Month: October 2013

Tommy Emmanuel and Martin Taylor The Colonel & The Governor Jazz has a long tradition of guitar duets, from the “Blue Guitars” of Eddie Lang and Lonnie Johnson to Dick McDonough and Carl Kress (as well as Kress and George Barnes), Billy Bean and John Pisano, Herb Ellis and Joe Pass, Ralph Towner and John Abercrombie, and Pat Metheny with Jim Hall. What makes the teaming of Martin Taylor and Tommy Emmanuel different is that both of their reputations are largely based on their work as solo guitarists.

Taylor proved he could play well with others during an 11-year stint with legendary violinist Stéphane Grappelli, beginning when he was 23, and more recently with his Spirit of Django ensemble. But as Pat Metheny said, the Scotsman is “one of the most awesome solo guitar players in the history of the instrument.”

As for Australia’s Emmanuel, he was an in-demand sideman and studio musician before concentrating on the solo format that’s brought him international acclaim.

With such self-contained stylists, a collaboration could spell overkill, but the taste and musicality both possess save this from being a chops fest. The repertoire is mostly jazz standards (Hoagy Carmichael’s “The Nearness Of You,” Irving Berlin’s “Heat Wave”), offset by four Taylor originals – so it’s well within Taylor’s wheelhouse (check his steel-drum impersonation in the Caribbean-tinged “Down At Cocomo’s”). But while Emmanuel’s eclectic mix of country, blues, rock, and world styles makes him impossible to categorize, he’s more than familiar with the jazz/standards canon.

With Emmanuel’s instrument of choice an Australian flat-top Maton and Taylor employing his Martin Taylor Maestro archtop built by Peerless, the intimate sound here is the perfect balance of warmth and brightness. And the mood is spontaneous, as these master improvisers play off one another, seamlessly trading lead and rhythm chores or indulging in some dazzling single-note interplay, as in the swinging “Bernie’s Tune,” where Taylor’s humorous dissonance elicits a laugh of surprise from Emmanuel.

To over-generalize slightly, Emmanuel’s attack is sharper, Taylor’s lines more fluid. But there’s no “winner,” since this never feels like a cutting session. At 56 and 58 respectively, Taylor and Emmanuel have combined to spend a century with a guitar in their hands, so there’s no insecurity here; each is comfortable and confident in his own abilities. The result is a guitar fan’s dream, a master class and then some, and one of the great guitar duos in jazz history.

This article originally appeared in VG‘s December. ’13 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.

Cynicism wouldn’t be out of place on your first listen to Sabbath’s first album with Ozzy Osbourne in 35 years. Before you even spin it, you can bet that the band won’t stray far from their classic sound and they don’t – even without the great Bill Ward on drums. This is thanks in part to producer Rick Rubin, who is known for employing a back-to-the-roots formula for everyone he has worked with, from Johnny Cash to Metallica and now, the Sab.

That said, 13 is surprisingly good. In fact, it’s very good, despite some problems with production. Rubin gives the CD a sound that evokes the heavy sonic textures of ’70s metal, but it’s overly compressed; unlike records that sound good at any volume level, you’ll have to crank this one to achieve proper butt-kickin’ results. Geezer Butler’s bass is sometimes lost in the mix and, frankly, the drums sound thin and wimpy.

Fortunately, Tony Iommi’s guitar holds things together well and his playing is spot-on, which is amazing for a guy who was battling cancer during the sessions. As usual, he has a bottomless well of heavy riffs, such as heard in the proggy eight-minute opener, “End Of The Beginning.” Ironically, the single “God Is Dead?” is the weakest song on 13, as much for its silly lyrics as for the bone-dry presentation of Ozzy’s voice.

Conversely, many of the better songs on this album are stuffed toward the end – and the absolute best material can be found on the second CD of bonus tracks. Maybe the rebooted Sabbath’s finest moment is on “Peace Of Mind,” a rocker where the whole band cooks in classic Sab style and Iommi leaves a trail of scored-earth guitar-manship in his wake.

“Pariah” is also another catchy stomper, while “Zeitgeist” and “Damaged Soul” evoke the cannabis-infused charms of “Planet Caravan” from 1970’s Paranoid. The latter is a slow, bluesy track, featuring not only grinding riff-work from Iommi and Butler, but also Ozzy’s long-missed harmonica playing. And for the guitar solo, Iommi lets his Hendrix-freak flag fly with no excuses.
So, while you may approach 13 with suspicion, give it a few spins to let it all soak in. Ward is certainly missed, but it’s hard to argue with the magic that happens when you get Iommi and Butler in the same room with Mr. Osbourne.

All told, 13 is the heavy metal album of 2013, and if you count yourself a Black Sabbath fan, get it. Two caveats: avoid “God Is Dead?” and listen to the cool-ass bonus tracks first.

This article originally appeared in VG‘s October ’13 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.

Metal fans are pretty much in agreement that the late Ronnie James Dio was the greatest metal vocalist of his generation – or any other, for that matter. His majestic yet theatrically masculine vocal style conjured up dark imagery. And still he was ingenious in his ability to allow listeners to personalize a song’s meaning.

With the success of The Very Beast of Dio in 2000, Niji Entertainment has released this follow-up. Where volume one focused on Dio’s early solo career up to 1994’s Strange Highways, volume two takes up where it left off with selections in non-chronological order beginning with Angry Machines from 1996 and ending with 2004’s Master of the Moon. Also included is “Electra” from the Tournado boxset, “Metal Will Never Die” from David “Rock” Feinstein’s 2010 album Bitten by the Beast, and “The Prisoner Of Paradise” from the Japanese import of Master of the Moon.

This collection shows Dio was constantly evolving as a songwriter. We get the ferocious guitar talents of Doug Aldrich with four selections from Killing the Dragon, with the standout being “Better In The Dark.” Tracy G goes ballistic on the live version of “Hunter Of The Heart,” while pushing Dio’s songwriting forward on “Black” from Angry Machines.

Craig Goldy gets most of the spotlight with selections from Magica and Masters of the Moon. His playing is inspired throughout, but particularly on “As Long As It’s Not About Love” and “Lord Of The Last Day,” anchoring the band to their classic sound. This volume illustrates that there was more to Dio than “Rainbow In The Dark.” It’s a well-paced, entertaining overview of Dio’s later period, and makes an excellent retrospective.

This article originally appeared in VG‘s Feb. ’13 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.