Soft and Music

It's rare to find a pop artist who can also write convincing lyrics in a sophomore album. So many new artists have managed to pull together amazing freshman releases — the contents of everything in their lives leading up to that point. But to be able to pull together a solid second album sometimes seems too difficult and quality falls to the wayside. Tough to cram a lifetime into a year or two, with so many other things screaming for attention – producers, concerts, press, fans… So to listen to Tyrone Wells' Remain and hear so many solid songs with thought- and emotion-provoking lyrics… it just doesn't happen often. Wells worked with a variety of artists, songwriters, and musicians to craft a set of twelve solid tracks. In the UK, he worked with Martin Terefe (who has worked with Jason Mraz, KT Tunstall, and James Morrison) and Iain Archer (UK artist and Snow Patrol songsmith). In the US, he worked with Tim Myers (former member of OneRepublic), David Hodges (former member of Evanescence), and Matt Scannell (Vertical Horizon). As a fan of Mraz, Tunstall, Snow Patrol, Evanescence, and Vertical Horizon — I have to say this is quite a pedigree of talent. In 2007, Universal Republic released his album Hold On, which was originally his first independent record (following Snapshot in 2003 and Close: Live at McClain's in 2005. Universal Republic saw the opportunity to release the album more widely as his first major label record. Songs from these albums have found their way into film and television soundtracks as well, so he's getting some great exposure. So far he's had tracks show up in One Tree Hill, Everyone's Hero, Rescue Me, Ghost Whisperer, Numb3rs and many others. I suspect that we'll hear many of the tracks from Remain in popular media as well. For me, what works for Wells on Remain is first and foremost the lyrics. And with those impressive lyrics, you then have his solid soulful voice that just lends each word credence. Add to that great arrangements utilizing acoustic and electric guitar, keyboards, and a well engineered pop feel, and you have a heck of a musical offering.

The Byrds returned to the studio during the second half of 1967 and the relationships between the members were not pretty. Michael Clarke left, Gene Clark returned, David Crosby was fired, Gene Clark left again, Jim officially became Roger McGuinn, and the resultant album, The Notorious Byrd Brothers, was brilliant and became a classic 1960’s release. Rolling Stone Magazine would rank it number 171 on their list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. The original album cover featured three human Byrds and a horse. The horse was supposed to represent the departed David Crosby and at the time I thought he was lucky that they faced the horse forward. Despite all the turmoil, McGuinn and Hillman soldiered on. They would change several of the tracks that Crosby had left behind and ultimately would write or co-write nine of the eleven songs. They also hired musicians to fill in the blanks. Session musician deluxe Jim Gordon would provide some of the best drum work of the group’s career. The most important addition would be guitarist Clarence White, who had also played briefly on their last album. He would later join The Byrds as an official member and provide the perfect foil for guitarist Roger McGuinn. The album would be a compromise between McGuinn’s psychedelic tendencies and Chris Hillman’s country leanings. They would unite to present a fairly mellow affair which featured hauntingly beautiful music. Producer Gary User, a former associate of The Beach Boys, was back for a second album. He is one of the forgotten studio wizards of the 1960s. He created a number of studio bands such as The Hondells and The Superstocks, who featured layered harmonies and catchy music. His production of The Notorious Byrd Brothers was impeccable and his ability to give the vocals and the music an almost sonic quality was outstanding. His greatest achievement, however, may have been his ability to keep the recording sessions focused in the middle of all the chaos. The two non original tracks were written by the legendary team of Carole King and Gerry Goffin and continued the group’s tradition of superior cover work. “Goin’ Back” featured Roger McGuinns legendary 12 string guitar plus the vocal phrasing gave the lyrics new life and meaning which enabled the song to escape its pop foundation and become a memorable folk-rock tune. “Wasn’t Born To Follow” would feature one of the best vocals of McGuinn’s career. The album contains a number of other delights. “Draft Morning” is a gentle but effective anti-war song that remains a social commentary about the late sixties. “Change Is Now” is highlighted by Chris Hillman’s bass beat and gorgeous harmonies on the chorus. “Old John Robertson” is the best of the country songs and looks ahead to the coming of Gram Parsons. The final two tracks are a last hurrah for the pure psychedelic Byrds. “Dolphin's Smile” is David Crosby’s final brilliant gasp as a member of the group. “Space Odyssey” was written with the Stanley Kubrick movie, 2001: A Space Odyssey, in mind. While it was not used in the film it remains a unique psychedelic relic of the era. The Notorious Byrd Brothers has a timeless quality about it and is one of the better, if not the best release, in their outstanding catalogue of work. It is a stunning album that was meant to be listened too with head phones firmly in place.

Ethereal Norwegian beatmakers Röyksopp have been lying low in recent times, but new album Junior is poised to change that. With its predecessor The Understanding enjoying a long honeymoon period (how long were we hearing Trentemoller’s remix of What Else Is There?), a new set of songs is very welcome. Joining Torbjørn Brundtland and Svein Berge on the new record is a who’s who of Scandinavian starlets. Guests so far revealed include Robyn, Lykke Li, Anneli Drecker and the ever-haunting Karin Dreijer from The Knife. Now, can we resume praying for that fateful Röyksopp tour? Junior is due for a late March 2009 release.

Something happened to The Stones on the way to the Beggars Banquet. Throughout the year that followed the release of Their Satanic Majesties Request in November 1967 The Stones entered a period of turmoil, tragedy, and somehow amongst all the chaos, emerged triumphant. Their Satanic Majesties Request, (a parody of the wording on the British Passport – ‘Her Britannic Majesty etc’ – thus further endearing them to the establishment) was very much an album of its time. Recorded throughout August and September that year the sessions were interrupted while Mick and Marianne travelled to North Wales with The Beatles to attend Maharishi Marhesh Yogi’s seminar. As the album was near completion influential manager Andrew Loog Oldham departed and a month later Brian Jones received a nine month jail sentence for drug offences. He was released from prison when his sentence was commuted to three years probation. In December Brian collapsed and was rushed to hospital officially suffering from exhaustion. The psychedelic influence of the summer of 1967, runs through the album which, having been released in time for Christmas, sold well, reaching number three in the UK. It contains its own highlights but it was what was to follow that would cause shockwaves. By March 1968 when they went in to the Olympic Studios in West London to record Beggars Banquet, both time and The Stones had moved on. They recruited the late Jimmy Miller, who had been working with the band Traffic, to produce the album. He was to be involved with the band throughout this golden era that saw them release a run of arguably their finest ever albums. An agreement had also been made with radical film maker Jean-Luc Godard, who wanted to include the band at work in the studio to run as a backdrop to his counter culture film One Plus One. It is a revealing and rare insight and shows the band working through the various possibilities of what would become “Sympathy For The Devil”. Mick and Keith had certainly tapped into a rich source in that studio and to see them working at this particular time makes the film a fascinating study. The film also shows that the future of Brian Jones within the band was becoming increasingly fragile. He appeared sadly withdrawn and remote from the main creative process. The signs of the band’s direction were there when “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” was released as a single in May 1968, becoming their first number one in the UK for two years. That month Brian’s flat was again raided by the drug squad and he was once again arrested,  not good as he was on probation. Street riots, including particularly violent ones in Paris and London, added to the backdrop for Beggars Banquet. The Stones, now well and truly the epitome of all things apparently anti-establishment, watched, listened and went into the studio and totally captured the mood of a troubled time. The album opens with the final version of “Sympathy For The Devil” – possibly the ultimate Stones track or certainly one with the most dramatic undercurrent. To open an album with Mick’s devil persona singing ‘please allow me to introduce myself’ is powerful stuff indeed. More conflict occurred when the album’s original cover was considered too ‘guttural’, by the record label. In its depiction of the inside of a graffiti covered toilet and in an act of defiance it reappeared with a cover showing a formal invitation to the Beggars Banquet itself. page 1 | 2

Even though her run with High School Musical ends with the upcoming HSM3, the 19-year-old Hudgens still knows where her bread is buttered. "Your fans are the ones who support your movies," the singer-actress says in the new issue of Teen Vogue about her screaming-teen fanbase. "Without them, your career is over. I'm turning 20 this year, so of course I'm going to have to grow up. But I'll do it when the time is right." Take, for instance, Rock On, Hudgens' first non-HSM film project in the last few years. Sure, she may play an edgy, dark loner with no friends, but she's quick to point out, "The script itself is still really family-oriented." The same goes for Identified, her recently released sophomore solo album. "It's a little more sophisticated [than my first album]," Hudgens explains, "though not in a sense where it's too old for my fans." —Additional reporting by Alexis Brunswick