Black Gives Way to Blue (Music CD)

Alice in Chains. Black Gives Way to Blue. Performers: Jerry Cantrell, William DuVall, Mike Inez and Sean Kinney, featuring Elton John. ASIN B0029LHW4U. Label: Virgin Records. 2009.

Summary
Black Gives Way to Blue is the first album of new material in fourteen years from Alice in Chains (AIC). The band is best known for its hard-rocking influence during the Seattle grunge music scene of the early 1990s. AIC replaced the deceased Layne Staley with William DuVall in lead vocals, however, the characteristic AIC sound still resonates from every track—even the piano mix of the title track with Elton John.

Critical Evaluation
The new Alice In Chains CD is as good as the three previous CDs. William DuVall will never fill Layne Staley's {vocal} shoes; but his voice harmonizes well with Jerry Cantrell's, and together they can carry the classic AIC sound. The title track is a tribute to Layne Staley that makes the album that much more moving after the long wait from the band.

The CD includes the following tracks: 1. All Secrets Known, 2. Check My Brain 3. Last of My Kind, 4. Your Decision, 5. A Looking in View, 6. When the Sun Rose Again, 7. Acid Bubble, 8. Lesson Learned, 9. Take Her Out, 10. Private Hell, 11. Black Gives Way to Blue, 12. Black Gives Way to Blue (piano remix), and 12. Your Decision (live). Young adults will like to have something new from a band from the (perhaps) romanticized grunge era of music, especially with the hard rocking sounds that can compete with today's current metal rock bands.

Reader's Annotation
Alice in Chains' first album in 14 years, has a new lead singer but all of the classic rock sounds that pay homage to their metal/grunge roots.

About the Performer
Alice In Chains formed in the late 1980's with Layne Staley (vocals), Jerry Cantrell (guitar, vocals), Mike Starr (bass, vocals) and Sean Kinney (drums) in Seattle, WA. AIC's sound is a distinctive combination of heavy metal rock and acoustic sounds, as well as the unique blend of vocals from Staley and Cantrell. The band produced three studio albums in the '90s: Facelift, Dirt and Alice in Chains. The albums were well received and often nominated for awards, but the band only won one award for the song Would from MTV's 1993 Video Music Award for Best Video from a film*.

AIC never disbanded, but were on hiatus just before Layne Staley died of a drug overdose in 2002. Black Gives Way to Blue brought back Cantrell and Kinney with Mike Inez on bass and William DuVall on lead vocals and rhythm guitar.

Genre
Heavy Metal

Curriculum Ties
Music: Seattle's Grunge

Booktalking Ideas
n/a

Challenges
Language

Awards
n/a

Reading Level/Interest Age
Ages 14+

Why I included this title...
Alice in Chains is one of those "bridge" bands for me and my kids. I listened to them when I was in college, they now enjoy the new CD, and we agree on what to listen to in the car.

More information:
Wikipedia, Alice in Chains. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_in_Chains

*The film was Cameron Crowe's Singles

Graphic from Amazon.com. Retrieved from http://www.amazon.com/Black-Gives-Way-To-Blue/dp/B002Q0F6V0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1292426515&sr=8-1 December 14, 2010

To The Sea (Music CD)

Johnson, Jack. To The Sea. Performers: Jack Johnson, featuring G. Love and Paula Fuga. ASIN B003C1QIO6. Label: Brushfire. 2010.

Summary
To The Sea is Jack Johnson's fifth solo album. Johnson has said that the title is "a reference to a father leading this son to the sea with the water representing the subconscious. So it's about trying to go beneath the surface to understand yourself." This album is very much an epistle about the ocean, and the relationship between it and us all.

Critical Evaluation
This CD from Jack Johnson is as easy-on-the-ears as his previous four offerings. His songwriting and singing make listeners feel like they are on the beach listening to him casually strum on his guitar with his friends.
The CD includes the following tracks: 1. You and Your Heart, 2. To The Sea, 3. No Good With Faces, 4. At Or With Me, 5. When I Look Up, 6. From The Clouds, 7. My Little Girl, 8. Turn Your Love, 9. The Upsetter, 10. Red Wine, Mistakes, Mythology, 11. Pictures of People Taking Pictures, 12. Anything But The Truth, and 12. Only The Ocean. Young adults will like the change to Johnson's new electric guitar skills, while older listeners will enjoy the laidback surfer style.

Reader's Annotation
Surfer-turned-singer/songwriter, Jack Johnson's fifth solo album is taken up a notch with some electric guitar and more anthems to the oceans.

About the Performer
Jack Johnson is a native to the Oahu's North Shore in Hawaii. He is the son of a surfer (Jeff Johnson) and was the youngest invitee to the Pipleline Master surfing finals on the North Shore at the age of 17. After an accident at the said Pipeline, his career as a pro-surfer ended with several stitches and missing teeth.

Johnson then graduated from high school, and attended college at University of California, Santa Barbara where he found music. In 2001, he released his first solo album, Brushfire Fairytales. In the last nine years, he has worked on several movie soundtracks and with many different musicians on various compilation albums. Through the solo albums, compilations and soundtracks, especially for the Curious George movie, Johnson's music appeals to all age groups.

Genre
Folk Rock

Challenges
n/a

Curriculum Ties
Music: ties with his musical influences—Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Bob Marley and Neil Young

Booktalking Ideas
How does Jack Johnson's folk music for the 21^st century differ from folk music from other decades? How is it the same…

Awards
n/a

Reading Level/Interest Age
Ages 14+

Why I included this title...
My family has enjoyed Jack Johnson since his first album.

Graphic from Amazon.com. Retrieved from http://www.amazon.com/To-The-Sea/dp/B003NJPOAQ/ref=sr_shvl_album_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1292426534&sr=301-1 on December 14, 2010.