The S4L Album of the Year 2015: Something More Than Free - Jason Isbell

From the moment I first heard it I knew that every album that followed had to top this. From July onwards this was already penciled in as The S4L Album of the Year 2015. This is "Thinking Man's Country" as oppossed to some of the nonsense that generally spews forth from Nashville!

His previous album Southeastern was always going to take some beating, such was the high praise for that album (even my mate Colin Busher below speaks with great favour about it) that pleasing the critics with something a little bit different was always going to be difficult. The Good News for Jason Isbell though is that if he, or any other Artist for that matter, relied on sales from the critics then they'd all be pretty poor! A good review, or even a bad review doesn't always matter to an artist who is really on a roll when it comes to crafting great songs. Rather it is the people who will listen and are able to find a little bit of themselves in the music that have the greater say. It is they who buy the album, go to the shows etc so if it sucked they'd vote with their feet and not bother to support it.

Seeing the response to Something More Than Free from the public should encourage Jason Isbell and not hamper  his efforts to day by day become a better songwriter.

Where Southeastern seemed very personal at times Something More Than Free is loaded with characters to spotlight the world he wishes to convey (and in doing that, he's doing no different to what Bruce Springsteen, Neil Young, Paul Simon or any other decent songsmith is doing).

There's a diversity of sound as well throughout the album. There's Country, Folk, and a bit of Rock all cleverly dispensed between the 11 songs.

If It Takes A Lifetime appeared at #2 in my Top Ten Songs of the Year. I loved 24 Frames the moment I first heard it (well saw it being played live on a TV show). Speed Trap Town is another favourite, and the title track also is fantastic (though personally I don't think there's a poor track on the whole of the album).

Some might have hoped that Jason Isbell would have failed to live up to the hype that was generated (not by him or his label) by Southeastern but they are all going to be disappointed because Something More Than Free is a work that has clearly triumphed and shows that Mr Isbell will be around for a long time to come yet!
 

Something More Than Free - Jason Isbell

Southeastern Records

Produced by Dave Cobb

Released 17th July 2015

US Billboard 200 Albums #6

US Billboard Top Country Albums #1

US Billboard Folk Albums #1

US Billboard Independent Albums #2

US Billboard Top Rock Albums #1

UK Album Chart #17

Tracklist*

(Click on the Links to Listen to the Music)

01. If It Takes A Lifetime    
02. 24 Frames    
03. Flagship    
04. How To Forget    
05. Children Of Children    
06. The Life You Chose    
07. Something More Than Free    
08. Speed Trap Town    
09. Hudson Commodore    
10. Palmetto Rose    
11. To A Band That I Loved.

* Links might not necessarily be the version of the song that appears on the record. You Tube once again seem to have removed tracks from the album they seem to have uploaded to a playlist themselves when the album came out. Apologies for this. Hope it doesn't spoil your listening pleasure.

Something More Than Free 
Some thoughts by Colin Busher 

"an album a lot of artists would sell their family for!"

2013's Southeastern is the best album I've heard in the last 15 -20 years. It stopped me in my tracks.

I told myself and others, when waiting on the follow up that a Southeastern only comes along every 20 years or so and expecting SMTF to be as good was foolish. Its not as good in my opinion, but only by the shortest of margins. If a record can have a 'lived in' feel about it, then SMTF has it. Isbell is a great storyteller and you feel immediately immersed in his tales and his characters.
From the couple in Flagship to the working class father in the title track which for me captures perfectly the life of the hard working man.

The standout track for me is Speed Trap Town a song that just pulls at your emotions. A song where you live every moment with the protagonist. Storytelling at its best. Who hasnt at some point wanted to be "a thousand miles away from a speedtrap town"?

Just shy of the perfection of Southeastern, SMTF is an album a lot of artists would sell their family for.

The S4L Boxset of the Year 2015: The Ties That Bind - The River Collection

The S4L Boxset of the Year 2015 was only ever going to have one winner.

Ever since Springsteen released the Darkness Boxset rumours abounded that a Boxset for The River was in the works and finally back in October this year, a day before the 35th Anniversary of the release of The River album it was announced that it would be released on December 4th.

I had even speculated a year prior to the annoucement what might be on the set and apart from a few things I was almost correct!

It was great seeing what could have been the album had it been released in 1979 as just a single album. I've had a bootleg of this for years and have always really liked it, especially the Rockabilly version of You Can Look (But You Better Not Touch) and the fact that Loose End was included to begin with.

Also good was seeing that songs that had been previously issued on the Tracks Boxset that were recorded during the making of The River are all brought together in one place (the 4th CD of the set. There's a number of my favourite Bruce tunes included in that little lot (Take 'Em As They Come, Roulette, Where The Bands Are, and Restless Nights).

The Crown Jewel of the Boxset has to be The Live Show from Tempe, Arizona filmed on 5th November 1980. And of course there are after little extras like the Note book with Springsteen's written words and a book with many unseen photos and the story of the making of The River Album.

Tonight on BBC4  (for viewers in the UK) you can get a chance to watch The Ties That Bind Documentary and the Tempe Show from 11pm. Set your recording devices so you don't miss it.

 

The Ties That Bind: The River Collection Track List
CD 1
The River - Record One (Remastered)
1. "The Ties That Bind"
2. "Sherry Darling"
3. "Jackson Cage"
4. "Two Hearts"
5. "Independence Day"
6. "Hungry Heart"
7. "Out In The Street"
8. "Crush On You"
9. "You Can Look (But You Better Not Touch)"
10. "I Wanna Marry You"
11. "The River"

CD 2
The River - Record Two (Remastered)
1. "Point Blank"
2. "Cadillac Ranch"
3. "I'm A Rocker"
4. "Fade Away"
5. "Stolen Car"
6. "Ramrod"
7. "The Price You Pay"
8. "Drive All Night"
9. "Wreck On The Highway"

CD 3
The River: Single Album
1. "The Ties That Bind"
2. "Cindy"                     
3. "Hungry Heart"         
4. "Stolen Car" (Vs. 1)            
5. "Be True"
6. "The River"
7. "You Can Look (But You Better Not Touch)" (Vs. 1)
8. "The Price You Pay" 
9. "I Wanna Marry You"
10. "Loose End"

CD 4
The River: Outtakes
Record One
1. "Meet Me in the City"
2. "The Man Who Got Away"  
3. "Little White Lies" 
4. "The Time That Never Was"          
5. "Night Fire"
6. "Whitetown"  
7. "Chain Lightning"   
8. "Party Lights"  
9. "Paradise By The "C""
10. "Stray Bullet"  
11. "Mr. Outside"          

Record Two
12. "Roulette" 
13. "Restless Nights"
14. "Where The Bands Are"
15. "Dollhouse"
16. "Living On The Edge Of The World"          
17. "Take 'em As They Come"
18. "Ricky Wants A Man Of Her Own"
19. "I Wanna Be With You"
20. "Mary Lou"
21. "Held Up Without a Gun"
22. "From Small Things (Big Things One Day Come)"

DVD 1
The Ties That Bind (Documentary)

DVD 2
The River Tour, Tempe 1980
Concert – Part 1
1. "Born to Run"
2. "Prove It All Night"
3. "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out"
4. "Jackson Cage"
5. "Two Hearts"
6. "The Promised Land"
7. "Out in the Street"
8. "The River"
9. "Badlands"
10. "Thunder Road"
11. "No Money Down"
12. "Cadillac Ranch"
13. "Hungry Heart"
14. "Fire"
15. "Sherry Darling"
16. "I Wanna Marry You"
17. "Crush on You"
18. "Ramrod"
19. "You Can Look (But You Better Not Touch)"

DVD 3
The River Tour, Tempe 1980
Concert – Part 2
1. "Drive All Night"
2. "Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)"
3. "I'm A Rocker"
4. "Jungleland"
5. "Detroit Medley"
6. "Where The Bands Are (Credits)"

BONUS: The River Tour Rehearsals
- Ramrod
- Cadillac Ranch
- Fire
- Crush On You
- Sherry Darling

Now that The River Boxset is out I guess we can now get the rumour mill running for either a Nebraska Boxset or a Born in the U.S.A. Boxset to come next!

The S4L Debut Album of the Year 2015: Response - The Spitfires

Here's a  Mod band called The Spitfires that my mate Coxy has been going on about a lot and at every chance possible encouraging us to have a listen. Having taken the advice of my buddy from up in the North East, who knows a thing or two about music, I dived in and discovered a fantastic sound from a bunch of youngsters hailing from Watford.

It seems I wasn't the only one impressed with them as BBC pundit and former Chelsea player, the niffty footed Pat Nevin was also quite taken with the album (read his full review here):
 "As far as debut albums go, Response has the depth and the innovation to get people listening and that’s the most important thing. Yet it goes beyond that in so many ways because the listener has something special in his hands that may just prove to be a catalyst not just for the band, but for an entire generation of young people who haven’t had a spokesman to air their frustrations until now. There’s a massive hole in the industry at the moment because nobody is talking about the problems these youngsters are facing. The Spitfires are more than aware of what they’re going through and, more importantly, they’re not afraid to scream about it so that others just have to listen."

I read quite a number of reviews across many websites from Bloggers to Magazines and to a man everyone of them was really positive about the band and the album.

The band's influences shine through (The Jam, The Clash) but do not overpower and through the 13 tracks it is clear that Billy Sullivan is a very gifted songwriter and musician.

Move On Up Blog has done a great breakdown of each track and you can check that out as you listen to the album here.

Hope you enjoy the music. Click on the links for further investigation and listening pleasure.

I'm more than happy to toss my hat in the ring and declare that The S4L Debut Album of the Year 2015 is Response - The Spitfires.

Response - The Spitfires

Catch 22 Records

Released August 2015 

The Spitfires are:

Billy Sullivan - Vocals and Guitar

Sam Long - Bass

Matt Johnson - Drums

Chris Chanell - Keyboards

Tracklist

 Disciples.
Tell Me.
Escape Me.
Spoke Too Soon.
Relapse.

 Stand Down

Seranade Part 1.
I'm Holdin' On.

 

Spark To Start.
Words To Say.
When I Call Out Your Name.
Seranade Part 2.
4am.

On iTunes you can get the album with a Bonus Track From Cradle to Grave (the link is for a live version of the song and not the studio version that features on the album)

The S4L Debut Album 

of the Year 2015

The S4L Reggae (Compilation) Album of the Year 2015

I couldn't quite make up my mind about this so I've chosen two great compilations that offer up a wealth of classic Reggae tunes.

Both are worthy of the title The S4L Reggae (Compilation) Album of the Year 2015.

The well-established and deep-rooted links between reggae and punk are  celebrated on a 19-track compilation  from Universal Music Catalogue. ‘Punky Reggae Selecta’ conjures the streetwise, cutting edge music scene of the 1970s with a smart selection of hard-hitting reggae tracks that influenced the new wave of punk artists, by Steel Pulse, Aswad, Third World and many more.

The album begins with a track that perfectly captures the relationship between these two different forms of rebel music. Jamaician reggae favourite Junior Murvin recorded the original in 1976, and it was seized upon by the London band soon to join the vanguard of the punk movement, The Clash. Their version was on their self-titled debut album of 1977, after which Murvin’s recording was included in the film ‘Rockers’ and belatedly gave him a top 30 UK pop hit in 1980.

The compilation also includes tracks by some of the most politically aware commentators on the reggae scene of the time, such as Burning Spear (‘Marcus Garvey’) and the aforementioned Steel Pulse, with ‘Prodigal Son,’ from their landmark ‘Handsworth Revolution’ album of 1978.

The anthemic ‘Legalise It,’ by former Wailers member Peter Tosh, and ‘Crazy Baldhead’ by Johnny Clarke also feature, reflecting a time in which reggae was played over the sound systems of punk clubs by the likes of Don Letts (more about him later) and over the airwaves of BBC Radio 1 by John Peel.

‘Punky Reggae Selecta’ also showcases such heroes as Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry, with ‘Roast Fish and Cornbread,’ and Max Romeo and the Upsetters, who feature with both ‘War Ina Babylon’ and ‘Chase The Devil.’ Other reggae greats such as Prince Far I, Augustus Pablo and U-Roy also help to demonstrate how reggae fed the punk revolution.

Compiled and annotated by DJ, recording artist and film director, Don Letts, ‘Dread Meets Punk Rockers Uptown Volume 2’, finally provides a long awaited follow-up to the widely acclaimed first volume, issued some 14 years ago. The 2CD, 38 track set comprises many of the tracks Don spun at the UK’s first punk club, The Roxy, which were instrumental in turning a whole generation of punks onto reggae back in the late seventies. The set features notes and images in the booklet included, courtesy of the Don himself.

There's a couple of songs that are included that are also on Punky Reggae Selecta but that merely shows what great tunes they are. Other artists on Don Letts' selection include The Twinkle Brothers, Black Uhuru, Toots and the Maytals, Tapper Zukie, Inner Circle, Culture, Big Youth, The Mighty Diamonds, The Abyssinians and The Gladiators to name but a few.

The S4L Country Album of the Year 2015: Down To Believing - Allison Moorer

There's been some great Country Music  Albums released this year and a number of them could easily have been The S4L Country Album of the Year 2015. Allow me to mention a few in passing  and also deal with one possible glaring omission (click on the links to enjoy the music).

Angels and Alcohol - Alan Jackson, The Blade - Ashley Monroe, Gone Like The Cotton - The Cox Family, Cass County - Don Henley, The Traveling Kind - Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell, Mr Misunderstood - Eric Church, and Pageant Material - Kacey Musgraves.

Absent from that list and indeed this category is a certain Mr Jason Isbell's Something More Than Free. The reason that it is absent is that it is due for far greater recognition to be revealed at a later date, so don't panic and don't be giving me grief!

The album I've chosen is the eigth studio album by Allison Moorer entitled Down To Believing. It had been a five year wait for a follow up to 2010's Crows Album and it's an album that's been crafted against the backdrop of a relationship split from Steve Earle and her young son's diagnosis with autism. It's an album that implies that there were mistakes made on the journey and diversions on the life's highway but she manages to craft from the pain and regrets etc a powerful bunch of tunes that surely must rank as her finest album to date.

Simon Holland, writing for Folk Radio UK said of the album:

 "It’s a break-up record, recorded in the fall out of the unravelling of her seven-year marriage to Steve Earle. Now living as a single parent, it also comes on the back of their now five-year-old son’s diagnosis with autism. Both of those factors figure large in the record, but if you’re going to write the headlines then you should also be prepared to tell the story and there’s so much to this record. There is passion, anger, there are questions with few answers, but there is defiance, acceptance, a glimmer of reconciliation and a dash of hope. It walks a highly charged emotional line and in doing so delivers a record that confirms Allison’s place amongst the very best of America’s singer songwriters."

I think that's a great summary of the album. 

It's probable that this will not feature highly on the Best of the Year Lists in the Music Press but I'm more than happy to declare it The S4L Country Album of the Year 2015.

  Down To Believing - Allison Moorer

 Entertainment One Music/Proper Records

Produced by Kenny Greenberg

Released 16th March 2015

US Country Chart #26

US Independent Albums Chart #36

The Guardian Review.

Slant Magazine Review. 

Pop Matters Review.

Country Perspective Review.

Saving Country Music Review.

Rolling Stone Interview.

The S4L Comeback Album of The Year 2015 - Penetration + The Rezillos

Making a decision as to what would be The S4L Comeback Album of the Year 2015 was actually not too difficult except for the problem that there were two contenders, both of whom had not released an album in 30+ years!


First up there was Resolution by Penetration. It had been 36 years since the last album Coming Up For Air. Having been back playing live since 2002 and only to have released a couple of singles (Our World - 2008, The Feeling - 2010) a brand spanking new album from them was most welcome indeed.

Second up was Zero by The Rezillos. It had been 37 years since their debut studio album Can't Stand The Rezillos was recorded and released in July 1978 on Sire Records, and less than a year later a live album Mission Accomplished...But The Beat Goes On also hit the stores (You can listen to both albums here!). By time the live album came out they had already been split up more than 8 months and had played their final show together in December 1978 (which was recorded for the said album). The band have been playing live again since 2001 and vocalists Faye Fife and Eugene Reynolds, and drummer Angel Paterson are the only remaining original members of the band.  

Like Penetration, The Rezillos have only released a few singles since reforming (2009's No.1 Boy, 2011's Out of This World and a live version of Top of the Pops in 2012) so a full length Second Studio album after 37 years is well worth the wait.

It seemed a shame to give one the honour and exclude the other so they both share the distinction of being The S4L Comeback Album of the Year 2015.

 Resolution - Penetration

Polestar 
Produced by Robert Blamire

Released 9th October 2015

Louder Than War Review.

Louder Than War Interview with Pauline Murray.

NE:MM Interview with Penetration.

Vinyl Guru on The Resolution of Penetration.

Beat Goes On (Promo Video).

 Zero - The Rezillos
Metropolis Records
Released 16th March 2015 

Update 22/12/15: You Tube seem to have removed the Full Album which they themselves had uploaded (they seem to be doing this with a lot of albums these days). Apologies. So here's a couple of tracks from the album.

 Pop Matters Reviews Zero.
Louder Than War Review.
Punk News Review.
Record Collector Review.

The S4L Live Album of the Year 2015: Brendan Byrne Arena, New Jersey 05/08/84 - Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band

There were a few live albums this year that stood out for me and each one had it's merits. First there was The Boys first official Live Album 'Undercover - Live in China'. A great little 13 song set at a "secret show" due to a government ban on their tour (not for any outrageousness on the band's part. Read more about it here). Old classics mixed with four newer tracks featured on The S4L Comeback Album of the Year 2014 - Punk Rock Menopause.

Second one I really liked was Black Rebel Motorcycle Club's Live In Paris. It contains a recording of the Specter At The Feast album played in sequence and a selection of tracks gleaned from their other recordings. Not that I pay a lot of attention to reviews but I did disagree with a review on Louder Than War that said the album sounded like U2! It's only in the past couple of years that I've really sat down and listened to BRMC and it was really the Specter At The Feast album that made a huge impression on me.

A third Live album, and again very different from the previous two that I thought was quite exceptional was Aquostic! Live At The Roundhouse by Status Quo. In conjunction with BBC Radio 2 the band had put on their first ever Acoustic Show at The Roundhouse, London back in October of 2014 to celebrate the release of their Aquostic (Stripped Bare) album. The BBC were on hand to record and film the concert which was then shown on tv and broadcast on the radio. A riviting show that was loaded with track after track of Quo classics performed like you've never heard them before.

The album I picked as The S4L Live Album of the Year 2015 was not one that was released to the shops and therefore was not a huge seller that got lots of publicity. It is part of the Live Springsteen Archives - and this year there were a couple of others that I could easily have picked as the best one. From the Devil's and Dust Tour in 2005 at Columbus was a real cracker with Bruce out on his own reimagining some of his finest tunes as well as playing tracks from the then latest album. The excellent Nassau Coliseum show from New Year's Eve 1980 on The River Tour was also another consideration. And lastly there was the New Year's Eve show from the Tower Theater in Upper Darby, Philadelphia on the Born To Run Tour that was also a consideration.

The one I ended up going with is what was the first of ten nights at the Brendan Byrne Arena and his first shows in New Jersey since 1981 where he had opened the Meadowlands with a six night stand.

What you get is Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band at their finest thundering out a 29 song set over 3 hours and 16 minutes that is a clear demonstration that they were one of the best live acts in the world at the time. It's full of humour, passion, intensity and Springsteen telling stories of growing up and family and a band totally on fire.

  Brendan Byrne Arena, New Jersey 05/08/84 - Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band

 Bruce Springsteen Live Archives

Released May 2015

SET ONE
1.BORN IN THE U.S.A.
2.OUT IN THE STREET
3.TENTH AVENUE FREEZE-OUT
4.ATLANTIC CITY
5.JOHNNY 99
6.HIGHWAY PATROLMAN
7.PROVE IT ALL NIGHT
8.GLORY DAYS
9.PROMISED LAND
10.USED CARS
11.MY HOMETOWN
12.BADLANDS
13.THUNDER ROAD

SET TWO
1.HUNGRY HEART
2.DANCING IN THE DARK
3.CADILLAC RANCH
4.SHERRY DARLING
5.NO SURRENDER
6.PINK CADILLAC
7.GROWIN' UP
8.BOBBY JEAN
9.BACKSTREETS
10.ROSALITA (COME OUT TONIGHT)

FIRST ENCORE
1.JERSEY GIRL
2.JUNGLELAND

SECOND ENCORE
1.BORN TO RUN
2.DETROIT MEDLEY
3.TRAVELIN' BAND
4.TWIST AND SHOUT

The S4L Blues Album of the Year 2015: Don't Lose This - Pop Staples

There's been a couple of really great Blues albums that I've really enjoyed this year: A Fool To Care by Boz Scaggs, Born to Play Guitar by Buddy Guy, and the recent Battle Scars by Walter Trout to name but a few.

The album I've chosen for The S4L Blues Album of the Year is one that was years in the making and only saw the light of day fifteen years after the passing of the artist concerned. So for the past fifteen years I'm fairly sure that Heaven's Halls have been filled with the sound of Pops Staples voice singing an even greater song whilst here on earth we got to hear his weathered blues/gospel for one last time.

Between 1998-1999 Roebuck "Pop" Staples recorded a bunch of songs that were supposed to be for a final album by The Staples Singers, Mavis Staples said:

"It was meant to be our last work, but my sisters and I decided to let Pops sing, to let him have this one. ... One day, Pops told me, ‘Mavis, bring that record up here, I want to hear it.’ I brought it up to the bedroom and he listened. When it was over, Pops told me, ‘Mavis, don’t lose this here.’ I said, ‘OK, Pops, I won’t lose it.’ And he just smiled. It was a moment I’ll never forget. He had this glow after listening to it; he loved it. So I kept it.

    I always said I was going to get it out there because Pops told me not to lose it. When he said, ‘Don’t lose this,’ that meant: ‘Let it be heard.’"

 

Mavis teamed up with Jeff Tweedy (Wilco) with whom she had already worked on a couple of fantastic albums (You Are Not Alone and One True Vine) and he added newer production to the 16 year old tapes. Tweedy's son Spencer played drums on the record and Jeff played bass.

 

Will Hermes of Rolling Stone gave it a Four Star Review. Tshepo Mokoena of The Guardian also spoke very warmly of the album.

So what you get are 10 beautiful tracks brimming over with gospel, R&B, and the Blues, particular highlights for me were Somebody Was Watching, Friendship, The Lady's Letter, Will the Circle Be Unbroken and an absolutely jaw dropping rendition of Bob Dylan's Gotta Serve Somebody.

 

Don't Lose This - Pop Staples

dBPM Records/Anti Records

Produced by Jeff Tweedy

Released 17th February 2015

Independent Albums Chart #16

Don't Lose This

The S4L Metal Album of the Year 2015: The Awakening - P.O.D.

Starting to get together my favourite Albums of the Year and what's clear is that I've been listening to lots of different styles of music throughout the year. I refuse to be a musical snob and only focus on one particular style of music. I've often found that when I've been so narrow minded with regard to music I have missed out on hearing other great things. The way I look at it is if the music is something that I like (no matter the artist) then I'm happy to listen. I understand that others don't adopt such a policy but it's something I would encourage.

First out of the bag is the Metal Album of the Year. I don't listen to loads of metal but there were a few things this year that struck me as being worthwhile spending time playing: All That Remains album The Order of Things was pretty sharp, especially the track This Probably Won't End Well. Blessthefall's To Those Left Behind was another I really liked as was Shinedown's Threat to Survival.

But the one I've gone for as my favourite of the year is by a band who I have loved for more than twenty years - P.O.D. (Payable On Death) Over  23 years they have released some great albums (Snuff the Punk, Brown, Fundamental Elements of Southtown, Satellite, Testify, and When Angels and Serpents Dance) and fantastic singles (Southtown, Rock the Party, School of Hard Knocks, Alive, Sleeping Awake, Lights Out, and Addicted being just a few of them).

The Awakening by San Diego Metalists P.O.D. is their ninth studio album and in what is a first for them it's a concept album! P.O.D. don't really have the same kind of draw as they did back when Satellite album hit the big time for them but it hasn't stopped them from still looking for ways to expand their horizons. With Howard Benson back at the controls for the fifth album they have certainly done something very different and it does seem to work well. I won't say much about the songs because the video below of the band discussing the album track by track does that better than I could.  One thing I do like about the album that I will say is that there is a great sense of hope weaving through this album even amid the darkness of some of the themes of the story created by the concept.

The album was deemed a commercial failure after dropping off the charts after only a week but a lot of that has to be down to the inability of the record label to give sufficient promotion to it. Regardless of that I really loved it and am happy to declare it The S4L Metal Album of the Year for 2015.

The Awakening - P.O.D.

Universal/T-Boy

Produced by Howard Benson

Released 21st August 2015

US Chart #75

P.O.D.
    Sonny Sandoval - vocals
    Marcos Curiel - guitar
    Traa Daniels - bass
    Wuv Bernardo - drums, percussion

Additional musicians
    Lou Koller (Sick of It All) - guest vocals on Revolución
    Maria Brink (In This Moment) - guest vocals on Criminal Conversations

The Awakening Album

P.O.D. Talk About The Awakening Track By Track

The Soundtrack4Life Albums of the Year 2013

It's a tough choice this year thinking about what the possible favourite Album of the Year is. I started with a very long list and have edited it down to a bit of a shorter long list. Out of that I selected what I can consider to be my best of the year. I make no apologies for the choices because they are my choices. They may not have been the biggest selling albums or even by artists who are particularly "hip", but they are my choices. These are the things that excited me in music this year and as ever it is a nice mixture of different sounds that somehow have collided together give me a whole lot of joy.
Here's a Playlist of some of my favourites from the year including many that didn't quite make the Top Ten.

#10

Boz Scaggs - Memphis

 Click here to see a previous post where I spotlighted the 'Memphis' Album.

  #9

Eddie and the Hot Rods - Live at The Rainbow 1977

Previous Post relating to 'Live at The Rainbow 1977'.

#8

Jars of Clay - Inland

Click Here to Listen to the 'Inland' Album in Full.

A Brief History of Jars of Clay.

#7

Jelly - Troubadour, Wizard, The Queen and The Machine

Previous Post regarding Jelly.
 

#6

Various Artists - A Concert For Kirsty

Previous post regarding Kirsty MacColl that included a spotlight on this superb concert.

#5

The Godfathers - Jukebox Fury

Interview with Del Bartles of The Godfathers originally posted in March 2013.

 #4

The Strypes - Snapshot

Previous post relating to The Strypes.

#3

Tankus The Henge - The Last Days Are Coming.

Previous post spotlighting Tankus The Henge and this really exceptional album.

#2

John Fogerty - Wrote A Song For Everyone

Previous post from May 2013 spotlighting this brilliant album by a true Rock and Roll Legend.

#1

Ruts DC - Rhythm Collision Volume 2

 

Click Here to Listen to The Soundtrack4Life Album of The Year.

Previous Post spotlighting The Ruts DC Live.

Soundtrack4Life Album of The Year

So here it is, the Album of the Year. It's been a great year for music, some truly amazing albums that have thrilled us no end and have given many hours of listening pleasure. The one album though that has dominated the year and has never been off the playlist is Bruce Springsteen's 'Wrecking Ball'.

 ALBUM OF THE YEAR

Probably one of the finest releases by Springsteen since 'The Rising' and one that speaks right into the times we are living in.

It was live in a concert setting though that the songs of 'Wrecking Ball' found their loudest voice and that's why the Concert Bootleg of the Year also goes to Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band for their performance on the final date of the European Leg of the Tour in Finland at The Olympic Stadium, Helsinki on 31st July. 

CONCERT BOOTLEG OF THE YEAR

A couple of shows on the European Leg had flirted with the 4 Hour mark but this show now goes down in history as the longest show of his career - 4 Hours and 6 Minutes and if you include the 5 Song Pre-show Acoustic Set, it clocks in at just under Four and a Half Hours!

REGGAE ALBUM OF THE YEAR

 Tim Armstong of Rancid did a wonderful job on this of bringing back the sound of old school 1970's Reggae and Jimmy Cliff sounds as good as he ever has done.

POP ALBUM OF THE YEAR

 People tend to write her off because she is a little bit eccentric at times but this album saw her at her best for many years, great writing and superb tunes, and some brilliant live performances throughout the year showed that she still has something to offer.

ROCK ALBUM OF THE YEAR

 After patching things up with Cherrie Curie and Joan Jett, 2013 is looking promising for a return of The Runaways. In the middle of the peace talks came this nice slice of rock and roll. Lita Ford kind of lost her way a bit but this was a nice return to form.

BLUES ALBUM OF THE YEAR

 Dion D'Mucci seems to get better with age and after a four year absence he returned with an album loaded with fantastic blues numbers that proved that he is still very much 'The King of the New York Streets'.

COUNTRY ALBUM OF THE YEAR

 There was a wealth of good Country Music released in 2012 (yeah, I know that sounds like a strange thing to say!) but the standout album was clearly this one by the King of Country music, Johnny Cash. Drawing upon the Gospel sounds of Cash this 51 track collection is just too wonderful for words.

PUNK ALBUM OF THE YEAR

 The Cockney Rejects seemed to have found a fresh breath of air since the making of their movie of the same name as the album, and whilst I would not confess to being the biggest fan of all that the band have done through the years, this album really took me by surprise. It's hard to find a track on it that is not good.

THE OLD MAN WHO'S STILL GOT IT ALBUM OF THE YEAR

  Okay, it's not a real category but I couldn't end this without giving some kudos to the 73 year old Ian Hunter for releasing a really brilliant musical explosion of old school rock and roll that still shows that he's got it and is not likely to lose it anytime soon. Really worth getting.