TOP TEN ALBUMS OF 2013 (GUARANTEED VAMPIRE WEEKEND-FREE!)

Yes, it's been a really long time since I've been here, updating No Expiration. I'm going to try to return more often in 2014.  You can read a lot of my stuff here at Radio.com, the site I work for (along with a number of websites for CBS owned classic rock, classic hits and Jack stations, along with Chicago's WXRT).

I'm planning on sharing my take on upcoming music events including the GRAMMYs and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as well as links to some of my interviews, videos and features.  But for now, I'm  returning with my take on the best albums of the year. 

Regarding the headline, I don't really have anything against Vampire Weekend, I am not that familiar with their music (although the few times I've heard their music, it hasn't really kept my attention). I think that they are a "zeitgeist" band - a band who, through a confluence of fans, critical acclaim and an intangible "x factor," are a band who everyone who works in music is expected to pay attention to, and expected to like. That's fine. I definitely like some artists who fall into that category. 

Anyway, I've been having a hard time coming up with an actual order for my favorite albums of the year. In recent years, I've had a handful of albums that rose to the top. In 2007, it was Ben Harper, Bruce Springsteen, Steve Earle, Mavis Staples and Robert Plant/Alison Krauss. In 2008, the Foxboro Hot Tubs. In 2009, Bob Dylan, the Cocktail Slippers, Rancid and Levon Helm. 2010, it was the Drive-By Truckers and Mavis Staples. 2011: Social Distortion and Foo Fighters. And last year, Bruce Springsteen's Wrecking Ball. 

This year, I have a number of albums that I've enjoyed, but no clear favorites. But I'll try to put them in some sort of order here. So, let's start already!

1. Ben Harper with Charlie Musselwhite - Get Up! Two generations of blues artists come together. The easiest thing in the world would have been to make this a covers album. Instead, Ben (and the guys from his current band) wrote a bunch of songs that should be blues standards in the years to come. I had the pleasure and honor of interviewing them when their album came out, and that was a huge thrill. Shortly after that, I saw them playing a show at Irving Plaza (way too small of a venue for them) and it was mind-blowingly great. Check out my review, with my wife's amazing photos, here. Anyway, I'm curious to see what Ben does next: I'd love to see him reunite with his old band, the Innocent Criminals, in 2014.

2. Nine Inch Nails - Hesitation Marks This was one that I thought was really overlooked by music critics. But I realize that a white, angry guy forever connected to the '90s who looks like he could totally kick your ass isn't who critics get behind these days.  But whatever. This album was really innovative. Of course, Trent has to compete with his past, which definitely looms large. Pretty Hate Machine, Broken and The Downward Spiral were all game changers. I don't know that he has another earth shaking record in him like that again. And he isn't that guy anymore: he's married, he has kids, has greyhounds. And yet, I think he's still haunted by every artist who ever disappointed him: he doesn't want to get soft, get boring or sell out. And he doesn't. Not only was this a great album, but he supported it with a great tour: first he did the festival circuit (they pretty much blew everyone away, including Mrs. Carter, at Made In America) and then revamped the band, put together a new stage show and raised the game once again on his headlining tour. Check out my review of that, and (again) my wife's amazing photos, here. I should also mention that his album with How To Destroy Angels was great, and their concerts were amazing too. I can't wait to see what Trent does next.

3. Kanye West - Yeezus Ok, I'm with the critics on this one. And yes, I know he's a douche. I've already written about my first (and only) encounter with him, you can read about it here. Do I buy into any of his hype? No. The Wall Street Journal wrote a scathing retort to his complaints that the fashion world is preventing him from entering their world. I wouldn't look to him as a fashion icon anyway. But what he is great at is making records. Of course, sometimes he needs some help and that was the case here: Rick Rubin exec-produced this album, and I'm sure that was a big factor. But Kanye knows a great track when he produces it, and he knows who to collaborate with (he worked with Daft Punk on "Black Skinhead," a highlight of the album). And he's still a compelling MC. I even like "Bound 2" but let's not talk about the video.

4. Mavis Staples - One True Vine Mavis's second collaboration in a row with Wilco's Jeff Tweedy. I don't like this one as much as their last record, You Are Not Alone, but this is still pretty great. Once again, Tweedy wrote the best song on the album. Last time, it was the title track, this time it's "Every Step." As great as the songs that Tweedy writes for Wilco are, I think he saves his best songs for Mavis. Another highlight is the cover of Funkadelic's "Can You Get To That." Mavis is the rare artist who improves with age. I went to see her in concert at New York's City Winery, and it was one of the best shows I saw all year. It made you feel good to be alive.  Thank you Mavis.

5. Queens Of The Stone Age - Like Clockwork On one hand, I really like Josh Homme and all of his projects. On the other, I don't always go completely gaga for them as some others do. I really liked the Queens circa Songs For The Deaf, when they had three vocalists: Josh, bassist Nick Oliveri and Mark Lanegan. I thought that they sounded too "samey" once it was just Josh. And then I saw them at the Made In America festival. I thought they were great, and that the new songs were amazing, so I checked out the album, and really loved it. "I Sat By The Ocean" is one of my favorites. Josh got bonus points for calling Jay Z out after playing Made In America. I like some of Jay's stuff, but everyone else falls all over themselves trying to be his pal. Josh comes from a different era and a different school.

6. Arctic Monkeys - AM I really thought all the critics would go crazy over this album. They've been hyping the Arctic Monkeys forever. In my mind, they're one of the few bands that the media go crazy over who actually deserve the hype.  I loved their debut album, 2006's Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not, and everything since. But I think this might be their best album. It combines their tight songwriting, which has always been a hallmark of the group, but also adds a lot of the "weirdness" that Josh Homme brought to the group when he produced their 2009 album Humbug. Josh actually sings backing vocals on a couple of songs here, giving him presence on two of my top ten albums of the year. Way to go, Josh!

7. Elvis Costello and the Roots - Wise Up Ghost More proof that both Elvis and the Roots can tackle any kind of music. A lot of this album reminds me of the Specials.  Sometimes these kinds of combinations can come off a bit contrived, but you know that with this one, it was all about mutual admiration and respect. I would love to see them tour together: imagine what Elvis songs they would revisit if they had time to rework some of his classics.  (In my world, Black Thought would be part of the tour and they'd do a bunch of Roots classics as well, Elvis could play along on guitar). Anyway, I'd file this with Elvis's great collab with Allen Toussaint, and the Roots' album with John Legend.

8. Black Sabbath - 13 Like everyone else, I approached this with managed expectations. I mean, could they still make a classic? Well, time will tell, but this album seriously kicked ass. And, OK, it doesn't  quite live up to the first six Sabbath albums, but it's at least as good as Never Say Die! and is better than Technical Ecstasy.  I obviously have a lot of feelings about the band: as I tell everyone I've ever met, I wrote the liner notes to the Black Box, and a while back was interviewed by A&E for a Sabbath doc. I was not disappointed by this album (other than the fact that they couldn't get it together with Bill Ward to have a full reunion; that said, Brad Wilk did a great job on the album, and Tommy Clufetos was great live). A lot of credit is due to producer Rick Rubin (him again!) but also to Ozzy, Tony and Geezer for bringing their A+ game. Especially Tony, who was going through chemo at the time.

9. Walking Papers - Walking Papers A new band featuring Duff McKagan on Guns N Roses and Barrett Martin of Screaming Trees and Mad Season. It sounds like nothing Duff has done, it's really more like Barrett's bands. In fact, singer Jeff Angell sounds a bit like Mark Lanegan. It's definitely a hard rock album, but more of a dusty Tom Waits type blues vibe (not a Clapton blues vibe). I was fortunate enough to interview Duff and Jeff for a Radio.com New Music To Know (read it here) and they were super cool. But what really turned me on to them was seeing them live on the second stage at the Rockstar Energy Drink Uproar Festival (see my review and my wife's photos here). They were really great, and I bought their album right there, and then reached out to get an interview. This isn't a "side project," it's a great band, please be clear. I hope they tour in 2014, I want to see them again!

10. Valerie June - Pushin' Against A Stone I also interviewed her for Radio.com's New Music To Know (read it here). I heard about her because some of the songs were produced by Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys (one of my favorite producers) and I think I'd read about her somewhere. I checked out her album and was blown away.  It would be great if she was a "zeitgeist" artist, but she's not going out of her way to enter the conversation for anything other than her amazing singing voice and her great songs. I think music lovers will be following her career for years to come.



So, there you have it. But ten isn't enough, here's a few other albums that I feel I have to add:

• Daft Punk Random Access Memories It has my favorite song of the year (yes, "Get Lucky") and it sees them turning their backs on the EDM scene they may or may not have created, eschewing samples and using all live musicians, including Nile Rodgers. 
• M.I.A. Matangi It has another of my favorite songs of the year ("Bring The Noize"). She's one of the most interesting artists today, consistently. 
• Alice In Chains The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here In which they prove that the "new" lineup, with singer/guitarist William DuVall is for real. One of the most underrated albums of the year. 
• Haim Days Are Gone Yeah, I'm with the critics on this one, too. I don't know how it's "indie" though, it sounds like '80s era Fleetwood Mac and Genesis, and I mean that as a compliment. Especially relative to what most indie rock sounds like these days. I saw them at Made In America and they were incredible. 
• Aaron Neville My True Story In which he revisits his doo-wop past, on a stripped down record produced by Don Was and Keith Richards. 
• Holly Williams The Highway The granddaughter of Hank, her artistry stands on its own. She's great. "Drinkin'" is devastating. 
• Lindi Ortega Tin Star I discovered her opening for Social Distortion, she was great. I wish the press would pay attention to her, she surely deserves it. Another artist who I covered for Radio.com's New Music To Know. A super cool chick as well. 
• Jason Isbell Southeastern The former Drive-By Trucker (who wrote my favorite DBT song, "Never Gonna Change") announced this album by saying it was the best thing he's ever done. Well, it is pretty freaking great. Check it out. 
• Lone Bellow Lone Bellow A great new band, when they sing together it's magic. Do yourself a favor and check them out. 
• Kacey Musgraves Same Trailer Different Park  Another time the critics are right. Her debut is excellent, she will get my vote for Best New Artist at the GRAMMYs. 
• Hanni El-Khatib Head In The Dirt Another Dan Auerbach production, it's great garage rock from L.A. 
• Sara Bareilles The Blessed Unrest I'm sorry to say that I only listened to this after it got a GRAMMY nomination, and well deserved. I interviewed a lot of music writers about her, all of whom were surprised, because she's not part of the zeitgeist, or the conversation. Which is all hte more reason to check this album out. 

Well, that's pretty much it. Bring it, 2014!

ROCK HALL INDUCTIONS: THE BEASTIE BOYS

I started writing a post "reviewing" The Beastie Boys' induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame last week, and planned to finish it either Friday or Saturday.  Obviously, it's a much different post now.

I've heard that Adam Yauch was admitted into the hospital on the same day that the induction took place.  I can only imagine the bittersweet feelings Adam Horovitz and Mike Diamond, and Yauch's parents, must have had, being at the ceremony that night.

I remember predicting that Chuck D would be the guy they'd call to induct The B-Boys and I'm glad I was right. Public Enemy had a long history with the Beasties, and he was so passionate about their importance.  I was glad that LL Cool J was also part of the induction. Chuck and LL deserve to be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame themselves, hopefully sooner rather than later.  (Rick Rubin was in the audience as a guest of The Red Hot Chili Peppers: it's interesting that he'd produced the Chilis, the Beasties and Donovan, as well as presenters Chuck, LL, and also Kid Rock who performed.  He should also be in the Hall of Fame soon!)

Chuck's speech was predictably longer.  But he made great points about how they always stuck together as a team, they were a TEAM of MCs, how they defied expectations and carved their own path. LL's speech was good too: besides pointing out that it was the Beasties who played his demo for Rick Rubin, he also noted that they really brought hip-hop to the suburbs.

Mike and Adam kept it pretty short.  I don't know how Adam H. kept it together while reading Yauch's speech for him.

Watching the performance a second time on TV, I liked it a bit better.  The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame wisely asked The Roots to perform at that segment (instead of Paul Shaffer's group, the house band for the rest of the night, and for nearly every ceremony). They were joined by the Beasties' longtime DJ Mixmaster Mike.  Black Thought was on the mic, along with Kid Rock and Travie McCoy from the band Gym Class Heroes.  Black Thought was a given, he's one of the best MCs in the game and has been since he started. Kid Rock is obviously influenced by the group.  I would have gone with someone like Q-Tip, Nas or Mos Def for the third spot though. They pretty much stuck to the hip-hop and rock/rap hybrids.  I guess they had limited time, but I thought they should have addressed their instrumental funk prowess (which would be easy for The Roots) and their hardcore punk background (which Mos Def or someone like Henry Rollins could have done). Still, they put together a cool performance and they probably didn't have a lot of time to rehearse it.

If you have a chance to check out this year's Hall of Fame induction ceremony, you should do so, especially if you are a Beastie Boys fan.

ROBERT JOHNSON AT 100 - THE BLUES LIVE ON

After months of not going to concerts, last night I went to my first show since the fall, and boy did I pick a good one.  The Robert Johnson tribute concert at the Apollo Theater, celebrating what would have been his 100th birthday. As you can see by the image to the left, it was a pretty great bill, with lots of my favorite acts there.

I already wrote a review, which you can read here: but it was very classic rock-oriented, as I wrote it for that format. But to reiterate, Living Colour killed it. They kind of reminded everyone just how exciting, explosive and vibrant it can be when the blues is brought to life with LOUD electric guitars.  But I have to ask how it is that Corey Glover seems to age in reverse?  His voice is amazing, and he seems to have more control of it now than he did two decades ago. Vernon Reid is just a monster on guitar. Their performance by themselves was great, as were their collaborations with Shemekia Copeland and Sarah Dash.

The Roots were amazing as always: Black Thought wasn't with them. Instead, guitarist Captain Kirk Douglas took the vocals on "Milkcow's Calf Blues."  I love Black Thought, but they could have a parallel career as a rock band if they wanted to. Macy Gray did a great take on "Come On In My Kitchen." Taj Majal and Bettye Lavette were commanding presences every time they hit the stage, and what a treat to get to see both Sam Moore (of Sam & Dave) and Allen Toussaint perform.  Most of these artists wouldn't be who you'd expect at a Robert Johnson tribute, but that's what made it cool. It showed that his influence extends far beyond "blues rock" artists.

It was also nice to see some younger artists:  The Dough Rollers are a traditional country blues-ish duo who were amazing, and The Pedrito Martinez Group were pretty exciting also.  I plan on checking them both out. Proof that, as I often say, the blues is alive and well.

BEST OF 2011 - #10 - THE ROOTS "undun"

I've heard people describe The Roots' undun as kind of being their Kid A or Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. I don't quite agree with that: it's not as difficult to get into as Kid A, and it doesn't mark a radically new direction like YHF. Although it does have it's very different elements: the second track (the first real song on the album) "Sleep," sounds unlike what The Roots have done before. And the LP ends with a suite of very interesting songs, starting with Sufjan Stevens' "Redford." It's not The Roots covering the song, it's actually a recording by Mr. Stevens.  Odd choice. It then goes into "Possibility (2nd Movement)," "Will To Power (3rd Movement)" and "Finality (4th Movement)."  The last three parts are instrumental and veer from classical to jazz.  You would have no idea that they were from a Roots album if someone played them for you cold.

According to the band, undun is "an existential re-telling of the short life of one Redford Stephens (1974-1999). Through the use of emotives and Redford’s internal dialogues the album seeks to illustrate the intersection of free will and prescribed destiny as it plays out ‘on the corner’. Utilizing a reverse narrative arc, the album begins as the listener finds Redford disoriented–postmortem–and attempting to make sense of his former life. As he moves through its pivotal moments he begins to deconstruct all that has led to his (and our own) coming undun." As a middle class white guy who grew up in, and lives in, the suburbs, I don't feel like I can address the subject matter (and the last thing I'd want to do is be a clueless white guy trying to address how things play out "on the corner").

What I do know is that there are great songs on the album: I especially dig "Kool On" (featuring Greg Porn and Truck North), "The OtherSide" (featuring Bilal and Greg Porn) and "Stomp" (featuring, yes, Greg Porn).

I like that the band doesn't bother with big name producers or huge celeb guest MCs, there's a real consistency on the album.  But I don't understand why they use other MCs (like Greg Porn, Truck North and Big K.R.I.T.) when they have the guy who is probably the best out there right now, Black Thought.

Of course, I kind of always root for The Roots: they're one of my favorite groups, and their last album How I Got Over was one of my favorite LPs of last year. (I prefer that one to undun, but I still obviously think highly of undun). And I definitely enjoyed Questlove's "snark that can no longer be tweeted about": his decision to cover Fishbone's "Lyin' Ass Bitch" when Michele Bachman was on the Jimmy Fallon show.  I actually wasn't totally comfortable with the "bitch" part, I thought that Joan Jett's "Little Liar" would have been a more appropriate choice. But funny as hell and on point, nonetheless.

Anyway, this was a really ambitious album (but also is shorter than 40 minutes, making it digestible) and I think they deserve credit for doing it.

THE GREATEST ALBUMS OF NO EXPIRATION'S LIFETIME

This is my 2,000th post! It feels like a big deal to me.  I've really enjoyed doing this blog, reading your comments (both here and on the No Expiration Facebook page) and occasionally meeting people who read the blog in person.  Thanks for your support, I'm going to continue doing No Expiration, and maybe add a video element to it at some point. I am in my early 40s, and love music as much as I ever did.

It was difficult to decide what to write about for my 2000th post.  I decided to do a list of the best albums that have come out since I launched this blog in the fall of 2007.  Some of my friends have a laugh over the fact that so many of the artists I listen to are "old" (which is silly and ageist), but in fact there are some newer artists, some who are celebrated by the hipster elite.  In fact, one of these albums topped the Village Voice "Pazz & Jop" album list!

1. The Drive-By Truckers - The Big To-Do was my favorite album of 2010, and also my favorite album of the past few years.  The DBTs is a band I was hardly aware of until a few years ago.  It was basically listening to SiriusXM's Outlaw Country that turned me on to them, and for that, I'm grateful. Once I started hearing a couple of songs, I started buying albums, and then attending concerts.  I'm in: I'm a fan for life. The Big To-Do is one of their best albums.  If my peers ask me about "new" bands to get into, I'll mention the Truckers.  They're not new, but they're new to a lot of people.

2. Bob Dylan - Together Through Life was my favorite album of 2009. It's amazing to me that Dylan still is adding to his unbelievable body of work. He was 68 (I think) when this came out.  How many 68 year olds are still putting out classic LPs? Well, I guess you can't compare anyone to Dylan anyway. The songs on this album were incredible - instead of writing them all on his own (as he usually does), he collaborated with Grateful Dead lyricist Robert Hunter.  But the secret sauce here is in the musicians he assembled for this record: Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell and Los Lobos multi-instrumentalist David Hildago.

3. Bruce Springsteen - Magic He's as relevant as he ever was, and he drove that point home with this album. By this point, he'd driven away lots of his politically conservative fans, and goes hard at the bu$h administration.  And he did it with some of his best songs ever.  I love "Long Walk Home." The line "The flag flying over the courthouse, certain things are set in stone: who we are, what we'll do and what we won't."  The song has one of Clarence Clemons' last great sax performances.  Actually, the live version is even better than the one on Magic, it has great vocal performances by Steve Van Zandt and Nils Lofgren. On the same album is "Girls In The Summer Clothes" which is pretty self-explanatory. This was around the time that lots of younger acts, from Arcade Fire to Gaslight Anthem, were citing Bruce as a major audience.  For a long time you didn't have young artists referencing Bruce that much, around Magic that started to change.

4. Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals - Lifeline My favorite album of 2007.  It was an album that they recorded in Paris over a (I think) two week period while touring for 2006's Both Sides Of The Gun, but it it totally a different album. The Innocent Criminals were really gelling as a band at this point... so it's weird that this is the last that we've heard of them (Ben has recorded either with Relentless7 or Fistful Of Mercy since then). I really hope we hear more from Ben and The Innocent Criminals in the future (I love R7 and Fistful though).  The album has a laid back but really soulful sound.  It's one of my favorites by Ben (who is one of my favorite artists ever).

5. Cocktail Slippers - Saint Valentine's Day Massacre There are two bands that I won't shut up about when people ask me about good relatively recent bands: The Drive-By Truckers and The Cocktail Slippers. Saint Valentine's Day Massacre is just a classic rock record, it actually blows my mind that more people haven't heard of them.  Little Steven, who produced the album, said it is one of the best albums he has ever worked on.  Think about that for a second.  By the way, I agree with him.  This album would be considered a classic and they would be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame if this came out in the '60s, '70s or '80s.

J. PERIOD'S Q-TIP MIX TAPE: CHECK IT OUT!

I've never been too familiar with the hip-hop mixtape scene. Most mixtapes aren't, strictly speaking, legal. But J. Period is a producer who has done a bunch of mixtapes... I don't know if they are "authorized" per se, but they are "commissioned." His latest mixtape is J. Period/Q-Tip The [Abstract] Best.

It's kind of like an audio documentary/podcast/tribute hybrid with pieces of songs, clips from interviews with Q-Tip as well as artists who he has worked with and influenced. There are new versions of some songs from his career (De La Soul cover "Excursions," Dres from Black Sheep gives his take on "Jazz" and a bunch of remixes that feature Questlove on drums). I found this collection on iTunes, where I also found a Roots mixtape by J. Period.  He occasionally posts other mixtapes at his website, if you love hip-hop, you should check it out. 

NEIL YOUNG TRIBUTE AT CARNEGIE HALL

So, tonight I went to the Neil Young tribute concert at Carnegie Hall. This is part of a series of annual tribute concerts organized by promoter Michael Dorf, they are fundraisers for a number of great organizations that you can read about here.

The show was pretty good, not great. Admittedly, it's tough to get momentum for a show when every artist plays just one song. The source material was great, obviously, and most of the artists selected songs that really worked well.  But it was a bit like live band karoke night.

Not to say there weren't highlights, the easy #1 being The Roots' performance of "Down By The River." Supposedly, they stole the show a few years ago when the concert paid tribute to Bob Dylan with "Masters Of War," and tonight was their amazing return. Black Thought wasn't with them, guitarist Captain Kirk Douglas sang lead, with the ladies from Dirty Projectors (who guested on The Roots' How I Got Over) singing backup vocals. They also went into "Hey Joe," (another song about "taking out" your woman).  Incredible.

The other highlights for me was the Cowboy Junkies' performance of "Don't Let It Bring You Down" and Bettye Lavette's "Heart Of Gold," which she actually recorded in the '70s. Other cool moments came courtesy of Joan Osborne ("Old Man"), Aaron Neville ("Helpless") and Pete Yorn (the acoustic "Rockin' In The Free World").

A lot of the performances were very polite and reverent, but didn't really stand out. Throughout the show I was thinking that it would be so much cooler to see Neil performing these songs. To be fair, most of the performers would probably agree with me on that one.

I wonder when I'll get to see Neil perform these songs.  But the good news is that Neil's next tour is rumored to be a Buffalo Springfield reunion. Neil, Stephen Stills and Richie Furay performed as the Springfield at the Bridge School Benefit concert a few months back, and now word is they're going to tour next fall, which is awesome news: they broke up before I was born!

BEST OF 2010 - # 6 - THE ROOTS "HOW I GOT OVER"

I love both Roots albums that came out this year: their collaboration with John Legend, Wake Up, is great. But How I Got Over is a classic. I wrote about it over the summer, and I still think it is an incredible album. I am a big fan of the band and their drummer Questlove, but I don't always love their albums.

If you've seen them on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, you know what a great and diverse band they are. They can go from backing Bruce Springsteen to Black Star to Christopher Cross.  They have always been a great band, but I would argue that working on the show has made them an even better band (I wonder if they would agree).  Their guest list on the album includes Jim James of Monsters of Folk/My Morning Jacket, John Legend, the ladies from Dirty Projectors and a number of underground hip-hop artists. It never seems forced or gimmicky, it's just that they can work with anyone, and really make it work. And they make it hip-hop.  I wouldn't have thought you could do that with such an unfunky group as Dirty Projectors.

The underground MCs they work with (Dice Raw, P.O.R.N., Phonte, Blu) are great, but none are as great as The Roots' lead MC, Black Thought. He doesn't get enough credit, I think it's because he's a quiet guy when he's not rocking the mic. But listen to dude's lyrics, he really is one of the best.

Check out: "Walk Alone," "Dear God 2.0," "Radio Daze," "Now Or Never," "How I Got Over," "The Day." Really the whole album though!

TOMORROW ON OUTQ: POP!

Tomorrow morning on SIRIUS XM OutQ show The Morning Jolt with Larry Flick, I'll be talking about some of the big pop records of the season. And by "pop," I mean big records.  Sonically, these records don't have much in common, but they all feature really catchy songs. 

I've only heard one song, "Well, Well, Well" from Duffy's new album, Endlessly, but I love it. Her album was produced by Questlove and features the guys from The Roots playing on many of the tracks (I'm told). I'm really looking forward to hearing the rest of this album. Larry was one of the first people in America to play Duffy's debut album, and she knows that, which is really cool.

Kings Of Leon just released their latest album, Come Around Sundown. I've never bought into them the way so many others have. I saw them on one of the small stages at the Austin City Limits Music Festival a few years ago (maybe 2003).  They were hyped, and I liked their sound and the way they looked. But their songs didn't stick with me.  A few years later, I saw them open for U2, and I was bored. But on their new album, they're really swinging for the fences, and there are some good songs there.  For my money, I prefer The Drive-By Truckers by a long spell.

Larry kind of told me about The Zac Brown Band last year.  I'd read about them, but on Larry's recommendation, I checked them out.  I think this Zac guy is pretty talented.  He's kind of mainstream country, but also appeals to the jam band crowd.  I think he could end up being like Jimmy Buffett. His new album You Get What You Give could be a really big album.

Bruno Mars is kind of outside my usual arena, but he is a talented kid.  He co-wrote and produced one of the best songs of the year, Cee-Lo Green's "Fuck You," as well as hits for other pop artists including Ke$ha, B.o.B., Flo Rida and Travie McCoy. He just released his own album, Doo-Wops and Hooligans, and I dig a few of the songs, "Grenade," "The Other Side" (which features Cee-Lo and B.o.B.) and "Liquor Store Blues" (featuring Damien Marley).

We may also talk about P!nk's new song "Raise Your Glass," which I didn't like... until I saw the video.  It's really a celebration about people who don't fit in.  Say what you want about P!nk, but she has the spirit of rock and roll in her.

Oh, and also, we'll talk about Mark Ronson's new album Record Collection, which I just wrote about.

TOMORROW ON OUTQ:GREAT TEAM-UPs

For those who are new to No Expiration, every Wednesday morning at 9 am-ish, I go on SIRIUS XM OutQ's The Morning Jolt with Larry Flick (co-hosted by Keith Price) to talk about music. Sometimes I have a theme, and tomorrow I'm going to be talking about recently released "team-up" albums. (We may also talk about the late, great Solomon Burke as well).

First off is the album by John Legend & The Roots, Wake Up. It's an album of covers of socially conscious R&B and soul covers from the '60s and '70s (as well as one new song written for the documentary Waiting For Superman). Yes, the album was inspired by Barack Obama's election, and was originally supposed to be an EP, but ended up becomming a full length album. Some people think that John Legend is too polite and that he lacks grit. ?uestlove who co-produced the album helped to change that. And as smooth as John is, he is very socially conscious, and you can definitely hear grit and fury in the cover of Bill Withers' "I Can't Write Left Handed." Lots of the songs are pretty obscure, I'd chalk that up to ?uestlove, who probably chose the songs. My one criticism: why have guest MCs, even such great ones as Common and C.L. Smooth when Black Thought is in the group (he's only on two songs). Anyway, I really dig this album.

Fistful Of Mercy is a new group that features one of my favorite artists, Ben Harper. The band also features Joseph Arthur and Dhani Harrison. They just released their debut album, As I Call You Down. It isn't my favorite thing Ben has done, but it has some really great songs. I recently filmed a performance by the group, I'll be posting a song soon.

Finally, the new duo album by Elton John and Leon Russell, The Union (produced by - of course! - T-Bone Burnett!). Leon was a huge influence on Elton, and Elton reached out to him a while back. Discovering that Leon wasn't in a great place, and bummed that he seemed to be forgotten, Elton invited him to do an album together. It shows what a giving and generous guy Elton is, despite the whole "tantrums and tiaras" thing. So that makes me want to like it. I think it is his best album since 2001's Songs From The West Coast (one of my favorite Elton albums), but not quite as good as that one. Still, there are some great songs, including the first single "If It Wasn't For Bad" (written by Leon) and "Hey Ahab" (written by Elton and Bernie Taupin).

THIS WEEK ON OUTQ: FUNK AND SOUL

For those of you who are new to No Expiration, every Wednesday morning at 9 am ET (ish) I am a guest contributor to the SIRIUS XM OutQ channel show The Morning Jolt with Larry Flick.  Every week I discuss music (surprise!) and this week I'll be talking about some new funky and soulful releases.

I have written about Brad before: the band features Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard, along with the great singer Shawn Smith. Smith also sings for Satchel (who Stone has produced), and for the electro music project Pigeonhed (the Lo-Fidelity Allstars remix of their song "Battleflag" is probably Smith's biggest "hit"), and has done solo albums too (as well as some other projects). He is one of the best singers you haven't heard. The band's drummer is Regan Hagar (also of Satchel, he used to be in Malfunkshun with the late Andrew Wood, who went on to form Mother Love Bone with Stone). Jeremy Toback used to be the bass player (he's also done some cool solo albums) but now Mike Berg is the bassist (he's also in Satchel). Enough family tree stuff, Brad is a really soulful band. At first they both benefitted and suffered from the Pearl Jam association: they certainly got more press because of Stone, but they sound nothing like Pearl Jam, they have a much more funky and soul music-based sound. Smith is the star of the band. If you can find the first album, 1993's Shame, check it out. But Best Friends?, their forth album which just came out, is very good too, although it did take me a few listens.

Street Sweeper Social Club just put out their second release, The Ghetto Blaster EP. It rocks! It has a bunch of new songs, a remix of "Promenade" from their debut, a new version of Boots Riley's other group, The Coup's "Everythang," and covers of M.I.A.'s "Paper Planes" and LL Cool J's "Mama Said Knock You Out." Plus there's a few new songs. I think Boots is going to do a Coup album next, and I guess Tom Morello will do another Nightwatchman project (and maybe some Rage Against The Machine shows), before the next Street Sweeper full length.

Michael Franti has had such an interesting career. In the late '80s, he was in this angry industrial/hip-hop group The Beatnigs. After that, he had a very Public Enemy influenced hip-hop group called The Disposable Heroes of Hiphopricy (I saw them open for U2 at Shea Stadium, pretty bizarre). In 1994, he started Spearhead, which combined hip-hop with live music, soul, R&B and reggae, and he's been doing it for years without too much commercial success - but the band gets lots of respect in the jam band community. All of the sudden, last year, they had a hit with the very poppy "Say Hey (I Love You)," which is a classic hit single. A wonderful song. Franti's new Spearhead album, The Sound Of Sunshine, comes out September 21, and it sounds like it has a simlilar vibe to "Say Hey."

A couple of other things I'll be bringing: new songs by Cee-Lo Green (his viral hit "F*** You," and another new song "Georgia"), some Robert Randolph & The Family Band (featuring Ben Harper) and a preview of the John Legend/Roots album.

TODAY ON OUTQ: HIP-HOP: THE ROOTS, EMINEM, BIG BOI AND MORE

For those of you who are new to No Expiration, every Wednesday morning at 9 am-ish, I am a guest on the SIRIUS XM Channel OutQ; I talk about new music on The Morning Jolt With Larry Flick. Today, I'll be talking about some recent hip-hop releases.

I've already written about The Roots' How I Got Over.  It's one of my favorite albums of the year, and the title track is up there as one of my favorite songs this year.  I also have a track from the Roots' upcoming collaborative album with John Legend, Wake Up, which I'll be writing more about.  It's covers of socially conscious soul tunes from the '60s and '70s.   Another one of my favorite albums this year is Big Boi's long awaited solo debut, Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son Of Chico Dusty.   It's amazing that Jive Records thought that this didn't have any commercial potential: Big Boi signed to Def Jam for the album (which is also odd, as they don't seem to be able to handle more "adult" or "arty" releases, such as How I Got Over. I'll also be talking about one of Larry Flick's favorite albums of the year, Eminem's Recovery. I've never been a huge fan of Eminem's (although I enjoy his SIRIUS XM channel Shade 45), but I definitely recognize the man's skills.  And there are some great songs on Recovery.

Kanye West has a crazy new song called "Power," which samples King Crimson's "21st Century Schitzoid Man." Amazing song, and I have that one. Also a new song from T.I., one of his first since leaving prison.  Also, music from two newer artists -- neither of whom I really "get," I confess -- B.o.B. and Drake. Tune in (SIRIUS 109, XM 98), call in (866-305-6887) and tell us what you think!

A NEW CLASSIC: THE ROOTS "HOW I GOT OVER"

So now I have three favorite albums of 2010. The Drive-By Truckers' The Big To-Do, The Black Keys' Brothers and now I'll add The Roots' How I Got Over.

It's not secret to long time No Expiration readers know that I'm a big fan of The Roots and their drummer Questlove.

I'll admit that I was a bit worried when I heard that they were collaborating with indie-rock artists (many of whom they met on Jimmy Fallon's show).  Questlove is the kind of guy who appreciates all kind of music, and who seems to get along with everyone. The ladies from Dirty Projectors (one of the most overrated bands in recent memory - but the ladies did a great job backing up Black Star on Fallon a few months back) sing on the intro piece, "A Peace Of Light." Some of the guys from Monsters Of Folk are featured on "Dear God 2.0," a sequel to their song "Dear God" written by Jim James (of My Morning Jacket). That works really really well. Indie harp artist Joanna Newsom is on "Right On," and Patty Crash is on "The Day," which is one of the true highlights. My favorite collab is with John Legend, who sings on "The Fire." (They also sample him on the previous song, "Doin' It Again.") (Now I really can't wait for the Legend/Roots album featuring a number of socially relevant covers).

The Roots have always been great at collaborating without losing their sound, and I think the Fallon show has only strengthened that, so it always ends up sounding like them. There's also hip-hop guests, some who have worked with the band before (Peedi Peedi, P.O.R.N. and Dice Raw), and at least one newer name (STS).

The centerpiece of the album, and my favorite song, is the title track, which features Dice Raw.  And I think Black Thought even sings a bit on that track! The lyric is one of their best ever: "Out on the street, where I grew up, first thing you learn is not to give a fuck.  That kind of thinking will get you nowhere. Someone has to care!" Who else is writing stuff so simple, poignant and elegant these days.  That puts them in Marvin Gaye/Curtis Mayfield turf. When you're there, you don't have to worry about keeping up with wacka flacka or drake. They're not so much about this moment in hip-hop, they're timeless.  That's how I've always felt about the group, but this album hammers it home.

ROLLING STONES WEEK ON THE JIMMY FALLON SHOW

Musically, no late night show can come close to Late Night With Jimmy Fallon. The Roots are the best late night band ever, they can rock with Black Star and they can rock with Christopher Cross. On Monday night, Mike McCready of Pearl Jam sat in with the band (I wish they'd post some rehearsal video of that!).
And in the above video, Jimmy announced that the week of May 10th is going to be Exile On Main Street week on his show, where every night a different artist will cover a song from the album (which is being reissued on May 18). That should be pretty cool.

RUN AND D.M.C. TO PLAY ROOTS PICNIC?

Last year at The Roots picnic, the group headlined their festival but also served as Public Enemy's backing band for a complete performance of It Takes A Nation To Hold Us Back. ?uestlove just posted a video annoucning the lineup (nothing too great, it features The Clipse and Vampire Weekend) but says that there will be a reunion that no one ever expected. He then puts on a black hat and gold chain and folds his arms.  I'm guessing - and I'm sure so is everyone else - Run-D.M.C.  Or, more accurately, Run and D.M.C.  It's not Run-D.M.C. as long as Jam Master Jay is no longer with us. Still that is a pretty cool deal. After Run and D.M.C. didn't perform at their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame last year, I didn't think they'd ever perform together again. So thank you to The Roots! Maybe next year they can get Eric B. & Rakim back together!

QUESTLOVE EXPLAINS "WALK ON" MUSIC

A lot had been made of how Conan O'Brien had Max Weinberg and the band play very expensive songs in his last week on The Tonight Show last week. Questlove of The Roots, house band for Jimmy Fallon's show, breaks down the science "walk on" music on late night shows - I didn't realize that this was started by Paul Schaffer on David Letterman's show. Read all about it on a very extended Quest tweet.

THE SPECIALS (MINUS JERRY DAMMERS) TO PLAY U.S.

The Specials reunion is definitely coming to the U.S. Other than doing Coachella, they'll be doing some U.S. shows including one in New York.  They'll also be playing Jimmy Fallon's show. Not that The Specials need any backing, but it would be cool if they jammed with The Roots.

It's just too bad that they couldn't make it work out with founder/leader/keyboardist/songwriter Jerry Dammers.

BEST OF THE 00's: QUESTLOVE

A couple of years ago when I was working at VH1, I had an interview with Questlove, drummer of The Roots, planned.  It was scheduled to be 15 minutes. We started talking about music and politics and next thing I knew, an hour and change had gone by. He's an artist who I could talk to for a long time, and more to the point, he's a guy who will talk for a long time if he's interested, without worrying about what his publicists or record label wants. 

Of course The Roots is his main gig - and I can't write about Quest without mentioning Black Thought, the group's MC and one of the finest in the game. Some have said that while Thought is great on the mic, he just doesn't have the charisma of a bigger star (or of Questlove). I would say that he just isn't interested in promoting her persona and doing a million interviews.  It's unfortunate for The Roots, with a more popular MC, they may have a bigger following. Then again, they're doing really well - Quest told me he was studying Phish - to figure out how to be a huge touring act without having to worry about hit singles (since hip-hop radio has never been much of a friend to The Roots, although they've backed up some very radio-friendly artists, including Eminem and Jay-Z).

Some people would argue that the '90s were The Roots' best decade, and they definitely had some great music from '90-'99, but I prefer the '00s. 2002's Phrenology was excellent (the rock-crossover-without-being-rap-metal "The Seed 2.0" (featuring Cody ChesnuTT) was one that Mick Jagger would have paid a milli for, but there were lots of other great tracks on the album. 2004's The Tipping Point is probably my favorite Roots album, I love "Star" (their remix of Sly & The Family Stone's "Everybody Is A Star"), "I Don't Care," "Don't Say Nuthin'," "Guns Are Drawn," "Stay Cool" and "Somebody's Gotta Do It" are classics, and better than most of what is dominating "Best of the Decade" charts. I also loved 2006's Game Theory. 2008's Rising Down, not so much, but it still had some great moments like "I Will Not Apologize." I can't wait to hear the next one, How I Got Over.   I think it is phenomonal that they got the gig as the band on Jimmy Fallon's TV show. From backing Black Star to Christopher Cross, they are awesome no matter who they play with.

So why am I calling out just Questlove instead of the whole group? Because Quest also produced D'Angelo's 2000 classic Voodoo and played drums on the album and in the touring band. That was one of the most ambitious R&B albums of the decade and even hit #1, but seems a bit overlooked these days, mainly because D'Angelo has been a bit M.I.A.  He also produced Common's Like Water For Chocolate (also from 2000), which included "The Light" and "6th Sense," and the followup, the more amitious (and more difficult) 2002 release, The Electric Circus. He also played drums on Fiona Apple's Extrodinary Machine, as well as on Joss Stone's cover of The White Stripes ' "Fell In Love With A Boy" (which he also did the arrangements for). And of course, he was the producer of one of my favorite albums of 2008, Al Green's Lay It Down. I definitely hope they work together again, and I'd love to see Quest work with other soul music legends. What up Stevie Wonder!
I know the guy is busy these days with the Fallon show, The Roots also do NYC shows and they have the album, but the more stuff Questlove produces or is involved with, the better shape music is in.

MOS DEF AND TALIB KWELI ON FALLON

I don't watch late night television too much, but Jimmy Fallon is killing it on the music front. The Christopher Cross thing was funny, but Mos Def and Talib Kweli's version of "History" (backed by The Roots, of course) was awesome. (The song is from Mos' The Eccstatic.) Backing vocals provided by two ladies from a band I don't really get, The Dirty Projectors. I wanted to embed the video, but NBC's site is only letting me embed the entire episode, not the song, which is too bad, because it was a great performance.

Update: here's a version I found on YouTube, hopefully NBC doesn't take it down.

THE ROOTS' NEW ALBUM: COMING IN 2010

The Roots album How I Got Over was supposed to come out this month, but now it won't be out until text year, according to ?uestlove's tweet. He says they want it to be "right" instead of "right now." This is an important album for them - their first since getting the Jimmy Fallon gig, and their second and (probably) last on Def Jam.