Levon Helm's second solo album isn't a bad listen, it just seems, given its pedigree, that it should be a good deal better than it is. Produced by Donald "Duck" Dunn of the legendary Booker T. & the MG's, and featuring Steve Cropper and the Muscle Shoals session crew, this outing ought to cook with some serious funk and soul, and that it only occasionally does so is the big surprise. Helm's Arkansas drawl gives his singing an authentic sounding expressiveness, but somehow nothing here has the easy, natural sounding ring that was the trademark of his best work with the Band.
A fiery guitarist and talented songwriter who plays a unique blend of Memphis R&B, southwest blues, and urban funk. Collection includes: Hell Or High Water (2002); The Hard Way (2004); Moment Of Truth (2007); Speak No Evil (2009); Red Clay Soul (2016); Winning Hand (2018).
Carry On is a four-CD set, spanning 50 years and includes more than five hours of music and includes a 113 page booklet. Produced by Graham Nash and Joel Bernstein with Stephen Stills, Rhino s anthology spotlights the remarkable scope of stills career with essential recordings, live cuts, new mixes, and 25 previously unreleased tracks. The tracks unfold mostly in chronological order, and the anthology leads off with its oldest entry: "Travelin " a previously unreleased recording that Stills made at age 17 in Costa Rica (one of the many places he lived growing up in a military family). The youngest track, recorded only a few months ago, features CSN performing "Girl From The North Country" in New York City during a sold-out five-night run at the Beacon Theater that closed the group s acclaimed 2012 world tour.