This is borrowed directly from a recent series of journals by JoeIsListening, wherein one takes 64 songs selected at random from one's playlist and puts them in an elimination tournament which I gather is based somewhat on basketball playoffs or something. I don't know from basketball, so I won't comment on that. To quote from Joe, "These will be divided into 32 musical face offs. Losers go away and the winners advance until 'there can only be one.'" I eliminated any under-1-minute tracks from the list, but didn't bother with a ten-minute-plus track or a number of 8-9 minute ones.

I am also borrowing Joe's Difficulty-O-Meter, which "gauges the degree of difficulty in deciding which song advances. The scale runs from * (no contest, no thought required) to ***** (pass the razor blades)".

Now, I've got close to 30,000 tracks in my system, many of which I could not hum even a snatch of upon seeing the title, so this could be interesting, or not as much. Let's see.

1. Lebanese Blonde (French mix) by Thievery Corporation
vs.
2. Relax (Come Fighting) by Frankie Goes to Hollywood
Difficulty: ****
Winner: Frankie
Comments: Both of them good grooving tracks, but I think "Relax" got the edge because of my greater familiarity with it, and perhaps it's a bit less laid-back and a little more forceful.

3. Broken Birds by Jane Siberry
vs.
4. 7 8 9 by Barenaked Ladies
Difficulty: *
Winner: The Ladies
Comments: Little contest here--a pretty much acoustic track from a past-her-prime Siberry doing a misguided album of songs she wrote as a teenager, versus a catchy children's song from Canada's top popsters.

5. Heat of the Moment by Willy DeVille
vs.
6. Dreamin' by Lou Reed
Difficulty: ***
Winner: Willy
Comments: Willy DeVille mostly wins by default, because the Lou Reed track, from his subdued "Magic & Loss", is just not very strong. We'll see how Willy does in the next round...

7. Hell in a Handbasket by Drywall
vs.
8. Framed by Saga
Difficulty: ***
Winner: Drywall
Comments: This is far from my favourite track from Stan Ridgway's "Drywall" project, but it's still at least distinctive enough to edge out a less-familiar prog-rock track from Saga.

9. Afterglow by Genesis
vs.
10. The Message by Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five
Difficulty: *
Winner: Flash
Comments: A weak track from a weak Genesis album against one of the classic songs of rap music? Okay, I'm not rap's biggest fan, but Grandmaster Flash nailed this one.

11. Slip Inside This House by 13th Floor Elevators
vs.
12. Close But No Cigar by "Weird Al" Yankovic
Difficulty: ***
Winner: Al
Comments: A catchy, appealing tune from Weird Al's latest album, even if not one that stuck out on first listen, holds its own against Roky Erickson's eerie tune.

13. We're Just Temporary Ma'am by White Whale
vs.
14. The Warrior by Scandal
Difficulty: *****
Winner: The Whale
Comments: Okay, "The Warrior" is a classic of 80's pop-rock, where White Whale are just some obscure upstart indie-rock band, but "We're Just Temporary Ma'am" is catchy and has a great title, which won out over nostalgia by a hair.

15. Prayer Meeting by Chet Atkins
vs.
16. Ultraviolence by New Order
Difficulty: ***
Winner: The Order
Comments: While "Ultraviolence" is one of those tracks that I couldn't hum you a bar of right now, it still outdoes a Chet Atkins instrumental cover version from "Solid Gold '68". Or, at least, this particular one.

17. My Hippy Angel by Bob Geldof
vs.
18. The Luxury by The Tragically Hip
Difficulty: ***
Winner: Sir Bob
Comments: While the Tragically Hip have some great songs, I have trouble getting into a lot of their album tracks, while Geldof's song is a fun listen.

19. Rocket by Primitive Radio Gods
vs.
20. Take Me Away by Fefe Dobson
Difficulty: ****
Winner: Fefe
Comments: Though Dobson's Avrilesque charms are overly obvious, they nonetheless outweigh those of that PRG guy.

21. Stay Awake by Suzanne Vega
vs.
22. Streets of Banaras by Ann Mortifee
Difficulty: ****
Winner: Ann
Comments: This was an interesting pairing. I love Suzanne Vega's a cappella take on the Mary Poppins song, but somehow her quiet, deadpan song paled next to Ann Mortifee's intense, histrionic soprano workout.

23. Furry Old Lobster by Jonathan Coulton
vs.
24. The Last Word by Mary Chapin Carpenter
Difficulty: ****
Winner: Mary
Comments: Mary Chapin Carpenter wins out over Jonathan Coulton for having more clever lyrics, but this is admittedly one of Coulton's weaker numbers.

25. As Good as New by ABBA
vs.
26. The Nightfly by Donald Fagen
Difficulty: ***
Winner: BAAB
Comments: The throbbing disco beat and harmonies have it over Fagen's soft jazz and wry weary-radio-DJ lyrics.

27. Questions in a World of Blue by Julee Cruise
vs.
28. The Rhythm of the Heat by Peter Gabriel
Difficulty: **
Winner: Pete
Comments: Julee Cruise is just a little too wispy to take on the primal power of even the live version of one of Gabriel's best tracks.

29. Tomber by Laurence Jalbert
vs.
30. Tapestry by Carole King
Difficulty: ***
Winner: Laurence
Comments: Laurence Jalbert, who on this song strikes me as a sort of Francophone Melissa Etheridge, edges out Carole King on this one.

31. You Took My Heart by Chris Isaak
vs.
32. Junior by John Mellencamp
Difficulty: ****
Winner: Cougar
Comments: John Mellencamp's story was a little more compelling than Isaak's bouncy lament.

33. Chance (single version) by Big Country
vs.
34. Messages by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark
Difficulty: ***
Winner: BC
Comments: The OMD track just wasn't striking me, which left Big Country on top by default.

35. Animation by Jon Anderson
vs.
36. Foxglove by Bruce Cockburn
Difficulty: ****
Winner: Bruce
Comments: The Jon Anderson track just went on and on, leaving the field open for Cockburn's little guitar instrumental.

37. What If We Don't Get What We Want? by 13 Engines
vs.
38. Rooms on Fire by Stevie Nicks
Difficulty: ***
Winner: Lucky 13
Comments: An uncharacteristically low-key track from alt-rockers 13 Engines, which takes out past-her-prime Stevie.

39. Mermaid Smiled by XTC
vs.
40. Perfect World by Talking Heads
Difficulty: ****
Winner: XTC
Comments: I'm not that familiar with the XTC track, actually, but it manages to beat out one of my less-than-favourite Heads tracks.

41. Manto's Arrow And The Sphinx by Andreas Vollenweider
vs.
42. Eric's Theme by Vangelis
Difficulty: ***
Winner: Vangelis
Comments: Despite (or, perhaps, because of) what sounds like Lisa Gerrard wailing in the background, Andreas Vollenweider is unable to beat the majestic track of "Chariots of Fire".

43. Kissing Gate by Sam Brown
vs.
44. Fading Lights by Genesis
Difficulty: ***
Winner: Ms. Brown
Comments: Not my favourite Sam Brown track, but it's better than the dull and overlong Genesis song, at least.

45. What a Day That Was by David Byrne
vs.
46. There Won't Be Trumpets by Stephen Sondheim
Difficulty: ***
Winner: Mr. Sondheim
Comments: Perhaps if the Byrne song had been the "Stop Making Sense" version, it might have beaten out this minor Sondheim song from the "Side By Side By Sondheim" revue.

47. The Killing Moon by Echo & the Bunnymen
vs.
48. Pull Me Down by The Skydiggers
Difficulty: ****
Winner: Echo
Comments: For a song I was unfamiliar with, the Skydiggers track was unexpectedly strong, but not enough to beat out the classic E&TB song.

49. So Serious by Electric Light Orchestra
vs.
50. Bus Stop by The Hollies
Difficulty: **
Winner: Holly
Comments: It'll take more than that silly ELO song to defeat one of the best pop songs of the 60's! I can see "Bus Stop" getting quite far in this competition, in fact...

51. Double Take by Blondie
vs.
52. Islands of the Future by Gentlemen Without Weapons
Difficulty: ****
Winner: Blondie
Comments: Oh, my. The Blondie song is pretty silly, and from their latter days, but what is it up against? While Gentlemen Without Weapons sounded more pop than new-age with their synthesizers filled with animal and natural sounds, this song contains a gagworthy voiceover from a young Fairuza Balk that eliminates it from this round.

53. Grimsby by Elton John
vs.
54. Nightswimming by R.E.M.
Difficulty: ***
Winner: REM
Comments: The Elton John song is okay, but not great, and the REM song has been growing on me lately.

55. Careful With That Axe, Eugene by Pink Floyd
vs.
56. The Horns of Rohan & The Battle of the Pelennor Fields by Bo Hansson
Difficulty: **
Winner: Floyd
Comments: Oh, please. There's no way that Hansson and his synthy Lord of The Rings soundtrack can compete with such an epic of prog. I mean, with screaming and everything!

57. Look Down by Claude-Michel Schönberg
vs.
58. Saskatchewan Sea by The SplendourBog
Difficulty: ****
Winner: Les Miz
Comments: The SplendourBog song is an interesting ode to Canada's flattest province, but it can't decide whether to be serious or jokey, so the Les Misérables track, not one of my favourites but decent enough, narrowly pulls ahead of it.

59. The Story of One Chord by Mojo Nixon & Skid Roper
vs.
60. Lovers Anonymous by 10cc
Difficulty: ***
Winner: Mojo
Comments: The Mojo & Skid track is silly stuff, and so is the 10cc I suppose, but the 10cc track has the disadvantage of being pretty dull musically, so it drops out.

61. I Wanted Your Heart by Magazine
vs.
62. Love Don't Need No Tyranny by Tanita Tikaram
Difficulty: ***
Winner: Tanita
Comments: Neither of these are songs I'm that familiar with, but the Magazine track was grating on me a bit on this listen, so Tanita takes it through greater tunefulness.

63. Amelia by Joni Mitchell
vs.
64. Future Call by Jill Cunniff
Difficulty: **
Winner: Jill
Comments: While I like a number of Joni Mitchell songs, this isn't one of them. I mean, my favourite album of hers is "Chalk Mark In A Rain Storm", for heaven's sake. Jill Cunniff's isn't quite Luscious Jackson, but it's still a more fun listen.

Next week, or so, Round Two, where the 32 winners in this round duke it out with each other...

Дональд Фаген - один из двух перводвигателей группы Steely Dan.Третья его сольная пластинка появилась только в 2006 году. Перерыв между первым сольным альбомом The Nightfly и Morph The Cat без малого четверть века. Однако музыкальный материал остался на высоком уровне. Несмотря на несколько печальную обложку альбом содержит 9 вполне жизнерадостных треков в стиле джаз-рок. Мои любимые композиции - Morph The Cat, H Gang и Brite Nightgown. Оцениваю альбом на 7 с половиной баллов по десятибалльной шкале.
Donald Fagen

I discovered Alex & Sam through everyone's favorite Indie music blog, Aurgasm. Their short but sweet offering, Sounds Like This: Volume One, is a relaxing ride through a folksy, jazzy paradise evoking, at times, artists as diverse as The Beatles, Steely Dan, and of course, more recent indie-folk artists like Sufjan Stevens and Bright Eyes.

The album starts off strong with a duo of catchy jazz-infused folk songs with pleasantly surprising horn and electric guitar solos. The two Berklee-trained musicians quickly switch gears to the pure jazz track, Land of the Free, in which Alex Silverman all but channels Donald Fagen. They quickly return to folk however, with Buy Your Side, weaving intricate finger-picked guitar melodies that bring to mind Bright Eyes' I'm Wide Awake It's Morning. What follows is a quietly optimistic, nearly orchestral track that could brighten any day. In the final song, Central Park, Samantha Sidley declares, "we are strange, strange enough to play in key"; the song is played in a decidedly strange, but haunting key, and makes for a sublime ending to a journey worthy of any music lover's time.

For the past three decades (since he started recording solo in 1979) guitar great Albert Lee former sideman of Emmylou Harris, Eric Clapton, The Everly Brothers, and Bill Wyman) hasn’t cut a single mediocre album yet. To anyone who likes his crisp country and rockabilly style, all of his releases are required listening (IMHO).

Last year’s album by Albert Lee & Hogan's Heroes (“In Between the Cracks”) has been particularly strong. And he even topped himself with the brand new “LIKE THIS” which hasn’t been officially released yet – I bought it during one of the concerts of his current tour.

I’ve had it on heavy rotation for about two weeks now, and my first impression during the initial listening session hasn’t changed: “Like This” probably is the strongest Albert Lee album ever. And that’s saying a lot!

He’s added some New Orleans flavour (“Two Step Too”, “Rad Gumbo”), a string section (“Skip Rope Song”), horns, and a sense of humour. In the second song, the 65-year old asks: “Can Your Grandpa Rock And Roll Like This?” – and then proves that your Grandpa probably doesn’t.

The track list:

1) Skip Rope Song (Jesse Winchester
2) Can Your Grandpa Rock And Roll Like This (Music: Elio Pace, Words: Elio Pace & Matthew Baker
3) Leave My Woman Alone (Ray Charles)
4) On The Verge (Hugh Prestwood)
5) I'm Comin' Home (Charlie Rich)
6) Runaway Train (John Stewart)
7) I'll Never Get Over You (John Hiatt)
8) Barnyard Boogie (Gray/Wilhelmina/Jordan)
9) Two Step Too (Delbert McClinton)
10) Why Me? (McClinton/Knobloch)
11) Pearl Of The Quarter (Donald Fagen/Walter Becker)
12) Breathless (Otis Blackwell)
13) Crying In The Rain (Greenfield/King)
14) Rad Gumbo (Barrere/Clayton/Gradney/Kibbee/Park/Payne)

Monday, March 31
We've just wrapped up an international conference call with Siggy and Neb from the esteemed Radio Dupree in Sweden. It was a very important meeting. There is some news about Walter Becker's new album, courtesy of mr. Jim Beard. We're alas a little too tired right now to work with what was handed to us so graciously, so we figured it would be ultimately appropriate to make it an April Fools' Day article. So, for now, Jim's the word and see ya'll tomorrow!

We did post a little ditty over on a Steely Dan fan guestbook The Blue earlier as an appetizer:

Jim Beard: "The CD sounds very nice. Warm and fat. Great tunes and grooves. Nothing like 11TofW. Walter sounds great on it. I think the fans will be happy."

Tuesday, April 1
click this THE DIRTY LOW DOWN link for the whole story at www.mizar5.net.

==============================================
Mizar5 DISCLAIMER: Jim Beard is only responsible for the content of the “Revolutions” album liner notes and the information about his work for Walter Becker’s new album “Circus Money.” Everything else in this article and the March 31 announcement “Jim’s the Word” is offered without his knowledge and permission. In no event shall Jim Beard or any of his affiliates be liable for any special indirect or consequential expectation or any other action whatsoever arising out of or in connection with the use of the information in this or any other web site and as such NOT be approached about any of the above with the exception as in regard to the new album “Revolutions” that will be released May 2nd.
==============================================

Steely DanDonald FagenWalter BeckerJim BeardJohn HeringtonTed BakerJohn BeasleyDean ParksHerbie HancockVince MendozaBill EvansBoz ScaggsFrank ZappaWayne ShorterJohn McLaughlinMike SternPat MethenyGeorge ShearingGeorge DukeVictor BaileyMichael BreckerRandy BreckerJoni MitchellSaskia LarooRickie Lee JonesMichael FranksKenny GarrettWeather ReportBootsy CollinsVictor WootenRichard BonaLionel LouekeStanley ClarkeMarcus MillerSteve LukatherTotoChina CrisisThe Metropole OrchestraStanley JordanGeorg WadeniusCoral EganPorcupine TreeEaglesBlood, Sweat & TearsWynton MarsalisWynton MarsalisJames TaylorSteve KhanMark EganJean-Luc PontyBob BergBéla Fleck and the FlecktonesJohn ScofieldBrian BrombergDavid FosterAlan BroadbentDiana KrallElvis CostelloRed GarlandMarian McPartlandSheila JordanLarry CarltonBob JamesKeith CarlockChick CoreaWayne KrantzDavid BinneyKJ DenhertThe Doobie BrothersHall & OatesGino VannelliMichiel BorstlapLittle River BandHerman BroodJoe ZawinulTerry CallierHarry Connick, Jr.Michael BubléBob MarleyJoe JacksonDean MartinFrank SinatraDuke EllingtonDizzy GillespieJohn ColtraneCharles MingusPeter HertmansSilje Nergaard

It's been only a couple of days now, since i decided to join last.fm

Gradually it dawned on me and i'm totally hooked, the concept is great and especially the radio stations, they offer some of the best music i have ever and never heard before. It's really taking me back to the old radio days some, the transistor days, or the tuner collecting dust days ever since the tape recorder's been put on hold to let the CD-player take all the glory.

I can't stop listening. I like the random feel of it all and last.fm is certainly an adventure for listeners. Plenty of things to discover and embrace. Stuff and albums i'd forgotten about. Music and artists to appreciate all over again. Or welcome wholeheartedly. Lovely, just lovely!

Oh yes, as an editor (CD reviews) and infrequent contributor for www.allaboutjazz.com this last.fm might come in very handy as well.

All when time allows.

Peter Hertmans
Silje Nergaard
Coral Egan
Jodymoon
Joni Mitchell
Steely Dan
Mark Sholtez
Saskia Laroo
George Duke
Frank Zappa
Walter Becker
Donald Fagen
Rickie Lee Jones
Rachelle Ferrell
Liz Wright
Kurt Elling
Steve Khan
Steve Lukather
Toto
Herbie Hancock
Weather Report
Spyro Gyra
Chick Corea
Frank Gambale
Pat Metheny
Nathalie Cole
Patricia Barber
Yeayeayeah Records
Sara Gazarek
Inger Marie Gundersen

Mizar5

1. "I.G.Y. (International Geophysical Year)" - 6:05
2. "Green Flower Street" - 3:40
3. "Ruby Baby" (Jerry Leiber & Mike Stoller) - 5:38
4. "Maxine" - 3:50
5. "New Frontier" - 6:23
6. "The Nightfly" - 5:45
7. "The Goodbye Look" - 4:47
8. "Walk between Raindrops" - 2:38

Si dice che la perfezione si nasconda nei particolari. Osservate la copertina di quest'album: siamo nell'America fine anni '50 primi anni '60. Sono le 4 e 10 del mattino, in una piccola stazione radio un dj è al lavoro, con la sua provvista di Chesterfield e un disco sul piatto (per la cronaca, il disco che si vede in copertina è "The Contemporary Leaders" di Sonny Rollins). Forse quel dj passa anche le telefonate degli ascoltatori: fuori da quello studio c'é l'America delle tensioni razziali e del maccartismo. La sua musica gira in silenzio a riempire la desolazione notturna e l'immaginario che solo una radio può accendere. Si è On the Air perpetuamente. Un sax tenore, un'armonica, un organo e l'immaginazione sguizza come le macchine che sibilano sulle highway.



Ora guardate il retro di copertina: in un casolare lontano, immerso nella notte, c'é una finestra illuminata. Se riuscirete a spingere lo sguardo appena un po' più in là, dentro quella finestra, vedrete un giovane Donald Fagen che sogna ad occhi aperti ascoltando la radio. Ha appena deciso cosa farà da grande.
Nel 1982 Donald Fagen ha appena messo fine al progetto che lo ha reso famoso nel mondo della musica: gli Steely Dan. Si è fatto la fama di musicista talentuoso ed esigente. E decide di dedicare il suo primo album solista a quella musica che anni addietro, quando passava la notte in bianco ascoltando la radio, gli ha indicato la strada...
Viene fuori un album curato nei minimi dettagli, il primo della storia ad essere inciso in digitale, arricchito dai contributi di molti ottimi session men. Tanto curato da poter essere definito pressochè perfetto.
Leggenda vuole che dopo averlo inciso Donald Fagen precipiti in una lunga depressione. Se davvero fu così, allora vuol dire che si era fermato a riflettere sulla bellezza di ciò che aveva fatto, e aveva capito che un simile miracolo non gli sarebbe più riuscito. Ascoltate questo album come sottofondo mentre vi dedicate ad altro: vi ritroverete a canticchiarne le melodie senza nemmeno rendervene conto. E vi sentirete felici, senza sapere perchè.
Potremmo anche parlare ancora di perfezione e continuare a cercarla nei dettagli, ma quando la musica trasmette allegria e ottimismo come in questo caso, amici miei, la perfezione non c'entra.
E' magia.

Donald FagenThe Nightfly

Ab sofort für euch - meine exclusive Gruppenkolumne "Takin' It To The Streets" im Blog der Blogger-Gruppe und der Hells Agents. Der Titel der Kolumne leitet sich von einem Album der Doobie Brothers aus dem Jahr 1975 ab. Musikalisch neues und altbewährtes textlich aufbereitet. Ich hoffe, es gefällt euch!

Donald Fagen - der Großmeister des Jazz-Pop, der Lyric-Papst, der Co-Leader von Steely Dan ist wieder da. Nachdem er für sein 2006er-Album "Morph The Cat" mal wieder einen Grammy abgestaubt hat, kommt jetzt am 1. Februar 2008 die "Nightfly Trilogy" endlich auch bei uns raus.

Die Box enthält alle drei Soloalbum des Meisters ("The Nightfly" 1982, "Kamakiriad" 1993 und "Morph The Cat" 2006) - muß ich die Box haben, obwohl sich längst alle drei Produktionen im Original in meinem Besitz befinden? Die Antwort kann nur lauten: Jaaaa! Erstmal ist jedes Album als Audio-CD enthalten. Dann ist noch eine CD mit Bonustracks dabei (auch drauf: das aus meiner Sicht so geniale "Century's End", welches sich damals auf dem Soundtrack zu "Die grellen Lichter der Großstadt" befand, die ich mir nie holen wollte!). Außerdem ist jedes der drei Alben noch als DVD-Audio enthalten, auch wieder garniert mit Bonustracks, Videos, Interviews, den kompletten Lyrics etc. - ich bin begeistert und sage voraus, das meinem Musikgeschmack und Fagen's Musik auch in Zukunft keine "Haitian Divorce" bevorsteht!

Außerdem ist auf der englischen Wikipedia von The Young Knives mittlerweile zu lesen, das die zweite Vorab-Single für das neue Album "Super Abundance" (VÖ: 3.März 08) feststeht. Der Nummer wird "Up All Night" heissen und erscheint bereits am 18. Febraur. Beim Label, auf der Homepage, der MySpace-Seite oder dem YouTube-Kanal ist allerdings noch nichts zu hören gewesen. Mal abwarten. Die erste Single "Terra Firma" hat es in UK jedenfalls bis auf Platz 43 geschafft. Also - hört sie euch an, solange sie noch ein Geheimtipp sind!!!