MBR: The Library CD Shelf
Midwest Book Review
We Dreamed These Days
Michael Feinstein with the Carmel Symphony Orchestra
www.michaelfeinstein.com
DuckHole Records
25444 N. 113th Way
Scottsdale, AZ 85255
Miller Wright & Associates, Inc. (publicity)
1650 Broadway, Suite 1210, New York, NY 10019
$17.68 www.millerwright.com
Platinum-selling vocalist and pianist Michael Feinstein presents We
Dreamed These Days, a captivating music CD recorded with the Carmel
Symphony Orchestra, with all proceeds going to The Feinstein
Foundation and the Center for the Performing Arts in Carmel.
Feinstein's vocals supported by the heady orchestra reinvigorates
classic theater and popular culture songs, as well as two world
premier songs composed by Feinstein - the title track "We Dreamed
These Days" combines Feinstein's melody with words by Dr. Maya
Angelou, and "With You" has lyrics by Lindy Robbins and an arrangement
created by Alan Broadbent. A first-class listening experience from
beginning to end, We Dreamed These Days is a "must-have" for anyone
who truly loves the art of music and wishes to support its practice
while enjoying its finest distillations. The tracks are "How Do You
Keep the Music Playing", "Two for the Road", "As Long As She Needs
Me", "With You", "The More I See You", "There Will Never Be Another
Like You", "Dream a Little Dream of Me", "What Kind of Fool am I", "I
Remember You", "The Hungry Years", "When I Fall in Love/My Foolish
Heart", "If They Ask Me", "I'd Rather Leave While I'm in Love", and
"We Dreamed These Days".
Tonalities of Emotion
James Boyk
Performance Recordings
$25.00 www.PerformanceRecordings.com
Tonalities of Emotion is a music CD gathering concert pianist James
Boyk's performances of instrumental classics. A beautiful rendition of
timeless musical treasures superbly rendered, Tonalities of Emotion
lives up to its title and is especially recommended for public library
music CD collections. The tracks are "Bach Chromatic Fantasy & Fugue,
BWV 903" (11:44), "Chopin Fantasy-Impromptu, OP. 66" (6:02), "Debussy
Reflets dans l'Eau" (6:34), and "Mozart Sonata in A minor K.
310" (20:25). 44 min. 59 sec.
...and Love Rages On!
AO Music
Arcturian Gate, PO Box 8606
Asheville, NC 28814
c/o The Creative Service Company
4360 Emerald Drive
Colorado Springs, CO 80918
$16.89
...and Love Rages On! is the third album of AO Music, a group with
roots in its members' love for ethnomusicology worldwide. Blending
instruments and rhythms from cultures around the globe, AO Music
promotes the message of "One People, One World" with its exciting
ethnic fusion of sound. The pan-cultural songs will awaken and enrich
the listeners with their beauty, adventurous spirit, and bold
experimentation. Highly recommended, especially as a unique and
original gift! the tracks are "Gaiya Lo Mane" (5:52), "In Lake'ch" (I
am another you) (5:58), "Shen Deni" (6:00), "Ena Na Lena" (5:32),
"Sheyu" (4:50), "Kumale Saleyo" (4:19), "Tio Da Ye" (4:53), "One
Kaleo" (5:16), and "Ubuntu" (4:25). 47 min.
Mumtastic
Tareq Abboushi & Shusmo
Rock Paper Scissors
511 West 4th Street, Suite 2
Bloomington, IN 47404
$TBA www.rockpaperscissors.biz
Palestinian pianist and buzuq player Tareq Abboushi leads the quintet
Shusmo, a trailblazing New York-based group that blends Arabic music
with elements of funk, swing-happy jazz, and even Latin rhythms. Their
latest album Mumtastic (a combination of "fantastic" and "mumtaz", the
Arabic word for "excellent") offers this new style of alternative
Arabic music, brimming with pulsing energy that encourages the
listener to go with the flow. The difficulties of Palestinian life,
from sharing the culture in exile from one's homeland to the burdens
of those living in the homeland, form an integral part of Shusmo's
unforgettable songs. Highly recommended. The tracks are "Longa
Nakreez" (5:46), "The Time It Takes" (5:05), "Georgina +2" (5:14),
"Traveling" (10:14), "Samba for Maha" (6:58), "Rasty George" (4:32),
"Reprise 2" (1:47), "Bayatak" (5:39), "Interlude" (1:35), "The Wall
(featuring Amir Elsaffar-Trumpet)" (7:08), "Pickles" (6:11), "Reprise
3" (2:38), and "Dal'ona" (10:49).
Making Speech Free
Utah Phillips
Free Dirt Records
PO Box 11451, Takoma Park, MD 20913
www.freedirtrecords.com
PM Press
PO Box 23912, Oakland, CA 94623
9781604863550 $15.96 www.pmpress.org
Making Speech Free is a live recording of Utah Phillips' 1999
performance as part of a Free Speech Teach-In. This sock-it-to-'em
showcase of history, humor, song, and reminders of the importance of
the continuing struggle directly takes on modern social, economic, and
moral challenges. "Don't Mourn, Organize" and the importance of making
one's voice heard is the underlying philosophy of this inspirational
and solidly motivational album. Highly recommended. The tracks are
"Railroading on the Great Divide", "Armed with only our sense of
degradation", "No More Reds in the Union", "She favored bank robbers",
"Pretty Boy Floyd", "Anybody who doesn't need a cop to tell him what
to do", "The rich will not permit you to vote away their wealth", "I
Got to Know Why", "All we want is to create voluntary combinations",
"I Will Not Obey", "Soup", "The origin of the hiring hall and free
speech rights", "Preacher and Slave", "Keep your hands in your
pockets", "Bread and Roses", "The most dangerous woman in America",
"The Charge on Mother Jones", "A strike is a massive act of free
speech", "There's Power in the Union", "This Land is Not Our Land",
and "You cannot even passively participate". 74 min.
The Wilders
Produced by Phil Wade, The Wilders and Mike West
Free Dirt Records
c/o Trade root Music Group, LLC
PO Box 11451, Takoma Park, MD 20913
c/o Make It Bigger Mama Publicity
step...@makeitbiggermama.com
$15.96 www.thewilders.us
The Wilders country band has released a self-titled album showcasing
their talent, passion, and heart. Celebrating fifteen years of
performing as a band, The Wilders album is an experience that truly
makes the listener feel alive, and is an absolute treasure for anyone
who has every loved any variant of country, from bluegrass to folk to
modern Americana. The tracks are "Ordinary People" (4:01), "Mid
November" (5:01), "Riding on Your High Horse" (2:04), "She Says (I
Say)" (2:49), "Get Up Kid" (5:45), "Stay With Me" (3:38), "Pat's
25" (4:41), "Riverboat" (3:47), "L.A." (2:24), "Things They Say About
Home" (3:20), "No. 7" (2:00), "This Old Town" (4:39), and "Lay Down
our Guns" (4:28).
Beethoven Shreds
The Great Kat
TPR Music
c/o Thomas Public Relations, Inc.
The Parkway Plaza, 734 Walt Whitman Rd., Suite 206
Melville, NY 11747
$7.95 www.thomas-pr.com
Beethoven Shreds is a high-octane wild ride of a musical performance
by The Great Kat, who may well be the fastest guitarist in the world
(unless someone can step forth and challenge her title)! The Great Kat
performs furious, magnificent shreds of Beethoven's classics on both
the violin and the electric guitar (often with orchestra & band) in
this exciting masterpiece, encouraging all generations of music lovers
to experience Beethoven in a whole new way. Highly recommended! The
tracks are "The Flight of the Bumble-Bee" (0:42), "Beethoven's 5th
Symphony" (1:14), "Torture Techniques" (1:06), "Bach's Brandenburg
Concerto #3" (1:41), "IslamoFascists" (0:50), "Bach's The Art Of The
Fugue" (0:32), and "Paganini's Caprice #24" (1:30).
EDITOR'S NOTE:
The Midwest Book Review is an organization of volunteers committed to
promoting literacy, library usage, and small press publishing. We
accept no funds from authors or publishers. Full permission is given
to post any of these reviews on thematically appropriate websites,
newsgroups, listserves, internet discussion groups, organizational
newsletters, or to interested individuals. Please give the Midwest
Book Review a credit line when doing so.
The Midwest Book Review publishes the monthly book review magazines
"California Bookwatch", "Internet Bookwatch", "Children's Bookwatch",
"MBR Bookwatch", "Reviewer's Bookwatch", and "Small Press Bookwatch".
All are available for free on the Midwest Book Review website at www
(dot) midwestbookreview (dot) com
Anyone wanting to submit books for review consideration can send them
to:
James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
278 Orchard Drive
Oregon, WI 53575-1129
To submit reviews of any fiction or non-fiction books, email them to
Frugalmuse (at) aol (dot) com (Be sure to include the book title,
author, publisher, publisher address, publisher website/phone number,
13-digit ISBN number, and list price).
James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review