That Sound 1993

When Seattle grunge went mainstream, it was only a matter of time before the ripple effect was felt in regions other than the Pacific Northwest. The Georgia-based quintet Collective Soul – along with fellow inheritors of the then commercially lucrative post-grunge landscape like Live, Bush, and Candlebox – developed the genre into a more succinct brand of angst, turning the sonic cacophony of bands like Mudhoney and the Melvins into radio-friendly hard rock…

The repertory of the Spanish vihuela from the 16th century remains little investigated, partly because few original instruments exist; when vihuela works appear on recordings they are often played on the lute or guitar. This is a shame, for the instrument has its own sound and a repertory (albeit one that often claimed playability on various instruments) that exploited that sound. The vihuela is large, with six pairs of strings running up a large body and long neck, and the music on this album exploits the instrument's rich sonority and capability for ornamentation rather than the rapid runs, called redobles in Spanish, that are characteristic of music for other plucked stringed instruments.

Produced by Evans' former employer Ry Cooder, Blues for Thought often sounds like a Cooder album with a great singer. Better yet, Cooder has retained the services of some A-list studio cats, but manages to make them sound like drunken denizens of a Mississippi roadhouse. With the legendary Jim Keltner leading the way with his powerhouse thwacka-thwacka, and Cooder laying down his usual ultra-soulful licks, Evans and company groove mightily though a collection of first-rate material, including blues classics and Evans originals that sound like classics. Highlights are numerous, but one is the second song, "Hey Mama, Keep You Big Mouth Shut," which is almost assuredly the only version of a Bo Diddley tune to feature an oud…

The production value is very high. There is a nice opening sequence where the band and roadies arrive at the venue, and get ready to put on the show. The DVD uses this sequence to introduce the players, showing them getting off of busses, walking down corridors, and other mundane predatory actions. Knopfler walks out to a very enthusiastic crowd and after a few seconds of thunderous applause launches into the first song. I was very happy (as a guitar player myself) that many of his solos were shown in close-up detail. I like little things like that, seeing how he works to get that sound. I will not go over every song, but just be sure, there is not a single piece of filler here, although there would be a couple of songs that might be considered MIA. I could not imagine seeing B.B. King in concert without his performing "The Thrill is Gone", so seeing Dire Straits and not having them perform the break through "Sultans of Swing", the song that introduced them to the world is a bit strange. Oh well, you can't have everything. There is a good mix of rockers, softer more mellow songs and plenty of opportunity for Knopfler to let the other members of the band show off a bit. Overall, a great performance.