Retro Music Review | Oldies, Reissues and New Releases with a Retro Sound

Mott The Hoople - Roll Away The Stone (The Best of) (2 Discs; Music Club; MCDLX062)

Often cited as the granddaddy of glam, Mott The Hoople frontman Ian Hunter brought a unique sensibility to the early ’70s music scene. With all the grace of a ballerina swinging a sledge hammer, Hunter pounded out rock and roll songs of crude elegance and glorious excess. Nobody wrote about the trials and tribulations of being a rock star quite like Hunter. “All The Way To Memphis” and “Saturday Gigs” were classic tales of life in a band, presented in an appropriately grandiose manner. These two tunes and 33 others comprise this brilliant new collection, celebrating a time when hair was long and platform boots were all the rage… READ MORE

Patsy Cline - Showcase / Sentimentally Yours (BGO; BGOCD798)

Country music legend Patsy Cline had the kind of talent that transcended musical boundaries. Her uncommon ability to be at once vulnerable and strong, to display breathtaking emotional fragility and impressive vocal power simultaneously, made her a hit on both the country and pop charts. With the reissue of Cline’s second and third LPs, Showcase and Sentimentally Yours, together on a single CD, the BGO label has created an amazing 24-track collection that is sure to delight devoted fans and casual listeners alike… READ MORE

Jackie Payne Steve Edmonson Band - Overnight Sensation (Delta Groove; DGPCD 123)

With a combined 60 years of experience playing soul and blues all around the world, Jackie Payne and Steve Edmonson are uniquely qualified to produce music that sounds both utterly fresh and undeniably nostalgic. In an era when music in general seems to have lost its soul, these two veterans have released an album infused with true passion and a timeless groove… READ MORE

Jet Harris and Tony Meehan - Diamonds and Other Gems (RPM Retro; Retro 825)

Bassist Jet Harris is a master of the musical sonic boom, as evidenced on RPM Retro’s complete Decca singles collection, Diamonds and Other Gems. In the early 1960s, Harris and drummer Tony Meehan created sweeping soundscapes of infinite grandeur and exquisite beauty. Combining elements of pop, rock, surf, and even folk, they brought the rhythm section into the lead, while scoring several chart hits along the way… READ MORE

Michael Nesmith - The Prison (Edsel; EDSX 3002)
Michael Nesmith - The Garden (Edsel; EDSX 3003)

With The Prison and The Garden, Michael Nesmith takes the book and record concept to an entirely new level. As an artist, Nesmith has always been a big thinker, dealing with grand ideas and philosophical questions. On these two works, originally released in 1974 and 1994, respectively, he allows his penchant for soul searching to roam unfettered. Here is Nesmith at his finest, blending music and narrative in a way that is entirely unique… READ MORE

Mitch Woods - Jukebox Drive (El Toro Rhythm & Blues; El Toro R&B 206)

Whether “Boppin’ The Boogie” or serving up burgers at a “Boogie Woogie Bar-B-Q,” piano man Mitch Woods is the epitome of cool. He rocks those eighty-eights like crazy as a “Saturday Night Boogie Man,” then stumbles in the next morning with a “Blues Hangover.” The latter track is a thrilling rhythm and blues masterpiece, thanks in no small part to Woods’ first class backing band, The Lazy Jumpers. Drummer Blas Picon not only drives the tune furiously, he also delivers a killer harmonica break… READ MORE

Slim Cessna’s Auto Club - Cipher (Alternative Tentacles; Virus 383)

Every Slim Cessna’s Auto Club album represents a new and haunting vision of the American landscape. This country as seen through the eyes of Slim is a strange place indeed. Revival meetings and mason jugs and bullfrogs and highways being hacked to ribbons are set against a constant and curious chant, the drumming voice of the ignored and the dispossessed… READ MORE

Sean Costello - We Can Get Together (Delta Groove Music; DGPCD120)

The blues had a baby and they named it Sean Costello. This amazing young guitarist has got what it takes. A winner of the Beale Street Blues Society new talent award when he was just 14, Costello more than fulfills the promise of that early recognition on We Can Get Together. His style is down to the ground intense, and his vocals are laced with raw, ragged truth… READ MORE

Legendary Rhythm And Blues Revue - Command Performance (Delta Groove; DGPCD121)

“For a good time, call The Legendary Rhythm And Blues Revue.” This slogan should be scrawled on walls from Terre Haute to Timbuktu. Command Performance is the rave-up, jump back, get down, spin-around party record of the decade. This electrifying live album generates enough pure power to light up the entire Western Hemisphere — with a little left over for the other hemisphere… READ MORE

Thom Rotella 4-Tet - Out Of The Blues (Four Bar Music)

Out Of The Blues comes brilliant jazz. Guitarist Thom Rotella takes a back to basics approach on this fabulous album, his first in 5 years. Planting both feet firmly in the blues, he creates jazz that is truly awe inspiring… READ MORE