To Love Somebody (B./Gibb/R.Gibb) 5.27
10. Frisco Queen (McCulloch) 4.05
11. When I Was Young (Burdon) 3.48
12. Love Fire (Devanche/McCulloch/Stars/Clifton) 4.21
13. Pay Master (McCulloch/Chapman) 3.30
14. Stand Up (McCulloch/Chapman) 3.26

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More from the real Animals:

Eroica Trio – Plays Gershwin, Ravel, Godard & Schoenfield (1997)

The Eroica Trio is an American piano trio consisting of Erika Nickrenz, piano; Sara Parkins, violin; and Sara Sant’Ambrogio, cello.

The trio take their name from Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony. They have toured and recorded widely, and released six recordings for Angel/EMI Classics Records, garnering multiple Grammy Award nominations.

The founding members of the trio were Nickrenz, Sant’Ambrogio, and Adela Peña. They were all trained at the Juilliard School. In addition to being accomplished musicians, the Eroica Trio have attracted attention in the chamber music world from some as physically attractive, stylishly dressed women.

The trio took first prize in the prestigious Walter W. Naumburg Chamber Music Competition in 1991. Their first compact disc recording Eroica Trio won National Public Radio’s 1997 Performance Today Award for “Debut Recording of the Year.”

In addition to touring with a varied piano trio repertoire, the Eroica Trio often appear in concert with major orchestras performing the Beethoven Triple Concerto.

The Eroica Trio commissioned a triple concerto by American composer Kevin Kaska. It was premiered by the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra in November 2001. They have also commissioned several works from American composer Bruce Wolosoff, including “The Loom,” inspired by the watercolors of Eric Fischl; that work was released on the Montage Music Society’s album Creating Music Inspired by Visual Art. (wikipedia)

Among the best-known piano trios, the Eroica Trio is also one of the most successful all-women chamber ensembles in the world. Winners of the 1991 Walter W. Naumburg Chamber Music Competition, the ensemble went on to a successful debut at Lincoln Center and several tours of the United States, Europe, and Asia. The trio quickly gained a reputation for passion and excitement in its performances and for innovative programs.

Pianist Erika Nickrenz, who began playing piano at age six and performed her first concerto at 11, has received the Rockefeller Award and has been featured in the PBS series Live from Lincoln Center.

Australian violinist Susie Park, who replaced founding member Adela Peña in 2006, has won top honors in the Indianapolis, Menuhin, and Wieniawski International Violin Competitions, and has appeared as soloist with the Indianapolis Symphony, as well as with the Korean KBS Orchestra and orchestras in Sydney and Melbourne. Cellist Sara Sant’Ambrogio has won many international competitions and received a medal at the International Tchaikovsky Violoncello Competition. She has toured extensively as a soloist and played with orchestras in Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, St. Louis, Moscow, and Izmir. She has released several solo CDs and joined in crossover performances with Rufus Wainwright, VAST, Angela McCluskey, and hip-hop artist Beatrice.

The group took its name from Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3 in E flat major, “Eroica.” It is one of the most active piano trios in the field of orchestral performance, and plays more concerts of Beethoven’s Triple Concerto than any other trio. It commissioned a triple concerto from composer Kevin Kaska, which was premiered in 2001 with the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra. The Eroica Trio also premiered Tango for Seven by Raimundo Penaforte, composed for an innovative combination of string trio plus string quartet, and which was premiered with the St. Lawrence String Quartet.

Recording for Angel/EMI Classics, the Eroica Trio’s repertoire has included the music of Maurice Ravel, Sergey Rachmaninov, Dmitry Shostakovich, and Antonin Dvorák, as well as lighter fare by George Gershwin, Leonard Bernstein, Astor Piazzolla, and Mark O’Connor. (by Rovi Staff)

And here´s their first album:

One of the most sought-after trios in the world, the Eroica Trio thrills audiences with flawless technical virtuosity, irresistible enthusiasm and sensual elegance. Whether playing the great standards of the piano trio repertoire or daring contemporary works, the three young women who make up this celebrated ensemble electrify the concert stage with their passionate performances. The Trio’s self-titled debut CD, which features works by Ravel, Benjamin Godard, a commissioned arrangement of the Gershwin Preludes, and Paul Schoenfield’s Café Music, was awarded NPR Performance Today’s “Debut Recording of the Year” and featured in Time Out New York’s “Top Ten Recordings” of 1997. (press release)

A first-rate debut album that lightens the mood of chamber music
The wisdom of crowds can do a belly flop sometimes, and it’s happened here with the lead review, which has incited a pile-up of negative votes against the Eroica Trio’s debut album. I hope prospective buyers won’t be misled. This is a beautifully played program caught in perfect sound. The program is winning and at times playful. EMI’s PR approach was aimed at finding a younger audience for chamber music, clearly. With three pretty young graduates of Juilliard to publicize, they struck a blow against the shriveled prune image that emanates fro, say, the Beaux Arts Trio.

The Eroica Trio doesn’t just look young; they play young. The fluffy arrangement of Gershwin’s Three Preludes actually swings, and throughout there’s an air of energy and exuberance. The group was founded in 1991, six years before their debut album was released, and they had won the prestigious Naumburg Award. Almost everything I’ve heard from them rises to a very high level of musicianship. I especially admire the pianist, Eriak Nickrenz. the best piano trios are led by a pianist with a strong personality, and she has one, particularly in their excellent CD of the first two Brahms piano trios – I’d rank it among the two or three best I’ve ever heard.

Personal taste can’t be argued against, but the two-star review’s complaints are pure fantasy. The ERoica play slow music as well as they play fast music. The main item here, the Ravel Trio, is flawless. The Jazzy Cafe Music by Paul Schoenfield, an expert at tongue-in-cheek, brings a smile. If anything on this album is less than first-rate, I can’t hear it. (by Huntley Dent)

In other words: An awesome trio:

Recorded at the St. Stephen’s Church, Tiburon, California, July 4 – 8, 1997

Personnel:
Sara Sant’Ambrogio (cello)
Erika Nickrenz (piano)
Adela Peña (violin)

Alternate front+backcover:

Tracklist:

George Gershwin: Three Preludes
01. Prelude I 4.38
02. Prelude II 7.50
03. Prelude III 1.57

Maurice Ravel: Piano Trio
04. Modéré 10.17
05. Pantoum 4.14
06. Passacaille: Très Large 9.32
07. Finale: Animé 5.22

Benjamin Godard:
08. Berceuse 5.51

Paul Schoenfiel: Café Music
09. Allegro 5.52
10. Andante Moderato: Rubato 6.10
11. Presto 4.30

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The official website:

Robbie Williams – The Ego Has Landed (1999)

Robert Peter Williams (né Conway; born 13 February 1974) is an English singer and songwriter. He found fame as a member of the pop group Take That from 1990 to 1995, and achieved commercial success after launching a solo career in 1996. His discography includes seven UK No. 1 singles, and all but one of his 12 studio albums have reached No. 1 in the UK. Six of his albums are among the top 100 biggest-selling albums in the UK, with two of them in the top 60, and he gained a Guinness World Record in 2006 for selling 1.6 million tickets in a single day during his Close Encounters Tour.

Williams has received a record 18 Brit Awards, winning Best British Male Artist four times, Outstanding Contribution to Music twice, an Icon Award for his lasting impact on British culture, eight German ECHO Awards, and three MTV European Music Awards.[2][3] In 2004, he was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame after being voted the Greatest Artist of the 1990s.

According to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), he has been certified for 20.2 million albums and 8.4 million singles in the UK as a solo artist. Five of his albums have also topped the Australian albums chart, and has sold 75 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time. He additionally topped the 2000–2010 UK airplay chart. His three concerts at Knebworth in 2003 drew over 375,000 people, the UK’s biggest music event to that point. In 2014, he was awarded the freedom of his home town of Stoke-on-Trent, as well as having a tourist trail created and streets named in his honour.

After 15 years, Williams rejoined Take That in 2010 to co-write and perform lead vocals on their album Progress, which became the second-fastest-selling album in UK chart history and the fastest-selling record of the century at the time. The subsequent stadium tour, which featured seven songs from Williams’ solo career, became the biggest-selling concert in UK history when it sold 1.34 million tickets in less than 24 hours. In 2011, Take That frontman Gary Barlow confirmed that Williams had left the band for a second time to focus on his solo career, although he stated that the departure was amicable and that Williams was welcome to rejoin Take That in the future. Williams has since performed with Take That on three separate television appearances, and collaborated with Barlow on a number of projects such as the West End musical The Band. (wikipedia)

The Ego Has Landed is a compilation album by English singer Robbie Williams. After the success of Williams around the world, especially in Europe, Williams was signed to Capitol Records in the United States, which was a part of EMI at the time. The album was released in May 1999 in the United States and Canada, and later issued worldwide. All tracks were previously released on Williams’ first two albums, Life thru a Lens (1997) and I’ve Been Expecting You (1998).

Williams embarked on a US Promotional Tour and when his first American single, “Millennium” was released, it peaked at No. 72 in the Billboard Hot 100. The album The Ego Has Landed was released in May 1999 in the United States and peaked at No. 63 in the Billboard albums chart, not having the success that he enjoyed in Europe. Despite this, Williams enjoyed good video airplay and received a nomination for the MTV Video Music Awards for “Best Male Video”; he did not win, but the exposure helped the sales of the album.

Capitol Records, trying to make Williams a bigger star, released a second single from the album, the ballad “Angels”, for which Williams shot a new video. When it was released in the autumn of that year, the song became a somewhat bigger hit than “Millennium”, charting at No. 53. However, this was not enough for Williams, so he concentrated on the rest of the world where he was already an established act. The album went on to sell 598,000 copies in the United States[7] being certified Gold by the RIAA in November of that year.

The compilation was released worldwide (as a limited edition in Europe, pressings for the album are still going strong in Latin America, Asia and New Zealand to this day) and was a huge success in New Zealand, reaching No. 1 on the Official Albums Chart.[9] It went on to sell 140,000 copies being certified 9× Platinum. In Australia, the album ensured platinum sales over 70,000 copies. The album was promoted in Latin America as well. Williams recorded a Spanish version of his hit “Angels” and it was included as a bonus track on the album and then released as a single (almost two years after its original release in English). The Spanish version was a substantial hit in most Latin American countries, but as the single had already been big in 1997, most video and radio outlets focused on the tracks from his album I’ve Been Expecting You. Despite this, the compilation proved to be a medium success giving him Gold sales in Argentina.(wikipedia)

Robbie Williams was an international superstar at the end of the millennium, a recognizable icon in all countries but one — the United States. Traditionally, this is a problem for British superstars, who are able to amass a large global following but are hard pressed to break down the doors to America for a variety of reasons, many of which are inexplicable. For Williams, it was because his records weren’t released in the U.S., probably because his former band, Take That, never developed into a commercial powerhouse in America. Once the group split, conventional wisdom suggested that lead singer Gary Barlow would become the star, but after Williams delivered back-to-back smashes (Life Thru a Lens, I’ve Been Expecting You), he seemed like the genuine star.

It was time for America to become acquainted with the lovable rock & roll rascal, hence the brilliantly titled The Ego Has Landed. Containing six songs from Life and eight from I’ve Been, The Ego Has Landed isn’t a perfect compilation, but it’s not half bad either. Since it’s culled from just two records, it doesn’t have great momentum or pacing, but it does contain a very good cross section of his two albums, leaning a little toward the mid-tempo and ballad side. The pacing is a little off, but the songs are there: the clever showmanship of “Let Me Entertain You,” the endearingly silly “Old Before I Die,” the crooning “No Regrets,” the propulsive “Man Machine,” and “Millennium,” Willliams’ bid for sampadelic hipness — everything that illustrates why he is a perfect post-alternative, post-Brit-pop, post-ironic pop star. (by Stephen Thomas Erlewine)

Personnel:
Guy Chambers (keyboards, background vocals)
Alex Dickson (guitar, background vocals)
Fil Eisler (bass, background vocals)
Gary Nuttall (guitar, background vocals)
Chris Sharrock (drums)
Robbie Williams (vocals)
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background vocals on 03.:
Neil Hannon – Neil Tennant

Tracklist:
01. Lazy Days (Williams/Chambers) 3.52
02. Millennium (Williams/Chambers/Bricusse/Barry) 4.04
03. No Regrets (Williams/Chambers) 5.10
04. Strong (Williams/Chambers) 4.37
05. Angels (Williams/Chambers) 4.25
06. Win Some Lose Some (Williams/Chambers) 4.19
07. Let Me Entertain You (Williams/Chambers) 4.20
08. Jesus In A Camper Van (Williams/Chambers/Wainwright III) 3.38
09. Old Before I Die (Williams/Bazilian/Child) 3.53
10. Killing Me (Williams/Chambers) 3.58
11. Man Machine (Williams/Chambers) 3.37
12. She’s the One (Wallinger) 4.18
13. Karma Killer (Williams/Chambers) 4.28
14. One Of God’s Better People (Williams/Chambers) 15.01
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15. Angels (Spanisch version) (Williams/Chambers) 4.28

Tracks 1, 5, 7, 9, 10, and 14 are from Life thru a Lens (1997).
Tracks 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 11, 12, and 13 are from I’ve Been Expecting You (1998).

“One of God’s Better People” runs 3:36. After 10 minutes of silence, Williams recites a poem called “Hello Sir”, addressed to a teacher who berated him for wanting to become a pop singer. This previously appeared as a hidden track on Life thru a Lens.

Latin American editions of the album include the spanish version of “Angels” as track 15.

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More from Robbie Williams:

The offical website:

Chumbawamba – Tubthumper (1997)

Chumbawamba  were an English rock band formed in 1982 and disbanded in 2012. The band drew on genres such as punk rock, pop, and folk. Their anarcho-communist political leanings led them to have an irreverent attitude toward authority, and to espouse a variety of political and social causes including animal rights and pacifism (early in their career) and later regarding class struggle, Marxism, feminism, gay liberation, pop culture, and anti-fascism.

The band are best known for their song “Tubthumping”, which was nominated for Best British Single at the 1998 Brit Awards. Other singles include “Amnesia”, “Enough Is Enough” (with MC Fusion), “Timebomb”, “Top of the World (Olé, Olé, Olé)”, and “Add Me”.

In July 2012, Chumbawamba announced they were splitting up after 30 years. On its website the members stated “That’s it then, it’s the end. With neither a whimper, a bang, or a reunion.” The band was joined by former members and collaborators for three final shows between 31 October and 3 November 2012, one of which was filmed and released as a live DVD.

Tubthumper is the eighth studio album and the major label debut by English rock band Chumbawamba, released on 1 September 1997 by EMI. The album was written and produced by Chumbawamba, with additional production from Neil Ferguson. A musical departure from the group’s anarcho-punk roots, the album incorporates elements of pop rock, dance-pop, and alternative rock. Thematically, the album acts as a social commentary on a variety of political issues, particularly that of class conflict. Tubthumper was promoted with three singles: “Tubthumping”, “Amnesia”, and “Drip, Drip, Drip”. “Top of the World (Olé, Olé, Olé)”, a standalone single previously featured on the official music compilation album for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, was included on a European reissue of Tubthumper.

Tubthumper received generally positive reviews from music critics, who noted it as a sonically distinctive record, in addition to praising its subtle social commentary. Following the international commercial success of lead single “Tubthumping”, the album peaked at number three in the United States and within the top ten in several other countries. The album’s release was met with several controversies, including controversial comments in interviews by group vocalist Alice Nutter and allegations of the band selling out after signing to a major label. Tubthumper remains as Chumbawamba’s most successful album, having sold over 3.2 million units in the United States alone.

Sessions for Tubthumper spanned from August 1996 through February 1997 at Woodlands Studio in Castleford, West Yorkshire, England. The album was written and produced by Chumbawamba, with additional production from Neil Ferguson. Approximately twenty songs were written for the album, with the group choosing to pursue a more mainstream sound entailing elements of pop rock, dance-pop, and alternative rock. The album resulted in a stalemate between Chumbawamba and their record label, One Little Indian Records, with the latter rejecting the record in opposition to the group’s new sound.[3] As a result, Chumbawamba parted ways with the label, then signing with EMI in England and Universal Music Group in the United States. The group intended to reach a larger audience with their music through signing with a major record label.

The album catapulted the group into the mainstream, released by EMI in the UK and in the US by Universal Records, and was noted for its departure from the group’s typical style of outspoken punk rock in favor of a more mainstream sound.[4][5]

The album’s title refers to “Someone who stands on a soapbox on the street corner and shouts what’s wrong with the world”.[6] The cover for the album was designed by Michael Calleia[7] at Industrial Strength Design[8] in New York City. The cover was loosely based on the album cover for the group’s 1994 album Anarchy, with the group commenting “the anarchy baby was just being born on Anarchy, and we thought it should be eight months to a year old with a bit of attitude on Tubthumper.”

A recurring lyrical theme on Tubthumper is social commentary, in particular class conflict.[3][9] However, critic Elisabeth Vincentelli opined that the group had “toned down some of the radical rhetoric”, and that the album’s lyrics, where they were previously had a “brusque directness”, Tubthumper contained “oblique pathos”.

The song “One by One” has been described as an “elegiac tale of treachery” committed by politicians. “The Good Ship Lifestyle” criticizes “lifestylism”, which the group defined as the “practice of wrapping yourself in a blinkered, self-perfecting, ideologically-sound cocoon”, telling other people how to live their lives but not abiding those rules oneself.

Tubtumper incorporates a number of musical styles, including synth-pop, hip hop, jungle, and madrigals.[9] The album was noted for its presence of trumpet solos. Music critic Greg Kot likened the album’s catchiness to that of the Spice Girls. An album review by Rolling Stone compared the musical style of “Smalltown” to that of British alternative group Everything But the Girl, while deeming the album’s overall genre “radio-friendly dance pop”. The Los Angeles Times concurred that the album was dance-pop.

Some critics were more lukewarm in their assessments of the album, however: Rolling Stone’s Elisabeth Vincentelli awarded the album 3 stars and opined that the album’s lyrics “have traded the brusque directness of yore for oblique pathos”, though she did go on to praise “Smalltown” as being “coolly collected” and “Tubthumping” as having “a fist-in-the-air quality that would work equally well at a union rally and in an arena.” She concluded that the album “may not enlighten the masses, but it’ll make them dance”. Music critic Robert Christgau awarded the album a 3-star honourable mention rating and cited “Tubthumping” and “Amnesia” as highlights, with the note “Tub as platform, tub as cornucopia, tub as slop bucket”.

Tubthumper was Chumbawamba’s most successful album in several respects. It spawned the worldwide hit “Tubthumping”, which was a top 10 hit in the US, the UK, Sweden, Norway, and Belgium, and a number 1 hit in Canada, Italy, Ireland, and Australia. The follow-up single, “Amnesia”, also proved a commercial success, managing to reach the top 10 in the UK and Canada. The album spawned a third single, “Drip Drip Drip”, which failed to make an impression on any international chart but was met with positive critical reception.

The album became a commercial success. In the United States, it hit number 3 on the Billboard 200[29] and sold more than 3,200,000 copies, thanks in large part to the success of “Tubthumping;”[30] Canada, where the album reached number 2; and the UK, where the album reached number 19. The album also placed at number 17 on the American tally of top-selling albums of 1997. Tubthumper remains the group’s highest-charting album in all three territories; its sales in the US stand at 3,200,000.

The group’s decision to sign with a major record label caused a huge upheaval in Chumbawamba’s fan base, with many of their older fans feeling the band had trivialised all that they had stood for in signing to EMI. The band was targeted by many as being sell-outs and hypocrites, after having been sternly do-it-yourself for their fifteen-year history up until that point.

The band defended their decision on their official FAQ page, issuing a statement that read, in part: “We signed to EMI/Universal not because we’d been co-opted into the ‘If you can’t beat capitalism … join it’ school of thought, but because experience had taught us that in a capitalist environment almost every record company operates on capitalist principles. Our previous record label One Little Indian didn’t have the evil symbolic significance of EMI BUT they were completely motivated by profit. Our [Chumbawamba’s] position was that whoever we signed with would want us not for our ideas but for the potential profit, so we’d battle for a contract where we still had autonomy.”

Chumbawamba’s decision to sign with a major record label prompted the release of the extended play, Bare Faced Hypocrisy Sells Records – The Anti-Chumbawamba EP, by several of their contemporaries in 1998. The release included contributions from The Chineapple Punks, Riot/Clone, Anxiety Society, Love, Chips & Peace, Oi Polloi, Bus Station Loonies, and Wat Tyler.

In early 1998, group vocalist Alice Nutter made an appearance on the American television show Politically Incorrect, to promote the album. During the interview, she appeared to encourage fans who were unable to afford Tubthumper to steal it from big chain music stores like HMV and Virgin.[36] Her statement led several music retailers to stop carrying the album altogether.[37] In the United States, following the interview, Virgin Megastores pulled the album from store shelves, while the album was number 7 on the US album chart; the company continued to sell the album, but kept it behind the counter.[36][38] Virgin’s Vice President of Marketing issued a statement about the incident, which said that the company didn’t genuinely believe fans would steal the disc, but that the company wanted to make a statement: “We were one of the earliest supporters of the band…We’ve been pushing the band since the beginning, and this is the kind of thanks we get?”

Nutter maintained that her comments had been taken out of context, and that they were “tongue-in-cheek” and not to be taken seriously. She told MTV in a January 1998 interview that “They wanted to talk about people stealing our record, which is irrelevant in the scheme of things. What I wanted to talk about was why people shoplift and why in some cases it’s absolutely valid. Some people have two houses and two cars and luxuries for far more than themselves, and other people struggle to survive day by day.”

The ensuing controversy also served to stoke the public’s interest in the album. (wikipedia)

Chumbawamba had been kicking around the British indie scene for years, releasing nine albums before Tubthumper unexpectedly brought the band to the top of the charts not only in England, but around the world. The difference between Tubthumper and the rest of Chumbawamba’s catalog lay in “Tubthumping,” a giddily infectious blend of big dance beats, pop hooks, and football chants. It’s a standout single, one that finds the group at its catchiest, and there isn’t anything quite as good on the remainder of Tubthumper, an album that finds the group downplaying its notorious political radicalism in favor of pop and dance. Still, there’s a handful of cuts scattered throughout the record that make the album worthwhile, and there’s no denying that “Tubthumping” is a hit single unlike any other. It’s one of the least likely hit singles ever, and that alone makes the record distinctive. (by Stephen Thomas Erlewine)

Personnel:
Jude Abbott (trumpet, vocals)
Dunstan Bruce (vocals, percussion)
Paul Greco (bass)
Neil Ferguson (keyboards, guitar)
Harry Hamer (drums, programming)
Danbert “The Cat” Nobacon (vocals)
Alice Nutter (vocals)
Lou Watts (vocals, keyboards)
Boff Whalley (guitar, vocals)
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Chopper (cello on 11.)
Geoff Clout (vocals)
Michael Cohen (vocals on 02.)
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Abbott Sauce Works Band (brass on 12.)

Tracklist:
01. Tubthumping 4.38
02. Amnesia 4.08
03. Drip, Drip, Drip 5.08
04. The Big Issue 4.37
05. The Good Ship Lifestyle 5.13
06. One by One 5.45
07. Outsider 5.08
08. Creepy Crawling 4.03
09. Mary, Mary 4.58
10. Smalltown 3.13
11. I Want More 4.01
12. Scapegoat 5.06

Notes:
“Tubthumping” and “Scapegoat” contain sampled excerpts from the 1996 film Brassed Off, as spoken by Pete Postlethwaite.
“Amnesia” contains sampled excerpts from the television series Rising Damp, as spoken by Richard Beckinsale and Leonard Rossiter, and from a government-produced public service announcement on mad cow disease.
“The Big Issue” contains sampled elements from the composition “Danke Für Diesen Guten Morgen”, as written and performed by Martin Gotthard Schneider.
“The Good Ship Lifestyle” contains a sampled excerpt from the BBC Radio 4 Shipping Forecast.
“Mary, Mary” contains a sampled excerpt from the 1993 film Raining Stones.

All songs written by:
Jude Abbott – Dunstan Bruce – Paul Greco – Neil Ferguson – Harry Hamer – Danbert  Nobacon – Alice Nutter – Lou Watts – Boff Whalley

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The official webite:

Quatermass II – Long Road (1997)

The original Quartermass was an early ’70s progressive band that recorded for the Harvest label in 1970. Widely sought after by collectors, the original lineup consisted of John Gustafson, Peter Robinson and Mick Underwood. The original band only recorded one album then split, with band members going on to other projects. Quartermass II was formed by original band member Mick Underwood in the mid ’90s. This incarnation of the band also features founding member of Deep Purple Nick Simper and top session players Bart Foley and Gary Davis. The music of Quartermass II is not progressive like that of its predecessor, but it is your basic commercial hard rock sound from bands as Whitesnake, Starship, Aerosmith or many others. While not overly spectacular, this band could attract some notice from the curious who were familiar with the original Quartermass or the reputations of Underwood and Simper. (Keith Pettipas)

Despite many Deep Pruple connections no DP sound, nor Quatermass I, but a very good rock album in many ways! Asks to be listened:

Where to start? Original Quarermass drummer Mick Underwood, as only surviving member, played on the first album, after one album the band stopped for a long time and has been resurrected some 25 years later, again for only one album. Before that he played in Episode Six, which spawned future lead singer Ian Gillan and bass player Roger Glover. After the departure of Gillan from Deep Purple he played with him in Gillan, the band. From Deep Purple Mark I stemss bass player Nick Simper, who later on formed Warhorse (2 albums) and Fandango (2 albums) on which his influence on bass and as songwriter is much bigger. Here he cowrotes only one track. Guest keyboard player Don Airy played at that time with Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow and would ultimately replace longtime serving DP member John Lord. Bernie Tormé offered a song, he was the guitar player for Gillan. Finally John Gustafson, singer/bass player for original Quatermass delivered two songs for this album, but did not participate in the recording sessions. He was also part of the band Gillan, before Deep Purple was reformed again.

Guitar player Davis said he was teached by m. Blackmore. Nevertheless, all those leads to Deep Purple or their offspring acts doesn’t make this album sound like any of them. On the contrary, I would say. Each track is a fine, solid song, and stands out in the midst of so many rock albums from the nineties. it is a shame this band did not reach higher ground, they certainly had the potention. It seems that they stayed together for 4 or 5 years but only this album was released. Each member plays very well, they could write good songs, especially the singer Foley and lead guitarist Davis. They didn’t make it afterwards, sadly, as far as I know. So what went wrong with all the (loose) DP ties? I cannot tell, this album is a much better effort than most other albums at that time and even than the first album, which was more keyboard dominated, and lacked a singer and guitar player. In fact Quatermass I and II were separate bands. Maybe the public, after such a very long time, anticipated an album in the same vein as the first, maybe is was not such a good idea to name this, different, band the same. Anyhow, talent and succes are not always each others complement, they can do without that. This album has to be listened to from another point of view. It gives the listener great joy. I can strongly recommend it … so what went wrong, with all the (loose) DP ties? (J. Talsma)

Personnel:
Gary Davis (leadguitar)
Bart Foley (vocals, guitar)
Nick Simper (bass)
Mick Underwood (drums, percussion)
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Don Airey (keyboards)

Tracklist:
01. Prayer For The Dying (Foley) 4.50
02. Good day to die (Gary Davis/Bart Foley)
03. Wild wedding (John Gustafson)
04. Suicide blond (Gary Davis/Bart Foley)
05. River (Bernie Torme)
06. Long road (Bart Foley)
07. Woman in love (Bart Foley)
08. Hit and run (Bart Foley)
09. Daylight robbery (John Gustafson)
10. Coming home (Bart Foley)
11. Circus (Gary Davis/Bart Foley/Nick Simper/Mick Underwood)
12. Undercarriage (live demo) (Foley) 5.53

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More from Quatermass:

En Vogue – EV 3 (1997)

En Vogue is an American R&B/pop vocal group whose original lineup consisted of singers Terry Ellis, Dawn Robinson, Cindy Herron, and Maxine Jones. Formed in Oakland, California, in 1989, En Vogue reached No. 2 on the US Hot 100 with the single “Hold On”, taken from their 1990 debut album Born to Sing. The group’s 1992 follow-up album Funky Divas reached the top 10 in both the US and UK, and included their second US number two hit “My Lovin’ (You’re Never Gonna Get It)” as well as the US top 10 hits “Giving Him Something He Can Feel” and “Free Your Mind”.

In 1996, “Don’t Let Go (Love)” became the group’s third, and most successful single, to reach number two in the US, and became their sixth number one on the US R&B chart. Robinson left the group in 1997 shortly before the release of their third album EV3, which reached the US and UK top 10. Jones left the group in 2001, Amanda Cole joined shortly thereafter. However, in 2003, Cole left the group, and Rhona Bennett joined the group during the recording of their album Soul Flower. In 2005, the original members briefly united before disassembling again. In 2009, the original members once again reunited for their “En Vogue: 20th Anniversary”. Shortly after the tour, Robinson and Jones again departed from En Vogue, with Bennett rejoining the group as a trio.

En Vogue has sold more than 30 million records worldwide to date, and are often considered one of the best female vocal groups of all time. The group has won seven MTV Video Music Awards, three Soul Train Awards, two American Music Awards, and received seven Grammy nominations. In December 1999, Billboard magazine ranked the band as the 19th most successful recording artist of the 1990s. They ranked as the second most successful female group of the 1990s.  In March 2015, Billboard magazine named the group the ninth most-successful girl group of all-time. Two of the group’s singles ranks in Billboard’s most successful girl group songs of all-time list, “Don’t Let Go (Love)” (#12) and “Hold On” (#23)

EV3 is the third studio album by American female vocal group En Vogue. It was released by East West Records on June 17, 1997, in the United States. Recorded after a lengthy break during which the band members became mothers or established solo careers, the album was En Vogue’s first project to include a diverse roster of collaborators including credits from Babyface, David Foster, Diane Warren, Andrea Martin, Ivan Matias, and Organized Noize along with regular contributors Foster & McElroy. It marked their first album without Dawn Robinson, who decided to leave the group late into the recording of EV3 in favor of a solo recording contract, prompting the remaining trio to re-record much of the material for the album.

Upon its release, EV3 received mixed reviews from critics, many of whom praised the band’s vocal performances but were critical with overall production of the album. In the US, the album debuted at number eight on both Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and the Billboard 200 with sales of 76,500 units, the band’s highest first-week numbers. Internationally, EV3 entered the top forty on most charts it appeared on and remains En Vogue highest-charting effort to date. Certified Platinum by the RIAA and Silver the BPI, the album produced three pop and R&B hit singles, including “Don’t Let Go (Love)”, “Whatever” and “Too Gone, Too Long”.

In 1992, En Vogue released their second studio album Funky Divas (1992). A major success, it sold 3.5 million copies worldwide and generated three top ten singles. Following extensive touring in support of the album, the quartet started what would become a longer hiatus. While band members Cindy Herron and Maxine Jones went on maternity leave, Terry Ellis reteamed with regular En Vogue contributors Foster & McElroy to work on her solo album Southern Gal which was released to lackluster success in November 1995. In the meantime, En Vogue lent their vocals to the collaborative single “Freedom (Theme from Panther)” (1995) and recorded “Don’t Let Go (Love)” for the soundtrack to the motion picture Set It Off (1996). Released in the autumn, it became the group’s biggest hit yet, selling over 1.8 million copies worldwide and becoming certified platinum by the RIAA.

In response to the large commercial success of “Don’t Let Go (Love)”, the group steadfastly went to work on its third studio album. Originally called EV4, it marked En Vogue’s first project that was not fully produced by McElroy and Foster, with additional production coming from Babyface, Andrea Martin, David Foster, Diane Warren, and Ivan Matias to provide the group with a new modern sound. As the album was nearing completion, Dawn Robinson chose to leave the group in April 1997 for a solo recording contract with Dr. Dre’s Aftermath Records after difficult contractual negotiations reached a stalemate. Her abrupt departure from En Vogue forced the remaining trio to re-record several of her original lead vocals; however, not every track was re-recorded, with Robinson’s leads remaining intact on several tracks and her background vocals still appearing on every song with the exception of “Does Anybody Hear Me”. The track “Let It Flow” reuses the main riff of the 1977 hit single “Slide” by funk band Slave.

In the United States, EV3 debuted at number eight on both the US Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and the Billboard 200 in the issue dated July 5, 1997. Selling approximately 76,500 copies in its first week of release, the album marked the band’s highest debut on both charts as well as their biggest first week sales yet. On August 26, 1997, EV3 was awarded platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), indicating sales in excess of 1.0 million copies. Elsewhere, the album entered the top forty on most charts it appeared on. EV3 reached top ten in Germany, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom becoming the band’s second top ten album after Funky Divas.

EV3 spawned three hit singles. Lead single, “Don’t Let Go (Love)”, was a worldwide hit and peaked at number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 1 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The single sold 1.3 million copies in the United States and was certified platinum by the RIAA. The second single, “Whatever” peaked at number 16 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 8 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The single was certified gold by the RIAA after sales of over 500,000 copies.[15] “Too Gone, Too Long”, the album’s final single released, was a top 40 hit on both the Billboard Hot 100 at number 33 and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs at number 25. (wikipedia)

The sound of En Vogue isn’t greatly affected by the departure of Dawn Robinson for their third album, EV3, since the group’s harmonies remain remarkably supple and soulful. Instead, the group are hurt by its selection of producers and songwriters. En Vogue have decided to work with Denzil Foster and Thomas McElroy only occasionally on EV3, choosing to hire such professional songwriters and producers as Babyface, David Foster, Diane Warren and Ivan Matias, who arranged their hit single “Don’t Let Go (Love).”

At times, these pairings work: Babyface’s “Whatever” is funkier than his previous work, and Matias brings a gospel-drenched sensibility to his songs. In the cases of Warren and Foster, they reshape En Vogue as an adult contemporary band, sapping the group of any of their energy or style. Still, there are enough strong moments scattered throughout the album to make it worth the wait. (by Leo Stanley)

Personnel:
Terry Ellis – Cindy Herron – Maxine Jones – Dawn Robinson (vocals)
+
Garry Barnes (bass)
Babyface (synthesizer, piano, drum programming)
Dennis Bolden (organ, programming)
Chanz (piano)
Mark Coleman (guitar)
Preston Crump (bass)
James Earley (guitar, bass)
Jason Eckl (guitar)
David Foster (keyboards)
Denzil Foster (keyboards, background vocals)
Giuliano Franco (synthesizer, drum programming)
Bernard Grobeman (guitar)
JAH (rap vocals)
Pro-Jay (programming)
Lil John (drums)
Tommy Martin (guitar)
Marlon McClain (guitar)
Thomas McElroy (keyboards, drum machine, background vocals)
Bill Ortiz (trumpet)
Dean Parks (guitar)
Nate Phillips (bass)
Adrion Sinclair( programming)
Norbet Stachel (saxophone)
Martin Terry (guitar)
Michael Thompson (guitar)
Kevin Wyatt (bass)

Tracklist:
01. Whatever (Edmonds/Andes/Franco) 4.20
02. Don’t Let Go (Love) (Martin/Wade/Murray/Brown/Matias/Etheridge) 4.52
03. Right Direction (Bolden/Eckl) 5.07
04. Damn, I Wanna Be Your Lover (Martin/Matias/Pro-Jay) 5.24
05. Too Gone, Too Long (Warren/Foster) 4.42
06. You’re All I Need (Matias) 3.36
07. Let It Flow (Foster/McElroy) 5.38
08. Sitting By Heaven’s Door (Foster/McElroy) 4.34
09. Love Makes You Do Thangs (Foster/McElroy) 4.28
10. What A Difference A Day Makes (Foster/McElroy) 4.12
11. Eyes Of A Child (Foster/McElroy) 4.32
12. Does Anybody Hear Me (Ellis/Herron/Jones/Matias) 3.09

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The official website:

Shania Twain – Come On Over (1997)

Eilleen “Shania” Twain (born Eilleen Regina Edwards; August 28, 1965) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She has sold over 100 million records, making her the best-selling female artist in country music history and one of the best-selling music artists of all time. Her success garnered her several honorific titles including the “Queen of Country Pop”. Billboard named her as the leader of the ’90s country-pop crossover stars.

Raised in Timmins, Ontario, Twain pursued singing and songwriting from a young age before signing with Mercury Nashville Records in the early 1990s. Her self-titled debut studio album was a commercial failure upon release in 1993.[8] After collaborating with producer and later husband Robert John “Mutt” Lange, Twain rose to fame with her second studio album, The Woman in Me (1995), which brought her widespread success. It sold over 20 million copies worldwide, spawned eight singles, including “Any Man of Mine” and earned her a Grammy Award. Her third studio album, Come On Over (1997), became the best-selling studio album by a female act in any genre and the best-selling country album of all time, selling over 40 million copies worldwide. Come On Over produced twelve singles, including “You’re Still the One”, “From This Moment On”, “That Don’t Impress Me Much” and “Man! I Feel Like a Woman!” and earned Twain four Grammy Awards. Her fourth studio album, Up! (2002), spawned eight singles, including “I’m Gonna Getcha Good!”, “Ka-Ching!” and “Forever and for Always”, selling over 20 million copies worldwide, also being certified Diamond in the United States.

In 2004, after releasing her Greatest Hits album, which produced three new singles including “Party for Two”, Twain entered a hiatus, revealing years later that diagnoses with Lyme disease and dysphonia led to a severely weakened singing voice. She chronicled her vocal rehabilitation on the OWN miniseries Why Not? with Shania Twain, released her first single in seven years in 2012, “Today Is Your Day”, and published an autobiography, From This Moment On. Twain returned to performing the following year with an exclusive concert residency at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Shania: Still the One, which ran until 2014. In 2015, she launched the North American Rock This Country Tour, which was billed as her farewell tour. Twain released her first studio album in 15 years in 2017, Now, and embarked on the Now Tour in 2018. In 2019, she started her second Las Vegas residency, Let’s Go! at the Zappos Theater.

Twain has received five Grammy Awards, a World Music Award, 27 BMI Songwriter Awards, stars on Canada’s Walk of Fame and the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and an induction into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.[18] According to the RIAA she is the only female artist in history to have three (consecutive) albums certified Diamond by the RIAA[19] and is the sixth best-selling female artist in the United States. Altogether, Twain is ranked as the 10th best-selling artist of the Nielsen SoundScan era. Billboard listed Twain as the 13th Greatest Music Video Female Solo Artist of all time (42nd overall)

Come On Over is the third studio album recorded by Canadian country music singer Shania Twain. It was released on November 4, 1997, and became the best-selling country album, the best selling album by a Canadian and is recognized by Guinness World Records as the biggest-selling studio album by a solo female artist, and the best-selling album in the USA by a solo female artist. It is the ninth all-time best-selling album in the United States, and worldwide. It is also the sixteenth best-selling album in the United Kingdom.

As of 2020, Come On Over has sold more than 40 million copies worldwide, shipped over 20 million copies in the United States, with over 15.7 million copies sold according to Nielsen SoundScan, and another 1.99 million through BMG Music Clubs. The album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart and stayed there for 50 non-consecutive weeks and is recognized by Guinness World Records as the album with the most weeks at No.1 on the US Top Country Albums chart. It stayed in the top ten for 151 weeks. Ten of the sixteen tracks hit the top 20 of the Hot Country Songs chart, eight of which hit top 10, including three No. 1s.

Seven of the tracks also made the Top 50 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Twain promoted the album with television performances and interviews. It was further promoted with the successful Come On Over Tour, which visited North America, Oceania and Europe. Out of the album’s sixteen tracks, twelve were released as singles, including “Love Gets Me Every Time”, “Don’t Be Stupid (You Know I Love You)”, “You’re Still the One”, “From This Moment On”, “That Don’t Impress Me Much” and “Man! I Feel Like a Woman!”. The album was also promoted with a succession of music videos for the singles. The fifth single, “When”, was the only single from the album to not be released in the United States.

The album was nominated for six awards at the 41st Annual Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Best Country Album. “You’re Still the One”, which peaked on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 2, was nominated for four awards, including Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Country Song and Best Female Country Vocal Performance, winning the latter two. The album received a further three nominations at the 42nd Annual Grammy Awards, including Song of the Year for “You’ve Got a Way”, Best Female Country Vocal Performance for “Man! I Feel Like a Woman!” and Best Country Song for “Come On Over”, winning the latter two.

After releasing and promoting her breakthrough album The Woman in Me, Come On Over saw Twain entirely collaborating with producer and then husband Robert John “Mutt” Lange on a variety of country pop numbers, mostly uptempo. Given much more creative freedom than for its predecessor, Twain and Lange sought to break the conventional country music formula on the album and explore the country pop genre to its fullest extent.

Twain decided not to tour off The Woman in Me partly because she felt she needed more powerful music to do a powerful show. Twain and her husband commenced songwriting material for the album as early as 1994, and often wrote apart to later intertwine their ideas. The recording process was intensive, with Lange dedicating overzealous time and patience to each individual track. Though the singer indicated her sonic preferences, she ultimately ceded all production to Lange. On the international version, Twain and Lange revisited the tracks to strip them of country influences and increase the album’s marketability beyond the US and Canada.

The album was a blockbuster success, becoming the biggest-selling studio album of all time by a female artist, the biggest-selling country music album, the biggest-selling album by a Canadian act and the ninth biggest-selling album in music history. Three different versions of the album were released, the original country version, released in 1997, and the revised pop/international versions released in 1998 and 1999. The album was also supported by an extensive world tour by Twain.
Twain topped her own record with the release of Come On Over, beating out her previous Diamond selling album The Woman in Me, as the best-selling country music album ever released and the best-selling studio album ever released by a female artist in any genre. Debuting at No. 2 on the US Billboard 200 with a moderate 172,000 copies (3,000 units behind Mase’s Harlem World), the album showed its consistency when it moved another 170,000 copies in its second week (a 1.2% decrease) to stay at No. 2 again behind Barbra Streisand’s Higher Ground. The RIAA certified Come on Over Gold, Platinum and 2× platinum on December 23, 1997. It sold more than 100,000 units in each of 62 weeks. During the Thanksgiving week of 1999, the Come On Over: International Version was released in conjunction to Shania’s Thanksgiving CBS special, Come On Over that week earned the Billboard chart “Greatest Gainer” title, jumping 24–11 on the Billboard 200, a 246% increase in sales from a 57,000 the previous week to a 197,000 the week after. The album’s best sales week was its 110th week, during which it sold 355,000 units to settle at number ten (Christmas 1999). The album stayed on the top 10 for 54 weeks, set a record for longest stay in the Top 20 of the Billboard 200 of 112 weeks, and in top 40 for 127 consecutive weeks. Come On Over topped the Billboard Country album chart for a record 50 weeks, finishing second to Garth Brooks’ Sevens in 1998, finishing first in 1999, and third in 2000 behind Dixie Chicks’ Fly and Faith Hill’s Breathe. It was certified diamond by the RIAA on April 7, 1999. Despite its considerable sales, the album never reached the top of the Billboard 200.

Come On Over was the first album to reach both 14 million (in September 2001) and 15 million (in August 2004) in sales in the US since 1991, when Nielsen SoundScan started tracking music sales. It ranks as the second best-selling album of the Nielsen SoundScan era in the US, with over 15.73 million copies sold by October 2017, behind its nearest rival, Metallica’s 1991 self-titled album (16.1 million as of 2015).[23] However, these figures do not include sales through such entities as BMG Music Club, where Come on Over has sold 1.99 million copies while Metallica has sold fewer than 298,000 copies.

The album topped the charts for 11 weeks in the UK. The album is one of the highest-selling albums ever in Australia, reaching 18 times platinum and spending 19 weeks at No. 1 and 165 weeks in the top 100 (or more than three years). It is still the best-selling album of the 1990s in Australia.(wikipedia)

Shania Twain’s second record, The Woman in Me, became a blockbuster, appealing as much to a pop audience as it did to the country audience. Part of the reason for its success was how producer Robert John “Mutt” Lange — best-known for his work with Def Leppard, the Cars, and AC/DC — steered Twain toward the big choruses and instrumentation that always was a signature of his speciality, AOR radio. Come on Over, the sequel to The Woman in Me, continues that approach, breaking from contemporary country conventions in a number of ways. Not only does the music lean toward rock, but its 16 songs and, as the cover proudly claims, “Hour of Music,” break from the country tradition of cheap, short albums of ten songs that last about a half-hour.

Furthermore, all 16 songs and Lange-Twain originals and Shania’s sleek, sexy photos suggest a New York fashion model, not a honky tonker. And there isn’t any honky tonk here, which is just as well, since the fiddles are processed to sound like synthesizers and talk boxes never sound good on down-home, gritty rave-ups. No, Shania sticks to what she does best, which is countrified mainstream pop. Purists will complain that there’s little country here, and there really isn’t. However, what is here is professionally crafted country-pop — even the filler (which there is, unfortunately, too much of) sounds good — which is delivered with conviction, if not style, by Shania, and that is enough to make it a thoroughly successful follow-up to one of the most successful country albums by a female in history. (by Stephen Thomas Erlewine)

Personnel:
Bruce Bouton (pedal steel-guitar, lap steel guitar)
Larry Byrom (slide guitar)
Joe Chemay (bass)
Stuart Duncan (fiddle)
Larry Franklin (fiddle)
Paul Franklin (pedal steel-guitar, “cosmic steel”
Rob Hajacos (fiddle)
John Hobbs (piano)
Dann Huff (guitar, bass, sitar, organ)
John Hughey (pedal steel-guitar)
John Barlow Jarvis (piano)
Robert John “Mutt” Lange (background vocals)
Paul Leim (drums)
Brent Mason (lead guitar)
Joey Miskulin (accordion)
Michael Omartian (piano
Eric Silver (mandolin)
Arthur Stead (keyboards, synthesizer)
Shania Twain (vocals)
Biff Watson (guitar)
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Bryan White (vocals on 05.)
Carl Marsh and David Hamilton (strings on 05.)

Tracklist:
01. Man! I Feel Like a Woman! 3:53
02. I’m Holdin’ On to Love (To Save My Life) 3.27
03. Love Gets Me Every Time 3.34
04. Don’t Be Stupid (You Know I Love You) 3.34
05. From This Moment On 4.41
06. Come On Over 2.54
07. When 3.39
08. Whatever You Do! Don’t! 3.49
09. If You Wanna Touch Her, Ask! 4.04
10. Still The One 3:34
11. Honey, I’m Home 3.35
12. That Don’t Impress Me Much 3.39
13. Black Eyes, Blue Tears 3.40
14. I Won’t Leave You Lonely 4.12
15. Rock This Country! 4.22
16. You’ve Got A Way 3.30

All songs written by Shania Twain and Robert John “Mutt” Lange

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Let me let you in on a secret
How to treat a woman right
If you’re lookin’ for a place in her heart
It ain’t gonna happen overnight
First you gotta learn to listen
To understand her deepest thoughts
She needs to know you can be friends
Before she’ll give you all she’s got
If you start from the heart
You’ll see love is gonna play it’s part
If you want to get to know her
Really get inside her mind
If you want to move in closer
Take it slow, yeah take your time
You must start from the heart and then
If you want to touch her
Really want to touch her
If you want to touch her, ask
A little physical attraction
Romantic, old-fashioned charm
And a lot of love and tenderness
Is gonna get you into her arms
If you start from the heart
You’ll see love is gonna play it’s part
If you want to get to know her
Really get inside her mind
If you want to move in closer
Take it slow, yeah take your time
You must start from the heart and then
If you want to touch her
Really want to touch her
If you want to touch her, ask
Let me let you in on a secret
How to treat a woman right
If you’re lookin’ for a place in her heart
It ain’t gonna happen no it ain’t gonna happen
If you want to get to know her
Really get inside her mind
If you want to move in closer
Take it slow, yeah take your time
If you want to get to know her
Really get inside her mind
If you want to move in closer
Take it slow, yeah take your time
If you start from the heart
You’ll see love is gonna play it’s part
If you want to touch her
Really want to touch her
If you want to touch her, ask

The offical website of Shania Twain:

Canned Heat – Blues Band (1997)

Canned Heat is an American blues and rock band that was formed in Los Angeles in 1965. The group has been noted for its efforts to promote interest in blues music and its original artists. It was launched by two blues enthusiasts Alan Wilson and Bob Hite, who took the name from Tommy Johnson’s 1928 “Canned Heat Blues”, a song about an alcoholic who had desperately turned to drinking Sterno, generically called “canned heat”, from the original 1914 product name Sterno Canned Heat, After appearances at the Monterey and Woodstock festivals at the end of the 1960s, the band acquired worldwide fame with a lineup consisting of Hite (vocals), Wilson (guitar, harmonica and vocals), Henry Vestine and later Harvey Mandel (lead guitar), Larry Taylor (bass), and Adolfo de la Parra (drums).

The music and attitude of Canned Heat attracted a large following and established the band as one of the popular acts of the hippie era. Canned Heat appeared at most major musical events at the end of the 1960s, performing blues standards along with their own material and occasionally indulging in lengthy ‘psychedelic’ solos. Two of their songs — “Going Up the Country” and “On the Road Again” — became international hits. “Going Up the Country” was a remake of the Henry Thomas song “Bull Doze Blues”, recorded in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1927. “On the Road Again” was a remake of the 1953 Floyd Jones song of the same name, which is reportedly based on the Tommy Johnson song “Big Road Blues”, recorded in 1928.

Since the early 1970s, numerous personnel changes have occurred. For much of the 1990s and 2000s and following Larry Taylor’s death in 2019, de la Parra has been the only member from the band’s 1960s lineup. He wrote a book about the band’s career, titled Living the Blues. Mandel, Walter Trout and Junior Watson are among the guitarists who gained fame for playing in later editions of the band.

And here´s another pretty good Canned Heat album:

A little tear came to my eye when the editor brought me a stack of CDs. There at the top was Canned Heat – the boogie band that peaked my interest in R&B, gulp, 30 years ago.

“Could this be the same band? I mean, aren’t they all dead?” I asked him. He shook his head, told me three of the original members are on the album and to have fun. And I did.

Singer Bob Hite, guitarists Alan Wilson and, recently, Henry Vestine, have gone to their reward, but the rhythm section of drummer Fito de la Parra and acoustic bassist Larry Taylor remains. And that’s one fine engine to have in your band and it boogies better than ever. The new Heat has slide guitarist/harp player Robert Lucas on vocals, Greg Kage on electric bass and lead guitarist Junior Watson has been a Canned Heat-er for a while now. Vestine, who died in December of ’97, made this his last work, playing on every cut and his sound remained distinctive to the end.

The Canned Heat of the late ’90s is pretty good and so’s the album, if you can look at them with a fresh eye and not with 1968-vision. The band that played Woodstock was magic and unique in their time. The new Heat isn’t magic, but it is a better-than-average blues band doing a good job of keeping the franchise boogying.

Lucas adds some energy with his slide playing, singing and original songs, but to be honest, the originals are only average at best. A version of Elmore James “Stranger” is excellent and a great opener for the CD, but I winced when I saw they had re-done Canned Heat classics “Going Up the Country” acoustically, “Boogie Music” and “One Kind Favor” here. But darned if they didn’t pull em off and in the process, saved the album.
I don’t know what the plans are for this band. They’ll probably stay together in some form or fashion forever. They remain popular in Europe and still have their fans stateside.
Give this one a listen. They brought a smile to my face and revived some great memories. I want to hear more from them. (Jack Clifford)

An outfit with deep blues/rock roots is Canned Heat Blues Band. Three members who date back to the 1960s version of the band, drummer Fito de la Parra, lead guitarist Henry “The Sunflower” Vestine, and bassist Larry “The Mole” Taylor, are on this latest self-titled disc on Ruf Records. They’re joined by Robert Lucas on guitar, harmonica, and vocals, Junior Watson on lead guitar, and Greg Kage on electric bass. This CD contains no big surprises, and is kind of what you’d expect from Canned Heat. If you miss the 60s, then take a listen to “Boogie Music,” which has a real feel of that wacky decade to it. The band also does an acoustic version of the Alan Wilson/Canned Heat standard “Going Up The Country”, with good slide guitar and raspy vocals from Lucas. By the way, this session constituted the last recordings by Vestine, who died in Paris late last 1997. (Bill Mitchell)

Personnel:
Robert Lucas (slide guitar, vocals,harmonica)
Gregg Kage (bass on 01., 03., 05., 07., 10. + 11.)
Adolfo “Fito” de la Parra (drums)
Larry “The Mole” Taylor (bass on 02., 04., 06., 08. + 09.)
Henry “The Sunflower” Vestine (guitar)
Junior Watson (guitar)
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Brenda Burnes (vocals on 07.)
Juke Logan (organ on 04.)
Tracklist:
01. Stranger (James/Robinson) 5.06
02. Quiet Woman (Lucas) 4.33
03. Iron Horse (Lucas) 5.12
04. Jr.’s Shuffle (Parra/Watson) 4.14
05. Creole Queen (Lucas) 3.45
06. Keep It to Yourself (Williamson II) 4.17
07. Boogie Music (Talman) 4.33
08. Going Up The Country (Wilson) 3.19
09. See These Tears (Lucas) 2.29
10. One Kind Favor (Talman) 4.25
11. Oh Baby (Lucas/Parra) 4.31
12. Gorgo Boogie (Lucas/Parra) 3.44

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More from Canned Heat: