Adrian Belew - Side Four (Live) HAS LANDED!!!

Side Four (live)

(Cover Painting by Adrian Belew )

I received this tasty slice of time in the ol' postal receptacle yesterday.

Recorded live at Canal Street Tavern in Dayton, Ohio on

February 16th, 2007

If you have seen The Power Trio, or better yet, if you haven't,

you are going to be enthralled with this sonically thrilling roller coaster

ride that is anything but coasting.

As Adrian proclaims in the brief liner notes, "this is the raw unadorned account of

most of what happened next."

I actually like the fact that it's unpolished after the fact

and shows how cohesive and gifted this unit is.

On the other hand, it still has that edge to it that says

"this is live", warts be damned, of which there are few.

Julie Slick's bass comes through thunderously on this

recording and really shows her understanding of the

material, Julie is a Thonk Queen. Eric is capable of drumming with the best, and has.

I started listening, as I could, in my car and it sounded awesome. I decided to

move indoors to my HDCD decoding surround system and start

from the start. Wow !

This is as close to what it might sound like on the studio monitors

as a poor boy could get on a shoestring.

The disc clocks in at a tad over 67 minutes with a minimum

of stage banter and a focus on the music, as it should be.

John Sinks has settled nicely into the sound engineer seat

and this recording shows it. We all dearly miss Ken but I

think he would be tipping his hat to his friend for his

work at the helm.

Biff Blumfumgagne has taken over as stage tech and provided

those hither to mysterious backing vocals and harmonies.

The Crimson cuts, while having been recorded live in many

settings before this, take on a new life and are welcome additions

to the Trio cannon. Dinosaur seems fresh and driven with

a slightly quicker pace to my ears.

Young Lions, which has been one of the "solo" spotlights

in the past, is given the full three piece treatment here and

it is a rollicking rendition indeed.

The true "star" here though is the new material plus

"Of Bow & Drum". (Is it too late to tour the Op Zop album

proper ? )

The Grammy nominated "Beat Box Guitar" has some space in the middle

for Adrian, Eric and Julie to play around a bit and, they do.

"A Little Bit of Madness" is a barn burner and I'm surprised that the

venue is still standing at the end.

Adrian gives full voice to the Belewps concept in "Drive" with

the rhythm section on break. The sound of the car starting this

track off moves around in my speakers and drives right on by

as Adrian digs in.

"Writing on the Wall", "Ampersand", Matchless Man" all come across

as fresh and exciting, considering that Eric and Julie did not play

on the originals, they have had space to make these versions

their own. "Big Electric Cat", a favorite of college radio in

the way back when, is always fun and welcome, this rendition

is no exception with new life.

In the musical circles that I frequent, talk of the annual "best of 2007" lists

has already begun in earnest. I'm glad that Side Four has hit the ground

in time to be in mine.

As with the previous "sides", this one has cover art as painted by Adrian

with a great band photo by Mark Colman.

Mixed and Mastered by Saul Zonana.

Thanks to Rob Murphree, the official Webmunky, for keeping us

informed and providing a home for the Elephant Blog and download store

which has provided a whole new way for us to appreciate

and keep tabs on the world of all things Belew.

Thanks to Adrian for taking the time to share in the Blogosphere and

regale the loving public with so many fascinating tales.

Oh, and, thanks for the great music of which there has been an abundance,

in the past few years.

PS, Not to detract from the current Side Four news at hand but,

I have just uploaded various photos of The Bears and The Power Trio I.

Be sure and go order Side Four before you steer away.

( clicking on the cd cover above will get you to Adrian's site, see Store Belew )