PETER WOLF
''MIDNIGHT SOUVENIRS''
APR 2010
49:32
**********
1/Tragedy/Petraglia, Wolf/4:30
2/I Don't Wanna Know/2:53
3/Watch Her Move/Rhodes, Wolf/3:58
4/There's Still Time/Jennings, Thiele, Wolf/5:08
5/Lying Low/Jennings, Wolf/3:10
6/The Green Fields of Summer/Jennings, Wolf/2:55
7/Thick as Thieves/Wolf/2:43
8/Always Asking For You/Jennings, Wolf/2:56
9/Then It Leaves Us All Behind/Jennings, Wolf/3:31
10/Overnight Lows/Jennings, Petraglia, Prophet, Wolf/5:06
11/Everything I Do Gonna Be Funky/Toussaint/2:12
12/Don't Try To Change Her/Jennings, Wolf/3:30
13/The Night Comes Down (For Willy Deville)/Jennings, Wolf/3:55
14/It's Too Late for Me/Jennings, Wolf/2:47
**********
Marty Ballou/Bass (Upright)
Kevin Barry/Guitar, Lap Steel Guitar
Paul Bryan/Bass
Larry Campbell/Fiddle, Guitar, Mandolin, Pedal Steel
Chris Cardona/Violin
Neko Case/Duet
Crispin Cioe/Sax (Alto)
Kris Delmhorst/Vocal Harmony
Jonathan Dinklage/Violin
Ada Dyer/Vocals (Background)
Babi Floyd/Vocals (Background)
Merle Haggard/Duet
Mike Harvey/Vocals (Background)
Arno Hecht/Sax (Tenor)
Duke Levine/Banjo, Guitar, Mandola, Mandolin
Shelby Lynne/Duet
Anik Oulianine/Cello
Shawn Pelton/Drums
Marty Richards/Drums
Catherine Russell/Vocals (Background)
Antoine Silverman/String Arrangements, Violin
Entcho Todorov/Violin
Kenny White/Bass, Conga, Guitar, Keyboards, Piano, Producer, Vocals (Background)
James "D-Train" Williams/Vocals (Background)
Peter Wolf/Harmonica, Re-Arranged, Vocals
Anja Wood/Cello
**********
REVIEW/AMG
Thom Jurek
Certain records create a space where memory -- not nostalgia -- makes us long for something that’s been missing. Eight years after the stellar Sleepless, Peter Wolf offers us that with Midnight Souvenirs. Few artists can make records where tautly crafted songs with solid lyrics, balanced production, and inspired performances are the only priorities. The album’s musical traces go all the way back to his past as a DJ, as a member of the Hallucinations and the J. Geils Band to his solo career and the present moment in terrific voice. Wolf and collaborators (most notably writing partner Will Jennings and co-producer Kenny Brown) deliver adult rock & roll songs. The tunes are direct, poignant, and confessional, buoyed by Wolf’s trademark sense of humor. It engages roots rock, R&B, Americana, and yes, blues, played by an all-star band that includes guitarists Larry Campbell and Duke Levine, and the best female backing chorus in the business: Ada Dyer and Catherine Russell.
There isn’t a weak cut here, but there are highlights. There are three excellent duets -- none were phoned in. The first is the soul-drenched country of “Tragedy” with Shelby Lynne, (co-written by Angelo Petraglia). “Tragedy” details the failings of a man in love and his desperate unwillingness to accept that this may be the end. Lynne’s a perfect foil, underscoring Wolf’s pleading with pure Southern soul singing; she's empathic but defiant. It’s a sad song but horns, Stax-style guitar, B-3, and a rhythm section create an infectious groove. “Green Fields of Summer” with Neko Case is inspired by a traditional melody that could have been sung by Fairport Convention. The set closer with Merle Haggard (in amazing voice here), melds the pair in a country waltz that sums up the regret that stands monolithically in the hearts of those who've failed.
Wolf rocks here too: “I Don’t Wanna Know,” with its big ringing guitars and wailing harmonica, is a betrayal song to dance to. “Watch Her Move” is a snaky, nocturnal old-school R&B tune that shakes in modern parlance. “There’s Still Time” is the album’s hinge piece. Slowly beginning with acoustic and electric guitars, it gradually soars, adding a string section and a gospel-ized backing chorus. Wolf declares his self-aware protagonist’s isolated way of living, the cost he’s willingly paid for it, and his decision to abandon himself fearlessly to whatever he encounters because that’s what actual living requires. ”Thick as Thieves” is a scorching electric blues number that wouldn’t sound out of place on a North Mississippi Allstars record. “Overnight Lows” is a humorous, soul morality tale where the singer wears his heart -- and faults --on his sleeve. “The Night Comes Down (For Willy DeVille)" is a big rock anthem delivered in an intimate way. Midnight Souvenirs is a terrific dark-night-of-the-soul album, but it doesn’t mope. It’s made for driving, dancing alone in the living room, or merely pondering your next move, while snapping your fingers, of course.
**********
BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Richard Skelly
Best known for his tenure fronting the J. Geils Band, singer Peter Wolf was born and raised in the Bronx, and came from a family active in show business. His father was a dancer, song plugger, disc jockey, and singer of light opera; his mother, an organizer for the civil rights and labor movements, was a teacher for inner-city children in the Bronx. Wolf's earliest passion was painting, and he was accepted on a scholarship to the Museum of Modern Art's Special Studies for Children, and later to the High School of Music and Art, just blocks from the Apollo Theater, where the young Wolf would make weekly visits. Seeing performers like Jackie Wilson, Dinah Washington, Otis Redding, and James Brown sparked his early interest in blues and R&B. After graduating from high school, he hitchhiked through the Midwest; in Chicago, he became involved in a couple of blues and folk music societies while studying painting at the University of Chicago. While there, he visited the South Side blues clubs, drawing influences from the musicians he saw there.
With a grant to study at the Boston Museum School of Fine Arts, he became a disc jockey on WBCN-FM, hosting a show called The All-Night House Party. The show touched on many musical bases, and reflected Wolf's own broad musical interests. While still in college in Boston, Wolf joined his first musical group, comprised of fellow art students. They played blues music, and later got to meet and tour with their heroes John Lee Hooker and Muddy Waters. In 1967, he formed the group that would go on to become the J. Geils Band, which began playing clubs around New England. Their first big break was a chance to play at the Fillmore East in New York City, and they became known for their marathon live performances, with Wolf establishing a reputation as a particularly dynamic frontman. The group was signed to Atlantic Records by producer/impresario Jerry Wexler, and toured constantly over the next couple of years, performing as special guests with the Rolling Stones throughout the U.S. and Europe. At one of these concerts, Wolf met actress Faye Dunaway, whom he later married for a short time.
Lights Out
In 1983, the group was at the height of its popularity, and had gone 17 years without a personnel change. Finally, the bandmembers went their separate ways and Wolf went on to produce numerous film soundtracks and run art exhibits of his original paintings. In 1984, he released his first solo album, Lights Out, followed in 1987 by Come as You Are, which spurred the hit single of the same name. In between albums he worked on duets with Mick Jagger and Aretha Franklin, who recruited him specifically for her Who's Zoomin' Who album. In 1989, after a six-month songwriting retreat in Nashville, he recorded his third solo album, Up to No Good, which appeared the following year. In 1994, Wolf assembled a group of musicians and began playing clubs as a way to test out newer material on live audiences. It was the live feeling he so successfully captured on Long Line, his 1996 Reprise release. While on tour in 1997, Wolf met producer Kenny White, and together the pair recorded Fool's Parade, which was released in 1998 on Mercury. It was selected by Rolling Stone magazine as one of the "50 most influential records of the decade." In 1998, he toured with the Royal Soul Review, a star-studded gathering of soul artists including Lloyd Price, Chuck Jackson, Sam Moore, Ben E. King, Irma Thomas, Percy Sledge, Gene Chandler, and Jerry Butler. Soon after, Wolf was asked to record with blues great Little Milton. They worked at the famed Muscle Shoals Sound Studios and are featured on the Malaco album Welcome to Little Milton.
Sleepless
In 1999, J. Geils reunited for an end-of-the-century tour. Wolf reentered the studio with White and cut Sleepless for the Artemis label in 2002. This set, with guests including Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and Steve Earle, was almost universally regarded as Wolf's finest solo moment and garnered -- again from Rolling Stone -- the honor of being "one of the greatest 500 albums of all time." In 2005, the J. Geils Band reunited once more for a special charity event to benefit the Cam Neely Cancer Foundation, Denis Leary's Firefighters Association of New England, and Michael J. Fox's Parkinson's Disease Research Foundation. The band later reunited in 2009 for a short series of sold-out shows across the U.S.; Wolf claims they were more than likely their very last. He finally re-emerged from his own recording silence in 2010 with Midnight Souvenirs on Verve, co-produced with White; the pair enlisted duet help from Shelby Lynne, Neko Case, and one of Wolf's true heroes, Merle Haggard.
The singer promoted the set on the major network late night shows, his own tour of intimate rock and folk venues, and festival performances. The recording received favorable reviews and landed inside the Top 50 on the album charts. Afterwards, Wolf resumed reunion work with J. Geils Band over the next few summers, playing the large outdoor sheds. During breaks, he was writing new material.
A Cure For Loneliness
When ready to record, Wolf enlisted members of his road band the Midnight Travelers (including keyboardist Kenny White, his co-producer). A Cure for Loneliness marked the singer's debut for Concord. It included nine new originals and three covers -- most notably a bluegrass reworking of the J. Geils Band hit "Love Stinks." It was released in early 2016.
**********
WIKIPEDIA
**********
WEBSITE
**********
TO THE TOP
********************
''MIDNIGHT SOUVENIRS''
APR 2010
49:32
**********
1/Tragedy/Petraglia, Wolf/4:30
2/I Don't Wanna Know/2:53
3/Watch Her Move/Rhodes, Wolf/3:58
4/There's Still Time/Jennings, Thiele, Wolf/5:08
5/Lying Low/Jennings, Wolf/3:10
6/The Green Fields of Summer/Jennings, Wolf/2:55
7/Thick as Thieves/Wolf/2:43
8/Always Asking For You/Jennings, Wolf/2:56
9/Then It Leaves Us All Behind/Jennings, Wolf/3:31
10/Overnight Lows/Jennings, Petraglia, Prophet, Wolf/5:06
11/Everything I Do Gonna Be Funky/Toussaint/2:12
12/Don't Try To Change Her/Jennings, Wolf/3:30
13/The Night Comes Down (For Willy Deville)/Jennings, Wolf/3:55
14/It's Too Late for Me/Jennings, Wolf/2:47
**********
Marty Ballou/Bass (Upright)
Kevin Barry/Guitar, Lap Steel Guitar
Paul Bryan/Bass
Larry Campbell/Fiddle, Guitar, Mandolin, Pedal Steel
Chris Cardona/Violin
Neko Case/Duet
Crispin Cioe/Sax (Alto)
Kris Delmhorst/Vocal Harmony
Jonathan Dinklage/Violin
Ada Dyer/Vocals (Background)
Babi Floyd/Vocals (Background)
Merle Haggard/Duet
Mike Harvey/Vocals (Background)
Arno Hecht/Sax (Tenor)
Duke Levine/Banjo, Guitar, Mandola, Mandolin
Shelby Lynne/Duet
Anik Oulianine/Cello
Shawn Pelton/Drums
Marty Richards/Drums
Catherine Russell/Vocals (Background)
Antoine Silverman/String Arrangements, Violin
Entcho Todorov/Violin
Kenny White/Bass, Conga, Guitar, Keyboards, Piano, Producer, Vocals (Background)
James "D-Train" Williams/Vocals (Background)
Peter Wolf/Harmonica, Re-Arranged, Vocals
Anja Wood/Cello
**********
REVIEW/AMG
Thom Jurek
Certain records create a space where memory -- not nostalgia -- makes us long for something that’s been missing. Eight years after the stellar Sleepless, Peter Wolf offers us that with Midnight Souvenirs. Few artists can make records where tautly crafted songs with solid lyrics, balanced production, and inspired performances are the only priorities. The album’s musical traces go all the way back to his past as a DJ, as a member of the Hallucinations and the J. Geils Band to his solo career and the present moment in terrific voice. Wolf and collaborators (most notably writing partner Will Jennings and co-producer Kenny Brown) deliver adult rock & roll songs. The tunes are direct, poignant, and confessional, buoyed by Wolf’s trademark sense of humor. It engages roots rock, R&B, Americana, and yes, blues, played by an all-star band that includes guitarists Larry Campbell and Duke Levine, and the best female backing chorus in the business: Ada Dyer and Catherine Russell.
There isn’t a weak cut here, but there are highlights. There are three excellent duets -- none were phoned in. The first is the soul-drenched country of “Tragedy” with Shelby Lynne, (co-written by Angelo Petraglia). “Tragedy” details the failings of a man in love and his desperate unwillingness to accept that this may be the end. Lynne’s a perfect foil, underscoring Wolf’s pleading with pure Southern soul singing; she's empathic but defiant. It’s a sad song but horns, Stax-style guitar, B-3, and a rhythm section create an infectious groove. “Green Fields of Summer” with Neko Case is inspired by a traditional melody that could have been sung by Fairport Convention. The set closer with Merle Haggard (in amazing voice here), melds the pair in a country waltz that sums up the regret that stands monolithically in the hearts of those who've failed.
Wolf rocks here too: “I Don’t Wanna Know,” with its big ringing guitars and wailing harmonica, is a betrayal song to dance to. “Watch Her Move” is a snaky, nocturnal old-school R&B tune that shakes in modern parlance. “There’s Still Time” is the album’s hinge piece. Slowly beginning with acoustic and electric guitars, it gradually soars, adding a string section and a gospel-ized backing chorus. Wolf declares his self-aware protagonist’s isolated way of living, the cost he’s willingly paid for it, and his decision to abandon himself fearlessly to whatever he encounters because that’s what actual living requires. ”Thick as Thieves” is a scorching electric blues number that wouldn’t sound out of place on a North Mississippi Allstars record. “Overnight Lows” is a humorous, soul morality tale where the singer wears his heart -- and faults --on his sleeve. “The Night Comes Down (For Willy DeVille)" is a big rock anthem delivered in an intimate way. Midnight Souvenirs is a terrific dark-night-of-the-soul album, but it doesn’t mope. It’s made for driving, dancing alone in the living room, or merely pondering your next move, while snapping your fingers, of course.
**********
BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Richard Skelly
Best known for his tenure fronting the J. Geils Band, singer Peter Wolf was born and raised in the Bronx, and came from a family active in show business. His father was a dancer, song plugger, disc jockey, and singer of light opera; his mother, an organizer for the civil rights and labor movements, was a teacher for inner-city children in the Bronx. Wolf's earliest passion was painting, and he was accepted on a scholarship to the Museum of Modern Art's Special Studies for Children, and later to the High School of Music and Art, just blocks from the Apollo Theater, where the young Wolf would make weekly visits. Seeing performers like Jackie Wilson, Dinah Washington, Otis Redding, and James Brown sparked his early interest in blues and R&B. After graduating from high school, he hitchhiked through the Midwest; in Chicago, he became involved in a couple of blues and folk music societies while studying painting at the University of Chicago. While there, he visited the South Side blues clubs, drawing influences from the musicians he saw there.
With a grant to study at the Boston Museum School of Fine Arts, he became a disc jockey on WBCN-FM, hosting a show called The All-Night House Party. The show touched on many musical bases, and reflected Wolf's own broad musical interests. While still in college in Boston, Wolf joined his first musical group, comprised of fellow art students. They played blues music, and later got to meet and tour with their heroes John Lee Hooker and Muddy Waters. In 1967, he formed the group that would go on to become the J. Geils Band, which began playing clubs around New England. Their first big break was a chance to play at the Fillmore East in New York City, and they became known for their marathon live performances, with Wolf establishing a reputation as a particularly dynamic frontman. The group was signed to Atlantic Records by producer/impresario Jerry Wexler, and toured constantly over the next couple of years, performing as special guests with the Rolling Stones throughout the U.S. and Europe. At one of these concerts, Wolf met actress Faye Dunaway, whom he later married for a short time.
Lights Out
In 1983, the group was at the height of its popularity, and had gone 17 years without a personnel change. Finally, the bandmembers went their separate ways and Wolf went on to produce numerous film soundtracks and run art exhibits of his original paintings. In 1984, he released his first solo album, Lights Out, followed in 1987 by Come as You Are, which spurred the hit single of the same name. In between albums he worked on duets with Mick Jagger and Aretha Franklin, who recruited him specifically for her Who's Zoomin' Who album. In 1989, after a six-month songwriting retreat in Nashville, he recorded his third solo album, Up to No Good, which appeared the following year. In 1994, Wolf assembled a group of musicians and began playing clubs as a way to test out newer material on live audiences. It was the live feeling he so successfully captured on Long Line, his 1996 Reprise release. While on tour in 1997, Wolf met producer Kenny White, and together the pair recorded Fool's Parade, which was released in 1998 on Mercury. It was selected by Rolling Stone magazine as one of the "50 most influential records of the decade." In 1998, he toured with the Royal Soul Review, a star-studded gathering of soul artists including Lloyd Price, Chuck Jackson, Sam Moore, Ben E. King, Irma Thomas, Percy Sledge, Gene Chandler, and Jerry Butler. Soon after, Wolf was asked to record with blues great Little Milton. They worked at the famed Muscle Shoals Sound Studios and are featured on the Malaco album Welcome to Little Milton.
Sleepless
In 1999, J. Geils reunited for an end-of-the-century tour. Wolf reentered the studio with White and cut Sleepless for the Artemis label in 2002. This set, with guests including Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and Steve Earle, was almost universally regarded as Wolf's finest solo moment and garnered -- again from Rolling Stone -- the honor of being "one of the greatest 500 albums of all time." In 2005, the J. Geils Band reunited once more for a special charity event to benefit the Cam Neely Cancer Foundation, Denis Leary's Firefighters Association of New England, and Michael J. Fox's Parkinson's Disease Research Foundation. The band later reunited in 2009 for a short series of sold-out shows across the U.S.; Wolf claims they were more than likely their very last. He finally re-emerged from his own recording silence in 2010 with Midnight Souvenirs on Verve, co-produced with White; the pair enlisted duet help from Shelby Lynne, Neko Case, and one of Wolf's true heroes, Merle Haggard.
The singer promoted the set on the major network late night shows, his own tour of intimate rock and folk venues, and festival performances. The recording received favorable reviews and landed inside the Top 50 on the album charts. Afterwards, Wolf resumed reunion work with J. Geils Band over the next few summers, playing the large outdoor sheds. During breaks, he was writing new material.
A Cure For Loneliness
When ready to record, Wolf enlisted members of his road band the Midnight Travelers (including keyboardist Kenny White, his co-producer). A Cure for Loneliness marked the singer's debut for Concord. It included nine new originals and three covers -- most notably a bluegrass reworking of the J. Geils Band hit "Love Stinks." It was released in early 2016.
**********
WIKIPEDIA
**********
WEBSITE
**********
TO THE TOP
********************
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