Anniversary Coverage

I don't get anniversaries as hooks for stories, and nothing illustrates why like Keith Spera's coverage of the 40th anniversary of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival at Nola.com. It's a cyclical exercise in nostalgia for a non-story:

From James Booker and Bongo Joe to Billy Joel and Bon Jovi.

From $3 at the gate to $50.

From hundreds of attendees to hundreds of thousands.

From a budget in the tens of thousands to a budget in the millions.

From sponsorship by Schlitz to sponsorship by Shell.

Much about the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival has changed

Ten years from now, the second half of those statements might change, but they'll reflect the same thought - "look at how things have changed" - but they could also be made four years from now or eight years ago or 17 years ago or 12 years in the future. The number's a marketing device; the press doesn't have to bite on it.

By the way, I generally like Keith's writing a lot, but he goes a little soft when he starts explaining away criticisms of Jazz Fest today:

Some longtime festival fans bemoan its lost innocence. They miss the days when ice chests and tent canopies were allowed and nighttime Jazz Fest concerts rocked the riverboat President. Some find corporate sponsorships and premium VIP ticket packages distasteful.

Ultimately, such contemporary festival realities do not distract from the average festival-goer's experience -- except, perhaps, when the grandstand's upper floors are reserved for VIP ticketholders and everybody else is huddled outside in the rain.

I'm not sure how he knows people aren't annoyed as they work negotiate their way through the Shell hospitality tents, and how people feel about there being a Miller hospitality suite with a view of the Acura Stage, and how he knows that most people who worked to get to the front of the stage don't care that the wealthy can buy their way in front of them with their VIP packages.

And while I agree that Jazz Fest ticket prices aren't out of line, that's probably the sort of argument that should come out of Quint Davis' mouth, not his.

Why Do We Do This Again?

Recently, I was called out (albeit in a friendly way) by someone who made meaningful contributions because I didn't comment on them in a review. I had to point out that the CD I was working from was an advance that came without artwork or a booklet, so I didn't know about said meaningful contributions. The last time this happened, I vowed we wouldn't review unfinished CDs (which includes the art and packaging), but that's often not realistic. As I write, I'm listening to the new Ha Ha Tonka to decide if I want to review it, and I'm doing so from an advance that came with a one sheet instead of liner notes. And a half-hour ago, I received the URL to download Jarvis Cocker's new album with the liner notes pasted into the email message. All of these situations conspire against liner notes that travel easily with the music it references. Information? What is it good for? (absolutely nothing!)

The Modern World

I can tell you everything wrong with the Sweet's Action: the Sweet Anthology (Shout! Factory) - much of it is simply bubblegum and/or journeyman efforts - but the stretch of the band at its best is irresistible for me. From 1972's "Little Willy" through the tracks from 1975's Desolation Boulevard, the Sweet performed a pretty smart trick, connecting Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman's schoolyard melodies with Brian Connolly's hard rock voice and Phil Wainman's sound-of-modernity production. The result sounded like a sexy, hard rock now that was available to anybody who wanted to be a part of it.

Start Saving Up

This almost makes me regret my affection for Christmas music:

YMC Records and Ali Lohan are kicking off the Christmas season with the release of her debut album, Lohan Holiday, which will be available in stores on November 21st. Following in the footsteps of older sister Lindsay, Lohan is taking the teen pop music scene by storm with a holiday-themed record that celebrates her love of the Christmas season. Lohan Holiday is an infectious and up-beat album that features the hit single "I Like Christmas" and classic songs such as “Deck The Halls,” “Jingle Bells” and
“Silent Night.” In addition to original tracks such as “Christmas Magic” and “Christmas Day,” Ali’s vocals were digitally added to the critically acclaimed singer Amy Grant’s song,
“Santa's Reindeer Ride," originally recorded by Grant as a teenager at the start of her career. The song captures the holiday spirit as reflected by two generations of up-and-coming pop sensations.

Lohan Holiday is not only the perfect stocking stuffer, but great for the family sing-a-longs during this year’s celebrations. For more information check out www.AliLohanMusic.com.

Track Listing:

1. “Christmas Day”
2. “I Like Christmas”
3. “Winter Wonderland”
4. “Christmas Magic”
5. “Jingle Bells”
6. “Groove of Christmas”
7. “Lohan Holiday”
8. “Deck The Halls”
9. “Silent Night”
10. “Santa’s Reindeer Ride” featuring Amy Grant
11. “We Wish You A Merry Christmas”
12. “I Like Christmas” (Remix)

Almost. There's a lot to love in all of that - songs called "Lohan Holiday" and the uberbanal "I Like Christmas", the requisite Lindsay reference, hype for a Christmas album a mere 7 or 8 shopping months' early, and Ali's voice added to an Amy Grant track. Y'know, it was creepy enough when Natalie Cole first did that with a Nat King Cole song, but at least that had some father/daughter drama to make it interesting. This is just Ali stapling her voice to a successful track by someone else, a naked attempt to be successful in some vague, purposeless, honorless, talent-neutral way.

Not by the Hair

On The Flashing, the Fancing, I'm with Chin Chin's retro disco/NYC dance rock, but it's soul jazz moments leave me in the same place so much soul jazz does - waiting for more soul or more jazz.

Growing Hole

At first I thought Booker T.'s collaboration with the Drive-By Truckers and Neil Young, Potato Hole, lumbered a bit too much for its own good. Now I love its weight as the electric guitars crunch with with as much distortion as they can carry, making Booker's organ sound even more glide-ready. Making organ-driven rock 'n' roll didn't seem like a good idea at first, but "Stomp it Out" finds his organ pulsing as authoritatively as the Truckers' power chords, and "Native New Yorker" spawns the sort of Neil Young solo we live for, and Booker follows his lead beautifully. The stunt song selections - "Hey Ya" and Tom Waits' "Get Behind the Mule" - seem gimmicky and unnecessary by comparison, and I'd say the same for the Truckers' "Space City" if Mike Cooley's vocal melody didn't mesh with Booker's sense of melody so seamlessly.

An Interesting Miss

Cher's 3614 Jackson Highway is now available via download from Rhino, and it's such an intriguing misfire. She recorded it with the Muscle Shoals rhythm section in 1969, covering Dylan, Buffalo Springfield, and Dr. John's "Walk on Gilded Splinters" - the latter a rock/soul version that is one of its stronger tracks. Ultimately, the album didn't work because she's not a blues or soul singer, and no amount of soulful support could change that. It could mitigate her shortcomings, but she was a rock star even then, and the subtext of all her performances was her persona. Where the subject matter was too weird to fully move into - "Gilded Splinters" - or the song so malleable that anyone could find a place in it - "Tonight I'll Be Staying Here with You" - she shines, and she was enough of an actress to make "(Just Enough To Keep Me) Hanging On" credible.