CD Reviews
By: North County Times - | ∞
Local, Pop, Rock, Rap
LOCAL
B "Lost Along the Way"
Jennifer Jayden
Self-released
Jennifer Jayden, recently relocated to paradise, has quickly become a regular on the local coffeehouse scene as well as offering voice (singing) lessons. And she's also released her first album, with 11 of her own songs.
It's a pleasant outing, with several truly attractive melodies ("Supergirl," "Goodnight Kisses") and an easy-going groove somewhere between folk and folk-rock. The album is anchored by Jayden's obviously trained voice. She has a nice, husky sound to her singing, with broad range (although she's strongest in her lower register).
The production is clean, the arrangements crisp, the playing strong. It's a promising debut, and one that makes Jayden worth keeping an ear on.
Jennifer Jayden performs Friday at Hot Java Cafe in Carmel Mountain Ranch.
---- Jim Trageser
Staff Writer
COUNTRY
B "Here and Now"
Darryl Worley
903 Records
Early in his career, Darryl Worley's biggest hits tended to be departures from the amped-up traditional country music he excelled at. His mournfully tender "I Miss My Friend," a reflection on a lover's death, provided his first big break in 2002. The following year, he gained national recognition for his controversial anthem about Sept. 11 and war, "Have You Forgotten?"
After a two-year break, the rural Tennessee native returns with "Here and Now," his first album since leaving Dreamworks Records. There's little that's reminiscent of his best-known tunes, but plenty to suggest he's better than his reputation might suggest.
He begins with "Jumpin' Off the Wagon," a spitfire attack on his former label, and he ends with a poignant tune about returning soldiers, "I Just Got Back From a War," which mirrors how the nation's view of Iraq has evolved from gung-ho patriotism to concern for the troops and getting them home safely.
But the bulk of the album finds Worley offering substantial modern country music delivered with brawny vocals and a fresh perspective. From the ferocious groove of "Party Song" to the sensitive portrayal of pain in "Slow Dancin' With a Memory," Worley proves he deserves attention for what he does best ---- rather than his occasional diversions.
---- Michael McCall
Associated Press
POP
C+ "Taylor Hicks"
Taylor Hicks
Arista
Why did Taylor Hicks win "American Idol"?
Well, it wasn't just his soulful voice or Clooney-esque silver hair. It was his unbridled, passionate delivery and goofy charm (plus those spastic dance moves, of course).
Hicks still has that amazing voice ---- somewhere between gruffness and sweetness. But the quirky appeal and fiery performance style that led him to be the unlikely king of this year's "Idol" unfortunately is in rare supply in his overproduced, self-titled debut.
Hicks, an Alabama-bred crooner with a penchant for soul, attempts to cover the hallowed ground of his forefathers: legends such as Ray Charles and musicians such as Ry Cooder, Michael McDonald and Joe Cocker.
Does he succeed? Yes ... and no.
Sleekly produced in L.A. by Matt Serletic (Santana, Willie Nelson), Hicks' album plays on typical themes entrenched in the soul-blues tradition: heartache, journeying, more love loss.
He pays homage to Charles on such songs as the funky "Heaven Knows," which samples a riff from Charles' "What I'd Say."
Other tunes range from the horn-fueled thrust of "The Runaround" to such cheese-pop as "Dream Myself Awake," written by Rob Thomas, and the disco-funk theme "Give Me Tonight," with its slap bass line and Hicks' overt reference to gettin' jiggy.
Some of it is catchy, certainly. But there's less grit to be found here. Where is the pizazz that drove Hicks to snatch that "Idol" crown? One wishes for the raw emotion of his heroes.
Perhaps the best song on the album is one that he wrote ---- "Soul Thing": "The road can be your friend, or the devil in disguise," he sings.
That track, with its ecstatic whoops, comes closest to the uninhibited soul that Hicks does so well.
---- Solvej Schou
Associated Press
Rap / Hip-Hop
A "Hip-Hop Is Dead"
Nas
Def Jam
On the title track to his ninth album, Nas even outlines a course of action if hip-hop dies on the vine: "Roll to every station/wreck the DJ."
That vigilante spirit may sound misguided, but Nas has been known to shoot from the hip. Since his mid-1990s emergence, he's channeled international outlaw Pablo Escobar in one breath, and likened himself to a cross-bearing martyr in the next.
Now on the brilliant yet at times pedantic "Hip-Hop Is Dead" ---- his first release on Def Jam ---- Nas shows the breadth of his interests. He partners with former nemesis and his label's CEO, Jay-Z, over the stately horns of "Black Republican." And "Where Are They Now" is built on James Brown samples and features Nas running down a laundry list of former rap stars: "Redhead Kingpin, Tim Dog/ Have you seen them?/ Kwame, King Tee or King Sun."
But as much as Nas' has done to reconcile old beef and promote his forebears, he tempers the goodwill with his own dark street sensibility. On the solemn "Hold Down the Block," he rhymes: "It's beef week, Monday murder/ Two (guys) dead Tuesday ... Saturday put the gat away, chillin' with your chick and a bag of haze wondering how it's all gon' end."
The Kanye West-produced "Still Dreaming" is equally bittersweet as the duo trade rhymes about urban dreams deferred. Later, over the reclining G-funk of Scott Storch-helmed "Play on Playa," Nas hopes for "trillion-dollar riches" and worries his daughter "don't wild like the Hilton sisters."
Foregoing party-starting anthems for more contemplative verse, "Hip-Hop Is Dead" is less the rap eulogy that the title implies and more Nas's sober vision of what the genre's been missing.
---- Associated Press
C "The Price of Fame"
Bow Wow
Columbia
Ex-kiddie rapper Bow Wow opens his fifth album explaining how he's dealt with fame's high price. Granted, the Ohio rapper's much-publicized break-up with R&B hottie Ciara probably hurt even more when Internet rumors alleged the relationship was merely staged to make him appear manlier. But being blog fodder is about as rough it gets for Bow Wow, the 20-year-old MC who's spent most of his formative years in a child star bubble. Any angst comes from his girl drama, not street drama.
On the bland "The Price of Fame," he gets all heartachy-breaky twice ---- on the bouncy, reconciliation attempt "Tell Me" and the slow-burning "Outta My System" featuring T-Pain's vocoderized croon. The latter sees Bow Wow rhyming to guess who: "You still running through my mind when I'm knowing that you shouldn't be."
Yet wallowing in the emo muck isn't wise strategy for someone who's trying to become a credible adult MC. Hence Bow Wow spends the bulk of the disc tossing off empty boasts about his wealth ("If I stood on my wallet, I'd be bigger than Shaq") and his young heartthrob appeal ("Ladies on the homie like I'm Denzel/ Shirt off, big chain-rocking like I'm LL").
The production, handled mainly by Bow Wow's mentor Jermaine Dupri, is often as tired as his lines. The strident, piano-driven "Give It To You" recalls a hard-bumping G-Unit throwaway beat while the serpentine synths of "Don't Know Bout That" is cookie-cutter snap music. Such missteps are curious signs that as Bow Wow grows older, he's not getting much wiser.
---- AP
More Stories
Advertisement
First name only. Comments including last names, contact addresses, e-mail addresses or phone numbers will be deleted. Attempts to misrepresent your identity or impersonate any person will not be approved. All comments are screened before they appear online, so please keep them brief. Comments reflect the views of those commenting and not necessarily those of the North County Times or its staff writers. Click here to view additional comment policies.
Today's Stories
Advertisement