Tales Wagging the Blog

THE CROWES STILL SOAR HIGH

The Black Crowes continue to rock on 20 years later. I simply cannot get enough of their latest, a 2-CD set individually titled Before the Frost… and its downloaded companion disc …Until the Freeze.

They recorded the tunes in unusual fashion: in a very rustic setting in upstate New York – a recording studio owned by The Band’s Levon Helm – that really shines through the music. A small audience was present for the live sessions and are respectfully unheard until their applause at the end of each track.

It's not like we've haven't heard those front porch sounds before in tunes like “Nonfiction” and “Locust Street.” But the mood of these discs fit the Crowes’ Georgian origin like none of their albums – each amazing in its own right.

Of course you get the rockin' Crowes, too, with tunes like "A Train Still Makes A Lonely Sound." But the twang this time around is sweetly thick in the air. Guest musicians add a biscuits-n-gravy aroma with instruments like banjo, mandolin and pedal steel guitar.

Also recommended is the companion DVD that features an all-access view of the unique recording process and location called “Cabin Fever.”

Rumors say the next project for the band is something they’ve supposedly already begun work on: a double-disc of acoustic takes on their vast catalog.

BOTTI & BAND BRING MAXIMUM JAZZ TO THOUSAND OAKS

Had the distinct privilege this weekend of seeing some of the top jazz musicians in the world. And that's not an exaggeration.

My beautiful loving wife got us tickets to see jazz trumpeter extraordinaire Chris Botti and his equally extraordinary band in Thousand Oaks.

In a small venue (1800+ seats). From orchestra level. No kidding.

Just a killer show from a tremendously talented bunch of players at the top of their game, including a Grammy-winning pianist (Billy Childs) and a gum-chomping drummer you can’t take your eyes off of (Billy Kilson).

The show also included an excellent and captivating guest appearance by violinist extraordinaire Lucia Micarelli. Having played with the likes of Trans-Siberian Orchestra and Josh Groban, it was a huge surprise and a sheer delight to hear her talents blend with Chris Botti and his band.

And what a great story Botti’s is. Very hot studio and touring musician in the 90’s that parlayed his talents and a few years in the trenches into a promising solo career under the heading of what some would call “smooth jazz.” More accurate would be an excellent jazz musician with pop tendencies, with many critics garnishing his efforts with 4- and 5-star reviews.

Applying his touch of success to someone else’s project, Botti also scored a Grammy as producer of a Brecker Brothers CD in the mid-90s.

At one point, none other than Sting asked Botti to be in his touring band. Despite being firmly entrenched in a solo career, he accepted. Good move, Chris. Happy to say I saw Sting’s Botti-enriched band in Colorado Springs in the early 00’s.

The tour I saw was the one where Sting decided to give his old faves some jazzy new arrangements. Botti was asked to add his hornblowing shine to classic tunes from The Police and Sting’s solo catalog.

[An aside: That tour spawned a CD / DVD set called All This Time. The behind-the-scenes documentary on the DVD is a good watch: the day the band planned to unveil the new arrangements for some friends in the backyard of Sting’s home in Italy turned out to be September 11th, 2001.]

After the two-year stint with Sting, Botti’s solo career entered its next phase on a clear upward trajectory.

[Botti and Sting still sit in on each other's performances: Sting was on the live disc "Chris Botti in Boston" and Botti could be found backing up Sting's performance in the recent star-driven "Hope For Haiti" telethon fundraiser.]

Botti's last several albums have been of the less-pop-more-lush persuasion, with at least three studio discs and a live effort featuring mostly standards and a diverse lineup of guest musicians like Micheal Buble, Steven Tyler and Yo-Yo Ma.

It is those last few discs -- “Italia,” “To Love Again” and “When I Fall In Love” -- that now define Botti’s career. And that was greatly reflected in his Thousand Oaks setlist as well.

Now both popular and well-respected, Botti is also a fine bandleader, as was on display in the TO show. Amazingly, but not surprisingly, the charismatic Botti’s name is now showing up on the short list of potential replacements for Tonight Show bandleader Kevin Eubanks, who will now apparently be leaving once the show’s transition back to 11:35 is complete.

Complete performers and consummate musicians, Chis Botti and his band are not to be missed when they come to your town. If you’re lucky, they’re playing an intimate venue like the Fred Kavli Theater in Thousand Oaks.

You'll have to be damn lucky, though.