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Saturday
23rd April 2005
Newcastle
City Hall
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The following piece is a review of Jim Diamond's new
CD. Please note that Jim will be bringing his band to
this gig.
Another
Gem From
Jim Diamond
Best
known for his 1984 smash I
Should've Known Better and his distinctive,
high-pitched vocals, Jim Diamond’s latest album, Souled
And Healed is proof that he is back to his best. The
ten track CD includes nine new Diamond songs plus an
excellent interpretation of the classic Loving
You Is Sweeter Than Ever.
The
opening song This
Is America immediately confirms this is Jim Diamond,
powerful, soaring vocals which cover the full range. The
next, Blues Shoes
opens with the haunting sax of Snake Davis which leads
into a very strong vocal performance by Diamond in an
anthemic song that would serve well as a single. The
lyrics and delivery are both subtle and direct.
The
third track is the choice for the single. When
You Turn is a heart-on-your-sleeve love song with a
good arrangement that compliments the soulful vocals of
Diamond. It’s quiet and thoughtful and maybe the sort
of record you would like to play for your partner.
There
are no duffers on the album, Jim Diamond has clearly
worked hard to find the right blend of up-tempo swingers
with soft-centred ballads. The vocals throughout are at
the right levels in the mix to allow the strength of his
voice to command, yet also allow the superb musical
arrangements to shine through. All songs have strong
lyrics, the trademark of Jim Diamond.
I
also have a particular liking to Rhythm
of the Radio, a bright driving song that sets the
feet tapping, memories of summer days and trips to the
beach in open top cars. Surely a cert for radio, but if
they don’t play it, e-mail Terry Wogan to give it a
whirl. Speaking of which, the single is already getting
a lot of air time on the country’s independent
stations so listen out for it. Second to last Strangers,
is a punchy foot-tapper with some excellent guitar work
by Robbie McIntosh. The album closes with The
Last Time, another romantic ballad and a good way to
end, because you think mmmm that was good I’ll listen
to the lot again.
Jim
Diamond has a pedigree to live up to with songs to his
credit that have now become classics. His first taste of
chart success was with soul-pop outfit PhD in 1982 when I
Won't Let You Down went to number 3. This was
followed by solo success with I
Should've Known Better in 1984 which was a number 1
hit and two years later Hi
Ho Silver (his theme song for the TV series Boon)
climbed to number 5. That’s a tough act to follow, but
with this album he should please his many fans and pick
up quite a few new ones.
Souled
And Healed is
released on the 7th February on the
Hypertension label HYP 5234. The single When
You Turn c/w Rhythm Of The Radio was released at the end of January also on
Hypertension 5334 they are in the shops now or go to www.hypertension-music-de
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Three legends, Booker
T Jones, Steve Cropper and Duck
Dunn are the driving force of Booker T &
The MG’s who play the Newcastle City Hall on Saturday
23rd April.
And we make no apologies
for using the word ‘legend’ many times because these
guys are the real deal! Indeed we could fill many pages
listing the magnificent achievements of these musicians
which reads like the Who’s Who of modern music. Take a
close look at the past five decades and you will find
them regularly popping up on some of the biggest songs
in history.
The MG’s intriguing
marriage of R&B and pop sounds has its roots in the
clubs and studios of Memphis of the late '50s and '60s.
Booker T began working sessions at the world famous Stax
Records studios in 1960 aged 16 along with
incredible guitarist Steve Cropper, bassist Lewie
Steinberg and the late Al Jackson Jr. on drums. Together
they formed the MG's (an acronym for "Memphis
Group," or for the sports car, depending on who's
telling the story).
With the outstanding Duck Dunn
replacing Steinberg on bass, the MG’s became the Stax
house band and played with some of the biggest names of
all time (and backing them on stage), artists like Otis
Redding, Sam & Dave and Eddie Floyd. They also found
success in their own right as one of America's most
readily identifiable instrumental groups. In 1962, when
Booker T was still at high school, the group cut Green
Onions, which sold a million copies and was followed
by six other Top 40 hits, including Hip Hug-Her, Groovin,
Soul-Limbo, Hang Em' High and Time Is
Tight. If you have keyboards in your bedroom you
want to play Green Onions, if you watch cricket
on the tele, you listen to the MG’s Soul
Limbo.
The songs they played on
and often co-wrote are some of the most important
records in the history of rhythm and blues music,
including Born Under A Bad Sign, (written with
William Bell), Hold On I'm Coming, Sittin' on
the Dock of the Bay, Try A Little Tenderness, When
Something Is Wrong With My Baby and many others.
In the 1970's, Booker T
not only put hits in the pop charts, he produced three
of the pivotal records in the career of one of country
music's biggest stars, Willie Nelson, including the
multi-platinum selling 'Stardust' album. He
produced and arranged other hits on the West Coast,
including Bill Withers' Ain't No Sunshine album
and Rita Coolidge's Higher and Higher.
In California, Booker T
played on albums by Bobby Darin, Ray Charles, Bob Dylan,
Stephen Stills and Barbara Streisand. In the eighties,
he recorded with the likes of Boz Scaggs,
Soul Asylum, John Lee Hooker and Kris
Kristofferson.
The MG's were the house
band for Bob Dylan's famous Tribute Concert in 1991 at
Madison Square Garden featuring George Harrison, Eric
Clapton and Sinead O'Connor. In 1992, The MG's were
honoured to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of
Fame. Later the band received a Grammy for its single, Cruisin'
and were presented with the Rhythm and Blues
Association's Pioneer Award. In 1993, they joined Neil
Young for a successful tour of Europe and the United
States.
In 1996 Steve Cropper was
acclaimed the second best guitarists of all time behind
Jimi Hendrix by Mojo Magazine. During the whole period
of the MG's glorious renaissance, Steve has also been
busy fulfilling his commitments alongside Duck Dunn to
original the Blues Brothers Band, who have issued two
CD's, Live In Montreaux and Live From
Chicago's House Of Blues. To emphasise, these are
guys who played and starred in the film, the real Blues
Brothers Band, not a tribute show, the real McCoy bonny
lad.
Being a legend is one
thing, but as a band these guys are awesome. Wherever
they go they attract huge crowds and bring the house
down with their jaw-dropping live show. This is going to
be one of the gigs of the year in the Northeast so make
sure you order your tickets today, you don’t want to
miss out on this one. |
