“Love Reign O’er Me” The Who, Las Vegas Encore Series

One of my all time favorite Who songs, this version is especially poignant as it was performed a mere two months after bassist John Entwistle’s passing (in the same dang town too).  Nonetheless the band soldiered on with the tour and selected Pino Palladino to cover The Ox’ bass parts, which he does capably but…  it’s not quite the same.  That said this tune has always been more of a Roger Daltrey showcase; in this version, the man doesn’t quite hit the power and majesty of the original but the spirit is still there as is the coolly slashing rhythm style of one Pete Townshend (video is the original tune in all its glory).

“Claws In So Deep” Death Angel, Relentless Retribution

Man, has the Bay Are birthed a ton of great thrash metal.  Death Angel were pretty much the babies on the scene, formed out of a group of Filipino cousins with the youngest being only 15(!) years of age when their debut was released.  Had a good run in the late 80s, disappeared for awhile (that’s a story in itself), then came back strong in the 2000s with an excellent run of solid thrash albums.  “Claws In So Deep” is a banger, five full on thrash minutes before pulling a reverse “Battery” and ending the song with some mighty impressive acoustic playing.  Highly recommended band, very good tune.

“Truck Stop Special” Anti-Mortem, New Southern

Strap on your boots, grab your cowboy hat, and enjoy a blast of “cowboy metal” from Anti-Mortem.  Sounding a bastard mix of Black Stone Cherry crossed with Maylene and the Sons of Disaster, “Truck Stop Special” crawls out of the swamp with a throaty growl and phased guitar intro (maybe just a hint of talk box guitar?) before breaking out the chunky slamming riff that would fit well on rock radio today.  Not quite my thing but these are young dudes that have picked up some heavy influences along the way (Pantera and COC, obviously…  check those tees!) and still have time to grow.

“Medicine Train” The Cult, Sonic Temple

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCcNo9pjIDA

Dare I say it, but…  methinks that the rise of Guns ‘n Roses had quite the influence on the hard rock scene in the late 80s- bands dropped the makeup and big hair in favor of less pomp and flash and more of a stripped down look.  On “Medicine Man” The Cult borrows a bit from that Guns template, maybe less street lethal and punky and more in line with Led Zeppelin and other blues rock\metal behemoths (I hear harmonica on here!).  Plus, Bob Rock is on hand to add more stomp and bottom end and suddenly guitarist Billy Duffy has become Jimmy Page Jr (vocalist Ian Astbury has always been awesome regardless of style or album).

“The Greeting Song” Red Hot Chili Peppers, Blood Sugar Sex Magic

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpaYJxSN6U0

Now THIS is my favorite era from the Chili Peppers…  listen to that John Frusciante riff; all dry in tone yet fast and totally ripping, funkier than a pair of unwashed socks shoved in corner of your gym locker.  And Flea?  Good grief that guy is a madman.  His herculean bass playing and killer tone is front and center, riding shotgun along with Frusciante and equally tight with drummer Chad Smith.  As for Anthony Kiedis…  well…  I’m a bit harder on him especially in the modern day RHCP but he’s really in his wheelhouse here, full on master of the funky ceremony with the occasional croon thrown in for good measure.

“Goin’ Down South” R.L. Burnside, Not The Same Old Blues Crap, Vol. 3

Man, I’m somewhat iffy on this version.  “Goin’ Down South” in its hypnotic original acoustic format is mindblowing and the second version from the early 90s is downright dirty and raunchy electric blues, but this rethink changes up the groove once again and leans a bit more funky and slightly hip hoppy.  Just an entirely different vibe altogether, certainly more modern but I’ll be damned if R.L. doesn’t pull off the sleepy cool vocal here.  A bit removed from the original Hill Country blues mojo, sounding like some sort of 4 AM slinky groove long after the party is over.

“I’ll Keep On Trying” Roomful Of Blues, That’s Right!

Now here’s a song that gets a formula right…  take one part R&B, mix that with two parts of the blues, toss in a heaping dash of soul, and you’ve got a fine, fine tune.  It’s kind of like taking The Coasters or one of those 50’s doo wop bands, sticking them in a time machine to the late 70s to sit in with the Fabulous Thunderbirds, and…  oh yeah, bringing along Boots Randolph and Johnnie Johnson for some sax and badass piano to cut them all loose, hit the record button, and see what comes out.  Sakes alive, this is some fabulous work here from everyone in the band.  Strong playing all around.

“Queen Of Hearts” Whitesnake, Snakebite

David Coverdale has always had the soul of a bluesman.  Throw away the big hairiness of the 80s post Slide It In and you’re left with a fine catalogue of tunes that certainly had their heavier moments but steered clear of some of the over the top morass that ruined some (I said SOME) of the tunes from Whitesnake’s late 80s/early 90s period.  “Queen Of Hearts” is a good example of that band’s meaty take on the blues, sounding dern near Bad Company in spots but a bit punchier in the riff department and maybe a bit slinkier in tone.  Features one Micky Moody on guitar who helped helm the band with the Cov during the early ‘Snake daze.

“Holy Water” Southpaw, Southpaw

Here’s a fab little tune from a one album wonder…  well, wonder may be too strong a word but Southpaw’s one and only album is a grade A dose of bluesy metal; maybe a hint of the more adventurous side of Badlands crossed with a dirtier Soundgarden or Alice In Chains.  Lead singer here is Mats Leven, a Swedish belter who has sung with everyone from Yngwie Malmsteen and Candlemass who does a bang up job on this cut showing off plenty of range- lower range croons, plenty of melody in the chorus, and nailing the high wails near the fadeout.  A surprise, but good luck tracking this CD down!

“Too Much Blood” Gaslight Anthem, Handwritten

Like all good Jersey songwriters, Brian Fallon paints quite the visual lyric like fellow compadre Bruce Springsteen.  However, “Too Much Blood” doesn’t drink too much from the Bruce fountain as some of the other Gaslight Anthem tunes often do yet this also steers clear from their uptempo rave ups too.  No, “Blood” is its own sound- a bit lurching in groove but offset wonderfully by a near melancholy chorus, Fallon belting strong and soulfully as the band rock and rollercoasters through the dark and light moods.  Not quite representative of some of the other band material but a decent side trip for the more adventurous.

Best song of the shuffle award goes to “Love Reign O’er Me” followed by a three way tie of RHCP, Death Angel, and The Cult!