The CD Club- A Music Appreciation Group Reviews
Each person brings along a favourite track to share with everyone. The tracks are played through a stereo, and the person presenting it says why they chose it. The rest of us listen with open ears and mind.
The styles that people prefer are diverse and so we have the chance to listen to music we might not have chosen for ourselves and have our listening experience expanded. Sometimes we choose a theme, thus far we have had New Zealand, Comedic and, “story songs.” But mostly we keep it open to give everyone a chance to share what they love.
Some of the people who have been regularly attending the group volunteered to give reviews of tracks they have particularly enjoyed for NB.
Ella at the Hollywood Bowl: the Irving Berlin songbook (2022) Ella Fitzgerald
“Alexander's Ragtime Band” was one of the first hits composed by Irving Berlin. The popularity of the song quickly spread world-wide after first being performed in 1911. Despite the title the song is not a 'rag' as the rhythm lacks syncopation. The lyrics do commemorate ragtime, however, and reignited interest in that musical style which had been in decline. Ragtime may have been the first music style to be distinguished by a generation gap. It was a precursor to jazz. Jazz eventually replaced ragtime as the most popular musical style among American youth. Irving Berlin is among, if not the most, successful songwriters of all time. Some of his other popular compositions include White Christmas, Puttin' on the Ritz, Blue Skies, There's No Business Like Show Business, Top Hat White Tie and Tails, You've Gotta Get Up in the Morning, Cheek to Cheek and Anything You Can Do.
-Dave
Ten Guitars Heartland 3: 40 Songs from Heartland New Zealand Songs from 1959-2013
This CD is full of sing-along toe-tapping songs that were released from 1959 to 2013. Songs like Sundown by Gordon Lightfoot, which is one of my favourites, but I never knew who sung it. I find that quite often I hear a song and think ‘who sung that?’. There are the obvious tracks that everybody knows such as Islands in the Stream by Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton along with Hopelessly Devoted by the dear departed Olivia Newton John. But do you know who sang Okie from Muskogee?
The perfect CD for road trips or background music for any occasion. I highly recommend this CD.
-Tracey
Kingmaker (2022) I Can Forget Tami Neilson
Tami Neilson's fifth album, Kingmaker, came out came out in July. I brought it along to the group because her planned Dunedin gig was cancelled. Many of the songs on this album are about the music industry, but I picked "I can forget". She actually can't, that's the problem - this is a song of grief, where a random in the street reminds her of her father: memory will not let her go. So, she sings "I'm begging you, let me be/Give me a memory/I can forget". This track shows off the beauty, power and range of her voice marvellously. When performed live, she often only has an acoustic guitar to back her, but the production here is more lush - strings, what sounds like hand-played drums and the occasional maraca.
-Barry
English Motets Gesualdo Six (Hyperion, 2018)
This is a collection of Renaissance motets by English composers, sung by the Gesualdo Six, an a cappella group comprising two countertenors, two tenors, a baritone and a bass. There is one voice to a part, so the number of singers in each motet varies from three to seven (the group's director, bass Owain Park, is the seventh). The informative booklet includes the texts, with translations of the Latin motets. The singing is excellent, and this CD should appeal not only to fans of Renaissance music but to anyone who enjoys the sound of voices in harmony.
-Alan
Dummy (1994) Glory Box Portishead
Glory Box, on Dummy, the first (of three) albums by Portishead is one of my all-time favourite bands. They hate being called a trip hop band, but they're really emblematic of that movement for me. It starts really quiet, then builds in volume and intensity. Keys, guitars, drums and a bit of scratching are used to great effect to provide the base for Beth Gibbons vocals. She mainly speaks her lyrics, but then gets a bit jazzy when she sings "Give me a reason to love you/Give me a reason to be a woman" and there's a proper snarl to her voice in the refrain "I'm so tired of playing". There are varying interpretations, but I think the "I" of this song wants a relationship to mature into something meaningful but is a lament because the other person is not up to it.
-Barry
(2009) Carol Brown Flight of the Conchords
From the opening verse,
Loretta
Broke my heart in a letter
She told me she was leaving
And her life would be better’
Through to
‘Paula, Persephone
Stella and Stephanie
There must be fifty ways
That lovers have left me’,
I was captivated by the dry humour of this song by Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement of the Flight of the Conchords. I enjoyed its reference to another great song “There must be fifty ways to leave your lover”, by Paul Simon - the opposite problem described in this song. I also loved the sad/happy tone of the music which reflected the conflicting feelings of humour and pathos.
There were good reasons for the lovers to leave him, while Carol Brown simply “took a bus out of town”. The back-up choir of old girlfriends giving their slant on the situation gave me a real chuckle and adds a whole new musical element that gives the song an extra lift.
Born in the USA (1984) Dancing in the Dark Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band
The inclination for writing 'Dancing in the Dark' is rather more humorous than the actual song. The song was inspired by not being inspired to write a song.
The record producer, Jon Landau, was impressed by the songs Springsteen and the E Street Band had compiled for the album. He did suggest to Springsteen, though, that another song with commercial potential was required to entice public interest. Springsteen reacted with hostility to this remark and left the recording studio to sulk in his hotel room. He returned the next day having written 'Dancing in the Dark' overnight. Personally, the song reminds me of studying for high school exams but preferring to be distracted by anything else.
'Dancing in the Dark' song was the first single to be selected from 'Born in the USA' and remains Springsteen's most popular song. Seven of the 12 songs included on that album were eventually classified as top 10 hits by Billboard magazine due to the volume of sales. Although the official video for the song was recorded during a live performance the event was not entirely spontaneous. A young actress was planted in the crowd to be deliberately selected by Springsteen to dance with him on stage during the song. The actress is Courtney Cox, and that appearance was the beginning of her very successful career on screen.
-David
If you are interested in joining in with The CD Club, we meet once a month on the third Thursday at 5.30-6.30 on the second floor of the City Library. Please register your intention to come at: library@dcc.govt.nz