Top 3 from March 4, 2014

God Said from Leonard Bernstein's Mass - A theater piece for singers, players and dancers, from the composer lead original recording from 1971

The work as a whole seeks to find a place for a functioning church in a disruptive, knowingly evolving society. A setting of the mass, but with interjection and commentary from, for the sake of argument, the real world. This song, labled “Gospel-Sermon”, sung from the point of view of the street, gives a litany of complaints about the church's hypocrisy in a jaunty yet powerful way, certainly a highlight and microcosm of the whole.

Top 5 from December 30, 2013, plus an aside

Heart of Glass by the Bad Plus from These are the Vistas

A rollicking treatment of the Blondie classic played with Lisztian left hand counterpoint from pianist Ethan Iverson (my audience-mate at the Jazz Standard in October) and a florid contribution from drummer Dave King. Points for taking the chorus in seven each time around, rather than just in the bridge as on the original.


The Real Me by the Who from Quadrophenia
Always wanted to be in a band that could play this song. It's a bit frightening how much I still feel this album at 43 as I did at 15. This is one of Moon's best performances (although the whole band if face-ripping good on this), but sadly approaching the time where his mind and body started to fall out of sync.

Top 5+ for October 31, 2013

Mercy Street – Peter Gabriel from New Blood

Doesn't quite match the vocal arrangement performed on the “growing up” tour, but a lovely arrangement all the same. One of the better entries on this somewhat dubious orchestral project.

Bubbles in My Beer – Willie Nelson from You Don't Know Me: the Songs of Cindy Walker

A song whose lyrics seem to call for music more like Gloomy Sunday, but is instead a lively, bouncy song from an album which manages the rare feat of being nostalgic but also completely in the the present tense.