DO YOU NEED *ANOTHER* LIVE RUSH ALBUM? YES. YES YOU DO

Well, I do anyway.  Rush recently released Time Machine, their ninth live album, and their fifth in the past decade.  What makes it different? Well, not too much.

But it does feature the band performing their greatest album (arguably) Moving Pictures, start to finish. And yeah, there are plenty of live versions of "Tom Sawyer," "Red Barchetta," and "Limelight" out there (although this "Barchetta" is a bit different, they go into a surf version of main riff). But I don't think the band ever performed "The Camera Eye" on tour before, and longtime Rush fans (myself included) were excited to hear them play it.

They also played two songs from their upcoming album, "BU2B" and "Caravan." Supposedly that album is coming out this year.  There's also a new Neil Peart drum piece "Moto Perpetuo" which has more of his jazz/swing influence. What else is different about the album?  They add a bit of reggae (yes, really) to "Working Man." So, really, it's not a totally essential to have.  But for Rush fans, well, anything new is fun to have. That's how we roll.

THE LITTLE WILLIES - "FOR THE GOOD TIMES"

I am a big fan of The Little Willies, the group featuring
Norah Jones and some of the musicians who backed her on her debut album, 2002's Come Away With Me.  My understanding of how the band got together is that, after all the hype from the first album got too crazy, Norah just wanted to go out and play Willie Nelson covers, and just be a band member, not necessarily the frontwoman. I think it developed a bit from there, to the point that they played other people's songs, and even wrote a few new ones.

I'd heard rumors about Norah and The Little Willies.  When I interviewed her for VH1 on the day that her second album, 2004's Feels Like Home came out, she told me after the interview that she was doing a gig that night with The Little Willies, and that it was like $5 cover or something. I was amazed.  On the day she releases the followup to one of the most successful debut albums in history, she's playing a bar with her undercover covers band. The following year, The Little Willies released their self-titled debut album, and I think they toured a bit too.

Last year, they announced their second album, For The Good Times. I was kind of surprised: Norah and bassist Lee Alexander were a couple and split up a few years ago.  So I didn't think that they'd get the band back together.  But it makes sense that the album was named after the classic Kris Kristofferson track: it's about looking back at the good times of a now-defunct relationship.  And anyway, it sounds like they had a blast making this record.  Songs like "If You've Got The Money, I've Got The Time" and "Foul Owl On The Prowl" show Norah letting her hair down a bit, as it were.  She doesn't always sing lead: "Diesel Smoke, Dangerous Curves," (featuring her on supporting vocals) is definitely one of the highlights.   So is the cover of Dolly Parton's "Jolene."  They also do Loretta Lynn's "Fist City," but it's hard to imagine her holding someone by the hair of their head and lifting them off of the ground.

It's interesting that I'm writing this the day that Norah's record label have announced that her next album, coming out later this year, will be produced by Danger Mouse, with whom Norah collaborated on the Rome album. I've got to think that that will be a lot different from The Little Willies, it's certainly not going to be straight up roots music.  But I'm definitely looking forward to it.

BACK IN THE DAY: THE BEASTIE BOYS "PAUL'S BOUTIQUE"

Well, there's nothing like it.  The Beastie Boys' Paul's Boutique didn't sound like any record that came before it, or anything since.

I remember buying it when it first came out, but I don't remember why I bought it.  I liked a bunch of songs on their debut album, Licensed To Ill. But it seemed like a novelty album, and it's appeal was... I'd describe it as douche-y.  Also their style was very derivative of Run-D.M.C.'s (understandable as they were a big influence and both groups were produced by Rick Rubin).

I think I may have heard "Hey Ladies" and thought that they didn't sound like they'd progressed too much. But the music was so much... thicker. I was intrigued.  So I picked it up.  When I first listened to the record, I was puzzled.  What the hell?  I know a lot of other people had the same experience.

But every time I came back to the album, I liked it a little bit more. I was always catching new references in the lyrics and in the music.  In fact, there is an entire website that explains every reference and lists every sample.  And there's a great book about the album that tells you just about everything about how it was made - it's part of the excellent 33 1/3 series.  You couldn't make an album like this today without a multi-million dollar sample-clearance budget and probably an army of lawyers.  I mean, they sampled The Beatles! You just couldn't do that today, but back then, there were no rules about it.  It was a cool era: other hip-hop LPs like Public Enemy's It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back and de la soul's 3 Feet High and Rising were similarly dense with samples, but no one can (legally) release albums like those today.  It's interesting to note, though, that this album was about the time where hip-hop's mainstream started losing interest in the Beasties.  On Licensed, they were signed to Def Jam and were managed by RUSH (both owned by Russell Simmons).  On this album, they left New York for L.A., ditched Def Jam and signed to Capitol (who didn't really have a hip-hop team in place), left RUSH management, and moved on from producer Rubin to The Dust Brothers.

Today, it's one of my favorite albums, and unlike Licensed To Ill, it's aged really well, and still sounds ahead of its time.

CHRIS CORNELL'S "SONGBOOK" AND "THE KEEPER"

I saw Chris Cornell on his solo tour last year, and was blown away, so I was glad when I heard he was putting out a live Songbook album. Like Eddie Vedder, Chris Cornell is making a good case for having parallel careers with a band, and as a solo acoustic troubadour.

The album starts and ends with brand new songs that he hadn't released before this. The first two tracks "As Hope And Promise Fade" and "Scar On The Sky" show that he still has lots of great songs in him. It's hard to imagine Soundgarden (or even Audioslave) doing "As Hope And Promise Fade." I would imagine this is the direction his solo career will go in.  He sings really honestly about some of his issues.  The line "You're never more than two drinks away from crying" kills me. "Scar On The Sky" sounds like it could be a classic Soundgarden slow tune. I just wonder: can he still write rockers?

The LP ends with "The Keeper," a studio track (not from the live performances) that he recorded for the film Machine Gun Preacher. It's an amazing song (I haven't seen the film) that somehow lost to Madonna's "Masterpiece" (cough) from a film she directed W.E. I like Madonna, but Chris's song is way better (and so is Mary J. Blige's "The Living Proof" from The Help).

Back to Songbook: most of the album is solo versions of Chris' songs from Soundgarden, Audioslave, Temple Of The Dog and his solo records. He does great versions of these classics.  Soundgarden's "Black Hole Sun" and "Fell On Black Days" sound even more black, and the Audioslave tunes are just as soulful, stripped of their (amazing, face-melting) arrangements.  I love "Doesn't Remind Me" and "Like A Stone." Of course, the Temple songs are incredible. And the album points out that Chris has had some great solo songs - and (sorry) that maybe his much-mocked Scream album would have been better with a producer other than Timbaland. I love lots of records that Timba has worked on, but I just don't think that that combo worked. Maybe someone like Flood or Danger Mouse could do a great, modern-sounding Chris solo record.

My only "complaint?"  Well, I would have loved to hear the Bruce Springsteen covers that Chris performed when I saw him: "Atlantic City" and "State Trooper." And the "bonus tracks" on the album are "different" versions of "As Hope And Promise Fade" and "Call Me A Dog," that aren't much different from the non-bonus track versions of those same songs, on this same album. But I'm not a negative guy, so I'll just hope for a Songbook Vol. 2.  But let's get that new Soundgarden record first!

WILLIE NELSON - "REMEMBER ME VOL. 1"

Late last year, without much hype, Willie Nelson released another album, Remember Me Vol. 1. The LP sees Willie covering some of the biggest classic country hits of all time.

Which is sort of similar to what he did on his last album, Country Music, which was one of my favorite albums of 2010.  That album was produced by T-Bone Burnett, and featured lots of timeless songs.   This one was produced by James Stroud, It doesn't have the sense of occasion that a T-Bone production, but I think it's a cool album.  You really can't go wrong with Willie singing songs like "Remember Me," "Why Baby Why," "I'm Movin' On," "Sunday Morning Comin' Down," "Satisfied Mind" and even "Roly Poly." The album won't change the world or expose Willie to any new fans, but I like it.

I know that there's a Volume 2 coming out later this year, and I've also heard that he's writing new songs for a new album (his last few albums haven't featured his own compositions).  That's what I'm looking forward to: new songs by Willie Nelson.  For now, I'm enjoying this one, if not as much as some of his other great albums like Country Music and Willie & The Wheel.

BACK IN THE DAY: GUNS N ROSES "APPETITE FOR DESTRUCTION"

I've heard a lot of people arguing that Guns N Roses is getting into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame based on one LP, 1987's Appetite For Destruction.  Normally I'd agree, that no band should get in based on one LP.  I'm cool with it.  I don't really have a problem with The Sex Pistols as Hall of Famers (even if they do), and they only had one album.  (But as Larry Flick rightfully points out, Never Mind The Bollocks, Here's The Sex Pistols kicked off a movement in a way that Appetite didn't).

That said, I think AC/DC could have been inducted just for Back In Black*, and the only other hard rock album with the impact of that classic is Appetite For Destruction**.

I remember the first song I heard by Guns was "Welcome To The Jungle," and I'm pretty sure I first experienced it on MTV's Headbanger's Ball.  At the time I was in a very "death to false metal" mode.  There were the cool bands, like Metallica, Slayer, Anthrax, Suicidal Tendencies and Megadeth. And then there were the lame (hair) metal bands, Poison, Warrant, Motley Crue, etc***.  Guns seemed to fall somewhere in between. They certainly weren't thrash.  They had a lot more of a Stonesy groove than the thrash bands (or the metal legends like Maiden and Priest) that I loved.  But they also seemed to have a little in common with the pop metal scene. I wasn't hugely into punk rock at the time, but I knew they had a punk influence going on.  They didn't sound totally original per se, but they definitely sounded different.  I got Appetite right after that Headbanger's Ball episode.

I was BLOWN AWAY. I could not believe how badass this album was.  The guitars were amazing, but never annoying like the shredders who were all the rage at the time. The bass was funky and cool. The drums swung (even though the drummer looked like he could fit into Ratt). And the singer: I'd never heard anything like this guy.

Most of the songs were like a fist to the face.  But then there was "Sweet Child O' Mine."  It was tender, but not wimpy, and had one of the coolest riffs I'd ever heard.  The only song I didn't like was "Paradise City," with it's synthesizers and chorus that kind of sounded like something Bon Jovi would do. To this day, I don't really dig that one, but I can tolerate it, and it doesn't ruin the album.

I don't listen to Guns as much these days, I don't know why.  I think Axl has lowered their status in my eyes, by turning the band into his solo project.  I don't mind when Trent Reznor does that with Nine Inch Nails, because that group was always Trent's project.  But I think Guns without Slash and Duff McKagan just isn't Guns.  I was OK with Gilby Clarke replacing Izzy Stradlin', and totally OK with Matt Sorum replacing Steven Adler. But no Slash and no Duff?  That's a dealbreaker.  I wouldn't buy into Guns without Axl either, of course. I know Axl's current version of Guns is touring and playing all of the Appetite songs, but I just can't imagine it sounds nearly as good as it would the original guys.

Anyway, I'm listening to the album as I write this, and it is still incredible.  Even, I must admit, "Paradise City." If you haven't heard it in a while, check it out.

* That said, I prefer Bon Scott-era AC/DC to Brian Johnson's era, but you just can't deny Back In Black.
**By the way, I'd argue that Guns did have a good handful of classics from after Appetite: certainly "Patience" from Lies, and "Dust N Bones," "Bad Obsession," "Civil War," "14 Years" and especially "You Could Be Mine" from the Use Your Illusion albums.
*** I've mellowed a bit on the hair metal thing.  I don't own any of their records, but I can definitely acknowledge that most of the hair metal bands had some good songs.  And, full disclosure, I wrote liner notes for some Warrant reissues, the younger me would have considered that a major "sell out."

TOMORROW NIGHT ON THE CATHOLIC CHANNEL - DAVE MATTHEWS' MUSIC

Tomorrow night I'll make my first appearance of 2012 on The Busted Halo Show on SiriusXM's Catholic Channel. It's always fun to hang with Father Dave, Robyn and Brett. Now they have a new board op, a good friend of mine named Christian.  I hung out with Christian at the Rock The Bells festival two summers ago, and we've worked together a number of times since.

Anyway, I'm dedicating my appearance to a friend who is no longer with us.  She was a huge Dave Matthews fan, so I'm playing some Dave songs in her memory.  It's all songs with The Dave Matthews Band, not from his solo stuff or his live material with Tim Reynolds.

A lot of people blow off Dave: in some ways, he combines two things that are very "uncool" in hipster circles: his roots are in the jamband scene, and he has huge appeal with soccer moms.

To me, Dave is a bit different than the rest of the jam band scene in that his lyrics are pretty important (and I don't think he gets the credit he deserves for being pretty heavy and dark). Also, he keeps the songs relatively short (at least in the studio) and tuneful... hence, he has a ton of hit singles. Hence, his appeal to soccer moms. He isn't a metal dude or a punk dude or an "alternative" dude or an indie rocker. He's a regular guy with a kind of awkward sensibility. I'm not the hugest fan: I have most of his studio albums and some live ones.  I don't need to have every one.  I rarely see his concerts - the long jams just aren't my thing. But I have a ton of respect for the guy, he deals with his stardom as well as probably anyone.  He enjoys it, but doesn't let it dictate what he does creatively. I've had the pleasure of interviewing him, and he seems to be a great guy.  

I had two songs that I definitely wanted to use - "Ants Marching" and "Everyday."  "Ants Marching" was the first song I ever heard by Dave.  I was at the H.O.R.D.E. tour and I heard this weird riff coming from the small stage.  I went to check it out.  This band featured black and white guys, guitar, violin and sax.  I thought, "man, this is great, but they'll never get big, they're too different." Oops! I think of that every time I heard the riff.  "Everyday" is a rare instance of a video really enhancing the song.  If you've never seen it, check it out.   I "crowdsourced" the third song on my personal Facebook page, and if you want to hear what song it is, well, you gotta tune in.  If you have a subscription, great! I'm on The Catholic Channel at 7:20 pm-ish.  If not, go here to get a free online trial subscription.