MUSIC REVIEW OF THE DAY: BOB MARLEY & THE WAILERS - LEGEND REMIXED

I'm no aficionado of the remix culture, and really don't see why it's needed at all, but it can be cool.  I do like hearing a song I loved turned on its head, and become something new.  Marley's Legend is up there with Sgt. Pepper and Rumours and The Wall for albums we know by heart, so a new version doesn't seem like a bad idea.

Led by some actual Marley's, Ziggy and Stephen, we have 16 of the great man's best-loved tunes refashioned by those two, and the likes of Roni Size, Thievery Corporation and Jim James.  Remixes can be fun, but they can be pointless and annoying too, and we have some of both here.  Turning No Woman No Cry into a Daft Punk-disco number with a completely different rhythm is a pretty amazing editing job.  But the sludgy version of Get Up Stand Up is annoying, taking a great song and defiling it (IMHO).

There are more good works, including Satisfy My Soul, now almost unrecognizable, with the I Three's backing vocals pushed up to sound like The Andrews Sisters, not dissimilar to the jazzy sounds on the recent The Great Gatsby soundtrack.  But the trouble is that the bag of tricks is limited.  Too many songs are stripped to bass and drums, or there's too much echo, too often they are slowed down.  The big lines get repeated too often, like when we hear "Is This Love" over and over, on top of a new dance beat.  Like all dance music, remixes included, it's good to have variety, and it's better to hear these songs one at a time, rather than all together as an album.

MUSIC REVIEW OF THE DAY: SING ME THE SONGS - CELEBRATING THE WORKS OF KATE MCGARRIGLE

Kate McGarrigle was so loved by her family, friends, and musical community, one tribute concert wouldn't do it.  This double-disc collection comes from three different shows spread out from 2010 - 2012, in London, New York and Toronto.  They served as fundraiser, and so does this disc, with net proceeds going to the Kate McGarrigle Foundation, which supports cancer care and research.

The cast of these tributes changed only a little; mostly it was the McGarrigle's band, and the kids and cousins and Anna of course.  Norah Jones was on hand in New York, Linda and Richard Thompson contribute a song, their son Teddy was deeply involved, Antony guests, and of course, Kate and Anna's great friend, Emmylou Harris.  She takes a major role, joining in group vocals on several songs, as well as performing her incredibly touching Darlin' Kate, which describes her final moments, and the feelings of those closest to her.  Jones' version of (Talk To Me Of) Mendocino is heartfelt and beautiful, and even joker Jimmy Fallon provides a fun and more than passable job on The Swimming Song.

But these nights belonged to the children.  Rufus and Martha Wainwright feature on the bulk of the songs here, and its quite amazing to hear their mother's words from them, and realize how personal and powerful they are.  Her tales were almost always biographical, specific times in her life, some joyous, some sad.  Rufus singing I Eat Dinner, a song that speaks of her loneliness, is heartbreaking, and Martha gets to tell the story in Matapedia, in which she figures as a teenager.

What a legacy Kate has left them, and us.

MUSIC REVIEW OF THE DAY: THE COOPER BROTHERS - SOUTHBOUND

Southern rock was the name coined for the music of several 70's bands specializing in boogie-blues with a twang, led by The Allman Brothers, and including Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Charlie Daniels Band, Marshall Tucker Band, .38 Special and a bunch more.  Of course, the capital of this good ol' music was Ottawa.  Okay, not so much, but you didn't have to be born in the South to play that style.  And Ottawa's Cooper Brothers did it just as well as their U.S. contemporaries, scoring North American hits with The Dream Never Dies and I'll Know Her When I See Her, doing major tours with contemporaries like The Doobie Brothers and Daniels, and even getting signed to the spiritual home of southern rock, Capricorn Records.

That last move was a blessing but then a curse, as Capricorn went under in the early 80's, and the band never really regained that momentum.  The members went their ways, but in 2006, a Greatest Hits spurred enough interest for them that brothers Dick and Brian Cooper got the bug back.  This is the second album since then, after 2010's In From The Cold.

Recorded with producer Colin Cripps on a break from his Blue Rodeo duties, Dick Cooper has found his writing chops intact, delivering eleven tunes in the classic form.  Brother Brian brings his distinctive twang, complementing all the twin guitar licks, slide solos, pedal steel, banjo, fiddle and all you'd hope for.  Lead single Southbound is a clever twist on the snowbird's wish to get away from winter, a sly reference to their southern rock sound.  Cooper keeps it up with the lyrics to The Last Time I Saw Georgia, with references to Capricorn rising (get it?), a love song brimming with hints about the band history.  So far, so smart, and a blast from the past.  But Waiting For The Hammer To Fall is a stone-cold true country gem, with great high vocal from Brian, lots of sweet harmony, a number band pal Jim Cuddy would be proud to pen.

More surprises arrive with the tender Love's Been A Stranger, where Brian duets with Kellylee Evans, another Ottawa singer.  The Juno-winning jazz singer helps make this a stand-out cut, not just with her excellent harmony lines, but by pointing out all the strengths in the song, and the band.  Brian's own distinctive voice shines, Dick's words are touching, and the string and horn arrangement show the group is more than just a cliche of that 70's sound.  The song is the key for me, as the album now opens up to reveal more nuances, like the Western touches of Bordertown, the funky humour of the earthquake tale Five Point Five, and the statement of musical integrity, Club Shangri-La.  The Cooper Brothers were always full of surprises, and they're still serving them up in part two of their story.

MUSIC REVIEW OF THE DAY: DAWN AND MARRA - TEASPOONS AND TABLESPOONS

I love it when a plan comes together.  And I love it when talent blooms.  You know those precocious high school kids who show so much promise so early, obviously skilled, natural musicians who make your own kids look like schlubs playing video games all day in the basement?  Ya, I got three of the latter.  Meanwhile, about three years back I ran into aspiring singing duo Dawn and Marra in Hamilton, On.  Still kids, they were in the talent contest (which they won) and obviously were keen on a career in music already.  Not some instant win Idol thing either, they wanted to be taken seriously.

Their music was modern folk, acoustic and pretty much what you'd expect, nice melodies and vocals, harmonies and teenage takes on bigger topics.  They were clearly talented, quite charming, and in that rather large city of a half-million, and close to a really big city, they were standing out.  Over the next couple of years, each time I checked in, they had done more;  some recording, lots of gigs, some traveling to play out of town.  But I kinda thought they'd stay much like I first saw them, with the nice melodies and folk-acoustic sound, and the harmonies, etc.

Ya, well.. guess again, Bob.  After an initial recording that did stick to that folk sound, this true debut is a real revelation.  Now 20 (Dawn) and 18 (Marra), Teaspoons and Tablespoons sees them blossom with new sounds, a mature set of lyrics, and an image that brings them into the vanguard of modern, vibrant performers.  Incorporating an intricate vocal blend and a surprising mix of instruments, the songs leave folk at the door, and wander into a big world of possibilities.  At the core are their voices, the unison and harmony singing they've been developing over the years, but now to hear the melodies fleshed out with off-kilter arrangements and inspired production choices is jarring in the best way.

Working with Vancouver producer Howard Redekopp (Tegan and Sara, New Pornographers, Said The Whale) seems to have been the key, a sympathetic ear ready to suggest and experiment.  Said The Whale join on several tracks, and Dawn and Marra found a new energy to their singing, trying on pop tricks and lots and lots of vocal blends.  It's pretty rare to hear so much harmony and unison singing, with very few spots where they aren't both singing.  It's even more rare to enjoy it so much, these two really are perfect together.

It's funny, I almost wish I didn't know the back story, and I'm questioning whether I needed to mention it.  I guess I just wanted to say how far they've come in three years, and let you know what went into all this, the hard work and development.  Anyone coming to them new should be impressed, and intrigued at what can happen when acoustic folk gets a youthful shot of energy.

MUSIC REVIEW OF THE DAY: AL LERMAN - LIVE @ THE ACOUSTIC GRILL

Al Lerman is best-known for leading the Juno-winning blues group Fathead, but he also does the solo thing, and does it well.  After a recent studio disc, Crowe River Blues, he returns with this live one, to show off his stuff alone and acoustic.  Armed with just a guitar and a harp, Lerman wanted this recording to reflect his own roots watching talented blues and folk performers in the famous Yorkville Village scene in 1960's Toronto, when he was first exposed to the real deal.

It's hard to do the classics we all know,and make them sound fresh, make them yours, but that's exactly what Lerman manages here.  Cocaine, Good Morning Little Schoolgirl and Nobody Loves You When You're Down And Out might get played a hundred times tonight in bars across North America, but Lerman's versions retain the excitement of that first discovery.  Of course, it helps that he's an engaging performer as well.  With no-one to lean on up there, he takes right over, and puts on the kind of show you want as a blues fan, a great voice and fine playing, especially on harp, his regular gig with Fathead.  Sprinkling in five of his own numbers alongside seven covers, there's never a moment where you wish he'd go back to something you know, a tribute to the warmth coming off the stage with each vocal.  Sometimes the very best sound you can get is back-to-basics, and this one makes me wish I was there.

MUSIC REVIEW OF THE DAY: PAUL MCCARTNEY & WINGS - WINGS OVER AMERICA

The latest in the ongoing reissue series of McCartney discs, which for some reason isn't following a chronological order.  This latest is the triple vinyl album that came from the famous Wings Over America tour of 1976, which saw McCartney conquer that country (and Toronto) with the biggest tour of the year.  Even though Wings had begun as a little band he could hit the road with, just playing rock and roll tunes to small college audiences, by then he'd seen Band On The Run, Venus & Mars and At The Speed Of Sound become huge hit albums, and this band was the biggest thing since, well, that other band he'd been in.

I've always thought this set was a really decent deal.  It's the whole show, start to finish, that he was doing that year, nothing left out, the same order, everything, so a real souvenir for all of us far away from the venues he played.  I'm that kind of fan.  Now, it wasn't all from one show of course, and there was the usual doctoring back in the studio, most notably certain band members had to redo their vocals.  But it still sounds like a complete show for the most part, a full concert experience over two hours.  Notable for the inclusion of five Beatle tracks, ones associated with Paul of course, I remember the excitement that caused at the time, when we thought we'd never hear those treasures sung again.  While it isn't quite the thrill anymore, it is still nifty to hear Yesterday, Blackbird, even The Long And Winding Road, by the composer.

And don't forget Wings was still considered a band, not a McCartney vehicle.  Denny Laine and Jimmy McCulloch get the spotlight too, with lead vocals and solos, and McCartney gets to switch off to piano and acoustic guitar, thanks to their presence.  And there's Linda of course, wisely mostly in the background.  There's plenty of criticism I could throw at them of course, chiefly how McCartney's lyrical ability had diminished by this point.  You don't really want to analyze these songs too much, everything from content to grammar could be atrocious (the infamous "In this ever-changing world in which we live in" from Live And Let Die).  He was writing cartoons instead of serious lyrics, quite literally in the case of Magneto And Titanium Man.   But they all sounded great.  Jet, Let Me Roll It, Letting Go, Beware My Love, these songs rock, especially live.  Silly Love  Songs, not so much.  Too bouncy, it makes it a trifle.  But compared to most live recordings, especially the last twenty years, this feels like an event, and is fun to hear.  They just knew how to do it better then; Frampton Comes Alive, Elton John 11-17-70, Allman Brothers At The Fillmore East, no matter who your favourites were, the live albums seemed more special then.

As usual, there are choices to the package you can buy for the reissue.  The bare-bones CD is available, just the two discs, remastered.  Or the vinyl has been reissued and upgraded.  For those willing to throw big money, there's the Super Deluxe box, which has a third CD of bonus tracks, a DVD, and a couple of big books to gaze at.  I haven't seen the full package, nor have I heard the extra audio, but I'm not too excited by it.  The bonus tracks are a handful of the same songs from a different venue, so it won't be anything too different.  I have seen the DVD, and that's not much at all.  There's a 75-minute TV special on the tour, which is really quite dull, aside from the song fragments and a shot of Ringo backstage, and the rest being the standard documentary stuff of bands going back and forth in the bus and such.  Beware, my love.

MUSIC REVIEW OF THE DAY: THE BEACH BOYS - LIVE 50th ANNIVERSARY TOUR

Here's a much better representation of The Beach Boy's 2012 50th Anniversary tour, as opposed to the rather lame one-hour DVD released last fall.  This two-disc set offers a full two hours, taken from various shows around the world.  At 41 tracks, it covers the bulk of the ever-changing setlist, which extended to over 60 songs on the final night in London.

It is, of course, hit-packed, with the emphasis on early surf, early cars, occasional later hits such as Rock and Roll Music, Sail On, Sailor, and (gulp) Kokomo, and two rather charming cuts from their new album.  But as deeper fans know, the shows actually featured some of the more artistic numbers long-loved by the devotees, such as SMiLE's Heroes And Villains, some Pet Sounds tunes, and even early 70's non-hits Add Some Music To Your Day, California Saga: California and All This Is That.  And the genial Bruce Johnston delivers the surprise hit of the album, performing his poignant Disney Girls from 1971's Surf's Up album.  There are enough of these gems to satisfy the hard-core Brian Wilson addicts.  Then there's Barbara Ann, Fun, Fun, Fun, Surfin' USA, I Get Around, Surfer Girl, California Girls, Little Honda, and lots more for the rest.

Yes, this is hardly the Beach Boys of old, and almost all the high parts and rich harmonies are handled by the huge backing band.  And there has been a ton of work done to the recordings back in the studio, to the point of distraction at times, so obvious is the overdubbing.  But today's concert-goers are almost like movie audiences, ready to accept the suspension of disbelieve.  They just want it to sound and look good.  Two Beach Boys are dead, Mike Love is now having some vocal issues, and Brian Wilson is a muddled presence at best, certainly unable to approach his golden-throated parts of yesteryear.  The fact they put on not just a credible, but enjoyable show was enough for the many around the world who attended, and this souvenir is a fun listen, even if it doesn't stand up to the usual scrutiny we use on much younger bands.