Covers Gallery, Volume V

Another set of covers to check out.....

1.   After The Gold Rush – Patti Smith does a wonderful job with this dark, emotional reading of the Neil Young classic; it’s on her recent release, Banga.

2.   All I Really Want To Do – from Private Revolution by World Party; Karl Wallinger’s mostly one man band does a nice rendering of the Dylan classic, which has been previously recorded by many artists, including Bryan Ferry, The Byrds and Cher.

3.   Come On Eileen – Fun ska-ified version of the Dexy’s Midnight Runners hit from Save Ferris. It can be found on their album It Means Everything.

4.   The Gaslight Anthem – You Got Lucky. Gritty run through of the Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers tune from their excellent new release, Handwritten.

5.   Lady Samantha - Three Dog Night’s take on the early Elton John/Bernie Taupin song, on their album Suitable For Framing.

6.   I’d Love You To Want Me – The German metal band re-does the Lobo soft rock hit and makes it sound like a lost pop metal tune. From Feels Like Comin' Home.

7.   She Said, She Said – The Black Keys rock out on the Beatles classic from Revolver; it’s on their album The Big Come Up.

8.   Use Somebody – Beautiful cover of the Kings Of Leon hit by Laura Jansen (from her 2009 disc Bells), who turns the power ballad into a quieter, but no less intense song.

9.   Right Down The Line - from Slipstream: Bonnie Raitt has still got it, and she shows us how it’s done on this cool version of the Gerry Rafferty tune.

10.    (You’re So Square) Baby I Don’t Care – The Primitives cover The King on this track from the tribute album The Last Temptation of Elvis.

11.    Rhiannon – California surf rockers Best Coast cover the Fleetwood Mac hit, and turn up the pop side of this song, with great lead vocals from singer Bethany Cosentino. From the recently released Just Tell Me That You Want Me: A Tribute To Fleetwood Mac.

12.   Southern Girls – Everclear energetically romp through this Cheap Trick song, from their covers collection, The Vegas Years.

Bonus Track:

Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye – Joss Stone – Soft, sensual reading of a song originally done by Don Cherry (and later covered by The Casinos), this version is on her new album The Soul Sessions, Volume 2.

Christopher Nolan "Rises" with the final act of his Batman trilogy

Christopher Nolan first tackled the Batman saga in 2005 with Batman Begins. By taking the character back to his roots, and grounding the story in the real world, he successfully reinvigorated the franchise, and told a compelling origin story of Gotham’s famous vigilante. Nolan took things to the next level with 2008’s The Dark Knight, in which the late Heath Ledger’s intense performance as The Joker became the film’s centerpiece. Both movies dealt with themes that are familiar to fans of the caped vigilante’s comic book saga; the dual nature of good & evil & the thorny path we travel when we seek vengeance. The films also asked the question: when you fight monsters & madmen using their methods, do you become just as bad as the evil you're fighting? What toll does it take on you to be the hero of a violent, corrupt city? In the closing act of The Dark Knight, Batman had to make a difficult choice: saving one life meant losing another, the life of someone he loved. In making a choice for the greater good, Bruce Wayne set in motion a chain of events that had devastating personal consequences. In taking the blame for the crimes of another man, he spared Gotham a scandal that could ruin the city. But did he lose his own soul & sense of self in the process?

Now, Nolan completes his story with The Dark Knight Rises, and it’s a fitting capstone to his trilogy. This time out, it’s been 8 years since the events of the last film, and crime is virtually non-existent in Gotham. Bruce Wayne is a recluse, and no one has seen him or Batman in ages. Bruce is holed up in his mansion, with the loyal Alfred (Michael Caine) at his side. He’s still grieving over the loss of childhood love Rachel Dawes and remorseful about his part in her death.  Wayne Enterprises is in financial trouble, but nothing seems to bring him out of his self-imposed exile. Out of nowhere comes Bane, a terrorist whose plan is the destruction of Gotham, and the beginning of a new world order. He seems to have a connection to a figure from Bruce’s past. Another new player is a sassy cat burglar named Selina Kyle, who intrigues Bruce with her charm & style, even while’s she’s stealing from him. Eventually, as Bane’s acts of terror and violence escalate, he forces Bruce out of his reverie, and back into action. But is an older, tired & conflicted Batman strong enough to stop a villain whose conviction to his goals borders on the evangelical?

Nolan goes for a truly epic feel here, and succeeds. He brings full circle elements and themes from the first two films, so you may want to view them before heading out to see the movie. The Bane saga was handled in a different style as part of the DC Comics series Knigthfall, but it’s re-worked in an interesting way in the screenplay by Nolan and his brother Jonathan, from a story by the director and David S. Goyer. Other elements & themes threaded in from Batman Begins feature supporting characters from my favorite Batman comics era, when writer Dennis O'Neil & artist Neal Adams brought Batman back to being a darker character after the fantastical stories of the 50s and 60s and the campy, pop art TV series. There are also some nods to Frank Miller’s classic tales The Dark Knight Returns and Batman: Year One, as well as some other well-remembered Batman stories from the comics world.

The actors are excellent; Christian Bale proves why he’s the best movie Batman ever, doing a fine job as Bruce Wayne and the Dark Knight; Anne Hathaway is sexy, slinky and fun as Catwoman; Tom Hardy is chilling as Bane. The supporting cast is flawless: Caine, Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, Marion Cotillard and Joseph Gordon-Levitt all have fine moments. And there are also cameos by a familiar face (or two) from Batman Begins. It’s an A-list cast that doesn’t play down to the material. Nolan and many of his usual technical collaborators, including cinematographer Wally Pfister, editor Lee Smith & music scorer Hans Zimmer also do outstanding work here. There are some visually stunning sequences, including a plane hijacking in the the film's opening moments and a great chase sequence later in the film. These movies are superhero stories that work for people that don’t generally like superhero movies; they’re good films and well told stories, in any genre.

Some have complained that the movie’s a bit overlong, and has too many subplots, but Nolan is climaxing his magnum opus here, and does so in effective fashion. He’s no stranger to complex, dark tales about the nature of man & the struggle between light & darkness in all of us; check out Inception, The Prestige, Memento and Insomnia to see what I mean. Nolan is also on board as a producer & co-writer of next summer’s Superman reboot, The Man of Steel, so it will be interesting to see what influence he’ll have on the story of that other classic DC hero. In the meantime, you can check out his excellent trilogy of Batman stories: Batman Begins & The Dark Knight are now available on DVD, Blu-ray and various digital download formats. The Dark Knight Rises is currently in theaters.

Here's a link to the film's trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8evyE9TuYk

The Gaslight Anthem shines brightly on the powerful "Handwritten"

The Gaslight Anthem’s music has often been likened to Bruce Springsteen’s, and the comparison is not entirely unfounded. The band hails from New Jersey, and specializes in epic songs about hard lives, shattered dreams & lost souls. But the group has other influences as well; over the course of their first three albums, the band has told their stories with a combination of sounds: a mixture of rock, punk, soul & even a dash of country. Front man & chief songwriter Brian Fallon makes these songs feel real; these are tales about people you’ve known, or feel like you’ve encountered in your own life.

On their fourth album, the recently released Handwritten, the group takes it to the next level; they’ve moved to a major label (Mercury Records) and enlisted super-producer Brendan O’Brien (who's worked with Springsteen, Pearl Jam, Paul Westerberg & Matthew Sweet, among others) to helm the record. It’s a strong effort, and may be their best release yet. These are tales of heartache & pain that nevertheless give you a sense that redemption is just around the corner. It’s no surprise that the first track is called “45.”  It’s a song that celebrates records, cars and lost innocence in equal measure; how can you not love a classic rock style tune about the love of girls, cars & vinyl? :) And it only gets better as it goes on : there isn't a bad song on this fantastic album.

Other highlights include the powerful “Biloxi Parish,” the beautiful “National Anthem,” the catchy, daring you to sing-along “Here Comes My Man,” and the soulful, anthemic “Desire.” The lyrics are imbued with a sense of yearning, and you can feel the joy & sorrow, and the sense of love & loss in Fallon’s intense, emotional vocals. He’s backed by the rocking lead guitar of Alex Rosamilia, the hard driving drums & percussion from Benny Horowitz, and the fine bass work of Alex Levine. By the time the band gets to their cool cover of “You Got Lucky” by Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers you’ll be wanting to spin the disc again and again. The iTunes deluxe version of the album features several bonus tracks, including a cover of Nirvana's "Sliver," as well as an additional original song called "Teenage Rebellion."

Fallon & his band mates are telling stories about everyday people. You connect with the emotions in these songs because you’ve felt them; you can relate to theses experiences because you’ve had them. The lovers, fighters, and dreamers in these musical paintings aren’t just like you & me; they ARE you & me. The Gaslight Anthem tap into that deep well of emotion, and do what all the best music should; it excites you, it enthralls you, inspires you and most of all it makes you want to rock. Handwritten is a great record, and one of the best rock albums of the year thus far. I encourage you to give it a listen, and while you’re at it, check out the other three albums (2007’s Sink or Swim, 2008’s The ’59 Sound, and 2010’s American Slang) by this talented, excellent band.

Here are links to the video for “45” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oST77VRHXt0 and a live performance of “Here Comes My Man” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FoW3Pgv-gng