THE JAYHAWKS - MOCKINGBIRD TIME

The Jayhawks are a band that I've always admired more than loved. I was in college when they released their breakthrough album, 1992's Hollywood Town Hall. I heard the single "Waiting For The Sun" all the time, and although they weren't where my head was at at the time, I knew they were a good group. 1995's Tomorrow The Green Grass was an album you had to be aware of if you were a music fan. These two albums, in my mind, had a lot to do with popularizing the "Americana" movement that I enjoy so much.  But after Green Grass, singer/songwriter Mark Olson quit the band.  Singer/songwriter Gary Louris kept the band going, but it was a different group without the co-leaders. There were certainly great songs after Olson left ("Stumbling Through The Dark" was great, "Save It For A Rainy Day" is one of the group's greatest moments and one of the best songs, maybe, ever). But the chemistry had changed.

So a couple of years ago when Olson and Louris got together as a duo, there were high hopes. Soon, they reactivated The Jayhawks and Mockingbird Time is the band's first album with both guys back in the fold.   The album is good, but not great, and doesn't have anything as classic as the material on their early '90s records.   On the other hand, the album gives the group new material to play in concert, which definitely holds up alongside the earlier stuff: the first single, "She Walks In So Many Ways" is one of the best songs of the year, and "Hide Your Colors," "Tiny Arrows" and "High Water Blues" are all great songs.  Some of the songs (like the title track) just drag. But if this is more than a "reunion" album, and is actually a "reactivation" album, I think it's promising.  The Jayhawks are the kind of band who could do their best album next year, they still have a knack for great hooks and beautiful harmonies.

TOMORROW ON OUTQ: SOCIAL D, GREGG ALLMAN, CAKE

For those of you who are new to No Expiration, every Wednesday morning, I am a guest contributor to the SiriusXM OutQ show The Morning Jolt with Larry Flick (co-hosted by Keith Price). Every week I talk about music and this week, I've got some great stuff to discuss.  I usually go on at at 9 am ET, but tomorrow I'll be on at 9:25, I'm being pre-empted for Miss America, believe it or not. Larry was nice enough to invite me to sit in on that, but I'm more than twice her age, so I'll pass!

First off is the new Social Distortion album, Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes. Mike Ness makes you wait a long time inbetween albums, but in my mind, it's worth it. I've never felt let down, by either Social D's albums or his solo records. However long it takes him to make them is fine with me.

Gregg Allman's first solo album in over 15 years, Low Country Blues, is also worth the wait. Very different from an Allman Brothers Band album, the record sees him teaming up with "Him Again," the great producer T-Bone Burnett. They make an amazing team, and they've produced an excellent album. I love it.

I've been a Cake fan since 1994: I remember seeing them at The Mercury Lounge in NYC in maybe 1994 or 1995. I had no idea that they'd get as big as they did, but I think they have that... thing ... that makes a band become a "cult" band. They have a career and most of the country don't even know who they are. It's a beautiful thing. They don't have anything to do with trends, they totally do their own thing, and I really admire them. But I'm a fan because of their great songs. I didn't love their last album, but the new one, Showroom Of Compassion, is growing on me, and I'm told it's the #1 album in the country this week!

The Jayhawks are a great "Americana" band, and they are reissuing what are arguably their two best albums, 1992's Hollywood Town Hall and 1995's Tomorrow The Green Grass this week. The latter has "Blue," which is a perfect song if there ever was one. These guys should have been bigger than they were. The band has recently reunited with their principal singer/songwriters Marc Olson and Gary Louris, and have a new album coming out this year. But both of these reissues are really worth your time and money, especially if you don't have them yet (but the bonus tracks make it worth it, even if you do).

Finally, this week Pearl Jam release their second live album, Live On Ten Legs. Although given the fact that they've released "official bootlegs" of pretty much every concert they've done for the past decade, I don't really see the point - it would have been cooler if they put all their rare covers or one-off guest spots on the album. I don't really need more versions of "Jeremy" and "Rearviewmirror" as much as I like those songs.  I have like 20 official bootlegs!  It does have one very cool rarity: a cover of the Public Image Ltd song "Public Image." Which I bought on iTunes. But if you don't have any live Pearl Jam stuff, you're missing out, and this would be a great place to start.