Mar 07 2005
eMusic.com ♫
I followed J-Walk’s suggestion and signed up for 50 free MP3s at eMusic.com. In the first 30 minutes I sampled some music, liked what I heard, and downloaded 3 full albums, all of which I’ve already burned to CD:
(1) Greg Brown’s latest album, Honey in the Lion’s Head, which I’m playing on Mud Radio as I write this. The only other Greg Brown album I own is Essential Recordings, but listening to this quiet, laid-back, powerful album (along with a few other songs I got from eMusic), I realize I pretty much need to buy all his records now. Even on a bad day, I know he’s going to be good.
(2) Townes Van Zandt’s A Gentle Evening with…, which finally presents a live Townes performance so that it feels like an actual show. Most of his previous live records, including the much-lauded Live at the Old Quarter, usually fade in and out after each song. How hard is it to mix in some crowd sounds between the tracks? A Gentle Evening finally gets it right. Recorded in 1977 before Townes got dragged down by his alcoholism (Live at McCabe’s, which was recorded just before Townes died and should never have been released, captures Townes in the absolute dregs of his alcoholism), his performance here seems almost innocent. Excellent stuff.
(3) Danny Schmidt’s Enjoying the Fall. Here’s a guy I cannot say enough about. I am at a loss for words (read one of my previous entries about him). His music, his words, his playing, his voice, his song-writing is… intelligent, humble, quiet, playful, deeply moving, fast, slow, revelatory, fun, upbeat, intimate and capitvating. What can I tell you? A single song of his doesn’t do him justice. The best way to appreciate his music is to put the CD in and let it play from the beginning to the end.
Which is what I’d say about all 3 of these albums, all 3 of these artists. It’s better to listen to their entire albums, not just their songs. Good songs are great to have, but you don’t need to put good albums on random play to make them sound good. Not that I have anything against random play, but I love a good album. Good albums, good albums, good albums!
I don’t know if I’ll sign on permanently with eMusic. As much as I like getting a good deal on good music, and although I don’t give a rat’s ass about collecting things, I do like having the actual album and the artwork, etc., and simply playing it as an album, not as another random track from my MP3 library. Still, I’m happy with the experience I’ve had with eMusic so far. The MP3s are of the highest quality and can be burned onto a regular CD without any loss of sound quality — and they sound great. And the price is right. So I can’t really complain. It seems like a good service. I just hope all the artists whose music I got for free got paid.
Thanks, John.
I’ve been listening to Greg Brown’s Honey in the Lion’s Head every day since I downloaded it. This is one good album.
Greg Brown’s latest album, HONEY IN THE LION’S HEAD, is definitely my favourite album these days. I can wake up at 7am, put that album on and love it. It is so relaxed, laidback, unobtrusive, Greg’s voice is so kind, the songs, the music, are so just right, I can put it on any time of the day in any kind of mood, and appreciate it. Glad to have his company. It’s great for people who want to unplug (and I always want to unplug).