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CD Reviews

TERRY BLAINE: Lonesome Swallow
Jukebox Jazz, 2002

“Squeeze me, squeeze me again…,” pleads Terry Blaine on the opening track to her latest release Lonesome Swallow. This is exactly what I was singing after listening to this new collection of jazz standards.
Some music is written to be performed time and time again. Like making good old-fashioned love, with a little creativity, there are always new ways to explore the most familiar lover. Most of these standards have been played everywhere, from the greasiest backwoods juke joint to the splendor of Prince Albert Hall. This is the beauty of jazz and this recording specifically captures those same timeless feelings of swan-like grace and low-down, bury my heart in the Mississippi mud suffering.

Lonesome Swallow, inspired by the rare 1928 duet recordings of Ethel Waters and James P. Johnson, is the fifth major recording project of vocalist Terry Blaine and pianist Mark Shane.

The duet is a time-honored measure of intimacy between musicians, and these two make a perfect pair. Shane’s deft fingers feather out delicate arrangements on tracks like “Willow Tree” and “I’m Glad There’s You,” giving Blaine ample space to intertwine her silky melodies with his rich chord voicing. “Jeepers Creepers” moves seamlessly from a gentle ballad to a joyous romp. “I’ve Got Rhythm,” that infectious George and Ira Gershwin classic, proves these two have got serious rhythm as Shane lights up his keyboard with beautifully syncopated stride piano ornamentation and Blaine easily keeps up the hot tempo with excited enunciation that would leave anyone breathless.

What I like about this recording is the pair’s ability to make me believe the music. A true respect for this music and each other is apparent in the fresh delivery on all the tracks. In the liner notes Shane states, “I think that all of the material was chosen from first takes. Call it instinct or call it natural, call it whatever you like, when you work with a talent like Terry Blaine, you just gotta play.” Likewise Blaine shares powerful feelings about the album. She says, “I actually broke down and cried after the session, tears of joy, to be sure, feeling as if we had sounded a deeper, truer note in our music than ever before.”

—John Trent

THE KISS UPS: Coffee Sessions
63 Partnership, 2003

They say a good rhythm section is the most important part of any band. Well the Kiss Ups are a great rhythm section that decided everything else is virtually unnecessary. Actually, if the group consisted of any more than bass and drums, they probably wouldn’t be as good. Fortunately, this formula gives them a lot of appeal and also some, well, incredibility.

The Kiss Ups are Paul Heath on bass and Michael Wilcock on drums, with both sharing vocal duties. While Heath adds some sparse keyboards and acoustic guitar on the cd, Coffee Sessions is dominated by the boys’ infectious barn rockin’ grooves and creative vocalizing.

Heath has a very large bass sound that dismisses the need for a rhythm guitarist. With his super chunky bass figures and progressions, a rhythm guitar might add dead weight to their sound. Wilcock’s tight but venturesome drumming keeps the music thoroughly energetic and exciting.

Coffee Sessions features nine caffeine-fueled original hyper pop tunes and one sooouped up cover of The Cars’ “Just What I Needed.” Track number 10, “Girl of My Dreams,” clocking in at a whopping seven minutes forty-eight seconds, starts off soft and steady with bass harmonics and a seamless punchy beat. Then the boys start to croon: “I’ve got the biggest heart in my chest / I’ll slice a piece for you.” Suddenly there appears a thunderous multi-layered bass line and the song takes on the form of an anthem: “If you dance for me, I’ll dance for you. / If you show me yours, I’ll show you mine. / You’re the girl of my dreams. / You make everything sooo dreamy.”
These guys are goofball Casanovas!

From top to bottom, all the tracks are chock full of catchy hooks that keep you hummin’. The lyrics keep it genuine, close to home and heart without getting Kiss Ups!

—JT