Just Released - 2014 [Ep.04, S.4]

“You know, if you break my heart, I’ll go,

But I’ll be back again…”

                  “I’ll Be Back” - The Beatles  [1964]

Agreed, it’s not likely the first Beatles song you’d think of but it’s an early sign of how complex their compositions would soon become. “I’ll Be Back” has only two and a half verses, two distinctly different bridges and no chorus whatsoever. Here in the Antipodes (just as in the UK), “I’ll Be Back” appeared as the final song on the album, ‘A Hard Day’s Night’. In the USA, kids would catch up with it five months later on an album called ‘The Beatles ‘65’. Let’s face it, until The Beatles delivered their Rosetta Stone in the form of ‘Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’ in 1967, their UK albums and EP’s had been chopped, diced and generally bastardized for considerations that were more commercial than artistic. Nevertheless, a generation (and more) grew up with those records in the USA and in celebration of The Fabs’ conquest of North America 50 years ago this month all those pre-Pepper releases have been collected in a box. In this week’s JR, we open it up. 

Also in this edition we return to the album ‘Any Old Love’ - just released by Brisbane band, Halfway. The critical acclaim that’s welcomed the album is warranted, as much for its sound, as for its distinctive (but never cloying) Australian imagery.  

A different kind of Roots music this week comes to us from Mali via the Mojave with the just released album by the Tuareg Desert Blues musicians, Tinariwen. Now in exile from their Saharan desert home in northern Mali, the band recorded their new album, ‘Emmaar’ in the sparse Mojave Desert region of California.

Approaching Roots music from yet another angle this week brings us to the stinging Blues guitar of Joe Louis Walker whose new album, ‘Hornet’s Nest is released at the end of this month. Among the album’s original songs, Joe Louis Walker also pays tribute to his own roots with a version of the 1958 classic, “Don’t Let Go”.

   

Also covering a Rock ‘n’ Roll classic from that same era is South East Queensland chanteuse, Nadia Sunde. Her new independent album ‘Stoking The Fire’, includes a smouldering version of “Shakin’ All Over”.

One of the week’s major surprises comes from American musician, Beck. His music has taken some curious turns over the past two decades but his latest ‘style reinvention’ is as remarkable as it is different. Beck has used the word “healing” to describe the music on ‘Morning Phase’ and it’s certainly introspective in mood. You’ll hear a preview of Beck’s new album right here.

      

Halfway: “Dropout”/”Dulcify” (from the album, ‘Any Old Love”)

Tiariwen: “Emajer” (from the album, ‘Emmaar’)

Nadia Sunde: “Till The Wind Dies Down”/”Shakin’ All Over” (from the album, ‘Stoking The Fire’)

Joe Louis Walker: “As The Sun Goes Down”/”Don’t Let Go” (preview from the album, ‘Hornet’s Nest’)

Beck: “Morning” (preview from the album, ‘Morning Phase’)

The Beatles: “A Hard Day’s Night”/”I’ll Be Back” (from the box set, ‘The U.S. Albums’)

Tiariwen: “Toumast Tincha” (from the album, ‘Emmaar’)

To stream Just Released (any time):  Find 'Just Released' here. 

You can also connect via local web pages at the links below..

Just Released is heard Saturdays at 9:05pm on ABC Local Radio.

Replayed Sundays at 4:05pm (AEDST or AEST) on ABC Digital Radio through Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, & streaming on demand at the Gold Coast, Newcastle, Hobart and Darwin web pages.

JR can also be heard on Radio Australia throughout Asia & the Pacific.

              ♫

    ♫   {](-_-)[}   ♫         Thanks for listening.

  

Just Released - 2014 [Ep.03, S.4]

“And oh, my giddy aunt, New York can talk,

It’s the modern road where folk are nice to Yoko …”

                  “New York Morning” – Elbow  [2014]

Listening to English band, Elbow (and particularly the voice of lead singer, Guy Garvey) might cause you to start thinking of Peter Gabriel. There’s certainly a similarity there. Learning that Elbow was influenced by Gabriel’s old band Genesis makes perfect sense then, as does the fact that their new album due out next month made it’s own genesis at Gabriel’s recording studios. The greatest influence on the new record however was the city of New York where Guy Garvey had spent much of 2012. It’s notably reflected in the song, “New York Morning”, which you’ll hear in this latest edition of Just Released.

Beating a path down the Comeback Trail this week is U2. The band has been questioning its own relevance recently and with their new album not too far away, they’ve continued their role as international ambassadors for positive change by aligning the release of their new single (“Invisible”) to a clever campaign to raise money for charity.

Also on the Comeback Trail is New York band Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings and while Sharon’s health had delayed the release of the band’s new album, ‘Give The People What They Want’, we’re happy to find that she is now back on the road and doing well. Another emerging American artist with a passion for retro Soul is Nick Waterhouse who’s soon to be released 2^nd album, ‘Holly’ is previewed this week.

Also making a strong return on the Comeback Trail is Suzanne Vega who’s ‘Tales From The Realm Of The Queen Of Pentacles’ is her first album of new songs in seven years. Her many fans in Australia can expect to hear songs from it on her tour coming up in April, including gigs at this year’s Bluesfest. Also touring soon will be Americana superstar Jason Isbell whose latest album, ‘Southeastern’ was one of our big favourites from late last year. The disc is now released in Australia ahead of his forthcoming April tour with special guest, Tift Merritt.

And more touring is forecast for Kate Miller-Heidke (in March) and the John Butler Trio (in April). Both have new albums and both are included in this week’s show. Meanwhile another Australian musician with a new album imminent is Melbourne’s Sally Seltmann. You’ll hear a preview of her 4^th long player, ‘Hey Daydreamer’ right here.

As we roll into another season of major tours across Australia it’s a great time to be outdoors but we haven’t forgotten those who prefer the comfort of the cinema. Often, a good movie is further elevated by a great soundtrack - and one recent example is the acclaimed ‘American Hustle’. Underlining the point in this edition we flashback to a bona-fide Soul classic from Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes. 

      

U2: “Invisible” (new single)

Kate Miller-Heidke: “O Vertigo!”/”Drama” (featuring Drapht) (from the album, ‘O Vertigo!’)

Elbow: “New York Morning” (from the album, ‘The Take Off And Landing Of Everything’)

Suzanne Vega: “I Never Wear White” (from the album, ‘Tales From The Realm Of The Queen Of The Pentacles’)

Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings: “Stranger To My Happiness” (from the album, ‘Give The People What They Want’)

Nick Waterhouse: “This Is A Game” (preview from the album, ‘Holly’)

Jason Isbell: “Traveling Alone” (from the album, ‘Southeastern’)

John Butler Trio: “How Do You Sleep At Night” (from the album, ‘Flesh + Blood’)

Sally Seltmann: “Catch Of The Day” (preview from the album, ‘Hey Daydreamer’)

Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes: “Don’t Leave Me This Way” (from the soundtrack album, ‘American Hustle’)

To stream the show (any time):  Find 'Just Released' here. 

You can also connect via local web pages at the links below:

Just Released is heard Saturdays at 9:05pm on ABC Local Radio.

Repeated Sundays at 4:05pm (AEDST or AEST) on ABC Digital Radio through Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, & streaming on demand at the Gold Coast, Newcastle, Hobart and Darwin web pages.

JR can also be heard on Radio Australia throughout Asia & the Pacific.

              ♫

    ♫   {](-_-)[}   ♫         Thanks for listening.

  

Just Released - 2014 [Ep.02, S.4]

  “It’s people that you lose,

   When you become a recluse …”

                  “Recluse” – Neil Finn  [2014]

Not exactly reclusive himself, Neil Finn has been so busy in recent years, it’s hard to believe he hasn’t released a solo album since 2001. His 3^rd solo album, ‘Dizzy Heights’ is released next week and in this edition you’ll hear where Neil’s muse is taking him now. There are moments that evoke thoughts of Sigur Ros or Radiohead - but there’s no surprise in that. It’s fair to say this isn’t the singer/songwriter album hardcore Crowdies fans may long for but if you think “Better Be Home Soon” is a ‘typical’ Neil Finn song, you haven’t been paying attention.  After all, music experimentalism has always run deep in the Finn DNA. Neil Finn will be touring Australia in support of ‘Dizzy Heights’ between the 6^th and 22^nd of March.

Meanwhile, the past week has seen Bruce Springsteen return to #1 on various album charts around the globe (including our own) following the release of his 18^th long player, ‘High Hopes’. His latest tour of Australia gets underway in a matter of hours, while the new album (partly recorded in Sydney during his last visit) features a song originally rendered by The Saints back in ‘86. You’ll also hear that in this edition.

As well, we dip into the new album of moody retro-Pop from the New York band, Dum Dum Girls and welcome the return of Tex-Mex trio, Los Lonely Boys following guitarist Henry Garza’s serious mishap last year, accidentally falling from the stage at the end of a concert in California.

And there’s plenty happening in Australian music with the release of The Jezabels’ new album, ‘The Brink’, a new single from Big Day Out favourites, RüFüS and not so much “rewriting” the past as “remixing” it are Melbourne’s  Ambient Trip-Hop masters, All India Radio who’ve just given their 2007 album ‘Fall’ a fresh 2014 makeover. (Possibly to prevent arguments, the new Remix also includes a copy of the album in its Original form.)

The JR Radar has been humming this week, picking up on some fresh World rhythms from the Grammy Award winning Tuareg musicians, Tinariwen (ty-nah-ree-won) who come from the Sahara Desert of northern Mali. Their 6^th album of Desert Blues to be titled ‘Emmaar’ arrives in a couple of weeks and we have a preview from it, right here.

      

Neil Finn: “Dizzy Heights” (from the album, ‘Dizzy Heights”)

Los Lonely Boys: “Blame It On Love”/”So Sensual” (from the album, ‘Revelation’)

All India Radio: “Fall” (from the album, ‘Fall Remixes’)

The Jezabels: “All You Need” (from the album, ‘The Brink’)

Dum Dum Girls: “Are You Okay?”/”Under These Hands” (from the album, ‘Too True’)

Bruce Springsteen: “Just Like Fire Would” (from the album, ‘High Hopes’)

Tinariwen: “Toumast Tincha (The People Have Been Sold Out)” (preview from the album, ‘Emmaar’)

RüFüS: “Take Me” (new single from the album, ‘Atlas’)

Neil Finn: “Recluse” (from the album, ‘Dizzy Heights’)

To stream the show (any time):  Find 'Just Released' here. 

You can also connect via local web pages at the links below..

Just Released:  Heard Saturdays at 9:05pm on ABC Local Radio & repeated Sundays at 4:05pm (AEDST or AEST) on ABC Digital Radio through Brisbane, Sydney,Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, and streaming on demand at the Gold Coast, Newcastle, Hobart and Darwin web pages. JR can also be heard on Radio Australia throughout Asia & the Pacific.

              ♫

    ♫   {](-_-)[}   ♫         Thanks for listening.

  

Just Released - 2014 [Ep.01, S.4]

“C’mon ‘n’ be my China Plate,

Cos’ Australia, Australia, Aus-tray-li-a,

Australia, you’re my maaate  …”

                  “Australia” - The Captain Matchbox Whoopee Band  [1975]

For any out-of-towners: the flagrant display of jingoism in this 1^st edition of JR for 2014 is in celebration of 'Australia Day'.  

But before the flag-waving begins, some pertinent news: JR is starting its 4^th season settling into a brand new timeslot and will now be broadcast on ABC Local Radio on Saturday nights at 9:05pm AEST. We’ll still be around on ABC Digital Radio and streaming online. (Digital or terrestrial? Over to you.) You will also notice the absence of Bill this week. He’s holidaying somewhere warm and will be returning soon.

Now, where were we? Oh, yeah... The flag-waving.

In 2014 more Australians are recording music than ever before. And in this edition we’re merely scratching the surface to reveal some of what’s out there.

New names are beginning to appear, like Ms. Murphy who recently teamed up with Lance Ferguson of The Bamboos to re-invent Little Dragon’s Electro-Pop hit of 2011, “Ritual Union” for her new EP, ‘White Dress And The Spirit’.

Others beginning to emerge include Melbourne’s Kingswood and Sydney’s Gypsies & Gentlemen.

Tom E. Lewis is another name you’ll be hearing more of this year. Perhaps you remember him from his starring role in the ‘70s film, ‘The Chant Of Jimmy Blacksmith’? Maybe you’ve heard of his role in the Indigenous theatrical reinvention of Shakespeare’s ‘King Lear’? Well, he has a new album arriving soon and you’ll hear it previewed in this week’s show.     

Also, there are more established names like Sarah Blasko, Dappled Cities and Halfway all with new albums, while Tex Perkins continues his chameleonic career with yet another new band project called The Ape. 

Looks like another bumper year for Aussie music. Baste yourself in zinc cream and tune in. It’s gonna get hot.

.

      

Ms. Murphy: “Ritual Union” (from the EP ‘White Dress And The Spirit”)

Gypsies & Gentlemen: “Anger’s Got A Hold” (from the EP, ‘Gypsies & Gentlemen’)

Lime Cordiale: “Famous” (from the EP ‘Falling Up The Stairs’)

Kingswood: “Suckerpunch” (new single)

Halfway: “Dropout” (from the album, ‘Any Old Love’)

Sarah Blasko: “Bird On A Wire” (from the album, ‘I Awake: Live At The Sydney Opera House’)

Ashleigh Mannix: “His Harmonica” (featuring Kim Churchill) (from the EP, ‘From The Mountains’)

Luka: “Unreal” (featuring Queenie) (Independent)

Dappled Cities: “Many Roads” (from the album, ‘Many Roads: B-Sides & Rarities 2003-2013’)

Tom E. Lewis: “Angels”/”You Can’t Change Your Name” (from the album, ‘Beneath The Sun’)

The Ape: “Don’t Need Nuthin’” (from the album, ‘The Ape’)

To stream Just Released (any time):  Find 'Just Released' here. 

You can also connect via local web pages at the links below..

Just Released:  Heard Saturdays at 9pm on ABC Local Radio & repeated Sundays at 4pm (AEDST or AEST) on ABC Digital Radio through Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra,Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, and streaming on demand at the Gold Coast, Newcastle, Hobart and Darwin web pages. JR can also be heard on Radio Australia throughout Asia & the Pacific.

              ♫

    ♫   {](-_-)[}   ♫         Thanks for listening.

  

Just Released - 2013 [Ep.48]

“I’m really gonna miss it, all the treasure and the trash,

And later in the evening, I can just imagine,

You’ll put on Junior Murvin and push the tables back…”

                  “How To Make Gravy” [Paul Kelly - 1996]

Another year of Just Released is all but done ‘n’ dusted.

The tinsel and champagne corks have been cleared away after last week’s ‘Best Of 2013 JR Awards®’ and preparations are now underway for the next celebration:  The3^rd Annual JR ‘Christmas Special’.

From Studio B on the 4^th floor of the historic Abernathy Building, we’re approaching this “most wonderful time of the year” from a slightly skewed angle to present a selection of Christmas music for people who don’t like Christmas music. The weather man assures it won’t be anything like the proverbial White Christmas around here (if it is, we’re in real trouble) so we’ve eschewed the idea (as well as the song) in favour of seasonal tunes that are somewhat more universally inclusive. Absent, are “chestnuts roasting on an open fire”, snowmen who go by the name of “Frosty” and reindeer, no matter what colour their nose might be. In their place, we have The Pogues and Kirsty MacColl with one of the greatest Christmas songs ever - Ray Charles proving he could sing any kind of fluff and make it his own - and the hardest workin’ man in show business, James Brown using a Christmas song to thank his fans, pimp his records and plug his concerts. (Lest we forget, James Brown died on Christmas Day seven years ago).

American a cappella group Straight No Chaser rework two Christmas classics in this edition, incorporating the original voices of Paul McCartney and Otis Redding.

Making his first-ever seasonal record this year was the always affable Nick Lowe. His tongue-in-cheek, “Christmas At The Airport” featured in JR a couple of editions back but also from his ‘Quality Street’ album is an old favourite from the ‘60s written by Joe South (“Old Toy Trains”). Another notable cover is Linda Ronstadt’s version of Joni Mitchell’s “River”, a song highlighting that for some at least, Christmas can also be a time of great loneliness.

Along with Joni, another songwriter with unimpeachable credentials is Paul Simon, whose song “Getting Ready For Christmas Day” samples a sermon by Baptist preacher and gospel singer, the Reverend J.M. Gates from 1941. Meanwhile, one of Australia’s greatest songwriters, Paul Kelly will always be known for “How To Make Gravy” viewing Christmas from the perspective of a man behind bars.

This is the final edition of Just Released for 2013 but we will be back early next year for season 4.

Wherever you happen to be this Christmas, we hope you enjoy the break.

Both Bill and myself wish you all the best for the season and a for prosperous and happy year ahead.

Stay frosty…  

   

      

The Pogues featuring Kirsty MacColl: “Fairytale Of New York”

Straight No Chaser featuring Paul McCartney: “Wonderful Christmastime”

Straight No Chaser featuring Otis Redding: “Merry Christmas Baby”

Linda Ronstadt: “River”

Jethro Tull: “A Christmas Song”

Katie Noonan and Tim Friedman: “Maybe This Christmas”

Ray Charles: “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town”

James Brown: “Soulful Christmas”

Troy Cassar-Daley: “Christmas For Cowboys”

Nick Lowe: “Old Toy Trains”

Paul Simon: “Getting Ready For Christmas Day”

Pretenders: “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas”

Tony Bennett: “I’ll Be Home For Christmas”

Paul Kelly & Neil Finn: “How To Make Gravy”

To stream Just Released (any time):  Find 'Just Released' here. 

You can also connect via local web pages at the links below..

Just Released:  Heard Saturdays at 12pm & repeated Sundays at 4pm (AEDST or AEST) on ABC Digital Radio through Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne,Adelaide and Perth, and streaming on demand at the Gold Coast, Newcastle, Hobart and Darwin web pages. JR can also be heard on Radio Australia throughout Asia & the Pacific.

              ♫

    ♫   {](-_-)[}   ♫         Thanks for listening.