The trio has only put four songs on Children’s Songs, but its hour long runtime is quite enjoyable. Joining them is Matt Jacobs on drums and percussion, and his background is similar. Collectively, their backgrounds include jazz, blues, fusion, pop, Latin and rock. The Minneapolis, MN based duo of Steven Lehto and John Wright have a wide array of influences, ranging anywhere from the aforementioned progressive folk pioneers to King Crimson, Miles Davis, and Richard Thompson.
Even so, they’ve crafted some fantastic pieces with their newest LP, Children’s Songs. Although you might expect such a band to have many members, in the case of Lehto & Wright, the band is simply a trio. Bands of the 1960s and 70s like Jethro Tull, Steeleye Span and Fairport Convention modernized the art, but they’re material was influenced by lore and poetry dating back centuries in the annals of UK history. The Philadelphia Examiner On Line, Article linkĮuropean folk is arguably the oldest style around today. In these "American Idol" times when so many people yearn to be stars - and do it with no work and no effort - and when pop music's most important ideology is commercialism, it's a joy to hear musicians who've worked hard and put forth tremendous effort and come up with something that is actually profound."
"Betsy Bell and Mary Gray" uses traditional lyrics put to a new arrangement that adds Pentangle-esque guitars (Bert Jansch and John Renborn) then builds into a Mahavishnu Orchestra/Weather Report kind of auditory extravaganza that brings the past into the future.Īccompanying "Children's Songs" is a DVD, "Live in the Studio," that captures some of the moments in the making of the recording. Make no mistake, while it's something that some children might enjoy, it's very grown-up fare. 5," "Blackberry Blossom," Chick Corea's "Children's Songs," John Coltrane's "After the Rain," and even Led Zeppelin's "The Rain Song." It's a 32-minute monstrous piece that needs to be heard to be appreciated. Its disparate tunes include Manuel Ponce's "Prelude No. The title track is a mélange of traditional tunes that throws into the same stew pot everything from kalimba (thumb piano) to squeeze box to Jaco Pastorius-like bass work. The solo section has the progressive rock sensation of Steve Howe's most adventurous material. The vocal verses are pungently driven by drummer Jacobs, who paradoxically combines intensity and a light touch that adds immensely to the cohesiveness of the harmonic instruments. "The Broomfield Hill" is a traditional tune that uses Martin Carthy's version as a model yet has a Pat Metheny vibe to the intro. Steve Lehto's fiery guitar solo has the feeling of a serpent uncoiling itself before it pounces. Its text pays tribute to those brave souls who fought and fell at Valley Forge and Gettysburg. "Wasn't That a Time" is an old Weaver's (Pete Seeger, Ronnie Gilbert, etc.) tune that is given an Ian Anderson and Jethro Tull feel. But one concentrated listen tells you that all the effort was worth the time invested. "."Children's Songs" is their newest release and is an ear-bending ride that clearly took a considerable period to work out, to arrange, to woodshed and to record.
0 kommentar(er)
