Bob's Back Porch Reviews
by Bob Bowser
Walk Through The Fire – Mark Karan
DIG Music and Quacktone Records
June 30, 2009
Good things come to those who wait, and although it took four years of waiting, Mark Karan delivers the goods on his first solo album Walk Through The Fire.
Best known for his work with the Grateful Dead-related bands The Other Ones and Ratdog, Mark Karan is joined by 25 musical “friends” on this disc, including fellow Jemimah Puddleduck members John Molo, J.T. Thomas, and Bob Gross. Other guests include The Persuasions, the Rowan Brothers, Bill Payne, Pete Sears and Wally Ingram. One of the album/s most powerful moments is the late Delaney Bramlett adding dobro and vocals to Robert Johnson’s "Love in Vain". This track is the first posthumous release of Delaney.
While all of the guests help add to the soup, the recipe and flavor are unmistakably Karan’s. His mercurial voice (he sounds a bit like a combination of Elvis Costello, Lowell George, and Steve Earle) and always interesting guitar work are the constants in an eclectic romp through multiple genres: country blues, R & B, funk and psychedelia all get a work-out. Six of the 12 songs on the album are covers; the last three tracks showcase the varied styles that make this album so fun. A pretty take on Randy Newman’s "Think It’s Gonna Rain" is followed by Mark as reggae crooner on Joe Jackson’s "Fools In Love". Deadheads will enjoy the funky reading of "Easy Wind" that ends the album.
It is the six originals that really shine. "Leave A Light" On (on the promotional copy of the disc, there is a 13th hidden track of another take on the song) and "Love Song" are both plaintive and heartfelt. "Bait the Hook" and "Rock Your Papa" would be right at home on an album by The Band or Little Feat. "Time Will Tell" is a dark, atmospheric piece containing an intense psychedelic jam. The title track is Mark’s story of surviving cancer and all of the proceeds from the track are being donated to the Oral Cancer Foundation. I had the privilege of seeing Mark play this song live in Negril, Jamaica this past January, and it was a personal highlight of Ratdog Daze for me. The song’s message of perseverance and acceptance is a powerful one for anyone facing a difficult situation. Seeing a healthy and curly-haired Mark sing this song is a moment I will always treasure.
Walk through the Fire is a disc that will get a lot of spins on the Back Porch. Mark Karan has delivered an album that is sweet - without trying to be - which is a rare and much needed thing. 4.5 out of 5 Rocking Chairs. Get this album!
Also, don’t miss mark Karan with Jemimah Puddleduck, on tour now!
• Jul 4: Garrettsville, OH - Nelson Ledges Quarry Park
• Aug 6: Falls Church, VA - The State Theatre
• Aug 7: Baltimore, MD - 8 x 10 club
• Aug 8: New York, NY - Les Poisson Rouge
• Aug 14: Denver, CO - Cervantes' Masterpiece Ballroom
• Aug 15: Denver, CO - Cervantes' Masterpiece
Together Through Life – Bob DylanColumbia
Released: April 28, 2009
It is difficult for me to review a Bob Dylan album, for several reasons. First, Bob Dylan is my favorite artist by far. I like everything he has ever done so I am woefully deficient in the objectivity department. Also, much of what I appreciate about Dylan’s work is very subtle and thus hard for a writer of my limited skills to discuss – his phrasing, the timbre of his voice, etc. Finally, each Dylan album to me is merely one piece of the puzzle so to speak…all of Dylan’s work taken together is his canvas for me, so it is difficult for me to analyze an isolated piece. It would be like discussing one tree in an Andrew Wyeth landscape.
Having said all of that, I can say that Dylan’s 33rd studio album Together Through Life is yet another masterpiece from music’s greatest master. Co-written with Grateful Dead lyricist Robert Hunter (with whom Dylan collaborated for two songs on 1988’s Down In the Groove), the lyrics’ simplicity belie their poignant comments on life and love. It is almost a cliché to describe Dylan’s songs as “relevant”, but the songs on this album capture the mood of the world in 2009 in a way few artists could even come close to doing. Musically, the album sounds like it could have been recorded in Chess Studios in 1957. The accordion work of Los Lobos guitarist David Hidalgo adds a Tex-Mex flavor. Sonically and lyrically, Together Through Life continues the vibe of Dylan’s last three studio albums. Like everything the man has ever done, this is an album worth owning and will continue to yield rewards on repeated listenings. Another 5 out of 5 rocking chairs on “Bob’s Back Porch Scale”.
No Line On The Horizon – U2Interscope Records
Released: March 3, 2009
A quick perusal of the 500-plus customer reviews on Amazon.com of No Line On The Horizon, the 12 studio album from U2, shows this is a disc people either love or hate. I fall into the former group; in fact, I think this is the best disc of 2009 so far (and considering Bob Dylan has already released a disc in 2009, that’s saying a lot!). Understand my bias – I think U2 is the best and most important band from the 1980’s, and don’t consider it hyperbole when I call U2 the “Beatles of our generation”. For me the new disc continues the legacy of innovative sound and lyrics that speak of and to the human condition pioneered on albums like Boy, The Joshua Tree, and Achtung Baby. I also believe a truly great album is more than just the sum of its parts…every track fits together in weaving this relevant and engaging aural commentary on life in 2009. I can’t wait until these songs debut live on the upcoming 360 tour (which I predict will be the tour of the year.) Although the year is not even halfway through, I will be very surprised if a disc is released in 2009I like more than this one. 5 out of 5 rocking chairs on “Bob’s Back Porch Scale"
Already Free – The Derek Trucks BandRCAVictor: B001KL3GWM
Released:January 13, 2009
Nothing compares with seeing the Derek Trucks Band live…the slide guitarist and his virtuosic, cohesive band have an infectious, joyful energy. Capturing the raw energy only a live performance can provide is often a difficult task for artists, but Trucks and mates pull it off on the musically diverse Already Free. “Down in the Flood,” an amped-up Dylan cover, seamlessly switches from buttery smooth, melodic guitar lines that could easily be mistaken for vocals to distorted swamp rock that sounds like Trucks has been doing it all his life (oh wait, he has…). Other standouts feature guests including fellow bluesman Doyle Bramhall II on the laidback rocker “Maybe This Time” and Trucks’ wife and soul/blues vocalist Susan Tedeschi on “Back Where I Started.” The Derek Trucks Band is a breath of fresh air on an increasingly mediocre musical landscape. On “Bob’s Back Porch “ scale, Already Free gets a solid 4.5 out of 5 rocking chairs.
