The legendary Paul Rodgers recently played the B. B. King Blues Club in Times Square and the show was documented in full on THIS LINK. Now please enjoy the set of photos by our own “Skeleton” Pete Parrella.
Official Website: www.paulrodgers.com
If you are well-schooled in the history of Rock music then you know the talents of Mr. Paul Rodgers very well. The legendary singer made incredible music with bands like Free, Bad Company, The Firm and most recently alongside the members of Queen. The chance to see him perform in such an intimate space as B.B. King Blues Club was a no brainer and you can learn more by scrolling past the logo below.
Artist: Paul Rodgers
Venue: B. B. King Blues Club (New York, NY)
Opener: n/a
Date: 9/27/2007
Label: Eagle Records
There are legends, and then there are the legends among those legends, and when it comes down to it singer Paul Rodgers is definitely one who holds this type of status when compared to his music industry peers. The world first heard him with Free and then Bad Company, the latter being my own first introduction to “The Voice” and that bands music adding crucial building blocks to my own Rock music interest. His prolific career found him working with lead guitarist Jimmy Page in The Firm, and while this band was never my own cup of tea it did some good for those who appreciated it. The most recent years of Paul’s career have found him working with Brian May and Roger Taylor of Queen in their “Queen and Paul Rodgers” outings and while this project had been met with mixed commentary, it was great to find friends working together for the common musical good when it came down to it. Now on what appeared to be a break from the Queen outings, we found Paul doing a night of material at the venerated B.B. King Blues Club and there was no way that I was going to miss seeing him perform in such intimate quarters.
Continue reading Paul Rodgers @ B.B. King Blues Club (9/27/2007)
Artist: Rory Gallagher
Title: “Live At Montreux”
Label: Eagle Records
Release Date: 7/25/2006
Genre: Progressive Rock
Rating: 3/5
The “Live At Montreux” videos from Eagle Vision are certainly a wondrous collection of music from some of the worlds finest talents as they graced the stage of this popular festival over the years. Rory Gallagher is among the guitar greats to be featured five times on the esteemed stage and in celebration of these appearances Eagle Rock Entertainments has made two separate pieces for the fans of the performer. The CD release while a single disk, covers a wide number of years with tracks coming from 1976, 77, 79 and 85 running 12 tracks. It’s a nice collection for the novice and new fan but will only serve the long time supporters as a teaser for the main product release which is the DVD collection. The CD was released as a compliment to the double DVD concert piece that features not one full appearance but six of this legendary player. I enjoyed listening to the CD especially tracks like “Mississippi Sheiks” and “I Take What I Want”, but was more interested in watching the DVD performances since from these you are able to absorb better the level of talent that Gallagher possessed. Sadly the music world would lose Gallagher in 1995 from complications after a liver transplant. To this day Gallagher is referred to as one of the finest Rhythm & Blues guitar players the world had seen. I must say that while I highly recommend the DVD I am not so sure of the CD, since it is only the twelve selections. It’s more for the fan who wants to complete his Rory Gallagher collection and since the “Montreux” releases are so well-done this makes investigating them both something any discerning music fan should do.
Continue reading “Live At Montreux” by Rory Gallagher
Artist: Rainbow
Title: “Live In Munich 1977”
Label: Eagle Records
Release Date: 6/13/2006
Genre: Hard Rock
Rating: 7/10
Ritchie Blackmore remains one of the most exciting guitar players in Rock history, and is one of the key people responsible for the early influences of Hard Rock guitar. Starting out with Hard Rock/Blues legends Deep Purple he left in 1975 to form Rainbow, a band to further explore his creative genius. He was also involved in heavy in-fighting with Purple’s Ian Gillan at the time which made this project all the more appealing to him. Deep Purple would themselves disband in 1976 before reuniting in 1983. The band during the course of its life would go through a number of lineups and this recording from Munich in 1977 features what appears to be the only time this particular formation of players had been recorded. Joining Blackmore would be Ronnie James Dio, whose band Elf was a continual support act for Deep Purple. Drumming was the one and only Cozy Powell, perhaps one of the most powerful Rock drummers of the time period as well as Bob Daisley on bass and Dave Stone on keyboards. The music of Rainbow was instantly appealing to fans of Purple as well as Hard Rock stalwarts who looked for something a little heavier. Tracks like “Kill The King” and “Long Live Rock ‘n Roll” ensured that would be the case with their pounding catchiness. “Catch The Rainbow” and “Still I’m Sad” with their each being over 15 minutes in length contain enough of the guitar wielding prowess fans expect of the man in black to showcase and are part of the reason that the album only runs at eight songs. Yngwie fans should note that Blackmore was among the earliest influences in the performers’ life and would be smart to also pay attention especially if the axe is their chosen instrument. The CD is also a great way for the Dio fans to hear how one of the best singers in the Metal industry sounded almost thirty years ago. Wow, even I had to stop and re-read that sentence….
Continue reading “Live In Munich 1977” by Rainbow
Artist: Deep Purple
Title: “Rapture of the Deep” – Special Edition
Label: Eagle Records
Date: 6/27/2006
Genre: Rock
Rating: 9/10
So much positive praise has been written about Deep Purple’s “Rapture Of The Deep” that it almost was expected of the band to release a double CD special edition not long after the initial release. The reaction by the general public to the newest album by these elder Statesmen of Rock was both incredible but yet very richly deserved. It’s 2006 and Ian Gillan now leads the charge with two original members gone off to other pursuits or well-deserved relaxation. Today we find Ritchie Blackmore playing “Renaissance Fair Rock” with his partner Candice Night while Jon Lord chose to retire from touring and recording. In their place we find Steve Morse, an incredible technician on the guitar and Don Airey on keyboards who brings to the table experience gained touring with “insert artist here”. I note it like that for Don’s contributions to Rock music would very easily fill this entire page. Bass and drums are still adeptly handled by Roger Glover and Ian Paice. Gillan can still deliver when you take stock of the whole album and it’s what made me save him for last. His pipes a little softer at times, but when necessary he can belt it out just like he used to. When you listen to the recording you would hardly think that this was a band that was formed some 37 years ago. Tracks like “Money Talks” that are loaded with the signature keyboards expected in a Purple song and “Junkyard Blues” remind you that this band has not yet lost its luster but instead chosen to shine up the model just a little more for the diehard supporters they have kept throughout the years.
Continue reading “Rapture of the Deep” Special Edition by Deep Purple
