6 - The Michigan Daily - Weekend etc. - Thursday, April 6, 1995 Mose Allison didn't revolutionize jazz or blues, but still he's good By Dirk Shuize Daily Arts Writer Mose Allison never intended to change the face of jazz. And he didn't. What he did do in his prime, though, was create a series of quite memo- rable albums featuring his distinctive and always swinging piano and vocal stylings. Columbia/Legacy has reis- sued three of these records in a three CD box entitled "The Mose Allison Trilogy." Included in the box is 1960's. "Transfiguration of Hiram Brown," 1961's "I Love the Life I Live" and "V-8 Ford Blues." "Transfiguration" was Allison's debut on Columbia records, the title suite of which, according to Mose, tells the story of Hiram Brown, a man who has spent all of his life in the country, dreaming of a life in the fast lane of the city. He goes to the city and, in far over his head, becomes despaired and disillusioned. Longing for his youth, he crashes hard and is, somehow, "transfigured." "Barefoot -- Dirt Road" opens the suite, estab- lishing the rural mood before giving way later to "Gotham Day" and "Gotham Night." Presumably, it is in "The River" that Brown experiences his transfiguration; it is a little hard to tell. Regardless, the material accom- plishes Allison's primary goal: it swings. It also may be Mose's best instrumental performance, backed as he is by the very capable Addison Fanner on bass and Jerry Segal on drums. Side two of "Transfiguration" re- places the conceptual suite with a series of standards, all treated to the unique piano and vocals of Mose. "Baby, Please Don't Go" may not sound too bluesy in his hands but the man never claimed to be a bluesman. He may have loved the blues, particu- larly that of the Mississippi delta, but he wanted nothing more than to swing and swing he does, through that tune and his other vocal number,'"'Deed I Do." The CD adds an alternate ver- sion of "Barefoot - City Road" as an extra incentive. { Though he tends to dismiss many of his vocal performances, Allison shows on 1961's "I Love the Life I Live" how much he truly enjoys sing- ing. It is plain in his phrasing on Willie Dixon's title track, given that casual swinging edge Mose practiced and "I Ain't Got Nobody." The record is composed of three blues numbers, four standards and four of Mose's own tunes. Regardless of the original sound of the songs, though, in Allison's hands they are transformed, not necessarily for the better but just for the different. His piano lines on this record are particularly loose and playful, perfectly suited to his vocals and the excellent backup he receives once again, this time not only from Segal and Farmer but Paul Motian, Henry Grimes, Gus Johnson and Bill Crow. Allison's own compositions on "I Love the Life I Live" do not shine as brightly as they did on "Transfigura- tion" but he does come up with some decent grooves, especially on "Night Train" and "News." Nothing as dis- tinct as "Gotham Night" on "Trans- figuration" but nothing bad, either. Two bonus tracks are added to this issue (which has never before been available on CD), including a rendi- tion of Irving Berlin's "The Pretty Girl is Like a Melody." On "V-8 Ford Blues," Allison re- turns most strongly to the blues, ren- dering five of his favorite songs by the best bluesmen with his character- istic soft personality. Different ver- sions of many of these tunes appeared on previous albums but here they ap- pear in a new, more personal light as producer Teo Macero leaves the vo- cal mic on during the instrumental passages, picking up a moan during "Baby, Please Don't Go" and coax- ing out of Allison some of his finest singing, particularly on Lightnin' Hopkins' "Mad With You" and Percy Mayfield's "Life is Suicide." In a time when not many jazz players were looking to the Delta for inspiration, Allison looked not only there but to country music as well, turning in fine renditions of "Hey, Good Lookin"' and "Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone." Whether it is a standard or a recent blues number, Mose still refuses to take any cover straight on "V-8 Ford Blues." Sonny Boy Williamson cer- tainly never sang the title track in the charming, swinging manner that Allison does. "I don't do the tunes the way they were originally done," he said. "I always intend to swing." Sure, he'll never be regarded as a classic blues belter but as is evident, he never wanted to be. The man swings, pure and simple. Though his vocals are always good, it is his piano playing that is ultimately most interesting, a con- tinually evolving sound that is direct even as it dances around the main themes of a piece, embellishing the basic changes with his own ideas. His own compositions, particularly on "V- 8 Ford Blues" and "Transfiguration of Hiram Brown" are as strong as his playing, allowing him room to open up and move around a bit more. "Ask Me Nice" on "V-8 Ford Blues" should be a standard by now. The only real drawback to "The Mose Allison Trilogy" is the lack of any unifying liner notes. All of the releases feature the original notes and a short paragraph by Allison describ- ing the record and that's all. An ac- companying booklet would have been nice, but that is merely nitpicking: the set is a well-chosen representation of Allison's work, embellished with the occasional bonus track. S Sonny Boy Williamson is covered by, but doesn't sound particularly like, Mose Allison. GLAM CDS Continued from page 4 type songs that lack decent lyrics, hooks, originality, style or substance"? That's better. It sounds like all of those crappy ballads their former bands used to release, unplugged and excruciating dull. So if they aren't the youth gone wild, who is? Skid Row's "Subhu- man Race" is their heaviest album ever and actually would sound pretty good blasting out of a car stereo. Sebastian's voice can be a little grat- ing but the music is surprisingly com- petent and heavy. Look, it's no White Zombie or Foetus or Monster Magnet or Quicksand, but it entertained me. I can't speak on Cinderella's new "Still Climbing," but my friend and fellow Daily staffer Brian said if you liked their sound before you'd like this one. And the one song I heard on Tesla's "Bust A Nut" sounded ... Tesla-like. If you're into those bands they're worth checking out. Slash's Snakepit is supposedly OK if you ignore the vocals, and Van Halen, well they suck but if you like the Hagar era you might enjoy "Balance;" Nothing groundbreaking, but noth- ing too embarrassing either. Now, if only Bang Tango and Enuff Z'Nuff had deals outside of Europe we might be starting a new trend. Hey, if disco and New Wave can make a comeback then I can think of worse things than listening to Motley Crue. -40 000 *min. age 19 required* Bivouac and the Ann Arbor Climbing Gym Present: Black Diamond/Scarpa Climbing Shoe Demo Day Try some of this year's hottest shoes on the walls of the climbing gym. When: April 6th 1995 Due to the approaching end of the academic year, T he ihga Daily Classified eatientMilla1 not ****cceptIn'personal checks startIng I Monday, March 20, ±995I On Monday, May 1, we.wN.re.u.e .c.epta..e ...personal ChS with an Imprinted local address, otea We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. Thank you for your cooperation. U Uj*IA What's New In The Galler Ia?, 1214 S& Unversity (campus level below Tower Records) Campus Collectibles Ann Arbor's Experts on Cards, , Comics, Magic, and Memorabilia 313-663-6646 i "A T &-f nn ski