The Musical Box

buddy & julie miller: written in chalk

Buddy & Julie Miller: Written in Chalk (2009) - As usual, the Millers put their ample Americana spirit through the ringer, whether it’s with their beautifully jagged duets (Gasoline and Matches, Memphis Jane), Julie’s hauntingly sparse narratives (June, Don’t Say Goodbye) or Buddy’s cunning alliances with Robert Plant (What You Gonna Do Leroy), Patty Griffin (Chalk) and Emmylou Harris (The Selfishness in Man). A killer record all the way through.

CJ3/crimson jazz trio: king crimson songbook, volume 2

Crimson Jazz Trio: King Crimson Songbook, Volume 2 (2009) - Another celebratory view of the beastly Crimson in swing mode. But Volume 2 is also a postscript for CJT drummer (and Crimson alumnus) Ian Wallace, who died shortly after these sessions were cut. The whole album is striking. But hearing Wallace and sax guest Mel Collins revisit music they originated on Crimson’s 1972 album Islands is a beautiful but bittersweet delight.

peter gabriel: lima, peru; 20-03-09

Peter Gabriel: Lima, Peru; 20-03-09 (2009) - Prog rock politico Gabriel toured Latin America in March and recorded every performance for release through themusic.com. This two hour show from Peru covers tunes from all of Gabriel’s studio albums, from the gingerly Solsbury Hill to the worldbeat apocalypse of Signal to Noise to last year’s Wall-E soundtrack delicacy Down to Earth. Bassist Tony Levin and guitarist David Rhodes light a fuse to it all, too.

grateful dead: road trips, vol.2, no. 2; carousel 2-14-68

Grateful Dead: Road Trips, Vol. 2, No. 2; Carousel 2-14-68 (2009) - Of the two new Dead archival albums, the 1977 snapshot To Terrapin is the cleaner, more commanding entry. But this mail order/download Road Trips set is way cooler. By peeling back the years to 1968, Jerry Garcia and crew sound positively fearless. They play the groove of Caution and the blues of Hurts Me Too like the music was brand new. And in 1968, it essentially was.

mike marshall: mike marshall

Mike Marshall: Mike Marshall’s Big Trio (2009) - The formal air of the cover photo suggests classical music. But mandolinist and guitarist Marshall’s new collaboration with two youthful protégés - bassist Paul Kowert and violinist Alex Hargreaves - revels in mixing chamber, Americana, touches of gypsy jazz and bluegrass sounds.  Granted, Marshall has been engaged in such synthesis for decades. But the resulting big sound of the Big Trio, though, is no less striking, inventive or playful.