VARIOUS ARTISTS
''A CLASSIC ROCK SALUTE TO THE DOORS: LIGHT MY FIRE''
JUNE 24 2014
RECORDING DATE JULY 2013
76:33
1 Jami Jamison, Ted Turner, Patrick Moraz - L.A. Woman 07:28
2 Lou Gramm, Thijs Van Leer, Larry Coryell - Love Me Two Times 03:21
3 Leslie West, Brian Auger, Rod Piazza - Roadhouse Blues 04:06
4 Mark Stein, Mick Box - Love Her Madly 03:25
5 Joe Lynn Turner, Tony Kaye, Steve Cropper - Riders On The Storm 06:20
6 Edgar Winter, Chris Spedding - The Crystal Ship 02:42
7 Keith Emerson, Jeff 'Skunk' Baxter, Joel Druckman - Intro (People Are Strange) 03:58
8 David Johansen, Billy Sherwood - People Are Strange 02:23
9 Robert Gordon, Jordan Rudess, Steve Morse, Nik Turner - Touch Me 03:56
10 Graham Bonnet, Christopher North, Steve Hillage - The Soft Parade 08:05
11 Ken Hensley, Roye Albrighton - Hello I Love You 02:38
12 Eric Martin, Elliot Easton - Spanish Caravan 02:54
13 Todd Rundgren, Geoff Downes, Zoot Horn Rollo - Alabama Song (Whiskey Bar) 03:25
14 Mark Farner, Chick Churchill - Break On Through (To the Other Side) 02:52
15 Ian Gillan, Rick Wakeman, Steve Howe - Light My Fire 06:59
16 Pat Travers, Jimmy Greenspoon - The End 11:23
REVIEW
By Glenn Astarita, allaboutjazz
Southern California-based Purple Pyramid Records and producer, instrumentalist Billy Sherwood raised the bar with this tribute to The Doors by convening a star-studded cast, featuring classic rockers performing with progressive rock luminaries. And the jazz contingent is onboard, evidenced by jazz guitar great Larry Coryell appearing with Focus keyboardist Thijs Van Leer on "Love Me Two Times."
When I first broke the seal on this recording and perused the personnel listing I was delighted yet partly suspicious, fearing this would be an unbalanced project and/or a riffing contest framed on The Doors songbook. Such is not the case. Thus, Todd Rundgren performing alongside Captain Beeheart Magic Band guitarist Zoot Horn Rollo and Yes keyboardist Geoff Downes signify one of many rather unlikely, yet markedly productive and enticing state of affairs. It's a varied set, where all the vocalists retain their signature chops and modus operandi. Although one unremitting factor is centered on their penchant for extracting the force-field of The Doors' vocalist Jim Morrison's commanding delivery.
The production's stunning sound quality yields additional bonus points and should warm the hearts of audiophiles. Ultimately, each rendition of The Doors' songbook is imbued with the musicians' idiosyncratic niceties amid a plethora of shrewdly placed dynamics, layered keys and guitar shadings. They inject distinct characteristics but don't sacrifice The Doors' core song-forms. Hence, disparate musical personalities uncannily attain an accord on many fronts by imparting a sense of ownership and camaraderie, whether or not they were recording tracks in the same studio at the same time.
It's easy to discern that Sherwood and associates maximized the talents and style of each artist's strengths, juxtaposed by strong soloing spots and the obligatory personal touches that many of us would anticipate. Van Leer helps give "Love Me Two Times " a modern uplift by instilling some good old Hammond-B3 organ style boogie rock, abetted by Coryell's Texas blues patterns and hard rock phrasings. Moreover, guitar hero Leslie West (Mountain) does what he does best via his emphatically thick vocals, coupled with sinuous slide guitar leads atop Rod Piazza's harmonica notes, as they punch it out on this husky finger-snapping spin on "Roadhouse Blues."
Tony Kaye (Yes) uses a synth emulated electric piano sound during "Riders On The Storm" and Keith Emerson (Emerson, Lake & Palmer) preludes "People Are Strange" with stride piano clusters and synths alongside time-honored session ace, guitarist Jeff "Skunk" Baxter's deft acoustic guitar work. Yet rockabilly vocalist Robert Gordon croons through "Touch Me" with the resonance and machismo of Morrison, complemented by pumping rhythms and Nik Turner's (Hawkwind) swirling sax notes and prog rock keyboard great Jordan Rudess' spiraling notes. Whereas, Rundgren tenders a pop-ish and clement outlook on The Doors' swaggering and bluesy torch piece "Alabama Song (Whiskey Bar).
Highlights are thriving components, especially when infamous Yes alumni, guitarist Steve Howe and keyboardist Rick Wakeman delve into an extended call and response motif, spanning rock, jazz and classical nuances in the bridge section of "Light My Fire." Here, Ian Gillan provides the antithesis of what we'd expect, considering his high-impact vocals with Deep Purple, as he counterbalances the soloists with a care-free and straightforward rendering of the familiar choruses. Indeed, this tribute endeavor covers all the bases and then some. It's not to be overlooked. Kudos to the production team for bestowing their rather enlightening plan of attack as it's quite apparent that a lot of thought prefaced the onset of this astonishing alignment of rock's past and present rock stars.
TO THE TOP
''A CLASSIC ROCK SALUTE TO THE DOORS: LIGHT MY FIRE''
JUNE 24 2014
RECORDING DATE JULY 2013
76:33
1 Jami Jamison, Ted Turner, Patrick Moraz - L.A. Woman 07:28
2 Lou Gramm, Thijs Van Leer, Larry Coryell - Love Me Two Times 03:21
3 Leslie West, Brian Auger, Rod Piazza - Roadhouse Blues 04:06
4 Mark Stein, Mick Box - Love Her Madly 03:25
5 Joe Lynn Turner, Tony Kaye, Steve Cropper - Riders On The Storm 06:20
6 Edgar Winter, Chris Spedding - The Crystal Ship 02:42
7 Keith Emerson, Jeff 'Skunk' Baxter, Joel Druckman - Intro (People Are Strange) 03:58
8 David Johansen, Billy Sherwood - People Are Strange 02:23
9 Robert Gordon, Jordan Rudess, Steve Morse, Nik Turner - Touch Me 03:56
10 Graham Bonnet, Christopher North, Steve Hillage - The Soft Parade 08:05
11 Ken Hensley, Roye Albrighton - Hello I Love You 02:38
12 Eric Martin, Elliot Easton - Spanish Caravan 02:54
13 Todd Rundgren, Geoff Downes, Zoot Horn Rollo - Alabama Song (Whiskey Bar) 03:25
14 Mark Farner, Chick Churchill - Break On Through (To the Other Side) 02:52
15 Ian Gillan, Rick Wakeman, Steve Howe - Light My Fire 06:59
16 Pat Travers, Jimmy Greenspoon - The End 11:23
REVIEW
By Glenn Astarita, allaboutjazz
Southern California-based Purple Pyramid Records and producer, instrumentalist Billy Sherwood raised the bar with this tribute to The Doors by convening a star-studded cast, featuring classic rockers performing with progressive rock luminaries. And the jazz contingent is onboard, evidenced by jazz guitar great Larry Coryell appearing with Focus keyboardist Thijs Van Leer on "Love Me Two Times."
When I first broke the seal on this recording and perused the personnel listing I was delighted yet partly suspicious, fearing this would be an unbalanced project and/or a riffing contest framed on The Doors songbook. Such is not the case. Thus, Todd Rundgren performing alongside Captain Beeheart Magic Band guitarist Zoot Horn Rollo and Yes keyboardist Geoff Downes signify one of many rather unlikely, yet markedly productive and enticing state of affairs. It's a varied set, where all the vocalists retain their signature chops and modus operandi. Although one unremitting factor is centered on their penchant for extracting the force-field of The Doors' vocalist Jim Morrison's commanding delivery.
The production's stunning sound quality yields additional bonus points and should warm the hearts of audiophiles. Ultimately, each rendition of The Doors' songbook is imbued with the musicians' idiosyncratic niceties amid a plethora of shrewdly placed dynamics, layered keys and guitar shadings. They inject distinct characteristics but don't sacrifice The Doors' core song-forms. Hence, disparate musical personalities uncannily attain an accord on many fronts by imparting a sense of ownership and camaraderie, whether or not they were recording tracks in the same studio at the same time.
It's easy to discern that Sherwood and associates maximized the talents and style of each artist's strengths, juxtaposed by strong soloing spots and the obligatory personal touches that many of us would anticipate. Van Leer helps give "Love Me Two Times " a modern uplift by instilling some good old Hammond-B3 organ style boogie rock, abetted by Coryell's Texas blues patterns and hard rock phrasings. Moreover, guitar hero Leslie West (Mountain) does what he does best via his emphatically thick vocals, coupled with sinuous slide guitar leads atop Rod Piazza's harmonica notes, as they punch it out on this husky finger-snapping spin on "Roadhouse Blues."
Tony Kaye (Yes) uses a synth emulated electric piano sound during "Riders On The Storm" and Keith Emerson (Emerson, Lake & Palmer) preludes "People Are Strange" with stride piano clusters and synths alongside time-honored session ace, guitarist Jeff "Skunk" Baxter's deft acoustic guitar work. Yet rockabilly vocalist Robert Gordon croons through "Touch Me" with the resonance and machismo of Morrison, complemented by pumping rhythms and Nik Turner's (Hawkwind) swirling sax notes and prog rock keyboard great Jordan Rudess' spiraling notes. Whereas, Rundgren tenders a pop-ish and clement outlook on The Doors' swaggering and bluesy torch piece "Alabama Song (Whiskey Bar).
Highlights are thriving components, especially when infamous Yes alumni, guitarist Steve Howe and keyboardist Rick Wakeman delve into an extended call and response motif, spanning rock, jazz and classical nuances in the bridge section of "Light My Fire." Here, Ian Gillan provides the antithesis of what we'd expect, considering his high-impact vocals with Deep Purple, as he counterbalances the soloists with a care-free and straightforward rendering of the familiar choruses. Indeed, this tribute endeavor covers all the bases and then some. It's not to be overlooked. Kudos to the production team for bestowing their rather enlightening plan of attack as it's quite apparent that a lot of thought prefaced the onset of this astonishing alignment of rock's past and present rock stars.
TO THE TOP
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