| Just when you thought you’d heard the last of "Walking On Sunshine," out comes a Katrina and the Waves reissue. Katrina and the Waves: The Original Recordings 1983-1984 (BongoBeat Records) collects the British band’s first two full-length records –Walking On Sunshine and Katrina and the Waves 2 – on one disc. These albums were only ever released in Canada, as our very own Attic Records was the first label to see KATW’s potential. The rest of the world didn’t really know about them until 1985, when Capitol Records turned them into one-hit wonders.
Despite that dubious status, KATW was actually a darn good band. Powered by guitarist Kimberley Rew (a one-time member of the Soft Boys) and vocalist Katrina Leskanich, the quartet blended ’60s pop and soul with a hint of early British punk to create a unique sound that most early ’80s record executives just didn’t get. There’s much more depth to the group, both lyrically and musically, than we’ve been led to believe, especially on songs like "Machine Gun Smith" and "Red Wine and Whiskey." The three previously unreleased tracks, all soul-flavoured, really highlight Leskanich’s vocal power, and a bonus DVD captures the group live at Shepperton Studios in 1983. The jam-packed liner notes feature a complete discography and reflections on the band’s rise and fall from the musicians, their British producer and their Canadian promoter.
And yes, the hit is here too – in its original, horn-less, pre-hit state. And, y’know, it’s really much better that way.
On the more organic end of the musical spectrum, Rounder Records has collected a number of Stanley Dural Jr.’s songs on the new album Classics. If this doesn’t mean much to you, then consider that Dural Jr. is better known to the world as Buckwheat Zydeco. Thus, Classics is mostly textbook Louisiana zydeco music – that is, accordion-driven, uptempo dancing tunes. There is some variety – "Turning Point" has a rock-y soul feel, and "Walking To New Orleans" and "Tee Nah Nah" are both slower songs – but mostly Mr. Zydeco aims to get your feet tapping.
It’s good music, but there’s not as much of it as one might expect – at only 10 tracks and 40 minutes in length, the party’s over kind of early. There’s also not much in the way of liner notes, except for a bit of discographical information on the original Rounder releases that the tracks were taken from. But overall, as an introduction to Buckwheat Zydeco’s work, Classics is a solid effort.
In contrast, another Rounder release provides a wealth of information both about the performers it showcases and the legendary American folklorist who collected their works. Alan Lomax: Popular Songbook features 22 songs which eventually worked their way into the rock ’n’ roll canon – including "Black Betty," "Sloop John B." and "The House Of The Rising Sun" – from artists such as Lead Belly, Woody Guthrie, Memphis Slim and Mississippi Fred McDowell.
The sound quality is a bit rough at times, due to the archival nature of the recordings. But more than compensating for this is the 36-page booklet, which not only features notes on each of the artists featured, but also an extensive essay on Lomax’s integral role in shaping modern popular music. Alan Lomax: Popular Songbook is a fitting tribute to the late musicologist and to the musicians he helped to bring into the public consciousness.
Speaking of consciousness, the new R.E.M. best-of, In Time (Warner), has been doing funny things to my head. For instance, when I heard "The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite," I naturally expected "Everybody Hurts" to follow it, and was thus a bit shocked when "Stand" came on instead. That’s one of the interesting parts of a 15-year retrospective – things can get jumbled around and stuck together in new ways. Another nifty inclusion is Peter Buck’s liner notes, which look at the creation and evolution of the songs from a guitarist’s point of view.
The trouble, though, is that I found the songs fading into a low background hum as I listened. Even the two new songs that have been included – "Bad Day" and "Animal" – fall squarely into the familiar Buck/Mills/Stipe (and sometimes Berry) pattern. There are definitely some great songs here – heck, "Losing My Religion" was one of the seminal works of the ’90s – but their life-changing impact wore off some time ago, and a lot of the newer songs didn’t have that impact to begin with.
Ah, well. I still know all the dance moves for "Stand." |
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