JF1

Thanks for the heads up!

Such a treat to see Bruce sit in with The Roots. And it was awesome how they played some of Bruce’s tunes!

I completely agree as it’s happened to me. I probably started listening to Bruce around the age of 9 after my father was playing some of his music, and ever since, I’ve been hooked. It’s pleasing to know that there are some kids and teens out there that are sophisticated enough to enjoy listening to Bruce’s music as opposed to the typical garbage that the majority are sucked into.

So just to clarify, Bruce is on from 7:00 – 8:30 EST?

Hmm, I don’t seem to have that. I see what you’re saying, but I still think Sonny’s drumming in that part on Bride helps build the song up. Plus, I just like how it’s something different.

Bruce and the Noisemakers are by far my favorite musicians, and music to listen to. It’s near impossible for me to dislike anything that comes out of their instruments. That being said, I will try my best to critique both positives and negatives from Bride.

Negatives:
– My main complaint overall is the lack of diversity on the album. I understand Bruce has to put on a few songs that are pretty recognizable, but these are some songs that could have been left off simply because they’ve appeared very often on the free/live noise albums as well as live in concert: Fortunate Son/Comfortably Numb, Resting Place, Changes Made, Good Life.
– Here are some songs that I think would have been better choices to replace the list above (My personal preferences), granted I know some Bruce hasn’t played live in quite some time: Stranded on Easy Street, Barren Ground, Harbor Lights, The Longest Night, Swing Street, Lost In the Snow, Stander On the Mountain (I know it was on Here Come the Noisemakers) just to name a few.
– I was disappointed that a few of the tracks were exact repeats from previously released “Albums” (Free/Live Noise particularly), like Funhouse. I understand the average listener isn’t going to notice, but I would have liked for Bride to be exclusive in that sense.
– I feel like Bruce included What the Hell Happened and Michael Raphael as slower songs to try and mix up the album, but if you’re going with that strategy, why not use a song like Barren Ground, Here We Are Again, or Lost in the Snow, which are generally slow and mellow songs, yet still more lively than those two?

Positives: (Too many to cover, but here are a few)
– White Wheeled Limo: I love the arrangement of this. In particular, JV’s bass solo as well as Sonny’s, really enhanced the song and brought a unique touch to it, which really separated it out from all the other versions of White Wheeled Limo I’ve heard. Limo is definitely one of my favorite songs from Bruce, and I think it’s safe to say this is my favorite version.
– Line In the Dust: I loved that Bruce included this on the album, and to go back to what I was saying above about including some unique songs into the album, Line In the Dust fits that perfectly. A great choice, and really well executed.
– Dreamland: Solid as always.
– Circus on the Moon: Really loved how Bruce included this on the album. Lively, and really enjoyable version.
– This Too Shall Pass: Great version.
– Country Doctor: I think Matt/Jeff said this in their podcast, but this song really climbed up my list of my favorite Bruce songs, really solid.
– Although the version of Standing on the Moon/Halcyon Days was nothing new in terms of composition, I must say that the transition into Halcyon days is probably one of my favorite transitions/combination’s of any songs Bruce does. It’s brilliant.
– In general the whole band was on top of their game, as always, throughout the whole album. Sonny on Resting Place, JV on White Wheeled Limo, JT on Tango King, Doug on Line in the Dust, and Bobby on Cartoons and Candy.

Overall:
– I’m thrilled to have another “official” live album to listen to. I’m partial to Bruce’s live stuff because Here Come The Noisemakers is the album that got me hooked to Bruce, and was the only Bruce material I had for a long time, until one day I woke up and realized, hey, there’s probably a lot more awesome stuff from this guy that I don’t know about. And just in general, I think Bruce is one of the most underrated live performers out there today. Like I said above, I find a very hard time disliking anything Bruce does, and this was no exception. Other then a few songs being a little dry in terms of not really being anything new (ie. Good life and Changes made), I loved every song on the album. I thought composition wise and technically speaking, the band’s playing was flawless, as always, and some solos on there and overall gelling from the band speaks volumes to just how talented the Noisemakers are. I look forward to Bruce’s next official release, whenever that may be. I have a feeling it will be a solo album, which is disappointing to me, just because I much prefer hearing the full band play. None the less, Bride of the Noisemakers lived up to my high expectations for Bruce and the Noisemakers, and I will thoroughly enjoy it for months and years to come.

Did you find out where Sonny is, and if he’ll be returning at some point during the tour?

Sounds incredible. Are any of these tracks on Bride of the Noisemakers the exact versions used on some of the Live/Free Noise released? Or are all of the Bride of the Noisemakers tracks exclusive?