You don’t want a review that starts “Buy this because it’s in aid of a good cause”. You want to know what you’re getting for your money, and what you get here is a wide-ranging assortment of interesting tracks. Most have appeared elsewhere, but there is enough variety to suggest that if you’ve already got many of the tracks you’ve got a hefty collection.
Not much of it is blues, although there are several tracks by soul- and blues-based performers, and as you might expect, the subject matter tends to be at the more worthy end of the spectrum. Blues fans will especially like the heartfelt “It’s A Blessing” by Maria Muldaur accompanied only by Bonnie Raitt, “Sister Rosa” by the Neville Brothers (about Rosa Parks’ place in civil rights history), “Getting There” by Mose Allison (nice they chose something other than the classics everyone knows), and “I Know I’ve Been Changed” by John Hammond with Tom Waits from the magnificent Wicked Grin album. You also get a live version of “A Change Is Gonna Come” by Tina Turner with Robert Cray guesting on guitar, but coming shortly after the Nevilles I could only think how much I preferred their version, or indeed, several others, like those by Sam Cooke or Otis Redding, or even English folk-rock group The Oysterband. While they’re not strictly blues you should also enjoy “More Than A Paycheck” by Sweet Honey In The Rock – wonderful singing – and “I Shall Not Be Moved” by Pop Staples with fine slide guitar added by Ry Cooder, while Los Lobos chip in with a version of Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On” which is respectful but still adds something to it.
What else do you like? Jazz? You’ve got Norah Jones singing the exquisite “Peace” by Horace Silver. Country? How about Willie Nelson’s “Living In The Promiseland”? Folk rock? There’s Bob Dylan’s “Watching The River Flow”, produced by Leon Russell 33 years ago and still sounding as fresh as a mountain stream. Latin? Ruben Blades does “Estampa” from his recent Mundo CD.
I looked forward to the one unreleased track here, “Happy Earthday” by Captain Beefheart. Don’t build your hopes too high. It’s short, it’s unaccompanied, and I suspect it was actually improvised as we hear it during a phone call. Those of us old enough to remember being knocked sideways by “Safe As Milk” and “Trout Mask Replica” will always thrill to hear the Don in flight, but this sounds like a man who wants to get on with his painting.
The CD is just over an hour well spent. The tracks are a mix of the enjoyable, the acceptable and the interesting. Which come under which description will reflect your tastes. It will probably introduce you to some performers you’re not familiar with and remind you of some you’ve enjoyed in the past. And how can you possibly quantify the curiosity value of Lou Reed singing the Louis Armstrong number, “What A Wonderful World”?
Now I’ll point out that if you buy it, you’ll be helping a good cause, “A campaign for the universal right to clean air and clean water”. Info about the organisation and the CD is at www.wherewelive.org.
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