Air Fan 1994 06 (187)

All King Crimson fans should know about David Cross, as he was once the violinist and keyboardist in the band in the early 70's. He played on many of the classic King Crimson albums such as "Lark's Tongue in Aspic", "Starless and Bible Black" and "Red". On this solo album from 1994 you can hear many reminiscences to King Crimson. David's electric violin is always in the forefront of the music without being dominating: swirling, floating and sometimes it hits you right in the face. Five tracks are studio recordings, and four are recorded live at Flöz Club, Berlin, October 1993. When you're buying a David Cross album you'll never get disappointed. This album is as highly recommended as any other David Cross release is.

When Jimmie Vaughan left the Fabulous Thunderbirds in 1990, the band's old pal Duke Robillard filled the guitar slot. The experience seems to have transformed Robillard, a charter member of Roomful of Blues, from a swinging jump-blues man into a thumping blues rocker. You could hear the early indications on his 1991 solo album, Turn It Around, and his 1992 album with the T-Birds, Walk That Walk, Talk That Talk, but the transformation is complete on Temptation. The singer/guitarist has concentrated his grooves around big, fat snare-drum beats and has given his guitar riffs a thick, dirty sound. He wrote or cowrote 9 of the 11 songs, but none of these originals is likely to join the standard blues repertoire.

Formed by Tokyo acid jazz maven Gonzalez Suzuki, Soul Bossa Trio recorded several albums of refreshing, exploratory jazz with a debt to fusion and Brazilian jazz but a sparkling sense of interplay often lacking in their club-centered contemporaries. Suzuki was originally a member of Tokyo Panorama Mambo Boys, Japanese jazz-pop favorites during the '80s.

The sturdiness of the blues tradition will support any band with decent chops and good instincts and make it sound good, but only the rarest bands overcome the weight of that same tradition to make music original enough for greatness. The Dallas quartet Mike Morgan & the Crawl is the perfect example of a bar band that serves the blues legacy honorably without ever adding much to it. Ain't Worried No More includes 9 songs by guitarist Morgan among its 13 tracks, but these represent a reshuffling of old materials rather than anything personal enough to be forever associated with its composer. Morgan, who wears a pirate patch over his right eye, is not a singer; he leaves that to his longtime partner and harmonica soloist Lee McBee, whose gruff and soulful baritone never distracts from the band's groove…

Memphis guitarist Preston Shannon's debut as a bandleader, Break the Ice is a showcase not only for the singer/guitarist's considerable talents, but for his influences as well. Heavily influenced by the Kings, Albert and B.B., Shannon puts down a blazing version of the former's "Crosscut Saw," as well as covering two songs by Jimmy McCracklin (the songwriter who gave B.B. "The Thrill Is Gone"). Truly one of the strongest talents on the modern day Memphis blues scene, Shannon and his band do much to transcend their influences and add an original sound on the 12 songs collected here.

This is a delightful set, a program of eight Brazilian tunes and three of pianist Joanne Brackeen's originals. With strong assistance provided by bassist Eddie Gomez, drummer Duduka da Fonseca and percussionist Waltinho Anastacio, Brackeen adds beauty and adventure to such numbers as "Recado Bossa Nova," "Estate," "The Island" and a pair of Milton Nascimento songs. The pianist stretches the songs a bit in spots but never neglects their melodies or the original moods. Well worth several listens.

This is the stuff guitar heroes are made of. Henderson doles out everything from straight-up rock & roll to slow, nasty blues and twangy country on this album. The quality and clarity of the sound on this recording serve to enhance and complement Henderson's in-you-face guitar style too. The opening track "Hit the Bricks" is fairly weak, and there are a few others that don't necessarily light any fires (the title track and "Love Somebody"), but the rest of the CD smokes. The seven instrumentals include Henderson's favorite Link Wray song "Rawhide," and a twangy, two-part version of Duane Eddy's "Rebel Rouser." The Ventures medley is a true delight (he breaks out the whammy bar a bit). "Brandon's Song" features some double-lead guitar and sounds like something you might hear from Clapton.

Formed by Tokyo acid jazz maven Gonzalez Suzuki, Soul Bossa Trio recorded several albums of refreshing, exploratory jazz with a debt to fusion and Brazilian jazz but a sparkling sense of interplay often lacking in their club-centered contemporaries. Suzuki was originally a member of Tokyo Panorama Mambo Boys, Japanese jazz-pop favorites during the '80s.