Bob Powers

MARIETTA, OH, USA - Cincinnati has a solid history in the annals of rock, blues and even Appalachian music, all performed and mixed by some of the major performers in R&B and country. A new album pays tribute to King Records, founded in 1943 by Syd Nathan, who was instrumental in putting the label and Cincinnati as important cogs in the history of these vital segments of the music business.

Proceeds from the new CD will go to the Infusion Network, a charity run by the Cincinnati-based Manuel and Rhoda Mayerson Foundation, a Cincinnati family philanthropy. Funds will be used to overcome some of the city's problems brought about by racial tension, riots and persistent negative media coverage.

The CD offers fresh versions of material by many stars in the King family. Performers include a stellar lineup of names, including Peter Frampton, Bootsy Collins, Over the Rhine, Blessid (cq) Union of Souls, Ass Ponys and other singers and groups, assembling 17 songs that helped to make King a major figure in the music business decades ago.

King Record's artists in its heyday included such blockbuster talent as John Lee Hooker, Albert King, Freddie King, Wynonie Harris, the Delmore Brothers, the Stanley Brothers, The Dominoes, the Platters, Otis Williams and the Charms, Hank Ballard and the Midnighters, Little Willie John and the incomparable James Brown.

This material remains excellent and deserving of a tribute. However, few if any of these 2002 versions stand up to the originals. That's not to say that the tribute fails, but rather that meeting the standards of the old King products seems impossible. Nice try and the charity seems to qualify as a worthwhile entity. If you don't know the originals, this CD will offer a fun ride.

Good Band Toto Sounds Great!

Old guys such as yours truly keep coming up with further proof that times are moving faster down the road than we imagined. I'd confess to the number of my next birthday in September, 2003, but that would make me too depressed to finish this column. And our esteemed publisher, Mr. Amis, would not be a happy camper, although you'd never know it from his outward appearance. But deep down, dammit, the pain would intensify. Or at least that's what I'd hope for. I like being appreciated as much as the next guy.

This leisurely paragraph leads me to the topic of this review. The rock-jazz band Toto celebrated its 25th anniversary in November. Toto wasn't high on my chart of personal faves, but the new album, "Through the Looking Glass" (CMC Records) offers a solid, clean and often delightful collection that to the newcomer will sound similar to the early days of Chicago but performed with more oomph and enticing arrangements that should make the album a choice of discerning rockers throughout the land.

The best part of Toto is guitarist Steve Lukather, whose style will remind veterans such as this scribbler of the really good guys, such as Eric Clapton and his ilk.

Toto's choice of material seems downright perfect, if such an accomplishment can occur these days. Give a couple of listens to "Through the Looking Glass" and you'll want to add it to your rock collection. As regular readers know, I'm a loyal jazzman, but Toto really set me to thinking. This album is the most fun I'd had since seeing the venerable Molly Hatchet perform live on the banks of the Ohio River. Awesome, baby, awesome!

The CD opens with a smasheroo of Bob Marley's "Could You Be Loved." Hear a couple of bars and you'll likely head for your personal dance floor. George Harrison's "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" carries a strong dose of simply lovely material. What a great song, what a great version by Toto. The band turns to a bit of jazz with Herbie Hancock's excellent "Maiden Voyage/Butterfly."

Think Eric Burden had the definitive version of "House of the Riding Son." Listen to Toto and you may change your mind. Cream's "Sunshine of Your Love" gets a heavy, brooding cast in the hands of an excellent, confident band. Last comes the old Bob Dylan topper, "It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry."

Hey, folks. This is one damned good album. I've kept it spinning at my house for three weeks and haven't tired of it a single whit.

Sinead: The Real Deal

The wonderful Irish singer Sinead O'Connor continues to produce distinguished albums that seldom make a major splash on U.S. sales charts. Her latest album probably will keep her record going: marvelous singer performs lovely and lush Irish songs, while the U.S. buying public goes for dubious singers such as the baby faced Michelle Branch.

O'Connor upset the Catholic Church a few years ago with a puzzling act on American television. Her borderline admirers followed Catholic leaders and pretty much abandoned this beautiful colleen.

Granted that O'Connor is a wee bit odd, but no one in his or her right minds could object to the lush new album, "Sean-Nos-Nua" (Vanguard Records), which translates as "New-Old-Style." Publicity material says the traditional songs have been recorded "new style," which O'Connor says, "The way we have recorded them is to Œsexy' them with rhythms and sounds so that they can become part of what is new style."

One of the songs, "Paddy's Lament," has an interesting story. It's the tale of an Irish emigrant to the U.S. in the 19th century who left Ireland to the U.S. only to find himself conscripted under President Lincoln in the American Civil War.

O'Connor says that with the exception of "Moving Hearts" no one has really made the songs appeal to young artists, "as what is traditional in Ireland is thought of as being uncool."

She and her fellow musicians "would be hoping to make Irish traditional music appealing to singers, bands and songwriters who are bored with the 'ooh baby' yawn state of Irish music as it is now."

Bob Powers always is interested in hearing from record distributors who deal in jazz, rock, folk, and anything that's good. For instructions on getting your album reviewed, contact him at oldbob@localnet.com.

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