Blackie and the Rodeo Kings are a band perfectly willing to wear their enthusiasm on their collective sleeve. After all, the project that brought Stephen Fearing, Colin Linden, and Tom Wilson together and gave them their group name was a tribute to Canadian singer/songwriter Willie P. Bennett, and they've never been hesitant to cover songwriters they look up to or bring in guest artists they admire…
Considering the amount of quality music the ad hoc Canadian singer/songwriter "supergroup" has released under the Blackie & the Rodeo Kings moniker – five albums, including a double from 1996-2007 – this 14-song, 55-minute set should have used the extra 20 minutes of its CD playing time to better advantage. The trio – Colin Linden, Tom Wilson, and Stephen Fearing, all solo artists with well-regarded catalogs of their own – began life by covering the songs of journeyman Canadian songwriter Willie P. Bennett before expanding into original material…
Blackie & the Rodeo Kings started out as a project in which three singer/songwriters – Stephen Fearing, Colin Linden, and Tom Wilson – got together to pay homage to a friend and colleague, and as good as they are together, BARK are a band that cherish their sense of democracy so much that no one ever seems like the leader…
Canadian singer/songwriter/guitarists Stephen Fearing, Colin Linden, and Tom Wilson all have successful solo careers, but sporadically put their individual projects on hold to record under the Blackie moniker. This album, the occasional band's fourth, comes only a few years following 2004's Bark, yet finds the trio – backed by a quartet of similarly talented musicians on bass, drums, and keyboards – in terrific form…
The second batch of songs recorded by Blackie & the Rodeo Kings (BARK to the group's fans) at the Bearsville sessions that yielded Let's Frolic is a looser, less structured affair. Far from leftovers, these 14 cuts have a similar feel to the music of the Dylan/Band Basement Tapes – a little rough around the edges but played with undeniable joy and enthusiasm that comes from the participants letting their guards down as the tape rolls…
Blackie & the Rodeo Kings are a Canadian songwriter's "supergroup," comprised of Colin Linden (who doubles as a guitarist in Bruce Cockburn's band), Stephen Fearing, and Tom Wilson. They may have begun as a garage band to record and perform the songs of obscure Canadian outsider songwriter Willie P. Bennett, but they've evolved into a unit that is akin to the legendary Rockpile in their approach to rootsy, rollicking, hooky pop/rock and country…
Rebecca Rust, cello, and Friedrich Edelmann, bassoon, have played together in duos, trios and larger chamber music groups for over 30 years. From their home base in Germany, this huband-and-wife team performs in America, Europe and Japan including radio and TV productions. Praised by Carlo Maria Giulini for her exceptional musicality, the American cellist Rebecca Rust, a native of California, received her first piano lessons with her mother at the age of five and began cello lessons with Margaret Rowell. Rowell said: Rebecca Rust is one of the most talented cellists that I have had the pleasure of teaching. Blessed with a beautiful ear and facility, she has used these gifts as tools to dig deep into the music itself, thereby giving her listeners a profound musical experience. Rebecca Rust is a brilliant cellist. Friedrich Edelmann grew up in Kaiserslautern, Germany. He studied with Alfred Rinderspacher, Klaus Thunemann, and Milan Turkovic. In 1977 he became the Principal Bassoonist of the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra. They are joined on this recording by pianist Scott Faigen.
Of the major works of Sergei Prokofiev, none (apart perhaps from Peter and the Wolf) have become so well loved by a wide audience as the ballets Cinderella and Romeo and Juliet. From the stage productions, to the orchestral suites, to the piano versions, many of these pieces are universally recognised.
Tenor saxophonist Scott Hamilton is in typically fine form on his third album as a leader for Concord. While Hamilton is equally skillful on ballads and hot stomps, cornetist Warren Vache sometimes takes a few too many chances on the uptempo material although one admires his brave attempts; he fares best on "Darn That Dream." Singer Sue Melikian sounds fine on two short vocals, but it is the instrumentals by the sextet (which includes guitarist Chris Flory and pianist Norman Simmons) that are most memorable.