The Colorado Sound – Vol. 2, Episode 31, 2010

Selasee “Pray for Me” from African Gate (2010)
Debajo Del Agua “Aquas” from The World Upside Down (2008)
The Subdudes “Any Cure” from The Subdudes (1989)
Andy Monley “All Hail” from Triplight (2006)
The Fantastic Zoo “Light Show” from Colorado in the Sixties [disc two] (1967)
Snake Rattle Rattle Snake “Parallel Lines” from Snake Rattle Rattle Snake (2010)
Kinetix “Anything” from Let Me In (2010)
Apples in Stereo “Same Old Drag” from New Magnetic Wonder (2007)
Everything Absent or Distorted (a love story) “The Exit Parade” from Soft Civil War (2006)
Great American Taxi “Fuzzy Little Hippie Girl” from Reckless Habits (2010)
White Water Ramble “Pulled Pork” from All Night Drive (2010)
Bobby Walker “Little Bit of Soul” from Way Back When (2010)
Chuck Pyle “Love Will Find A Way” from The Spaces In Between (2010)
The Dominant 7 & The Jazz Arts Messengers “Hop On, Buckle Off” from 14 Channels (2010)
Mollie O’Brien and Rich Moore “Losers” from Saints & Sinners (2010)
After Midnight Jazz Band “Gee Baby Ain’t I Good To You” from Midnight in Madison (2010)
Halden Wofford and the Hi Beams “Tear It Down” from Sinners and Saints (2010)
Ash Ganley “Missing From My Heart” from Universe Acceptable (2010)
Old Soul “Oldest Religion” from Old Soul (1996)
Jeff Brinkman “Sometimes” from To the Bones (2010)
Gabrielle Louise “I’ll Turn Myself In On Monday” from Mirror the Branches (2010)
Zuba “Planet of Love” from South of Eden (1999)
The Higher Elevation “The Diamond Mine” from The Diamond Mine (1967)
Eric Shiveley “Greetings from Deming” from Eden’s Light (2010)
Hello Kavita “Light Up In the Blue” from To A Loved One (2009)
Tickle Me Pink “Strange Life” from On Your Way Down (2010)
Andrea Ball “Dial Tone” from Dial Tone (2010)
Greg Harris Vibe Quintet “Blue Heron” from Glass Gold (2010)

The Colorado Sound – Bohemian Nights @ New West Fest Edition

Kinetix “Let Me In” from Let Me In (2010)
Matt Morris “Money” from When Everything Breaks Open (2010)
Post Paradise “The Ghost in the Airwaves” from The Ghost in the Airwaves (2010)
Megan Burtt “Too Damned Hard” from It Ain’t Love (2010)
Jerry Palmer “Little Nevada” from Cherry Picking (2010)
Romano Paoletti “Can You Run” from Story of a Lifetime (2009)
Great American Taxi “Good Night to Boogie” from Reckless Habits (2010)
Euforquestra “Soup” from Soup (2009)
Chris Daniels & the Kings “Jackhammer” from Is My Love Enough (1993)
Liz Barnez “Whiskey Bay” from Revealed (2005)
Angie Stevens & the Beautiful Wreck “Give It On Back” from Queen of This Mess (2009)
Arliss Nancy “Wrong Or Right” from Dance to Forget (2009)
Drag the River “I Remember Now” from Bad At Breaking Up (2009)
Mandy Harvey “Almost Like Being in Love” from Smile (2010)
Flobots “White Flag Warrior” from Survival Story (2010)
The Rouge “Lady Luck” from Blasting Room session (C. Jak) (2010)
Wire Faces “Count To Three” from Wire Faces (2010)
Danielle Ate the Sandwich “Two Bedroom Apartment” from Two Bedroom Apartment (2010)
The Hollyfelds “Either Way” from Lo Bueno, Lo Mao, Lo Feo (2010)
The Congress “Loretta” from The Congress (2010)
Nathaniel Rateliff “Whimper and Wail” from In Memory of Loss (2010)
Motorhome “I Know Better” from Motorhome (2009)
The Informants “Salvation” from Crime Scene Queen (2009)
SHEL “The Latest & Greatest Blueberry Rubber Band” from Try to Scream (2009)
Paper Bird “Steady As” from When the River Took Flight (2010)
Spring Creek “Tangled In The Pines” from Way Up On A Mountain (2009)
Fierce Bad Rabbit “Everything Is Alright” from Everything Is Alright (2009)
The Photo Atlas “Jealous Teeth” from To Silently Provoke the Ghost (2009)
The Patti Fiasco “Don’t Go” from No Bridges (2010)
Jeff Finlin “Hands off the Wheel” from The Tao of Motor Oil (2010)

MMMM – Monday August 17, 2010

Okay, I have to admit I have been incredibly busy this summer.  I’ve got home remodeling to complete before mid-September, festivals to produce and/or be a part of as emcee (People’s Fair, Carbon Valley Summer Festival, Bohemian Nights) or as a performer (Carbon Valley Summer Festival)… my show to produce weekly … records to listen to … sound gigs to do …. I really needed a day or two or three to just simply relax and listen to music that not only doesn’t shake, rattle, and roll but just sounds somehow refreshing to the soul.  I need that on occasion.  Today (Sunday) is one of those days.  Sun tea anyone?

Selasee and the Fafa Family – African Gate
Genre/Style: World, African, Reggae
Sampled Track: African Gate
Website: http://www.selasee.com
Bio from website: Born and raised in West Africa, Selasee’s pursuit of music eventually led him to Boulder, Colorado, where he currently lives.  Selasee’s music is a unique blend of Reggae, West African Highlife and American Pop music.
Notes: I only recently became aware of Selasee’s music.  This record was enough to convince me to check out his previous release called “Run.”  Most reggae bands rarely ever fully embrace the style or immerse themselves in it authentically.  That’s why those whose soul is tied to the message and the “nation” win out every time … This album is highly recommended if what you’re looking for is the authenticity that lies beneath the pop trappings of most who try to play African and reggae styles.

John McVey – Unpredictable
Genre/Style: Adult Contemporary, singer-songwriter
Sampled Track:  Unpredictable
Website: http://www.johnmcvey.com
Notes: In today’s world, you just don’t take ten years off between doing records and hope that anyone who heard that “one” will remember you ten years later.  John did just that … took ten years between albums.  The result?  Amazing.  And it’s not that John didn’t have chops to begin with.  He’s an accomplished producer/engineer at Coupe Studios in Boulder who stays so busy that this record actually took two years to record.  The care, professionalism, and attention to detail shows in every imaginable way.  This record is truly as good as it gets …

After Midnight Jazz Band – Midnight in Madison
Genre/Style: jazz, big band, vocal, trad, blues, americana
Sampled Track: Hallelujah I Love Her So
Website: http://www.aftermidnightjazzband.com/
Recommended if You Like (RIYL): Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Lyle Lovett and His Big Band
Notes: I grew up in a house filled with the music of Benny Goodman (The King of Swing), Lionel Hampton, Pete Fountain, and other Swing Era greats.  I am tremendously happy that bands like After Midnight not only keep the style alive, but do with the care and skill they do.  This record represents the best of four sets of music the band did live in Madison, Wisconsin, in 2008.  It is a joyously good listen!

Gabrielle Louise – Mirror the Branches
Genre/Style: Folk
Sampled Track: I’ll Turn Myself in on Monday
Website: http://www.gabriellelouise.com
RIYL: Joni Mitchell, Patty Griffin
Notes: There’s a gypsy in Gabrielle’s soul.  I knew that BEFORE reading this on her website, “The daughter of two gypsy musicians, Gabrielle inherited the genetic predisposition to wanderlust and song.”  On this, her fifth independently released album, Gabrielle follows further out across the trail she’s been traveling the past four years since the release of Journey.  One of the most striking songs on the record is “Strange Summer Snow,” and I do dare to say that it is the equal to some of the best folk songs in anyone’s catalog.  This isn’t simply singer-songwriter fare … Gabrielle, over the course of a few short years, has really and truly become a major force as a folk artist – not just singing love songs, but singing about the heart and soul in ways that MOST singer songwriters can only hope to achieve in their dreams.

Eric Forsyth – (the thin of thick things)
Genre/Style: Folk
Sampled Track: Flannel Shirts and Boat Shoes
Website: http://www.ericforsythmusic.com/
Notes: A solid performance and maturing songwriting are the highlights of this sophomore record from this California transplant who was, “Born of a jazzer father and very accomplished professional organist for a mother, “Er-Bear” Forsyth was homegrown in Northern California in the shadow of his late great grandmother’s baby grand Steinway.”    A multi-instrumentalist, Eric wrote, produced, and recorded this effort with the skillful mandolin work of Dave Willis.  Focus tracks include “Flannel Shirts and Boat Shoes” and “Happenstance.”

Dan Craig Band – Alchemy
Genre/Style: Folk, singer-songwriter
Sampled Track: Enough
Website: http://www.dcraigmusic.com/
Notes: Recommended if you like Josh Ritter and Damien Rice.  Dan Craig’s music has recently been featured on the hit show “One Tree Hill” and has shared the stage with many artists including Gregory Alan Isakov, Mike Doughty (Soul Coughing), Ari Hest and Katie Herzig in the past year.  Recommended tracks include: “Alchemy,” “Solid Ground,” and “Enough.”  There are few voices as self-assured as Dan’s … and fewer still the songwriters whose arrangements are as fresh as those on this record.  It’s solid… and he’s got a new one apparently in the can for a Christmas 2010 release … dude stays busy that’s for sure.