Reviews roundup – Rainbow vs. Paul Gilbert vs. In Layman Terms vs. Sands Hall vs. Daze Of Grace

Reviews roundup – Rainbow vs. Paul Gilbert vs. In Layman Terms vs. Sands Hall vs. Daze Of Grace

RAINBOW
Monsters of Rock: Live At Donington 1980
Eagle

Ritchie has a new Rainbow, and with a click of his ruby slippers, here’s the Rainbow set from the first Monsters of Rock show back in 1980. Coincidence?

They’re claiming this has all the audio for the show.  But it doesn’t.  It’s also not the first time the 20 minutes of footage has been out, officially, on DVD, either.  That was last year when the “Light In The Black” box set came out.  Open.  Goal.  Missed.  Mind you, this is a lot cheaper than the box set, which goes for about forty quid, so if you didn’t want to splash the cash for that, then go for this.

Rainbow were promoting the “Down To Earth” album,  so it’s Ritchie Blackmore (guitars), Don Airey (keyboards), Graham Bonnet (vocals), Roger Glover (bass) and Cozy Powell (drums), in what proved to be the final show for this lineup.  Soundwise, it’s pretty good, and is the best you’ll get from this era.  Something you’ll know if you had the misfortune to buy the “Down To Earth Tour 1979” box set.

Bonnet excels at the “Down To Earth” material, which was some of the strongest Rainbow recorded, so ‘Eyes Of The World’ and ‘Lost In Hollywood’ are essential.  Just a shame that ‘Love’s No Friend’ has gone walkabout.  Elsewhere, it’s a bit patchy, but this is probably as good as it will ever get for this brief moment in Blackmore history.

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PAUL GILBERT
I Can Destroy
earMusic

Out in Japan since December, the latest offering from Paul Gilbert finally makes it over to these shores.

It’s his eighteenth(ish) solo album, which is a lot considering the time he spent in Racer X and Mr Big, but time has not withered his widdle, and he can still shred with the best of them.  Of course, that is to damn with faint praise, because he’s a much more rounded guitar picker than that.  And working here, with Kevin Shirley producing, and a band of Freddie Nelson and Tony Spinner on guitars and vocals, Kevin Chown on bass, and Thomas Lang on drums, he rawks out.

He’s certainly put together some mighty fine riffs here, with the title track almost pure metal in content.  Folks who like things a bit more controlled should turn their attention to ‘Woman Stop’, and ‘I Am Not the One (Who Wants To Be With You)’, but it’s nice to hear him go totally into the red. I’m not convinced by his foray into the blues, but pound for pound, this is up there in the upper echelons of his solo releases.

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IN LAYMAN TERMS
Tangled
independent

You know how they say that you know you’re getting old when the polis start looking young.  Well, the Grim Reaper is chapping at my door, and he’s no looking for my granny.  Because Cole Layman is a senior in high school.  Which is bad enough, but his band partner is Logan. His wee sister.  Jaysus!

Anyway, they done got the blues, with Cole on guitar and cigar box guitar and Logan on bass and vocals.  Their mum played the drums, so they were exposed to live music from an early age (and she now plays drums with them live).  Five of the nine tracks are original and they’re OK.  Performance wise, young master Cole is a dab hand on the guitar, with fingers wise beyond his ears, and he will definitely be a name to reckon with.

However, some of the covers don’t come off, especially the Howlin’ Wolf and Janis Joplin songs.  The vocals just don’t have the depth that the songs need.  But, that’s a minor quibble, because when I was their age I was drinking cider and taking speed at the back of the warehouse in Jane Street. They could easily mature into something very special, so keep your eyes peeled and your ears open.

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SANDS HALL
Rustler’s Moon
independent

This album came out a couple of years ago in the US, but, for some reason, is getting a push in these here parts.  Crucially, for me (and sadly lacking from the press bumph), is the fact that in the eighties Sands Hall had a bit part in T.J. Hooker.  T.J. BLOOMING HOOKER!

For sure, she’s done all sorts of arty farty creative writing / Shakespeare over the years, but nothing will top that.  However, in between Shatner related anecdotes, it turns out she’s been playing the guitar since she was 16, but managed to wait nearly 45 years before releasing an album.

Given that most people have their musical influences at an early age, it’s no surprise that this folky, singer / songwriter,confessional album has the late sixties / Laurel Canyon embedded in its DNA.  So that’s Judy Collins and Joni Mitchell then.  Most of the music is delicate and acoustic, framing words which have hippy written through the middle like a Woodstock stick of rock.

Those are the best tracks, which include the likes of ‘Leanin Into The Bar’.  Later on, there is a tendency for the music to wander off into jazz-lite, which is considerably less engaging, but there is at least half an album here worth listening to.

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DAZE OF GRACE
Rumours Of Glory
independent

And while we’re on the subject of hippy dippy, acoustic whatnots, here come the Routleys from the Canadian colonies.  That’s Sharon Grace Routley – vocals and acoustic guitar, Jubal Daniel Routley – electric guitar, and Warren Routley – hand drums and percussion.

And they too have a hankering for the old days when all you needed was a guitar, a parking lot and a pocket full of skank.  Of course that led to a lot of shite records, but the Routleys have managed to avoid that.  They’ve been recording for a decade or so, and they’ve got their seventies soft rock meets folky pop sound down pat.

‘In The Garden’ and ‘House of Cards’ stand out for me, but there is a gentle persuasiveness to their music that reminds me of being young and hopeful.  Fool that I was.  Ms Routley has a very listenable voice, ably backed by gentle strumming and delicate percussion.  One for the Cowboy Junkies fans out there.

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