Jon Cleary has been playing tracks from his new album "The Bywater Sessions" for a few years now. And as much as I love Jon and his band The Absolute Monster Gentlemen, I have never been a fan of the "novelty" tune. There is so much to love about New Orleans music with an endless supply of great music to be heard, I can take a pass on the songs that seem to cater to the casual fan. Give me some deep cuts from Irma Thomas, James Booker and Ernie K. Doe and save the "Mardi Gras Mambo" for Bourbon Street.
(I love "Mardi Gras Mambo," by the way. That's not my point.)
The "new" tracks that Cleary had been performing live, all had a slightly too cute vibe to them.
"Been A Little Minute Since We Did The Diddly Doo" or "Uptown, Downtown, Round Town, Backatown." Or the one about his "Zulu Cocoanuts," which demands that you "take your hands off my nuts. COCOA-nuts!"
Yes, it's all in good fun. I get it. But Jon Cleary has written some fantastic R&B tunes and I simply wanted more of that. When the track list for "The Bywater Sessions" was finally announced with a release date just in time for Jazz Fest, I was somewhat crushed. Half were those silly tunes and half were remakes of songs from past Cleary albums. There would be no new R&B or funk originals.
Oh well. I ordered it anyway. I mean, how bad could it be?
I should have known better.
"The Bywater Sessions" is one of the best records out of New Orleans in years.
The band was captured live in the studio for this release and with the additional musicians added to the original trio, the songs jump out with new life. If you have never seen Jon Cleary & The AMG live, this record is about as close as you'll get to the electrifying performances he and his killer band have been putting on for the last 25 years.
The playing is mind-blowing. The arrangements are anything but basic. And those "silly" songs I mentioned earlier are hardly novelty once this band blows them up. My expectations were low and maybe that helped. But after two spins, I can say from the heart, "The Bywater Sessions" is one of the best records of Jon Cleary's career, and certainly the most fun you'll have NOT being in New Orleans for Jazz Fest.
16 comments:
Interesting. I've heard the pre-releases and while I'm a huge fan (and former neighbor), they left me flat. The sophomoric lyrics had a lot to do with it, too. Def will be giving it a listen and hope it sounds better in the context of an entire lp.
Happy Jazz Fest indeed. As they say at Passover, "Next year in New Orleans...." That's my dream
Funky sounds! Will give it a spin!
- Paul in DK
Wow! I am usually all about the lyrics, the groove can take a while to register; but one minute into Uptown, I was dancing (I never dance). My wife was ready to call an ambulance. Thanks, Sal.
We saw them at Jazz Fest last year and they were a blast. He mentioned onstage that they were recording a new album. Happy that it's finally released.
as always thanks for the scoop!
What -- no more obscure 60s garage stuff this week? 😎
I love when something gets you jazzed for Jazzfest, and it sounds like Cleary is clearly clicking! Thanks for this!
Thanks - a great listen and a great day.
Clearly is opening for Bonnie Raitt on her tour. That sounds like a nice show.
Cleary
I've listened to it 2x, and while I agree its good, I just expected more. Its very reminiscent of a Professor Longhair lp. And, while I agree that can hardly be considered a criticism, Prof would recycle a lot of the same songs on his too few recordings. Not sure the world needs a record from Jon in which he is already recycling songs from his last 2 lps. But, to me, he's at his best when you get a chance to see him live, and this is the closest a studio album can come to a live experience.
I get the feeling he just wanted to finally get something out in the market. This lp took an extended time to complete, mainly due to the fact that his home studio was under repair for almost two years due to a hurricane. Its very good, but I just believe there was something better that he could have done.
I listened again last night and again, loved every second of it.
"Its very good, but I just believe there was something better that he could have done."
I would argue this. I think he could have done something "different." But I don't think you can get "better" than these ten songs. Yes, five have appeared on earlier records. But I think these five all best the original versions. I agree that he probably wanted something out there for Jazz Fest. But aside from the New Orleans diehards, and former residents :) how many people have actually heard "Boneyard" and "Unnecessarily Mercenary?"
I know I will be turning it up at least once or twice more this weekend.
Boneyard should be fairly well known, since its on the lp that was the Grammy winner. I think Mercenary was played on the tv series House, and also got a ton of airtime when Bonnie Raitt recorded it. There's nothing wrong with the new lp, and I'm sure I'll listen to it more. I just wish he would write/record material that didn't have lyrics that were meant for a frathouse. He's recorded some during his semi-frequent trips to Cuba that has yet to see the light of day.
Must be awesome to experience this live - someday I'll get there!
Saw them at Tipitina’s Sunday before last, I think the same personnel that’s on this album. I thought both the album and the show were pretty great. Yes, a lot of it isn’t fresh material, but if you’re lucky enough to see one of Cleary’s solo piano shows, it will be all old stuff, and it will be great, and it will be different than the last time you saw him do the same songs.
Post a Comment