Rod Stewart ~ Camouflage (album review) ... When all the good songs are hidden under camouflage!

Style: soft rock
Label: Warner Brothers
Year: 1984
Home: n/a

Members: Rod Stewart ~ vocals
Jim Cregan, Robin LeMesurier, Michael Landau ~ guitars
Jay Davis ~ bass
Tony Brock ~ drums
Kevin Savigar ~ keyboards
Michael Omartian ~ keyboards/percussion/b. vocals

Additional: Jimmy Zavala ~ harmonica
Gary Herbig ~ saxophone

Guest: Jeff Beck ~ guitar solos


It's almost embarrassing where some musicians have gone to sound as hip & trendy & with it as possible. Sometimes the outcome works, giving the musician a breath of fresh career air they desperately needed to then progress to a proper facelift beyond the initial trial. Career boosts happen every day like this. Other times the albums, or even an era, has been forgotten, tucked away like an embarrassing hobby & its almost shocking to dig them up again. For example, anyone remember the 70's band Blackjack or the hard rocking guitar wailing "Fool's Game" by a leather pants wearing guitar soloing Michael Bolton? While one never mentions a string of less than thrashy albums by Megadeth nor even the quasi-return retooled line-up outing that came afterwards before the band broke up. Camouflage was RS trying to slip into the rock charts with a technique he thought was probably trendy but actually suffers with too many keyboards, electronic drums & weak songs & everything but what made RS great the decade before. Any glory in RS's voice is lost in the shallow over-produced material that draws too much from in the moment trends & not enough from focusing on trying to make an album good for RS regardless of trends. It's a frightening listening that's on par with the forgettable Midnight At The Lost & Found by Meat Loaf ... or maybe the newest Bon Jovi country-rock outing. Sadly, RS would keep this sound/mold up for the following decade with five albums along the same lines & only a little breakthrough with Vegabond Heart before discovering the wonders of going acoustic. This is one of those albums where one encourages a musician to stick with what they did best regardless of trends. It's hard to think RS was enjoying this flat music. Part of the problem is by this time in his career he probably forgot what music rested nicely with his vocal palette. He done too much harm with his "Do You Think I'm Sexy?" disco outing. Not even the cover of the classic rock "All Right Now" by Free & with guest guitarist Jeff Beck do little for the outcome, particularly as decades later the guitar solos over synth backings with sax lines no longer sounds cool ... unless you like the Miami Vice theme played over & over but without the driving rhythm & with unmemorable lyrics. This dry & slick pop rock musical approach may have worked for a few bands, but they didn't have RS's bluesy back catalog to compete with. Here RS is competing against himself & he's not winning any points. The fact that there's only eight songs doesn't help. Check out "Can We Still Be Friends" which is representative of the album & be done with it there. If you like your soft rock 80's synth keep listening. If you like RS you probably won't like this album. But, I must step back as there was one hit off the album "Some Guys Have All The Luck" which is an enjoyable song. There's something good in everything. It ain't much though. All the other good parts of the album have been lost behind the camouflage. Where's RS? I can't see him.

Jeff Beck ~ The Visual Story (DVD review) ... The Yardbird's bag of tricks!

Style: classic rock, hard rock, instrumental, blues-rock
Label: XXL Media
Year: 2011
Home: Britain

Concert location: multiple locations
Year Recorded: multiple dates
Length: 51 minutes
Bonus Features: none

Members: Jeff Beck ~ guitar
additional players n/a

Guests: Jan Hammer ~ keyboard
Doug Wimbish ~ bass
Simon Philips ~ drums
Steve Lukather, Carlos Santana ~ guitars

When you need a respected guitarist who is diverse, creative & with a powerful musical presence plus with a long history ... sadly, JB is not a name that is often offered but he should be in the top 10 on the top of the list. The problem might be he's more a guitarist's guitarist than a casual listener's guitarist. With a catalog ranging from pulling the Yardbirds away from the blues into more progressive territories to gutsy bluesy recordings with a young Rod Stewart on vocals, to the powerhouse rock line-up of Beck, Bogart & Appice to a solo career of largely instrumental albums that's been completely unpredictable with forays into blues, rock, avant-garde jazz, funk, electronica & even classical JB has not been necessarily kind to his fans neither giving them what they might want, expect nor music that can be always casually listened to. JB's love of experimentation has often led to musical forays more welcomed by guitarists who are into technical playing then someone looking for a rainy day record ... though, at the same time, he's released solos that would make peers Jimmy Page & Richie Blackmore wilt with tears & experiments that could go head to head with Hendrix, a guitarist who can be just as difficult when it comes to listenability by casual fans as many bootlegs contest. To truly understand JB one needs only turn to the instrumental guitar rockers of the 80's such as Steve Vai & Yngmie Malmsteen to hear his influence. This odd little video, sadly, only continues to push JB away from the casual fan & towards guitarists looking for a hardcore playing lesson & insight into this guitar legend. Opening with a undated & undetailed clip, not helped any by a complete lack of linear notes or any packaging details, is a 1970's British TV performance where JB fronts a top-notch band churning out the blues. It's got a very Led Zeppelin feel to it. The quality is horrendous with a fuzzy picture, obviously not taken from master tapes as the rolling counter on the screen belays, but that doesn't get in the way of JB shining. The song is followed by an on the spot discussion with the unidentified host of the guitar itself, it's switches & strings, JB's foot pedals & even a strange looking "bag" that JB says is one of only three he's seen & turns out to be a proto-vocoder. If you want to know JB's early set-up this is a near must view & with lots of close-ups on JB's fingerplay it's a lesson as good as it gets to a lesson. Actually, watching him it's amazing how much sound comes out of so little & unflashy movement of his right hand. This is followed by a second, & equally unidentified, clip of JB recording a solo in a studio via camera obviously stuck on a table & not meant for anything but personal viewing. The recording is a stop & start process with unidentified producer on hand & half the time is spent discussing or experimenting with different sounds. The highlight is seeing JB play both with an without the previously recorded rhythm section in the background. Put all your dreams of grandeur aside ... there's nothing glamorous about recording. It's a tedious process & a tedious film to watch ... though Andy Warhol would probably rave about it. On the other hand, it's interesting, if not a bit shocking, to see JB call a solo not very good though most guitarists would be exuberantly happy with the previously improvised moment. The clip ends with him rolling a cigarette. Warhol would be squirming with glee. The remaining part of The Visual Story is taken from a 1986 broadcast that was originally shown on Japanese TV & featured JB headlining with Carlos Santana in an outdoor concert. This has been previously released both officially & bootlegged & in longer complete form. It opens with a weak performance of "Wild Thing", a song that really should only be attempted by the original band as it was raunchy by being primitively raw due to recording limitations but when made raunchy comes out everything but. Further, JB is not a dynamic stage presence, though on the backing band includes legendary Jan Hammer, Doug Wimbish & Simon Phillips. Compared to the previous TV & studio bits JB is in prime high energy form giving it his all. The song selection might not the best, relying more on improvisation, but one can clearly see the power JB has with a guitar in hand. The weak opening gives way to a stronger end with songs featuring JB playing with Steve Lukather & Carlos Santana. Three very distinct guitarists in a unique moment. With a lack of bonus features, packaging detail that even extends to not listing song titles for the TV & studio recordings & generally third generation video quality this is a collector's only item. But, if you want a close-up fingerboard lesson on what JB plays this is a must. Or, if you want to see a progression of an artist from rigid tv studio with everything toned down, to working through problems in a studio to letting it all go free on stage then ... well, this video shines. 

The Yardbirds ~ Birdland (album review) ... Leftovers of the pecking order!

Style: hard rock, progressive
Label: Favored Nations
Year: 2003
Home: England

Members: John Idan ~ vocals/rhythm guitar/bass
Jeff Beck, Gypie Mayo ~ lead guitar
Chris Dreja ~ rhythm guitar/percussion
Jim McCarty ~ drums/b. vocals
Alan Glen ~ harmonica

Additional: Martin Ditchum ~ percussion

Guests: Jeff Baxter, Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Slash, Brian May, Steve Lukather ~ guitars
Johnny Rzeznik ~ lead vocals

Let's be honest. Outside of the name this isn't really the Yardbirds nor even the brief New Yardbirds. Yes, some of the original members are here & as they got a career boost so long ago behind blues king Sonny Boy Williamson II there's nothing wrong with having a guest heavy album. The Yardbirds were actually one of the most adventurous bands on the British scene, even eclipsing the early Beatles, as they moved from a blues band to a psychedelic band with their songs remaining undoubtable classics. But, times have changed ... the bird has been plucked. Gone are the experimental wild eyed blues boys to be replaced by a plodding near middle-age tribute band. The music falls flat while the 7 new originals are interesting, but the fact that they are the best songs on the album, only one including a guest guitarist & its the weakest, doesn't say much for keeping the Yardbirds name alive. The classic songs are weak & without the risk or even bluesy swagger that they once had. Even their peers Deep Purple, which is criticized today for its FM radio friendliness that was never present with Richie Blackmore, put in a more exciting show. Originally, the Yardbirds came to an end when everyone left except for new guitarist Jimmy Page, who recruited new members, labeled them the New Yardbirds, only to have the name of the band missing from the first album & thus all we have is the name of the album - Led Zeppelin. Before Page the band also had the guitar powerhouses of Jeff Beck & Eric Clapton ... Tony Topham where are you? ... pushing the band through distinct personality changes. Nobody is pushing now. Though Beck guests for a single track on Birdland all that's left of the band is the drummer & rhythm guitarist, returning to the studio 35 years after their last recording. We don't even have original singer Keith Relf, long gone from this world, & singers can make all the difference to a band. It's like someone other than Eric Burden fronting the Animals. You don't know what you've got till it's ... The remaining members might have co-composed the songs but we turn to others to make it pop. Some bands reunite & its like the music kept developing even though it wasn't played for decades. The reunited Doors with Ian Astbury, aka Riders On The Storm or previously Doors of the 21st Century, sound as if they never broke up but kept developing. Big Brother & the Holding Co., numerous singers post Janis Joplin, are the same for those still listening. While other bands reunite falling somewhere between a tribute band & a brand new entity. The Yardbirds here are like that. It's not bad, but it's not the Yardbirds. It's a nice tribute band with no guts except when they do the new songs, which are in a Yardbirds style whatever that means. Not even the guests are able to boost the songs. Actually, the guests seem unnecessary just adding flash where a little breath would be better. The songs, most obviously "For Your Love", started life so primitively that to flesh them out works against them. The result is often one not bluesy enough nor rock enough. This was always a problem with the band since day one, not helped by the "Over Under Sideways Down" psychedelic period, but becomes more so here 35 years later. One of the problems is that there was never any real dominant force within the band & the revolving guitarists didn't help, while the band also went through numerous musical changes. There still is no dominant face, just torch carriers. To be fair, though, to have only two members of a once five member band it doesn't matter whether the two members are Clapton & Relf back from the dead or the rhythm section. There's not enough parts of the equation to take it home & give it life beyond a second rate but high profile tribute band. For those that don't know the Yardbirds outside of their major hit "For Your Love" with Eric Clapton it's time for a musical education. Just don't start with this album as they've got a rich catalog that will keep you happy awhile before you get to this release. Since Birdland the line-up has changed again. McCarty & Dreja remain & so does the revolving door.

Jeff Beck ~ Jeff Beck's Guitar Shop (album review) ... Crazier than ever!

Style: instrumental, hard rock, blues-rock
Label: Epic
Year: 1989
Home: England

Members: Jeff Beck ~ guitars
Terry Bozzio ~ drums/voice
Tony Hymas ~ keyboards

 

 

  I believe that though most up & coming guitarists know the name Jeff Beck they largely haven't heard his playing, including his work with the Yardbirds. Or, maybe they've heard him doing a guest solo but didn't read the liner notes. I bet most guitarists don't realize that it was Beck's gimmick of playing the guitar with a cello bow that Jimmy Page stole for Zeppelin. I first heard Jeff's via a Yardbirds collection & later saw his name repeatedly as a guest soloist ... always hearing an outstanding near lunar solo & wondering who did it because it didn't sound like a guitar. Also, I could never forget one review I saw that described his guitar playing as the sound of a dump truck backing up. I would say more it's like a cyclone in a machine shop. Beck's solo career is famous for it's range of blues-rock to fusion jazz, all under an unassuming sheen & with a few big names along the way such as Rod Stewart. Because he doesn't have the same charisma as Slash or Satriani, isn't a tabloid hog, regularly has large gaps between albums & has an an unpredictable musical output his career has been undoubtedly hurt. In the end it's our loss, not his. As the unassuming sheen of his albums & career mask sheer technical & creative brilliance. How many guitarists have pulled off the same range of styles, with favorable reviews along the way? Though it doesn't rock out like some of his other releases, Jeff Beck's Guitar Shop is a good starting point for those who like a bluesier taste in their music. But, know that the title track does indeed sound like it's name with a a cacophony of disconnected guitar sounds appearing & disappearing imitating ... a cyclone in a machine shop. I believe that Beck aims for the bigger sound experience than the potential of the individual songs. He wants an experience not a chart-topper with some filler. Beck's albums are largely instrumental, which a lot of people tend to shy from, including myself, due to the regular over-the-top masturbatory approach they often take. Beck is the exception. This album is proof, as though it's an album of overdubs & studio magic it's largely much softer than might be expected. Jeff Beck's Guitar Shop opens with a burst then settles down into an addictive groove. You don't need to be a rocker to enjoy this, or know the technicalities of music theory to appreciate his playing. It's got funk, metal, blues, techno & whole lot in between. If you haven't Jeff Beck - you're missing a stellar & underappreciated creative force. Here's your starting point.