Tuesday, January 23, 2018

Catching up on 2017: The Tragically Hip, Jerry Yester, Uriah Heep, Dolores O'Riordan

Before being fully immersed by 2018, I wanted to take a listen back at some terrific late-2017 releases as well as an overlooked classic from 2012 deserving of renewed attention.



Artist: The Tragically Hip
Title: A National Celebration (Eagle Vision)
Title: Long Time Running (Eagle Vision)
You might like if you enjoy: The Tragically Hip
Tell me more: Two companion releases celebrating the The Tragically Hip (available on blu-ray, DVD and digitally) were released in December 2017. The Canadian troupe  often referred to as simply The Hip  embarked on its 2016 Man Machine Poem tour knowing it would be the quintet's final tour. With lead singer Gord Downie's having recently learned of his diagnosis of having terminal brain cancer, The Tragically Hip ultimately was able to chronicle the end of their 30+ year run with both a documentary featuring rehearsals and glimpses of The Hip's 15-date Canada-spanning tour (Long Time Running, directed by Jennifer Baichwal and Nicholas de Pencier) and a moving concert film captured at the Rogers K-Rock Centre in the band's hometown of Kingston, Ontario on Aug. 20, 2016 ( "A National Celebration"). Downie lost his battle fighting cancer on Oct. 17, 2017, but both A National Celebration (originally aired live by CBC, the concert was reportedly viewed by one-third of Canadians and is among the biggest events in the nation's broadcast history) and Long Time Running prove to be lasting and profound reminder of his and the band's important place on the rock landscape. Information: thehip.com



Artist: Jerry Yester
Title: Pass Your Light Around (Omnivore Recordings)
You might like if you enjoy: The Turtles, David Crosby, America, Poco
Tell me more: Somehow I didn't get around to spinning Jerry Yester's wonderful Pass Your Light Around around the time of its release in October 2017. Stupid me. The long-lost collection of Yester's 1970s recordings is an outstanding 15-track collection (filled with songs the artist co-wrote with Larry Bekett) complete with a 16-page booklet that provides lyrics and extensive liner notes providing details about these timeless songs. The breezy "My Dusty Darling," harmonies-styled "Brooklyn Girl" and ambitious folk rocker "Showboat" are among early highlights on the disc, while the countrified "Dance For Me, Anna Lee," poetic piano ballad "The Minutes" and genre-defying "Across The Persian Gulf" resonate decades after they were originally captured on tape. Information: omnivorerecordings.com.


Artist: Uriah Heep
Title: Raging Through the Silence: 20th Anniversary (Uriah Heep Records)
You might like if you enjoy: Uriah Heep
Tell me more: Raging Through the Silence: 20th Anniversary is available as a 2 CD/1 DVD combo package and has been released in connection with the upcoming anniversary of progressive heavy metal band Uriah Heep's May 18, 1989 concert at the London Astoria concert that produced the recordings. The versions featured on the release will thrill fans of Uriah Heep; the straight-forward rocker "Bad Bad Man," inspired rocker "Cry Freedom," Journey-flavored "Stealin'," the rousing audience-favorite "Too Scared To Run" and the power ballad "More Fool You" all deliver via energetic live performances. The new version of "Raging Through the Silence" also includes a bonus audio interview (recorded on the same day as the concert). Information: uriah-keep.com.


Artist: The Cranberries
Title: Roses (Cooking Vinyl)
You might like if you enjoy: The Cranberries, D.A.R.K.
Tell me more: The tragic death of 46-year-old Irish singer Dolores O'Riordan on Jan. 15, 2018 has led to renewed interest in the work of the beloved artist. As lead singer of The Cranberries (as well as a member of the trio D.A.R.K.), O'Riordan left a stellar collection of recordings that extend beyond the group's best-known '90s hits ("Linger," "Zombie," "Salvation"). The Cranberries' final full-length studio LP Roses was released in October 2012 and has been a welcome part of this writer's music collection since its release. The songs here soar as high as O'Riordan's dazzling soprano, with "Conduct," "Tomorrow" and the haunting "Show Me" among the stirring originals. In addition, those want to further explore O'Riordan's enduring musical legacy should pick up the final Cranberries album (2017's live collection Something Else) and D.A.R.K.'s 2014 studio LP Science Agrees. Information: cranberries.com or darkofficial.com.


Robert Kinsler


1 comment:

  1. That Hip documentary "long time running" was amazing. Thanks for this review and I'm sadly looking forward to watching the Live show from Kingston.

    ReplyDelete