what are you listening to lately?

Recent enjoyable purchases (although I've spent much time listening to BB6 music over the Internet)..

Fountains of Wayne - Welcome Interstate Managers. Looks like this is the release that gets them wide exposure. Witty lyrics, incessant hooks, great musicianship - from 80's Cars thrum of Stacy's Mom, Alt-Country, and more. I especially like the sub-rockers, including "Hackensack", "Valley Winter Song," and the graceful, brief closure of Yours and mine (In about an hour/the sunlight's gonna fad/And you and me will divvy up the wine/Like everything else here/Yours and mine/Picking up the paper/Coffee's been made/It's Book Review and Face the Nation time/Two in the same mind/Yours and mine").

Bebel Gilberto - Tanto Tempo. Late to the party with her, but can't beat that languid summer sound of bossa nova and Brazilian beaches. Attracted to her disc as a follow-up from listening to the Getz/Gilberto recording.

Denison Wittmer - Recovered. Remakes of 70's so-cal/easy acoustic rock songs and others. Reinvention of some (especially Carole King's "So Far Away" as a synthesized melancholic dirge), but very faithful to many sounds - w/a voice that brings to mind Jackson Browne more than any. Revisits some more back catalog songs, too - including "Nightime" by Alex Chilton/Big Star (also covered nicely by Epic Soundtracks), "Songbird" from Fleetwood Mac, "Farther On" and "These Days" by Jackson Browne. Instrumentation recalls 70's sound too (steel guitar?)-

Mull Historical Society - Us. One man music machine (a la Todd Rundgren). Very Brit - that is to say, eccentric, and not easily pigeonholed.

Jazz, lot's and lot's of jazz. Diana Krall, The Rippingtons, Fatburger, Candy duffler, and Prafoul(?). I went from Metallica and Rage against the machine to Jazz, Go figure.

the new Dave Matthews solo album - Some Devil
Counting Crows - Recovering the Satalites (currently)
Alison Krause & Union Station - Live
YES - Talk
the new Steve Winwood album - About Time

I've got to chime in again, after listening to the new EmmyLou Harris CD today. It's really good, with that shimmery Lanois-like texture that her last CDs had. Different producer this time, not Lanois, but a friend of his. Also, I picked up the new Joan Baez CD and it's one of her best. She doesn't use her operatic voice that some didn't like (including Dylan). Maybe age has taken a toll on her instrument, but the mellow smoky voice on this CD, and her selection of other people's songs (esp. Greg Brown's Sleeper and Ryan Adams' If I Needed You) make this CD one of my very favorite recent purchases. By the way--both these discs sounded great on my ARC tube integrated. Very warm and detailed.

Emmylou's new CD just arrived, but haven't listened to it yet. Glad that Sc53 liked it!

Been mostly listening to the Dylan SACD remasters (when not rooting on the Cubs!)