CHRISTINE LAVIN PRESENTS LAUGH TRACKS (2 VOL.)  -  VARIOUS ARTISTS

YEAR:  1996
LABEL:  Shanachie
TRACK LISTING:  Andy Breckman tells us how he really feels  -  Andy Breckman,  Don't Get Killed  -  Andy Breckman,  The Cheneille Sisters give us their Bob Dylan Update  -  The Chenille Sisters,  Blowin' In the Wind (A Female Perspective)  -  The Chenille Sisters,  Welcome To New York Don White  -  Don White,  Rascal  -  Don White,  Vance Rants  -  Vance Gilbert,  Country Western Rap  -  Vance Gilbert,  Act I:  Patty Larkin channels Marlene Dietrich  -  Patty Larkin,  Act II:  Marlene "hums" La Vie En Rose  -  Patty Larkin,  Act III:  At the Mall starring Marlene Dietrich, Carmen Miranda & Ethel Merman  -  Patty Larkin,  Blow 'Em Away  -  Chuck Brodsky,  Potato  -  Cheryl Wheeler,  Welcome to New York Greg Greenway  -  Greg Greenway,  Massachusetts  -  Greg Greenway,  Dave's True Story asks:  Thinking of majoring in English Literature?  -  Dave's True Story,  Trollope  -  Dave's True Story,  Microwave Life  -  Megan O'Donough,  What is bothering Cliff Eberhardt now?  -  Cliff Eberhardt,  Good For Nothing Saint (Mr. Christopher)  -  Cliff Eberhardt,  Double Yodel  -  Lou & Peter Berryman,  Rob Carlson demonstrates the art of the international insult  -  Rob Carlson,  God Loves the Irish  -  Rob Carlson,  TV Talk  -  Sally Fingerett,  David Buskin goes out on a limb  -  David Buskin,  Hotline  -  David Buskin,  Slap Bang  -  Betty,  Dave Van Ronk gives himself advice - Dave Van Ronk,  Garden State Stomp  -  Dave Van Ronk,  I'm Bored  -  Christine Lavin,  Every Man For Himself  -  The Foremen,  Debi Smith on the bodhran, The Hags and Irish Pizza  -  Debi Smith,  Sleep  -  Debi Smith,  Tom Paxton explains the 80s  -  Tom Paxton,  Yuppies In the Sky  -  Tom Paxton and Company
BONUS TRACKS:  Laugh Track WFUV Laughers  -  Audience,  (These Eggs Were) Born To Run  -  Rob Carlson,  The Jackie O. Auction  -  Tom Paxton
IMPRESSIONS:  Folkie Christine Lavin has spearheaded many many cd collections of modern folk singer/songwriters for the last couple decades and she's still doing it (hence the recent holiday compilation "JUST ONE ANGEL").  They are usually formed around a central theme of songs about winter or autumn or food and here we have her mid-90s "funny folk songs" 2 cd set which were all recorded live during two nights at the Bottom Line.  As with any such collection, the "funniness" of the songs vary to mildly amusing to downright hilarious.  The presence of my beloved favourite Cheryl Wheeler doing her famous "Potato" song (to the tune of the Mexican Hat Dance and only using the one word "potato") made the collection a must buy but there are quite a few more funny songs which make the collection worthwhile (if probably better suited to a cherry-picked single cd of the funniest songs).  Other funny highlights include Patty Larkin's three-act "At the Mall" during which she channels Marlene Dietrich, Carmen Miranda and Ethel Merman with schizophrenic glee.  Rob Carlson's "God Loves the Irish" interposes the annual St. Patrick's Day parade with the Gay Rights parade with humorous results:  "And when we say 'Up the Irish'...that isn't what we mean!"  The charming Chenille Sisters (whom I've been a fan of since 1991) update Dylan's "Blowin' In the Wind (A Female Perspective)" with such lines as "How many roads must a man drive down before he admits he is lost."  Cliff Eberhardt laments the desanctification of St. Christopher in "Good For Nothing Saint (Mr. Christopher)" while David Buskin's "Hotline" sidesplittingly examines the effects of budget cuts when the suicide hotline is combined with the information number of the public library.  In order to make your own edited-down single cd of the best stuff, I offer my favourite tracks listing below.  However, regardless of the laughter-quotient of some of the songs, the championing of current little-known but worthy folk singer/songwriters and the perpetuation of live performance makes any Christine Lavin compilation worthy.  In her own words from the liner notes:  "Some of the artists on these disks may be familiar to you, some may be discoveries, all of them are hard-working, talented singer/songwriters who have recorded many terrific albums.  I hope 'LAUGH TRACKS' will lead you to their full-length recorded works and to their fabulous live shows."  You certainly can't fault her motives.  As a side note, I actually saw a mini-concert similar to this one when my ex-girlfriend SFB bought tickets to see Cheryl Wheeler performing live locally in tandem with Patty Larkin, John Gorka and Cliff Eberhardt and that evening is one of the few things which I am indebted to her for.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Don't Get Killed  -  Andy Breckman,  Blowin' In the Wind (A Female Perspective)  -  The Chenille Sisters,  Act I:  Patty Larkin channels Marlene Dietrich  -  Patty Larkin,  Act II:  Marlene "hums" La Vie En Rose  -  Patty Larkin,  Act III:  At the Mall  -  Patty Larkin,  Potato  -  Cheryl Wheeler,  Trollope  -  Dave's True Story,  (These Eggs Were) Born To Run  -  Rob Carlson,  Good For Nothing Saint (Mr. Christopher)  -  Cliff Eberhardt,  Double Yodel  -  Lou & Peter Berryman,  God Loves the Irish  -  Rob Carlson,  Hotline  -  David Buskin,  Garden State Stomp  -  Dave Van Ronk
FACT SHEET:  LAUGH TRACKS is a 2 cd set of live performances by various folk artists instigated by Christine Lavin.  The concerts were recorded at the Bottom Line in New York City on the nights of June 22 & 23, 1996.

STORMS - Various Artists

YEAR: 2003

LABEL: Cerpts Productions

TRACK LISTING: Storms - Fleetwood Mac, Knowing Me Knowing You - ABBA, Every Little Thing About You - Raul Malo, Lovesong - The Cure, Winter Kills - Alison Moyet, Blue - Sarah McLachlan, If I Could Reach You - The 5th Dimension, Back To Then - Darius Rucker, Blue - Barry Manilow & Sarah Vaughan, Don't Take Your Love From Me - Frank Sinatra, Neither One of Us (Wants To Be the First To Say Goodbye) - Gladys Knight & the Pips, No More Drama - Mary J. Blige, This Train Don't Stop There Anymore - Elton John, If I Could Only Stay Asleep - Patsy Cline, Ghost In This House - Allison Krauss, Trouble - Cat Stevens, Black - Pearl Jam, Who Am I Foolin' - Cheryl Wheeler, Two Star - Everything But the Girl

IMPRESSIONS: It was never my intention to put up a cd mix I made myself however there's no other I would consider before this one. The only cd mix I've made which has a fan base; everyone who has heard it declared it a classic. So who am I to argue with them? I would certainly say this is the one cd mix I consider a perfect jewel. Made on the 7th of January 2003, this cd was the result of a breakup and a broken heart ripped out of my chest and trodden on with golf shoes. Not only was the year 2002 a tough one for myself but for others I knew and this cd resonated strongly with all of us. Not only does it contain my number one favourite song of all time (Pearl Jam's "Black") but it also contains my number TWO favourite song (Mary J. Blige's "No More Drama"); both songs won Song of the Year Penguin Awards in their respective years. It features the song which had the most ever plays on my first ipod "City Lights" (Everything But the Girl's "Two Star" which had racked up 18 plays before I got my new ipod "Podzilla"). The cd also features the second saddest song ever recorded: The 5th Dimension's "If I Could Reach You" (the number one saddest song ever recorded, in case you're interested, is Stan Rogers' "First Christmas"). I am still extremely proud of the mood I managed to sustain on this cd and consider it my finest programming job.

MY FAVOURITE TRACKS: Storms - Fleetwood Mac, Lovesong - The Cure, Winter Kills - Alison Moyet, Blue - Sarah McLachlan, If I Could Reach You - The 5th Dimension, Blue - Barry Manilow & Sarah Vaughan, Don't Take Your Love From Me - Frank Sinatra, Neither One of Us (Wants To Be the First To Say Goodbye) - Gladys Knight & the Pips, No More Drama - Mary J. Blige, This Train Don't Stop There Anymore - Elton John, Ghost In This House - Alison Krauss, Trouble - Cat Stevens, Black - Pearl Jam, Who Am I Foolin' - Cheryl Wheeler, Two Star - Everything But the Girl

FACT SHEET: STORMS is a Cerpts CD Mix which was compiled on January 7, 2003. The cover art is by Edward Gorey.

MRS. PINOCCI'S GUITAR - Cheryl Wheeler

YEAR: 1995

LABEL: Rounder

TRACK LISTING: Mrs. Pinocci's Guitar, Does the Future Look Black, School Girls, TV, The Rivers, Further and Further Away, Is It Peace or Is It Prozac?, Howl at the Moon, The Storm, So Far To Fall, Makes Good Sense To Me, Piper, Time Taketh Away, One Love

IMPRESSIONS: Along with Cheryl's DRIVING HOME, this is one of my favourite albums of all time. Another masterpiece (that's two in a row for our girl). The opening title track is deceptively simple but often makes me cry during the final verse. This album is just wall-to-wall with exceptionally well-written songs and it's debatably Wheeler's masterpiece. I saw Cheryl live circa 2000 along with Patty Larkin, John Gorka and Cliff Eberhardt and when she sang "Howl at the Moon" the other three singers unexpectedly came on the stage to sing harmony on the chorus; from Cheryl's reaction the moment was unplanned and you could tell it genuinely touched her.

MY FAVOURITE TRACKS: Mrs. Pinocci's Guitar, Does the Future Look Black, School Girls, TV, Further and Further Away, Is It Peace or Is It Prozac?, Howl at the Moon, The Storm, So Far To Fall, Makes Good Sense To Me, Piper, Time Taketh Away

GUEST ARTISTS: Jonathan Edwards (vocals on "School Girls", co-producer), Johnatha Brooke (background vocals on "The Rivers")

FACT SHEET: MRS. PINOCCI'S GUITAR is Cheryl Wheeler's fifth album. The title track is based on an actual event in Cheryl's life. The hilarious and oddly touching "Is It Peace or Is it Prozac?" was written after Cheryl suffered a nervous breakdown and, after she recovered she wrote "Howl at the Moon" for her new dog James. "Makes Good Sense To Me" was Cheryl's response to the right-wing "Contract with America" in 1994. The album was nominated for the "Song of the Year" Penguin Award for "So Far To Fall" and won Penguin Awards that year for "Duet of the Year" for "School Girls" and "Album of the Year".

DRIVING HOME - Cheryl Wheeler

YEAR: 1993

LABEL: Philo/Rounder

TRACK LISTING: Driving Home, Silver Lining, Music In My Room, Frequently Wrong But Never In Doubt, Don't Forget the Guns, Act of Nature, 75 Septembers, Spring, Bad Connection, When Fall Comes To New England, Orbiting Jupiter, Almost

IMPRESSIONS: DRIVING HOME is the first Cheryl Wheeler album I heard and it remains one of my all-time favourite albums. I first heard the song "Orbiting Jupiter" on Gene Shay's local PBS radio folk music show and rushed right out to buy the cd. The first song on the album, the title track, is the perfect beginning to a classic album; a relaxed-tempo conjuring a leisurely drive home. The album is filled with songs of universal experience ("Spring", "When Fall Comes To New England"), personal autobiographical-sounding lyrics ("Music In My Room", "75 Septembers") and comedy ("Don't Forget the Guns") which figure in every Cheryl Wheeler album. I love the album so much I awarded it the Penguin Award for Album of the Year in 1993. This would not be the last time Cheryl Wheeler would receive this great honour.

MY FAVOURITE TRACKS: Driving Home, 75 Septembers, When Fall Comes To New England, Orbiting Jupiter, Almost

GUEST ARTISTS: Allison Krauss (vocals), Jonathan Edwards (vocals, percussion, harmonica, tapered horn, producer), Patty Larkin (vocals, slide guitar)

FACT SHEET: This is Cheryl's first album on Philo/Rounder Records after leaving Capitol. After being virtually ignored at Capitol, Cheryl's album DRIVING HOME was heavily promoted by Philo/Rounder and three singles were released: "Almost" for Adult Contemporary Radio, "Silver Lining" for country radio and "75 Septembers" for general radio release. Jonathan Edwards produced the album. Cheryl co-wrote the song "Orbiting Jupiter" with Janis Ian.