Word: musicalization
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1970-1979
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...monothematic eulogizing of a Bruce Springsteen who forever relives the nights of fast cars, bright lights, teenage promiscuity and gang fights; it was the expression of a wandering spirit, probing amid the ruins of the past and picking out vital bits of history or emotion that translate into powerful music...
...current single, "Half a Mile Away," has a Chicago-like big brass sound and a steady rock beat, but again the lyrics about a delinquent night life are as commercial and inane as the sound itself--a departure from Joel's earlier music. "My Life" and "Zanzibar" also set shallow words to fine music. The former mixes bold, upbeat instrumentals with creative back-up vocals from Chicago's Peter Cetera and Donnie Decus. The latter experiments with some faint Latin rhythm and a few typical Steely Dan cliches, mixing in a fine jazz trumpet solo by Freddie Hubbard...
...Night," encompasses all the shortcomings of this latest Billy Joel effort. The cut begins with a lackadaisical vocal set to a Phil Spector beat that suits Johnny Mathis more than Billy Joel. Though the song builds to a contrasting bridge and powerful crescendo, Joel is lost in the music, overshadowed by the mystery vocalist who solos the first two verses and dominates the choruses. The album lists no vocal credit. The listener leaves the song wondering where Billy Joel is hidden...
...unsatisfying end to an unsatisfying album. Joel said he wouldn't stagnate with the sound of The Stranger, and this latest album certainly represents a departure. But there is a loss of verve and expression here which disturbs the long-time Billy Joel fan. It's good music, but not up to Billy Joel quality. His success lies in the character that has pervaded his music, and on 52nd Street, we get it only in fleeting moments...
...last weekend by the Boston Ballet, is itself a loving tribute to a style and spirit already of the past when Fokine created his choreography in 1908. He distilled the essence of Romantic ballet--a series of dreamy reveries suffused with moonlight and white-clad sylphs floating to the music of Chopin. We might be witnessing the animation of an 1840s watercolor, so fluent is Fokine in his chosen language...