Three New Albums from Christmas
I got three new albums for Christmas and have just finished getting through them with a good listen. As is often the case, they represent the broad and eclectic taste of this pmPilgrim so I can't really rank them- just talk about each one.

Ray Charles and the Count Basie Orchestra- Ray Sings, Basie Swings It's a concert that never happened in reality, but then here's the CD to prove that reality isn't all it's cracked up to be. Take a Ray Charles vocal track from a concert 30 years ago, add the Basie Orchestra with new arrangements based on that concert's big band, Basie-ize it a bit and you have Ray at the height of his power with a new big band interpretation. It's very good. Not a great recording like Genius Loves Company, Charles' last album, but certainly worth the listen and enjoyment.

The Beatles- Love- Yes, the Beatles, remixed and matched by none other than George Martin and his son. It is, actually, a soundtrack for Cirque du' Soleil. But it is the Beatles in a great mixture by the guy who knew the original music almost as well as the original Fab Four. To hear these songs in these new contexts, overlaid with other songs to bring out new sounds is like rediscovering them for the first time. Quite an accomplishment for songs that are the soundtrack of the past 40 years. Purists may not like them, but I'm not sure the Beatles themselves were purists- just listen to the anthology to get that clear. For the group that took multi-tracking to unheard of heights, this is a wonderful compilation- and a trip to listen to.

J.J. Cale and Eric Clapton - The Road to Escondido - Eric Clapton doesn't exactly break revolutionary new ground anymore. He doesn't have to. In his genre he is always "new ground" simply by his unbelievable ability to do what he does so well. J. J. Cale is the singer-songwriter of such rock and roll classics as After Midnight and Cocaine. (Part of the Clapton song book!) Here the two team up with J. J. Cale for a romp and a half of great music. Who needs new ground when the old can be so much fun and so fine.