Schumann: Symphonies Nos. 2, 4 (Mahler Arrangements)

CML call number: CD CLASSICAL Schumann
Bernard Holland wrote in the New York Times: "Mahler sharpens Schumann's points. The opening of the Second Symphony has all trumpets, with lower brass instruments removed. The light-footed Scherzo is lightened even more, with greater separations between notes, fewer repeats and the strategic removal of woodwinds and brasses. Changes in the finale are similar: insertions of pizzicato markings, deletions in horn parts and, at one point, some new harmony. Mahler assumes that Schumann's buried bassoon part was meant to be heard and supports it with muted trombones and trumpets. In the Fourth Symphony, Mahler adds more than he subtracts. Violins, horns and timpani are given added weight. Mahler manages more theater from big climaxes, inserting his beloved high-register horn parts toward the end of the finale. The recording also includes the Overture to 'Genoveva,' fine music attached to a failed opera. Mr. [Riccardo] Chailly has been busy resurrecting the [Leipzig] Gewandhaus Orchestra, which sounds in lean, athletic form here" ("Schumann Retouched, Mendelssohn Revisited," 3/18/07).

David Ball: Heartaches by the Number

CML call number: CD COUNTRY Ball
Contents: Pick me up on your way down (H. Howard) -- Stop the world and let me off (Belew / Stevenson) -- Heartaches by the number (Howard) -- Sweet dreams (D. Gibson) -- Please feed the jukebox -- There stands the glass (Grisham / Hull / Shurtz) -- Faded love (B. Wills) -- What's going on in your world (Chamberlain / Porter / Steagall) -- Half as much (C. Williams) -- Please help me I'm falling (Blair / Robertson) -- I'm walking the dog (Grimsley / Grimsley).
Ralph Novak wrote in People: "While flashier, less talented singers have risen to prominence in Nashville since his 1994 debut, Ball has valiantly kept plugging away in relative obscurity. His latest is a marvelous collection of standards which amounts to a tribute to the industry that has never fully appreciated him. Included are terrific renditions of Bob Wills's 'Faded Love,' Don Gibson's 'Sweet Dreams' and Curley Williams's 'Half as Much,' as well as Ball's own 'Please Feed the Jukebox.' With his no-frills delivery, Ball gets right to the heart of it all" ("Picks & Pans: Music," 4/9/07, p. 42).

Neutral Milk Hotel: In the Aeroplane Over the Sea

CML call number: CD ROCK Neutral
Contents: The king of carrot flowers, pt. 1 — The king of carrot flowers, pts. 2 & 3 — In the aeroplane over the sea — Two-headed boy — The fool — Holland, 1945 — Communist daughter — Oh comely — Ghost — Two-headed boy pt. 2.
Eric R. Danton wrote in his Hartford Courant blog Sound Check: "Neutral Milk Hotel is not reuniting. Neither are plenty of other bands, of course, but there have been several rumors to the contrary about Neutral Milk Hotel over the past year, Billboard reports, prompting denials from the indie 'fuzz-folk' band's eccentric frontman, Jeff Mangum. Neutral Milk Hotel is one of those groups that is highly influential in music circles (stylistic descendants include the Decemberists and the Arcade Fire) while remaining largely unknown by the broader public. I'd be surprised if either of its full-length records has sold anywhere close to 100,000 copies, but Neutral Milk's second album, 1998's 'In the Aeroplane Over the Sea,' is a heartbreaking masterpiece built on lo-fi instrumentation and the fragile emotion of Mangum's quavering voice" (3/31/07).

Daughtry: Daughtry

CML call number: CD ROCK Daughtry
Ben Sisario wrote in the New York Times: "The crowd at Irving Plaza quieted to a hush on Monday night as Chris Daughtry spoke between songs, asking his fans to sing along on his next number. 'I assume you guys have the record,' he said, and a collective, largely female shriek answered in the affirmative. With music sales chronically sluggish these days, not every artist can make such an assumption. But Mr. Daughtry, the brawny 'American Idol' rocker with the cleanshaven scalp who was voted off last year in one of the series's biggest upsets, has good reason to be confident. Though on 'Idol' he reached only as high as No. 4, Mr. Daughtry now has one of the biggest hits of the season. His debut album, 'Daughtry' (RCA), opened at No. 2 on the Billboard chart when released in November, and it has remained in the upper ranks of the Top 10 almost every week since, reaching the top spot twice. Dismal statistics have become regular news for the music industry. … But with broad support from radio, 'Daughtry' has been holding strong. Through Sunday it had sold just under two million copies in the United States" (3/22/07).

Fountains of Wayne: Traffic and Weather

CML call number: CD ROCK Fountains
Personnel: Chris Collingwood, lead vocals, guitar, banjo; Adam Schlesinger, bass, guitar, keyboards, vocals; Jody Porter, guitar, vocals; Brian Young, drums, percussion; with acc. musicians.
Contents: Someone to love — '92 Subaru — Yolanda Hayes — Traffic and weather — Fire in the canyon — This better be good — Revolving diva — Michael and Heather at the baggage claim — Strapped for cash — I-95 — Hotel Majestic — Planet of weed — New routine — Seatbacks and traytables.
Eric R. Danton wrote in his Hartford Courant blog Sound Check: "It was an inauspicious start to Fountains of Wayne’s spring tour as the band battled technical glitches and sore throats. … Even so, the quintet persevered … [with] earlier songs and tunes from the band’s recent album 'Traffic and Weather.' … [S]ugary harmonies … soared over tight, catchy power-pop hooks. … The show continued with 'I-95,' a new tune mourning the distance between two lovers."

The Last Town Chorus: Wire Waltz

CML call number: CD ROCK Last
Contents: Wire waltz — You — Modern love — Caroline — It's not over — Understanding — Boat — Huntsville, 1989 — Wintering in Brooklyn — Foreign land. All songs written by Megan Hickey except "Modern Love," written by David Bowie / Jones Music Ltd (PRS).
Eric R. Danton wrote in his Hartford Courant blog Sound Check: "The Last Town Chorus put on one of the most captivating performances I've seen in a long time when singer and guitarist Megan Hickey and her band played this year at South by Southwest. Now Hickey is on tour, with a pair of dates in the area. The Last Town Chorus performs a headlining show Tuesday at The Space in Hamden, and opens for Michael Penn Thursday at the Iron Horse Music Hall in Northampton. The band's newest album, 'Wire Waltz,' is simply beautiful. … It's also the subject of our latest podcast. I'm joined by the regulars: Babe Zero, a pseudonymous DJ on WHUS-FM and Courant photo editor; Steve Busemeyer, a Courant editor and occasional CD reviewer; and Eric Gershon, a reporter who has written about music."

Ben Riley's Monk Legacy Septet: Memories of T

CML call number: CD JAZZ Riley
Contents: Let's call this (5:29) -- Rhythm-a-ning (7:42) -- Gallop's gallop (6:17) -- Nutty (5:50) -- Brake's sake (6:18) -- Pannonica (6:30) -- Straight, no chaser (6:21) -- Bemsha swing (6:28) -- Shuffle boil (5:59) -- Green chimneys (5:40) -- Epistrophy (1:06).
Nate Chinen wrote in the New York Times: "[P]ianist and composer Thelonious Monk … who died in 1982 but withdrew from the public years earlier, has hardly slipped into oblivion. His piquant harmonic language and craggy instrumental style are enduring features of the jazz landscape, and show no signs of fading. … [T]he drummer Ben Riley … a Monk alumnus … with his Monk Legacy Septet … released a refreshing album called 'Memories of T' last year. The group consists of trumpet, three saxophones, guitar, bass and drums; the omission of a pianist is purposeful. Don Sickler, the trumpeter, also serves as an arranger and musical director, and at times his horn arrangements reach beyond the surface details of melody, toward the chiming piano interjections that Monk would often work into the songs" ("Music in Review: Monk Tribute," 4/14/07).