Shopping List: The New and the Notable
John Abercrombie, The Third Quartet (ECM)
Thanks mostly to violinist Mark Feldman and double-bassist Marc Johnson, chamber-music intensity pervades this session led by the impeccable jazz guitarist. Ornette Coleman's "Round Trip" and Bill Evans's "Epilogue" are the only non-originals on a fine album that grooves freely, intently, and playfully on all cylinders.
Mitch Myers, The Boy Who Cried Freebird: Rock-and-Roll Fables and Sonic Storytelling (Harper Entertainment hardcover)
Myers's unhinged collection merrily mixes reality-based histories of jazz saxophonist Albert Ayler and eccentric rock genius Frank Zappa, among others, with fictional accounts of a Robert Johnson album that sparks a haunting, a young man transported back in time to the greatest Grateful Dead show ever, and the titular ubiquitous annoyance. His imagination is so accurate, you'll end up not caring where the facts end and fantasy begins.
Los Straitjackets, Rock en Español, Vol. 1 (Yep Roc)
Los Lobos guitarist Cesar Rosas produced this bemasked Tennessee quartet's muy autentico tribute to Spanish-language versions of 1960s hits, from the McCoys' "Hang On Sloopy" and the Kinks' "All Day and All of the Night" to Barbara Lynn's "You'll Lose a Good Thing" and Marty Robbins's "Devil Woman." Guest vocalists include Thee Midnighters' Little Willie G, the Fly-Rite Boys' Big Sandy, and Rosas.
Koko Taylor, Old School (Alligator)
The queen of Chicago blues (b. 1935) suffered a serious illness a couple of years ago but returned to pitch another wang dang doodle on her best album in ages. Taylor screams, growls, and grumbles Lizzie Lawler's "Black Rat" and Willie Dixon's "I may be dead and gone, but I got young fashioned ways" with newfound conviction—and she provided five excellent originals to boot.
Chris Whitley and Jeff Lang, Dislocation Blues (Rounder)
This positively haunting album marks Texas blues guitarist Chris Whitley's final recordings prior to his death by lung cancer in 2005. Australian bluesperson Jeff Lang is the perfect foil on an album rife with wild ghostly playing on tunes like "Stagger Lee," Dylan's "When I Paint My Masterpiece," and Whitley's mesmerizing title track.